Imperialism in the Aisles
Anyone who has been to Trader Joe’s will recognize its 19th century periodical style illustrations. These historical cartoons are meant to be comical, but their subtext is dark. From popcorn to paper towels, recognizing the history of imperialism…
Stop Policing our Bodies and Our Marches
It’s impossible to dismantle an oppressive system if you partner with its agents. And yet, the Santa Cruz Women’s March (SCWM) is partnering with the Santa Cruz Police Department (SCPD) for a march that will, apparently, advocate for intersectional women’s rights. The choice to collaborate…
My Body, My Business
“Fat” isn’t a bad word until you make it one. I am fat and I am beautiful. Those terms aren’t mutually exclusive. For every person on the internet telling a fat person to lose weight, there are thousands more fat people rolling their eyes, including…
Career Opportunities in the Modern Internet Age
To understand what careers may lie ahead for me in the near future, I sometimes surf Linkedin to see people’s current professions and how they got there. There’s nothing noteworthy to me most of the time, though one career path always catches my eye: Social/New…
Stop Asking Why
I’ve been trying to explain to others (and myself) why I decided to transfer from Boston University (BU) to UC Santa Cruz, for over a year. Often I give the easy answers. I missed California. I couldn’t handle another East Coast winter. The culture of…
Spirit of the Game
A special mixture of adrenaline, pride and nausea. This is my reward at the end of a three-hour ultimate Frisbee practice. The UC Santa Cruz women’s ultimate team, Sol, possesses a free-spirited culture unlike any other sport I’ve played and teaches me how to be…
Supporting and Understanding Someone with Bipolar Disorder
When I’m sick I experience sleep deprivation, memory blackouts and sensory overload. The less I sleep, the more manic I become with auditory, visual and tactile hallucinations. I can’t read or process speech. I have bipolar disorder 1 (BP1). BP causes atypical shifts in energy…
