Keyword: Obesity

Obesity, a word that is frequently used in the media and everyday life, is becoming an epidemic problem worldwide. The US is one of the fattest countries in the world, trailing close to Mexico, the fattest country in the world. In the old days, being fat or obese is a status symbol; a symbol of the superior, of loyalty, of power. Nowadays, people see obese individuals as diseased, weak, sick individuals who need medical help or guidance. The social meaning of obesity has changed over time. Moreover, in today's society, obesity is not simply fat; it is associated with words such as undesirable, hatred, isolated, weird, etc.

For the past four to five decades, Americans have not been eating healthily. With the increasing amount of fast-food restaurants such as McDonald's and Burger King, and processed food products containing high-fructose corn syrup, Americans have been gaining much more weight than other nations. At the same time, the media has been redefining the "normal image". The image of beauty does not mean women who have healthy weight or decent size, but they have to be stick-skinny, weighing less than 100 pounds. In the medical world, that is not healthy for women of any size, but in the media, that is the definition of beauty. That definition has not been changed since. Yet, more and more Americans are being classified as obese.

In our generation, we are in the age of technological devices, where most people living in modernized societies have at least one product which relieves their stresses from everyday life. However, with the increasing rate of innovative technological devices being sold to consumers, more and more individuals are not getting the exercise they need in order to maintain a healthy weight. For example, (with of the Truman's post about) a new technological device, segway, provides an environmental friendly method of getting away towns/ metropolitan cities. Although walking is another environmental friendly way to get to different destinations, people neglect the importance of walking and rely on such expensive devices. In addition, the Internet and gaming consoles also help aggrandize this obesity crisis. With an increasing amount of kids and adults of both genders using the Internet everyday, people no longer need to walk to places to meet friends, families and even dates, nor do they need to shop for their necessities on foot; everything is within reach with the worldwide web. Sure, technological devices help mankind in many different ways; however, they eliminate burdens at the expense of health.

"In the United States, one in three kids is obese. Hey, that one fat kid is indeed three kids!" -Jay Leno. In a society where skinny, underweight individuals represent the population in the media, obese individuals are incarcerated in a world of cruel jokes and humiliation. This image problem also triggers hate crimes. Although is not commonly presented in the media, hate crimes against the obese definitely exists. A study done by Yale University found that 12% of the subjects feel they have been discriminated against due to their body sizes. As a result, they feel isolated, detached from the society. With such mental abuse on a day-to-day basis, some eat away their pain, some begin living a healthier routine, some would do nothing, and furthermore, some take drastic measures such as committing suicide. However, the government has already proposed plans to reduce the severity of this epidemic problem; in New York, fast food restaurants must display the nutrient facts on their menus. California has also proposed a law to ban trans-fats in foods. Furthermore, some businesses such as Dove are promoting real beauty. However, are these businesses taking advantage of the obesity problem to make more profit? Or are they trying to help save obese individuals to feel more accept in the societies?

Perhaps that helped you understand this "real beauty" businesses are advocating.


So are businesses sincerely helping the "disadvantaged"? The Dove campaign is not only an campaign to help others, but another to attract more consumers to buy their products. Whenever a consumer wants a beauty product, s/he would think of Dove because of its active campaign against false advertisements. Aside from the companies that are actively trying to promote healthy advertisement, there is a new industry dealing with "healthy products" that are targeted at the obese consumers. For example, there is an increasing amount of diets pills in pharmacies, more and more 24 Hours Fitness in different parts of the country, as well as a entirely new industry of free-fat products. This new industry of "helping the obese" damages the image of beauty. As this industry becomes more popular, the obese may be humiliated further more because they are being advertised as "bad individuals" and that skinny is beautiful. The new meaning of beauty has helped create new industries that take advantage of the obese.

Centuries ago, being obese or simply fat was a good thing; however, obesity is now seen as a bad thing. The meaning of the word has not changed, but the social meaning of image has changed; skinny is in, obese is out. Obese individuals suddenly become isolated as the meaning of image change in the 19th century. These people are victims, victims of our new, redefined society. In this new society, industries take advantage, consumers loose money, and, more importantly, tears are being shed. The damage obesity creates is much more than anyone could imagine.

6.1 Hmm...

It's the last week of summer session. Throughout the last few weeks, I have noticed that the class talked about race, technology, and media related subjects. Whenever a topic related to those subjects always reminded me how we are being shaped.

