Backpacking last weekend

Last weekend I went backpacking for the first time in almost 5 years. Since moving here almost a year ago, I have barely stepped outside the Raleigh/Durham area to see the rest of NC, and so this trip to Pisgah National Forest was a great chance to see the mountains in the western part of the state. The trip was led by two Duke seniors who are part of an organization called Project WILD. This trip was a fundraiser for their program for high schoolers called "Step Into the Wild". On Friday April 24, we started out from Sam Knob (sort of near the center of this map) and hiked to a campsite near Devil's Courthouse, which is where this picture was taken:



I don't remember the exact route we took on Saturday, but we ended up near Shining Rock. This picture doesn't really do Shining Rock justice - it's a beautiful, large outcropping of snow-white quartz with granite intrusions (look at me trying to sound like I'm a geologist):





Even though it had been so long since I went backpacking, I think I did pretty well w/ carrying a pack, though I think mine was a lot lighter than our leaders' packs.



Overall, it was a great trip, and I'm really glad I decided to go and that grading could wait! We had absolutely perfect weather, and thus the many scenic mountainous views were especially gorgeous - see the rest of my photos (plus a couple from other trip participants) here.

Welcome Senator Specter

As a resident of PA, I always thought that Arlen Specter was not that bad for a Republican, but maybe that was because PA's other senator was that wacko Rick Santorum - thank goodness he's gone! Anyway, welcome to the left, Senator Specter!

New Relative

My cousins Gail and Mike have videos and pictures of their new son Adam on their Facebook pages, so hopefully that means they won't mind if I post a photo of the little guy here on my blog:



What a cutie he is and how exciting it is to have a new addition to the (extended) family! Our family is pretty small, and Gail is the first one in our generation to have a kid, so even though Adam is technically "only" my first-cousin-once-removed (right?) I think it's a big deal! I feel like an aunt (but Alicia, feel free to make me a real aunt anytime!). Yay babies!

Selfish Thief

In my previous post I sort of rhetorically threw out there the idea of calling Sarah Palin a "heartless thief" for her political desire to take away a woman's right to choose. However, after reading this column, I think "selfish thief" is a better description. As Marcus writes "Abortion is a personal issue and a personal choice. The government has no business taking that difficult decision away from those who must live with the consequences." How dare Palin assume that the choices she made are the right ones for every woman out there, or that we don't deserve to have available to us the choices that were available to her. But maybe, just maybe, she'll reflect further on how fortunate she was to have such choices, and Sarah Palin the Politican will see the light. More broadly, I hope everyone with the political power and desire to one day govern my uterus will see the light and finally understand.

Strong Words for the World

Given the comments on my last post, I need to get some things straight here. I am afraid I am coming across as someone who is brash, thoughtless, and full of liberal anger to spew. Although I am a liberal and I am angry at times (who wouldn't be?) the rest of this could not be further from the truth.

I am an intelligent, thoughtful, and fair woman who tries to stay informed as best she can. Of course I do not know Sarah Palin or any politician personally. All I know is how she portrays herself as a political figure through her words and actions. I try not to let the "spin" of the "liberal media" influence my interpretation of those words and actions. I try to think for myself before I form an opinion, and especially before I post that opinion for the entire world to read. Yes, CG, you're right when you say "for all we know, Barak Obama is a homophobe asshole while Palin enjoys the friendship of homosexuals". But we don't know that. What we do know is that Sarah Palin expressed her support to amend the United States Constitution to unjustifiably single out one group of Americans and put them at a disadvantage (and Obama has made it clear that his administration DOES NOT support such an amendment). To me, the idea of such an amendment is scary almost beyond words, and thus, in my attempt to come up with strong words to express my strong opinion, I arrived at "homophobic bitch". Again, these words are not describing Sarah Palin the mother/wife/daughter/grandmother/person, as I do not know that Sarah Palin - they are describing Sarah Palin, the former candidate for Vice President of the U.S. Maybe "bitch" is inaccurate, as I use it to describe exceedingly mean people, and what she had given support for is more scary than it is mean. So maybe I should have said "homophobic monster" to describe a powerful (or potentially powerful) politician who seeks to amend our U.S. CONSTITUTION to put same-sex couples at a permanent disadvantage throughout the supposed "Land of the Free". Are you going to attack me with silly comments if I use "ignorant clod" to describe Palin's denigration of and desire to cut funding for the biological sciences? Or "heartless thief" to describe her desire to take away my right to choose abortion? Would it make you feel better if I called Obama an ignorant greenie-wannabe for supporting ethanol as an alternative fuel (his advisors aren't ignorant, and hopefully they'll change his mind)?

