skip to main |
skip to sidebar
I know I've been away for a while but this past month has been a roller-coaster. Each joy has been followed by a subsequent loss and each sadness has been followed by a sudden boon. It's hard to say that I know where I'm going because I feel like I have yet to get the ground under my feet.
I've had my computer breakdown and cost hundreds to fix, I've had a (slight) promotion at work. I've had my close friends move to California, and realized that I'm drifting from others. We as a nation stood for change (Yes we DID!) but the citizens of California decided to take away the rights of others. It's been ridiculous. I've gone from dancing in the streets to feeling like I don't know which way to turn next. And feeling completely helpless to having hope.
Today, I found out that Miriam Makeba, the wonderful South African songstress, has passed. I'm bolstered by the thought that she died while doing what she loved most and that she like all the others around the globe got to witness a major turning point in not only American but global history with the election of the first Black president of the United States. I'd like to think that when one door closes, it's only brief. It's only a sign that more is to come. There's no death, without rebirth. And I'm just experiencing growing pains.
So lately I've been feeling more than little dissatisfied with The Boy. His recent actions (or inactions, really) have been driving me up the wall. After the whole exclusivity conversation, a lot of the advice was: dump him, move on or fuck someone else. Being who I am, I considered those options carefully. To be honest, the thought of ending things with him makes me physically ill. My chest kind of constricts when I think about it. But I did consider "fuck someone else" to be a viable option.
Recently, an old friend/lover/hook-up has reappeared in my life. The timing seemed fortuitous. He'd called me up a couple of times and even invited me to the club where he works to hang out. Then yesterday, he called to see if I wanted to go to dinner. Because I've had a very hectic couple of weeks, I'd planned on staying in last night, so I invited him to come over for dinner. He came over with wine and salad fixin's while I'd cooked some fish and potatoes. The stars were aligned.
We talked, watched some television and snuggled a bit before the wine took its toll and I suggested heading to bed. Now as he'd clearly spent the night at my place before and I could tell he was interested it seemed like everything was lined up for a casual night between friends ... with benefits. From the moment of the first kiss, it felt off. But I was determined to power through. I figured it was fate. I wanted to hook up with someone else but I didn't want it to be about getting back at anyone. I wanted it to happen naturally and here some higher power had dropped this situation in my lap. This was no time to turn back. But clearly, that higher power has a sense of humor. Though I was determined and eventually started to get a bit into the mood, my partner was having a down day. Way down.
I'm not exactly sure what this means. I was originally hoping that last night was a sign that things were shifting away from The Boy. Now it seems I'm right back where I started.
Every year I avoid 9/11. I either spend the majority of the day in my house watching television (something completely innocuous) or I turn off the tv and avoid major news outlets, etc. I don't like to remember that day. And it's actually a lot easier to do in California. But today I woke up and they were airing an episode of Iconoclasts* on the Sundance Channel which featured Renee Zelleweger interviewing Christian Amanpour.
They talked a lot about the news media's role in the world as truth-tellers. Obviously Amanpour is a shining example of that. They discussed Rwanda and Amanpour's personal guilt about the media not stepping in and eventually they talked about 9/11. They walked throughout the construction site for the new tower and memorial park and they discussed how the media, in deference to the experience we'd all gone through, tempered their reporting and only now were they slowly building back to the way it had been. That really made me think. Amanpour said that there was an Edward R. Murrow quote that she uses as her mantra: This instrument [television] can teach, it can illuminate; yes, and it can even inspire, but it can do so only to the extent that humans are determined to use it to those ends. Otherwise it is merely wires and lights in a box.
This quote means everything today. I think the reason why I avoid 9/11 every year is because I get so sick of seeing politicians using this medium to capitolize on a tragedy. At the same time, I'm conflicted because sometimes I use that "box" to avoid hearing or seeing anything of any significance. To be honest, I don't think the news media is getting better. I think that if The Daily Show wasn't funny (and therefore didn't pull in ratings), we wouldn't have a true unbiased news outlet. The media is supposed to act "without fear or favor". We always want to talk about how Americans have freedom of the press but do we have an unbiased press? No.