For race related subjects, I remember the heated debate that Whites are becoming more disadvantage than before. During that discussion, some students argued for the minorities while others argued for the opposite side. I thought that that debate was enlightening because of the different perspectives mentioned by students. This is how we are shaped by- race. I am Asian, you are White, she is Latina, he is Black. This is how we identify ourselves as well as other people. When race is mentioned, we choose our sides and fight for what we really deserve. While equality is important in the US, our colors separate most of us. I know some have became colorblind, many of us are not. So when a race is being mentioned, just like our class discussion, we take our sides and fight for our ideologies. This class somewhat represent what different Americans think.

On the technological topic, it seems like we all agree that all moving with technological progress. Rather than writing snail mail to each other, we would send instant messages, emails, and leave wall posts on Facebook. As an writing class, I am quite amazed that we have the chance to discuss the pros and cons of technological process because it is quite rare to discuss such topic in other English classes.

Media has shaped us in many different ways, it has helped develop and support our ideologies. In class, when we tried to decipher the meaning of different satirical cartoons, many of us had different interpretation. By listening to other people's interpretation, I have noticed that many people's perspective about our societies.

As part of an English writing class, it not only has helped me to produce better quality writing, it also helped me to notice other people's perspective on different topics which we face almost everyday. Overall, I have taken more from this class than all the other English classes combined.

5.2 The Audience and The Media, Friend or Foe?

After reading Paris' blog on truth and media, it made me wonder, who's at fault? the audience? the media? To illustrate my point, some people would not want to believe the "truth" because it hurts; instead, people turn to different sources to listen to the things they want to hear. For example, when 9/11 happened, everyone in the US was shocked and in a state of disbelief. When footage of Iraqis celebrating aired, most Americans immediately agreed that Iraqis are crazy idiots who are destroying peace and democracy. However, when a reporter tried to convince Americans that that footage was actually a video clip of Iraqis celebrating New Years, very few believed them because it countered their believe. Most Americans watch the news not only to know the things happening around the world, but also to pick out stories which would support their ideologies.

When Americans watch the news, most of them do not just turn to any news report; they turn to the newscast which would satisfy their desire- the desire to hear what they want to hear. For example, most Republicans would turn to Fox news to get their daily dose of stories while college students would probably turn to the Daily Show, the Colbert Report or CNN to get their information. I, as college student and a Democrat, refuse to watch Fox news because their stories do not fit my taste nor does it fit my desire to hear to the "real, unbiased stories". I remember I watched Fox news for five minutes and I had to immediately grab the remote and switch to the CNN channel. Why? Because their polls and statistics are retarded. As a statistics student, let me tell you that no one should rely on polls, period. It's just something you should not believe, like Scientology. (Sorry if I offended any Scientologists.) Why? Because you can manipulate the data whichever way that fits your belief, the larger group of people = the better it fits your theory. Second, they never tell you how the data is extrapolated other than telling you that it's from a group of _____ (number) of people. These two things automatically make the data unreliable. So when Fox news asked a group of 350 people, "Who won last Friday's debate?" or "Do you think Black voters play a decisive role in Obama's candidacy?" one shouldn't even bother to look at the results because it does not reflect what people think, only what Fox news thinks because Fox probably manipulated the data to influence their audience. However, when the audience sees the results of the poll, the audience will believe that is the truth and probably jump onto the bandwagon and follow the "what others believe in". Sure, intellectuals like us would think this is biased and would never jump the bandwagon immediately and condemn its biased reports/ polls. But then again, if we do not believe in the polls to begin with, why would people do it? why would people even want to see the result? The answer is that people believe that the polls produce "unbiased" results and therefore more news channels have these ridiculous surveys - only to satisfy our hunger, our hunger for the things we want to hear. Indeed, the media is biased, however, the viewers only want to hear the things they want to hear and media is just adjusting itself to serve the need of the audience.

I agree with Paris' idea that as audience, we should be exposed to the same stories from multiple sources, however, the question is, do we want to hear them from multiple sources?

And... here are the pictures of my failed attempts in the intersection of Covell and Sycamore:
first attempt:

second attempt:

third attempt:
fourth attempt:

and because of the strong wind blowing against my face, I gave up.

