2012 Wrap-up

2012 is coming to end and we shall welcome 2013 here in the eastern time zone in 14 hours. The world didn't end on December 21, surprise! Although the Mayans themselves never thought it was the end, just the end of a calendar. So what did 2012 bring? Many things, some good, some bad and some downright ugly.

I started the year with my then engaged friends Dan and Julie at their house in Minneapolis. I traveled back to Texas to finish the final semester of my master's degree. My parents came to San Marcos in May to see me graduate. I was accepted to the University of South Florida to work under a PI (principal investigator/my PhD adviser) on a NSF (National Science Foundation) grant. I was ecstatic but sad to leave Texas. Blake and I moved to Florida with our traveling circus of animals and I started my PhD program. One semester finished! (And like 9 to go). I went back to MN in August for Dan and Julie's wedding. Julie asked me to be a bridesmaid and I am glad that I was able to be a part of their special day.

So besides me becoming a Master and moving to Tampa, what else happened in 2012?

The Giants beat the Patriots in the Super Bowl for the second time in 4 years. And ha ha Eli Manning, you aren't even going to the playoffs this season! Anyway....

One of the most successful female artists of all time, Whitney Houston, died in February.

We saw more horrible mass shootings, including the Aurora, CO movie theater shooting in July and the Sandy Hook Elementary school shooting in CT in December. There were other shootings and plenty of gun violence (remember Trayvon Martin) but it seems that after Sandy Hook, a meaningful national conversation on guns and a culture of violence has begun.

There was the 2012 GOP primary season in preparation for the 2012 Presidential Election. What a circus that was! The jokes just write themselves. Each candidate was ahead at one time or another with Mitt Romney coming out on top to face President Obama in November, besting Michele Bachmann, Rick Santorum, Newt Gingrich, Herman Cain and Rick Perry.

Political dysfunction continued throughout 2012 after the debt ceiling debacle in 2011, which left us with the manufactured fiscal cliff. As of today, it's looks like we are going over.

2012 also saw the continuation on the "war on women" with more restrictive laws passed throughout the states. The contraception mandate in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (aka ObamaCare) went into affect in August which led Rep. Mike Kelly (R-PA) to compare the mandate to Pearl Harbor. Yikes. We also had the infamous comments about rape and women's bodies from the likes of Todd Akin and Richard Mourdock, who were (thankfully) defeated in their races for Congress. Whadda know, you can't say crazy things about women and get elected. In related news, Tea Party darlings Joe Walsh and Allen West lost their seats. Will 2013 be the beginning of the end of the Tea Party's influence on the GOP? Let's hope so.

Oh, and the Supreme Court affirmed the Constitutionality of ObamaCare.

Perhaps the biggest political story of 2012 was the re-election of President Barack Obama. It was a crazy fall, with record amounts of money spent, binders full of women and Big Bird. The right was shell-shocked. They really thought Mitt Romney would win. That's what you get for watching Fox News.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton resigned this year, probably because of the attack on the American Consulate in Benghazi which resulted in the death of four Americans, including the ambassador to Libya. It looks like John Kerry will be her successor.

Other political stories include dirty voter suppression tactics, the legalization of Cannabis for recreational use in Washington and Colorado, the defeat of a marriage amendment in Minnesota, voter approval of gay marriage in Maine, Maryland and Washington, the Supreme Court announced that it will hear DOMA and California's Proposition 8 in the spring, and Elizabeth Warren defeated Scott Brown in Massachusetts Senate Race. 

2012 also brought extreme weather, including heat waves, drought, wildfires and super storm Sandy slammed into the East Coast. The elephant in the room became visible. More Americans now recognize that climate change from human activities is real and a big problem. I hope that 2013 will bring political action and bold solutions to one of the biggest threats to humanity.

General David Petraeus resigned amid a scandal involving an extra-martial affair.

2012 was the year of the London summer Olympic Games. The US Women's gymnastics team took home the gold for the first time since Atlanta 1996 and 16 year old Gabby Douglas became the women's all around  gold medal champion. Michael Phelps became the most decorated Olympian ever with 22 medals (including 18 gold) from three games. 17 year old swimmer Missy Franklin also won some gold medals. The US swimmers did well all around, winning several medals in London. Kerri Walsh Jennings and Misty May Treanor won the gold in women's beach volleyball for the third time in a row. Usain Bolt of Jamaica, the fastest man on Earth, won the gold in the 100 and 200 m sprint for the second time, becoming the only person to do so. There were many other exciting sports stories, too many for me to cover here.

