Nerdy Girl is back (and sort-of) grown up!

Like any great work of writing that provides insight into contemporary culture and the human condition (think:  Shopoholic series, Twilight, and Gossip Girl), the end of “Nerdy Girl: Around the World” robbed its readers of the true momentary escapism that had broken up the unbearable doldrums of real life…

Hyperbole? Perhaps, but there is something to be said for artistic license – even if it only serves to feed into one’s delusions of self-importance and grandeur.  (Of which I only have a few)

The original Nerdy Girl blog (2009) chronicled the adventures of a bright-eyed, college junior studying in the city of Berlin as she navigated living abroad , speaking another language, and traveling around a continent.  Since then, that same junior has gone on to graduate from college, enter the workforce, and learn the importance of setting up a 401(K).  Determined to stay “hip and cool” despite evidence to the contrary, she has decided to stay living at home because it is de rigeur among her post-college peers.

As it turns out “home” is living in one of the most exciting cities in the world – which deserves to be rediscovered!

Nerdy Girl thinks it’s time she “traveled” at home, exploring the great cultural spots, experiences that NYC has to offer!

Now if only she understood how the streets worked below Houston Street…

Control those hormones. ASAP.

So while I am certainly not the first blogger to post a rant on the subject, I feel that as both a college student, a young woman, and a former facilitator of ASAP workshops (Acquaintance Sexual Assault Prevention), it is my duty to say something regarding the horrifying article posted February 22nd on the Daily Princetonian by Iulia Neagu.  ”The real ‘Sex on a Saturday Night.’” article basically takes the position that any girl who decides to drink is also deciding it’s okay for her to be violated -because hey!  She did it to herself and we all know that boys in college cannot be trusted to keep it in their pants.

“She knew what would happen if she started drinking. We all know that the more people drink, the less likely they are to make wise decisions. It is common sense.” (Duh. However, some of us make silly decisions while sober as well…)

I find that argument disturbing on many levels because not only does it pardon the “perpetrator’s” actions but it also assumes that men are incapable of holding themselves to a higher standard, all men both good and bad.  Now, while I am not suggesting that I think it’s okay for girls to get themselves so “shit-faced” that they are rendered incapacitated but responsible drinking, among other reasons, should merely be a precaution against violence such as rape – Not giving the guy the “go ahead.”

I was also disturbed by the writer’s vilification of the theoretical victim, sympathizing with the accused and equating such “trauma” with a girl’s unexpected pregnancy.  Yes, I did just write that.

“I understand that matters like this can be painful and even tragic for those involved. The consequences can be severe for both parties. For the girl, it might mean an unexpected pregnancy, while the guy could be charged with rape.”

Now, I am not suggesting that all cases should be treated equally, nor that a false accusation is not traumatic, but I do believe that it is ignorance and misinformed statements such as the one above that make it more difficult for “real” rape victims to come forward.  One of the biggest fears a rape victim faces is that no one is going to believe her or even if they do, they would presume she was at least partially responsible.  With articles released like Miss Neagu’s, wouldn’t you be afraid of that?

For those of you interested in reading the article here is the address:  http://www.dailyprincetonian.com/2010/02/22/25251/

p.s. Did anyone who read the article not find the judgment the writer passed on her “friend” a tad horrifying?

Dual citizenship is tough sometimes

(side note:  how cute is this?)

Normally, I don’t write two posts in one day…in fact lately, I’ve had trouble writing more than one post per week (thanks schoolwork!) but I feel recent events are extremely important to address:

Team USA beat Team Canada in Men’s Hockey, 5-3.  Not cool.

Olympics can be a tough time because as anyone with dual citizenship knows, you have to choose who to root for.  Now, a lot of the time that is not much of an issue…that is until they are put head to head – like tonight.  Then you choose one, in this case I chose Canada, and they LOSE.  On their HOME turf.  It is especially hard knowing just how important hockey is there.  I have family whose basements double as a second-hand skate shop (thanks to the years of rapid growth) and even during those dark times when the NHL was on strike, one could still find themselves surrounded hundreds of thousands of Canadians chanting, “GO LEAFS GO!”  (I attended Live 8 in Barrie, Ontario and the set changes took an unusually long time.)

