The older version of Walter Mitty was a slapstick farce; the new release is a believable story about a daydreamer, played by Ben Stiller. To make an unbelievable story believable takes a deft touch, and Ben Stiller brings it to one of my favorite films of the season, serving as both the star and the director of the film. It’s a lovely story of a man who dreams of being heroic, but is destined just to be a common man who does his job well. The change from everyday Walter to adventurous traveler Walter is seamless, so the story works on a real plane, as well as in fantasy. By the end of the film, the viewer wonders whether Walter really went to the places shown – or merely dreamed them.
I highly recommend this film to anyone looking for a nice afternoon of theater seating and popcorn munching.
Monday, December 30, 2013
Monday, December 23, 2013
Show Time Too
Saw American Hustle today and am disappointed. Both the storyline and the acting are uneven, with some places needing dialog to fill in for poor acting, and other places needing more believable acting to back up the storyline. If you like the TV series starring Timothy Hutton, Leverage, you'll be disappointed in American Hustle because Leverage did a much better job of defining the con, setting the wheels in motion, and then walking away clear.
Individual performances suffered from over-sell, with Jennifer Lawrence's uneven and often poor ability to relate to her character in a believable manner becoming a distraction throughout, as were her hairstyles and lipstick. Amy Adams did a much better "acting job," but she, too, had a tendency to over-play her character throughout. Amy Adam's boobs had quite the starring role in the film, with every top she wore baring her girls (which are small) and distracting from the actual storyline. Christian Bales is excellent from opening to closing credits, both in physical appearance and in character portrayal.
A disappointment when compared to the other films I've been enjoying (see previous posting).
Individual performances suffered from over-sell, with Jennifer Lawrence's uneven and often poor ability to relate to her character in a believable manner becoming a distraction throughout, as were her hairstyles and lipstick. Amy Adams did a much better "acting job," but she, too, had a tendency to over-play her character throughout. Amy Adam's boobs had quite the starring role in the film, with every top she wore baring her girls (which are small) and distracting from the actual storyline. Christian Bales is excellent from opening to closing credits, both in physical appearance and in character portrayal.
A disappointment when compared to the other films I've been enjoying (see previous posting).
Sunday, December 22, 2013
Show Time
In the past couple of weeks, I’ve been to several movies as it’s cold outside and warm inside the theater – a perfect reason to go to the movies. Of the movies I’ve watched, four of them have been outstanding: The Dallas Buyer’s Club, Philomena, Enough Said, and Saving Mr. Banks. I judge movies as good when the story is strong and both engages and entertains me; when the acting is seamless, with the actors being the characters, rather than actors portraying a character; and when I walk out of the theater compelled to talk about the experience. The four movies I named all share those characteristics. However, one other movie I enjoyed is nominated for Best Picture at one of the upcoming awards show, and that puzzles me.
Sandra Bullock is the star of a space-themed film, Gravity. It is a good enough film, but very thin on plot and character development. There is a scene wherein George Clooney’s spirit comes back from his demise in deep space to tell Sandra’s character how to calm down and save herself. Formulaic, mildly interesting, and predictable character portrayals, including Bullock’s oft-repeated “No, no, no, no, no” panic call that she uses to define character in several movies in which she has starred.
It’s interesting to me that Gravity gets “best picture” and “best actress” nominations, while the other movies, which are so much better and worth watching, have … none.
Sandra Bullock is the star of a space-themed film, Gravity. It is a good enough film, but very thin on plot and character development. There is a scene wherein George Clooney’s spirit comes back from his demise in deep space to tell Sandra’s character how to calm down and save herself. Formulaic, mildly interesting, and predictable character portrayals, including Bullock’s oft-repeated “No, no, no, no, no” panic call that she uses to define character in several movies in which she has starred.
It’s interesting to me that Gravity gets “best picture” and “best actress” nominations, while the other movies, which are so much better and worth watching, have … none.
Saturday, December 21, 2013
Standing Up
One of the reasons people come to the United States is because there are freedoms here that are not a part of the people’s lives in other countries. I can speak my mind in the US, but would guard my words in many foreign countries, such as on my cruise stops in various islands in the Mediterranean, my visit to China, and even my visit to my son’s home in Canada. However, this basic American freedom of speech is being challenged and amended by people who take offense at what others say and/or do and want retribution in the media and the courts. Rather than being challenged to speak our minds, we are being reminded to bite our tongues because someone who disagrees with our thoughts can change the course of our lives.
I don’t watch Duck Dynasty and have little idea about the characters and their life styles because I don’t find the basic premise of a reality show about people’s lives to be interesting or real. The father of the family, Phil, is currently being vilified by the LGBT community for saying that homosexuality is against his basic beliefs, which are Bible-based and supported by Scripture. The LGBT community wants Father Duck held accountable for his comments because they shed an unfavorable light on the LGBT lifestyle. The LGBT community has a right to live their lives in the ways that they define, but Father Phil does not have the right to live his life in the ways that he defines. The basic discord is that LGBTs have the freedom to condemn him for his beliefs, but he has no right to condemn them for theirs.
This is a country where I stand up for MY beliefs and allow others to have their beliefs, especially when they disagree with mine. We discuss, we argue, we compromise – but we don’t take away the Constitutional rights of one person in favor of another. If I am gay, that is my business; if I am straight, that is also my business. Just as it is wrong for me to forcefully impose my lifestyle on others, it is wrong for others to forcefully impose their lifestyles on me.
Every generation has a population that finds acceptance through diversity, joining like-minded individuals to form groups that give strength and power to individuals who otherwise may never experience that. It’s not a case of right/wrong but a condition of difference, and this country is based on diversity, not unanimity. The LGBT community celebrates their personal diversity, but demands unanimity in that all people should believe what they believe, preach their message, and support their lifestyle. The LGBT community proclaims that they have the right to live their lifestyle and to hold people such as the Duck Dynasty Phil accountable to a higher standard than they live. If anyone in the LGBT community were treated with the disrespect Duck Dynasty father Phil has been, the hue and cry would be legendary. The rest of the world is not supposed to stand up for Father Phil’s treatment at the hands of a very vocal minority, lest they too are sucked into the controversy and vilified for what they believe. The minority manipulates the media to support their cause at the expense of other people’s right to freedom of speech.
How much stronger would be the case for understanding and acceptance if the LGBT vocalists would have supported Father Phil’s right to say whatever he believes is the truth, the same way that the LGBT community has the right to say whatever they believe is the truth. There is room for diversity, as well as discussion, and the discussion is what opens the door for all to believe.
FOLLOWING UP: A spokesperson for GLAAD says, "We believe the next step is to use this as an opportunity for Phil to sit down with gay families in Louisiana and learn about their lives and the values they share.” While that is noble from one perspective, by that very "opportunity ... to sit down with gay families ... and learn," the presumption is that Phil is wrong and the gay perspective is right and that Phil needs to be educated about something he already knows from his religious upbringing and does not support. Perhaps we all need to invite our gay friends over for a chat about their lifestyle and values?
I don’t watch Duck Dynasty and have little idea about the characters and their life styles because I don’t find the basic premise of a reality show about people’s lives to be interesting or real. The father of the family, Phil, is currently being vilified by the LGBT community for saying that homosexuality is against his basic beliefs, which are Bible-based and supported by Scripture. The LGBT community wants Father Duck held accountable for his comments because they shed an unfavorable light on the LGBT lifestyle. The LGBT community has a right to live their lives in the ways that they define, but Father Phil does not have the right to live his life in the ways that he defines. The basic discord is that LGBTs have the freedom to condemn him for his beliefs, but he has no right to condemn them for theirs.
This is a country where I stand up for MY beliefs and allow others to have their beliefs, especially when they disagree with mine. We discuss, we argue, we compromise – but we don’t take away the Constitutional rights of one person in favor of another. If I am gay, that is my business; if I am straight, that is also my business. Just as it is wrong for me to forcefully impose my lifestyle on others, it is wrong for others to forcefully impose their lifestyles on me.
Every generation has a population that finds acceptance through diversity, joining like-minded individuals to form groups that give strength and power to individuals who otherwise may never experience that. It’s not a case of right/wrong but a condition of difference, and this country is based on diversity, not unanimity. The LGBT community celebrates their personal diversity, but demands unanimity in that all people should believe what they believe, preach their message, and support their lifestyle. The LGBT community proclaims that they have the right to live their lifestyle and to hold people such as the Duck Dynasty Phil accountable to a higher standard than they live. If anyone in the LGBT community were treated with the disrespect Duck Dynasty father Phil has been, the hue and cry would be legendary. The rest of the world is not supposed to stand up for Father Phil’s treatment at the hands of a very vocal minority, lest they too are sucked into the controversy and vilified for what they believe. The minority manipulates the media to support their cause at the expense of other people’s right to freedom of speech.
How much stronger would be the case for understanding and acceptance if the LGBT vocalists would have supported Father Phil’s right to say whatever he believes is the truth, the same way that the LGBT community has the right to say whatever they believe is the truth. There is room for diversity, as well as discussion, and the discussion is what opens the door for all to believe.
FOLLOWING UP: A spokesperson for GLAAD says, "We believe the next step is to use this as an opportunity for Phil to sit down with gay families in Louisiana and learn about their lives and the values they share.” While that is noble from one perspective, by that very "opportunity ... to sit down with gay families ... and learn," the presumption is that Phil is wrong and the gay perspective is right and that Phil needs to be educated about something he already knows from his religious upbringing and does not support. Perhaps we all need to invite our gay friends over for a chat about their lifestyle and values?
Monday, December 16, 2013
Third Time a Charm
When my cataracts became big enough, it was time for surgery to remove them. Because I have ambliopia (lazy eye) and astigmatism, I was offered the option to have replacement lenses at an additional out-of-pocket expense of $1500 per eye. After being assured that my vision will be better post-surgery than it’s ever been in my life, and after researching the internet to get a feel for the positives and negatives, I gave my consent and paid my money for the replacement lenses.
Three days after surgery on my right eye, something didn’t feel right – and I couldn’t see out of that eye. A bit alarmed, I contacted the doctor and went in for a quick check-up. Come to find out, the lense had rotated and had to be redone, so instead of having the left eye done the next week, I had the right eye lense repositioned. Then I went in for the left eye and voila! I had great vision.
This past week was my 3 month check-up and I told the doctor I really cannot see as well today as I could post-surgery. She checked – and a film has over-grown the right lense. Guess who’s going back in for yet another (minor) surgical fix?
At this point in time, I’m glad the left eye has been good, but now I know that a film can cover the artificial lense, which is signaled by traffic lights resembling exploding 4th of July fireworks! I'm am assured that once the film is removed with a laser, it will not regrow.
My individual issues are not common, according to my doctor and the internet, but so far, I’ve had more than my share and don’t want to deal with any further issues any time soon.
Three days after surgery on my right eye, something didn’t feel right – and I couldn’t see out of that eye. A bit alarmed, I contacted the doctor and went in for a quick check-up. Come to find out, the lense had rotated and had to be redone, so instead of having the left eye done the next week, I had the right eye lense repositioned. Then I went in for the left eye and voila! I had great vision.
This past week was my 3 month check-up and I told the doctor I really cannot see as well today as I could post-surgery. She checked – and a film has over-grown the right lense. Guess who’s going back in for yet another (minor) surgical fix?
At this point in time, I’m glad the left eye has been good, but now I know that a film can cover the artificial lense, which is signaled by traffic lights resembling exploding 4th of July fireworks! I'm am assured that once the film is removed with a laser, it will not regrow.
My individual issues are not common, according to my doctor and the internet, but so far, I’ve had more than my share and don’t want to deal with any further issues any time soon.
Thursday, December 12, 2013
It's All About the Music
Without question, my favorite TV singing show is The Sing-Off, featuring a capella singing groups with a range of ages and abilities. The Sing Off was awesome the first time around, but it didn’t make it back on-air last year. This year, it’s back in a slightly different format, including fewer performance groups and a quicker pace.The basic premise is ten singing groups, ranging from 5 performers to 20 or so, who prepare presentations within a musical context, such as Party Anthems. Each froup performs, is critiqued by judges who actually have professional singing careers, and the bottom two choirs at the end of each episode duel for the save that brings one of the bottom two groups back for the next round in the competition. Every group is good, but there is always another group who is better – and that head-to-head competition elevates the bottom groups to bring their A game if they expect to be saved.
The pros on the show include Nick Lachey, host, and judges Ben Fols, Shawn Stockman, and this year’s new addition, Jewel. Because all of the pros are professional musicians, they are tuned into the talent, rather than focused on the cute performances that often mask weak singing. For instance, Justin Beiber would be a good member of a choir, but he doesn’t have a solo voice; hence, all the electronic enhancement and distractions on the stage to keep the focus off his basic weakness: his voice. On the other end of the spectrum, a Whitney Houston voice needs a large choir to help her blend as her powerful voice demands singing solos, and would over-power a small a capella group. In an a capella group, every voice has to be a “best” voice because each member has to carry his/her own weight and not drag down the over-all performance of the choir.
The competitors need to have strong bass vocalists to anchor the bottom range of the songs, the bass provided solely with vocals because no instrumentation augments the singing. Additionally, there is a “beat box” performer who sets the tempo and keeps the performance moving to … the beat … without having a drummer on stage. There also have to be enough members of the group to fill in both the mid-range and the high end, and all of it has to be cohesive, as well as technically perfect to win the contest. Any one performer dragging the tempo, or flatting a high note, or rushing the bridge can justify being in the bottom two and headed back home for the holidays.
This years’ groups include a high school team, a typical street corner group of singers from days gone by, a niche performance group of Filipino male singers, and a large group of male performers who go by the name of AcoustiCats. Sprinkled into the mix are groups that include both male and female performers who blend their voices in song and accentuate the pieces with choreography that keeps the eyes entertained while the ears listen to the music. Too much choreography distracts from the music, and poorly performed music stands out with nothing else on stage to mask a singing issue.
I’m happy to have The Sing Off back this year and hope that it comes back every holiday to delight those of us who enjoy real singing, rather than electronically enhanced lip-syncing.
The pros on the show include Nick Lachey, host, and judges Ben Fols, Shawn Stockman, and this year’s new addition, Jewel. Because all of the pros are professional musicians, they are tuned into the talent, rather than focused on the cute performances that often mask weak singing. For instance, Justin Beiber would be a good member of a choir, but he doesn’t have a solo voice; hence, all the electronic enhancement and distractions on the stage to keep the focus off his basic weakness: his voice. On the other end of the spectrum, a Whitney Houston voice needs a large choir to help her blend as her powerful voice demands singing solos, and would over-power a small a capella group. In an a capella group, every voice has to be a “best” voice because each member has to carry his/her own weight and not drag down the over-all performance of the choir.
The competitors need to have strong bass vocalists to anchor the bottom range of the songs, the bass provided solely with vocals because no instrumentation augments the singing. Additionally, there is a “beat box” performer who sets the tempo and keeps the performance moving to … the beat … without having a drummer on stage. There also have to be enough members of the group to fill in both the mid-range and the high end, and all of it has to be cohesive, as well as technically perfect to win the contest. Any one performer dragging the tempo, or flatting a high note, or rushing the bridge can justify being in the bottom two and headed back home for the holidays.
This years’ groups include a high school team, a typical street corner group of singers from days gone by, a niche performance group of Filipino male singers, and a large group of male performers who go by the name of AcoustiCats. Sprinkled into the mix are groups that include both male and female performers who blend their voices in song and accentuate the pieces with choreography that keeps the eyes entertained while the ears listen to the music. Too much choreography distracts from the music, and poorly performed music stands out with nothing else on stage to mask a singing issue.
I’m happy to have The Sing Off back this year and hope that it comes back every holiday to delight those of us who enjoy real singing, rather than electronically enhanced lip-syncing.
Monday, December 2, 2013
Do As I Say, Not As I Do
Mike Tomlin may have been able to apologize for a mistake of standing on the field and in front of a sidelines' runner this weekend, but the smug smirk on his face says differently. He knew exactly where he was standing, he was standing there purposefully, and he interfered with a runner who could have picked up more yardage and, perhaps, scored a touchdown.
There is no excuse for his actions, nor any contrition on his part, and I hope that the NFL throws the book at him.
There is no excuse for his actions, nor any contrition on his part, and I hope that the NFL throws the book at him.
Wednesday, November 27, 2013
More Questions from Oprah Magazine
I wish I had invented the fly swatter! How did we ever kill pesky flies before someone jerry-rigged a fly swatter?
The most awe-inspiring places are standing on the rim of the Grand Canyon, walking on the ocean floor at the Bay of Fundy, where the tide changes by almost 50 feet every cycle, and standing all alone on the prow of a cruise liner as the sun comes up across the endless ocean.
When I’m really excited I usually have to pee.
I celebrate big moments by sharing them with others.
I feel happiest when I am busy, productive, and interacting with other people.
If I could meet any fictional character, it would be Atticus Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird. The parenting and peopling that Atticus exhibits in the novel is a model for the way I wanted to parent and continue to interact with people.
