Dateline: today; a few minutes ago. Moiself was exercising on my elliptical-thingy, listening to a podcast, when I heard the phrase that was music to my ears:
Department Of Questions That Have No Logical Answers [1]
The realm in question:
Sci-fi and set-in-the-future movies and television shows.
The question for the realm:
Why are the (almost always male) directors’ and/or producers’ of such shows seemingly obsessed with bizarre/fantastical/just-plain-silly female hairstyles?
“Kroika! Only he who is strong enough to remove this hibernating wolverine from my head shall be my mate.”
Do these men imagine that, in the future and/or “out in space,” the laws of gravity will not apply to hair proceeding from the scalps of both humanoid and alien women?
Just moiself asking. Because, you know – science.
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Department Of Surprise Of The Week (As In, Are You Kidding – Not. At. All.)
AKA Jane Roe. Put that documentary on your streaming list. Highly recommended.
A bombshell documentary airing…on FX adds a final shocking twist to Norma McCorvey’s ideologically eventful life. In AKA Jane Roe, McCorvey offers what she calls a “deathbed confession”: Actually, she was basically pro-choice all along and only became a pro-life activist for the money. “It was a mutual thing,” she tells director Nick Sweeney. “I took their money, and they took me out in front of the cameras and told me what to say.” Sweeney displays tax documents revealing that McCorvey received at least $450,000 from pro-life groups over the course of her years as an activist, often classified as “benevolent gifts.” (slate.com)
Apparently, there are some people who are shocked and/or disappointed to learn that Norma Jean McCarvey, aka “Jane Roe” in the 1973 Roe V. Wade SCOTUS decision, admitted she was paid for her notorious “flip-flop” – from pro-choice to anti-abortion – by the anti-abortion side.
In the final scene of “AKA Jane Roe,” a near-death McCorvey is asked if she felt she was a “trophy” to the pro-life movement, and she says, “Of course. I was the Big Fish. I took their money and they took me out in front of the cameras and told me what to say … I’m a good actress. Of course, I’m not acting now.” (rogerebert.com review of AKA Jane Roe)
Such tactics are no surprise to many of us who have worked in women’s reproductive health care. The anti-abortionists [2] use the ends-justifies-the-means excuses for their deception, propaganda, and outright pants-on-fire lies.
Moiself has more stories than I care to recall, from both my days at Planned Parenthood and a private OB-GYN practice, having to do with women’s encounters with anti-choice exploiters activists. One of the ickiest stories I will detail in next week’s post.
One of my “favorite” such stories came from a PP I worked at, a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away, in the Bay Area. I was in the clinic’s lab, about to start the centrifuge, when I saw my co-worker, MT, exit the exam room across from the lab. MT, known and admired by her coworkers for her serenity and equanimity, face-palmed her forehead as she scurried toward me, holding a pipette of her patient’s blood. As she added her sample to the centrifuge, I asked her whence the WTF?!?! expression on her face. She replied that her patient had come to PP after first going to one of those shit-faced, lying to women “Pregnancy Counseling Centers” which, its receptionist assured her when she telephoned for info, was a legitimate medical clinic. While the patient was waiting for her pregnancy test to be run, the center’s “counselor” told her that having an abortion would give her cancer (of her “womb”), which could then infect her husband’s reproductive tract.
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Department Of Why We’re On The Subject Of Lying To Women…And Men….
Division Of Taking A Break From Dissing My Religious Roots And Going After Other Peoples’
Sub-Department Of More Fun With Movies
This next movie I recommend is not a documentary, ala AKA Jane Roe, but is an equally fascinating, disturbing, harrowing, and ultimately hopeful account of real-life events. It is based on Deborah Feldman’s Unorthodox: The Scandalous Rejection of My Hasidic Roots. Feldman’s memoir recounts growing up within, becoming estranged to, and finally escaping from her rigid Satmar Hasidic community in the Willamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn.
So. My thoughts after watching Netflix’s four-part series, Unorthodox:
I wonder how many of the residents of New York City’s most populous borough go about their daily business without giving a thought to the fact that, in their northwest corner, there is an entire community of people ruled by…mmm, how do I put this…mind-numbing, misogynistic mythological minutia.
I’ve heard of/read about the voluminous rules & regs of Hasidic life, but to be presented with the daily realities of the Satmar Hasids…yikes with a capital IKES. The sect’s many extremist emphases include an ultra-orthodox, anti-Zionist theology (they’re not fond of other [read: non-Hasidic] Jews, and particularly loathe the secular ones), and rejection of modernity. As for the latter, they are able to interpret some amusing exceptions for themselves (surprise!). For example, Satmar Hasids may have a cellphone, but not a ‘smart” phone – or any device with internet access (which would allow you to ask questions of/read opinions and facts presented by authorities other than your rabbi).
Satmar Hasids’ lives are a continual numerical equation of sorts, a computing and tracking of what must be done and when and how often – as well as, the biggest list of all, the thou-shall nots – all carried out within the confines of a close-knit (read: gossip-ridden and judgmental) community isolated from non-Jews, estranged from other (non-Hasidic) Jews, and centered around the dicta of a grand rabbi leader. [3]
All of the minutia of rules rules rules – and did I mention, rules? [4] The most time-consuming, and physically and intellectually and sexually onerous and stifling “guidelines” and restrictions are (surprise, again!) applied to women.
“Blessed are you, HaShem, King of the Universe,
for not having made me a gentile;” “Blessed are you, HaShem, King of the Universe,
for not having made me a slave.” “Blessed are you, HaShem, King of the Universe,
for not having made me a woman.” (2,000 year old prayer, from the Talmud, which Orthodox Jewish men are still supposed to recite every morning)
Hasids’ lives are directed by the triviality of detail, the constant accounting of everything – how many days for this, steps for that, when to touch or say or eat this and not that, what to cover and uncover – lives prescribed and restricted by the rules that (they are taught) are from their god and are monitored by their god (and the other community members. You are always being watched). Yet, somehow, there’s a subset of rules as to how you can circumvent the other rules [5] – which, remember, are from The King Of The Universe…who apparently isn’t paying enough attention to notice when his minions are doing an end run around his holy rules.
Adherents and supporters of such religious communities argue that those rules and rituals give meaning to life. Moiself, along with those who have escaped from such constrictive communities, call claptrap and bullshit take strong issue with that claim.
