Rant: Vive le stupide : What we say about first ladies and ANTM 's

What do Michelle Obama, Carla Bruni-Sarkozy and America's Next Top Model ladies have in common?
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Like anyone else, I too am interested in fashion and what looks nice. From time to time I criticize what others choose to wear as well (okay, okay more than from time to time). But I cannot look at two first ladies and think "Who won?" Do I really care what first lady was wearing what? Um, that was rhetorical.

I read about which first lady kicked the other fashionista's ass and so on but I really thought that was kinda well...stupid.

Michelle wore a J crew ensemble and apparently pissed off some designers. I guess the woman thought maybe, just maybe in this economic climate it is better to not be so ostentatious. I mean, remember Marie Antoinette and the whole "Vive la revolution!" thing....yeah.....moral of the story would be don't show off in front of the the poor---okay that is not the moral but still ;)

I saw so many facebook updates and comments on "news" sites so I took a look to see the pictures of the two being all buddy buddy. Yeah, Mrs. Obama and C. Bruni looked nice. That's about it. Sheesh. Because they are women I guess we should really care who pulled off her outfit right? Please. Well there is one thing to be thankful for: a lack of Sarah Palin, can you even imagine what the articles would be like if she was VP now.

Then in the comment sections of the pages there are loads of insults and praises hurled every which way. A well known singer/songwriter was interviewed in our class the other day and he said what most smart people will tell you, people who make negative comments need to get their own damn lives. Loser jealous people---and I paraphrase. :)

This brings me to anther brief rant that has been stewing for a while. America's Next Top Model. I know everyone and their grandma watches this show--but I loathe it! I cannot help it, I am well aware I am the minority but it makes me nauseous.

Either people like watching because of the so called glitz and glamor and terrifyingly skinny pretty things or because they LOVE/CRAVE the drama. You walk by people talking about it whether at school or work and they always have something to say about the chaos that happened or which girl was better and which one cried and was told to lose weight. Seriously, for depression era comedy-esque TV is this the best we can do?

One of the major problems I see with this is many girls see these tall, stick-like creatures who happen to also be incredibly photogenic as sub human and therefore okay to mock. Is the girl too skinny or too raw in her look-at-me poses that you feel it's okay to laugh at her sad, albeit sometimes dumb, tears when her "dreams" are dashed. Or when a girl is told she needs to wax-- but really it's not hair it's anorexic down!

I won't go on. I lose. You win. It is the one of the most watched and talked about shows. Be proud.

Oh, one more question: those of you focused on political wardrobes....did you happen to hear anything in the news about Sri Lanka or the G20 summit or Afghanistan. Yeah I don't blame you for wanting to focus on frivolous stuff. I only blame you when you forget it is frivolous.
LOVE YA ;)

Today in History: no time for Bandwagons, Buzkills or Bemusement

In a theatre of over 850 people I sat and watched the inauguration of Barak Obama as 44^th president of the United States of America. I also watched the inauguration of the first African American president. What I also watched was America’s neighbour to the north react with a fervent.

This day was not just America’s. It is more than a “change” in American politics; it is historic, no matter where your views rest on the political spectrum that sadly polarizes us.

Some choose to look at Canada’s (especially Toronto’s) exuberant reaction to his presidency as another tragic element in Canada’s supposed inferiority complex. Why, they ask, are more Canadians seeming to care about what happens south of the border when we have our own political crisis’s to worry about? Why, when our own voter turn out was lower than it has been in longer than most can remember? And why, when a general malaise and apathy has caught half of our country—even during a controversial time in our parliament--does Canada care so much about this day?

I don’t pretend not to wonder about some of those things or regretfully look at the apathy here at home, but what I do see are reasons why Canada cares.

I spoke with two women at the Bloor Street Cinema while watching the inauguration. They were sisters from Barbados who are proud Canadian citizens, and yet this day was special for them. Not because of where they were born or live now, and not because they are happy to see a more “liberal” change in American politics. It was about an overwhelming joy they thought they would never have because they never thought such a day would come.

Although this day is not solely about race, it is something that can not and should not be ignored. Empathy for the tragedies that transpired years ago lead countless non African Americans, myself included, to feel a rush of emotions today.

It does not matter what one thinks of Obama’s politics, not at this moment. We will have more than enough time to critique and judge his ability to lead what is arguably the most powerful nation on earth.

I think today is for celebrating, not commenting on how Obama could be a “neoconservative” in Canadian political terms and comparing him to Stephen Harper in a derogatory way (as was done in a piece in the Toronto Star) or trying to figure out why we in Canada seem to have neglected much of what is happening here at home.

What happens to America does affect the world. But more importantly, what happens anywhere on the planet that shows us as a species getting even slightly closer to living as equals should be celebrated.

It was not until today that I realized what bothered me about the whole Obama mania worldwide, it was his devout and unwavering “groupies.” They seemed to lose sight of the fact that he is a human being and not infallible; not seeing how odd and unfair it is to place so much pressure on one man. Similarly his naysayers do not realize what kind of day today actually is and how it is not the time to complain—all of that can be done tomorrow. Tomorrow we can speak of all the rest: obligations, promises, troubles, beliefs, doubts. Today we can just watch history.

