On an Academic Note

I got a paper proposal accepted!!

The paper is called "Carrying the Fire": Political Liberalism and Realism in Cormac McCarthy's The Road. It will be presented at the Western Literature Association Conference in Spearfish, South Dakota this fall.

You might be asking yourself, "Western Lit? I thought you taught political science?" Well, yes, yes I do teach poli sci, but I'm doing a political look at a piece of modern literature and this is a conference that welcomes and encourages scholars from other disciplines to present at their conference. Plus, my husband is presenting a paper there as well, so I was going anyway, so why not see if I could present too, right?

What the heck was that? - Bones edition

I don't know what last night's season finale of Bones was supposed to be, but I was very disappointed with it. Oh, it was funny and all, but certainly not what I had hoped for in a season finale. The only thing I can figure is that the writers wanted to find a way to give the die-hard fans some of the things they have been longing for (Booth and Bones in bed together, Zack back on the show) and they couldn't think of a normal way to do it. I don't know.

I do wonder if there was supposed to be any significance to anything that played out in the show. Plus, there is the question of whether that was all Booth's dream or was it Brennen's story that she deleted, or what.

I sure hope they get there act together by next season. If they don't, you can forget jumping the shark, they will just fall into the shark tank and be devoured.

We live in a drug culture

You've probably seen this commercial for Abilify before, but I'll post it for those who haven't.



When I heard this commercial it just struck me how reliant on drugs we really are. Basically what this commercial is saying is that if you take drugs and they don't seem to be helping, or helping enough, the answer is to simply take more drugs. Drugs are not always the answer, and usually they just aren't the answer at all. We tell out kids, "Don't take drugs", "Say NO to drugs", etc. but then we are bombarded by commercial after commercial that says if you want to feel better, perform better, etc., the answer is in this drug or that drug.

Now a lot of people try to make the argument that there is a difference between prescription medication and "drugs" and on some level that is true, but on another level it just simply isn't true. Most of the street drugs today started out as drugs recommended by doctors. Yes, even cocaine and heroine. They were psychiatric drugs. We didn't know about their long term effects, side-effects and all that back then like we do now, so they are generally not prescribed anymore. But the flip side to that is that the drugs we have today are rushed to market without enough research and/or the doctors who prescribe them don't really pay attention to what they are doing or why they are doing it. (And I say this from experience.) The drug company tells them, "try this" and they do.

Some times medication is necessary. I'm not saying it isn't. But we rely on them too much. As a culture, we seem to have this notion that everything can be fixed with a little round pill taken once a day (or 30 minutes before sexual activity) and I think that is wrong-minded. We look for the easy way out and sometimes there just isn't one.

New York City flyby ill advised, to say the least

Via CNN.com, Official who OK'd N.Y. flyby accused of 'felony stupidity'

After a YouTube video showed panicked New Yorkers scrambling as a Boeing 747 flew frighteningly close to the lower Manhattan skyline, a former Homeland Security adviser questioned whether the man who approved the flyby should remain in his White House office.

Fran Townsend, who advised President George W. Bush for more than three years, called the move "crass insensitivity" in the wake of 9/11.

"I'd call this felony stupidity. This is probably not the right job for Mr. Caldera to be in if he didn't understand the likely reaction of New Yorkers, of the mayor," Townsend said Tuesday on CNN's "American Morning."

Louis Caldera, director of the White House Military Office, quickly apologized for Monday's incident after the planes prompted workers and residents to evacuate buildings in New York and New Jersey.

I have to say that I agree, felony stupidity is an appropriate descriptor here. If it is not stupidity on the part of the person authorizing it, then it is sadistic. Let's hope for stupidity.

Quote of the Day

Study without desire spoils the memory, and it retains nothing that it takes in.
-- Leonardo da Vinci

As a college instructor that teaches only general studies classes, I can vouch for the truth of this statement. When people are disinterested in a subject, they are not likely to learn much or retain what little they did learn.

I wish that as a culture we actually valued education and knowledge. Instead, what we value is the piece of paper that we get after paying for 4 years of college and the job that we get because of it.

Speaking of Jumping the Shark...

Apparently JumptheShark.com has jumped the shark. What was once a great site full of user comments and feedback on tv shows, etc. is now just another page on tvguide.com. It is nothing like the old site. The good news is, there is a new website out there is picking up where jumptheshark.com left off. It is called Bone the Fish. It is just starting up, so go check it out, sign up and starting adding content to make this a great site like the old Jump the Shark used to be.

The Joys of a New Landscape

Last fall we moved into a new home, but the house is not actually new and the yard has a good bit in the way of established landscaping. I'm trying to figure what all I have and what I want to plant and where. It is an interesting discovery experience. Currently I have a small shrub (or I suppose it could be a small tree) blooming in one of my beds that I have no idea what it is. The blooms look a lot like honeysuckle, but it is definitely not a honeysuckle vine. If anyone knows what this is, I would really appreciate the info. Here are some pictures of the shrub and close-ups on the blooms.