And for the previous blog regarding my trip back to Davis from the Bay... Here's the picture I took with my phone:

5.1 What a Scene!

Okay, okay, I know did not take this picture this week, as the date on the photo shows. However, I did attempt to take a similar photo on the corner of Sycamore and Covell, but I failed horribly. As soon as I find my cable to transfer my photos to the computer, then I will show you my failed attempt at that intersection. As for now, I will have to stick with this one.

This is a picture taken on the intersection of Park Avenue and E57th St. It was not easy to take this picture. I, wearing a t-shirt, jeans and a pair of flip-flops, waited at the intersection with dozens of New Yorkers dressed in business attire. As soon as the light turned green, with a strong cold wind blowing against me, I ran half way through the intersection and aimed toward the Metlife building. In the process, people just simply walked through between my camera and the scenery even though they knew I was trying to take a picture of the street. Despite the fact that people were blocking my view, I took the picture anyway. I ran back and checked my picture. It came out blurry. The process restarted again. After about seven failed attempts and angry drivers yelling at me with heavy New Yorker accent, I finally succeeded. I remember I was on that same intersection for about 20 minutes before heading to my next destination. I walked a few blocks and entered a Subway station, I waited for the train to take me to Little Italy. When I double checked my pictures while riding the Subway, I was very amazed what a great picture I took. I captured the heart of Manhattan- streets filled with cars, limos, buses, businessmen, tourists, tall buildings, etc. Even though it is a scene of the modern world, there were trees and bushes in the center divider. It truly is a blend of nature and modernization.

4.1 Discrimination versus Sterotypes

I was quite intrigued by the topic of discrimination after reading this post. I think discrimination is a huge problem within societies that cannot be fixed by censoring people speaking against other races. We all discriminate or stereotype at some point in our lives because of others' skin colors, personalities, hobbies, habits, etc. Eddy is right that viewpoints have been shaped by our surroundings and our families. However, we make the choice to continue our "ignorance" even though we are given the choice to become more accepting. As children, they cannot differentiate the difference between Whites and Blacks, so they use the terms good and bad to describe them. However, now that we know more about other cultures as we live in a multicultural state (or country), we should not generalize a group of people because of their skin colors. However, sad to say, we still discriminate.

I remember when I was an adolescent, my grandmother would generalize blacks. Whenever my uncle drives through Oakland, he rolls up the windows and locks the doors. Now that I have a car and the opportunity to choose my very own destinations, I would avoid driving through Oakland as much as possible. Even if I have to drive through Oakland, I would find myself doing the exact same thing that my uncle has been doing. Because of my family, I stereotype. But I could have taken the time to understand Blacks and not isolate myself from them. However, I made a different choice; I follow the path that most people have taken, I have taken the path of discrimination. Why? Because I want to be "normal" and have the same mentality that most people have. I know I should not do this, but I am doing it anyway because I want to be socially accepted. And I believe most people discriminate because of this ideology of social acceptance.

Many people censor others from talking against minorities. Those who do say degrading things against a certain race would be publicly criticized, like the Don Imus incident. However, censoring individuals speaking against a race does not eliminate discrimination, rather, it only makes it more invisible. What America needs is to make this issue more transparent; people need to speak their dislikes aloud, not hide them. If people actually know the reasons behind racism, maybe we can do more about this issue. Perhaps we can make this country a better place by sharing our ideas, sharing our hate. Hopefully, we can turn that hatred into love just by speaking out loud.

Discrimination is a choice. Most of us have made the choice to discriminate and I believe we should make another choice - speak aloud and solve this issue rather than hiding it.

3.3 Away from normality

“Beep, beep. Beep, beep.” I opened my eyes, and I saw “6:00 A.M.” in bright red print with a black background on a clock. There I was, getting myself out of my bed. I looked out into the streets, and I saw a few elderly sitting on the benches and listening to an old-fashioned radio. There was my uncle, standing next to me impatiently, and said, “You young people and your sleeping habits, do you know that you’ll be healthier if you wake up early?” I asked, “Can we do this some other time?” He shook his head and said, “I thought it would be a great idea that we should spend some time together in the wild, you know, away from those busy streets and dirty air in the metro. Plus, it’s been a while since you came back to Hong Kong to visit me. I guarantee you that this trip will be fun.”

I wore my pair of sweats and t-shirt. I realized I was embarrassed about my mismatched outfit. But my uncle told me that no one was going to notice me anyway. So I left the apartment with my uncle.

