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We're 2!!!! - Episode 48
713 Plays6 years ago
It's hard to believe that it has been two years since we started this podcast! We hope you enjoy our reminiscing over our favorite episodes and our hopes for the podcast in the future.
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Transcript
Introduction and Announcement
00:00:01
Speaker
You're listening to the Archaeology Podcast Network.
00:00:06
Speaker
After two great years with the Archaeology Podcast Network, the hosts of the Women in Archaeology podcast are moving on to set out on our own. We'd like to thank the APN and our listeners for all of the support we've received over the past two years. We hope you'll continue listening to the podcast.
Where to Find New Episodes
00:00:25
Speaker
You'll be able to find our new episodes on our blog at womeninarchaeology.wordpress.com,
00:00:32
Speaker
on our Patreon page, and of course, through iTunes. Again, thanks for listening.
Meet the Hosts
00:00:41
Speaker
Hi, and welcome to the Women in Archaeology podcast, podcast about for and by women in the field. My name is Chelsea Sladden, and I'm your host for this episode. It's an exciting episode because we're joining too. Yay! Joining me on this episode are some very familiar names. We've got Emily Long, Kirsten Lopez, and Sarah Head. Thanks so much for joining me on this episode. Ladies, I'm super excited about it. So am I.
00:01:10
Speaker
So crazy to think it's been two years. I know, right? So this is gonna be a little bit different from some of our normal episodes and that we don't really have a topic.
Favorite Podcast Moments
00:01:17
Speaker
We're just gonna kind of talk about the fact that we're two, what some of our favorite episodes are, what are some of the amazing things we've learned, the connections we've made, hopes and plans for the future, that sort of thing. So to kick us off, Emily, Kirsten, or Sarah, this is one of you want to talk about
00:01:36
Speaker
your favorite moment on the podcast so far? Favorite moment on the podcast. No softballs for me tonight, ladies. My favorite moment on the podcast has been, there's a couple. The period episode was definitely a favorite of mine. It was, both of them were. We, but I know only one of them made it out, but still, we had a really good time with those. But in general, like my favorite times on the podcast have been when we've brought forward some really hard hitting
00:02:03
Speaker
topics that are uncomfortable to talk about but yet have managed to have a really good group of women to discuss them. I'm thinking things like the sexual harassment episodes that we've done, the monuments episode was the one. I also like the ones that we deal with
00:02:21
Speaker
very woman specific topics like motherhood in the field. Again, the wonderful period episode. I think the what's in my bag and how to pack a bag for the field kind of falls in that because we talk about female specific items that we would want to keep with us like pads. But so those are my favorites.
00:02:45
Speaker
That's my favorite time in podcasts is when we're particular topics that would not come up otherwise in any other kind of a situation because women think about these things, not necessarily not women. Oh, yeah. Just jump right off of that,
Field Challenges in Archaeology
00:03:00
Speaker
too. It's just I love like what you're saying, Sarah. It's like when we're just unabashedly frank.
00:03:07
Speaker
about the realities of things. No one would have ever talked to me about going right into the field and being like, oh no, how do you actually pee in the field? Or, oh my gosh, how do you say that you don't pee on your pants? It's like, nobody talks about that. And we are. Yeah, yeah, yeah. That's a really great example. I completely forgot we had a whole discussion about how to go to the bathroom.
00:03:35
Speaker
And it's embarrassing and it's awkward, but we're just like, whatever. I mean, for me, that's kind of my favorite part, where we're just kind of like, all right, well, we're going to talk about this, whether you like it or not. Yes. Well, because you know what? Somebody out there has that question. Like you were saying, how do I pee in the field without peeing all over my pants? Well, you know, sometimes you do and sometimes you don't. It all depends on the ground and the sentiment structure. And if you've got a lady peeing on.
00:04:03
Speaker
The angle of the slope. You have something to grab onto or lean against. What kind of stick? How windy is it? Or are there bugs biting your butt? Oh man. Oh yeah. The imminent threat of the potential rattlesnake around. I've never had to deal with that one. Very grateful.
Community and Support Networks
00:04:23
Speaker
And a lot of these things are...
00:04:26
Speaker
Our frankness seems to be really appreciated by a lot of the listeners. We've gotten some great feedback, some emails, some Facebook comments, some conversations I've had with people.
00:04:35
Speaker
You know in person at conferences and that sort of thing being told that We say the things other people are afraid to say and it's so important that the podcast is really important because of our frankness because I'm not afraid to punch is because we talk about Some very very important basics that you know, just don't get a lot of air time a lot of inches and press
00:04:58
Speaker
Yeah, one of the things about or one of the topics that came up, I don't remember what episode it was. I think it was the what's in your bag episode. And that was the customizing. I remember talking to a teacher about this, like, like refitting things like safety vests.
00:05:16
Speaker
So you're not like catching on brush. Random equipment that doesn't ever really come in women's size. Or at least, you know, small women's size. Or like curved size. Like the shapes are all wrong. Rain gear is one example of that.
