The Egyptian goddess Isis was celebrated as the ideal wife and mother.
The blogger known as Dr. Isis has some fancy-sounding degrees and is a physiologist at a major research university working on some terribly impressive stuff. She blogs about balancing her research career with the demands of raising small children, how to succeed as a woman in academia, and anything else she finds interesting. Also, she blogs about shoes. In fact, she blogs a lot about shoes.
...And behold, he raised the motherfucking Jameson on high as Isis bedecked her feet in glory, and the masses were sated. -- The Holy Gospel According to PhysioProf
I had planned only to write about how blogging can hurt your career, but I think there is something else I need to address first. Other Sciblings have already written about it and a few of you have sent me emails and left comments. It's also the buzz over on Twitter.
I know about the mail order bride ads and the naughty singles ads. As DrugMonkey echoes in his preceding post, I think it is a shame that these ads showed up after our month long Silence is the Enemy campaign. I think all of the bloggers at ScienceBlogs agree that advertising the sexual exploitation of vulnerable women of limited economic means is disgusting.
When the ads were first brought to my attention I contacted the management of ScienceBlogs. They assured me (and the other bloggers here) that the ads would be removed. I hope that they are sincere and have no reason to believe that they are not.
Still, even today when I went over to Drugmonkey's site to get the link for his mail order bride post, I saw this:
This makes me feel sad, and if you've been visiting me for any length of time then you know how I feel about the exploitation of women, especially racial minorities and women from economically disadvantaged backgrounds. That's the entire point of the Letters to Our Daughters Project and the Silence is the Enemy Project, right?
That said, I cannot in good faith continue to contribute content here while these ads remain visible. This also makes me sad because I love being at ScienceBlogs. I love my Sciblings (well, most of them) and I believe in the establishment of community for the promotion of science. But, it would not be right for my page views to generate revenue that funds individuals who exploit women. The morality in this matter seems pretty black and white.
I believe the management here at ScienceBlogs when they tell me that they are working to have their ad agency remove the ads, but the traffic generated in the meantime while those ads still appear still puts money in the pockets of those who exploit women. So, until I receive confirmation from the Overlords here at ScienceBlogs that these ads are gone, I'm taking a hiatus. If the hiatus becomes extended and I feel an urge to blog in the interim, I may retreat to my old home at Blogspot.
I pray that my hiatus is brief and wish all of you a very happy 4th of July weekend.
There are two things in the world make me happy enough to elicit a true sympathetic response. I am talking an increased heart rate, general body flushing, widened bronchi, decreased peristalsis, sweating, piloerectory sympathetic response.
1) A devestating pair of shoes
2) Confirmation of the fact that megablogger Ed Brayton basically worships me and hangs on every totally hot word I type.
Today Dr. Isis received an email that provided both #1 and #2. Blog lurker JPowers155 writes:
Dr. Isis:
I am but a humble blog stalker who found your site courtesy of my friend Ed Brayton (Dispatches from the Culture Wars). After listening to yet another of my discourses on the importance of fabulous footwear (and handbags), he suggested that I take my obsession to your blog and bother him no further. He was, of course, extremely complimentary of your illustrious self and I've found myself in the unusual position of agreeing with his assessment of your wit and talent. [emphasis a la Isis]
Peacock feathers? Check. Grosgrain ribbon? Check. High heel? Check. (I'd remove the pearl stick pin detail for day as it's a bit much, but for an evening event, it might just work.)
Your servant, JPowers155
The shoes found at the link provided absolutely melted my soul...
Figure 1: Pedro Garcia's Minne Feather Pump Net-a-Porter. I even adore those little pearl pins.
The only thing more beautiful than those shoes is the knowledge that Ed Brayton sits around with his friends talking about how wonderful I am. "Wit and talent?" Dr. Isis cannot make that stuff up if she tried. I mean, it's not going to stop me from humilating him when we finally make our schedules mesh to meet for the great MeatEating Challenge, but it certainly evokes a level of affection that would cause me to offer him my handkerchief to dry his eyes with.
Now, if Ed really wants to demonstrate his unwavering love and devotion, he can begin a campaign to rescue my Barbies. I was unable to find them for several years, with the exception of one, and I have learned from reading Ed's blog that Glenn Beck has stolen them.
Please, Ed. Wrangle your readers and rescue them before they are violated any further.
This may not be helpful but the things I wish I knew about Dr. Isis' alter ego include: Where/how did you grow up? Where did you go to school? How did you become interested in science? And in your particular area of research? What struggles have you faced? How have you been lucky? Do you have pets? What do you do for fun/hobbies (I guess you won't be able to say blog)? How have you been an advocate for women in science? For science literacy? Community outreach/activities? What are you thoughts about teaching? What/who inspires you? How does your creative process work in the context of your scientific work? Where would you like to see science (in general) and your work (in particular) be in the future? Talk about some mistakes you've made and some "eureka" moments. Talk about your family. And, go ahead, talk about your shoes. (But know that if you do, people WILL figure out who you are.)
