Postcards from Outer Space

Facing an impossible choice and doing the right thing

2011-10-19T00:09:00.003-04:00

Today I am proud of Israel. And humbled by the right choice made in face of a devastatingly difficult reality. Because today Israel exchanged over 1,000 Palestinian prisoners, many of them terrorists, in order to bring home 1 captured Israeli soldier who has been held for the past 5 years.

The criticisms of the deal I have heard from some in the Jewish, pro-Israel right, are chilling. As my mom said in response to those criticisms, “Even if you can't agree it's the right choice, it's an impossible choice. How do you criticize an impossible choice?”

I recommend that reading this piece from Haaretz (Israeli newspaper). I’m quoting a piece of it, but the whole thing is well worth the read:

The deal to bring Gilad Shalit back to his family is painful to Israelis bereaved by terror. It is, by any measure, chillingly dangerous.

And it was the right thing to do.

[…]

The deal for Gilad Shalit is a remnant of a promised land that – to those everyday people who donate their very youth, their very lives, in order to defend it – still believes it important to keep its promises.

The first of those promises is a simple one. When they draft you and process you and inoculate you and arm you and begin to use you, they spell it out, to you and your family both: If you are lost on the field of battle, we will get you back. Whatever it takes.

Whatever it takes. Even if it takes much too much.

The list of the terrorists being released is unendurable. The numbers are beyond understanding. Until you consider that this is how it's always been.

[…]

And this is what I too have said several times today. That no matter what you believe as to the wisdom of the deal, you should be able to rejoice that Gilad Shalit is back with his family. That it is not a new precedent (Israel has been making these kinds of impossible exchanges for decades). And that it was the right thing to do.

Wrapping up research

2011-09-24T16:05:00.001-04:00

So, I’m finishing up the research part of my trip, and of my foreseeable travels. (It’s quite possible I’ll be back before the dissertation is done, but this trip ends the currently planned travel for work).

The Croatia trip was less productive than I hoped but more productive than I feared. I learned some interesting new pieces in putting together the puzzle of what is going on in the region, but not much progress on the Croatia case-study itself. That will take more digging and networking from home it seems.

I think in many ways, Bosnia was the most fulfilling part of my travels this year from a dissertation perspective. This is because it was a sort of turning point taking the dissertation topic from something with potential to something I can see developing. It was an aha moment. This thing might actually work. And might actually be important. That is in part because while it was my third stop, it is only the second of the case studies (Serbia was for regional context – the case studies are in Kosovo, BiH, and Croatia). And I learned enough to know that there are going to be some really interesting differences in outcomes here, for a good compare/contrast (rather than just hypothesizing that there might be). There’s still a long road to go, with a number of “bends in the road” as Anne Shirley would say, but I feel like it’s the right road to be on…

Croatian culinary adventures

2011-09-23T08:01:00.010-04:00

I've had a few requests for more food posts. Apparently people are enjoying watching me eat my way through the Balkans. Of course, this is only partially true. The vast majority of the local cuisine, at least what would be considered main courses, are meat-based. And besides the fact that I'm not a big meat eater in general, my style of keeping kosher involves eating vegetarian during my travels. However, it turns out there are still plenty of interesting local foods to sample. It's just that most of them are pastry and/or dessert! See for example the ice cream (which is really superb), burek (described in previous posts), and palačinke (crepes), that are popular throughout the region.

And now, without further ado, let me introduce you to three Croatian pastries (complete with pictures!):

Fritule -- these little balls of fried dough remind me of a cross between doughnut holes and fry bread. They are dipped in sugar and cinnamon. They are traditionally a Christmas time treat in Croatia, but are also sold in little paper cones year round at open air markets.

Štrukli -- a traditional Croatian pastry filled with cottage cheese and baked or fried. My Lonely Planet guidebook describes them as "baked cheese dumplings" and the Bradt guidebook says štrukli "is something of a death by cream, doughy-pasta and cottage-cheese experience. It's somewhere between a giant cream-soaked ravioli and a cheese-stuffed dumpling." Personally, I found it to be akin to cheese blintzes, just served with real cream rather than sour cream.

Štrudla -- it's Strudle! This is one pastry influence in Croatia that clearly migrated from further north along with other Austo-Hungarian influences. You can actually find it throughout the Balkans, but in Croatia it's particularly popular.

Sightseeing Zagreb – Arts and Architecture

2011-09-18T11:10:00.003-04:00

Zagreb feels very European in a way that makes me think of Vienna and Prague, though I’ve never been to either. It does make me want to visit there as well. This totally makes sense if you look at the growth of the city and the influences on it’s architecture. Sarajevo has three distinct architectural phases – Ottoman, Austro-Hungarian, and Yugoslav (think communist-era utilitarian), expanding outward from the city center. Only a few hours further north, in Zagreb, by way of contrast, there is little Ottoman influence to be seen. The Austro-Hungarian influence, however, is vast. What a difference geography makes.

The Cathedral in Zagreb is magnificent. (Most Croats are Catholic). It made me think of my thrill in visiting the National Cathedral in DC my senior year in high school, while I was studying art history. “Look, Ma – flying buttresses!! How cool!”. So back to Zagreb, the Cathedral is artistically and architecturally gorgeous, and very different in style to the few others I’ve visited -- e.g. the Cathedral in Mexico City which is Mexican baroque with a vengeance (this is not meant as a criticism, I have a very soft spot for the place), very different from the more subtle dynamic at play here. (I don't have pictures that could do any of the above mentioned Cathedral's justice, but do a quick google search if you're interested to get a sense.) One of the things I love about visiting cathedrals is experiencing another culture putting its best foot forward – this is the way it wants to see itself. The other thing I love about it is something that is both intentional and unintentional at the same time. From my perspective, a great Cathedral is truly awe-inspiring, as it was designed to be, but for me the awe has a more human than divine focus. Look what beautiful works mankind can do when energy and talent are put towards building something lofty!

Along the same lines, I have also visited several art museums while in Zagreb. It’s a great city for art galleries as there are many – private collections and public, including collected works from Europe and around the world and local artists. Today I visited Meštrović Atelier, the home and gallery of Croatia’s most famous native sculptor Ivan Meštrović, and it was very much worth while. I can appreciate Greco-Roman sculpture in theory -- it is designed to be aesthetically pleasing --, but it is not very interesting. The people often seem very reserved. Meštrović's sculptures are perhaps less perfectionist of the human form, but more emotional, and I found some of them to be quite compelling, and almost all of them to be interesting.

The long and winding road

2011-09-14T05:07:00.003-04:00

On Sunday, I took the bus from Sarajevo to Split. This involved driving through the mountainous BiH countryside westward towards the coast, at which point we entered Croatia, and then up the coast towards Split. (A long narrow strip of Croatia dips down along the Coast most of the length of Bosnia and Hercegovina). All of the highways were at most 1 lane in each direction. Both the mountain roads and coastal roads were very curvy, and this combined with a slightly-to-warm bus on an 8 hour drive left me feeling slightly queasy. This is unfortunate because it was otherwise a lovely way to see beautiful pieces of both countries.

After spending Monday in Split, yesterday (Tuesday) I took a bus inland (north-eastward) across Croatia to Zagreb, the capital. I was worried about this ride after the previous one, especially since my guidebook said the trip would take 5-9 hours. Ultimately, it was smooth sailing, over much better (and wider! 2 lanes in each direction!) roads. And it took just about exactly 5 hours. Yay. Now to explore another Balkan capital city.

View Larger Map

Zoom out a bit on the map to get a better sense of the geography. I can't get google to show you the route itself because it doesn't have enough road data in the region. In fact there is no google maps data for Sarajevo! It's weird living in a pre-google world!

By the seashore: a visit to Split

2011-09-12T15:50:00.001-04:00

Yesterday I took the bus from Sarajevo to Split, and tomorrow I take another bus on to Zagreb, but today is my vacation day to visit Split and chill. It’s lovely. I wish I had more than one day to spend exploring the Croatian coast, as it surely deserves. But has nonetheless been lovely to stroll along the water front, and explore the ancient ruins of Diocletian’s palace (the Roman emperor’s retirement home) which coexist and mingle with modern life in Split. This is not like visiting the Palatino in Rome. Inside the palace walls are restaurants, shops, homes, and small hotels, making use of the ancient structure, which is teeming with modern life. It’s pretty cool.

10 years and a lifetime ago…

2011-09-11T17:36:00.000-04:00

10 years and lifetime ago, I was a college student. A Californian spending the fall semester living in NYC and working at the UN. I and my classmates, all students of international relations, arrived in NY on September 1st, 2001. Less than the 2 weeks later, the world we studying and came to experience changed in front of our eyes. (Although granted, this is coming from the girl who wrote about the threat of international terrorism on a college admissions essay 3 years earlier). Even now I cannot say exactly how that experience has affected my life, but that it has done so, in ways both subtle and not-so-subtle, is indisputable. I don’t think I’m ready to go into that further in this space, at this time. Suffice it to say, I am remembering.

Wandering Through Sarajevo: An Itinerary

2011-09-09T11:17:00.002-04:00

What would you do and see if you were tourist in Sarajevo? Here’s some of what I’ve done in my free time between meetings:

Old town – The Baščaršija (old Ottoman town center) and Ferhadija (city center from Austo-Hungarian times), sit next to each other, in the center of the town, full of pedestrian walkways. Great for people watching, getting a bite to eat, or a ubiquitous coffee, or shopping. Seriously, don't miss it.

River – The Miljacka river runs through the city of Sarajevo, which is connected to itself by a series of bridges – both foot bridges and ones for vehicular traffic. Lots of life near the river. Though I'll admit, getting up into the hills (Sarajevo is comprised of the river valley and is built up into the surrounding hillsides) is a great way for a view of the whole town.

Maršala Tita – The central street running through the newest part of the city complete with an eternal flame monument to WWII victims, and home of the national bank, UN offices, etc.

Art Museum – The national gallery. It was closed during my stay, but I’d have checked it out otherwise.

History Museum – This small museum gives a glimpse into the history of the 1990s conflict, and its affect on the city and its residents.

National Museum – Zemaljski Muzej Bosne-i-Hercegovine, is a large museum complex including an archeology museum, natural history museum, and ethnography museum, all focused on BiH.

Jewish History – You can see the old Ashkenazi synagogue (dating to the Austro-Hungarian era) and the Sefardi Synagogue (dating to the medieval / Ottoman era). The later now serves as Jewish museum.

Tunnel Tours – During the war a tunnel was dug under the city, connected besieged Sarajevo to free Bosnian territory. You can go see a small piece of the tunnels, along with a very small museum. Not sure if you can do so without a guide, but regardless a guided tour is worthwhile for this to get more out of it, and to easily get there and back from the city center.

Wandering Through Sarajevo: Random Observations

2011-09-04T14:55:00.003-04:00

When I was 17, and headed off to travel without my family for the first time, on a trip to Israel, I invested my lifesavings in a fancy new camera. The photography advice my mother gave me then stands by me today. It also is good advice for just taking in and writing about a new place. She said, "Look around you, and figure out, what do you see that would let you know that you weren't in Los Angeles? That's what you should take a picture of."

Here, then, are a few observations from Sarajevo, in no particular order:

Cobblestone streets are quaint and charming, and a pain in the neck (or ankle). They are slippery (no traction) and uneven – not so great for paving a large pedestrian area. (This observation is not new per se… Try walking through the Palatino ruins in Rome in flip flops. Actually, don’t try it. Take my word.) This is something I’m daily reminded of in old town Sarajevo.

Bosnian Muslims seem to be more religiously observant than Kosovar Albanians, at least in their dress. This is not to say they’re super religious; they’re definitely not. It’s all relative. In Kosovo, where the population is now around 90% Muslim, I saw very few women in hijab. Fewer than I see randomly in Beantown. In Sarajevo, (the Muslim population of BiH is unknown as there’s been no full census since the war, but pre-war it was a little under 45%) the number wearing hijab is much larger. Clearly not as large as the Muslim population itself in the town, but quite prominent, in a colorful sort of way. I love seeing the coordination between headscarves and outfits.
I’ve also seen a few women wearing their headscarves in the manner I associate with Tichels worn by married Orthodox Jewish women (knotted in a bun in the back – covering the head but not neck & shoulders). The women here who do so are always wearing it with a turtle neck or equivalent to remain modest. This is clearly not the mainstream style, but is also not completely isolated. Totally fascinating.
Not un-relatedly, Sarajevo is great place to shop for scarves (to be used as headscarves or otherwise). There are shops selling beautiful colorful options all over the place.

If you have a sweet tooth, you’re in luck. Bosnians love their slatičarnice (approximately dessertaries). It seems like every third shop you’ll find one of these small cafes selling ice cream, pastries, and of course coffee.

Other specialty food shops are čevabdžinica (places specializing in ćevapi and other grilled meats), and buregdžinica (places specializing pitta – burek (meat), sinica (cheese), krompiruša (potato), and zeljanica (spinach, with cheese).*
*In Serbia all these pitta dishes are called burek, and are specified more by naming the filling, whereas here they all have specialized names. Thus Bosnian sirnica is what Serbians call burek sa sirom. (Cheese burek). Etc. These filled savory filo-pastries are really not equivalent to what Americans call burekas. Similar concept, but very different. Among other things these are cooked as huge flat (think pizza pan size) circular dishes, and you are served a large slice. It’s a meal by itself.
As in Serbia, the preferred national coffee is what we would call Turkish Coffee. Though here I’ve often seen it called Bosnian Coffee. Go figure.

Sarajevo, I wish I knew you

2011-09-02T10:49:00.002-04:00

On the road again. This time in Sarajevo, capital of Bosnia and Hercegovina. See the previous where I am blog post for general political geography of the region. BiH, of course, has it’s own much more complicated political geography that fell out of the split up of the former Yugoslavia, ethnic cleansing, and the Dayton Peace Accords which tried to put humpty-dumpty (BiH) together again. It is a country of contradictions -- the one former Yugoslav state which has a minority-majority population -- where the various ethnic communities have historically mixed and mingled – and where many divisions of the war remain apparent and divide the country making governance a tragic comedy.

If this is so, Sarajevo too is a city of contradictions in ways both parallel and divergent. Once a beautiful city of ethnic coexistence that brought the world the Sarajevo Hagadah, and the 1984 Winter Olympics. And yet such a fraught and terrible history – WWI (which began here with the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand), WWII, and most recently a bitter war of ethnic cleansing that destroyed a country. The city of the Sarajevo Hagadah no longer exists – three wars in one century withered the Jewish community beyond recognition. The city of the 1988 Olympics no long exists either – it was destroyed by the war only a few years later. But it remains a fascinating and vibrant place. A place worth knowing. A place that makes you think twice and look deeply.

Sarajevo wears its scars from the war but continues on; it does not look like a city destroyed (ala Detroit, for lack of a better example), nor does it look like a city re-making itself in a new image (see Pristina). It is cosmopolitan in the best sense of the word, mixing people from various ethno-national backgrounds with ease. And yet I know it is far less so than in the past. It is charmingly modern and antique all at once. A big city with the trappings of a small town. It is impossible to describe. Impossible to ignore. Impossible to truly understand. Impossible to be here and not remember so much history.

When in Rome…

2011-06-24T11:03:00.004-04:00

…eat Croissants for breakfast, and eat Gelato every day. Life will be good.

Also, carry a trustworthy guide book. It will be your friend. Seriously, I always have guidebooks when I travel, but I rarely carry them walking around. Rome is different. Not because it's harder to navigate (it's not), but because it's easier to get caught eating in tourist traps of dubitable quality, where a guidebook can help you find better options for local fare in the neighborhood you find yourself. You’re already going to pay a bunch -- Rome is très expensive -- so you might as well get quality. Seriously worthwhile. We did much better with the ever-helpful Lonely Planet than when we chose on our own.

Be prepared to cover your shoulders and knees to enter the Vatican museum. Same thing goes for St. Peter’s (if you brave the lines, which we didn’t).

If it’s summer, hydrate early and often. And keep in mind that public bathrooms may be scarce, and/or icky, but still better than dehydration.

Leave time for window shopping when walking anywhere.

