umich.edu/~goodwins

Hi! I'm Sarah, and this is my website (or Web site, if you prefer). You may have stumbled upon it, or you might have come intentionally because you love me so dearly. =P Either way, I'm glad you're here. Thank you so much for visiting!

If you have any questions or constructive comments about my web page, please e-mail me. Have fun surfing through my site!

Have a web page of your own and want to link to me?

links:

autobio:

My online handle is generally buzhwa or buzhwa2001. It's roughly a phonetic spelling of "bourgeois." I asked a friend to give me a nickname, so she somehow decided to use Madonna's song "Music" for inspiration. =P The line goes, "Music makes the bourgeoisie and the rebel," but my friend could only make out the "buzhwa"-sounding part, so there you go.

I live in Michigan. If you ask me where my hometown is, I'll show you by pointing to a spot on the palm side of my right hand (or the back of the left hand), as that is what Michigan's lower peninsula looks like. ;)

In 2005, I received my B.A. (Artium Baccalaureus) in Linguistics with a minor in Spanish Language, Literature, and Culture from the University of Michigan. Since sixth grade, I had wanted to study to be an orthodontist, but it took me four semesters of college to realize that I wasn't cut out for the science classes. =P Therefore, since I had already taken a lot of Spanish, and my roommate wanted to take a linguistics class, I ended up taking that introductory course with her and getting hooked on the subject. Read more about what linguistics is. Instead of majoring in both Spanish and linguistics, I minored in Spanish and concentrated on linguistics because the major required more Spanish literature classes, and the minor allowed me to focus on language-oriented courses.

I'm not sure yet what I want to do as a career, but currently I work as a research technician, developing EFL/ESL (English as a foreign/second language) test materials. I enjoy interpreting and translating (interpretation is done out loud; translation is on paper). Additionally, I find the social effects of language fascinating, such as regional accents in American English or thinking about the implications of standardized English testing.

The human voice fascinates me. =) I do research and development on English speaking tests and encounter many different speakers in my day-to-day work. I love recognizing voice actors in animated shows, and I also enjoy the variety of singing voices out there (operatic, pop, gruff alternative, death-metal vocals, etc.). It's just amazing what we can do with all those articulators in our head and neck.

Music is a huge part of my life. I played trumpet regularly for about 12 years, four of those years as part of the Michigan Marching Band. I can play a few things on the piano as well, although I've never taken lessons. I also like to drum on any hard surface if the song allows. I listen to many different music genres, but my favorites tend to fall into metal (especially from Scandinavia), pop/rock, alternative, classical, cover songs, and stuff with interesting time signature changes. I would rather lose all my senses than be deaf. =)

Genealogy fascinates me. I can explain to you the difference between "second cousin" and "first cousin once removed". I love finding out about my family tree and how my ancestors lived. I attend family reunions regularly and feel that it's very important to listen to what older generations have to say.

If you are age 17 or older, weigh 110 lbs., and are in good health, I urge you to become a blood donor. You fill out some paperwork; a Red Cross worker checks your temperature, blood pressure, and iron level; you donate a pint of blood, which takes about ten minutes; and finally you get juice and snacks. See GiveLife.org for more information.

unusual/interesting facts about me:

  • I learned to read when I was three years old
  • I can't tie my shoes the "traditional" way (I have to make two loops and tie them together)
  • I love to watch TV in closed-captioning
  • I didn't learn how to swim until I was 14 years old
  • I can recite the U.S. states in alphabetical order
  • I always dot my "i"s with circles
  • I was stepped on by a horse when I was two (my mom said that it didn't put any weight on me; I don't remember this, haha)
  • I always point out old cars on the road when I'm driving (and I'm not even a car aficionado)
  • when I buy some food that comes in a variety pack of different flavors, like instant oatmeal or granola bars, I always eat them so that there's one of each flavor left before finishing the box
  • I peel the price sticker off almost anything after I buy it (unless it's a tag or on a wrapper, then I just remove that)

things I want to do before I die:

  • become fluent or at least conversational in four or more languages (already have English and Spanish, next I have special preference for Finnish, Swedish, Thai, or Greek)
  • get a doctorate in some field of study (probably linguistics)
  • visit Finland, Sweden, Spain, Argentina, Greece, the UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, and a few other countries
  • get a tattoo
  • go bungee-jumping and/or skydiving
  • finish all of Tolkien's books
  • learn to work a soundboard, like in a recording studio

my rant about U.S. pop music:

Don't be a slave to mainstream music (if you don't live in the U.S., this probably doesn't apply to you). I'm not saying all popular music is bad, but it bugs me when ALL the music someone listens to is from the radio... then comes and raves about it to me. Here's why you should make an effort to check out underground artists:

~People from other countries think MTV is an accurate representation of the U.S. music scene (if you actually tune in at a time when they're playing music videos... oh wait... do they anymore?), and VH1's just as bad in their portrayal of not-so-various music genres. I found out about nearly all of my current favorite non-mainstream artists via word of mouth. Make others realize that not every American listens to only Linkin Park, Evanescence, 3 Doors Down, Gwen Stefani, 50 Cent, or whoever else gets buttloads of airplay nowadays.

~Be open-minded to music from genres you wouldn't normally listen to. I sent a bunch of metal songs to an e-mail group I'm part of, and after making it a point to ask my closest friends if they'd checked out the tunes, I received SO many responses to the effect of "oh, I'm not a big fan of heavy metal" or "that's just not my style". Sheesh. At least waste one bend of your pointer finger to click on the link and hear the damn thing first.

~Lower concert ticket prices! Holy crap... you don't know how much I appreciate cheap tix. I saw my two favorite bands in Dec. 2004 and Apr. 2005 for about $20 per show. You can't even see mainstream bands' shows on a regular basis unless your family's loaded.

~Going along with that, not-so-popular artists give better live performances. There's much less pre-recorded stuff at the shows. The telling factor of a good artist is if they can deliver what's on their albums (perhaps even kicked up a notch). No studio magic needed.

~Finally, BETTER MUSICIANSHIP. Many artists have studied at prestigious schools like Berklee, Juilliard, or Helsinki's Sibelius Academy (of course, you don't have to have attended one of those, but I can't think of a single mainstream artist who has). Their vocal work and/or instrumentation is just plain superior. Orchestration is superb; guitars are shredding; drums are wailing away. You can see my metal love \m/ shining through here, but I'm trying to keep all genres in mind (even classical), and the guitars/drums don't have to be crazy on every song... heh.

(Sun., June 5, 2005)