We went to a café to get some breakfast before we began our trip. I ordered a cup of coffee and a sandwich; he ordered a cup of tea and a bowl of noodles. “You Americans always do that cliché thing that you guys just have coffee and then have sex. I know it from movie your movies.” That, I believe is a total misconception.

When we finally finished our meals, my uncle and I climbed onto the second story of the double-decker bus when it arrived. I sat next to the window. I looked outside when my uncle fell asleep, and I saw working men and women, students, elderly all walking together on the same sidewalk. I, then, thought, America is so much different from here. Looking down into my clothes and comparing to the styles locales wear, I felt different; I felt like an outsider. After spending the first half of my life in Hong Kong, I would call Hong Kong my hometown. But why do I look different from others?

After riding on the bus for two hours, we finally got to the foothill of the trail. I looked at the green leaves on the oak trees, dried, yellow leaves on the dirty trail, birds flying around the sky. I felt energized and excited. “Don’t you love that scenery?” My uncle asked. I nodded.

My uncle handed me his walking stick and said, “I need that back when I sixty.” He laughed. And then, we started walking uphill, even though the trail was dirty and uneven. But as my uncle and I started sharing our interesting stories about our lives in different places, I completely forgot about the unpleasantness of this trail. There, we walked to the top of the hill, and it was already four p.m. I looked down and saw the busy streets filled with tall buildings, planes flew across the city as my feet were standing on a trail filled with dirt. The chirpings suddenly became my iPod, the wind became my air-conditioning system, the trees became my new temporary home. I took a couple pictures of the scenery. I, again, looked into my hometown one last time, and I thought maybe I should stop being an American and enjoy my visit in Hong Kong and act like a locale.

“Hey, I gave you the stick. How could you be tired? By the way, where it is?” I remember I left it on the hilltop next to a tree. “You owe me one,” he said. Yes, I owe him one. Not the walking stick, but that scenery he brought me to see. That scenery made me realize that sometimes, it is better to look things from another perspective: life is much prettier that way.

3.2 Everywhere You Go, You Need...

In search of an interesting ad, I found this website. It contains many different ads from different parts of the world. On the site, I found this ad of a handheld camera which convinced the audience that they need this camera when they travel around the world during anytime of the year.

The art of this ad is quite creative, in several ways. First, it is in only black and white, which is quite unusual because it advertises an innovative technological product that highly depends on colors. The second thing I am quite amazed about is the fact that this entire ad is done in one line; all the scenes of "your memory" are all connected. In a way, it makes the audience feel that they can have adventurous trips throughout the year, nonstop. The third thing I like about this ad is that all these pictures are between the USB cord and the camera. It illustrates the point that the only thing between the camera and the computer is memories, your memories. It also points out the convenience of putting your memories into your computer; all you need to do is to plug that USB into an USB port, and you can share your memories with others. The art of this ad is definitely breathtaking.

Aside from the art form of this ad, this ad has many meanings which mesmerize the audience so that they must have this handheld camera wherever they go. The ad contains many famous landmarks of the world, such as the Effiel Tower, the Prymaids of Egypt and the windmills of Holland. Other than these famous landmarks, the ad includes images of Christmas, the beach and the zoo to convince the audience that this camera can handle anything - from small, simple day trips to big, extravagant trips. It sends a message that this handheld camera is a must-have item which would make your unforgettable memories last forever.

In conclusion, this ad is innovative, original, and imaginative. Moreover, it successfully sends a clear message that this camera can capture all unforgettable moments, your unforgettable moments.

3.1 Driving Home

As I was driving back to Davis from the Bay Area on a Friday evening, I thought to myself, "Maybe I should wait until Saturday morning to do this..." But I did not. Instead, I got into the car with my two cats and a trunk-full of food which my grandmother bought and started driving on I-880. The sun was in my eyes, I could feel the heat although the air condition was on. The traffic flow was smooth; I did not have to slow down for manics with road-rage who switch lanes every 30 seconds or so. As I reached Richmond, I saw some congestion ahead of me, but it was too late to go back home, so I slowed down and continued driving. There was a point which I had to stop completely, and just at that moment, I heard, "meow, meow, meow..." My cats were complaining about the heat. I turned around, and they looked at me with their large eyes. I said, " We'll be home in an hour." They looked away as if they did not accept my answer. I turned back and continued driving. I observed the incoming traffic, there were teenagers driving, kids in the backseat watching TV, and elderly asleep in the car. I thought, "although they are different, they have something in common - they all have a destination to go to." The traffic got less congested, I returned my eyes to the road.

