Author

Sarah Birdsong

Creatrix. Wildling. Heathen. Born in a microcosm, possessed of different instincts.

The skyline of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
North AmericaTravel

A Weekend Visit to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

by Sarah Birdsong

Following our whirlwind tour of New York, we were off to visit Philadelphia. As previously mentioned, I found myself in the northeast visiting friends for a wedding I was to be part of. I wasn’t going to waste the opportunity to take advantage of my time there. This entry will continue where I’d left off in my previous piece, Visiting New York City. I’ve broken this trip into three separate installments: my brief stay in New York, my weekend in Philadelphia, and the wedding in Bensalem.

At this point, I’d enjoyed a brief and action-packed tour of some long-desired NYC destinations. I woke up sore from the many miles I’d hiked across the city with my wanderlust meter already brimming. That morning, we enjoyed one last breakfast with our Brooklyn hosts before piling into the 7th Avenue station for the train south. Sean was excited to get out of the city, but he was also bursting to show me Penn Station.

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The Information Kiosk of Chinatown, NYC.
North AmericaTravel

Visiting New York City

by Sarah Birdsong

I’ve known Stephanie for sixteen years. So when she asked me to be a part of her bridal party, the only word that sprang to mind was “yes!”

We’d seen each other through countless life stages and painful periods of growth. And I was more than happy to assist her in starting the latest chapter with her wife-to-be, Christine.

Luckily for me, Bensalem, Pennsylvania, found itself between two cities I could squeeze into my visit northeast. For the brevity, I’ll break this installment into three pieces: my New York City travel, my visit to Philadelphia, and of course, the wedding.

My reasons for dropping into New York were twofold, however. My uncle works and lives in the city and a visit was long overdue. He’s been a favorite of my extended family because of our shared interests in the arts. Having worked on Broadway building sets for the whole of his adult life, Uncle Bob has always fostered and nurtured my love of arts and music.

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Sean and Sarah in black and white before the Marriott Marquee, anniversary weekend.
Adventures

5 Ways to Celebrate Your Anniversary on a Budget

by Sarah Birdsong

It was January when I began to search for activities for my fourth anniversary. Page after page with variations on queries such as “budget friendly anniversary ideas + Atlanta + GA.”

I was rewarded with results telling me to create scavenger hunts. Or to serve him breakfast in bed. Or to write him a love poem.

I’m not saying those ideas don’t have merit, but they’re also chock full of Pinterest-level banalities. I wanted to get outside and do something while still being friendly to my wallet. Plus, you can do all of that without just writing cute little notes to your partner and tying them to a balloon that will go in a landfill in two weeks time.

Unreasonable expectations from social media have instilled the fear of missing out in the average person. It’s made us consumers of a well-groomed life which doesn’t exist outside of fairy tales. I want substance in my relationship, not platitudes.

Thus, we’ve had to find creative ways to make our anniversaries memorable while being conscious of our wallets.

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It may be a tad over the top in terms of tourist attractions, but I enjoyed our visit to this location in Toronto, Canada!
View overlooking the train station in downtown Toronto, Canada, from the hotel.
DJ Triskyl finally meeting DJ Todd in person after years of faithful listening in Toronto, Canada,
Wrapping up the evening in downtown Toronto, Canada, with Todd from RSA, and his wife, Melanie.
Our hosts DJ Todd from Real Synthetic Audio and his wife Melanie over sushi at NAMI, Toronto, Canada.
Alan demonstrates the proper Robert Smith hair flip over sake at Nami, in Toronto, Canada.
A signature of Toronto’s skyline, tallest free-standing structure in the Western Hemisphere, and the third tallest tower in the world in Toronto, Canada!
North AmericaTravel

A Weekend Dash Northward: Toronto, Canada

by Sarah Birdsong

We drove from Chicago all the way to Toronto for maple tea and poutine. Well, maybe that’s why I was there.

However, Sean and our friend Alan had far more concrete and manageable plans: to have an interview with Todd from Real Synthetic Audio to commemorate his podcast’s 20th anniversary!

In truth, I invited myself. But the boys were not going that far north without me, I could promise them that.