00:05:35
Speaker
like women's rain gear at least that I have tried on can often be made to look pretty and cute but it's not really meant for like lifting your legs to hike through all this stuff or to fit it in the waist and you're like if I put any more layers under this I'm gonna
00:05:52
Speaker
burst it open. Exactly. So, you know, you move over to men's and it just doesn't fit right. Even the smalls were too long, but they were roomy. Like I could actually move around in it. So I just, you know, roll down the waist or, you know, it's stuff like that to where it's where to get stuff. We had a conversation about red ant pants, which I think out of Australia, which is sort of the women's version of Carhartt,
00:06:17
Speaker
work pants, but they actually have different shapes to choose from and not just like... I've forgotten about those. I'm glad you brought those up. Yeah, because those sounded amazing. Unfortunately, they're really expensive. So if you're always looking for sponsors, hey, red ant pants.
00:06:42
Speaker
And we could gear test them. We could. In different parts of the United States. We've got, you know, Pacific Northwest, we've got Southwest, we've got East Coast, come on. Though I know personally one of my favorite things about this podcast has just been
00:07:00
Speaker
And it's not necessarily a particular episode, but all of the amazing women that I've gotten to meet through the podcasting, Kirsten and Sarah, Emily, you were not women that I had ever met in, you know, out in the world prior to this. And I now consider all of you my friends.
Networking and Career Preparation
00:07:16
Speaker
And we had 40, 50 guests on in two years probably. I haven't actually counted them all, but it's a really good number. And just women, some of them I knew, some of them I didn't. But getting to talk to them, talk about their experiences. How are they similar? How are they different? Learning about specialties and areas of expertise that aren't mine and that I maybe didn't know a lot about.
00:07:42
Speaker
and there are differences but there are also so many similarities and there's just this amazing community of women in archaeology that's so supportive and so welcoming and it's amazing to be part of that and I feel like the podcast kind of has provided a good end to that and hopefully any women who are listening realize that you are also part of this community of women archaeologists and we love you, we're always here for you.
00:08:09
Speaker
And it's it's so neat to, like you said, meet people in person that either you've, you know, I mean, you know, you, Chelsea, I think I've met in well, not that I think I know we've we hung out as a is a little while ago. And I look forward to meeting Sarah coming up with these next essays.
00:08:35
Speaker
And I hung out with and met April Besaw, who's a frequent guest on the show in Toronto, and that was a lot of fun. And it's just neat to see how many different things that we do as women in archaeology. I think I've gotten more of a sense of how diverse this field is with regard to
00:09:01
Speaker
the types of work that archaeologists do through this show than anything, any other platform that I've seen.
00:09:09
Speaker
And that is really encouraging, saying that I'm going to be wrapping up my masters hopefully at the end of this calendar year. So I'm currently gearing up, you know, and doing all of the things that you do as you prepare to, you know, look for a job in the next year or so. The episode we did with April
00:09:31
Speaker
not too horribly long ago on putting yourself out there as an archaeologist. That was one that was, I actually went and re-listened to that the other day to be like, okay, what are all the things? Am I forgetting something? To kind of, you know, polish up all of my resume stuff and my social media presence that I've been getting better at since that show for sure. It's been
00:09:58
Speaker
a learning curve, but that's definitely one that I think has been valuable for me. And I hope other people have gotten some good value out of it as well.
00:10:09
Speaker
along these lines, and I'm not necessarily related to the podcast, because of the podcast, I have joined a lot of female archaeologist support groups lately. And they, well, okay, to be fair, I kind of started them because I needed support as a woman archaeologist, and I figured everybody kind of did. And so we started one on Twitter. And if you're a female archaeologist, and you're not part of that, and you want to be part of it, hit me up, it's our key fantasies at our key fantasies on Twitter. So
00:10:39
Speaker
hit me up and I'll add you to it. But we also started a Slack group and I think we're not horrifically active, but that's okay. Because I feel like when people get on, when women get on there and they ask questions, they're getting answers not just from like a couple of women who are in their immediate vicinity. They're getting answers from female archaeologists from all across the country and a couple across the pond.
00:11:03
Speaker
So, like, I wouldn't have even thought to do something like that if I hadn't been involved with this podcast and if I hadn't seen the success that this podcast is having just at community building and awareness raising and just, you know, bringing women archaeologists together, which I know sounds weird, but it seems like we needed this and it shouldn't sound weird. It really is.
00:11:30
Speaker
Yeah, it's not at all. I've been on that support group on Twitter and it's delightful. I say that with no irony or anything. It's really delightful and people will be like, man, I'm really struggling with
00:11:49
Speaker
my dissertation today. And then everyone's like, you can do it. Here's some tips, you know, like try doing X, Y and Z and you can write or oh, just like all kinds of issues. And it's so incredibly supportive. And I feel that way so much about like the women that all of you in this podcast to that it's, it's really fun when we just message each other because for one thing, like you all met each other. I haven't the funny thing is I haven't met any of you. Emily, you're next on my list.
00:12:18
Speaker
Yeah. Well, and you're closer to the next essay. You know, Albuquerque is next year. That is true. We're gonna be in your backyard, sort of. Oh, that is true. I want to go to the Albuquerque meeting, not for any particular reason, other than there's a Weird Al song named Albuquerque. And I'm not lying, that is the only reason I want to go to the Albuquerque meeting is so that I can get, say that I have been to Albuquerque where the Weird Al song is written. Anyway, sorry, go ahead. That's awesome.