When I’ve read and watched the stories of people who’ve fled such communities, it’s obvious to moiself that the fulfillment of the religious rules – and the task of merely trying to keep track of all of them – takes up the majority of one’s time. This crucial phenomenon serves to keep the community running…even if it’s only on its own cultural hamster wheel. As a member of the community you aren’t really doing anything other than upholding the community. You are not doing, learning, or producing anything new/original. You’re not even thinking original thoughts, but merely “studying” those of your community’s founder, who presents himself as your god’s interpreter. And with all this you shall pass the time because…what else is there for you to do, that you are allowed to do?
And, oh, the pervasive and primitive misogyny at the root of the Hasid – of any religion’s – social regulations! The fear and mis-characterization of, and obsession with, female sexuality is ever present, despite the claims that the religion’s rules uphold the “beauty and sanctity of the marital relationship” (the ultimate purpose of which is to produce more human specimens for their god’s ant farm). Denying and obscuring and shaming, either directly or obliquely, is applied to the physical aspects of being human, the very aspects which supposedly stem from their creator-god. What a world of spiritual and cognitive dissonance – to honestly think about it would drive an introspective person mad. But, once again: ritual and rules to the rescue!
The detailed pro-and pre-scribing of peoples’ behavior – even their thoughts – is a highly effective form of crowd control. The decrees and rituals to be learned and applied – the continuous “studying“ of them guarantees there will be no true contemplation going on…because you’re just too damn busy trying to remember it all (“Hmm; was that mitzvot 513 or 613?”). A day is only so long; keeping your sect’s versions of physical, mental and spiritual “kosher” keeps you from having the time for the kind of thoughtful analysis of these superstitious burdens codes which would allow you to see through and escape from them.
Now then. To those of us who are giving ourselves the proverbial pat on the back re our relatively progressive take on things: I can’t help but wonder how many “moderate” believers (of any religion) who’ll watch Unorthodox– or perhaps another depiction of an extremist/Fundy sect of their own faith – will cluck their tongues at the primeval actions and philosophies of the Fundies, and not realize their own proximity to such retrograde superstitions.
Yes, the same g-d who commands that we reject the homos is honored by our Nancy-boy curls and Ru-Paul-to-die-for hats, trust us.
If you are religious, those are your roots. You only are a few notches up the scale of modernity, if you try to apply Iron Age spirituality in the 21st century. You may reject or laugh at the claims of, say, your Fundy Christian cousins, but do you still, literally or figuratively, embrace the tenets of Christianity? Do you, either with fellow worshipers in a god-box (temple, church) or alone in the privacy of your home, telepathically beseech and/or grovel to a cosmic Jewish zombie who was his own father and who can make you live forever if you symbolically cannibalize him (“take communion”) and telepathically tell him you accept him as your master so he can remove an evil force from your soul that is present in humanity because a rib-woman was convinced by a talking snake to eat from a magical but forbidden tree?
Yep. You’re not like those silly Fundies at all.
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Department Of I Know The Year Isn’t Even Half Over Yet…
…but moiself has a nomination for the Mascot For The Year 2020.
According to the Chinese Zodiac, we are in the Year of the Rat – although in my estimation, we have been ever since #45 took office.
Ahem. Ladies and Gentleman, for your consideration, I propose that 2020 may be declared The Year Of The Murder Hornet.
Yes, you heard me right: THE MURDER HORNET. A name like that begs for all caps, n’est ce pas?
THE MURDER HORNET.
I am compelled to keep typing it. I so wish I was making this up – and so will you, if you read about this insect. The name alone – do you even want to Google it?
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Department of The Corona Virus Playlist The 500 Greatest Songs Off All Time Edition
As per the Rolling Stone Magazine list . [6] Not to diss songs 101-500, but I culled the following entrants from the top 100 (’cause life is short and I like to eat dinner).
As with previous CVPs, moiself has listed some of these song titles which are IMHO, applicable to our social-isolating, transmission–paranoid, COVID-19 times, and which, in small groupings, imply a related story. This time there’s no clue save for the song titles as to who the recording artists are (but few clues needed, given the RS list’s bold title).
(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction My Generation Imagine What’s Going On Suspicious Minds
A Change Is Gonna Come Blowin’ in the Wind People Get Ready A Day in the Life
Help! I Walk the Line Gimme Shelter Let’s Stay Together Let It Be
The Times They Are a-Changin’ The Weight Heroes Bridge Over Troubled Water
Walk On By You Really Got Me I Heard It Through the Grapevine Every Breath You Take Crazy
And here’s what I made for ours, one day this week – never mind. EEE on hiatus this week. So, get your own damn dinner ideas.
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May you never see a MURDER HORNET, even from a safe distance; May you reject all belief systems which require you to wear silly hats; May the month of June bring us closer to a cure from COVID-19 (and MURDER HORNETS); …and may the hijinks ensue.
Thanks for stopping by. Au Vendredi!
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[1] Including why they often appear in moiself’s brain, seemingly apropos of nothing.
[2] They’re definitely not “pro-life” – (unless the life in question is fetal) as their other political views and polities indicate.
[3] In the Satmar community’s case, a Hungarian rabbi who migrated to the US with a group of followers after WWII.
[4] They are way too many to list; and many revolve around the paramount importance of maintaining what they define as physical modesty: bodies must be covered fully; all clothing is formal (or what as a child my family would have called “dress-up” clothes). Women’s skirts must hang a certain distance below the knees, shirt sleeves must extend past the elbows, bodices must cover the collarbone. Satmar Hassids take the modesty rules to the extreme re women’s hair: when a girl marries she must shave her head, then wear a wig when she is in public (if she has no hair then she cannot possibly tempt a man with her hair, because he can’t possibly or even accidentally see her hair when she has no hair. A totally logical thing for an almighty deity to be concerned with.
* Young people are kept ignorant about their bodies; masturbation (and any sexual contact or knowledge) outside of marriage is forbidden; thus, marriages (arranged when the participants are between the ages of 17-19) are often consummated with the Hasidic bride essentially being raped by her husband.
* Women are considered ritually “unclean” for a period of 12 days each month (during and after menstruation). Husbands must not have physical contact with their wives until after she has had a Mikveh (ritual cleansing bath). There are scads of rules for pregnancy, including that a pregnant woman must not gaze at “non-kosher animals and other impure things.” A woman is ritually unclean for 7 days after birthing a boy and 14 days after having a girl.
* Husbands are “unclean” – but for only one day – after ejaculating, and take a mikvah to restore ritual purity.
-You must pray three times a day, and make sure that on the Sabbath (Shabbos) each prayer session is longer than usual, and also study certain religious texts at certain times of the day for certain lengths of time (the primary role of Hasid women is wife and mother; because of this, women are excused from some commandments that require them to study/pray at certain times of day.)
