VOL. 1
ISSUE 1
SEPTEMBER 2017
MS.RPRSNTD
PERSONAL STORIES ARE FACTS
NOT YOUR SARAH.
OUR MYTHS ARE DEEP BUT, OUR FUTURE IS DEEPER. 1
A LETTER FROM THE EDITOR Many of us have had the experience of sharing or not sharing a personal story, with the fear that our words may sound fake or contrived to those who happen to hear. This fear, to me, springs from the obsession with credibility & legitimacy. AKA "authorship". It is this construct that creates this fear, and has caused us to ask - how often are personal stories misrepresented? The theme of issue 01 is "Personal Stories Are Facts". Our aim was to elevate people ready to Feature Story: Dating An Undercover Neo Nazi
tell their own stories, in their own words,
Photographed By Adrienne D. Williams
without fear. We asked all of our contributors to share a
My own story has taught me that I am heard best
story of personal misrepresentation. Jaleesa is
when I am seen as the authority of my own life.
our feature story who unravels a tale of dating
And until we see one another, we can assume
a man she later discovered was an undercover
those who profit from our division will
Neo Nazi (p.24).
continue to win.
We challenge you to read the stories, art and
Whether it be through the rise of "objectivity"
poetry without questioning their validity.
or the elimination of the personal "I" in
Without rolling your eyes. With out the impulse
writing, the modern Westerner seems to have
to fact check. Pay attention to the amount of
forgotten that facts are stories too.
times you hesitate to believe what you read. How often you question whether someone's shared
If you are struggling with listener based
story, is real.
dictatorship, imagine the voice of a wellresearched-person in your mind. Imagine the
In essence, we are asking you to take a break
sound of someone who is committed to always
from analyzing, dissecting and...
being "factual." Let this person speak in a
just listen.
tone that's sounds "official" to you. And enjoy.
Facts are dead and dying.
If you are feeling really brave, read a section
If you don't agree then just pick up a middle
outloud to a friend - or to someone who looks
school history book and try to use those facts
like they may need one.
to explain how we have the KKK running the White House. Or how "progress" has run us full
What the world needs more of now are personal
circle.
stories, told with the same authority with which we present "facts".
FACT: Everybody has a story. FACT: Personal narratives are the backbones of history. FACT: We have been strategically trained to stop believing the personal stories of billions (specifically stories of the oppressed).
SHOUT OUT to the homies that supported this
Look, many of us are enraged by the issues that
issue: Crystal Murphy PH.D, Justin Bauer,
are reemerging in our culture. So radical
Prince's "Purple Rain" album, SDC, and the
action is needed. And our team has chosen to
California heat wave.
begin this work with the the revolutionary act of storytelling.
B.
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MEET THE ZINE MS. RPRSTND Zine is a donation based digital/print publication, inspired by the photography exhibition launched by Adrienne D. Williams in September 2017. MS. RPRSNTD Zine analyzes the implicit and explicit misrepresentations of Women of Color, through the lens of art, storytelling, poetry, and photography. The zine acts as a tool guide for navigating and unfolding layers of historical misrepresentation of WOC in media, culture, and politics. Contributors are invited to submit unique forms of art to the publication that complement and support each scope & theme. The goal of the zine is to mix artists, activists, and intellectuals under one publication, to examine, elevate and glorify personal narratives and biases.
MEET THE STAFF EDITOR-IN-CHIEF & LAYOUT DESIGNER: BRITTANY A. ESTRADA "ANYONE WHO CHOKES ON THEIR FOOD, SHOULDN'T SURVIVE THE APOCALYPSE" Hear This: "U.N.I.T.Y."- Queen Latifa CREATIVE DIRECTOR: ALI BUTTON "TO JUST BE...TO JUST LIVE..." Hear This: "Phenomenal Woman"- Laura Mvula TEAM CONTRIBUTOR: ROXY MORRISON
Staff Content: 7- An Ode To Little Kim 9-11 Future Female Saints 24- Palm Ross 42- Black Is Beautiful 44- Organic & Rogue 3- Tea Gurl 13- Who Said That 17-18 Palmistry:The Saturn Finger 19- Come Back Corner 40- Please Don't 43- Organic & Rogue
8- Introducing Nah. 12- Audrey Lourde Notes 14- Sketches Proceeds from this issue will be donated to Inner City Arts, LA Girl Skate Sesh & Flourish LA.