I shouldn't go on and on about Palin, because, thank goodness, she's back in Alaska for now, so her damage is relatively confined and we have other things to worry about. But I think the media's portrayal of her and my response to that portrayal provides a good example of what I'm talking about here - how some of us liberals can, indeed, think for ourselves:

~ Attack on Palin #1 - the Katie Couric interview and other gaffes. Yes, it was fun to make fun of, and yes, some of us took it as an indication that Palin doesn't know what she's talking about. But I think she completely redeemed herself by later speeches, especially in the VP debate, in which I thought she was very well-spoken. I just disagreed with everything she spoke about!
~ Attack on Palin #2 - her daughter is a teen mother. So? Our nation has the highest teen pregnancy rate of any developed nation, so it's to be expected that this happens even to families like Palin's. Yes, I disagree with the way that Palin wants to spend my tax dollars educating America's youth about sex, but this is based on data, not Palin's daughter.
~ Attack on Palin #3 - the expensive clothes. If I was her, I would do the same thing - allowing the RNC to fund my campaign wardrobe. When in the spotlight so much, it's important for politicians to look nice, especially when their platform is so horrible that they may need to rely on their good looks to get votes :)

Although here's an attack I kind of agreed with:

~ Attack on Palin #4 - on a visit to NC (and maybe there were others too?) she said something like (I'm not getting this exactly right) "It's nice to be here among REAL Americans, folks who care about our country". The point was, it seemed like she was implying that Obama supporters were not "real" Americans and do not care about our country. This is one case where I can understand why people initially called her a "bitch". It was a bitchy thing to imply, and I don't think her follow up statement (not really an apology) really cleared this up. Still, though, there were lots of bitchy things flying around during this campaign, by both sides.

The point is, there are people of both political parties who do indeed think for themselves (and there are way too many who don't). I try to look at an issue or a political candidate as a whole package - everything or everyone has positives and negatives. The only positive I could think of for Palin was her interest in supporting "special needs" children, but even this "positive" was negated by her stance against genetic research that could potentially help special needs people (which I understand is a result of her ignorance, so is partially excusable) and her running mate's stance against improved family leave and childcare policies. We liberals were angry and frustrated after the last 8 years, and the thought of at least 4 more years of the same was, at times, terrifying and depressing. Let me call Sarah Palin a homophobic, right-wing bitch in peace, and I'll let you call Obama a tax-and-spend, baby-killing terrorist. We'll both feel better! :)

More on Gay Rights

CG, your ignorance on GLBT issues is showing through your comments. It sounds like you need to educate yourself. My blog is not enough - check out Pam's House Blend (link on the left sidebar) and http://www.hrc.org.

Keep in mind, CG, that the Human Rights Campaign endorsed Obama because even though he doesn't support federal gay marriage, at least he supports civil unions and other pro-gay issues (anti-discrimination legislation, etc - see here). Obama was the only Presidential candiate I know of who specifically referenced his concern for his "gay brothers and sisters" in his speeches. I don't know about McCain, but Palin is indeed a homophobic bitch...remember this? And this? Those right-wing, Christian conservative, Jerry Fawell types are all alike - to them homosexuality is still a sickness, a disease, and God doesn't love them because of it! WTF? This attitude has got to stop, and I would think even YOU would agree with this since I assume you want your precious Republican party to make a comeback! A platform based on "anti-gay" will no longer be sustainable - you GOPs will have to find another way to bring your voters to the polls. I'm sure this is what the Log Cabin republicans have been trying to say for years.

D.C. to Recognize Gay Marriage

I have GOT to stop reading the newspaper & blogging and GET BACK TO WORK, but there is just so much exciting news. From the Washington Post:

D.C. Council Votes to Recognize Other States' Gay Marriages

The decision was unanimous. Focus on the Family, your agenda is going DOWN like the Titanic! Take THAT, Christian Right!

From the New York Times...

"Vice President Joe Biden, who threw the ceremonial first pitch, had better control" than C.C. Sebathia! Great article.

One State at a Time

I told you (April 3 post)! Vermont Legalizes Gay Marriage.

Orioles Home Opener

Baseball season has begun! The Phillies fell to the Braves on Sunday, but the Orioles figured out CC Sebathia:

Visitor

Today's an absolutely gorgeous day, and so I let Madeline outside where she and Pudding (the cat next door) are sitting in their respective yards having a nice, peaceful staring contest. But I am keeping a careful eye on them and the backyards just in case our furry visitor from yesterday decides to return. So when I got home from work on Friday afternoon, Madeline was yowling to go outside, but because it was windy, she was yowling to come back inside after just a few minutes (wind makes her undecided). I was in a good mood, so I indulged her, letting her in and out, in and out. I was grading a paper in the living room and heard her meowing on the deck, but I wanted to reach a stopping point, so I didn't come right away. When I did, I saw that she wasn't meowing to come back inside, but rather she was fixated on something in the yard. I was expected a neighborhood cat, but instead it was a possum with at least three babies! Luckily I grabbed Madeline just as she was making a move to bolt into the yard. I think possums are rather icky, but the possum was just ambling along in no hurry to leave my yard, so I went in and grabbed my camera. By the time I returned, it wasn't as close, but I still got some decent pictures.



This Canon PowerShot has a nice zoom for the money! See the babies?