Benvenuto a Roma!

2011-06-20T14:49:00.002-04:00

I arrived in Rome, very tired from an over-night flight, this morning. After sleeping in, we stumbled upon the Piazza del Popoplo almost on our door step, and then went to the Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel, which was indescribably cool. And then we had gelato. A good start to a vacation in Rome.

We’re located in the center of the city, in walking distance of so much history and culture – which is awesome. Much more exploring to be done, after getting some rest tonight.

Wrapping Up Belgrade

2011-06-12T19:05:00.000-04:00

As I write this, I’m sitting on an airplane back to Boston. I left Belgrade a week earlier than planned due to the aforementioned family emergency. I was able to have the two interviews which were scheduled for the last week, and they were quite useful. Then, I spent a final shabbat in Belgrade before heading home. Having sorted out the plan to go home meant that I was able to enjoy the last time there without stressing much.

I spent almost all of shabbat with the Rabbi’s family. I went to the synagogue Friday night for services, and had already been invited to dinner at their home. There was one other guest, who spoke little English, and I of course do not speak Serbo-Croatian at all, so that made conversation a bit ackward, but it was lovely to have a real shabbat meal, especially after so many weeks traveling and eating packaged non-perishables (no fridge). The next morning I went to the synagogue again, and after that there was a small Kiddush (coffee and pastries), during which I actually talked with several people about my research (people reached out when they realized I’d been there more than once). After Kiddush I stayed for lunch and the rest of shabbat with the family. It was really a wonderful time. I had a lot of good conversation, with people who I very much enjoyed getting to know; I played with the kids; I had real home-cooked food. By the time I left after havdalah, I went back to the hotel to pack. So all in all, a very good way to end my time in Belgrade.

So, that’s all for Belgrade. Stay tuned for the one week trip to Rome still coming up after a one week hiatus. And of course, a future Balkan adventure in Bosnia and Croatia in the fall.

Shavuot in Belgrade

2011-06-09T18:57:00.005-04:00

I spent Shavuot in Belgrade, and finally got to meet the Belgrade Jewish community. It’s a bit hard to separate out how it was, because I was so anxious for news of home, having had a family emergency immediately prior to the holiday starting.

There were services at the synagogue on Tuesday night. There were a surprising number of people, after how empty it was when I was last there. There were even a good number of women. In addition to the Rabbi’s return, this may be partially accounted for because davening was followed by a community dinner (250 dinar, which I paid when I inquired about service times on Monday), for which they converted the community kosher kitchen to dairy (making everyone very excited, because this is a highly unusual event). The Rabbi introduced me to a few young women in my age range, and I sat with them at dinner. The food was delicious and the company pleasant.

Wednesday morning I also went to davening, which was much smaller, but there was a minyan (quorum for communal prayer) and the Rabbi assures me there are more people on shabbat. The shul / community is predominately Sefardi, so there were some interesting differences, the most noteworthy of which was a special Ladino prayer for Shavuot – a Ketubah (marriage contract) between G-d and the people of Israel. After services I ended up having lunch with the Rabbi’s family. It was a quiet affair. They tell me they’ve normally had 20-ish guests for Shavuot, but they were tired this year. It was perfect for me, a home cooked meal, and some nice time to talk with new people without being overwhelmed was really perfect for the moment.

The rest of the holiday was pretty quiet. I read. A lot. And watched the clock. A lot. And ate. Not so much, but enough.

Back in Belgrade

2011-06-05T14:37:00.001-04:00

I never thought I’d be so happy to be in Belgrade, but after the obstacle course that is walking down the street in Pristina, it feels amazing. By obstacle course I mean not know when there will be a sudden gigantic hole in the side walk, or unpaved sidewalk strewn with rocks and random giant pieces of concrete, or cars parked, or, my personal favorite, a car driving up onto the sidewalk and straight towards you at full speed in search of parking.

Other things I’m happy about:

More vegetarian options than in Pristina
Less reason to fear for my life while crossing the street
More street signs
More people who speak English
More sunshine / fewer thunder storms
More Jews (i.e. any form of Jewish community)
No worries going out after dark, because its well lit with lots of people around (actually it seems that Belgrade never sleeps!)

This week should fill up pretty quickly. I’ve got two interviews scheduled and Shavuot in between.

Not much to report

2011-06-04T16:22:00.002-04:00

The last few days have been pretty quiet. I’ve just been hanging around Pristina, and tracking down some contacts. Meanwhile I think this place is making me addicted to coffee -- it is going to be hard going back to my only occasional coffee when I get home!

I had another interview the other day, which at least cuts my costs per interview in half, and which was a very good contact who I wouldn’t have had without being here. I also spoke with another potential contact recommended by the first interviewee, but unfortunately he’s not in town this week. We had arranged to talk tonight to see if we could meet tomorrow morning early before my bus back to Belgrade, but his wife called to say he hadn’t made it back yet and wouldn’t be here tomorrow. But it is still a contact to follow-up on later, so that’s something. Next report will be from Belgrade.

P is for Prizren

2011-05-30T17:45:00.003-04:00

Today’s blog post was brought to you by the letter P. For Prizren, and Pristina, and Peja. Did you notice how I listed 3 of the top four cities in Kosovo, and they all begin with P?*

Today I visited Prizren. This day trip was postponed from yesterday because the weather report was more promising. However, it also turns out that most shops and such are closed on Sundays in Pristina, so I’m assuming that applies elsewhere and thus that today was actually a better day to visit. (Aside: I’m not sure why this is the case since most Kosovar Albanians are secular Muslims (i.e. Sunday is not in any sense a holy day)).

Observation of the day: Prizren is covered with little clothing shops. Its really astounding, how many. Also, both there and in Pristina there seem to be an extraordinary number of shops specializing in ball gowns / special occasion wear. People here must have significantly more reasons to dress black tie than I do, cause there really is quite a large market apparently.

Getting there and back given my non-existent Albanian and the bus drivers' and taxi drivers' non-existent English was a not so fun adventure. (Taxi to bus station. Bus from Pristina to Prizren. Etc. It's a story for another day). However, Prizren itself is a charming old city, with the area by the river covered in old cobblestone roads, an old stone bridge, a Serbian Orthodox cathedral, a Catholic cathedral, several mosques, and the remainers of an old castle from which you can see a panoramic overview of the whole city (if you climb all the way up to it). So, all in all, it was a nice day visit. But I will be ready for a quiet day in Pristina tomorrow.

*The fourth is Mitrovica.

Where in the World is Sunkist Miss?

2011-05-27T10:50:00.003-04:00

Readers have been asking exactly where I am located / traveling, and seeing as I don’t have much to report today, I thought I’d provide a few answers.

I am currently in Pristina, capital of Kosovo. And was previously in Belgrade, capital of Serbia (where I will be returning later this journey). Back when Yugoslavia was a country, it was made up of 6 republics – Slovenia, Croatia, Bonsia and Hercegovina, Serbia, Monetnegro, and Macedonia. All of those are now successor countries. Serbia itself contained two autonomous regions, Kosovo and Vojvodina. Vojvodina is still part of Serbia; Kosovo is a separate entity, though its country status is disputed. Okay, so all of these countries which made up the former Yugoslavia are in South Eastern Europe, located on the Balkan peninsula, which has Greece at its bottom tip, and is surrounded by the Adriatic, Ionian, Agean and Black seas.

View Larger Map

It is in the UTC+1 time zone, the same as most of Western Europe (except the UK and Portugal which are UTC). So, that is +6 hours from EST or +9 from PST for those playing along at home.

Of course, the political status of the Yugoslav successor states has been a complex issue, and Kosovo is the extreme example. I’m not going to review the whole history here as it's much too long and complicated for the purposes of this blog post. Suffice it to say that when the UN and NATO took control, they separated it from Serbia but did not grant it full independence, leaving status to be decided later, and in 2008 Kosovo declared independence. While it is not currently a UN member-state due to the contentiousness of this claim (there are concerns that China and/or Russia would veto), it is a member country of the World Bank and IMF, and has been recognized by 75 UN Member States, including the US, almost all EU and OSCE members, and all of its neighbors except Serbia. (This makes for some interesting travel issues as Serbia considers the border an internal administrative boundary not a port-of-entry, so there can be visa issues if you enter Serbia from Kosovo as you will not have a Serbian entrance stamp. This is resolved if you entered Kosovo from Serbia and are going back to the same place – hence my taking the bus from Belgrade and back again.)

Of course, places with contentious political status often have contentious naming / linguistic issues as well. See for example the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, which entered the UN with that full long name because Greece opposed it being called simply Macedonia. So, in Serbian, Kosovo is Kosovo (Latin scrip) or Косово (Cyrillic); in Albanian (the primary language here) it is Kososva (or in some circumstances Kosovë). Pristina, is Приштина or Priština in Serbian, Prishtinë or Prishtina in Albanian. As you will have noticed, I have stuck with Kosovo and Pristina, as they are the standard English language spellings and as such are used by international organizations, just like I have used “Belgrade” for the capital of Serbia rather than the more accurate “Beograd”.

Progress

2011-05-26T14:47:00.005-04:00

Today I conducted my first interview (over a macchiato, clearly), which went quite well. I succeeded at getting a few recommendations of others to interview, along with contact info for them. Now it’s time to see if I can get those to happen while I’m in town.

Meanwhile, big-picture progress in the region, just while I happen to be here:

"The president of Serbia announced at a news conference in Belgrade on Thursday that Ratko Mladic, the fugitive accused of masterminding the massacre at Srebrenica in 1995, had been captured."

-New York Times

Cultural excursions

2011-05-24T17:24:00.005-04:00

Sadly, my first interview which was supposed to be today (perfect, with one day to get oriented in Pristina before diving in) was postponed to Thursday, so I now have extra time. The result of that, however, I got to accompany my new American friend to the Dečani Monastery, which is about a 1 1/2 - 2 hour drive from Pristina. As an added bonus, it was beautiful, warm and sunny there, unlike Pristina which seems to have perpetual thunder storms.

The Dečani Monastery was constructed in 1327-35, with the frescos completed in 1350. While there were some additional icons added a couple centuries later, the original work is all still visible, remarkably well preserved, and has never been restored. It’s the real deal. The Monastery is part of the Serbian Orthodox Church. The stone building itself is built in a Western style – the monk there told us that it was actually commissioned from a Catholic architect. But the inside frescos (covering the walls floor to ceiling as well as the ceiling and cupola) and mainly in the Byzantine style, with artists imported from Constantinople to work on it, but also borrowing from Romanesque influences. Truly the meeting of Eastern and Western Christianity of the time. The guide book said that that this is the place to go in Kosovo if you only have one day in the country, and it was certainly well worth a visit once here. The extent and detail of the frescos and the way they are so well preserved in the original space is really amazing to see. It is also a UNESCO world heritage site considered endangered, along with 3 other UNESCO sites in Kosovo – which are all medieval Serbian churches. Despite the fact that it is protected by KFOR soldiers because of real threat (there have been past attacks on it), it was very peaceful, there were several other visitors, and the monks were very gracious and welcoming.

Tonight, after a bit of wind-down time, we met back up for dinner at a place recommended by both my guidebook (the only guidebook to Kosovo that exists, at least in English), and a friend who has spent time here previously. We explored in the afternoon to make sure we could find the place since Pristina can be difficult to navigate, what with curving streets and no signs. Good thing we did, because the place was super tricky to find. I would’ve given up if I were on my own, and still would’ve if it hadn’t been recommended by a friend. But it was worth hunting for, cause it was great. It serves Albanian food and attracts both an international and local crowd (a plus, cause you know its good, but they speak English and understand vegetarian). I was a little worried since they have no written menu, you just have to know, or ask, or have the waiter bring you stuff. But it seemed worth a try given the double recommendation. Anyways, it was lovely. They served a warm traditional bread (sort of like pita, but different) with cheese spreads, and a very nice salad to start. Then you get a main dish (the waiter picked for us, vegetarian one for me, and meat for companion). All the main dishes are baked in clay dishes. The veggie dish was simple -- a veggie medley cooked to perfection over a long time and topped with some goat cheese. And of course a macchiato for dessert – the favorite coffee in Kosovo. No room left for baklava with it, which is also traditional. All in all, a very good, but exhausting day.

Impulsive friendships

2011-05-23T17:29:00.003-04:00

Yesterday I took the bus from Belgrade to Pristina (Kosovo), about a 7 hour journey. I managed to quickly make friends with the only other American (or foreigner for that matter) on the trip. Turns out he is a studying art history and here to visit the monasteries in the Serbian enclaves which are very significant within the history of Byzantine art. We initially bonded over being anxious about doing solo journey from Belgrade to Prisitina, finding the right bus, etc. However, we actually found we had lots to talk about. One can meet friends in the strangest places.

My hotel room in Pristina is quite lovely. They upgraded it due to my prolonged stay. Navigating Pristina is less lovely. Many streets don’t have sidewalks and the paving not so great. And street signs? Non-existent. Forget what I said about street signs in Belgrade, by comparison they were abundant! I literally haven’t seen one yet. This does mean that it's less relevant how up-to-date your map is, since you just need to go by the general direction of the roads. Well, that and hope to come across someone who speaks enough English, and happens to think the street names (which have changed several times in recent memory) are the same as your (choose your own adventure: map, guidebook, internet), who can help redirect you. Fun times. Nonetheless, I spent many hours this afternoon wandering around with said friend from yesterday’s bus ride, and now have a much better sense of how the main streets in center city fit together, which is at least enough to get me to my interview appointment.

I spent a moment contemplating the level of impulsiveness and outgoingness was required for me to (a) befriend a stranger, and (b) trust that impulse enough to later exchange contact info and hang out in a foreign city. My first thought was that this is totally unprecedented for me, but upon further reflection I realized that this is not really a first for me in a foreign country even though it is totally not my personality at home. (Where, let’s face it, I’m a planner, and it takes me a while to get to make friends.) I think part of it is knowing that I’m never going to be in this same place again, so if there’s a opportunity it's now or never. And part of it is that when traveling alone you crave someone to talk to and just share an experience of a new place with, even its just for a day of that longer travel adventure. So, here’s to new friends, and leaps of faith, which after all is what this whole trip is based on anyhow.

Lazy days

2011-05-22T03:57:00.002-04:00

Not so much exciting to report. Friday I went to the Ethnographic Museum. Something like the Museo de Antropología in Mexico, though much smaller in scale as that one is tremendous. Basically, imagine the “peoples and cultures” part of a natural history museum, now expand it. So in the case of Serbia, this museum has lots of examples of traditional costume, housing, tools, textiles, etc as they evolved over the years. I also stopped by the shul for a truncated Kabbalat Shabbat (I don’t know if they get a minyan and/or do more when the Rabbi is in town, but he’s away). There were no Saturday services due to his absence. The shul itself is beautiful. The service was kind of sad, but I’ll reserve judgment until the Rabbi is back.

Saturday I had a quiet day. Stopped by a couple of free galleries. One had a random contemporary exhibit. The other is the “Gallery of Frescos”, which focused on local church art (very clear Byzantine influence) but also had replicas of several old (11-1200s) local church facades which I thought were cooler than the frescos. Other than that, I read and napped, and now (Sunday morning) am getting ready to catch the bus to Kosovo.

Everywhere around the world

2011-05-20T11:36:00.003-04:00

Some things never change. Spray paint art of other worlds by a sidewalk artist. From Mexico City to Harvard Sq to Belgrade:

(Picture from last night).

I can see clearly now, the rain is gone

2011-05-19T15:27:00.002-04:00

The city is charming, especially when the sun comes out, which gives you a chance to really appreciate the sidewalk cafe culture. It feels much more European than I expected for a place that has historically been at the cross-roads of two continents. The buildings (at least in façade) are mostly old-school European, but visibly decaying, interspersed with some very utilitarian box-buildings. Cafes are very popular and places are open late. There is a huge shopping culture and presence of a wide range of shops from spacious high end shops (Burberry is next to Armani) to what you’d see in mid-town Manhattan (tiny shops, squeezed full to the brim with cheap stuff – soccer jerseys, shoes, you name it). Interestingly, these things are not in different neighborhoods but all in the same area. Most people dress pretty nicely (in a modern European style) and seem to stroll around and window shop quite a bit. Having done a bit of that myself, I’m seriously feeling inspired to do some actual shopping because there are all sorts of little boutiques with cute skirts and such.