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MEET THE CONTRIBURTORS
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MS.RPRSNTD Photo Series- Adrienne D. Williams- Photographer. Writer. Brand Person. Daughter. Woman of Color. @msrprsntd
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Notes on Being A Black Female- Kiana Josephine Daniels- Warmth. @kiki_cuchoo
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An Interview with a Safari Dom- Hannah Juarez- What do you call a baby kangaroo that’s always laying around? A pouch potato! (I work at the LA Zoo and Natural History Museum n other cool stuff) pro cheese, pro choice. @misshannahgrams
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Abandoned Zoo Photo Series- Vianne Robitaille- Raised in the Michigan Northwoods and cultured by blue-collar Wisconsin grit. My photographs are visual manifestations of a desire to find the symmetry between austere physical form and the warmth of candid, human connection. @visceralantics
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Dating An Undercover Neo Nazi- Jaleesa Rosario Turner- A creative developer both professionally and personally. Most likely be the only black Icelandic person you will ever meet, because I have yet to meet another one. I exist to fuck up the status quo - I will continue to do so. @rjoaslaereisoa
31
Self Portrait & Fruit, a Poem- Premstar Santana- Actor, artist and filmmaker based out of Los Angeles, Ca. @premstarsantana
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Energizing a Self Portrait- Julia Childs
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PTSD - Bernadette Bolaños- A 22 year old poet of Nicaraguan and Guatemalan descent. After enduring years of sexual abuse, she started displaying symptoms of PTSD at the age of 12. When her panic attacks and night terrors feel overwhelming, poetry keeps her grounded. @bernie.smile
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I was not ladylike, nor was I manly- ADillaTheGENIUS- A self-taught visual artist|photographer. A.Dilla's works are contemporary, and conceptual while encompassing creative mediums such as graphic design, film, digital photography, photojournalism, collage, fine art, fashion, music, event, and the entertainments. A.Dilla has exhibited in the North American cities of Atlanta, Ga, Los Angeles, Ca, and San Diego, Ca @adillathegenius
37
An Interview with a White Passing P.O.C- Ruby Elise- Artist from Los Angeles CA. @rubybaby
41
Rant?- Crystal Murphy Ph.D.
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photos from Adrienne D. Williams @MSRPRSNTD
14 15
photos from Adrienne D. Williams @MSRPRSNTD
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PHOTOGRAPHED BY VIANNE ROBITAILLE
SAFARI DOM Like many events with Hannah Juarez, this event was filled with random laugh attacks, strange existential observations, odd findings of knicknacs in inappropriate places, and the normal "ARE YOU SERIOUS" response. Hannah and I have known each other for eight years. And in those eight years Hannah has proved her self to be the most daring self explorer I have ever met. The day of the interview proved no different. Before we stacked her taxidermied animals, exotic books, and soft furs in the Suburban she faintly mentioned that she was sick. She proceeded to show me pictures on her Iphone of what seemed to be her tonsils completed deformed and bulging out of her throat like coliflour. Just another walk in the park for Hannah. Barley, able to speak and in extreme pain, she kindly gave me a small lesson on the best technique for deep throat selfies. When we arrived at the Griffith Park Abandoned Zoo Vianne, our Swiss Army Knife photographer, Hannah and I chose a cage to set up a make shift working table. The method of the choosing was very Hannah-esque: Which one felt most like a nest. With a low hum of country music from her mouth, Hannah extracted, lip tuckers, recycled vitamin B syringes, a dental pick from an ex lover, suede wire brushes, fishing knives and repurposed medical scalpels. She was ready for the interview.