The sports world was full of scandals in 2012, including Lance Armstrong being stripped of all his Tour de France victories. The New Orleans Saints found themselves in a scandal over "bounty gate" and the Penn State football program was slapped with a harsh punishment by the NCAA after the child abuse scandal.

In the celebrity world, Justin Timberlake is officially off the market after marrying Jessica Biel in October, Beyonce and Jay-Z reproduced, both Jennifer Aniston and Angelia Jolie got engaged, Katie Holmes divorced Tom Cruise, Jersey Shore star Snooki also reproduced, Britney Spears is on primetime as a judge on The X Factor, and Lindsay Lohan is so last year. Everyone's favorite royal coupe, William and Kate, announced they are expecting a royal baby. Lastly, Kim Kardashian and Kayne West announced yesterday that they are also expecting.

The year's biggest science stories include the tentative discovery of the so-called "God particle" or the Higgs-Boson and the successful landing of the Mars rover Curiosity. There was a record free-fall jump from the edge of space, the closest known planet was discovered in Alpha Centauri B, 4 US space shuttles retired, the world's helium stock is running low, one of Saturn's moons may harbor life and Neil Armstrong died.

"Gangham Style" went viral and became the most watched youtube video of all time, the Pope joined Twitter and for some reason, "Call Me Maybe" was one of the biggest hits of 2012.

Since I can't cover everything, here's a link to CNN's year in review.

Whew! What a year.

Happy New Year! See you in 2013!.

Yes we did

The 2012 election has come to a close and President Obama has been re-elected for a second term. I watched the results roll in to a late-ish hour here on the East Coast. I left the room for about 2 minutes and when I came back, NBC called Ohio for the President. Then it was over.

Elizabeth Warren has been elected to the Senate. Claire McCaskill and Joe Donnelly defeated Todd Akin and Richard Murdock, respectively. Apparently you can't say crazy things about rape and women's bodies and get elected to the Senate.Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) was also elected to the Senate and is the first openly gay woman to serve in that legislative body. Tea Party favorite Allen West (R-FL) has also been defeated. Thank the Universe.

MN has defeated the marriage and voter ID amendments. Excellent. I'm so proud of my home state.

Fat cat millionaires and billionaires spent a pretty penny to ensure Mitt Romney won. But that didn't work out.

Now, we will come together or become more divided?

Time shall bring the answer my fellow Americans.

3 days out

The time for the 2012 election has finally (almost) arrived. I am looking forward to when I won't have to listen to campaign ads that have taken over the airwaves. Since I live in a swing state, the number of advertisements is through the roof! It's common for 6 campaign ads in row on a commercial break. I miss advertisements for useless and unnecessary junk consumer products that drive our economy.

The race is in a dead heat with President Obama holding an edge in key swing states. Pundits say it will all come down to Ohio.

I've learned over the last 4 years that facts mean almost nothing and racism is alive and well in the good ole US of A. I wonder if right-wing landia will implode should President Obama be re-elected. We shall know soon.

Since it's probably not a secret anyway, I'll just come out and say it: I hope Obama gets re-elected. I could have handled John McCain, but plutocrat extraordinaire Mitt "say anything to please the crowd" Romney and Ayn Rand devotee Paul Ryan are just to much for me. Please my fellow Americans, do not let right-wing extremism win the day. Oh, and friends in MN, vote NO on both 2 and 6.

And I hope both Todd Akin (R) and Richard Mourdock (R), senate candidates for Missouri and Indiana, respectively, are defeated. They both have said ridiculous things about women's bodies and rape, so I hope sanity wins, aka voters reject these crazy beliefs about women and biology.

As Tina Fey said, "If I have to listen to one more grey-faced man with a $2 haircut explain to me what rape is, I'm gonna lose my mind!"

Exactly. I suppose the bright side is that this crazy talk exposes the true beliefs of the far-right. Rejection by voters will send a strong message, I hope. This is 2012, not 1950. Let's live in the 21st Century. Can we be done with all this culture war crap? Let's just let gays get married, keep abortion legal and available, support comprehensive sex education and for the love of bacon let's teach evolution in schools.

Oh, and let's start doing something about that pesky human-accelerated climate change.

