Today I would like to introduce one of my new
contributors, a person I know very well and am excited to be
collaborating with: my mom, Dr. Elizabeth Newman.
An Arkansas native, Libby (as she
likes to be called by people other than her children), moved to Pueblo, Colorado in the back half of 2015. Recently retired from teaching sociology at the University of Arkansas, she brings an insight and expertise into evaluating modern society.
To learn a little about Libby and what
she's all about I conducted a formal-ish interview with her recently to
learn a little bit more about what makes her tick.
Beginning of Interview
2/24/16
2:00 PM
Haley: Hola.
Libby: Hola you.
H: So, you have been my mother for about .
. . 31 years or so at this point. What's that been like?
[Ed: troublingly long pause.]
L: I can't really say that it's "been
like" any one thing. Like all of life, it's been different
at different times. Sometimes it's been so rewarding . . . when you were
a kid (before the dreaded teen years), and since you've been an
adult. Probably not so different from most mother/daughter
relationships. The difficulty that you were as a teen was
overshadowed by the incredible joy you were as a younger kid. So
smart and talented and creative. And those are the qualities I enjoy
about you now. So all in all . . . it's been good, and totally worth it!
H: Well that's a relief!
L: Ha!
H: So, in addition to being a parent of me, you also taught college level sociology for many years. Are you glad
to be retired from the U of A now?
L: So glad. In retrospect, I can't
believe I did it. From the moment I walked into a classroom, to the
time the class was over--that time was always magic for me. However,
the rest of it was total bullshit. The politics, the pressures. I
wouldn't go back for anything. And yes, I have regrets about doing
it--at least the way I did it. I would have been happier and more
accepted at a small school. But life takes us places we don't
necessarily plan, and I can't say how glad I am that that phase of my
life is over. (Kind of like having periods. Good riddance to both!)
H: Now, I know that throughout your life you
have always been a musician, but now that I've seen some of your
archives, it's clear you've been a writer for a long time as well.
When did you first start writing?
L: I have things I've written from Jr.
High, on which the teacher wrote "Great writing!" When I
started college, after I got a few of the techniques under my belt I
had been unclear about, I started getting big kudos for my writing
skills. I'm pretty sure there were times when my lack of knowledge
was overlooked because of my writing skills.
So, maybe I've always been a writer. I
was the editorial page editor for my high school newspaper. That
helped . . . although, since all I did was write my
opinions, it probably helped cement the type of writer I'd be.
H: What are you going to be writing about
for this blog?
L: I want to write in some of the same
ways that I was writing in some of the things you've seen. To write
about current events and topics, but to put a different spin on them. To write about something
in an unexpected way.
When I wrote in support of Mary Kay
LeTourneau, for example, she was being totally vilified in the press.
So I like to take something that is being looked at one way, and
look at it another way. That is usually what I hope to achieve in my
writing.
[Ed: She then listed some examples of her contrarian views.]
I like saggy pants.
I think tattoos are sucky . . .
I think the idea that all American kids
need to prepare to go to college is patently absurd. I'd like
everyone to be a good thinker, but we're not doing sooo many kids any
good by pressuring them to go to college.
I think that polygamists should be allowed to marry. I don't think we can give all the wives SS benefits, but they should be allowed to marry.
H: Eh, I only support polyandry, but close
enough.
L: I wanted polyandry, but your dad said
no. Silly man. Could have had help working
on the cars . . . .
H: In joining this blog you have agreed to
post your work side by side with mine. How do you think our two
different perspectives and styles are going to fit together?
L: Oh, I don't know if they'll "fit
together." What does that mean? Perhaps they'll just exist
side by side. But, I would expect that yours will be
different from mine. I don't know in what ways--perspective, subject
matter, analysis, political bent . . . etc. But it really doesn't
matter. I don't know that the differences are things we can know
right now. Just doing it will be an exploration of the ways we are
different. We'll see . . . . That's probably all I can say about it
now.' That "fitting together" thing
may be somewhat of an evolution.
H: Back to your professorial days. Were you ever interviewed by students for various reasons?
L: I was interviewed every single semester
I ever taught. Some idiot in English at the U of A gave students the
assignment of interviewing a professor, and I often fell prey to
that. But everywhere I've taught, students have interviewed me for
one thing or another--the school paper; a paper being written . . . and
on and on.
For the one at the U of A, they always
asked "Why did you decide to become a sociologist?" As if
I ever decided that. Life paths . . . again. I had a pat answer: "because they offered me more $ than the grad programs in
anthropology." I mean . . . my god . . . what a question. Can anyone
really say why we do anything, lol.
H: Something I always wondered as a kid: did you ever fail a student simply
because they were ugly?
L: Absolutely not . . . unless you mean ugly
of spirit. That could be accomplished. I actually never failed a
student that did not contribute significantly to his/her own failure.
However, if a person was tolerable, I would always give a little
push to help. If they were not tolerable, then I would let them cast
themselves over the ledge, and wave at them on their way down.
There is nothing more satisfying than giving a grade to an asshole that said asshole didn't want."Gosh . . . you only missed the grade you wanted by .5 points. Sad . . . ."
H: Moving on, if you could be any team member from
the 1973 New York Yankees roster, who would you be?
L: Oh, I don't know, because I don't know
any of them specifically at this time. However, if you could give me
a few names. 'Cause make no mistake about it: 1973 and those years
around there were MY YEARS. Probably, though, I wouldn't have been in
much for any of the Yankees. 1) they had the unfortunate moniker
"Yankee" attached to them; and 2) they were so straight! I
was a hippy!
H: A well thought out answer, but
incorrect. You would be Sparky Lyle.
L: Okay, then! I like that name. But that is NOT my porn name.
H: And what would that be?
L: Chips Cherry. First pet; first street.
H: That is a legitimately good porn name. OK, final question. What do you want
people to think/feel when they read your work, here or otherwise? What do you want them to take away from
it?
L: I just want them to think. I just want
to spur a little thought that they might not have otherwise thought.
For example, there was this thing on Facebook where everyone was making fun
of these protesters who had set up signs in front of the milk case at a grocery store, saying that milk kills. "Ha hahaha! What a bunch of
dumb asses. They don't know where milk comes from! They think cows
have to be killed to get milk! Hahahaha!" Smug assholes. They don't
know anything about the dairy industry, which I've known about
all my life (did you know my Dad owned a dairy when I was a kid?).
Males are superfluous in the dairy industry. That's where a lot of
your McBeef comes from . . . dummies.
So just stuff like that. Trying to get
people to think beyond their own categories.That's generally what sociologists do. Jasper [Ed: my brother, her son] wishes we'd just gone to church,
instead of doing all that "thinkin'"!
H: Great answer. That's all my questions! You did it!
Woo woo!
[Ed: Conversation devolves into mother/daughter talk from here.]
Ending of Interview
2/24/16
2:43 PM
Well there you have it. My mother: funny, smart, and ready to start tossin' around some opinions. Look towards the future for new pieces from her on a wide variety of topics, all of which will be found under the tag "Libby".