Today’s primary event was visiting Kalemegdan fortress and park, which are at the heart of the old city of Belgrade. This large park is quiet, green, with rambling walks up the plateau, around and within the walls of fortress. It was first build as the site of an ancient fortress a few centuries BCE, and was subsequently rebuilt at least once by the Byzantines (500s), with upkeep and modernization in the interim, and once again mostly rebuilt by the Austrians (1700s). Pieces of the prior iterations remain visible. Anyhow, in addition to being an interesting historical cite, and housing the Military Museum at its highest point, it is also a functioning municipal park with tennis and soccer courts inset between fortress walls. This is a remarkable use of space. The Military Museum was interesting, though it would have been more so if more of it were translated (there are small captions for each display, in contrast to large paragraphs of Serbian text). They do really show a progression of the weapons and armor used in the area from ancient and medieval times through the modern day, including more biodegradable materials (uniforms, flags, etc) when reaching the more modern eras. Only after wandering the fortress for a couple hours did I happen upon the place where you can pick up audio guides in multiple languages. It wouldn’t have helped the museum, but would have explained more of the fortifications, but it was still quite interesting. If I have extra time at the end of this visit perhaps I’ll go back for the audio guide version.

Have I mentioned that I love the sunshine?!

A leisurely lunch

2011-05-18T16:12:00.003-04:00

Today I had lunch. No really, that’s pretty much the only noteworthy thing I did. But it was lovely. Allow me to explain. I started out the day slowly because I hadn’t slept well and I had some stuff that needed doing (emailing contacts and such), so I didn’t head out until I wanted lunch at 1. I headed towards Skadarska. That is the “bohemian” section of the city – a short cobblestone pedestrian-only street with a fountain in the middle, and lined with mostly traditional Serbian restaurants and flowers everywhere. In yesterday’s wanderings, after going through a 5 street intersection in every possible direction, I’d managed to figure out how to get there, but didn’t actually go explore it. So I figured I’d check it out at lunch time today.

So today, not 3 minutes into my walk, I was stopped by two people who wanted to know if I spoke English and whether I could direct them. (They were Australian.) Apparently I am very good at not looking lost and out of place! As it turned out they were trying to get to Skadarska, and I did actually know how to get there. I explained directions and also that I was heading in that direction and offered to walk with them. Along the way they mentioned that they were looking for lunch, and would I care to join them if that’s what I was doing too? I agreed, feeling up for a bit of adventure and a bit of conversation in English. They asked my criteria, and I said, any place where I can get vegetarian food. Turned out they too were looking for vegetarian food in an authentic Serbian atmosphere and cuisine. We wandered around, picked a restaurant, and sat on the lovely porch (no rain!) for a leisurely 3 hour lunch. There was no lack of conversation. (I mean, I can talk! But it wasn’t awkward or anything). And the food was really good, and waiter super helpful. All in all, a good day.

Lunch (keep in mind that lunch here is the main meal of the day, I didn’t eat breakfast and expect a very small dinner if I ever get around to it):

Starters
Salata šopska (known colloquially as Serbian salad with cheese because that is its only difference from salata srpska – literally Serbian salad – which consists of tomatoes, cucumbers, onion, a few peppers, oil, lemon juice, and paprikia. This, in both forms, is a traditional dish throughout the region. Very simple, but very delicious and refreshing given good tomatoes, of which there are plenty).
Bread (all meals come with ridiculous amounts of yummy bread)
Main
Stewed veggies with an egg (yay protein!)
A traditional potato side dish that we all shared
Dessert
Serbian Coffee (see previous post - Orienteering Belgrade)
A lovely vanilla meringue (light and soft and fluffy) (And tastes of the others’ desserts.)

*By the way notsomachmir, all this menu-posting is for you! :)

Orienteering Belgrade

2011-05-17T16:36:00.005-04:00

In which I find my way around by wandering in circles, despite my map and a good sense of direction.

Accomplishments:

Finding the Jewish community center (“Jewish Commune”).
Finding the Synagogue.
Finding the central bus & and train station, and buying a round-trip (open-ended) bus trip to Kosovo, leaving Sunday.
Successfully reading Cyrillic signs and matching with (Latin-alphabet map).
Ordering the correct breakfast food without an English menu.

Today I walked around a good part of central Belgrade. Its really not that large of a city, and quite walkable. (With lots of pedestrian walkways where streets are closed to cars, and busy streets having lit crosswalks - no need to press button - or underpasses). But walkable doesn't always make for tourist friendly. Take a city that was not built on a grid. Add in a large number of messy multi-street intersections that are not organized into Rotaries. Add to that a dearth of street signs. The signs that exist are sometimes written in Cyrillic, sometimes in Croatian-Latin, and sometimes both. This makes for a hard to navigate city.

Aside: Seriously, I originally thought there weren't any street signs since I noticed right away that the sign posts with arrow shaped signs attached were pointing in the direction of various points of interest. They are not street signs. Street signs are posted on the side of buildings near street corners. In theory. In practice there are more corners without such signs than with. In Mexico when there were missing street signs it was generally because someone had stolen them and they hadn't been replaced. The number of missing seems rather large-scale for that kind of excuse here. Anyhow, thankfully, it's safe to walk around, I was not in a rush, and between my map and sense of direction I managed not to walk in the same circle twice. And I did eventually find every place I was looking for (and probably got a better sense of how the various places connected and a better city tour than if I had succeeded at the more direct route).

Low points:

Figuring out the shower mechanism (the faucet is waist-high and then there is a shower head attached to a hose, so you have to hold that up to shower, with limited water pressure -- not so good for thick hair, but at least the water is warm).

Highlights (all culinary):

Delicious “moka orange” (local spelling) at a lovely little cafe that has indoor and sidewalk seating (as they all seem to). Although Turkish Coffee (often called Serbian Coffee so as not to give the Turks credit for anything) is the drink of choice in this country, this popular cafe is known for its mochas. It was a really lovely place except for all the second-hand smoke. But that’s par for the course. They also had amazing-looking desserts, but I was looking for something less sweet.
I got a burek sa sirom (giant slice of cheese-filled filo dough) from a to-go bakery. Bureks are a local specialty (throughout the region, not just Serbia) and come in several flavors (cheese, spinach, and meat being the primary three).
For dinner, a lovely eggplant gratin, and an amazing chocolate-y dessert which I couldn’t finish.

Welcome to Београд

2011-05-16T14:27:00.004-04:00

I arrived in Belgrade today, exhausted but without hiccup in the travel. I will be in the region (Serbia and Kosovo) for a month for dissertation research. The flights were totally fine and my luggage made it through the connection in Rome without a hitch. Interestingly, the woman sitting next to me on the flight to Rome (after person originally sitting next to me was kicked off the plane for having a medical condition and no doctor's note), was a young woman (probably my age-ish), who works for USAID and was heading to the region for work. Not actually a useful contact, but one that made for a lovey chat with someone interested in international affairs.

I had read in the guide book that you should ask inside the arrival gate (baggage claim area) for help getting a cab, rather than going out to the curb where the drivers will way over charge you. This was definitely good advice not only because of the price (which was fixed before the trip at a reasonable rate), but because the guy from the inside official taxi stand escorts you through customs and the chaotic mobs when you emerge from there, straight to your waiting cab. Breathe sigh of relief. The taxi driver didn't speak much English but was super excited to be carrying an American tourist. It was kind of cute. The place I'm staying this first week is no shining star. The rooms are kind of dingy and small, but its my own and it seems to be clean, so that'll do. There isn't good wireless access in this place, which I knew, and which is not good given my need to be contacting people for work, but I expect it'll be better after this first week, and I'm making do.

After arriving, and going next door to exchange Euros for Serbian Dinars (100 DIN = 1 Euro), I took a nap but made sure to set an alarm because despite not having slept last night (over night flight), I was determined to stay up until a reasonable hour so that I can get myself onto local time quickly. So, after the nap I went exploring the immediate neighborhood where I'm in, and grabbed a quick bite (a slice of pizza verde for 90 DIN; I wasn't super hungry, mostly just tired). There is a big open air pedestrian mall the winds around nearby, and the plethora of sidewalk seating for cafes is really amazing (even McDonald's has a cute out-door seating area that matches the rest of the local style). They were all empty because its drizzly out, but I imagine that when the sun comes out it'll be quite the scene. I also discovered that these stairs leading underground were not a subway that the guidebook neglected to metion, but rather pedestrian under-passes under the busy street, that are lined inside with cheap shops (the shops on street level are trendy unlike these). Today I didn't bring the camera, but I'll have to take pictures even though it will surely make me stand out as a tourist.

Kids and guns

2011-03-13T11:34:00.003-04:00

Let’s talk for a moment about guns in the home. Lots of people have them. Too many people don’t adequately protect the guns, and thus themselves, their kids, and their neighbors. Why does this happen? Two reasons. (1) Many gun owners are concerned that locking up their guns runs counter to their self-defense purposes – if it’s locked up they can’t get to it as quickly. (2) They think that “educating” their kids not to play with guns is enough. This is purely wrong. No matter what you tell them, kids do not have a clear enough understanding of causes and consequences. Yes, education is important. It is not sufficient.

There are of course two problems with unlocked guns at home -- kids who shoot them by mistake, and kids who shoot them intentionally. Both problems are resolved if the kids can't get the guns.

Here’s why it’s a problem (and why my news feed is incredibly depressing). And keep in mind these are only the stories about kids, in the past 2+ months. (And actually there are a few more that I can't link to any more cause they're no longer posted)...

Existential Lyrics

2010-10-24T16:33:00.006-04:00

A friend recently posted a lyric to the recent Shakira song, Gitana, on facebook:

"Yo soy quien elige como equivocarme."

I am the one who decides how to make (my) mistakes.

I actually read it wrong the first time, however. A simple dyslexic error. I read it as:

"Yo so quien elige como evocarme."

I am the one who decides how to evoke myself.

I mentioned this to the friend who posted it, and she responded, "how existential of you!"

Actually, I think both the original lyric and my (mis)read of it are existentially interesting and empowering. I choose my mistakes. I choose how I evoke myself. I choose how I project myself. I choose who I am.

(Aside: This lyric by the way, while it is part of chorus of the Spanish song, is not included in the English version, Gypsy. The songs are not exact translations. And, as with many of Shakira's songs that have been made in two languages, I find the Spanish version much more interesting and poetic.)

MA Voting Update

2010-10-21T09:17:00.002-04:00

Dear state/local election authorities,

I apologize for doubting you. I did in fact end up getting a postcard from my local (city) election commission telling me the election date and where my polling place is located. This is wonderful news.

However, now I ask of you (state/local election authorities), why do you not do this for primary and special elections? Can this please change? Now. It's important. Find a way to fund it. Seriously.

Thanks.

Love,

Sunkist Miss

More on Voting in MA

2010-10-04T19:58:00.006-04:00

Well, it turns out the situation isn't quite as dire as I thought. It seems that while there is no voter information sent out by the state before either special elections or primary elections (my two local voting experiences so far), they do sent out information before the general election. Of course I still find it highly problematic that voters are given no information in the former two cases.

This voter guide is much less comprehensive than the one in CA -- it focuses exclusively on ballot measures (it does not list candidates who will be on the ballot, even for state-wide offices) -- but it does at least inform voters of the date of the upcoming election, how to get an absentee ballot, and where to get information on where to vote. Neither the voter guide nor any other publication sent to voters (there isn't any that I've seen so far), actually tells voters directly where their polling station is located rather than requiring them to ask. But this is a start.

So, overall I am less appalled than previously, but not satisfied. I want to see MA address its citizens before all elections. Not to do so is unconscionable -- low voter turnout is a major problem with our democracy, particularly in primary and special elections. The state government should at a minimum take responsibility for making sure citizens are informed that an election is upcoming (on such-and-so date) and how to get further information. And I really also want to see direct mail to voters telling them where their polling place is located. Is that so much to ask?

Voting in a strange land

2010-09-16T09:21:00.002-04:00

Tuesday was the MA primary election. This feels remarkably late for me since the CA primary was in June. With a primary in September the general election campaign season is necessarily short.

Anyhow, I had an observation about voting in MA: I don’t like it. No really, this is not just the whiny Californian feeling like MA still isn’t home, it’s more than that. Prior to the election we got mail from one candidate in one primary race. No info from other candidates. And more importantly, no info from the state. I find the later high problematic and disturbing. The state should be doing more to ensure people know that there’s an election approaching, when it is, where your polling place is, how to get an absentee ballot, and what’s on the ballot.

In California of course, this is done in extreme form: Significantly before the election you receive a sample ballot that also tells you the location of your polling place and has a form for applying for an absentee ballot. Closer to the election you receive a complete Voter’s Guide. In the Guide there are official statements from each candidate. For ballot propositions there is a summary of the proposition, analysis of its legal and fiscal effects by the state legislative analyst, and statements from both sides of the issue (the Yes and No campaigns).

I’m not suggesting MA needs to go to the same level, but it is currently at the opposite extreme. Yes, much of the voter guide type info could be on a website. But there should still be at a very minimum direct mail to the voters saying the date of the election, and giving the URL of the website to go to for more information (this could be a post card). In my opinion, it should also be personalized enough to also tell you on the mailing where your polling location is (which is fairly easy to do). Sure, as a native Californian I’d prefer to see an actual sample ballot even if a more extensive voter guide (which as far as I can tell doesn’t exist in MA) were available only online, but even if you don’t receive a sample ballot, you should be told when and where to vote and where to find out what’s on the ballot. How can we ~~expect~~ hope for an even minimally informed electorate when they don’t even know there’s an election happening?

Secrecy in the News

2010-07-22T18:06:00.004-04:00

The Washington Post this week has been doing a series called "Top Secret America". You should read it, if you haven't already. The online format for the articles is sort of annoying but if you go into the article you want and click the print button on the screen it will bring it up in a more read-able format (which you can then print or not).

Also, on a related note, I'm sort of surprised they didn't interview (or quote, anyhow) Steven Aftergood at FAS for this study. If you're interested in the topic you should definitely be reading his blog, Secrecy News.

Adventures in the Kitchen

2010-07-14T13:08:00.002-04:00

Trying to eat more vegetables has been an on-going adventure for us. Toyb grew up eating very few vegetables and has not really made them for himself in the intervening years. Luckily, he’s a good sport and he’ll always at least try them if they’re presented to him. However, its still hard to keep buying and cooking vegetables when you’re not sure if the second person is going to really eat them. Besides, I also want to expand my repertoire since I grew up with sort of mainstream vegetables and they are thus my comfort zone.

This summer we have a CSA farm share. It's yummy food, it's good for you, it's good for the environment, and it's good policy – what a win! Anyhow, it has not only been getting us to eat more vegetables (both quantity and variety), but has also prompted us to experiment with cooking more. Last night Toyb suggested that maybe we (which means I) should be blogging some of our more successful experiments.

Last night’s dinner, a fast and delicious couscous:

Cut large summer squash from CSA into bite size pieces. Roast with a bit of olive oil, garlic salt, and lemon pepper.
While that’s roasting prepare other ingredients:
- Slice green onion (also from CSA).
- Crumble some feta.
- Cook plain couscous on stove top.
Place couscous in mixing bowl. Drizzle in extra virgin olive oil and a sprinkling of salt and basil (fresh would have been better but this was improvised base on what we had). Toss in the roasted squash. Add a splash or two of lemon juice. Mix in green onions and feta.

The ingredients last night were not actually new-to-us vegetables (unlike some of adventures earlier this summer), but it was still fun experimental cooking. And yummy.