The possum left my yard momentarily, slipping under the fence and actually leaving behind a baby in the process (who wandered just a bit before it finally scrambled under the fence after its mother). But then she came back, this time with the babies on her underside instead of back. They hung out by the fence for a while, before crossing my yard and heading over to Rachel's yard.

Progress!

How exciting! This just in:

Iowa Court Says Gay Marriage Ban Is Unconstitutional

If this had happened yesterday I would have sworn it was an April Fool's joke. And it's a unanimous decision! In Iowa! Equality is indeed happening, even in the Midwest - one state at a time.

Busy!

I've been busy! I meant to blog about the Land Between the Lakes trail runs, but I'll just refer you to Rob's blog - he has a nice race report and pictures. Since LBL, my running has been really blah, even after a five (!) day hiatus. So I decided that was a good reason not to push it this weekend, combined with the fact that this weekend has been work work work (though I did run about 8 miles this morning). I'm taking another break now because my head hurts - mentally and physically. I have 18 papers graded, and 17 to go! And then a bunch of other stuff!

Anyway, Madeline has interrupted my work with comic relief. Once again, licking the soap (but not as vigorously as she licked the candles):



Not budging while I sheeted the bed:



And just posing like the little darling she is:

Umstead Trail Marathon

As you can see from my March 3rd post, last week began with enough snow to close down schools and lows around 11F. But the week ended much differently, weather-wise. On Saturday in Raleigh, N.C. it was bright and sunny with a high temperature of nearly 80. It was a beautiful day to be outside...except for those of us running the Umstead Trail Marathon. I've certainly done long runs in temps this warm, but I've never raced long in such conditions. Well, I guess there were those two Mahomet half-marathons, but at least they were flat and over with in a couple hours!

I actually have no idea how I was able to finish in 4:39:47. That's 10 minutes faster than I did LBL last year, and Umstead was way hillier and hotter (LBL had snow, but heat is even worse), and I was just as poorly trained. I started worrying about whether or not I could finish at mile 11 - ELEVEN! My stomach felt like it usually does at the end of a marathon, where the thought of another gel makes me want to barf and nothing seems to quench my thirst. The Gatorade on the course tasted really concentrated, which was good - it's sometimes watered-down on race courses - but I still had trouble staying hydrated. My friend had salt tabs at the mile 21 aid station (thank you Mickey!). I've never used salt tabs before, but the way I was feeling I figured they couldn't hurt! It's hard to tell if they actually helped because I still felt lousy the rest of the race, but maybe I would've felt even worse without them.

Anyway, I don't have any pictures from the race itself, and if any get posted on the website, I probably won't re-post any of me here, because I am sure I looked awful. I got splotchy sunburn and my arms and back still ache from my hunched-over, trying-not-to-collapse running form. But I do have a picture of my...handmade frog award! In this race they give awards to the top 15 male and 15 female finishers. Somehow, I just made it - I was number 15!



Also, all finishers got a pint glass:



And our goody bags had some of the best schwag of any races I've done. Socks perfect for Sandra Cooke, Ph.D.:



Gels, chews, lotion, organic lip balm, and a body glide sample:



Speaking of body glide, I have never used it because I have NEVER had major chafing issues...until this marathon. Andrew says I've been lucky. But I am worried that it means my thighs have gotten fatter! Anyway, I am totally gonna be a body glide user from now on (but I'll also try to slim my thighs!)

And then of course, the technical race tee-shirt:



Also, the post-race food was pretty good - veggie and chicken burritos, chips, fruit, oreos, and more. So all in all, it was a good race. Besides the usual soreness (and chafing and sunburn!), my left foot hurts today, but it's better than it was yesterday. So hopefully I'll be able to start AND finish the LBL 23K this Saturday!

Kitty weed

You all know I love cats, right? So hopefully you don't consider me cruel because I think what this man did is hilarious rather than abusive.

Snow Day!

We actually had a snow day on Monday! 2-3 measly inches is all it takes for Duke to cancel classes. I was mostly cozy and productive at home, but I did take a couple walks around the neighborhood. Here is my snow-covered street (well actually the snow-covered vegetation bordering the street):



I thought my neighbor's snow-covered trees across the street looked really pretty:



My house doesn't look that exciting - I need to get a shrubbery! (but not too expensive, haha):



I walked through Northgate park near my house. It wasn't as pretty as I thought it'd be - the snow was melting pretty rapidly - but this little creek looked kind of nice:




This March snowfall caught some of the flowers off-guard. My daffodils aren't blooming yet, but lots of my neighbors' flowers were. I saw quite a few snow-covered blooms on my walk. I should have gotten a close-up shot of my next door neighbor's flowering bush - it's in the picture to the right of my house - all the egg-yolk-yellow flowered were frosted with snow.

Speaking of flowers, Andrew's mom gave me this lovely pink bouquet for my 30th birthday:

Scariness

I did not listen to Gov. Bobby Jindal's speech last night, nor have I read any of the recent articles about him. But the recent headlines and news radio snippets I've heard that mention "Jindal" and "President" in the same sentence are quite scary, if for no other reason that this. That crap will only pull our nation backwards on the educational and science trajectories, when we need to move forward.

