Oxford

me thinking about the humped back bull (below) on the grounds of the prestigious Oxford campus

The Ashmolean museum, Oxford

"Humped back bull" from the Early Iron Age (1350-1000 B.C.). The Ashmolean Museum of Art and Archealogy is the world's first university museum (and I think also the oldest museum in England). Opened June 6 (My B-day!) 1683. Anyway, I don't know about you, but this humped back bull captured my attention.

the thinker (originally the poet), small version

a recent news story that got a lot of attention here was about a Muslim teaching assistant who, when asked to remove her veil while teaching, refused. Apparently, the school administration asked her to remove the veil because the children could not understand what she was saying when she was speaking to them (she was hired as a bilingual support worker). When she refused, they fired her, and she went to court with it. At the end of last week the court dismissed her three claims of discrimination and harrassment but found she was victimised by the school and awarded her 1, 000 pounds for 'injury to feelings'. In the meantime, her story inspired some interesting debate-about Muslim culture in the context of British society. Tony Blair commented that the veil is a 'mark of separation' which makes people of other ethnic backgrounds 'uncomfortable'. The teaching assistant, Mrs. Azmi, along with others criticised Blair for making comments before her case was decided. Mrs. Azmi, at the end of her case, commented that she was 'fearful for Muslim women in this country who want to work'. She also said "Integration requires people like me to be in the workplace so that people can see that we are not feared or mistrusted". Hmm. She has a point. Obviously the veil has a lot of cultural/religious significance (of which I don' t know enough about to pretend I know anything), but what should happen when a veil-or any other religious/cultural clothing/item/tradition, etc. interferes with a person doing her or his job?

"If you have policy that kills the disease of poverty, then you can kill the symptom of negative rap."-Rhymefest in response to Tory (Conservative Party) leader David Cameron's criticism of DJs for playing violent songs (Metro, 20/10/06)

tattoo 2006

So last Saturday I went with Prilla (featured below in bunny pictures. thanks, chica!) to her school's annual international food (and music/cultural) festival, "Tattoo 2006". It was so much fun and I ate SO MUCH food and drink from so many countries (seriously, probably sampled food from 20 different countries in the span of a few hours-it was ridiculous). I came away with a bit of henna (featured below), a bindi, a tattoo of the Italian flag (forced on me by some crazy pizza-pusher-no kidding, he was pushing pizza and tattoos of his country's flag on people), an event T-shirt, and a stomach ache! There was also this crazy Argentinian band running around the place with drums and whistles and mostly-naked dancers. Good times.

Frieze Art Fair, Regent's Park: from the Sculpture Garden

this piece was a big rusty-looking blue truck with smudged smiley faces all over the front windshield and a bunch of pictures of naked women and such on the inside. it was supposed to represent inside the mind of a trucker. this one artist did a piece called "tree pants" where he sewed a big pair of blue jeans on a tree. "tree pants" was what initially attracted me to checking out the Frieze sculpture garden (I read something about it), but I never did see it (prilla and I worked hard just to find the sculpture garden and were worn out by the time we got there)...don't know, maybe the tree walked off with its new pants on!

bunnies! giant bunnies!

fun with bunnies

It's a very bizarre feeling to pick up a copy of a free daily paper to find a picture of your country's president supposedly falling over after being shot and then open it up to find a brief article describing the event of his "assassination". And equally as bizarre to discover that in reality your country's president was not assassinated, but that there is a British TV program primetime tonight (this was a week or two ago) which will play out this imagined event. Hmm. I didn't catch the TV program, "Assassination of a President", but I think it continues to be shown as a re-run (I actually heard the show itself "wasn't very good"...but the whole concept to me is strange/interesting/scary/even offensive-as much as I can't stand Bush's policies and the shit that comes out of his mouth, a show about his assassination?). I think this is a first in history-a TV show about the assassination of a current, still-living president. (top picture was on backpage of paper). Thoughts anyone?

the thames, courtesy of sonia

Stirling, Scotland (surrounding area...on a gloomy day)

Wallace Monument, Stirling, Scotland

in honor of "Scotland's greatest freedom fighter", Sir William Wallace (Braveheart)

on top the wallace monument. it was windy.

red

Edinburgh, Scotland photos

not sure why kelly is lifting her leg here, but it makes me laugh (kinda cheerleaderesque). good times.

jen, kelly mcH et moi

I accidentally ordered cider at the pub where these pics were taken and then mentioned that I wasn't usually a big cider drinker and didn't mean to order it to the bar tender. She happened to share my predilection for darker beers and dislike of ciders, and recommended that I put boysenberry syrup (or something of that nature) in the cider. I agreed, and she poured a ton of it in the drink, making it a bright reddish burgundy color. I liked it for a sip or two (I think it was just the novelty of the syrup and the color)...but it was still cider, so I made kelly and jen help me drink it. I don't even think we did ever finish it completely, but we got close.

Scott (as in Sir Walter Scott) Monument, Edinburgh

parade we stumbled upon in Edinburgh

quickfact: Kelly McH cries everytime she hears bagpipes. this random parade encounter was one of those occurences-we think something from another life)