Alright well I'll leave it at that and be back after the election to comment on the state of our great nation. Hopefully sanity will win out.

Peace!

What a Google search brings

I searched for Blake on Google this evening and it led me to a blog entry by a guy with whom I went on some dates back in my freshman year of college, almost 7 years ago. The blog entry read something like, "I found out on Facebook that Erin has a boyfriend. Congratulations Blake!".

Oh my.

I read through the entries in the preceding dates to see if there was anything else written about me. I shouldn't have looked.

In sum, we went on a few dates and I thought I was interested but it turned out that I wasn't. I should have been honest and just told him that when it got to that point. I was 18 and in retrospect, I didn't handle that situation very well. I had no idea what he was feeling.

To SD, I apologize for my actions. My behavior was pretty shitty. If I could have done it differently, I would have.

I hope that you are well and that you are happy.

I'm deeply sorry.

Happy birthday rats!

As many of you know, I have kept pet rats for the last 5 years. It has truly been a pleasure and a learning experience to share my life with these lovely little rodents. Over the years, I have been met with varying responses from "Really? That's crazy!" to "EWWWWWW!" to "How cool!" and everything in between. One of my favorites came recently when an insurance agent was over at the house I'm renting to take photos for my renter's insurance application and he asked me, "do you have any dogs?" and I replied with, "no, just cats and rats". The agent then said, "well everybody has rats." I laughed and explained to him that I have pet rats, rats in my house by choice. The look he gave me was priceless.

Last summer, when I discovered that one of my rodent friends (sadly) developed a uterine tumor, I brought home two 9 week old females.

One week later on August 11, 2011, this happened. Phoebe gave birth to 5 rat babies.  It was such a surprise but a wonderful gift from the Universe. As Blake and I walked out of the pet store the week before with my new ratties, Phoebe and Io in tow, I told him that someday I would like to experience having rat babies, but not now. Sometimes you get surprised.

I can't believe that you were ever this small. And that four of you are albino.

And yes, I threw them a birthday party. And by birthday party, I mean giving them an extra special treat, mini chocolate cupcakes from the Publix (grocery store chain) bakery. Your lives are short; I want you to live it well.

Happy birthday Fancy, Tempie, June, Zeus and Splinter! And to Phoebe and Io, who were born sometime in June last year. It's been quite the adventure. I'm glad that I brought your mamma home (even though she bit me several times during her nursing period) and that I was given the opportunity to watch you grow from little hairless pink sausages into adult rats. Here's to your continued health and the (too) short but magnificent time that I get to spend with you. 

And RIP to Maxine, Moo Moo, Marley and Matilda. It was truly a pleasure my Euarchontoglires kin!

Chick-Fil-A and the First Amendment

Hot in the news currently is a now infamous interview of Chick-Fil-A's President Dan Cathy and the contributions of the restaurant to anti-gay groups. Understandably, it has sparked outrage and in the wake of this controversy, the mayor of Boston and a Chicago Alderman (which is a member municipal assembly or council) have vowed to block construction of Chick-Fil-A in their respective cities. Today, I came across this piece on MotherJones.

I don't approve of Dan Cathy's anti-gay stance and I won't be dining at Chick-Fil-A. However, I do not agree with city (or any level) government blocking construction because of Dan Cathy's views. It is a violation of his First Amendment rights. Yes, I realize that his views are bigoted and I think he's wrong. But he has the right to believe it. 

It should be crystal clear to everyone that knows me that I am 100% behind my LGBT friends. I support equality and disapprove of the anti-gay movement entirely. But, we must remember that because we find some speech revolting is not a compelling reason to censor it. Free speech and protecting unpopular views are cornerstones in our democracy. 

I am going to end this short post with a link to a wonderful piece by atheist lesbian blogger Greta Christina because she eloquently says everything that I want to say. 

http://freethoughtblogs.com/greta/2011/03/28/fred-phelps-loopholes-in-first-amendment/

"I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it."- Evelyn Beatrice Hall in Friends of Voltaire. 

Did you click on the link to Greta Christina's blog yet? Read it; it's worth your time. 

I'll never look at birds the same way again

I've been absent from the blogging world for over a week mostly due to moving preparation, but I also was given a wonderful opportunity at the end of last week. I went to the central Texas coast with a friend who is also in the MS Wildlife Ecology program at Texas State (where I just graduated). She studies American Oyster Catcher (AMOYC) nest success. I went out on a boat through West Galveston Bay and East Matagorda Bay. Wow! What sights! Not only did I see AMOYC's with chicks but a plethora of water birds and their chicks. If you ever doubt that birds are dinosaurs, just take a look at this pic of pelican chicks.