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"I ASPIRE TO BE MRS. FRIZZLE, IF SHE WAS A SAFARI DOM."
O
ne frozen opossum cradled in her arm like a cherished teddy bear, and three thawing Starlings in an old coffee cup were the last items she placed on her work table. "Okay, are you ready?" She asked with a big smile full of teeth.
How did you decide to get into taxidermy?
How do you make sure you keep true to
It just kinda happened. I was looking for a
nature?
new medium in art. I worked in sculpture
Reference reference reference. Looking at live
and floral design. I saw mortuary science
animals. That is why working at the LA Zoo is
took a few years to complete but taxidermy
perfect. Also, deep research. How do animals
could be completed in a weekend. So, I tried a
hold their bodies during the year? Does it
I began the interview trying to pretend I didn't already know the intricacies of her life (a game we should all play with our close friends). So I started small.
weekend class and as soon as I made the first
change? This is the art of taxidermy. You can
cut I fell in love. It brings me joy. If I can skin
get up close and personal with animals in ways
something it is therapeutic for me.
you would never be able to while they are living.
What is your favorite word today?
How do you describe your taxidermy
and have the foot claw around my hand. I deeply
work?
encounter animals and enjoy it.
Cunt
I have been able to pull tendons from the inside
Taxi comes from the root “to move”, What do you call dogs when you see them on
and dermy comes from "dermis" which means
the street?
What does it feel like to toggle back and forth
skin, so it means moving skin. So we taxi the
between live animals at the LA Zoo and
skin, we move the skin. I do my own work. My
taxidermy?
work is a juxtapostion of natural forms and
Most people would think it is a stark difference.
modern forms and angels. I work at my own
But for me, it is just working on another animal.
snake soon!
studio but I am a taxidermy apprentice at the
I love animals whether they are alive or dead. I
Natural History Museum which is super
practice ethical taxidermy. I work on animals
How do you characterize yourself?
fuckin' lucky. My mentor there is the only full
that have experienced natural death or
I aspire to be Mrs. Frizzle, if she was a safari
time museum taxidermist left. I am lucky to
Dom. This lends it self to who I have become.
abatement work. I take the body that may be
work under him. The work at the museum
buried or incinerated and I give it new life.
informs my personal work. There, Tim really
Whether it is for a museum so people can learn
pushes being true to nature, not just
from it or my own work so people can enouncter
anthropomorphized things, but being as true
their feelings through the art. These animals are
When did you start taxidermy?
to nature in their environment as they would
still living on, serving another function and
In 2013
be when they were alive.
purpose.
Doo doos Do you have pets? I have three silkworm moths. and I am getting a
Learning about animals and people. I am not spurred that I work in informal education I guess.
Do you describe taxidermy as your
How to most people respond to your
So… does the taxidermy effect your sex
profession?
profession?
life?
It is not a hobby. I don’t like when people
Most of the time I am just ready for an on
(laughing) I've never thought about that. I
call it a hobby because it trivializes the
slaughter of questions (she responds
forget how much of a weirdo I am. but when
work. For me, taxidermy AND working at
while popping the eye out of a Starling)
you list off the fact that I live in a death
the zoo are both my professions. I work with okay so… Most people ask me if I do my
chamber full of sex books I wonder. No one
animals, dead or alive.
taxes. And I say yes. Sometimes if I am
has ever said anything. I am sure they have
feeling impatient with people I just tell
thought it. but by then they should know my
Are there barriers while working in the
them I am an accountant. Most of the time
profession. A taxidermist's b edroom should
field?
when you tell people you are an accountant
be full of dead things.
