Contrariwise

Yay! On top of finding out that Season 2 of Joan of Arcadia will be out in November, I got an email today that Switchfoot’s new CD will be out on December 26! It’s called Oh! Gravity. The punctuation in the title makes me think of Panic! at the Disco. I’ve only heard “I Write Sins Not Tragedies,” and I hate it. I like the style of the music, but I don’t understand how a song with a chorus that gets edited so liberally can be so popular. Forget them: there’s new Switchfoot on the horizon! The email mentions a fall tour, too… any takers?

In other news (pun not intended), I read two WashPo articles today and one yesterday that deserve mentioning. The first was in the Sunday Source, which is my favorite section. It was written by a Yale senior who took a cooking class designed specifically for college students. Genius! Forget lab sciences; I need to take that class. The second addresses one of my biggest complaints about the current state of education in the United States: high school graduates’ vocabulary is pitiful. How do you graduate from high school without knowing what “satire” means? You don’t have to understand it, but you shouldn’t frown at the sound! The author blames this crisis on the lack of pleasure reading. To some extent, I agree. However, in the era of Harry Potter and (unfortunately) The Da Vinci Code, more students are reading. Even back at my high school, I’d see my peers reading what are popularly called “black books.” (Borders keeps them under “African-American Interest.”) So they’re reading, but apparently it’s more about the sex scenes than expanding their vocabulary. Mark my words: I will be the teacher the students complain about because she makes them watch School House Rock.

The third article caught my eye for several reasons. The first, clearly, is good copy editing leading to good headlines. The second is that it’s an issue I’ve pondered myself, also for clear reasons: black American culture.

Where is the civil rights groundswell on behalf of stronger marriages that will allow more children to grow up in two-parent families and have a better chance of staying out of poverty? Where are the marches demanding good schools for those children—and the strong cultural reinforcement for high academic achievement (instead of the charge that minority students who get good grades are “acting white”)? Where are the exhortations for children to reject the self-defeating stereotypes that reduce black people to violent, oversexed “gangstas,” minstrel show comedians and mindless athletes?

The best example of this chasm between the reality and the potential of black American youth may be my sister and me.

Yeah, this is gonna get personal.
Read the rest…

The bad part about this awesome new blog is that there’s so much to do behind the scenes that… I forget to post. So let’s rectify that now.

Life has been pretty good lately. I can’t believe it’s already the middle of August, though. In mid-July, I was ready to go back to school solely for the company. Now, I realize that going back means going back to class, which sucks, and so I’m less eager. I’m excited about living in Commons. Maura and I might have some moments where we’re crossing each other in the bathroom, but if we managed to live practically on top of each other for a year, we can manage this.

I am learning to cook! I made a Mexican lasagna for my mom and Courtney a few weeks ago. I found the recipe online, then put the ingredients on the grocery list and gave it a whirl. And it was so yummy! I even took the leftovers to work the next day. On Saturday, I tried another recipe and made a pizza casserole. It was like pizza-style macaroni. I think I should have used chopped pepperoni instead of sliced, though, because it was hard to mix. It had a ton of cheese, and the pizza sauce wasn’t as tangy as I’d hoped, but my mom said it was “really good.” Considering my relationship with my mom, that was a huge compliment.

Earlier this week, I got the best news since Honors hired me: CBS is releasing the second season of Joan of Arcadia in November! I still wish they hadn’t canceled it. At least I’ll get to relive my intro into Joan. The first episode I saw was “Independence Day,” which immediately drew me in. I mean, when Will.I.Am (yes, the guy from the Black Eyed Peas) is playing God, you know it’s gonna be a good show. I finally got around to watching the first season finale recently, which was unbelievable. I cried. I don’t cry very often when watching TV or movies. If my birthday party plans continue, I think we’ll be watching Joan. Or maybe the live-action Alice in Wonderland.

What entry would be complete without a random link? I found a video by OK Go via Happy Catholic. It’s mesmerizing. I can only wonder how many rehearsals it took to perform a song while “dancing” on eight treadmills.

Not much has been going on lately; I suppose I haven’t posted about my life because I don’t have much to post about. I finally bought myself a thesaurus (Oxford) this weekend when I went with Mom and Courtney to The Blvd at the Cap Center. (For non-locals, it’s an outdoor mall constructed where the hockey arena used to be.) I also ran into Paul, who I knew from high school. We had the standard “I’ve just run into a casual acquaintance I haven’t seen since high school” moment.

Also, I entered the second half of my 54-day Rosary novena on Saturday. I wasn’t sure how it would work out, but now I’m convinced it works, because of my vocation breakthrough and Lacy’s resignation as CDA regent. (We have to elect a new vice-regent now, since the bylaws say Cathy’s automatically regent.) It’s always nice when I actually catch the answers to my prayers.

The boys of Catholicae Testudines linked to the omnipresent YouTube the other day. What video, might you ask, did they link? A full-length Tridentine Mass, with narrative explanation? Well, no. The CT boys went for a TMNT teaser trailer!