00:12:48
Speaker
Well, then we'll have to go there. But just kind of what all of you have already been talking about, it's like we're in a support group of ourselves and just messaging each other, talking about issues. And even just the planning process for this podcast is almost like a little support group as well, because it's like, all right, what do we need to talk about? It's like, oh, man, this has been an issue. Or whoa, whoa, this research is coming out. And we'll talk about it. And then bringing this information together,
00:13:14
Speaker
It's cathartic in many ways too. Our rants are quite cathartic as well and our random shark facts and what was the other squirrel facts? How much we hate pottery.
00:13:31
Speaker
pottery rants or anti-pottery rants, but just, I don't know. It's like we have a lot of fun. We're a little support group. We try to get information out there and we're trying to raise women's voices. I think it's such a fun combination of things. And I think our listeners have fun with it too, even with our serious topics that I think we do a good job. It's one of my favorite things too, that at the end we're trying to lift it up. It's like, man, we're talking about some really depressing topics here.
00:13:58
Speaker
how can we change you know it's like we try to always bring it back to what can you do or what can we do to help each other i think that's a really awesome factor of what we do too exactly makes me happy yeah makes me very happy i i do enjoy having that outlet um like you guys were saying with the just it's very cathartic um i was talking to someone the other day about how
00:14:23
Speaker
Being on this podcast and being involved in this has helped me so much in the process of going through my masters. And of course, I'm not doing, you know, what Chelsea's doing, Miss PhD over there.
00:14:44
Speaker
There are definitely the few moments of self-doubt or other issues where it's like, I'm just having a hard time writing, I can't focus. Coming back around to and knowing that we're all here, both in this group because we meet.
00:15:02
Speaker
fairly often to record and to plan. And then the Slack group that came online recently that you were mentioning, Sarah, and Twitter, it's just, it's become such a big help in just really kind of keeping me on track and doing the things that need to be done. I completely feel you, because I'm also in the middle of a master's. Granted, we're doing theory this semester, so like I'm questioning life and everything, but... Oh.
00:15:37
Speaker
But you need to go through the processual ideas that Benford laid out for you to be able to understand the ecology and environmental models that can be opposed. It is okay to just pick it up and go it's a rock and move on with life.
00:15:56
Speaker
I was going to say, there's Binford, but I would say a lot more credit needs to be given to Schiffer and Butzer, you know. That's just true, that's my opinion. Guys, I already made Sarah have an hour-long theory discussion with me on the way back from the Mid-Atlantic Archaeology Conference this weekend.
00:16:16
Speaker
But how do you feel about the idea of processional class, which brings together all of the ideas that can be done? I read a really great response paper to that the other day that was really fun. Just look it up, Madonna Moss, I believe, wrote it in 2005. It's up on academia.edu, I believe, so.
00:16:41
Speaker
Let's see, it's this kind of stuff that we're talking about. Like, this is awesome that I can have my, I hate theory rants. And like, everybody can bring it back around to making fun of the fact that I hate theory. We don't want to know what my committee chair told me about theory. Go for it.
Addressing Broader Archaeological Issues
00:16:57
Speaker
All right, so I'm writing my theory chapter for my dissertation. And it's like, man, this is really hard. And he's like, well, you know, theory is just to get professors tenure. Really? And he's like, but you still have to write your theory chapter. And I'm like, damn,
00:17:12
Speaker
Can I just write that into your chapter? I was going to say, can that just be my theory chapter? I'm not going for 10 years. Screw you, theories. I'm pretty much like, I'm not going for 10 years. What were we talking about? Oh, yeah. The tangents. The tangents are all so wonderful. We never have those answers. Those don't exist on the show. This is a well-oiled machine. Of course.
00:17:38
Speaker
We all have notes, and it's pre-scripted, right? I don't know what's more terrifying than the thought that we just randomly do, so the fact that we scripted... Insert um here, and then tangent about theory, and then antipodery, you know. General rant that actually, or you know, just mumble rambling that has forgotten its train of thought halfway through. That's my specialty. Like, what was I saying?
00:18:08
Speaker
On that note, we are about at the end of our first 20-minute segment, so we're going to give a break, and when we come back, you will probably hear more tangents!
00:18:27
Speaker
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00:18:46
Speaker
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00:19:17
Speaker
Hi, everyone, and welcome back to the Women in Archaeology podcast. Today's special episode is all about us and the fact that we're turning to so far on right. Super exciting. So I didn't give you guys a chance to cheer. It's hard to contain yourselves.
00:19:35
Speaker
So far today, we have been discussing some of our favorite things about the podcast, what it's given to us, what we hope we've given back to the community, but it's not just the archeological community that we are hoping to reach. We also have several episodes that we like to think of as kind of our engaged citizen episodes and part of larger conversations around archeology
00:20:02
Speaker
heritage, public outreach. You know, you see headlines, whether it's the Dakota Access Pipeline, or the shrinking of the national monuments, or the removal of Confederate monuments. We try to bring an archaeological perspective to those issues, which
00:20:18
Speaker
isn't always easy. That we don't always agree. But I... It's not always comfortable. Yeah, definitely. But I think Kirsten, you had some thoughts about that in the break that you wanted to maybe kick us off with. Yes. So some of these topics, as you mentioned, are those which people get very... Defensive.
