Margaritas and Tattoos :)

(I had to take the picture lol)

It was a time of celebration! One of my best friends was getting married so all of us girls got together and went out for margaritas that night. We were having a great time talking about life and the future. One of our friends had recently separated from her husband and was learning to become independent again. My friend who was getting married was embarking on a new journey with her future husband. Each of them wanted to do something to commemorate these events forever. They decided to get tattoos, one wanted to represent freedom and the other unity.

Therefore, the quest to find the best tattoo parlor in Pensacola Florida was on. I was so excited because I do not have any tattoos, never seen anyone get one much less ever been in a tattoo parlor. This was an entirely new experience for me and I was not sure what to expect. I figured it would be like you seen in the movies where a big, mean, tattooed, pierced man comes out ready to inflict pain. I thought the place would be small and run down and maybe even unsanitary. I was really hoping this was not what we would find and I am glad I was wrong! The place that we went to was very classy, clean, friendly and most importantly, it was sanitary! However, a big, tattooed, pierced man ready to inflict pain did come out. He was not mean though, he just truly enjoyed his job of tattooing and piercing. He made the girls he was tattooing feel very comfortable and even us who were not getting tattoos were having a great time. He gave us a tour of his shop and then he started telling us about work that he has done and where all he has gone to continue learning the new and current techniques to make the best tattoos possible. In the middle of our conversation, a wild-eyed little boy came stumbling into the room. He had been awaken from our loud laughter (must have been from the margaritas) and asked us to keep it down just a little because he was trying to sleep. I was very shocked to see a child in the tattoo parlor because I would never dream of having my daughter there. However, it was interesting to learn that the tattoo artist was a single father and he had to do whatever he could to provide a good life for his son. Even if that meant building a room in his tattoo shop where he could sleep while he worked late nights to make a little more money. I think it was at this moment that we realized that we were all the same, that he was not just the tattoo guy anymore, but also a single, hard-working father just trying to do the best for him and his son.

Well the tattoos started and he began with my friend Kelly, the one getting married. She was about to become Kelly Young and wanted to get “young” put on her body somewhere to represent her new life with her husband. At the same time, she was a little afraid of tattooing a name on her in case anything was to happen. Therefore, she decided to put “Forever Young” to represent the phrase, being young and youthful forever, and meaning she was going to be a Young forever as well. She surprised her future husband by sending him a picture of it and he loved it. Both felt that this was a show of their commitment to each other and their marriage. He later got the same tattoo so it became their act of a “forever” love between them.

My friend Jessica was the next to go. She is the one that had recently left her husband after a long marriage of pain and infidelity. She was ready to become closer to her family, friends and God. She wanted a tattoo that she could always look at that would remind her of the strength she showed when she finally walked away from him. She could not decide whether she wanted to get a tattoo on her wrist (where she originally wanted) or on her inside ankle. The reason she was going back and forth was because of she was thinking about the future and was afraid she wouldn’t be able to get a regular job with a tattoo on her wrist but then she finally decided to follow her heart and decided to throw caution to the wind for once and do what she wanted. Therefore, she got a beautiful cross on the inside of her left wrist that was full of beautiful green and pink colors.

When he finished the tattoos, both of the girls were very happy with their accomplishments. These tattoos were an example of a rite of passage in each of their lives. Even though it was not a formal ceremony, they marked a change in each of their social statuses and it recognizes a new set of social relationships that have been produced.  I was excited to have been a part of an event in their lives that would be with them forever. I do not know if I would ever get a tattoo, but it was great to see the importance that these artistic expressions meant to each of these girls.

 

Me and Jess :)

Me and Kelly. I was trying to make her laugh lol :)

Peace, Love and Buddha

Tall, enormous buildings, adorned with intricate gold details and designs in the foothills of a beautiful valley in an Asian country. This is what I pictured when I thought of a Buddhist temple. I was not aware that Buddhist temples were so easily accessible in our communities like churches. You can blame that on my ignorance of the religion. When William Anderson began inviting members of our class to attend a service with him at the Buddhist temple, I was very excited and intrigued to find out how different and alike this would be to my own religion.

Religion is a set of beliefs in supernatural beings and forces directed at the helping people make sense of the world and solve important problems. According to our book, many anthropologists have observed over the years that all societies have some level of recognizable sets of beliefs and behaviors that would be considered religious. Buddhism and Christianity are separate religions but share the fact that both have been part of the revitalization movement, because their aim is to breath new life and purpose into society.

