Economic growth = women

“I am very happy and proud” at being a female entrepreneur, she said. “When I was young, they said: ‘A woman is a woman — a man should take care of you.”’

“But women are actually contributing a lot more than men. We always find ourselves multitasking,” she said, between working and raising a family. “If it could be equated in terms of currency, it would be 80 percent of the economy.”  - Women Entrepreneurs Drive Growth in Africa

Recently...

"Life is too short to be busy."  - "The ‘Busy’ Trap" by Tim Kreider  from NYTimes on June 30, 2012

Finding balance is always the struggle. I caught influenza (I think it sounds cooler) from trying to work to much. I'm a workaholic, its something I admit to and am slightly proud of, but this article brings up good points. Prior to South Africa, I had a epiphany - I need to care about myself (b/c no one else would) and care less about what others are doing (If they care, then they will do it) This is the only fair way, b/c my expectations are different than others. But this is a side note, the article also emphasizes the authors decision to pick "time over money." It is funny because recently, my classmates and I had dinner with this woman in a township, who spoke about time being married to money. She said this emphasis on time is a Western thing, which is why we say good morning, noon, and night. Where in Africa, they say "Molo"  or "Molweni (for more than two people)"which is "hello" in Xhosa. We are too obsessed with time and watches. Anything that is connected to time = money. It is so funny and very true. 

So, my goal is to make time for myself and to be less "busy." Oddly enough, when I got first epiphany, I got sick with a bad head cold and now, I am coming to the realization after having influenza! I like how I have these realization because of illness. So, I will try hard to be balanced and one day, I hope to have harmony. Namste. 

WTF...

Bill Cunningham looks like he would be a nice old man. Apparently, he gets paid by NYTimes to write about things he sees on the street and is a famous photographer.  I wish I got paid to do that, b/c I would share much more interesting stuff from my walks to Dupont from U Street every Sunday morning, especially after a crazy drinking holiday like St. Patty's day.

Recently, Bill made an observation for the fashion side of the site about women's footwear. Apparently, women like to wear comfortable ballet flats and often they are black! Crazy! He also praised "American women" for choosing ballet flats as their fashion choice for shoes and that designers can't control our choices. Who are you Bill? Any rational woman would have told you this. Yes, we wear flats or sneakers and change into heel shoes when we go to work. We don't want blisters... Bill, do you choose to wear comfortable shoes when you go to work a.k.a walk around the streets of NYC taking pictures?

It appears the Bill has not been talking to any women nor looking at anyone's feet for the past two years. I watched this NYTimes report with much amusement because it was obvious that this person was not a woman. All women already know this. Sorry, Bill, you are two years late.

Yes, this is why I'm going to grad school...

NYTimes: Education

The Master’s as the New Bachelor’s

By LAURA PAPPANO

Published: July 22, 2011

Call it credentials inflation. A four-year degree may not cut it anymore.

 

...and apparently getting this piece of paper will give me more responsibility at work.

5-1-2011

Best line of Obama's speech tonight, "Bin Laden was not a Muslim leader. He was a mass murderer of Muslims." Wow, what a night.  This won't end terrorism, but I am thankful that this chapter has ended.
"Justice has been done."

Big Benefits Are Seen From Eating Less Salt

...over my dead salty body.

No thanks, New York Times. I am already trying to eat your "11 Best Foods You Aren’t Eating" even though I am not a beet person. But I draw the line with salt. Salt is king!

5 Years later: Hope

I thought that I would share this nice story of hope: NYTimes, In Tsunami’s Wake, an Unexpected Second Chance, January 1, 2010. Hopefully, it won't be the last.

Awesome Article

"The world is awakening to a powerful truth: Women and girls aren’t the problem; they’re the solution."

"A result is that as many infant girls died unnecessarily [due to male preference] every week in China as protesters died at Tiananmen Square. Those Chinese girls never received a column inch of news coverage, and we began to wonder if our journalistic priorities were skewed."

Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn, "The Women's Crusade," New York Times, August 17, 2009.

Interesting Article

“I send him letters that are uncomfortable messages.”~Mr. Mike Kelleher, the director of the White House Office of Correspondence (Ashley Parker, "Picking Letters, 10 a Day, That Reach Obama," New York Times)

This is a very cool story about the gatekeeper to the White House a.k.a Obama's mailman. He is not really a mailman per se, but he does choose the ten letters are received/read by President Obama. It is a short and touching story. Check it out here.

Also, check out the slideshow. I really like this image. You know that I would be filling up Michelle's inbox, granted I bet I would fall into that bin marked N.R.N., no response necessary. Also, I wonder if Bo will actually be opening his own mail. I doubt it. He has no thumbs.

Friedman's A Biblical Seven Years

It's not a secret that I enjoy Friedman's Op-Ed articles and the New York Times. My co-worker and friend Mari knows that I wish I were this homeless man at our Starbucks on 14th Street because he is always reading the NYTimes and enjoying a venti sized coffee every morning. I really wish that I could do that every morning...

But back to Friedman. In an article posted today called, "A Biblical Seven Years," Friedman states that the United States needs to reprioritize and refocus on its infrastructure and education system to compete with new global problems and powers, like China. This is a common theme in Friedman's writing and a theme that I have been noticing too.

Last night at the Convention, Warner also mentioned the need to focus on our children's education.

"Think about education. If we recruit a new army of teachers and actually give our schools the resources to meet our highest standards, not only will every child in America be given that fair shot, but the American economy will be given a shot in the arm. And whether they want to be an engineer or an electrician, every kid will be trained for the jobs of the 21st century...The race for the future is on, we have one shot to get it right. And the status quo just won’t cut it.”

I agree with this statement. I am not sure if I am of a different breed, but I don't think the youth of this country value education and strong work ethic. At least not the youth that spend their summer in my office as interns. I have never been so surprised to see two individuals, who lack common sense and work ethic. They wanted to get credit for work, but not do the work and have their hands held at all times. Sometimes I just stared at them thinking- are you kidding me? Are you really 21-22 years old and don't know this? Do you really go to an Ivy League school? I was also always horrified by what came out of their mouths, but I think that was mostly because they were socially inept.

I remember hearing from my friend, who works at a middle school, that parents these days want to hear that their children are the best and tell their children that they are best. Well, maybe they should be telling their children that they should "work harder" or that "there are 1,321,851,888 people striving to be better than you." I grew up wishing I were smarter like my siblings and I hate (strong word, I know) seeing people waste their "smarts" and natural ability. So, please live up to your natural ability and if not, don't apply to be my intern.