The same message for women in the media - be pretty!

I just watched a Chevrolet commercial on television. The message of the spot (besides selling Chevrolets) was that parents are role models. However, most of the adults in the ad were men who were going about town, meeting other men, presumably doing business and enjoying the day, while the sole woman in the ad is shown putting on lipstick in the mirror while her small daughter helps her. Underlying message, women-your job is to look pretty and that message is being passed on to the young girl in the ad. How far women have come! Look at the women's magazines from the 1960's and 1970's. They were overrun with articles about looks, taking care of your skin, aging well, keeping the weight off and pleasing your man. Fast forward to today's magazines and a quick perusal of the magazine rack shows articles for woman about aging well, beauty tips, losing weight and pleasing your man. Yep, we've come a long way, baby. While watching the Queen Latifah show, I listened to a young female performer talk about how important the inside was and then followed that by talking about how long it took to get made up in the morning. "I don't look like this when I get up." I am tired of the message that the media sends out to the universe that the most important thing a woman can do is look pretty, that her value is directly related to having a man, that single women who are independent and are not in a relationship are not complete and must be unhappy and unfulfilled. Not every woman is meant to be a mother. Freud was wrong, biology is NOT destiny. So why hasn't the media changed their message? Or have we come so far and changed so little? Why are so many women reluctant to identify themselves as "feminist" and reject the message of job equality and equal pay? It worries me that women still are reluctant to see themselves as complete individuals. And the media still reinforces the generations old image of women as decoration pieces in a world run by men.

Battling Comcast!

Why do I feel like I am preparing for battle when I have to call one of my service providers like Comcast? I know I will be put on hold way too often. I know that I will probably have a hard time understanding at least one or more of them because of an accent and bad connection. I know that I will have to repeat my information a million times before I get anyone who can help. I have also learned that I must save everything I purchase from them online, either save the page or save a picture of the information to your clipboard and paste it into Word. I don't blame the customer representatives. They have to do a job like anyone else but I do blame the culture of screw the consumer unless or until he/she can provide proof of something. I had my bill amount changed by Comcast. When I called, I was told my promo was only for six months. I had spoken to four different people and felt I was going nowhere so I hung up. Lucky for me, I had saved the promo from November on my computer that I purchased. It said 12 months. So I called back and again, had to go through three people, giving my information to each one. Finally some person in loyalty said I had been signed up for the wrong package and would take care of it. He then said he would email me confirmation of our conversation. (By the way, I tried a recording app on my phone to record the conversation but their end is blocked out - REMINDER TO SELF: get an old fashioned mp3 recorder device for future) I am waiting for that confirmation. He asked for my email so I hope to get it. We shall see. In total, I spent 45 minutes on the phone and lost an hour of my time fighting for what I had originally agreed to. I know my bill is lower now but, I am almost tempted at then end of the year to go back to DirecTV, which was a pain to try and cancel. DirecTV didn't want to let me go. It was like a divorce, "NO! Don't leave us!" And all the deals they offered would have been great before I had decided to cancel. So why can't these cable, Internet, phone, etc. companies give us the best prices BEFORE we threaten to leave? And why can't they continue to give us the best deals just for being their customers? It feels like services don't care about us once they have us on the hook. "You know those people; they will put up with anything!" so says the service company. Only stepping in to save our account when we are at a breaking point. Service companies! Wake up. Why all the complaints online and elsewhere??? Because you treat your BEST customers, your regular customers, long-time customers like crap! Comcast has one of the lowest customer satisfaction rating. But do they care? Not that I can see it. I would love it if, for once, one of these companies said, "Hey, you have been a good, long-time customer. Here's a discount." I am not holding my breath on that one. But a customer can dream... UPDATE: Yes, I got a confirmation email which is confusing but looks like I got the right price and package this time. Of course, the email was sent to the wrong address. The service person had asked what email address to send the confirmation to and I gave him the one I use. Wouldn't you know, he sent it to the old address anyway. Why ask what address I want to use when you aren't going to listen anyway? Oh well, I hope the price will be the right one on my next bill. We will see...