I grew up a very conservative Christian. I am the daughter of a pastor and missionary and the niece of the Director of Hispanic Ministries in North Alabama. Christianity has always been an extremely essential part of my life. Being a Christian and having a strong personal relationship with my Lord Jesus Christ is an important part of my life that will continue to infiltrate my day-to-day activities and influence my thoughts, choices and behaviors in the future. However, this was not always the case. There was a time in my life that I was not sure why I was a Christian and I began to question our beliefs and practices. However, the more I learned about other religions, the more I came back to Christianity. I reviewed Buddhism very briefly during this time and there were some things that immediately stood out that I knew I didn’t and couldn’t ever agree with and dismissed my further studying of the this religion. The hardest thing I could not come to grasps with is the belief of reincarnation. Especially because they believe there is a possibility of being reincarnated as an animal, even an insect. In addition, Buddhists do not directly pray to anyone. They do not pray to Buddha himself, they meditate on his teachings. This was hard for me because when I pray, I would like to know there is someone who is all-powerful and listening to my thoughts and petitions. Even though I knew that I did not agree with the beliefs of Buddhists, I was excited to accompany William to learn more about his religion and his choice to convert.

I met William at Barnes and Noble and we rode to the temple. We pulled into a small strip mall and if it were not for him being with me and telling me it was the Buddhist temple, there is no way that I would have known. However, when we walked inside, there was color and decorations everywhere. William told me that each painting or ornament symbolized a specific meaning. When we walked into the temple, there was a wall immediately in front of the door. In between, the wall and the door there were about 15 pairs of shoes. I immediately realized this meant to take our shoes off before we continued inside. I am glad I wore flip-flops because they were very easy to slip on and off J the reading had already begun, so William helped me get a mat and pillow to sit on and we each got a book with prayers and meditations. William told me to place this in my lap. I later read on the website for the temple that they do this out of respect and reverence to the holy text. We sat for a while listening to the teachings of Lama Ven. Tenzin Deshek. Afterwards, they began reading prayers out of the book. I could not bring myself to recite them because it felt wrong reciting texts of a different religion than my own. However, I read the words to the prayers and it was very interesting that they reminded me of many scriptures we have in the Bible. Many of the teachings are the same and this was something I did not expect to find. Then Lama Deshek rang a bell and meditation began. There was complete and total silence. It was so silent it almost felt like other people could hear my thoughts! I believe this was a time that the Buddhist meditated over the prayers, meditations and teachings they had just received. I took this time to reflect upon my own religion and prayed to my God. We sat there for what seemed forever and I have to admit my butt began falling asleep! This was the biggest part of culture shock for me because I come from churches where we have a band, a lot of music, a lot of standing and praising. We have prayer and meditations, but even that is usually not quite. We also have many kids at our church and I was very curious as how children would be in this type of setting. However, if the children were born into this culture, it is normal to them to sit for a long period in total and utter silence. This is an example of enculturation. The children learn the culture from their parents and friends that are a part of that culture. Their behaviors and ideas are learned. Therefore, they acquire the behavior of silently sitting through the meditation services. Afterwards, the Lama rang the bell again and this signified that the time of meditation was over. He stood up and everyone stood up. I did not know what we were doing but I seen everyone bowing down as he walked by so I did the same. I felt very uncomfortable not knowing what or why I was doing that. I decided to do it anyways though because I was a guest and even though I do not agree with the teachings of Lama Deshek, I respect him.

After the service was over we cleaned up the mats and pillows and they passed around candy, cashews, and the best tea ever. We were able to sit and talk for a while and I was able to ask William many questions as to why he converted to Buddhism. This especially interested me because he is the son of a minister as well. He told me that he had been researching and doing a lot of reading into many religions and Buddhism felt the most right to him. There was a specific quote by the Buddha that attracted his attention that he felt put Buddhism on a different level than other religions. The quote is “Do not accept any of my words on faith,believing them just because I said them. Be like an analyst buying gold, who cuts, burns, and critically examines his product for authenticity. Only accept what passes the test by proving useful and beneficial in your life. The Buddha” I have to admit that there were some questions that I asked William that we had completely different views on and I was slightly offended at some of his answers but I was glad to know that he kept everything 100% real with me. Buddhism and Christianity share many great things. However, at the end, I stand by my choice to be a Christian, but was happy to be able to have a better understanding of Buddhism.

Lama Deshek

Me standing in front of the alter. Every piece on the alter has a meaning and represents something significant in the Buddhist religion.

