soctober16-blog - Tumblr blog

[soctober16-blog]

9/16ths of second. 

That's all it took. 

15 years ago Janet Jackson was labeled that hypersexualized Black woman that purposely wanted to show her nipples in front of millions during the Superbowl half time show. At the time I was only 7, so I did not understand the complexity of coverage that depicted Janet Jackson as the sole perpetrator. 

What I grew up to understand was white male privilege was real and the countering of Justin Timberlake’s media blame proved just that. After viewing the video multiple times  I pondered why the blame was not on Justin Timberlake since it was evident he pulled the clothing off of Jackson. But then I stepped back and realized Janet Jackson was not only a woman, but a Black woman. Justin Timberlake was not only a man but a White man.  On top of the Jackson’s “Provocative” music it was easy to blame Jackson. This blame narrative is not new though.

Throughout history blaming Black women because they are deemed to be sexual creatures has dated back to slavery. This blame turned into an actual caricature of a Jezebel. A Jezebel can be described as a promiscuous and seductive Black woman. This narrative frames Black women to be sexual creatures that gave further justification for exploitation. 

The explotation of Janet Jackson can be seen through a framework of body politics. Janet Jackson was blackballed by not only by the MTV but the CBS network. Justin Timberlake was not. White male priveldge could explain this.  15 years later Justin Timberlake was allowed to perform at the Superbowl again. Do you believe Janet Jackson will be extended the same offer? 

Holland, S. L. (2009). The “offending” breast of Janet Jackson: Public discourse surrounding the Jackson/Timberlake performance at Super Bowl XXXVIII. Women's Studies in Communication, 32(2), 129-150

[soctober16-blog]

Americans’ top frustrations with the tax system:

• 62% are bothered “a lot” by the feeling that some corporations do not pay their fair share in taxes • 60% are bothered “a lot” by the feeling that wealthy people don’t pay their fair share

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[soctober16-blog]

Redefining My Bullet Journal System

The bullet journal is probably something you’re no stranger to. It’s been circulating around the internet for a while, and it’s one of the main subjects of studyblr posts. However, when I started college last semester, I found that I no longer relied on my bullet journal to organize my tasks and structure my responsibilities anymore. Instead, I tried out a bunch of productivity/task-organization apps: Taskade, Actions by Moleskine, Any.do, Todoist, Wunderlist. None of them seemed to have what I needed, so I decided to give the bullet journal method another try.

The first thing I reflected on was why I stopped in the first place. At first I thought it was because the method itself allowed for a lot of freedom and I’d get confused as to what things to include and how to structure everything. But then I realized that it was in fact because I had previously been bullet journaling for other people instead of myself. Since I had what one could call an ‘artsy bullet journal’, I tended to focus more on the artistic aspect so that it would get more likes and reblogs after I posted it, when I should have been focusing on how it can organize my life. I realized that the bullet journal is a tool; the focus should be on life itself, not the bullet journal, but you can use the bullet journal to add value to your life.

At the beginning of the year, I deconstructed my organizational needs and attempted to apply that to my bullet journal method. I stopped looking at other people’s bullet journals and started thinking about my own needs and preferences. I thought about how I would best organize my time so that I could accomplish all of the things I want to accomplish in the different aspects of my life.

Supplies

The fact that I only have 2 main supplies allows me to bullet journal anywhere, anytime.

The Structure

The Practice

Simply having the tool to organize your life isn’t enough - you should also have a practice, a habit, for using it.

Going Forward

One thing I’d like to work on is future logging. As of now, I think in terms of months, since the my main commitment at the moment is my education, and monthly planning has worked out for me. But I think if I’d like to tackle on larger projects - e.g. my YouTube channel that I just started - I’d need to do a lot more future logging.

Another useful thing I want to try out is to summarize my journal entries in the form of notes. Recently I’ve been audio journaling (15-20 minutes of me talking to myself), and it’s been pretty effective. However, I have no way of ‘skimming’ the entries like I would a written journal entry. Summarizing them would help me retain main ideas of each entry and remember the things I said that are or could potentially be important and useful.

Final Thoughts

If you don’t think your bullet journal is adding value to or improving productivity and organization in your life, I think you should reconsider the way you’re approaching the system. I found a method that works for me; yours might be different. While it can be beneficial to draw inspiration from other people, do whatever helps you the most, not what other people tell you you should be doing. After coming up with an appropriate structure, make sure you maintain the practice.