About

“The impulse to keep to yourself what you have learned is not only shameful, it is destructive. Anything you do not give freely and abundantly becomes lost to you. You open your safe and find ashes.” – Annie Dillard, The Writing Life

About Me:

My name is Chelsea.  I’m an adjunct professor of English and communications living in Maryland, although my heart (and favorite professional sports teams) live in Pittsburgh, PA.  Before I started teaching, I received my M.A. in Humanities and B.A. in English and Communication Studies, and worked in marketing for about three years.  Reading, writing, learning, and sharing make me happier than just about anything in the world.  I’m currently in the process of trying to watch every Academy Award for Best Picture film before I die, and my favorite holiday is the annual Jimmy Buffett concert in D.C.

Unshared experience wilts and dies.  My goal is not to wind up with a safe filled with ashes.

“You seem to have a lot of opinions today.”  –  Carrie Bradshaw, Sex and the City

About This Blog:

In June 2013, I began teaching a summer course called “Human Communication” to a small group of eight students.  Much of the subject matter focused on the psychology behind communication – what constitutes and does not constitute listening, the messages that non-verbal communication conveys, and most notably, how our unique cultural perspectives (including bias) help or hinder our understanding of one another.  I quickly discovered that each of my students — all of different ages, genders, races, and occupations — had a wealth of stories to share on cultural communication and bias: The man who once fell victim to racial profiling and internalized the idea that all cops are racist; the woman who struggled with being the only non-native speaker of English in her classes; the chemistry major who expressed frustration with former teachers who told her that “science isn’t for girls.”

It was during this class that I realized the growing need for conversations about the aforementioned issues.  Most of the topics in this blog will revolve around issues of gender, relationships, and social institutions, although you can bet that race and religion will be guest starring every now and then.  I’ll also throw in some politics and pop culture as appropriate, and some education too.  As far as naming this blog, I decided on “Gender on the Rocks” not only because it combines two of my favorite things — gender and booze — but also because the phrase “on the rocks” indicates that something is unstable or even problematic, which many accepted social norms can be.

Thank you for listening to the noise I make in my little corner of the Internet.  I thrive on feedback, so by all means — leave comments, share posts, continue the discussion.  And if you have an idea for an entry or would even like to make a guest post, feel free to leave a comment or send me your material via e-mail.