Babyyyyy Loveeeee

Puuuuush! Puuuuush! Breaaaaaathe! Puuuuush. Puuuuush! Breaaaaath. This is what the delivery nurse kept reciting to my sister on the morning of March 18, 2010. An hour later, the most beautiful baby boy made an appearance into the world and I fell in love! Garieth Landon Etherton was born at 8:25 a.m. He was 8 lbs and 19 ½ inches long!


Throughout most of her pregnancy, my sister experienced strong Braxton Hicks contractions. Her and her husband made many trips to the hospitals, which would always end in a “false alarm.” The night before she delivered, she was already a week over due, she was huge because her placenta was growing on the outside of the womb which caused her belly to poke out further than normal, she was miserable, and still running around after a one year old! She began feeling contractions but we all decided they were probably Braxton Hicks contractions once again. Early Friday morning (the 18th), she awoke to find her water had broken throughout the night. This was the real deal. It was time for us to make our way to the hospital because after 9 months, Landon was ready to come.

This was my sister and brother-in-laws second child. He was very unplanned and unexpected, coming only 15 months after the birth of his big sister. However, they showed as much enthusiasm and love for him as they showed for their oldest child, Mia. Even though I had given birth myself 4 years prior, it was a new and exciting opportunity to be in the room while someone else gave birth. It was my turn to become a participant observer instead of being the one observed!

After getting to the hospital and once her pain level began to increase, they were ready to give her an epidural. It was surreal to see the length of the needle they put in her spine! When I went through the same procedure, I did not think much of it since I did not see it actually going in my spine. I only felt a small pinch and before the needle was pulled out, my legs were already tingly and my pain disappearing. This was not the case for my sister. She started shaking violently, which they said could be a side effect from the epidural, but then her right side went numb, while her left side was still feeling maximum pain. We had to get the anesthesiologist back in there very quickly so he could fix whatever was going on. He took the epidural out, let her rest a minute and tried again. By this time, the contractions were coming so close together and they were so severe she could not sit still long enough for them to insert the needle in her back. If they attempted it, they could cause permanent damage to her spinal chord. They decided they would put some local anesthesia to her groin area so she would at least have some type of pain control when she gave birth. When they were beginning the injections, the baby was crowning. They did not have time to give her anything, not even Tylenol! I experienced some strong cultural shock because even though I had been through the same process myself and even though I work as a nurse aide and have medical experience, I had no idea what to do in this situation. All I knew was that my sister was in agonizing pain, she was having this baby natural and he was coming now. I quickly jumped beside her and helped her hold her legs up. She was getting so weak and tired from pushing for so long. After a little while they told her they needed to speed up the process because my nephew had his umbilical chord wrapped around his neck so many times, if they didn’t hurry up he would lose too much oxygen and he could become unconscious. There were also, so many people in the room (it is a teaching hospital) and I felt my sister was feeling frustrated at so many people gawking at her completely exposed and in pain. I finally took control and told them the only people that needed to be directly in front of her were the doctor and her nurse. I told the rest of them to step aside and give her some space. I also remembered using the birthing mirror during my daughter’s birth and it was completely essential in knowing what I was doing. I quickly got it for my sister and put it in front of her. She could not talk much because she was so exhausted but I know she was smiling at me with her eyes and that was exactly what she needed. Out of nowhere, she got a second wind and an energy and drive that had me in complete disbelief. She was so brave and strong and even though she was shaking from fatigue, she knew she could not give up, the life of her unborn son depended on it. With a newly found drive, she continued pushing and delivered Landon within 5 minutes. She was relieved it was over, but the concern was still not over. The doctors worked quickly to cut the umbilical chord off his neck. When he came out, Landon was blue and not crying. My heart was breaking, however, I had a feeling he would be ok. After what seemed forever, we heard the most beautiful cry I had ever heard. They wrapped him up and immediately brought him over to Leslie (my sister). I began crying tears of joy and happiness.

This event was of epic proportions and importance to my sister and her husband. They just brought a life into this world and for the rest of their lives they would spend nurturing and raising him to be the best person he can be.When they finally brought him over and handed him to my sister she immediately began crying and could not stop kissing him. They began to instantly form a special type of kinship system, known as the mother-infant bond. They began developing an intimate, intense and long-lasting relationship. Through this kinship, the new parents will instill strong bonds of security, love and moral obligation to what they, the parents, believe to be the socail norms. I know from experience, giving birth is one of the most amazing experiences in the world. However, watching a birth is something truly miraculous and beautiful. This is and experience that I will never forget for the rest of my life.

