It was ok.

I think there definitely needs to be some serious consideration of blogs and zines and other independent media. That element was critically absent from our discussions at Mothering & Feminism. One of the keynote speakers was extremely dismissive of online communities and other third-wave communication strategies, and it left a bad taste in my mouth. Of course, most of the audience was pretty shocked, and we had some fruitful conversations afterward, so I'm not inclined to see it as a loss. I think there should be disagreement; it's a useful motivator.

I also found the conference to be dominated by career academics. People would introduce themselves asking, "And where do you teach?" even in discussions of mothers and writing--I guess you're supposed to study Kate Chopin, not actually be a mother and a writer. I felt kind of like a sideshow freak. I think because tenure-track academics get travel stipends, they're the only ones who can afford to attend conferences regularly anyway--thus conferences like this are dominated by scholars looking for a notch on their CVs instead of by real people.

But I also got kind of a charge out of knocking on that door, if you know what I mean. The organizers always encourage submissions from across the spectrum of writing and performance, and I think if we're able we should try to step in.

and detailed her experiences in that zine "in the (m)other tongue"

it didn't sound all that great, to tell you the truth. but maybe pm or e-mail her and ask her directly? (I would also urge you to read the zine, but you're probably not going to get the zine by this saturday)

I can't go but I totally think it's a great idea. Let us know if you need us to be research subjects!