The most awe-inspiring places are standing on the rim of the Grand Canyon, walking on the ocean floor at the Bay of Fundy, where the tide changes by almost 50 feet every cycle, and standing all alone on the prow of a cruise liner as the sun comes up across the endless ocean.
When I’m really excited I usually have to pee.
I celebrate big moments by sharing them with others.
I feel happiest when I am busy, productive, and interacting with other people.
If I could meet any fictional character, it would be Atticus Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird. The parenting and peopling that Atticus exhibits in the novel is a model for the way I wanted to parent and continue to interact with people.
Whole Lot of Shakin' Goin' On
I am from the generation that influenced music to change from the “standard” melodies of the 1940s to the rock ‘n roll of the 60s. In the middle were the 1950s, a time that forever changed popular music. Four of the giants of the pre-rock and roll era were Carl Perkins, Jerry Lee Lewis, Johnny Cash, and Elvis Presley, singers who added a beat to the music and changed it forever.
Million Dollar Quartet is the story of one magical day shortly before Christmas in 1956 when the four living legends came together in Sam Phillips’ Sun Records recording studio, where they all got their start. The impromptu jam session was unique and captured by a newspaperman who commented, “This quartet could sell a million.” This was a one-time performance by the four legends who later would be inducted into the Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Fame. What remains is the tape of the quartet's impromptu jam, as well as a photograph of the four music giants before they hit the big time.
The traveling stage show captures the intensity of the time, a time when music was forever changed. The performers were conflicted because they got their start with Phillips, but he was too small to build their careers into the cultural phenomena they each became, and so they moved on to the bigger labels. This jam session in early December 1956 was the only time they were together, a moment in time captured by the stage play. The physical appearances are spot-on, with each actor capturing perfectly the personality and the mannerisms of the four. The pianist who plays the role of Jerry Lee Lewis is over the top talented and provides a foundation for the other three men to play off. The actor portraying Johnny Cash doesn’t just have his mannerism, but he also has that deep bass voice that comes from the bottom of his soul. Carl Perkins’ character is captured well, a lesser-known influence in the gradual metamorphosis of country/western into rock ‘n roll. The hit of the show, however, is the performance of Elvis Presley, the King of rock ‘n roll, whose physical gyrations emphasized the beat of and the lack of inhibition of the music he loved to perform.
If Million Dollar Quartet comes to a stage in your neighborhood, I strongly encourage you to buy a ticket and enjoy the telling of the real story of how rock ‘n roll "... transformed the cultural landscape of the twentieth century" [quote from the stage notes]. It wasn’t the Beatles – it was the good ole country boys whose love of music challenged them to take it a step further today than they had gone yesterday.
Million Dollar Quartet is the story of one magical day shortly before Christmas in 1956 when the four living legends came together in Sam Phillips’ Sun Records recording studio, where they all got their start. The impromptu jam session was unique and captured by a newspaperman who commented, “This quartet could sell a million.” This was a one-time performance by the four legends who later would be inducted into the Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Fame. What remains is the tape of the quartet's impromptu jam, as well as a photograph of the four music giants before they hit the big time.
The traveling stage show captures the intensity of the time, a time when music was forever changed. The performers were conflicted because they got their start with Phillips, but he was too small to build their careers into the cultural phenomena they each became, and so they moved on to the bigger labels. This jam session in early December 1956 was the only time they were together, a moment in time captured by the stage play. The physical appearances are spot-on, with each actor capturing perfectly the personality and the mannerisms of the four. The pianist who plays the role of Jerry Lee Lewis is over the top talented and provides a foundation for the other three men to play off. The actor portraying Johnny Cash doesn’t just have his mannerism, but he also has that deep bass voice that comes from the bottom of his soul. Carl Perkins’ character is captured well, a lesser-known influence in the gradual metamorphosis of country/western into rock ‘n roll. The hit of the show, however, is the performance of Elvis Presley, the King of rock ‘n roll, whose physical gyrations emphasized the beat of and the lack of inhibition of the music he loved to perform.
If Million Dollar Quartet comes to a stage in your neighborhood, I strongly encourage you to buy a ticket and enjoy the telling of the real story of how rock ‘n roll "... transformed the cultural landscape of the twentieth century" [quote from the stage notes]. It wasn’t the Beatles – it was the good ole country boys whose love of music challenged them to take it a step further today than they had gone yesterday.
Saturday, November 23, 2013
Beckretary
This past week’s episode of Glee drove home the overwhelmingly negative effect Sue Sylvester (Jane Lynch) has on Becky (Lauren Potter), a Down’s Syndrome student to whom Sue has become attached. It is an opportunity for Sue to be a positive role model, yet she chooses to “teach” Becky by example how to be derogatory and disrespectful both to staff and her fellow students.
When Sue first took an interest in Becky and then revealed that she had a special needs sister, I felt that it would be an opportunity for Becky to grow into her potential within the realities of her disability. However, Sue took that opportunity to put Becky into conflict with other students through both her words and her actions, refers to her as Sue’s “Beckretary,” and has given unrestricted power to be rude, disrespectful, and derogatory with impunity. Why the writers of this popular show would morph Becky into a mini-me Sue is beyond my comprehension, but that isn’t my primary concern: what about the actress with Down’s Syndrome who has been taught through her role on this TV show to be disrespectful to the people with whom she has contact?
When I searched for the name of the actress portraying Becky (Lauren Potter), I found an interview with her and her mother: (Posted by Rob on Jun-16-2009 under Glee Episode Spoilers, News, Videos)
[Mom says} Lauren enjoyed the two-day shoot but said it bothered her that when people looked at her, they first saw the Down syndrome.
[Lauren's reply] “It’s really hard for me when people see me as a Down syndrome kid,” she said. “I want them to see me as typical.”
Can this actress understand that the behaviors and language she uses as the character Becky are not typical, and are inappropriate for use in her interactions with people off the set? Is Lauren able to make and then understand the distinctions between real and a role? Does she understand that the nastiness of her character would be inappropriate in her daily interactions with peers and adults and in no way will distinguish her as typical? And, if her goal is to be a role model for other differently abled people, does Lauren understand that this is the wrong role for that goal to be achieved?
When I see Becky being nasty, mean, and vindictive, I see a character who is far from typical in a very negative way, and not because she has Down's Syndrome.
When Sue first took an interest in Becky and then revealed that she had a special needs sister, I felt that it would be an opportunity for Becky to grow into her potential within the realities of her disability. However, Sue took that opportunity to put Becky into conflict with other students through both her words and her actions, refers to her as Sue’s “Beckretary,” and has given unrestricted power to be rude, disrespectful, and derogatory with impunity. Why the writers of this popular show would morph Becky into a mini-me Sue is beyond my comprehension, but that isn’t my primary concern: what about the actress with Down’s Syndrome who has been taught through her role on this TV show to be disrespectful to the people with whom she has contact?
When I searched for the name of the actress portraying Becky (Lauren Potter), I found an interview with her and her mother: (Posted by Rob on Jun-16-2009 under Glee Episode Spoilers, News, Videos)
[Mom says} Lauren enjoyed the two-day shoot but said it bothered her that when people looked at her, they first saw the Down syndrome.
[Lauren's reply] “It’s really hard for me when people see me as a Down syndrome kid,” she said. “I want them to see me as typical.”
Can this actress understand that the behaviors and language she uses as the character Becky are not typical, and are inappropriate for use in her interactions with people off the set? Is Lauren able to make and then understand the distinctions between real and a role? Does she understand that the nastiness of her character would be inappropriate in her daily interactions with peers and adults and in no way will distinguish her as typical? And, if her goal is to be a role model for other differently abled people, does Lauren understand that this is the wrong role for that goal to be achieved?
When I see Becky being nasty, mean, and vindictive, I see a character who is far from typical in a very negative way, and not because she has Down's Syndrome.
Wednesday, November 20, 2013
Jingle Balls
Okay, so now I'm offended by ... a commercial? K-Mart has a chorus line of men decked out in tux tops and boxer bottoms. Believe it or not, the men, legs spread, do pelvic thrusts along with "bells" ringing out a chorus of Jingle Bells. I'm sure that someone thought this was hilariously funny, and maybe it is over a coupla beers, but for a national sales commercial?
Not so much funny.
UPDATE: I think the commercial has been removed from TV as I haven't seen it once this entire past week. Good decision!
Not so much funny.
UPDATE: I think the commercial has been removed from TV as I haven't seen it once this entire past week. Good decision!
Wednesday, November 6, 2013
12 Years a Slave
My movie buddy and I decided to see a special screening of the new "slave" movie playing at a local theater. The previews piqued our interest in seeing the film, so we attended with expectations. Sadly, those expectations were not met on several levels.
A film has to engage the emotions of the viewers so there is buy-in to the story being told. This film came across as actors portraying their roles, rather than actors becoming their characters. I watched the most emotional scenes from a distance, not engaging with the characters and what is happening to them. Sure, it is horrific, what is done, but it didn't feel that way during the film.
The main male slave character is too resigned, too able to accept his slavery – and since he didn’t fight what happens to him, I didn’t engage with his character. I understand the concept of “go along to get along,” and it would have cost him physically had he overtly fought his enslavement, but he seemz also to give up spiritually. There are two instances when he fights his captivity, both of which shine because the rest of the time he’s so passively resigned to his fate.
The supporting cast is excellent in the portrayal of a ruling class that takes for granted that human beings are theirs to own. The slave owner’s wife is particularly vivid in her nuanced performance of both sympathy for and acceptance that slaves are purchased products to be used and abused at will by their masters. She is the one character with depth of character in her performance.
Far too often it takes far too long to make a point in the picture, with scenes that drag out to uninteresting before they are played completely. A slow pace dulls the senses and distracts from the scenes that need empathy to be believable.
Thus, I’d give 12 Years a Slave a grade of C.
A film has to engage the emotions of the viewers so there is buy-in to the story being told. This film came across as actors portraying their roles, rather than actors becoming their characters. I watched the most emotional scenes from a distance, not engaging with the characters and what is happening to them. Sure, it is horrific, what is done, but it didn't feel that way during the film.
The main male slave character is too resigned, too able to accept his slavery – and since he didn’t fight what happens to him, I didn’t engage with his character. I understand the concept of “go along to get along,” and it would have cost him physically had he overtly fought his enslavement, but he seemz also to give up spiritually. There are two instances when he fights his captivity, both of which shine because the rest of the time he’s so passively resigned to his fate.
The supporting cast is excellent in the portrayal of a ruling class that takes for granted that human beings are theirs to own. The slave owner’s wife is particularly vivid in her nuanced performance of both sympathy for and acceptance that slaves are purchased products to be used and abused at will by their masters. She is the one character with depth of character in her performance.
Far too often it takes far too long to make a point in the picture, with scenes that drag out to uninteresting before they are played completely. A slow pace dulls the senses and distracts from the scenes that need empathy to be believable.
Thus, I’d give 12 Years a Slave a grade of C.
Saturday, November 2, 2013
The TSA Shooter
The coverage of the TSA shooting brings questions to mind, such as why were so few shots fired and so few people involved? It seems that the shooter had “suicide by cop” in mind when he took his semi-auto rifle into the airport where literally hundreds of targets were available but left uninjured. When he shot and killed one TSA employee and wounded another, he took off running – not shooting at other TSA agents. He had spare magazines of ammo with him, but he didn’t senselessly spray the target-rich environment with bullets.
He simply took off running until the cops caught up with him and brought him down in a hail of bullets.
Thus, I think his goal was suicide by cop – which failed, as he survived 4 gunshots to his chest area.
He simply took off running until the cops caught up with him and brought him down in a hail of bullets.
Thus, I think his goal was suicide by cop – which failed, as he survived 4 gunshots to his chest area.
Friday, November 1, 2013
Tough Questions
The issue of O magazine waiting for me at the therapist's office offered challenges this month. I've had to think about my responses, rather than just taking the first idea that came into my head.
I’m so glad I learned the secret to … making good gravy: use cornstarch, rather than flour, and you won’t have lumps. Many people judge the meal, as well as the cook, on the gravy.
But I hope I never figure out … how to work complicated mathematical problems! Math and I stay as far away from one another as is humanly possible.
When I need help with life’s mysteries, I turn to … a good book. Asking family and/or close friends makes me too vulnerable, and I probably already know what they will say, so an author (writing for a universal reader) keeps the advice pertinent, as well as important, and the reader can personalize it to fit.
My next challenge is figuring out … how to make a contribution without dealing with the demands people want in return. Far too often my volunteerism quickly consumes my life and I am working a full-time job with no pay, no benefits, and limited thanks.
If you could offer one piece of advice to the world, it would be … as Elvis believed, Take care of business, rather than sitting on the stoop and waiting for someone else to take care of your business for you. I don’t owe you anything, but you owe yourself whatever it is that makes your life complete. You don’t know that you cannot have what you want/need unless you first figure out how to work toward it and then put your plan into action. Doing nothing gets you ... nothing.
I’m so glad I learned the secret to … making good gravy: use cornstarch, rather than flour, and you won’t have lumps. Many people judge the meal, as well as the cook, on the gravy.
But I hope I never figure out … how to work complicated mathematical problems! Math and I stay as far away from one another as is humanly possible.
When I need help with life’s mysteries, I turn to … a good book. Asking family and/or close friends makes me too vulnerable, and I probably already know what they will say, so an author (writing for a universal reader) keeps the advice pertinent, as well as important, and the reader can personalize it to fit.
My next challenge is figuring out … how to make a contribution without dealing with the demands people want in return. Far too often my volunteerism quickly consumes my life and I am working a full-time job with no pay, no benefits, and limited thanks.
If you could offer one piece of advice to the world, it would be … as Elvis believed, Take care of business, rather than sitting on the stoop and waiting for someone else to take care of your business for you. I don’t owe you anything, but you owe yourself whatever it is that makes your life complete. You don’t know that you cannot have what you want/need unless you first figure out how to work toward it and then put your plan into action. Doing nothing gets you ... nothing.
Sunday, October 27, 2013
Miley's Twerk Isn't Up to the Standards of a Full-Blown Shimmy!
It’s not always easy to pack an overnight bag and head to Broadway, so a local theatre, Cinemas Palm D’Or, brings Broadway to the desert. The most recent showing is the 2036th, and final, performance of Smokey Joe’s Café, which features the music of Leiber and Stoller, music anyone living through the 50s, the 60s, and maybe the 70s, will recognize, but anyone who enjoys a dynamic, fun-filled couple of hours of theater will enjoy.
On Broadway showcases a male quartet with the standard ranges of low bass to highest tenor, complete with the “moves” that make any great quartet even better. The female quartet is equally as accomplished in both singing talent and dance moves, but it is the music that steals the show. There are individual performances that come in at the top of the chart, as well as cast performances that had the audience standing and begging for more.
One number, in particular, had me howling with laughter and wondering why Miley Sirus stirred up such a large pot of disfavor with her “twerking” performance: the shimmy, complete with the fringed outfit that shimmies right along with the music. We used to shimmy, some better than others, and twerking seems tame when compared to the shimmy in all its wiggling and suggestive glory. Those who can, do, and those who can’t wish they could when it comes to the shimmy. There is a YouTube video of this performance that brought the house down, as well as other videos of spectacular performances.
If you have an opportunity to see the filmed version of the Broadway stage play, Smokey Joe's Cafe, I highly recommend it to you as a fun-filled, face-paced 2 hours of music you’ll recognize and fight hard to avoid singing along with the performers on the stage.
On Broadway showcases a male quartet with the standard ranges of low bass to highest tenor, complete with the “moves” that make any great quartet even better. The female quartet is equally as accomplished in both singing talent and dance moves, but it is the music that steals the show. There are individual performances that come in at the top of the chart, as well as cast performances that had the audience standing and begging for more.
One number, in particular, had me howling with laughter and wondering why Miley Sirus stirred up such a large pot of disfavor with her “twerking” performance: the shimmy, complete with the fringed outfit that shimmies right along with the music. We used to shimmy, some better than others, and twerking seems tame when compared to the shimmy in all its wiggling and suggestive glory. Those who can, do, and those who can’t wish they could when it comes to the shimmy. There is a YouTube video of this performance that brought the house down, as well as other videos of spectacular performances.
If you have an opportunity to see the filmed version of the Broadway stage play, Smokey Joe's Cafe, I highly recommend it to you as a fun-filled, face-paced 2 hours of music you’ll recognize and fight hard to avoid singing along with the performers on the stage.
Friday, October 25, 2013
Neighborhood Watch
My smallest dog, Cinnamon, discovered last week that she can see out the front room window. When that window is open to let in the cooler Fall air, Cinnamon can bark unceasingly at sights/sounds both real and imaginary. What a noisy little neighborhood watcher she has become!! 
My other two dogs also spend time sitting in the window area and watching what's going on. The neighbors across the way are cleaning up their yard; the neighbors next door to them were out cutting their grass with a noisy electric mower. A group of kids were playing in the empty lot across the street and squealing with joy when they found one another. When all three of the dogs get to barking, it's a loud cacaphony of strident sound.
