P!nk

I received the gift of music for Valentine's Day from M (iTunes card) so I had my son download a number of favorite tunes. One of them was by P!nk. I'd forgotten how much I liked her music and her smartass way of taking things on. The more I thought about her music choices and lyrics, the more I realized, here was a very overlooked artist. Unlike a lot of young musicians, she doesn't sing just about sex, partying and getting lucky. Although her first song, "Let's Get This Party Started" would have made you think she would be like all the rest. No, somewhere along the way, she veered off the beaten path, avoided the whole plastic Barbie Doll singer routine and forged her own path, that of an intelligent, assertive woman, singing about things more important to her than looks, clothes and guys. Below are some of my favorite P!nk songs. Listen to the words and tell me what you think. P!nk's Official Website

Her breakout hit when she first came on the scene: Let's Get This Party Started

Just Like A Pill I think the thing I like about her music is that she's paying attention. She's seeing contradictions, absurdities and trying to figure things out, just like we all are.

Family Portrait If you ever wondered at the pain and scars children get from a dysfunctional family, P!nk carried hers into adulthood and put them in a song.

This song is entitled, "U and Ur Hand" which needs no explanation. You might want to go to YouTube to see the original video for this song. I like it better than this disco remix. U and Ur Hand original video


You'll have to click on this link and go to YouTube to see this video, but I think the video really demonstrates P!nk's take on the absurdity of how girls behave for attention.Stupid Girls video


This is one of her more politically thoughtful.

Feel Good Friday

Thanks to Tess for giving me something to laugh about today!

Friday Rant

Utah State Sen. Chris Buttars

It seems that the above Utah State Senator has figured out what is wrong with this country. It's not the weakest economy in 80 years. It's not widespread layoffs, bank collapses, meltdowns in the auto industry or a housing crisis. No, the greatest threat to America is gay people. These guys are obsessed! Leave us alone. We're highly educated, law abiding, tax paying citizens.

I think the scarier threat to America is churches and how they're destroying this country with their hate messages and intimidation tactics. Also, the other scary threat to America is State Representatives who can't speak proper English. "What is the morals of a gay person" Senator Buttars?! Their morals ARE love of God, country, family, friends, neighbors and a willingness to work to make the world better rather than spreading hate messages.



Here's Senator Buttars' comments on the gay threat.

OMG

Are people really as ridiculous as they appear in print? Here are two stories that stunned me this morning:

The economy is getting tough all over. So a married Chinese businessman decides he needs to downsize and get rid of 3 of his 4 mistresses. He holds a contest to decide which one to keep. The first one elminated tries to kill the others as well as the businessman. End game - first mistress dead, all others injured. Businessman has now been left by wife and all mistresses. What was he thinking?!Chinese Mistress Exacts Revenge

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

So a Muslim businessman decides to found a t.v. station whose whole purpose is aimed at countering Muslim stereotypes, you know them, covering the women from head-to-toe, violence toward women who don't submit, etc. What does he become most famous for? Beheading his wife because she wouldn't submit. She filed for divorce. Muslim Exec Beheads Wife

What is wrong with people?

Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream

My friend sent me the following. Thought's I'd share it. Hope one of the flavors makes you laugh.

Ben & Jerry created "Yes Pecan!" ice cream flavor for Obama. They then asked people to fill in the blank to the following:
For George W. Bush, we should create "_________".

Here are some of their favorite responses:

1. Grape Depression
2. Abu Grape
3. Cluster Fudge
4. Nut'n Accomplished
5. Iraqi Road
6. Chock 'n Awe
7. WireTapioca
8. Impeach Cobbler
9. Guantanmallow
10. imPeachmint
11. Good Riddance You Lousy Motherfucker… Swirl
12. Heck of a Job, Brownie!
13. Neocon Politan
14. RockyRoad to Fascism
15. The Reese's-cession
16. Cookie D'oh!
17. The Housing Crunch
18. Nougalar Proliferation
19. Death by Chocolate… and Torture
20. Credit Crunch
21.. Country Pumpkin
22. Chunky Monkey in Chief
23. George Bush Doesn't Care About Dark Chocolate
24. WM Delicious
25. Chocolate Chimp
26. Bloody Sundae
27. Caramel Preemptive Stripe
28. I broke the law and am responsible for the deaths of
thousands…with nuts

Hold On - Spring Is Coming!