Here I am.....sort of

Never fear....I will post again shortly. Yes, I am talking to you...all three of you (lol) or my many adoring fans (and rightly so)

It is just as of late I have been pondering things that are either too cliche or trivial to write down or I have thought of stuff to tenuous to post without sparking comment wars or debates--the likes of which I rather not see.

And other stuff that you can just categorize as PROCRASTINATION.

The Not-So-Great Debates

If you watched TV tonight you know that the Canadian federal English debate was up against the vice presidential debate.

If you are Canadian and only watched the American one because you have an inferiority complex, are an Obama groupie, are curious about the Palin effect, you like McCain or wonder how boring Joe Bidon might be…well, that is not a good enough excuse. But that is for another rant. Let’s talk about both of them.

Well we have certainly not come a long way from the great debate of Nixon and JFK. Maybe make up or a tan is not going to make or break it like it seemed to in the days of old but not much more can be seen in terms of progress. Oh no, wait…there is youtube type questions. Hardly more than a way to put a human face to the questions they have to answer.

Canada

What I did see was a gang bang approach to questioning Harper. What I think the other party leaders may not have realized is that this tends to work to his advantage. He may be a jerk, he may want to take a crap on artists, he may love America too much, but he is not dumb in the W sense. He knows how to talk and keep composure. Plus he is the king of condescension and trying to make the other leaders look like overly emotional prats. His smirks are irritating and he seems to look at Elizabeth May like she is the scum beneath his shoes, but the shouts of “But you did this” coming form the other leaders is also quite irritating.

Layton was not an exception. Although he is a very intelligent man with some great views sporting the only stache, he also focussed on seeing Harper’s downfall…or at least seeing his not so great of a win. However, he did get the occasional dig into Dion i.e. when he mentioned the NDP historically being the most responsible—fiscally, and then there was a mention of Bob Rae and he looked to Dion and said, ‘well now he is with you’. And he did manage to possibly plug himself and speak in third person more than any other leader.

Elizabeth May was not as dumb as her newspapers photos made her look. Sure she repeated herself at nauseum when she did not want to answer a question, but that may just mean she has truly entered the political arena. (Mind you at times it seemed like politics 101 as she incessantly cited stats and sources using them as a crutch.) However, she did know full background on issues people assumed she could not carry her weight in and she has the most excellent memory.

Stephan Dion was not laughable. He did not butcher the English language as much as critics said he would. Although I wish I was fluent in French so I could hear him sound even more competent. But common Dion, you have to stay tough. Hold on to that big boys don’t cry attitude and don’t seem so emotionally wobbly. Please mention something other than the carbon tax and please oh please do not start every argument with “As the liberals…” as if they are a divine omniscient power. Overall though, he was not as bad as everyone makes him look.

Gilles Duceppe, what can I say, he is funny. His acknowledgement that he knew full well he would not be prime minster was hilarious; as was his glancing at the others and saying three of them knew they would not either but did not want to admit it. Okay, I would not want separatist to win, after all we would need passports to go to Newfoundland  But aside from that he was more chilled out than he was four years ago as I recall him being quite red faced then. And he seems to care about what he ays he cares about and remains rather solid in that.

On a whole it seemed not much will come from the debate in the way of a radical change. Tory win, hopeful minority, Harper handled it all well but really had nothing new to add at all! Layton was good, better than Dion maybe but there may not be a change in opposition leader. The bloc dude is still funny. Oh, this time there is a lady and she is green, and pretty darn tough. WITHOUT lip stick jokes huh. Will there be more to it? It would be cool if there was. They all did okay. That would be the simple way to say it.

Lines of the night: Layton's sweater comment to Harper Duceppe saying they know they cannot be PM

America

Well, we (or they rather) have a woman who many are apparently viewing as a accessories icon and sexy librarian type (which still confuses me) who smiles way to much and can see Russia from her house :P We also have an old guy who is kind of boring and who smiles too much when he is being insulted. Wow, who would have thought—Americans smile too damn much!

Anyways, I cannot fairly assess that debate as I was concentrating on the one in my own country. But I watched part of it since they are quite the characters and what happens to the good old U.S of A affects us all. (But it was only the VP’s)

Palin: too much soccer game analogy…enough cutesy down home-ness.

Biden: general rhetoric, no that unique. Loves the word fundamental.

Both: no personal attacks I saw, but more so a lot of “your boss sucks more!”

What I can say is how anticlimactic this debate also appeared to be. What happened to the old fashioned pointing, challenging questions, and passionately yet rude interruptions? When the first U.S TV debate occurred it engrossed so many people and directly affected the outcome of the election. (Oh, the power of TV.) Alright, this was not McCain and Obama, but it was a semi-big deal. So shouldn’t it have been enticing to watch with or without a glasses clad airplane huntress? From what I saw it was the same old speeches, same old quips, and same old defences. Pretty uneventful.

Lines of the night (from what I saw): Palin: "Can I call you Joe?"
I think I agree with what Steve Pakin said at the end of the Canadian debate, something to the affect of ours was more interesting, I’m sure of it. Well, still, not great enough.