tablet computers versus notebooks

So what is all the hype about tablets? They are the same price as mid-priced regular notebooks but with way less flexibility and memory. Take the example of the iPad. It costs almost $1000 with all the options and yet you can't connect it using a USB. What do you get, 16, 32 gigabytes? Yes, there are some great apps but I don't see the draw. In addition, it is awkward to hold and seems (at least to me) a bit fragile so I am reluctant to hold even a sample in the stores for long. Invideo and music. addition to the iPad there are the alternatives now being offered. But, discounting those that seem to be bargain basement knock-offs, these are all around $600 to $900. I could get a light weight computer with good review ans great customer support for that. I don't see the draw. Not yet. They will have to make them more flexible and cheaper before I will even consider one. The iPad is more like a big iPod. I already have several of those and I have a Droid phone with great apps, both playing music and movies. Tablet? No, new draw there for me. Apple and the other companies like HP will have to show me something more before I buy.

More Snow and Cold and Stupid

I really hate snow plow trucks. Now, I don't hate the person behind the wheel individually but I hate what they do when they get behind the wheel. I spend the better part of the morning clearing my driveway, got the snow blower out, used the shovel, etc. Not one hour after I was done, the plow came by and dumped a huge amount of snow back in my driveway. So I had to go out and hand shovel big chunks of snow and ice. By the end of the day I was sore from top to bottom. And if I don't get it right away, the temperature will get warmer and then colder and I will have solid chunks of ice to deal with. That is enough to rip a hole in my car's undercarriage. I know because it happened one year. I tried driving over the pile because I couldn't life the chunks of ice and that's what happened. There should be a number to call for the city to know that you are not 16 or 21 and don't have the ability to lift heavy stuff like you once did. What about old people who live by themselves, how do they deal with it? I know my Dad used to rant and rave when the plows came by. I know they don't have a lot of places to put the snow but ramming it up in a person's driveway seems sadistic.

Friday was a day off due to the weather. I did nothing but lounge around and watch TV. I kept flipping channels hoping I would find something of value. Channel flippers are eternal optimists, I think. They keep changing the channel in anticipation of finding something really entertaining or of value. Instead, what we see is reality shows everywhere. We live in an age when someone can lay claim to celebrity simply because they are a seen. Paris Hilton and any of the Kardasians, for example. Does anyone really care who they are and what they do? What do they do beside show up on TV? Then there are shows like the Amazing Race, Big Brother, Big Sister, Big Uncle and Big Aunt. Enough! Don't get me started on Bad Girls. The bad refers to their acting, their decision-making process, their language, their IQ's and their lack of ability to contribute anything positive to society except their boobs and buns.

This society has such a youth fetish and yet doesn't anyone realize that young people are the most stupid members of society? They have not had enough life experience or knowledge to make good decisions. But everyone wants youth. The young people today are so dumb. They make mistakes left and right but think they should be put on the same level as people who are older and have more day to day knowledge. But young people don't listen and reject that. I know that young people may have always felt that way but with the messages that TV and other media are giving them, it reinforces the idea that anyone who is not young and pretty is not worthwhile.

When someone young tells me, "I have the right to my opinion," I want to say, "Sure, you have the right to make yourself look stupid. But why don't you shut up for a while and listen to someone else for a change? They have been doing this longer and you may learn something if you aren't careful."

More Snow and No Snow Blower

Yep, I have no snow blower, a 50 foot driveway and a the snow is still coming down. Did I mention that I just paid to have my snow blower repaired last week and paid $100 for it?? So I shoveled. Luckily it was not heavy snow, just a lot of it. But it kept blowing and fogging up my glasses. So I took them off. Better to see things in a blur than to not see at all. And, as I look outside, the snow is coming down more with bigger flakes.

My dad is probably going home from the hospital on Monday. They wanted to keep him a little longer because of his age (92). He had a blood infection and a urinary infection. I had never heard of a blood infection. But then, I didn't talk to the doctor, just my brother and I am not sure if he got it right. My mom seems not to know anything is wrong but she is in a state that she isn't aware of a lot these days.

I am starting to feel my age. I have arthritis and tendinitis in my are and leg. (The attempts to start the snow blower didn't help that.) I should exercise more but never seem to have the time. And when I do get time, I just want to catch up on my sleep. I am getting old and set in my ways. It really kind of sucks getting old but I suppose I prefer it to the alternative.