So I've been watching the leaves of some of my Daffodils, Tulips and other unknown bulbs slowly popping their heads up through the ground. I know Spring is coming, I just know it! This weekend was gorgeous, cool, crisp and very sunny. The Ivy has started growing in the side yard again and for right now, I'm ripping it up as fast as it comes up, which isn't too fast. I know soon the weeds will arrive and M will begin planning her garden and digging up the side yard again. I've changed my header (above) to a picture of the Cherry Blossoms in Washington, D.C. in honor of Spring coming.


Did you know there's actually a piece of classical music for Spring? It's jaunty like a lively new bunny in the Spring. Get in the mood, because contrary to the snow on the ground and the temperatures outside - SPRING IS COMING!!

Just When You Thought It Couldn't Get Any Weirder

So we have heard recently that the Octo-mom said she wasn't receiving any government support for her first six children, even though she's unemployed. Turns out she was lying, she gets Food Stamps and Disability Checks for two of the first six kids. She doesn't believe Food Stamps and Disability Checks are "welfare." She's playing a game of semantics.

When I first saw her interview I commented to M, "wow, look at her lips and mouth area, it doesn't move. She's had some work done." Where she gets all the money to have plastic surgery and in vitro fertilization is beyond me.


Now, take a look at her before and after shots. She's looking more and more like Angelina Jolie. When asked if she'd altered her appearance, she claims she has not. When asked if she has a thing for Angelina Jolie she claims she doesn't think about her other than when she watches a movie with her in it. Angelina Jolie's rep said they have received a number of "flattering" letters from Octo-mom in the past. Oops, caught in another lie. I'm really getting scared for the welfare of these 14 kids.

Supposedly others in the media have caught on and Saturday Night Live did a skit on Octo-mom and paired it with a visit from "Angelina."





Here's the interview with Octo-mom to hear her own words. What do you think? Is she nuts?

Tribute to the Vanity Fair Questionairre

On a much lighter note than my recent posts, I decided to be a celebrity for five minutes. I regularly read Vanity Fair and one of my favorite parts is the Proust Questionnaire at the back. I like to wonder how I would answer: deeply, sarcastically, wittily? Well I will wonder no longer. Here's the quiz and my answers. Feel free to answer the quiz on your blogs or share your answers here in the comments.

1. What is your idea of perfect happiness?
Sleeping in on a Sunday, waking up to a clean house, the sound of thunder and rain, the smell of breakfast cooking, and knowing I can lounge around all day reading a good book.

2. What is your greatest fear?
Harm coming to anyone I love.

3. Which living person do you most admire?
The mom and/or dad, holding down multiple jobs, struggling to survive, but getting up every day and doing it all over again because they want something better for their kids. Also, the reporters and political activists in third world nations who regularly risk their lives for an idea of what life should be like.

4. Which living person do you most despise?
Child molesters, Dictators, Bullies

5. What is your greatest extravagance?
Eating out.

6. What do you consider the most overrated virtue? Piety.

7. On what occasion do you lie?
Anytime I'm supposed to be more polite than honest.

8. What do you dislike most about your appearance? My weight.

9. What is the quality you most like in a man? Kindness.

10. What is the quality you most like in a woman? Kindness.

11. Which words or phrases do you most overuse? Huh? // F@!& it. // Suck it up and just do it! (Obviously not all at the same time.)

12. What or who is the greatest love of your life? M, definitely M.

13. When and where were you happiest?
Vancouver, BC, Canada, July 2, 1993, the day of the epiphany.

14. Which talent would you most like to have? To be able to sing in front of people.

15. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? My weight.

16. What do you consider your greatest achievement? My two children. I like them as people, imperfections and all.

17. What is your most treasured possession? My poetry.

18. What do you most value in your friends? Their patience with me.

19. What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery? Suicidal depression and self-loathing

20. What is your favorite occupation?
Writer

21. What is your most marked characteristic? My voice. I'm told it's distinctive and memorable. Go figure.

22. Who are your favorite writers? Emily Dickinson, Christina Rossetti, Taylor Caldwell, and Diana Gabaldon

23. Who is your favorite hero of fiction? Red Jamie of course! James Fraser, the Scottish Highlander

24. Which historical figure do you most identify with? It used to be Emily Dickinson, but then I realized I couldn't afford to be an eccentric hermit and got over myself.

25. What is your greatest regret? Wasting time not getting my education sooner and wasting time in relationships with people not good for me.

26. What is your motto? Suck it up and just do it.

27. If you were to die and come back as a person or thing, what do you think it would be? A dog owned by a very rich, very kind, dog lover.

It's not Pedophelia, it's my religion!

Not too long ago we had the story about our homegrown Polygamous sects marrying child brides, not to be outdone, Muslim men in Saudi Arabia are doing the same thing.

