Hey guys my name is Megan (or Meg). I’m starting my last semester as an Undergrad here at Cortland, and I’m so excited about this class. I just took Danica’s Audre Lorde class last semester and I am ready to get back into the swing of things. I’m an English major with a psychology minor, focusing on disabilities in children. After this semester I plan on continuing here at Cortland getting my M.A. in English. As any English nerd, I love to read books of all kinds and genres–I’m a sucker for a historical fiction novel. Along with that I also like writing both for school and creatively.
This summer I’ve spent a lot of time with my family. I watch my four-year-old niece a couple days a week. Other than that I work for Broome County in the Real Property/Tax Services department. It sounds more glamorous than it is! Mostly I’m on the phone answering tax questions or reading deeds. When I’m not doing that, my natural habitat is holing up on my porch in our swing and reading. Quarantine got me into sketching and painting. I’m not very good, but I’m enjoying it either way!
We have three cats in our house, two of them are mine (pictured below). Their names are Berlioz Marie (Burli for short) and Bagheera Katherine (Bagi for short). As their names reveal I love Disney movies. I grew up watching them, and they are still my go-to rainy day movie. It’s either a Disney movie or a cheesy teen rom-com. Bagi and Burli are as different as they can be. Burli is very affectionate and cries at everyone for attention, especially if you are getting out of the shower. Bagi is our feisty one, tends to slap you then stare at you. I’m the only one who she’ll let hold and snuggle her.
I’ve read a lot of books this summer (+quarantine) but my favorite so far was The Electric Heir by Victoria Lee. I’ve always liked reading young adult fiction novels, and this was amazing! It tackles really adult issues, like immigration, sexual abuse, domestic/partner abuse, a corrupt government, plus a deadly virus that either kills you or gives you incredible power! It’s a roller coaster, but I love reading books meant for ‘kids’ that doesn’t sugarcoat the hard issues.
Two topics/questions for the course that I would like to explore (sorry these are long):
- How as a society can we keep moving forward in our understanding and empathy in regards to race, gender, and sexuality? For me, I grew up in a small rural, (mostly white) community so I did not have a lot of experience with people who did not look like me. I was fortunate enough to have parents who cared about my empathy levels and going to college I was exposed to a diverse group of peers, professors, and curriculum. How can we all move this world towards a more open and diverse understanding?
- This is a part of a debate I’ve been having with some family. The argument of “well I don’t see color so…” or “why do we even care what someone is or does? Do we want to create a world that celebrates diversity and labels everything, or should we strive for a world where there are no labels besides “human”?
This is Burli 
This is Bagi
Hi Megan! Great to have you in class again. And thanks for introducing Bagi and Burli to our class website/virtual petting zoo. I also love YA novels: some favorites from this summer were Erika Sanchez’s I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter and Rita Williams-Garcia’s One Crazy Summer.
Thinking about your excellent questions, “empathy” and “colorblindness” are two topics we’ll be sure to address this semester. Looking forward to continuing our conversations from Audre Lorde (and starting some new ones) on Monday!
Hi Megan!
I enjoyed reading your post! I am so happy to find another student who is studying both English and psychology! Both of these fields intertwine with one another which makes them beneficial to study simultaneously. Further, I think it is awesome that you are focusing your psychology minor on disabilities in children. For a while, I wanted to open my own practice and become a child psychologist. However, I wanted my practice to be solely focused on alternative methods to help children psychologically rather than prescribing medications.
Also, I am a fan of YA novels that contain more raw writing about harsh topics. One of my favorite YA novels is Kathleen Glasgow’s Girl in Pieces; it tackles a lot of psychological pain, depression, self-harm, and suicidal attempts but it is a great read. Another YA novel I just finished reading was Holly Jackson’s A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder. It was wonderful, twisting, nail-biting mystery that I definitely recommend.
Lastly, your cats are adorable and I am looking forward to starting this course with you come Monday. Enjoy your last weekend of summer!
Hi Megan!
I really enjoyed your post! I’m studying English as well! I think it is very interesting that you’re studying both English and Psychology. I also like your idea of focusing your psychology degree on children with disabilities.
I’m a big Disney movie fan as well! I spent some of quarantine watching older Disney movies as well as ones I had never seen before. I’ve always loved reading young adult fiction novels as well! One of my favorite YA novels I read over quarantine was All The Bright Places by Jennifer Niven. This novel focuses on two characters who struggle with the emotional and physical troubles from their past, but together are able to discover that the littlest things can mean so much. It is a great read!
Your cats are absolutely adorable! I look forward to meeting you on Monday!
Hi Megan!
Excited to hear you’re planning on joining us in the MA program. There’s so few of us right now, so that’s super exciting. We need more people like you! I love your cats, also. They’re adorable. I’m really interested in the book you read over the summer, I might have to add it to my list. I think your second question is especially interesting. It’s such a hard thing to deal with because a lot of people have that view that by not acknowledging difference somehow it’s better. I look forward to try to answer this question with you this semester. 🙂
Hi Megan! I was also in Dr. Savonick’s class on Audre Lorde last semester and I’m glad we will be having another class together this semester! This is my last year at Cortland as well and it bittersweet. I am currently doing online classes at home so I miss the campus a lot but hopefully there is a vaccine by Spring (I like to hope for the best even though I’m not sure how likely this will be). I also had a lot of time during quarantine and summer to read many books. I got reread Harry Potter (a classic favorite of my childhood) which was very fun. I also got read other fun books like Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, When we Were Mermaids by Barbra O’Neal, and other fun books. The Electric Heir by Victoria Lee sounds like a fascinating book. I might have to pick it up to read now. I am also a fellow Disney lover. My personal favorite is Tangled but my favorite Disney Princess is Belle. I have three cats at home but I’m not really close with my cats. I gravitate more to dogs. I have three dogs that I have gotten to spend a lot of time with this summer and in quarantine. It was nice because we got a puppy this past February right before quarantine (we were lucky we got her at that time otherwise we might not have been able to get her). With quarantine we were home all the time so we got to spend time with her and train and play with her.