5 Interview Questions from Dr. Brazen Hussy

Thanks to Dr. Brazen Hussy for making the effort to come up with these questions. I had fun answering them. Check out her blog if you want to learn about martini etiquette and all sorts of other interesting information about the ivory tower of academia and life in general.

1. Why did you decide to start blogging?

Cartharsis. I needed an outlet to voice my frustrations with the academic world and I wanted to remain anonymous. I have since tried to put my thoughts down in very random patterns. I enjoy reading other blogs more than writing. For the things that I have written, I am hoping for some constructive criticism and validation.

2. How are you liking the South?

The South is a strange place. I simultaneously love it and hate it. People in the South are very nice but very superficial. The weather is great but the cities are not efficient. I have run into quite a few "klansmen" and uber-conservatives but I have also run into quite a few thoughtful people on all sides of the political spectrum. When I moved down here, I thought I was born in the wrong place....that I was a southerner at heart. But since being here, I have realized that I was mistaken. I am not southern nor do I want to be. Southerners seem to be fighting a legacy (sometimes real, sometimes imagined) of colonialism and defeatism. Racial tension is prevalent under the surface. Many northerners are moving to the region and the southerners often resent this. Although southerners portray themselves to be very carefree, hospitable, and easygoing, I think they are really afraid, anxious, and conflicted. It is very difficult to walk into a classroom when students know you are from the North. They stereotype northerners as much as northerners stereotype southerners. The South has nice sweet tea though.

3. What are your plans for the weekend?

Last weekend I was in D.C. to do research at the Library of Congress. This weekend I plan to attack the copious amount of weeds in my backyard and watch the NCAA tournament. I think I will buy a new pair of sunglasses too.

4. When did you first realize you wanted to get a Ph.D. in history, and why?

I spent a year as a missionary of sorts in Jordan during my third year in undergrad. While there, I realized that everything I understood was uncertain and mythologized. The western indoctrination was shown to be a farce when I confronted Islam. When I returned, I realized that history was a way for me to challenge American myths and western dogma. As far as the Ph.D. is concerned, I got into it for all the wrong reasons. I pursued a Ph.D. to show-off. I wanted to prove to everyone that I was better than them or that I could do what people told me I could not do. I have suffered for this. But I really enjoy learning about and teaching history, it is very satifying and I believe myself to be chipping away at the establishment concocted by those who have gone before me. So, I find that my path has some rewards to it. But I have no idea why I am trying to join a club made up of people who I really do not like. (No offense to any Ph.D.s reading this).

5. What country would you most like to visit?

Russia. I am a cold war kid and in high school it was forbidden for us to visit the Soviet Union and East Berlin. My imagination of these places have had a huge influence on my life. I have been so indoctrinated in the "othering" of Russian people, yet I have always felt that the people, the landscape, the weather of Russia could not be that much different from America and Americans. I am very curious to see Russia, Berlin, and Cuba.