I hate the way females are mistreated around the world. All these empty justifications (religion, culture, etc.) for why men use and abuse females is just so much bullshit. They rape, molest, beat, abuse, own females, because it pleasures some warped area inside them. Then they hide behind religions and societal customs to get away with it.

Of course, they'd never stand for males to be treated this way; males are superior, ordained by God to have dominion over all creation, females included. Convenient that all that BS was written by men.

When I see religions or cultures where half the population is devalued, abused, held back, it just reveals the ignorance of the men. How can you be a successful society or religion with one hand tied behind your back? That's basically what they're doing when they limit half their population from contributing to their society.

Oh, they'll say the females contribute, they keep the home, they bear and raise the children, and they'll elevate those contributions as high as they can to hide the devalued status of females in their group.

Females don't need to be educated, they don't need to vote, they don't need to choose their careers or marital status. They don't "need" that because the males don't want them to have that. I'm sure the males are afraid they couldn't pull this crap on an educated population. They'd have a hard time justifying all the abuse under a critical, educated eye that's free to leave if they don't like the culture/religion.

If guys think their society/religion that devalues women is so great, let them live like that and see how they like it. This is not a well thought out rant, just a venting after watching the video about the 8 year old being married to a 47 year old man. How many of you believe he'll keep his promise not to have sex with her until she reaches puberty and if puberty comes at age 12, then it's okay for a 51 year old man to have sex with a child? What kind of religion is this?!

I Am Completely Freaked Out

Okay, so my sister sends me this video and I am stunned by what I see. It has to be a prank, some digital trickery. So I go on-line to check Snopes and see if it's a fake. I couldn't find anything about it being a fake. The most I came up with is this was real. It happened in Chile and a traffic camera or someone on the highway manning the traffic cam caught it and zoomed in on it.

Now when you watch this, it's not out of the realm of possibility that one animal will save another animal. We've seen this many times in various situations. What's really freaked me out is how this is happening. Watch this video closely. A dog gets hit by a car and is lying on the highway with traffic swerving around him trying not to hit him again. Everything normal and predictable so far.

Next, another dog comes along to try and save him. This is where it gets freaky. The second dog doesn't just bite onto the collar of the first dog and try to drag him out of there, no, the second dog uses his paws and legs like arms and hands, getting up under the first dog's front legs and tries to drag him out of the roadway.

To make it even more freaky. The second dog savior, continuously looks left, right and behind to make sure he's not going to get hit by a car while dragging the first dog off the highway. I REALLY want to know what was going through that dog's head to make him so human-like in his mannerisms. Watch the video and tell me what you think.

A Song That Always Makes Me Smile

I heard this song years ago and just stumbled upon it again. I laugh every time I hear it. Hope it brings a shine to your day!

The Mom Song

M's mom sent me "The Mom Song." I couldn't post the version she sent, but I found a similar one on YouTube. It's great. While getting this video clip I spotted the Kid's reply. It's not as good, starts out rocky, but gets some good licks in there in the middle. Enjoy.

"Supermom" Update

This story says she's unemployed and looking for endorsement deals. The story just keeps getting more bizarre.

It's All Fine And Dandy, But...

So I'm reading the morning news on the CNN website like I do every morning and I come across the headline "Afghan farmers give up opium for wheat." I think, "yes, finally." So I clicked on the story but then realized it wasn't what I expected. CNN Story

Afghan farmers began growing poppies for one of two reasons: (1) Opium was more valuable than grain so they could make more money off of it, and/or (2) They were forced by the Taliban to grow opium because that's where the Taliban got their funds to operate.

So when I saw the headline, I thought one or two things might have happened: (1) People were starving making grain more valuable than poppies, and/or (2) The Taliban had been pushed out of areas making it possible for farmers to grow other crops. Neither of these things have happened.

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has been giving farmers seeds and fertilizers, plus helping them with irrigation. Okay, that's good, but what's to stop the Taliban from coming in and destroying the crops or terrorizing these people if they don't grow poppies for the Taliban? What's to prevent these farmers from going back to growing poppies if they discover there's more money to be had growing the more lucrative crop?

This is about survival for these people. They make so little money to survive on that they have to grow the most profitable crop. They also need to live and if they have to choose between being attacked and killed by the Taliban or cooperating with them, you can predict which choice they will make.

I got the impression that this change-over is happening in relatively safe areas, but there was no mention that the Taliban had been irradicated from these areas. If we know nothing else about the Taliban, we should know, they are persistent and they don't just go away. They regroup and return. There are no easy answers, are there?