Lilly Ledbetter, again

Here's a great op-ed piece from the NY Times on Lilly Ledbetter and other women who have fought to end gender discrimination in the workplace.

Lilly Ledbetter

Since Obama was sworn in, nearly every day has been - as a friend of mine remarked recently on her Facebook page - "like a liberal Christmas". Today, President Obama signed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Restoration Act into law. Lilly Ledbetter filed a lawsuit against her employer, Goodyear, after she discovered she had been paid less than her male counterparts, but her lawsuit was thrown out because it was filed more than six months after the discrimination occurred. The Act makes it clear that the 180 day statue of limitations begins with each new discriminatory paycheck. I think that the 180 day statue of limitations is still too short, but at least it is now clear that it begins on pay day, not on the day the pay was agreed upon.

Of course, all Senate democrats voted for this Act, but it is especially noteworthy that all female republican senators also voted for it, whereas only one male republican voted in favor (Specter).

Homemade Minestrone

I don't usually cook with meat, but last week I got inspired after thumbing through the Joy of Cooking, and I decided to roast a chicken. Then this week I was about to throw the chicken carcass away when I stopped and thought "hey, I should make stock!" So I did, and the chicken stock actually turned out pretty well, so from it I made minestrone soup:



It is not too bad, if I do say so myself. I put in almost twice as many macaronis as the recipe called for (you can probably tell from the picture) because I like a lot of pasta in my minestrone. I also put in twice the fresh herbs, and a little less broth than the 10 cups the recipe said, so it is quite flavorful.

So. Today begins the last week of my 20s. I am slightly bummed, because I feel like as long as I'm 20-something I can still pretend I'm a kid sometimes. But it's gonna be hard to feel like a kid when I'm THIRTY. I was boosted a bit this morning by some lady at church asking me "how school was going", and when I mentioned I teach at Duke rather than take classes there she said "oh, you don't look old enough to be teaching!" (I've had this conversation with at least 4 people at church, and it always makes me feel better). So I guess as long as I don't look 30, maybe I can get away with continuing some of my 20-something habits. Like wearing a short skirt. According to some magazine or something I read somewhere once (Glamour? Washington Post fashion column?) only women under 30 should be wearing short skirts. At 30 you've supposedly reached some level of maturity that is above the teen/collegiate/20s-look-at-me-I'm-so-sexy look of short skirts. Well, that's a fashion rule I'm gonna break because my legs are too fabulous to not show off once in a while!

At last

After 8 long years, the abortion football has once again been thrown. Obama has repealed the Global Gag Rule. An excellent start in the process of undoing the damage of the past 8 years.

Women in Science

Two posts in a day, how 'bout that! Yesterday's New York Times had a great article on the problem of female shortage in the sciences. The article mentions that "President Obama might be able to change things significantly for young women in science — and young men — by signing an executive order that would provide added family leave and parental benefits to the recipients of federal grants, a huge pool of people that includes many research scientists." Wow! As a young woman who anticipates (well, hopes) to be seeking tenure and raising kids at the same time, I think that would be fabulous. This article states our plight quite well:

...expecting a young woman to sacrifice her reproductive fitness for the sake of career advancement is simply too much, and yet the structure of academic research, in which one must spend one’s 20s and early 30s as a poorly compensated and minimally empowered graduate student and postdoctoral fellow, and the remainder of one’s 30s and into the low 40s working madly to earn tenure, can demand exactly that.

Yes, these are the things that keep me up at night.

Snow!

I love snow! I really do - I think it's pretty and peaceful (although my opinion changes somewhat in treacherous driving conditions). I thought that moving to North Carolina meant no more snow (or least not enough snow to ever cover the ground), but looky what Madeline and I saw out our window this morning:



Yay! I wish I had some cross-country skis (it's just barely enough, I think), but running in it this evening will be fun, too. Hmm, I hope the other Godivans show up for our East Campus run! It is possible these southern folk don't feel the same way I do about running in the snow.

So exciting! Here is my first house experiencing its first snow (with me as homeowner, that is):



I don't own a snow shovel yet, but I think it'll be okay. The snow on the sidewalk is starting to melt already. Here is my neighbor's holly tree with berries and snow:



Here, I was trying to take a picture of the little sweetgum balls with snow caps:



I decided to stay home today and watch the inauguration. Two things that made me happy today: snow and the fact that BUSH IS FINALLY OUTTA THERE! Good riddance, too. I might leave my "Bush's Last Day" bumper sticker up for a while longer, just to prolong the celebration that he's GONE.

Haven't blogged in a while!

To the 3 people who actually check my blog every few days - sorry I haven't blogged in a while! I had a merry Christmas, did you? One of my Christmas gifts was, once again, a digital camera! Yay, now I can post recent pictures of better quality than the one above (that was taken w/ my minolta film camera - it's just not that good). Although, I've only used my new gift a little, so far. Need to put a bigger memory card in it, and my big memory card is somewhere in my closet. So anyway, here are some more pictures from the holidays - pre-digital camera.