After crossing the San Rafael Bridge, the traffic became more congested than before. Fearing that I might get stuck in the traffic, I calmed myself by saying, "It's probably the construction, yeah, it's probably that..." However, the traffic became very congested, causing me to stop completely. Cars could not marge into the far right lane, and were having trouble getting of an exit. Trying to find out why I am in this mess, I looked around for clues. I was not the only person; people looked around as well. 15 minutes had passed by and I was at the same exact place where I stopped. Another minute passed by and the cars started moving, but very slowly. About 20 miles later, I saw a cloud of smoke in the sky in west of north west direction. I thought, "That should not be the problem..." Man, was I wrong. After driving 35 miles per hour for 45 minutes, I finally reach the origin of that dark, gray cloud. I found myself slowing down to 10 miles per hour, trying to figure out what really happened. On top of that, I also found myself getting my cell phone out and attempted to take a picture. I failed a couple of times, succeeding after my 5th attempt. At the same time, I found other drivers doing the same thing. Moreover, some ridiculous drivers from the opposite side of traffic actually got out the exit and tried to merge into my side of the traffic. That was one crazy scene. Then I finally found out the cause of the smoke; a car actually exploded and was burning furiously. "What a scene," I thought. "Now, let's go home." I sped up, along with other drivers, and headed to my very own destination.

2.3 Pregnancy Pact - Who's to blame?

The Pregnancy Pact scandal is the most recent event which leaves many parents questioning the effectiveness of the government's policy on preventing teen pregnancy. Many states, such as California and New York, advocate a comprehensive sexual education program while many other states such as Texas, Georgia and Mississippi support an abstinence-only program. While statistics show that programs abstinence-only and protection programs produce similar results in teen pregnancy rate, they do show that teens who received abstinence-only program education have been diagnosed with sexual transmitted infection more than those who received protection program education. With national teen pregnancy rates rising for the first time in 15 years and an increasing rate of sexual transmitted infection, the government should revise its policies in order to prevent teen pregnancy and sexual transmitted infection by advocating a comprehensive sexual education program nationwide.

With a comprehensive sexual education program, teens could learn many different ways to practice safer sex other than the abstinence method. Moreover, comprehensive sexual education provides information on sexual transmitted infections. In addition, it teaches teens about sexual communication as well as sexual abuse. The abstinence program does not offer any basic information regarding intercourse; rather, it tries to convince teenagers that abstinence fosters healthy relationships between men and women. However, with the increasing exposure of sexual contact in music videos and movies, an increasing amount of younger teens are intrigued by the subject. This curious thought then translates into action while ignoring the negative consequences of sex. Most teens around the country have sex on their minds whether they have received abstinence program or comprehensive sexual program or neither. Abstinence-only program does not work, and this embarrassing pregnancy pact scandal only further denounces the effectiveness of the US government's policy against teen pregnancy.

The US government considers children of today as the wealth of tomorrow, yet it fails to provide teenage women the best sexual education they well deserve. Why? Because the US government has not separated itself from faith. 95% of the US population declares themselves as having some kind of religious affiliation, and most of these people are strong advocates of abstinence programs. With politicians' religious interests and lobbyists lobbying against comprehensive sexual education, failed policies against teen pregnancy have not been revised nor reconsidered. The US needs change; it needs to change in order to keep tomorrow's wealth healthy. It needs to change to keep America going. The change must start now, the change starts with comprehensive sexual programs.

2.2 They are all relative

In a capitalist nation, consumption is an essential part of the economy. The idea of consumption is inevitable. For every human, reason is essential when more than one choice is presented in front of a person. The idea of reason is also inevitable. Why? Because reason and consumption go hand in hand. How? Reason is caused by desire; without desire no one would bother to picture themselves in the future, no one would change the world into a better environment. In addition, consumption is also driven by desire as well. Without desire, people would not buy, would not want and the world would not grow nor advance. Reason and consumption, together, drive the human race to advance, to reshape the world into a better environment for the future generations. To illustrate this point more straightforward, desire is the cause of making the decision, reason is the method of making decisions and consumption is one of the most important factors to determine decisions.