* Work” is prohibited on the Sabbath. What is defined as work includes writing (or erasing!), tearing of paper, driving, shopping, using any electric device, cooking, laundry, cleaning, carrying any object outside of the home, handling money…. There is a maximum number of steps you may take on the Sabbath (again, as interpreted per your rabbi, and there are ways to define what is your home/community that can skirt this requirement).
[5] Hasidic Jews will ask or even hire a non-Jew, aka a “Shabbas goy,” to perform basic tasks – e.g. turning on a light or an air conditioner – which the Hasids are forbidden to do on the Sabbath. Yet, even then, the Hasids can’t be honest, to themselves or the goys, about how they are skirting this holy commandment of no work on the Sabbath. When enlisting assistance they’ll try to avoid asking directly (“Would you please turn on the light for me?”); rather, they’ll drop hints and hope the goy will get it and help them (example: “It’s so hot in this room…if only the fan was turned on….”).
[6] Which was curated nine years ago, so yeah, an update may be needed.
[7] A recurring feature of this blog, since week 1 of April 2020, wherein moiself decided that moiself would do themes as listed in the 4-3-20 blog.
I got this bottle of tequila for a friend, because of the label…which I misread. Boys and girls, can you guess which two letters my mind transposed with another two, which caused me at that initial, mistaken glance, to blurt out, to the store clerk,
“Four *hundred*? That’s the manliest tequila ever!”
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Several days ago, apropos of a prompt moiself cannot exactly recall (something I read which mentioned cyber-bullying) I listened, once again, to Monica Lewinsky’s acclaimed TED talk on the subject…which led me to read for the first time an article she wrote for Vanity Fair magazine several years ago – an article which preceded the TED presentation. If you listen to the first, which I strongly advise you (and all those who think they have an opinion on the Clinton-Lewinsky “scandal”) do, I also advise you read the second. After reading the article I wanted to send feedback to her personally but had no way to contact her (other than by cyber-stalking), so I am sending this out via the blog-o-sphere. May the cosmos have mercy upon me.
Good luck with that, you impudent b***h.
Dear Ms. Lewinsky,
I re-listened to your TED talk the other day ( apropos of a prompt I cannot now recall, but the subject was cyber-bullying ) and so, once again, I found the link to “The Price of Shame,” which I believe to be one of the best TED talks ever. If there were an awards ceremony for excellence in TED talks (“The Teddies?” [1] ), yours would get my nomination in the Best Issue category.
I’ve listened to it several times, and each time come away (re)impressed with your insightful analysis of the links between the evolution of “shame culture” via the concurrent rise of the 24 hour news cycles, social media, and online harassment. Most of all, I admire, how you have taken your personal experiences with persecution and worked to turn humiliation into advocacy.
Searching for a link to the TED talk led me to a link to “Shame and Survival,” the article you wrote for Vanity Fair magazine in 2014, where you dealt with the issues which you would later incorporate in your TED talk, and also went into more detail about your experiences. I found myself cheering your determination to take back your narrative and give a purpose to your past (and present). However, there was one cringe-worthy (to me) statement you made therein, one which I hope the passage of time has given you cause to reconsider.
“I still have deep respect for feminism and am thankful for the great strides the movement has made in advancing women’s rights over the past few decades. But, given my experience of being passed around like gender-politics cocktail food, I don’t identify myself as a Feminist, capital F.”
The context of your statement – your relating the “humiliation derby” that several prominent women joined in, which illustrated ” …a perplexing aspect of the culture of humiliation…that women themselves are not immune to certain kinds of misogyny “– makes your sentiment fully understandable, and arguably inevitable. After being on the receiving end of such cruel treatment, the fact that you are not bitter and vindictive – it is a testament to your strength of character, maturity and grace (and I question whether I be capable of displaying or developing those qualities, were I in similar circumstances).
Still, that was six years ago, and I hope that now you could identify yourself with the F word (maybe not in all caps). Perhaps you have already done so, and my point is moot. Proceeding on the assumption that you haven’t, my concern with you still holding that sentiment is related to your crusade regarding online bullying, in which you want people to view other people as unique human beings and not stereotypes, and not hold an entire category of people responsible for the cruel actions or snide comments of a few individuals.
Feminism, the simple yet profound philosophy of advocating for women’s rights on the basis of the equality of the sexes, did not let you down. Certain “celebrity feminist”individuals– who were, unfortunately, prominent enough that their short-sighted, narrow-minded, unkind and snarky comments about you were deemed worthy of recording – let you down.
Along with short-sighted and narrow-minded, snarkyand unkind, I would add fearfulto characterize the comments made about you by those feminist personalities. They were fearful – with good reason, it turns out – of what would happen if “the other side” used the Clinton scandal to gain (even more) power for themselves. The other side both explicitly and implicitly avowed to undermine and overturn the principles feminism stood for and the civil rights for which feminists strove, and as we see today, their retrograde view of what constitutes equal rights is unfortunately and alarmingly persistent.
Yes, the gap between the personal and the political vis-à-vis President Clinton’s behavior – which includes how you were scapegoated and the resulting political/cognitive dissonance it evoked in too many of Clinton’s female supporters – was alarming. Unfortunately, no matter how regressive his treatment of an individual woman was, Clinton’s political stances, policies and agendas were far more progressive and pro-women than what the Republicans stood for. Thus, the shameful loyalty of those vocal feminists who slid down the old slippery slope of immediate political self-interest:
“He may be a SOB, but he’s *our* SOB…and sadly, what are our alternatives?”
I’m sorry if this seems overly didactic; you are obviously intelligent, thoughtful, and historically literate, and these are points which you have already likely considered. Still, as a lifelong supporter of equal rights, I hope that you would someday be able to reevaluate and embrace the term feminist, to know that you can disagree with others who may claim that mantle just as you continue to support Democratic policies and ideals despite the injustices done to and said about you by many of your fellow Democrats.
Thank you again for the important causes and issues you continue to illuminate and advocate, and for your bravery and example to all women and men for rising above adversity and calling out the “culture of shame.” Wishing you all the best, I am,
Sincerely yours,
* * *
Blog Department Of Classic How-To-Live-A-Good-Life Advice ® Tweaked
Your life’s journey is not to discover who you are, but rather who you want to be.
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Department Of The Deep Thoughts Continue, aka What I Thought About When I Overheard An Older Person Denigrate Young(er) People’s Lack Of Perspective Re The Passage Of Time
The fact that nothing lasts is the reason that things matter. Our ephemeral, mortal nature gives meaning to every day. The realization that we will never pass this way can make us treasure the here and now, and make the most of the time we have.
