Thursday, March 25, 2010

say to people they barely know, "hi, how are you!"

A regular reader wrote to me recently with the request below; it's actually a request of the rest of you. Others have written emails with more or less the same request, so I figured I'd make this an end of the week post:

During the discussion about Oso's post (classism vs racism) the word "community" kept getting used when referring to SWPD. I hadn't really thought about SWPD as being a community, but it is; there's plenty of us regulars. But it also highlighted something I've been thinking about for awhile, which is that the readers of SWPD are all people, above and beyond our work as anti-racists or anti-racist allies. Communities create bonds based on shared experiences and interests; we know we all share interest in anti-racism and a more equal world, but what do we share beyond that?

Maybe it's just because I grew up in the era of BBSes, when there was always an Introductions forum where people talked a little about themselves, but I'm really curious about my fellow commenters, and you as well. 


If you have a day when you need something light-hearted, I'd love to see an introductions post where people can share whatever they want to share. What's their family like? What music do they listen to? What's their happiest memory? What do they do all day? Do they have pets? Whatever they want. We all share anti-racism, but I bet if we got to know each other better we'd find that we have many more commonalities and shared interests than that. :)


Sounds good, and I'll start. I do have a pet, a dog -- and she's getting old! (10 years) That saddens me, and I think it's unfair that animals we get attached to usually age so much faster than we do. Speaking of animals, and fish, I grew up pursuing them so they could end up on our family's plates. I don't do that much anymore. I'll still eat them, though I do avoid consumption of industrialized animal products -- I know too much about what happens behind the scenes.

My tastes in music change all the time -- current faves include Amadou & Mariam, Radiohead (especially In Rainbows), Aphex Twin, Nina Simone, Crystal Castles, David Byrne, Yo La Tengo, Hank Williams, The Very Best, Boards of Canada, Manu Chao, Michachu, and others I'm forgetting.

I buy most of my groceries at a natural food co-op, I volunteer at a local program for prisoners, and I continually plan to get more involved locally (any day now!). I live in a neighborhood that's not completely white, but I do think it's whiter than it should be. I prefer to ride my bike whenever I can. I've lost the bug that I used to have for "travel," and I'm not entirely sure why.

Okay folks, your turn!

115 comments:

  1. ok, i'll start the comments off!

    i'm married with 3 cats. i'm an avid biker and i'm still in the process of job-hunting after living abroad for 2 years. i'm a certified Scuba Diving instructor.

    i grew up listening to mostly new wave, ska, punk rock, and jazz, but now my music tastes have expanded to include Afrofunk, Western Swing, and pre-1980s R&B.

    i love to knit, sew, garden, cook, and read. i also spend way too much time on the internet researching things that interest me.

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  2. island girl in a land w/o seaMarch 26, 2010 at 12:02 AM

    1.5 generation pilipina.
    currently live in nebraska.
    miss the pacific ocean terribly.

    came to the land of beef, became a full-time vegetarian, part time vegan.
    looking for vegetarian fish sauce.

    doc student. read, read, read, write, write, write, defend, defend, defend, blah, blah, blah.
    smoke too many cigarettes, drink too much coffee.

    two older dogs, who are patient and loyal friends.
    cannot imagine living without a dog companion.

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  3. I'm married with 2 kids, one boy (almost 3yo) one girl (9mo), no pets. We live in downtown Toronto, in one of its most diverse neighbourhoods. I'm on parental leave from teaching highschool Math and Physics at our local school.

    Most of my favourite music is top-40 but I'm really out of touch. What I do listen to all.day.long is Jingle Bells and Michael Finnegan.

    I like playing team sports. I played inter-university indoor volleyball years ago and now I play ultimate and I curl. But I've played a bunch of other sports, too. I grew up a Montreal Expos fan. I love board games and cards (usually bridge) and I read several baby-naming blogs.

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  4. Yay, my turn! :)

    * I have a cat that I love more than life itself, a pug, and two spawnlings (aka children). I spend most of my time spawn-wrangling.

    * Elder Spawn is autistic, which is often interesting and occasionally sucky. (Regarding autism: I despise Autism Speaks and believe in neurodiversity. I think Jenny McCarthy needs to STFU and GTFO, or perhaps even DIAF.)

    * Younger Spawn was born at home unassisted (meaning no doctor, midwife, or other professional in attendance), and that was one of the most empowering moments of my life. No, it wasn't an accident.

    * Regarding music, I'm Maynard James Keenan's bitch. Doesn't matter what he does (Tool, Puscifer, A Perfect Circle), I love it. I'm mostly a rock girl (NIN, Marilyn Manson, etc) but I also listen to lots of other genres on a regular basis.

    * I'm a writer. I write dirty smut that often requires trigger warnings. My first book came out last December, and now I'm getting ready to jump on the submission-go-round again.

    * I've been with my fella for 12 1/2 years, and still love him.

    * I'm a steampunk, and make costumes. I also do seriously awesome zombie makeup.

    * I'm a dancer fangirl, so America's Best Dance Crew is my favorite show. (Hype 5-0 FTW!)

    * I also love Torchwood, and nature shows about animals.

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  5. I'm married to my college sweetheart. We have two sons. I like sushi, rock/pop/oldies/r&b music (one of my hobbies is music collecting), indie films, and reading. I am thirty-three years old; yet, I look barely 21 (pros/cons to this, trust me).

    I teach an English teacher in the affluent L.A. suburb that I live in. Also, I've modeled and appeared in commercials in my college years. Despite living in Southern California for six years (I'm a native Philadelphian), I just earned my driver's permit! Yay me!

    I am living with Bipolar Disorder, which means I get to be a moody bitch without question (no, I'm totally kidding....maybe : ) ).

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  6. As you can see, I'm Victoria. I'm not married and don't ever want to get married. I have 2 sons - one in upper elementary, the other in middle school. I attend a local university here in south Florida and major in Secondary English Education. This is my last full semester.

    Living in south FL, you can guess that I spend a lot of time in water and on sand. I kayak and snorkel when it's warmer, and I fish regardless of the weather. I'm not a big traveler right now, but weekend excursions to various places in Florida are plentiful.

    I also write (fiction, non-fiction, very little poetry), read (books and blogs), and I actually do have a community online - a discussion forum for women, which keeps me busier than I thought it would when I took it on.

    My musical tastes are pretty broad. I love reggae, dancehall, 90s rap (favorites in my teen years were Wu Tang, Nas, Jay Z, Biggie, Smiff & Wessun...who later changed their name) 80s pop (guilty pleasure), Bob Dylan, Billie Holiday, Dean Martin, Sade, salsa influences are Frankie & Rey Ruiz, Celia Cruz, Joe Arroyo, won't list all the merengue, also have a thing for bachata as well. Meh, I think that's enough of a list.

    *waving*

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  7. How you doing. This is how we informally greet people where I reside. Which is the capital city of the O-State. (OH)

    I am the mother of three adult sons and the grandmother of four girls and one boy.

    I am my mother's only child and my dad's oldest child. I also have four brothers and one sister. My family branch is bi-racial. I am Black but four of my sibs are bi-racial and one is White. My teenage granddaughter is White and the remaining five grandies are also bi-racial.

    I listen to different types of music. Jazz, rock. gospel, classical, reggae, some country and western and show tunes can be found in my musical library.

    I love to read and to write. My profession is education. I work in the field of Early Childhood Education and Development.

    I'm an activist. I work on a variety of issues on line and in real time.

    We do Buckeye football as a family activity during the season. We also like to hang out at the theme parks and do the roller coasters. I work out, walk daily and I still dance as a form of exercise.

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  8. I'm married with a 7-month-old daughter, our first and only child. I work full time outside the home while my husband stays at home with the baby, doing paid work when he can find it (he's a freelance artist/animator).

    My passion lies with babies and mommas. In a perfect world, if we had all the money that we needed, I would be a midwife or doula. In this world, I'm stuck working in a cubicle in a room with no windows.

    We're kinda green. We cloth diaper and make our own baby food. I'm still breastfeeding and I have no plans to stop anytime soon. We want to teach her baby signs but we've been inconsistent. We may decide to homeschool or unschool, but we're not religious. I'm an atheist and my husband is agnostic. We'll be raising our daughter as a skeptic.

    I'm learning more about gardening and starting to experiment with baking. My favorite hobbies are knitting, sewing, curling (as in the ice sport), reading (although I haven't done much of it since the baby came along), camping, and above all - I LOVE mountain unicycling. I'm 30 pounds heavier than I was before I had the baby, not to mention really out of practice, so while I can still ride, I can't do the fancy stuff I used to be able to do. I'm working on it by riding a few times a week. Practice makes perfect.

    I used to listen to a lot of different music, but not so much these days. I know it sounds corny, but I prefer not to block out the noises that my daughter makes, even when she's just breathing softly. My first pregnancy ended in miscarriage so even when she cries, I'm just relieved to hear the life in her little voice.

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  9. ::ahem:: :)

    I'm single. No pets.

    I was recently accepted into grad school and I can't wait to start in the fall so I can a) go back home and b) get away from the craziness that is my current job. Oh and I'm also excited about getting my radio show back (I'm returning to my alma mater).

    I listen to all kinds of music, but I have a love affair with R&B, especially of the 90s new jack swing variety.

    I love the color purple (color, book, movie -- and probably the play if I'd ever seen it).

    I really want to own a pickup truck. ::shrug:: My friends judge me for this.

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  10. I like this idea.

    I'm a single, 27 year-old female living in Chicago. I'm a medical student and graduate student. I currently spend my days working in a microbiology lab. I'm usually in here commenting between mouse experiments. Along with anti-racism, my main personal cause is health disparities.

    I spend my free time salsa dancing, reading, cooking and baking, volunteering (usually in free medical clinics or at homeless shelters), surfing anti-racist blogs (natch), hearing live music at local concerts and festivals, and traveling when money allows. I attend church every Sunday and sing in the gospel choir.

    My favorite musical artist is Josh Ritter, a folk singer. My musical tastes are otherwise fairly ecclectic.

    I'm a coffee addict. :)

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  11. I am Fatima, I am white. I am an American Muslim lady...I love eating, cooking, and eating out in restaurants. I love reading about food, too. My favorite kind of food is: spicy and chile hot!

    I am married and have two toddler aged daughters. I currently live in the UAE, but my family and I are planning to relocate to the US in 3 months, a homecoming for me...the move is what I think about much of the time these days.

    I read babyname books, too @Karen L! I am interested in languages and name etymology, I usually know what people's name means when I meet them, but I don't reveal this right away because it makes me seem extra weird :-)

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  12. I'm 24 years old, living in Houston, Texas. Live at my parents house (current massive amounts of student loans prevent me from paying rent) with my boyfriend. In the house we have 3 dogs, one lab mutt (about 12 yrs), one dachshund (about 11 yrs) and my own furbaby Cookie who's a terrier mutt (1.5 years). No cats right now, since really the only cats we've ever had were all strays we took in. I do own a gun, though it stays locked up in my closet most of the time. But I am an excellent shot and stand ready for the zombie uprising (which is a great fear of mine, if only because my brother the super bio nerd seriously has plans to create a zombie virus and I know one day it may very well happen).