Consumption itself pulls nations together and promotes reforms and revolutions from different aspects, as I mentioned in my last post. However, it also makes history and defines the definition of reason in each era. The desire to discover and obtain initiated people to explore and reason. This desire changed the world entirely, as it helped fuel the Renaissance period. In the Renaissance period, traders traded with merchants from around the world to get a variety of products in order to fulfill their desires of exploring and obtaining "exotic" products from the ends of the Earth. Their curiosities helped shape the world; their desire also provided the foundation of capitalism. Desire gave birth to reason and consumption; they coexist, for as long as reason exists, consumption will always part of society.



In the modern world, where the dollar sign is an universal language, people reason and take their financial status in account when making decisions. For example, no one would buy a BMW when he/she is living under the poverty line even though he/she wants that particular car. Reason and consumption are two of the most important factors when making decisions and in each decision we make, we make history. Not only do we make history, we are making changes for the future generations. History, consumption and reason: they are all relative.

2.1 Consumption

(Top: Hong Kong in the 1950's. Bottom: Hong Kong in the 2000's)
Today's world is all about consumption. People of all ages are consumers. Many say consumption is a form of destruction, a form of separation. However, as a student studying Economics, I believe consumption gives the world a better tomorrow rather than harming societies. Consumption may be believed to destroy some societies because richer countries take advantage of economically disadvantaged countries. However, while consumption might destroy old societies, richer countries bring all countries together and help bring the disadvantaged better societies by increasing their living standards.

People consume everyday because it is a way of society. Consumers not only help stimulate the global economy, but give nations a chance to work together. Disadvantaged countries such as the Philippines, Bangladesh, Mexico and Jamaica all need investments from richer countries such as the United States, Germany and France in order to have better, higher living standards. To increase living standards, rich countries provide jobs for the unemployed and in return, these rich countries ask for their services. Without assistance from richer countries, these countries would lag behind and cause a gap in diverging living standards, GDP, and social reforms. The increasing demand for products increases the countries productivity and wealth. Also, consumption gives everyone an incentive to strive to do their best using their special abilities. If the act of consuming had never suggested, students would not be in school, doctors would not save people and engineers would not try their best to create innovative technology for the people. Consumption is not only a form of incentive, but also brings people around the world together.

Putting the money perspective aside, consumption also helps initial revolutions and reforms. Because of an increasing consumption of products, employers hired women and children to work starting in the 1900's. These women exchanged their thoughts and launched a series of protests advocating women's rights. Also, due to increasing consumption and prices, families decreased their familial size in order to reduce the burden of high price of goods and services. Women asked for a more effective way to prevent pregnancy and that caused the invention of birth control. Birth control revolutionized and redefined women's rights. Aside from women's rights, children also earned their rights to get proper education from schools nationwide. Without an idea called consumption, children would not have received any basic education and women would not have earned the rights they deserve.

Consumption does not destroy societies; it only destroys old, inefficient ideology which cause backwardness in some nations. Consumption is not as bad as most people see; it is only one of the methods to improve societies for our future generations.

1.3 My Chaotic Week

As crazy as it might sound, I have called the police, went to court, had a huge argument and a life threatening experience this week. This week is definitely far more dramatic than any television series I have ever watched in my entire life. How interesting, how dramatic? Well, let me rewind my memory to last Tuesday, and let you be the judge.

I am living with a girl who was my neighbor last year. Since she was the first person I met when I was a freshmen, she and I had a close bond between each other. And because of this bond, she and I had decided to leave together when the annual housing question arose last year. In the recent months, her boyfriend and her have been harassing me because of a couple of misconceptions. I ignored them because I didn't want to start arguments. However, about ten days ago, she suggested to me that she would be moving in with her boyfriend in the coming academic year. Moreover, she commanded me to look for someone to replace her in the lease because she believes that it is my responsibility to find someone to take her place. Out of anguish, she and I had a little confrontation on Tuesday night. That confrontation got out of hand and her boyfriend came into the apartment and harassed me verbally and physically. Fearing about his next move, I called the police. The police told me to file a restraining order against my roommate's boyfriend and tell the apartment manager. So there I was, on Wednesday afternoon, at the apartment manager's office the next day telling her my situation. The manager, probably fearing a possible lawsuit against the owner of the apartments, called my roommate and threatened her with a possible joint lawsuit (the owner of my apartment and me) against her. And then on Thursday, I went to the Woodland Court House to file a restraining order against my roommate's boyfriend. I waited for the entire day for my restraining order but the judge could not make a decision on the same day. So here I am, complaining about my chaotic week and waiting for a restraining order.