Traveling while Jewish: Shabbat

2010-05-25T18:01:00.002-04:00

One of the biggest challenges posed by traveling over Shabbat turned out to be finding a place to stay that has old-fashioned mechanical locks rather than electronic key-cards. In some cities with major Jewish populations, a few major hotels do offer the option of mechanical keys, but elsewhere this is simply not an option. Our solution: try bed-and-breakfasts. This might be a counter-intuitive option for the shomer shabbat traveler. After all, (1) you might have kashrut issues with eating at a B&B, and (2) you might have shabbat issues with eating at a B&B. However, they tend to be small and homey which means no elevators and no electronic keys. This makes it worth-while even if you don’t eat the food. (And often there will be fresh fruit and cereal available, so even the food may be workable).

Another issue, of course, is lights. If you’re in a hotel room, you need to have lights on in order to do anything, yet it can make it difficult to sleep at night (and you likely don’t have a second room to solve the problem). Plus if you leave lights on they are likely to be turned off the next day by the cleaning crew, leaving you in the dark in the hours prior to havdalah. The solution: bring a wall timer with you. Hotel rooms almost always have lamps plugged into the wall, so you can have a timer and avoid both sleeping in the light and reading in the dark.

Traveling While Jewish: Kashrut

2010-05-24T21:44:00.002-04:00

These musings come out of a long cross-country road trip. While this posting is probably particularly relevant to those who do not “eat out” (i.e. don’t eat at establishments that are not kosher-certified), it may also be relevant to other kosher-keeping travelers as well.

A few pieces of advice: (1) many places have at least a limited amount of kosher food available, so you should definitely look into options ahead of time rather than assuming the worst; (2) that said, the options are often very limited, and in some places it is almost impossible to find certain items (like kosher cheese and bread).

If you need to take your food with you, travel with a cooler, take at least one knife, and try to stay in places with mini-fridges. This will greatly increase the range of foods available. In addition to eating tuna, crackers and bread, we had fresh fruit, salad, cheese, and milk (for cereal) making for much more pleasant and balanced meals.

Also, look into what might be available even if there is not a kosher grocery store. For example, although the availability of hechshered bread will still vary regionally, Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods both carry a number of hechshered foods, including cheeses, nation-wide, so if they are nearby you will find many more products available than you might otherwise expect in areas without large Jewish populations. That said, Trader Joes itself is not available in large swaths of the country.

Favorite home-made meal of the trip: Avocado-Tomato-and-Goat-Cheese sandwich with salad.

Favorite “restaurant” meal of the trip: Kosher taco cart in LA (Pico-Robertson area) motzei shabbat. The real deal. Tacos that happen to be kosher rather than the other way around. Yum. Of course, I’m not sure this really counts a restaurant.

Other restaurant highlights included: Indian (dairy) in Austin/Houston, Moroccan (meat) in New Orleans, Coffee and Beignets also in NOLA, delicious dairy pastas and salads in Atlanta, and BBQ in Teaneck. Of course we had some krispy kremes along the way as well.

Most unexpected meal out: in Charleston, SC there is a yoga studio that has hechshered vegan foods at lunchtime (salads and wraps and such – menu based on ingredients of the day).

Keep Austin Weird

2010-05-06T23:33:00.003-04:00

So, as you may know, Austin, TX is proud of being weird. There are T-shirts and hats all over the place that say "Keep Austin Weird". However, I think they probably define weird differently than I do.

What I think is weird: (a) We visited the state capitol, and the tour guide was a retired New Yorker (he moved to TX because that's where his oldest kid is in college!). Seriously, we can't have an actual Texan tour guide for the Texan capitol? (b) One of things that I learned from the tour guide is that the Texas state legislature meets for one 140 day session every two years. (The governor can call special sessions in which he defines the agenda in case emergency appropriations / legislation are needed, but basically the legislature is in session 5 out of 24 months). Say what?! Texas is weird.

Vivir para contarla -- Living to Tell the Tale

2010-04-12T13:50:00.005-04:00

When Vivir para contarla, the autobiography of Gabriel García Márquez, was published in late 2002, it made a big splash internationally, despite the fact that it had not yet been published in English. In fact the English translation would not be available for a year, yet the Spanish version was selling well even in the US. A few months later, the LA Times published a book review of it … also in Spanish.

Editor's note: Recently, Alfred A. Knopf, in a move unprecedented in the U.S. book world, published the Spanish edition of Gabriel García Márquez's long-awaited memoir in the United States, a year prior to its appearance this fall in English. Without benefit of reviews or publicity, "Vivir para contarla" found its way onto The Times' bestseller list. Book Review has decided that a review, in Spanish with accompanying English translation, is in order.
- “Gabo Habla”, by Gioconda Belli, Los Angeles Times, February 16, 2003.

The full review is no longer available on the LA Times website, but can be found online here.

I was a college student in Los Angeles at the time the book review was published. In fact, I was majoring in Spanish-language Literature (part of a double major with international relations). And I was impressed. But I did not have time to read the book at that point. I was after all working on two theses – one for each major. But I promised myself that I would one day do so. This year I finally fulfilled that promise by reading the book. It was a challenge (probably more than it would have been 7 years ago), but ultimately an interesting read for anyone interested in Latin American literature and familiar with Gabo’s novels.

End of an Era

2010-01-19T11:12:00.001-05:00

A few weeks ago I found myself registering to vote in MA.

I have come to realize that I will never know as much about MA politics as I know about CA. That may not be true for most people, but I am not most people. I have lived and breathed state and local politics for my entire life. It was spoon-fed to me as a child along with my baby food. I knew aspiring city council and state assembly members before I could walk. Maybe that’s why I started talking so early. In any case, California politics is in my blood.

And yet, here I am. Living in MA. No longer in a position to argue that my permanent residence is in CA. I still hope to return there someday. Until then, I am obligated to learn more about the politics of the place I live. Which at the moment, is MA.

And so, today, for the first time I voted on a non-CA ballot, in a special election for the MA US Senate seat, and the whole country is watching. I don’t know what’s going to happen…we’ll find out soon enough. But for the moment, it’s nice to know that my vote matters.

Sunkist Miss by any other name

2010-01-18T12:57:00.003-05:00

“I read in a book once that a rose by any other name would smell as sweet, but I’ve never been able to believe it. I don’t believe a rose would be as nice if it was called a thistle or a skunk cabbage.” – Anne Shirley in L.M. Montgomery’s Anne of Green Gables.

So, then, what did Sunkist Miss decide to do about her hyphenated name when she got married, and why?

Short answer: I kept my name. My husband kept his name. We will give our kids hyphenated names. Don’t worry, they will only have one hyphen. It will be my_mom’s_name-his_dad’s_name.

Longer answer: I couldn’t see myself getting changing my name. My name is very tied into my identity. This is perhaps true for different people to different degrees. For me it is certainly the case.

That said, I really want to feel like the (hypothetical) kids have a family name, not just one of their parent’s names. Because of this desire to have an identifiable family-name it was also important to me to decide ahead of time what we would plan on naming our hypothetical children; after all, depending on the answer it might affect what I wanted to do with my name. This is because the answer that would be most unacceptable to me would be to keep my name but give my kids only my husband’s name.

I felt that the kids’ names should be identifiable (which is not to say identical) with the names of both parents. After all, that’s what my parents did and it worked well for us. We clearly had a family name, people could easily identify us with our parents by name, and yet they each kept their own name. As an added benefit, my cousins also had hyphenated names, so our names were also identifiable with theirs. I liked this idea in theory, although I would also have been fine with an option where we all chose to have the same hyphenated name as each other (but that didn’t make sense for us for a variety of reasons). Both of these answers (in contrast with the more traditional everyone, or everyone except mom, takes dad’s name) recognize that both parents are independent individuals with their own histories and identities coming together to make a new family identity. Neither of them is wholly subsumed by the other, nor do they remain completely independent.

Longer Still: Ask me in person. :)

PS. I was talking about this with a friend recently, who is also thinking about what to do with her name when she gets married. But there’s an added twist. She’s German, and apparently in Germany if you are not taking your husband's name you have to declare what your children’s last-name will be when you get your marriage-license. Now there’s some added pressure! I actually wanted to think about this up-front myself, because I felt that what I named my kids and what I did with my own name were not independent of each other, but it certainly wasn’t required by law!

Responding to hyphen-aversion

2010-01-15T15:22:00.003-05:00

The most frequent reasoning I hear as to why hyphenated names are not viable, goes something like this:

Hyphenated names are impractical. Sure, it works for one generation; but what will your kids do? It doesn’t work after one generation! And, by the way, you think you’re being all cool and feminist, but really it’s still patriarchal cause the names obviously came from mom’s dad and dad’s dad. *Snicker*.

Ack. How aggravatingly naïve, condescending, and anti-feminist (anti-progress, really) to boot. Also, if I’m okay with the name I was given, why do you need to try to tear it down? It’s not your problem.

Anyways, with regard to point 1 (hyphenated names only work for 1 generation): Dude, trust your kids more than that! People are creative. A hyphenated name gives you more options to play with not less. I know people who grew up with the whole family having the father's name, people who grew up with only their mother having her name, people who grew up with hyphenated names, and some even more creative solutions. Now those same people are grown up and getting married. Some of them have kept their name, some have taken their husband's name, some have hyphenated, and some have created new / hybrid names. All of these are equally possibilities for people who start out with hyphenated names and those who do not. The difference is simply that those who grew up with hyphenated names generally thought more carefully about their choices, because they grew up knowing there was more than one possibility. Seriously, no matter what you name your kids, they'll figure out what to do with it when they grow up – whether or not you want them to.

Point 2 (mom’s name is really patriarchal too) really makes me want to yell. Set aside names for a moment -- is that really how you view the world? Is no progress possible on anything? So, what, because things were screwed up in the past I’m supposed to passively sit by and let that past dictate my future? I don’t think so! Yes, most last names are patriarchal. And yes, I can’t change the past. But I can change the future. And if my mother gave me her name, and if I pass it along, etc, that’s history in the making right there. The name doesn’t lose its past, but it does gain new layers of meaning and significance.

What's in a name?

2010-01-14T17:48:00.004-05:00

What do you do with your name when you get married? It’s a very personal question, and yet it’s bigger than that. Do you hyphenate? If so, in what order, and do all of you hyphenate, or just your offspring? Do you keep your name, but give your kids another (an answer I’ve seen a lot among professional women)? Do you create a new name? Or go with the traditional patriarchal answer? If you pick any answer but the last, you can expect questions and judgments, and they don’t end.

Now, add a new layer to the question. Your parents were liberal feminists ready to change the world. They gave you a hyphenated name. Now you’re going-on-30 and getting married. What do you do? The world wants to know. Welcome to my life. For as long as I can remember people have been asking me what I’ll do with my name when I get married (and before that they asked my parents!!). Seriously, this has been going on since before I was born! It has always annoyed me that people think this is appropriate behavior when they wouldn’t ask that of an acquaintance of similar closeness who did not happen to have a hyphenated name.* So I coyly answered, “you’ll find out when I get married.” When I got engaged, I stuck to the same response I’d used since childhood.

As it turns out, one of the nice things about having a hyphenated name to start with is that fewer people simply assume that you changed your name when you get married -- they actually ask! After all, you were clearly raised in a weird multi-named feminist environment, and people have been asking for your whole life, so you've probably put some thought into it.

*(Yes, sometimes there was genuine curiosity, but frequently it was tinged with a “Ha! See you and your silly feminist parents – you’re stuck now!” sentiment.)

Other considerations:

2009-11-19T13:14:00.001-05:00

I’ve been thinking about potentially donating my wedding dress, now that the wedding is over. Saving it seems wasteful when there are organizations that can use it to provide other brides with affordable dress options while using the profits for charitable causes. And really, while I suppose its possible that someday I might have a daughter who wants it, the odds are dramatically against this ((a) I might not have a girl, (b) she likely won’t be my size, (c) even if she is, she likely won’t share my taste)).

On the other hand, it is sort of sentimental, and maybe some day I would appreciate being able to go back and look at it.

Either way, I need to decide soon. If it’s being kept I need to deal with getting it cleaned and preserved. If it’s being shipped for charity, well, it’ll still need cleaning etc, so sooner is still better. Any thoughts?

Once Upon a Wedding, Or, Jewishly Conscious Wedding -- Part II

2009-11-17T14:02:00.013-05:00

(The previous post told you about resources. This one talks about the decisions we actually made.)

Things we did to walk the orthodox/egalitarian line, and make a halachic wedding that was also inclusive of women:

Our RCA halachic pre-nup was signed (and notarized) before the wedding, by friends who would not be valid halachic witnesses, but are totally competent to sign this particular religious document because it simply requires witnesses to meet the standards of American juridical practice.

The rabbi announced at the tish that the pre-nup had been signed ahead of time, so that, even though the signing was not public, it was made public knowledge. (We also explained that we had done so in our wedding program).

The ketubah was not signed during the tish, but rather at the bedeken, so that both of us and all our friends and family were present.

To effect the kinyan of the ketubah, rather than having the groom lift an insignificant object (e.g. pen / handkerchief) to signal his assent, I personally gave the him a ring I bought for him; he took it and lifted it to signal his acceptance of the ketubah obligations. Thus I was able to publicly give him a ring in a way which produced a halachic effect, and that could not possibly be interpreted as interfering with kiddushin.

Under the chuppah, during Erusin, I announced my intention to accept the ring bought for me by the groom, saying, “Behold, I am prepared to accept this ring for the purpose of kiddushin according to the laws of Moses and Israel” (in Hebrew). This announcement not only adds equality by giving the woman a voice under the chuppah, but it also adds clarity to what takes place since she verbally announces that she intends to accept the ring rather than working on the basis of “silence is acceptance.” After I made this statement the groom gave me the ring he had bought and recited the traditional formula.

For sheva brachot under the chuppah we chose to have one person (in this case a family member) sing all 7 brachot rather than calling up a rotating list of friends. We love the person who did so, but the decision was also made for cosmetic reasons – you cannot get around the halachic requirement to have a man say the sheva brachot under the chuppah, but it looks and feels very different to have one man do so versus a parade of men.

Benching was led by a man, but sheva brachot during benching were recited by a mix of male and female friends.

Jewishly Conscious Wedding -- Resources

2009-10-28T16:13:00.004-04:00

As you may have guessed, not only have I thought long and hard about various social, political, and environmental concerns about the wedding (see previous post), I have also put a great deal of thought into the Jewish aspects of the wedding.

Specifically, here are some resources I found useful in trying to plan a wedding that is both halachic and meaningfully inclusive of women:

Most important are the following JOFA Journal issues:

i) On making halahcic weddings more egalitarian: Summer 2003 JOFA Journal's special wedding edition.

ii) On the issue of halachic pre-nuptial agreements, and other means to avoid agunah issues, see the Summer 2005 JOFA Journal on the subject.

Relatedly, here is the RCA (Orthodox) halachic pre-nuptuial agreement.

Additionally, I would point out that there are many other relevant resources available on the JOFA website about Jewish marriage from an Orthodox, Feminist perspective.

We also found this article, "What's the Truth about...a Chatan and Kallah Not Seeing Each Other before the Wedding?" quite illuminating. Turns out this is not an ancient, time-honored Jewish custom, but rather a relatively recent innovation.

Also worth knowing about is JUFJ's Green and Just Celebrations Guide, which provides a lot of ideas about making simchas more environmentally and socially conscious. This of course relates to the subject of the previous post, but with a particularly Jewish bent, so I'm including it here.

Socially conscious wedding

2009-10-22T14:56:00.005-04:00

I tend to think of my self as a socially-conscious person, but we (fiancé and I) are not the activisty types (though I am much more so than he is). I buy environmentally friendly cleaning products, but I don’t preach about it, and I don’t object to resorting to paper plates when doing dishes feels like too much of a chore. I think about my choices, and attempt to prevent injustices in the world where possible, but I don’t go out and protest very often. My entire choice of vocation is premised on making the world a better place, but my chosen route is research rather than advocacy, outreach or fieldwork.

Similarly, our wedding will not be the most environmentally friendly possible -- it will not involve local food, and will likely generate plenty of waste. It will, in most respects, be a typical wedding. At the same time, however, I feel that (a) when planning an event I know will be wasteful, I should attempt to curtail that waste in at least some areas, and (b) that if we are spending so much money on one event, it should be an opportunity to do so in a way that reflects our values. So, here are some of the small ways were are doing this:

You already know that my engagement ring is made from a conflict-free diamond, set in recycled-gold, and sold by a socially-conscious jeweler. Both of our wedding bands are also made of recycled gold and come from the same seller. We will make sure our guests know about this.

