Social Scientist @UCLA w/ expertise in measurement, STEM, teacher and afterschool education. Former public school teacher. Musician. Art lover. Italian American. Foodie. NCAA hoops. SoCal native. Cat parent to Chloe and Lila. Photos my own.
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NEW: Tenure-track position in History at UC Berkeley in the GLOBAL HISTORY OF TECHNOLOGY. We are casting a wide net here: *all* periods, places, and fields are under consideration. I'm on the search committee, so do let me know if you have questions.
So Google has made a very expensive broken calculator
I still own the CD for R.E.M. Out of Time, so I’ll say Radio Song music.apple.com/us/album/rad...
Colorado has been all mail voting for ages. My family there loves it.
Now these guys are the authority on endocrinology? I’m sticking with my own physician’s advice.
Some of us stopped worrying about having a bra for each type of top.
I may soon be eligible to join a union for the first time since I was a young adult. We voted last month to unionize researchers and policy professionals at the University of California. Getting to officially join will be an amazing thing.
After two nights with some of my best girlfriends, I’m having a solo dinner date at Terra e Mare near my house in Los Angeles. Penne arrabbiata, Rose, a good Italian Chianti, and lots of classic Italian American crooners including Dino and Frank. My Italian dad would have loved this place.
The Leslie Nielsen one or the remake? I could use a good laugh!
There is something magical about going to the Hollywood Bowl with over 17,000 people on a warm summer night in Los Angeles. Last night was particularly magical since it was Cindi Lauper’s farewell show for her career.
I passed about ten gas stations while out doing chores this afternoon. The cheapest I encountered was an Arco at $4.37 if you paid cash. Last week the lowest I found was $4.09. I keep topping off in case it gets even worse. Now tell me that we aren’t having horrible price inflation?
My cats take research and (social) science quite seriously. #caturday
This Labor Day weekend as we enjoy barbecues and picnics, let's remember the farm workers who labor so hard to put food on our tables. #WeFeedYou #LaborDay
It needs a Doctor Who book!
I hope @governor.ca.gov does this for state employees like myself and for other Californians.
I’m in SoCall too. I refused to opt in and whenever my Nest auto adjusts my settings I go into the app and put my schedule back.
Your lead, which doesn’t mention that states control elections, is why I stopped subscribing to your paper.
Besides the wrongness of this statement, personal observations like this are not scientific.
I want to call out the profile of Gustavo Arellano who I started reading regularly when he was writing the ¡Ask a Mexican! column that highlighted Latino people, culture, and news. I think he’s an important follow if you care about what is happening in Los Angeles.
Done! I used the free site this year and it was my best tax preparation experience ever.
When life is difficult, I sometimes take walks along the beach with my close friends. I love them all dearly! #LosAngeles #LaborDay
I’d vote for her and she was very nice when I went to a fundraiser she was at
In contrast, my Los Angeles city councilwoman cares about combating homelessness and housing. cd4.lacity.gov
Luckily my city councilwoman in Los Angeles also takes homelessness seriously
Well now I’m debating whether to stock up on coffee and pasta made in Italy. :(
Old people can get thin skin and bruise really easily. My parents certainly have that issue. Dude is old.
P.S. Apologies for the typo. My phone overly spellchecks Mamdani. It also sometimes has trouble with my own non-anglo surname!
Just to be clear, I love using the EN dash but not the EM dash when I write reports and publications. I’m also an Oxford comma prude.
My mom’s heritage is pretty cool
Does it mean no margherita pizza or only margherita pizza? It was named after the Queen of Savoy which is kind of classist?
Maybe there will be another #ZcavengerHunt
I don’t live in New York, but I kind of hope that my 11th great grandfather, Thomas Willett, is part of the #ZcavengerHunt #Mandani BTW, my ancestor was the first mayor of British New York. Also, I’d like to see the Mayor of Los Angeles do a metro friendly scavenger hunt too!
