Parents are unfailingly bias. I recently requested aid in my search for more permanent employment. The Tall Guy responded by sending me an email with a link to a posting on monster.com. I went to the posting to see that Alicia Keys is looking for a professional blogger to maintain her new website. My father and I talked about it and he said that I was the perfect fit for the personality the internationally-acclaimed singer/songwriter is in search of.
"She wants someone who motivates others and inspires them. That's you, Boo!"
I blushed and smiled under the confidence my father has in my talents. Then I read through the qualifications and job demands more thoroughly. My dad saw nothing but my talents while I saw nothing but how I was, yet again, under-qualified for a job.
So I got to thinking, Why don't I apply for the job? It's a shot in the dark for any of the tens of thousands of people I'm sure are bound to send in their resume. But why not? I always see my faults, why shouldn't I see my potential and just jump off a cliff for once? Tall Guy, thanks for only seeing me through your rose-colored glasses and thereby reminding me that I really am all that and a bag of chips. One day, I'll find my niche. Today, I'll apply for the job of a lifetime.
Showing posts with label pop culture. Show all posts
Showing posts with label pop culture. Show all posts
Friday, April 16, 2010
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens
Firefly.
Robin McKinley.
Captain Wentworth.
Malcolm Reynolds.
BBC mini-series.
Jane Austen.
The West Wing.
Anne Shirley.
Horatio Hornblower.
A small sampling of things that compose my mental stockpile. Things that I forget some people know nothing about. Shows, books, characters, networks. Some of you do know of these things. Some of you know of many these things. Some of you, I bless and curse you, introduced me to several of the items on the list. Whatever the case may be, these things run thick in my psyche and have been begging for recognition. And now they have it.
If any of the names on this list appear foreign to you, might I suggest you introduce yourself as soon as possible. They are all spirited companions and will offer lifetimes of happiness.
Robin McKinley.
Captain Wentworth.
Malcolm Reynolds.
BBC mini-series.
Jane Austen.
The West Wing.
Anne Shirley.
Horatio Hornblower.
A small sampling of things that compose my mental stockpile. Things that I forget some people know nothing about. Shows, books, characters, networks. Some of you do know of these things. Some of you know of many these things. Some of you, I bless and curse you, introduced me to several of the items on the list. Whatever the case may be, these things run thick in my psyche and have been begging for recognition. And now they have it.
If any of the names on this list appear foreign to you, might I suggest you introduce yourself as soon as possible. They are all spirited companions and will offer lifetimes of happiness.
Monday, August 24, 2009
"we ain't got it!"
I'm broke. No denero for me. None. Nowhere, zip, zilch, nada. But I like stuff. It's a weakness, I know. So I thought I would share some of the results of items that have been tempting me to dig deep into my nonexistent coffers.
Craft in America. Best freaking documentary EVER..so long as you are a complete and utter art geek. Fortunately for me, I am!
Oh yes, there's a book, too. A gorgeous book! Dang PBS and all of the wonders it reveals to me...
100 Flowers and How They Got Their Names is a darling little book I found at the library and fell in love with (go figure!). It gives the etymology of each flower and a little about where the flower can be found with a sweet black and white sketched image of each blossom. The drawings are fantastic and the history is just genius. Plus, I like the flower names. Some of them are rather cute.
Breast cancer awareness at its best. Is there really a need for more explanation to this? I think not. There's also a shirt that says "Thanks for noticing, Save the Tatas" but I opted out of the image for it. Still on the list though.
This list is not including the blouses from J.Crew, the beautiful navy blue sweater with leather buttons, or the soundtrack for (500) Days of Summer. Or cake from Pronto. Or cocoa from Caribou. Or the cool Michigan book I saw at Borders last week. Or the random tree book I haven't found yet.
Moral of the story: I am not cut out for poverty; I like helping the economy too much.
Monday, August 10, 2009
reeling
Turner Classic Movies, better known in the colloquial as TCM is both a virtue and a vice. For me at least. August they are running a series called Summer Under the Stars where each day of the month is devoted to one iconic film star. All day. Every day. Thirty-one days. That's a lot of films that I either love, rarely get to see, or have never seen before. Great news for my film loving sensibilities, plague-like news for my OSU application.