Madeline looking creepy:




A red-tailed hawk that my cousin and I got really close to at Thanksgiving:





Life is good - I promise to write a more interesting post later!

Cute Couple

Excellent, excellent opinion piece. Excellent.

Thank you Olivia Judson! Dr. Judson, a darling, talented evolutionary biologist at the forefront of her field and author of "Dr. Tatiana's Sex Advice to All Creation" (one of my favorite books) has written an outstanding article on the Bush administration's assault on science. Amen! Also, I really must read Shulman's book that she mentions. This looks like a good book, too - I love the cover!

Hopefully the economy and war will not completely distract Obama from this important task of restoring credible science to government.

Reason #463 Why "Abstinence Only" Education is Stupid

Read this.

Raleigh Marathon

Here's a belated race report for the Raleigh Marathon! We dragged ourselves out of bed at 4:45 am, which was somewhat eased by "falling back" an hour and our 9:30 bedtime, but was still a bit tough. But I'm glad it was a 7 am start time, because by mile 20 it was getting quite warm for us middle-of-the-packers, and from that point on the course had almost no shade refuge. So here's me, Madelyn, and Kate a few minutes before the start (thanks Marathonfoto!):



Kate and Madelyn did the half-marathon, and both did very well! As I mentioned before, I finished in 4:05 - not the sub-4 I had hoped for, but I underestimated the hilliness, even after studying this elevation map:



See those big hills at miles 5 and 13-15? I powered up them, feeling strong and still maintaining a sub-9:00 pace. I only slowed down a little at the 17-18 mile hill. I was feeling way over-confident and trying to guess how big my PR would be. Then the course left the lovely shade and soft dirt road of Umstead State Park - we turned a corner and were suddenly on a concrete sidewalk heading uphill and straight into the sun (miles 19-20). I didn't hit a wall or anything, but just could not keep up my pace for the rest of the course - even on the slight downhill from mile 22-25. Mile 25 was awful - it doesn't look like a big hill on the course elevation map, but it sure felt steep and way longer than a mile (as mile 25 usually does). So I revised my goal to 4:05 and finished in 4:05:24. Not too bad I guess. So here I am within a few tenths a mile of the finish. See my Obama '08 shirt? I got lots of compliments on that! And no heckling!

The Land Slides Further

Check this out:

Obama adds symbolic NC victory to White House win

Obama had won North Carolina! It's the first time a democratic Presidential candidate has won the state since Carter won it in 1976. Isn't that crazy? That's crazy! In a good way of course! It makes me proud to be a North Carolinian. So that means Obama has 364 electoral votes to McCain's 162. GOPs, we CRUSHED you!!

To change the subject, Connie has asked for a race report - yes, I will post one later. In a nutshell, it was a tough race but it went well - ran a 4:05 marathon on a very hilly course.

Landslide Victory!

Hooray for President-Elect Obama!



Wow. IN, FL, OH, VA, CO, NV, NM?!?!?! Wow! This is amazing. Now us liberals can get to work with Bill Ayers and Jeremiah Wright to implement our radical socialist agenda! (just kidding, CG - do you realize how ridiculous you sound now?) In all seriousness this is a really exciting time in our country's history, and I'm looking forward to seeing how it all plays out. He's definitely got his work cut out for him.

Man, Phillies winning the World Series, Obama and other dems winning office...this is shaping up to be the Autumn of Sandra Cookie!

PHILLIES WIN!!!!!!!!!!!

THE PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES ARE THE 2008 WORLD SERIES CHAMPIONS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm so excited I don't know what to do with myself!!!

Let's go Phillies!!!

Monday night was a letdown, but at least it wasn't a loss. I am SUPER-EXCITED for tonight! I don't want to get my hopes up too high or jinx them...but I can taste a World Series victory!

Reason #893 to keep that ignorant bitch away from the White House

Someone on the ECOLOG listserve alerted us to this bit about Palin dissing fruit fly research. Here is the link to another blogger's post. Apparently she has no idea how important Drosophila research is for human genetics. Still, even if this were not the case, the fact that she thinks that funding for biological research is an "earmark" or a "pet project" really frosts Sandra Cookie's cookies!!!! Of course, she's a creationist, so what was I expecting?

Here are some quick facts

Click the link above. These are the sorts of problems that most Republicans ignore or won't fix because it's "too much government intervention and money". But just leaving it up to your precious free market isn't gonna fix these things. These problems ultimately affect us all as a nation, and thus as a nation we need to address them.

Equal Pay

I've gotta respond to CG's comments. He wrote: "But don't you think a woman that isn't pregnant is more valuable to an employer than one that is?" and "shouldn't women who choose to forgo pregnancy to focus on their career reap some reward (better job/pay) for the sacrifice they make?"