Although this week seems more dramatic than a Spanish soap opera, I have learned a couple valuable lessons. First, never confront to a roommate who has a uncontrollable boyfriend. Second, always call the police when a confrontation goes out of control. Third, never spend the entire day waiting for a restraining order because it takes two days. And lastly, always wipe out all misconceptions because they turn into hatred. For me, it was a valuable lesson learned and I hope you will learn a lesson or two from my chaotic week.

1.2 Revolution and Reform

“...Revolutionaries Wait
For my head on a silver plate
Just a puppet on a lonely string
Oh who would ever want to be king?” – “Viva La Vida” by Coldplay

Throughout history, societies deconstruct and form new revolutions and reforms. Because of advance technology and increasing knowledge, more and more people demand more dramatic changes to perfect their societies in recent centuries. I think revolutions and reforms are not only limited to the political aspect, but also to the gender, race, technology, economical and educational aspects. As student with an Economics major, as well as a feminist, I believe Economics and individual rights, as well as politics, are the fundamental foundation for a better society. Changing only one factor of the fundamental foundation will not change our society; instead, changing one factor might conclude in a negative effect. Now, let’s decode the real meaning of revolutions and reforms.

I think the top reason why societies change is because of money. As a economics major, money explains human behavior and ideology which affect their point on other issues. To explain this a little better, let's use women for example. Women were not earn money for the family before the 20th century. Because of the raising demand of cheap goods and labor, and higher living standards, women were forced to work in factories to relieve the burden of the families. With increasing amount of women working together, thoughts and ideas were exchanged. With these new ideas, women turn these ideas into voices and demanded equal rights. Because of a simple theory of supply and demand, it has formed a foundation for revolution and reforms. As a proud supporter of women's rights, I majored in economics because I believe money is the root of revolution and reforms.

As a child, I grew up in a home where domestic violence was very visible. Both my mother and myself were the innocent victims of such unspeakable crime. My friend is experiencing domestic violence from her boyfriend and I have started thinking about the importance of feminism. Without the first feminists, such as Mary Wollstonecraft, to launch peaceful protests against men, I, along with many other women, could not be here and receive a better education to expand my mind. Thanks to feminism, I am here trying my best in school to honor the activists, who had fought hard for women ’s rights, respect those who believe in me now, and prepare for another battle for the women of the future. Today, women have a chance to change the society; all women can make a difference. Past activists set up the stage for today's women to perform our best to prove our ability, and I am willing to perform my best to help set another stage so that the future women can prove their strength.

In Keywords, deconstruction is a "strategy of complication", perhaps because deconstruction is a method of decoding issues we face, and we understand the issue at hand, we call for reforms and revolution to lead our society a better tomorrow. And since, as history has shown, reforms and revolutions are a method of solving a series of complicated issues, deconstruction is a strategy of complication.

1.1 Book Hunting

As I was walking to the Bookstore, I was thinking, "I hope this class will not turn out to be as bad as the other writing classes I have had before..." Then the memories of my previous writing classes appeared in my mind. I shook my head, and said, "Oh god, I don't want to write!" I entered the Bookstore and walked down the stairs. From the stairs, I saw people walking into people, talking on their cell phones, copying ISBN numbers, etc. There was only one word to describe the situation- chaos. I, unwillingly, walked toward to the banner which says, " UWP". The shelf was empty. Then I said to myself, " That is not a good sign." I took a few steps back and looked for another "UWP" banner. I didn't see one, so I took a few steps to the right, and there, I found some UWP books. There, I saw many " ______ Guide's to Writing" books and some novels like Into The Wild. Suddenly, I realized I was smiling, maybe because I don't have to do many formal writings in this class, or maybe because I hate stupid writing guides and novels. Either way, I thought, " I guess this class is really different, well, it better be different. I'm not gonna have a life if it isn't." I grabbed a copy of Keywords and paid. Outside of the cashier counter, I saw a good friend of mine whom I haven't seen in month. We chatted and left, and I thought, "Today's a good day, maybe this is a good sign."