Sunday, October 20, 2013
Captain Phillips
My movie buddy and I wanted to see the film Captain Phillips, so we bought our tickets and popcorn and settled in. We made it through all the movie trailers, but when the actual film began, I realized it was not what I had thought it was. I'm not a fan of the hand-held camera technique, but a bit of it is okay; however, this film is nothing but hand-held cameras and too much of anything is too much.
From the time Capt. Phillips climbed aboard his ship, I became more and more nauseous and, after 25 minutes, I had to walk out before my head exploded. The film is filmed all in hand-held camera mode: the camera keeps moving side to side, up and down, across and back -- and I have issues with vertigo and can barely make it through the snack bar roller coaster enticement.
A little bit of shakey cam can enhance the drama and/or help to tell the story, but there really is too much of a questionable camera technique.
From the time Capt. Phillips climbed aboard his ship, I became more and more nauseous and, after 25 minutes, I had to walk out before my head exploded. The film is filmed all in hand-held camera mode: the camera keeps moving side to side, up and down, across and back -- and I have issues with vertigo and can barely make it through the snack bar roller coaster enticement.
A little bit of shakey cam can enhance the drama and/or help to tell the story, but there really is too much of a questionable camera technique.
Saturday, October 19, 2013
Making the Call
I don't lose things, but sometimes I do misplace them. I'm such a creature of habit that I react subconsciously to the put it back where I found it early childhood training. However, I'm of an age wherein the mind isn't as sharp as it used to be, so if I misplace something, I just sigh and go back through my previous actions until I find it. When I don't find it, panic sets in -- and, hence, having to make the call to my credit card company when I didn't find my credit/debit card in its niche in my purse. I distinctly remembered the last time I had the card (at the local Von's gas station), so I stopped by there to see if my card was there. Yeah, slim to none chance of that being the case, but I was rewalking my day yesterday and that was the last time I remember using my card.
I called the card company and after being asked a half-dozen times to provide the card number for my lost card, I was finally directed to a human being. I told him that if I had the card, I could tell him the number ... but the reason for my call was that I couldn't find my card. We went through the whole process of reporting it, canceling it, and being assured that a new card is on its way sometime this coming week.
The last thing he said to me was that if I found the card in my pants pocket, I could not use it because it was now inactive -- and halla, I went to check the pants I wore yesterday. There was my card, along with the receipt for the gas I had purchased. Alas, too late, but better to be safe than sorry when it comes to a missing credit/debit card.
I called the card company and after being asked a half-dozen times to provide the card number for my lost card, I was finally directed to a human being. I told him that if I had the card, I could tell him the number ... but the reason for my call was that I couldn't find my card. We went through the whole process of reporting it, canceling it, and being assured that a new card is on its way sometime this coming week.
The last thing he said to me was that if I found the card in my pants pocket, I could not use it because it was now inactive -- and halla, I went to check the pants I wore yesterday. There was my card, along with the receipt for the gas I had purchased. Alas, too late, but better to be safe than sorry when it comes to a missing credit/debit card.
Friday, October 4, 2013
Responding to the Call
I get irritated when people come down on police officers, saying that they don't care about or respect others. Well, here is a story that clearly shows not all cops are in that category.
This story involves the police department in the hill country town of Fredericksburg, TX who reported finding a man's body last Saturday, in the early evening, in the Pedernales River near the state highway-87 bridge.
The dead man's name would not be released until his family had been notified. The victim apparently drowned due to excessive beer consumption while visiting "someone" in Kerrville, TX.
He was wearing black fishnet stockings, 4 inch spiked heels, a red garter belt, a pink G-string, purple lipstick, dazzle dust on his eyelids, 2-1/2 inch false eyelashes, and an Obama T-shirt.
The police removed the Obama T-shirt to spare his family any unnecessary embarrassment.
OK: so I cut and pasted this from someone much more clever than I because I haven't laughed this hard in a really long time.
This story involves the police department in the hill country town of Fredericksburg, TX who reported finding a man's body last Saturday, in the early evening, in the Pedernales River near the state highway-87 bridge.
The dead man's name would not be released until his family had been notified. The victim apparently drowned due to excessive beer consumption while visiting "someone" in Kerrville, TX.
He was wearing black fishnet stockings, 4 inch spiked heels, a red garter belt, a pink G-string, purple lipstick, dazzle dust on his eyelids, 2-1/2 inch false eyelashes, and an Obama T-shirt.
The police removed the Obama T-shirt to spare his family any unnecessary embarrassment.
OK: so I cut and pasted this from someone much more clever than I because I haven't laughed this hard in a really long time.
Wednesday, October 2, 2013
What If The Republicans Are Right?
Back in the day, my former husband wanted to buy a motorhome, which required a trip to San Diego to go shopping. We went from one car lot to another without finding what we were looking for, but finally we came across a coach with an excellent lay-out, solid construction, and outstanding reputation: a Mini-Winnebago. I was ecstatic to find just what I was looking for as a family recreation vehicle, and husband seemed to agree. This was it; however, when we started off on a test drive, the engine light came on. Immediately, we shut off the engine and told the sales rep about the light. He said not to worry; sometimes, the mechanics who prep the vehicles forget to recheck the oil they add upon delivery. They would do that now and then we could proceed with our test drive.
Ex-husband refused to budge: we either got another coach that had never seen the engine light come on or we would move on to another lot. The salesman lowered the price and offered a 100% guarantee and he still wouldn’t budge. I argued that this was the perfect coach for us, spacious, comfortable, with a separate seating area away from the kitchen, and 3 separate sleeping areas, listing all the features that it had that we had not seen in any of the other coaches. Ex stubbornly refused to purchase that one and we were off to another lot.
Ex-husband found a coach he really liked and I was appalled. It was a smaller footprint than the Mini Wini and the design didn’t allow anywhere to sit while meals were being prepared. There was an overcab bunk, which I refused to crawl into, and the dining table top made into a small bed for two children, 2 constricted sleeping areas for a 4-person family. The construction didn’t seem as top drawer as the Mini Wini and I said no, no, no – for a dozen different reasons. Just the fact that I said “no” was reason enough for ex-husband to decide that this was the motorhome for us – and he refused to go back to the Mini Wini for another look-see or to look at other coaches on the same lot, or travel to yet another unexplored sales lot. He wanted what he wanted and it didn't matter what I said or did because he was not going to change his mind.
I told him that I refused to co-sign the loan and would not partake in trips involving that coach as I absolutely could not see it working well for a family of four. He signed all the papers and proudly drove the motorhome to a friend’s home in the area, feeling that he had bought a great recreational vehicle for his family to enjoy. When a friend asked me (in front of ex-husband) why I had agreed to purchase it if I didn't like it, I told him that I had not agreed -- but my opinion was disregarded completely.
The first night we slept in it (yes, I caved in and went on vacation, pissed off and not looking forward to it at all), I slept on the tabletop bed conversion because there was no way I was going to climb into the overcab bed. As I turned over in my sleep, the support brace broke off the bench seating and the whole thing fell to the floor. I was right about shoddy construction and the decision not to buy this model, but being right didn’t mean diddly as we were stuck with it because it was more important for the husband to be right than to compromise.
Hence, the Affordable Care Act. The Republicans are generally saying slow down, think this through, and give it some time before we commit one hundred percent to a program that seems to have too many potential problems attached to it. The Democrats say if that’s what the President wants, that’s what he’ll get, and we’ll work the kinks out after the fact. The President whines like a kindergartener, worried about his presidential legacy that is based on ObamaCare as he hasn’t done much of anything else to brag about. He’s exasperated and that’s reason enough to pass the legislation.
Maybe the Republicans are right and the President and the Democrats are wrong. Maybe this is being rammed into law without thinking it through for the long run. Maybe we should all be taking a closer look at the construction details, and rather than be pleased by what seems like a good, cheaper deal on the surface, check the support braces before sleeping on the tabletop conversion.
Ex-husband refused to budge: we either got another coach that had never seen the engine light come on or we would move on to another lot. The salesman lowered the price and offered a 100% guarantee and he still wouldn’t budge. I argued that this was the perfect coach for us, spacious, comfortable, with a separate seating area away from the kitchen, and 3 separate sleeping areas, listing all the features that it had that we had not seen in any of the other coaches. Ex stubbornly refused to purchase that one and we were off to another lot.
Ex-husband found a coach he really liked and I was appalled. It was a smaller footprint than the Mini Wini and the design didn’t allow anywhere to sit while meals were being prepared. There was an overcab bunk, which I refused to crawl into, and the dining table top made into a small bed for two children, 2 constricted sleeping areas for a 4-person family. The construction didn’t seem as top drawer as the Mini Wini and I said no, no, no – for a dozen different reasons. Just the fact that I said “no” was reason enough for ex-husband to decide that this was the motorhome for us – and he refused to go back to the Mini Wini for another look-see or to look at other coaches on the same lot, or travel to yet another unexplored sales lot. He wanted what he wanted and it didn't matter what I said or did because he was not going to change his mind.
I told him that I refused to co-sign the loan and would not partake in trips involving that coach as I absolutely could not see it working well for a family of four. He signed all the papers and proudly drove the motorhome to a friend’s home in the area, feeling that he had bought a great recreational vehicle for his family to enjoy. When a friend asked me (in front of ex-husband) why I had agreed to purchase it if I didn't like it, I told him that I had not agreed -- but my opinion was disregarded completely.
The first night we slept in it (yes, I caved in and went on vacation, pissed off and not looking forward to it at all), I slept on the tabletop bed conversion because there was no way I was going to climb into the overcab bed. As I turned over in my sleep, the support brace broke off the bench seating and the whole thing fell to the floor. I was right about shoddy construction and the decision not to buy this model, but being right didn’t mean diddly as we were stuck with it because it was more important for the husband to be right than to compromise.
Hence, the Affordable Care Act. The Republicans are generally saying slow down, think this through, and give it some time before we commit one hundred percent to a program that seems to have too many potential problems attached to it. The Democrats say if that’s what the President wants, that’s what he’ll get, and we’ll work the kinks out after the fact. The President whines like a kindergartener, worried about his presidential legacy that is based on ObamaCare as he hasn’t done much of anything else to brag about. He’s exasperated and that’s reason enough to pass the legislation.
Maybe the Republicans are right and the President and the Democrats are wrong. Maybe this is being rammed into law without thinking it through for the long run. Maybe we should all be taking a closer look at the construction details, and rather than be pleased by what seems like a good, cheaper deal on the surface, check the support braces before sleeping on the tabletop conversion.
Monday, September 23, 2013
Prisoners
* First, the title is lame: the film is not really about prisoners.
* Next, Hugh Jackman overplays his role: he’s too macho, too out of control, too determined to beat the truth out of anyone in his way.
* Jake Gyllenhaal, on the other hand, is so down-low that his character seems catatonic at times.
* And, at 2 hours and 26 minutes, the movie is too long: I could easily edit out a full 15 minutes without losing either the tension or the need to know information.
* I also could not count the number of times the word “fuck” and its variants were used, but suffice it to say that it was over-used by all the actors throughout the film. There have to be other words available to pack a different kind of punch. Two plus hours of fuck this, fuck that gets old in a hurry.
That said, I enjoyed Prisoners. Attending an afternoon matinee, the theatre had seniors in the seats, so there was lots of loud whispering as we all guessed the directions the story took. I guessed “snakes” at one point, but was wrong; I’ll defend that there should have been snakes just to freak out the story a bit more.
* Next, Hugh Jackman overplays his role: he’s too macho, too out of control, too determined to beat the truth out of anyone in his way.
* Jake Gyllenhaal, on the other hand, is so down-low that his character seems catatonic at times.
* And, at 2 hours and 26 minutes, the movie is too long: I could easily edit out a full 15 minutes without losing either the tension or the need to know information.
* I also could not count the number of times the word “fuck” and its variants were used, but suffice it to say that it was over-used by all the actors throughout the film. There have to be other words available to pack a different kind of punch. Two plus hours of fuck this, fuck that gets old in a hurry.
That said, I enjoyed Prisoners. Attending an afternoon matinee, the theatre had seniors in the seats, so there was lots of loud whispering as we all guessed the directions the story took. I guessed “snakes” at one point, but was wrong; I’ll defend that there should have been snakes just to freak out the story a bit more.
Saturday, September 21, 2013
I Don’t Get It
Today’s bride wants to look sexy by making sure her “girls” are falling out of the bodice of a really low-cut strapless gown and her butt is tightly hugged by the cut of the gown. Big globules of bouncing fat on the way up the aisle and a broad beam plowing its way back down it. Not pretty.
Why does President Obama take it personally so often? Some legislators are voting for what the people want, not trying to “get” the president. Presidents are supposed to be presidential, not petty.
Why would anyone write that a person is filled with anxiousness when the correct word is so much simpler: anxiety.
If former students have money for clubbing and booze, why can’t they make payments on their student loans? Instead of spending $100/week on fun, send the money to the lender and pay down the debt by $5200/annually.
Why does my neighbor become upset with me when I live my life without consulting her about where I go, what I do, or with whom I am at any given moment?
I don't answer my house phone until/unless the machine tells me someone I know is calling. I decide which calls to answer: if you're on the other end representing a telemarketing firm, tough. It's not rude; it's my phone.
Why does President Obama take it personally so often? Some legislators are voting for what the people want, not trying to “get” the president. Presidents are supposed to be presidential, not petty.
Why would anyone write that a person is filled with anxiousness when the correct word is so much simpler: anxiety.
If former students have money for clubbing and booze, why can’t they make payments on their student loans? Instead of spending $100/week on fun, send the money to the lender and pay down the debt by $5200/annually.
Why does my neighbor become upset with me when I live my life without consulting her about where I go, what I do, or with whom I am at any given moment?
I don't answer my house phone until/unless the machine tells me someone I know is calling. I decide which calls to answer: if you're on the other end representing a telemarketing firm, tough. It's not rude; it's my phone.
Saturday, September 7, 2013
Speak Up or Shut Up
We, the people, are afraid to stand up for what we believe is right. We pass the buck to the person next to us, or to the rabble-rouser who isn’t afraid to push the boundaries of acceptable protest. We sit back and lament the loss of our liberties, but we hesitate to stand up and question those who would limit them. Politicians are elected to serve at the will of the people, not to function independently of the electorate, but it's easier to allow the politician to make the decision and then take the heat if it isn't the decision we were wanting.
This past week, in the midst of the growing alarm with atrocities in Syria, it has become clear that we, the people, do not want to become engaged in yet another war in a foreign country whose people are engaged in civil war, but our elected officials are not hearing us. The track record of US intervention is not good, so many groups of citizens are saying no to opening the door to another prolonged military intervention with no discernible favorable outcome for the US. If the United Nations were in favor of an intervention and a coalition of consensus were present, then the US could debate that intervention in Syria is for the greater good. As long as that standard is not clearly apparent, Syria should continue to fight its own battle and determine its own outcome.
There is a philosophy about people being “blindly subservient to institutional authority,” even to the extent of foregoing one’s individual rights so the institutions can determine them for the individual. We, the people, have often ceded our authority to the institutions, preferring to have someone to blame, rather than accepting responsibility for the governance of our country. When we don’t take a stand at the local level, preferring to assess blame after the fact, rather than questioning the process and the projected outcome prior to the vote being held, then we have no grounds to throw stones at those who do take a stand. President Obama’s thought process this past week illustrates his desire to have institutional authority take precedence over individual rights in his apparent aim at plowing ahead with military intervention in Syria in spite of both the electorate and elected officials nay-saying his cry to arms. If we do not want the President to make an individual decision to take action where the people do not want action taken, then we have to stand up for what we believe, rather than continue to be blindly subservient to institutional authority.
In my youth, we were encouraged to stand up and be counted, to vote so our voice is heard, to speak out when wrongs are committed, and to bear witness to wrong-doing. This strength of character is eroding in our country, with people preferring to leap to conclusions without knowing and/or understanding the issue, or for leaders to encourage action because “I said so.” There is a difference between process and event, and the process must come before the event if it is to go well, as well as end well. We are too quick to arrive at conclusions that may be based on incomplete or inaccurate information, a trait that is encouraged by our public media’s goal to be the first on-air with the news, however incomplete and/or inaccurate, because first with the “facts” makes the “facts” our truth.
It is time for all of us to become more well-educated about our lives, our liberties, and our responsibilities as citizens of a significant nation in a global community. We need to know the truth, based on all the evidence, not just the sound-bite that makes it on-air first and becomes the institutional authority for both action and inaction. The old watchwords from the 60s come to mind: Question Everything!
UPDATE: A local rep, when presented with petitions signed by constituents against any "war" in Syria, responded, "I have not yet made up my mind how to vote when the issue comes up." He, if I understand our electoral process correctly, doesn't "make up" his mind but follows the wishes of his consituency. Ask the voters who elected you to office how THEY want you to vote and then do the job to which you were elected! It's NOT about you; it's about us, the people you serve.