 

Leslie and Mark about to leave for the hospital!

Mia was getting impatient and she wanted Mommy :)

Mark and Leslie ready to see their little boy!

I couldn't believe how beautiful he was!

The proud aunt!!!!!!!!!

Garieth Landon Etherton

The proud cousin, Jazzlyn and proud big sister, Mia keeping each other enertained :)

Hey Soul Sista...

Veal, black-eyed peas, collard greens, rutabaga and corn bread. This was some of the most amazing food that I had ever tried and I could not believe it had taken m e 23 years to try it! I had the privilege of going to Nikki’s West with another member of our class, and extraordinary woman, Judi Cunniff Olsen. I was really excited to get to try some authentic soul food as well as being in some great company. Judi was my cultural broker and she did a great job explaining the restaurant, procedures and food to me.


When I seen the sign for Nikki’s I immediately noticed that it said “steak and seafood” right below the title of Nikki’s. This threw me off a little because for some reason, I expected it to say “authentic soul food” or something! I pulled up and Judi is patiently waiting for me to get there. We walked inside and the first thing that I noticed was that every person standing behind the buffet line ready to serve was African-American. We told them about our project at school and they were very friendly and eager to point out some great food to try. I asked one of the servers what was his favorite food; he told me it was veal. Therefore, that is what I decided to try. I was not sure what veal was but I was looking forward to trying something new. Later on, I asked Judi about it and she told me veal was a baby cow!!!! I was a little disgusted for a minute at the thought of eating a calf! This is an example of how culture can influence of bilological processes. I felt disgusted because of my culturally blessed idea that eating a baby animal was despicable. However, after a moment, my hunger took over and I finished it because it really was delicious! After getting all of our food, they directed us to our table. The restaurant was split into two different rooms. Judi told me most of the time they are both completely packed and the hosts are communicating back and forth with each other to find a place to accommodate all of their guests.

We sat down and began to enjoy our food. I fell completely head over heels in love with soul food!! I could not get enough of it. Rutabaga is my new favorite vegetable! As we ate, I noticed that even though every server was African-American, every waitress was Anglo-American. I thought this was an interesting mixture. There were all different kinds of people eating there also. They ranged from old to young, couples to singles, Hispanics to Whites. This was a very diverse restaurant and it seemed the mutual love of great food was able to knock down cultural barriers. Something else that Judi pointed out that I thought was very interesting is that Nikki’s West is run by a very influential Greek community and family in the area. I was very impressed with the blend of ethnicities.

Throughout our meal, Judi and I had a chance to talk about each other’s lives and what we are planning and hoping for in the future and I truly believe that was one of the highlights of the evening. I took some of my food home to let my family try it and they were as impressed as I was. It is definitely something we are looking forward to eating again!
 

The best food ever! Veal, black-eyed peas, collard greens, rutabaga and cornbread!

Me and the lovely Mrs. Judi :):) I Love Her!!!

I Love Your Sushi Roll, Hotter Than Wasabi :)

Food….yummy!!!! I love everything about it, how it is made, how it smells but even more how it tastes! I was very excited to find out we “had” to try new foods for our culture blog! I was excited because trying new foods is actually a passion of mine. I have tried many different kinds of foods but the one I have never had a chance to try was sushi. I had wanted to go for a long time so this was the perfect opportunity to venture outside of my comfort zone again and explore a new culture with my taste buds!



At the beginning of the semester, I had tried hard to get a group of our classmates to go together to a sushi bar, but because college students are not known for having a lot of free time, it was nearly impossible to get our schedules together. However, I decided to go anyways, and took a friend with me who knew about sushi.


We went to Sakoa Japan Grill. When we first walked in I noticed there were regular tables and chairs where most people were sitting at, and then they had a room with a traditional table very close to the ground and cushions as seats. Strong Japanese details adorned the restaurant and it was obvious they were proud of their heritage and culture. However, for this exact reason, I was completely thrown for a loop when I started paying attention to the music that was playing in the background. The reason it caught my attention is that the hosts of the radio show were French! Not only were they speaking French, but also the music they were playing was American Jazz music. Talk about cultural infusion!


I wanted to try fish that I had never had before so after studying the menu carefully we ordered five different rolls and sashimi. The sashimi was salmon, tuna, yellow tail, and white fish. Sashimi is eaten raw, just the pure piece of raw fish. It actually did not have much taste to it. I did not really like it though because I love my food full of flavor.