I stopped donating because 1) I’m donating to public TV and radio instead and 2) I’m sick of getting texts and emails from people in other states who I’ve never heard of. ActBlue should only opt you into the candidate(s) you donated to.
It’s not actually furniture until I assemble my patio bench at home, right?
Had to delete and reinstall Bluesky because apparently my VPN temporarily routed me iPhone through Mississippi. Fun times.
How I feel after writing my sixth research report of the summer at UCLA. Onto the next!
I’m an American. From my British, Irish, and German ancestors who immigrated in colonial times, to my Italians who came in the 1800s and 1900s. My partner who immigrated from India and became a US citizen is just as much an American. This is our country.
Some Texas Democratic women have torn up their permission slips and will now be hosting a “slumber party for Democracy” on the House floor.
holy shit this is a helluva ad from the Democrat running against Joni Ernst in Iowa. worth every second
As a federal employee, my dad belonged to a union. This morning I got to vote to form a new union at the University of California. I also want to call out the organizers at each of the campuses who got us to this point after many years of trying!
I initially found him on TikTok where he has a strong following, but I just followed Foo Howser on here too. He does daily doses of California history. I’ve already learned a lot about my home state. bsky.app/profile/fooh...
When your baby grows up way too fast! #caturday
That I’d… -become a coffee / cappuccino person -live in Los Angeles a few miles from where my parents grew up -become a social scientist -work at a university -love writing -have two extremely goofy cats -have a partner from India -All the amazing food that comes with having a partner from India
When I was a young teacher we only worried about making sure kids weren’t taken by non custodial parents. What is happening with kids being snatched by the government is so horrible.
I told my family not to worry about my deployment. It’s DC, which is very safe. Me too. Me too. Me too.
So the memorials, other parts of the mall, Logan Circle, etc. It’s all for show.
Don't poke the bear.
My 11th great grandfather was Thomas Hooker who eventually went to Hartford.
My first immigrant ancestor came in 1633 from England via the Netherlands. Our ancestors probably knew each other.
I’m half Italian (well, Italian and Sicilian) plus everything else on the list except Polish. Of course no one would guess the first part with my two word surname ending in vowels!
I can’t believe that it has been two years already since we buried my dad. I really need to go home to San Diego to visit his grave.
UCLA employees received this notice in our email this afternoon.
I’m so thankful for judges who respect the rule of law! #UCLA #StandUpForUC
If Harvard does this then they hurt all of the other colleges and universities in the US.
Do you want to know more about the amazing work being done at UCLA? I suggest you check out the UCLA Newsroom site that highlights some of the research at our campus. #StandUpForUC newsroom.ucla.edu
I think we only dislike each other on the football field and basketball court.
www.kqed.org/news/1205152...
I’m a career researcher at UCLA. It’s time to #StandUpForUC
Let’s do the math… UCLA is supposed to pay one billion to get 584 million in appropriated funding released? Please call your congress people and senators. If they are going to do this to our public university they’ll do it to yours too.
Why just limit to yourself to international cat day. Chloe and Lila declare today to be galactic cat day!
For my fellow Los Angelenos, the LA County Fire Department is now posting updates on Bluesky.
I have a bean grinder and almost only make espresso or coffee at home. My bags of beans are up a few dollars.
Another great show on PBS! Also, on a personal note, it makes me think about the part of my family that has lived on the slope of Mount Etna for centuries.
The burden was probably less. For the university to do it they would probably have needed board approval.
Stanford University’s student-run newspaper sued two senior Trump administration officials Wednesday, challenging Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s ability to revoke student visas and deem an individual deportable based on the content of their speech.
I had to verify the eligibility of my now ex-husband for my UCLA medical benefits back in 2011 I believe. We did receive a campus wide warning email before I got the individual one.
I work at UCLA. Here is the info on UC admissions. admission.universityofcalifornia.edu/admission-re... And here is a link to the details of California Prop 209 which forbids the use of race, ethnicity, or sex in admissions decisions. www.ucop.edu/academic-aff...