Dinosaurs! They were so cute!! I also got a kick out of the Royal and Caspian Tern chicks. Tern parents were very angry at the approaching humans.

Another amazing highlight was the Magnificent Frigatebird encounter. A young male attempted to steal a fish from a Laughing Gull about 8 feet above the boat. It was so cool. We saw 5 frigates flying ahead on West Galveston Bay. The beauty and the wonder! I'm thankful for these remarkable gifts from the Universe. To life!

By the way, I hope some you got that the reference for the title of the post. Hint: It involves a movie about non-avian dinosaurs.

Enjoy your Monday!

New information, time to adjust

I found a well written and interesting piece in the NY Times yesterday regarding NYC Mayor Bloomberg's ban on sugary drinks over 16 oz. A few days ago, I wrote about this stating that I did not agree with the ban. After reading this article, I'm on the fence. We do have a serious problem in this country with obesity (I never doubted that we did) but I'm still not sure if this ban will lead to the intended outcome. Anyway, here's the article from the times.

And I also found this today. I knew that this was the plan of Walker and his Koch masters all along. As Robert Reich wrote eloquently in his piece earlier in the week, I also fear that the goal of today's GOP is to repeal every piece of New Deal and progressive legislation that they can. They are doing an excellent job so far.

Hilarious poster

A friend posted this great poster on facebook today. I wonder what year it was made. I can't help but think that the right wing STILL feels this way. Their actions speak loud and clear. Anyway, enjoy.

Lightning strikes, maybe once, maybe twice, and it all comes down to you

It's been a depressing last few days, partly attributed to the distressing news of CO2 reaching 400 PPM in the Arctic as well as the general human destruction of the biosphere, the potential collapse of the European (then Chinese then American) economy and the fact that the US is on the fast-track to a new Gilded Age where the mega-rich control everything. Anyway, I won't get too much into it but I have to keep something in mind (so I can remember that I care enough to do something about it).

From the wisdom of Dr. Seuss

"And all that the Lorax left here in this mess was a small pile of rocks with the one word 'UNLESS.' Whatever that meant, well, I just couldn't guess.

That was long, long ago. But each day since that day, I've sat here and worried and worried away. Through the years, while my buildings have fallen apart, I've worried about it with all of my heart.

But now, says the Once-ler, now that you're here, the word of the Lorax seems perfectly clear. UNLESS someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It's not."

I'm someone. I'm here. And so are you. Let's change the world.

Current Events Tuesday

For the last time for 100 years, Venus will transit across the sun. Get your eclipse glasses, #14 welder glasses or paper and a pinhole!

Today is the day of the recall election of Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker (R), Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch, and three state senators, all Republicans.

Here is a great piece from Robert Reich that is relevant, but not directly about the recall.

While browsing facebook, I see a status that reads this, "I dont want any comments, i just want to put this out there. I think everyone can agree that WI is too divided. but as this election comes upon us, I have seen more negativity/name-calling/false accusations from the "Left" on Facebook than I've ever seen before. So much for 'bringing wisconsin together'".

I refrained from commenting but I still felt the need to say something about this. Said person clearly does not realize that this post further divides. Ah the irony. And of course, this person accuses the "Left" of being the cause of this division. It's clear that the definition of "bringing Wisconsin together" for this facebook user is for those nasty leftists to come to the "right" side.

Anyway, I hope that Wisconsin votes out that Koch-bought clown. But, then again, he has outspent his opponent 7.5 to 1, or $30.5 million to $4 million. And $3 out of every $5 that went to Walker came from out of state. What a shame. We have the best democracy money can buy.

Source: Mother Jones

Moving on, last week NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg banned all sugary drinks over 16 oz from being sold in movie theaters, sports arenas, and the like. JS has a hilarious response that pretty much sums up my reaction. Mayor Bloomberg, while I agree that there is a serious problem with the food industry, obesity, diabetes, and the associated costs, this is not the way to do it. Authoritarian measures are not the answer to the problem. Way to give the people another reason to mistrust the government.

"I will never forgive you for that Michael Bloomberg!"