    I'm a vegetarian (sometimes pescaterian), though still a fairly recent one since I only started last July. I enjoy videogames, though I wish there were better games out to play, and will play just about anything that isn't a modern wartime FPS or a boring racing game. My favorite games of all times would have to include Shadow of the Colossus, Prince of Persia Warrior Within, and Viva Pinata (seriously, that game is addictive). I work at a small local law firm (no really, the entire firm is me and the attorney) that deals with asbestos personal injury cases. It's boring but pays way better than my job at Gamestop ever did.

    And I love a lot of different music, and it's always changing, but right now I'm really into eclectic industrial metal music. like System of a Down, Mindless Self Indulgence, and Maximum the Hormone. But I'm also a big sugar punk fan (what I call music like Motion City Soundtrack or The Matches) and J-Pop. I'm sure if I could find a way to listen to my J-Pop internet radio station everywhere that would probably be my music 24/7. :P

    Nice to get a chance to really get to know everyone! :D

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  13. @Karen L: Whooo, another curler! I'm in the US where it's not nearly as popular; most folks in my area just think it's weird.

    I have to say that I'm really enjoying this thread!

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  14. i'm married with no kids and a dog. no plan for kids, i'm just not that kind of lady.

    ph.d. program drop-out. part-time poet. reproductive justice activist. vegetarian. atheist. serious gardener of flowers and veg. only flower pots to work with, but i dream of a big garden plot someday. i ride my bike everywhere, rain or shine.

    i'm from the east coast of the US, but moved out west as an adult. i wish i could see my family every day. i've been thinking a lot lately about community and what it means to be so far away from family.

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  15. HI. I'm a chemist and a punk rawker.

    Me and my boyfriend are trying to start a charity to raise money to help low-income teenagers afford abortions.

    My favorite animals are goats and my favorite tv show is Martha Speaks on pbs kids!

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  16. Hi Everyone,
    Parsley is literally my middle name - my mother's maiden name. I live in Vermont with my partner of 3 years. (We're both white women, btw.)

    I'm a Unitarian Universalist minister, serving two small Vermont congregations.

    I grew up listening only to classical music, and I was a classical musician (amateur) for 13 years. Now, I've expanded my musical taste a bit to include mostly female singer/songwriters whose lyrics I like. Right now, the CD in my car is Tracy Chapman.
    In my free time, I make quilts.

    Nice to "meet" you all! :-)

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  17. I'm not a regular poster but I'll bite. I'm a sleep-deprived mother of 2 toddler tornadoes who I love more than I could ever adequately express. In my life B.C. (before children), my husband and I were the support staff to my first dog ever, a Boxer. I still miss him (the dog, that is; husband still with me :o)).

    Relieved when Obama came on the scene and provided me with an example I could point to of someone who came from a multinational/cultural upbringing/family where everyone didn't "match." (Although identifying as more than one ethnicity still makes some people treat me as if I'm trying to be sneaky/lying.) Grew up listening to highlife, jazz, european classical and some rock, blues, r&b and hip hop. Love wide variety of musical genres, reading, sports (playing & watching), art (creating & consuming). Tea addict. Miss living by mountains or an ocean.

    Looking to re-immerse myself in volunteer work (beyond donating resources) now that I have time.

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  18. I often lurk and occasionally comment, but maybe putting myself out there will get me to speak up more!

    I'm living with my boyfriend in a 70 year old house (it's wonderful). We have two dogs who are absolutely brilliant. I just got my B.A. in Women's and Gender Studies and will be either going to grad school in the fall for Educational Studies (philosophy) or into a midwives apprentice program.

    I love folk, pop, ambient, and psychedelic music. My favorite artists include Jenny Lewis, Joanna Newsom, High Places, Beach House, Panda Bear, Animal Collective, Grizzly Bear, and many more. Boyfriend has gotten me into dubstep, but it's ripe for a conversation about race (it's basically white electronic hip hop).

    I do Tarot, yoga, and read a lot. I'm an ardent and inconvenient feminist. I like to bike around and sit with trees. Been a vegan for 3 months, vegetarian for 2 years. I have't owned a tv in almost two years which is nice except when you're sick and have nothing else to do.

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  19. Hey, y'all!

    I'm a former military brat recently settled in my hometown. Single, no kids, no pets, but I have the cutest, sweetest, most adorablest little niece whom I love sooooooo much! (Happy 9-week Birthday! NĆ©e-NĆ©e misses you! maybe someday she'll find this message ^_^) As you can see, I've fully embraced the role of Crazy Aunt!

    I'm inbetween homes right now, but I'm trying to remain optimistic. I'm looking for a 2nd job because being a lowly government minion isn't paying well AT ALL. I also plan on working a side hustle selling my homemade crocheted items.

    I proudly proclaim myself a womanist, a nerd, and a geek (specifically in the Star Trek/X-Files, manga/anime, American cartoons, video games, shiny new gadgets, foreign movies, and Old Hollywood arena). My iPod contains hip-hop, R&B, punk rock, and popular music from India, Korea, Japan, Russia, and France; classical music (Am I the only one who likes to get down to the "Masterpiece Theater" theme song?); old time detective radio shows; and old-school hip-hop and R&B. I spend my nights watching the History Channel, TCM, Nickelodeon (and Nicktoons - one more week of "Invader Zim"!), Cartoon Network, Discovery Channels (all of them), LinkTV, and Current.

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  20. @island girl: I so hear you. I grew up in southern California, spending many of my days in the ocean, and now live in Toronto. It's been twelve years and I still miss the ocean and dream about it on a regular basis. :(

    @honeybrown: Go you indeed! :D It must have been hella difficult to get around for the past six years. o_O

    @August: Another semi-green atheist parent! Nice. :) We cloth-diapered with #1, coslept with both, babywore with both, used signs with both, and I practice child-led weaning (Elder Child weaned at 3 1/2 years, Younger Child is 2 and still going strong). Both my husband and I are "Capital-A Atheists" (as we put it) and are raising our kids atheist. *high-5's you* (And FWIW, I was trained as a midwife, after spending years being a doula. But then I realized that my ethics were incompatible with the concessions that licensed midwives are forced to make in my province, so I didn't go into practice.)

    @thesciencegirl: What kind of mouse experiments are you doing? (I'm fascinated by that kind of stuff.)

    @PMS Rhino: I'm also a huge Mindless Self Indulgence fan! Saw them with The Birthday Massacre (also a band I love) and the show was AMAZING. Jimmy's so much fun to watch onstage. Have you ever seen them live?

    @Kinsley: Yay, container gardening! I grow veggies on my balcony. This year I'm doing cucumbers, blueberry bushes, sugar snap peas, snow peas, tomatoes, various herbs, Kentucky Blue beans, Golden Wax beans, ground cherries, carrots, and radishes. What's your gardening plan for this year?

    @leedevious: When your charity gets going, can you direct some of those funds Utah's way? I just had to fundraise for a friend there, since apparently abortion funding is basically nonexistent in Utah. :( When she asked the local Planned Parenthood about it, I gather they laughed pretty hard (not at her, but at the idea that such a thing might be available in SLC).

    Yay, I'm so delighted with this thread. It's awesome to get to know all y'all better. :)

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  21. I'm from Cleveland, Ohio. Graduated from The Ohio State University. Moved to small town Missouri 3 years ago to start my career. Currently plotting my escape. I quilt and I'm learning to sew clothes. I believe she who dies with the most fabric, wins. I collect 1950's furniture and turquoise household objects (typewriter, mixing bowls, sewing machines). I do yoga and pilates. Trying to add in cardio/weights. Proud owner of 2 giant cats. I'm black and an atheist. I mostly listen to RnB and believe all the good music is pre 2000. I mostly read decorating blogs.

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  22. Okay, I'll play!

    I live in the Midwest with my toddler son, adopted from Ethiopia at 9 mos, and my husband, a chronic PhD student (and, yes, I mean 'chronic' like a disease) who, we've recently learned, has Asperger's Syndrome. This has been challenging, but I can't say enough about a good couples' therapist. My son is a delight, with a wicked sense of humor and the sweetest nature in the world. I would be lying, though, if I didn't also tell you that he also drives me batty a good part of the time. The other interesting thing about our family is that my husband is very much a Mormon and I am very much not. This is an area in our marriage that We Don't Talk About.

    When I'm not here or at other anti-racist blogs, I'm fighting the apparently losing battle against corruption in international adoption. This also involves getting my own agency to come clean about some not-so-nice stories circulating about them. One tremendous gift of all of this investigation has been our decision to establish independent contact with my son's first family. So, we are now also wading into the unknown waters of open adoption, which is unexpected but very cool, and I'm still figuring out how we Get This Right.

    But, while I'm doing all of that web surfing, I'm really supposed to be, you know, working. I'm an editor at a non-profit that does research and policy advocacy on asset and wealth inequality. Sometimes this means I imperiously tell other people where to put their commas and sometimes it means that I basically rewrite people's papers for absolutely no credit. But that's okay. After all, the job allows me all kinds of freedom to be, ahem, here...

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  23. I'm a playwright and I'm gonna write, direct and produce my first film this year.

    I love to eat sushi. My favourite animals are cats and horses. I have a huge fear of dogs, but if a dog is really nice, then I feel relaxed.

    I have a huge fear of elevators.

    I love to watch old silent films and I love to make mime comedy sketches.

    My favourite place in the whole world is the aquarium. Anywhere on the planet, as long as I'm surrounded by fish, sharks, and marine life. I LOVE IT!!!

    I have a thing for ginger boys. Pale skin, red hair, it gets me HOT.

    I love military guys, too.

    ummm yeah that's it

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  24. Lots of Ohio people here. I was born and raised in Cleveland. I did my undergrad in Ohio, and grad school in Florida. I now teach statistics at a university and work as a statistical consultant. I'm a Taoist and a pescatarian. I practice Qi Gong and a little Tai Chi. No pets.

    I listen to mostly Indie Rock and Motown (my parents got me into Motown. Good stuff.) and Delta Blues. I read voraciously, but mostly academic stuff or biographies.

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  25. I'm a 26YO single black female lving in New England. I can't afford pets right now but I've wanted a dog since I was little and can't wait to get one.

    My job is not one I would like for the rest of my life but I consider myself lucky to have one at all.

    My taste in music is as volatile as the weather. Yesterday it was Baroque, today it's Japanese hip hop, tomorrow, who knows?

    I am a volunteer conversational english instructor and I love it so much I have considered making a career out of it. I also volunteer at a resource center for homeless/low income women.

    The following is a list of my addictions: knitting, tea, anime, asian dramas, walking.

    Ok, I think I'm done!