This is not a novel idea. When I’ve read similar sentiments it is at this point that the typical Life Advice Giver® writes about how this ephemeral-ity is understood by the old and not so much by the young…. And moiselfdoesn’t think that’s necessarily the case. [2]
I’ve known plenty of older people who gave no indication that their advanced years had brought them any advanced wisdom – they seemed just as stuck in the minutia of life as the Gen X, Y, or Z-ers whom they were so critical of for “not seeing the bigger picture.” These same Oldsters® were/are not stepping back to look at *their* bigger picture, for fear of what it contains. Their resulting lack of introspection and/or denial of obvious realities (My body is changing; Time waits for no one) is perhaps the opposite side of the coin of the stereotype of hedonistic youth (Live for the moment; Who cares about tomorrow …Hey, hold my beer while I do this…).
“Do you know what she’s talking about?” “Nope – hold my beer while I ask her.”
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Department of The Corona Virus Playlist The Heavy Metal Edition
Specifically, the prototypes of what became known as Heavy Metal music (such as the bands Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, Black Sabbath), guitar-driven rock characterized by amplified distortion, extended guitar solos, emphatic beats, and maximum concert decibel intensity (translation: LOUD)..
Moiself has listed some of those groups’ song titles which are IMHO, applicable to our social-isolating, transmission–paranoid, COVID-19 times, and which, in small groupings, imply a related story.
Communication Breakdown Dazed And Confused Good Times Bad Times Hey Hey What Can I Do How Many More Times
In My Time Of Dying Night Flight No Quarter Sick Again Stairway To Heaven
Trampled Underfoot Wearing And Tearing What Is And What Should Never Be Your Time Is Gonna Come
A Touch Away Bad Attitude Don’t Hold Your Breath I’m Alone Into The Fire
Might Just Take Your Life Never Before Slow Train Smoke On The Water Sometimes I Feel Like Screaming
A Hard Road Buried Alive Crazy Train Dying For Love Electric Funeral
Get A Grip Killing Yourself To Live Slipping Away Warning What’s The Use? When Death Calls Wicked World Wishing Well
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Pun For The Day
I stayed up all night to see where the sun went, and then it dawned on me.
May you not judge the notorious until you’ve walked a mile in their scandals; May your label letter transpositions bring you a good belly laugh; May you live as long as you want to, and want to as long as you live; …and may the hijinks ensue.
Thanks for stopping by. Au Vendredi!
* * *
[1] Just think of the cute design possibilities for the teddy bear statues that would be presented to the winners. [2] What’s with the lack of footnotes? [3] A recurring feature of this blog, since week 1 of April 2020, wherein moiself decided that moiself would go themes as listed in the 4-3-20 blog. [4]
* Abject Failure: I’ll make a canned wieners & SpaghettiOs gelatin mold before I make this recipe again. * Tolerable: if you have the proper…attitude. * Yep: why, sure, I’d share this with my cat. * Now you’re talkin’: Abby the support Avocado ® approves. * Yummers: So good, it merits The Purple Tortilla Chip Of Exclamation ® !
Department Of As The Isolation Lengthens The Thoughts Deepen (or…not)
These times of uncertainty are also times of having more time – perhaps, too much time – to ponder the great existential questions of our age. All issues, from the profound to the mundane, may come to mind in the blink of an eye…or the punch of a car radio button.
Dateline: Wednesday, late a.m., driving home from the grocery store. “Those nachos were really hard on my stomach,” moans a voice in a radio ad, which segues into the familiar Pepto-Bismol commercial jingle. I listen to a chorus of pleasant voices warble the praises of a product which, they assure me, will sooth just about whatever ails a person’s digestive tract, and I wonder about the singers of such jingles. I assume they do commercials and voice-overs as a way to supplement their income – from what I gather, the life of most professional vocalists is fraught with uncertainty, and they take whatever gigs pay the bills. Still, I wonder if the young (I’m assuming) man with the lovely tenor voice ever imagined, during all those years in the practice rooms as he was training his “ear,” learning to sight read and honing other skills in pursuit of his BFA in Vocal Performance, that he would one day be in a recording studio to practice holding just the right amount of vibrato on the end syllable of, “diarrhea-aaaaaaaah“ ? [1]
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Department Of Screaming At People Who Can’t Hear Me Chapter 375 In A Never-Ending Series
Dateline: May 9, 7 a.m.-ush, out for a walk, listening to the most recent Radiolab podcast: David and Dominique. From the Radiolab website, here is the episode’s description:
David ___ and Dominique ___ have a couple of things in common: they both live in New York, they’re both gay, and they’re both HIV-positive. But David is in his 60s and has been living with the disease since moving to New York in the ‘80s. Dominique, on the other hand, is only in his early 30s…this episode features a very special conversation between David and Dominique about the similarities and differences in their experiences living with HIV.
Dominique, as part of his job working for a gay men’s health crisis type organization, advises people on safe sex practices. In the last third of the interview Dominique talked with David about contracting HIV and the medications he, like David, now must take, for life. Dominique had been HIV negative, but when he entered into what he thought was a mutually monogamous relationship, he stopped using safe sex practices. David asked Dominique if he is embarrassed about having HIV; Dominique vehemently denied that, and claimed he doesn’t regret anything. Dominique also said that when people find out about his HIV status change, some have asked him if, looking back, would he change things – what would he do different (ly)?
“I wouldn’t change *anything.* I made a conscious decision to be in love. If I had to change one thing I will say I wish I were in a relationship with someone who was more honest….but, like, people were saying…”don’t you wished you had ‘wrapped it up,’ and I know this (the question David had asked him, about embarrassment) is not a safe sex question, but no I probably wouldn’t have used a condom because I was in a trusting relationship, we were getting tested, right? So, I wouldn’t change anything…”
I know what I am *supposed *to think when, someone says something like that. Moiselfis supposed to think, Oh how honest how brave how heroic/noble.
Instead, I blurted out, to the pavement and the crows perched in the trees, what I honestly and absolutely do think:
“What an idiot!”
What a shallow, non-introspective idiot.
It’s the same thing I say – usually to moiself – when I encounter similar declarations from any individual (via personal conversation with a friend or family member or colleague, or reading an interview with or bio about a notable person) who declares that, looking back on their life, they wouldn’t change a thing.
This kind of no-regrets/I-wouldn’t-change-anything assertion (read: humble-brag) is usually/immediately followed by the explanation/justification about how the ups and downs of life, the good the bad and the ugly, have all contributed to their whole persona and/or where they are today….