00:20:39
Speaker
So defensive, self-righteous, very dug into their position about and people feel strongly about, which on that note, outside of Facebook, people often are unwilling to discuss much further or to any considerable or approachable depth. And these are things that we need to actually have conversations about. I mean, the weather is important. Don't get me wrong, especially when you're working in it.
00:21:09
Speaker
But actually talking to your field mates, your crew, people in your office or colleagues, it's good to have these discussions about where we are as a field, how we're engaged or engaging with these issues and how they affect not only us, but what we stand for and what we are supposed to be doing
00:21:36
Speaker
in theory in both the CRM field and academic work and sort of what are reasons for existing behind. One might call it theory. If one were brave. If one were brave, yes.
00:21:54
Speaker
Don't scare them away. Yes. So as an archaeologist, there is a Facebook group out there that has been engaging since the election or since during the campaigns before the election, this last presidential election that I don't remember what the original name of it called, but it is now Archaeologist for a Just Future.
00:22:22
Speaker
So if you are an archaeologist of any level, we have people on there from tech level to seasoned archaeologists and professors. Professor Emeritus is one who actually runs it. So it's a really great group for discussion. We're all of varying opinions, much like this show.
00:22:44
Speaker
And because it is difficult to engage people outside of Facebook, that's one of the reasons why we have those discussions on here is to actually get people to voice them. So we voice them to each other. We disagree and we agree all of the above. And I think it's really great to have people on that are of varying positionalities, of varying opinions. And I think
00:23:07
Speaker
Even just sending comments or discussion topics or responses is very great to hear from people just to know that we're engaging for their thought. Engagement, I mean the whole point of these episodes are really to get you to think and act.
00:23:23
Speaker
Because too many times in my field crew days of being a tech I ran into people that were just so afraid to rock the boat and to make things uncomfortable And just wanted to kind of follow the status quo because that's just what it was But we can't
00:23:41
Speaker
I mean, things aren't going to stay that way with that attitude. CRM may not exist if we follow the way of the EPA. Take a listen to some of those episodes. We have some that had follow-up episodes to specific topics, which were pretty fun. And if you have suggestions or things that you really want to talk about, they can be anywhere from important pop culture
00:24:07
Speaker
engagements such as we had an episode on how women archaeologists were portrayed in the media, the election of Trump, how that is going to affect us once he was elected and then later we had a follow-up on how things have been going, monuments episodes as mentioned before and so forth. Did you guys have any thoughts or input on additions? I mean I would say we've definitely gotten some comments from people
00:24:34
Speaker
positive and negative. A lot of the issues that we talk about are polarizing. Some of those comments have come from the archaeological community itself. Some of them come from people who aren't archaeologists. So it's encouraging to know that
00:24:49
Speaker
We have listeners who aren't archaeologists and still find us approachable and accessible. So thank you so much for listening. I mean, thanks to all of our listeners for listening. But if you ever hear us discuss a topic and you think that there's a viewpoint missing, sometimes it can be really difficult because you can only have so many people on a remotely recorded podcast before it just becomes chaos. But let us know how you feel. I keep a list of
00:25:20
Speaker
who has said what about different topics and people who expressed an interest in coming and being on the podcast to talk about topic X if we ever cover it again or do a rehash. We are listening. We do want to make sure as many different perspectives get heard as possible. We're happy to use our platform to help raise awareness. So I would invite anyone who
00:25:47
Speaker
has an opinion that they want to be made known that is respectful. We're not here to call anybody names or make anybody feel bad, but... Yeah, we're not gonna gang up on you. That is something that I feel like...
00:26:03
Speaker
that might be a concern for some people is like, oh, well, there's a bunch of a bunch of you and I'm just one with a different opinion. And it's like, but we want to hear it. We want to engage your voice and really have your voice heard and offer, as Chelsea said, the platform to you and discuss, you know, not just polarize or try and push people away that are have different thoughts.
00:26:27
Speaker
There's even a good example of that when we were talking about the monument situation and whether or not the statue should be taken down. I'm pretty sure Sarah that we had like three different opinions going on where we had one side that was like extremely take them down another side that
00:26:48
Speaker
was no, it won't make a difference. Leave them up, but leave like a plaque or something. And then in the middle, it's like we need to be doing a combination of both. And I thought it was wonderful that you, Sarah, that you brought up differing opinions. And I mean, it was good that we all didn't agree. We should have varying opinions on the show. And we're not like we are experts in our field, but does it mean we're always right?
00:27:15
Speaker
But that disagreement and other disagreements that we've had about just, I mean, in general, other topics.
00:27:22
Speaker
It's representative of the field. I mean, that's I think the important thing that I want people to understand. It's like one of the reasons why this show even exists is because it's important to hear female voices discussing archaeological topics. And I don't mean women's issues. I mean discussing research and things, laws that affect the field and events that affect the field. And the statues is one of those events that's affecting the field of archaeology and whether we like it or not.