We bought (with money from my bubby –her wedding gift to us) fair trade kippot from MayaWorks for our guests. (Toyb’s sister is making kippot for the men in our immediate families). Again, our guests will be told about this choice.

Aside: The MayaWorks kippot are amazing – absolutely beautiful hand knit kippot in an array of colors (so everyone will have kippot of a similar style but different colors) – they will be memorable, and many people will actually use them afterwards!

We asked guests not to have registry items gift wrapped when ordering them to be mailed. The packing material generates enough waste.

We also asked guests to consider offsetting the carbon-impact of their travel to the wedding as part of our gift (particularly relevant given the long-distance travel inherently involved when you live 3,000 miles from your family of origin).

“I am a resident of the County of Los Angeles”

2009-07-14T18:34:00.005-04:00

Last Spring, my parents came to visit and brought with them a Jury summons I had received from the County of Los Angeles. I sat in their hotel room looking over the form. It asks several yes or no statements where the “correct” (or most common) answer is highlighted. I read the questions out loud, along with my intended answers:

“I am a US Citizen? Yes. I am a member of the armed forces? No. I am a resident of the County of Los Angeles? Yes.”
Wait! I meant, NO. I don’t live there anymore. Like, seriously!

Later that day, back at my apartment, when I sat down to fill out the form, I thought to myself, “I should pay careful attention so I don’t do that again.” And so I began: “I am a US Citizen? Yes. I am a member of the armed forces? No. I am a resident of the County of Los Angeles? Yes.” Oops. I had to get a new form. Freudian slip? Um, yeah.

So today, I did something really crazy. Perhaps the hardest thing I’ve done since leaving CA for the East Coast 6 years ago. I officially declared myself a resident of Massachusetts, and turned in my beloved CA driver's license. I feel like I've lost a piece of my identity. As I said to Toyb later, "This is what true love looks like. Nothing less could have induced me to do this." I did not, however, register to vote. Not yet. I couldn’t bring myself to do it. For that one I’m going to need someone to hold my hand.

Post-denominational egalitarian girl in an orthodox world

2009-03-24T18:45:00.001-04:00

So, what does an egalitarian girl do when she’s engaged (much less married) to an orthodox boy? This is a question I expect I’ll be answering over and over again in different ways for the rest of my life. And, as usual, there isn’t an easy answer other than to approach each issue as it comes up.

At the moment the interesting thing is that figuring out how to strike the right balance in our wedding is much more difficult than figuring out how to live our lives together. That makes sense actually, because as it turns out our practice, apart from the egal davening, is not very different. So setting up a life together is relatively easy on that count. And we are happy to continue to daven in two minyanim. We are particularly lucky in our current locale in that we can do that all in one building, but even if that does not remain the case, we’ll be okay.

But planning a wedding? That’s a bit more complicated. Luckily we have great resource in Rabbi Linzer’s article for JOFA (circa 2003), which indicates a variety of ways to make Jewish weddings more egalitarian within the boundaries of halacha. Stay tuned to see just what our balance will be. It promises to be an interesting ride.

Made with love, not angst

2009-03-04T19:19:00.003-05:00

I have previously written at length about the subject of conflict diamonds and (consumer-based) measures to alleviate the problem. However, this question had renewed potency when I recently became engaged. You may wonder, what did Sunkist Miss decide to do about an engagement ring? Well, I’m here to share that information with you.

Initially when we went shopping (browsing), I really couldn’t find anything I was happy with. And the more I thought about it, the more I recognized that I was not going to be happy with a standard Kimberly Process certificate of origin. Don’t get me wrong, the Kimberly Process represents a very important improvement in how diamond retailers do business. However, it wasn’t enough. It is well known that, as I described previously, “it’s difficult to actually verify where diamonds come from and the major buyers (companies) may mix them together.”

Enter Brilliant Earth -- a San Francisco-based company committed to making socially conscious jewelry. Their diamonds come from Canada (from Canadian mines, not through Canada). They use recycled metal (mine is white gold) for making the settings and bands. The materials they send/pack in are all made from recycled paper and the jewelry boxes are from wood from a sustainable forest. Finally, they recognize that all of these things are not enough because, as I wrote about in my previous blog post on the subject, the problem with effectively boycotting African diamonds is that while verification is extraordinarily difficult, not all African diamonds are conflict diamonds, and poor communities are reliant on their export. Their solution? As their website explains, “Brilliant Earth also dedicates 5% of its profits to directly benefit local African communities harmed by the diamond industry.” Moreover, they are also beginning to offer certified Namibian diamonds which are conflict-free, and mined with fair labor and environmentally monitored mining practices. In other words, they are really making an effort to get to the source of a variety of social problems in the jewelry and diamond business one ring at a time. Also, the people there were very helpful and informative and we got a hand-written note with the rings! (We got wedding bands there as well so they would be made from recycled metals and would match).

Yes, I know I sound like a commercial for this company, but really, I want people to know that this option is out there. Finally, when I found them, I actually felt good about the ring. Because it’s not just me getting something I don’t have to feel guilty about, but something I can feel confident is making a market-based statement about what is important and helping to support a company that does good work in this area.

I will add one last thought. In my prior post on this subject I brought up the question of whether wearing a diamond ring in some sense constitutes marat ayin. Marat Ayin is the Jewish concept which proscribes an action that while technically permissible looks like something that is not, and which therefore makes others think that the impermissible is permissible. So, is wearing an extremely socially conscious ring marat ayin because other people might think that any old diamond ring was acceptable? This was really my last hold-up. What I concluded is that (a) as mentioned above, it is important to support this company, and (b) it is in a certain sense an educational opportunity for me. No, not everyone I encounter will know the story of my ring. But my friends and family will, anyone who reads this blog will, anyone who attends our wedding will. And in that way we will teach people that there are more possibilities out there. It’s not only about Brilliant Earth, but more broadly about the fact that it is possible to make socially and politically responsible choices.

Unforgettable

2009-01-21T17:46:00.003-05:00

Yesterday I had the privilege of witnessing history. I was cold and achy and walked forever and it was chaotic and the sound echoed. But I was there and it was amazing. I was lucky enough to have a ticket to the Inauguration of our newest President, Barak Obama.

I, along with some two million of my fellow Americans stood on the National Mall and watched Obama take the oath of office and address the country. His speech was eloquent as we have come to expect, but that is not what made the moment so special. It was the grand significance of this moment in American history, and the energy and optimism radiating from an enthusiastic crowd of people who trekked to Washington to be present in that moment, that made it unforgettable. I am awed by the thought that my children will never know what it is to grow up believing that only white Christian men can be president. Okay, in my heart of hearts I believe that Christian is still politically required in this country (though I would love to be proven wrong). And I don’t think that this election ended the significance of racial or gender inequality—but it represented progress that we didn't imagine was possible in our generation.

My parents worked to change the possibilities that American offers. My father was in high school when he volunteered on Bobby Kennedy’s campaign in 1968, and later really cut his teeth politically on the McGovern campaign. My mother worked to get women into elected office. They tried to change reality. But by the time I was growing up, they were not expecting to see this happen, not yet. It seemed like the changes they worked for were still a long ways off.

In Barbara Kingsolver’s Animal Dreams, one of the characters, Hallie Noline writes, “[T]he very least you can do in your life is to figure out what you hope for. And the most you can do is live inside that hope. Not admire it from a distance but live right in it, under its roof.” I am not an optimistic person. But yesterday I felt a part of a moment of collective optimism.

All weekend the millions of people who made their pilgrimage to Washington exuded a spirit of exuberance. They were just not celebrating Obama’s inauguration, or even the inauguration of our first black president, but something more – the fact that this seminal event changes the possibilities that the future holds. I grew up in a diverse metropolitan community, and very few of us ever believed that anyone like us could grow up to be President. We were brilliant and we were going places, the presidency just wasn’t one of them. And so I am thrilled that this highly symbolic change – the realization of the impossible dream – has taken place. I believe that more deeply rooted changes have taken place allowing this moment to arise. And I am cautiously optimistic that further deep changes are coming – not just during Obama’s presidency but further into the future. Because it is not one man changing history. It is Americans changing their own destiny by collectively changing the realm of the possible.

Someday I will teach my children about these things, and tell them that I stood there in the cold at that moment. Sí se puede.

An Ode to Socks

2009-01-21T00:26:00.003-05:00

Yay! A while ago some friends were talking about “smartwool” socks, but I tossed it aside as hype. However, my feet are always cold (okay, most of me is always cold). So I'd been worrying about spending a bunch of time outside in DC this week. And besides, I needed to try something different. Thus when Toyb suggested I try smartwool, I decided to give it a whirl. I obtained a few pairs (with some lovely designs). I have been wearing them the last few days (including a double-layer today), and wow am I impressed! (Though I’m not convinced the miracle is really the brand so much as wool vs. cotton in general, but still…). Hooray for cozy feet. Clearly a shopping trip is in order!

In honor of this new revelation, I bring you an excerpt from Pablo Neruda’s poem “Oda a los calectines” (“Ode to Socks”), which concludes:

Y es esta la moral de mi Oda:
Dos veces es belleza la belleza,
y lo que es bueno es doblemente bueno,
cuando se trata de dos calcetines
de lana en el invierno.

And this is the moral of my Ode:
Beauty is two-times beauty,
And that which is good is doubly good,
When you are talking about a pair of wool socks
In wintertime.

(Translation is my own).

Answering to a higher authority

2009-01-15T22:45:00.002-05:00

The application of standards whether for to people, organizations, or even nations is not easy and not always fair. We are all biased. And sometimes that bias is revealed through preferences or prejudices – treating favorites less harshly than others. But sometimes that bias is manifested in holding certain people to a higher standard.

During my sophomore year in college when I was taking a notoriously difficult Spanish literature class I encountered this type of standard. More than once I was surprised by receiving a lower-grade than I thought I had earned on a paper for the class. I discussed this with La Profesora. I told her that while I was fine with a B if I earned it, I wanted to know why I had been given that grade when all of her comments on my paper were complimentary. She responded by telling me that in fact I had written the best paper in the class, but other the students had received higher grades because while my paper was clearly very good, I was capable of better.

Likewise, when I was growing up my mother regularly told me “I don’t care what other people’s children do, I care what you do”, whenever I would try to bring in someone else as an example of why she was being too judgmental.

I must confess that despite recalling my great frustration with both my mother and La Profesora, I empathize with their position. I hold myself to a higher standard than I believe is fair to apply to other people. Likewise, I hold those I respect to a higher standard than people with whom I have no connection. The same can go for organizations or even nations. I think that this is legitimate, but I also try to temper the tendency with some leniency. I try to remember to distinguish between hopes and expectations – to hold a combination of idealism about potential and realism about what to expect. I think I succeed, at least to a point. After all, while I have been accused of being an idealist, I’ve never been accused of being an optimist.

An Ode to Travel by Train

2009-01-15T13:00:00.000-05:00

I am writing this as I sit on the train from Boston to DC. If you can afford it (in terms of time and money), I believe the train is the best way to travel between East Coast cities. It’s comfortable and stress-free. You don’t have to get to the station super early as when flying and when you arrive you’re already in the city. You don’t have to know where you’re going and pay attention to the road as when driving. And it’s less cramped and more reliable than the bus. (Not to mention more reliable than a plane in winter!). My computer is plugged in and my phone is charging. When I’m done writing, I’m going to take a little walk and stretch my legs. I only wish there was wireless, but I’m sure that will come some day. Meanwhile, I’m enjoying looking out the window. I think the view is probably considerably nicer during the winter – everything looks magical covered in snow – at least when you’re looking at it from a warm and cozy vantage point.

As for the Left Coast: I’ve taken the train from Los Angeles to Portland, OR. It was a fantastic experience (and much more scenic than back East), but is worth doing only if you will enjoy the experience for it’s own sake. If your purpose is simply to reach your destination, a plane is worth it at that distance.

When inspiration fails to strike, try a meme

2009-01-08T11:04:00.002-05:00

So I haven’t really felt like writing in a long while, and the truth is I’m still not feeling the love. I guess I’ve been wrapped up in living my life and processing events of the past semester. However, Katrina (of Conservadox and Single) tagged me with a meme (two-in-one actually). This is not the sort of thing I have ever done, or imagined myself doing, but I’m flattered, and besides, I’m in need of inspiration and this was handed to me! So, here goes.

Part 1. Pick up the nearest book (physically) to you, turn to page 56, and write down the 2nd to 5th sentences.

The book is The Inheritance of Loss by Kiran Desai (a novel which I have not yet read – it’s next on my reading list).

It was suffused with Indian femininity in there, abundant amounts of sweet newly washed hair, gold strung Kolhapuri slippers lying about. Heavyweight accounting books sat on the table along with a chunky Ganesh brought all the way from home despite its weight, for interior decoration plus luck in money and exams.

“Well,” one of them continued with the conversation Biju had interrupted, discussing a fourth Indian girl not present, “why doesn’t she just go for an Indian boy then, who’ll understand all that temper tantrum stuff?”

“She won’t look at an Indian boy, she doesn’t want a nice Indian boy who’s grown up chatting with his aunties in the kitchen.”

Part 2. (Unrelated to Part 1). State 7 facts about yourself. Katrina says the facts should/can be a combination of weird and not-so-weird ones.

1) I find talking out loud a very useful way of organizing my thoughts. I like hearing myself think. While having an interlocutor is preferable, if none is available, talking to inanimate objects is frequently an adequate substitute.

2) On occasion I have caught myself talking out loud to myself in Spanish.

3) I feel much calmer and happier when my stuff is neat and organized. I feel like there’s a connection between the organization of my things and my life. So if my space is chaotic I feel like my life is chaotic. When I organize my space and my things, I find myself feeling more in control of my life, I have ordered the chaos in my universe in a way that extends beyond the pieces of paper and books filed neatly into their correct locations.

4) I thrive on making detailed plans of how to approach upcoming tasks. My favorite way of organizing is making lists on post-it notes. I can plan out my work days, weeks, even months in advance that way. And the really special thing is – it works! I actually follow the plan.

5) I frequently forget to eat. I get absorbed in my work and I don’t get hungry. Really, I must have a defective hunger mechanism.

6) I love buying greeting cards / note cards. I can spend forever searching for the perfect one. And I frequently buy them even when there is no occasion imminent. In those cases I save them because I have found the perfect card for some particular person on some occasion that may eventually arise.

7) Back before grad school, in the land before time, I actually had real hobbies (in addition to varieties of politics), like dance and art.

(Note: I am not actually tagging anyone particular. But if you read this blog, then I probably read yours and would love to read your answer. So consider yourself tagged if you would enjoy this exercise. You can even link to your answer in a comment!).

Remembering

2008-12-07T11:25:00.005-05:00

It is snowing outside and I am remembering Erica Murray, who I have written about twice before, and who lost her battle to leukemia this week. She was a beautiful sunshiney person, and will be missed by many people. Last night I re-watched the youtube music video ("If I had a Marrow Donor") she and her sister Jaci made encouraging people to sign up for the Bone Marrow Registry. And I cried. I am sad for Erica, and all the things she never got to do. And I am sad for Jaci watching her sister die. And for their mother. It breaks my heart.

I'm also remembering Nicole Elliot, who lost the same battle, some 10 years ago, in high school.

Remembering Nicole makes me feel old. How much I've lived since then. Remembering Erica reminds me that I am still young. How much is still left ahead. And in both cases, how unfair it all is.

Prop 8 by the Numbers

2008-11-30T09:17:00.004-05:00

[Disclaimer: The numbers of votes and percentages come from the California Secretary of State. The number crunching (comparing Presidential and Prop 8 votes) is my own.]

The Text of the Proposed Law:

Section 7.5 is added to Article I of the California Constitution, to read:
SEC. 7.5. Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California.