Now, I don’t disagree with the we-are-everything-that-we-have-done-have-had-done-to-us sentiment. Rather, I take *strong* issue with the idea that *no regrets* is a positive, even admirable, quality for a human being to have, or strive for.
Or a thoughtful non-Terran, for that matter.
In my opinion, if you have no regrets, you simply have not paid attention. If you have no regrets, you probably have little empathy. What is the point of self-reflection if you learn nothing from that which, you realize, was a regrettable action on your part?
Can we truly learn from our mistakes if we don’t admit or identify what was a mistake? And yes, the question of changing one’s actions (“Looking back, what would you do differently?”) can be viewed as moot, since the opportunity to do so has, so far, only presented itself in science fiction movies and novels. Still, I mistrust a person who says that, knowing what they know now, they would do everything the same. I think a person who confidently makes such a declaration hasn’t *really* thought the question through… or if they have and still hold that absolutist conclusion, they are shallow and/or callous.
Because our mistakes don’t just hurt our own selves.
The young man (YM) whose drunk driving killed my friend’s son (and another passenger in YM’s truck) served a jail sentence for “gross vehicular manslaughter.” I sincerely hope that he put his time in jail to good use; even more sincerely, I hope he never expresses any variation of how, if given the proverbial time travel opportunity, he “wouldn’t change a thing” because now he is more thoughtful and/or learned some bit life lessons, or now he knows from *personal experience* why people should never drink and drive…. There are *so* many other ways YM could have learned those lessons than by causing the death of his friends and the enduring agony of their loved ones.
So, to any of us who have ever (probably in haste and somewhat thoughtlessly) boasted said that we “…have no regrets/ would do everything over again,” moiself asks,
You would never take back words said or actions done in anger or haste – words and deeds that didn’t instigate international armed conflict but nevertheless caused someone acute or ongoing pain? You would never admit to wishing you’d spent more time getting to know certain people (the shy or nerdy or otherwise “uncool” kid at school or work, or your aging relatives), instead of spending so much time and energy on people (the “popular” gang at school, the influential go-getters at work) whom, if you met ’em today, you wouldn’t give ’em directions to the outhouse?
Yeah, it’s your body and you don’t regret any of those cigarettes, [2] Ms. Marching Bravely To The Grave…but it’s never *just* your body, honey. It’s your friends and family and colleagues who also suffer, physically as well as mentally and emotionally, as they watch you slowly suffocate to death; it’s your colleagues who must pick up the slack at work; it’s the health care system you burden….
Just to be clear, by regrets I’m talking honest self-assessment here, and not in any way encouraging shame-obsessed wallowing (which, in the opinions of both moiself and the American Psychological Association – jolly good of them to agree with me, don’t you think? – usually benefits no one).
Moiselfhas learned from the “regrets” examples of others, when they have shared what they’ve regretted. I can think of more than one occasion where I have stopped moiselffrom doing/saying similar hurtful things or rephrased my thoughts or changed my course of action, because of someone else’s admission of regret for having done something similar. And yes of course, I’ve learned from my own mistakes, but so many of them… well, there were other ways I could have learned those lessons, other ways which did not involve being unkind to other folks.
I don’t think that people should regret *everything* (that they either knew at the time or that turned out to be a bad move on their part). I do hold that those who’ve convinced themselves that they regret *nothing* are demonstrating that they have learned nothing about what it means to walk through this world as a sentient being. To any and all No-regrets folk, please: Do the world a favor: find a sci-fi time travel machine and go back and work on yourself.
Honestly, could a face like this have any regrets?
* * *
Department of The Corona Virus Playlist The Honky-Tonk Country Music Edition
There are more sub-genres of Country Music than there are hook extender panels on Dolly Parton’s brassieres’ straps. Honky-Tonk, a term whose etymology is disputed, generally refers to the kind of music which emerged from early 1900s piano bars which provided country music – often referred to (by the music industry) – as hillbilly music – to entertain their patrons. As per Wikipedia:
Originally, [honky tonk music] featured the guitar, fiddle, string bass, and steel guitar. The vocals were originally rough and nasal, as exemplified by the singer-songwriters Floyd Tillman and Hank Williams, but later developed a clear and sharp sound, such as that of George Jones and Faron Young. Lyrics tended to focus on working-class life, with frequently tragic themes of lost love, adultery, loneliness, alcoholism, and self-pity.
Moiself has listed some of those exemplars of honky-tonk song titles which are IMHO, applicable to our social-isolating, transmission–paranoid, COVID-19 times, and which, in small groupings, imply a related story.
I’ve Been Out A-walkin’ I’ll Give You Something To Drink About If Drinking Don’t Kill Me God’s Gonna Get ‘cha Your Cheating Heart Hell Stays Open All Night Long
All My Friends Are Gonna Be Strangers Blue Side Of Lonesome We Live In Two Different Worlds Bridge Washed Out Don’t Let Me Cross Over
Just Waitin’ I Love You So Much It Hurts Near You Nothing Can Stop My Loving You Drivin’ Nails in My Coffin
We Must Have Been Out Of Our Minds We’re Gonna Hold On There’s The Door How Can You Refuse Him Now When The Grass Grows Over Me
Be Careful Of Stones You Throw Alone And Forsaken I Love You So Much It Hurts I Just Don’t Like This Kind Of Livin’ I’ve Just Told Mama Goodbye
Take These Chains From My Heart The Angel Of Death The Old Log Train Wealth Won’t Save Your Soul You’re Barkin’ Up The Wrong Tree Now
May you truly not have a reason to regret the majority of your regrets; May time spent reading this blog *not* be one of your regrets; May jingles about intestinal distress remedies never intrude upon your deep thoughts; …and may the hijinks ensue.
Thanks for stopping by. Au Vendredi!
* * *
[1] I wonder how that credit appears on a professional vocalist’s resumé?
[2] A declaration from one (there have been so many) of my relatives who died from smoking-related or caused disease. This particular one had arranged with a doctor she used to work for to insure that nothing related to cancer/smoking would go on her death certificate (she was too proud for what to her would have been an admission, that, as a former nurse, she “should have known better”) .
[3] A recurring feature of this blog, since week 1 of April 2020, wherein moiself decided that moiself would go themes as listed in the 4-3-20 blog.
* Abject Failure: I’ll make a canned wieners & SpaghettiOs gelatin mold before I make this recipe again. * Tolerable: if you have the proper…attitude. * Yep: why, sure, I’d share this with my cat. * Now you’re talkin’: Abby the support Avocado ® approves. * Yummers: So good, it merits The Purple Tortilla Chip Of Exclamation ® !
