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Data in Social Science

The science aspect of social science work is central to improving social systems. Data inform whether we are moving in the right direction or need to adjust our course. However, data and science must not be the center of our work; we must keep focus on children, families, and individuals, whose experiences are nuanced and filtered through systems that hold innate bias, which rests within the data . By maintaining awareness of these biases and their potential, we can keep people at the center of our work and focus on the true causes of injustice and pain that many families deal with. Lack of awareness can be a slippery slope to believing that individuals or families are themselves at fault for their situations, be it lack of housing, interpersonal violence, or other abuse. With data that are conscious of systemic issues and biases, we can examine the true issues at hand, such as racism , financial instability, and ableist policies.  What good are any manner of properly applied scien...
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Lemon Blueberry Breakfast Cake (aka, Creating My Own Wins)

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Let me start with this: Life is fucking hard and I don't blame you for skipping right down to the recipe. Lately (as in, since March 2020), it's been one thing after another. Staying home, avoiding people, doing what we thought was best for the kids, realizing that was not best for them or for us, and trying to survive hour to hour in the onslaught of anxiety, uncertainty, and decision fatigue. The kids are dealing with reintegration now, and it's hard in different ways for each of them. One is loving school and hates being at home, and the other doesn't know how to be social anymore. This morning, I felt tired, unappreciated, guilty, and broken all before 8 a.m. So I made cake for breakfast. The kids love pancakes, but the youngest only likes them with syrup or honey, and the oldest is never interested in a healthy side dish. Drop the "pan" though, and it's a different story. I added an extra egg to my favorite pancake mix, and poured it over a layer of f...
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Clairvoyance and the Coming Fall

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I'm about to reveal that I'm even weirder than you always suspected. Sometimes, I've just known something. As certainly as you know an apple thrown in the air will hit the ground, I've (impossibly) understood a future truth.  When I was 19, I barely knew a thing about this boy in my band class. Despite that, I felt a connection and knew that if he gave us a chance, we could last a long time together. I'd never even had a boyfriend before.  Ten months later, we started dating. We've been together 15 years. When we lived in New Mexico, I knew about our future daughter. I saw her dark hair, her dimples. At that point, I didn't even know if I wanted kids, but the image of her was so clear.  Ten years later, she is five and as vibrant and full of personality as I saw then. I share these as a precursor so that you can fully understand. When I say I had a Feeling, I want you to know what I mean. When Trump came down the escalator four years ago to announce his can...
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Day 2: All Connections Are Intimate

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I need to start keeping track of what's going on for my own sanity. I want to be able to look back and say that things really were going that fast - to say, I hope, that we seem to have worried for nothing. To remember the good in all of this. I also need way more therapy than I can afford (though I'm still getting therapy, trust me), and so I write. I'm labeling the days in accordance with my workplace shutdown. Day 1 (Monday) was my first day working from home to prevent the spread of COVID-19. I'm happy to overreact so that others will survive, so they don't have to worry about whether a ventilator will be free if needed. I'm also still recovering, three and a half weeks later, from influenza A and am not eager to be that sick again. Less than two weeks after my trip to Korea (by the way, I went to Korea!), I got sick. After a little prompting, I requested COVID-19 testing and was told that CDC guidelines wouldn't allow my doctor's office to do ...
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Walnut and Roasted Beet Empanadas (Also, Hi)

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Been a while. I'm posting this exclusively for the purpose of remembering what I made last night so I can make it again. But not on a weeknight - this was way too involved for that, what with two small and hungry children clawing at my ankles. At least the results were fantastic - Child Unit 1 spontaneously said thank you and that it was delicious! They're empanada -like, but I'm pretty damn white so it's likely I missed something vital. Apologies on that front. I was going to take a picture, but it didn't end up very photogenic. I didn't bother with the egg wash, so the pastry looked pretty blah, and the cream sauce looked exactly like the "grey stuff" from Beauty and the Beast. Shocking that Child Unit 2 didn't want a bite of it to tide him over. Mmm, grey stuff. Walnut and Roasted Beet Empanadas * 2 extra large beets (like seriously, huge), cubed 1/2 c. walnuts, chopped 2 T. olive oil 1/4 c. onion, chopped Greens from the beets, ...
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Personal Action Plan: A Rough Start

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Source I loved  Madison Mahdia Lynn's  suggestions, so I'm writing them out here. If you're feeling like a bit of flotsam in a sea of tears, give this a try for yourself - feel free to start from my list. Also, it's often the case that others can see you more clearly than you see yourself. Do you have insights for me? Let me know. STEP ZERO: Give yourself a moment to breathe. This was the first two weeks. Now I need to multitask. STEP ONE: Make a list of what you’re good at. Writing (incl. coming up with effective slogans and bringing humor) Knitting/crochet Empathy Patience Baking Listening Attention to detail Discount shopping Using the phone Passion for ALL THE THINGS STEP TWO: Make a list of your limitations. Public speaking (I can do it, and I might be good at it, but it's emotionally taxing) Inability to directly confront problems ... which is going to be fun for me Constraints due to having a toddler (time available, time of day issues) Li...
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The World Turned Upside Down: A Modernization

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Source The World Turned Upside Down was written in protest of Parliament. Legend says that the song, referenced in the musical Hamilton, was played by the British Army upon their surrender to the United States. Listen to me and you shall hear of government gaslighting, opulence, fear: Since  Galileo in days of yore, you never heard the like before. The truth is despised, “alt facts” are devised, And science is kicked out of town. Yet let's be content, and the times lament, you see the world turned upside down. Astrophysicists did rejoice to see gravity waves; others sang with one voice That climate change is humanity’s thing, that now genes may receive editing. ( Let all honest folk take example and note That truth is not false, being bound.) Yet let's be content, and the times lament, you see the world turned upside down.   Our  Commander thinks himself a king, reddens to hear we’re organizing; Upon the border he’ll set a wall; Muslims already are part ...
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