second half of book evaluation

I continued my reading of Self –Made Man by Norah Vincent on to the fifth chapter titled “Life”. In this chapter, Ned decides to take himself far away into a Catholic monastery with a bunch of male monks. She decided to go here as a kind of foil to her time at the strip clubs. The strip clubs enhanced and empowered a mans sexuality, but she wanted to see the other extreme of it, and witness what happens when that is taken away by chastity. Overall, the audience was able to see how male emotions and physical contact had to be forced among one another. Also, Ned’s femininity started to show through even more in this all male environment, which completely shocked her. She developed relationships with some of the members of different degrees and in the end, made a confession to a few of them about her true identity. Chapter six was labeled “Work” and as the name implies she applied for jobs at different male centered type of workplaces. The work she was doing was not glamorous, as it basically consisted of selling items door to door, and the competiveness and roughness of the male attitude in the workplace. Chapter seven, “Self”, took a deeper look at herself as she began attending meetings for a type of all male support group, as in a men’s movement or secret male society. There the men were able to let out their feelings and discuss them, as well as the stereotypes society has placed on them and the feelings of disappointment in the eyes of their fathers. She ended up going on a retreat with the guys into the forest as part of a catharsis, but it ultimately pushed her over the edge and she needed help in the form of going to the hospital as her project ended in her last chapter. Most of the last chapter was a reflection on the whole journey overall and what she learned from it.

My own thoughts on the fifth chapter was that it was very interesting, the whole idea of a monastery to me because I am not really affiliated with a religion, so their views and some of the things expressed in this chapter, I couldn’t really relate to. I also found it extremely hard to differentiate between all the different guys and there names because there were a lot of them, and oddly enough, a lot of them seemed gay. The sixth chapter I found interesting, but I didn’t really like the side of male stereotypes it represented. The “nine-inch dick” concept that Vincent mentions really showed through in this chapter, as well as the competitiveness. Ivan was not my favorite character, and I think it was completely wrong of them to try to use the pregnant girl the way they did. The seventh chapter overall was probably my favorite, because of how in depth it went to uncover the real emotional challenge of being a man and carrying the world on their shoulders. I thought some bits of it were really comically, like when she was contemplating all these dangerous weapons, and they just turned out to be plastic. I also thought the whole retreat was very interesting, and definitely a look at something no other female would probably ever get a chance to witness. In the last chapter, I think she did a great job concluding her project although it didn’t end in the way she quite anticipated. Overall I think this is an outstanding journey Vincent has portrayed in an interesting light, and it offers great perspectives on the world around us and the challenges as well as the stigma with gender roles and the stereotypes that accompany them. Glad I got to experience this book for this project and I’m excited to present it and share what we’ve witnessed with the class.

Self- Made Man Summary (Chap. 1-4)

This book follows the journey throughout a whole year of one woman, Norah Vinent, as she disguises herself as a man to gather a different perspective on the world and sexuality. One evening, Norah decided to dress up drag with her friend, and the idea for this book seemed to grow from there. In the first chapter, She talks about the birth of her alter-male-ego, Ned, and the purpose of the book. It takes the reader through different steps of her process in order to alter her appearance.  In the second chapter, Ned joins a bowling league in order to get a foot in the male world. She befriends the three guys on her bowling team and learns about the difference of friendships between females and males. In the third chapter, Ned delves deeper into male sexuality as he visits strip clubs and reveals the female perspective in a male appearance of what goes on in these clubs. The fourth chapter Ned decides to focus on Love and dating as a male and what it’s really like for guys. She finds rejection is rough, even in the smallest amounts and becomes glad she is lesbian because of how she perceives the male/ female interactions and how closed off and guarded they are when meeting one another.

So far, this book has really impressed me. It’s nothing like I thought it would be, but definitely lives up to the hype and praise given by its reviews. Norah definitely had to be emotionally, physically and mentally prepared to immerse herself in this project and I believe she has covered all of the bases. I mean she began lifting weight and even wear a fake penis to make the project even more real life. She definitely went above and beyond than I ever expected. She is persistence, inquisitive, and courageous throughout her journey.  In each chapter she goes behind the scenes to expose different complete male environments that women rarely get a glimpse at. The second chapter was cool because she talked of the similarities and differences between guy friendships and female friendships and I know with the female ones she was spot on, and the male ones, she was directly in the situation so it could be exposed. Chapter three really blew my mind when she went to the strip clubs! I was so shocked at the things she witnessed, and even more shocked at the things she had the balls to do.  If I was in that situation, I would have been totally disgusted, as I was just reading it, and would have left and not been able to finish that portion of it. But she had persistence and perseverance and it really shows throughout the book. Her discussion of male sexuality was also intriguing, like how the bowling guys still went to strip clubs and didn’t tell there wives, but they still loved them to death and had the upmost respect for them. As I woman, I wasn’t really okay with this, and it angered me as I was reading, but the farther I got, I realized there is nothing I can do to change anything like this, and I think that’s how Norah expressed it as well in some of the pages. The last chapter takes a closer look at dating and men asking woman out. I found this chapter to be kind of amusing, but sad as well, because of all the rejection. There have been times in my life when I have rejected people and I never really put myself in their shoes and thought about there side of it. However, she never really talked about when a girl asks a guy out, mainly because this experience didn’t happen to her as Ned.  I was the one who asked my boyfriend out, so it would have been interesting to me to see this from a guys perspective. Overall, the book has been a great read, and I am excited to see what the final four chapters bring to the table! Applause for Norah(:

Three additional sources

How Eating at Home can save your life - by Mark Hyman, MD

This is an interesting article I found by the Huffington Post that I think could be very valuable to my experience. It first focuses on the fast food industry and how it’s stripped away certain experiences and opportunities from families by the food and services it offers. They have great logos appeal in the statistical information and facts that they use to support their statements. The article states “more meals are eaten in a minivan than a kitchen”. The article also compares the percent of people that eat out in 1900 to the percent of people that eat out in 2010. This article has up to date information while still being able to compare information from a long time ago. One of the articles main points is that family dinners have been hijacked by the food industry. They delve farther into this by saying that food-science has changed our diet, and that it’s not always for the better. Mainly it addressed health issues and changes with our diet and lifestyles as it relates to the food industry.

I really enjoyed this article with the hard hitting facts and the straightforward attitude. I will definitely be using and keeping in mind a lot of the statistical information and facts as I immerse myself in my experience in May. I mostly agree with what the article says about the food industry destroying family dinners. Also, with the influence of technology and social media, it rings true that the traditional family dinner no longer exists. Luckily for me growing up I got to experience those real family dinners where you could spend quality time with your families. That is to go without saying that there were the occasional unpleasant dinners with arguments or unwanted discussion, but for the most part I am highly satisfied with those family dinners. My mom would always take suggestions on health foods we wanted for the next day’s dinner and as long as moderation was involved, factor in a great tasting dessert as well. It wasn’t till I got busier in high school and was able to drive that these dinners because less and less. However, I applaud my mother for still making it happen efficiently when so many events were going on.

8 Benefits of eating at home – other than saving money - by John S.

This resource comes from Passivefamilyliving.com. It’s a narrative type informative story of John’s own family and why they prefer eating at home to dining out. The biggest thing it claims with proof from their budgets and savings is how much money they limit dining out to because of the expensiveness of it. Saving money by not eating out is able to put cash back into one’s pocket, but besides saving money, there are a few other benefits one should be aware of before they dine out. The article goes on to highlight and describe each of these benefits to their audience. These benefits are a healthy lifestyle, lower health care costs, family time, knowing what you eat, reducing temptation, increase of energy, education, and making money. By eating at home one is subject to a healthier lifestyle. Because restaurants have limited healthy choices and bigger portions size it is likely that the meals you can create at home will far exceed in the health portion. An additional step to eating healthy is that you won’t develop things like diabetes and other similar diseases, which will maintain the price of your health care costs. Family time at the dinner table as the article suggests is great for the whole family to catch up about their day and interact on a relaxed level. Knowing what you eat talks about the importance of knowing what ingredients make up the food in the case of food allergy concerns. Reducing temptation discusses how hard it is to bypass the unhealthy choices when eating out. When you’re at home, one has more control over it. The other three items are also important to my research so I feel as if I will be using this article a lot for this project.

         I really liked this article and the layout of the information was really organized and made it easier to understand. These are all great benefits when one is looking to cut the amount of times they eat out a month. One of the cool benefits of not eating out that I have never thought about was that you could make money off of the money you save from not eating out by investing it or putting into a savings account.

How To Start Saving Money on Food Expenses – John S.

Another article by John S. of Passive family income, the reader is able to take away how to save money when grocery shopping and buying all the ingredients for meals. First off it claims that purchasing unprocessed and natural foods are not only healthier, but also cheaper. Once again John compares his budget to the steps he is taking so readers can see how much money is really being saved. The first way he shows to save money is to loose the addiction to soft drinks. John’s family will save 12.50 a month, which came out to $150 a year that their family could be saving. Next the importance of avoiding prepackaged foods is breached. Switching to things like tap water and instant tea instead of things like pop, sports drinks, or bottled water helped his family save even more. Another point he makes is to spend more time preparing food and spend less on food by buying more whole-grain and natural foods, which will also increase healthier choices into their diets.

I chose this article because it takes a different approach to my project. Because I will not be spending money at restaurants and instead making my own food, then I need to spend money on ingredients for that food. That’s where this article will help me get the most value out of the money I spend on ingredients and groceries in general to save even more money. It will steer me away from prepackaged items and things like pop and junk food that are not only expensive but really unhealthy as well. 

