Every once in a while I will experience or see something in my cultural environment upon which I feel compelled to comment. Sometimes it will be a rant, sometimes a rave.
First, a rant. I went mall shopping with my eleven year old daughter last weekend. It was a right of passage of sorts. This was the first time that she and I had a date together, by ourselves - she has a twin brother- in which we were going to the mall. Even though I have mixed feelings about using shopping as a bonding experience with my kids, gosh darn it, it works and I know that as they get older it will be something that I can utilize as a way of connecting with them.
Anyway, my daughter and I were in pursuit of a pair of skinny jeans and a new sweat shirt. We went to Macy's, JC Penny's and Sears. I was getting more and more irritated as went through the clothes for girls 7 through 14 at these stores and was exposed to the lack of choice. I am not exaggerating when I say (because I started keeping track) - that at least 75% of the clothing, both pants and tops had either hearts, peace signs or both on them.
Can any one out there tell me why besides the fact that the fashion of the day is a bit retro 70's hippie?
I thought about the subtle cultural messages that this conveys to girls who are on the verge of adolescence: Don't speak up in class, be nice, keep the peace even if it is at the expense of something you feel strongly about, don't speak up, don't be "feisty," suppress your anger, keep a smile on your face no matter what.
Why don't boys have hearts and peace signs? Boys are the ones that really need to learn the lessons that these culture symbols teach us.
If boys clothing were inundated with peace signs and hearts perhaps their would be less bullying on the playgrounds, less fighting, less put downs, more true heart connections, more hugging, less homophobia.
Most importantly, if boys had peace signs and hearts on their clothing, when they grew up maybe there would be NO WAR!!!
Saturday, February 27, 2010
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Crazy- if I didn't give Jeff Bridges an Oscar- or is it?
Oscar Talk:
At this point it seems to be all about Jeff Bridges needing to get that OSCAR in his hands and finally put to rest the "most underrated American actor" moniker to rest. I thought that he was a shoe in after seeing Crazy Heart- the "it almost went straight to DVD, low budget with BIG acting chops and GREAT music, little film" that could movie. But then I saw Colin Firth in A Single Man. More on that later.
In Crazy Heart, starring Jeff Bridges, Maggie Gyllenhal, Colin Farrell, and Robert Duval, we are at our most voyeuristic in that we are "forced" to follow Jeff Bridges' "Bad" character around as he drinks, throws up, smokes, looks like death warmed over and in between, sings some fantastic songs at broken down, end of the line joints. "Bad," as he calls himself and claims as his name until the writing on his tombstone proves otherwise, is a master song writer and massively charming alcoholic. (Don't we all know a few of those- at least the charming alcoholic part...:)
His character was utterly believable and yet I was always aware that this is Jeff Bridges, my favorite actor, playing a f**ked up, washed up alcoholic.
I do not think this is necessarily a drawback to enjoying and appreciating an actor's performance. Often it is WHY we go see a particular movie- to see an actor do what s/he does very well. In this case though it was a problem- a big problem. I could not get past a young beautiful smart sexy woman falling for Bad- except for the fact that it was Bad played by the stunning Jeff Bridges. Is it cynical? Perhaps, but as I became a spectator to the sport of falling for baddies, all I could think of was, "heck ya, I'd do him too if he was in fact Jeff Bridges!" And that kind of took away from the overall effectiveness for me. That, and the phone booth in the middle of the desert on the side of an empty road. Oh and yes, not enough screen time for Mr. Farrell. Mr. Bridges- you rock but if I had to pick between you and Mr. Firth... I don't know. Its close. Very close. Are you going to be watching the Oscars? But it's all about being honored just to be nominated with and by your peers, right? Go Ms. Bigelow!
At this point it seems to be all about Jeff Bridges needing to get that OSCAR in his hands and finally put to rest the "most underrated American actor" moniker to rest. I thought that he was a shoe in after seeing Crazy Heart- the "it almost went straight to DVD, low budget with BIG acting chops and GREAT music, little film" that could movie. But then I saw Colin Firth in A Single Man. More on that later.
In Crazy Heart, starring Jeff Bridges, Maggie Gyllenhal, Colin Farrell, and Robert Duval, we are at our most voyeuristic in that we are "forced" to follow Jeff Bridges' "Bad" character around as he drinks, throws up, smokes, looks like death warmed over and in between, sings some fantastic songs at broken down, end of the line joints. "Bad," as he calls himself and claims as his name until the writing on his tombstone proves otherwise, is a master song writer and massively charming alcoholic. (Don't we all know a few of those- at least the charming alcoholic part...:)
His character was utterly believable and yet I was always aware that this is Jeff Bridges, my favorite actor, playing a f**ked up, washed up alcoholic.
