I'm gonna be the very best...

Back when I didn't think that I would get to study abroad this fall, the super awesome assistant director of Asian American Studies at NU advised that I should take the time to actually think out what I ultimately wanted to accomplish before diving headfirst into the country as well as the program's curriculum. So, I thought. And then I had to take finals. And when I found out that I would actually get to go this fall, I kinda said, "Meh," to the whole idea and decided that I would kinda wing it when I get there.

But today, I was perusing the Northwestern Alumni magazine that routinely gets mailed to my house despite the fact that no one in my household has graduated from NU. It contained listings of what alumni/ae are up to these days as well as the plans of the newly graduated class of 2010. In addition to making me feel ridiculously incompetent and guilty about my hours upon hours of TV-watching this summer, it also encouraged me to actually think about my goals for when I get to Thailand. Here are some potential ones.

A picture from the program's website. I hope to see all of this soon. Complete with adorable doggie.

Goal 1. Complete the CIEE curriculum

Well, it kind of goes without saying that I would have to complete the curriculum set by the program. Basically, my classroom curriculum deals with development and globalization on both the academic and the grassroots/community level. It heavily focuses on the society's relationship with the environment as well as the roles that various NGOs play in the area. Somehow, mixed with all of this, peace and social justice studies will be covered through the community stays, field trips, and larger group projects (they're calling it a field-study practicum, so yeah).

Now... in terms of expecting something in the form of an agenda or moment-by-moment itinerary of the whole experience, I don't. Whatever the program decides to do, I'll have to go by anyway. So I really have no choice in this matter, but I hope to learn through observation in order to...

Goal 2. Change the world - Go into NGOs/non-profits

Here at SESP, we do things differently. And by that, I mean we do things more awesomely. Sure, lots of people go on to be lawyers and teachers and what-not, but there are certainly others that have gone above and beyond by entering into organizations like the Peace Corps or even founding their own non-profits and NGOs. We have had amazing alumni/ae that have done wonderful things with their lives and have helped out so, so many people.

...Wow. To think that I have to fill those shoes by the time I graduate seems impossible at this point. So as step 1 in my master plan to change the world, I hope to observe everything that goes on around me and take fieldnotes like crazy, SESP 372-style. Step 2: perhaps I'll find a topic that particularly piques my interest and make that into an independent study topic or even senior thesis. I would assume at this point that the topic has to do with some sort of social justice because that's the kind of thing I'm into these days, I suppose. I would love to work with the sadly salient issue of human trafficking in the Mekong river basin as well as other places in Thailand. And having this year's Thai Night support the cause of preventing human trafficking definitely increased this interest of mine [thanks, Pong!].

Up top, a Google Maps picture of Khon Kaen. On the bottom, an illustration of the Mekong river basin. Handy!

Okay, step 3. After graduation or something, touch base with an NGO like ENGAGE, a US-based NGO that we will automatically be working with when we get there, that shares my interest and/or mission to change the world. Alternatively, step 3 could consist of setting up a business plan and creating my own non-profit. And that would be incredible. Step 4 would be following through and making whatever I determine to be important as a lifelong commitment. And then change the world. Man, that'd be cool.

Goal 3. Pay the bills - Become a lawyer

As amazing as it would be to do the above option, I would probably still have to find a way to financially support myself. And my LSAT test prep book is telling me that law school is the way to go. I mean, I know how I perhaps sounded a bit self-righteous and all rose-tinted in the last bit that I wrote there. So isn't it a bit cynical that now I want to settle into a profession which society generally views as amoral and just plain... greasy?

Do I aspire to be the butt of all bad lawyer comic jokes?

Ehh. Well. I still want to help people. And I do plan to go into public interest law, where practitioners seem to have more of a soul than the run-of-the-mill corporate lawyers [though don't get me wrong; corporate law is important too!]. Plus, on a broader scale, don't all occupations intrinsically help others in some way? The physical therapist helps patients by aiding them in moving their bodies normally. The musician helps people unwind after a long day by playing his/her music. The high school janitor helps students by cleaning up waste and materials that might be hazardous to students' health. Sure, your neighborhood drug dealer helps people get high but doesn't help the community by doling out mind- and body-altering drugs for high prices. However, different kinds of neighborhood drug dealers like Walgreens and CVS also offer drugs that are meant to help heal people and are thus vital to a community. You might then argue that that the neighborhood drug dealer deals illegal drugs and is thus immoral. But then, are all of our laws based on ethics and morals? Okay, okay, I'm digressing like crazy.

So one way I could integrate my aspirations of becoming a lawyer into the study abroad experience is learn from the justice system there. I could further study deviance and sociological behaviors of the communities that I will stay in given each community's unique circumstances. Also, in the group projects, I hope to think in a different way -- perhaps in a way that's more organized (see above). Not sure exactly how this would help me become a lawyer, but acclimating to different types of thinking is certainly a good thing to have for life, right?

Goal 4. And now for something completely different - Study culture

One thing that differentiates Khon Kaen and the rest of the Isan region from Thailand (and especially the already developed Bangkok) is the culture. The region retains its Khmer and Lao influences - from the food all the way to Isan dialect of Thai that is widely spoken. Want some pad thai while you're in Khon Kaen? Nah, you'd have better luck finding some sticky rice with ลาบ (pronounced kinda like "larb") made from pork and the occasional worm or two.

Mmm. My vegetarian heart cries.

So I could focus on the cultural aspects that make Khon Kaen different from the rest of Thailand. Or, I could study how the people of Khon Kaen are perhaps dealing with the effects of globalization and modernization and how they are able to retain their unique cultural practices. I could even do some comparing and contrasting with other regions of Thailand, since we'll be travelling around a bit anyway.

Goal 5. Even more different - Study cultural appropriation... And pop culture.

Is anyone really surprised? I mean, where else am I going to use my extensive knowledge of k-pop and theories that my 3 previous classes about Asian American pop culture has taught me?

So, k-pop is really, really big in Thailand. And Thai TV networks get all of the Korean music programs [MCD, Music Core, Music Bank, Inkigayo... Is it bad that I'm excited to watch Thai TV for this reason alone?] on their regular cable channels. On the ~academic~ side, I could do a study on how Thais appropriate this Korean culture onto themselves and study their habits as consumers. On the other hand, I could study how the people of, say, random rural villages in the middle of Isan are perhaps not getting exposed to the same aspects of pop culture that their Bangkok-counterparts are. If this is the case, which I'm assuming it is, how do they consume pop culture?

Somehow I could make some grand, sweeping generalizations and then go on to study how Asian Americans consume culture from Asia and what that means for both the identity of Asian American culture and the reigning industries of pop culture in Asia [anime, k-pop, etc]. I would assume that this goal would be geared more towards an independent study, though, instead of a lifelong thing. But it would be fun to "study k-pop" as an occupation, right? Right?

Oh yeah, I promised Pokemon.

Okay, all done here. Next post will be about my love/hate relationship with the Thai language!