Posted under art & fluff & weirdness
What the hell were we thinking in the1980s?
I was discussing this song with a young friend who missed the 1980s entirely, and this video left hir very confused. I couldn’t explain it. Did we think this was a daring or profound statement about–something? Anything? (Monkeys?) WTF???
Posted under fluff & jobs & local news
Historiann's parking space
Hee-hee. I love it. Finally, I’m benefiting from the nice, shiny new classroom and counseling building they built behind the SpacePod that houses most of the Liberal Arts departments at Baa Ram U. In the process, they did away with a whole parking lot but they also converted a few of the spaces in the adjacent lot to these spaces. So although I’ll never get to teach in shiny new building, at least I get preferred parking closer to my building with these spots reserved for smug hybrid drivers. (And for me, the unsmug hybrid driver who has to teach in unglamorous, un-smart, unrenovated classrooms. Unbelieveable, isn’t it?)
This is for Sisyphus, who won a postdoc (yay!) and has moved to Postdoc City, only to find that the morning commute and parking is even more difficult than it was back in the Golden State. Good luck, Sis! We’re all rooting for you.
Posted under American history & fluff & happy endings
UPDATE, 8/29/10: See Blake’s review of our Dinner at the Farm, including fire-breathers, fire dancers, and fireworks! Plus cucumber and mint-infused G & Ts, a gorgeous view of the mountains at dusk, lots of friendly dogs, and much, much more.
It seems like almost everyone I know and love has a late summer birthday–ej, Mark, Kathleen, Blake, and Dad. Consider this a lazy, lazy happy birthday wish for us all! (And it was coincidentally recorded last year on my birthday.) For those of you who remember the 80s (and I know that all of you listed above do!), Comrade PhysioProf posted this birthday classic by Altered Images earlier this month.
Posted under American history & childhood & fluff & women's history
In the spirit of all of the complaints about young people today, I present you with a guest post by Mrs. Norbert Thrummox (nee Delphine Brumley), my entirely fictional great grandmother.
We didn’t have anything, get anything, or expect anything. Christmas was pretty much like every other day of the year, only colder. Our parents didn’t even know our birthdays, let alone celebrate them with cake and presents! We never heard of such luxuries.
Breakfast was weevily cornmeal sprinkled on a half-sheet of newspaper, lunch was what we could forage on the playground at school, and supper was what we could beg from the bar we’d have to drag our daddy from at closing time. (Mostly pickled eggs, or sliced radishes in summer.) This was difficult, as we’d have to get up at 5 a.m. to make it to school by 8, but we were usually good and hungry for our suppers by 1 a.m. or so. But we didn’t mind! We were free. Most things were free, because we didn’t have any money. Theft was non-existent in our community. I’d like to say that we never locked our doors, but that would imply that we had doors. Most of us didn’t. Continue Reading »
Posted under art & fluff & happy endings & local news
Eat your heart out, Judy Jetson. I got a new car. (Thanks, Fratguy!) Continue Reading »
From the library of the University of Bergen in Norway, we have “A Plagiarism Carol.” (It might be more seasonal to show this to you closer to exams for the fall semester, but a colleague of mine just forwarded this to me.)
Not just Charles Dickens, but also Dirty Harry, 24, and The Terminator, plus Ozzy Osborne ca. 1982–what’s not to like? Remember, kids–plagiarism really can derail a career.
I’ll be posting more about career derailment later today.
Posted under European history & childhood & fluff & jobs & women's history
Forgive this solipsistic post–those of you who aren’t interested in la vie Historiann can just click away. But, yesterday Tenured Radical said that I don’t “reveal the nature of [my] sexuality, [my] relationship or [my] parenting status on the blog, and is a pretty radical feminist,” which is a little inaccurate. Longtime readers know that I “came out” on my blog as a married heterosexualist last year, although I grant you that there’s nothing more specific about my sex life here. I thought about it a while, and decided that these were pretty good representations of “how pleasant is the life [we] lead” here at number 17 Cherry Tree Lane.
First, here’s Historiann: “We’re fighting for our rights militantly–never you fear!”
Next we have Fratguy: “It’s grand to be an American, in 2010. King Obama’s on the throne–it’s the age of men!” Continue Reading »
Posted under American history & Gender & art & book reviews & fluff & happy endings & women's history
Can you guess I’ve been waiting all summer to post this one? That’s George Clooney’s Aunt Rosemary starring as Tenured Radical on the left, and Vera Ellen as Historiann on the right. (Or the reverse. It doesn’t matter! She’s the smart sister, though, whichever side she’s on.) Anyhoo–we’re co-hosting a three-part conversation about Terry Castle’s collection of essays The Professor and Other Writings this week on our blogs. Plus, our pal Comrade PhysioProf is going to chime in with his review of Castle’s book–just in time for beach reading season! Part I is over at Tenured Radical today–go read and join the discussions over there and at CPP’s blog, and I’ll host part II at el Rancho Historiann tomorrow. We hope you have fun! Continue Reading »
Posted under fluff
A bit overdressed, aren't we?
Well, friends–it’s time for me to head on up to the mountains again. Summer here is short–so we’ve got to get a move on, and it’s a good weekend to get the heck out of Dodge. It’s our annual wilderness camping trek, so tonight I’ll be sleeping at 11,000 feet! That’s right–unlike the campers shown here, we’re carrying everything in and out on our backs. Phew! Apparently, there’s good fishing where we’re going. Now, I don’t fish–so I’m wondering just how heavy a few books are going to feel after hiking a few miles in with my frame pack.
In the meantime, I think the last time I updated my blogroll was in about. . . well, never. Here are some fun and fab blogs I’ve been meaning to add to my list–please put your suggestions (or your blogs) in the comments below, and we’ll see if I can get around to this little bit of housekeeping this summer when I get back! Click around and stay awhile. Continue Reading »
Posted under European history & fluff
Spain is victorious! (Belgium anxiously awaits news of its fate.)
Would this joke be funnier if the Netherlands had won?