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  26. I'm an autistic, queer, trans and disabled twentysomething white girl from the Pacific northwest, now living in Minneapolis with my partner.

    I'm chronically unemployed, but volunteer as an ESL teacher in my neighborhood, and recently applied for a full-time paid volunteer position teaching literacy to younger kids in at-risk schools.

    Indebted college dropout, wanting to remedy that, interested in biology and linguistics. Little work experience, no obvious career path, and a whole lot of depression, but a sort of subconscious tenacity that's gotten me this far.

    I live with one cantankerous metalhead lesbian computer programmer (my spouse in all but law) and one cat. We have a third partner abroad, with plans to eventually relocate together as money and immigration status permit.

    My taste in music tends toward the kitschy -- it's mostly metal, anime soundtracks, weird synthy stuff and folk music.

    I write comics and books, mostly speculative fiction. I'm conscious of representation *and* appropriation issues in this area and try to write fiction that's inclusive without being exploitative.

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  27. I always hate ice breakers because I can never think of anything cute to say. I'm afraid that I'll come across as boring and pretentious, and I suppose that's because I am. So, taking a deep breath . . . I'm 60 and proud of it; that's why I picked my blog name. (I'm amused at the number of young men who write comments that seem to assume I must have low self-esteem because I refer to myself as an older woman.) I'm white. I grew up in Southern California, spent 10 years in a couple of Southern cities and have lived for 30 years in Wisconsin. I've been married for almost 40 years to a man I went to high school with and I have two children in their 20s as well as a son-in-law in his 30s. My spouse and children love me and appreciate me despite believing that I am weird and often annoying. I'm a sociology professor. I teach about race and I do public work trying to fight racial disparities in criminal justice and have an (overdue) writing project trying to theorize criminal justice disparities as repression. I think about race pretty much all the time. I'm the opposite of colorblind: I am constantly aware of other people's race and my own white privilege and I score badly on "unconscious racism" tests. I catch myself in racially biased assumptions at least daily. I'm also used to having people treat me with respect and deference, and I walk around with a sense of privilege that it is really hard to shake. I do know actual people of color from a wide variety of walks of life (low income ill-educated ex-felons to highly educated professionals, and especially a lot of graduate students) but am very conscious of the boundaries of experience and privilege. A recent stretch for me is getting to know some trans people who are close to my children, as well as a person at church.

    Let's see, can I come up with any lighter notes? I don't have favorite music or movies. I've read Jane Austen dozens of times and really like George Eliot's books. I have a cat but don't really like him. I'm an omnivore. I don't really have hobbies, more obsessions. Sometimes my obsession is my research/writing, and I pretty much tune out everything else. Recently my obsessions have been free cell, crossword puzzles, and reading blog comments. Apart from "race" blogs, I've been reading about romance novels and thence about the publishing business. The only gardening I do is obsessive weeding: I've been on a rampage against garlic mustard for the past few years. I gained a lot of weight when my children were growing up and then lost it with a program that included a lot of exercise. While exercising and weeding and folding laundry and driving I listen to a LOT of audio books, almost all fiction, ranging from trash to serious literature.

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  28. @Robin

    i envy your steampunk. if i felt like i could take on another aesthetic identity, i would SO be there.

    @ PMS Rhino

    be ready. the zombie uprising is inevitable, and whoever is not prepared is destined to be zombie food.

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  29. I am a longtime lurker partly because I've been unsure how to post through my RSS reader.

    I am nearly thirty. White. Lesbian. Disabled (physically, cognitively, chronic illness, psych history, etc.), use an electric wheelchair and aug comm.

    I've got no partner. My family is a cat who means everything to me, and a close friend, both who saved my life when I was flailing around trying to make it in the adult world minus employment and most of the other trappings of standard adulthood.

    I listen to just about any music unless it has this one specific beat that gives me seizures or something close. Country is one of my favorite sounds dating back to my family descended from "Okies" and "Arkies", but I hate the racism of the industry. Get me to just about any kind of concert though and I love just letting go and letting my body ride the music without any interference from my thinking.

    I mostly live in bed so the Internet is my line to the outside world. I read about any and all power imbalances - white/PoC, enabled/disabled, straight/queer, cis/trans, rich/poor, human/other animal, and many others, both alone and in connection with each other. I write mainly about disability as injustice.

    I love sensuality. I am easily entertained and can spend all day just staring at a quilt, smelling a cat's fur, biting plastic, rubbing my fingers on wood. It's a refreshing break from the cognitive complexity of reading and writing and I need it like I need sleep.

    I have a lot of good memories and very vivid recall. It's hard to know which is my favorite. There are so many days where all I do is love my cat while she loves me back. Then there's the smell of snow. The patterns of sand flowing around in the ocean's undertow. Too many things like that to pick one for the best.

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  30. @Robin: this year the spring planting veg plan includes green bush beans, some kind of yellow tomato but I can never remember the name-lantern or candle or something, snow peas, mini eggplants. herbs of all sorts grow in my year round windowsill pots. for flowers I do some edibles, nasturtiums and calendula, and some just for the pleasure of it, cosmos, morning glories, and anemone. I like wild flowers a whole lot and I think I'm going to go on some late summer field and forest walks picking seed pods to gather new things to grow next year. I am completely impressed by blueberry bushes in pots. I've never tried growing berries in my flower pot system yet. That will have to change.

    @Angel H.: I share much of your geekdom! All except the Old Hollywood part.

    @PMS Rhino: I also enjoy video games. I haven't played the ones you mentioned, but am really intrigued by Shadow of the Colossus.

    @Kittywhompers: I love the way you write. I too love sensuality and I think I know some of what you mean about the joy of texture.

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  31. Black, Male. Proud of the Black part, the male part is meaningless, way too much privilege for me to have much respect for being male. I’m a mortgage broker by trade, ie, I’m presently unemployed.

    I'm in my early 50's. I grew up in L.A., integrated one neighborhood, and saw the white flight. Involved in busing to desegregate two white public schools (jr high & high) again saw the white flight. Moved to Austin TX, three years ago. Racially a very depressing place, and a very segregated and racist city. Austin fancies itself a liberal city, but that's only by Texas's standards. Actively planning a relocation to either L.A. or the D.C. /Maryland area.

    Three children, 23, 20 and 15 months. Yea, 15 months! I Try to read a book a month, but it ends up being one every two or three months. I primarily read non-fiction, but will enjoy some Orwell or Kafka. Dig Harlem Renaissance era poetry. Great appreciation for 60's-80's RnB

    I don't care for pets, my wife likes em, so we have two cats.

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  32. @Robin: I'm so jealous! I've wanted to see MSI live for years! But every time I think to see where they're touring they've always just barely passed us by. D: Sucks 'cause I LOVE live concerts so much and I've seen videos of their shows and they look awesome. Plus I've loved them ever so much more since I found that two of the members are chicks. :)

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  33. Well I recently graduated with master of public policy degree and have worked with ex-offenders in employment. I love videogames and have a shiba inu. I enjoy diffeent genres of music and lived in Japan for a while for school so I listen to alot of japanese pop. Oh and I'm an aspiring singer that can't seem to get his demo together. :)

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  34. @Robin

    Thankfully, I am in a suburb where everything's here. So, it was a blessing and a curse. Yeah, I have everything here; but, what the hell was my incentive to drive? You know what I got tired of asking my DH to take me here and there. I am an independent woman and hated asking others for help.

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  35. I love this idea.

    Grew up in New England, and have lived my entire life in the Northeast US except for a spell of a few years in Morocco, which I miss every. single. day. I came back to be closer to my parents, whom I'm really close with. I'm an only child.

    I have a degree in sociology, but I almost majored in theatre. I minored instead, thank goodness.

    I adore my job. I live with my partner and cat. I speak English and Arabic, and continue to study the latter to improve upon what I know. I pay a lot of attention to politics, and though I have a lot of so-called "causes" that are important to me, queer rights, Palestine, and free speech are at the top of that list. I'm an atheist/humanist.

    I listen mostly to hip hop, Brazilian funk, Arabic music of many genres, and the kind of rock the Counting Crows play. I also love the Beatles, and my parents sang "Rocky Raccoon" to me as a lullaby growing up.

    I travel a lot and would be happy doing it full-time, being "homeless". Last year I made it to Japan, Syria, Lebanon, and Malaysia, plus lots of the US and Canada.

    I could eat sushi every day too, if it weren't for the mercury content.

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  36. Robin, thank you SO much for using the word "neurodiversity." I was familiar with the concept (almost innately) but had never heard the term before; it speaks to me.

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  37. Long time reader, only recently began commenting. I am a black woman in my late 30's, native Texan (often to my embarrassment), single, with no children. However, I have the best looking 4 nephews and the most beautiful niece in the world, and my best friend of 27 years and I share the world's most handsome, smartest, most obnoxious pug.

    I was a working stage and commercial actress for 15 years, in Texas, Chicago, Denver, San Francisco, and whereever else I could find a job. I still do voiceover work, but I went to grad school a few years ago and I'm now a therapist, specializing in working with adolescents, although I also work with individuals, families and couples. In the past, I've done crisis intervention, victims assistance, community mental health with mentally ill homeless and indigent populations, medical family therapy with the terminally ill, and sexual assault counseling.

    I'm a voracious reader, mostly of history and social psychology, but also a huge fan of folklore and mythology, crime history, film criticism, especially about horror and exploitation films, and for fiction, mostly fantasy and British police procedurals and cozy mysteries.

    I'm a film and music lover, and like my fiction, I tend to like it British. I recently saw Part One of the Red Riding Trilogy in my local arthouse theatre, and loved it. Can't wait for Parts 2 and 3! Musically, favorites include The Smiths (my favorite band of all time), The Jam, Phoenix, Fleet Foxes, Muse, Blitzen Trapper, Fiery Furnaces, The Dresden Dolls, Doves, Elbow, and many more. I also listen to neo-soul, classic soul and R & B, swing from the 30's and 40's, bluegrass, and Celtic rock and folk, among others.

    I've been a practicing Witch since the age of 14, love classic animation but hate dealing with the ugly racial stereotyping that comes with it, try to eat healthy but have been known to mow people down to get to a Nestle Drumstick, am an NPR junkie, haven't traveled nearly as much as I'd like, and I still love to swing and fly kites. I spend way too much time on great blogs like this one, and am so grateful for the way they have broadened my knowledge, motivated my activism, and let me know there are, yes, communities out there with intelligent, passionate and curious people who truly wish to be the change they wish to see in the world.

    @Robin,

    I would love to read your 'dirty smut' sometime. Where can I find your book? Also, I decided not to cancel my subscription to BBC America back in 2007 when they announced they would be airing Torchwood. And I actually considered, for about five minutes, watching Desperate Housewives because I love John Barrowman that much!

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  38. @Kittywhompers: I love your screenname!

