i become the nightman

i have very little time to update today ! yesterday i didn't do anything because i was feeling the pain of life. that's melodramatic, i was just kind of tired. i took a nap and had a dream i was remote-piloting a car but the screen was too small and i kept running people over and killing them, so i was despondent all night. i leveled my priest a little bit (we got to like.. 46?) and did some reading.

i ended up finishing the evolution of calpurnia tate. i thought it was a little cloying at first but i ended up really loving it.



it's about an 11 year old girl in texas in 1899 who lives a fairly comfortable life in a wealthy household. she starts hanging out with her grandfather, who she'd never really paid much attention to, and he teaches her about evolution and science and the scientific method and they hang out observing nature and being naturalists and collecting samples and doing experiments, which leads to her feeling trapped by the obligations and expectations placed on women and female children at the time. the book was super sweet and funny, and all of the interactions between the kids seemed totally realistic and natural, and i appreciate that the author didn't rely on any kind of emotionally manipulative plot twists or totally unrealistic but satisfying conclusions. she did play fast and loose with texas history and natural science but i don't think it would be particularly distracting if you didn't already know what she changed.



i guess the thing that struck me was that the utter hopelessness the main character feels about the future that is prescribed to her as a woman (marriage, babies, housekeeping, limited career choices) still rings true for female children in 2010. what a bummer. like, i do acknowledge that we've come a long way since then, but women are still devalued and dismissed in many professions, discouraged away from math and "hard" sciences and technology, and judged constantly by their perceived value based on their success in obtaining a male partner and their reproductive choices. blehhhh. i do like the idea of books like this that provide a glimmer of hope and a relatable character for female children who don't feel like they fit in or are uncomfortable with pressure to conform.

i have a million meetings today, but i ordered pizza for one (SIX pizzas ! two plain, two pepperoni, one sausage, and one mushroom ! the mushroom one is for meeeeeeeee) (but all pizza in west philly is greek pizza so it's gross and offends my italian tastebuds !). it's been a surprisingly quiet week at work, but i don't feel rushed or backed up and i may not need to stay late every single day this week !


excited pizza designed by natalie dee. used without permission !!!

back to work i guess. i will be assembling badges with a couple of other people who love gruntwork until 2:30 and then i have to prepare badges for speakers, answer 9 million voicemails, update registrations, and make a checklist to make sure i'm bringing all the materials i need to the site on thursday. i don't know if i'll have time to update tomorrow so you guys may be left with this stupid entry for DAYS.