Hello Blog! Hello Readers
It seems that I always begin like this, but, it has been a long time since I have written! I think, what about two weeks now? Anyway, I took approximately 1.5 weeks (like my scientific lingo?) to myself to enjoy my friends and enjoy my summer. This week, starting Sunday, I hit it HARD I spent the whole day today at my internship doing an article search for my OTHER research project... bad I know…but this can get really addictive. Anyway, I have several things to report.
The first of these being I have received feedback from my official update to my research fellowship administrators. All in all, it seems I have done nothing terribly wrong the first time. I did get reprimanded for not including page numbers in my notes. I changed that habit VERY quickly and immediately began putting them in my notes. The confusion around my project surfaced again, but I think I have settled that debate forever. I am not looking at the black physician in literature any longer, but instead looking at the figure in both textual and oral sources. I am looking at how he inhabits an understated second role as an advocate for equality in a time period when marginalization and segregation were legally mandated. Finally I can breathe a sigh of relief. I was also told I should look at what ISN’T present in scholarly works and use that as a spring board for criticism of the works that I am reading.
In other news, I had a lovely conversation with a historian from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Her research did not directly align with mine, but she looks at traditional healing and health in South Africa. After I told her I was going there to study abroad we had a long conversation about traditional versus western medicine as well as witchcraft, all over a nice toasted Panini. That trip to UNCC also allowed me to buy my community borrowers card and get access to online articles. That is good… but I hate how it is limited. I can only check out six books at a time. What kind of mess is that for a student researcher? On top of that, I can’t use interlibrary loans! REALLY? I guess I can’t complain though... at least I can check out something. I’m so excited because I got my license the other day, so I can drive to UNCC by myself now! YAY.
Over the past week I have been in HEAVY contact with my mentor. She gives the best advice. Yesterday, I emailed her and asked her about Google Books (which is an EXCELLENT resource for those of you who are doing research too) Here is what she sent to me:
"I will add, too, that the internet has made research almost unrecognizable
in its ease: when I was a grad student in the 1980s the MLA Bibliography
was still in huge volumes that you had to lug off a shelf in the reading
room and you would burn calories off running up and down the aisles of the
stacks, getting bound periodicals to take notes from (photocopying was
pricey and therefore not done except for all but the most important
articles). Hence the need to get those citations done right the first
time around--who wanted to go back into the stacks only to find the right
volume missing!!!"
LOL. Research has changed so much since then! I can now do an article search from a desk in my dorm room, or in my real room at home!
In Internship news. I have definitely taken a few days sabbatical (even though I am physically here) from my project. As it turns out Mental Health statistics are the hardest to come by, when looking at prevalence in racial and ethnic minorities. I might need to revamp my project a tad so that whatever products I produce look reasonable…but I have one thing to say: If anyone chooses a career in Mental Health/Mental Health advocacy, PLEASE set up better systems of surveillance. It is incredible to me! I was speaking with a multicultural mental health advocate who deals with refugee populations in my hometown, and he told me there was NO question on the intake evaluation about mental health status. Think about where refugees come from. It is a mistake to assume no mental duress, and an even bigger mistake NOT to point them in the direction of adequate mental health care. I see this is a big problem, not only in my community, but in the National Community. Now all we need to do is figure out how to fix the problem.
Well, I have a few weeks before my next official update. I need to read 5 books by then (lol). So… I need to get to it. I think that is about all for right now!
- Until Next time
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Monday, June 14, 2010
Financial troubles at every turn...Dear Blog and Followers, So... today was just one of those busy days, but at least, I’m finally developing a routin
Dear Blog and Followers,
So... today was just one of those busy days, but at least, I’m finally developing a routine, and writing EVERYDAY which is a good thing. Today I have not touched any of my academic research. This is due, in part, to distress in the realm of my internship. Upon my arrival back home in Charlotte, NC, not only was I faced with the tightening budget of my family, but also with the tightening budget of the County in which I live. It seems that while I was gone, the economic crisis hit my home especially hard. You should see how services are being cut left and right here: Public Libraries are facing a 50 percent budget cut, and the local school system is firing teachers when it desperately needs to be hiring some. In the face of all of that, the non-profit that I am working for this summer is in limbo.