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A brief look over one of the beaches on St. Simons Island, Georgia, by the fishing pier.
The St. Simons Island Light lighthouse in, Georgia.
A brief look over one of the beaches on St. Simons Island, Georgia, along the fishing pier.
A Weekend Escape: a night on the Pier on St. Simons Island, Georgia.
A glimpse of our view for the weekend; an overcast ocean with quiet waters on the St. Simons Beach, Georgia.
My pack of degenerate fools on the beach at St. Simons Island, Georgia.
The northern corner of Driftwood Beach, Jekyll Island.
The northern corner of Driftwood Beach, Jekyll Island.
Entertaining our shutterbug sensibilities, documenting every square inch of worn and gnarled length of tree we could find on Driftwood Beach, Jekyll Island.
The northern corner of Driftwood Beach on Jekyll Island, Georgia.
The northern corner of Driftwood Beach on Jekyll Island, Georgia.
Driftwood bleached by the sun and preserved by salt air on Driftwood Beach, Georgia.
A Weekend Escape: feeding the local wildlife on Jekyll Island, Georgia.
A Weekend Escape: feeding the local wildlife on Jekyll Island, Georgia.
North AmericaTravel

A Weekend Escape: St. Simons Island, Georgia

by Sarah Birdsong

Our relationship with Sean and Nicole Barnes seems to consist primarily of last-minute adventures. Toward the end of January, Nicole asked us if we would be interested in driving down St. Simons Island, to the coast of Georgia to visit with her grandparents. The only excuse I’ve ever needed to do anything is, “why not?”

Plus, after consuming all the seafood I could ask for in Lousiana, I was eager for more. And My!Sean? You don’t need to ask if he wants to visit the ocean. St. Simons Island rentals and hotels were in short supply on such short notice. However, we were assured our accommodations were already taken care of. Travelers looking to enjoy the Golden Coast without the benefit of extended family will need to book at least 90 days out from their intended arrival date, Hodnett Cooper reports. St. Simons Island vacation rentals are decently priced with comfortable accommodations for couples or families.

On the second weekend of February, we threw our bags in the back of Other!Sean’s truck and piled in. Irish folk music blared, naps taken, routes argued over. We arrived in St. Simons that evening, excitement bordering on road-fueled irritability.

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Cathedral Bridge, Portland, Oregon. North Edison Street and Pittsburgh Avenue, Portland, OR 97203
Cathedral Bridge, Portland, Oregon. North Edison Street and Pittsburgh Avenue, Portland, OR 97203
Columbia Park in the 5th Quadrant, North Lombard Ave & Woolsey St, Portland, OR 97203
Named by Plympton Kelly, Mt. Tabor comes from the mountain of the same name in Israel. SE 69th and Belmont Street, Portland, OR 97215
Named by Plympton Kelly, Mt. Tabor comes from the mountain of the same name in Israel. SE 69th and Belmont Street, Portland, OR 97215
Named by Plympton Kelly, Mt. Tabor comes from the mountain of the same name in Israel. SE 69th and Belmont Street, Portland, OR 97215
Named by Plympton Kelly, Mt. Tabor comes from the mountain of the same name in Israel. SE 69th and Belmont Street, Portland, OR 97215
Named by Plympton Kelly, Mt. Tabor comes from the mountain of the same name in Israel. SE 69th and Belmont Street, Portland, OR 97215
Named by Plympton Kelly, Mt. Tabor comes from the mountain of the same name in Israel. SE 69th and Belmont Street, Portland, OR 97215
Named by Plympton Kelly, Mt. Tabor comes from the mountain of the same name in Israel. SE 69th and Belmont Street, Portland, OR 97215
Named by Plympton Kelly, Mt. Tabor comes from the mountain of the same name in Israel. SE 69th and Belmont Street, Portland, OR 97215
Portland, Oregon, built water reservoirs on-site in Mt. Tabor between 1894 and 1911, visible through the deciduous overstory sloping down the hillside.
The quayside town of Portland, Oregon, finds itself surrounded by densely thriving timber as well, swallowing the territory in its growth.
North AmericaTravel

New Years 2017: Portland, Oregon

by Sarah Birdsong

For as long as Sean cared to remember, he rang in the New Year with one of his oldest friends. This occasion saw itself becoming scarce when John decided to start over in Portland, Oregon. In the fall of 2013, John with his partner Elizabeth left for the other side of the country, leaving behind the humidity and sweet tea. However, this year Sean decided the distance would no longer stand between him and one of his treasured New Years tradition.