My memory for today…sailing in San Diego Bay, which I did almost every weekend during part of my childhood. I really miss those days.
I really doubt that first class or elite passengers are going to be cool with this.
I learned about that when I went to an event with PBS SoCal. People need to know!
I love PBS Passport
Do you want to help public radio after their loss of funding? Just use this website to find and donate. I’m a proud donor to @kcrw.com in Los Angeles. adoptastation.org
These are your words of the week eugenics derecho persona non grata endangerment hypergamy absquatulate www.merriam-webster.com/wordplay/the...
I tend to subscribe and cancel streaming channels regularly but I’ve been a consistent donor to PBS SoCal since I cut the cord eight years ago. PBS Passport has amazing content. BTW, the photos are from @pbs.org donor events I attended this year with Ken Burns and Henry Louis Gates Jr.
I watch so many of the @pbs.org European Walter Presents shows too.
"WASHINGTON, D.C. (August 1, 2025) – The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) announced today that it will begin an orderly wind-down of its operations" cpb.org/pressroom/Co...
To reintroduce myself. I’m a career researcher at UCLA where I primarily do evaluation and assessment work in the field of education. While many of our federal grants in teacher ed were already cancelled this news is still devastating. Please call your congress people and senators.
Tennyson would be happy
Encinitas is my hometown. It isn’t conservative anymore. Democrat Mike Levin is the congressman there. It voted Obama, Hillary, Biden, and Harris.
I prefer slow travel although I’m okay if a half day turns into a whole one. For example, I ended up walking through Barcelona after going to the Picasso museum. I unexpectedly ended up at a Greek theatre, the Joan Miró Institute, and then the Olympic stadium on my way home.
People should just go to Burbank on the weekend to experience the car hop or car show at Bob’s Big Boy. bobs.net/pages/history
Cats who read!
My cat Lila is a big fan of animal TikTok. Her favorites are the San Diego Zoo and right now she is watching videos of a cat colony at a Tuscan villa. #caturday
This came up in my memories this week. Chloe cat has always been a big fan of Adam Serwer because of his ginger cats. #caturday
I’ll never forget their singing while watching La Bamba with my parents when I was a kid.
That’s my hometown. Law enforcement in Encinitas is handled by the sheriff’s department. Their vests would say sheriff not police.
I live in the flight path to Burbank airport. This is &&&&& crazy!
Guinness should only be had on tap and in a pub owned by someone from (or in) Ireland
Blur or Oasis: answer is Manic Street Preachers
I’m happy to share that researchers and public service professional employees at the University of California will be voting to unionize! There’s been talk about doing this for years, and there are many unions already in the UC, but with threats to funding this is so important.
With ten campuses I think we will put up a good fight.
My cat hates when I force her off the “cream colored” rug!
When my younger cat was still a baby she used to suck on my older cat’s tail. Boy was my older girl frustrated!
PBS News is not going anywhere. We will continue our work without fear or favor, as we have for nearly five decades on the air. We are profoundly grateful to Viewers Like You for your loyalty and unwavering support.
My real life friend, Jonathan, is looking for collaborators!
99% of the time I just think peaceful thoughts about the loss of my dad to Parkinson’s two years ago. But hearing Brian Wilson singing God Only Knows during yoga this afternoon brought tears streaming down my cheeks. It’s interesting how the combination of stillness and music can be so powerful.
I try not to do annoying advocacy posts on my socials, but I make an exception for the national parks. This is a humorous video and I hope it helps raise support for the parks system, a true wonder among God’s creations and our most exceptional cultural export m.youtube.com/watch?v=b7Wv...
They probably didn’t know that the pour is a multiple step process for Guinness 😣
When I’m old I’ll barely remember White Lotus. I’ll always be a Star Wars kid, and Andor is the best.
