Take a break for a book

Hello writers, students, professors, bloggers (i.e., readers.)

We are all spectacularly busy people here; the editors of AFLM all work, try to run a magazine, blog regularly, and make an attempt at having some sort of healthy social life, and I'm sure the same is true of you. You're a busy person and it's a busy world we live in, full of distractions and a thousand things a day that can suck away your time. So why not give into one of the most edifying time-sucks around and read a book?

I haven't been reading much recently and I've been worse for not picking up one of my favorites and re-reading it for the simple joy of getting out of my head.

I've been buying books, collecting them into neat little stacks, occasionally re-organizing them either alphabetically or by the order in which I'd like to read them, looking at them and thinking about them, but not reading them.

All of us here know that books are fantastic, but it's easy to skip reading the literature that you like when you have to read 600 pages a week to keep up with your classes, or when you know that there's a stack of ready-to-grade essays sitting at home.

Sometimes the other stuff can wait. Sometimes it's more important to pick up a book that's as well worn and known as your favorite pair of jeans and sinking into it like a hot, scented bath for your brain.

I had a lot of plans last weekend, plenty of things to get ready for this week, and a pretty heavy schedule planned for Saturday. I had to get my oil changed, my car smogged and registered, take cash out of one bank and put it in another, meet with friends for dinner and prepare for an impromptu dessert party.

Most of that went straight out of the window when I impulsively threw Chuck Palahniuk's Rant in my purse as I was heading out to Jiffy Lube. I started reading while my oil was being changed and never really stopped. A few things on my schedule stayed on target but a lot more got brushed off, and you know what? It wasn't the end of the world. Looking back I realized that reading the latest Stephen King instead of finishing class reading didn't herald the apocalypse either. Nor did rereading LOTR cause the heat death of the universe, even though I did so when I was supposed to be studying for finals and planning my wedding simultaneously. Reading Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows at my friend's son's 6th birthday party did cause a few problems, but who cares when a 6-year-old calls them a nerd?

Reading a book - good or bad doesn't matter - for the sake of the pure joy of reading is a better balm to my mental bruises and a better boost to my productivity (after I've finished, of course) than anything else I can think of.

It's a busy world. We're all busy people.

Read something you love anyway - the stars will keep their places in the sky, I promise.

If anyone is interested in a fantastic place to pick up reading (or procrastinating) material, try checking out Thrift Books online - fair selection, great prices, and (typically) free shipping make it pretty easy to always have an escape route from reality on hand.

Cheers,
Stay sane,
     - Alli

Strange Sounds

I was recently introduced to these Youtube videos from across the world documenting a strange sound coming from the sky.  One of the links is below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XNVOnGGbaFU

There are many videos of these strange sounds all over Youtube, and many people, of course, have come up with their own assumptions of what they might be.  Many think that it is the trumpet of Gabriel coming down for Judgment Day.  The fact that we are nearing December 2012 (Mayan calendar ends December 21, 2012), many think these sounds are the markings of the end of the world.  Others, however, believe that the sound is documenting an alien presence.  Whatever the assumption might be, people who have been watching these videos feel that it is something bad.  However, there are many who say it is one elaborate hoax that gained international appeal because of the accessibility of Youtube.  One man posted a Youtube video debunking the strange sounds, saying that it is a hoax.  People are just recycling the sound in their videos and using footage of a landscape or neighborhood as the backdrop.

This got me interested in hoaxes and why people do them.  In 1938, an episode on the radio for H.G. Wells’ War of the Worlds was broadcast as a series of news bulletins narrated by Orsen Welles.  Because the bulletins sounded so real, the broadcast actually instilled panic and fear into a lot of people.  Although, this wasn’t intended to be a hoax, it has been claimed one due to the reaction of many of the listeners believing that an alien attack was occurring. 

Why hoaxes?  What is appealing about them?  Why do people play them?  I think one of the reasons is this fascination with documenting.  With the accessibility of the Internet, especially Youtube, and video use on our cell phones, it is easier these days to be a documenter.  We used to rely on what we saw on TV to document strange occurrences and events, but now we have that ability and as a result, some people abuse it.  This love of documenting and reporting leaves viewers with a lot of ambiguity as to the authenticity of the footage.  Many of us, so badly, want to believe some of the things we see on these videos, like alien sightings, etc. because it could answer many ultimate questions that reside in all of us, whether alien or religious.   With that in mind, these kinds of videos are posted to feed on people’s beliefs, to help them continue to believe or to change them. 