    I'm about a month away from the end of the semester from hell (which I guess is an interesting phrase when describing Christian divinity school...), and looking forward to having enough time to do things like comment regularly again. Although that may not last long because I am starting a really awesome Ph.D program in the fall!

    In the free time that I don't technically have, I teach Sunday school, volunteer for a disability advocacy group, and serve as a peer counselor for undergrads with eating disorders/related issues.

    I have never lost a game of Star Wars or Lord of the Rings Trivial Pursuit.

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  39. @Robin, I study the disease cholera, which is caused by a bacteria that colonizes the intestines. I basically infect mice with this bacteria and try to understand how their bodies respond. The overall, longterm goal is to improve cholera vaccines.

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  40. I am married. No kids. Lots of pets and would have more if I could afford them.

    Sadly hubby was laid off and has been out of work for over a year.

    I love symphonic metal and play classical flute and guitar as well as play in a metal band. (I think I mentioned this before when saying how weird it was to do this as a woman of color-ironically musicians love it).

    I am a professional artist by trade and work in commercial art as well as illustrating book covers and children's books.

    3 years ago we bought a house in the country - we wanted to get started early on our retirement home. LOVE IT! Now we just have to work on the retirement MONEY!

    I have a love - hate relationship with my fellow human beings right now. I prefer solitude to being around the masses this year.

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  41. I live in the NW where, to my disappointment, we had NO winter weather this year, and I teach writing and ethnic/cultural studies courses at a large public college--not a university. After two dissolved marriages, I now live with an eight-year-old standard poodle who acts two, and according to our agility coach, "hasn't got a fight in her." I'm also an actor, singer and unproduced playwright, and at 53, I might be one of the older white male contributors here. Nice to meet all of you.

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  42. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  43. @MissCegenation: Glad I'm not the only one prepared for the zombie apocalypse. :)

    @Kinsley: Shadow of the Colossus is a MUST play if you have a PS2. Pretty much an action puzzle game where you fight huge (and the scale is massive) colossi. The same people did a game called ICO which is another of my all time favorites. And then they're making another one called Last Guardian for the PS3 coming out (I think) the end of this year which I am absolutely bouncing off the walls waiting for. Just such a great development studio. I you enjoy gaming you should definitely try them. :D

    @Robin: My cousin and her friends have been doing a bunch of steam punk costumes lately. Even had an awesome photo shoot with some of their outfits. Probably gonna join them on a steam punk cosplay during AKon in June. Though it's going to take ALL the willpower I have to not just get a unitard and glue gears all over it as a joke. :P

    And I'm totally gonna have to disagree with you because Jungle Boogie FTW!!! D:

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  44. I'm an avid re-enactor, within the SCA, and within a smaller ELizabethan group. I also do costumed interpretation at a living history museum about early colorial America (which means I get to sneak in a lot of really good Native American history and let people know it's not just Pocahontas Disney).

    I embroider, I'm on my second 17th century embroidered jacket, which I occasionally post pictures of on my blog, and I run a costuming website.

    In real life (*grin*), I am a first generation British immigrant, I'm married, I work for a brain injury foundation, I'm partially disabled with a chronic pain condition, and I spend far too much time on the intarwebs, soaking up as much as I can on the fight for social justice. I'm a pragmatist, but an idealistic one, if that makes any sense. I love animals, but don't own any, though I intend to make my land into a wildlife refuge as soon as I move there permanently.

    I dig all kinds of music; I just have to like the way an individual song sounds.

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  45. I'm 29, single and am a wanderluster and a writer. Originally from Baltimore, I've already lived in Philadelphia (college), NYC (grad school and work), and now Los Angeles to become a bit more proactive with my filmmaking career as a screenwriter. I'll probably also dabble in directing.

    Aside from my love of film--mostly indies and foreign, I also write fiction. I just completed a collection of short stories.

    I'm also a foodie and love to cook.

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  46. I'm a young Afrikan-American male. I'm single with no children (thank goodness lol) I live in a small, conservative town in South Carolina(pray for me). I love to draw, websurf, watch tv, read, listen to music, and just chill. I went to school at USCA (go Pacers lol). I have a dog, and I'm the youngest of two.

    I've been researching and writing blogs about racism and the problems of the black community. I'm trying to create a comic book that addresses the real issue behind the pain within the black community. Unfortunately, it's a lot harder than I thought. I can imagine it will even harder to distribute it. Until then, I've made several political cartoons that have been floating around the net.

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  47. 22 year-old, single, heterosexual gal. I cook, take bad pictures of things, and I go to the gym a lot. I'm a 2nd year med student and I sleep and nap a lot of my days away ^___^

    I like to read well-written trashy novels (contradiction in terms???) and I love melodramatic animes and survival horror videogames.

    Speaking of which, one of my life's goals is to learn enough skills to make sure I can survive a zombie outbreak. These include:
    -shooting a gun
    -learning to drive stick
    -flying a plane
    -scavenging for food
    -learning to navigate by the stars

    @ robin: I'm v. interested in reading one of your books :) congrats on getting published

    @ebony: congratulations on getting your short story collection published! are the stories featured around a theme or a genre?

    I find it so exciting to hear about people whose works get put into print. It takes serious discipline.

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  48. As most of you already know..
    I am an academy award-winning actor and songwriter, starring beside such notables as Todd Bogswell in Foosball Boogey, Electric Boogaloo 2 (best picture with a foosball in it.) Moreover, I played opposite Dash Riprock in, Flipper… the Untold Story. (Best mammal in a romantic comedy) I enjoy long walks on short piers and I’m currently working on an in-depth biography of Charlie Brown. (So misunderstood, had a full head of hair once…)

    I’m also collaborating with Toni Morrison to do a follow-up to her acclaimed historical novel Beloved- entitled, Aquatinted. I’ve had the distinction of serving under three Presidents (local school board) as speechwriter and car pool coordinator. I’m fluent in three languages (Ebonics, Pig Latin and English.) I’m well read, having gorged myself on such best sellers as, The Bride of The Far Side: by Gary Lawson. So you want to learn Disco: by Kathie Lee Gifford, and lastly- Everything you’ve always wanted to know about sex but had sense enough not to share it on national television: By Jerry Springer.

    I enjoy channel surfing, and online gaming. (Quake 3) I enjoy sitting… reading and sitting- and sitting and reading, while eating. I particularly enjoy pawning off grandiloquent falsehoods to people I don’t even know. I’m a black man, married for 29 years this July- with four grown children. I’m an artist, who enjoys contemporary Jazz, Gospel and Classical music. I have no pets, but I have raised teens.

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  49. 25 (on monday), white/cis/male (aka privileged, ignorant, and persistently moronic in a thousand-and-counting[-downward-if-i-can-help-it] ways), syntactician by education and training, language teacher by profession, writer/translator/gamer/bad athlete by hobby, loud, single, and broke (to pay off those student loans).

    the first book i stayed up all night to finish was pride and prejudice.

    i once got into a fistfight over a girl, and nobody won.

    if i could star in any type of tv show, it would have to involve food.

    if i don't cut my hair for two months it becomes a mullet.

    i grew up in minneapolis and phoenix; thus, extreme temperatures have no effect on me.

    raspberries. you can make your case for blueberries or strawberries, but my answer is raspberries.

    i wish i could write like a) christian bok or b) italo calvino.

    in the mood for love and 2046 are one of the strangest and most fascinating movie-sequel duos i've ever seen.

    ...aaand: i <3 this blog. thank you, macon, and everyone else who contributes and comments!

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  50. olderwoman, if you're willing, please write to me over email so I can ask you something (unmakingmacon @ gmail dot com)

    This has been great so far -- come on out, lurkers!!! It's good to get to know so many of you a bit better.

    jim, I think In the Mood for Love is in my Top Ten -- not sure if it's before or after Vive L'Amour.

    Robin, thanks for the term "spawn-wrangling"! (And for much else.) And to TAB for "toddler tornadoes."

    August, I might have to steal this someday: "I'm an atheist and my husband is agnostic. We'll be raising our daughter as a skeptic."

    CuteRedHood, I haven't owned a TV for far, far longer than your two years. I'll never go back.

    thelady, thanks for the thought of a turquoise typewriter.

    DIMA, thank you especially for the films on your blog. I watch and love them all.

    Winnowill, co-sign on The Smiths.

    Kittywhompers, I knew rain has a smell, but now I'll watch out -- sniff out -- for the smell of snow. Wow.

    M. Gibson, LOL!!

    Best of luck getting your books published, Will and Ebony.

    attack laurel, could you post a link to that jacket? I couldn't find the photos you mentioned.

    Mr. M, a shiba inu! I've been thinking about those . . .

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  51. oh, fun times!

    My birthparents are Korean immigrants to the U.S.; I was adopted at the age of about 2 months and raised by my white parents in southern Oregon. I grew up an only child, but a couple of years ago I reunited with my bio sister, and somehow, in one of the greatest and most unexpected blessings of my entire life, we are very close now.

    I went to school on the east coast (JHU, in Maryland), got married after graduation, and have since resided in one of those parts of the South that is rather dominated by Yankee transplants who do not reflect the true nature of the place. My husband, who is Irish/Lebanese, is a grad student finishing his PhD in engineering. We have one child, a very verbal and dramatic 2-year-old. We have no idea where we'll be living a year from now.

    While no amount of parental guilt could ever induce me to move back to my tiny white hometown, I admit that I remain deeply attached, spiritually and emotionally, to my native bioregion. I adore the Pacific Northwest and hope to move back someday, to Portland or Seattle or Vancouver.

    I've worked for various nonprofits since college; I still do, from home, while I care for my daughter, and occasionally freelance write/edit on the side. In my free time I write, read, sing, salsa and swing dance, knit, and watch a lot of bad TV and college basketball. I'm a practicing Catholic, and when I pray, it's usually for my husband to finish grad school already.

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  52. i've only commented once but i'm a long-time lurker so i hope it's okay that i am commenting.

    1st-generation pinay-american who has grown up in NC. my parents both became born-again southern baptists and assimilated quite well into our all-white neighborhood. my dad, tho born in okinawa and looking very eastern asian, identifies as a white republican.

    i have been living the past half year in the Netherlands pursuing a serious romance with a dutch experimental/noise artist i saw in my former university town. we are in a polyamorous, queer, domestic relationship and i am very happy with how we communicate and negotiate our boundaries. and we want no pets or babies :-D

    i have my degree/license as a RN, BSN. i worked in a medical center for 2-3 yrs. and i worked one summer in a clinic in oaxaca, mexica. in the far future, i would like to return to the states and do a PhD in medical anthropology.

    my partner and i both boast ridiculously huge music collections and are both involved with it in one way or the other. i think it's rather redundant to talk ab my tastes bc they're so eclectic (i miss NC funk and all of the XYC dance parties DJ'd by library science nerds but i am also digging all of the huge dubstep parties happening @ all of the squats) and i always find myself battling the whole "only abstract music made by white boys with severe social anxiety is the best music ..." thing. i fantasize ab starting up a riot-disco band and maybe jumping on the bandwagon of being a electro-funk dj ala dj andy butler or armand van helden ... even tho my only DJ experience was minimally on college radio ..

    i am currently unemployed: learning dutch, knitting, sewing/figuring how the best dress forms for ppl with different body shapes ("apple"-shapes, holla!!!) , knitting, urban gardening, reading, and NOT BEING ON FACEBOOK.

