Already this morning I wrote a pretty solid draft of a new piece and applied for a job. Next up: walk to the co-op to buy more coffee, then submit some poems.
Saturday, I like you so far.
Saturday, February 23, 2013
Monday, February 18, 2013
Today in things that made me cry: this video. I volunteer for Steel City Greyhounds, and it's a great organization that helps dogs who need homes. In fact, I'm about to go walk a couple of them right now.
Wednesday, February 6, 2013
This article from The Atlantic discusses the societal pressure women face now to condense a lifetime of experience into a few formative years in our twenties. I've been acutely aware of this in the past, say, year, which has taken me from twenty six years old to twenty seven. At twenty six, I still felt like I had all the time in the world to find a relationship steady enough for lifelong commitment. Suddenly, at twenty seven, it seems like my time is running out and I'd better get settled right now.
This is, of course, ridiculous. I have never wanted to get married for the sake of marriage. It's too big a commitment for that. My value to society is not measured in whether or not I contribute to the traditional nuclear family, or how quickly I get to it. My worth and attractiveness are not declining as I become more centered and professionally successful.
Despite all of these things I know to be true, there is the nagging voice that tells me I should be married by now, or at least planning my wedding. I resent this subconscious assumption. It does not take into account individual circumstances. It assigns a correct age at which one apparently ought to be coupled up and settled down. That correct age spans roughly three months between the period in which we're all supposed to be running around sewing our wild oats, and the period in which we have passed our prime and become desperate, aging slowly on the shelf, beginning to stink of spoil.
By letting this voice continue, I condone this assumption that my worth is tied to my relationship status. It's hard to silence decades of programming, but I'm going to try. There's no perfect age for anything. My life is great, and is not full of things I'm not ready for. I like it that way.
This is, of course, ridiculous. I have never wanted to get married for the sake of marriage. It's too big a commitment for that. My value to society is not measured in whether or not I contribute to the traditional nuclear family, or how quickly I get to it. My worth and attractiveness are not declining as I become more centered and professionally successful.
Despite all of these things I know to be true, there is the nagging voice that tells me I should be married by now, or at least planning my wedding. I resent this subconscious assumption. It does not take into account individual circumstances. It assigns a correct age at which one apparently ought to be coupled up and settled down. That correct age spans roughly three months between the period in which we're all supposed to be running around sewing our wild oats, and the period in which we have passed our prime and become desperate, aging slowly on the shelf, beginning to stink of spoil.
By letting this voice continue, I condone this assumption that my worth is tied to my relationship status. It's hard to silence decades of programming, but I'm going to try. There's no perfect age for anything. My life is great, and is not full of things I'm not ready for. I like it that way.
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