@tamaranopper
Joined July 2014
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As Octavia E. Butler said, “Writing is a form of gambling.” Bet on yourself, bitch, and keep writing.
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I rarely listen to advice—given way too freely—offered by people who don’t want me to win. I just clock it and keep doing my work. Like Octavia E. Butler said, sometimes we gotta “keep your own counsel.”
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The level of desperation and distress felt in this era underscores the need for self-awareness, organizing, and political ed. Cuz knowing who to be mad at is part of the work. As Fred Hampton said, “We have to educate the people as to who their enemy really is and it ain’t us.”
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Toni Morrison said, “The Civil War of 1861 had its encore as the civil-rights movement of 1960.”
...@tamaranopperOct 19
In her remarks at James Baldwin’s funeral, Maya Angelou described the Civil Rights Movement as “the second civil war in 100 years.” During his life, Baldwin had noted that we mistakenly call it the Civil Rights Movement when it was a slave rebellion that was “brutally put down.”
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Building new habits. Like Octavia E. Butler said, “We don’t have to wait for anything at all. What we have to do is start.” And “do the thing and you will have the power.”
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Toni Morrison said, “I am very conscious of writing in such a way that nondiscriminating readers have full access,” while “structuring and writing in such a way that the more discriminating readers find some kind of reward. Trying to do both things is important to me.” Goals.
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Bitch, get your writing done. You chose this life.
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Ta-Nehisi Coates said, “‘Why are you so depressing? What about hope?’ ... I’m not a fucking politician! I don’t have to make people feel good at the end of the book.” “This expectation of hope... People are confused about the job writers are supposed to do.”
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Another day, another run. Grateful for that and the sunshine.
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Trying to psyche myself up for today’s workout by remembering that V.I. Lenin said, “Force yourself to do all kinds of stretches, several dozen at a time, without slacking.”
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As Octavia E. Butler wrote in her journal, “Striving is sexy” but being sanctimonious is not. “Good is only sexy when it’s very powerful, not sanctimonious, and not too good.”
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Relative freedom is collective. It involves consciousness raising and changing the shared material conditions in which we are all trapped. Many of us focus only on the former and end up being self-congratulatory and treat gloating as organizing.
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Marshawn Lynch said, “Start taking care y’all mentals, y’all bodies and y’all chicken. So when y’all, you know, ready to walk away, you walk away and you be able to do what you want to do.” He was talking about professional athletes but this resonated with me.
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In her remarks at James Baldwin’s funeral, Maya Angelou described the Civil Rights Movement as “the second civil war in 100 years.” During his life, Baldwin had noted that we mistakenly call it the Civil Rights Movement when it was a slave rebellion that was “brutally put down.”
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Octavia E. Butler said, “We human beings are good at finding things to fight about, making trouble where it isn’t necessary.” Again, knowing who to be mad at is part of the work.
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Toni Morrison said being an adult “means growth, taking on responsibilities, stop bitching about it, always.”
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The most famous living sociology major, Stephen Curry, on his favorite sociology class. “Probably Gender and Society. Because I had a good professor who was very opinionated about that. So we had great debates and stuff... It was the most engaging class.”
What was your favorite Sociology class? Probably Gender and Society. Because I had a good professor who was very opinionated about that. So we had great debates and stuff. And a lot of it was about parenting, which is a phase of life I’m in now. I learned a lot about social pressures and, I guess, challenging the norm. Which our professor did a lot with her kids. Some of the stuff I didn’t agree with, some of the stuff I did. It was the most engaging class. You think back to that stuff now when you’re raising your daughter? Yeah. And it’s actually, it’s surprising I’m not as — how do I put it? — I guess with my daughter I’m more inclined to get her into both sides of the gender-norm conversation when it comes to things she’s interested in. Not forcing her into pink and dolls and all that kind of stuff. Kind of doing mini-experiments to see what she gravitates towards without outside influences.

ALT What was your favorite Sociology class? Probably Gender and Society. Because I had a good professor who was very opinionated about that. So we had great debates and stuff. And a lot of it was about parenting, which is a phase of life I’m in now. I learned a lot about social pressures and, I guess, challenging the norm. Which our professor did a lot with her kids. Some of the stuff I didn’t agree with, some of the stuff I did. It was the most engaging class. You think back to that stuff now when you’re raising your daughter? Yeah. And it’s actually, it’s surprising I’m not as — how do I put it? — I guess with my daughter I’m more inclined to get her into both sides of the gender-norm conversation when it comes to things she’s interested in. Not forcing her into pink and dolls and all that kind of stuff. Kind of doing mini-experiments to see what she gravitates towards without outside influences.

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Trying to psyche myself up for my workout by remembering that W.E.B. Du Bois said, “We must rapidly come to the place where the man all brain and no muscle is looked upon as almost as big a fool as the man all muscle and no brain.”
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Toni Morrison said, “We really have to learn to love thinking again. Not fretting, not worrying, but thinking.” “You may get used to, you ought to get used to, making decisions.” “Receive tremendous joy from problem solving...”
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Some consider struggling a form of humiliation when it can be just part of learning and building strength. Fascinating article on how some interpret “struggle” in Mao’s “dare to struggle” as “dare to fight,” and different meanings of struggle vs fight. interpret.csis.org/dare-to-f…
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