a friend of mine sent me this article, and its a list of the "top ten most hipster campuses" across the country. The schools on the list aren't particularly surprising, but what struck me was how encompassing their standards of hipsterdom are--so broad that practically anyone can be considered a hipster. Which only confirms my belief that of all the sub-cultures we studied, hipsterdom isn't sub at all. Hipsters are popularly defined by their anti-conformist nature, but does listening to the radio or wearing flannel or being interested in art really count as non-conformist? My father begs to disagree.
http://collegemagazine.com/editorial/1911/The-10-Most-Hipster-Campuses
samantha levy
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The Power of Four
I came across this speech by Tom Hanks a few years ago. It is his address to the 2005 graduating class at Vassar College. While its opening metaphor of gridlock made me think of traffic and the rush and occasional inconvenience of urban life, its underlying message made me reflect on urban isolation. If there was a movement to help, in whatever way that may be, I feel like a sense of community would be more prone to develop even in the most rat-invested and depressing urban environments. The two things I noticed when I came from California, was that people actually smoke cigarettes, and people actually hold the door. I do not know if the phenomenon only exists in the northeastern community or at the entrances of Snell, Rebecca’s, and my dorm, but it was a pleasant surprise and certainly a help when my hands were full. That simple action made me feel like I was part of the Northeastern community, and the Boston community by proxy. That simple action of holding the door for someone could combat the harsh life and the dreary nature of life alone in the concrete jungle. The same concept could be applicable to the beautification of the urban (guerilla gardening). If just four out of one hundred people took it upon themselves to plant a flower, there would be 21,704 more flowers in the city (according to the 2010 census). I think that is amazing. Although the last third of the speech is a slightly more applicable to those graduating soon, the part about “what the hell do I do now?” caused me to reflect on the comments made about Anthropology as a major. “What the hell do I do now?” I believe it was eloquently stated by someone, “whatever you want to do.” I encourage everyone to what his speech and take the message to heart, the first link is the first 9min and 30 sec of his speech and the following link is the last two and half min.
Helen
Food & the City
My roommate's mother is as poignant as she is beautiful. When asked about navigating Boston, she shrugs lightly and says, "All roads lead to Chinatown." A month later her words are still floating around in my head.
Food is a tragically overlooked indicator of a global city. In fact, the integration of new styles of cooking and food is, in my mind, a necessary element of any city that claims global status. Perhaps, the most important necessary facet, far above development and wealth which only effect a limited number of individuals and as we've read cannot be considered the only attributes of global city status.
In particular, the presence of Asian inspired alterations to menus inside and out of restaurants all over a city, say Boston, radiate from the establishment of Chinatown, whichever city you may be in. (Or for that matter, any ____town or Little____ which may vary from city to city.) People move in, new foods become available, new restaurants open, things are shared and adopted.
In my mind mixing and blending of taste and style is always a good thing. Anthony Bourdain, (one of the main players in the food-anthropology trend which has been made increasingly accessible by the Travel Channel) shares my sentiment that in terms of local food, global influence can only make things better. The clip shows the range of influence which can be seen through food in cities from Lebanese to Szechuan in this specific example. Yet most importantly for this discussion, towards the end of the clip featured, about 13:00, there's a conversation about how the surge of immigration after strict limits where lifted in Melbourne and the effects of a developing Chinatown on the local preference for food. Within the episode, No Reservations: Australia, which if you have Netflix you can watch, you can see how more and more restaurants (and thus people) are adapting Asian inspired dishes from cooking style to ingredient choice. Is this an occurrence symptomatic of a global city? Have all food trends (the growing popularity of sushi is another different but intriguing example of global food influence) originated from global cities in some way?
Perhaps in the debate between global or not we should look at food as primary source of information since it is the ultimate reflection of the people who inhabit the city and the global connections and networks within.
- Alexis Brinkman
A good chuckle
I found this online, and I thought it had alot of great humor in it and I hope you guys enjoy it!
Helen
If you're from Boston:
You'll know who the cahdnal is, how to take the T to JP and what the blinking red light atop the old Hancock Building means in the summer (in winter it means snow is due).
If you're smaht, you'll never get cahded at the packie (liquor,or packagestore).
You only eat italian sausage outside Fenway Pahk before a Sox game with mustid, peppahs-n-onions.
You might be from Boston if...
You think of Philadelphia as the midwest.You think it's your God-given right to cut someone off in traffic.
You think there are only 25 letters in the alphabet (no R's).
You think three straight days of 90+ temperatures is a heat wave.
All your pets are named after Celtics or Bruins.
You refer to 6 inches of snow as a "dusting."
Just hearing the words "New York" puts you in an angry mood.
You don't think you have an attitude.
You always 'bang a left' as soon as the light turns green, and oncoming traffic always expects it.
Everything in town is "a five minute walk."
When out of town, you think the natives of the area are all whacked.
You still can't bear to watch highlights from game 6 of the 1986 World Series.
You have no idea what the word compromise means.
You believe using your turn signal is a sign of weakness.
You don't realize that you walk and talk twice as fast as everyone else.
You're anal, neurotic, pessimistic & stubborn.
You think if someone is nice to you, they must want something, or are from out of town.
Your favorite adjective is "wicked."
You think 63 degree ocean water is warm.
You think the Kennedy's are misunderstood.
Dumb Massachusetts Laws
Boston
Urban play
This is the website of OakOak, "a French artist who likes to play with urban elements."
OakOak's work is very minimalist--only adding a small element here and there--but it creates very powerful and amusing images! Below are some of my favorites on the website:
- Rebecca Willett
"Gated Communities: Building Social Division or Safer Communities?"
http://uam-antropologia.info/web/articulos/goglia_gated_communities.pdf
This study takes a look at gated communities in Mexico City, home to people ranging from lower-middle class to higher-middle class, and how inclusion/exclusion of gates and fences work to sometimes provide more safety, sometimes not, and how they contribute to the residents' identities and perceptions of themselves, their neighborhoods, and the rest of the world. An interesting question posed by the authors is what people's perceptions of security and insecurity are, and what about these communities attracted people to live in them (they are the "non-urban" amidst the "urban").
- Rebecca Willett
"Disappearing in New York", or-- How to Be a Modern-Day Flaneur?
http://thoughtcatalog.com/2011/disappearing-in-new-york-city/
I found this article, and was reminded of our discussions about the flaneur and the possibility of a modern day one. Here, Ryan O'Connell makes an impressive case for it!
- Rebecca Willett
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