00:27:46
Speaker
But it's important to hear women discussing that. Again, it's important to hear women disagreeing and having civil conversations about why we disagree with one another. I mean, yeah, I took a very hard stance on that. And there was a lot of other co-hosts on the show took the opposite stance. And I don't remember, honestly, and I'm not bringing it back up again. But the fact that we were able to
00:28:09
Speaker
That's my point. It was a cordial discussion. I was like, I am right. And I think Chelsea was like, no, you're not. And I was like, Niner Niner. And she was like, her head's big. And we had a very cordial discussion about it. No, we did not. I don't think we called anyone names anyone. Friends. Which is super important.
00:28:39
Speaker
Obviously, Chelsea and I are still friends over that. I just spent like five hours in a car with her. I tortured you with discussions on theory. Is that why that happened? I see. On that note, I do look forward to our upcoming discussion on a very theoretical topic.
Book and Conference Reviews
00:29:04
Speaker
Astrophysics. Space. We're talking about space. Let's do this. Space archaeology? Space archaeology. What? Wait, we need Sarah Park back. If you're listening and you know her, let her know. I will just start pestering her on Twitter. You're like, hey, we have the same name. You should come on my show and talk about space. Space archaeology. I've already asked her to come on the show. If all of us ask her, she'll either come on the damn show.
00:29:35
Speaker
We're fun. Can't you tell how much fun we are? I'm sorry, Kristin. What were you talking about that's possible? No, we've done book reviews in the past and I believe we have one forthcoming. Yes. Oh yeah, we do. Down the pipeline. Super exciting. It's called The Archaeology of Utopian and Intentional Communities by Stacy.
00:30:02
Speaker
I butchered her last name, I'm really sorry. I promised to figure out how to pronounce it before the book review. But yeah, that should be a really good episode that I'm excited to have. Then yeah, we'll be a little bit more theoretical, but we'll also talk about some really cool sights from Quakers, Shakers, Mormontowns.
00:30:24
Speaker
Please tell me that one of the police you're going to talk about is New Harmony in Indiana because New Harmony was very close to my heart when I was living there. So that is where the Harmony Society is from. The answer is yes. Excellent. I'm quite excited. I'm not very far into the book yet. Sorry. Read more. New Harmony is awesome. Yes. So we have yet to to do that review. And by the time, you know, this hits the airwaves, we will be shortly following
00:30:52
Speaker
Shortly after so so yeah as you're listening to this keep your eyes out subscribe actually and you will get an automatic notification if you're actually interested in listening to that and Anything else and that way you don't miss out and you can
00:31:07
Speaker
you know, we'll have a link to where you can purchase that when it gets published. And a link with a discount is even more exciting. See, we do cool stuff for our listeners. Yeah. That is best. We do our best.
00:31:23
Speaker
Well, just kind of on that note too, how we're trying to do different things as well. It's like when we did the book review on the kids book. I'm afraid I am blanking on the name at the moment, but like it's an excellent resource for kids. Oh yeah, cool. I'm gonna take it. So it's like we've got the serious topics. We've got fun topics. I'm just a
00:31:44
Speaker
thinking about just some of the discussions we've had with outside guests. We don't only talk to women, we do talk to men as well. So it doesn't preclude that, you know, men are not allowed on the show by any stretch. I think one of our really good interviews and discussions was with Mike Roman.
00:32:05
Speaker
oh yeah about Kiribati and for me that was one of the most one of the most heart-wrenching ones um episodes to be part of because i honestly didn't know much about Kiribati and the issues that's going on there and that it's like forgotten people and nobody will take them despite these this massive problem with climate change and i just i found it heartbreaking but at the same time so incredibly important and talking to mike was incredibly interesting and
00:32:34
Speaker
I don't know, it was all, it was all the things. Yes, that was, that was a good one. Just to put that out there, just because we're the women in archaeology doesn't mean we'll only talk to them. Yes. If the research is important and the
00:32:51
Speaker
We want to get the research known and that these massive issues such as climate change, we want our listeners to hear about it. Whether we're going to be talking about utopian societies in our book review or how does climate change is affecting vulnerable communities throughout the world. We want our listeners to know, so it doesn't have to be a women's only type of thing. We want to hear as many voices as possible.
00:33:19
Speaker
Let important topics be known. And one of our first or actually our first book review was actually a male author who was a guest on our show, and that was Alan Kaiser for the Archaeology, Sexism and Scandal book, which was super fun. And I definitely was really great reading. It's great for archaeologists and also accessible for non archaeologists. So as far as reading ease and interest,
00:33:46
Speaker
That one was very good. Fantastic. We also do our wonderful conference review episodes. We've done the theoretical archaeology group meeting in Toronto, the AAAs, the SAAs, the SHAs. We recorded a MAC episode a couple days ago actually.
00:34:11
Speaker
was amazing. We had seven people in the panel, which I think is the largest group we've ever had. Being being in person definitely makes that easier. Yeah, we'll actually have another one for this year's essays that are coming up.
00:34:26
Speaker
and hopefully if i can round up people i'm gonna be dragging because i can't find anyone online so if you if that's going to this um and actually somehow i find that like
00:34:41
Speaker
It's just going to be a low enrollment for this year at NWAC, which is the Northwest Anthropological Conference. And I'm going to be a social presence there, social media presence there. And that may have occurred before this episode, unfortunately, comes out. But I will hopefully, if
00:35:08
Speaker
If you're interested in Northwest archaeology, I will be recording that. I can listen to that. What dates is that conference? So that is the 28th through the 31st. Oh yeah, no, this isn't coming out before then.