This past week, in the midst of the growing alarm with atrocities in Syria, it has become clear that we, the people, do not want to become engaged in yet another war in a foreign country whose people are engaged in civil war, but our elected officials are not hearing us. The track record of US intervention is not good, so many groups of citizens are saying no to opening the door to another prolonged military intervention with no discernible favorable outcome for the US. If the United Nations were in favor of an intervention and a coalition of consensus were present, then the US could debate that intervention in Syria is for the greater good. As long as that standard is not clearly apparent, Syria should continue to fight its own battle and determine its own outcome.
There is a philosophy about people being “blindly subservient to institutional authority,” even to the extent of foregoing one’s individual rights so the institutions can determine them for the individual. We, the people, have often ceded our authority to the institutions, preferring to have someone to blame, rather than accepting responsibility for the governance of our country. When we don’t take a stand at the local level, preferring to assess blame after the fact, rather than questioning the process and the projected outcome prior to the vote being held, then we have no grounds to throw stones at those who do take a stand. President Obama’s thought process this past week illustrates his desire to have institutional authority take precedence over individual rights in his apparent aim at plowing ahead with military intervention in Syria in spite of both the electorate and elected officials nay-saying his cry to arms. If we do not want the President to make an individual decision to take action where the people do not want action taken, then we have to stand up for what we believe, rather than continue to be blindly subservient to institutional authority.
In my youth, we were encouraged to stand up and be counted, to vote so our voice is heard, to speak out when wrongs are committed, and to bear witness to wrong-doing. This strength of character is eroding in our country, with people preferring to leap to conclusions without knowing and/or understanding the issue, or for leaders to encourage action because “I said so.” There is a difference between process and event, and the process must come before the event if it is to go well, as well as end well. We are too quick to arrive at conclusions that may be based on incomplete or inaccurate information, a trait that is encouraged by our public media’s goal to be the first on-air with the news, however incomplete and/or inaccurate, because first with the “facts” makes the “facts” our truth.
It is time for all of us to become more well-educated about our lives, our liberties, and our responsibilities as citizens of a significant nation in a global community. We need to know the truth, based on all the evidence, not just the sound-bite that makes it on-air first and becomes the institutional authority for both action and inaction. The old watchwords from the 60s come to mind: Question Everything!
UPDATE: A local rep, when presented with petitions signed by constituents against any "war" in Syria, responded, "I have not yet made up my mind how to vote when the issue comes up." He, if I understand our electoral process correctly, doesn't "make up" his mind but follows the wishes of his consituency. Ask the voters who elected you to office how THEY want you to vote and then do the job to which you were elected! It's NOT about you; it's about us, the people you serve.
Friday, September 6, 2013
Yucky Fizz
When I opened a carton of Chobani yogurt for breakfast this week and it had a bad odor, an "off" color, and a yucky fizz, I just assumed it had been in the fridge too long. Ditto the next 2 cartons of Chobani as I added them to the trash bin. Never entered my mind that I had purchased some greek style yogurt with an added (harmless) bacterial growth.
I threw my 3 cartons out and went to the grocery store to buy another dozen cartons, vowing to eat these in a timely manner; guess the smart people gave Chobani hell and demanded their purchase price back.
Whatever. There are some things in my life that just aren't worth the time, the energy, and the effort to mount a crusade, and yucky, fizzy Chobani is one.
I threw my 3 cartons out and went to the grocery store to buy another dozen cartons, vowing to eat these in a timely manner; guess the smart people gave Chobani hell and demanded their purchase price back.
Whatever. There are some things in my life that just aren't worth the time, the energy, and the effort to mount a crusade, and yucky, fizzy Chobani is one.
Thursday, August 29, 2013
The Third Eye
I hope my insurance company has a sense of humor when I recently submitted claims for 3, yes 3, eye surgeries. I paid out of pocket for very expensive toric lenses to correct my acute astigmatism as part of the cataract removal process. The right eye was first, and although the surgery went well, a week after the surgery the vision in my right eye was so blurry that I couldn't make out street signs, much less written correspondence.
The two-week after surgery check-up shocked my eye surgeon when she realized that the lense had rotated 20 degrees, causing the extremely blurry vision. She has been doing this (and other) surgeries since 2007 and has never encountered the problem before, nor heard about it happening to colleagues. She told me that I was "one in a million," but I really would rather that distinction were for winning the lottery than having to redo the eye surgery.
Of course, the redeaux worked and yesterday, the left eye was corrected. When I went back this morning for the day-after check-up, the surgeon was surprised that my distance vision has been corrected to 20/20 and is clear as a bell. She told me to go buy some reading glasses, so I stopped at WalMart and bought 2 pairs with a vision correction of +1.50, rather than the +2.0 she though I may need. I made sure that I could easily read the samples, and the +2.0 was too strong, so I just tried on pairs until I found the best strength for my eyes.
And, because I now have to keep a pair of reading glasses handy, I've already made 3 crocheted cozies to wear around my neck to hold my glasses when I take them off.
The two-week after surgery check-up shocked my eye surgeon when she realized that the lense had rotated 20 degrees, causing the extremely blurry vision. She has been doing this (and other) surgeries since 2007 and has never encountered the problem before, nor heard about it happening to colleagues. She told me that I was "one in a million," but I really would rather that distinction were for winning the lottery than having to redo the eye surgery.
Of course, the redeaux worked and yesterday, the left eye was corrected. When I went back this morning for the day-after check-up, the surgeon was surprised that my distance vision has been corrected to 20/20 and is clear as a bell. She told me to go buy some reading glasses, so I stopped at WalMart and bought 2 pairs with a vision correction of +1.50, rather than the +2.0 she though I may need. I made sure that I could easily read the samples, and the +2.0 was too strong, so I just tried on pairs until I found the best strength for my eyes.
And, because I now have to keep a pair of reading glasses handy, I've already made 3 crocheted cozies to wear around my neck to hold my glasses when I take them off.
Tuesday, August 27, 2013
SnapShots
If it's okay to have an allblacksdating.com on-line dating service, is it equally okay to have an all whites dating site? Or is this another instance of it's only racist if it's whites excluding blacks, especially during the week that we are honoring the Dr. Martin Luther King, JR speech about dreams ... including the hope that EVERYONE would one day be judged on the content of character, not on the color of one's (black) skin.
A real language lesson: we used not to use the perjorative words asshole, asshat, dick, bitch, son of a bitch, damn, hell, shit and even the allusive "f" you, but lately, language usage has lessened to the lowest common denominator and all of these once-excluded words run rampant through the family sitcoms. One commercial even prides itself on changing the phrase "fucking good" into "fricking good," but the real f-word implication is still there. Guess my favorite lecture on the three primary levels of language usage would do a fly-by in today's classroom: we don't talk that way; we don't talk that way outside of the house; and we don't talk that way if we want to keep our job.
How come Miley is being slammed for her highly suggestive, questionable, and/or morally reprehensible performance, but Lady Gaga not only performed, but then sat in the first rows of the reserved seats wearing her seashell breast covers and baring her g-string clad butt both to the seated audience and to the viewing audience, but has had nary a ripple in the Miley publicity pond? If we're going to lament the loss of good taste, let's apply it fairly.
If a foreign country wants to engage in war with the United States, all it has to do is figure out the definition of crossing the red line -- and we'll send our troops and munitions to wage war? What about having a step ladder of color-coded lesser offenses, perhaps using the shades of the rainbow in some kind of response framework that intercedes in general armed conflict, rather than having civil war in the streets be ignored until the ill-defined "red line" is crossed and hundreds of innocent citizens are dead from the use of chemical weapons, their bodies wrapped in sheets and displayed in the streets for the media, and thus the world, to see.
Kate Gosselin is suing her ex for hacking her computer and phone accounts to dig up dirt on her that has been allegedly used in an unflattering, recently-released, tell-all book. I'm not sure that good ole Jon is all that tech smart ... and I know he doesn't have any money, so why waste the time, the energy, and the personal resources?
Why do I believe that having a serious talk with my middle dog will make her stop and think before she poops and pees on my livingroom carpet every time a single drop of rain falls from the sky? Two pee puddles and one poop pile greeted me this morning, but the only sign of rain that blanketed the rest of the Valley was a light dew on the shrubbery. I could remove the carpeting, but I hate the feel of my bare feet on a bare floor!
The other side of my perception is my reality is the idea that whoever gets there first defines the truth.
A real language lesson: we used not to use the perjorative words asshole, asshat, dick, bitch, son of a bitch, damn, hell, shit and even the allusive "f" you, but lately, language usage has lessened to the lowest common denominator and all of these once-excluded words run rampant through the family sitcoms. One commercial even prides itself on changing the phrase "fucking good" into "fricking good," but the real f-word implication is still there. Guess my favorite lecture on the three primary levels of language usage would do a fly-by in today's classroom: we don't talk that way; we don't talk that way outside of the house; and we don't talk that way if we want to keep our job.
How come Miley is being slammed for her highly suggestive, questionable, and/or morally reprehensible performance, but Lady Gaga not only performed, but then sat in the first rows of the reserved seats wearing her seashell breast covers and baring her g-string clad butt both to the seated audience and to the viewing audience, but has had nary a ripple in the Miley publicity pond? If we're going to lament the loss of good taste, let's apply it fairly.
If a foreign country wants to engage in war with the United States, all it has to do is figure out the definition of crossing the red line -- and we'll send our troops and munitions to wage war? What about having a step ladder of color-coded lesser offenses, perhaps using the shades of the rainbow in some kind of response framework that intercedes in general armed conflict, rather than having civil war in the streets be ignored until the ill-defined "red line" is crossed and hundreds of innocent citizens are dead from the use of chemical weapons, their bodies wrapped in sheets and displayed in the streets for the media, and thus the world, to see.
Kate Gosselin is suing her ex for hacking her computer and phone accounts to dig up dirt on her that has been allegedly used in an unflattering, recently-released, tell-all book. I'm not sure that good ole Jon is all that tech smart ... and I know he doesn't have any money, so why waste the time, the energy, and the personal resources?
Why do I believe that having a serious talk with my middle dog will make her stop and think before she poops and pees on my livingroom carpet every time a single drop of rain falls from the sky? Two pee puddles and one poop pile greeted me this morning, but the only sign of rain that blanketed the rest of the Valley was a light dew on the shrubbery. I could remove the carpeting, but I hate the feel of my bare feet on a bare floor!
The other side of my perception is my reality is the idea that whoever gets there first defines the truth.
Thursday, August 22, 2013
What the H-E-Double Toothpicks?
I’m reading a Nora Roberts Rom/Com, The Heart’s Victory, in the Forever collection, when a sentence stops me BAM! right in the middle of the page:
“Chivalrousness was simply not one of Lance’s qualities, and Foxy knew that she had had enough of chivalrousness for a while.”
Why on earth would anyone write such a ridiculous sentence, creating a word to take the place of “chivalry,” which makes perfect sense in the sentence: “Chivalry was simply not one of Lance’s qualities, and Foxy knew that she had had enough of chivalry for a while.” Add to it the “had had” and it’s simply a sentence that should not have been constructed.
“Chivalrousness was simply not one of Lance’s qualities, and Foxy knew that she had had enough of chivalrousness for a while.”
Why on earth would anyone write such a ridiculous sentence, creating a word to take the place of “chivalry,” which makes perfect sense in the sentence: “Chivalry was simply not one of Lance’s qualities, and Foxy knew that she had had enough of chivalry for a while.” Add to it the “had had” and it’s simply a sentence that should not have been constructed.
Saturday, August 3, 2013
Four Eyes
I was five years of age when I had my first pair of glasses fitted to my face. They felt strange, an extra weight on my face that formed a plastic mask over my eyes. Now, decades later, I am going without glasses – and that, too, feels strange.
The first thing I do in the morning is reach for my glasses; the last thing I do each night is put my glasses on the bedside table. Other than that, I never think about wearing glasses because that is my normal. Since the surgery this past week, I’ve been not wearing glasses unless I have to read something, and it feels weird to be a two-eyed person, rather than a four-eyes. I miss the feel of the glasses on my face and feel strangely naked, exposed, and vulnerable.
In two weeks, the surgery will be performed on my left eye; after that, I may need glasses to read, but will be glasses free for the majority of my daily life. I already am getting a taste of how strange that feels, but I hope that this between time will make the transition smoother than if I just went glasses free all at once.
The surgery is to remove cataracts, with the side benefit the correction of acute astigmatism. Part of me wishes I could have had the astigmatism corrected surgically when I was a child as I’ve always resented that I had to wear glasses all the time, while other people never had to wear them.
I wonder if/when the lens replacement surgery can be done on children so they, too, can take the 24/7/365 frames off their faces. My doctor says that my vision will be exceptionally clear (no cataracts) and also more precise once my eyes adjust to the lens replacement. Isn't that a wonderful gift to give to a child who has his/her life ahead?
The first thing I do in the morning is reach for my glasses; the last thing I do each night is put my glasses on the bedside table. Other than that, I never think about wearing glasses because that is my normal. Since the surgery this past week, I’ve been not wearing glasses unless I have to read something, and it feels weird to be a two-eyed person, rather than a four-eyes. I miss the feel of the glasses on my face and feel strangely naked, exposed, and vulnerable.
In two weeks, the surgery will be performed on my left eye; after that, I may need glasses to read, but will be glasses free for the majority of my daily life. I already am getting a taste of how strange that feels, but I hope that this between time will make the transition smoother than if I just went glasses free all at once.
The surgery is to remove cataracts, with the side benefit the correction of acute astigmatism. Part of me wishes I could have had the astigmatism corrected surgically when I was a child as I’ve always resented that I had to wear glasses all the time, while other people never had to wear them.
I wonder if/when the lens replacement surgery can be done on children so they, too, can take the 24/7/365 frames off their faces. My doctor says that my vision will be exceptionally clear (no cataracts) and also more precise once my eyes adjust to the lens replacement. Isn't that a wonderful gift to give to a child who has his/her life ahead?
Sunday, July 28, 2013
No Rear-view Mirror
Princess is a 1/2 hour TV show based on the concept of a "Princess," defined as a totally self-centered female who spends far beyond her means to pay the bills. Today, I watched an episode about a young female on "stress leave" from her demanding job as a make-up demonstrator in a shopping mall cosmetics department who is spending money like she earns $6000/month, rather than living off her disability checks. Yeah, disability checks!!
She's over $20k in debt to her family, but here's what I found interesting: her theory of debt repayment.
The money was spent a long time ago, so why don't we all just move on? She doesn't understand why her family cannot just forget the past (because Princess has), even though her elderly aunt loaned her $10K for school bills and is repaying the loan every month because the Princess can't afford the payment herself. The same aunt would like to have her car back, but the Princess can't return her only means of transportation -- or pay for the insurance, the gas, or her parking tickets -- so her aunt should just get over it and move on. And her mother? She REALLY wants her favorite daughter to pay back the $7200 she's borrowed from her own mother? We could probably also talk about credit card debt, but you get the picture.
Cue the giggles when she spent her rent money on a totally cute pair of hot shoes she just had to have ... .
She's over $20k in debt to her family, but here's what I found interesting: her theory of debt repayment.
The money was spent a long time ago, so why don't we all just move on? She doesn't understand why her family cannot just forget the past (because Princess has), even though her elderly aunt loaned her $10K for school bills and is repaying the loan every month because the Princess can't afford the payment herself. The same aunt would like to have her car back, but the Princess can't return her only means of transportation -- or pay for the insurance, the gas, or her parking tickets -- so her aunt should just get over it and move on. And her mother? She REALLY wants her favorite daughter to pay back the $7200 she's borrowed from her own mother? We could probably also talk about credit card debt, but you get the picture.
Cue the giggles when she spent her rent money on a totally cute pair of hot shoes she just had to have ... .
Friday, July 26, 2013
Juror's Remorse
One of the TM jurors has come forward to say she was going to be the juror who stayed the course and voted for a guilty verdict on the manslaughter charge, but "according to the law in Florida," she couldn't find him guilty. So, what's all the public appearances, posturing, and comparing her regret to TM's mother's pain?
If you could not find Zimmerman guilty under the law, he is not guilty -- under the law. If you don't want this kind of verdict to happen in another case, either find enough legal evidence to lead to a guilty verdict or change the law.
Or, consider that if he's not guilty under the law, he's not guilty.
It's just as plausible that a young, testosterone fueled teen, all dressed in black and deliberately conducting himself in a suspicious manner in a strange neighborhood, decided to teach the man following him a lesson by jumping him. He'd have a great story to tell to all his homies, posturing about what he did, when he did it, and how he prevailed over "the man." Could have been the story of how a young black man killed a Hispanic man just as easily as it became the story of how a Hispanic (turned white by the media and protesters) man killed a black man. If TM had found the gun, would he have used it? and then regretted that decision for the rest of his life. Zimmerman would have been just as dead if TM had pulled the trigger during the fight as TM is dead because Zimmerman pulled the trigger during the fight.
We can "what if?" for years to come, but six people made a decision based on the law, a decision that no amount of remorse, regret, or righteous indignation will change.
Nor TV appearances.
Nor riots in the streets.
Nor playing the race card.