I work for the Charlotte Coalition for Social Justice, working on a Health Disparities project. I decided to come back because the organization has made such an important impact on my life, and the way that I view the world. It even led to my current interests in health disparities. But this organization is facing being cut from one of its major contributors: The Charlotte-Mecklenburg County. We met with one of the County Commissioners to try and persuade him to change his vote. He was very candid, which I appreciate, the meeting instigated my passion and fire, and I’m afraid that amidst all of that my points may not have been taken well. It’s just that, this organization means so much to ME. I even spoke about how my work with this organization led to my scholarship to WUSTL. And now younger students will not have the opportunity to experience the wonderful-ness of it because the county is considering cutting it.
Now don’t get me wrong. It is JUST as important to fund the schools and the library; however, I make the case that even with budget cuts these resources will still be OPERATIONAL. That cannot be said about CCSJ, which is requesting an incalculably small percentage of the county budget. And what really irritates me is that I cannot convey HOW MUCH this organization actually impacts students’ lives. They don’t see that there are salient, tangible benefits from their money. I don’t know. I’ve sent emails, I’ve called, and I’ve met. I want people to really KNOW—THIS IS WORTH IT. So if you live in Charlotte, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE contact your commissioners within the next 24 hours and tell them to keep CCSJ alive.
Well it is 11:00 pm. I still need to compile my update email for my research fellowship administrators to be sent tomorrow. This entails compiling an annotated bibliography, which I have NOT been keeping up with…so I’ll be up for a while... and then waking up early to attend a meeting with another local leader in the morning. It’s tiring, but I’m glad that I’m actually becoming an active member of my home community.
Anyway... I’m super tired, but I still have to stay up…I need some caffeine…it feels like I’m back in school (which it shouldn’t because it is the summer)…anyway….
- Until next time
So... today was just one of those busy days, but at least, I’m finally developing a routine, and writing EVERYDAY which is a good thing. Today I have not touched any of my academic research. This is due, in part, to distress in the realm of my internship. Upon my arrival back home in Charlotte, NC, not only was I faced with the tightening budget of my family, but also with the tightening budget of the County in which I live. It seems that while I was gone, the economic crisis hit my home especially hard. You should see how services are being cut left and right here: Public Libraries are facing a 50 percent budget cut, and the local school system is firing teachers when it desperately needs to be hiring some. In the face of all of that, the non-profit that I am working for this summer is in limbo.
I work for the Charlotte Coalition for Social Justice, working on a Health Disparities project. I decided to come back because the organization has made such an important impact on my life, and the way that I view the world. It even led to my current interests in health disparities. But this organization is facing being cut from one of its major contributors: The Charlotte-Mecklenburg County. We met with one of the County Commissioners to try and persuade him to change his vote. He was very candid, which I appreciate, the meeting instigated my passion and fire, and I’m afraid that amidst all of that my points may not have been taken well. It’s just that, this organization means so much to ME. I even spoke about how my work with this organization led to my scholarship to WUSTL. And now younger students will not have the opportunity to experience the wonderful-ness of it because the county is considering cutting it.
Now don’t get me wrong. It is JUST as important to fund the schools and the library; however, I make the case that even with budget cuts these resources will still be OPERATIONAL. That cannot be said about CCSJ, which is requesting an incalculably small percentage of the county budget. And what really irritates me is that I cannot convey HOW MUCH this organization actually impacts students’ lives. They don’t see that there are salient, tangible benefits from their money. I don’t know. I’ve sent emails, I’ve called, and I’ve met. I want people to really KNOW—THIS IS WORTH IT. So if you live in Charlotte, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE contact your commissioners within the next 24 hours and tell them to keep CCSJ alive.
Well it is 11:00 pm. I still need to compile my update email for my research fellowship administrators to be sent tomorrow. This entails compiling an annotated bibliography, which I have NOT been keeping up with…so I’ll be up for a while... and then waking up early to attend a meeting with another local leader in the morning. It’s tiring, but I’m glad that I’m actually becoming an active member of my home community.
Anyway... I’m super tired, but I still have to stay up…I need some caffeine…it feels like I’m back in school (which it shouldn’t because it is the summer)…anyway….
- Until next time
Sunday, June 13, 2010
BUSY!!!!!!!
ARRGGHH! Can you say BEHIND!?