00:35:26
Speaker
of March. Exactly, so I am, yeah, so hopefully this will, that will have been recorded and posted as a summary of that conference, which is usually quite good actually. It's a little bit different feel, I mean every conference has a different feel and that's one of the things I really like about the reviews that we do of the conferences because you get a good idea of what these other regional conferences are really about and what they're like. I mean, you know, I've been going to SAAs for
00:35:57
Speaker
six years and the regional conference now for almost as long, but I hadn't actually been to anything else. So when I went to the theoretical archaeology group conference up in Toronto last year, it was a whole different experience. I mean, it was for one on the east coast. I don't make it out that side of the country very often. So it's a
00:36:19
Speaker
different cultural feel than the West Coast, of course. And it was really neat to just, I mean, I know, Sarah, you're not a big fan of theory, but I find it kind of fun and fascinating. It's like playing with Play-Doh. I don't know how much of it is actually like
00:36:37
Speaker
real, but it's really fun to talk about. Of course, a lot of it's very applicable in some situations, but I think there's some that is just kind of, yeah, like Play-Doh. It's airy. It can kind of be formed and molded to whatever you want it to be. So it was a really good experience and definitely different. So it's neat to go.
00:37:04
Speaker
an idea of what kind of stuff is out there and to diversify, you know, what you attend or people that you want to meet, you can always go to a regional conference outside of your area. Oh, and later this year, also, I'm going to be at GBAC, which is the Great Basin Anthropological Conference, which actually only goes on every two years, and that's in October.
00:37:28
Speaker
so i might actually go to that one yes that's in salt lake this year yeah of course may i do a really quick conference plug it'll take one minute yeah um there's also another wonderful uh conference if you're in the southwest area called the pakos conference this year
00:37:44
Speaker
It's going to be in Flagstaff, Arizona, and it's primarily a southwestern conference, but it's entirely outdoors. Everybody stays in tents, RVs, whatever you got. It's usually on the Forest Service, Park Service, something like that. Two big pavilion tents, one for books and vendors and posters, the other for talks. It's really laid back. It's so much fun. It's usually three to four days. Highly recommend it. And it's typically in early August.
00:38:10
Speaker
Nice. I've actually heard of that one. And I've heard it's really great. So I'll definitely back you up on it. We will definitely check back in with both of you about your conference and experiences. And on that note, we've actually went a little bit over this segment. So we will see you after the break.
00:38:32
Speaker
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00:39:01
Speaker
That's wildnoteapp.com for your free 30-day trial. Now back to the show.
Future Goals for the Podcast
00:39:11
Speaker
Hi, and welcome back to the Women in Archaeology podcast. On today's special episode, we've been talking all about us because we're two. Yay. See, I remembered to give you guys time to cheer this time.
00:39:28
Speaker
So in the last section, we talked a bit about some of our favorite aspects of the show, some of the human-gauged citizen behavior that the show has. We're gonna spend the last 20 minutes talking a little bit about kind of where we want the show to go. However, on a very important, completely unrelated note, where I would like my own life to go, I found out during the break about Wish.com, and there's a Viking logo fortress, and I think everyone needs to know about it, and now we can talk about the podcast.
00:39:59
Speaker
Archaeologists never really grow up. It's like toys. There's a Viking Lego set? What? I was going to say, apparently we're just going to talk about Legos for the next 20 minutes, which I am okay with some Legos. There's a mini trebuchet that I want, I'm just saying.
00:40:15
Speaker
We're going to talk about archaeology or LEGO type things. We should also probably maybe try and talk about archaeology and the cool work.
Innovation in Archaeology
00:40:22
Speaker
I was just getting ready to say, if you follow my Twitter account, you will notice that I built an archaeological lab out of LEGOs from the excellent company Excavation Blocks, which is on Etsy. Good luck finding the kit. But if you can, seriously buy it because it encourages them to put more archaeological LEGO sets together, which I desperately need.
00:40:43
Speaker
But also, you should check out the amazing work that the Fairfield Foundation is doing because they are using drones to take aerial photographs of their sites and then using photogrammetry to create 3D models that have different stratigraphic layers within them. You can pop in and out so you can
00:41:04
Speaker
take off the different levels of stratigraphy and then, you know, reveal like the brick foundation. That was cool. And amazing. And I spent all weekend doing research with this. They are. OK, no, here. You're not doing this justice. You're not doing this justice. These 3D things, these 3D printed models that I actually, I will remember her name by the end of this.
00:41:33
Speaker
Ashley McCustin, this has been her project with the Fairfield Foundation out of Virginia, and she has created three by three unit blocks, so there's nine units within a block.
