If the entire world was one village of 100 people

The village would have 60 Asians, 14 Africans, 12 Europeans, 8 Latin Americans, 5 from the USA and Canada, and 1 from the South Pacific

51 would be male, 49 would be female

82 would be non-white; 18 white

67 would be non-Christian; 33 would be Christian

80 would live in substandard housing

67 would be unable to read

50 would be malnourished and 1 dying of starvation

33 would be without access to a safe water supply

39 would lack access to improved sanitation

24 would not have any electricity (And of the 76 that do
have electricity, most would only use it for light at night.)

7 people would have access to the Internet

1 would have a college education

1 would have HIV

2 would be near birth; 1 near death

5 would control 32% of the entire world’s wealth; all 5 would be US citizens

33 would be receiving --and attempting to live on-- only 3% of the income



Thought this was really telling of the world we live in. My professor, Valerie Hudson shared it with us today. I think her international relations class has been my favorite thus far at BYU. Oh, and remember that 102 I got on the first exam? We were given back our second exam on Wednesday and guess who just so happened to get the highest grade yet again, clocking in at a 103? Yeah, it was me.

Also, another cool resource is her WomanStats database. Along with a group of student coders, she has compiled the most comprehensive database on the status of women internationally. I hopefully will be working for her project next semester!

My survey

For my political science methodology course, I am doing a project on the correlation between the amount of time a mother spent working outside the home and their children's ACT/SAT scores. If you'd like to be part of this monumental research, please leave a comment with the number of hours your mom worked (include only paid employment, not church callings, PTO obligations,etc.) while you were in high school and your standardized test score.

Thanks for participating.




P.S. I'm pretty sure this violates some sort of IRB regulation :)

My pathetic wardrobe

Sometimes, I look at my closet and get really discouraged. Mostly because I have a very limited amount of clothes and the ones I really like have already been worn 2308 times and are now dirty, and I won't do laundry more than once a month (last winter, I did it ONCE all semester) The other thing is that 90% of my clothes don't fit me. I have one pair of jeans from last year that fits and that's after a routine of squats and kicks to get in them. The other two pair I have I got on ebay this year and they are great. And since I live in jeans, having only two functional pairs when you don't do laundry very often can sometimes prove difficult. Another thing is the wearness of my clothes. When I find something I like, I'll wear it once a week or more because hey, it looks good and is comfy. So, basically the things I really like to wear are worn thin. Probably 75% of my shirts have some kind of hole in them; in fact, I just discovered a tear in my favorite black tanktop that I stole from Allison last year which inspired me to write this post. About 75% of my clothes were also bought in high school. Let's face it; my personality (not to mention fashion.... one of my favorite pair of pants right now are brown gauchos. I've been informed these are no longer cool.) has changed a lot since then and I'm finding it increasingly difficult to pick out clothes I like from my own closet. I can pull together probably three or four decent outfits, but after that, it's t-shirts and my Yale hoodie for the rest of the week. I will admit that I do have a few really nice Sunday pieces thanks to Mom and a huge Arden B sale last Christmas. Oh, and I must mention my beautiful kelly-green wool coat I bought from Nordstrom on a whim and peer pressure. If only I could wear that and only that.

The solution: Lose 20 lbs. Find the money and time and patience to go shopping. Be on "What not to wear".


The upside: Cecilia has more clothes than anyone I've ever met.
The downside: Barely any of them fit me.

Thanksgiving

Last week's break was absolutely glorious. Work was canceled Wednesday and Thursday, so Wed. morning I headed up to Salt Lake. First on the agenda was going to Austin's class at an elementary school in South Jordan and talking to her class about South Africa. Due to unforeseen circumstances, I did not get to do my little presentation but I'm looking forward to another visit in the near future. After that, Austin was off to see her family in Washington and so I headed to downtown Salt Lake. I hung out at Temple Square for a bit in the Visitor's Center, visited Aunt Linda at her office, went back to Temple Square and watched the Joseph Smith movie. After another few hours at the Visitor's Center (I pretended to be not a member but really interested to make the missionaries happy... it was worth it), I drove to the airport and picked Christopher up. We headed up to Kaysville to spend Thanksgiving with Christopher's large and loud extended family. This was my second famed Anderson family Thanksgiving and it was great! We played games all day and night and there was always something going on and someone to play with. After two years of not playing Rook, I picked it back up and Christopher and I dominated, our favorite moment being when we beat his dad and uncle in our last hand which was a perfect 300 hand. It was a beautiful and proud moment for me (and for him also, I'm sure). After one more game in the tournament, I had to hurry back to Provo to work in the afternoon on Friday.... and that's when it began. I got so sick on Friday night and into Saturday morning and it was bizarre. It was a little like my numerous African stomach illnesses I had this summer but man, it was miserable. Not to mention I had to crawl off the ground and answer the phone between puking into the trash can beside me. YUCK. Then I had to go home at 1 am to an empty apartment because all my roommates were gone! Luckily I just fell asleep after about an hour and then by the next morning I was feeling better if still not 100%. And I haven't eaten much since then.... maybe this is a good start to my detox diet?

