Around the Horn

The Cornell Cinema has been screening a series of documentaries and films that center around water.  Last night, my roommate Katy and I went to see Up the Yangtze, which centers around an impoverished family trying to make ends meets.  Realizing their inevitable eviction along with little-to-none government compensation they’ll receive as “illegal citizens”, the family decides to send their oldest daughter Cindy to work on a Yangtze cruise ship.  The damming completely exploits China’s history and integrity; the workers on the ship are taught what to say and how to act, the entertainer on the ship sings “it’s so easy to learn Chinese-y” while the tourists dress up in “traditional” yellow emperor robes.  The entire cruise centers around the fact that ancient villages and sites will soon be under water.  At the same time, the tourism industry helps China because it offers so many jobs and opportunities, to which many are grateful for.  The cinematography is absolutely stunning, seeing the juxtaposition of vanishing natural scenic beauty with concrete and metal.  As much as our media focuses on alarming economic growth and looming prosperity of China, the documentary rightfully counters the light-speed cities with the dire situation of many rural citizens .

I’ve noticed a subconscious cut in the number of coffee runs.  It seems silly, but spending $4 on a beveridge has never really appealed to me, lest it be Jamba Juice.  However, my indirect caffeine cut seems logical in a recession, but only perpetuates a vicious cycle.  Consumers are spending less, and retail shops and larger business are receiving less revenue.  With less money to go around, saving money Big Man style can mean budget cuts, layoffs, or restructuring.  Either way, if more people are jobless, there’s even less free cash floating around.  So that’s why Starbucks is closing another 300 store…my bad if the one in Collegetown is the next to go.

In a topic hitting closer to home, President David Skorton recently announced budget cuts for the university in light of hard economic times.  This is definitely trickling down to the Cornell community, as each department is expected to cut their spending budgets by ~10%; he is also taking a 10% cut in his salary.  At the same time, Skorton proposed that funding for financial aid continue for students, and I fully support him.  While students are “safe” from the job market, in the sense that their sole job is to learn and stay in school, their parents may not be so lucky.  Layoffs are rampant and it is difficult for parents to go back to school without making drastic changes in their family’s financial structure.  Cornell has been flexible and generous with financial aid in my case, making it possible for my parents to send me here.  Cornell is continuing its longstanding effort to assist students, and this is the University’s way of rolling over some rough patches, preparing students to brave through this recession.

I wish I were in DC right now for the inauguration, but I’m at work in Day Hall with the next best thing: the MSNBC live stream. I am excited to see that things are finally looking up and am optimistic for the next few months. I’m also a little obsessed with Michelle Obama, the epitome of a power woman, but I digress.

I’ve been getting a lot of flak for being a Democrat and entering the finance world. Some think that Obama will take money from the rich and giving to the poor. To be honest, I voted for Obama because I think that he will bring something new to the American political landscape. I voted for America, and while that may mean that I’ll be living a little more frugally, so be it. Either way, I’m an alumna in debt and Wall Street compensation is not really going anywhere within the next year or so, not unless the economy starts turning around and the bailout plan actually starts working itself out. In the mean time, I think America is aching for change, and I’m going to embrace this historic event–and wait to see what Michelle is wearing tonight.

After reading the news on Friday about Lehman Brothers’ call for help, I spent most of the weekend refreshing the New York Times, Bloomberg, MarketWatch, and all the other business-related webpages.  It’s surreal being bubbled off in Ithaca, not realizing the global impact that Lehman’s bankruptcy and Merrill Lynch’s merger with Bank of America will incur over the next few weeks.  I decided to hit the hay around midnight, thinking that nothing new would develop in the wee hours.

Just as I’m about to doze off, I hear a faint high-pitched tone.  I brush it off, grouchy that I have to re-fall into my dozing state.  Five seconds later, my housemate Courtney runs in.  “Jen, get up, the fire alarm’s going off.”  The house is pitch black.  I shuffle around my desk for my glasses and look at my phone.  1:28 am.  Wonderful.  After putting on a shirt (yes, it was that hot in my room), I drowsily head downstairs to the porch, where my other housemates nervously waited.

