October 2011
33 posts
Why we should use the Oxford Comma
A direct quote from The Times newspaper, talking about a Peter Ustinov documentary and saying that:
“highlights of his global tour include encounters with Nelson Mandela, an 800-year-old demigod and a dildo collector”.
Note to self: Do not attempt to eat lunch while on tumblr. I almost choked.
Must not guffaw, baby sleeping…
No-Nonsense Guide to Tourism - Review
Title: The No-Nonsense Guide to Tourism
Author: Pamela Nowicka
Genre: Guide
Length: 144 pages
First line of the book: “Being a tourist is easy but tourism is complex.”
Summary: [From back cover] Pamela Nowicka explores the third biggest industry in the world (after oil and narcotics). Taking the reader on a trip through the early days of travel, up to the first package tours and today’s mass tourism, she argues that we in the West could help more by travelling less and being more aware and discerning when we do travel. This compelling and fascinating book will show you the hidden impacts of tourism.
How you found the book: Bought it at the Between the Lines booth at Word on the Street Toronto.
Opinion: Overall I think this is a good book. It feature a lot of graphs and sidebars that explain her points in further detail or demonstrate them by use of anecdotes. I do feel that the rhetoric gets a bit repetitive, especially since I studied this topic before. However it is indeed a great guide.
Recommend? If you have never read analysis about the harmful impact of tourism, then yes, I absolutely recommend this book. If you are already familiar with the subject, I suggest you skip to chapter 7 which provides practical tips on how you can make a difference.
Why being a girl isn't working out for me:
- Body: Oh, guess what time of the month it is!
- Me: Please, god, no--
- Ovaries: ALL SYSTEMS GOOOOOOOO!!!
- Brain: I quit. i quit. kittens and cupcakes and no one loves me. oh my god salty snacks i am furious
- Me: Please, guys, calm down--
- Face: TIME TO RUIN EVERYTHING YOU HAVE EVER LIKED ABOUT ME. I'M GROWING MOUNTAINS, BITCHES.
- Brain: And now I'm ugly! shbdksdnksbn
- Torso: Time to practice labor. cramp this bitch up. GO GO GO GO GO GO
- Me: STOP IT FOR THE LOVE OF GOD!
- Stomach: lol clothes cant fit you anymore. you are bloated. you are now a balloooooooon!
- Me: I hate you all
- Brain: I KNOW EVERYONE HATES ME I AM SO DEPRESSED. we need to procreate.
- Face: Lol, i'm not done yet.
- Uterus: what did i ever do to deserve this?
- Brain: you just wait uterus. they're going to make you hold a baby for like 9 months straight.
- Uterus: You mother fuckers.
- Torso: CONTRACT!
- Me: I quit being female, I am now a llama.
- Brain: Me gusta.
“If you are bored with life, if you don’t get up every morning with a burning desire to do things - you don’t have enough goals.”
—Lou Holtz (via heyfranhey)
Sisters of the Yam - Review
Title: Sisters of the Yam: black women and self-recovery
Author: bell hooks
Genre: Self-help/Black Studies/Women’s Studies
Length: 190 pages
First line of the book: “Sisters—and you who are our friends, loved ones, and comrades—I greet you in love and peace.”
How I found the book: Bought it at the Between the Lines booth at Word on the Street Toronto
Opinion: I love this book. So much that I plan to gift it to the women in my family. I don’t agree with all of hooks’s analysis but all her points are thought provoking and lead to introspection. I plan to start a magazine in the future and many of themes and ideas presented in the book can become part of the magazine’s ideology. The emphasis on self-recovery is so wonderful and empowering. bell hooks includes an entire chapter on community and I think it is the best way to read this book. I really wish I knew other women who had read the book so we could talk over the topics. The experience and discussion would create a bond similar to the original Sisters of the Yam.
Recommend? Yes. To everyone I know.
Have you read this book? Do you recommend any other work by bell hooks?