I'm not sure where or what I'll be doing next September 11th but I'm going to try not to avoid it. I hope that this country will have progressed and that journalists will be holding our government leaders accountable but mostly I hope that it won't hurt so much to remember. *If you've never seen it Iconoclasts
is a really great show that pairs celebrities with their idols to conduct an interview. One of my favorite episodes is Alicia Keys & Ruby Dee.
When I come to update my blog, I'm always unsure what to write about. There's some personal stuff on the backburner I've held off on writing about because I want to digest it myself. And then there's television, something I could go on and on about but I don't want this to become all about my entertainment obsessions. But one issue I really felt I had to address was the choice of Sarah Palin for vice presidential candidate.
I have to admit, when I first heard about Palin's candidacy, soon followed by the breaking story about her daughter's pregnancy and then capped off with her hockey-mom/pit bull quote, I was just outraged. I was caught up in the debate. Is this woman a feminist? Is she a hypocrite? Is she a victim of sexism? Et cetera, et cetera. But now that things have calmed down a bit, what I'm seeing as the biggest issue is her qualifications. Most politicians (and an extrememly high number of Republicans) are hypocrites. Whether she is or is not a feminist is a moot point. (Although I personally feel that while Palin has benefited from feminism, her policies are clearly anti-women) What is the point is that while we are being mired in these questions, no one is asking can this person (female or male) do the job? Is she qualified to hold the second highest position in this NATION? That is not something to be taken lightly.
Palin attended numerous schools throughout her college education, moving with seemingly no reasoning. She was supposedly a journalism major but no one remembers her working with any campus publications. She's had little experience at the state level, being governor for only a year and half and no international experience whatsoever. These are all issues that the Republican Party took Barack Obama to task for. She's currently in the middle of an ethics investigation for abusing her position to get a local officer fired for "mistreating" her family. And I'm not saying that her experience as a mother is irrelevant but I don't see how it's supposed to make up for obvious shortcomings. If that's the case than Hillary Clinton must have been overly qualified for president being a successful mother, with a strong educational and political background.
And many people are questioning if McCain's choice shows how much of a "maverick" he is or whether his campaign did not properly vet his choice for VP. I personally think the choice of Palin was a shrewd and calculated move. While we get caught up in the pregnancy scandal and Obama has to sidestep issues of sexism, McCain has created a situation where he gets to sit back and watch the drama unfold and the onus has moved away from proving himself a worthy candidate.
Part of it is the media's attempt to make politics "sexy" and "entertaining". That's why we're watching this year's election unfold the same way we watched Britney Spears' breakdown or followed the Brangelina baby news. We all want our politics served to us in soundbites. Hell Vogue is even doing a story on Palin (which I find ironic since the Republican Party is largely responsible for the economic downturn that is hitting the fashion industry but I guess Anna Wintour would rather Palin than the ever stylish Michelle Obama. Maybe Italian Vogue will give her the cover). So while we're caught up in the USWeekly style coverage, John McCain may sidle right into the White House ... when we least expect it.
Fall TV Preview*Since the ultimate frenemies are coming back together (see picture at right), it got me thinking about what draws us to television. Yes we love seeing great friendships and love affairs but all couples (friends or lovers) are far more exciting when there's conflict. So I'm going to talk about the best upcoming fall shows and the conflict that drives them.
First off, the CW. First off, props to Dawn Ostroff for kicking off the fall tv season on Labor Day, weeks before anyone. But this move is not without calculation. Ostroff is desperate to revive the network and hopefully, she hasn't burned too many bridges with the cancellation of fan (though not ratings) favorites like Veronica Mars and Everwood. But the CW reigns as the network you love to hate, with guilty pleasures like Gossip Girl, One Tree Hill and the rebooted 90210 which is sure to be the next show no one wants to admit they love. All three shows premiere back to back September 1st & 2nd. Gossip Girl, with its Bananarama backed promos is highly anticipated. Will Serena and Dan get back together? Will Blair rip Chuck a new one for standing her up? Who will be the next to fall and rise again? And every OTH fan will be tuning in to see who Lucas proposed to at the end of season 5 (my money's on Lindsay but an eventual reunion with supposed "one true love" Peyton).