So many want to believe and to be proven of their beliefs that these videos are used to facilitate and entertain them.  However we react to them, they will continue to be posted for our amusement and maybe even to open our minds a little further to the possibilities that might exist.

Watch the link I have posted…is it real? 

Faithfully,

Cristina

End of an era or the next step of a critical evolution?

Newsweek announced this morning that it is closing its print doors at the end of the year. This announcement is made just months before what would have marked the magazine's 80th anniversary.

On one hand, this announcement is an unquestionably big deal, one that signals what can only be the first of many because if Newsweek, one of the most established and well respected newsmagazines, does it why wouldn't anyone else? And a move like this helps to disqualify the oft-repeated head- in-the-sand claim that print journalism will continue on because there will always be a demand for it.  At this point, that notion seems to simply be an unsupported one. All those people up in arms about the potential death of print journalism a few years ago? Where are they now? I can tell you this much: their numbers, not to mention their influence on the industry, are small.

And while some may be saddened by and/or nostalgic about this news, the depth of their emotions are likely to be begrudgingly overshadowed by the fact that Internet news and column-style journalism just makes too much sense. If anything should be online- the ultimate accelerator of easy communication and info sharing- isn't it the news? And isn't it global perspective and commentary? The foundation of journalism is firmly based in utilizing the available means of communication. To hold onto a model that is quickly becoming outdated is to become complacent and to lack innovation. For journalism to survive and thrive, it must move forward.

Besides, I can't remember the last time I waited to read what Andrew Sullivan or Jessica Bennett had to say in print when it was already online.

But also I hate the idea that I'll never be able to read another Newsweek, and soon to follow another newspaper of any kind, on anything other than a backlit screen. But the fact that we spend all our time staring at things that are glowing will have to be the topic of another blog.

I have more to say on this matter... but I'm reluctant to do so after a long day of work and without further forethought. So for now, stay turned.

Illness

It’s October, which everyone knows means that shelves in shops, gas station countertops, and the decorative flag your grandmother hangs out of her front window will all be emblazoned with pink ribbons and the words “Support Breast Cancer” until November. I don’t want to shit on curing cancer here, but I’ve got something of a problem with the way we’re trying to go about it. 

First off there’s the fact that dedicating a whole month to the process of raising awareness is actually hugely counterproductive when it comes to actually making money to cure cancer. Because you can, in October and November, purchase batteries with pink ribbons printed on them and cookies that look like moustaches, and because you can shell out a dollar at the drug store for rubber bracelets that say things like “I heart boobies” and “Movember,” you’re not going to donate any money to any groups that actually cure cancer. People support awareness campaigns because it’s easy to be “more aware” than it is to make a donation and we, as humans, get an endorphin high from feeling like we have accomplished something without actually getting anything done.

After you’ve dealt with the problems of awareness-based rather than donation or researched campaigns you come to the question of where the money generated by these campaigns is going. Well, in the case of Breast Cancer Awareness it’s largely going to breast cancer, which is a good thing except that breast cancer is the third leading cause of death for women (and then only for women over fifty) coming in behind heart disease and lung cancer. Sure, there’s a Heart Health Awareness month, a Sudden Cardiac Event Awareness month, and so on, but can anyone tell me when they are? Without peeking? I didn’t think so. This might not seem like such a big deal except that because of Breast Cancer Awareness there’s a disproportionate amount of fear in young women that they’ll die of breast cancer. This leads young women to get unnessecary tests and, because they think they’re taking care of themselves by focusing on the biggest, scariest monster out there in the world of health, ignoring things like high cholesterol and high blood pressure right up until they start having a heart attack (the symptoms of which they’re misinformed of because popular media typically sees heart attacks as a men’s health issue and tends to only portray men’s heart attack symptoms.) 

The other place where money goes during Breast Cancer Awareness month is to the companies who partner with various pink ribbon organizations. Companies like Coca Cola and KFC and Avon, all of which either produce or promote products (or in the case of Avon, product ingredients) that have the potential to increase breast cancer risk. Yeah, that sounds sensible, right? Companies whose products increase breast cancer risk make a buttload of money by selling those same products in pink containers every October. Oh, and in case you didn’t read the Forbes article I linked up there, take note that actual cancer survivors have trouble fitting and finding support in to a lot of the pink ribbon events since the events are so positive, peppy, and full of we-can-beat-it spirit that people who have survived or who are fighting cancer bring down the party for the only-in-October crowd.