Anyways, to sum up this long rant, I found this and I think Cartman’s facial expression accurately shows how, I and many other Canadian fans are feeling right now…

No place like home

I think one of the most underrated parts about college is…getting to go home.  Whether it be for a long winter break or a short weekend, it is definitely a perk.  Or maybe I am just freshly back from a nice weekend in nyc filled with love, attention, and lots and lots of good food.  Oh and laundry.  When I left on friday I had little more than a clean pair of socks and maybe a tshirt.  (It’s hard when you finally pick your head up from the books and realize that your laundry is threatening to topple you as you open the closet…)  Laundry is definitely something that I have come to appreciate while being at school these past few years.  (Now a junior)  Not because I was suddenly responsible for myself (though that is a factor) but that there are only a few machines available (4 floors down – no elevator!).  Additionally, and arguably more importantly, it is impossible to ensure that someone does not snatch your dryer before your clothes are even dry, leaving your still-wet undergarments out for the world to see.  That is if they didn’t accidentally fall on the floor while the other student was so graciously “moving them out of the away” for you.

So now I am not only well-fed and well-rested, I have a full wardrobe again and it all smells nice and fresh.  Like home.

(Only 2 more weeks to go until spring break! yay!)

Happy Valentine’s Day!

I love Valentine’s day.  Just because the candy comes in the cutest packaging and it’s acceptable to eat large amounts of chocolate.  Something that I have managed to do today already and the day has yet to be over…

Yesterday, as I was waiting for the train coming back from Philly, I was reading Us Weekly (intellectual material, I know) and I came across, on the one hand one of the more disturbing channels of marketing, and on the the other hand, I thought it was somewhat genius.  It was a valentine’s day card that you could peel out of the magazine and give to “your man” (for those of you who ::gasp:: forgot about the holiday) and then once you peeled off the card it was an advertisement for a Las Vegas hotel and all of their package deals, spa and casino included.  I don’t know, I was impressed but also a little disturbed that the consumer has become to be seen as so lazy and thoughtless.  At the same time, with all of this snow, that advertisement made me briefly imagine the warm desert air and sea salt body scrubs…

Why don’t you go “test” yourself College Board?

Something horrifying has recently been brought to my attention.

A list of tips for a resume-building MIDDLE-SCHOOLER.  I almost find this more inappropriate than Britney Spears possibly even Heidi Montag.  (But that’s another blog post for another day.)

And now, without further ado, here is the list…with some Nerdy Girl edits mixed in…

1. Work on Good Study Habits

There are more reasons than just practicing for those crucial sophomore and junior year grades.  How about avoiding the sunday night screaming matches that might ensue when  your mom finds out you neglected to mention that 3+ hr map of Asia project…due this monday?  That was reason enough for me.  Sorry mom.

2. Explore Several Extracurricular Activities

This might seem counterintuitive but a lot of activities that you might engage in are social activities and will thereby be great opportunities to make friends.  Otherwise you might have to wait until college to do so.  Assuming you get in that is.

3. Read a Lot

This one I can whole-heartedly agree with.  Many times throughout middle school (and well into high school) did I lock myself in the bathroom with the new (fill in chick-let author) book.

4. Work on Foreign Language Skills

“Most competitive colleges want to see strength in a foreign language. The earlier you build those skills, the better. Also, the more years of a language you take, the better.”  (This one was too good not to leave in.)  Now I know why my parents were so dead set on me learning Russian, they saw how hopeless I was at math!

5. Take Challenging Courses

Take things that are challenging and that you can do well in because middle school is stressful enough.  (Especially when that boy you’ve been crushing on just asked if you wanted to go out for Starbucks this weekend.  hey it was cool in my day!)There’s no point in taking that class just to prove one’s self.   Been there, done that, almost resulted in a nervous breakdown.  The bright side?  I can now explain to you that Force = Mass x Acceleration.  With a box diagram.

6. Get Up to Speed

In laymen’s terms, “get a tutor.”  However, I hate that these days it’s all about getting the A (and I sure as anything, was guilty of that – just not really until I hit HS)!  Get a tutor so you actually know what’s going on and don’t sit in class with a pit in your stomach, praying the teacher doesn’t call on you or even worse, give a pop quiz.  Who knows, once you understand it, you may even like it!

