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“Don’t be dependent on anyone else—man, woman, child, or dog. I want to go everywhere, look at and listen to everything. You can go crazy with some of the wonderful stuff there is in life.”--Shel Silverstein

The Devaluation of College Degrees

I was reading a post somewhere written by a PhD student in physics. He was lamenting on how degrees have been "dumbed-down" and are no longer for the elite. They have become easier to obtain because of less requirements. Instead of being for the very intelligent and hard-working, those with less than above-average abilities can get college degrees.
He said that there are many people who persue master's and doctoral degrees in sciences who don't have big questions they want to answer. It is bad for science to have people studying it who are not passionate enough about what they do. Also, since the degrees have become easier to get, there is not as much knowledge behind that diploma as there used to be.
I remember hearing the same thing said by V.S. Naipaul. When I was an undergraduate student, I went to see him speak just after he won the Nobel Prize. During a question and answer period, he stated that it would be better for students to obtain science degrees rather than arts and humanity degrees, because many of the requirements for them have been taken away. For example, students of English literature used to have to learn Old English and now no longer have to. Instead of degrees going to elite people, they are able to be given to more of the population. That idea stayed with me. I had never thought about that.
Yet still, most people haven't been highly educated. I do know that the vast majority of the population, even in industralised nations, do not have college degrees. The higher the degree, the less percentage of people there are that have them. In 2005 27.7% of U.S. citizens had a bachelor's degree, 8.9% had a master's degree, and 3% had a doctoral degree. Those figures are similar or less in many other industralised nations.
Obtaining a degree shouldn't just be about getting a piece of paper to get a job, it must also be to want to learn something we are passionate about. If we aren't passionate about what we study, then we should just study something else or stop studying altogether. Yet so many people are just after a piece of paper. Of course, with that piece of paper comes many job opportunities, which without that piece of paper they would not exist.
I do wonder how many people who get accepted into Master's or PhD programmes are just in it for a degree. How many of those people want to be scholars, experts in their fields, or how many just want job advancement?
I do doubt that quality standards will ever be the way they were many years ago. Nobody wants to be told "no", so things will still be made easier so more people can get the degrees.

On the Future

Today I was teaching my students about future goals. I had them each make a timeline about what they want to do. For an example, go to college at age 20, get a good job at age 24, get married at age 30, etc.
I made a timeline for my future. I said that I would like to get a master's degree in a few years, and also would like to get a doctoral degree eventually. The students in the front row (all girls) said "when are you getting married?". I said "I don't know". Truthfully, I believe it doesn't matter anymore. It did matter to me at one time, but not now. I think having academic achievements is more important to me.
I do wish that I made different choices in the past. I wish I already had a master's degree. I can't change the past, so it's not worth it to beat myself up over it. I can just look to tomorrow. I am not that old yet, either. I am just going to be 30 in a few more weeks.

Getting a Makeover

I have decided that I need a makeover. I should dress a lot nicer. I have been wearing clothes that have been old or out of style. I decided to get rid of a lot of them. I should also dress up more often when I go out, rather than throwing on a pair of jeans and a shirt. I should try to wear skirts more often too.
I do think I should get a friend to go shopping with. I need some feedback on what looks good on me.

Marriage and Having a Baby

Today in class I was talking to my students about changes in life. There was a list of eight things in the lesson. They were, in no order:

1. Getting married


2. Moving Out


3. Graduation


4. Getting promoted


5. Retirement


6. Falling in love


7. Having a baby


8. Getting divorced

I asked the students which would be the most happiest of all those things. The girls were almost unanimous that "having a baby" would be the most happiest thing. The next happiest thing would be "falling in love" and "getting married". The boys thought that "graduation" and "getting promoted" would be happiest, and some did say "getting married". Having a baby was about #2, #3, or #4 on their list.
What is it about so many women that they think having a baby would be the best thing for them? Well, first there is that motherly instinct that is almost universal about women. Also, society seems to say that having a baby would make any couple deliriously happy. It is like the idea that being in love makes us completely happy.
I have known some childless women that have nearly drove themselves mad over the fact they didn't have a baby.
I had a teacher in middle school who was married a few years and childless. She was in her late twenties and wanted a baby as soon as possible. Her husband was still attending school and was later looking for a job. Her husband told her it wasn't the right time to have a child, and that they should wait until later. He was forcing her to take a contraceptive every morning at breakfast. She fought with him a lot about it, and told the students at class about it. She one locked herself in the restroom to cry for a long time. The students coached her, telling her to hide the pills under her tongue. After a few years she and her husband moved out of the area and later had two boys. All that fighting and sadness was for nothing.
I knew a couple for many years who didn't have children. The wife wanted a baby badly and tried everything. She tried IVF and lost the baby. The couple looked at adoption domestically, in Guatemala, and later China. They were raising money to adopt a Chinese baby when the husband finally had enough of it all and divorced her. She is now somewhere in her 40s and will most likely never be a parent.
Do we really need children to be happy? After a baby, couples have less time for intimacy, less money, and more things that they will have to compromise. With usually both parents working, they have to balance their jobs and a family. Are parents really happier than childless adults? Honestly, I don't think so.
It is true that parenting can be rewarding for those parents who put in the effort to do their best and their children in turn are kind to them. Yet it is possible to have a good life and be satisfied without children. They are not necessary for happiness.
I shall say the same thing about being in a relationship: it doesn't guarantee happiness. With so much abuse, people being mismatched, and making mistakes; they don't make us happy all the time. It is possible to be single and happy with it as long as we don't make ourselves miserable over the fact we are still single.

"Jesus Rifles"

The U.S. military has entrusted the company "Trijicon" with making scopes for its rifles used in combat. The company has been putting coded text references from the Bible next to the serial numbers. It can be dangerous since the USA is trying ot prove that it's not fighting a "holy war" against the Middle East. U.S. military personnel is not allowed to proselytise over there. There is also the separation of church and state that doesn't allow religion to be forced on anyone.
The company was founded by a devout Christian who died in 2003.

North Korean Tours!!!

Going to North Korea will make someone very interesting. In conversations where people talk about their travels, saying you have been to N. Korea will halt conversations. You will suddenly become the most interesting person in the group.

North Korea has again opened its doors to U.S. citizens for tours. I was reading www.cnn.com and I was surprised to find that out. There is one company that runs those tours. I went on the "Koryo Tours" website and they have many tour packages. I am not someone who usually likes a tour package because I like to go off the beaten path. Yet, North Korea is one of those places where tourism is restricted and guided tours are a necessity.

I know that Geumgangsan (Gold River Mountain) is a popular destination. Kaesong is a seaside city that also attracts tourists. Baekdusan (White Head Mountain) is on the Chinese border. Pyongyang has many things to see such as their subway, an an art museum with North Korean art, and many statues of Kim Jong-il and Kim Il-seung. Statues and paintings of both the "dear leaders" are all over the country.

I don't know much about the visa rules for other countries. I do know the Chinese and South Koreans go there often.

The same company also offers tours to Turkmenistan as of 2006. That is another destination that isn't common. It takes a long time to get there though, more than 30 hours from Seoul. Central Asia, along with the Middle East are the closest things to terra incognita for the 21st century. There are ancient cities and beautiful landscapes to see.

Things are looking up

I haven't had the best of luck until recently. I went to the doctor yesterday and he says I don't need to come back unless I get more lesions on my skin. The psoriasis has gone from my body except my legs, but they are getting better. I do hope it all disappears before late Spring, so I can wear skirts again.

Andy Warhol

I went to see an Andy Warhol exhibit at the Seoul Museum of Art today. I liked it a lot. Warhol was an interesting character. He supposedly had an I.Q. of around 86, which would be bordering retarded, but would still be in the normal range. It is also suspected that he had an autistic disorder. If he did have an autism spectrum disorder, that would explain the way he obsessively collected things, made many pieces of art that were similar and yet had their differences in shades and colours.
I didn't know much about Warhol before I saw the exhibit. There were his famous drawings of Campbell soup cans, a portrait of a boy picking his nose, and his Marilyn Monroe portraits. There were also portraits of other celebrities like Sylvester Stallone, Princess Diana, and Ingrid Bergman.

He had a sort of fascination with death. He made an art print of the 1962 jet crash at Orly in Paris. It was en route to Atlanta, Georgia, USA and was carrying mostly art enthusiasts from an art society. They had gone to Paris for the art, and were returning home. 130 people died. He also made many prints of an electric chair and an ambulance disaster.

I liked the exhibit a lot, even though I am not a huge fan of pop art. I prefer impressionism and some types of post-impressionism. I like dadaism, symbolism, pointillism, and some cubism. I am glad I took the time to go out and see the exhibit. I still think the Renior exhibit I saw last year and the Picasso exhibit from a few years ago was better.




electric chair





Ingrid Bergman as a nun, like in "The Bells of St. Mary's".