After very little deliberation and a last-minute shuffling of schedules, we had secured our accommodations for an extended weekend in Portland, Oregon.

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Storefront of Antoine's Restaurant. 713 St Louis St, New Orleans, LA 70130
The Abbey, New Orleans, Louisiana. 1123 Decatur St New Orleans, LA 70116
Sean!Barnes pausing a moment to light his cigar.
Remoulade, 309 Bourbon St, New Orleans, LA 70130.
Remoulade, 309 Bourbon St, New Orleans, LA 70130.
Lestat's Ball, New Orleans, Louisiana. 828 S. Peters Street, New Orleans, LA 70130
Lestat's Ball, New Orleans, Louisiana. 828 S. Peters Street, New Orleans, LA 70130
Lestat's Ball, New Orleans, Louisiana. 828 S. Peters Street, New Orleans, LA 70130
Lestat's Ball, New Orleans, Louisiana. 828 S. Peters Street, New Orleans, LA 70130
Lestat's Ball, New Orleans, Louisiana. 828 S. Peters Street, New Orleans, LA 70130
St. Louis Cemetery No. 1, 1539 Jackson Ave, Suite 415, New Orleans, LA 70130.
St. Louis Cemetery No. 1, 1539 Jackson Ave, Suite 415, New Orleans, LA 70130.
Tomb of Marie Laveau, St. Louis Cemetery No. 1, 1539 Jackson Ave, Suite 415, New Orleans, LA 70130.
St. Louis Cemetery No. 1, 1539 Jackson Ave, Suite 415, New Orleans, LA 70130.
1020-22 Rue St. Anne Marie Laveau House, New Orleans, Louisiana
Marie Laveau the Mule in the French Quarter of Royal Carriages.
Italian Society Tomb, St. Louis Cemetery No. 1, 1539 Jackson Ave, Suite 415, New Orleans, LA 70130.
Jean Lafitte National Park, Jefferson Parish, Louisiana.
North AmericaTravel

Halloween 2016: New Orleans, Louisiana

by Sarah Birdsong

If you live in the south, and if you fancy yourself to be goth, you know one truth.

Spending Halloween in Louisiana is something of a pilgrimage you must take at some point. While I most certainly knew this for my twelve years in the south, I had yet to go.

Additionally, over the years I had heard of the annual Halloween Lestat’s Ball. The titular ball is dedicated to the well-known character of the same name, conceived by Anne Rice. And yet again, I’d never had a chance to attend.

That changed in 2016, the year of our Lord.

I told Sean early in the year that I wanted to attend the Ball this year. In spite of that, I’m not quite certain that he believed me. As I divulged my plans to our friends Sean and Nicole Barnes, I believe he began to understand the gravity of the situation. To differentiate between the Sean’s they will thusly be referred to as My!Sean and Other!Sean.

He definitely grasped the weight of my intentions by the time I had purchased our tickets and air travel. And as we boarded our plane poised to deliver us to the uttermost south, I spotted a portent of things to come.

A man sporting a full-blown mullet. Gloriously bleach blond with crispy ends in tow. A proverbial unicorn in his natural habitat made complete by his horseshoe mustache. Though I am no augur, I interpreted it as an omen for our weekend.

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Hightower Creek Vineyards. 7150 Canaan Dr, Hiawassee, GA 30546
Tree House Lodge. Hiawassee, Georgia.
Tree House Lodge. Hiawassee, Georgia.
Tree House Lodge. Hiawassee, Georgia.
Tree House Lodge. Hiawassee, Georgia.
Tree House Lodge. Hiawassee, Georgia.
Tree House Lodge. Hiawassee, Georgia.
Appalacian Wine Festival. 1311 Music Hall Road, Hiawassee, GA 30546
Hightower Creek Vineyards. 7150 Canaan Dr, Hiawassee, GA 30546
Hightower Creek Vineyards. 7150 Canaan Dr, Hiawassee, GA 30546
Hightower Creek Vineyards. 7150 Canaan Dr, Hiawassee, GA 30546
North AmericaTravel

The Appalachian Wine Festival: Hiawassee, Georgia

by Sarah Birdsong

The Appalachian Wine Festival in Hiawassee is an annual event featuring local vineyards and connoisseurs alike. Newly relocated to the Atlanta area, I was eager for the chance to explore the surrounding countryside. Luckily for me, Other!Sean and Nicole had a weekend in the mountains planned with friends and family. If local wine wasn’t enough to lure me, the prospect of a weekend in the mountains was.