7. Explore and Enjoy

Just keep it PG.  ;)

Have we all seriously gotten so obsessed with “success”  that the life-threatening stress of college applications is now affecting middle-schoolers?  Or is it due to the recession that evil people at College Board are taking any opportunity they can get to collect on “testing fees”?  In middle school I was still of the firm belief that any school would be dying to have me and my charming self.  As a lover of learning, reading, and school, nothing disturbs me more than to find out that the evil and malicious College Board who are now taking advantage of giving poor middle school children a “pre-pre SAT experience.”  Just thinking about it brings back shivers.  You’re probably thinking, “What does she care?  She’s already in college.”  You’re right but there are those long, long nights when I wake up with a start from a nightmare reliving that time I took the SATs and was so addled, and stressed that I filled in the answer in the WRONG SECTIONS!  (And then proceeded to try to fix that with all those silly time constraints and a proctor glaring at me.)

Sarcasm and jokes aside, I guess this article struck a nerve with me.  I find this a rather pressing issue, given the fact that education is an area that I have become truly passionate about.  Education to me, however, is not just about the test scores, though I grudgingly admit that they can be important, but it is more about creating experience for the students in which they can learn and grow to find their own interests.  Interests that become passions and inspire them to work productively towards enriching their own lives, regardless of their socio-economic background.

(Clearly, I was very strongly affected by last summer working at Geoffrey Canada’s Harlem Children’s Zone Promise Academy as a 3rd Grade Teaching assistant.  An AMAZING organization.  Check it out at http://www.hcz.org!)

До тех пор пока!

(translation:  So long for now!)

Can nerdy girls be “bad-ass”?

The answer?  Why, yes they can.  (At least that’s how I see it.)

So hi, it’s been awhile.  In fact it’s been so long that I considered making the title of this post “Missing Person: Found” but I decided that that was a tad too morbid and liked the sentiment of the current one better.  For the past 3.5 weeks I have been settling back into life at Swarthmore, or as we “swatties” like to call it, “Swat.”  It has been so easy…  Suddenly, I was no longer “Nerdy Girl:  Around the World”  but just plain, ol’ “Nerdy Girl.”  Doesn’t have quite the same ring to it, now doesn’t it?  Luckily, the transition has been fairly smooth and exciting in it’s own right.  That is if you are as fascinated by the Fascist Italian economic policy during the 1920s.  Which, luckily, I am extremely fascinated by.  (I just handed in my first honors seminar paper yesterday!  Oh the relief…)

Now you might be wondering, how does studying fascism, while pretty “bad-ass” in its own right, (yes, yes I did just make that claim), bring me to the conclusion that nerdy girls are such.  The answer?  My new mode of exercise – MMA (otherwise known to the world as Mixed Martial Arts)  Recently, for those of you who know me, I was told by a very handsome (and German – hehe) doctor that I was in fact unable to run at the same intensity and distances that I had been doing for so long.  It was a big blow but after the requisite amount of sulking I decided that all it meant was that I needed to try something new.  MMA being the obvious next choice.  I mean who can resist shiny, bright shorts with dragons on the behind?  Not me.

That is how I came to find Daddis MMA Academy (formerly known as Philadelphia MMA) – Thanks google! – and take my first class last week.  So far I have only taken lessons in Muay Thai which mainly consists of boxing and kickboxing techniques.  (Face – for us lay people and not professional fighters – is off limits)  The workout was great!  Intense, invigorating, and social all at the same time!  There is definitely something sexy about being able to defend one’s self.  And though I am definitely the smallest and least tattooed individual there, I am definitely fierce enough.  (If not we’ll find out!)

This week if all goes as planned I will get my first taste of Brazilian Jiu-jitsu on Thursday!  That is if “Snowmaggeddon” permits it…

Blast from the past

There are certain periods of life that one would prefer to repress to the darkest recesses of memory.  Times such as when you thought bell-bottoms were cool, the night you may or may not have had a little bit too much to drink and things got a little too crazy..times such as middle school.