Okay, so I've bitched a lot about breast cancer and Breast Cancer Awareness - why? Because last week was Mental Illness Awareness Week and I had no idea. Which is pretty terrifying considering that suicide is the 4th leading cause of death for adults between 18 and 65, with approximately 40,000 deaths by suicide in the US each year, a number that in itself is widely considered underestimated since many suicides are reported as accidents or complications of accidents or drug overdoses. And that number doesn't take into account the rising number of deaths among schizophrenics, cardiac deaths in female anxiety sufferers, or all of the early deaths caused by complications of mental illnesses.

I was diagnosed with clinical depression, compulsive and anxiety disorders in 2004. I've been living with mental illness and all of the problems associated with it since I was 17 years old, and so have a lot of people I know.

School has just started back up at Cal Poly and there are hordes of students wearing pink bracelets and advocating mammograms (about 30 years too early for most college students) all while being surrounded by people who are at risk TODAY for all of the dangers of mental illness.

Breast cancer is terrible, and it kills too many people - we should work on fixing it, and we are researching cures and causes, which is a very good thing. But mental illness is largely unrecognized and stigmatized - after ally, you've probably never heard someone with breast cancer being told to "snap out of it" or "just get over it" or "grow up."

So my rant about breast cancer awareness isn't really about breast cancer, it's about mental health and our attitude toward it as a culture.

And it's a way for me to tell anyone out there who is coping quietly with mental illness that you're not alone, it's nothing to be ashamed of, and that seeking treatment isn't weakness - it's okay to ask for help.

Here are some links; be safe, and be kind to one another.

Suicide Prevention Wiki
.GOV Resources

Cheers,
Alli

What Does it Mean to Be a Man?

From the desk of Tim Jewell...

From my oldest memories, I remember being raised by my mom and observing every day how strong a woman she was. She pulled herself out of a family situation that nearly destroyed her will to achieve her ambitions but, instead of living up to the low standards that her family expected her, she went back to college late in her adult life and fulfilled her lifelong dream of becoming a teacher and an expert in education and classroom instruction.

Why do I detail her life? Because I grew up in a household that had a woman as the primary breadwinner and inspiration to her children. My brother and I grew up following her example both intellectually and emotionally and developed ourselves based on the support and resources that she gave us, and each of us grew into men that, I say with pride, are very different than the average American male, and very much distinct from the social standard to which many men in American and worldwide are held and expected to imitate. My brother and I grew up in a home that was structured around what I would consider feminine values, at least judging by the perspective that America has applied to its expectations of men and women both.

You know very well what I'm referring to. Men are, and have been, expected to be the head of the household for millennia and, even in a society where gender roles are seeming to become blurred, are expected to be tough and emotionless. The closest that our society allows men to true honesty is humor - though this goes far beyond simply the male role in America, it is especially noticeable in the dynamics of dating in the teen and twentysomething world - and the ultimate ideal for a male's self-development is expected in the culmination of his body into a muscular, sports-toned, sexualized machine.

Think of it this way, both male and female readers: when you step out in public and observe people walking by at a quick glance, who do you notice?

If you say you noticed the not-quite-skinny nerdy girl with glasses who is reading Charlotte Bronte by herself on a bench and gazing contemplatively at the crowd passing her by, or the tall scrawny kid wearing running shoes focusing intently on his schoolwork with only a brief glance up to watch the leaves, then you're probably lying.

The men and women who turn heads are the toned, athletic, fashionable, sexy types. And when I say sexy, I don't just mean slightly attractive or cute: I mean the Ryan Gosling types who turn heads with merely a thin V-neck shirt and a vague motion of their hands in your direction. I mean the Beyonce types who wear their cleavage and short dresses like a uniform and perform nuanced and lithe movements that make your body react in ways you didn't think possible.

There is something fundamentally disturbing about this occurrence:

The men and women who turn heads are idolized and noticed and fawned over for the way they appear, the way they move, and in some cases, the way they talk or joke or laugh or act during even brief conversations.

