Thursday Thoughts

“Never tell a young person that anything cannot be done. God may have been waiting centuries for someone ignorant enough of the impossible to do that very thing.”
~G.M. Trevelyan

Back to School!

I made it through the first day!

Isn’t that what we all think about our first day anywhere?  Be it a new job or a new school, I think we all breathe a sigh of relief at the end of the first day.  I think we all go into these situations with anxiety, as we’re curious about what to expect.  How will we fit into the environment?  How will the other people in this new environment be?  What will my role be?  Will it meet my expectations?

After my first day at new teacher orientation for my new school, I feel great.  However, I feel great in an apprehensive kind of way.  I’m in an environment where the stakes are high, accountability and responsibility are not just buzz words, and there’s a thread of commonality amongst team members about why we each are there.

Although we didn’t put in a full day of work, we did work hard…and I’m tired!  I think part of what makes returning to work exhausting is the mental aspect, where you really are directing your thoughts and focusing on activities after not having to do so (or not having to do so as much) for a while.  Nevertheless, I feel a good exhaustion; one that results from time well spent being a part of something that matters beyond yourself and your personal interests.

That said, I’ve got some things to do to prepare for tomorrow…and one of those things includes being well rested!  I’m really hoping that I stay awake for the finale of the Bachelorette  (I’m embarassed that I even mentioned that show on my blog, for the record).

Until next time…

Thursday Thoughts

“Today you are You, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is Youer than You.”
~Dr. Seuss

UPDATE: Charges Against Harvard Professor Henry Louis Gates, Jr. Dropped!

Thanks to one of the comments on my earlier post today, I checked MSNBC.com to find out that the charges against Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates, Jr. were dropped.

Excerpt from the article on MSNBC.com:

“Prosecutors on Tuesday agreed to drop a disorderly conduct charge against Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. after the noted African-American scholar accused police of racism when he was arrested at his home following a report of a break-in there.

In a statement, the city and police department of Cambridge, Mass., said they had “recommended to the Middlesex County District Attorney that the criminal charge against Professor Gates not proceed.”

“This incident should not be viewed as one that demeans the character and reputation of Professor Gates or the character of the Cambridge Police Department. All parties agree that this is a just resolution to an unfortunate set of circumstances,” the statement continued.”

Well, there we have it.  I’m glad that the charges have been dropped and this situation resolved; however, I do hope that we continue to view this as a sign that racism and racial profiling still exist.  We cannot continue to ignore the persistent role that racism plays in our society; whether blatant or covert.

Harvard Professor Henry Louis Gates, Jr. Arrested

Harvard professor, Henry Louis Gates, Jr., the pre-eminent African American studies scholar, was arrested after attempting to get into his locked home.

Here’s a snippet of an article posted on MSNBC.com:

“Police responding to a call about “two black males” breaking into a home near Harvard University ended up arresting the man who lives there — Henry Louis Gates Jr., the pre-eminent African-American studies scholar.

Gates had forced his way through the front door because it was jammed, his lawyer said. Colleagues call the arrest last Thursday afternoon a clear case of racial profiling.

Cambridge police say they responded to the well-maintained two-story home after a woman reported seeing “two black males with backpacks on the porch,” with one “wedging his shoulder into the door as if he was trying to force entry.”…

He was arrested on a disorderly conduct charge after police said he “exhibited loud and tumultuous behavior.” He was released later that day on his own recognizance. An arraignment was scheduled for Aug. 26. Police refused to comment on the arrest Monday.

Gates, 58, also refused to speak publicly Monday, referring calls to his attorney, fellow Harvard scholar Charles Ogletree…

Ogletree said Gates had returned from a trip to China on Thursday with a driver, when he found his front door jammed. He went through the back door into the home — which he leases from Harvard — shut off an alarm and worked with the driver to get the door open. The driver left, and Gates was on the phone with the property’s management company when police first arrived.”

Hmmm…I must say that it will be interesting to see how this turns out, and how Harvard University and Cambridge respond to this incident.  I can most definitely understand Gates’ perspective in this situation, and what bothers me most is that there is the automatic assumption by the caller that these two black men must be breaking into a house.  At no point does it ever cross the caller’s mind that this person might live there, that their door might be jammed.

Would there have been the same action taken if the only thing different about the scenario was that it was two white men seen at the house?  While I’d like to say yes, my experience has taught me that the answer would be no.  But I guess we’ll never know.

The bottom line is that when it comes to race in America, we still have a ways to go.

Thursday Thoughts

“I prefer to be true to myself, even at the hazard of incurring the ridicule of others, rather than to be false, and to incur my own abhorrence.”
~Frederick Douglass

Adjusting

One thing that I know about myself is that I don’t really handle change well.  While I’m always excited about the possibility of change, and I realize that change is really the only constant, that still doesn’t give me the ability to handle it well.

I believe that I’m pretty resilient, and surprisingly, pretty flexible.  So, changes in my work environment or within the context of relationships don’t bother me too much (unless they are EXTREME changes).

All that said, it’s still an adjustment to be in North Carolina.  While I’m glad to be back, anytime that you move you have to make the necessary changes.  I feel like the last two weeks have had me in a frenzy of getting everything set up and turned on, and now that all of those things are taken care of I’m just left to my own devices (also known as unpacking).

As much as I was ready to move back to North Carolina, I miss elements of my life in Florida.  And although I’ve been out of Georgia for a year, I miss elements of my life there as well.

I think that what I miss most is having that core group of people there to support me.  Twitter and Gchat can only provide so much encouragement.  While I know there’s a difference between being alone and being lonely, I feel like I’m walking that line.

I’m sure that as I begin work and school, things will pick up and I’ll be too busy to think about things like this.  But until then…it is what it is, I suppose.

Thursday Thoughts

“We are now at a point where we must educate our children in what no one knew yesterday, and prepare our schools for what no one knows yet.”
~Margaret Mead

Feels Good to Be Home: NC Edition

I’m back in North Carolina.

I’m at home.

It feels great.

That’s the short version of the story. It’s taken me a while to get to a place where I can blog for a little bit (hello, I’m in a small town now, and people just don’t have the same urgency to connect you with necessities such as internet).

The journey wasn’t too bad. I was worried about how Q and I would fare in the car with a lot of my earthly possessions for an extended period of time.  It was a wonderfully successful trip, between lots of listening to Michael Jackson, talking on the phone to family and friends, a stop at Bojangles, and a quite interesting discovery at a rest stop. 

Roanoke Rapids is nice. It reminds me of a more urban Hillsborough, with a more diverse population. Even in it’s niceness, it’s a far cry from the activity of the Fort Lauderdale/Miami area that I had become slightly accustomed to.

What I love most is that I’m close to many people that I love and hold dear to my heart. After being hundreds of miles (and hundreds of dollars) away, gassing up the car for a quick hour and half journey is so worth it. One visit to Chapel Hill for a night at He’s Not Here confirmed that all was well. The second confirmation was this weekend, after traveling over to Camden for a wonderful 4th of July celebration.

What I do not miss, or rather, what I do not like, is the unpacking process. I dislike it almost as much as I dislike packing. I’m taking it step by step, and I’m starting to see my apartment take shape. Slowly but surely, I’m feeling at home.

I’m excited that my mother will be visiting in a couple of weeks so that she can put her motherly stamp on my apartment. In the meantime, I’ll settle for unpacking, one box at a time, while becoming a little too spoiled by Directv.

Until next time…

Thursday Thoughts

“My imperfections and failures are as much a blessing from God as my successes and my talents and I lay them both at his feet.”
~Mahatma Gandhi