The Master Cleanse

After Thanksgiving, Cecilia are going on the master cleanse detox diet. For ten days, we will eat nothing and drink only a concoction of maple syrup, cayenne pepper and lemon juice, laxative tea at night and a salt-water flush every morning. Apparently, the diet serves to rid your body of toxins and remove excess waste that has built up in the intestines. Then for the next ten days after the diet has ended you gradually introduce food to your body like vegetable broths, raw vegetables and fruits, and eventually you add in your carbs. It is supposed to not be used as a weight-loss regimen but to begin a cycle of healthy-eating. Although I eat pretty healthy right now, I can't seem to get rid of this gut I built up in South Africa and I think this may help me get rid of it. And Ce and I are going to walk at night after work and maybe I'll get up and do some yoga before class. I have got to do something to get rid of this weight I have gained because it's annoying me! The cleanse is also supposed to aid in reducing the cravings for fatty, carby food, which I could use.

I didn't get to do this in YW!

So, with all this talk of marriage in the air, I've decided to do something that I probably should have done when I was 12. But I was always a rebellious little YW and so I never wanted to do this. Who wants to think about what their future husband will be like when they're 12? Plus, everyone always had the same answers (Strong testimony, good priesthood holder, HOT.) Well, here are my minimum requirements I've finally decided on:

1. SMART. This is crucial. A companion who can debate healthcare reform and understand quantum physics would be welcome. A nerdy professor type is kind of what I'm going for, glasses really turn me on. But he also has to have social skills.
2. Well-read. Not neccesarily of the classics, but of NYT bestsellers and the like. An interest for continually learning together by reading and discussing.
3. If he has a subscription to the Economist, I'm sold.
4. Internationally-minded. If he isn't foreign (read below), then he at least needs to have traveled and have an understanding of another culture. Has to be willing to live all over with me. Has to love African babies and want to adopt.
5. I would love a guy who spoke an Asian language, just so he could teach it to my kids. I think it's a waste when missionaries or native speakers who know another language don't teach their children. I wish to anything I knew another language.
6. Supports me in my career decisions. This is kind of obvious. Doesn't want a little-wifey who stays at home and cooks. Because.... come on.
7. Asian. I prefer Chinese or Korean but I won't be picky. In fact, anyone foreign would probably be welcomed. Accents a plus.
8. Hard-worker. Will share equally the responsibilities of marriage and future kids. I expect a husband that changes diapers and does the dishes, right alongside me.
9. A do-it-yourselfer. I'm kind of getting in to this whole, buy an old house and fix it up thing. I think that'd really be an awesome learning and growing experience and I need someone that can take on the challenge.
10. Healthy but not buff. I really am not into guys who spend hours in the gym, nor am I into someone who eats mac & cheese and pizza for every meal and is a couch potato.
11. Which brings me to... adventurous eater. I love trying new cuisine and random eaterieis and need somone who will go along with me. Vegetarian a plus.
11.5. Willing to quell sexual urges and date at least a year. Although I can be irrestibility desirable, I'm not into this whole quickie-marriage thing.
12. Foreign-film lover. Has to take me to the IC. And enjoy it. Can't be afraid of subtitles.
13. Ok, maybe somewhere on this list I should go ahead and add member of the Church. So here it is. Honors his priesthood. Can take me to the temple. Converts OK as are non-members who have potential but exhibit it before we're married.
14. Anti-superficial. Not a pretty boy. Can't spend more on clothes than me or take more time to get ready. This might be tough, because everyone knows how little I spend on clothes and my speedy-quick 10-minute getting ready skill. So, maybe this one can be a little lenient.
15. East-coast liver. Or just want to live on the East Coast. I will not subject myself to the torture that is living in the West. Sorry Utahns and Arizonians. If not on the East Coast, then maybe in another country. I would not be opposed to moving to Europe or Asia.
16. Liberal. Has to love healthcare reform and equal rights. Must be willing to vote for a female senator. Must support my feminist tendencies, or at least have a good laugh at them. But not in a condascending or demeaning way.
17. A tad neurotic and willing to show it. Because let's face it, I'm a little crazy.
18. The right sense of humor. The Office NOT Dumb & Dumber. Intelligent humor. Stephen Colbert. Witty.
19. Wants 4-5 children and is willing to go along with my weird names.
20. Beach-lover. Surfer a plus because I've always wanted to learn.
21. Adventurous. Safaris in Africa, elephant riding in India, scuba-diving in Australia, backpacking Croatia, bungee-jumping at Vic Falls. You know, the usual. Spontaneous and not scared to try new things and dive right in.

