Just Hilly

The Penny Pub in Bay Shore, NY is a warm and cozy Irish bar on Main St. On the smaller side, they use the best of their space. The decor combines traditional Irish pub fixtures, beer memorabilia and a little cottage core. The stained-glass luminaires on the ceiling are a nice soft touch to the stained wood in the background.  My friend and I went the weekend after the St. Patrick's Day parade in Bay Shore (arguably the best on the island). Luckily for us they still had their special St. Patty's menu available along with their regular fixings. I had their potato soup, and it was to die for. The bacon was a nice touch, but it would have been just as filling without it. We split a basket of wings after being recommended by two people we met at the counter. We were happy for the suggestion because they were so good. We scarfed them down before remembering to take a photo lol.  Speaking of the folks we met, both the bartender and strangers at the bar added to how enjoyable the expe...

 The Most Anticlimactic of Escapades “Disappointment forever lurked just beyond the edges of her joy, ready to spring like a ravenous cougar.”     - Kathleen Rice Adams, Prodigal Gun  In “An Adventure in Paris” by Guy de Maupassant the subject of the story is a woman dissatisfied with her life. The narrator refers to her as a “little person from the provinces” suggesting she is not of a lavish lifestyle. She is a wife, mother and homemaker; exactly what a woman should be yet she yearned for more. Sexual exploration and being a participant in group sex was her main fantasy, those thoughts being her escape from the everyday boredom she experienced. Even while next to her sleeping husband, those thoughts ran through her mind. The lives of the wealthy appealed to her, “ she was continuously thinking of Paris and read the fashionable papers eagerly.” She was naive, adventurous and ready to change her life. Once she got the nerve to go, there was no stopping her; her ...

The topic to be discussed in this essay is Black women in sports; more specifically how they navigate the challenges as both female athletes and black athletes. This will be an analysis of literature and statistics through primarily Critical Race Theory (CRT) and the feminist theory.  My first lens, critical race theory, formerly studied on college campuses, has seen a recent push to be applied to broader schools of thought and institutions. It evaluates the significant inconsistencies in the consideration of the place of “race” in legal circles impacts life chances, freedoms, and every day experiences in social structures (Lawrence & Hilton, 2022) With one of those social structures being sports, black athletes have had to navigate exclusion, abuse, unequal opportunities and protections. The beginnings of most black American participation in sports at a higher level began in historically black colleges and coloured leagues. Those athletes were some of the first to encounter po...

This essay is on a proposed new, more precise and ethical way to systematically test athlete's hormone levels to check their eligibility for competitions. The feminist theory, in regard to how sports reproduce gendered ideas and practices related to sexuality (Group, 2020), is the theory I felt most aligned with the issues to be discussed. It is a mostly accepted belief, that due to the natural, physical advantages males have, sports should be separated by male and female to create a fair playing field. Most sports authority organizations around the world segregate their athletes. Prior to puberty, there is no difference between males and females in terms of athletic ability and performance. Once puberty starts, a male’s testes begin producing 20 times more circulating testosterone than their female counterparts which triggers major physical and physiological changes.(Handelsman et al., 2018) In regards to sports, the changes in a male’s height, bones density, muscle gain, muscle r...

Healthcare workers are members of the working class that gain income from directly caring for and treating the sick and ailing. They are responsible for the maintenance of the hygiene, nutrition, clinical treatment and rehabilitation of those unable to keep up with their own care while recovering from disease and injury. As voluntary members of this group of laborers, healthcare workers (HCWs) acknowledge that the welfare of their patients usurps any personal feelings or ideals they may have as part of their professional obligations; just as a convicted rapist is expected to get the same standard of care for their ailments as any other patient in the healthcare setting. Similarly to how HCWs don’t choose their patients, they also don’t decide the types of care plans or preventative measures to be put in place- governing bodies of health science research and the biomedical sciences inform healthcare schools, institutions and workers of what is effective treatment and prevention.  In...

Hey everyone, Happy New Years, Valentine's, Black History month and Women's History month! My first post for today will be about stressors. It can be therapeutic to write them down to see them in front of you rather than just in your head or in the moment feelings. Seeing them written down can help you prioritize which are affecting you the most and which you can tackle the most directly. Only focus on what you yourself can control in this moment.  For example: 'I have a goal weight I need to make by the end of the year and my slow progress has me stressed.'  Rather than focusing on the deadline, focusing on acknowledging current progress outside of weight (longer stamina, going down a clothes size, better sleep etc), can help keep a positive outlook on your weight loss journey. Taking a step back and re-evaluating the current changes you've been maintaining and decide which ones you want to switch up and bit to see if that gives you better results scale wise.  Prac...