So. I spent all day yesterday getting through the majority of One Blood by Spencie Love, the story of Charles Drew and the legend that surrounds his death. Only had 70 more pages to go, but I got caught up with my mom driving around the city! Good thing is I got out of the house in the middle of the North Carolina thunderstorms… anyway… moral of the story is, I have yet to finish this book, and I wanted to get it done before I have to send in my update to the Fellowship administrators before Tuesday.
This would be my fourth book for this month...and I am looking over my reading track record and to me it looks grim. I’ve completed only four books in the span of a month (plus a few articles). Am I stressing too much, or am I going too slowly? I guess I’ll find out when the administrators/TA’s get back to me. I want to kick myself though…I read at a TERRIBLYSLOW rate (if you take into account the time I spend taking notes and arguing with myself over a passage that I just read… I’m not crazy, it’s just what I do lol…) Anyway, I hope to pick up the pace in the future.
And I need more articles…which means I need to take a trip out to UNCC to gather articles.
Until this point, I have had little luck getting things at home... so I need to speak with a research librarian there. Maybe I’ll take the trip Friday.
Until then I need to go back over my notes, re-organize them to the NEW METHOD that I am beginning to use, I need to complete my annotated bibliography and compile the rest of my sources by t Tuesday. It’s not a terrible load, but I just need to find the time to do it. I do confess, I should have been doing all of this all along, but... you know… it’s the summer. On top of that I’ve been typing up my notes that I have taken on paper (It’s definitely more organized when I type them in Microsoft OneNote.. so if you are doing research I suggest using this program.. it is AWESOME)
Anyway, I’ll get it all done, on top of practicing for my piano recital, on top of waking up SUPER early to attend my sister’s graduation, on top of going to my internship tomorrow after that, on top of meeting with a County Commissioner tomorrow…It is going to be a busy next couple of days.. Almost as busy as a regular academic day at Wash.U. BUT I CAN HANDLE IT…right?
I’ll let you know how it goes... looking at my schedule; I might have to miss a blog post tomorrow—just as I am getting the hang of writing consecutive days (Thanks Dean Herman for the push!).
Well…off to the races!
- Until next time
So. I spent all day yesterday getting through the majority of One Blood by Spencie Love, the story of Charles Drew and the legend that surrounds his death. Only had 70 more pages to go, but I got caught up with my mom driving around the city! Good thing is I got out of the house in the middle of the North Carolina thunderstorms… anyway… moral of the story is, I have yet to finish this book, and I wanted to get it done before I have to send in my update to the Fellowship administrators before Tuesday.
This would be my fourth book for this month...and I am looking over my reading track record and to me it looks grim. I’ve completed only four books in the span of a month (plus a few articles). Am I stressing too much, or am I going too slowly? I guess I’ll find out when the administrators/TA’s get back to me. I want to kick myself though…I read at a TERRIBLYSLOW rate (if you take into account the time I spend taking notes and arguing with myself over a passage that I just read… I’m not crazy, it’s just what I do lol…) Anyway, I hope to pick up the pace in the future.
And I need more articles…which means I need to take a trip out to UNCC to gather articles.
Until this point, I have had little luck getting things at home... so I need to speak with a research librarian there. Maybe I’ll take the trip Friday.
Until then I need to go back over my notes, re-organize them to the NEW METHOD that I am beginning to use, I need to complete my annotated bibliography and compile the rest of my sources by t Tuesday. It’s not a terrible load, but I just need to find the time to do it. I do confess, I should have been doing all of this all along, but... you know… it’s the summer. On top of that I’ve been typing up my notes that I have taken on paper (It’s definitely more organized when I type them in Microsoft OneNote.. so if you are doing research I suggest using this program.. it is AWESOME)
Anyway, I’ll get it all done, on top of practicing for my piano recital, on top of waking up SUPER early to attend my sister’s graduation, on top of going to my internship tomorrow after that, on top of meeting with a County Commissioner tomorrow…It is going to be a busy next couple of days.. Almost as busy as a regular academic day at Wash.U. BUT I CAN HANDLE IT…right?
I’ll let you know how it goes... looking at my schedule; I might have to miss a blog post tomorrow—just as I am getting the hang of writing consecutive days (Thanks Dean Herman for the push!).
Well…off to the races!
- Until next time
Saturday, June 12, 2010
Time Control
Ah, back to the old research blog. It seems I haven’t posted anything for almost two weeks. So I have A LOT to say. I’ve been putting this off for a while, particularly because I keep hanging out with friends, or hanging out with family, and my time just dwindles away, almost to the point where I spend the week not doing one thing. For instance, I was almost finished with the book “Medical Apartheid” by Harriet Washington (I highly recommend it). It took me a week to read the last 70 pages!