With many professions there is a road map
they don’t ask questions. This doesn’t mean
set up for you. For example, if you want to
accountants are boring, I love my
How many mounted pieces do you own?
be a doctor there are paths to become the
accountant. But, it helps when I am not
I have four mounted ones in my room. But I
exact type of doctor you want to be. But
down to have a conversation.
have a jar of testicels, horns, pelts, feathers, skulls. I used to freak my ex out because I
b eing a taxidermist, there are no explicit paths to accreditations. It is one of the few
Do you enjoy talking about your job?
talk to dead animals the same way I talk to
professions left where t here i s an
I love it, I want to change the perceptions of
live animals.
apprenticeship. It is what people call hacker both jobs. People think zoos are places education. I am using traditional education
where animals are JUST locked up and this
Describe your accomplishments in a nut
to supplement my work, but I am interested
is not true. People also think that taxidermy
shell.
and passionate and because of that I will
is morbid and again this is untrue. I like
I went from competitive cheer competitions,
figure out how to do it. But, barriers...
giving zoos and taxidermy a different face
to southern baptist bible quizzes, to
hmm.. One of the biggest challenges I have
and voice and challenging people to look at
taxidermy competitions.
stems from the laws in California. They are
these jobs differently. How important is your style to you?
very strict i n regards to game use. I 'm from Texas, so I went backwards for this
What is the taxidermy community look
I think clothing is a language. W hat you
profession. T hat is why I lean towards
like?
wear speaks before words. I look the way I
museum taxidermy because I can work on
Female taxidermist are growing in
like, w hether it is the day, moment or year.
things that may usually be a felony in this
numbers, but the majority are middle aged
Sometimes I go through five outfits a
state.
white men. When we went to the WTC
day, m aybe cause of functionality or it just
(World T axidermy Competition) I was told
didn’t make me happy.
Is it normal to do taxidermy without
that some of the men asked why my friend
gloves?
and I where wearing costumes. We definelty
How do you think people perceive you?
Oh yeah. Maybe with certain animals, like
stood out. To be fair my hair was died half
I am a lot to take in. I know that. I am a big
armadillos because they carry leprosy which black and half white like Cruela Deville and
personality and I dress like it. I have
doesn’t die in the freezer, you wear gloves.
my friend was wearing skeleton fishnets.
accepted the fact that I am an only child
But m ost of the time I have meat in my
But there is a larger amount of younger
and I am a loud person. But I think people
finger nails and fat on my face.
people joining the art which is exciting
underestimate me because of the way I
(She answers this question while pushing
because the practice could die out. So with
present myself. People don’t think I can do
up her yellow framed classes, with bird fat
young interest the art can thrive and keep
as much as I can or assume that I am
on her finger tips).
its integrity.
shallow because of how I dress. But I am a capable woman. I build shit.
What is the coolest animal you have
Have you experienced push back from
worked on?
Vegans?
Cool is subjective. I love birds. And not
I have a s piel for vegans. If you are vegan
many people consider birds cool. My
for health reasons I totally get it. But if you
favorite bird is the Black Curassow. It has
are vegan because you do not want to hurt
black hair like a jerry curl and it is really
animals it's important to be aware that
freakin cute. Basically, if you had a big
thousands of animals are killed to protect
yellow body it would be you.
produce. For example, European Starlings are killed by the thousands, by farmers to
What happens when you rip a piece off
protect their organic crops. So, if you are
while you are working?
eating certain produce, on a vegan diet, to
Taxidermy is about tricks. Smoke-n-
protect animals, you may still be hurting
mirrors. I once ripped a head of a European the animals. I buy my European Starlings Gold Finch. Full off. Just pop! And you just
off the abatement workers from the farms.
sew it back on. No big deal.
People think that I hate animals. But, it is the exact opposite. I love them because they are napping forever ( while she pets her frozen opossum).