These days with the ever-present Facebook it is very easy to keep in touch with those from your formative years with just a simple “Hey!  How are you?!” on their wall or the ever personal “Happy Birthday!” because obviously you had that date imprinted…on your homepage.  And let’s be honest, we are all guilty of it – checking up on profiles of people you don’t, in all honesty, have that much interest in keeping up with, but are curious about.  Facebook can answer alllll sorts of questions such as where are they at school (did they go ivy? liberal arts?), their crazy halloween weekend costumes, and whether or not they have let themselves go.  (Just remember the camera does add five pounds for those of you planning to look me up right after this)

Now, you might be asking, what has brought on this bought of pontification?  (yes, I did just use that word to sound smarter…I am preparing to get back to Swarthmore, afterall!) Last night, out and about in the city (at the legal age of 21) I found myself running into people right and left that I hadn’t seen in YEARS.  One of my companions on this particular occasion asked the very astute question, “You know I see you running into all of these old acquaintances.  How do you catch up after like 7 or 8 years?  I mean how do you capture all that time with all of the loud music, drinking and loud people around you?” Good question.  You really can’t so my plan of action has to smile and nod and just answer the questions I am asked.

The craziest part is how much comes back to you when you are face to face with a couple of the boys, now “collegiate men”, who were part of the entourage lighting candle #12 on your bat mitzvah cake.  And that’s where you crrrrriiinggeeeeee…

Back to the real world…

As I got off the plane from Charlotte (the connection on the way back from the beautiful island of Turks and Caicos) I declared (aloud), “I will be happy if I do not see another airport for a LONG time!”  And here I am two days later wondering where I am off to next.  I think that it is a disease.  Well, it’s better than a drug habit.

It’s also a good thing that my last trip down to the caribbean was such a success.  I went with my dad and brother down to Turkoise Club Med in the Turks and Caicos and not only did I have time to read about 1500 pages in fiction but I also was able to try out scuba diving (it turns out that I am way too neurotic for such activities – even if I did get perfect scores on my quizzes…too bad a lot of things in life, like scuba,  don’t just depend on book learning!) I also made sure to enjoy the sun – maybe a little too much as I am still suffering from some uncomfortable sunburns.  I promise that I wore sunscreen!

The worst thing about coming back to reality?  Aside from the BITTER cold?  No one feels bad for me, even with my painful sunburns.  I mean it’s not like I’ve been traveling for the past 6 months and doing all sorts of incredible things… Oh wait, yes, yes it is.

I guess I should quit while I’m ahead and go rub some more aloe vera on my back now…

Happy New Year!

Ho, Ho, Ho!

Q:  What’s the difference between Santa and Tiger Woods?

A:  Santa only had 3 Hos.*

Well, it has been a tiring week back in the US!  (I mean that is really the only rationalization for the joke above, now isn’t it?)  Not only did I have some sleep to catch up on and friends to see but I also just spent the last few days in our country’s capital celebrating Christmas with Barack Obama.  Hey, if he can do a seder in the white house… Okay, not really.  I was with my dad’s family in D.C. and it was really nice to see family that I hadn’t seen in so long, especially since I missed Thanksgiving this year on account of being in Berlin.  (Oh yeah, remember that?)

Like the big kid I am I spent most of the evening playing with my little cousins (once removed?  I can never get that right)  It’s amazing how much confidence in themselves young children have.  My three year old cousin, Teddy, had absolutely no doubt that as soon as he said “let’s march” I would follow him up and down the stairs more times than I would care to admit.  It’s not my fault that all it takes is a giggle for my heart to melt and for me to be at his mercy.

His older brother Alex, who is turning 9 in a week or so, has finally become old enough for me to play the older, wiser cousin role, rather than just that of  an oversized playmate.

3 very important thing I was able to impress upon his impressionable mind:

1)  Never ask a woman her weight

2)  Never ask a woman her age (once it becomes a question, that is)

3)  Compliments will get you very far…

That last one really came back to haunt me as he would start pulling out the “You’re really pretty,”  causing me to blush…and then question his motives.  He’s a quick study.

Merry Christmas!

(I hope all my jewish friends are enjoying that movie and chinese food. ha ha.)

*I am embarrassed to admit it but I stole that joke from my dad of all people.