I want to hang out and enjoy my summer, but I feel that I’ve done a little too much of that, some of it voluntary, and some of it against my will, but I am finally putting my foot down and hitting the research path again.
I have been promising myself I would go to the UNCC library to do some more in-depth article research. I have a flowing book list, but I need more articles to understand the various components of my project. And I just keep discovering stuff I want/need to read. I’m afraid there is no way I can even get to all of it.
I’m still waiting to find out what the deal is with my research stipend. I applied for it in May, and haven’t received it, or any word of what to expect/ if it has been approved or not etc. I am dirt broke… I need money man.
In regards to my internship, over the past week after talking to one of my high school teachers, she basically destroyed the premise of my project, because it has been done already (I was going to look at disparities in access so quality to health care). I’ve decided to revamp that and focus specifically on mental health. I came home to a story that a black man sought mental health help TWICE, saying that he was going to harm someone. Psychiatrists let him go both times, and he later killed his wife and two daughters. It is a tragic situation, but after hearing about it twice, I got the idea to research more on the local mental health system, and to understand if disparities exist between racial/ethnic minorities (as I am sure they do) and to find out the causes for those disparities. I’ll let you know how that goes.
I have my first Kling academic research update coming up next week, the day after my sister’s graduation, and the day that I have a meeting with a professor about my internship project. It’s going to be a busy weekend as I prepare my material for that update to the University administrators. I hope everything goes to plan though.
In OTHER news, isn’t this backdrop just PERFECT! Omg. I’m in love with it! And FOUR FOLLOWERS! I feel so popular. I’m amazed people want to hear about my research. Too bad I don’t have any catchy/funny stories at the moment. I guess I need to finally get into the library to get some. But yeah, hopefully, FINALLY I will begin to keep this thing updated rather frequently. I need to really record all of my thoughts…
OH by the way, as I was reading Medical Apartheid, the author fleetingly mentioned two things which caught me off guard: 1. An African pygmy was caught and displayed in the BRONX ZOO in the early 20th century. Can you believe that? He was placed into a cage with a monkey and 2. The author mentioned that there are some volumes sitting on library shelves with the weatherized skin of African Americans on their covers. Isn’t that amazing? I am so surprised at the extremity of the medical atrocities that African Americans faced! Well I’ll leave that disturbing image for you to ponder! Lol
- Until next time
I want to hang out and enjoy my summer, but I feel that I’ve done a little too much of that, some of it voluntary, and some of it against my will, but I am finally putting my foot down and hitting the research path again.
I have been promising myself I would go to the UNCC library to do some more in-depth article research. I have a flowing book list, but I need more articles to understand the various components of my project. And I just keep discovering stuff I want/need to read. I’m afraid there is no way I can even get to all of it.
I’m still waiting to find out what the deal is with my research stipend. I applied for it in May, and haven’t received it, or any word of what to expect/ if it has been approved or not etc. I am dirt broke… I need money man.
In regards to my internship, over the past week after talking to one of my high school teachers, she basically destroyed the premise of my project, because it has been done already (I was going to look at disparities in access so quality to health care). I’ve decided to revamp that and focus specifically on mental health. I came home to a story that a black man sought mental health help TWICE, saying that he was going to harm someone. Psychiatrists let him go both times, and he later killed his wife and two daughters. It is a tragic situation, but after hearing about it twice, I got the idea to research more on the local mental health system, and to understand if disparities exist between racial/ethnic minorities (as I am sure they do) and to find out the causes for those disparities. I’ll let you know how that goes.
I have my first Kling academic research update coming up next week, the day after my sister’s graduation, and the day that I have a meeting with a professor about my internship project. It’s going to be a busy weekend as I prepare my material for that update to the University administrators. I hope everything goes to plan though.
