The Great Material Continuum

Among the Ferengi people of the Star Trek universe, there is a belief in the Great Material Continuum.  This represents the trade that they see as the force binding all life in the universe, the river that flows from those who have to those who need.  The Ferengi see the Continuum as an opportunity for profit, but I attempt to traverse the river on a nonprofit basis. 

Looking back on 2011

Rabbit on our driveway (6/2011)

New Year's Day is traditionally a day of new beginnings.  I love new beginnings -- the excitement of starting fresh with the allure of pristine new projects.  Accomplishments are just over the horizon, glittering in the near distance.

But taking stock of where we are means pondering the past as well as looking to the future. Yet I'm less likely to mull over tasks completed than to dream of what is to come.  So I'm challenging myself to spend some time thinking back over what I've done.  Rather than compile a list of individual achievements (as in Lisa Call's 100 Accomplishments for 2011), I wanted to think about how my activities fit into my goals.  Perhaps I'm considering my cosmic footprint for 2011 (to borrow a concept from fellow blogger and academic Jill Kronstadt, whose blog is really worth reading).  So in the larger sense, what did I do in 2011?

The Life of a College Professor

Before I became a college professor, I didn't understand the broad scope of the professorial role.  I think it's hard to appreciate all that a job entails until one is immersed in it.  Even though my father is an academic, and I grew up hanging around his office, sitting in on his classes, and helping to administer exams and mailing out the journal he edited, I don't think I grasped all that professors do. 

Over the last week or so, for example:

Women's Studies Silent Auction

The annual Montgomery College Women's Studies Program Scholarship Breakfast is on Wednesday, Mar. 9 (8-9:30am), which showcases the achievements of Women's Studies students and faculty.  In fact, this year, I am one of the faculty being honored -- I will be one of three faculty members receiving the On Her Shoulders We Stand Award.  This award is given to those who have contributed significantly to the Women's Studies Program, and I am tremendously pleased to be receiving this recognition.  It is truly an honor to receive an award for doing work that is so meaningful to me and that I love so well.  I am fortunate to have such wonderful colleagues and fabulous students, as well as an incredibly supportive partner, who doesn't complain about my long hours at work and shows up every year for our V-Day production.  Thanks, Q!

The event is also a fundraiser for the Women's Studies Scholarship fund, and I am coordinating the silent auction part of the breakfast.  Thanks to our generous donors, we have a wonderful array of items for the auction, and all proceeds from the auction go toward student scholarships.  The auction has a diverse range of items, including jewelry, ceramics, textiles, vintage items, stained glass, watercolors, housewares, and accessories.  If you see something you want, I am happy to arrange a proxy bid for you.  Just email me by Tuesday, Mar. 8 at 5pm to let me know what item you wish to bid on and how high you are willing to bid.  Click on the individual pictures to see more details about each item, including the estimated value and the minimum bid. 





My contributions to the silent auction included some of my own textile creations.

Set of four burp cloths (green and blue bubbles)

Set of four burp cloths (red stripe and bookbinder red)

Set of four autumn leaves placemats with matching tangerine linen napkins

Let's hope for enthusiastic bidding so that we can fund even more scholarships for next year!

Women's Studies Silent Auction

The annual Montgomery College Women's Studies Program Scholarship Breakfast is on Wednesday, Mar. 3 (8-9:30am), which showcases the achievements of Women's Studies students and faculty.  This is also the main fundraiser for the Women's Studies Scholarship fund, and I am coordinating the silent auction part of the breakfast.  Thanks to our generous donors, we have a wonderful array of items for the auction, and all proceeds from the auction go toward student scholarships.  If you see something you want, I am happy to arrange a proxy bid for you.  Just email me by Tuesday, Mar. 2 at 5pm to let me know what item you wish to bid on and how high you are willing to bid. 

I did some new kinds of lighting for some of the pictures, as well as using some different editing options in Photoshop, and I think most of the photos of the silent auction items came out quite well.  Many thanks to Robin Atkins for her post on photographing beadwork, which inspired me to try out these new techniques. 

Silent Auction Slideshow

New blogging project

In honor of Mother's Day, I just wanted to let you know about my new blog, Memories of My Mother, where I will be posting weekly explorations of memories of my mother. This project represents an exercise in mindfulness, as I spend some time each week reflecting on my mother's life. In addition to the regular blog posts, I'm raising funds toward a college scholarship in her name at Montgomery College(as part of the Women's Studies Scholarship program). All net proceeds from sales of my handcrafted goods in my Etsy shop will go toward the Nancy Driessel Stearns scholarship fund. Right now, there is only one item in my Etsy shop, but more will be listed in future, so check back regularly to see what I have available. The project is described more fully on the blog, so if you are interested, pop over and read about it there. Feel free to post comments, if you are so moved. There are links on the blog to subscribe via a reader or via email (to have new posts emailed to you), as well as a link to my Etsy shop (on the right hand menu).

Happy Mother's Day!

Silent auction

What did I do today? I took pictures and put them on Flickr. I am coordinating a Silent Auction to raise money for the Montgomery College Women's Studies Student Scholarship fund. The actual auction will be held on Wednesday morning, but I put up pictures of some of the items that will be auctioned. There are some great items in the auction -- if anyone wants to bid on the item, I'm happy to put in a proxy bid for you. Just email me to let me know.

I thought that ancientsong would like this piece.

Free rice word game

Prove your brilliance and feed the hungry. Plus, it's so addictive!

So Tired

I. Am. So. Tired.
Too many hours of coaching and stage managing for the campus performance of The Vagina Monologues. Both shows were great -- the cast and crew did a terrific job and both shows were well-attended and we raised several thousand dollars for organizations working to end violence against women. They also gave me some beautiful roses as a thank-you. But now I'm in post-production ennui (augmented, I'm sure by staying out too late last night chatting with students from the cast). Now I have to get caught up on everything else that didn't get done while I was at rehearsals.

My to-do list includes:

• Write exams for two different classes by Monday
  
• Finish organizing a silent auction to raise money for the Women's Studies Scholarship Fund at the Women's Studies Breakfast on Wednesday -- some very cool items so far, including jewelry, molas, tickets to local events, pillows, scarves, Brazilian crafts, etc.
  
• Grade grade grade student papers and journals
  
• Write my yearly evaluation packet
  
• Dance!
  
• Prep for the Zar workshop on Tuesday (I'm TA-ing for Yasmin, need to format the warm-up and make sure the tech is ready)
  
• Work on various unfinished projects as time permits (too many to list!)

Gosh, that just makes me feel even more exhausted!