Christmas was not what I expected.

I was awakened to a phone call yesterday morning. My dad was sick and the paramedics were taking him to the hospital. I don't know what he had but it was probably something like the flu. He was suddenly sick over night and was throwing up and couldn't get out of bed. So I drove to my parents, checked on my mom who was with her caregiver and went to the hospital. He was weak but better. He slept most of the day and my brother should be bringing him home today. I will try to drive in tomorrow to see my parents.

Then my brother and I went to my nephew's house which was huge. I had never seen this new place (this is his 3rd or 4th house) and it was gigantic. My entire house could have fit in the living and dining room. It was beautiful but I don't understand why someone buys such a house for only four people. He claimed to need that much room when his brother visits. But he has to keep up the payments and I can't imagine that is easy. If he were to lose his job or his wife would, they would be in huge debt (they may be now, I don't know.) Why do people buy so much more house than they need? Why do rich people buy expensive multi-million dollar homes? Why do some rich people have to have several? There are people without any and you get people in the world who have nothing better to do with their money than buy a castle.

The snow is coming down pretty fast right now. We will have a couple of inches before it stops. I need to shovel and get the snow blower out.

One thing I noticed yesterday when talking to my brother was how much like my dad he is. Yet he and my dad, until recently, did not get along. My brother seems to see all the negative in my dad. Okay, I agree that my dad is no angel and makes mistakes. Some of them hurt people - like me. But he is our father and he did the best he could. People are not all capable of being great parents. (That is why some people should think really carefully before becoming parents.) We can only do as well as our limitations. Some of those limitations are the result of our own parents. They were out role models (like it or not). Maybe that is why I didn't want kids. I don't think I would have been very good at being a parent. I don't have patience and tolerance. I got that from my father. But I understand my dad, I think. I "get" him in a way I don't think my brother does. But my dad can still hurt when he says or does things. Isn't that the way, parents can always hurt us the worst, especially when we care for them.

Christmas Eve

It is the night before Christmas and the wind is howling outside, reminding me of any of the old versions of "A Christmas Carol." My favorite is with Alastair Sim, which I think is the best. Nothing on TV and no major breaking stories on the news. I read a story about a woman in China who is trying to save the dogs and cats there. Seems there are no laws to protect animals in that country and cats is considered a delicacy in certain parts of China. I know from a friend that people in Korea eat dogs and try to stir them up and frighten them before they are killed to "tenderize" the meat. How cold are some people! These are companion animals who only want love and kindness from us. I don't understand people who return that kindness and love with evil. People who abuse and fight animals should have their reproductive organs removed so they are not able to procreate. I gave up meat about a month ago because it did bother my conscience. I love steak and hamburger but the thought of what animals go through to produce it made me quit. I wish I had not read that story in the news. I saw another that the Philidelphia Eagles are giving Michael Vick some kind of award for overcoming adversity. Need I say what I would like to give that coward and SOB?? Are they freaking nuts? What adversity did he overcome? He certainly was treated better than the animals he drowned, hung or beat to death. Adversity my ass! May he reap the rewards of the actions he brought on others.

Well, I am off to a very negative start tonight. But I feel not too positive anyway. Family is so difficult sometimes. Parents can be a source of steadfast strength or uncertain disappointment. I wish my father would be a little more aware of the feelings of other people. But then, maybe I am just like him. I feel like I am losing him to the others and he doesn't seem to see it or care. Growing older sucks! But I supposed he would say the same.

I guess I feel pretty much alone. I suppose that is of my own making but when you don't have kids and a family around, it just makes all of that alone feeling more so. I feel like the world is going on around me and it would probably go on without the blink of an eye if I wasn't here. Have I made a contribution to anything? I assume I have but don't always feel or see the results of that contribution to clearly. And of course, it is the holidays so everyone is supposed to be happy. I don't do happy well. I am a somewhat morose personality. I don't see the glass have full but I pretend I do because others expect or desire you to. They want others to be happy or put on a happy face. Underneath the happy face is not so much happy. I think the best I can do is be content. There are times when I am content. That will have to do.