Introducing the Northernmost Californian...

Hello, my name is Kelli and I am likewise honored to be in this group of bloggers. Thus far Kyla is our common link, and rightfully so: from the moment I met her, I knew there was little doubt that she was not only passionate about the world and her journey in it, but also about making connections with people. I am a thirty-six year old wife and mother of two, and while I was Kyla's high school English teacher, I believe we are all at the age where we are peers now.

A little about my background may be in order. I was born and raised in southern California, in a conservative bedroom community north of San Diego, nestled between three towns with military bases. My hometown gained notoriety in the 1990's for the schoolboard's opposition to sex education and the teaching of evolution, and is much the same today. I escaped after high school to an area more in keeping with my liberal views, and further molded much of my world view through my many experiences at UC Davis as a part of a demolition crew, peer counselor, Women's Conference volunteer, and individual major (Cross Cultural Women's Literature.) I became an English teacher and married after college to a wonderful man, and our dreams became each others'. While we have lived all over northern California, we now work hard at building our dream of family and home on a little piece of land at the north end of the Great Central Valley.

In my professional life I have fulfilled all goals but one: to get my Master's degree. I am now learning a great lesson: in my rare year out of the classroom, I am able to meditate on the feminist conundrum of "having it all" and being super woman. I am working to strike a better balance between work and family, between living the life that I want to live and giving to the people I want to give to as well as myself. I am a part of this blog because of Kyla's invitation, and also because I care deeply about many of the issues thus far introduced and discussed. I am a part of this blog because I enjoy writing and the open exchange of ideas, and look forward to the promised rants and discussions we have here as we explore the London-Cali Connection.

*drumrolll please...*

Greetings Earthlings!

I'm the third (thus far) member of this blog, and my name is Kathleen. My main base is San Diego, California, although most of my life I lived in Norcal, the Silicon Valley area.

So what makes me tick? To sum it up, I would quote a webcomic I'm starting up which I've named, "F.eminist E.nvironmentalist V.egetarian H.umor." It was an acronym that actually spelled something--I haven't figured out how to fit "Writing," "Intellectualism," "Politics," and "Poverty alleviation," into that mix. although I suppose I could call the whole comic a PWIP FEVAH. or WH(humanitarian)IPPE(xistentialist)d(rawing)...
I could rant about all these things for hours. Unfortunately, what I should be doing is spending hours on the three research papers I have due in four weeks.

Anywho, How was it that I got invited to this elite circle? To be honest, I'm really honored that Kyla invited me to join in on the friendship that she's had with Mythili for years, especially since comparatively speaking, Kyla and I have only known each other for about two and a half years, and we've only been in the same city for about one year.

Kyla and I met through the women's center at the UCSD campus, initially as strangers that came to recognize each others' faces through our joint participation in the femme-friendly activities held there, and then came to know each other better through the writing group that Kyla started up. Kyla was very up-front about her past with an eating disorder, and with her help and the help of a smack-in-the face from my doctor, I came to terms with the fact that I had one too. I'd like to say I've completely gotten over it, but sometimes I wonder.

In any case, right now I'm putting my anger against "the system" to work as co-President and Head blogger of the Healthy Models Coalition, a group Kyla started to help fight against institutionalized anorexia in the fashion industry, (http://healthymodels.org/) and as a blogger for the Vegetarian club at my university (http://ucsdveg.blogspot.com/)

My posts often take an angry or satirical tone, mostly because the times when I feel compelled to write something are the times when I get angry or satirical. Reader beware.

--Kat, aka Frog. Amphibians need love too :D

Introducing Kyla

I'm Kyla, I'm American, and I love my country, but that doesn't mean I think it's better than every other nation, nor do I endorse everything that takes place in the US. Patriotism does not always correspond with a superiority complex.

Why do I introduce myself this way? Because this is the London-Cali connection, and not all the contributors are American! So first things first, I'll introduce myself by my nationality. Specifically, I live in California. I predict that, wherever life takes me, I will always be a California girl at heart. It is a forward-thinking state, full of mountains and oceans and therapists. I don't surf and I've only seen a celebrity on the street (well, in a restaurant, actually) once. I do live in southern California, quite near LA, though I am not from here. I come from far Northern California, way up near Oregon, in a very conservative town called Redding. Yes, there are conservatives in California.

But this is not about California, not yet anyway. It's about me. Like I said, my name is Kyla. I'm a twenty-three year old student very, very close to graduating - in fact, one Latin course is the only thing between me and my degree in literature/writing. Woot! I am, first, a writer. I want to change the world through writing. I am many other things: I am an environmentalist, a feminist, an animal-lover, an activist, a reader, a student, a teacher, and a woman.

Yes, I am both a student and a teacher right now, about to graduate in just a few months while starting a teaching job at a local middle school. Do wish me luck!

Speaking of middle school, Mythili and I "met" when we were eleven or twelve, the American equivalent of the sixth grade. I was excited to have the internet for the very first time and went about looking for pen pals. And I found Myth! (or did she find me? --no matter.) The amazing thing about our friendship is that it began at such a tender age and has lasted for thirteen years. It's rare that childhood friendships last, I suspect because we all grow up in different ways. Myth and I seemed to grow up in similar ways, if she doesn't mind my taking the liberty to suggest as much. We met in person during my trip to England and Wales after high school graduation, and we clicked as well in person as we did over the net. We love to chat about just about everything - and we thought you might like to hear us chat.

So, here we are. What would you like to hear about, from Californian and English perspectives?

Welcome to the London-Cali Connection!