And this seductive first glance from the voyeur to the person being viewed can often carry over into the more personal and intimate aspects of a person's daily life: they might pass this person often or notice various people on various days who make them swoon at a simple raise of the eyebrows or half-cocked smile. Their attention to strangers and potential romantic interests begins to focus on the looks and the demeanor of everyone they meet who vaguely seems like a good prospect.

This is dangerous.

Building a friendship, or a relationship, or a casual dating situation, upon the foundations of attractiveness or humor or an arbitrary association of that person with "masculinity" or "femininity" is threatening to the possibility of happiness in the future of that relationship for both involved.

I'm not saying that any of us are at fault for this fascination with surface characteristics, and in the end, there is nothing inherently wrong with these qualities in a person. Everyone loves to laugh, to feel deeply intimate sexual desire, and to fit in with categories that ensure a person's comfortable conformity with society at large. These are innate human needs and, to a great extent, we need these to survive and succeed in a world that values these things.

But these traits are only the surface.

There are many incredibly essential and necessary human qualities that are thrown to the side in favor of the traits that I've mentioned. You know what I'm talking about. When was the last time you did a double-take towards someone who spoke eloquently, who recited an obscure poem from memory, who was able to keep you interested in a conversation about serious topics that had nothing to do with Facebook or Instagram? When was the last time someone's taste in music, books, or film swept you off your feet? And when did you last eagerly say yes to someone who asked you to accompany them to an art gallery or a bookstore?

Very basic examples, of course. But what I'm getting at is that hardly anyone looks beyond the surface to the characteristics that truly make us human. What sets us apart from the rest of the animal kingdom is our intellect. Humanity did not survive for tens of thousands of years warring with our neighbors and picking fights with assholes who looked at us the wrong way. Obviously, war and violence are facts of existence, and the body count left behind by ignorance and arrogance is undeniable.

But warriors, fighters, weightlifters, bodybuilders, airhead sex symbols, pop star divas, and teen idol actors and actresses did not carve out the most substantial aspects of society that we love and value today.

So let me get back to my original point before I continue firing ammunition.

What does it mean to be a man? Or a woman, for that matter?

A man is someone who steps out of his comfort zone and takes risks. A man is someone who confronts challenges without fear and uses the best of his skills, knowledge, and ability to solve problems and deals maturely with failure or consequence, without taking out his rage and frustration on others. A man is someone who thinks before he acts and considers issues with foresight, research, and contemplation. A man is someone who is interested in what someone has to say and handles the conversation with the appropriate emotional or mental gravity, not lightening the situation with jokes when unnecessary and not reacting with impulsive remarks.

A man is not just someone who can deliver a knockout punch in a ring or bench 500 pounds.

The poet or author who risks his livelihood to pursue his passion for his craft is just as much a man.

The boyfriend or husband who listens attentively to his girlfriend or wife and treats her with respect and commitment is just as much, if not more, of a man.

The father who respects his children and earns their obedience through his honesty and integrity, allowing himself to be available when they need him, is just as much of, and represents some of the greatest qualities of, a man.

Once again, there is nothing wrong with being a fighter or a weightlifter or an actor or actress with a six-pack or enormous breasts and lips or the life of the party. But physical substance and the ability to entertain are far, far, far less important than emotional, mental, and intellectual substance. If you focus on your physical appearance or public persona at the sacrifice of your mental strength, you are destroying your own possibility of happiness.

When someone truly becomes your friend or decides to pursue a relationship with you, your buff exterior, trendy wardrobe and tattoos, or endless repertoire of movie quotes will no longer matter. What will matter is how you take care of them, how you respond to their good moods and bad moods, how you reciprocate their generosity and love, and how you endure trials alongside them beyond simply offering support and sympathy. These are all qualities of intelligence and mentality, and the happiest individuals living today and in the past and in the future were and are those who deeply understand and emphasize these qualities about themselves.

When you die, the legacy you leave behind will not be founded upon your attractiveness or your humor. The tastes of humanity change at the slightest whim, and if these are the qualities for which you are remembered, then your memory is doomed to obscurity. But humanity always remembers courage, intellect, innovation, individuality, kindness, love, and resisting the shallow and arbitrary social standards of the time imposed on the people of every era.