Be honest and personal. People really dig this kind of stuff. I know I do.
Catharine believes you all will dig it if I am honest and personal. To be honest and probably too personal with you all, Dr. Isis left work today at 4pm, trusting the day's experiments to the capable members of the lab, because for the first time in easily 10 years she has cramps. The domestic and laboratory goddess has spent the evening cuddled with a bottle of Motrin, 1.5 quarts (and, by the way, what the balls happened to the regular sized cartons of ice cream? This is missing 0.5 quarts) of Breyers waffle cone ice cream, and the second season of The Tudors.
Figure 1: Isis's cramps, except in her uterus and with hotter shoes.
I still believe that opening up and being personal can be of value to women trying to figure out a life in science, but opening up and being personal can also place you square in the cross hairs of criticism and judgment. This week, for example, Dr. Isis founder herself swiftly judged. Oh, so swiftly judged.
I know before we begin that this week's shoe will be controversial. Still, before you all start losing your junk, allow me to explain... I love science. I promise you that I really, really do. That doesn't mean that there aren't days that I don't look out of my window and dream of my escape. In my mind I run off to a small bungalow in AndalucÃa.
Figure 1: The view from Dr. Isis's bungalow in AndalucÃa.
There I spend my evenings working as a flamenco dancer and my afternoons drinking wine and eating tapas.
Video 1: Baile flamenco a la Dra. Isis
Realizing that I am committed to my office and science and grant-y type things, I am happy to trade my flamenco dreams for these...
Having returned safely home, I have retreated to the calm quiet of my dining room while Little Isis naps to work on some projects. One project I have been putting off is for an article about your favorite diva of bench and hearth. I am supposed to provide a biographical sketch of all of my many, many, vast accomplishments and degrees. But, here's the thing. I have been putting it off because, for some reason, I have been having a really difficult time writing two paragraphs of nice things about myself. My science? Fine. Myself? Not so fine.
What has come over me lately? Am I feverish? Have I caught some kind of strange virus which selectively infects the ego? I'm just not sure, little muffins. In an effort to get something on the page to get me started I have written, "Dr. Isis is a pretty cool chick. Also, her shoes are basically always amazing"
To distract myself, I have been looking online at fabrics to redecorate my dining room. I am considering these:
Figure 1: For the chairs.
Figure 2: For the curtains.
But, speaking of being online and people that it is easy to say nice things about, ScienceBlogs very own GrrrlScientist needs your help. Grrrlscientist is in the running over at Quark Expeditions to be their official blogger from Antarctica. Her entry page is here and she needs your votes! Here are the rules a la Grrrl:
To vote, go there and register your email address and create a different password from that used for your email. In a few seconds, you will receive a confirmatory message at your registered email address so you can then vote in this competition. Remember, according to the rules, there is "one vote per valid email address."
Right now Grrrl, who is registered under the pseudonym "Devorah Bennu" is in the lead, but only by 61 votes. Surely there are more than 61 people reading my humble little blog and we can all do our part to help Grrrl get to Antarctica to take bad ass pictures for us. Right? I mean, right????
Get over there, lovely little muffins, and show Grrrl a little love.
One of my favorite blogs is PostSecret. I like reading all of the anonymous little secrets people mail in because, secretly, I'm just a little creepy that way.
I thought I would disclose my own little secret as I sit and have breakfast, traveling back to the family. Early last semester the girls in the lab were all reading Twilight. I scoffed at them, telling them that my life was sufficiently dramatic without having to worry about the drama of some starcrossed teenagers. I think I even once scolded them for discussing the tribulations of Bella and Edward instead of paying attention to what we were doing and for coming to work sleepy because they had been up all night reading.
This week, I bought a copy before the fight down and read it in about 24 hours, ending up feeling sleepy the next day. Before I board my next flight to return home, I am going to buy a copy of New Moon.
Let's all not judge Dr. Isis. Let's not judge. And if the lab women are reading this, let's all agree not to discuss my dirty little secret in the open.
I mentioned yesterday that this week I have been in the deepest, hottest (literally and figuratively) part of the south visiting an MRU to study for the week. I was invited here to learn a particular technique used at this MRU that I think is going to change how we do things in our laboratory for the better. We do a lot of novel things, but there are some things that are done at this MRU that, as I mentioned, are absolutely outstanding. Still, I learned during this visit that there are a couple of things about being a scientist that I still haven't gotten used to.
The Egyptian goddess Isis was celebrated as the ideal wife and mother. 