The Numbers:

Presidential Race (CA):

Obama: 8,063,473 votes (61.1%)
McCain: 4,902,278 votes (37.1%)
Other: 248,081 votes

Prop 8:

Yes: 6,838,107 votes (52.3%)
No: 6,246,463 votes (47.7%)

Analysis:

What the numbers mean:
13,213,832 votes were cast in the Presidential race in CA.
13,084,570 votes were cast on either side of Prop 8.
This is slightly less than in the presidential race, but very similar. In fact, fewer people declined to vote on Prop 8 than voted for “other” in the Presidential race.

If every person who voted for McCain also voted for Prop 8 (clearly an exaggeration, but it is reasonable to assume that a very large percentage did so), 1,935,829 Obama supporters must have voted for proposition 8. Yes, qualitatively we knew this was the case, but seeing that number has different sort of impact. (I would add that this is accurate even taking into account those who voted for “other” as it is likely that the vast majority, being more liberal on this issue than the general population (green party, peace & freedom, etc), voted against prop 8).

Recent Historical Context:
In 2000 Proposition 22 proposed to limit marriage to that between a man and woman in CA. This was at the time a legal fiction since there was already only marriage between straight couples but it was seen as preventative. In addition, this was a normal ballot measure, not a constitutional amendment, and was overturned by the court, along with other relevant statutory law, in May 2008, thus making same-sex marriage legal in CA and precipitating the current Prop 8.

Prop 22 passed easily with Yes: 4,618,673 votes (61.4%) compared to No: 2,909,370 votes (38.6%). Clearly there were many fewer voters in this election (It was the presidential primary in March 2000). Moreover, a majority of them were Republicans (4,153,693 voted for Republican candidates in the primary compared to 3,272,023 for Democratic candidates).

So, The relevance of the Prop 22 story is two-fold: If you simply look at the percentages, well, we’ve come a long way – to move from 61% to 52% in 8 years is actually remarkable. This extent of this change is undercut by the different distribution (republican/democrat) in voters (and quantity of votes) in the two elections. Nonetheless, I think that is still indicative of an ongoing cultural shift (this is my own conjecture, not proved by the numbers, but one can make a strong argument for this understanding).

[And next, on Postcards from Outer Space, a more qualitative look at Prop 8 and CA politics.]

Another election season as a California expat

2008-11-24T10:11:00.005-05:00

As I prepared for the election by having my biannual pre-election phone consult with my father I thought, how can I ever stop voting in California? I would miss this so much. It is our bonding time in a very real way, as my dad talks me through the various judicial candidates and ballot propositions – with my mom in the background adding her perspective and keeping him honest. It’s a Sunkist Family Special.

We Californians voted for Barak Obama by 61.2% compared to 37% for McCain. That was exciting, but it also means that on election night a bigger question was how the various ballot measures were going to turn out. There were 12 state-wide ballot measures, plus various county and local measures. (Prop 8 deserves its own discussion, so today I’ll only touch it in relation to the other measures.) People outside Cali seem to think Californians are totally liberal, but that misunderstands California politics. California is its own special snowflake (err, sun-flake?!). My theory is that California politics is in large part predicated on our ballot-measure voting system. That is to say, the general population is able to pick-and-choose their issues; opinions are mixed and people can vote their opinion on separate topics.

For an overview, Californian voters over my lifetime have tended to be: pro-choice, pro-environment, anti-immigration, anti-criminal (e.g. pro-three-strikes law, pro-capital punishment), and anti-though-increasingly-divided-on- gay marriage.

Thus some key results from 2008:

Prop 2: Farm Animals: Yes 63.4%, No 36.6%
Prop 4: Parental Notification: Yes 47.7%, No 52.3%
Prop 5: Nonviolent Drug Offense: Yes 40.3%, No 59.7%
Prop 8: Ban Same-Sex Marriage: Yes 52.1%, No 47.9%

Where Prop 2 requires better treatment of farm animals; Prop 4 would have required parental notification for abortion; Prop 5 would have improved treatment programs and reduced prison sentences for nonviolent drug offences; and Prop 8 amends the CA state constitution to ban same-sex marriage.

[Coming up next on Postcards from Outer Space, a discussion of Prop 8.]

When school meets the sabbath day

2008-11-20T15:26:00.004-05:00

I don’t actually have a problem with talking about school (which is after all my “work”) on Shabbat. Maybe it would be different if I didn’t like what I did. Certainly I choose to avoid the aggravating related subjects (homework), but I am happy to talk about the content. After all, I chose to study IR because I’m interested in it. I’m fascinated with how the world works. Moreover, as mentioned previously, politics of all kinds are also a hobby.

On a day-to-day basis I get caught up in the frustration of coursework. So I actually really appreciate the chance to talk about what I’m learning. For one thing, it makes me step back and think about that question, and that helps put the whole school thing in perspective. So last week, when E asked me about international criminal law, I jumped at the opportunity to explain.

The problem is, as my friends used to point out in undergrad, that the stuff I choose to study is frequently depressing. Really. What did you learn about this week? Genocide. Not really shabbos dinner conversation. Not even for me.

Addicted to Politics

2008-11-19T20:05:00.003-05:00

Hobby of the semester: explaining domestic (US), and particularly California, politics to foreign students during the bus ride.

Hobbies more broadly: Minyan politics, domestic politics, disability rights, saving the world…

Oh wait, saving the world’s what I do professionally! Otherwise known as international politics. Hmmm…

Seems that it’s all politics. Anyone surprised?!

*Disclaimer: I did actually have other hobbies before I was a graduate student. Really.

Wishing life were fair

2008-10-30T23:00:00.002-04:00

I have written about Erica before, in March, when she was searching for a bone marrow donor after having a relapse of leukemia which had been in remission for a year. I only know her peripherally, but we have many mutual friends, and have crossed paths for a long long time. She never found a perfect donor, but they went with an imperfect match, and she has been doing well with that and was leukemia free – until 20 days ago when she relapsed again. That led to more chemo. And today, more bad news. The chemo failed. I am feeling so sad.

Around Rosh Hashanah, my mom emailed asking “Who or what has inspired you in the past year?” My answer was Erica. Both in her personal strength and the way I have seen her inspire other people. She is a very special person, and I’m feeling reminded about how unfair life can be.

Allergic

2008-10-02T23:11:00.000-04:00

I am allergic to the East Coast.
Oh, I know. You think I’m being melodramatic again. But you’re wrong.
I mean, quite literally, I was allergic to almost nothing in CA.
Then I moved East.
After a couple years in DC, I developed skin allergies – allergic dermatitis – reactions to airborne allergens that result in itchy rashy arms.
A couple more years in Boston, and I have (presumptively – not yet confirmed) developed seasonal allergic asthma.
That’s right, I moved East to a place where my skin breaks out in rashes and I can’t breathe … literally!
California sounds SO appealing right now. I want to go home. I want to breathe.

A student of international relations

2008-09-18T21:53:00.001-04:00

I recently got in touch with a childhood friend. She asked me a question that turned out to be surprisingly difficult to answer:

“International studies sounds very interesting and cool. I don't know much about what it entails, could you let me know?”

The dictionary says:

a branch of political science dealing with the relations between nations.

But that is not a satisfying definition. It is too short and outdated. After a bit of thought, this is approximately what I wrote (slightly edited for identifying details):

Let me try to answer your question about international relations. Many places international relations is treated as a sub-specialty within political science, but increasingly it is seen separately as its own subject. Nonetheless, it is very much interdisciplinary, involving aspects of political science, history, economics, sociology, and area/cultural studies.

Basically it is the study of how countries, societies, and people interact across borders. Traditionally this meant the understanding of how and why countries conduct foreign policy (both diplomacy and military action). Today this also entails how transnational organizations work (be they inter-governmental organizations like the UN, multi-national corporations, or international non-governmental organizations), and how transnational forces work (the flow of people, ideas, and goods across borders).

When studying international relations people generally choose a specialty to focus on – either regional, topical (functional), or both. For example, people may focus on international security, international law, international organizations, international trade, international economics, mediation and conflict resolution, international environmental policy, or any of a myriad of other sub-specialties.

Later, thinking about how long and winding my explanation was I decided to look up some other definitions. What I found made me feel much better about my descriptive definition. Compare my off-the-top-of-my-head explanation with the intro to wikipedia entry on international relations:

International relations (IR) is a branch of political science. It represents the study of foreign affairs and global issues among states within the international system, including the roles of states, inter-governmental organizations (IGOs), non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and multinational corporations (MNCs). It is both an academic and public policy field, and can be either positive or normative as it both seeks to analyze as well as formulate the foreign policy of particular states.

Apart from political science, IR draws upon such diverse fields as economics, history, law, philosophy, geography, sociology, anthropology, psychology, and cultural studies. It involves a diverse range of issues, from globalization and its impacts on societies and state sovereignty to ecological sustainability, nuclear proliferation, nationalism, economic development, terrorism, organized crime, human security, foreign interventionism and human rights.

I also looked it up in my handy-dandy Penguin Dictionary of International Relations, which came up with similar ideas. I will not replicate it here.

I guess I did alright after all. It was kind of an interesting exercise.

The Purpose of Government

2008-09-17T22:34:00.004-04:00

In his inaugural address President Kennedy famously said, "Ask not what your country can do for you--ask what you can do for your country." It was inspirational and expressed an important concept about giving back to society. However, in a political environment that tends to question the efficacy of government writ large and to deride "insiders" and "bureaucrats", I think it is also important to remember what your country can do for you.

What is the purpose of government? It is to allow us to act collectively in ways that we are incapable of acting individually. This is what President Lincoln wrote on the subject so many years ago, and it is still relevant today:

The legitimate object of government, is to do for a community of people, whatever they need to have done, but can not do, at all, or can not, so well do, for themselves - in their separate, and individual capacities.

In all that the people can individually do as well for themselves, government ought not to interfere.

The desirable things which the individuals of a people can not do, or can not well do, for themselves, fall into two classes: those which have relation to wrongs, and those which have not. Each of these branch off into an infinite variety of subdivisions.

The first - that in relation to wrongs - embraces all crimes, misdemeanors, and nonperformance of contracts. The other embraces all which, in its nature, and without wrong, requires combined action, as public roads and highways, public schools, charities, pauperism, orphanage, estates of the deceased, and the machinery of government itself.

From this it appears that if all men were just, there still would be some, though not so much, need for government.

~ Abraham Lincoln

Of course, in this highly imperfect world, there are only too many ways in which government is needed to help us collectively reach towards our potential.

Foreign Policy Experience

2008-09-14T15:31:00.001-04:00

To all my friends and neighbors who are going around proclaiming “I have more foreign policy experience than Sarah Palin” (which, among other things, is the name of a group on facebook)…

I do not believe that Sarah Palin is qualified to be Vice President. Moreover, I do not believe that Sarah Palin should be Vice President because I wholly disagree with her policy stances. However, I believe that criticism should be justly and accurately applied.

Most of you do not have more foreign policy experience than Sarah Palin. Perhaps you have equal foreign policy experience to Sarah Palin, because you have none. But there is no value of less than zero for foreign policy experience.

Take it from me. I actually do have more foreign policy experience than Sarah Palin. But that is a statement I make as a person who has been studying and working in international relations for the past 9+ years. I do not expect most politicians to have that. I don’t even expect most presidential candidates to have that. Yes, I would like them to have more foreign poicy experience than our current President did upon taking office, or than Sarah Palin currently has, but that does not mean that I believe that you have any more relevant experience than she does. I know that life is not fair, but I can try to be. Thanks for trying with me.

Summer Reading

2008-09-10T00:23:00.003-04:00

Empire Falls, Richard Russo
The Grass Is Singing, Doris Lessing
The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay, Michael Chabon
Water for Elephants, Sara Gruen
Snow Falling on Cedars, David Guterson
Ines del Alma Mía, Isabel Allende
People of the Book, Geraldine Brooks
A Thousand Splendid Suns, Khaled Hosseini
Little Brother, Cory Doctorow
Les Misérables, Victor Hugo

Currently reading:
The Memory Keeper’s Daughter, Kim Edwards

Wait! Free time? Reading literature? What's that?! Oh yeah. Summer vacation. What an amazing concept. It is, of course, over now. But I read some good stuff. And a nice mixture of just-for-fun and good-for-me. The good for me category included the Isabel Allende because I read it in the original spanish which is good practice so I don't get rusty, and Les Misérables because it is was on my list of books-I-ought-to-have-read. Also, about 1/2 the books were gifts from my Bubby, who is the #1 person keeping me apprised of interesting literature.

Now I have to get back into the swing of school. Eek! Luckily I only have a few unread (fiction) books left on my shelf to distract me, which is fine since I only have time to read on shabbos and chag. Still if you have any ideas of what should be on my future list, I'm always taking suggestions. I keep a very long list which I will not replicate here.

Still on my shelf:
The Kite Runner, Khaled Hosseini
The Book Thief, Markus Zusak
La Sombra del Viento, Carlos Ruiz Zafón

Homeward Bound

2008-07-02T20:16:00.001-04:00

During my California adventure I have, of course, been visiting with family and friends from my past. Over the course of these visits, I have been repeatedly asked my favorite question: “So, do you think you’re going to come back?”

Me? Move back to LA? I love it. I miss it. It is a part of me. And no, I’m not moving back. At least not any time soon. (Maybe when I retire? It’s not like I’d go to Florida!)

Seriously though, I’m pretty committed to staying on the East Coast. It may not exactly be “home” in the sense of the land of my birth, or the land of my family, but it is “home” in the sense of the place I live. Despite my longing for California, I know that at the end of this visit I will be returning to Boston. And that, at this moment, is where I belong. It is where my apartment is, my stuff, my school, my friends, my community. Yes, I may be home for a visit, but at the end of it I will be happy to go home.

Of Saints and Angels

2008-06-29T14:30:00.002-04:00

The other day I saw an exhibit at the Gene Autry Museum called “All the Saints of the City of Angeles.” It was a very cool multimedia bilingual and socially-conscious art exhibit. The basic idea stems from the large number of streets with saints names in Los Angles (e.g. Santa Monica, San Fernando, Saint Pierre, etc):

In All the Saints of the City of the Angels, artist J. Michael Walker uses the saints and the streets bearing their names to uncover the soul of Los Angeles, the City of the Angels.
[...]
By connecting the stories of the saints with the people and places of L.A., Walker illuminates the many facets of Los Angeles' multicultural heritage, from a troubled past including forced Native labor and greedy land developers to a contemporary landscape of economic chasms and newly built cultural bridges.

If you’re in LA between now and Sept 7th, and interested in this sort of thing, I highly recommend it.

Writing from the Other Side

2008-06-27T14:59:00.004-04:00

I am writing this blog post from my native land, where I am home for an extended visit (read: several weeks).

I’m having a very So Cal vacation. Thus far I have been to the Griffith Observatory, the Aquarium of the Pacific (aka the Long Beach Aquarium), the Nixon Library, a Dodgers game, and my alma mater. I have met people at Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf (or “coffee tea and bean” as my father calls it!), eaten lunch in Pico-Robertson (read: Jew-ville), and hung out by the Ocean (the Pacific is the only real ocean for me!). I’ve been eating plenty of fresh-picked strawberries, and getting plenty of sunshine. I have driven in circles around most of LA county multiple times, with my trusty Thomas Guide by my side, and used more gasoline than I’d care to admit (though my conscience is assuaged by the fact that I don’t even own a car in Boston, and in fact have never owned a car in my life!). It's all so very LA.

Primary Madness

2008-06-03T23:12:00.003-04:00

I am waiting for the results from today’s election. It being the first Tuesday in June, it is California’s primary day. “Wait a minute,” you may think, “Didn’t California have a primary way back in February?” Yes. We did. And yet, here we are again.

You see, California state law requires that the statewide direct primary elections be held on the first Tuesday in June (which, back in the day, is when we voted in presidential primaries – long after they had been wrapped up and decided by other less populous states). However, this year the powers-that-be, with the blessing of the Democratic Party, decided to move the presidential primary up to Super Tuesday (Feb 5, 2008). On that ballot, we voted for the presidential candidate of our choice, and of course a large number of ballot measures (referenda and/or initiatives), as is our custom.