Linden Avenue looked like Kansas just before Dorothy and Toto were swept into Oz.  Leaves and trash were everywhere. The wind gusts had cut the power, and our house was not the only one with blaring fire alarms.  Little by little,  other Linden-ites crept out of their bedrooms.  The thrifty ones ran straight to Collegetown Pizza and CTB, since no power meant free food.   Our house called the police, and within 5 minutes, a firetruck was barging down the street to silence fire alarms.  We were back in bed by 2 am.

Everything seemed back to normal this morning until I read about speculation of the next Black Monday due to the Lehman and Merrill dealings.  The Collegetown blackout seems so petty when compared to the latest developments in the financial crisis, and that was the biggest wake up call of all.

My brother taught me a new expression the other day: “hhhnnnnnnngggggg!!! It supposedly captures the feeling of ready-to-explode stress/agony/pain.

I came home from NYC last Saturday to find that I had Jury Duty the following Monday. Under normal circumstances, I would have given the LA County Superior Court props for calling me in when I’m actually in town, but during my sole 2 weeks of freedom? Not especially thrilling.

To make things worse, I wasn’t picked to be on the 12-person jury–I was Alternate #2. I had to show up and listen to the proceedings, but in the end, I didn’t even have a say as to whether the defendant was guilty or not guilty.

The law system may well be one of the most inefficient. Worse than the DMV, because if you don’t show up, you are breaking a law. Yikes. One of the days panned out like this:
11:00am-11:30am–Arrive at Courthouse, wait outside court room
11:30am-12:00pm–One witness testifies
12:00pm-1:30pm–Lunch recess. Because 30 minutes in the courtroom really beat us down.
1:30pm-1:50pm–Lunch coma lag. Waiting outside the courtroom again.
1:50pm-2:10pm–Another witness testimony, and judge immediately calls for a 20-minute break
2:10pm-3:10pm–That was a long 20 minutes.
3:10pm-4:10pm–Longest courtroom session yet. Closing statements and a good 30-minute droning of the Judge.
4:10pm–Instead of using the remaining 20 minutes to deliberate, the 12-panel jury decides to reconvene tomorrow. Great. I have to come in again, NOT participate in deliberations, and listen to the verdict.

Total time spent in courtroom: 1 hour, 50 minutes
Total time spent waiting to enter the courtroom: 3 hours, 20 minutes
Does the ratio seem a little off to you? While it is our civic duty to serve on a jury, it’s hardly acceptable that attorneys and the whole system to treat us like dispensible units.

I guess the biggest disappointment was forming an opinion on the proceedings, yet not being able to voice and reason with the other jurors. The verdict (guilty) was surprising to me, and it would have been interesting if I could sit in the deliberation room and have at it with the jurors. Personally, I don’t think the evidence and witness testimonies could have proven the defendent guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, but the decision was not mine to make, unfortunately.

Well, look on the bright side. I got plenty of my summer reading done, I earned $15 dollars for a day’s worth of waiting (enough to cover lunch), and completed my service. With a hesitant pursed smile.

My prayers and thoughts go out to all the students, faculty, staff of Virginia Tech, as well as the victims and families of victims. This was a tragic loss of life and definitely a shocking wake up call. I cannot even imagine the pain and grief the VT family is feeling right now. It is chilling to think that something like this could ever happen in the US, let alone a college campus. This event has affected many of my peers as well as myself, as some of the victims were our age, 19/20, with a world of opportunity ahead of them, only to be cut short by a senseless and troubled man.
How can something like this be prevented? Hindsight is 20/20, and although the shooter fit the profile of a potential murderer, many of these indicators can pass right under everyone’s nose.

