iana

I am Diana, currently a graduate student at Drexel Unversity working on my MLS (Master of Library Science) degree. My goal is to become a curator of rare books. I have a great fondness for books, particularly those that have been weathered through the years. Once I make my place in a library, I can enjoy my life sharing the knowledge of books with others. These last few years have brought great changes to my life. In May of 1997 I graduated from Indiana University of Pennsylvania with degree in history. In August of 1997 I matriculated and in May of 1998 I dropped out of a graduate program at The University of Pennsylvania where I was studying Latin and Greek in the classical studies department there. I had planned to continue my education focusing on classical languages and researching in the area of classical relgion. I had intended to spend the rest of my life residing blissfully within the comforting embrace of the university walls, immersing myself in research and teaching bright-eyed students the wisdom that I gained. This, of course, was quite an idealistic pipe-dream. Eventually I realized that after I invested years of my life and a great deal of hard work I'd end up teaching in some backwoods college where few of the students cared to be in my class at all. My honor makes it difficult for me to teach someone who doesn't wish to be taught. This realization, on top of the fact that the program at Penn tends to be rather traditional and conservative (making me feel that I was perceived as a flake) forced me to re-evaluate my goals in life. After a year of questionable motivation and constant depression, a great deal of introspection made me realize that grad school in classical studies was no longer the path for me.

Right now I am working for the School District of Philadelphia in the art museum district of Philadelphia. I'm an executive assistant for the director of Risk Management. It's somewhat of a depressing job. I often read through incident reports that occur within the schools, and there are knives, guns, drugs, and anything else you can imagine, starting in the 1st grade. It's truly ashame. The job suffices at this point for what I need by way of money to help pay off the educational debt I have accrued. Despite what the government and everyone else has thought, I felt my education was important and thus funded it on my own. Now I have a sizable debt congruent to a small mortgage. What a wonderful way to begin life as a working adult, don't you think? Call me bitter, but I believe that people with intelligence should be nurtured not forced into hard labor to pay for nourishment and a roof over their heads so that they can continue their intellectual growth.

As for our government, well, I think ours needs a good deal of work. Perhaps I'm an idealist, no I AM an idealist, but regardless, I think that a government that is for the people and by the people should behave in such a manner. From what I have seen, we have a government that is for the wealthy and by the wealthy. The majority of American citizens do not fit into that category. This can be seen again in how the government manages education for its citizens. If one has a lot of money or no money, then one can go to any choice school that will accept him/her. Those, like myself, who supposedly have money through their middle class parents, but for some reason are not actually supported by said parents, well, we fall through the cracks. Unfortunately the majority of America is middle class, and though some parents highly support their children's education, some of them, for whatever reason, do not. I'm just lucky I had enough perserverence to attain my goal and receive a degree, and I am very proud of my accomplishments. I'm just a little resentful that it had to be such a difficult endeavor when I've always felt that I could give something back to society through my education. Evidently this concept is new to the government who is more familiar with another of society's major problems, self-centeredness.

There are certain inalienable human rights that I believe we have, and one of them is health insurance. My question is why should a tax-paying United States citizen be denied necessary medical attention from an accredited physician regardless of social status? It's a cold society in which we live, my friends.

In general reference to the government, I believe in legislation to protect the environment. I also believe in equal opportunity regardless of race, sex, or religion. In general, I believe that America should support and nurture its citizens, supporting those with special abilities and providing opportunities for growth for those who lack skills. But I am an idealist, and generally our ideals are never realized.

I am an advocate of gay rights, and with good reason. I'm bisexual. And no, I am not confused, and shouldn't "make up my mind." Who says there are only two choices? I've actually found more prejudice in that regard from members of the gay community, mostly gay men. They feel I'm either a lesbian who hasn't come out to herself yet, or a heterosexual trying to be cool. For me it's a spiritual decision. I find my body to be nothing more than a mere shell, a robot for my soul to guide through this lifetime. In other lifetimes I have been a man, so why should I limit myself to a single group of individuals, when our souls are genderless beneath our physical forms? I look for what is inside, the soul of the person.