The rolls that we ordered were Jimmy Walker, Matupitu, Thai Octopus, UAB Roll, and the Volcano. It amazed me how spicy almost every sushi roll was, but they were still delicious!!!! My favorite on was the Volcano which I thought, by its name, that it would be the spiciest one but it was the least spicy and my favorite. The UAB Roll was my second favorite. It had crab, crawfish, and cream cheesed stuffed inside with eel on the top!! That was my first time having eel, and it was a little spicy. The Matupitu was good but so weird! It consisted of spicy tuna & avocado inside, white fish on top with siracha, mayo, honey, nacho cheese, masago, & eel sauce! You would think these flavors would totally clash but it actually turned out pretty good. You just had to eat it without really thinking about everything in it J The last two were my least favorite, mainly because of their levelness of spiciness. The Jimmy Walker had beaded wasabi on the top of it and I did not know that until after my mouth was already on fire! However, the Thai Octopus was even worse! WOW!!! Talk about spicy!! It was the smallest of the rolls but it literally made my eyes water and I started sweating! I could only eat one of those and I drank about three glasses of water trying to cool my mouth. Overall, I loved sushi! I cannot wait to go again, and this time I have a better idea about what to expect!

                      The Sushi Chef.

                                The UAB Roll, Jimmy Walker,
Thai Octupus and the Volcano

Sashimi

Yummy lol

"The Anatomy of Hate: A Dialogue For Hope" Shutting Down the Negative and Raising Up the Positive

Main Entry: 1hate
Pronunciation: \ˈhāt\
Function: noun
Usage: often attributive
Etymology: Middle English, from Old English hete; akin to Old High German haz hate, Greek kēdos care
Date: before 12th century
1 a : intense hostility and aversion usually deriving from fear, anger, or sense of injury b : extreme dislike or antipathy



According to the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, hate is derived from fear or anger. From personal experience, hate can often lead people to perform outrageous acts of violence against the person or persons their hatred is geared.

On Thursday, March 25th, UAB hosted a screening of the documentary, “The Anatomy of Hate: A Dialogue For Hope,” a Mike Ramsdell film. The night consisted of a large group of students, faculty and other Birmingham area residents watching the documentary. I attended this filming with William Anderson and Judi Cunniff Afterwards, there was a Q&A dialogue session directed towards two different groups on UAB’s campus: Life 180 and Birmingham’s Free Thought Society.

The documentary was so powerful, moving and heart wrenching. It vividly showed the hostility that overwhelms our world today and the affects it brings. Many of the subcultures Ramsdell interviews are thoroughly consumed with ethnocentrism. They believe they are superior to all others whether it is by their religion, sex preference or race. Something I realized very early on in the film is that hatred is part of enculturation, meaning that culture is learned and passed on to the children of the new generations. There were many examples of people still fighting their ancestor’s war because they passed it down from generation to generation. At one part of the movie where they showed some of the kids that were part of the white supremacist group, my stomach churned. These little angels, straight from heaven, grow up with hatred engraved in their hearts. There were even parts through the movie where I broke down and cried. What Ramsdell did with this film is unbelievable. He brought these stories together to make a film that has touched me forevermore.

After the film, a dialogue session followed. Audience members asked questions directed to two different UAB groups, one Christian, the other agnostic/atheist/etc. The dialogue was intense at the beginning with the first commenter stating the men who did not believe in God were fools. The director was able to jump in and take the conversation back over pretty quickly. I am a Christian and was sitting in between a Muslim, Buddhist and among other nonbelievers [of God]. It was interesting to see the different reactions of my fellow students when other audience members made certain comments throughout the dialogue session. The time that I felt the most uncomfortable was when a girl began asking questions about the Bible. The people around me began to huff, puff, and shift in their seats. They made it very clear they did not want to hear it. Regardless, I believe the dialogue focused too much between Christians and non-believers, rather than a dialogue session about the actual movie itself.

Overall, the film was so inspiring. It is a reminder that we have the choice to have hatred in our lives or not. It is infused in our minds like something we cannot change, but rather it has grown in our hearts. It is our choice to raise it up or shut it down.

Main Entry: 1hope
Pronunciation: \ˈhōp\
Function: verb
Inflected Form(s): hoped; hop·ing
Etymology: Middle English, from Old English hopian; akin to Middle High German hoffen to hope
Date: before 12th century
intransitive verb
1 : to cherish a desire with anticipation

Me and Judi (William ran off...lol we didn't know where he went so we took it with just us together)