I think I may edit this and add more later on. I wrote this rather quickly…in the last five minutes or so. But for now this is the unedited commentary on the not-so-great, but more so funny and mediocre debates.

---Image taken from BBC news website----

Random-Provoked

One day this girl named Z met this girl named Y. They were both dressed very pretty in 1920's style costumes. They talked online, they commented on art and how many people suck, they went for coffee, they brought friends out to gather and have fun. Girl Y has a dog that messed up part of girl Z's family car, she nicknamed him Balls.

Z and Y are eerily alike and crazy. Girl Z is very happy to have met girl Y----crazy, artsy, pretentious at times, smart, complicated etc. All those things are okay because girl Z is all of them too.

There, did I make you happy now Anya?....You are in the blog, so now you can keep reading. :D

Focus lady, focus!

Note I am in the process of looking back and editing my previous posts-but I am not uploading yet. This may not be CP style or what not, but for now read it and pretend. :) Lazy in this way I admit that I am.

I was in a class today and someone asked who in the room had a blog? I did not turn around but apparently less people than I had expected raised their hands to indicate yes. I got that idea after the person who had asked turned directly to me and said, "So what do you write about?"

Truth be told, I was not sure how to answer that, maybe I could say:general fluff-lifestyle, rants, relationships, music, entertainment, commentary on ridiculous or non ridiculous current events.

In all honesty I never bothered to find a complete focus for this blog. I wanted a place where I could write my thoughts rather than speak them since occasionally people may not want to hear them all. (I know, how dare!) This was also to be a place where I would be encouraged to keep writing. Not because of feedback or dare I say payment (we ain't there yet), but rather, I thought that by seeing dates I had last written I would be appalled by my laziness and would feel pressure to write.

Actually some of that is a lie. That is why I write now, HOWEVER, originally I had made it so people would read it and see my general criticism of how they were acting and such without me having to confront them yet again. (Refer to the very messy, rage-filled first entry from way back-which is still unedited, sigh)

Anyways, enough about me. Okay, almost.

I was thinking after being asked that question if maybe I should focus this blog thing-a-ma-jjg more. But then I wondered where I would ever get to put random things like insulting Sharon Stone, or reviewing Batman, or talking about random musical acts. I think that part of my charm (for me at least) is that I always want to talk about a variety of things (mind you I do keep this rather light, what with big issues and serious beliefs not typically featured here) I think that maybe soon, I will get another blog that will be more focussed. Maybe then I can write things that thus far I have been saving in my mind for potential freelance work. But as of now I shall keep this relatively random--unless a great idea strikes me.

Okay, I lied....this was about me today, but I am permitted to be self centered on this webpage at least.

P.S I am still trying to think of a name change....I have yet to love one enough to commit to it yet...ideas are welcome. (A blog name, not my real name obviously)

Not a desperate believer: finding the band.....again.

"I feel so low, I feel so high....dododododo..."

Okay so I was feeling a little low and was perusing the net trying to just waste time when I came across a song by INXS, which in turn made me think of the new INXS with J.D. Fortune, which then made me want to hear one of their new songs....then, I tried to find a video on youtube for it but the song was only there played to a montage of Kalam Porter pictures (Canada's only good idol winner) and then I looked him up, and thought hmm great voice, but a face so gentle and pretty like a little innocent cherub, then that mad me think of petite pretty boys with awesome sexy voices and I thought of the good old days of Daniel Johns and Silverchair. Pheuf...there, all in one breath...that’s how I think.

So that is how I came upon Silverchair again. A while back I saw them with their 2007 new song Straight Lines, and I was like "NOOOOO" euw and quickly became apathetic to the band that I had so much adored in early high school years. Although that should have been a sure fire sign I would love it since I typically hate something or someone before I love it/them. But upon seeing them again I decided now that I love them again. How can I be so fickle you ask? Easy, I always am. :p

For one, like many of the albums (Young Modern) naysayers I thought of how incredibly different they were from their old angst ridden alt rock songs of old. But for all intents and purposes alt rock as we knew it back then is gone, so you cannot expect them to stay the same. Also how unattractive would it have been if these now 29 year olds continued to sing about parental abuse, anorexia, animal rights, suicide, and hating people, or sarcastic pseudo masochism, as they started doing at age 13. I admit, in the right mood, as I discovered while very pissed off yesterday, the old songs still work—despite what anyone says about maturity etc. Their new stuff if very different, but not worse. It is still the same trio and the same awesome voice of Daniel Johns—who does not want to seem pretty feminine anymore methinks, what with a bit more muscles, short hair, and the very odd facial hair the whole band is sporting. Good choice I think, aside from the style of face hair they chose, a general scruff would look better.

What I like about my rekindling of my love for this band is that I was not a "desperate believer" (pun on lyric intended) who wanted to be loyal to them for nostalgia's sake, I had to find my way back through new appreciation which means more I should think.

I like the new progressive, yet classic, cool, but creepy stuff that features some falsetto. I think it is a nice change and I think that I can now add them back to my facebook favourites--a true sign of real admiration and appreciation of course ;)