Kim Clune Dot Com

Archive for the ‘Publications’ Category

“Dog Rescue, for Better or Worse,” my recent article for AnimaLovers’ Companion (get the PDF), discusses the level of commitment one makes when caring for homeless animals.

When faced with a frightening medical and behavioral problem with Emmett, our challenging fostered hound mix, my husband and I knew he had nobody else. Emmett came out on the other side without issue, as did we, and in the process Emmett became ours.

We know Emmett is our family dog for all the right reasons and we couldn’t be happier. It’s difficult to imagine what his life would have been like had Emmett not had caring humans in his corner. Sadly, many animals do not. Strays, animals with health or behavioral issuess are often seen as disposable yet, if just given a chance, they can be the most valuable and appreciative friends in our lives.

DogTime Media has accepted This One Wild Life (my blog about animal rescue, fostering and adoption) into their blog network. This is terrific news on several fronts.

With roughly 500 contributors including Animal Planet and Petfinder, Dogtime.com receives 22.9 million unique visitors which amount to 320 million page impressions per month. While these stats are for the network and don’t reflect my own blog traffic, my posts can now reach a much larger and targeted audience in order to promote animal rescue while denouncing pet store purchases and puppy mills.

With “Save a Dog” and “Save a Cat” Facebook apps, DogTime Media also works with shelters nationwide to feature real homeless animals which can be fostered virtually through a game-like interface. This not only raises awareness for the homelessness real animals face, but the points earned for petting or feeding the animals online earns real pet food for rescue groups. The more you play, the more DogTime will pay.

I’m pleased to be part of a network that recognizes a bigger picture and eager to celebrate all that animal rescue means to me.

As a recent graduate of the College of Saint Rose, I was invited by editor Ryane McAuliffe Straus, Ph. D. to submit my work for the college’s maiden Journal of Undergraduate Research. Beginning this year, the faculty-reviewed journal will annually publish research from all academic fields to showcase Saint Rose students’ scholarly achievements. Thrilled by the extension to include recent graduates, I dug through my old files, made minor changes based on final grading comments and shipped off my work.

I received a rejection letter on November 30th for my piece on the poetry of Anne Kingsmill Finch.  The rejection came with some deserved criticism. While one reviewer said, “This paper displays a sophisticated and confident command of language and secondary sources,” he/she also said that it drags in the middle and could use more close textual readings. The second reviewer said this piece was worth publishing, but with major revision. It was recommended that I revise and resubmit for the following year’s issue.

Truth be told, I was never driven by pre-romantic peotry in the way that theory and postmodernism classes fueled my interest. I wrote this paper to satisfy my professor and, while I did receive an A, my grade likely reflects my understanding of what was expected rather than any new and exciting contribution. This, I suspect, comes through in my final piece.

While rejection certainly fuels disappointment, mine was short lived. Later that day I received another letter. This one offered provisional acceptance for the second piece I submitted on the film The Last King of Scotland. Now this was exciting news. I worked hard on this paper to shed light on the colonization of Uganda via the cultural ignorance of the Western entertainment industry. After reading my reviewers’ very thorough critiques, there was nothing more satisfying than receiving this final comment: “All in all, however, impressive and interesting!”

As Dr. Straus explained, “Acceptance to the Journal is very competitive; we received over 20 submissions and are able to publish under half of those. As such, you should be very proud of your achievement.” Proud, I am. Beyond the long road of revision and more post-graduation all-nighters than I cared to endure, I feel I’ve honed my best work to date. I have since accepted an invitation to be recognized for having demonstrated “distinguished academic achievement” during the Saint Rose Honors Convocation Ceremony which will be held on March 27th. Perhaps it’s hokey to participate, but this is my first reviewed publication. I’m allowed to be hokey, aren’t I?

Below is the abstract for “Ideological vs. Factual Reality in The Last King of Scotland.” It provides a glimpse at what is now published.

Globalization and economics make the potential for colonization through entertainment media an ever-pressing reality. In the film The Last King of Scotland, the postmodern desire to believe in the political possibility of historiographic metafiction conflicts with the loss of true facts when the film’s unintended and most enthusiastic audience is a nation of Ugandans with a deep desire to learn their national history surrounding Idi Amin’s dictatorship. Comparing history with the concept of historicity illustrates the ways in which Ugandans trust the film’s seemingly factual “reality” while not understanding certain ideological realities created by its fictive devices. Filmmakers, although paying careful attention to Amin’s costumes and settings, intentionally distort the facts surrounding the death of his publicly adored wife, Kay, sacrificing the authenticity of an individual and national experience for the sake of an ideological representation of Western colonization. The determination is that while distortion and colonization are each crimes in their own right, the filmmakers’ profit-driven motive to draw the patronage of Western audiences unwittingly adds another layer of colonization to an already exploited African nation.

Now that this paper is finally in print, perhaps I will revisit that Finch paper … It did end up in a literary discussion on Finch in UK’s Guardian, after all.

Update: The Journal of Undergraduate Research is now available online.

Amplify your goodwill and cheer this holiday season! Buy an orphan a pair of shoes. Support an education. Do it in the name of one you love or as a family affair. Learn how in the new VVQ Holiday Gift Guide (PDF) and don’t forget to share it!

My husband Tim and I wrote our first article together covering the kennel side of dog rescue. Creekside Kennel, run by Dawn Niebuhr, is where the AnimaLovers dogs that are up for adoption stay when foster homes aren’t available. Read the article (PDF format) to see why Creekside Kennels is so special.

The latest issue of VVQ is hot off the press!
In this Issue:

• A Note from Founder and Executive Director, Shana Greene
• Quilts of Love from Dawn Brislawn
• Baby Tasur Expected in December!
• The College of Integrative Medicine Opens in Ghana
• Where in the World is Ramesh Nath Sharma?
• Butterfly Project Scholarship Recipients
• A Special It Takes a Village Party!
• Contact, Subscription & Donation Information

Village Volunteers Quarterly 2.2 (PDF) is finally here!

Please consider throwing an “It Takes a Village Party!” in your own back yard this month or next. (See the newsletter for details.) You’ll raise both the awareness and funding required to sustain the global work done by Village Volunteers.

Many people depend upon our help around the world and yet, in this troubled economy, we too find ourselves asking for help. Thank you for any gift or donation you can manage. Every bit counts and is greatly appreciated.

All the best,
Kim Clune, Ed.
Village Volunteers Quarterly
http://www.villagevolunteers.org

AnimaLovers' Companion Spring 09 (Click for the full PDF)

The AnimaLovers’ Companion (Spring 09 PDF) features an article I wrote about the benefits of fostering animals and the terrific experience my husband and I shared with a black and white lab mix named Moo.

Welcome to the second newsletter I designed and authored for Village Volunteers. PS: Our readership is nearing 5000 worldwide!

In this Issue:

• A Note from Founder and Executive Director, Shana Greene
• Water Filter Project Fully Funded
• Nicole Khristine Partners with VV
• Congratulations to Pamela Odoyo!
• Sister Freda’s: Improving Orphans’ Lives
• VV in New Book by Susan Skog
• Get Connected: Online Resources
• Wassa Dance Thanksgiving Fund Raiser
• Sirua Aulo Academy Roof is Complete
• Three Exciting Volunteer Opportunities
• Never Too Young to Make a Difference
• Support Village Volunteers, Seattle