On a side note, Jim Parsons was the guest on that episode. I love you Jim! You are brilliant.

Last topic for the day: the anthropomorphic destruction of the biosphere.

First up, the CO2 concentration in the Arctic has reached 400 PPM, the highest in 800,000 years. I also spotted this. Yep, that's right. As the polar ice recedes, we greedy humans are going to vie for the uncovered resources. GIVE US MORE!!!!

Wow humans. For shame. We have learned nothing.

Lastly, since I am very angry and close to a very feisty rant, I'll just leave you with this clip from The Colbert Show.

Making parts of science illegal?!?

Good game humans. Bye bye.

Fembot, out!

Letter to Texas drivers

Dear drivers of the great state of Texas,

Your vehicle has a turn signal for a reason. Use it.

When pedestrians have a walk sign in a crosswalk, it is not alright to slam on the gas and cut them off because you can't wait 10 seconds for them to cross the street.

If there is traffic on the highway, suck it up and be patient. It is stupid to cross the ditch to the service road because you just can't wait.

Just because you drive a truck does NOT mean that you can do anything you want on the road. Rules still apply to you even in your big stupid truck.

It is not okay to tap bikers from behind with your bumper. Are you trying to kill someone?

Turtles do not scurry out onto the road like rabbits or squirrels so please stop running them over.

Thank you,

Erin

I saw a werewolf with a Chinese menu in his hand

Happy Friday!

As a special end of the week treat, I am going to tell the story about how I came to be a nonbeliever/atheist. I've been wanting to write about this for awhile but I haven't come around to it, until now. First, I should clarify why I call myself an atheist. I definitely do not believe in anthropomorphic deities, including the biblical God as well as any human-like deity (Zeus, Apollo, Shiva, Ra, etc.) that has ever been thought of by human beings. However, beyond that, I really don't know the secrets of the Universe. I have no clue why life and humans exist. But I'm pretty sure that anthropomorphic deities were made up by humans. I think it is far more likely that humans made God in our image, rather than the other way around. There is no evidence (expect for in the minds of people) to suggest that humans were uniquely made by a supernatural force. But this post isn't meant to be an argument for atheism per say, just how I came here. So with that, I'll begin.

I was raised Catholic in the suburbs of Minneapolis-St. Paul. I was baptized in the Catholic Church and I also participated in the first communion when I was 8 years old. When I was younger, my parents were practicing Catholics but that stopped somewhere around my late pre-teen years; maybe even before, I can't speak for their religious beliefs or lack thereof but us kids still went to church until I was about 12. Luckily for me, my parents were never very religious or strict in their beliefs. My mom told me that I was never in danger of Hell, no matter what other Christians (or my cousins) said. My brothers and I went to mass when we were younger and we prayed at the start of meals, mostly just at my grandparents' house. In retrospect, I'm glad that my parents were not very strict in their beliefs because I think their openness helped lead me to where I am now.

Ever since I can remember, I have always wanted to know the answer. To everything. I asked  "why?" constantly.

"Why is the grass green? Why is the sky blue? Why are cats covered in fur and we are not? Why are there bugs? WHY??"


You could say that I was always a scientist. I sought the answers because I want to know. Gathering knowledge is one of my favorite things to do, even back then. We didn't get the internet (remember AOL dial up?!!?) until I was around 8 and we didn't have fast, reliable internet until I was in high school. But we did have books. Lots and lots of books. Books about knights in the middle ages, books about sharks, books about jungle cats, you get the picture. Thank you mom and dad. My appetite for knowledge was insatiable. What does this have to do with anything? you may be asking yourself but I swear I'm going somewhere with this. Point is, my search for knowledge started early, as well as one of my favorite past times of thinking deeply about life and truth.

When I was around 10, I began to contemplate the idea of salvation and the promise to live in a paradise (Heaven) forever. The idea of forever was difficult for a child to grasp but that didn't stop me from thinking about it. The more I thought about just how long forever is, I became very frightened. I thought about the alternative (burning in Hell forever). I came to the realization that to me, both options are terrible. I was terrified at the prospect of living anywhere forever, even a paradise.

"Can I opt out and just not exist?" was one of my frequent thoughts. I was really sad and scared about what I thought at the time was reality and the only two options after death. I managed to forget about it for a few years I suppose but this fear came screaming back when I was a sophomore in high school. It consumed my every thought for weeks. In chemistry class. In French class. At home during dinner. I thought about the concept of living forever in Heaven or Hell constantly. I became depressed and even more terrified. I don't remember how I managed to forget about this but I did until the following year, my junior year of high school.