If you could not find Zimmerman guilty under the law, he is not guilty -- under the law. If you don't want this kind of verdict to happen in another case, either find enough legal evidence to lead to a guilty verdict or change the law.
Or, consider that if he's not guilty under the law, he's not guilty.
It's just as plausible that a young, testosterone fueled teen, all dressed in black and deliberately conducting himself in a suspicious manner in a strange neighborhood, decided to teach the man following him a lesson by jumping him. He'd have a great story to tell to all his homies, posturing about what he did, when he did it, and how he prevailed over "the man." Could have been the story of how a young black man killed a Hispanic man just as easily as it became the story of how a Hispanic (turned white by the media and protesters) man killed a black man. If TM had found the gun, would he have used it? and then regretted that decision for the rest of his life. Zimmerman would have been just as dead if TM had pulled the trigger during the fight as TM is dead because Zimmerman pulled the trigger during the fight.
We can "what if?" for years to come, but six people made a decision based on the law, a decision that no amount of remorse, regret, or righteous indignation will change.
Nor TV appearances.
Nor riots in the streets.
Nor playing the race card.
Monday, July 22, 2013
The Heat
Melissa McCarthy and Sandra Bullock are perfectly paired in the comedrama The Heat that had me LMAO while ROTF. It's R rated for good reason as the dialog is pretty raunchy, but the comedy is so good and works so well that I let the language slide. For a 1 PM matinee, the theater was packed and everyone genuinely laughed together, which is a sign of a well-executed script.
Sunday, July 14, 2013
The Lone Ranger
My nomination for the WORST MOVIE of the year: The Lone Ranger. It earns this distinction on so many levels that it's hard to spotlight just one flaw!!
Profiling
The way it seems to me is that if you are a black perpetrator, you are a victim of racial profiling; if you are a black victim, you are the victim of racial profiling. Whoopi Goldberg may be right in her insistence that blacks don't live in the same world with the rest of the population.
Saturday, July 13, 2013
Foreign Driving
Shenyang, China features a variety of vehicles that creates a confusing mobile traffic jam through which the majority of motorists wander unscathed. But don’t ask me how. It took the first week of abject fear without accident before I could enter a cab and not cower in the corner. Looking up at a decrepit city bus from the back seat of a cab driven by a driver determined to cut the bus off is not for the faint of heart.
Let me explain what I’ve learned, beginning with the basic rules of the road. First, and foremost, any driver in any vehicle has the right to do whatever s/he wants to do on the road. Signs, signals, and striping are simply suggestions for those drivers who lack the confidence to pick a destination and then get there, come what may in interference. Thus, buses, construction dump trucks, privately-owned vehicles, pedicars, small, three-wheeled cars the size of a typical living-room barkalounger, donkey-drawn carts and repurposed bicycles all compete for road space with the taxis, which by sheer numbers command attention. The only commonality between this polyglot of vehicles is that survival depends on one’s vehicle’s horn: even the burro-drawn cart must have a horn.
The horn provides access to multi-maneuvers on the road, bypassing either the rules of the road or common usage agreements. Thus, in the states, a two-lane pathway would, at any given time, have a maximum of two vehicles abreast. In China, that is a minimum; the maximum lane usage practice incorporates the parking/curb lane, the first striped lane, the lane centered over the first stripe, the second striped lane, and the lane centered over the double-striped lane that separates oncoming from ongoing traffic. The horn announces where a vehicle is and presages that it’s going to be moving about the traffic pattern, but it is up to the other drivers on the road to be alert and move out of the way. Failure to drive defensively while aggressively pursuing one’s ultimate destination results in a traffic accident.
Smaller vehicles defend their size against the biggest vehicles on the road by stationing themselves near either the front or the rear bumper of the much larger vehicle. When the traffic flow begins, the small vehicle beeps its horn, then pulls out into traffic, perhaps feeling invincible and/or protected by the much larger vehicle it’s using to open a hole in the traffic. Based on the relative size differential, I’m guessing that the only way the bus knows there is a far-too-small vehicle hiding from view is past experience. One person can squeeze into these micro-cars, but there is a “back seat” with a passenger holding on for dear life. The pedicabs have been motorized (they used to be bicycles and still look like enclosed bicycles), but I saw few with any kind of lights aboard, which minimizes being seen by other vehicles on the road, especially after sunset. Regardless of the relative safety of being in either of these two vehicles, it’s somewhat better than being a pedestrian.
There are few traffic lights in Shenyang; hence, traffic continues to scurry about helter skelter. A pedestrian risks life and limb each time s/he crosses a street because the vehicular traffic does not stop for man, woman, or child. Ever. As the cabs dart about the roads, there, perched on the center “no crossing” lines are temporarily halted pedestrians who have been unable to cross the street fully. If the cab is using the “center line” as another passing lane, it behooves the pedestrians to be especially alert to line-sharing. On one of the few streets with a pedestrian lane, traffic becomes even more aggressive because that is wasted lane space for motor vehicles, as well as wasted driving time, so they ignore the pedestrians with disdain for their selfish mindset in claiming that crossing lane as their own.
By the end of the first week of cabbing around Shenyang, I felt better at being surrounded by steel and steadfastly refused to even try to cross the street. By the end of week two, I was able to conquer my fear of crossing some of the less busy streets, but it took nerves of steel to do so, especially because drivers simply do not react as if any of the more civilized road rules apply to them. A right-hand turn at a corner can be made from the double yellow “no passing” line farthest from the right-hand curb – as long as the horn is administered properly and profusely. A U-turn can be made across the double yellow “no passing” line into on-coming traffic as long as the horn is used to indicate … something is happening on the road somewhere, so look out for it. And, of course, passing another vehicle is simply one of the rules of the road, and if the car was intends to pass fails to heed the horn, muscle against the front bumper and just keep coming on: the car being nosed out doesn’t want the hassle of a traffic accident and will move out of your way.
People who have lived in and/or visited major cities tell me that this craziness is universal, but that doesn’t make it any less frightening. It does, however, explain some of the driving I’ve witnessed on the California freeway systems! People who move here from other areas disregard line striping, even on freeways, but here? We call them statistics.
Let me explain what I’ve learned, beginning with the basic rules of the road. First, and foremost, any driver in any vehicle has the right to do whatever s/he wants to do on the road. Signs, signals, and striping are simply suggestions for those drivers who lack the confidence to pick a destination and then get there, come what may in interference. Thus, buses, construction dump trucks, privately-owned vehicles, pedicars, small, three-wheeled cars the size of a typical living-room barkalounger, donkey-drawn carts and repurposed bicycles all compete for road space with the taxis, which by sheer numbers command attention. The only commonality between this polyglot of vehicles is that survival depends on one’s vehicle’s horn: even the burro-drawn cart must have a horn.
The horn provides access to multi-maneuvers on the road, bypassing either the rules of the road or common usage agreements. Thus, in the states, a two-lane pathway would, at any given time, have a maximum of two vehicles abreast. In China, that is a minimum; the maximum lane usage practice incorporates the parking/curb lane, the first striped lane, the lane centered over the first stripe, the second striped lane, and the lane centered over the double-striped lane that separates oncoming from ongoing traffic. The horn announces where a vehicle is and presages that it’s going to be moving about the traffic pattern, but it is up to the other drivers on the road to be alert and move out of the way. Failure to drive defensively while aggressively pursuing one’s ultimate destination results in a traffic accident.
Smaller vehicles defend their size against the biggest vehicles on the road by stationing themselves near either the front or the rear bumper of the much larger vehicle. When the traffic flow begins, the small vehicle beeps its horn, then pulls out into traffic, perhaps feeling invincible and/or protected by the much larger vehicle it’s using to open a hole in the traffic. Based on the relative size differential, I’m guessing that the only way the bus knows there is a far-too-small vehicle hiding from view is past experience. One person can squeeze into these micro-cars, but there is a “back seat” with a passenger holding on for dear life. The pedicabs have been motorized (they used to be bicycles and still look like enclosed bicycles), but I saw few with any kind of lights aboard, which minimizes being seen by other vehicles on the road, especially after sunset. Regardless of the relative safety of being in either of these two vehicles, it’s somewhat better than being a pedestrian.
There are few traffic lights in Shenyang; hence, traffic continues to scurry about helter skelter. A pedestrian risks life and limb each time s/he crosses a street because the vehicular traffic does not stop for man, woman, or child. Ever. As the cabs dart about the roads, there, perched on the center “no crossing” lines are temporarily halted pedestrians who have been unable to cross the street fully. If the cab is using the “center line” as another passing lane, it behooves the pedestrians to be especially alert to line-sharing. On one of the few streets with a pedestrian lane, traffic becomes even more aggressive because that is wasted lane space for motor vehicles, as well as wasted driving time, so they ignore the pedestrians with disdain for their selfish mindset in claiming that crossing lane as their own.
By the end of the first week of cabbing around Shenyang, I felt better at being surrounded by steel and steadfastly refused to even try to cross the street. By the end of week two, I was able to conquer my fear of crossing some of the less busy streets, but it took nerves of steel to do so, especially because drivers simply do not react as if any of the more civilized road rules apply to them. A right-hand turn at a corner can be made from the double yellow “no passing” line farthest from the right-hand curb – as long as the horn is administered properly and profusely. A U-turn can be made across the double yellow “no passing” line into on-coming traffic as long as the horn is used to indicate … something is happening on the road somewhere, so look out for it. And, of course, passing another vehicle is simply one of the rules of the road, and if the car was intends to pass fails to heed the horn, muscle against the front bumper and just keep coming on: the car being nosed out doesn’t want the hassle of a traffic accident and will move out of your way.
People who have lived in and/or visited major cities tell me that this craziness is universal, but that doesn’t make it any less frightening. It does, however, explain some of the driving I’ve witnessed on the California freeway systems! People who move here from other areas disregard line striping, even on freeways, but here? We call them statistics.
Wednesday, July 10, 2013
Wuz Gunna
I wuz gunna post my trip to China, but decided instead to make an official report, with color photos, and send it to nearest and dearest. If anyone wants to know about "Shenyanigans" (as I'm calling the 3-week vaca), feel free to post a comment that includes an address and I'll send it to you.
Sunday, June 16, 2013
Man of Steel
Each actor who has portrayed the character of SuperMan has brought his own uniqueness to the role, and Henry Cavitt continues the great chain of (super) beings. His chiseled looks enhance the "caricature" aspect of the comic book hero, but Henry's facial features morph into human features of various emotions, such as friendship, respect, loathing, and love. Sparks fly when he meets his Lois Lane, and other sparks fly when he realizes the fight is to the death. The sheer joy on his face when he tests his newly-discovered super skills is the same look on any kids' face when riding a two-wheeler for the first time, mastering a skateboard, hitting the ball off a T, jumping into the pool for the first time, or any of the other rites of passage today's youth use to mark their life journey.
Y and I enjoyed an early-morning showing of the film, which was packed with families celebrating Father's Day. My only caveat for the film begins with the "appropriate audience" approved movie trailers that were far too bloody and violent for all the little children in the theater. I also question the parenting decision to take younger children, those well under age 10-12, to such a violent film. Children are influenced by life's events, whether real or imaginary, and later on, when young adults act out/act inappropriately, sometimes we forget the uber-realistic visual bombardment we showered on our children at the movies. Not everyone who is exposed to violence grows up to be violent, but when a person says, "I snapped," s/he could be reverting to these overly-violent blockbusters that lurk in their subconscious.
Yes, that's my sticking point with the film: the violence is too extreme, too loud, too forcefully in-your-face. I harken back to the good ole days when SuperMan bounced on a trampoline and dove through an open window to fly toward evil, lying on what must have been an early green screen, his cape streaming out behind him. When he held up his hand to stop a bullet from finding its mark, SuperMan convinced me and other children that he was, indeed, impervious to harm from an evil enemy. To a child, it seemed almost magical, and what was portrayed on the screen was filled in with a child's vivid imagination and suspension of disbelief that made it all seem so real.
I disagree with the critics that the latest SuperMan film is too dark, too ponderous, too dull -- and I'm going to say that the other audience members today will agree with me, not the critics, based on the wild applause at the end. I'm not sure what the critics look for, but perhaps they should simply sit in a darkened theater filled with customers and base their ratings on what the people applaud, rather than some phony scale for ratings that is based on technical merit.
Y and I enjoyed an early-morning showing of the film, which was packed with families celebrating Father's Day. My only caveat for the film begins with the "appropriate audience" approved movie trailers that were far too bloody and violent for all the little children in the theater. I also question the parenting decision to take younger children, those well under age 10-12, to such a violent film. Children are influenced by life's events, whether real or imaginary, and later on, when young adults act out/act inappropriately, sometimes we forget the uber-realistic visual bombardment we showered on our children at the movies. Not everyone who is exposed to violence grows up to be violent, but when a person says, "I snapped," s/he could be reverting to these overly-violent blockbusters that lurk in their subconscious.
Yes, that's my sticking point with the film: the violence is too extreme, too loud, too forcefully in-your-face. I harken back to the good ole days when SuperMan bounced on a trampoline and dove through an open window to fly toward evil, lying on what must have been an early green screen, his cape streaming out behind him. When he held up his hand to stop a bullet from finding its mark, SuperMan convinced me and other children that he was, indeed, impervious to harm from an evil enemy. To a child, it seemed almost magical, and what was portrayed on the screen was filled in with a child's vivid imagination and suspension of disbelief that made it all seem so real.
I disagree with the critics that the latest SuperMan film is too dark, too ponderous, too dull -- and I'm going to say that the other audience members today will agree with me, not the critics, based on the wild applause at the end. I'm not sure what the critics look for, but perhaps they should simply sit in a darkened theater filled with customers and base their ratings on what the people applaud, rather than some phony scale for ratings that is based on technical merit.
Friday, June 14, 2013
Applauding Vivian at US Airways
Hurrah for Vivian at US Airways in the greater Phoenix, AZ area. After my pleas to have a redundant payment of $179.10 refunded to me fell on deaf ears in numerous telephone conferences in which I engaged in a repeatedly futile attempt to get the customer service rep to even acknowledge that a refund was owed to me, I figured I had nothing to lose by sending a letter to the same address I had sent the original payment. I penned a letter, included my documentation of the original check deposited to a US Airways account, and figured I felt better for being proactive, but didn’t expect anything to come of my efforts.
I’ve learned the hard way that it is almost impossible to use reason, logic, or truth with big business. This time, however, I am pleasantly surprised as Vivian called to tell me that it took her a while to track down someone who could authorize the refund, but she finally received approval to send me back the $179.10 and I should have it in a couple of weeks. Nah, I don’t get a “refund fee” to match the businesses’ “late payment fee,” nor do I get accrued interest as they wanted to charge me for allegedly failing to pay the payment on time,
but I’m going to get something for my effort – and for Vivian’s persistence. Yeah for team Vivian!
PS: the check was in the mailbox yesterday!
I’ve learned the hard way that it is almost impossible to use reason, logic, or truth with big business. This time, however, I am pleasantly surprised as Vivian called to tell me that it took her a while to track down someone who could authorize the refund, but she finally received approval to send me back the $179.10 and I should have it in a couple of weeks. Nah, I don’t get a “refund fee” to match the businesses’ “late payment fee,” nor do I get accrued interest as they wanted to charge me for allegedly failing to pay the payment on time,
but I’m going to get something for my effort – and for Vivian’s persistence. Yeah for team Vivian!
PS: the check was in the mailbox yesterday!
Saturday, June 8, 2013
Googleness
Vince Vaughn is a funny man; who knew he is also a funny writer? He’s the one with the idea for The Internship, a story based on the Google concept of “Googleness.” As they say at the campus, if you have to ask what it is, you don’t have it and you can’t get it. The Internship is a predictable, but funny, film that shows how individuals can develop into productive teams in spite of themselves.
The use of an ‘80’s film, Flashdance, is the tool for selling a great idea: keep the faith, have hope, and when all else fails, just dance your way to the finish. The core cast of interns that surround Vaughn and his sidekick, Owen Wilson, capture the individualism of characters that must bond in order to succeed. The film also captures the reason why “every man for himself” doesn’t work for all people and/or all the time. Sometimes, the people with whom we surround ourselves are the spark that brings us success we could not achieve on our own.
I like The Internship, even though it is predictable. There are funny moments, hilarious moments, poignant moments, and even some “serious business” moments that make the running time fly by, rather than crawl. And, there’s the “Rocky” moment at the ending, all in all a great way to spend a lazy Saturday afternoon.
The use of an ‘80’s film, Flashdance, is the tool for selling a great idea: keep the faith, have hope, and when all else fails, just dance your way to the finish. The core cast of interns that surround Vaughn and his sidekick, Owen Wilson, capture the individualism of characters that must bond in order to succeed. The film also captures the reason why “every man for himself” doesn’t work for all people and/or all the time. Sometimes, the people with whom we surround ourselves are the spark that brings us success we could not achieve on our own.
