https://www.mwstephens.com/blog daily 0.75 2026-06-21 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/68ccf4945aa8807c1c57cd47/966be55e-af17-476c-ac88-1d65ac7ec20f/IMG_0490.jpeg https://www.mwstephens.com/blog/what-walking-in-the-rain-taught-me-about-resilience monthly 0.5 2026-06-21 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/68ccf4945aa8807c1c57cd47/a5ccafea-2fc3-4f6e-bcea-528bef42e564/23D748F5-DA4F-4447-9CEC-C92A598E8759.jpeg Blog - Ethnography, Essays, and Observations - What Walking in the Rain Taught me About Resilience I’ve been exercising nearly every day for a few months now, having come to accept that it’s one of the biggest changes I could make in my life for both my physical and mental health. It’s been amazing, really, after getting across that initial hurdle of having an inertia of zero. Now I thin of it not as exercise, but as my morning constitutional. If I don’t go, something just feels off. So what, then, should I do when it rains? Living in Berlin, experiencing inconvenient weather is fairly common. It’s been above 30C (over 90F), it’s rained all day or stormed when I’m halfway through my circuit. Should I be taking days off when it’s not ideal outside? In short, no. I’ve come to realize that while I definitely shouldn’t be taking my walk if the weather’s dangerous, I should get my butt outside if the weather is just inconvenient. And this isn’t just about exercise, but I’ve come to realize it’s about my whole outlook on life. With my C-PTSD (Complex Post Traumatic Stress Disorder), emotional regulation can be a challenge. By which I mean, I can spend a lot of emotional energy on things that don’t matter because they managed to trigger something. This is something I have been working on improving as part of my recovery process. I could let rain upset me and cancel my plans. I could get upset because someone canceled an appointment last minute. I could get upset over any number of inconveniences and speed bumps and expend energy railing at the injustice. But that doesn’t help anything. https://www.mwstephens.com/blog/bourdieus-symbolic-violence monthly 0.5 2026-05-24 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/68ccf4945aa8807c1c57cd47/68d01d0e-d1ec-408b-b443-6a36d8f422d4/BOURDIEU-SELECCION-DIALOGA-SENTIDO-SOCIAL_CLAIMA20110930_0145_8.jpg Blog - Ethnography, Essays, and Observations - Bourdieu’s Symbolic Violence - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/68ccf4945aa8807c1c57cd47/4078d642-881d-45f6-a0e3-45066a925744/IMG_2062.jpg Blog - Ethnography, Essays, and Observations - Bourdieu’s Symbolic Violence - Make it stand out Some of this is touched on in The Temptation of Power and Status, so check that I out if you want to see how fine dining can be a form of cultural capital. https://www.mwstephens.com/blog/what-weber-tells-us-about-america-today monthly 0.5 2026-05-14 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/68ccf4945aa8807c1c57cd47/fe437fa7-cd44-41dc-b6e7-699bfacb3b68/robert-michels.jpg Blog - Ethnography, Essays, and Observations - Trump, the DNC, Weber, and Michels Political Parties (Archive.org) is a book published in 1911 by German-Italian Sociologist Robert Michels. Michels had been a member of the German Social Democratic Party - established in 1870 to advocate for the working class (Appelrouth & Edles, 2021). Michels, like me over a century later, grew disillusioned with the party as he watched it become more and more conservative, more and more concerned with the size of its coffers and voter rolls than it was with doing the work that caused people to sign up in the first place. Sound familiar? Michels wondered why this revolutionary party on the vanguard of worker’s rights became just another tool of the elites, of the oligarchy. Was it inevitable, or was there something special about this one? What he came up with, and what he put in Political Parties is known as The Iron Law of Oligarchy. https://www.mwstephens.com/blog/start-with-a-good-base monthly 0.5 2026-05-12 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/68ccf4945aa8807c1c57cd47/f5924d58-af49-4cb2-81e8-865c915529e1/IMG_2621.jpeg Blog - Ethnography, Essays, and Observations - Start With a Good Base - Make it stand out A blueberry muffin with crumble topping, made from scratch and without a recipe. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/68ccf4945aa8807c1c57cd47/1ff2d6e0-9f75-4a27-8d7a-68cc771c5a0b/IMG_0363.jpeg Blog - Ethnography, Essays, and Observations - Start With a Good Base - Make it stand out Ugali, sukumu wiki, and kachumbari from Kenya. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/68ccf4945aa8807c1c57cd47/f016a16c-f577-4703-a541-11196eb6cd6e/IMG_1800.jpeg Blog - Ethnography, Essays, and Observations - Start With a Good Base - Make it stand out Spicy red pho with pork intestines from Da Nang, Vietname. https://www.mwstephens.com/blog/dear-america-do-you-still-dream monthly 0.5 2026-05-10 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/68ccf4945aa8807c1c57cd47/1778397585419-YLEYA4LEYNH9PSVBK15A/americandream.png Blog - Ethnography, Essays, and Observations - Dear America, Do You Still Dream? - Make it stand out Image generated by Google Gemini using the command “Generate an image based on the attached essay.” https://www.mwstephens.com/blog/my-name-is-anonymous-and monthly 0.5 2026-05-10 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/68ccf4945aa8807c1c57cd47/1778397689045-XLG6TCW723KV5BW1CR3O/alcoholism.png Blog - Ethnography, Essays, and Observations - My Name is Anonymous, and… - Make it stand out Image generated by Google Gemini using the prompt “Generate an image based on the attached essay.” https://www.mwstephens.com/blog/well-someones-getting-fired monthly 0.5 2026-05-10 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/68ccf4945aa8807c1c57cd47/1778397833368-TEP3175JE5W42PQWX4WT/terrorism.png Blog - Ethnography, Essays, and Observations - Well, Someone’s Getting Fired - Make it stand out Image generated by Google Gemini using the prompt “Create an image based on this essay.” https://www.mwstephens.com/blog/marx-was-wrongbut-not-how-i-believed monthly 0.5 2026-05-10 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/68ccf4945aa8807c1c57cd47/419b42d9-2023-4c40-8d3d-28626cce61f8/IMG_2120.jpeg Blog - Ethnography, Essays, and Observations - Marx was Wrong…But not how I Believed - Make it stand out Experiencing the healthcare system of a Communist country. https://www.mwstephens.com/blog/the-temptation-of-power-and-status monthly 0.5 2026-04-02 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/68ccf4945aa8807c1c57cd47/1e34c293-52d0-435a-9a88-d86957bf669c/IMG_2043.jpeg Blog - Ethnography, Essays, and Observations - The Temptation of Power and Status - Make it stand out A trio of delectable starters, including a charcoal salmon that was just oomami melting on the tongue. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/68ccf4945aa8807c1c57cd47/c9b2dd10-ba3a-44fe-9199-6815545884ce/IMG_2046.jpeg Blog - Ethnography, Essays, and Observations - The Temptation of Power and Status - Make it stand out Foie gras surrounded by figs. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/68ccf4945aa8807c1c57cd47/beab271b-8a9c-4f60-9943-0e53bf98dd42/IMG_2050.jpeg Blog - Ethnography, Essays, and Observations - The Temptation of Power and Status - Make it stand out This was the dish that made me think of autumn in Maine. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/68ccf4945aa8807c1c57cd47/3fd42c3a-4cc5-4ac0-8b35-c6420c8f1bf7/IMG_2052.jpeg Blog - Ethnography, Essays, and Observations - The Temptation of Power and Status - Make it stand out The cleansing interlude! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/68ccf4945aa8807c1c57cd47/66e3dab0-6e21-494c-b9b5-5759bfcdc6fe/IMG_2055.jpg Blog - Ethnography, Essays, and Observations - The Temptation of Power and Status - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/68ccf4945aa8807c1c57cd47/4078d642-881d-45f6-a0e3-45066a925744/IMG_2062.jpg Blog - Ethnography, Essays, and Observations - The Temptation of Power and Status - Make it stand out This was the most amazing dessert! https://www.mwstephens.com/blog/ethnographic-observation-rupas-mall monthly 0.5 2025-10-02 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/68ccf4945aa8807c1c57cd47/7fc84182-d84d-467b-bfa1-9b7c8951fe96/IMG_1494.jpg Blog - Ethnography, Essays, and Observations - Ethnographic Observation: Rupa’s Mall - Make it stand out Viewed from the observation tower of the Eldoret Arboretum, this is the view of Eldoret Town. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/68ccf4945aa8807c1c57cd47/c8a1167a-dfef-4f69-84e8-89df8db321db/IMG_0253.jpeg Blog - Ethnography, Essays, and Observations - Ethnographic Observation: Rupa’s Mall - Make it stand out The KFC in Rupa’s Mall, a familiar sight for the traveling American and a sign of continued colonialism for Kenya. And yes, the chicken tastes the same. But. make sure you try the rice! https://www.mwstephens.com/blog/getting-married monthly 0.5 2025-09-22 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/68ccf4945aa8807c1c57cd47/ca212931-0cea-491d-9b30-de7fec75d977/Screenshot+2025-09-21+at+10.51.03%E2%80%AFPM.png Blog - Ethnography, Essays, and Observations - Kenyan Marriage Bureaucracy - Make it stand out Note the link to the Registrar of Marriages in the middle of the image. This is where one should click to begin the application process. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/68ccf4945aa8807c1c57cd47/7e805201-efe4-4344-9f02-8dbb6b0a62e0/OBV_3171.jpeg Blog - Ethnography, Essays, and Observations - Kenyan Marriage Bureaucracy - Make it stand out In the registrar’s office, just before the vows are given. Take a moment to marvel at how beautiful that bride is! https://www.mwstephens.com/blog/white-in-kenya-privilege-perspective-and-positionality monthly 0.5 2025-10-02 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/68ccf4945aa8807c1c57cd47/bbc59784-89ae-4b2c-9649-9892c6885467/Mzungu.webp Blog - Ethnography, Essays, and Observations - White in Kenya: Privilege, Perspective, and Positionality - Make it stand out Image generated with ChatGPT. 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