Ooooooh, boy, but this is the hardest part! The more I try and work on my pages, the more I feel like saying, "Hey, you want to know about me? Just read!" But that's a cop-out. I know that when I see pages that I like, I'm curious to know something about the person behind the pages. So, I hope you like my pages enough to want to read what I don't want to write.
I'm currently a full-time court reporting student at the Capitol Court Reporting and Captioning Institute, located in Alexandria, Virginia. For those who aren't familiar with the process involved in machine stenography, in addition to the information linked at my school, there's also some information on becoming a court reporter, the steno keyboard, and the court reporting profession in general on the 'net.
Court reporting was a natural for me, despite it having taken several years for me to get there. I've always loved words, word play, codes, learning new languages. I enjoyed my typing and shorthand classes in high school, and I went on to get my bachelor's in linguistics at Michigan State University. Now I find the theory of machine stenography -- the creation of the most elegant short-form possible of a word -- fascinating, and the physical aspect of writing on the machine is, to me, like sculpting a poem: providing physical form to words, wrestling them out of the air.
Being the multi-tasking type of person that I am, I love bringing things I enjoy together. Thus, it was only a matter of time before I tried combining court reporting and web weaving. The result: The Court Reporting Students' Online Support Center -- a nice little site, if I do say so myself. It's even gaining in popularity with my Compendium of Online Book Discussions, et al., despite the fact that the latter obviously has a much wider potential audience.
In addition to being a student, I'm also a part-time paralegal at the D.C. office of a large national law firm. (I'd worked full-time there for almost seven years when I finally decided to take the plunge and return to school.)
I am a BBW -- a big, beautiful woman -- so I am concerned about size-ism. Luckily, I'm not the only one, and there are some cool links out there for others who are fat or fat-friendly. Sharon Curtis is maintainer of FAQs for soc.support.fat-acceptance and alt.support.big-folks, and she has a straightforward listing of the sites listed therein and other such information.
I suspect that the political philosophy I'm the closest to these days is communitarianism. I'm a believer in social justice and individual empowerment (for individuals and for communities). I also believe that with rights come responsibilities -- and am still trying to articulate this concept to myself and to others. Wendall Barry, a poet/farmer/philosopher, does much better than I. My other major guide through life is Judaism -- probably best described as Conservative, but my practices wander the spectrum from Reform to Orthodox, as well. I like to see community in action; for examples, you might want to look at my Community page.
I am a fan of Cyndi, but even more so of her often-collaborators, The Hooters. Yup, that's right, there's a link to them. This band from the '80s is still around, although recently mainly involved in non-Hooters-band projects.
The latest and most exciting development is a new album called Largo. It is an absolutely wonderful CD, masterminded by Rob Hyman (of the Hooters) and Rick Chertoff (their often-producer), and also featuring Eric Bazilian (of the Hooters), Joan Osborne (whose Relish album was also produced by Rick and majorly written by Rob and Eric), Taj Mahal, the Chieftains, members of The Band (with whom Rob, Eric and Rick did an amazing cover of Bruce Springsteen's "Atlantic City"), Cyndi Lauper (another Chertoff protege -- and Rob co-wrote "Time After Time", and Rob and Eric have often guested on her CDs (she returned the favor on their Out of Body CD)), Carole King, David Forman, and far too limited guesting by other members of the Hooters. and in fact did much of the work with Joan Osborne on her latest album -- to the extent that one of the Hooters, Eric Bazilian was robbed of the songwriting Grammy for "One of Us".
The album is excellent, and I really advise everyone to run out and grab a copy!
(Speaking of Joan . . . I saw her on April 8, 1996 at the Bayou Theater -- woo hoo! She was obviously loving putting on a show, and it was a great time!)
In addition to the Hooters, I also enjoy some of the following musicians (as well as many others, of course):
The BoDeans
Sarah MacLachlan
Gordon Lightfoot
Mandy Patinkin
Stephen Sondheim
Goo Goo Dolls (man, but I hate that name -- but I do love that music!)
Bruce Springsteen
I love to read -- and love to recommend authors! I tend to like modern fiction, with more of an emphasis on character than intricate plotting or action. With that in mind . . . I have recently been enjoying the works of the following:
Lynn Sharon Schwartz
Jay McInerney
Tabitha King (yes, wife to Stephen King himself -- but with her own tremendous talent)
Bret Easton Ellis
Torey Hayden
Edith Konecky
I also have a fondness for some "children's" authors -- particularly Jean Little, and E.L. Konigsburg. And, much to my chagrin, I have become enchanted with the Babysitters Club.
John Sayles. The best. His most recent movie was Men With Guns, a fascinating examination of war, responsibility, and the journey to the heart. In addition to being a master filmmaker, by the way, John Sayles is also an amazing novelist and short story writer.
Some other favorite movies include the following:
Singing in the Rain
The Philadelphia Story
sex, lies and videotapes
The Stuntman
I don't have much time for television, but I do always make time for Party of Five. If you haven't seen it, keep an eye out for it -- the characters are wonderful, and the episodes are truly well-crafted.
I have also become an absolute devotee of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. It is . . . hard to state in words. Very hip, very ironic, very happening, and also warm and human. It's a neat line that they manage to walk. Plus, Joss Whedon has great long-term storytelling ability. Just when you start thinking, "What more can they do with this master-villain?" the old villain is vanquished and another even more intriguing one rises up
Rachel's Index Page - Community - My Friends
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e-mail: allegria@his.com
Last updated on July 6, 1998