I like The Internship, even though it is predictable. There are funny moments, hilarious moments, poignant moments, and even some “serious business” moments that make the running time fly by, rather than crawl. And, there’s the “Rocky” moment at the ending, all in all a great way to spend a lazy Saturday afternoon.
Thursday, May 23, 2013
The Graduate
I graduated from high school in June 1963. I was tall and thin, and wore my very blonde hair long. It is fifty years later and I am still tall, not at all thin, and wear my rapidly whitening hair long. The more things change, the more they stay the same.
We have a class reunion person, a gal who seems to think the greatest activity in the world is staying in touch with people from “our class” and then arranging reunions so we can attend and wonder who the heck that person is! Because I’m single, it’s awkward to attend the more formal functions, so I did opt for the Sunday afternoon barbeque at the 45th reunion – and sort of recognized a few people, actually knew two people, and had no clue who the others were, nor what their lifetime accomplishments were. No one was impressed with my career as a classroom teacher, the reaction akin to the old saw “those who can, do, and those who can’t, teach.” I’m proud that I spent thirty-five years in front of a podium at both the high school and the college levels. I made a contribution to society that didn’t net much in financial and/or societal returns, but I know that many of “my” students have gone on to live productive lives.
The 50th reunion is looming large, coincidentally in the same time frame as my cataract surgery. I’m not enthusiastic about attending this event, not even the barbeque, and I can use my surgery as a reason not to make the drive and socialize with people I barely remember and with whom I share so little personal or professional history. The reunion gal, however, wants a huge turn-out, so she’s on every level of social media hyping the event and haranguing us to attend.
The invitations are in the mail, so I have to make a decision: should I go, or should I stay ... home.
We have a class reunion person, a gal who seems to think the greatest activity in the world is staying in touch with people from “our class” and then arranging reunions so we can attend and wonder who the heck that person is! Because I’m single, it’s awkward to attend the more formal functions, so I did opt for the Sunday afternoon barbeque at the 45th reunion – and sort of recognized a few people, actually knew two people, and had no clue who the others were, nor what their lifetime accomplishments were. No one was impressed with my career as a classroom teacher, the reaction akin to the old saw “those who can, do, and those who can’t, teach.” I’m proud that I spent thirty-five years in front of a podium at both the high school and the college levels. I made a contribution to society that didn’t net much in financial and/or societal returns, but I know that many of “my” students have gone on to live productive lives.
The 50th reunion is looming large, coincidentally in the same time frame as my cataract surgery. I’m not enthusiastic about attending this event, not even the barbeque, and I can use my surgery as a reason not to make the drive and socialize with people I barely remember and with whom I share so little personal or professional history. The reunion gal, however, wants a huge turn-out, so she’s on every level of social media hyping the event and haranguing us to attend.
The invitations are in the mail, so I have to make a decision: should I go, or should I stay ... home.
Monday, May 20, 2013
waiting and watching
The asphalt was taken up; a huge hole was dug, then filled in. The water truck seems to run 24/7 in a sometimes futile attempt to stop the gale-force winds from redistributing all the sand on my street to the street due west. Heavy-duty equipment has become part of our daily lives as the sewer pipe installation continues in the neighborhood.
Today, I'm waiting and watching to see what happens. There is an expensive brick wall around the perimeter of my front yard. The construction crew put an orange arrow from the street to the wall, then from the wall inside my yard to a spot just shy of the landscape circle. A huge bucket wielded by an obviously bored bucket operator gouged a huge piece of real estate on the street side of the wall and turned it into yet another ditch. Just prior to breaking for lunch, he stopped -- and now is back for the part of the arrow inside the brick wall.
I paid to have the wall installed, and it was not cheap; however, it was done correctly, with a nice deep cement footing anchoring it in place and rebar reinforcement. It's not something I want to see gouged with the big bucket, so I walked out to talk to the man supervising the equipment. He said he'll do his best, but another worker told me, "No problem, we'll dig under the wall. It won't be damaged."
I'm waiting and watching because I'm not sure I believe any person who assures me that it's "no problem." I've already been told that we have to pay whatever it costs to hook up to the sewers from the house, and that we have to do that during a specific time frame. We also have to hire and pay for a crew to fill in the septic tank, although I've never had an issue with mine and don't see why it can't just be left as it is. And, we have to pay through an added assessment to our property taxes for the total cost per household for this project, which means my payment will go even higher next year (my housepayment has increased by $400/year over the course of the past 10 years due to increased taxes and fees and assessments over which I have absolutely no control). I wish I had the money to just pay all these costs, but that's not my reality. Or the reality of anyone else in the same boat.
I'll let you know what happens.
UPDATE: my wall is still in one piece and the big machines have moved down the street, so guess everything is okay. My next-door neighbor was not so lucky: the crew broke her water main and she's again without water! Last week, it was the landlord who hadn't paid the water bill, then the water company charging a reconnect fee that the landlord wouldn't pay. She's had a rough couple of weeks, but she keeps on keeping on.
Today, I'm waiting and watching to see what happens. There is an expensive brick wall around the perimeter of my front yard. The construction crew put an orange arrow from the street to the wall, then from the wall inside my yard to a spot just shy of the landscape circle. A huge bucket wielded by an obviously bored bucket operator gouged a huge piece of real estate on the street side of the wall and turned it into yet another ditch. Just prior to breaking for lunch, he stopped -- and now is back for the part of the arrow inside the brick wall.
I paid to have the wall installed, and it was not cheap; however, it was done correctly, with a nice deep cement footing anchoring it in place and rebar reinforcement. It's not something I want to see gouged with the big bucket, so I walked out to talk to the man supervising the equipment. He said he'll do his best, but another worker told me, "No problem, we'll dig under the wall. It won't be damaged."
I'm waiting and watching because I'm not sure I believe any person who assures me that it's "no problem." I've already been told that we have to pay whatever it costs to hook up to the sewers from the house, and that we have to do that during a specific time frame. We also have to hire and pay for a crew to fill in the septic tank, although I've never had an issue with mine and don't see why it can't just be left as it is. And, we have to pay through an added assessment to our property taxes for the total cost per household for this project, which means my payment will go even higher next year (my housepayment has increased by $400/year over the course of the past 10 years due to increased taxes and fees and assessments over which I have absolutely no control). I wish I had the money to just pay all these costs, but that's not my reality. Or the reality of anyone else in the same boat.
I'll let you know what happens.
UPDATE: my wall is still in one piece and the big machines have moved down the street, so guess everything is okay. My next-door neighbor was not so lucky: the crew broke her water main and she's again without water! Last week, it was the landlord who hadn't paid the water bill, then the water company charging a reconnect fee that the landlord wouldn't pay. She's had a rough couple of weeks, but she keeps on keeping on.
To err is human; to cheat is, well, cheating
Back in the day, there was a philosophy predicated on the ethical belief that cheaters never prosper from their actions. The way the wheel turns, in today’s academic environment the cheaters are earning the A’s, while the ethical minority struggles to earn an honest grade that still qualifies them to continue with their education. Sooner or later, contrary to what we all would like to believe, the honest student succumbs to the will of the majority and joins the cheaters who consistently outscore them on standardized testing. What the teachers don't seem to understand is that too many perfect scores on any test doesn't mean a class mastered the content; it means that there is cheating running rampant among the students.
Test banks, along with the answer keys, are prolific online and easy to obtain for anyone who has the financial means to make the purchase, especially if a dozen or so students all contribute to the buy. Textbook companies make these materials available for instructors; however, if they are available to one consumer, they are available to all consumers. There are no checks and balances that require a purchaser to have administrative approval for the purchase: any credit card will be accepted and any purchase put through. The test banks are often downloaded to the buyer's computer at the time of purchase, which means that buyer can sell to anyone who wants a personal copy of the materials.
True/False and multiple choice answers are easiest scored by using a Scantron answer sheet and a scoring machine; thus, the test banks/answer keys focus more on that form of testing rather than, perhaps, a short written response that demonstrates each student’s mastery of the concepts being tested. It’s a matter of time/money for the TAs (teacher’s assistant) who are often solely responsible for grading the exam instruments: in a class with 300 students, the time it could take to hand-score short written responses, at 5 minutes per student per question, becomes several hours, and those hours have to be multiplied times the total student enrollment the instructor is assigned in any given semester. Compared to using the Scantron system, which scores both true/false and multiple choice responses literally as fast as the user can put the answer card through the scoring machine, the answer for the teacher and assistants is time, rather than educational outcome.
And, believe me, we all want to believe that "our" students won't cheat: they won't pass the answers from one section of the same course to students in other sections of that course; they won't purchase materials from the students who took the course last semester to ensure a good grade this semester; they won't download required semester papers from the internet and put their own names onto them and submit them as original student work; they won't go online and buy the test bank.
For the student, the ethical position eventually becomes untenable when dozens are getting perfect scores on the heavily-weighted objective quizzes and tests, while the honest student may be missing answers and receiving a lower grade. No one tells the educational institution or the teacher that the high-scoring students have the test bank and answers to all the Scantron-based testing instruments: no one likes a snitch. The ethical teacher could renumber and/or remix the questions from the test bank to help guard against unethical student use of test banks. It would take a bit of time, but cutting and pasting on a computer and then making a new master Scantron test answer sheet could help to minimize the prolific cheating activity that students take as their data-driven right.
Ideally, an ethical individual would not cheat regardless of the price paid to remain honest; however, success in educational institutions is based strictly on exam scores … and to err is human, but to cheat becomes divine when cheating along with everyone else simply creates a level playing field.
Test banks, along with the answer keys, are prolific online and easy to obtain for anyone who has the financial means to make the purchase, especially if a dozen or so students all contribute to the buy. Textbook companies make these materials available for instructors; however, if they are available to one consumer, they are available to all consumers. There are no checks and balances that require a purchaser to have administrative approval for the purchase: any credit card will be accepted and any purchase put through. The test banks are often downloaded to the buyer's computer at the time of purchase, which means that buyer can sell to anyone who wants a personal copy of the materials.
True/False and multiple choice answers are easiest scored by using a Scantron answer sheet and a scoring machine; thus, the test banks/answer keys focus more on that form of testing rather than, perhaps, a short written response that demonstrates each student’s mastery of the concepts being tested. It’s a matter of time/money for the TAs (teacher’s assistant) who are often solely responsible for grading the exam instruments: in a class with 300 students, the time it could take to hand-score short written responses, at 5 minutes per student per question, becomes several hours, and those hours have to be multiplied times the total student enrollment the instructor is assigned in any given semester. Compared to using the Scantron system, which scores both true/false and multiple choice responses literally as fast as the user can put the answer card through the scoring machine, the answer for the teacher and assistants is time, rather than educational outcome.
And, believe me, we all want to believe that "our" students won't cheat: they won't pass the answers from one section of the same course to students in other sections of that course; they won't purchase materials from the students who took the course last semester to ensure a good grade this semester; they won't download required semester papers from the internet and put their own names onto them and submit them as original student work; they won't go online and buy the test bank.
For the student, the ethical position eventually becomes untenable when dozens are getting perfect scores on the heavily-weighted objective quizzes and tests, while the honest student may be missing answers and receiving a lower grade. No one tells the educational institution or the teacher that the high-scoring students have the test bank and answers to all the Scantron-based testing instruments: no one likes a snitch. The ethical teacher could renumber and/or remix the questions from the test bank to help guard against unethical student use of test banks. It would take a bit of time, but cutting and pasting on a computer and then making a new master Scantron test answer sheet could help to minimize the prolific cheating activity that students take as their data-driven right.
Ideally, an ethical individual would not cheat regardless of the price paid to remain honest; however, success in educational institutions is based strictly on exam scores … and to err is human, but to cheat becomes divine when cheating along with everyone else simply creates a level playing field.
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
Family Time
This past weekend was a family weekend, spent traveling to Vallejo for my nephew’s graduation from California Maritime Academy, one of the California State University system’s campuses located on the water of the San Francisco Bay area, and a beautiful campus with a quasi-military feel to it. We took two cars to the event, leaving from Santa Barbara and making the drive with time to spare before the 1:00 pm seating deadline: reserved seats were only held until 1:00, a half-hour prior to the formal ceremony. If you aren’t seated, anyone can take your seat – and we did so, sitting quite comfortably in the third row from the front.
After the graduation finished, we returned to the house in which my nephew and a few other new graduates lived. They are doing the typical “ready to move out” thing, with the couches going to the curb, the bathrooms in need of professional cleaning, and the rug someone else’s problem. The guys don’t care about things such as cleaning deposits because they are already paid with "gone" money and they are anxious to move out and move on. Now. Today.
It was a nice party, populated with more older adults than younger adults, and an on-going barbeque and smoker provided delicious meat treats to accompany the tables filled with salads and sides. Delicious food, nice company, and shared joy at the completion of this stage of the “children’s” development. Some of the grads will continue with their educational goals and others will go right into full-time employment, but all of them will move on, so having the grads, their families, and these friends together perhaps will not happen again, so lots of photos.
The photo I chose for this update includes my youngest brother, his wife, three of his four daughters (the fourth daughter was trying desperately to survive her final exams for the end of her first year at Harvard), the graduate (still partially in uniform), and me..jpg)
On the drive home, we stopped in Salinas to enjoy barbeque at Salinas City Barbeque, a small restaurant housed in an old family residence. The dinner was one of the best restaurant barbeque dinners I've eaten, including the sides (beans, cole slaw, potato salad, or a baked potato), the toasted bread freshly baked each day, and Ma's Homemade Berry Cobbler, which I took "togo." Believe me, the mixed raspberries, blackberries, strawberries, and apples, topped with a cookie crust, didn't need the additional scoop of ice cream to add to its deliciousness.
I enjoyed dessert back at the family home, sitting outside on one of the benches set under a shady tree and basking in the glow of rehashing an excellent weekend vaca. Fair winds and following seas blessed us all.
After the graduation finished, we returned to the house in which my nephew and a few other new graduates lived. They are doing the typical “ready to move out” thing, with the couches going to the curb, the bathrooms in need of professional cleaning, and the rug someone else’s problem. The guys don’t care about things such as cleaning deposits because they are already paid with "gone" money and they are anxious to move out and move on. Now. Today.
It was a nice party, populated with more older adults than younger adults, and an on-going barbeque and smoker provided delicious meat treats to accompany the tables filled with salads and sides. Delicious food, nice company, and shared joy at the completion of this stage of the “children’s” development. Some of the grads will continue with their educational goals and others will go right into full-time employment, but all of them will move on, so having the grads, their families, and these friends together perhaps will not happen again, so lots of photos.
The photo I chose for this update includes my youngest brother, his wife, three of his four daughters (the fourth daughter was trying desperately to survive her final exams for the end of her first year at Harvard), the graduate (still partially in uniform), and me.
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On the drive home, we stopped in Salinas to enjoy barbeque at Salinas City Barbeque, a small restaurant housed in an old family residence. The dinner was one of the best restaurant barbeque dinners I've eaten, including the sides (beans, cole slaw, potato salad, or a baked potato), the toasted bread freshly baked each day, and Ma's Homemade Berry Cobbler, which I took "togo." Believe me, the mixed raspberries, blackberries, strawberries, and apples, topped with a cookie crust, didn't need the additional scoop of ice cream to add to its deliciousness.
I enjoyed dessert back at the family home, sitting outside on one of the benches set under a shady tree and basking in the glow of rehashing an excellent weekend vaca. Fair winds and following seas blessed us all.
Friday, April 26, 2013
Street Work
The asphalt pavement has been removed from my street by a huge piece of machinery designed to do that prior to the installation of sewer lines and then sidewalks and curbs. The ground shakes as if we’re having a minor earthquake and the rumble of the powerful engines makes it impossible to hear anything else. What I had not counted on was having my asthma triggered by the removal process.
I have both asthma and chronic bronchial issues that are triggered by certain odors, including both nail polish and polish remover, and most household cleaners and solvents. My cleaning lady uses white vinegar, which not only cleans well, but it does not leave a fragrance behind. I can burn unscented candles, but those with scents have to be selected carefully. Incense is not an option, nor are odors in confined spaces, such as fragrances in my vehicle.
Churning up the asphalt in the removal process must also involve heating it because I have been choking on the odor of heated asphalt since the machinery began its journey down my street. Once the process is completed, there is just dirt left in the roadway, which is fine. Piping is going to be laid before the roads are repaved, and I’m not sure how long the process will take to finish, but I've closed up the house and will make the best of it.
I have both asthma and chronic bronchial issues that are triggered by certain odors, including both nail polish and polish remover, and most household cleaners and solvents. My cleaning lady uses white vinegar, which not only cleans well, but it does not leave a fragrance behind. I can burn unscented candles, but those with scents have to be selected carefully. Incense is not an option, nor are odors in confined spaces, such as fragrances in my vehicle.
Churning up the asphalt in the removal process must also involve heating it because I have been choking on the odor of heated asphalt since the machinery began its journey down my street. Once the process is completed, there is just dirt left in the roadway, which is fine. Piping is going to be laid before the roads are repaved, and I’m not sure how long the process will take to finish, but I've closed up the house and will make the best of it.