Department Of Although I Promised Not To Use The Term “Silver Lining” When Referring To A Pandemic….
…there is at least one good thing to come from our world’s current situation. The “good” I refer to is a side effect of the stay at home/shelter in place/physical distancing/non-essential business closures. This side effect – I need a better term; ’tis not marginal consequence – provides some evidence that it might not be too late for us (humans). It’s the realization that, when we stop screwing with Mother Nature, even inadvertently, we begin to clean her (read: our) house.
“4.2 Million Deaths per year attributed to ambient (outdoor) air pollution. …. The combined effects of ambient (outdoor) and household air pollution cause about seven million premature deaths every year, largely as a result of increased mortality from stroke, heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer and acute respiratory infections. ( World Health Organization website, health topic: air pollution )
New Delhi, during rush hour…not at night.
Imagine living a mere 500 miles from the world’s tallest mountain range – in the geographic scale that means Mt. Everest is practically in your backyard – but you haven’t been able to see the world’s tallest peak in 30 years?
* Residents in the northern Indian state of Punjab say they’re seeing the Himalayas for the first time in decades while on coronavirus lockdown.
*Since India was put on lockdown in March to help prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus, the country’s air quality
has seen immense improvement.
*The air quality has increased because public transportation has stopped,
fewer people are driving, and there’s less air traffic in the skies. ( excerpts from “India’s air quality has improved so much since the country went on coronavirus lockdown; citizens can now see the Himalayas for the first time in 30 years,”Reuters)
It remains to be seen, of course, how people and businesses adjust after the various stay-at-home restrictions are lifted. That tiny, optimistic part of my brain – a part so small it cannot be located on this map of basic brain regions –
(that tiny part is located behind the brainstem and contains the pathways for minor yet essential neutral activities, including optimism, holding grudges, understanding fart jokes….)
– that part lets me hope that all sides of this multi-faceted situation, from big and small businesses to individuals, will see the benefits of working (at least part time) from home where and when possible, and coordinate alternative solutions to our transportation and energy needs and uses.
* * *
Department Of The Letter (To The Editor) I’m Not Sending
The article was written by staff writer Tom Hallman Jr., who purported to explore “finding the light in a season of darkness” and other such (supposed) Easter themes, all from Christian points of view. [1]
I wasn’t sure what to call the piece when I first read it, and even now. “Article” is too neutral, for that which was essentially a newspaper staff member’s promotion of a particular religious faith; also, it ran on the front page of a (supposedly) neutral newspaper, and not in the op-ed section.
Moiself meant to craft a response of some sort, something compelling and rational, a day or so after reading the article, which is when my feedback would have been more topical, if not appreciated. You know the advice: “Strike while the iron is hot;” “Make hay when the sun shines,”and…um…“Tee up while the caddy isn’t looking” – all those inspirational sayings from the pantheon of metallurgical, agricultural and sports idioms which make this The Greatest Nation On Earth ® .
I wanted to ask Hallman if, in light of the COVID-19 crisis (or for other reasons), he is planning on doing comparable PR pieces/blatant bootlickery articles on religious faiths besides Christianity, as well as articles exploring religion-free worldviews, during their respective, reflective, special times and/or celebrations?
MH has an abundance of co-workers who hail from all over the world, largely from India and other south Asian countries. These folks, who have become an integral part of the Portland Metro area society and workforce, have a variety of cultural and worldview roots, including Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist, Sikh (and secular!). What about their – and other – ways of “finding light in darkness?”
The Hindu multi-day celebration of Ganesh Chathrthi will be coming up this summer. Ganesh is a Hindu avatar known as the “remover of obstacles” and “imparter of wisdom”– attributes even non-Hindus can appreciate, especially in these COVID-19 times when there are obstacles aplenty (and a shortage of wisdom, considering what passes as “leadership” from the White House).
Besides (and no disrespect intended), who doesn’t enjoy the image of a colorfully-dressed, multiple-limbed elephant avatar (and his ever-present rodent sidekick)?
The Muslim holy month of Ramadan, a time of fasting, reflection, and community, is ongoing, as I type. Vesak Day, upcoming any day now, [2] is observed worldwide by Buddhists (and some Hindus), who, heeding the Buddha’s exhortation that the only way to truly honor him is to follow his teachings, encourage love, peace and harmony via “noble deeds” such as donating to charity, organizing blood donation drives, distributing gifts and food to those in need, etc.
Portland has a thriving Pagancommunity, and given the past months of uncertainty (and those to come), the Wiccan celebration of Lughnasad (August 1) will hold special meaning this year. What can Wiccans teach non-wiccans, with analogies via a celebration filled with both the hopes and fears that are as real today as they were in ancient times: hopes for a bountiful harvest and abundant food, juggled with fears that the harvest might not be enough and that the approaching winter will be filled with struggle and deprivation.
Here’s one of Hallman’s opening statements, in his The Oregonian Easter article:
“What we’re hungry for is an answer of certainty. Given that (his prior statements of the worries of our time, including spread of a new disease, school and economic closures and general life disruption and uncertainty)…Is there a place this Easter for a message rooted in something as nebulous as the concept of Christian faith?”
Here moiself’s reflective statement, after reading Hallman’s article: Will be we be seeing a front page feature on the relevancy of modern interpretations of ancient celebrations – as we did with Easter – illustrating other worldviews, e.g., the Wiccan acknowledgement of facing your fears, concentrating on developing your own abilities, and taking steps to protect yourselves and your homes? Are Hallman and/or other Oregonian reporters going to write about that?
We’ll get right on it.
Or, how about space for a message that needs no special time of year, in contrast to (using Hallman’s wording) “a message rooted in something as nebulous as the Christian faith”[3] :
“Is there a place for a non-nebulous message — a message as far as possible from supernaturalism, and which is as grounded as the principles of Humanism?”
These principles, found in greater detail here, are, briefly and chiefly:
Humanism affirms both the ability and responsibility of people to live their lives and pursue opportunities compatible with social and planetary harmony, and seek the greater good for our fellow human beings. Since it is free of theism and other supernatural beliefs, humanism derives the goals of life from human need and interest, rather than from theological or ideological abstractions, and asserts that humanity must take responsibility for its own destiny.
“Protestants and Catholics are shrinking as a share of U.S. population; all subsets of “none” are growing.” (“In U.S., Decline of Christianity Continues at Rapid Pace,” Pew Research Center, 10-17-19, Religion and Public Life)
It should come as no surprise that, along with the nationwide increase in the number of people who ( are willing to [4] ) identity as Atheists, Agnostics, Skeptics, Freethinkers, et al., at least one third of Oregonians claim a “not-affiliated/none” label when asked to list their religious affiliation . Added with the number of people practicing non-Christian faiths, that makes ~ forty percent of Oregonians who are “Christianity-free.” That sounds like a subject worthy of exploration in a publication which calls itself The Oregonian.