00:41:46
Speaker
And she brought two with her because I think she's only got two printed out. One of them is modern. They just did it, I think, a couple of years ago. So that's the one that they were going over every square inch of it, taking photographs of it, uploading the photos directly into the software. So everything is like high detail. Like each individual freaking brick in the brick fall is on this 3D model. And you can pop the layers off. And when I say you pop the layers off, I mean, you remove
00:42:16
Speaker
the soil layers as the excavation itself had been done so like they went down arbitrarily 10 centimeters you take off the layer and the layer is in is 10 centimeters as per uh the resolution so um the resolution wasn't the word but you understand scale thank you
00:42:39
Speaker
So like you take that off and then if there was a feature underneath that layer there is a little tiny feature that you can then pry out of there just what's underneath of the feature. The really important part of this and this is your fault Chelsea because you got me on this. The other really important part is the second 3x3 that she printed off she had to use it was part of the house that had already been excavated and it had been excavated 10 years ago.
00:43:06
Speaker
I think she was saying that all said and done, this data is somewhere between 10 to 20 years old. She recreated the excavation based on the documentation that was taken during the time of the excavation. That came in only 10 to 20 years ago, so we're talking about field forms, pictures, data points, which are important. I'm just going to say it twice.
00:43:30
Speaker
But by using all of these data things that we do as archaeologists, so if you're ever in the field and you're like, why am I doing the same damn thing 14 times? This is why you're doing the same damn thing 14 times. So the 20 years later,
00:43:41
Speaker
somebody can take that binder's worth of data that you just generated as you excavate and literally recreate everything that you did to scale so that I, 10 years later, can play around this 3D printed model and pop off each individual layer, which is to scale in thickness. Like if you went down 10 centimeters on your paper, like I said, I'm popping off a 10 centimeter layer. You look at the little feature that you had underneath your 10 centimeter layer. I mean, this thing is absolutely fantastic. And talking about rants, I will now stop.
00:44:11
Speaker
It's not playing, it's research. You put little, like, Lego people with it? You could put Lego people on this and it would be fantastic. Like, I feel like if I had my Lego people with me, I would have done that. I'm just saying. You need to feel like that's a new series you need to do. Tiny Trolls. Tiny Trolls. Oh god, it's the cutest archaeological site I've ever heard of. Oh my god. This thing was so amazing. And I wasn't even the one that goobed out and played with it forever.
00:44:36
Speaker
research. I don't know. Clay, what are you talking about? I'm engaging in public archaeology. I may or may not have a minute long video of Chelsea taking apart and putting back together the 3D model several times. I think they might need to go on the blog. Ah, yes, that's exactly what I need to do. That would be awesome.
00:45:04
Speaker
Anywho, in terms of the future of the podcast...
Listener Engagement and Collaboration
00:45:07
Speaker
I'm so sorry, this thing was new. No, no, like, we warned people about tangents. You entered it in your own wrist. Oh, yeah. Excuse me.
00:45:19
Speaker
One thing I mean that we we always need to think about in terms of continuing the podcast. And it's one of those things that's frustrating, but necessary as well as just the ability to support it to keep going. And we're always hoping for using new audio programs, hoping to get people better microphones, those types of things. And that just takes a lot of funding. And so we are setting up a Patreon account and the links will be available
00:45:49
Speaker
And if you are interested in supporting the podcast in any way, shape, or form, it could be in providing us new ideas of things to talk about, becoming a guest on the podcast, or even monetarily supporting the podcast. It's always appreciated. So just check out our Patreon. It'll be in the links.
00:46:11
Speaker
We're also speaking of looking for ways to support the show. Always, like Adeline mentioned, looking for new ideas. We've actually recorded a couple episodes on
00:46:24
Speaker
that were listener requests, the most recent, which is a archeology 101 or archeology basics coming out later this summer. So if you have an episode that you think would be a really great topic, if you are a teacher, whether it's at a college level or, you know, a fifth grade level, and you want something that you can, you know, show in your classroom or assign as homework, we are happy to
00:46:53
Speaker
provide the resources that people are looking for. Always looking to diversify who we have on the panel. So come join us. We're nice. If it's for kids, you know, I think that's amazing. I have a now teenage child myself.
00:47:14
Speaker
Do you know that there are some episodes in our past that have a fair or at least a mild amount of cursing so we can always watch that? Just look for those that have me on them.
00:47:29
Speaker
I guarantee there will be at least one swear word in any episode that I am on, and I apologize ahead of time, but that's the way it is. Yes, and I actually had an archaeologist when I invited on the show, she was like, no, no, no, no, I curse too much, and I'm like, oh no. Yes, we all curse.
00:47:48
Speaker
This is not necessarily a clean show. However, if it is something that you're requesting, we can most definitely serve that audience. And just because I think it's fun and great to do, and I think we would have a blast doing it as well, it's not something that we would necessarily take as a chore or be like, well, we can't do that. We have to have our freedom.
00:48:11
Speaker
Yeah, we can always turn on our lecture clean voice. I mean, instead of saying, you know, we did shit tons of dirt, you know, we can be like, yes, we precisely excavate at 10 centimeter levels when we say that's because we look for stratigraphic changes in the dirt. But you know, we can turn it on and off as needed. Exactly.
00:48:34
Speaker
And I think these would be fun to do but I don't know how Desired they may or may not be which is probably why so so that's why he kind of said let us know what you are listeners are interested in we are here to create a
00:48:50
Speaker
you know, a podcast or product that is going to be useful for our listeners. It's going to be thought provoking and engaging. Obviously also trying to grow our listener base. I feel like most groups are doing that. And to that end, we've got listed in a couple databases, including Archio Analytics.
