Why say no? Well… I’d like to think that is a basic instinct–one of the first words little ones learn when they realize they are a person. However, I know that this is not always true. We are taught, culturally, how to express ourselves and our discomfort, aversion, and generally how to participate (or not) in this world.I start this project first as a person. I am a person who is looking to find more strength in my place in the world and to find meaning in my presence and purpose for the time I am here.
I come to this as someone who has not been, historically, comfortable with expressing themselves in fear of offending, disgusting or making others uncomfortable.
I come to this project as a woman. I am a woman who has been in situations where my thoughts, ideas and opposition have been questioned. I have also been in situations where my personal needs were not respected and my words under-valued. I want to investigate this phenomenon more fully both in myself and in the culture in which I live.
I come to this project as a student. This blog is part of a larger culminating project for a degree. I will do what I can to illuminate the student component of this experiment but not at the detriment to my safety and anonymity–to whatever state this is possible.
The nuts and bolts:
I am a thirty-something (shhhh…don’t tell) woman living in the Bay Area.
I am an ex-pat Texan who although has many criticisms of her home state, feels great nostalgia for the Lone Star State.
The Bay Area suits me much better on a political and social front. I also feel that it will be my home for some time to come, despite my yearning for bluebonnets and perfectly made margaritas.
I am single, thank the Goddess, as I left a long term relationship a bit ago and believe it to be the hardest and most rewarding thing I have ever done. I live with two wonderful feline beasts, but, PUH-LEEZE don’t call me the “cat lady”!
