got my first paycheck for tutoring today!

~*~*~*~
i made more in 14.75 hours
than 3 months teaching english in china.
^___^
(not that the latter wasn't an awesome
and great experience)

things

are

getting

cray

cray.

@___@


but
i can
do this!
i will!

having my 2 favorite professors whom i respect
and admire so much write my letters of recommendation
for grad school is one of the most amazing feelings ever.

after june and i chatted a while,

she said "now, enough about grad school,

i want to hear about new zealand & your travels!

how are your parents?"

then we talked about how she

wants to teach a muslim education class here.
i think this would be a really good idea.
there is just too much misunderstanding
and misdirected hate.
in addition to our education system reform
(2014-2015!!!!!)
i think muslim culture and education
should be added as a mandatory course in public ed.
i don't believe in wars;
we need Peace Education for Liberation.

she went to iran recently and

said it was one of the most

pleasant places she has been.

(and she has been EVERYWHERE).

"people were having picnics and

drinking tea everywhere and

inviting me to join"

she also meets with china and japan's

ambassadors often to talk about

international relations.

"You are a citizen of the world.

No human being is illegal."

-Angela Davis at Practical Activism

event on campus a few weeks ago.

thank you
for all the support,
encouragement
and cheering on~*~*~

[if you feel this applies to you,

it probably does].

when all else fails,

buy feijoas, pomegranate, spinach, and zucchini.

then go for a run to the beach,

sit on a cliff by the sea,

and contemplate things.

"Education is the proper way to promote compassion and tolerance in society. Compassion and peace of mind bring a sense of confidence that reduce stress and anxiety, whereas anger and hatred come from frustration and undermine our sense of trust. Because of ignorance, many of our problems are our own creation. Education, however, is the instrument that increases our ability to employ our own intelligence."

-Dalai Lama.

go forth.

never did i think i would be

spending halloween: 
*hanging out with the other
3 anthro writing tutors & our
coordinator talking about
electromagnetic radiation,
*sitting in my 3 hour senior seminar

eating dal & mac n cheese/

talking about nomads of the Ottoman Empire/

presenting a summary of & my thoughts on Turkish feminism,

*voting for the first time,

eating chocolate ice cream

and researching the different
props with my housemate.

Camellia sinensis.
real tea should taste like this:

'"Epigenetics" means what we eat, how we live and love, alters how our genes behave"

supporting local organic farms:

*helps local small businesses

*reduces transportation costs

*contributes to protecting the environment, esp top soil

*reduces toxic chemicals

*prevents soil erosion

*tastes better!!

*promotes biodiversity

*strengthens community

*improves workers' rights

*contributes to a more sustainable future!
*spreads awareness & involvement
in environmental & social activism

*is not necessarily more expensive

in the long run.

lastly, regarding labeling,
just knowing what it is

you are consuming is a nice and valid thing to know :)

it's that time of the quarter again.

o the madness.

fa'amalosi!

“Ideally, what should be said to every child, repeatedly, throughout his or her school life is something like this: 'You are in the process of being indoctrinated. We have not yet evolved a system of education that is not a system of indoctrination. We are sorry, but it is the best we can do. What you are being taught here is an amalgam of current prejudice and the choices of this particular culture. The slightest look at history will show how impermanent these must be. You are being taught by people who have been able to accommodate themselves to a regime of thought laid down by their predecessors. It is a self-perpetuating system. Those of you who are more robust and individual than others will be encouraged to leave and find ways of educating yourself — educating your own judgements. Those that stay must remember, always, and all the time, that they are being moulded and patterned to fit into the narrow and particular needs of this particular society.”
― Doris Lessing, The Golden Notebook