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  53. I develop ridiculously inappropriate crushes on celebrity scholars and activists. I do not trust my genes enough to breed. I'm saving up for chest reconstruction surgery but plan on keeping my vag as is. I can't hold my alcohol, my pot, or my tongue. Rape baby turned transcultural adoptee. There have been no exogenous animals in my stomach for 9 years. I don't believe in the institution of marriage. It does not believe in me either. I'm grateful to be sharing my life with a woman who's excited about adopting a Deaf brown baby, even though she is neither and I am both. Even though on paper I sound like the little fetus that could, my life is so fabulous it's practically covered in glitter.

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  54. It's fun to read and be surprised by what people about themselves--I've been way off on a lot of genders and ages!

    I am 21 years old and will graduate with a double Bachelor's in Spanish and Psychology major this fall (a semester early, thank goodness). I plan to move west and work with Teach for America as either a high school Spanish teacher or a bilingual educator, then go on to get a Master's and PhD in Spanish. My long-term goal is to be a Spanish professor, though I have yet to figure out my focus area.

    When I'm not studying (I'm sitting in the library right now on a Friday night...pathetic, I know), I run a free ESL program off-campus, serve on my college's Honesty Committee, and serve as the VP of a social club for women of color (all 3 of us) on campus. I also spend time on the phone/emailing/Gchatting with my boyfriend, who lives 3 time zones away (and, incidentally, reads this blog). :-)

    My favorite music genre is Neo-Soul, and I can't get enough of Maxwell, Lauryn Hill, or Laura Izibor. I love mystery books (I've read every Sherlock Holmes title and I wish I could find more "whodunits" at Borders), but I hate animals. (Yea, I said it.) I'm a horrible joke-teller and quite possibly the world's biggest crybaby.

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  55. I'm Mike (48) and I live in the city that I was born in which is Glendale Ca.I never went to college but I do own a tree trimming company in the foothills of Los Angeles.I'm divorced and live with my oldest son Joe.I am a Christian who believes that God judges the heart not the religion.Politically I was conservative in my earlier days but have become more liberal over the last couple of years.I don't trust either political party and don't like government intrusion.I don't have a T.V. in the house but I do like to read books.Lately I've been reading Howard Zinn:"A peoples history of the United states".It has helped me see that I was taught a bunch of B.S. in school.It's not a good feeling to wake up one day and realize you've been lied to your whole life and that society wears some pretty thick blinders.I've learned a lot from this blog.I'm on Facebook under Michael Barker.....

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  56. Another older woman here. White, single, childless, between cats (last one died recently at age 22, which is 100+ in human terms), grew up in residentially segregated suburb outside residentially segregated city (in OH) and never much thought about this as a child and teen. I was and am a science geek. I completed my professional training (pathologist) in another residentially segregated Midwestern city, and consciously chose to live in the city in one of the more racially diverse areas. I took an academic job in this city; most of the people I know I met at the university and teaching hospitals.

    I have many characteristics of Asperger's syndrome.

    Music: vocal music of most kinds, especially classical and opera. I don't listen to rock, 99% of country, hip-hop (unless I am after dramatic recitation). Cabaret, gospel, classical Indian, flamenco, Broadway - if there is an expressive singer and a worthy song, I will give it a try.

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  57. Howdy all,

    I'm a 29 year old, male, queer, midwesterner turned Rocky Mountainer, who pretends to be some kinda radical activist. After turning up my nose at my suburban middle-class roots to go ride freight trains and herd sheep for several years, I am now firmly planted in the ranks of the barely employed minimum wagers, and couldn't be happier. Father, avid bicyclist (don't drive), plainclothed punk-rocker, with a fondness for wearing long flowy skirts around the house. Who needs tv when there's netflix? Prefer to eat fresh produce from the dumpster than buy processed crap with money that could be going towards bail instead.

    Fighting to survive the ongoing zombie apocalypse, can't wait for it to finally end.

    Currently

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  58. I'm Nigerian. I'm my 3rd year of University. I'm studying Human Resource Management. I love Rap, Rock (I think Chuck Berry is amazing), R&B, Hip Hop, Pop and anything that sounds good to my ears. I really love old songs which is weird for someone my age. I love to write. I wanna be a writer someday. I'd really like a fat white cat.

    I school in Dubai. I'd like to adopt children when I'm older and open up a school back home for orphans. I'm very passionate about it. You should see how worked up I get when people say they don't think adopting children is a good idea. I turn 18 in May. Did I mention how much I love this blog? Macon D you rock! Marry me! When I'm older of course.

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  59. FUN!
    20 y.o Anthroplogy major. For the most part, its just been me and my mom along with my grandparents, aunts, uncle and cousins all my life.

    I like a little bit of everything but right now I'm listening to alot of Wiz Khalifa, Chip Tha Ripper and Georgia Anne Muldrow.

    I like to read (mostly blogs and magazines). There is one book I want to read soon; it's called Wench. I'm either in class, at work in the theater helping to build play sets or asleep.

    I love when there is some type of long break for school because I get to back home!

    My food of the moment is queche. My cousin made it and I love it.

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  60. @ Jac and Sonic

    Have you read World War Z? if not, that's a good read on basic preparedness for any future zombie outbreaks. i'm a pacifist and scared of guns, so i'd better either get over it, or get myself a baseball bat and do some marathon training....

    @ M. Gibson

    sitting and reading is outstanding.

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  61. I'm 17 (so I'm probably younger than most of the people on this blog) and my mom is my family. I also have a cat. I listen to all kinds of different music, I like to say that I have an eclectic taste. I write poetry and I'm no Maya Angelou, but it works to get my point across (ahem, if you're interested in checking out my poetry, it's in my blog).

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  62. @MissCegenation: No World War Z (yet!), but The Zombie Survival Guide? Can I get a hell yea!

    @M.Gibson: your answer made me laugh - I wasn't sure if you were serious at first :-P ("Acquaintinted" was hella funny)

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  63. I'm a former Renaissance man who is now just going baroque: 64-yr-old, retired former professor (Ed.), carpenter (Class A), reporter/editor, car seller, teacher, announcer, and odd-job man; in fact I formerly described myself on my card and my vehicle as "The Odd Man for Your Odd job."

    Two dogs (at present). Often more, but these two are enough for now: Budreaux, a 65-lb fawn-and-white american pitbull; Hanna-Stella, 90-lb, hound-bodied black lab-mix. Both are 8 yrs old, and rescues off the streets of Abq--followed me home (Hanna), or came right to the door (Budreaux). I will always have at least one dog, and after this experience, they'll be pitbulls, the best damn dogs EVER... (See my blog: Whiskey, Dogs and Weed.

    I'm single, without issue, and have been to the vet. My favorite music is blues, second is jazz, but I like all of it. I drive an F-250 Diesel ('99) and an Escort ZX-2 ('02--gets 40 mpg, @ 80mph). I haven't got a cell-fone or an ipod, don't wii, text or twitter.

    I enjoy watching what everybody else in the world calls 'football,' but the sport at which I was most adept (a relative thing) was surfing: both my skill and my courage both maxed out at about 10-12 feet...I have striven to stay stoned as much as possible, since 1968.

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  64. Yeshtastic Haha I'm 17 too!

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  65. Love this one..

    @Jac, Sonic, MissCegenation- About the zombies...I thought I was the only one!!! LoL

    I am 32, married,female, a little ADD and AA- more specifically AA and Italian- principal that can not spell AT ALL. (In college I lost a full grade on a paper because I had lost my mouse and couldn't use spellcheck!)I have been friends my husband more than half of my life. Live in the SF Bay- love the water and city lights. My spirit is not right without them.

    My singular passion in life is education. Period. The work is very hard. My city is very violent. My distrit is incredibly broke. It is my hometown, and I will never leave. It's in my soul.

    I eared a masters from Berkeley and an planning on applying to doctoral programs in the fall. I fear not getting accepted...

    Love weird movies- like the ones you see in the middle of the night and never find out the name.

    Raphael Saadiq is the only artist whose CD I'll buy before hearing it. Love the song Feelin Good and live jazz,old school Motown, Hip Hop and neo-soul. Listen to classial music to calm myself but know nothing about it.

    The last books I read were by Malcolm Gladwell. Really appreciate how he thinks and writes. For whatever reason I feel a connection to his work.

    The first candidate I ever donated money to was Obama. I do thank God for him.

    I go to church occasionally, should go more. I am a psuedocatholic- I've never been baptized. Completely disagree with the churches policy on many things- gay marriage, reproductive rights, evolution- but my religion is beautiful to me. I have been to the Vatican. I was awestruk.

    Love to travel, hate to fly.

    Truly believe MEAN PEOPLE SUCK :-)

    I really enjoyed reading about all you :-)

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  66. @Woody I have 2 american stafs... but I agree pits are the best dogs ever!!!

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  67. The Queen of SwordsMarch 27, 2010 at 12:35 AM

    Long time lurker... Second time poster. I'm a 20 something Forensic Psychologist with an interest in the cultural manifestations of trauma. I'm 'from' Jamaica but was born in The states and moved back and for about 4x's. I'm black though technically also East Indian, white ( Jewish/Scottish, Spanish) and Chinese. I live in South Korea teaching ESL and I'm obsessed with race/ sexuality constructs and privilege. Octavia Butler rocks my world and there's no genre I haven't explored. Fiction (particular dystopian sci fi)and books with psychological / sociocultural themes tend to catch my eye. I love to cook, talk, use sarcasim, have conversations about difficult topics and bend rules. I listen to most manifestations of jazz ,70's funk, some rock ( hello Rolling Stones and Nirvana) r&b, dancehall, reggae, hip hop, Motown and most everything in between.

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  68. Longtime lurker, first-time poster in da house. I don't post because I think my response would be redundant, or it would take too much out of me to do so.

    Let's begin with stats. I'm a single, black female, native San Franciscan (really rare) in my mid-late 30's. I never had a pet, but I know that I'm a cat person and would love to have one before the end of my time. I have no children, but I'm god-aunt to four, two god-nieces and nephews representing the next generation of the United Nations. While the history of this country sees everything as black or white, growing up around diversity in the Bay Area has taught me that race relations is bigger than black and white, and I can't just think in those terms anymore.

    My brain capacity these days tend to focus around getting through the 2nd round of the thesis in Counseling Psychology masters program, thinking about clients, planning for children's church, or daydreaming about Gerard Butler.

    I don't get to read much outside psychology material, The Bible, and tons of blogs.

