The End of an Era

Today marked the end of the repressive policy of Don't Ask, Don't Tell which was a compromise that left no one happy. By chance today, I visited the Hull House which was the headquarters for Jane Addams's groundbreaking work for social justice, immigrant rights, and the improvement of communities. In the mock-up of her former bedroom, there was a poem that she had written to her female companion of over thirty years. It was so beautiful, I thought maybe I should share it!

The “mine” and “thine” of wedded folk
Is often quite confusing
And sometimes when they use the “ours”
It sounds almost amusing.

But – You and I, may well defy
Both married folk and single
To do as well as we have done
The “mine” and “thine” to mingle
(Jane Addams Papers, reel 113.45.1572)

Also, I thought I would share my latest obsession, the Beyonce song "Countdown": 

Maxwell Street Market

On this rainy Sunday morning, I decided that I would head up to the Maxwell Street outdoor market (pictured above) to do walk around, and enjoy the city that I just moved to.  As per usual, it was an adventure not parallel to anything that I would do in Ripon.

I got on the train, and today I decided that I was going to listen to the Sufjan Stevens album "Bring on the Illinoise," I was jamming out and really enjoying the new perspective I have gotten out of one of my favorite albums since moving here.  When I got on to the train car, it smelled of cigarette smoke and once the train started moving I found out why.  There was a man in the back of the train, opening the emergency exit doors who was smoking and drinking.  I was not surprised that someone was smoking, just that they were doing so with the door to the train open while we were travelling!

Then, I got off the train at Roosevelt to take the bus to the market when a man pulled out my headphone from my ear (note how I am already annoyed).  He then starts asking me where I'm from, and then for my number.  This made me wonder how many women actually give men their number this way, because it has to work sometimes otherwise men wouldn't do it.

Then, I made my way to the market and miraculously avoided spending money because the market had everything that you could ever want - from nuts and bolts to bras and panties.  The one thing I spent money on was a taco from a stand which blew my mind.  It was delicious, with homemade tortillas (being made in front of me) and deliciously marinated pork (al pastor).  Great!  I'm going to have to make a trip there again soon to enjoy some more tacos al pastor! 

Multiple Personality Version

if I was crying,
in the van with my friend,
it was for freedom
from myself and from the land
I made a lot of mistakes

you came to take us,
all things go, all things go
to recreate us
all things grow, all things grow

The Windy City : A Photographic Introduction

I know, it's the second day in a row that I've had two blog posts.  These pictures come from my roommate Kiran, and her lovely camera.  She's been taking such great pictures, and since I don't have a camera (lame, I know!!!) I am using some of her pictures to document my trip so far.  You can catch Kiran at her blog, Shutter Sights.

"Government isn't a business, it should be run for the people!"

Well, today was awesome.  Earlier this week, while in class we were told that the Alderman from the 49th ward of Chicago (Rogers Park) was going to be giving us a tour of City Hall.  I was pretty excited, and thought that it was a good opportunity to further understand the way that the city government works here.  We've heard countless stories, and people all talk about city government and so far we've heard the same thing (not that its bad), "There was a Mayor named Daley for five thousand years and that just changed, and we once had an African American mayor named Harold Washington who was a reformer and broke the Democratic machine after battling the Council Wars."  But today was a different piece of the city of Chicago's story.

Yesterday, one of our professors told us that Alderman Moore had called her earlier in the day, and that it made her nervous.  Then she told us that we were going to have a change of plans.  Well, the change of plans seemed pretty damn good to me - it was going to a Rahm Emanuel press conference in Alderman Joe Moore's ward.  

When we arrived there this morning, Alderman Moore had more to say than Emanuel whose press conference was rather short but, I did get to shake Mayor Emanuel's hand! It might have even been the hand with a partially missing finger!  I was pretty star struck, in the same way that other girls might have been star struck by Justin Timberlake.  I got really embarrassed, my heart fluttered, and I'm pretty sure I blushed.  My hand even tingled for a good fifteen minutes afterward.  I would have to say that this was a good way to start my morning! 

xo

Farming

Today's been an inspirational day, so it's time for the second blog post of the day!  I have decided that I might want to pursue urban farming as a possible profession once I graduate in May.  I am thinking that I want to buy a lot of land somewhere in South Seattle which I will build an eco-friendly cottage home on, and also open up my own urban farm.  This urban farm wouldn't just be for myself, but would also (hopefully) be a center for education on growing organic vegetables.