@MISSHANNAHGRAMS
"I USE TO FREAK MY EX OUT BECAUSE I TALK TO DEAD ANIMALS THE SAME WAY I TALK TO LIVE ANIMALS"
T H E A R T O F H E A L I N G DATING AN UNDERCOVER NEO NAZI AS TOLD BY JALEESA ROSARIO TURNER
WHAT DOES HEALING LOOK LIKE FOR A 28 YEAR OLD, QUEER AFRO-LATINA, BORN OVERSEAS, LIVING IN THE BAY AREA IN 2017...WHO ALSO HAD JUST STARTED DATING CIS MEN AGAIN?
It was one thing to be intimate with queer bodies, but my first cis partner (in a very long time), ignited a trigger, deep inside me. So I set out to do some ancestral healing. At the time of the photoshoot featured with this article, I was going through hell- deep in depression. Grieving the loss of mi abuelo and my many friends in the Ghostship fire. I had just escaped a relationship with a POC male who was hiding a double life. He was a Neo Nazi recording artist with a decent following. It’s easy to ask how a radical queer living in Oakland, California ended up there. I would see him around Oakland. It wasn’t until he started hitting on me while he was working at Whole Foods, that I took notice. I had been single for a while and had just left a high paying tech job to work independently as a creative developer and thought I wouldn’t mind discounts at Whole Paycheck and some dick on the side. I experienced various levels of abuse from our first date, but it took me five months to break away. How did I allow this emotional, mental and physical to abuse occur? I think back to my dedication to allyhood. In the queer community, we make it a point to show understanding and empathy as we suffer from various forms of trauma. Knowing that cis men are fragile, I found ways to rationalize his anger and pain.
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Photographed by Adrienne D. Williams
Photographed by Adrienne D. Williams
He was adamant about being addressed as a Lebanese man. He did not acknowledge he was actually half Lebanese American and half white, and was raised with no contact with his Lebanese family because his white-passing father tried to erase any connection with being a person of color. His mother, a gold digging white woman from Dayton, OH, wanted a rich ethnic man and white passing children. His story started to change. He started to claim the identity of being from Phoenician blood and a part of the Lebanese Maronites. He became radicalized to this idea that his Christian Nationalist blood line was superior to others because he had “seen war and death” the year prior. Which is a lie. He was on a very lush, safe family vacation.
He spent most of his time on a vineyard, occasionally driving through bullet torn towns of conflicts past. As a child of the military, I questioned his story and locations, but he would spin off in a rage - usually while we were alone in my house. He flunked out of college and dove deep into violent counter culture. He cut his parents off and by 2016, at the age of 29, he was sleeping on a couch in in East Oakland, during the city’s housing crisis. He told me he didn’t invite me over because he was embarrassed by his sleeping arrangement. But the real reason was, he was living in a Neo Nazi hideout: one roommate had KKK outfits bought on the deep web and was holding meetings at the house, and the other was a legit self hating black man. Meanwhile, I lived alone and he had access to me at all times, and would physically threaten me to allow him to stay.
He was obsessed with comparing who had a “harder life,” to the point of physical contact when the word “privilege” was mentioned. He was angry with everyone. He had little connection with people of color and wanted to identify as one, to me. He used me to cover up his racist antiblack hate speech music. He also used me because he “always wanted to be with a black girl,” he would joke. The night before we broke up, he tried to hit me at a friend’s show in San Francisco. It was the first time he did this in public and caused a huge scene. He gave me back my house keys, and the next day I went to Whole Foods to get water and realized he was pointing me out to his co-workers and yelling. Three days later, I arrived to my house being broken into and very personal items (only he would know the location of) missing. I spent weeks in pain and fear. I knew I was safe within my community and safe with the help of call out culture, but I was afraid of being written off as a “crazy ex girlfriend” as I began to uncover his double life.