    My music collection consists of over 6,000 songs on my Ipod, which I will never get to hear all of them on shuffle. My fave era for music 1976-1989. I love mixes and presently obsessed with freestyle. My ideal concert is Sade and Maxwell sharing the bill. Besides surviving the oral presentation for the thesis, I'm looking forward to seeing The Eagles in concert at the end of April. I tend to play a game called "count how many blacks are at this concert" when I attend concerts where I know black attendance would be low. I was surprised when I counted 10 at the Fleetwood Mac concert last year.

    I'm addicted to the internet and watching every episode of The Office on Netflix. I just started watching the show regularly a couple of months ago. Before that I was addicted to Scrubs and used to watch it on every channel and time it aired in syndication on a daily basis. Yes, it was that bad.

    Hello Everybody!

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  69. @ Sonic

    hell yeah!

    as an aside, although i didn't think that Zombieland was a perfect zombie movie by any means, i did appreciate that it brought the basics of how to survive a zombie apocalypse to the general public.

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  70. [thanks, critical processes, i've already been thinking about a post on that topic, almost did one yesterday. ~ macon]

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  71. I'm actually a high school student in the Southeast. I am quite obsessed with physics and would like to spend a lifetime studying it. I share many music interests with Macon, such as Radiohead and Aphex Twin, but I also listen to Animal Collective, Four Tet, Brian Eno, Autechre, and Sigur RĆ³s among others. I'm into video games, especially old Nintendo ones.

    I only eat meat or dairy products on occasion; however, fish is always welcome. I can't dance, but I do anyway because it's fun. However, I don't generally socialize too often (apart from the internet) and I am in fact asexual and (currently) aromantic.

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  72. @ macon:

    How sweet of you to ask! - it's http://www.extremecostuming.com/reproductions/themaidstonejacket.html

    It was the first really large scale embroidery project I tried - some of my other work is also under the "reproductions" section. :)

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  73. a l,

    thanks for the link, all i can say is, wow! and, beautiful.

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  74. I'm a 27 year old Asian American, heterosexual, able-bodied, lapsing Protestant Christian female. I'm currently a phd student in mathematics contemplating careers other than academia. I grew up in southern California where discussions of race, and other systems of oppression occur or are avoided depending on the group I'm with.

    Now I'm in grad school in Madison, Wisconsin and the thesis writing process is demoralizing and difficult. But for that reason, the challenges are why I'm grateful for having the opportunity to experience. When I got to grad school, I founded a group in my department as a means of support for the low percentage of women in my department. While it wasn't difficult to get the group started and going, I found it incredibly difficult to move it in a direction that brought men into the discussion and created a space that educated and allowed us to discuss deeper issues. I'm no longer as involved and am now more focused on my research.

    During my spare time I like to knit, watch movies, and sometimes photograph. I wish I read more but I devour books so rather than lose 20 hours to a book, I usually just avoid them until I'm on break. I love love sushi, but am dissatisfied with my options in Wisconsin and so often wait until my biannual trips back to LA before indulging.

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  75. TakeMulattoBack and deevinej23,

    I need to take notes on everyone from the Bay Area because I'm moving there at the end of this year. :-)

    Everytime I've gone, I've seen way more Black males than females, but as soon as I leave they come out of the woodwork to hit on my boyfriend. :-P

    If I can ask any question: hair? I'm from the Midwest, so I'm hoping SF will be a welcome change to the cold and dryness here, but I just need to go with the low-maintenance route because I'm lazy.

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  76. @ Jasmin!

    I LOVE the bay :-)

    Well, we have a little rain, but fog is the problem. Since we are by the water there tends to be lot of moisture in the air.

    In general, I think people are more free about hair here than in other places. Locks are common for both women and men (more men though), it's all good for the natural curls, relaxers or afros if that is what you choose to rock.

    That being said, I have curly hair and I have never found the perfect stylist in the Bay. My texture is difficult to deal with because it is kinda long, not permed, fine, won't hold a curl, and always wants to wave at the root. I am sure he/she is out there...

    Good luck :-)

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  77. I'm a single, bi, genderqueer college student, about to graduate with my Biology degree (!!). Jobwise, I've been everything from an aquarium tech to a kosher caterer.
    My favorite music is punk or Scottish/Celtic (meaning that I absolutely love crossover Celtic punk).
    My mom is Scottish, and my dad is Kalinago (aka "Island Carib" aka "that tribe from 'Pirates of the Caribbean'). I speak Scots, Gaelic, Japanese and a little Spanish (my mom speaks Scots, English and French, my dad speaks English, Spanish, Dutch and some French).
    As for pets, I have a leopard gecko, as well as a cat and dog which currently live with my parents.
    When I'm trying to *not* work on my thesis, I enjoy painting, distance running, and watching action movies (the more campy the better).

    @Jasmin: that depends on what your hair likes to do. In response to moisture, my hair sniggers and reverts to its Kalinago texture (which is a weirdly fake-looking wave). A black friend of mine saw no appreciable difference, while a white friend said it made her hair less flyaway and easier to style.

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  78. @ Jasmin: Hopefully you will find the Bay Area at home for you. Good luck with the move.

    Living in SF with the fog has been rough on the hair over the years, especially back in middle and high school when I would lose curls on the way to school. Now that I don't take the bus hardly ever, it's easier to keep a decent relaxed hairdo for 6-8 weeks. The mist hasn't been as much of a factor in recent years, except for Pacifica. The wind is another story especially when we get some crazy microsystems.

    As for finding a hair salon, it's definitely a trial and error process. I've had the same hairstylist for more than eight years. You may need to consider paying more than $60 and willing to hang out at the hair salon for more than two hours a visit, depending on the place and the person.

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  79. I'm a regular reader, not a regular poster (and I can never for the life of me remember each time what name I used the last time each time I comment on this site ...), but I'll introduce myself anyway. I'm a married 20-something born, raised & still living in the South. I spend my days at a boring office job pondering what I want to be when I really do grow up. I have two cats. I have yet to exactly figure out my religion. I try to be environmentally friendly, but my attempts don't always succeed (ie, my dead vegetable garden ...). I read a lot, and sometimes I paint.

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  80. @MissCegenation: You can always fit one more aesthetic identity in there somewhere. ;) And seriously, steampunk's a blast! What other excuse do I ever get to go out in public and run around with other people dressed like this? (I'm dead center, in the purple skirt and overbust corset.) Join us... joiiiiiiiiin usssssssss... ;)

    @kittywhompers: Reading your description made me think of the blogger Ballastexistenz - she's a severely autistic woman with a deep relationship with her cat. There's a post from her here about the way she perceives feline communication as versus the way most neurotypicals perceive feline communication, and it's really neat.
    is writing. Go away.
    @Kinsley: Ooh, we do morning glories! I put netting across the large window in the Spawnlings' room, and by July their entire window is covered in green leaves and flowers. It makes a lovely replacement for a curtain. :) As for the blueberries, look for a variety called Tophat; they're a busy variety, and full-size they'll be around 2'x2', so they're well-suited for a large container. They're an excellent producer as well, if they have full sun. One tip: collect pine needles and use them as mulch for the bush, since blueberries like acidic soil.

    @PMS Rhino: See if they have a mailing list, so you can get advance notice! Seriously, they are SO MUCH FUN. Jimmy usually strips down to his boxers onstage and he abuses the crowd a lot.

    @Jillian: Glad to give you a name for the concept. :) I tend to specify my stance on cure vs neurodiversity as soon as the autism topic comes up, because I got sick of having to punch people after they would excitedly tell me that Jenny McCarthy "cured" her kid's "autism"* and I could totally "fix" my kid too by doing chelation therapy [or insert other idea here]. (Okay, I've never really punched anybody. But I'd imagine punching them, in great detail, before I'd explain to them that if you can "cure" a kid's "autism" by doing chelation therapy, then they were never autistic to begin with; and furthermore, my son's autism is not a disease, it does not require a "cure", and he's fine as he is, TYVM and GFY. And FURTHERMORE, that chelation therapy is dangerous as hell and shouldn't be used. ...But I digress. I could go on for pages here.)

    @Winnowill: Yay, another pug owner! :) On the downside, being a fellow Dresden Dolls fan, I was so disappointed in Amanda Palmer making that stupid Klan comment a few days ago. Especially with it coming so soon after the whole Evelyn/Evelyn ableism fail... ugh. I still like her music, but I just can't like her anymore. :( And WOOHOO for John Barrowman! Although I have to admit my favorite is Owen. <3 This is my desktop background right now and I swoon over it endlessly. (Have you ever read the Torchwood LOLcat fic? It's quite possibly the most awesome fanfic EVER. Even people who have never seen an episode of Torchwood love it, assuming they're familiar with LOLCats.)

    @thesciencegirl: It must be immensely satisfying to play a role in developing life-saving medicine. I'd be curious to pick your brain about the emotions involved in what you do (it intrigues me from a writer perspective) - if you're interested in discussing it, could you email me at robinwolfebooks@gmail.com? :)

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  81. @Jac: I love the idea of the unitard with gears, but I have that kind of sense of humor. ;) The key would be to play it totally straight, and talk earnestly about how long you spent on your costume and how happy you are with the results. If you could pull it off to the point where people weren't sure whether you were kidding or not, that would be AWESOME. :) And WOOHOO, another ABDC fan! I have nothing against Jungle Boogie, but they just haven't done it for me, with the exception of the Disco Challenge. They had the best performance of the night for that episode. But other than that, I've felt like they're fine and talented, but they're not truly unique or exceptional. Blueprint Crew is hands-down the tightest crew on this season, and Poreotix is the most original. (I love Poreotix. I want to pick them all up and snuggle them because they're so damn adorable.) Hype 5-0... well, I'll be honest, the reason I'm rooting for Hype 5-0 is because they have Josh Ulep and I have a big crush on him. *blush* If it wasn't for Josh, I'd be rooting for Blueprint. Yeah, I know, it's shallow. But I have this thing for bboys with spiky black hair. (Previous crush was Jeromeskee from Massive Monkees, and the first dancer crush was Ronnie Boy from Super Cr3w. Funny story about Ronnie, I wrote an eighty-page porn story about him and then actually gave him a copy when I met him in real life. Even after he found out it was porny, he was still super-sweet about it, asked me my name and thanked me, and gave me a hug. I'll love him forever for being such a sweetheart and not treating me like a crazy stalker fan.)

    @Sonic: Nowadays, getting published is only part of the battle. o_O Writers are required to get out there and hustle to sell their books, and the marketing required can take a good deal of time. My publisher requires me to do chats, guest blog entries on blogs dedicated to romance and erotica, set up a Facebook fan page and have a website, etc. *Someday* I'll be a big author who has an established fan base... but until then, getting published involves a whole lot of work! (Although I'd certainly rather have the work and the published book than be unpublished!)