ABSOLUTELY NOT. Not only should men and women be paid equally for the same work, but parents and childless adults should also be paid equally for the same work. To "forgo pregnancy" does not necessarily mean you are going to be better or more productive at your job than someone with kids. In my field (biological sciences) I know male and female professors with children who manage to teach, publish, and get grants funded at the same (or even higher) rate and quality as professors without kids. So why would you pay them differently? Sure, it is true that there are scientist-parents who may have a brief "hole" in their publication record because of those 3 months they took for paid paternity/maternity leave. Unfortunately, this may affect their ability to get tenure or get grants funded (but fortunately many institutions are becoming more understanding of this). However, it should in no way whatsoever affect their salary!

In academic interviews it is against most institution's policies to ask if a candidate is married, has kids, is planning to have kids, etc. These policies are in place precisely because of the attitude you revealed in your comments in the earlier post. You cannot discriminate against someone based on these factors! And this is why it is best for an institution (or any place of employment) to have equal paternity/maternity leave policies - whether they hire a man or a woman, the possibility that that person will take parental leave is the same. You cannot decide against the woman because "she's a woman of childbearing age, so she'll probably take maternity leave". And actually, you cannot discriminate against men of childbearing age for the same reason either. I can understand the perspective of an employer who is short-staffed and needs someone to work full-time immediately with no extended leave on the horizon. But that employer has to realize that the possibility of extended leave is always there and is unpredictable. You never know if and when a employee will get cancer, have an accident, etc. and need an extended leave of absence. This is why you just have to hire the best candidate for the job and not discriminate based on perceived likelihood that a person will take parental, sick, or disability leave. Actually, I know a woman who, in the few years after landing her tenure-track position, had both cancer and a baby, and has still managed to stay at the top of her field.

All that being said, sure, it is possible that parenthood takes its toll on a person to the extent that their job performance suffers. But this is just one of many factors that can affect a person's job performance (divorce, chronic illness, depression, etc.) And that's why the only factors that should determine someone's salary or whether or not they get hired are their resume and job performance NOT their gender or family status.

In regard to the comment that a woman who isn't pregnant is more valuable than one who is, I look at my own place of employment. I am NO MORE VALUABLE to my employer than the two female teaching fellows currently expecting babies, or the male teaching fellow whose wife just gave birth last week (congratulations Jon and Celia!). Our supervisors at Duke University evaluate us only according to how well we do our jobs, not whether or not we take parental leave, an option open to all of us teaching fellows. It is unfortunate that not all employers practice such non-discrimination, and even more unfortunate that there are politicians do not support this mindset.

Economists' Policy Group for Women's Issues

Jesus Christ, it's 2008! Why haven't we made more progress? See this grade report on McCain and Obama. I absolutely do not understand why BOTH candidates, actually, do not have more As. But McCain and Palin's views here really top everything. They truly disgust me. Even our goddamn president voted for the VAWA. WTF???

Make my autumn!

I will consider autumn 2008 a success if at least 2 of these 3 things happen:

1. The Phillies win the World Series
2. Obama wins the presidency
3. My proposal gets funded.

Let's go, Fate, 3-for-3!!!!

Told you

Thanks for finally making your views loud and clear, Gov. Palin. But if you truly believe that traditional marriages are the foundation for strong families, then why don't you support a constitutional amendment to ban divorce? Or to ban unmarried women from artificially inseminating themselves? Or to require that widows and widowers with children must remarry as soon as possible? Or to require that heterosexual couples with children must get married? Because all of those amendments seem just as logical as banning gay marriage.

I am sure my gay friends with children (as well as those without) take great offense at you implying that their families are not strong.

Are you anti-abortion?

If so, you should read this article from the Washington Post. It's quite interesting and makes several noteworthy points:

• "Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good, which calls for a 'consistent ethic of life' on such issues as poverty and capital punishment, argue that economic policies may be the most effective way to combat abortion by providing social services, such as affordable health care, for pregnant women." I COMPLETELY agree with them. The way to reduce abortion is not to criminalize it, but to address the root causes of the issue: (1) why do unwanted pregnancies happen and (2) why do women choose to abort their pregnancy. Similarly...
  
• Douglas W. Kmiec, an anti-abortion scholar, argues that "that overturning Roe v. Wade would not end abortion, and that the bigger priority should be addressing 'the economic and cultural and social circumstances that force women to believe that they must make a choice against life.'" YES, once again I completely agree that overturning Roe v Wade would not end abortion.

I found the article somewhat heartening. It is nice to see that there are some anti-abortionists who understand that being "pro-choice" or "pro-life" is not simply a position regarding the Roe v. Wade decision. There are so many factors in our society that influence the amount of abortions that occur. Certain politicians may say they are pro-life, but at the same time they may promote policies that increase the number of unwanted pregnancies (e.g., abstinence only education). When you increase the number of unwanted pregnancies, it's a good bet that you'll increase the number of abortions, too. I wonder if, despite George Bush's pro-life intentions, his policies actually indirectly increased the number of abortions that occurred compared to if he had not been President. Think about it: Roe v. Wade still rightfully stands, thank God, but we've had huge setbacks in the number of poor women with access to affordable health care/ health insurance, the way we educate our young people about sex, and socioeconomic factors that influence whether a woman thinks she can afford a child.