Hundreds of years from now and more, civilization will develop based on the precedents that we set in our own lives and decisions. How do we want to be remembered? What values will we transmit to our children and the emerging generations? Think carefully about your answer, and do not be afraid to search profoundly within yourself for the right one.

Finish Something...

As I was going through my screenplays and short stories, I noticed they all had one thing in common: they were unfinished.  I find that it is easy for me to begin a story or screenplay; setting up the scene, introducing the characters and slowly pacing to the plot.  However, once I get to the plot, I stop.

How do writers keep going with their stories?  How do they finish?  I realized that a major reason I cannot finish is because I don’t lay out my story before writing it.  I am so quick to just begin writing that when I get to a certain point, I don’t know where to go.  My ideas for the story cease, I get angry and I move to another one.

I believe that if high school taught me anything about how to write well, it taught me how to organize my thoughts.  I think that my problem when writing fiction is that I don’t organize my thoughts ahead of time, so when I do get to the plot, I am stumped; not sure of where to go.  I wonder how many writers have had this problem, and how many of them have had to overcome it. 

I find that as I get older, the desire to be a writer and get published grows, along with the frustration that I cannot finish one story.  I once was told that to be a successful writer, one must write every day.  Whether one writes for a few minutes or a few hours, writing consistently will help greatly; and who knows, it could lead to something great.  But as I busy myself with school and work, it is difficult to dedicate a good amount of time to writing freely. 

I read David Lynch’s book, Catching the Big Fish, in which he compared ideas like catching fish and sometimes in order to have a big idea, you need to catch a small fish first to let it grow into a bigger idea.  Trying to think of this while figuring out a story to write frustrates me because although I don’t usually disagree with what David Lynch has to say, this idea is so simple yet the process is way more complex.  Ideas are like catching a fish, but I don’t always catch them and when I do, they never really grow into anything that I consider worthwhile.  It is so easy for me to get frustrated with my unfinished work that I easily dismiss it and move on to another.

I guess my main goal is to finish a piece.  Don’t dismiss it early on.  And for the sake of having a clear, focused story: organize!

Reagan-Era Necrophilism

While doing some research for a paper I’m writing about Robert Browning’s Porphyria’s Lover, I stumble upon what seems to be GOLD! While aimlessly wandering through JSTOR I find an essay that seems to make a connection between Porphyria’s Lover and David Lynch’s television series Twin Peaks. Relevant to my paper? Absolutely not. Mind blowingly interesting? HELL YES! But alas, much to my chagrin, the essay turns out to be so skewed and wrought full of paper-thin conclusions that I turn away in disgust.

According to the critic, mostly men have praised Twin Peaks.

 Hmmm…problematic seeing as I am an avid fan of both Browning’s poetry and David Lynch’s work and I am indeed a woman.

Also, according to the critic, Robert Browning and David Lynch strongly encourage incest and necrophilia at the expense of the safety of young women.

Hmmm…do I find necrophilia sexually stimulating? No….But yet I am a fan…Ughhh. I just don’t even know who I am anymore!

Side rant--I wonder if she has ever read about the dynamic relationship between Robert Browning and Elizabeth Barrett Browning? You know, one of the first women poets bold enough to write a nine book semi-autobiographical epic poem about the struggles of being an outspoken woman writer. You know, the whole I refuse to live a caged bird life thing?...Hardly sounds “dead” to me. I guess not. I guess it is appropriate to misread Robert Browning’s poetry and reduce him to a necrophiliac.

Ok…so she isn’t an expert on 19^th century Victorian poetry. I can maybe let her irresponsible reference to Browning’s poetry slide. But when she links Lynch’s Twin Peaks to right-wing Reagan era politics all I can do is shake my head.

Getting to my point: PLEASE—Use theory responsibly! Am I saying that people should stop using feminist theory? Absolutely not. It is relevant and much needed. That being said, it is highly irresponsible to focus on a limited aspect of an artist’s work and do your “thing” all while ignoring the rest of the work that boldly contradicts your argument. I understand you want to get published, but be ethical. By the way- I am not just standing on my soapbox and saying this to the rest of the public.  This is advice I continually give myself when I get some wild idea. Point is, sometimes you need to talk yourself down a little and think through your argument and if and only if you can provide a persuasive case should you move forward.

 

And yes, my title is misleading, disturbing, and just plain incendiary. Now you know how I felt.

Robert Browning is probably turning in his grave. That’s hot.