A Handful of Randomness

Thought #1-- Tuesday (either this past Tuesday or the one before it), I was on a break during my late-afternoon class (morphology) and was walking toward the restroom.  My Jackie-friend had come out of the classroom a few moments after I did and was behind me some distance in the hallway.  Apparently she called out, "Hey, Cripple!", but didn't want to do it too loudly, because she knew that much of the world would find such an exclamation to be offensive.  It reminds me of a topic discussed in another linguistics class (I warned you, I have a linguistics reference for everything!) where we talked about social marketplaces and symbolic capital, communities of practice and indexing... basically how you show that you are part of a group and perform your identity.  The fact that my Jackie-friend can call me a cripple and that I can call myself one in her presence (like the recent blog about another classmate and "cripple parking") shows the relationship we have.  (Another fantastic example of this is given in Marlita Hill's speech.  Check out the videos! #1 and #2)

Thought #2-- I had a ling test today (more linguistics.  This is why I blog.  Because my friends just can't take it anymore).  It was for LING 100: English Grammar and Syntax.  I went to the testing services (I get disability services on tests) and was, shall we say, rather amused by the amount of difficulty that was a part of taking this simple little test.  In all, it probably took me twenty minutes max to take.  But it actually took two hours.  Why?  Well, first, because of budget issues, they are grossly understaffed.  Which means there are no students to answer phones, pass out exams, etc.  So even though I was scheduled to begin at 10, it was at least five past before they began setting me up for my exam.  Then they put me in the wrong room.  See, the computer program I use for drawing sentence trees (yes, sentences grow on trees) was only installed on two computers.  And the computer they put me on wasn't one of them.  After getting on the right computer, I found that the program wasn't installed properly, since it wouldn't open.  (Of course, the other computer it was supposed to be on wouldn't boot at all.)  So after having the student at the desk look at it... and the secretary... and the disability services coordinator... a call was put in to the tech department.  Meanwhile, I did the multiple choice and then drew the trees on my white board.  (I can write on a white board a good deal longer than on paper.  But it was interesting cramming all five trees on my little white board!)  Then the tech dweebs came and tried to figure out why the program wasn't working.  Interesting fellows.  Not exactly the brightest stars in their field.  Finally the program worked.  I think there's a glitch in the program, though, because when you try to export the trees as images, the files don't work right.  On my computer, I can just tell it to open with paint or some other image editing software and it does.  Not on the DSS computer, though.  (Thankfully I know how to use print screens, though, so I managed to solve that without issue.)  Click click typety click and I was all done.  It was rather interesting to see though: the student passing off the issue to the nearest person in authority.  The secretary looking at the computer in bafflement.  The DSS coordinator getting angry at the tech department for messing up.  The tech dweebs for being totally unprepared and uninformed.  (And for it taking two to log in, reinstall, and change a setting.  Really?)  And me, watching in amusement.

Thought #3-- Oh, yes, my doctor's appointment!  I almost forgot.  Short little appointment.  My doc says I have a pinched nerve in my neck.  So we're adding Aleve for a few days and hoping that the inflammation goes away and doesn't come back.  If it does, I'm to call and get sent to a spinal specialist for another injection (this time more accurate than what they can do in the ER).  But I can move my head today!  Yay!  Almost full range of motion and very little pain.  (The skin is hypersensitive, but that may be due to the injections.)  The doc says he thinks this is a one-time thing and that once it goes away I shouldn't have persistent trouble with it.

Thought #4-- After the doc appt, I went back to campus to talk with my professor and apologize for having to leave in the middle of her class.  We had a great chat: linguistics, books, families, fieldwork... it was fabulous.  I got some great book recommendations and always enjoy picking her brain.  Good times.

Well, I have other thoughts floating around, but they are more complicated to put into the two-dimensional bloggosphere, so they shall wait and be mused upon some more.

Busy day tomorrow: Meeting with the advisor of my honor society, another appointment, and then with my second graders.

Banned Books Week

Well, one of my favourite weeks of the year comes to an end today: Banned Books Week.  The week that spreads awareness about banned and challenged books, censorship, and the first amendment.

I, personally, am highly opposed to censorship.  To quote Voltaire, "I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it."  While I personally may not like the message of some books, first of all, it's all data:  Not only is there a message in the text, but there's also information to be gained about myself and why I didn't like the book.  And secondly, who am I to say what another should be able to read or think?

So here is a list of banned or challenged books and authors that I have read.  Many books on this list are ones that I love greatly, and have really impacted who I am.  Others I did not like, but I did read them, and they still have become a part of who I am:

Lord of the Flies, William Golding

1984, George Orwell -- Anyone else see the irony of having this book on the list?  Oh, yes.  Let's ban books that talk about censorship and the destruction of the freedom of thought.

Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck

The Sun Also Rises, Ernest Hemingway

The Lord of the Rings, JRR Tolkien

Scary Stories (Series), Alvin Schwartz.

Bridge to Terabithia, Katherine Paterson -- One of my favourite books ever.  Beautiful touching story.

The Giver & other works, Lois Lowry -- Another favourite book.  Fantastically written.  A thought experiment about what happens if we give up our liberties.

Alice (Series), Phyllis Reynolds Naylor

The Great Gilly Hopkins, Katherine Paterson

The Witches, James and the Giant Peach, & others,  Roald Dahl -- His works were some of my favourites when I was in elementary school, and I still love them.

A Wrinkle in Time & other works, Madeline L'Engle -- Fantastic book  By a fantastic author who is greatly missed.

Blubber & Are You There, God? It's Me, Margaret, as well as others, Judy Blume

The Bluest Eye, Toni Morrison

Flowers for Algernon, Daniel Keyes

Harry Potter (Series), J. K. Rowling -- Every time I read these I am impressed by the complexity of the plot and the genius of the work.

A Light in the Attic & other works, Shel Silverstein -- Fantastic & creative.  Yes, Shel Silverstein didn't like kids, but his books were clever and witty.

The Face on the Milk Carton, Caroline B. Cooney

The Dead Zone, Stephen King

The Adventures of Tome Sawyer, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, & others, Mark Twain

Don't You Dare Read This, Mrs. Dunphrey, Margaret Peterson Haddix

The DaVinci Code, Dan Brown

Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury -- Again, anyone see the irony here?  Ban a book that shows what could happen in a society where books are banned.

Junie B. Jones and Some Sneaky, Peeky Spying, Barbara Park

The Golden Compass, Philip Pullman

Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West & others, I'm sure, Gregory Maguire

Twilight Series, Stephenie Meyer

Canterbury Tales, Chaucer

The Arabian Nights, Sir Richard Burton

The Bible

Many works by William Shakespeare

Grimm's Fairy Tales, The Grimm Brothers

The Diary of Anne Frank, Anne Frank

Lysistrata, Aristophanes

How to Eat Fried Worms, Thomas Rockwell

The works of Lewis Carrol