Long story short, if you are pro-life you can go ahead and VOTE FOR OBAMA with a clear conscience!

Yaaayyyyy!!!!!!!!!!!!

My Phillies are the 2008 National League Champions!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

3 down, 47 to go!

Hooray! This just in:

Conn. High Court Rules Same-Sex Couples Can Marry

These things take time, but they do happen and will continue to happen. Some day, even Texas and Alaska will be on board, and anti-gay and anti-equality policies and laws will be seen as old-fashioned and narrow-minded.

Also, regarding this issue, I was very disappointed with how Joe Biden handled this question in the VP debate. Yes, I realize that there are virtually no major party leaders that support a constitutional amendment to allow gay marriage. But Biden's and Palin's attitudes towards gay rights and issues differ in significant ways. Check out this Human Rights Campaign video:




In other happy news the Phillies beat the Dodgers 3-2 last night! I'm calling for a Rays-Phillies World Series with the Phillies going all the way!

Science and the Election

During Friday night's debate when McCain once again mentioned the "$3 million" (it was actually more) grizzly bear DNA study as a pork-barrel, waste-of-money, ear-marked whatever, I thought "you've got to be kidding me". First of all, $3 million is nothing. My research group in grad school received NSF grants totaling almost $3 million to study the effects of UV radiation on lakes. I wonder what McCain would say to that! Probably that my Ph.D. was a waste of the federal governments' money. Probably "who cares about lake ecology?" And if he's elected, I'll bet he'll slash the NSF budget just as Bush did. And in contrast to this, did anyone else note that during the debate Obama actually said "We've got to invest in science and technology." I realize that in light of the economy, etc., science is not a priority for most voters. But it certainly is for us scientists, and I think it is crystal clear where the candidates stand on science. That McCain actually declined to answer 18 science-related questions from the prestigious journal Nature speaks for itself. As an ecologist I of course was quite interested in the candidates' responses on evolution. Obama's response: "I do not believe it is helpful to our students to cloud discussions of science with non-scientific theories like intelligent design that are not subject to experimental scrutiny." I could not have said it more clearly myself. McCain's stance on evolution, according to Nature:

McCain said last year, in a Republican primary debate: "I believe in evolution. But I also believe, when I hike the Grand Canyon and see it at sunset, that the hand of God is there also." In 2005, he told the Arizona Daily Star that he thought "all points of view" should be available to students studying the origins of humanity. But the next year a Colorado paper reported him saying that such viewpoints should not be taught in science class.

Okay, at least he finally acknowledged that creationism does not belong in science class. Of course, his creationist VP doesn't feel the same. I also found it interesting that Obama's science and technology advisers are actually, um, scientists, whereas McCain's science advisers are a couple of CEOs, the former secretary of defense, a former CIA director, and a former NSA adviser.

I change my mind!

Sarah Palin's abortion stance isn't so bad after all! Now if only McCain could make the same offer.

For biology teachers

The "Discovery Institute" (for some reason I feel they deserve quotes around their name) has been distributing a document to students entitled “Ten questions to ask your biology teacher about evolution". The National Center for Science Education has compiled a set of responses to these questions to aid biology teachers whose students try to challenge them with these questions. I think the NCSE did a good job, but I still wonder if these students will just end up confused, or will refuse to admit to anything that they view as contradicting their faith, no matter how sensible and compelling the evidence is. The NY Times recently published this list. Also, the article that accompanied this list I found quite interesting but also troubling. I can feel Mr. Campbell's frustration.

This reminded me of Lehigh University's Michael Behe. When I was in grad school there, I often heard him referred to as an "embarrassment". I thought I'd check his webpage to see if he's altered any of his ID content (he hasn't). And Lehigh's Biology Department has stated clearly and succinctly their view of his views.

Tomato score: Squirrels 8, Sandra 0

Andrew was here last weekend and brought his digital camera, so now I have pictures to post! Nothing too exciting, but I did want to give an update on my little "practice garden". Occasionally I have an alert, squirrel-chasing guard cat:



but Madeline would have to be on duty 24/7 to keep the little thieves away. They have gotten at least 8 of my tomatoes, but the hearty little plant is producing more, so I must do something to protect them!



After Andrew left I built a chicken-wire fortress around my tomato plant. So far it's working, and my tomatoes have grown noticeably! Also, my marigolds have begun to produce flowers! This was after Andrew and his camera left, though, so I don't have pictures (I am still clinging to my broken digital, hoping somehow it might just start randomly working again). Also, my basil is being eaten less by insects and more my me. The mint is flourishing as usual.

Here are some pretty purple flowers from the side of my house. I've seen these all over the Raleigh-Durham area. Does anyone know what they are? I am awful with plant ID!