Tuesday, April 16, 2013
Desert Winds
Last night, we had winds coming in from the west that were sustaining gusts of 70+ mph. That is a ferocious wind, especially for cars on the freeway and power poles.
My neighbor called me in a panic about 9:30 pm, when she went to the back slider to let the dog in and saw a power pole almost ready to rest on her roof. The pole at the back of her property had pulled out of the ground and was being restrained by the other neighbor’s brick wall. The pole danced in the wind, so when she asked me what she should do, I told her to call 9-1-1 and stay out of her backyard.
Thankfully, both the police and the power company responded quickly, but there isn’t much anyone can do in winds as strong and steady as we experienced last night. Giving in to tired, I crawled into my bed after 11 pm, deciding that what was going to happen was going to happen. I awoke this morning to an upright power pole with some workers at the top finishing the fix. The winds are gearing up again, so it’s nice to know that the pole is back in the ground – for now.
The blowing sand obliterated the interstate, as well as all lane markers and street signs. There will be many claims for wind damage to homes, as well as vehicles, when the wind finally blows itself out.
My neighbor called me in a panic about 9:30 pm, when she went to the back slider to let the dog in and saw a power pole almost ready to rest on her roof. The pole at the back of her property had pulled out of the ground and was being restrained by the other neighbor’s brick wall. The pole danced in the wind, so when she asked me what she should do, I told her to call 9-1-1 and stay out of her backyard.
Thankfully, both the police and the power company responded quickly, but there isn’t much anyone can do in winds as strong and steady as we experienced last night. Giving in to tired, I crawled into my bed after 11 pm, deciding that what was going to happen was going to happen. I awoke this morning to an upright power pole with some workers at the top finishing the fix. The winds are gearing up again, so it’s nice to know that the pole is back in the ground – for now.
The blowing sand obliterated the interstate, as well as all lane markers and street signs. There will be many claims for wind damage to homes, as well as vehicles, when the wind finally blows itself out.
Monday, April 15, 2013
Maltitol sugar substitute: use with caution
Results of a Google search for "maltitol," a sugar substitute used in Harry and David's "sugar free" chocolate caramel balls:
What is Maltitol?
Maltitol is a sugar alcohol, an ingredient commonly used in low-carb or “sugar-free” products such as candy and nutrition bars. It is used so much because of its similarity to sugar in terms of taste, mouth feel, and interaction with other ingredients. Products which use maltitol and other sugar alcohols as sweeteners can be called “sugar free.” Although claims are often made that maltitol has little impact on blood sugar, this turns out not to be the case.
Maltitol Has Carbs
Maltitol is a carbohydrate. Although our bodies do not absorb all the calories in maltitol, this substance does provide us with 2 to 3 calories per gram, compared to the 4 calories per gram of sugar. (For what it's worth, I have noticed that the claim of 2 calories per gram usually comes from literature provided by the manufacturer or the low calorie food industry whereas other analyses tend to be closer to 3 calories.) Since maltitol is a carbohydrate, and since it provides calories, you would expect it to impact blood glucose. You would be correct.
Maltitol Has a Relatively High Glycemic Index
In particular, maltitol syrup has a glycemic index of 52, which approaches that of table sugar at 60. The powdered form has a glycemic index of 36, which is still higher than most other sugar alcohols and all artificial sweeteners.
Maltitol is Not as Sweet As Sugar
Estimates run from 75% to 90% of the sweetness of sugar. Again, the information provided by industry groups tends to give the 90% figure, while other sources say 75%. So, if maltitol has ¾ of the sweetness of sugar, ¾ the calories of sugar, and ¾ the glycemic index of sugar, it isn’t a far leap to the conclusion that you need ¼ more maltitol to get the same effect of sugar, which will give you close to the same effect in most other ways (except for dental cavities). You are basically getting expensive sugar. (NOTE: as a Type II diabetic, I have to be careful of "sugar," but this product mimics sugar in both glycemic index and carbs without spelling it out.)
And … a bonus: Maltitol can Cause Intestinal Discomfort
Usually this takes the form of intestinal gas and cramping, but some people may find themselves with diarrhea. If you decide to eat products with maltitol, you’d be wise to start with a small amount and judge the reaction -- as well whether you’ll be in a crowded room a few hours later.
_______________
Yep, maltitol is the reason for the worst diarrhea I've ever had in my life! It's the sweetener used in the caramel chocolate balls I purchased at Harry and David's and adds a whopping 21g of sugar alcohol to the tasty treats. The reason I know it's the sweetener used is because I received a call from a H&D's representative who told me that's the sweetener listed on the label as part of the milk chocolate coating and the dark chocolate coating. After Googling the product (see above), the representative explained to me that diarrhea is a by-product of maltitol use in some people, and I'm one of the some people. I told her I have never had diarrhea as badly as I had it during those 3 awful days last week, as well as the day this week before I finally made a connection to the back label on the chocolate caramel balls.
For some of us, a little maltitol can go a long way! My suggestion to the H&D rep is to make the warning about the sweetener a bit more prominent, especially in that it's not recommended for diabetics, as well as its being an instant "super" laxative in some people. At my age, 3 days of severe diarrhea could easily result in hospitalization!
What is Maltitol?
Maltitol is a sugar alcohol, an ingredient commonly used in low-carb or “sugar-free” products such as candy and nutrition bars. It is used so much because of its similarity to sugar in terms of taste, mouth feel, and interaction with other ingredients. Products which use maltitol and other sugar alcohols as sweeteners can be called “sugar free.” Although claims are often made that maltitol has little impact on blood sugar, this turns out not to be the case.
Maltitol Has Carbs
Maltitol is a carbohydrate. Although our bodies do not absorb all the calories in maltitol, this substance does provide us with 2 to 3 calories per gram, compared to the 4 calories per gram of sugar. (For what it's worth, I have noticed that the claim of 2 calories per gram usually comes from literature provided by the manufacturer or the low calorie food industry whereas other analyses tend to be closer to 3 calories.) Since maltitol is a carbohydrate, and since it provides calories, you would expect it to impact blood glucose. You would be correct.
Maltitol Has a Relatively High Glycemic Index
In particular, maltitol syrup has a glycemic index of 52, which approaches that of table sugar at 60. The powdered form has a glycemic index of 36, which is still higher than most other sugar alcohols and all artificial sweeteners.
Maltitol is Not as Sweet As Sugar
Estimates run from 75% to 90% of the sweetness of sugar. Again, the information provided by industry groups tends to give the 90% figure, while other sources say 75%. So, if maltitol has ¾ of the sweetness of sugar, ¾ the calories of sugar, and ¾ the glycemic index of sugar, it isn’t a far leap to the conclusion that you need ¼ more maltitol to get the same effect of sugar, which will give you close to the same effect in most other ways (except for dental cavities). You are basically getting expensive sugar. (NOTE: as a Type II diabetic, I have to be careful of "sugar," but this product mimics sugar in both glycemic index and carbs without spelling it out.)
And … a bonus: Maltitol can Cause Intestinal Discomfort
Usually this takes the form of intestinal gas and cramping, but some people may find themselves with diarrhea. If you decide to eat products with maltitol, you’d be wise to start with a small amount and judge the reaction -- as well whether you’ll be in a crowded room a few hours later.
_______________
Yep, maltitol is the reason for the worst diarrhea I've ever had in my life! It's the sweetener used in the caramel chocolate balls I purchased at Harry and David's and adds a whopping 21g of sugar alcohol to the tasty treats. The reason I know it's the sweetener used is because I received a call from a H&D's representative who told me that's the sweetener listed on the label as part of the milk chocolate coating and the dark chocolate coating. After Googling the product (see above), the representative explained to me that diarrhea is a by-product of maltitol use in some people, and I'm one of the some people. I told her I have never had diarrhea as badly as I had it during those 3 awful days last week, as well as the day this week before I finally made a connection to the back label on the chocolate caramel balls.
For some of us, a little maltitol can go a long way! My suggestion to the H&D rep is to make the warning about the sweetener a bit more prominent, especially in that it's not recommended for diabetics, as well as its being an instant "super" laxative in some people. At my age, 3 days of severe diarrhea could easily result in hospitalization!
Extreme Cleanse
On the trip to the outlet malls last week and a stop at Harry and David’s, I bought 2 bags of “Sugar-Free Caramel Balls,” a treat I could enjoy without worrying so much about too much sugar. On the front label, it warns the buyer that this is not a low calorie food and to see the nutritional information for saturated fat content (6 grams). I checked out the nutrition facts, but didn’t see anything alarming until yesterday.
Last week, I had diarrhea so badly over the course of 3 days that I was wondering if I needed to see my doctor and be checked for colon cancer. I had to stay in the house, close to a toilet, and even then had some close calls. All my energy drained out my big toes and I felt like I had been put through a ringer. Tried to figure out a cause, but couldn’t think of anything I had eaten that would cause such a virulent reaction.
The other day, I opened bag 2 of the caramel balls and had a handful. I had no idea why the sudden diarrhea hit me again, but after spending some quality time on the toilet, the thought struck me: I had eaten caramel balls.
Nah, no way a candy could hit my digestive tract that harshly, right? Wrong. There is a warning on the bag back label that I completely missed: “Excess use may have a laxative effect.” No clue as to what excess use is, but I now know that a handful of the caramel balls triggers a reaction so much bigger than the consumption of the product.
This is a first for me: I can honestly say that I have never encountered a product with the “laxative effect” warning before. The rest of bag 2 of the caramels is in the trash as no candy craving is worth the reaction I’ve had from eating this candy. As much as I love candy in general, and caramel in particular, it’s going to be a while before I’m going to be able to even think about eating chocolate or caramel anything!
Last week, I had diarrhea so badly over the course of 3 days that I was wondering if I needed to see my doctor and be checked for colon cancer. I had to stay in the house, close to a toilet, and even then had some close calls. All my energy drained out my big toes and I felt like I had been put through a ringer. Tried to figure out a cause, but couldn’t think of anything I had eaten that would cause such a virulent reaction.
The other day, I opened bag 2 of the caramel balls and had a handful. I had no idea why the sudden diarrhea hit me again, but after spending some quality time on the toilet, the thought struck me: I had eaten caramel balls.
Nah, no way a candy could hit my digestive tract that harshly, right? Wrong. There is a warning on the bag back label that I completely missed: “Excess use may have a laxative effect.” No clue as to what excess use is, but I now know that a handful of the caramel balls triggers a reaction so much bigger than the consumption of the product.
This is a first for me: I can honestly say that I have never encountered a product with the “laxative effect” warning before. The rest of bag 2 of the caramels is in the trash as no candy craving is worth the reaction I’ve had from eating this candy. As much as I love candy in general, and caramel in particular, it’s going to be a while before I’m going to be able to even think about eating chocolate or caramel anything!
Friday, April 12, 2013
Rickety Pic
If you loved Brian’s Song, a film about the first black/white pairing in pro football, you’ll enjoy and recognize the gist of 42, the story of the first black professional baseball player, Jackie Robinson. 42 is a much less passionate story (than Brian’s Song) as it concentrates on the difficult integration of a black player into white professional baseball, whereas Brian’s Song focused on the friendship between Brian Piccolo and Gale Sayers, a friendship that developed into an unbreakable bond between the two professional athletes that transcended Piccolo's death from cancer.
42 is very low-key throughout, almost more the story of the coach, Branch Rickey, as it is the story of Robinson, whose personal life is as prominent in the film as his professional trials to establish himself as a baseball player, rather than as a black baseball player. Rickey selected Jackie Robinson as the Negro player to break the color barrier because he was a hugely-talented baseball player, and also a man who could restrain himself from fighting back as the racial epithets were hurled at him by other athletes, as well as the general public. Robinson became an idol not just to young black men, but also to white youth who wanted to play ball just like Robinson.
I’m not sure why the movie is titled 42 as it’s never explained to the viewer why that number was given to Robinson. I know from press junkets promoting the film that each April, all baseball players wear the number 42 to honor Robinson’s courage in breaking the color barrier in professional baseball, as well as the other fact the number 42 is the only number in baseball ever to be retired. Beyond that, the mystery of the number is unanswered.
This is one of the "go see" movies, but doesn't rise to the level of "must see." I’ll give the film a B- for the message, but it basically is a formulaic “rags to riches” movie that is too predictable and which does nothing to generate excitement in the telling of the historic fete. The actors portray their characters well, but the starring character in the film becomes Rickey’s ever-present cigar, which catches the viewer’s eye more often than any of the human characters. It also would help if the end of the movie were shown before the story is told so viewers know the characters, not only who they are, but also how they are important to the story, all of which comes after the final scene of the movie.
42 is very low-key throughout, almost more the story of the coach, Branch Rickey, as it is the story of Robinson, whose personal life is as prominent in the film as his professional trials to establish himself as a baseball player, rather than as a black baseball player. Rickey selected Jackie Robinson as the Negro player to break the color barrier because he was a hugely-talented baseball player, and also a man who could restrain himself from fighting back as the racial epithets were hurled at him by other athletes, as well as the general public. Robinson became an idol not just to young black men, but also to white youth who wanted to play ball just like Robinson.
I’m not sure why the movie is titled 42 as it’s never explained to the viewer why that number was given to Robinson. I know from press junkets promoting the film that each April, all baseball players wear the number 42 to honor Robinson’s courage in breaking the color barrier in professional baseball, as well as the other fact the number 42 is the only number in baseball ever to be retired. Beyond that, the mystery of the number is unanswered.
This is one of the "go see" movies, but doesn't rise to the level of "must see." I’ll give the film a B- for the message, but it basically is a formulaic “rags to riches” movie that is too predictable and which does nothing to generate excitement in the telling of the historic fete. The actors portray their characters well, but the starring character in the film becomes Rickey’s ever-present cigar, which catches the viewer’s eye more often than any of the human characters. It also would help if the end of the movie were shown before the story is told so viewers know the characters, not only who they are, but also how they are important to the story, all of which comes after the final scene of the movie.
Monday, April 8, 2013
Oprah’s Questions re: Can Do Attitude
My quickest confidence booster is reminding myself how much I have done to make my house into my home, especially all the little touches that add my personal uniqueness.
The biggest risk I’ve ever taken is quitting two jobs and relocating to another state, then packing up again and relocating for another job, and then finding the personal courage to return to a place I never again wanted to live while I found the means to relocate to where I am now.
If I had no fear, I’d pack up and leave where I am now.
One other fear for me is retirement, as so much of who I am is wrapped inside what I did for 35 years of my adulthood. For a person who saw 200 students a day, 5 days a week, for 48 weeks each year (including summer school), with a constantly changing student population, as well as required curriculum, sitting alone in my house was a huge fear about what I'd do, where I'd go, which people would be part of my new life. I've done a lot of sitting on my couch in the past few years due to two knee surgeries, following the initiating injury that went under-diagnosed for the first 3 months. I also fell and fractured the L4 vertebrae, which was officially diagnosed as "stirring up" my spinal arthritis and under-treated as a result. Once that injury was treated properly with spinal decompression therapy, I've been able to stand up straight and tall, which improved my entire mental attitude, as well as my mobility.
I'm finding that I like being retired. I actually like to sit on the couch and do handwork; as a result, I've completed many projects and have others in the works. I also enjoy a reading day every so often, although I've found that when I read the Amazon.com ratings of books and make my selection based on reader's reviews, I get stuck with some poorly written novels that I cannot force myself to finish.
I also enjoy the freedom to leave the house anytime I choose for whatever reason. Yesterday, as a matter of fact, I drove to the factory outlet stores up the highway and just meandered through the shops. Granted, I made a Harry and David stop, one of my guilty pleasures, only to find that the store is being closed but will reopen in the other half of the outlet facility. There was no chocolate-covered fruit left in the store, but I did buy both Meyer lemon marmalade and orange marmalade (at 33% off), as well as a jar of rhubarb/strawberry pie filling that I will use to make some delicious dessert tarts ... soon.
Even though I have to plan my travel when I have a pet-sitter available for the 3 dogs, I flew to Oregon recently, and have trips to China and Canada in the works before the end of the year. I make day trips more often than longer trips, and am pleasantly surprised to find lots to see/do within about a couple hour's drive. This past week, I visited a local museum that chronicles part of the history of the Valley, ate at a well-known restaurant adjacent to the polo grounds (which are being turned into the internationally-known venue for the upcoming Coachella and StageCoach events), and saw the polo ground's roses in full, fragrant bloom.
Therefore, my "can do attitude" is growing in confidence with the freedom to do whatever I want to do -- or not do what I don't want to do -- when I want to do it. I've been gathering things over the years to try "someday," and I've finally accepted that the someday is ... today!
The biggest risk I’ve ever taken is quitting two jobs and relocating to another state, then packing up again and relocating for another job, and then finding the personal courage to return to a place I never again wanted to live while I found the means to relocate to where I am now.
If I had no fear, I’d pack up and leave where I am now.