I do not think this is necessarily a drawback to enjoying and appreciating an actor's performance. Often it is WHY we go see a particular movie- to see an actor do what s/he does very well. In this case though it was a problem- a big problem. I could not get past a young beautiful smart sexy woman falling for Bad- except for the fact that it was Bad played by the stunning Jeff Bridges. Is it cynical? Perhaps, but as I became a spectator to the sport of falling for baddies, all I could think of was, "heck ya, I'd do him too if he was in fact Jeff Bridges!" And that kind of took away from the overall effectiveness for me. That, and the phone booth in the middle of the desert on the side of an empty road. Oh and yes, not enough screen time for Mr. Farrell. Mr. Bridges- you rock but if I had to pick between you and Mr. Firth... I don't know. Its close. Very close. Are you going to be watching the Oscars? But it's all about being honored just to be nominated with and by your peers, right? Go Ms. Bigelow!
Friday, February 5, 2010
Crazy Heart No One Says No to JB (and I don't mean Jim Beam) or Do They
Stay tuned- review is forthcoming. Must say though that my absolutely favorite thing to do is go the movies by myself, on a weekday. Preferably starting before noon. What a privilege...
Question: What is the Ultimate Road Movie? Answer: Seriously? What a dumb question.
My husband and I are going away for five precious days next week. Alone. No kids. Just us. We haven't been away for more than one night since we moved to California two and a half years ago. This is a big deal.
One thing that you may not know about me is that I am a BIG planner. I like to know where I am going and where I have been. Controlling? Perhaps. Comforting, albeit falsely? You bet. I have planned every one of our trips together over the last 15 years. And I was set to plan this one. We were going to drive to Palm Springs and stay in a mid century modern hotel- The Viceroy- sleep in, get couple massages, go on hikes in the desert, and eat fine foods.
I don't know what came over me but I asked Graydon (the husband), hey, if we were to put that big foam pad in the back of the van, would I be able to have a great night's sleep? Oh, besides being a planner, I MUST have my sleep. And I MUST have a comfortable bed to do so. I am envious of those who can sleep anywhere (and I am surrounded by such people). I asked also if he would love it if we would just take off and sleep in the van and go where the wind take takes us. Yes, he said he would love it except that he would be worried about me not being OK with it. "Oh," I said, don't worry about me. It will be great. Well guess what? I lied! You better start worrying. I am already starting to get a pain in my neck for the anticipated bad night's sleep and the not knowing where I am going- I am going to the chiropractor today as a preventative measure for the crick in my neck that I know I am going to get...
Where am I going to get the courage, how will I build up the mental stamina, and how will I best relax into this new place of not knowing, not planning and grandiose sense of freedom? At the movies of course. In order to best create the attitude adjustment needed to embrace the the excitement and seduction of the unknown I am revisiting... the ultimate road movie. The following, in order from first to last, is not the normal alphabetical or by year. No, this list represents a continium of romance, fantasy, hope, love, promise, liberation, sociopathy, freedom, apocalypse, adrenaline, action and horror. I will leave it to you, dear reader to label each according to your own life experiences. All available on DVD through Netflix.
It Happened One Night
Badlands
Bonnie and Clyde
Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore
Easy Rider
Thelma and Louise
Motorcycle Diaries
The Road Warrior
Paris, Texas
Borat
One thing that you may not know about me is that I am a BIG planner. I like to know where I am going and where I have been. Controlling? Perhaps. Comforting, albeit falsely? You bet. I have planned every one of our trips together over the last 15 years. And I was set to plan this one. We were going to drive to Palm Springs and stay in a mid century modern hotel- The Viceroy- sleep in, get couple massages, go on hikes in the desert, and eat fine foods.
I don't know what came over me but I asked Graydon (the husband), hey, if we were to put that big foam pad in the back of the van, would I be able to have a great night's sleep? Oh, besides being a planner, I MUST have my sleep. And I MUST have a comfortable bed to do so. I am envious of those who can sleep anywhere (and I am surrounded by such people). I asked also if he would love it if we would just take off and sleep in the van and go where the wind take takes us. Yes, he said he would love it except that he would be worried about me not being OK with it. "Oh," I said, don't worry about me. It will be great. Well guess what? I lied! You better start worrying. I am already starting to get a pain in my neck for the anticipated bad night's sleep and the not knowing where I am going- I am going to the chiropractor today as a preventative measure for the crick in my neck that I know I am going to get...
Where am I going to get the courage, how will I build up the mental stamina, and how will I best relax into this new place of not knowing, not planning and grandiose sense of freedom? At the movies of course. In order to best create the attitude adjustment needed to embrace the the excitement and seduction of the unknown I am revisiting... the ultimate road movie. The following, in order from first to last, is not the normal alphabetical or by year. No, this list represents a continium of romance, fantasy, hope, love, promise, liberation, sociopathy, freedom, apocalypse, adrenaline, action and horror. I will leave it to you, dear reader to label each according to your own life experiences. All available on DVD through Netflix.
It Happened One Night
Badlands
Bonnie and Clyde
Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore
Easy Rider
Thelma and Louise
Motorcycle Diaries
The Road Warrior
Paris, Texas
Borat
Damsels in Distress, Bozos in Heat
Check out this well written and entertaining article about the gender-fication of two cable television channels:
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/31/arts/television/31sexes.htm
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/31/arts/television/31sexes.htm
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