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Guess What I Did Today?
Sep. 2nd, 2010 08:28 pmIt is a well-established fact that my grandfather's girlfriend, M, is pretty much the coolest person in the history of the universe. It doesn't matter what we talk about - astrophysics, Victorian literature, Russian history, traditional needlework, cabinetry - she always knows something about it, and she always has an opinion on it. I totally want to be her when I grow up.
So when my mom and I and the boyfriend went out to dinner with the two of them last night, M and I started talking about some of the anthropology classes I took last year - she is really interested in cross-cultural gender roles and parenting roles, which my winter term class covered extensively, so we were mostly talking about that. And then she kind of off-handedly mentioned that she had gone on a 4 month anthropological survey some years back when her husband was invited to be the group's official physician and she, I guess, just sort of talked herself into being included. As it turned out, this was a good thing, since out of the anthropologist, his grad student, her doctor husband and her, she was the only one who had the sense to think about things like food, laundry, mosquito-netting, etc.
Now, this would already be a pretty interesting story to hear over pizza. But in the middle of telling me about this expedition she went on, M is like, 'hey, you should come over tomorrow and I can show you the footage!'
So yeah, I spent this afternoon watching original, unedited footage of an anthropological survey of indigenous tribes along the Manu River in Peru, mostly the Machiguenga and Yawanawa groups. IT WAS REALLY REALLY COOL. I mean, mostly it was pretty mundane stuff - people fishing, cooking, chopping wood, playing with their kids, doing their hair, that kind of thing, all shot by the grad student - but it was still fascinating. Since it was raw footage, it wasn't subtitled or narrated, obviously, but M still remembered the names of a lot of the people they dealt with, and she told me a lot of extra details about what the food tasted like, and how they had parties every week where they got drunk on fermented cassava, and how one of the kids in the village got eaten by alligators. It had an immediacy that even a very good documentary can't quite capture. She kept asking me if I was bored, or I wanted to stop, and I was like NO THIS IS SO NEAT IS THERE MORE.
Today was really kind of an awesome day.
Also, while I was there M gave me a pie crust recipe and a potato bread recipe, and since I am the least patient person ever, tomorrow I shall do ALL THE BAKING. THERE WILL BE PIE OMG (I have never made pie before. This may well end in tears).
Also also: Behold! David Tennant's chest! This is the movie they've been filming here all summer. I am coming up with fewer and fewer reasons not to see it.
So when my mom and I and the boyfriend went out to dinner with the two of them last night, M and I started talking about some of the anthropology classes I took last year - she is really interested in cross-cultural gender roles and parenting roles, which my winter term class covered extensively, so we were mostly talking about that. And then she kind of off-handedly mentioned that she had gone on a 4 month anthropological survey some years back when her husband was invited to be the group's official physician and she, I guess, just sort of talked herself into being included. As it turned out, this was a good thing, since out of the anthropologist, his grad student, her doctor husband and her, she was the only one who had the sense to think about things like food, laundry, mosquito-netting, etc.
Now, this would already be a pretty interesting story to hear over pizza. But in the middle of telling me about this expedition she went on, M is like, 'hey, you should come over tomorrow and I can show you the footage!'
So yeah, I spent this afternoon watching original, unedited footage of an anthropological survey of indigenous tribes along the Manu River in Peru, mostly the Machiguenga and Yawanawa groups. IT WAS REALLY REALLY COOL. I mean, mostly it was pretty mundane stuff - people fishing, cooking, chopping wood, playing with their kids, doing their hair, that kind of thing, all shot by the grad student - but it was still fascinating. Since it was raw footage, it wasn't subtitled or narrated, obviously, but M still remembered the names of a lot of the people they dealt with, and she told me a lot of extra details about what the food tasted like, and how they had parties every week where they got drunk on fermented cassava, and how one of the kids in the village got eaten by alligators. It had an immediacy that even a very good documentary can't quite capture. She kept asking me if I was bored, or I wanted to stop, and I was like NO THIS IS SO NEAT IS THERE MORE.
Today was really kind of an awesome day.
Also, while I was there M gave me a pie crust recipe and a potato bread recipe, and since I am the least patient person ever, tomorrow I shall do ALL THE BAKING. THERE WILL BE PIE OMG (I have never made pie before. This may well end in tears).
Also also: Behold! David Tennant's chest! This is the movie they've been filming here all summer. I am coming up with fewer and fewer reasons not to see it.