One other fear for me is retirement, as so much of who I am is wrapped inside what I did for 35 years of my adulthood. For a person who saw 200 students a day, 5 days a week, for 48 weeks each year (including summer school), with a constantly changing student population, as well as required curriculum, sitting alone in my house was a huge fear about what I'd do, where I'd go, which people would be part of my new life. I've done a lot of sitting on my couch in the past few years due to two knee surgeries, following the initiating injury that went under-diagnosed for the first 3 months. I also fell and fractured the L4 vertebrae, which was officially diagnosed as "stirring up" my spinal arthritis and under-treated as a result. Once that injury was treated properly with spinal decompression therapy, I've been able to stand up straight and tall, which improved my entire mental attitude, as well as my mobility.
I'm finding that I like being retired. I actually like to sit on the couch and do handwork; as a result, I've completed many projects and have others in the works. I also enjoy a reading day every so often, although I've found that when I read the Amazon.com ratings of books and make my selection based on reader's reviews, I get stuck with some poorly written novels that I cannot force myself to finish.
I also enjoy the freedom to leave the house anytime I choose for whatever reason. Yesterday, as a matter of fact, I drove to the factory outlet stores up the highway and just meandered through the shops. Granted, I made a Harry and David stop, one of my guilty pleasures, only to find that the store is being closed but will reopen in the other half of the outlet facility. There was no chocolate-covered fruit left in the store, but I did buy both Meyer lemon marmalade and orange marmalade (at 33% off), as well as a jar of rhubarb/strawberry pie filling that I will use to make some delicious dessert tarts ... soon.
Even though I have to plan my travel when I have a pet-sitter available for the 3 dogs, I flew to Oregon recently, and have trips to China and Canada in the works before the end of the year. I make day trips more often than longer trips, and am pleasantly surprised to find lots to see/do within about a couple hour's drive. This past week, I visited a local museum that chronicles part of the history of the Valley, ate at a well-known restaurant adjacent to the polo grounds (which are being turned into the internationally-known venue for the upcoming Coachella and StageCoach events), and saw the polo ground's roses in full, fragrant bloom.
Therefore, my "can do attitude" is growing in confidence with the freedom to do whatever I want to do -- or not do what I don't want to do -- when I want to do it. I've been gathering things over the years to try "someday," and I've finally accepted that the someday is ... today!
Friday, March 29, 2013
Flying Lesson
I've just returned from a few days visiting with a friend in Oregon, a friend who relocated to her home town after living in the desert for more than half her life. I loved being in an area where everything is green and moisture abounds. The flight up left on time, took the scheduled two hours, and was easy-peasy.
Then, it was time to return home.
We arose at 6 AM to be ready by the 7 AM leave the house time, arrived at the airport at 8 AM for the scheduled 9 AM flight. Breezed through my second full-body scan, but was chastised for leaving my cosmetic bag inside my luggage, instead of in a grey check bin. Got to the gate and found out that our departure was delayed an hour, so I could have enjoyed a second cup of coffee before leaving for the airport; instead, I began what was going to be a long day of sitting and waiting to leave for the return flight home.
That turned out to be the good news as the departure time went from 9 AM to 10 AM to 11 AM to 12:30 PM and finally landed on 2 PM. Yep, really. I sat in the airport from 8 AM until our 2 PM departure, and it's a very small regional airport, so not much to do except listen to all the people talking on their cell phones! Do people realize how much personal information they share with complete strangers during these calls?
To their credit, Allegiant apologized effusively and often for the delay, and brought in pizza for everyone inconvenienced by the delay, but that doesn't cancel out sitting for 6 hours before a scheduled flight departs for its destination.
It's a curse that has plagued me since I began flying to different destinations. I can hardly wait for the flights to China and back home this summer. I could end up spending my vaca in an airport!
Then, it was time to return home.
We arose at 6 AM to be ready by the 7 AM leave the house time, arrived at the airport at 8 AM for the scheduled 9 AM flight. Breezed through my second full-body scan, but was chastised for leaving my cosmetic bag inside my luggage, instead of in a grey check bin. Got to the gate and found out that our departure was delayed an hour, so I could have enjoyed a second cup of coffee before leaving for the airport; instead, I began what was going to be a long day of sitting and waiting to leave for the return flight home.
That turned out to be the good news as the departure time went from 9 AM to 10 AM to 11 AM to 12:30 PM and finally landed on 2 PM. Yep, really. I sat in the airport from 8 AM until our 2 PM departure, and it's a very small regional airport, so not much to do except listen to all the people talking on their cell phones! Do people realize how much personal information they share with complete strangers during these calls?
To their credit, Allegiant apologized effusively and often for the delay, and brought in pizza for everyone inconvenienced by the delay, but that doesn't cancel out sitting for 6 hours before a scheduled flight departs for its destination.
It's a curse that has plagued me since I began flying to different destinations. I can hardly wait for the flights to China and back home this summer. I could end up spending my vaca in an airport!
Friday, March 22, 2013
SPLASH!!
I watched the first episode of Splash and think the first 2 divers got a bad call. At the beginning, both Kesha and Katherine Webb did more difficult dives than the 3 men who followed, but they received the lowest scores (in the 6s)because they went first – and the 2 male judges had no idea how badly the following 3 men would dive. As it was, a 400-pound man who toppled over and fell into the water, scored a full point higher than either of the first 2 women who did “something” dives that showed a semblance of skill.
Although the womens' dives were equal to or better than the 3 male divers who dove after them, Kesha had to leave, but Katherine was saved, so she will dive again.
All 12 contestants should have dived a first time before any scores were given that would eliminate anyone. The technique of each contestant could be evaluated in the first round, with pointers for improving performances given by the judges. Then, let the competition begin with a baseline performance index guiding the judges' scoring.
I’m not going to watch further episodes of this reality show because it isn’t interesting or entertaining, and it’s also unfairly scored.
Although the womens' dives were equal to or better than the 3 male divers who dove after them, Kesha had to leave, but Katherine was saved, so she will dive again.
All 12 contestants should have dived a first time before any scores were given that would eliminate anyone. The technique of each contestant could be evaluated in the first round, with pointers for improving performances given by the judges. Then, let the competition begin with a baseline performance index guiding the judges' scoring.
I’m not going to watch further episodes of this reality show because it isn’t interesting or entertaining, and it’s also unfairly scored.
Thursday, March 14, 2013
Another Oprah Survey
What is ...
the best advice I ever received is to try before determining whether I could or could not do something, or simply won't even try.
the best childhood memory is Uncle Nils's barbeques, complete with a homemade kite for his namesake, Nils.
my best guilty pleasure is a fresh box of See's candy.
my best souvenir is the tablecloth I bought in Greece and put under glass on my dining nook table.
my favorite hobby is cake decorating, which I really enjoy, but seldom do these days.
the best gift I ever received is one that was spontaneous and unexpected, a pair of pearl earrings with sapphires set in a ring around the pearl, that my Mother gave me for my 50th birthday and which I gave to my daughter on her recent marriage.
my biggest vice is eating sweets instead of a meal.
the best advice I ever received is to try before determining whether I could or could not do something, or simply won't even try.
the best childhood memory is Uncle Nils's barbeques, complete with a homemade kite for his namesake, Nils.
my best guilty pleasure is a fresh box of See's candy.
my best souvenir is the tablecloth I bought in Greece and put under glass on my dining nook table.
my favorite hobby is cake decorating, which I really enjoy, but seldom do these days.
the best gift I ever received is one that was spontaneous and unexpected, a pair of pearl earrings with sapphires set in a ring around the pearl, that my Mother gave me for my 50th birthday and which I gave to my daughter on her recent marriage.
my biggest vice is eating sweets instead of a meal.
Oprah’s Snapshots
O Magazine uses "complete this thought" ideas to get response from a wide variety of people. If she were to ask me, I'd say ...
1. One flaw I wouldn’t change about myself is my enthusiasm for talking to anyone, anywhere, anytime about anything.
2. My quickest stress reliever is a cup of coffee.
3. My most peaceful place is anywhere along the coastline, a river, or a lake.
4. My favorite comfort food is roast leg of lamb, accompanied by mashed potatoes and lamb gravy with broccoli hollandaise. Second best is homemade mac 'n lots of cheese, served piping hot and melty gooey.
5. When I’m feeling anxious, I call no one; instead, I write.
1. One flaw I wouldn’t change about myself is my enthusiasm for talking to anyone, anywhere, anytime about anything.
2. My quickest stress reliever is a cup of coffee.
3. My most peaceful place is anywhere along the coastline, a river, or a lake.
4. My favorite comfort food is roast leg of lamb, accompanied by mashed potatoes and lamb gravy with broccoli hollandaise. Second best is homemade mac 'n lots of cheese, served piping hot and melty gooey.
5. When I’m feeling anxious, I call no one; instead, I write.
Wednesday, March 13, 2013
Puny Post
I stole a post sent to me via a friend because it made me laugh.
1. The fattest knight at King Arthur's round table was Sir Cumference. He acquired his size from too much pi.
2. I thought I saw an eye doctor on an Alaskan island, but it turned out to be an optical Aleutian.
3. She was only a whisky maker, but he loved her still.
4. A rubber band pistol was confiscated from algebra class because it was a weapon of math disruption.
5. No matter how much you push the envelope, it'll still be stationery.
6. A dog gave birth to puppies near the road and was cited for littering.
7. A grenade thrown into a kitchen in France would result in Linoleum Blownapart.
8. Two silk worms had a race. They ended up in a tie.
9. A hole has been found in the nudist camp wall. The police are looking into it.
10. Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.
11. Atheism is a non-prophet organization.
12. Two hats were hanging on a hat rack in the hallway. One hat said to the other: 'You stay here; I'll go on a head.'
13. I wondered why the cricket ball kept getting bigger. Then it hit me.
14. A sign on the lawn at a drug rehab center said: 'Keep off the Grass.'
15. The midget fortune-teller who escaped from prison was a small medium at large.
16. The soldier who survived mustard gas and pepper spray is now a seasoned veteran.
17. A backward poet writes inverse.
18. In a democracy, it's your vote that counts. In feudalism, it's your count that votes.
19. When cannibals ate a missionary, they got a taste of religion.
20. If you jumped off the bridge in Paris, you'd be in Seine.
21. A vulture boards an airplane, carrying two dead raccoons. The stewardess looks at him and says, 'I'm sorry, sir, only one carrion allowed per passenger.'
22. Two fish swim into a concrete wall. One turns to the other and says 'Dam!'
23. Two Eskimos sitting in a kayak were chilly, so they lit a fire in the craft. Unsurprisingly it sank, proving once again that you can't have your kayak and heat it too.
24. Two hydrogen atoms meet. One says, 'I've lost my electron.' The other says 'Are you sure?' The first replies, 'Yes, I'm positive.'
25. Did you hear about the Buddhist who refused Novocain during a root canal? His goal: transcend dental medication.
26. There was the person who sent ten puns to friends, with the hope that at least one of the puns would make them laugh. No pun in ten did.
1. The fattest knight at King Arthur's round table was Sir Cumference. He acquired his size from too much pi.
2. I thought I saw an eye doctor on an Alaskan island, but it turned out to be an optical Aleutian.
3. She was only a whisky maker, but he loved her still.
4. A rubber band pistol was confiscated from algebra class because it was a weapon of math disruption.
5. No matter how much you push the envelope, it'll still be stationery.
6. A dog gave birth to puppies near the road and was cited for littering.
7. A grenade thrown into a kitchen in France would result in Linoleum Blownapart.
8. Two silk worms had a race. They ended up in a tie.
9. A hole has been found in the nudist camp wall. The police are looking into it.
10. Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.
11. Atheism is a non-prophet organization.
12. Two hats were hanging on a hat rack in the hallway. One hat said to the other: 'You stay here; I'll go on a head.'
13. I wondered why the cricket ball kept getting bigger. Then it hit me.
14. A sign on the lawn at a drug rehab center said: 'Keep off the Grass.'
15. The midget fortune-teller who escaped from prison was a small medium at large.
16. The soldier who survived mustard gas and pepper spray is now a seasoned veteran.
17. A backward poet writes inverse.
18. In a democracy, it's your vote that counts. In feudalism, it's your count that votes.
19. When cannibals ate a missionary, they got a taste of religion.
20. If you jumped off the bridge in Paris, you'd be in Seine.
21. A vulture boards an airplane, carrying two dead raccoons. The stewardess looks at him and says, 'I'm sorry, sir, only one carrion allowed per passenger.'
22. Two fish swim into a concrete wall. One turns to the other and says 'Dam!'
23. Two Eskimos sitting in a kayak were chilly, so they lit a fire in the craft. Unsurprisingly it sank, proving once again that you can't have your kayak and heat it too.
24. Two hydrogen atoms meet. One says, 'I've lost my electron.' The other says 'Are you sure?' The first replies, 'Yes, I'm positive.'
25. Did you hear about the Buddhist who refused Novocain during a root canal? His goal: transcend dental medication.
26. There was the person who sent ten puns to friends, with the hope that at least one of the puns would make them laugh. No pun in ten did.
Monday, March 11, 2013
Really? This is Customer Service at its Best
Last November, I sent an electronic check to US Airways to pay the first balance due on my new US Airways MasterCard. As is my practice, I sent payment several weeks before the date due as I don't like checks going astray and not being applied to my account. Imagine my surprise in December to receive my second bill from US Airways MasterCard showing that I still owed $179.10 -- plus a $20 late fee and interest ($2.40) accruing on my unpaid balance.
Thus began the customer service calls (20 minutes today with Tim) to figure out what went wrong and how to correct it, culminating in a heart-felt apology from Jake, the manager with whom I asked to speak after spending the 20 minutes with Tim. Jake claims that an internal audit was completed on my complaint and the first check was never received, so the second check I sent cleared the problem from the first billing cycle. Nope, US Airways MasterCard Services does not owe me a refund or a credit for a double payment, but they "notified" me of that decision in December (NOT). When I disagreed and said I have had no contact from US Airways MasterCard -- or I wouldn't be wasting my time contacting them again -- Jake explained that uh, it was a phone call that went directly to FAX, even though I don't have a fax and he had the correct home number. I had been told to allow two billing cycles for the refund to be posted, which is why I waited until today to do the follow-up.
Jake sounded sincerely sorry, a most practiced delivery from customer services that grates like fingernails across a blackboard. I'm wrong; US Airways MasterCard is right; if there's anything else we can do for you ... . Yep, there is: credit $179.10 to my account. I paid it, the back of the check clearly says "For deposit only US Airways Inc," so credit my account with the second payment of $179.10. No big deal: just do the right thing.
Well, says Jake, when we examined the documents you submitted under case PYT0108274, we discovered that the payment, although it does say "For deposit only US Airways, Inc," was actually deposited by JP Morgan Chase, which is not the credit card's bank (they use Barkley's), so no one owes me a refund or a credit back to my card for paying the same bill twice. And, he says, I was notified of this decision, which, of course, I was not or I would NOT again be on the phone trying to clarify the situation and get a refund credited to my account.
The $179.10 is a piddly sum to US Airways MasterCard, but to me it's a big issue in the way US Airways MasterCard does business -- and I'm not going to be party to it. Therefore, I asked for my current balance due, will send them a check, and then requested that the account be closed. It isn't worth the aggravation to deal with this company because if they'll do it once, they'll do it again. ...
but not to me!
Thus began the customer service calls (20 minutes today with Tim) to figure out what went wrong and how to correct it, culminating in a heart-felt apology from Jake, the manager with whom I asked to speak after spending the 20 minutes with Tim. Jake claims that an internal audit was completed on my complaint and the first check was never received, so the second check I sent cleared the problem from the first billing cycle. Nope, US Airways MasterCard Services does not owe me a refund or a credit for a double payment, but they "notified" me of that decision in December (NOT). When I disagreed and said I have had no contact from US Airways MasterCard -- or I wouldn't be wasting my time contacting them again -- Jake explained that uh, it was a phone call that went directly to FAX, even though I don't have a fax and he had the correct home number. I had been told to allow two billing cycles for the refund to be posted, which is why I waited until today to do the follow-up.
Jake sounded sincerely sorry, a most practiced delivery from customer services that grates like fingernails across a blackboard. I'm wrong; US Airways MasterCard is right; if there's anything else we can do for you ... . Yep, there is: credit $179.10 to my account. I paid it, the back of the check clearly says "For deposit only US Airways Inc," so credit my account with the second payment of $179.10. No big deal: just do the right thing.
Well, says Jake, when we examined the documents you submitted under case PYT0108274, we discovered that the payment, although it does say "For deposit only US Airways, Inc," was actually deposited by JP Morgan Chase, which is not the credit card's bank (they use Barkley's), so no one owes me a refund or a credit back to my card for paying the same bill twice. And, he says, I was notified of this decision, which, of course, I was not or I would NOT again be on the phone trying to clarify the situation and get a refund credited to my account.
The $179.10 is a piddly sum to US Airways MasterCard, but to me it's a big issue in the way US Airways MasterCard does business -- and I'm not going to be party to it. Therefore, I asked for my current balance due, will send them a check, and then requested that the account be closed. It isn't worth the aggravation to deal with this company because if they'll do it once, they'll do it again. ...
but not to me!
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