My first three sources

The College Student's Guide to Eating Well on Campus - by Ann Selkowitz Litt

I found this resource in the library and thought it would be very relevant to me and my topic since I am a college student and the audience the book addresses is college students. Overall, the book covers five main topics to focus on when emerging oneself into the college lifestyle. Fist off, it talks about the dreaded and popular topic of the "freshman fifteen". The book goes on to discuss why it happens and how one can avoid it. Another topic is that it focuses on the health aspect of the food that one eats because of the limited choices one has at college. There is a special section on diet programs  that are popular with college students and offers information on different types. Another great issue to take a look at is how to manage your individual unique food issues. Gives tips and walk through advice as to how to work with campus dining and food services if you have an dietary needs, allergies, etc. Another great section that's great for college students is how to eat well off campus as well. This is great because students can get tired of campus choices and are always up late when the dining halls could potentially be closed or on weekends when there is time to explore off campus.

I feel like this book can be somewhat helpful in my research for my immersing experience because it talks about food and it's tailor-made for my lifestyle at this time in my life. I can definitely  learn something from reading about the freshman fifteen because I have put on some weight at college for the lifestyle change and other major life changes. I think it will be interesting to see what advice the book offers as to how to avoid it. Another aspect of the book I'm looking forward to delving into is the "what's in the food you eat" portion of the book. There is some great information in this book that can guide me in my research, but I feel like it isn't as valuable to me and my immersive experience as some other sources may be. It doesn't really talk about cooking or making your own food, which is the majority of what I will be doing in my experience. Also it doesn't discuss the differences of eating out or eating in and the potential money one could be saving in doing so.

Cut Cost, Not Quality - HOW TO AFFORD BETTER FOOD - by Tabitha Alterman

This resource comes from the periodical called Mother Earth News in the December 2011 issue. This four page magazine article discusses and gives new insight to money saving ideas when it comes to cooking and food. There are some helpful tips that are really narrowed down into smaller steps so the reader can take full advantage of the advice. Some of the topics addressed are to buy food and ingredients in the season's their most abundant. Because the supply is plentiful, the demand is not as high, so prices will be relatively low in season. Another great trick is to buy locally. According to the article, when you spend $1 on supermarket food, not much of it goes to the producer. Overall, the fewer the middlemen, the less the seller of the product will have to charge you, thus saving good money for getting quality produce. There is a lengthy section that addresses the importance of cooking and growing your own food. From there it offers steps as to how to do this successfully and the next steps to take after you know how. Other great money saving tips are persevering/canning food and packing your own lunch. Buying in bulk can for the most part be a good thing, but you must choose wisely while doing so.

I feel like this article is very valuable to my research experience with my immersive learning project. It focuses directly on the money saving aspects and not so much the health aspects that is exactly what I’m looking for. Some experiences of my youth have taught me about some of these topics in order to save money would be buying in bulk, buying locally, and cooking and growing your own food.  When I was younger, every year my parents would have a garden that they would plant and grown some of their own fruits and veggies among other things. We also have a good-sized orchard with apples, pears, peaches, cherries, and grapes. We wouldn’t sell our garden produce, but we would use it in our own kitchen and meals. We would also go to farmer’s markets in our town to eliminate higher prices at supermarkets and the middleman.

Eating out vs. Eating at home - by Chef Dave Fouts and Vicki Bovee, MS, RD, LD.

This short little article addresses big issues related to my topic. The article begins with an interesting look into the history of the first restaurant and the origin of eating out. Although it does partially focus on health, the other half focuses on the occasion of eating out and the ups and downs of eating at a restraint instead of your own home. First off, it goes on to compare serving sizes and exactly how big a serving size should be. The article claims that restaurants are just in the business to make money, so it makes plenty of sense that if your going out to eat, your likely not saving any money. Another reason why most people prefer eating out rather than at home is because it’s more convenient and saves the consumer’s time. It also gives tips on how to overcome that in your own home and schedule so you can eat at home and not on the run with fast food, or because you don’t want to deal with the mess of making the food and cleaning up. Lastly, the article makes a statement that in the end, you must take responsibility for your own health and wellness.

I really enjoyed how the article drew you in with the lead about simmered sheep’s feet being the first dish ever served. I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t eat that dish, but I guess the restaurant industry had to start somewhere. Another great factor about this article is that it compares and contrasts the benefits and disadvantages of eating out versus eating in. This is exactly the type of information that I am looking for. It gives a graph of the health information of classic restaurant recipes and compares them with similar healthier recipes one can make in their own kitchen. I think that it’s great that it addresses the potion sizes in restaurants because that has a lot to do with the calorie intake.  I know I’ve always been one that was taught to eat everything on my plate till its gone, so people that were raised that way are consuming too many calories and are not eating healthy. I love that they give modified recipes for healthier options of such common and well-liked dishes. That really tops off the article because you can be interactive with it and actually make something in your kitchen and have the satisfaction that it is for sure healthier for you than eating out.