“You heard the lady; we’ll get right on it.
* * *
Department of The Corona Virus Playlist Los Angeles Seminal Punk Rock Bands Edition
And by seminal moiself is referring to how influential and ground-breaking were the punk bands which formed and played in So Cal in the late 1970s/early1980s – not the variety of bodily fluids that were flung onstage during a Germs performance.
Along with the afore-mentioned Germs, Bands in this genre include Black Flag, Alice Bag Band, the Circle Jerks, Catholic Discipline, Fear, and (my personal favorite), X.
Moiself has listed some of those groups’ song titles which are IMHO, applicable to our social-isolating, transmission–paranoid, COVID-19 times, and which, in small groupings, imply a related story.
Modern Man American Waste Annihilate This Week Beat My Head Against The Wall Fix Me Life Of Pain
I’ve Had It Loose Nut Nervous Breakdown Nothing Left Inside Padded Cell Shut Down
Media Blitz I Don’t Care About You Let’s Have a War We Destroy The Family Have A Beer With Fear World Up My Ass
Deny Everything Moral Majority Killing For Jesus Your Phone’s Off The Hook, But You’re Not Back Against The Wall We’re Desperate
I’m Coming Over Some Other Time When Our Love Passes Out On The Couch Under The Big Black Sun How I Learned My Lesson
I Must Not Think Bad Thoughts Painting The Town Blue What’s Wrong With Me Lettuce and Vodka Live Fast Die Young
* * *
Pun For The Day
I’m reading a book about anti-gravity. I just can’t put it down
May you find your own silver linings (and perhaps a better term to describe them) in times of stress and deprivation; May you be able to spot the mountain ranges – be they metaphorical or actual – from your own backyard; May you embrace the part of your humanity that takes responsibility for its own destiny; …and may the hijinks ensue.
Thanks for stopping by. Au Vendredi!
* * *
[1] Which, like the name “Easter,” was appropriated by early Christians from Celtic, Germanic and Pagan cultures.
[2] Many religious or cultural holidays use a particular culture’s ancient lunar – rather than the contemporary Gregorian – calendar, and so their date(s) vary from year to year.
[3] I would add, “or any religion” when it comes to being nebulous.
[4] Those who are open about being religion-free face “intense prejudice” in this country.
[5] A recurring feature of this blog, since week 1 of April 2020, wherein moiself decided that moiself would go themes as listed in the 4-3-20 blog.
* Abject Failure: I’ll make a canned wieners & SpaghettiOs gelatin mold before I make this recipe again * Tolerable: if you have the proper…attitude. * Yep: why, sure, I’d share this with my cat. * Now you’re talkin’: Abby the support Avocado ® approves. * Yummers: So good, it merits The Purple Tortilla Chip Of Exclamation ® !
Department of War Is Hell (And Also Entertaining, In A Masterpiece Theatre Production)
MH and I watched season 1 of World on Fire, “an adrenalized, emotionally gripping and resonant World War II drama that follows the intertwining fates of ordinary people in five countries as they grapple with the effects of the war on their everyday lives.” Which is * exactly * how I was going to describe it to y’all, until Masterpiece Theatre’s website did it first and saved me the trouble of using terms like resonant.
The seven part series, which follows the first year of (the European experience of) WWII, left us looking forward to the second season (not yet available, but in the works). Moiself of course wants to see how the *intertwining fates of ordinary people* plays out; also, I’m curious to see if something moiself noticed, about the presentation of the series’ male and female characters’ personalities, continues into season two.
With the exception of an endearingly awkward, ethically decent RAF pilot and a shell-shocked WWI vet-turned-pacifist-activist, the male characters seemed rather and variously “weak” when it came to overall content of character, from their decision-making, treatment of others, and ability to act on – and modify, as circumstances dictated – their principles. In contrast, the majority of the female characters, no matter their economic, personal, and cultural backgrounds, displayed a certain ethical, temperamental and intellectual strength, despite the chaos and amorality of the war around them. I wanted to ask the writers and producers, was this gender character discrepancy intentional?
I’m thinking, yes…or at least, maybe…and that it is,at least in part meant to ironically highlight the strength of the women of that time and in those countries, wherein they were viewed as the “weaker” sex. In so many, many ways (ways that still are in place, around the world), women, indeed, were “weaker” than their male counterparts:
* Women were “weaker” in that being born female automatically assigned them to a lower status in their country, their religion, their own family;
* Women were “weaker” in that they had fewer (if any, in some cases) civil rights or personal, professional, educational opportunities as compared to men, yet they were subject to life-altering decisions imposed upon them by (male) politicians, religious and cultural leaders, as well as that of their own and husbands, fathers, and male kin;
* Women were “weaker” in that their opportunities for self-determination were limited, and if somehow they were able to take direct action they had to do so at the sacrifice of what was considered a normal life and risk incurring societal shaming and ostracizing;
* Women were “weaker” in that the personal life choices both men and woman made had very different consequences for women than for men (e.g. extramarital sex; bearing vs. fathering a child out of wedlock).
* * *
Department Of Talking Back To Someone Who Can’t Hear Me
Dateline: last week, circa 7:45 am on a rainy morning. Moiself is listening to a Fresh Air podcast during my morning walk. I’m at the end of the podcast, a slot typically reserved for a book, film or other artistic review. As book critic Maureen Corrigan begins her segment on “Need A Mental Escape? These Books Offer Solace In Troubled Times,” my mind begins to drift. I’m snapped back to the present when I hear Corrigan, speaking about who she thinks of when she thinks about her favorite food writers, say that she always thinks of:
“…the immortal Laurie Colwin, who died in 1992.
With only the raindrops splashing up from the street to hear me, I blurt out:
“Well then, she wasn’t exactly immortal, was she?”
* * *
Department Of Sometimes I Don’t Even Ask, “What?” (Or, “Why?”)
Sight of the week, spotted at the entrance to our cul-de-sac, while moiself is driving to the grocery store: An Older Gentleman (late 70s, I’d guess), is standing on our street corner, talking to a neighbor (they are a bit closer to each other than social distancing norms would recommend, and neither is wearing a mask).
As I round approach and then round the corner I see that the OG is holding a…gas dispenser nozzle? Yep, that’s what it is…in each hand. OG (consciously or otherwise) uses the nozzles to gesture as he speaks. Neither nozzle is attached to a hose, or anything else – they are just nozzles, no gas tank or gas station in sight.