    @nikki: Have you written about meeting your sister anywhere online? I have a major soft spot for tales of bio-families reuniting, and yours sounds like a wonderful experience. <3

    @Jasmin: I've been surprised by a lot of it too!

    @The Queen of Swords: Are you a Cormac McCarthy fan by any chance?

    @attack_laurel: Holy cow, I can't even believe that jacket. I've done some small embroideries and thought that the couple-dozen hours each of those took was a serious hassle. I can't even imagine doing a project like yours. You have my admiration forever. (And that skirt is TDF!)

    @Seadhlinn: All right, I have to ask: recommendations for crossover Celtic punk? This sounds too interesting not to check out. :)

    @those who asked about my work: My writing website is www.robinwolfe.com and links to purchase my book can be found from there. :) There's also a few freebies up, and there are trigger warnings on anything that requires them.

    @those concerned about the zombie uprising: Move to Toronto, and when the zombies start coming, I'll do all our makeup so we fit in, and then we can lurch around like they did in Shaun of the Dead! We'll fit right in. It'll be like the SWPD Not Really Dead Crew! It'll be awesome. :D

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  82. Thanks Seadhlinn,TakeMulattoBack, and deevinej23. :-)

    I'm debating going natural when I move, since I hardly ever straighten my hair (I usually wear braidouts and do the occasional roller set), I'm scared to let someone I don't know relax my hair, and I'm too cheap to pay for an expensive relaxer on a teacher's salary, even though I only get them done every 8 weeks. I'm hoping I can just let my hair grow out and do its thing, since I will be way too busy to get all experimental--I just don't want the wind to dry my hair out! Eh, I'll probably be too busy being tormented by high schoolers (99% of whom will be taller than I am) to worry about looking cute. :-)

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  83. I'm a regular reader, but I rarely post (usually because I end up saying something stupid). I am Holly Steel. I am a fifteen year-old girl. I am Hispanic and white (despite what some people think, the two are not mutually exclusive). I live in Florida (so south it's not even south anymore). I'm an atheist, having been in a state of transition for a few years during elementary school.

    My interests are writing, music, language, politics, and history. I've done NaNoWriMo four times (and won, of course 8D) and I like writing random short stories and fanfiction. I like music of all sorts. I like pop, disco (forgive me), rock, folk music (very wide field here)... yeah. I'm a huge linguaphile; Spanish is my first language, English is my best language, I've studied French for five years and am pretty good at it, I have been studying Russian for a year but haven't had the time to seriously study it, I will take a Japanese class next year, and Hindi, Navajo, Icelandic, and Yoruba are on my hitlist. I'm a descriptivist, basically the anti-grammar police (although I still cringe at 'your a moron' and other such needless errors). Politics and history go together; I really like history and I wish my school had more history classes.

    Video games deserve a special mention. I think that video games are art. A very young form of art, but art nonetheless. Video games can make you feel, they can take you on adventures, they can do so many things and with an interactivity that you don't have with books and movies. Look at MOTHER 3 and tell me that video games can't make one cry. My favorite series are Pokemon, Paper Mario, and EarthBound (Nintendo in the house). I have a website about these games, in fact... were it not for video games, I don't think I would have gotten into web design. And that's a scary thought for me.

    I'm basically a huge nerd. :p

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  84. Ok.... : )

    Well, I really like this blog (I don't remember how I found it, but I've been hooked ever since), but I've only made a few comments. I admit I'm still somewhat paranoid about "revealing myself" on the internet, even though I basically live on it. So I consider myself a hardcore lurker.

    I'm from Massachusetts, a child of Jamaican immigrants. I'm 21, married to Ewan McGregor* and have 2 siblings. My favorite band is The Clash and I also like David Bowie. I guess I like mostly rock, rap and reggae, though a lot of the stuff on my iPod is from my brother- I'm not very savvy. I enjoy travelling and am a good drawer. I'm a junior in college and am currently studying abroad in Italy. I studied German last year, but haven't continued since I've been here focusing on Italian, but I want to start up again.

    I LOVE movies. Last semester Sidney Lumet came to Bologna and I got to see him speak at the cinema!! He's looking good for 85, too. I didn't get to attend the longer meeting, but my professor (who is an awesome nerd and has a column in the newspaper) photocopied his article about the event for me : ) I'd love to go to Rimini, where Federico Fellini is from- I might as well since I'm so close.

    My favorite actor is Al Pacino and favorite movie the Godfather (I know I know, ridiculous). I'm a pretty shameless Godfather fan girl. I saw it when I was 14 and that's what got me into movies. I also like Robert De Niro and Martin Scorsese. And Ali G. Damn, that was long, whoops. Nice to meet all of you : )

    *some day...

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  85. Macon, I really like this idea of people getting to know each other.

    Long time lurker but most of u may be familiar with my email to Macon which turned into a guest post.

    I'm a 25yr old black female. Mom is Danish and Dad is Liberian. Grew up in Africa, attended undergrad in Boston and did postgrad in the UK. I speak 2.5 languages (French, English and German but not very well).

    I'm single, have been for about 4.5 yrs but have dated men who made me feel like shit so I'm growing to love who I am first. I'm a true foodie...think about food everyday of the week (and occassionally sex). I like Neo-Soul (Maxwell, Simon Webb, Chrisette Michelle) and Adult Alternative music like Cold Play. Have lived on three continents and been to over 10
    countries.

    @Jasmin...do go natural it is truly a liberating experience. I was natural for 5yrs then texturized but went back to being natural about 8months ago.

    My mate and I plan to come to San Francisco this fall. Would anyone in the area be willing to put us up? Just thought i'd ask. Contact me and we can chat it up.

    BTW Macon are you single?

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  86. Thanks for coming out, lurkers! Nice to see some new "faces" here.

    Holly Steel, you're amazing. Watch out, world!

    Nomunfo, yes I am.

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  87. Long time lurker and first time commenter. I found SWPD through Racialicious, which I've been reading since it's Xanga days.

    I'm a 19-year-old biracial (Chinese/White) female hailing from the SF Bay Area, but I've been attending school in Canada for the past 6 years (first Victoria, BC, now Montreal, QC). I'm studying Psychology with a minor in Social Studies of Medicine, and I'd like to pursue Public Health and/or Nursing.

    I'm interested in feminism, race issues, education policy, sexual health, social justice, performance poetry, foreign films and indie flicks, anime, and blogs, and I listen to J-Pop, K-Pop, trip hop, ambient, classical, and Against Me! (folk/punk).

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  88. ok....... This is my second time commenting here, but i follow this blog all the time.

    Anyway..... My name's Robin. I'm from philly(it's spring which means soft pretzels and water ice!) I am a budding photographer, i also love to write and read.I'm a vegetarian and an atheist ( in a house full of devout born agains). I have a bf that actually treats me as i should be. I wear my heart on my sleeve and am not very good at hiding my emotions ( my face always gives me away)I can be a bit of a hot head... am working on that.

    As far as music goes i love rock music. My favorite band in the whole wide world is coheed and cambria( going to see them in may!) Me and Claudio will eventually have a love child. I am also a little dorky....my bf is slowly turning me into a gamer.

    Oh and i'm a natural.....My fro has done many things for me. I've gotten intune with the real texture of my hair, love the versatility and the cottony feel of it.....and the curls aaaaaaaaaahhhhh! :)

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  89. This is my second time posting, but I've been reading for about a year.

    I'm 21, senior undergraduate at the University of Michigan, studying sociology.

    I am an avid reader, but nonfiction has become my lit of choice since starting college.

    Hall & Oates is my current favorite jams, but any soulful music is fine, particularly blue-eyed soul these days (duffy, adele, chromeo, junior senior).

    As a black woman, I often spend a huge amount of time wondering what personal values I will have to sacrifice to get a husband. Not even a black husband, just a husband in general.

    I love love love traveling - I've been all over Europe, and North Africa. Asia is where I'd like to go next.

    Knowing what I know about privilege and oppression, domination, subordination and all those others isms, it can be difficult to enjoy my favorite TV shows - House, Survivor (LOVE), Grey's Anatomy, Scrubs.

    Like MissCegenation, I spend way too much time researching things that interest me. I love learning, I plan to attend a grad program somewhere a bit more metropolitan than Ann Arbor.

    Film are a guilty pleasure - art-house, comedies, thrillers (but good ones), dramas, and a good romance every so often [quite difficult to find these days]. I have a disgustingly good memory for names of films and actors I've yet to even watch yet, thanks to imdb.

    I'm waiting to meet a real-life Macon D. Or at least a man who's socially conscious.

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  90. Long time reader/lurker developing my identity as I go. I am 22 years old, Ghanaian but I have been living in the US for about 10 years now, and even then I have yet to feel settled here. It's just not home I guess. I am always hungry to read about the experiences of other immigrants living in the U.S., especially African immigrants in the U.S. I speak English and Twi.
    I love people and discussing the world with people but I am ridiculously sensitive to even the subtlest of slights, and so I end up avoiding them altogether for my sanity's sake lol.
    I love to write poetry when my brain will let me, and I love to blog. I am a borderline nudist and I love outdoor nude photography. I feel I have nothing to hide when it comes to my body. I collect books (I grew up constantly surrounded by books).
    I am taking a pseudo break from school right now but I am returning to major in International Studies and Spanish. I would love, love love to be able to speak Arabic fluently.
    I love animals but I have not been stable (moving around too much) enough to take care of one.
    Umm...that's it. Apart from that, everything is still in progress. Keep up the great work on this blog!

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  91. I am also going natural! It has been quite the journey but I have developed a solid love of my hair and everything that comes with it.

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  92. "I’m also collaborating with Toni Morrison to do a follow-up to her acclaimed historical novel Beloved- entitled, Aquatinted."

    Sorry... I misspelled "Acquainted"
    Michael

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  93. This is a really nice idea.

    I'm Alana. I'm in my 30s, married to a mathematician, and I have two cats. One of our cats is diabetic, which is a challenge. We're about to have twins. I was born in the South but consider New York home. Right now we live in Montreal, Quebec, where we are the only Anglophones on our street.

    I used to work as a museum collections manager at a Jewish museum, but I haven't been able to work in museums in Montreal because my French is not good enough. So I make a lot of stuff. Crochet, sew, develop photos in my bathroom-darkroom. I like to cook. We're vegetarian and try to avoid processed foods, largely for environmental reasons. But every now and then it is just necessary to buy a box of Oreos.

    I like pretty much all music. I enjoy reading very much, especially anything related to history or travel. I also like young adult fiction.

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  94. I'm black African, living in the U.S I'm married. We have a cat.

    Im a software engineer and my hobbies are road biking (and for a period racing), astronomy, art and photography. I love reading sci-fi and sociology/politics(and reading in general) as can be told by my chain reading profile.

    http://www.chainreading.com/profile/baiskeli

    My musical tastes are all over the place, Jazz, Classical, Soul, folk.

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  95. @Holly Steel
    Mother 3 is an awesome game. My favorites are Metroid, Earthbound, and Metal Gear.