In OTHER news, isn’t this backdrop just PERFECT! Omg. I’m in love with it! And FOUR FOLLOWERS! I feel so popular. I’m amazed people want to hear about my research. Too bad I don’t have any catchy/funny stories at the moment. I guess I need to finally get into the library to get some. But yeah, hopefully, FINALLY I will begin to keep this thing updated rather frequently. I need to really record all of my thoughts…
OH by the way, as I was reading Medical Apartheid, the author fleetingly mentioned two things which caught me off guard: 1. An African pygmy was caught and displayed in the BRONX ZOO in the early 20th century. Can you believe that? He was placed into a cage with a monkey and 2. The author mentioned that there are some volumes sitting on library shelves with the weatherized skin of African Americans on their covers. Isn’t that amazing? I am so surprised at the extremity of the medical atrocities that African Americans faced! Well I’ll leave that disturbing image for you to ponder! Lol
- Until next time
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Routine Achieved... at least I hope
t seems that I have finally achieved the delicate balance of routine over my summer break. I just completed my second day at my internship at the Charlotte Coalition for Social Justice, as an Intern for a special Health Disparities Project. I am working 9-5 (at least for the most part) 3 days a week, while the remaining two days of the week are used for my other research project, the one that I am blogging about.
I realized that I am supposed to blog about both my internship AND my research. So I’ve decided to kill two birds with one stone, and blog about them both. Now I have no reason to repeat what I did earlier this week…. That is… not maintain my daily journal as I am supposed to. Hopefully now the sands are beginning to settle on this summer vacation, and I will have time to dedicate to my studies…as opposed to dedicating it all to hanging out with friends!
As I said earlier, I have an internship. I am working on a comparative neighborhood study, analyzing adequate access to health care, and how that has a role in perpetuating health care disparities in my hometown. If you can’t already tell, I’m becoming a nut for race and health, and I’m looking at different aspects of that relationship over the summer. I love what I am doing. The only thing is, I’m getting a taste of corporate life, and I don’t understand how people do it. I mean, sitting on my butt for 8 hours a day, looking at a computer screen? I have always known, that is exactly what I DON’T want to do. I want to have flexibility, move around, talk to different people, and do different things….hopefully I can find a job like that once I complete school.
On to my academic research project. I have had SEVERAL breakthroughs/epiphanies over the last week. I have been reading Under the Knife by Hugh Pearson. I almost finished it over the weekend, but due to work, and an unsettled schedule, it took me almost the entirety of this week to finish the last 30 pages, as well as type up my notes, but I AM DONE with my second book. I think I will move on to Medical Apartheid next, a book about medical experimentation on black people from colonial to present times. It’s very controversial, and looks very interesting, so I can’t wait to read it.
Reading Under the Knife however, I’ve realized several things. One of them being, I had a romanticized notion as to who the African-American physician was in the Jim Crow era, and how he was a Saving Grace Angel sent to save the black community. This book was a candid examination of the life of Joseph Griffin, the first black surgeon in the state of Georgia. The argument of the book, as I take it, is that there are two sides to every story… every legend. Hugh Pearson looked at how family and local legends of Dr. Griffin were romanticized, and often played up his benevolence, however under further inspection Dr. Griffin appears to be one who does not fit into the “good doctor” mold—he was ruthless and seized homes and land from many of his patients who were unable to pay the bills, he broke the law several times, and he performed illegal back-door abortions. This lead me to believe that the literature that I will be looking at could be either two things (or something in between): It could feature a physician/ or physicians who are VERY romanticized in what they provide for the community or those who are not romanticized at all, and provide a more candid look at what it is like to be a physician in the Jim Crow Era. That might be a potential driving question of my research.
Another thing that I have also realized is that I may have been employing the wrong search queries when looking for books and articles. What I failed to realize, is that in the Jim Crow era, and even before then, the black population has gone through several “name changes.” As I have searched for African-American and Black Physicians, I have failed to search for “Colored” or even “Negro” physicians. I feel that employing these terms, which are more connected to the time period in which I am studying will lead me to more books and articles that pertain directly to my research.
I think that is everything for right now. I am beginning my third book for the summer (in the end of my second full week back home). I should pick up the pace, especially sense I have a better understanding of how my time can be organized.
Well, Hopefully I’ll blog tomorrow, and every day after that!
- Until then
I realized that I am supposed to blog about both my internship AND my research. So I’ve decided to kill two birds with one stone, and blog about them both. Now I have no reason to repeat what I did earlier this week…. That is… not maintain my daily journal as I am supposed to. Hopefully now the sands are beginning to settle on this summer vacation, and I will have time to dedicate to my studies…as opposed to dedicating it all to hanging out with friends!