First there was the day of Harold Lloyd, silent film genius who I knew absolutely nothing about until last week. He was brilliant! The films were fantastic! And they were on average only about an hour long. Do you realize how many movies that is? Then there was the day of Judy Garland films, beginning with her early career working with Mickey Rooney in the "Andy" movies. Those I can typically avoid fairly well. But then, ,then the demonic forces of TCM unleashed films like Summer Stock and In the Good Old Summertime. Both of those are on my all-time favorites list as the diva-like Judy pairs up with the likes of Gene Kelly (be still my dancer loving heart!) and Van Johnson (seriously underestimated film legend, in my approximation). Here's the thing: I didn't get to watch the former of the two, and for good reason.
I was out watching another film. It's a disease I have, really. Me and my partners in crime rustled up some free tickets to the film Adam, an absolutley fantastic piece! It's about a young man with Asperger's Syndrome, a high-functioning form of autism, who struggles to find himself, work with Asperger's, and to find his place in the world. I'd watch it again in a heartbeat and listen to the soundtrack even sooner.
TCM really did a number on me yesterday though. One solid day of Cary Grant. This wouldn't have been as bad were it not for the fact that I watched An Affair to Remember before the Cary Grant-a-thon even began. So it was that late yesterday, I curled up at home after a day at the beach to watch Mr. Grant in Notorious and Houseboat. The latter of these films I have seen several times before. It is a light-hearted romance in which he stars with Sophia Loren. Good grief! That woman is a knockout!
The former of the two films, however, was new to me. Notorious is a Hitchcock film from 1946 in which Grant plays against Ingrid Bergman. Without even seeing the film, these three names should give a sense that it is fantastic. In reality though, this film is even better than you could imagine. Cary Grant, the total dreamboat that he is, has been inconized for his roles as a suave, debonnaire, witty man. He's absolutely brilliant at it. In Notorious, however, he is none of those things. Devastatingly handsome, to be sure. But his character is cold, distant, and brooding. I fell in love with him all over again feeling like I'd found a whole new side to him. The swooning that took place during that film was utterly absurd.
Luckily Cary Grant day came fairly early in the month giving me ample time to try to avoid TCM until Frank Sinatra day in the latter portion of August. That way I can focus on my appli-oh! Fun movie I've never seen before! Gotta go!
Saturday, July 04, 2009
july the fourth
When, in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bonds which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the laws of nature and of nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. That whenever any form of government becomes destructive to these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shown that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such government, and to provide new guards for their future security. --Such has been the patient sufferance of these colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former systems of government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute tyranny over these states. To prove this, let facts be submitted to a candid world.
He has refused his assent to laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.
He has forbidden his governors to pass laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.
He has refused to pass other laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of representation in the legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.
He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.
He has dissolved representative houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.
He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected; whereby the legislative powers, incapable of annihilation, have returned to the people at large for their exercise; the state remaining in the meantime exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.
He has endeavored to prevent the population of these states; for that purpose obstructing the laws for naturalization of foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migration hither, and raising the conditions of new appropriations of lands.
He has obstructed the administration of justice, by refusing his assent to laws for establishing judiciary powers.
He has made judges dependent on his will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.
He has erected a multitude of new offices, and sent hither swarms of officers to harass our people, and eat out their substance.
He has kept among us, in times of peace, standing armies without the consent of our legislature.
He has affected to render the military independent of and superior to civil power.
He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his assent to their acts of pretended legislation:
For quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:
For protecting them, by mock trial, from punishment for any murders which they should commit on the inhabitants of these states:
For cutting off our trade with all parts of the world:
For imposing taxes on us without our consent:
For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of trial by jury:
For transporting us beyond seas to be tried for pretended offenses:
For abolishing the free system of English laws in a neighboring province, establishing therein an arbitrary government, and enlarging its boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule in these colonies:
For taking away our charters, abolishing our most valuable laws, and altering fundamentally the forms of our governments:
For suspending our own legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.
He has abdicated government here, by declaring us out of his protection and waging war against us.
He has plundered our seas, ravaged our coasts, burned our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.
He is at this time transporting large armies of foreign mercenaries to complete the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of cruelty and perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the head of a civilized nation.
He has constrained our fellow citizens taken captive on the high seas to bear arms against their country, to become the executioners of their friends and brethren, or to fall themselves by their hands.
He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavored to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian savages, whose known rule of warfare, is undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.
In every stage of these oppressions we have petitioned for redress in the most humble terms: our repeated petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A prince, whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.