Andrew, I wonder if the large red and black beetle we saw was a type of carrion beetle (that's what it looks like in my Peterson insect guide). Do you remember it looking like this?

What a great sentiment...

...from my favorite comic strip, For Better or For Worse (it takes place in Canada):



Some day, our country will reach that milestone, too.

The fate of my eggs...

...does not belong within the realm of anyone's moral compass but my own!!! This makes me SO FURIOUS:
Workers' Religious Freedom vs. Patients' Rights
If my religion were white supremacy, would that give me a right to deny services to all non-white people in my profession? If you don't believe in birth control, then don't work in a profession where your job description entails providing birth control! It's like a PETA activist being employed at Cabella's and then refusing to sell anything related to hunting! Or a Jewish person taking a teaching job at a Catholic school, and then claiming they shouldn't have to teach the lessons that contradict their faith! Yes, you should be free to believe what you want. But so should I, and I believe that birth control, and in some cases abortion, are healthy, important, and the morally correct thing to do with my body and my life. If anyone stands in the way of that, they are infringing upon MY religious freedom AND health, not just "patients' rights". And when the uterus in question is MINE, then the only morals that can be imposed upon it are MINE. Think birth control and abortions are immoral? Then don't take it or have one. I won't encourage you to or secretly stuff condoms in your mailbox. In turn, I ask that you not take my prescriptions away from me (there are pharmacists who DO that!). Don't you dare try to prevent me from doing what I think is morally correct for ME. KEEP YOUR LAWS OUT OF MY BUSH, BUSH!!!!!!

Orioles won on a SUNDAY!

Yes, it's true. Today the Orioles beat the Angels, the team with the best record in MLB, 5-2! Why is this so noteworthy? No, not because the O's suck in general. Because they haven't won a game over their last FIFTEEN Sundays! It was becoming like a curse or something. The more amazing thing is that they won with Garrett Olson as the starting pitcher (hahaha)!

The Phillies are losing right now, but it's only 5-2 in the 4th. Maybe they can pull out an amazing comeback like they did yesterday! Check out this line score:



Isn't that crazy? That would've been an exciting game to be at. I miss Citizens Bank Park!

Oh, sweet!!! Shane Victorino just smashed a 3-run home run to tie the game! Those Braves are going DOWN.

Madeline

This is an old picture of Madeline, but it captures her current spirit. Poor thing wants to go outside all the time! I've tried to explain to her that it's too dark and there are too many mosquitoes and I've showered so I don't want to put on more bug spray. But we were out in the backyard earlier this evening and as I was putting sticks in the compost bin, Madeline started trying to attack the sticks like they were string toys. Then I started throwing them, and she chased them, although they were a little too big for her to get her mouth around them (and she usually only "fetches" paper wads and broccoli stems). She's just like a dog, it's so funny! But what was really hilarious was the dirty little trick I pulled to bring her back inside - I ran across the yard, up the steps, and inside, waving a stick behind me, and Madeline bounded after me the whole way. She was kind of pissed off when I then threw the stick outside and closed the door :) Hmm, maybe next time she goes under the porch I can coax her out with a stick instead of cat treats! It's so weird, I've never met a cat as dog-like as she is.

I haven't mentioned the Orioles in a while because it is sad. They've been slipping further and further below .500. They lost to Toronto twice yesterday, and I am scared to check the standings. They are losing to LA now, but Jay Payton just hit a 2 run double, so now they're only down 5-3 in the 7th. Maybe they can do it!

Settling In

It has been over 3 weeks since I moved in to my first home (as a homeowner, that is), and I am settling in pretty well. I've even started hanging pictures and only have one box left to unpack. However, I'm heading into week #2 with a broken AC. It hasn't been too bad so far, but tomorrow is supposed to be a high of 99 F, which I think is the hottest it's been since I moved here. I was initially dragging my feet on getting it fixed. Now the problem has been diagnosed (need a new compressor), but not yet solved, as Steve the AC guy was gonna try to find a low-cost compressor from some discount vendor he knows. Low-cost would be fantastic, but I will call him tomorrow, as Madeline and I are getting antsy! On Saturday night I slept at a friend's house after a party, which besides being a great way for me to meet some lovely women in my new town, was also a nice respite from my tropical-feeling home. Thanks Carolyn! I may have to sleep under my desk in my lovely air-conditioned office tomorrow night! This is pathetic, I've become too used to modern creature comforts! I should remember back to the hot summer nights spent in my grandparents non-ACed homes.

Anyway, here are some pictures of my new, humble little dwelling:







I don't have many from inside, but I'll wait until I get everything bought/ unpacked/ put-away...and host a visitor w/ a digital camera (don't want to waste film on some ordinary rooms!) And here is the poor little garden I started. Actually, the marigold seedlings are coming up quite well, the mint looks decent, and the tomato isn't dead (bought the mint, tomato, and basil plants from the garden store). The basil is being thoroughly enjoyed, but unfortunately not much by me. Does anyone know of any good organic insecticides for sweet basil? I'm quite naive and new at this!