The English and literature course for 11th grade at my high school was world literature. We started the course by reading various creation stories from around the world. Up to that point, I don't think I had given much thought to the creation of Earth and its inhabitants. But as we were reading these stories (all of which are fables that predate the knowledge of geology and astronomy), I knew that this isn't how it really happened; these were just stories, tales. We read Genesis last. As we were reading it, a brand new thought bounced into my head.

"This sounds just as ridiculous as all the other creation stories we have read..."

GASP!

"Did I really just think that?" I thought to myself.

I hadn't learned that much about evolution, chemistry, physics, geology (pretty much all the things I know now) and everyone I knew was a Christian, Jewish, or a Muslim. I didn't know any nonbelievers. Given that, you can imagine how terrifying those thoughts were for a girl who had been raised to believe that you must believe in God to get into Heaven. I scared myself. I decided to read the Bible because maybe that could bring me back to an unyielding faith. In fact, the opposite happened. I remember reading the passage where Eve and all women are dammed to painful childbirth. I thought to myself, "Huh? Childbirth is painful because Eve ate some fruit from this tree?"

And I was not satisfied with that explanation. It seemed ridiculous even though at the time I didn't make the connection between the size of a human infant's head and the size of a female's birth canal, but I still wasn't satisfied. The ball of yarn had started unraveling. I was in anguish because my faith was slipping away and I couldn't stop it. I even got a tattoo of "Hosanna" on my left wrist shortly after I turned 18. It sounds stupid, but the day I got it I didn't believe in God, but I really wanted to. I still didn't know anybody that didn't believe in God. I was terrified of my own thoughts (notice the recurring feeling of sheer terror). I couldn't tell my parents that I didn't believe, let alone anyone else.

But, it got better not long after that. I finished my first biology class at the University of Minnesota and I started to finally get the answers I had been searching for. Evolution and the story of life's journey from single-celled organisms (maybe even just strands of RNA!) was the most exciting tale that I had heard yet. First, I accepted evolution and the Big Bang Theory, but I still believed in some sort of God (or at least I kept telling myself that). It wasn't until one of my mentors and good friends lent me "The End of Faith" by Sam Harris. After that, my fear was lifted away. I felt extreme relief. I finally had the courage to "come out" as a non-believer to my family. They didn't take it well. To this day, I think many of my family members and friends still have a hard time with it. Some of my family members are still praying for my soul. As far as I know, I am the only non-believer in my family. I was shocked and saddened a few years ago when a long-time friend of mine sent me a message on facebook explaining why she is deleting me from her friends list. Her reason was because I don't believe in God. I wish I was making that up but I have the message to prove it!

I discovered the late but great Carl Sagan's books in the last few years. My views on life, the Universe and ethics have been forever changed. I chose to be a biologist and I read more and more about atheism and became convinced that leaving Christianity was truly one of the best things I did.

And since I have to give credit where credit is due, I should mention that somewhere in the period of my transition (but before I read the End of Faith) Blake told me that "Hell was just made up to scare kids into going to Sunday school". I guess he always knew the truth. He had already made the journey to non-belief. I'm glad he was there to catch me.

Alright, I should wrap this up. Believe it or not, this is the short version. I left out a lot of detail but perhaps I'll fill the gaps in later posts about this topic.

I guess the moral of the story is this: non-believers, I understand the fear and anxiety but come out, come out, wherever you are. I've got your back.

Fembot, out!

My God a breast! Anything but that!

Warning! Post about reproductive choice and politics ahead.

So far in 2012 we have seen a plethora of bills aimed at reducing women's control over their own bodies, because we all know regulating uteruses creates jobs. In the wider theme of controlling women and their sexuality, I came across the latest controversy today. The "controversy" is a photo of two active servicewomen breastfeeding in their uniforms. While browsing through the comments and the tweets, the sentiment that this should be done in private because is it offensive was a common one. The reaction leads me to conclude that people are afraid of breasts. One user on HuffPost told me in all capital letters that "women should not be allowed to breastfeed in public". Again, I have to conclude that said user is afraid of breasts. I also found this wonderful piece today. Yep, it seems that the fear of women's bodies and sexuality is running at full capacity today and has been for all of human history. Jezebel has a hilarious as usual take on this. The whole thing is so typical that it hardly counts as news. The fact that we still live in a patriarchal system is demonstrated over and over and over and over again. I could keep going because it's endless but you get my point. Let's wake up and smell the 21st century! Soraya Chemaly had a recent piece that hits the nail on the head.