Um. Ok. that's all I got. Kudos to those who read all of that.
Anybody know anyone who fits the criteria? Hook me up.

And please no derisive comments.

Paradise Now

While I don't claim to be Siskel & Ebert (though come to think of it, I don't always agree with their ratings in the least), here's a film review for all my readers. The movie is an independent film called Paradise Now. We watched it this evening for my international relations class and I was so touched. Not only is it beautiful, it is incredibly thought-provoking. The film takes you out of your paradigm and into a completely foreign one. The setting is the West Bank and the characters are young Palestinian men who want to be a part of the resistance against the Israelis. They are chosen to complete a mission, suicide-bombing a group of Israeli soldiers. Never before have I ever seen suicide-bombing and thought... oh, THAT'S why they do it. It really gives you their perspective, humanizes these men. You can sense the pain,the frustration, the prison-like existance they live in. Things are a lot more complicated than our society makes them, and there are really no clear definitions of right and wrong. It is all a matter of perspective. Moral relativity... who espoused that one? Was it... Hobbes? I think so. This philosophy class is really paying off, huh?

Back to the movie: I just want to talk about one image that really struck me. All of the imagery was moving, but the two cityscapes of the West Bank city and then Tel Aviv were represented in stark contrast. In Palestine, the buildings were bombed out, the streets were dirty, and the people sullen. As sooon as Said and Khaled got to Tel Aviv, the landscape changed dramatically. As they were driving down the street you saw girls in bikinis rollar-blading down the boardwalk, fancy cars, and soaring skyscrapers. While I do not know how much of this imagery was propaganda of sorts, you do have to take into account that the per capita GDP in Israeli is around $26,000 and in Palestine it's around $1500. This is especially unsettling considering they occupy nearly the same land in terms of resources and geography.

Overall, this film really puts the radical Islamic ideology into perspective as well as elucidates some vague nuances of the Israeli-Palestinian struggle.

Loud noises

Aren't libraries supposed to be a place of quiet and solitude? Why does the cleaning crew insist on starting steam-cleaning of the carpets before it's closed? How are frantic paper-writers like me supposed to focus on Kant's moral objectives when there is a horribly loud noise being emitted behind me?!

My letter to the stake pres.