I would want this place to be a safe space, in which people paid for their classes (and vegetables) on a sliding scale that would reflect their income level.  This farming space would eventually teach members of the community how to grow their own vegetables, as a sustainable way to live while also making food more affordable and tasty! 

I am pretty lucky that this semester I am taking a class in food justice, which will examine parts of my plan...and I am hopefully doing my independent study project on a way to make this dream feasible.  Wish me luck!

Changing the View

This morning, we had our first session of the Independent Study portion of the Chicago program, and we had a guest speaker named Jody Kretzmann who seriously changed my views on the way in which communities and people who are not valued by our society should be viewed and treated.  He was there to introduced Asset Based Community Development (ABCD) which focuses on what a community already has instead of what it is lacking.

While the problems which exist in a community are important to examine and attempt to change, according to Mr. Kretzmann the way to do it isn't by showing a community what is wrong but building up the beneficial parts of the community to tackle fixable problems first. The part of the presentation that killed me (in the best way possible) was when he was describing a meeting that he had with a community member from the South Bronx, long considered one of the "toughest" neighborhoods in our country.  When he had asked her what had happened to her neighborhood to make it so tough, and hard to live in - she said that the worst thing that had happened was that people put her neighborhood in a prison.

This doesn't necessarily mean that the outside world had constructed walls around the South Bronx, but that her neighborhood was being constantly judged by outsiders who did not understand the world that she lived in.  Most of these people wanted to help, but themselves had never visited the neighborhood that they wanted to help.

While the people were trying to do something good by helping her neighborhood, they had no idea what the community members within the South Bronx saw as the largest problems, or the way that the community members would want to improve their community.  The prison in her mind were the ideas and conclusions that people came to when they thought of her neighborhood.

So, today I am going to work on figuring out the times when I have wanted to help someone, but instead put them in a box (or even worse, in a prison).

Live and Help Live

above: a photo taken from a train station on the Brown line with an Obey wall pasting (is that what you would call those?)

So, this is my first posting from the city of Chicago.  So far, things are going well.  I have been going non-stop since I arrived, and am exhausted!  Everyone in my apartment has been passing out before 10 pm because we have been so busy.  It's been crazy!

I arrived on Monday, and moved in to the apartment, and I thought that everything was going too easy until we left for our walking tour of our neighborhood, Hyde Park.  We went to move in one of our roommates named Emily who had arrived late, and we couldn't open the door!  The lock was jammed, and we ended up being locked out of our apartment until 8 pm because the landlord was too busy to come help us out.  That made our day seem even longer, and we all promptly fell asleep after the landlord's son broke our door down.

Yesterday (Tuesday), in the morning we had ice breakers and got to know each other for the first time.  It was a little overwhelming because of the amount of people, but the real fun came in the afternoon.  We all split into groups and got to explore a neighborhood in the city for the first time.  It was really fun, and we toured Albany Park, one of the most diverse neighborhoods in the whole United States.  We picked up some kebabs and brought them back for the potluck.

Overall, it's been a good few days (albeit really busy), and there are only more exciting things to come...like Ripon this weekend for Frisbee Golf!
xo

Turn Out the Lights



photo: A famous Seattle billboard that anticipated Boeing leaving the city

As a Seattleite, my whole life I have been surronded by Boeing news.  It seemed (probably incorrectly) that there was always a local news story about the latest Boeing layoff, or the latest union strike.  Boeing is such an integral part of Seattle culture that it used to be a common joke to ask someone when you met them if they work at Microsoft or Boeing.

A week or so ago, Boeing was in the news - this time for a national issue.  Boeing is attempting to build a factory in (open for business!) South Carolina.  It has become controversial, and a partisan issue because the factory in South Carolina would not have union employees who have been "known to strike when contract negociations begin."  There were two op-eds which focused on this issue and have caused quite a stir, "How Democrats Hurt Job Creation," by Joe Nocera and "Removing the Obstacles to Economic Growth," by Eric Cantor.  These two articles attack the president, as well as the National Labor Relations Board for attempting to block the jobs which would be created by having the plants located in South Carolina.  The suggestions of the National Labor Relations Board are to move the plant, and the jobs to Washington.

After feeling a little conflicted about the issue, because I love Boeing and view it is a solely Puget Sound company, Media Matters published a rebuttal on the whole issue that can be found at this link: http://mediamatters.org/research/201108240026 . Check it all out!

In other links for the day, here's a blog post (yet again from SLOG) which Paul Constant explains why he wishes that the President would encite class warfare : "God I Wish the President Declared Class War," by Paul Constant
Also, I am in Milwaukee this weekend visiting friends before I head off to Chicago. 
xo