Are there any questions? Comments?

Over the last 2 days, there have been 20 visits to this blog and only 1 comment. Even with the direct question at the end of my last post, I just can't seem to stimulate any response. If I don't know you or don't know you read my blog, I promise not to be creeped out if you suddenly make your presence known through a comment - and you can even comment anonymously if you want. Na ja, thanks for reading anyhow - but a special thanks to Hannah and Rachel for your regular comments :)

The System

There is something inherently wrong with an education system in which, for lack of time, one must sacrifice reading a book one is totally excited about for skimming over it and improvising a book review about it - following strict guidelines - in order to get a good grade.

Now of course, one could place the responsibility on the individual to better manage their time or to take the initiative to read the book on their own time; however, in such a grade-oriented culture in which following guidelines is given more value than developing an in-depth understanding, I believe the problem is clearly systemic. Students cannot take their education into their own hands while satisfying the requirements of the system and maintaining a healthy, balanced lifestyle. Everyone, at some point in their academic career, must make a choice to neglect at least one of those three areas in order to better focus on another, and unfortunately, in this society, most pressures favour the prioritization of grades.

What do you think?

Annie Get Your Gun

Yesterday night, coming back to campus on the metro, I sat down in a relatively full car just across from a rather unique looking character. He was wearing a dirty, torn, reaking, and obviously mismatched army uniform. He had a German flag patch on his arm, was wearing a couple of different layers for warmth and impermeability and had a camo back pack. He was sporting a sort of mushroom cut but with the sides totally shaven and had bites or welts of some sort on his face and neck.

Like everyone around me, I tried not to give him too much attention but without seeming to be shunning him. However, especially wearing a suit and carrying a laptop bag, I couldn't help but feel rather unsafe and, yet again, understand why one would want to carry a weapon wherever they go. In two other instances here in DC I've found myself sitting apprehensively with my hand in my pocket and my thumb on the "9" button of my cellphone.

In Newfoundland, within days of the incident in which border officials killed an agitated, though seemingly harmless Polish immigrant in a Vancouver airport using a Taser, their use and future purchase was halted. Since the province's first acquisition of Tasers in 2003, they have never been used.

Walking the Dog

Today, for the second time, while I was running, I saw a young boy "walking" a little dog in the forest. That is, he was standing in one spot indifferently holding the dog's short leash and playing some type of handheld videogame while the dog basically walked on the spot, sniffing around to kill time.

Pretty Rich Girls

In a cab to the airport last Wednesday, I got talking with the driver and when he heard I was studying at American U, he warned me to watch out for all the "pretty rich girls". It made me feel a little sick - like I was expected to be attracted to girls because they were pretty and rich but that I somehow had something they didn't and I had to protect it from them. I wished I was at Mt.A. again where, I like to think, one would never hear such a comment.