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Notebooks and coffee sitting on a desk.
EducationLifestyle

Using Education to Reach the Next Chapter

by Sarah Birdsong

It is no secret that my education, or lack thereof, constitutes a major obstacle in my life. For better or for worse, it has been a source of external validation I’ve measured myself against.

Often to my own emotional detriment.

Today, I reflect on my life and everything that has brought me to this point. Just as I begin to make the move further south, I look back to the first hurdle in my education I managed to leap over.

After a lifetime of self-doubt related to my education, I was the recipient of the following letter. This followed the senior year of my Associates:

To Sarah,

 

Thank you for your recent application for graduation from the Associate in Arts (A10100) program for the fall 2012 term.

 

After a careful review of your records, the Graduation Office has determined that you are currently enrolled in your final courses and are considered a potential graduate.

 

Toward the end of the term, the Graduation Office will send you information regarding degree and diploma orders.

 

CPCC holds one graduation ceremony each year in May. Graduates from the previous summer and fall terms, as well as current spring graduates, are invited to participate, although participation is not required. Ceremony information is mailed to eligible graduates in April. Because degrees/diplomas are mailed directly to students’ homes, graduates receive a congratulatory letter from the College President during the graduation ceremony.

A year and a half later, I finished my final semester at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. I had two A’s and two B’s in my senior classes. My final cumulative GPA was 3.5—Cum Laude. I graduated from CPCC with a 3.0, and that was with all of my C’s in math.

I wanted Magna Cum Laude. But I was also working two jobs (and sometimes three) for the entire duration of my college career. As I have noted, I’ve struggled with crippling cognitive impairments that have hampered my ability to concentrate. Some days it was an Olympic event to even pull myself out of my own bed when the day’s schedule bared down on me. To see my abilities in their own light instead of contrasting them to the accomplishments of others. I worked hard for it, but I fell just short, struggling against a riptide of internal and external factors. Some I could work to my advantage and some I simply had to learn to let go of.

Namely, the number B’s in my cumulative grade point average.

Parting Thoughts

I had purposely attended a community college first, knowing my learning disability would drastically affect my grades. Additionally, I knew that when I transferred to a university that my GPA would reset. Tabula rasa. From there, I could labor in the subjects I excelled in. This ensured my grades were the best they could be without the threat of my disability darkening my doorstep.

I worked my ass off for those A’s, sometimes staying in the computer lab writing until it was too late to simply go home. I’d sleep in my car in the parking lot, waiting for the next day to officially begin. Inducted into the Lambda Alpha and Sigma Tau Delta honors societies, I began to grasp that grades alone do not constitute the measure a woman, though they may inform certain faculties. Additionally, I was struggling with invisible and damaging mental processes that no one—not even me—could identify.

In short, I had done the best I could with what I had in the tools at my disposal.

It’s been instructive in learning to accept that my life cannot be calculated by numbers or grades. Most importantly, it’s lesson in being gentle with myself.

It’s a fitting end to a lifetime of insecurity over my education—and the judgments of others regarding it.

ADDITIONAL READING

I have compiled a list of additional resources regarding this entry and its contents for researching the topics therein:

The Anthropology Department at UNCC: take a look at my Alma Mater. The Anthropology Department at UNCC is dedicated to a holistic, four-field approach for understanding the experience and value of human diversity across time, space, and social groups.

CPCC’s Office of Disability Services: my personal experience with CPCC’s Disability Services was as rewarding as it was hopeful. The staff is dedicated to helping you achieve your goals in addition to being both a resource and a source of encouragement.

UNCC’s Office of Disability Services: UNCC’s Disability Services work assiduously to ensure that every student has access to the appropriate accommodations and engagement to get the most out of their education.