As I said earlier, I have an internship. I am working on a comparative neighborhood study, analyzing adequate access to health care, and how that has a role in perpetuating health care disparities in my hometown. If you can’t already tell, I’m becoming a nut for race and health, and I’m looking at different aspects of that relationship over the summer. I love what I am doing. The only thing is, I’m getting a taste of corporate life, and I don’t understand how people do it. I mean, sitting on my butt for 8 hours a day, looking at a computer screen? I have always known, that is exactly what I DON’T want to do. I want to have flexibility, move around, talk to different people, and do different things….hopefully I can find a job like that once I complete school.
On to my academic research project. I have had SEVERAL breakthroughs/epiphanies over the last week. I have been reading Under the Knife by Hugh Pearson. I almost finished it over the weekend, but due to work, and an unsettled schedule, it took me almost the entirety of this week to finish the last 30 pages, as well as type up my notes, but I AM DONE with my second book. I think I will move on to Medical Apartheid next, a book about medical experimentation on black people from colonial to present times. It’s very controversial, and looks very interesting, so I can’t wait to read it.
Reading Under the Knife however, I’ve realized several things. One of them being, I had a romanticized notion as to who the African-American physician was in the Jim Crow era, and how he was a Saving Grace Angel sent to save the black community. This book was a candid examination of the life of Joseph Griffin, the first black surgeon in the state of Georgia. The argument of the book, as I take it, is that there are two sides to every story… every legend. Hugh Pearson looked at how family and local legends of Dr. Griffin were romanticized, and often played up his benevolence, however under further inspection Dr. Griffin appears to be one who does not fit into the “good doctor” mold—he was ruthless and seized homes and land from many of his patients who were unable to pay the bills, he broke the law several times, and he performed illegal back-door abortions. This lead me to believe that the literature that I will be looking at could be either two things (or something in between): It could feature a physician/ or physicians who are VERY romanticized in what they provide for the community or those who are not romanticized at all, and provide a more candid look at what it is like to be a physician in the Jim Crow Era. That might be a potential driving question of my research.
Another thing that I have also realized is that I may have been employing the wrong search queries when looking for books and articles. What I failed to realize, is that in the Jim Crow era, and even before then, the black population has gone through several “name changes.” As I have searched for African-American and Black Physicians, I have failed to search for “Colored” or even “Negro” physicians. I feel that employing these terms, which are more connected to the time period in which I am studying will lead me to more books and articles that pertain directly to my research.
I think that is everything for right now. I am beginning my third book for the summer (in the end of my second full week back home). I should pick up the pace, especially sense I have a better understanding of how my time can be organized.
Well, Hopefully I’ll blog tomorrow, and every day after that!
- Until then
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Road humps...already
So.. I'm going with this metaphor of driving, I guess because in my conscience, that is something that I want to do, heck I NEED to do...taking public transportation is SUCH a hassle. Anyway so yes, I have begun this journey of research, jumped on the highway of knowledge, and I've already hit the bumps. I haven't been in the car for more than 5 minutess, before I am forced to slow down and re-evaluate.
I have checked out 3 books from the library that I really should read. Two of them are nonfiction and describe the history of race and medicine from its "beginnings" (whatever that means, I havent even read the first chapter) to the present (It was finished during the Clinton Administration). Let me tell you. I tried to read the forward and Introduction, and almost fell asleep. The subject matter interests me to death, but the writing is so.. formalized and academic, it would bore anyone. I find this very ironic because in the text the authros allude to "easy readability" for dissemination of the information to the masses...that's funny. It just goes to show how disconnected the world of academia CAN be (I'm not saying it's always like that).
On top of that, I've hung out with my friends twice within a 7 day period, spending, a LOT of time with them. I hung out with m grandad too. And I know there will be more and more people wanting to see me during my time back home...BUT I NEED TO RESEARCH.
Here's what I have decided to do. My time at the library will be RESEARCH time (except for right now, when I'm blogging, when I should be doing some reading). I think I'll start the heavy duty stuff next week, but while i'm still just chilling out/ breaking from school, I'lll do more of the light reading.
hopefully by next week, when I start my internship, things will be a little more scheduled and regulated. I need a schedule, consistency, to keep me on my p's and q's and to really get stuff done.
Well anyway, I will stop ranting, but hopefully by next week I can get it together.