I consider myself to be a spiritual person. I have been all my life. I used to focus it on Christianity, but I've moved beyond that. Christianity was too restricting for me in an intellectual fashion. I really hated having all my questions answered with, "You just have to have faith." If they could just give me one logical reason, I'd have bought into it, but they didn't. And now with all the reading I have done as a historian in the area of early and medieval Christianity the more I have come to the conclusion that contemporary Christianity is not how Jesus had intended it to be. It is based off of corrupt individuals who sought power and wealth through the institution of the Church. Plus the whole ideal of Christianity never evolved to suit the needs of a quickly advancing culture. As my generation spans life, and new generations come into being, I foresee Christianity becoming a philosophy of the past.

I practiced Neo-Wicca for a while, but it didn't feel right to me somehow. It seemed too contrived. In my pursuit of knowledge of ancient cultures, I have moved more and more to the ancient philosophies of Earth-based religion. There are some groups of people who do follow the truly ancient ways. The religion is more malleable, suiting an evolving population, yet retaining the teachings of the Old Ways, and it seems to be free from power-hungry, wealthy control. You are your own advocate to the Goddess, the gods, the Great Spirit, or however you imagine the natural divinity to be. Priests and priestesses are nice, and they are necessary for group work, but not necessary when you need to do a ritual alone. The Old Ways foster an individual rapport with the gods and spirits with whom you work. And this religion serves to protect the environment that is our giver of life. Paganism, in general, is more egalitarian and brings forth harmony and unity to all people who are brothers and sisters of the Earth. Since my departure from the world of academia, I have done a great deal of spiritual growth and have planted many seeds for future growth. I have found a tradition that resonates with me and am happy to have found a group of people to learn from and grow with.

Have you had enough of these boring monologues? Well, for a change of pace, here a few interesting tidbits about the Garden's Keeper.

• I love flowers, especially daisies, and green trees.
• I prefer coffee.
• I absolutely ADORE cats and felines in general. I have a kitty, Mana, that you can see on my kitty page. I love her very much.
• I've been a vegetarian since I was 14. I eat some kinds of fish though. I made the choice primarily because I've always been a finicky eater, and I've always disliked meat. It wasn't hard for me to give it up. Now I'm incorporating the healthy aspect into my diet. Heart disease runs rampant in my family, claiming young lives as well. I don't want to be among the numbers.
• I like to watch anime, particularly Ranma 1/2. I like the more fantasy oriented films and less the futuristic ones.
• I used to play Dungeons and Dragons, and read all the old Dragonlance novels. I think it's influenced me in who I am today. Krynn was my escape from a very harsh reality at the time.
• Photography is a hobby of mine. I love to take pictures. I have a few posted in my Gallery. Take a look if you like.
• I love music. I have a links to some of my favorite musical sites, but that doesn't include the classical music that I enjoy just as much. As a matter of fact, I was a musician at one point in my life. I played bass from the time I was twelve until I graduated from high school. I even played professionally once. That was a dream come true, and one I'll never forget. It was probably a gift from the Fates, because I wasn't intended to be a musician in this life, no matter how much I loved it.
• I'm 25 years old, born on May 21, 1974. I'm a Gemini with a Scorpio Rising.
• I generally watch very little telelvision. I never had time in college (I didn't have much of a life either. Spent too much time studying, imagine that). I never got back into the habit.
• I have recently begun a business doing book searches and sellng books online. The name of my business is Libera Rising, named such because the idea came to me on the Vernal Equinox one year ago. Libera is the later Latin name for Persephone, the bringer of Spring when she arises from the Underworld to receive the embrace of her beloved mother, Demeter/Ceres. So, if you have a book that you've been wanting, but it's hard to find or out of print, just let me know. Perhaps I can find it for you.

Well, if you've read this far, I'm certainly impressed. I usually just skim these types of things myself, and if anything interesting pops out, then I'll stop and take it in fully. So now you know a little more about a complete stranger, or more about someone you thought you already knew. I'm glad you stopped by.

Merry meet, merry part, and merry meet again!