taylor mali

I wish I had something to say, but I've been swamped with work...and we're heading to Tennessee tomorrow morning. Hopefully, you enjoy the poets as fillers in my absence.

I'm pretty sure this guy is a teacher; he seems to like to speak to the sad trends of our culture.

Grades

I had forgotten how much I hated our educational system, but I am quickly being reminded.

I absolutely love learning. I love reading. I even like to write. But as soon as I receive this random point total that has been given as an arbitrary judgment, I begin to feel differently. Especially when this arbitrary grade must be maintained at a "B" level for me to stay in school. And then there's the kick in the pants when the grading scale is raised to an insanely high level. So, here at my lovely school, I must maintain an 87% or higher. 86% and below is a B-, which will put me on academic probation (and after the second term of below a 3.00, or below 87%, you're out of school for a semester). If I want to get an "A," I must have at least a 97%!

So, for one class, I have four grades which have all been completed. Two tests: each 99%. First paper - 92%. Second paper - 95%. Average these out and I have a 96.25%, which is an "A-". And this is definitely my best class so far...

Ridiculous.

Enough said for Buckeye fans.

Why am I getting hits from all over the world??!!

So, I've been getting random hits from all over the world the past three days. I'm not sure what's going on, but I would love to find out! If you're reading this and you don't know me, would you mind commenting how you stumbled onto my blog...
If it's because of the "next blog" link, then does anyone know why the hits started only 3 days ago???

I would really appreciate it!! Thanks!

Jesus Video #2

I have a few papers I'm working on, so my blogging life is suffering. But I think these videos are good fillers.

Hot Tub

One of the reasons we chose our apartment was the hot tub and pool. Unfortunately, it was out of commission the first three months we were here.

However, it's now repaired, and I am doing my best to get my money's worth.

Those pesky bacteria and dead skin cells are no deterent to me - I'm just a happy man living the good life...Wahoo!!

Bassey Ikpi - Homeward (this poem is clean!)

I can't get over these "def poets"...
The poem below I find especially beautiful because of a friend I have here in Seattle. She is Kenyan, although she's lived in the states for over 10 years.
It wasn't long ago that I sat across from her, listening to her share the pressures she's felt to assimilate into the American culture. "To belong" - it's what we all desire, but for some, it requires much more of us.
The majority of people I encounter are similar to me; for me to belong, I'm not required to change much.
...but if my culture was different, my first language was different, the way I thought was different, the way I viewed God was different, the clothes I wore were different, my heritage was different, my history was different, my political views were different...what if I didn't grow up watching the same television shows, or listening to the same music? What if I was always left out of conversations because I couldn't relate to the cultural expressions? What if I had a different color of skin?

I can't remember the last time I cried so hard. I could barely speak, and I felt embarassed. Everyone in the group stared at me in bewilderment. Through the tears, I mustered enough voice to stammer out, "I feel sad for you, but my tears are for my personal loss of you right now. There is beauty in you that I can find nowhere else." I hated that she was forced to assimilate. It certainly was not fair to her, but it was also not fair to me...

There is beauty in her uniqueness, in her heritage, and in her culture. She adds so much to my life that I can find nowhere else, and for others to force her to forget, to leave it all behind...and for what???!!

I hate it. I absolutely hate it. Why do we exclude? Why do we force assimilation? Why can we not celebrate our diversity, our uniqueness, our individual beauty?

I love the poem below because in it, I see the face of my friend.