In related news, today is the 3rd anniversary of Dr. George Tiller's cold-blooded murder. I just love it when people who call themselves "pro-life" demonstrate how much they love life by murdering doctors. By the way, I don't use the term "pro-life" to describe the "anti-choice" crowd (except for just now, but that will be it!). They have demonstrated that they are not deserving of that title.

Man, I can't believe that we are still fighting this. But, as Sara Robinson pointed out in this article, we will still be fighting it for a while.

For now, I am counting my lucky stars that I have access to affordable and reliable contraception.

The last week of May

Hello again. May is almost over and the summer is quickly approaching. It's so hot in Texas already that it definitely feels like summer but, no, still spring! By the time we move to Tampa, it will be even hotter. I miss the cooler weather but apparently I can't stay out. I am really excited about living near the ocean. Enough about the weather (although it does break the ice!).

Switching to current events, with winning the Texas primary, Mitt Romney has enough votes for the nomination. It's almost certain that the party will nominate him in Tampa at the party's convention this August. However, I did spot this story yesterday on Bob Cesca's blog. And to that all I have to say is damn you campaign staff of John McCain for bringing her onto the national stage. My initial reaction to his VP announcement in the summer of 2008 was "who?".  

That's right, the Republican National Convention is in Tampa this year. It was in St. Paul in 2008. Why do I get the coincidence of living in the same city as the RNC? Anyone want to calculate the probability?

The campaign season is in full swing and we are still 5 months out from the general election. The madness has just begun. And it really is madness. The GOP has completely gone off the deep end. Lastly, let's not forget the creation of super PACs following the Citizens United decision. Stay tuned. 

Changing topics again, I have a brief movie review of Men in Black III. Blake and I saw it over the weekend. If you are a fan of the franchise, I highly suggest seeing it. The third movie was better than the second. I like the first one the best, but the latest installment is a very close second. The villain was especially sinister and Josh Brolin was brilliant as young Agent K. There were moments of humor but we also saw a more intimate picture of K and his relationship with J.

Alright that's all I have for today.

Fembot, out!

Pending goodbyes and my very lucky life

Where did the time go? It's May 2012, I have graduated with a Master's degree and we are on the brink of moving to another state so I can pursue a PhD. It truly feels like just yesterday it was May 2010 and I was getting ready to leave Minnesota, the place of my birth and where I spent my whole life up to that point. The spring was filled with many tears and goodbyes, but also excitement for the road ahead. I can't believe that two years have almost passed and that this is over. Now it's time for me to say goodbye to Texas and hello to Florida. The last two years have been quite the journey. I have learned more than I thought was possible. I'm very glad that I took a chance and moved to Texas in the middle of the summer. To a place that is very different than where I am from, to a place where I knew very few people.

Now that is almost done, I can safely say that this was the right decision. I have been truly blessed by the whatever force(s) run the Universe. I was in the company of some of the brightest and most wonderful people that I have ever, and probably will ever, meet. I can't even begin to explain how lucky I am. I have been changed for the better because of them. There are too many to list by name and I don't want to forget anyone but I think (and hope) that these individuals know who they are. I have been given a myriad of wonderful opportunities in my lifetime and I am truly thankful. I should point out that there are absolutely people in MN without whom I wouldn't be where I am today. There are two people in particular that gave me more gifts than I deserved. Without them, I would definitely not be where I am now. I don't think you know just how much you gave me. I am forever grateful J and S.

I don't believe that anything is written in the stars, but I do believe that you make your own destiny. I'm so glad that my choices led me here. I took a crazy chance, but it turned out to be the right one.

I have been very lucky, indeed.

New blog for the brink of a new chapter

Hello new blog. I decided to start a new one even though I can also be found at http://erin-theadventuresofascientist.blogspot.com/. But, I will no longer be posting there but maintaining this new blog (probably self-evident by now) anyway, enjoy my new collection of ranting  writings which will contain everything from stories about my pet rats and cats to commentary on current events (including pop culture stories that I only slightly care about but care enough to mention them).