However, the presidential primary cannot displace the statewide direct primary election, at least not without a legal change first, and so, we have another election. On this ballot I got to vote in the primary for assembly member, member of congress, numerous judges, and, of course, a couple more ballot measures on eminent domain (after all, it has already been a few months since the last round of the primary, clearly enough time to need more ballot measures!).

I find this situation very frustrating. As anyone who cares about participation in the electoral process knows, the best way to get people to vote for the smaller offices (state and local), is to tie it in to a big election that people care enough about to go to the polls. Having the primary on Super Tuesday is just such an opportunity. Not to use it is worse than squandering the opportunity – it is actually counterproductive for participation in the local election – who is going to bother to care about voting in a second primary when they already voted for president months ago? Me, and my family, and a few (millions) of our closest friends. Not enough people. Not nearly enough.

Driving on the Wrong Side of the Country

2008-05-16T13:14:00.003-04:00

I learned to drive in CA, and had never driven on the east coast at all until this past fall. At that point, after driving Toyb’s car the first few times, I quickly came to the realization that in order to survive I will need to learn two things: rotaries, and parallel parking. Neither of which I know to do. Because after all, neither is necessary in So Cal.

I also noticed something else about East Coast driving which struck me as quite peculiar: there are no painted curbs. This makes it so much harder to know exactly where to park. In CA we have painted curbs in many colors:

• red for absolutely no parking (on corners, by fire hydrants, etc)
• white for quick drop off / pick up of passengers or mail
• yellow for slightly longer loading/drop off and pick up of passengers and freight
• green for limited time parking (e.g. 30 minutes only – it will be painted on the curb)
• blue for handicapped only.

My latest observations from my road trip have added some new aspects to east coast driving:

• In MA, and ME you aren’t allowed to drive in the left lane on the highway, it’s for passing only. Say what?! Yeah, so very weird. (*Trivia: It turns out this is also the rule in PA, NJ, IL, KY, and WA.) I'm having a really hard time understanding this one, despite Toyb's valiant efforts to explain its supposed merits.

• There are signs with a lower speed limit (i.e. minimum as well as maximum). This actually does make sense to me…but I have never seen such a thing before!

Counting

2008-05-15T10:52:00.002-04:00

Why is this year different from all other years? All other years I intended to count the omer. But I never succeeded. This may seem odd to people who know how detail-oriented I generally am. But the problem is that I have never managed to start. That’s right, I keep thinking if I could just manage the first day then maybe, just maybe, I would pull it off. At least that would be a beginning. And it is rather ridiculous that I’ve never managed even that.

So, why is this year different from all other years? This year I actually started!

Moreover, I am very excited to note that as of today (last night) I have made it half way through! During my week-long road trip with a friend, we counted together every night. And being the dorks we are, that made us very excited! :)

Activist Judges

2008-05-01T23:58:00.003-04:00

(or what I learned in school this semester...)

I have been studying comparative law and my professor is fond of saying that he wishes somebody would tell the President that when he rails against activist judges, he really sounds very French! He makes an interesting point.

The French (civil law) and American (common law) legal systems were both designed with a “balance of power” in mind to provide protection against the abuses of the pre-revolutionary system. But different historical experiences shaped those fears, and thus the new systems they helped create.

In pre-revolutionary France the parlements were overly powerful – serving both judicial and quasi-legislative functions, and were identified with the landed aristocracy. The Revolution was in part a reaction against the parlements. Thus the post-Revolutionary Napoleonic Code was designed to prevent such abuses by an overly powerful judiciary.

In the American context, in contrast, the danger which the system was designed to guard against was an overly powerful executive. In the common law experience judges provided individuals with defense against the state. Thus a powerful judiciary provided a safety-check against the executive – judge made law is an integral part of the common law system, designed to protect people. In other words, activist judges are the very basis of our judicial system.

It is in France that judicial activism is inherently feared and thus systemically prevented through a firm reliance on codes and legislative supremacy. Judicial activism is very American! :)

Mongolia as a NWFZ

2008-04-15T12:30:00.003-04:00

One evening when we were taking a study-break by playing the map game, Aliza asked me a question about Mongolia. Mongolia is a Nuclear-Weapons-Free Zone, I noted in response. Aliza asked how this was possible. How, indeed? Aren’t NWFZs definitionally zones (treaty-created areas covering more than one state), not single states? Normally, yes. As the UN Chronicle explains, the very rationale behind NWFZs is based on encouraging stable non-nuclear inter-state relations:

Most States seek nuclear weapons for their deterrent qualities, often pursuing them because they fear that their neighbours are developing such weapons. Nuclear-weapon-free zones are intended to fix this security dilemma because they prohibit the possession, testing, transporting and stationing of nuclear weapons within a specific area. Without the presence of nuclear material in a region, no country should feel insecure enough to seek or develop such weapons. At its foundation, NWFZs are confidence-building measures aimed at improving trust and transparency among neighbouring countries.

In fact, the oldest NWFZ predates the NPT (Non-Proliferation Treaty) by a year. It was established in 1967 in Latin America and the Caribbean. In 1968, the NPT explicitly granted regional blocs the right to create NWFZs: “Nothing in this Treaty affects the right of any group of States to conclude regional treaties in order to assure the total absence of nuclear weapons in their respective territories,” (Article VII, NPT). Since then NWFZs have been successfully established in the South Pacific and South East Asia. NWFZs have also been created, though they are not yet in force, in Africa and Central Asia. More recently, post-Cold War Mongolia declared itself to be a single-state NWFZ and the international community has accepted this designation. Surrounded by Russia and China you could hardly expect it to create a regional zone.

You can take the girl out of California…

2008-03-30T21:35:00.004-04:00

Conversation with an old friend:

Me: So, if I’m staying here indefinitely, I guess that means I really live here.
Friend: Yeah, it kinda does.
Me: Does that mean I have to register to vote here?!
Friend: Yeah, it does.
Me: But… I still feel like a Californian!
Friend: Some people may adopt their new homes, but even if you never live in California again, you will always be a Californian.
Me: Yes, that’s true! … But my kids won’t be!
Friend: True, it’s not a nationality – you can’t pass it along!
Me: But that’s so SAD!

...but you can't take California out of the girl.

Searching

2008-03-26T20:25:00.004-04:00

Erica, with whom I am acquainted in real life, and who bridges my California-East Coast divide, was diagnosed with leukemia two years ago and has recently relapsed. This means she is very much in need of a bone marrow donor. In fact, Erica and her sister Jaci made a song about the search for a donor. If you're not on the registry, consider joining, not only for Erica, but for the random stranger out there who's life might be saved. Next time it might be someone you know. (Also, if you're on the registry and your contact information has changed, make sure it's updated!) And please, re-post/ pass this along to people you know.

Productive Procrastination

2008-03-21T09:53:00.002-04:00

In honor of Spring Break (which is really a misnomer because it is NOT spring in New England, no matter what the calendar says!) and Purim, Sunkist Miss presents some fun and productive ways to procrastinate (at least if you share some of my interests). These are a few of my favorite things:

1. Geography as procrastination. It’s a map game! Addictive and educational. Perfect for your local internationalist, and anyone else who likes to know where other countries are. (Hint: it helps if you turn the sound on. I know the noise is annoying, but it is useful for knowing when you are getting things right or wrong).

2. Free Rice. Seriously, this is a great procrastination tool for those who are verbally inclined (not that we know anyone like that!). And it’s a feel good game, because as you play, you donate rice to the World Food Program (paid for by ads, of course).

3. Beverly Hills Chabad. Say what?! Yes, really. So, maybe normal people don’t sit around learning leyning when they’re procrastinating, but who ever said I was normal? Anyhow, this is an awesome resources – I kid you not, it’s an online tikkun! How cool is that?! (Yes, you can also check out Bible ORT, for a verse-by-verse dissection, but for basic tikkun functionality BH Chabad is totally the way to go!).

Happy Purim!

District of Columbia v. Heller

2008-03-18T23:22:00.003-04:00

The Supreme Court today heard the oral arguments for the case examining DC's handgun ban and the 2nd Amendment. The last time SCOTUS heard a Second Amendment case was in 1939. This one is going to make history folks. It's worth keeping track of.

Here are two articles on today's proceedings: the first is from the Washington Post, and the second from the New York Times (there's also a link there to CSPAN's audio of the arguments). When available, transcripts of the oral argument will be on the SCOTUS website.

Check it out. No commentary from Sunkist Miss today. Just bringing you the news.

Amor con sal, chile, limón

2008-03-12T21:27:00.003-04:00

Querido lector (Dearest Reader),

I have written previously about cilantro as the secret to Mexican cooking. Today, I share with you the other key, the trinity: sal, chile, limón (salt, chili, [and] lime).

This trio can be found on every table, your regular daily condiment, as common as table salt is here. It is a also a refrain you hear anywhere that food can be found. No “and” necessary. It is a phrase unto itself. Siempre así, “Sal, chile, limón.”

Last night, I prepared mango the proper way – seasoned with sal, chile, limón – for dessert, and it was such a treat. Just the right combination of sweetness with a kick.

Love with a sprinkling of sal, chile, limón,

Sunkist Miss

Mikvah Ladies in a Post-Denominational World

2008-02-27T16:05:00.006-05:00

Ima Shalom is a friend and former neighbor, self-described as a “work-at-home-stay-at-home mom living the post-denominational life with her son and Orthodox husband.” About 6 months ago, when her baby was 9 months old, she started a collaborative blog with several other Jewish mothers of young children. It’s a really lovely effort. The reason that I mention it today is that yesterday she wrote a post that I think several of my readers will find interesting. The post talks about her recent invitation to help coordinate the schedule at the local mikvah.

This is particularly interesting in light of the shul politics of the area where she lives... There is a substantial constituency of people there who are active in both the orthodox shul and in (a) the local post-denominational egalitarian minyan and/or (b) the local partnership minyan. The people in this situation have been explicitly excluded from serving as mikvah attendants lest their (varying levels of) egalitarian practice imply loose observance of niddah and thus taint the mikvah. (The ortho shul has also taken issue with men who participate in these minyanim, but that is not the subject of this post.) Anyhow, interestingly enough Ima Shalom attends the ortho shul (where her husband is very involved and respected) and both of the above-mentioned minyanim. As she notes, being a mikvah scheduler is an important way for her to participate, even if she cannot serve as a mikvah attendant. Anyhow, you should read her post. And, if you’re interested, check out her blog regularly.

Some days I feel like a Conservative

2008-02-24T21:22:00.003-05:00

In a post on the Conservative Movement, Elf wrote:

So it doesn't bother me that the movement doesn't always reflect my ideals, or even that it doesn't seem to have a clear-cut mission. From my perspective, the movement's function is to serve as an umbrella organization for similarly-minded Jewish leaders to build and sustain communities, grapple with contemporary issues, and educate the next generation. Granted, it doesn't always do these things very well, but it hobbles along. And since I don't generally expect much from religious institutions (or institutions in general), I'm not seriously disappointed.  

Elf very much reflects my feelings on the matter despite the fact that I (a) grew up in the Conservative Movement, and (b) sometimes identify as Conservative.   

Actually growing up with it, I don't think I ever had the idea that it was supposed to be any different than what Elf describes. And it met my needs by providing us with the UJ, Hebrew High, and the United Synagogue Website (which was my way of figuring out where I might want to daven when entering a new city -- seriously, I must have been the only college student to actually use this tool!)

As for identity, well, when I identify as Conservative (which is not always) I do so first because it's convenient (other days I prefer to say observant, or observant and egalitarian, for example, but what does that mean?!), and secondly because I appreciate being able to label myself as somehow still under the same umbrella as my family despite being at a quite different place on the spectrum that is Conservative Judaism.  

Of course, I’m a bit unsure of the utility of the Conservative label for someone who isn’t involved in the Movement. I tend to agree with those who say that the distinction between Conservative and anything else to the right is mixed seating. You may think I’m exaggerating or referring to an old-fashioned distinction. But truly – one of the 2 Conservative shuls where I grew up had mixed seating but did not count women for minyan nor allow women on the bima, while the last post-denominational minyan I was involved in has separate seating but allows women to do basically everything. Moreover, if this really is the distinction, and I if I have concluded that seating arrangement is not a deal breaker (which clearly I have, given my involvement in said minyan), then can I really claim to be Conservative? Perhaps not. But today it’s the best I’ve got. If you want tomorrow’s opinion, you’ll have to ask then!

Now, regarding Katrina's observation about disproportionate disillusionment among Conservative Jews... I have to admit that most of the conservative, formerly-conservative, and would-be-conservative-except people I spend time with fall somewhere close to the conservadox / observant-egalitarian / post-denominational / modern orthodox fault-line. Which is to say, I'm not convinced that I have a representative sample.

That said, is it a problem that the most educated and involved Conservative Jews seem disillusioned with the movement? Yes. That can't be good.

But then again, J is going to be a passionate Conservative rabbi someday – one who actually believes in the movement for its potential. I guess we’ll have to wait and see what the happens.

And why don’t I personally feel angsty and disillusioned? I guess I think the Conservative movement did well by me, and made me who I am. And, despite all the musing in this blog post, I actually don’t feel required to stick myself in a label/box. I can therefore accept that legacy without worrying too much about whether it is for me today.

All Fired Up

2008-02-21T13:51:00.002-05:00

I am, to borrow a phrase from Barak Obama, all fired up. Now, you might wonder, what is it that has Sunkist Miss fired up today? The election? No, I’m fascinated by but not worked up about the election. Kosovo? The arms trade? Minyan politics? No, no, no. What I’m talking about today is the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) and the right for people with disabilities to obtain accommodations. In another life I think this would have been my calling. As is, it is what you might call a hobby. In any case, it is something that I am passionate about. And this week, I had the opportunity to help out a friend, in a small way. It reminded me about how frustrating it can be to deal with the system. And how important it is to be able to advocate for your needs.

The friend in question was asking for reconsideration of a request for accommodation on a standardized test that had been denied. I helped edit the letter. This required a certain touch that goes beyond knowing how to write. And as she noted, I am quite good at this. My response: I learned from the best. And it’s true. Along with how to write a cover letter, and what else happened in 1492, my mother taught me everything I know about advocating for accommodations. I know what to say and how to say it so that you hit the right buzz words. And much as I was frustrated by the fact that the letter was needed, I was excited to realize that this is something I now know how to do. I’ve come a long way. It’s really nice to be able to use that to help someone else. It makes me feel like there was some net gain from my own experiences with this.

Perhaps some other time I will write more about disabilities issues. But for now I’m just thinking about how much I care about this issue, how far I’ve come, how much I’ve learned, and how much I would like to find a way to help other people beyond the friends/acquaintances who occasionally come my way. Maybe when I’m done with grad school I’ll make that a real hobby.

Fighting the Cold

2008-02-19T10:36:00.003-05:00

Winter is Cold. I know – you, East Coast native that you are, are not surprised. But hey, for some people this is a revelation. It was new to me when I moved east – and I’m still getting over the shock! Anyhow, this seems to come up, repeatedly, in my war class. Just ask my professor…

• Waxing nostalgic on the Peloponnesian War:
“Melos is a nice place – especially when you’re in the midst of the arctic night which is [Boston] in January or February.”

• Contemplating the Napoleonic Wars:
“Napoleon’s idea, when he invaded Russia, was to winter in Lithuania. Now, I don’t know… my idea of wintering doesn’t include either Russia or Lithuania!”

Imagine... if only Napoleon had decided to winter in Greece!

Only in California...

2008-02-08T16:47:00.000-05:00

I miss voting on election day. I mean, I voted of course, but being a PAV (that's permanent absentee voter, for those of you not in the know) is much less exciting...especially if you vote for someone who subsequently drops out! Oops.

Anyhow, one of the joys of being a voter in the Great State of California is the dubious privilege of voting on numerous referenda/ballot propositions. I mean, some one has to legislate. If the legislators don't do so, you bring it to the people. Repeatedly. My favorite measure on the Super Tuesday ballot: Proposition 91 on Transportation Funds. Prior to each election, the Secretary of State sends out an official Voter Guide, where you can read the text of the measures, the official legislative analysis of what it will change, and pro and con arguments. Examine the arguments regarding Prop 91:

Pro: Prop. 91 is NO LONGER NEEDED. Please VOTE NO. [...]