During our relationship he was secretive of his music and only described it as “very angry and mean”. He asked me to never look him up online. When I did, I uncovered his affiliations with long running white supremacist bands, record labels and people. He has over 5 aliases all of which hint at violent behaviors. All the images on albums glorify white nationalists who have committed mass murders in America and he uses racial slurs in all of his music. His personal Instagram account was filled with Nazi flags, slogans and clothing. My life started to change. My community became more aware of the presence of Nazis in the Bay Area; who are able to use their POC identities to gain access to brown spaces. “What does healing look like for a 28 year old queer Afro-Latina born overseas, living in the Bay Area in 2017...who also had just started dating cis men again?” Was the original question I set out to answer when I was asked to be apart of this project. I wanted to take bits and pieces of my complete life story (ancestors included) to help heal the past; in this lifetime and ones prior. The use of rope helped me connect ancestral trauma with intimacy and my own narrative. These photos are more than just portraits to me - they are life saving markers. They remind me of how far I have come since then and what it means to be around supportive strong women, like Adrienne D. Williams. Being a part of this project confirmed that even at our “lowest” we are still inspiration to those around us especially as women… especially as women of color. Even though I was in some of the darkest times of my life - I was reminded my light could still be seen and others wanted to help me share it.
photos from Adrienne D. Williams @MSRPRSNTD
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photos from Adrienne D. Williams @MSRPRSNTD
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Survivors are
How do I explain to you That my PTSD is my oldest friend And my biggest enemy How can I get you to understand that I love you but I need my space right now What happened last year feels like last night And although you may not always be the problem, Challenge yourself to stop being the perpetuator I’m still working on this unlearning too.
3 times more likely to suffer from depression. 13 times more likely to abuse alcohol. 26 times more likely to abuse drugs. 4 times more likely to contemplate suicide. And 6 times more likely to suffer from post-traumatic stress
I can go weeks at a time being okay But the difference is that today I heard a whisper of the same excuses that convinced me to stay And the shadow caught up to me though I tried to run away I swear I wanted to tell you but there was a delay In the amount of panic That I could process In this Poem.
disorder. Otherwise known as PTSD. These are the numbers that society has tattooed across my body If we took off my clothes I’m sure you’d find them But I’d rather not Because I have PTSD Post Traumatic Stress Disorder Pretending To Still Dream Prying To Surpass Detachment Probably Tripping so Stop the Drama Parental Tension is Severely Damaging Pursuing Total Self Determination Poderosa pero Tambien Siento Dolor Our Lady of Sorrows Has taught me That love is pain So I walked blindly in her footsteps daily. I think that’s what they call faith. The belief in something bigger than yourself So that you give up control to the situation that you’re in. That sounds like how I got stuck here in the first place In a relationship I couldn’t explain With this parasite of a man who was addicted to my pain.
Life with PTSD means that I always have a plus 1 to the party On weekends we stay up late, cuddle and watch our favorite show America’s Most Traumatic Home Videos We drink soy lattes with a double shot of insecurity please I’d like to believe that You, Me and my PTSD
Sounds kinds sexy? So baby maybe you could come over And help my breathe through a panic attack Just like my therapist taught me!
Yes world I have PTSD Which means I create my own definition of safety And you know what? Being a survivor means waking up every morning And it’s always a great fucking day to be me. 34 33
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PHOTOGRAPHED BYÂ ADRIENNE D. WILLIAMS
RUBY ELISE.
INTERVIEWED BY BRITTANY A. ESTRADA
NAME YOUR FAVORITE SKATE PARK.
WHAT IS YOUR APOCALYPTIC SKILL?
South Pas.
Empathy.
WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE COLOR?
WHO IS YOUR FAVORITE SKATER?
My brother Zane Foley & Torey Pudwill.
Pink..I know it's lame...but I love it.
WHERE WERE YOU BORN?
HOW DO YOU REPRESENT YOURSELF?
I was born in the UCLA hospital and raised in Claremont.
My Mom is Jordanian and my Dad is French, German & Irish.
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE WORD? Compassion.
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"SKATING IS MY THERAPY"
WHITE PASSING W.O.C. CAN YOU SHARE YOUR CHILDHOOD EXPERIENCE?