“For the last time, Regular or premium, and do you want your receipt?!”
* * *
Department Of Excuses In The Coronavirus Age
My late mother [1] was born and raised in the small northern Minnesota town of Cass Lake. A reserved, studious, compliant child, she was never what I would (nor she did) describe as introspective or particularly perceptive. Still, every now and then she’d share with me an anecdote from her childhood which demonstrated, even when it was not the point of the story, that she was paying attention to the world of grown-ups around her, and not always liking or respecting what she saw.
Mom was in her early teens during the WWII era. One time when I asked her to recount some of her wartime memories, the first thing she told me was how she’d noticed that so many of the townsfolk, from merchants to private citizens, used The War ® as an all-purpose excuse or evasion for their mistakes, oversights, and outright incompetencies.
Cass Lake was far off the national defense radar; the town was not a hub or conduit for anything of vital importance [2] for The War Effort. ® Of course, there was rationing of certain goods (e.g., gasoline, butter, sugar, canned milk) and shortages of others (e.g., automobile tires; shoe soles, and other rubber items), like in all towns across the country. Everyone knew this and adjusted their habits and expectations accordingly. But when your mother asked you to stop on your way home from school at the five and dime store and get a spool of (non-rationed) black thread and the shopkeeper told you he was out of black thread but would put in an order and he’d have it next Tuesday…then when you went to the store on Tuesday and there was still no black thread and you timidly inquired as to when your mother could expect it to be in, the shopkeeper would glare at you and dismissively whine,
“Don’t your folks know there’s a war on?”
War on- schmoron. You found out later (from a classmate who had an after-school job in the store’s stockroom) that the shopkeeper had written up his re-supply invoices just before closing time, that very day of your first visit – after he’d taken a late lunch (read: three whiskeys) at the tavern. He’d simply forgotten to include your order, as well as the orders of several other customers, who also found out on Tuesday that the ______ (shoelaces/spatula/salt mill/cornhusker’s lotion) they’d requested were not in because,
“There’s a war on.”
The town’s lone barber station was closed for four hours one Friday afternoon, during your father’s regularly scheduled 2 pm appointment. It was a sunny day; business was slow, and the barber wanted to go fishing during lunch and stayed at the pond later than he’d planned. The next day, when your father complained to the barber about leaving work and showing up for his appointment only to find that there was no one there to trim his hair, guess what he heard:
“Don’t you know there’s a war on?”
The one movie theater in town oversold their Saturday matinee. You and your friend bought tickets to the show but could find not one empty seat in the theater, and when you returned your tickets and asked for your money back, or at least tickets to a later showing:
“Don’t you girls know there’s a war on?”
Y’all get the picture.
Nowadays, we (allegedly) peacetime Consumers ® get the you-know-what excuses, most frequently encountered when we are put on hold during telephone calls (and we’re making more calls then we used to, what with sheltering-at-home and not taking our concerns directly to the businesses and organizations) to customer service lines.
First, there are the two customary/introductory lies which accompany our journey to the call waiting queue:
* “We’re experiencing a higher volume of calls than usual…” (WTF, customer service voice dude!? This is your default/standard message, no matter what day/time of day I call – which means that since you are *always* experiencing a “higher” volume of calls, by definition you are experiencing just a normal volume of calls…which you can’t admit and so you feed me this bullshit line, trying to get me to imagine 500 people calling at the same time as moiself instead of admitting you don’t have the staff to handle a normal amount of customer calls.)
* “We thank you for your patience.” (Ahem. I do *not* thank you for your presumption. We’ve never met; you haven’t even spoken with me, yet you are thanking me for my temperament, when I am not in fact experiencing anything resembling patience.)
Now we move on the Situation Specific Mendacity:
* “Due to the coronavirus, we are ______________
* “…taking extra precautions with your newspaper production and delivery…”
* “…dealing with customers who have extra concerns about our services, and we are doing our utmost to ensure that…”
Attention, companies: unless you are a health care business, you can’t use the virus as an excuse for putting us in the same holding pattern you’ve been using FOR YEARS.
No, no, and no – the coronavirus has nothing to do with ourcellphone family plan you altered with neither my request nor permission…. And people are not calling your newspaper’s customer service subscription info line to ask about COVID-19 symptoms…nor are they waiting to speak with a Target customer returns representative about how best to administer the Presidentially-recommended COVID-killing bleach enema…. The timeliness and accuracy, or lack thereof, of your responses to our concerns have to nothing to do with COVID-19, and your call centers/customer service department employees are perfectly capable of lying to us/not listening to our complaints working from home, so don’t be using this as yet another excuse for your ineptitude.
* * *
Department of The Corona Virus Playlist The Weird Al Yankovic Edition
Moiselfhas listed some of Weird Al’s song titles which are IMHO, applicable to our social-isolating, transmission–paranoid, COVID-19 times, and which, in small groupings, imply a related story. If I were making a movie of these times, Weird Al might just be the person I’d tap to do the soundtrack.
Germs Cable Tv I Can’t Watch This Callin’ In Sick The Saga Begins
Stuck In A Closet With Vanna White Amish Paradise Laundry Day I’m So Sick Of You I Was Only Kidding
Livin’ In The Fridge Free Delivery Girls Just Want To Have Lunch Fast Food
I Love Rocky Road Rice, Rice Baby Snack All Night Fat Fatter You Don’t Love Me Anymore Won’t Eat Prunes Again
Everything You Know Is Wrong Dare To Be Stupid I’ll Be Mellow When I’m Dead Mr. Frump In The Iron Lung
* * *
Pun For The Day
Did you hear about the cross-eyed teacher who lost her job because she couldn’t control her pupils?
May you enjoy the petty pleasure of talking back to those who can’t hear you; May you not accept “coronavirus” excuses for non-coronavirus issues; May you remember to be mellow when you’re dead; …and may the hijinks ensue.
Thanks for stopping by. Au Vendredi!
* * *
[1] Late as in deceased, not as in chronically tardy.
[2] Except of course for the young men (and women) who joined the Armed Forces – thank you for your service (oh…yeah…they’re all dead now…it’s just a reflex, ya know?).
[3] A recurring feature of this blog, since week 1 of April 2020, wherein moiself decided that moiself would go themes as listed in the 4-3-20 blog.
Active, reliable, sarcastic, affectionate, bipedal, cynical optimist, writer, freethinker, parent, spouse and friend, I am generous with my handy supply of ADA-approved spearmint gum and sometimes refrain from humming in public.