Haiti Earthquake

HAITI, POPULATION 0, HAS BEEN DESTROYED BY THE GREAT EARTHQUAKE OF 2010. FOR MORE INFORMATION, SEE: THE ISLAND FORMALLY KNOWN AS HAITI

The Island sunk into the sea Wednesday afternoon

That was actually on Wikipedia this morning. I hate it when people write stupid stuff like that on the site!

www.peopleofwalmart.com

Darn. Here in Korea there's a similar chain store called "E-Mart". I don't think I see many entertaining people there though. Americans are entertaining. Wal-Mart has become a freak show.

Vacation and Infected Leg

I went home for 2 1/2 weeks. I lived with my mother and aunt. There were also five cats and two dogs. I brought over the two kittens I rescued a few months ago. They are doing good in their new home. Suzy already likes to sit on my mother and aunt. Jasmine is more shy though. Violet, my Siamese cat, likes to antagonise her because she is jealous that I left her for a year and brought home two kittens.
It was good to see everyone. I didn't think it was enough time to really see everyone I wanted to see, and do everything I wanted to do.
I left for Korea by first going to Hartford, Connecticut and then to Washington/Dulles airport. I then flew straight to Tokyo. The ride was 13 hours long and my leg was throbbing badly. I couldn't sleep at all because of the pain. I have had psoriasis for a few months now and it is still on my legs. One of the sores has become infected.
This morning I went to see the dermatologist again and he prescribed some antibiotics by mouth, but he also had me get an IV of antibiotics. I stayed there for an hour and had an IV dripping into my hand.
I do hope this infection clears up soon and I no longer have to get psoriasis treatment. I had never had it before last year.

I am back.

I made it back to Korea in one piece. I went from Hartford, Connecticut to Washington D.C./Dulles to Tokyo/Narita and then to Seoul. What a trip. I had a bad nosebleed for a while and my leg throbbed. My psoriasis is still on my legs and one of the lesions on my right leg is infected. :(

The United States annoys me.

I have been in the USA for two weeks now. I have been able to see the USA from an outsider's prospective, since I have spent at least two and a half years abroad. I realise how silly typical American culture is.
I have been watching television because it has been cold and snowy outside. I think so many of the things they try to sell on television are totally ridiculous. No wonder so many Americans are in debt, they buy so many things they don't really need. Clutter is a common problem in many American homes because of all the stuff people buy.
Here is a "potty patch" for your dog to whiz inside the house. Wow, keep your dog peeing in the house! It looks like real grass!!!!


Here is a neck exerciser. Yes, people can waste their money on this crap. Can't someone just do some neck exercises by just using their hand to their neck and just move their neck up and down? It does work, and it will save money.

Those are just a sampling of the stupidity I have seen on American television these two weeks.

There is a popular reality TV show called "The Biggest Loser" when people suffering from obesity go on TV and try to lose their weight. This season has teams of two family members competing against other teams. The people who lose the biggest percentage of body weight during the show will win. To begin with, they had to be weighed in public, in front of their towns. When they arrived at the ranch, they immediately had to do 26 miles on exercise bikes. They also had to do treadmills for long periods of time. I think they would be better off if they each had their own individual exercise programmes and started exercising gradually, and then worked up to more intense things.



One thing many of the obese contestants complained about was the fact they couldn't find love at their size. That is sad, because if someone really loves someone else, they wouldn't care so much about looks. Also, I have known many fat people that got married. I myself am a thin person and I haven't found a match yet either, so being thin doesn't guarantee a successful love life. Also, being confident and loving one's self regardless of size is attractive.

00s: a crazy decade.

Honestly, I think that the 00s was a stupid decade. When it was the 1990s, people complained about how silly the music was, how terrible the fashion was, and how society had degraded. I would like the 1990s back please. Yes, even with the ugly grunge style and the Monica Lewinsky saga. I am sure most of the world would agree with me.
The 00s Hall of Shame:
George W. Bush!!!
Reality TV
Recession
Bank Bailouts
Hurricane Katrina
Mugabe
Terrible girl groups/pop princesses like Destiny's Child, Hannah Montana, Britney Spears, Avril Lavigne, Miley Cyrus, etc, and etc.

Yet there were some good things:
Lord of the Rings
Pixar (then they sold out to Disney, noooooo)
better cellphones and laptops
China opened up more (and more jobs moved over there)
North Korea had more talks (yet they fired off some missiles)

YUCK! What a stupid decade!
And what on Earth was Jennifer Lopez wearing on New Year's Eve in New York City?!!!