Dear President Rowley,

After spending last evening praying and thinking about the talk you gave in stake conference yesterday, I feel a strong urge to write you a letter and express my concern over the words you shared with members of your stake.
First of all, I feel it is inappropriate and uncalled for to speak of your sexual relations with your wife from the pulpit. I guarantee that it made most everyone in the congregation feel awkward to hear of your touching her “sacred parts,” not to mention how she felt as she sat on the stand.
The one sentence in which you referred to that is of course a minor issue and not my primary concern. My main concern lies in the opinion you expressed about the consequence of sexual sin. We all realize sexual sin is gravely wrong and messing around with such a major sin is dangerous and leads to great heartache. There are many in our stake that I’m sure can attest to the pain of repentance that comes with confessing and cleansing yourself from such a mistake. However, you implied that once a person has even touched another inappropriately before marriage, then they are not to be trusted by their spouse. Although I may be wrongly interpreting your teachings, it seemed to me as well as others you were espousing that once you made a mistake it could never be undone. The doctrine of the Church teaches the opposite; if full repentance is sought and granted, the sin is forgiven and forgotten and should no longer be remembered or dwelt upon by the now-worthy individual. You expressed the thought that if you are pure and unsexual during courtship and engagement, you are completely able to be trusted not to have extramarital relations in the future. By trying to encourage the congregation to remain pure, I think you ostracized those who have made mistakes in the past. I think the subject of repentance was talked about too briefly; while you mentioned it in just a few sentences, I think it’s the focal point of this discussion. Yes, perhaps some of us have fallen, but we still have great hope for our future and especially our relationship with our eternal companion.
Another problem I wanted to address was your statistic that 40 percent of marriages in the Church end in divorce because of pornography. I asked several others afterwards just to see if I misunderstand what you said, but they all verified what I heard. I hope you meant that 40 percent of marriages that end in the Church are a result of pornography. The statistic that I heard is an inaccurate and exaggerated statistic because not even 40 percent of marriages in the Church end in divorce; the official rate as established by Professor Daniel K. Judd, a professor at BYU and member of the Sunday school general presidency, is around 6% of temple marriages.
The last question I want to ask you is this: Where has all the doctrine gone? Whatever happened to speaking of Christ? To quote the scriptures: “And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ… that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins” (2 Nephi 25:26). In short, stake conference left me feeling frustrated and confused as opposed to uplifted.
Moreover, I was not the only one who left stake conference upset. I spoke with several others including my roommates who also were a bit apprehensive about your statements, which I can only see as your opinion and are in no way Church doctrine. While I do not seek to undermine your authority or “steady the ark,” I just could not contain my sentiments and felt you should know the concerns of your constituents.

Kind regards,
Caitlin Carroll

A method of keeping your GPA up without studying.

No, I'm not talking about cheating. That would be immoral. My method of getting a 4.0 while not studying is by killing my roommate, which I inadvertently almost did last night.

Cleaning checks are this strange BYU phenomena that cut down on the negative externalities associated with being a renter as opposed to an owner and attempts to free-load from your roommate's cleanliness. They occur usually once a month, and they are stressful to everyone involved because the incentive for passing is saving you anywhere from between 20 and 50 dollars. After cleaning for approximately 8 hours Sunday and Monday, at around 2 in the morning last night I was down to my last noodle. Although I had finished my job, I decided to help out my roommate Hailey who was avoiding the toilets she was assigned to clean. I would've too: they are black on the inside and look as if they have not been cleaned since BYU was Brigham Young Academy. I grab some toilet bowl cleaner and a scrub brush and have at them. After a few minutes of useless scrubbing, I look back under the cabinet and find the Clorox. Ah-ha! Clorox solves all of life's problem. I opened the cap and began to pour. Before I even had a chance to grab the scrubber, the room filled with fumes and I near passed out. I flushed the toilet quickly and rushed to my window where I stuck my head out sputtering and gasping and coughing. Meanwhile, Cecilia wanders into the bathroom and then by the time I walk back out she has passed out on Becca and Katy's floor and is doing this weird thing It wasn't a seizure like Devin has but her muscles were clenching and it really freaked uso out. We pick her up and put her on the bed and open all the windows to get air in and I turn the fan on. After a minute of not getting better, I called 911 and the paramedics came to check her out. I told them they can't take her because it costs money so they came up to the bedroom and took pressure and pulse and then one of the big, strong paramedics carried her next door to recover on their couch.

We passed our cleaning check. All is well in the world.

Halloween party

So, on Halloween, my roommates and I in one genius collaboration decided to throw a party. This was no ordinary party: this was hardcore. I'm talking hours spent decorating, making food, and preparing for the party. At the onset of the party, there were quite a few people at our house. However, within the hour they had dissipated, presumably going more popular parties, but they did eat our food. But it was ok, we had a good time and ended up watching Ghostbusters 2 and hanging out.

My favorite part of working my new shift (4:30- 1am on Friday) is cleaning out the fridge! Every Friday night, all the food that's not labeled is thrown out by the late shift worker (ME!) So, I work at a company with quite a few wealthy, single twenty-somethings, so that means really, really good food in the fridge. And since most of it is not old, rather than throwing it away, I eat it myself! So, on Friday night, I enjoyed a baked potato from what looked like Outback or something (I gave a whole steak away to a friend that works in the other department). I also took home tortillas, a bunch of yogurt, and other random drinks. For sure, it's a bonus.