- Until Then
I have checked out 3 books from the library that I really should read. Two of them are nonfiction and describe the history of race and medicine from its "beginnings" (whatever that means, I havent even read the first chapter) to the present (It was finished during the Clinton Administration). Let me tell you. I tried to read the forward and Introduction, and almost fell asleep. The subject matter interests me to death, but the writing is so.. formalized and academic, it would bore anyone. I find this very ironic because in the text the authros allude to "easy readability" for dissemination of the information to the masses...that's funny. It just goes to show how disconnected the world of academia CAN be (I'm not saying it's always like that).
On top of that, I've hung out with my friends twice within a 7 day period, spending, a LOT of time with them. I hung out with m grandad too. And I know there will be more and more people wanting to see me during my time back home...BUT I NEED TO RESEARCH.
Here's what I have decided to do. My time at the library will be RESEARCH time (except for right now, when I'm blogging, when I should be doing some reading). I think I'll start the heavy duty stuff next week, but while i'm still just chilling out/ breaking from school, I'lll do more of the light reading.
hopefully by next week, when I start my internship, things will be a little more scheduled and regulated. I need a schedule, consistency, to keep me on my p's and q's and to really get stuff done.
Well anyway, I will stop ranting, but hopefully by next week I can get it together.
- Until Then
Monday, May 17, 2010
Confusion and Commencement
Okay,
So it's been a while since I have last posted anything to this blog (if you can even call it that, there is only one post up thus far)... however several things have transpired since my last posting, which I would like to share with anyone who is reading, or at least for my own benefit of personal reflection.
I have started receiving word of the day emails from dictionary.com, starting today with the word majuscule. It must be a very obscure word, because it is showing up as a spelling error in this text box. It is basically a fancy way of describing the capital form of a letter. For instance A is the majuscule form of a... I don't know, it seems like a useless word to me, but i want to augment my vocabulary if I am to take this scholarship thing forward, so I begin.
I am at home now, and I took a very quick trip to the main public library branch downtown, and immediately I was reminded of why I am doing the project that I am doing, and why I am interested in the things that I am. My eyes have been further opened to structural injustices , or as Paul Farmer would call "Structural Violence," and how structural inequalities lead to social inequalities. I was looking at how one road: East/West Boulevard signifies the barrier between rich and poor, and more often than not between black and white, where West Boulevard is the road that leads to the poorer side of town, and East Boulevard to the other. Why is that so? It can not be because all poor people migrated to one area of town...but I digress. I was riding public transportation (to be green, and because I have yet to obtain my license), and I overheard a man in his early forties speak about how he was diagnosed with diabetes at 35. Imagine. You are in the height of being middle aged, and you are diagnosed with diabetes, not even reaching the midpoint of average life-expectancy. And I saw how most of the people in my neighborhood are overweight, and I even witness, to my dismay, the eating habits of my family which I try so hard to elucidate. We constantly speak about loosing weight, however we don't even make the simplest, slightest changes that could make A WORLD of difference... But anyway.
So, from the beginning, I have been engaged in an internal conflict (do you like the literary term?) with myself. I have these big ideas about my project, and how I want to attack it, and I want to read everything under the sun that comes even remotely close to what I want to study (In general I want to study the biological and social relationships between race and health, but more particularly, I will be looking at the figure of the African-American doctor in African-American literature). Although I would love to take a broad interdisciplinary approach, I have had conflicting advice on what exactly to do. On the one hand, a fellowship advisor gently urges me to follow my original project (based in English lit) so that I have a clear cut goal in mind as to what I will accomplish over the summer. On the other hand my mentor brought up the very good point-- Why English? I could accomplish my research goals through other methods, especially those more related to my academic and career goals of Anthropology and Public Health. Both make very valid points, and whenever that happens, I always get stuck in the middle. I have, however, come up with a remedy to solve those problems. I think for the time being, I will remain with the literary focus of my project, because it is the most focused that I could possibly get when doing a project of this caliber. I will save the anthropological/public health approach to my topic with a senior honors thesis, which allows me more writing room to further delve into methodology and research.
Other than that. I have checked out three books from the library...The Street by Ann Petry (my relief book, yet still may be related to my research), an also the two volumes of An American health dilemma. All three amount to over 1850 pages! It is Monday, and I hope to complete those books by the end of the week, at least most of them. I don't start my internship until hopefully next week, so I have all the time in the world right now.
Well, It officially begins today. Hopefully everything will go according to plan!
- Until Next Time
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