00:49:09
Speaker
is a really great service as well as we should have a blog coming out on the queer archaeology website shortly. If you want to write blogs for us, we always need blogs. Oh, definitely. One of the things you could do
00:49:27
Speaker
One of the things you can do as a listener that is just, I mean, you don't have five bucks to give us. I understand. I really do. But if you're listening to the podcast and you have any kind of social media or Facebook or anything that you do, even Instagram, share us. Just sharing links to our shows, even if it's just like pick one of your shows, pick one of our shows that you really enjoyed and just share it with everybody you know. Just active sharing the show is major support for us.
00:49:56
Speaker
please share us anywhere you can. And that right there, I will give you a giant thank you for. And fellow podcasters, I mean, we're always interested in collaboration and hearing from new people. Chelsea, over the break, mentioned this Anthro life, and that would be a wonderful collaboration or just chat, just to chat with would be wonderful. I had a really, really excellent conversation at the AAA's with
00:50:25
Speaker
this Anthro Life. I guess I was back in November and it was phenomenal and I would really like to recreate it and record it. So if you're hearing this, get in touch.
00:50:39
Speaker
And if anybody wants to give us free stuff, we're always happy to be gear testers. Yes. Give us fancy, you know, work pants, pack packs, REI if you're listening, we would be happy to test out whatever you have. We can expand lab equipment, different digital calipers, how they survive in fields.
00:51:03
Speaker
We're very open to creative ideas for sure. And there's actually a couple of guest episodes that I have popped in on with Go Dig a Hole as well, so you can catch me on that periodically.
00:51:22
Speaker
And then I'm sure there's others that will be upcoming on different podcasts eventually as well. As I mentioned, collaboration is always a fun thing to do.
00:51:39
Speaker
Oh yeah, it's totally fun for us. We love meeting new people, hearing from new people. And since we are literally located all over the country, you can probably find us within a few hours drive if you want to do something in person.
Reflections and Gratitude
00:51:56
Speaker
Or at least we'll be in whatever time zone you are. You know, I think where you are literally in every time zone. Anybody who's listening in Europe, I'm going to be doing my dissertation research there this summer. Sometimes it's difficult to organize recordings for people when you're talking about a five or six hour time difference. Maybe even an eight hour time difference. Guess what? This summer, there won't be a time difference.
00:52:20
Speaker
Has your chance. Yes. And that's because we have I think on a couple of occasions coordinated from the UK to the west coast across several hours time. So those are those are scattered in there too I think. It's doable but it's rough.
00:52:40
Speaker
It is rough going, but don't feel like because you're so far away, you can't. That's another thing is we make, we figure it out. We could always try to make the podcast bilingual too. Try different languages. I speak French really poorly. My Spanish is a bit rough these days. We could have a really wacky episode trying to... Everyone can criticize our terrible language.
00:53:03
Speaker
But we will try. Maybe. So ladies, we are approaching the end of our episode. Does anyone have any final thoughts? I'm just really happy and proud of where we've gone in the last two years. I'm really happy to be part of this group and I'm excited to see where we go this coming year. Yeah.
00:53:28
Speaker
so happy that it's still going. Not to say that I thought it would not still be going, but it's just, it's so much more than I thought it would be. I definitely think it, and it'll be great to see what we create in this next year or even then, you know, repeat what we've done. They come in two. Forever.
00:53:55
Speaker
I just want to say, repeat the same thing I've been saying all weekend. Every time Chelsea's walked up to somebody at the conference, I was like, I'm with the Women in Archaeology podcast. I would just like to say I am incredibly proud of how far the three of you have taken this podcast. I may have come up with the idea and somehow wrangled all three of you into being on the podcast.
00:54:17
Speaker
I am super proud of how much you all have owned this podcast, how much you all have grown the podcast, and I am super excited to see where you guys are going to take it in the next year. Yes, I'm good at wrangling. You're an excellent wrangling. Yes. You really are. I would like to kind of echo the same sentiments. This podcast has turned into more than I ever thought it would be.
00:54:44
Speaker
I feel like I've made some really excellent, not just colleagues, but friends on the show, found an amazing group of supportive women. So thank you all for being part of that, being guests who come on, co-hosts, listeners, couldn't do it without you. Well, some of it we could, but it wouldn't be worth the same amount.
00:55:10
Speaker
as always we love hearing from you so check out our blog you can always email us at womeninarcheology at gmail.com or find us on twitter at womenarchees and until next time have a great couple weeks bye
00:55:36
Speaker
Thanks for listening to the Women in Archaeology podcast. Links to the items mentioned on the show are in the show notes. You can contact us at womeninarchaeology at gmail.com or at womenarchies on Twitter. Please like, share, and subscribe to the show. You can find us on iTunes, Stitcher, and Google Play. Support the show in the APN at www.arcpodnet.com slash members. Thanks for listening and see you next time.
00:56:05
Speaker
This show is produced by the Archaeology Podcast Network, Chris Webster and Tristan Boyle in Reno, Nevada at the Reno Collective. This has been a presentation of the Archaeology Podcast Network. Visit us on the web for show notes and other podcasts at www.archpodnet.com. Contact us at chrisatarchaeologypodcastnetwork.com.