Con: No argument against Proposition 91 was submitted.

Now, the official results, with 100% of precincts reporting. Proposition 91 failed. NO votes: 3,820,464 (58.1%). YES votes: 2,763,289 (41.9%). That's right folks, 2.7 Million voters in the state of California voted yes on a proposition that absolutely nobody supported.

Diamonds are for Fighting?

2008-01-29T17:02:00.000-05:00

The other day my roommates and I watched Blood Diamond. It’s a fictional account of the conflict diamond trade in Africa, and specifically in Sierra Leone during the 1990s. The movie later prompted a conversation about diamonds and politically/socially conscious decision-making in buying jewelry. I should note that nothing in the movie was news to me, and that I had actually thought about this subject a lot already.

So, if you want to be socially responsible, what are the options?

(1) Do nothing. The Kimberly Process, which entered into force in 2003, is a voluntary process that is supposed to ensure that conflict diamonds are not traded in participating countries (including the US).
(2) Ask for documentation of the seller’s policy on conflict diamonds, and find out how they verify their suppliers.
(3) Get a certified conflict-free diamond (probably a diamond from Canada – yes, they have diamond mines there, they are really from Canada not just via Canada).
(4) Re-use an old diamond.
(5) Since it’s difficult to actually verify where diamonds come from and the major buyers (companies) may mix them together, offset part of the cost by donating to some NGO working to combat the trade in conflict diamonds.
(6) Get something else.

The last option merits further exploration. First of all, if you are going that route – do some research on whatever it is you are planning to buy. That said, it occurs to me that perhaps, for those who are concerned about this issue, buying a diamond, even one that is conflict-neutral or conflict-free, might present a situation of marat ayin. In other words, do I want to give other people the impression that I, a politically aware, socially conscious consumer am okay with buying a diamond that might not be clean? If not, the safest answer is not to have one. I actually overheard some girls at school discussing this idea (albeit with different vocabulary!) last year when one of them was explaining why she didn’t have a diamond engagement right because while she would’ve gotten a certified one, she didn’t want others to think it was simply acceptable as-is.

However, there is not a simple right-and-wrong sort of answer. Yes, the diamond trade tends to be exploitative of poor and conflict-prone countries. However, many developing countries also rely on those exports, and boycotting diamonds could be seen as unfairly damaging their economic prospects even when the particular country of origin is not the source of the problem. As with all my favorite topics, this one defies easy answers.

I am not intending to judge people’s decisions by posting this. Rather, if I have made you think and fomented discussion, I have succeeded. I know good people who have chosen each of the above routes (or a combination thereof). The secondary motive is that people have actually asked me for advice on this subject before, as their resident international relations expert. So having it thought-through and written down is a useful exercise. Along the way, I've included a lot of links with helpful information.

The Rest is Commentary

2008-01-27T14:37:00.000-05:00

Today I read Sun Tzu’s Art of War, which dates to the 6th Century BCE. My mother told me that the thing that’s important to understand about Sun Tzu before delving in, is that it's like reading Talmud – it is published with the original text embedded with various commentaries.

This turned out to be very helpful advice. For example, let’s start at the very beginning:

Sun Tzu said:
War is a matter of vital importance to the State; the province of life or death; the road to survival or ruin. It is mandatory that it be thoroughly studied.

Li Ch’üan: ‘Weapons are tools of ill omen.’ War is a grave matter; one is apprehensive lest men embark upon it without due reflection.

I begin to see why this is still arguably the most important book on military strategy. And yes, that lasting impact is another parallel.

In fact, thus far I have found Talmudic logic a useful corollary in several of my courses this semester. Another example is in comparative law, where we have been studying the development of civil law and the jus commune, which began with the glossators at the University of Bologna (11th-12th Century CE) expounding on the text of the Justinian (roman) codes with interlinear commentary.

Sunkist Miss: Your friendly neighborhood translator

2008-01-22T17:22:00.000-05:00

Today, after spending the ride home chatting with yeshivaBoy, I stepped off the T and into an alternate identity. Meet Sunkist Miss, your friendly neighborhood translator and local Latina.

I went to CVS and was minding my own business, when a little old lady came up to me and asked if I spoke Spanish. I rapidly recalled the last time this happened in CVS, but decided she probably wasn’t proselytizing and really did need help. This was the right decision. I helped her find the medication she was looking for. Mission accomplished.

[Note: the story referenced is from before I started the blog, I just posted it so you have the back-story if you are so inclined. I think it's entertaining.]

The Spell is Broken...

2008-01-21T00:11:00.000-05:00

It is frigid outside. And I slipped and fell on ice on the way to shul yesterday. Everything aches. I miss my warm and dry native land. I hate the winter. All's right in the world.

Winter Magic

2008-01-17T18:44:00.000-05:00

I know, I know. I said there was nothing good about winter. After all, I’m cold-blooded, or as Toyb says, endo-thermic. I don’t sustain my own body heat; I extract it from my surroundings. So come winter in Boston, I freeze. This is all still true.

And, yet. Here I am, in January, shivering, and appreciating this crazy season! What happened? Well, it snowed, again. And actually, there is something quite magical about it. Watching the snow falling is something I will probably never get used to. It’s just such a novelty. Like, wow, what’s that white powdery stuff falling from the sky?! So on Monday, when it had stopped snowing, I dared to venture outside and see my city transformed into wonderland. And I did what every good Californian would do: I took pictures. After all, the best lesson I ever had in photography came from my mother, who told me, "when you go some place new, look around and observe what in your surroundings tells you that you’re not in LA."

And the thing is, a few days later, the magic hasn’t quite worn off. I know it will this weekend when the temperature drops and the snow turns icy. And at that point I will return to my visceral hatred of winter and cold. But today, as I was walking home, I purposefully stepped off the sidewalk and into the snow. I know people were looking at me funny. But hey, it was still dry and fluffy and virtually untouched, and that feeling of walking on cloud puffs is so strange and irresistible. Like, totally!

The cultural event of the year

2008-01-09T01:06:00.000-05:00

When I was home in Cali during winter break, not only did I get to visit my family and replenish a bit of my Vitamin D, but also I attended the annual Sunkist family cultural outing, which in this case was a trip to the Music Center to see The Color Purple. I'm not sure what I think about the Color Purple as a musical, but it was certainly beautifully done. Moreover, it truly was a cultural event, an LA happening. Sitting there, it was impossible not to feel the energy in the theater that came from watching this particular play amongst a wonderfully diverse audience. It was an experience. An LA experience. Being there reminded me for a moment of the unique experiences I had growing up in Southern California. It was a special opportunity, watching the Color Purple in that setting. It was also a special chance to reflect on my own upbringing. I don't know if I'll ever return to CA to live, but it has certainly shaped who I am.

Subway Poetry

2007-12-17T18:28:00.000-05:00

I was in a T stop I frequent regularly the other day, minding my own business, when something caught my eye. I was walking under the staircase/escalators, and carved into the bricks on the floor was a poem!

I'M nobody! Who are you?
Are you nobody, too?
Then there ’s a pair of us—don’t tell!
They’d banish us, you know.

How dreary to be somebody!
How public, like a frog
To tell your name the livelong day
To an admiring bog!

- Emily Dickinson

Wait? Emily Dickinson on the T? What a lovely surprise!

Adventures in Microsoft Land

2007-12-10T19:09:00.000-05:00

A while back I went to the computer lab at school, in a rush to print my paper. I opened my document in MS Word, but the application looked totally foreign. Unbeknownst to me they had installed Office 2007! I couldn't figure out where anything was. Like, where did the menus go?! How do I print? Ouch. Luckily, I hit ctrl-p and moved on with my life.

Fast-forward to today. I was again in the computer lab, this time waiting while some research-related articles printed. I had literally nothing to do while I waited. So I opened Word, played around a bit, then went to Help. I figured I might as well learn a bit about how it works since this issue is likely to arise again at some point. I did a few searches, and found the manual for the information I was looking for. So I figured I'd read it. (Aside: What? You don't sit around reading software manuals when you're bored?! Stop laughing!) Anyways, I clicked on the link, but no go. To read the information I want, I need Flash 7.0. And no, I can't install it on a school computer, not being an administrator and all! Foiled again!

My newest hobby...

2007-12-06T18:13:00.000-05:00

...calling the management of buildings on my street that have not shoveled their sidewalks to tell them that the icy sidewalks are a public health hazard and criminally negligent.

Seriously, if I'm gonna live in the cold inhospitable northeast, I at least don't want to risk death-by-ice walking to the subway! Is that too much to ask?!

Meet Brijit

2007-12-05T11:12:00.000-05:00

I want to introduce you to a friend. Brijit is a new web-based resource, created by a friend of mine in DC.

Basically, the idea is this: we're smart educated people who like to know and read about what’s interesting in the world, but we don’t have time to actually read all those sources that we’d like to. What we need is someone to tell us which stories are most worth reading. Brijit aims to fill this role. This is more than an RSS feed. While it is fully rooted in the age of online media, it is equally based on human input. Real people read a myriad of articles and write qualitative summaries along with rankings to help you choose those articles of most interest. It’s a pretty awesome concept. So, check it out. And tell your friends!

PS. Brijit is still a work in progress; if you have constructive feedback they would very much like to hear from you.

Transcontinental Haftarah

2007-11-24T20:22:00.000-05:00

Some 2,990 miles, and three time zones apart, my mother and I read the same haftarah this morning, in shuls with the same name! This is something we are both, separately, learning how to do. It was kind of nice to know that we were both doing this today.

I’ve been leyning for several years, but didn’t learn haftarah trope till recently when I decided to teach myself as a procrastination technique when I was avoiding research papers. Yes, I am decidedly a nerd!

(Okay, so I did read torah and haftarah at my bat mitzvah many moons ago, but at the time I was really not able to learn the trope. Funny how at a later age I learned it effortlessly. I was just ready.)

I think I prefer torah reading to haftarah. As someone commented to me recently, it’s sexier! It’s also easier for me. True, you don’t have the vowels and trope in front of you, so it requires substantially more practice. But the language is easier. And much as I’d love my Hebrew to be so good that I don’t mind the poetic mumbo jumbo – at least it's reassuring to know that it’s good enough that I notice the difference! (Sort of like when I was studying for my Bat Mitzvah and my mother said that she felt good knowing that I was struggling with the words to the kaddish cause it meant I knew the difference between Hebrew and Aramaic!)

Shavuah tov!

Somber Thanks

2007-11-21T20:11:00.000-05:00

Each year at Pesach, and to a lesser extent on Thanksgiving, my FOO (family of origin) keeps in mind peoples who are less fortunate than ourselves. Like many people, we have spent quite a bit of time talking about Darfur. But this year I’m thinking about a lesser known but even more dire conflict zone.

In the DRC (Democratic Republic of the Congo), 4 million people have died since the conflict began in 1998. That’s over 1,000 people per day. In addition to that, there are 2.4 million people displaced by the conflict, and 42 million who are suffering from food insecurity (including 17 million who are malnourished).

Despite the presence of a UN mission, this is not truly a post-conflict society. The conflict persists. The scale of the destruction is breathtaking. I know this is depressing. But it is important to know. To recognize what is happening. This is what my FOO taught me: to be grateful for what we have; to understand that there are people out there who have nothing; and to be politicized about it.

I am thankful to know that I have enough food to eat. That I have a place to live. That I am alive. These are not luxuries. Yet, for so many people, even that last and most basic human right is violated. We cannot rewind time and give these people back their lives, and more people are dying every day. Those who are not dying are in precarious situations. Please remember them.

Ode to Cilantro

2007-11-18T12:04:00.000-05:00

I love the smell of fresh cilantro. It makes me excited for whatever I’m about to cook, and inspires me to travel more.

Okay, I know some of you have this strange inability to eat cilantro because it tastes weird to you. (So sorry! How much you miss!) But for the rest of us, cilantro is such a beautiful thing. As I was cooking the other day I commented to my roommate that cilantro is really a key ingredient for Mexican cooking; it makes a huge difference in getting an authentic flavor. She understood completely.

When I studied in Mexico some of the students I met had never encountered it before. One conversation about it (translated into English) went like this:

Other Student: What is this green herb I see on everything?
Me: How can you not know what it is?! It’s cilantro, of course.
Other student: Okay… so, what’s it called in English?
Me: Cilantro!

It wasn’t until I moved to the East Coast that I found out that lots of people call cilantro coriander. In fact, if you look up cilantro on dictionary.com the definition says “See coriander.” If you look up coriander there’s an actual definition. Funny, cause in Cali I never heard of coriander except in relation to the ground up powder from the seeds. (Similarly, I discovered that garbanzo beans are called chickpeas here. How very odd!)

The next time you’re trying to cook Mexican food, remember the cilantro. Take it from this Californian – it makes a world of difference.

IR != Infrared

2007-11-14T16:25:00.000-05:00

As a student of international relations (IR), I have been well aware of the over-abundance of acronyms and abbreviations in the field for many years. One of the best things about my class on Relaciones Internacionales de América Latina y el Caribe, many years ago now, was that I learned the terms of art all over again, en español.

Aliza recently posted about the need for translation in pharmacies, and in medicine more generally, something she knows from work experience.

In my world things like this are very important if you are going to be professionally fluent (Spanish --> English):
ONU = UN
OEA = OAS
EU = US
UE = EU
ONG = NGO
TLC = FTA
PIB = GDP
ADM = WMD
APL = SALW
MTA = APL

Grad school, of course, takes the acronyms to a whole new level. But that's a subject for another day.

Politics, Partisanship, and Priorities

2007-11-07T22:23:00.000-05:00

The Economist had a lovely column about the Governator and California exceptionalism. As someone who’s been breathing California politics since birth, its nice to see how well they hit several key points about our (admittedly screwy) political system back home, and how it has worked for the Governor. Excerpt:

In his loftier moments, Mr Schwarzenegger claims to be blazing a new political trail, which he calls “post-partisanship” […] Yet, despite the governor's attempts to sell it in Washington, his post-partisan approach is unlikely to travel far, or even to persist after his term ends in 2010. Recalling his early years as a penniless immigrant, Mr Schwarzenegger often says that he could have succeeded only in California. The same is true of his political methods.

http://www.economist.com/world/na/displaystory.cfm?story_id=10063779

And then, there’s this opinion piece in Salon about Kucinich, Democratic party politics, and the primary. It’s both entertaining and thought-provoking:

http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2007/11/05/kucinich/

Saving the World, One Job at a Time…

2007-11-06T14:06:00.000-05:00

Washington Post article, “Fulfillment Elusive for Young Altruists In the Crowded Field of Public Interest.” Ouch…

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/11/01/AR2007110102675.html

Allergic to Seasons

2007-11-01T12:46:00.001-04:00

I’m allergic to seasons. Okay, fine, partially, it’s just fun to say. After all, I love whining about East Coast weather. But it’s also rooted in reality.

I was going to say that fall was my least favorite season. Except anyone who’s been around me in, say, winter, would protest. So, I’m amending my thought. ALL of the seasons on the East Coast are my least-favorite:

Winter – Because it’s SOOOO cold!
Spring – Because it’s a joke – its STILL cold!
Summer – Because it’s icky sticky HUMID. (Okay, this is more about D.C.; I’m still not convinced Boston ever gets warm!)
Fall – Because it makes me sick. Really, I’m sneezy, my eyes are red and itchy, I can’t breathe, and my arms are rashy. Yes, I am actually allergic to fall.* Fun stuff.

I suppose there are some nice things about seasons. They make me appreciate every moment when it's nice out in a way I did not do when it was almost always nice out! Now when the weather's good, I can't wait to spend all my time out-doors. More specifically, there are other nice things about seasons …

Winter – Ummm, I’m working on it, haven’t come up with a reason yet, but there must be one somewhere…Help?!!
Spring – It really is beautiful when the flowers finally come out!
Summer – It’s green and warm at long last. Proper weather!
Fall – Leaves are pretty, and a novelty!

*Okay, so this doesn't last that long, it's mainly while the seasons are still fluctuating a lot, but still, it kinda sucks!