Shout Out To New Musers #18!

Last Shout Out Post For 2024! Huzzah!

Jan 01, 2025

Hello Hello, Fellow Musers, I hope for everyone who celebrates Kwanzaa, Hanukkah, and Christmas that y’all have been enjoying your holidays! Mine is going pretty well-except for a brief trip back home, myself and the Furry Overladies have been relaxing at my partner’s home that he shares with his parents. Nalia is currently resting her good chaotic self next to me as I work on this post:

Nalia: 🎶Sweet dreams are made of these/Who am I to disagree?🎶

My upcoming winter holidays post has decided that it wants to be multiple winter posts, but the first part is coming along pretty well. I will talk more about that, but fiiiirst, y’all, we gotta welcome the new subscribers to this smol-yet-ever-growing corner of Substack!

Salem (and Nalia, as she’s dreaming of catnip and snuggles): Purrzahz!

Welcome New Subscribers!

Tricia

Megan

Thank you both so much for subscribing to this Substack! I hope to see you in the comments, engaging with this community (but no pressure if you don’t feel comfortable with commenting)! Check out the Chat as well! Feel free to DM and/or email me if something I’ve written sparks an idea and/or thought that you would like to discuss. You can email me by clicking the “Respond” or “Reply” of whichever article-essay-post you wish to respond to that is sent to your email. Sending many Hearty Huzzahs to both of you!

Soooo, second things second

I graduated!!!

Okay, not completely graduated, but I did walk the stage, I shook the university president’s hand, and have a blank-diploma-holder thingy to put my diploma in once I finally get it, until I decide to frame it.

Which I should get, once I pass the supplemental make-up class I have to take, because I didn’t pass the class I was taking this past semester.

I’m going to be honest with y’all-that past class and this upcoming class are both part of Physical Anthropology, aaaaand while I find it interesting from a hobby-ist perspective, I have no interest in specializing in the field. You really do get down to the bones and genetics of humanity in this field, it’s very complicated, and I find the details that I need to know to pass to be overwhelming.

The class I’m going to be taking this upcoming semester will be about primate evolution-Jane Goodall territory. I respect and admire Dr. Goodall, and my mom and I even heard her speak at my junior college back in my early days of anthropology classes. She gave a wonderful talk. It was an awesome experience1! But also, I will be having the same professor and the course will be online. Send good, peaceful vibes my way, and I’ll be sure to return the favor!

Third things third

As I mentioned above, I will be breaking up my winter holiday posts into sections. As I was writing and frankly getting lost in rabbit holes about the history of various winter holidays which led to me reading more than writing, I realized that since winter extends from Dec. 21st-ish to March 21st-ish (officially, even though it gets warmer-ish in March) at least in the northern hemisphere where I live, I had a nice, calm discussion with myself (which does not always happen), and thought it would be fun (and less mind taxing) to break the post up into multiple posts, specifically in the months that the specific celebrations and holidays take place in.

I’m not sure if I will do this with Spring and Summer, at least this Musing’s season. I may do one Spring and one Summer post each, do my delayed Fall posts, and save Spring and Summer for 2026. One of these days I will sit my butt down and let Nalia will help me map out a more concise schedule.

Nalia: Mmhmm, after which I will have accrued multiple, well deserved cat naps!

Fourth things last (a fun way to say: In Conclusion)

We are half-way through Musing’s of an Anthropology Student Year 2, and I’m beginning to see a pattern in how my main Musings will be shaping up (coming to you in multi-parts apparently), and I’m having to constantly remind myself that I’m still learning and finding what will work best posting-schedule wise. I’m also having to remind myself that setbacks happen, and that it’s okay to take a few moments to breathe, vent my frustration, and briefly step away from everything to breathe some more. That being said, I promise, that in between the holiday posts, I will have other Musing’s. A few that I’m developing currently:

~That promised post about my journey to get my anthro degree
~Deep Dive 1: The Difference Between Sociology and Anthropology2
~Deep Dive 2: Why archaeology is integrated with North American anthropology, but is it’s own field internationally3 (title pending)
~A Special Birthday post by Nalia and Salem
~One or Two more Artist’s Corner posts to round out the rest of the Musing’s Year 2

My Winter Holiday’s Part 1 post will be posted soon4. This post is about the winter solstice (that part is completed), Hanukkah, Christmas, and New Years. Part 2 will be about winter holidays/celebrations in January, and Part 3 will cover holidays/celebrations in February and the first part of March. Even though I focus mainly on northern hemisphere winter celebrations, I also intend to cover southern hemisphere celebrations. So, for those of you who live in the southern hemisphere, or for Fellow Musers who know people living in the southern hemisphere, if there is a specific celebration that you feel us northerners need to know about (because trust me, we absolutely do!), please let me know in the comments, in an email, in a DM, or a combo (if you want to, absolutely no pressure though😉)!

Alrighty! Welp, according to at least one Substack Note-tice, some part of the planet is already in 2025!

North and South America won’t be in 2025 for a few more hours. As with all New Years, there’s things that I’m looking forward to, things I’m not looking forward to, and shenanigans that will probably make all of us do a bunch of facepalms.

I’m not one for New Years resolutions, but if you enjoy doing New Year resolutions and you’d like to share, feel free to

Musings of an Anthropology Student

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