No Child Left Behind (teaching to the test) -- AGHHHHHHHHH!
Distributive justice (is it possible? Under what conditions? What would it require or presuppose?)
Equity not the same as equality. (Distribution)
Why search for definitive answers?
Statistics - wtf?
Tax cuts (Walmart, the wealthy)
Importance of health
(Dis)ability
Mom

Productivity, Reunion, Happiness

I'm finally settling into my niche at Rutgers. I don't really like New Brunswick, but the university itself is really providing me with great multi-faceted resources for the various aspects of my education. The social scene here has also been getting better as I've been spending more time on campus. I've joined an organization called Tent State, which has really been motivating me to be more active within the community as well as to research questions I have about problems abroad, specifically the War in Iraq. As opposed to sitting here and tossing around my own ideas about what should be done in Iraq, I have been trying to get at good sources that will inform me about as much of the situation as I can get at. As Kurt Vonnegut wrote in "A Man Without a Country" people tend to guess too much, and I am as much a product of that as anybody else. Here (and elsewhere) I am learning to correct my tendency to guess through research. Speaking of getting involved in the community, I just reread what I have just written and am rethinking what I said about not liking New Brunswick. It's definitely not an attractive city and crime and noise here are pretty rampant; yet there's a lot that can be done to make things better here. So I am going to try and do as much as I can to help while I'm a part of the university to give back to the town. I think Tent State is great for that, especially now that we're trying to get Street U going. Street U is a medium through which Rutgers students can mentor kids in secondary schools in New Brunswick and surrounding areas. It's pretty important and necessary considering the schools here aren't very well funded.

In addition to Tent State I've recently begun going to Salsa Club on Monday nights with my friend Adam and belly dancing classes by myself on Wednesday nights. My instructor, Yudita, is really great and has really been inspiring me to practice really hard so that I can get better. She seems to think that I can do really well in it if I keep practicing. It's a great release, really good exercise, and tons of fun. I came out of yesterday's class feeling extremely refreshed. I have a feeling it's going to become a hobby I'll be very passionate about.

This past weekend was especially refreshing. I had been (and still am) extremely stressed out about schoolwork and managing a lot of different things at once, and was really looking forward to visiting my friends in Worcester, MA. I was originally only supposed to stay until early evening on Sunday, but ended up making an impromptu decision to stay longer. I went to a wedding with my friends that was much more poignant than I had expected it to be. I think it was a combination of the fact that the couple getting married was so incredibly happy and also the fact that I was there with people who were all really happy to be there witnessing that together. We had spent a really fun weekend together just laughing non-stop, and the merriment the wedding provided was just a great plus. I ended up skipping all my classes on Monday in a huge act of irresponsibility, but I'm honestly not regretting my decision. I posted a couple of pictures from the weekend somewhere below. (Sorry it's messy, but I really don't have the patience to make it look pretty).

This weekend I will be studying a lot and catching up on work, and also picking Nick up from the airport in Washington DC on Sunday! YAY! =)