Week Six

Modern Greek Studies Lecture: Yossipon and Jewish Nationalism in 19th and 20th Century Greece

Foreign Language Building
Lucy Ellis Lounge 7:30pm
2/25/13

Well, lets just say I felt wayy out of my element and lost in translation. The whole time i tried real hard to pay attention and take notes but due to the slight accent and the fact that I had no idea how to spell any of the words he was saying i felt overwhelmed and in need of subtitles. The guest speaker was Dr. Bowman from The University of Cincinatti. at the beginning of the lecture he said that he would split the lecture into covering too time periods, part one was 1840 and part two was 1890-1940. when i heard that i was like oh dear what was i doing here. i feel that if there was a powerpoint presentation or if i was in some kind of early greek studies class i would have felt more comfortable. the fact that a majority of the audience was older also intimated me and made me feel as if i stuck out like a sore thumb.

some observations right away
-crowed
-older crowd
-being filmed 
-smelled funky in the room (which distracted me alot)
-and the chairs were so obnoxiously squeaky (i wanted to yell at people to sit still)

one fact that i did remember was that "every year 40 of each century is a Messianic year" which means of or relating to the messiah or thoughts/hopes of return
and after that tid bit i was lost and started doodling 

myself taking notes/doodling

                                                                Dr. Bowman from the University of Cincinnati

week five

40 North presents Poetry Out Loud
Art Theater
February 19th

The event i attended this week was "Poetry Out Loud" which was a high school poetry competition where finalist from high schools in the area competed by reciting and preforming famous poems. The winner and runner up after two rounds of poetry go on to compete in the state competition in Springfield March 8th.

This was definitely something i wouldn't usually go to because i hated the poetry units in high school or grammar school mostly because i didn't enjoy writing poems and hated talking in front of large groups of people.
But these young men and women showed no fear when they were preforming they animated themselves like we were watching a play rather then listening to a reading of a poem. 

It was interesting to see how each student took their poems differently. One poem, I know why the caged bird sings, was repeated 3 times each by a different student and each in a completely different style. i thought that was pretty cool hearing the same poem in different tones, moods, etc. each student adding their own personality and flare.

you could sense the nerves that they had hearing their name and making the long walk to the stage hoping they don't trip (which someone did...poor little guy) or forget their lines. in front of me was a mother daughter and teacher. the daughter was shaking and having trouble breathing she was so nervous. and after each performance you would hurry back to her seat read over her lines and critique everything she did wrong or could have done better. that teacher seemed really nice and supportive and gave her two students flowers at intermission saying that "they were winners to her no matter what"....corny but cute.

One kid that definitely stood out from the pack was this boy with floody jeans kind who was kind of scrawny with long curly hair. the way in which he read his poems was scary as hell. it made me very uncomfortable with his intense gaze and death metal/screamer tone of voice...creepy to say the least

At the end the judges took time to tally up the scores and the winner and runner up were announced. Overall it wasn't to shabby of an event to attend. it was something different, new and entertaining and also my first time visiting the Art Theater.

2012 state champion

                                             the theater

                                           the program

                   poor kid...had to go first and tripped up the stairs doing it

                                   the creepiest of the performers

          mother daughter in front of us (tweaking out the whole time/ nervous wrecks)

                       runner up (boy in red) and the winner (girl in black)

                                            Art Theater

                                                                                            goon squad

week four

Hot Topics Dialogues
2/11/13
"Race, Gender, and Body Image in the Media"
Women's Resource Center

Sure this topic is something that everyone has an opinion about but this lecture didn't really give too many opposing viewpoints. There was a panel of four women from around the university all giving their thoughts on the topic all of somewhat similar body types. i get that it was supposed to be a like discussion and highly participatory but i feel as though no one really spoke up in fear that their opinion would get shout down.

Some topics/topics covered:
barbie dolls
american girl dolls
plastic surgery
photoshop

I personally thought these topics were quite juvenile and not really proving a point but rather an opinion (theirs). i feel they made assumptions that they thought applied to everyone but honestly when i was a kid i wasn't comparing myself to a barbie doll( i knew that body type looked funky and unrealistic) or complaining about the body type of an american girl doll that isn't even skinny or unrealistic in my opinion.

They brought up some studies but didn't really have all the facts or proof to offer more information.

Set up of the room and where the panel sat.

stopped taking notes after i realized i didn't really care to write down their opinions so i jotted down talking points mostly.

fellow miners

free snaks and drinks 

Overall it felt more like a conversation you would just have with a friend after seeing a commercial or magazine add nothing too lecture worthy in my opinion. and time seemed to drag on while there. the topic itself is something everyone has an opinion on but i feel like in order for this lecture to be more successful then they needed to go beyond what has already been talked about or encourage a healthier lifestyle to ensure a healthier you and outlook on life.

week three

Black LGBT History Month
Keith Boykin
Illini Union 314A
2/4/13 7pm

This weeks lecture was given by Keith Boykin. Boykin is an openly gay author,commentator, Tv personality and political consultant.His lecture was on what his journey has been like from his time in college to now as a gay african american man. Boykin started off his lecture with how he was inspired to make the choices and decisions in his life. That inspiration came from Robert Frost's poem "The Road Not Taken"
After his undergraduates degree Boykin went off to do campaign work for the governor of Massachusetts. There he would only earn 250$ a month being that he just finished college his family questioned his decisions to go through with this decision. But debts and doubts aside Boykin was able to follow his heart, go on an adventure, see the world and find a passion for what truly interested him.
After that he did other odd and end jobs like teaching 8th grade social studies and 10th grade english but hated it and decided to apply for law school, another decision questioned by his family. He got accepted to Harvard and went on to become a major part of ensuring campus diversity.
he spoke of the importance of "speaking truth to gain power"
confronted dean and actually had the dean running from him avoiding questions, he held sit ins to gain the deans attention and even took the dean/president of Harvard law to court(they lost due to "didn't have proper standing" but won in the public's opinion gaining the recognition and respect they deserved)
he then went on to work for the Bill Clinton administration especially with the topic of gays in the military

http://live.huffingtonpost.com/r/segment/comparing-civil-rights-gay-rights/510a8c422b8c2a138f000395

Boykin's thoughts about this article
-people choose their religious beliefs yet they are still discriminated against
-pointless to prove whether or not
-irrational people

Coming out vs Out
-coming out= you need some sort of affirmative disclosure/prof
- out= open and honest
"if you tell the right people you don't have to tell everybody else"

Words/Tips to audience
-follow dreams
-make difference
-share stories
-inspire change
-" you will always be afraid in the service of your vision but that fear gets less and less important"
-"diversity benefits everyone not just the minorities and women"
-"dont be afraid to say what you feel/ don't sacrifice what you truly mean in order to please someone else" "you say your side they say theirs and find a way to meet halfway"

This lecture was really interesting it focused a lot on his background and how he got to where he was today and also the speed of change in todays world with accepting differences. Towards the end he spoke a little bit about his book and his inspirations for those excerpts as well. Overall he kept me entertained and interested in each of his stories and life lessons.
-books were available for purchase
-he was signing books
-open for questions
-free food and drinks after the presentation

                                            Fellow Miners

                                             Keith Boykin  
                       

                                        Snazzy Deserts