At the same time, I have read about the Asian-American/immigrant backlash this event has caused. These hateful comments sadden me, and I am in disbelief that students have the notions in their mind to even think that this event shows why America should not let foreigners through its doors. Many Asians immigrate to America because of the hope and potential this country instills in its citizens and promotes to foreigners. My parents came from Taiwan to study in America. They hoped for a better tomorrow, not just for themselves but for my brother and I. Both have worked hard and feel that coming to America was the best decision for the family, however difficult the cross-globe transition was to them. It is ignorant and unnecessary to assume that all Asian-Americans or foreign immigrants share the same twisted mentality. This event is the workings of one troubled student, not of the Asian-American community as a whole.

I realize that in order to continue writing a blog with varying material, most of my entries will inevitably be about my unpredictable weekends and not so much my routine Monday-Friday. If you really want to know about the highlight of this week, I finished the Thursday New York Times crossword!! (victory dance)

Friday night: a date with the Cornell Cinema and two of my sisters, Katy and Courtney. The movie? An Inconvenient Truth, a documentary featuring ex-VP Al Gore Jr. and our increasingly deteriorating Earth. Global warming is an issue that has been seriously overlooked by the general public as well as our government. The documentary highlights many recent weather phenomenons indirectly caused by global warming. Floods in China, typhoons in the southern hemisphere, Hurricane Katrina. Al Gore talks about the potential consequences the world may face if we continue this self-destruction. The lack of fresh water, polar bears drowning because of their neverending search for icebergs to rest upon. The most terrifying part of the movie involves satellite images with animation to show the effect of higher sea levels. If the polar icecaps ever melted, half of Beijing and almost all of Shanghai would be under water. Downtown Manhattan=underwater Manhattan. Think Waterworld (OK, bad movie, but you get the point). If policies do not change in the US for the next few years, we are in deep trouble (so tempted to write “deep water,” but I thought that was a little much). It is so ironic that the US is not willing to take extra measures to save our planet because they fear that these measures will affect economic growth; but how can you increase economic growth if half to country is underwater and rampant with hurricanes/tornadoes? Wait, I’m sorry, I totally forgot that capital is much more important than the well-being of the entire planet. Because when push comes to shove, I would take a block of gold over fresh drinking water and unflooded land? Please.

Goal of the week/year/life: Be more eco-friendly. Excuse me while I go turn off any unneccessary lights.

Yesterday, a score and half of Kappa Deltas went over to Rawlings Green up on North Campus for Phi-Tug. Yes, another fraternity/sorority philanthropy event, this time sponsored by the brothers of Phi Kappa Tau. Proceeds for this event went to Hole in the Wall Camps, an organization of camps for children with serious illnesses. What do we do? Tug rope. Teams of six sign up and are divided into groups to tug in a roundrobin fashion. Winners of each matchup are decided in a best-of-three faceoff. The winners of each group then face off and vie for a wonderful Phi-Tug trophy. Lots of intense tug-o’-warring, slipping, blisters, and plain clean fun. Props to my Kappa Deltas for rounding up five teams of six girls each (there were KD Phi-tug t-shirts EVERYWHERE), and taking 1st and 2nd place in the Girl’s bracket.

Although I missed the football game yesterday due to Phi-Tug, I did stop by Schoellkopf to support Big Red in another way: singing the national anthem. I am in Jock Jammers, an a cappella group consisting of all varsity athletes. Within our small group of 10 (2 guys!), we have representatives from Women’s Basketball, Rowing, Gymnastics, Equestrian, and Soccer, and Men’s Wrestling. The Jock Jammers were invited to sing the national anthem for the Women’s Field Hockey game. Although the crowd was small, it was definitely cool to step onto the turf and start off a home game. We nailed the Star Spangled Banner, so hopefully you’ll be hearing more anthems at various sporting events.

Staying on this light note, Happy National Women’s Friendship Day!

The ladies after our 1-2 victory!