Life as an Extreme Sport

Category: …and everything else

Mostly everything else in a brain-academic way.

Acting Metatron?

...and everything else, Academics

I think I’m a writer and sort of a performer, and part of the deal is wanting to connect with an audience. Wanting to have your work read or enjoyed. And there is a real pleasure in knowing that you’ve made that connection with people and that they seem to like it.

I like that quote. It rings true for me, even if The Daily Show Resident Expert John Hodgman was talking about the role of fame, and what it brings – not something I have experience with. I do have experience with being a writer, and sort of a performer, and I think it’s something that’s come out most, these last few years, in front of the classroom. Put me in front of a group of people, give me a topic, and… I will make a willing fool of myself, in the name of entertaining education. Some of the things I’ve said and done in a classroom setting, I look in amazement on the memory, and often with embarassment. How in the world did I think saying/doing [fill in blank] was a good idea?

Example? How about the last class I TAed, where I decided to use the internet to my advantage and bring up MySpace while talking about communication, privacy and the internet? Completely forgetting, of course, that the MySpace picture I had up was in much more revealing clothing than I generally wore while teaching, taken at a night out at the clubs. And of course, the entire photo album was up and visible on the first page. Now, it’s not that I had a problem with my students seeing me in anything other than what passed for business clothing in Seattle; after all, many of them could see the MySpace information already. It was the surprise of forgetting there was a nearly half undressed me on awaiting us, the surprise of the class, and my general “oh, man, I’m never going to live that down…”

Of course (and thankfully), at the time, my instant response was “see! what a perfect example of what we’re talking about!”

I’m not even going to go into some of the stuff that happened when I was teaching sex ed,…

But, in a roundabout way, I come back to the initial quote, of writing and being a bit of a performer, and it’s an impulse I understand. Right now I miss the performance bit – I miss the teaching, but I also just miss stepping into the skin of the reactive performer, the person who just opened her mouth and let God speak through me.Which, of course, is simply a reference to the approach some people have to improv. Frankly, I think good improv and teaching look remarkably similar…

Bones Wins

...and everything else

I am rather known, among my friends, for having a strong stomach. Very few visuals get to me, let alone enough to make me think I’m about to lose it. I’m that irritating person who watches surgery while eating and chatting about what I’m watching.

This episode of Bones just won that particular battle with my stomach. That was quite literally one of the grossest things I’ve ever seen. And it’s still going strong… man. That’s nasty. (And yes, I have had several reactions to this, all of which boil down to “omg I have to see what it is that actually grosses you out!” Suckers.)

that got thru

...and everything else, Academics

I am not the best with the people skills. Working on it, as best I can. But I can miss cues, and pull faux paus for it. This time, at least, the message got through loud and clear. Which is regrettable, but there it is.

Of course, Michael wants to play devil’s advocate and make me think about other options, which is fair – especially given the absolutely shitty few days I’ve had. And there are plenty of demony points to raise. But, it’s something I’ve been hesitent on for a bit now, just because the cues and signals have strongly shouted one thing, conflicting with what I’ve been told.

Oh, fuck it. I don’t know what to believe anymore. Maybe this was all just a horrible mistake.

Newsweek Hates Americans

...and everything else

I’ve seen this in several spots, but Crooked Timber wins the linkback for going and digging up last week’s covers, too. (I’m too lazy to download the images, and for some reason can’t get ’em to display, so instead you get links: Newsweek covers, this week, from around the world, and to just emphasize the ‘fun’, last week.)

I think Crooked Timber commentor John Emerson says it best: why does Newsweek hate Americans?

clinging to the hope of a medical miracle

...and everything else, Bioethics

Studies like these are fascinating, showing that there appears to be conscious thought in patients in vegetative states. But while they’re really provocative, they’re also frustrating. There have been a few of these now, and they seem to always involve only one, maybe two patients, whose injuries were caused by blunt trauma to the head, and who’ve been in the state for a short (~6mo) time.

The problem with this is that it gives people false hope. People who have loved ones in minimally conscious or persistent vegetative states, who’ve been in those states for years, who’re clinging to the hope of a medical miracle. Sure, the articles include a throwaway line, standard these days when talking about PVS, “it wouldn’t have helped Schiavo” – but I don’t think people hear that. I think people see that there might be hope, and grab on, not understanding why their case may be different.

I want to see these studies done on patients who’ve been in these states for years. Who got there through oxygen deprivation. I want to see the range addressed, so that when the articles come out, there’s a case in there to represent the field of possibility, not just the tip where the promise is.

These studies are important, hands down. They’re showing us new methods of treatment, giving new ideas, and bringing up new and very complicated things to think about. But they need to be broader, and think outside the immediate.