I was never enough. On my Mom's side I was the white passing Jordanian. On my Dad's side I was always mixed. Didn't matter how engrained I was in my culture, cultural practice or even language I was too white or not white enough. It was a difficult struggle and I felt lost. But I have grown closer to my Jordanians roots and identify more with my Mother's side.
HOW DO PEOPLE OFTEN DESCRIBE YOU?
Most people think I am Latina, but I am able to pass as White. It really just depends on who I am with. I think most white people know that "there is something in me"... they just seem too scared to ask me what I am mixed with. Maybe because they don't want to offend me. But when I audition for a white female role it is my body shape that eliminates me from being white the most.
OH..I JUST ASSUMED YOU WERE LATINA HAS MISREPRESENTATION AFFECT YOUR DATING LIFE?
Not specifically. Most of the guys I date don't ask me about my family. The ones that do ask seem scared. I asked a guy I dated once why he would assume my history without questioning or engaging in conversation and he just said "OH...I just assumed you were Latina".
WHAT IS THE COMMON RESPONSE FROM PEOPLE AFTER LEARNING YOUR HERITAGE?
The most common response from people when I define who I am is " I WOULD HAVE NEVER GUESSED!". Maybe 10% of the people I have meet have guessed that I am Jordanian. That is because most people are ignorant to the diversity in Arabic women. The Kardashians made all of us Armenian.
WHEN DID YOU START TO SKATE? One year ago. I started working at a Utility skate shop with my brother. I was able to set up a board and followed pros. Eventually, I started to skate, but just for transportation. I say I have only skated for a year because I am not trying to be something I am not. But in the past year I was feeling stripped away by all the barriers of acting. I was constantly told to be someone else and surrounding myself with people that were only concerned with their outward appearance. Skating allowed me to connect with myself and other women who are down to earth. Skating is a therapeutic challenge for me. I am able to miss a trick or hit a trick but either way I get back up. One time at Sheldon I got down the first two drop-ins and on the last one I got speed wobbles and hit my head pretty bad. I had to sit out and gain my balance. In retrospect it wasn't a big deal - it is the type of pain that makes me stronger. I'm always honest when people ask me how long I skate, and honestly all that matters is that I keep doing it.
SHARE YOUR BEST SKATE MOMENT? In the store one day while I was checking out, the cashier saw my Diamond key chain and complimented it. He then said he skates and that's one of his favorite brands. When I told him that I skate he was stoked. We were instant friends. Honestly, it is what I respect most about the skate community. What you have in common with someone is evident and active. I have made a lot of solid friends just by dropping into a park.
EXPLAIN SELF REPRESENTATION. There are many grey areas in people's unique stories. I hope a half Jordanian half European girl is reading this, just to know that you don't have to define yourself just yet - or at all.
A RANT?
I wear a ring on that finger. Mainly so my colleagues and my students think I have a stable, mature, standard, happy life after work. I don business casual, resenting every hard-earned penny I spend this way. I'm paying for ugly things to keep my job. I wish I didn't know so well the market for these goods. Would rather the time spent on texting my femme colleagues, debating whether this costume will pass, on political economy. There's a sliver of my closet, though, hosting motorcycle gear and a basic cotton dress. And jean shorts. I wear those on weekends. Being a professor in the body I was given, born as recently as it was, I have to show them I'm serious about this endeavour and this endeavour alone. The phrase don't judge a book by its cover endures because people do. A leather jacket or a messy bun could undo years of writing. You know, I gather my looks primed that one reviewer who referred to me as "young woman" and "miss." At least the on campus act has gotten them to call me doctor or prof. So I actively, purposefully mis?represent myself. When I'm the one choosing, I find freedom. But not time, and barely rent. 57 41
INSPIRATION thank you.
VIBRATION thank you.
EVERYTHING YOU
ARE
IS ORGANIC
AND
ROGUE.
MOC.DTNSRPR.SM @ POHS
DECOLONIZE
YOUR DECK