Support and Resources for Adults with Learning Disabilities: it is a myth that learning disabilities only affect children. Issues that were present during our educational tenure are present in every social and work-related function thereafter and require just as much effort to process, often with less support.

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Anthropology: the study of human societies and their development.
EducationLifestyle

The Crossroads: Change Springs Eternal

by Sarah Birdsong

Don’t overlook the impact people have in your life—whether they become staples of your everyday life, or they were a brief episode. For me, I was still in the process of completing my Associates of Fine Arts when I took an intro course in Anthropology course as one of my social science electives.

For as long as I can remember, artwork has been a cornerstone in my identity. In my childhood, I devoted hours to that craft, filling sketchbook to the brim with lively and fantastical compositions. When it came to my college education I chose Fine Art as my major as a placeholder while I worked around my learning disability. I had no aspirations of purpose or meaning at this point because I was focused on simply surviving the educational arena.

That changed when I took ANT 210: General Anthropology. The course catalog describes it as such:

This course introduces the physical, archaeological, linguistic, and ethnological fields of anthropology. Topics include human origins, genetic variations, archaeology, linguistics, primatology, and contemporary cultures. Upon completion, students should be able to demonstrate an understanding of the four major fields of anthropology.

Knowing what I know now, this is an impossibly vague introductory course with just enough information to tease out intriguing questions while offering virtually nothing in terms of substantive answers. In fact, I found that anthropology posed more questions than it even thought of answering. And it takes a different kind of personality to accept that kind of ambiguity.

But it was enough. That one class made me switch gears from being an art major to a social science student by the end of the semester. At that point, I stopped worrying about my art portfolio and started researching the concepts that my instructor had given to me.

Anthropology didn’t just refine my educational path—it permanently altered my life.  It has challenged and inspired me to evolve more than anything else I have ever had the pleasure of coming into contact with. It’s completely reshaped my view of the world. And while it may sound lofty, I can say with 100% certainty that it’s made me a better citizen of the world.

The Importance of Reaching Out

I digress. The point of this entry is thus; I found my first anthropology instructor on LinkedIn. I hemmed and hawed on whether or not I should contact her, largely because I didn’t believe she would remember me. In the end, I did contact her, and we shared the following exchange:

Me:


You probably do not remember me, but I was in one of your night Intro to Anthropology courses. That class inspired me to transfer to UNCC for Cultural Anthropology, which I am graduating from in December.


Her:


Thank you so much for telling me that! I miss teaching every day, but I had to give it up with my demanding travel schedule at [redacted]. I am so happy to hear you went to UNCC too as that is where I went. I loved it! I wish you the very best of luck and please let me know if I can ever help you out in any way as you search for a job/career. Seriously, this email just made my year!

When I applied to UNCC, there were no sleepless nights wondering if my art portfolio passed muster. And when I was accepted into UNCC’s anthropology program, Dr. Dalsheim was my first introduction to anthropology as she saw it. She was my first introduction to the concept of intersectionality as a feminist and as a scientist—as an anthropologist.

I was just reading the very first paper I ever wrote on the topic of anthropology. Its chief concern was the effect of missionaries on the Akha people, an indigenous hill tribe originating in China. Reading my old work certainly illustrates how far I’ve come in my research and overall writing skills. I am tempted to post it here in the future.

ADDITIONAL READING

I have compiled a list of additional resources regarding this entry and its contents for researching the topics therein:

The Anthropology Department at UNCC: take a look at my Alma Mater. The Anthropology Department at UNCC is dedicated to a holistic, four-field approach for understanding the experience and value of human diversity across time, space, and social groups.

Dr. Joyce Dalsheim: an assistant professor whose tenure at UNCC focuses on Cultural Anthropology, gender, nationalism, Israel and nearby areas.

Unsettling Gaza: Joyce Dalsheim’s ethnographic study takes a ground-breaking approach to one of the most contentious issues in the Middle East: the Israeli settlement project. Based on fieldwork in the settlements of the Gaza Strip and surrounding communities during the year prior to the Israeli withdrawal, Unsettling Gaza poses controversial questions about the settlement of Israeli occupied territories in ways that move beyond the usual categories of politics, religion, and culture.

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