Next on the list is NBC's Heroes. Those lucky enough to attend this year's San Diego ComiCon were treated to the premiere episode of this season and everyone admits that it's a game changer and also a step in the right direction after last season which was mediocre. To be honest, I'd given up on Heroes (a show that was so engaging, I read online comics and followed every episode with a religious fervor) but so far the reviews have been good so I'm rooting for it to return to glory.
One of my upcoming favorite networks is CBS. It's my new place for sitcoms. I'm eagerly anticipating the return of How I Met Your Mother and The Big Bang Theory. Both shows exhibit great comedic timing and with the addition of Sarah Chalke to the HIMYM cast, it should continue to please. Everyone is wondering if Ted and Stella will marry and if not, when will we meet the titular "mother". Also my one and only procedural show Cold Case continues to make me cry once a week. It's cathartic.
ABC has gained lots of ground in the past few years and rather than introduce lots of new shows, the network has decided to stick with its reigning hits, Grey's Anatomy, Ugly Betty and Lost, while also giving some of its new shows a chance to find an audience. Everyone is hoping that this season will finally see Grey's Meredith and Derek settling into a relationship and viewers will be holding their breath to see if Katherine Heigl's unfortunate comments about the shows writers will result in her character's untimely death. Ugly Betty suffered a sad sophomore slump but with Wilhemina and Marc back at MODE hopefully the show will return to form. ABC's newer shows, Pushing Daisies and Dirty Sexy Money will hopefully, continue to build an audience despite being cut short by the WGA strike, while many are hoping that the break gave showrunner Shonda Rimes a chance to breathe life into the faltering Private Practice.
Given FOX's track record, I'm going into this fall rather dubiously. I was lucky that Terminator: The Sarah Conner Chronicles was renewed but I wonder how that luck will hold out since FOX is notorious for preemptively canceling shows that aren't breakout hits. I'm excited for the J.J. Abrams show Fringe which has tinges of Abrams other shows (Alias and Lost). And there's also Joss Whedon's Dollhouse starring one of my favorite actresses Eliza Dushku (Joss, I love you!) but I hesitate to even get attached as both Whedon and Dushku have been burned by the network before.
Finally, the ultimate "frenemy" show The Hills is back for a fourth season. While I spent most of last season staring at the tv asking myself what happened to the last half hour of my life, so far this season has been filled with interesting conflicts and off the wall comments which makes you wonder if these people actually take themselves seriously or if they're just truly clueless. Either way, it's good television.*picture from The TVAddict.com Click to check out his site.
I was going to take a break from blogging because I kind of OD'd this week but I had to write a little something about the passing of Bernie Mac.
Mac was an amazing comedian and a great man. His distinctive voice and style was something that set him apart from other comedians. A contemporary of Steve Harvey, D.L. Hughley and Cedric the Entertainer (together the "Kings of Comedy") he had a style and swagger that was in many ways unmatched.
Personally, I loved his performances in the Ocean's Eleven films. He brought a wonderful sense of levity to those films. His ability to turn a personal pain (his sister's drug addiction) into a hilariously poignant comedy routine and later into a network sitcom, shows just how adept a talent he was. It's a shame that another great star and truth teller has been taken from us. I hope Bernie Mac and George Carlin are telling jokes to Buddy Jesus right now. Rest in peace.
UPDATED: Soul singer and the voice of South Park's Chef, Isaac Hayes passed away today, Aug. 10th, at 2 p.m. Another great soul lost. Rest in peace.
I know I've been away for a while but this past month has been a roller-coaster. Each joy has been followed by a subsequent loss and each sadness has been followed by a sudden boon. It's hard to say that I know where I'm going because I feel like I have yet to get the ground under my feet.
