Using Technology to Deepen Democracy, Using Democracy to Ensure Technology Benefits Us All

Thursday, October 31, 2019

Barbara Lee Speaks For Me Daily

Tuesday, October 29, 2019

Teaching This Week

I didn't get around to Naomi Klein in my lecture last week, so this week we begin with her. Then I'll be reading from William Burroughs and we'll move into Hannah Arendt and the Biopolitical Turn. Not sure if we'll manage to get through all the notes I've crafted for today, but there it is. Tomorrow I'm finishing up Judith Butler and going over a host of short queer manifestos by queer artists and queer theorists which should be a lot of fun tho' the potential for mess is also a bit high. Fall is two-thirds through, and writing workshops and symposia begin to fill the syllabus as final weeks and final projects beckon. End of term frankly cannot come quick enough, teaching in Trump times is quite demoralizing and exhausting.

Friday, October 25, 2019

Barbara Lee Speaks For Me Daily

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Barbara Lee Speaks For Me Daily



Oh, and about the news of the day? Impeach all the Trumpublican Nazi motherfuckers. Thank you.

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

Barbara Lee Speaks For Me Daily

Haven't done one of these for a couple of days, so here's a couple today:


Monday, October 21, 2019

Prep

Late papers still coming, thesis students sending me fresh new excerpts, it's a bit of a tumult! Lecture tomorrow is Barthes, Debord, and Naomi Klein. We'll see how far I get. The queer theory survey the next afternoon feels like even more of a crapshoot, Sandy Stone, Judith Butler, Zoe Leonard, Ulrike Muller, Marlon Riggs, Allyson Mitchell, Holly Hughes, Wu Tseng, Carlos Motta, student presentations. I hesitate to craft long lectures for a class with so many inputs and rapid changes of tone and focus. It's crazy on my nerves but the experience in the classroom itself has been pretty energized. Another week, here we go!

Sunday, October 20, 2019

Sunday Brunch and Walk

Beautiful autumnal stroll to our Piedmont Street diner and bakery -- the weather was so nice we actually had to wait for a table (we avoid the many hipster brunch spots along Piedmont where this is commonplace, ours is more a friendly shaggy greasy spoon), then we walked to the Rose Garden which was also more than usually thronged even as the roses are browning and fading by now a bit. What a lovely day! Much of my grading is behind me at least, but I've still got lectures to craft: Finishing up Barthes, moving on to Debord for Tuesday and maybe some Naomi Klein. In the Queer theory survey course for Wednesday it's Judith Butler, with still a bit more Sandy Stone and student presentations galore. A bit overstuffed, but whatever will be will be. I'm in no mood to work at all, but work I will anyway.

Friday, October 18, 2019

Grading

Graded papers all the long day through, listening to Sibelius symphonies one after another as I go. At this point I have formed such a forceful association between grading and Sibelius I can't really listen to his work any time other than when I'm grading, which is a pity. Quite a few left to do, but I'm waiting for stragglers at this point, so I suppose I'll be turning to lecture prep for the rest of the weekend and just grading papers as they continue slowly to trickle my way...

Thursday, October 17, 2019

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

Prep

Screening and discussing John Carpenter's "They Live" in my critical theory survey course, an old fave, by now feeling a bit faded. Tomorrow's Queer theory survey is taking a field trip to the library to check out research avenues for their final papers (yes, they're already starting to think about final papers and it's scarcely mid-term now), then talking about Sandy Stone's manifesto "The Empire Strikes Back," assigned but not yet discussed from last week. All this has meant that there's somewhat less to prepare this week and I've been considerably less stressed in consequence. A stack of grading arrives today to wipe that smile off my face soon enough, tho'.

Monday, October 14, 2019

Sunday Walk and Brunch

Superquick note this morning to say yesterday was dreamy, Eric and I took it easy for once, set aside work, had eggs at our favorite diner on Piedmont then strolled through the sweet autumnal breeze at Mountainview cemetery overlooking the whole City skyline, Oakland and San Francisco spread out like a mirage of the future... A beautiful day, followed by a lovely night at home, dinner, weed, and a movie, who could ask for anything more? I don't think I gave Trump and his disgusting bigot celebrants and their ongoing crimespree bloodbath a thought the long day through for once. Is that what it will be like if we manage to prevail over those assholes for good? Nice to think: There's got to be a morning after...

Friday, October 11, 2019

Barbara Lee Speaks For Me Daily

Wednesday, October 09, 2019

Barbara Lee Speaks For Me Daily

Monday, October 07, 2019

Prep

Writing workshop tomorrow on the Toulmin Schema for the analysis of arguments, followed by a mini-lecture on Barthes' Mythologies -- Wednesday, we're still finishing up Valerie Solanas and also turning to Sandy Stone's "Empire Strikes Back" on TERFS (not yet so named) and connecting queer to trans discourse via Haraway. These days I'm always too nervous to really enjoy what happens in the classroom -- but that said, these are texts I've loved teaching in the past and would sure love to find myself loving teaching again in the present...

Barbara Lee Speaks For Me Daily

Saturday, October 05, 2019

Barbara Lee Speaks For Me Daily

Friday, October 04, 2019

Week That Was

...whew! A rather hectic week ends. Intermediate Reviews on top of the usual lectures kept me rather busy these last few days. Fortunately my thesis students are brilliant and wonderful, and also one of them is writing about sf flicks I can obsessively geek out about with her as an added bonus. Next week looks a bit less strenuous, which is good because this insomniac needs to catch up on his sleep.

Barbara Lee Speaks For Me Daily

Tuesday, October 01, 2019

Barbara Lee Speaks For Me Daily