    Is it just me, or are there a whole bunch of vegetarians and vegans here? Perhaps something might be said about that?

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  96. I am partnered and childfree, currently living in New Mexico. I started traveling the U.S. as soon as I was old enough to, so I've seen a great deal of it. I'm restless to see more of the world. I'm white, cis, not particularly sexual, "spiritual" but not religious.

    I'm endlessly fascinated with social issues; interpersonal and ecological. I'm constantly reading, constantly challenging myself and my ideas, or developing ideas where I didn't have any before, and insufferably challenging the people around me for better or for worse.

    I'm a massage therapist by trade, but work is hard to come by around here so on my off days (most of them) I'm volunteering with various and sundry soup kitchens and shelters and hanging out with the Nuclear Abolitionists and Catholic Workers of the city. They're an inspiring lot and we always have those fire-in-the-belly kinds of conversations which are sometimes just depressing, but mostly passion-inspiring. We keep each other going.

    I have a cat who I love. I'm interested in urban farming and I want to get chickens, but my partner is not so keen on the idea & would rather get in to aquaponics. I'm a vegatarian/freegan who likes composting and playing in the dirt, so we're at an impasse on that front. I love cooking and hiking and I have no trouble keeping myself extremely busy despite a pretty lax work schedule.

    I'm also fairly new to blogger (lurking here since I joined) and always looking for more people to follow, so if you want to get connected feel fee to send me a note!

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  97. @Robin: Mill a h-Uile Rud would be an excellent example-- Scottish Gaelic punk (<3)
    @Holly_Steel: I like your attitude.
    @Jasmin: My parents swear by student hairstylists-- they're getting graded, so they want to do a good job, and are eager to try out techniques on different kinds of hair. Plus it's inexpensive.

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  98. Hey everyone! Ghanaian Third Culture Kid, currently going through the HELL of repatriation. I hate coffee and cooked onions (but raw onions are fine). I don't like going to the beach, except at night, and am a big fan of American college sports.

    I love music, but HATE the question "what kind of music do you listen to?" I have a younger sister and parents that I haven't seen in three years.

    If I had gone to the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, I would no doubt have been in Gryffindor.

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  99. I'm a techno amish urban homesteader working class New York neighborhood. People who meet me are surprised that I grind grain & bake our bread. When I do dress I can be a very glam gal complete with heels & pearls. Oh that I'm 50% Puerto Rican or that the majority of my family are people of color. That revelation isn't biased both blacks & whites are always surprised. What really tends to blow them away is when they stop by and I'm canning up a bushel of peaches on my wood stove listening to Tito Fuentes.
    Year long sabbatical from work - family of 4 on $29,000 no stamps no medicare just homesteading skills & ghetto smarts. Oh the second big revelation is that only have one car.

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  100. Hello everyone, I've been regular reader for a looong time but I seldom post. I plan on changing that, right now.

    I am a heterosexual, white(and proud) male who is over 10 years and under 18 years of age. My legal guardian is in the military so i live on a base in California. The base is in an inconvenient and remote location so it takes me (and two other kids) about a 40 minute bus ride to get to the nearest high school. As of now, I have been a vegetarian for four years and a vegan for one. My interests include topographical definition, history, word etymologies, maps (real and made-up), geology, recent and the most distant history of life on earth (Precambrian multicellular life is pretty interesting, i guess) and conifer trees. Some favorite bands of mine would be Amon Amarth, Burzum, Ensiferum, Stormwarrior, Emperor, Nile, Exhumed and Napalm Death. I love going to concerts, when i can...

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  101. @Doreen: "cooked onions (but raw onions are fine)"

    Yay for the fellow Ghanaian! lol I love raw onions with salt on it! hate when it's in between cooked and raw bleh!

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  102. @Robin,

    I'm with you on the Amanda Palmer irony fail. I hesitated listing the Dresden Dolls after that. Like you, I still like the music, but her status as a heroine of mine ended with that and the ableism crap. The only thing that makes me feel better is the backlash against her comments came quickly and without restraint, and from (former) fans too. Haven't seen the Torchwood LOLcats fanfic, but I will have to check it out. Sounds hysterical! Heading over to your website soon to check out your writings, and looking very forward to it!

    @Hrothgar,

    Interesting musical choices. Curious about your opinion of Varg Vikernes' views, and also what you thought of Lords of Chaos, if you read it...

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  103. @Winnowill,

    Oh, You like Burzum too?
    Anyway, as for Vikernes views: some a little weird, some ridiculous and some racist. I get the feeling that he was influenced by touchy-feely-new age BS a little too much, but hes no idiot.

    About Lords of Chaos: Haven't read it yet but I've heard its full of misinformation. I'm also a really bummed about the movie (yech!) but life will go on...

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  104. @holly steel:

    you are my hero! keep fighting against those angry prescriptivists with the power of cold hard linguistic fact.

    "I'm basically a huge nerd. :p"

    that's just code for being awesome.

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  105. purple kitten mafiaMarch 29, 2010 at 3:08 AM

    I have been lurking around for a long time.Love this blog:) This is my first comment here. I am a 23 yr old Pakistani-American, raised in several countries and states. I attend a women's college in the eastcoast, majoring in economics and physics. Coming to terms with having bipolar disorder, learning disability and add.

    I adore black and white movies. Currently obsessed with Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton movies.

    I don't really have a preference when it comes to music. Right now I obsessing over Oum Kalthoum,Oldelaf,Rhoff, and CunninLynguists.

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  106. @Robin: Yay! *high five* We cosleep and wear our baby too. I haven't looked too deeply into child-led weaning, but I do hope to breastfeed for at least two years and am willing to go longer than that.

    So far the atheist parenting hasn't been too uncomfortable, although I expect it to get more complicated when my daughter is old enough to ask questions about why her cousins go to church and pray before meals and we don't. I don't think that SHE will complicate things, but my husband's parents (who are evangelical Christians) certainly will. I'm afraid that they're going to try to stage an intervention, or just plain attempt to undermine what we tell our daughter by scaring her with the threat of hell, or telling her that her aunts (all of my closest female friends happen to be lesbians) are wicked or unnatural. How has atheist parenting worked for you so far?

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  107. Yay for natural hair! I've been natural for 6 years or so now, and I can't imagine ever going back.

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  108. @Seadhlinn: Thanks for the rec! Checked them out on youtube but found that I couldn't hear the singer well enough to distinguish anything more than indecipherable rumbling (and not in a "syllables of another language" kind of way, in a "unable to pick out anything at all" kind of way). Came across Na Gathan in the related videos though - yay for chick drummers! (On an unrelated note, I've been listening to a ton of Bad Brains over the past few days. Mmmm.)

    @Winnowill: Gah, I hear you. I'm having such serious trouble reconciling "I love the music she makes" with "omg somebody needs to kick that girl in the junk with a clueboot". And I used to love Neil Gaiman because I think he's an amazing writer, but now that he's engaged to that twatwaffle, I can't respect him any more either. (The company you keep reflects on you, especially when it's someone you've proposed to.) Did you see the epic racefail that is the video for "Have You Seen My Sister Evelyn"? It's a fan video, but AFP has embraced it and called it the "official unofficial video" for that song. It's really something special. During the video they refer to the black girl character as a "hobag", and then have a completely gratuitous scene of a wrecking ball knocking her down. And then - just to really slather the racist cake with two containers of the cheapest oil-based frosting available - it portrays a random monkey running up and banging her in the bottom. A monkey. Having sex with her. (It isn't clear whether she's upset about it or not.) And then an anvil drops on her body. Yes, none of this has any context whatsoever in the song, and it makes no sense whatsoever, and I have no damn clue why the hell it's in there *other* than being racist bullshittery. (If anyone just wants to watch the - well, I was going to say "highlights", but let's run with "lowlights" instead - just fast-forward the video to 1:45 and watch from there.) It's just... yeah, that video is REALLY something special. And AFP loves it and has given it her seal of approval.

    @August: The things we've told our son about religion would be likely to offend some of the readers here, so I'm going to err on the side of discretion. Email me - robinwolfebooks@gmail.com - and I'd be happy to go into detail with you. :)

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  109. Emailed! Thank you! :-)

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  110. So I'm a little late. I'm a thirty-something black woman. No spouse, no kids (and my clock is ticking). I am a cat owner and love my cat way more than seems rational. I live in the east coast, was born in NJ and live in DC now. I'm a long time Doctor Who junkie (23 years). I tend to sleep and not sleep too much. I sit in a little cubicle all day trying to look busy. I enjoy kayaking but don't do it enough and keep finding myself on kickball teams (who knew such things exist). Not the most exciting of people but I'm working on it.

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  111. I'm a 30+ queer feminist first-generation Australian. Musician and craftsperson, majored in anthropology and currently working with primates. I read more than anyone else I know, mainly non-fiction but I'm also a diehard Terry Pratchett fan. Music I have on high rotation at the moment: Shantel, Balkan beat box, la peuple de l'herbe, massaila sound system, Babylon circus, caravan palace, besh o'drom, Les ogres du barback & Les hurlements d'leo. Also love Gogol bordello, Manu chao, Camille, Lhasa de sela, zap mama, dr John, war, la tordue, Les croquants, Les Tetes raides, Betty Davis..... Etc etc. Currently addicted to French ska and gypsy punk.

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  112. Hi as you can probably figure out im part of class of 13. I'm a military child, and have lived in Europe for the pass 6 six years and before that Central America. I love R&B, Jazz, J-rock, and some rap. I'm Cherokee/African, (half and half to be exact) but get mistaken for Philipino, Indian( from India)
    P.S want to be a psycologist someday. (part of the reason why im hear... to study and learn about white people.)

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  113. i guess i had a flurry of posting a while ago, but then fell out-i am 42, white, female-separated for many years, no children in the home. except my calico manx sophie. i am unemployed, as so many are.

    i grew up in central and south america, and spoke spanish and portuguese "natively" as a child. i can still squeak along in spanish, but the portuguese remains only in my odd accent in spanish.

    i live in kansas, but plan to move to az in a couple of months. kansas is NOT for the liberal minded.

    i don't listen to much music anymore-mostly podcasts these days-political, horror movie, and rachel maddow.

    i guess i would be considered hetero, but i tend to say asexual. i'm rabidly feminist and anti-racist. (and often alienate coworkers and roommates over it)

    i'm also vegetarian, and buddhist.

    i think i'll be ok in the zombie uprising, since i can already shoot and drive a stick, but it's always something, you know.

    not much else to say, i guess.

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  114. that's not true -_-
    we do that in Africa too.

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  115. I'm a 31-year-old white ciswoman here to read and learn. Probably won't be commenting much since my comments would likely be quite predictable and just show the cluelessness that I'm trying to get over by reading in the first place.

    I'm a law student, I live in Virginia and my husband and I have two cats and a dog. I write fiction, read a lot and worry about taking the bar next year.

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