Reading/Doing List

Reading:

Sister of My Heart, by Chitra Divakaruni

Harper's Magazine, current issue

Drinking Coffee Elsewhere, by ZZ Packer. ("Ant of the Self" is an amazing, nuanced and heartbreaking story).

Stars in My Pocket Like Grains of Sand, by Samuel Delany

Doing:

Went to the big ANSWER anti-war march in Frisco today, after going back and forth for the longest time about whether I would go. I've been to my fair share of marches, and although I feel that they are necessary and important for movement-building, I go back and forth about how effective I feel like they are in terms of changing policies, stopping wars, and doing the things that they claim to be doing. For the most part, the marches I've been to--the orderly, slightly staid marches where the routes are all pre-set and legal and there's no real surprises or targets for our demands--have felt more like self-indulgent leftist walking parties, where I get to see a lot of folks that I've known and worked with over the last ten years. But are they really helping to sway public opinion about the war? I'm not so sure.

It was nice to see a lot of the youth that my organization works with at the rally, from both our San Jose and Oakland offices, as well as youth (I'm talking high-school age here in case you didn't know) from other Oakland youth organizations. Didn't recognize any of the Filipino lefties that were marching with the usual red flags--but that's cool; I'm glad it's not all the same folks marching in the same demonstrations. Some of the young folks from Californians for Justice had never been to a march like this before.

Worked on my novel today. Getting a good number of pages done this week, after starting a new novel log to help make my writing more structured.

Got a haircut with my old hairdresser from a few years ago. Have a mini-set of bangs now, a mere 1/2 inch section of shorter strands that barely graze my right eyelid. My hairdresser assured me, "It's what everyone wants right now." I didn't have any alternative in mind.

Had dinner at the fairly new HCW: Home of Chicken and Waffles in Jack London Square tonite. Cool place, nice vibe. H. and I were the only non-Black folks in the place, besides the Latino bus boy and a random blonde white dude in a suit that wandered in to pick up his to-go order. It's the kind of place that makes me happy to be back in the 'Town again.

Peace,
Rona