Nor have we been wanting in attention to our British brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which, would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, enemies in war, in peace friends.
We, therefore, the representatives of the United States of America, in General Congress, assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the name, and by the authority of the good people of these colonies, solemnly publish and declare, that these united colonies are, and of right ought to be free and independent states; that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the state of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as free and independent states, they have full power to levy war, conclude peace, contract alliances, establish commerce, and to do all other acts and things which independent states may of right do. And for the support of this declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor.
New Hampshire: Josiah Bartlett, William Whipple, Matthew Thornton
Massachusetts: John Hancock, Samual Adams, John Adams, Robert Treat Paine, Elbridge Gerry
Rhode Island: Stephen Hopkins, William Ellery
Connecticut: Roger Sherman, Samuel Huntington, William Williams, Oliver Wolcott
New York: William Floyd, Philip Livingston, Francis Lewis, Lewis Morris
New Jersey: Richard Stockton, John Witherspoon, Francis Hopkinson, John Hart, Abraham Clark
Pennsylvania: Robert Morris, Benjamin Rush, Benjamin Franklin, John Morton, George Clymer, James Smith, George Taylor, James Wilson, George Ross
Delaware: Caesar Rodney, George Read, Thomas McKean
Maryland: Samuel Chase, William Paca, Thomas Stone, Charles Carroll of Carrollton
Virginia: George Wythe, Richard Henry Lee, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Harrison, Thomas Nelson, Jr., Francis Lightfoot Lee, Carter Braxton
North Carolina: William Hooper, Joseph Hewes, John Penn
South Carolina: Edward Rutledge, Thomas Heyward, Jr., Thomas Lynch, Jr., Arthur Middleton
Georgia: Button Gwinnett, Lyman Hall, George Walton
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. That whenever any form of government becomes destructive to these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shown that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such government, and to provide new guards for their future security. --Such has been the patient sufferance of these colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former systems of government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute tyranny over these states. To prove this, let facts be submitted to a candid world.
He has refused his assent to laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.
He has forbidden his governors to pass laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.
He has refused to pass other laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of representation in the legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.
He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.
He has dissolved representative houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.
He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected; whereby the legislative powers, incapable of annihilation, have returned to the people at large for their exercise; the state remaining in the meantime exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.
He has endeavored to prevent the population of these states; for that purpose obstructing the laws for naturalization of foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migration hither, and raising the conditions of new appropriations of lands.
He has obstructed the administration of justice, by refusing his assent to laws for establishing judiciary powers.
He has made judges dependent on his will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.
He has erected a multitude of new offices, and sent hither swarms of officers to harass our people, and eat out their substance.
He has kept among us, in times of peace, standing armies without the consent of our legislature.
He has affected to render the military independent of and superior to civil power.
He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his assent to their acts of pretended legislation:
For quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:
For protecting them, by mock trial, from punishment for any murders which they should commit on the inhabitants of these states:
For cutting off our trade with all parts of the world:
For imposing taxes on us without our consent:
For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of trial by jury:
For transporting us beyond seas to be tried for pretended offenses:
For abolishing the free system of English laws in a neighboring province, establishing therein an arbitrary government, and enlarging its boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule in these colonies:
For taking away our charters, abolishing our most valuable laws, and altering fundamentally the forms of our governments:
For suspending our own legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.
He has abdicated government here, by declaring us out of his protection and waging war against us.
He has plundered our seas, ravaged our coasts, burned our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.
He is at this time transporting large armies of foreign mercenaries to complete the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of cruelty and perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the head of a civilized nation.
He has constrained our fellow citizens taken captive on the high seas to bear arms against their country, to become the executioners of their friends and brethren, or to fall themselves by their hands.
He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavored to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian savages, whose known rule of warfare, is undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.
In every stage of these oppressions we have petitioned for redress in the most humble terms: our repeated petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A prince, whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.
Nor have we been wanting in attention to our British brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which, would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, enemies in war, in peace friends.
We, therefore, the representatives of the United States of America, in General Congress, assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the name, and by the authority of the good people of these colonies, solemnly publish and declare, that these united colonies are, and of right ought to be free and independent states; that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the state of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as free and independent states, they have full power to levy war, conclude peace, contract alliances, establish commerce, and to do all other acts and things which independent states may of right do. And for the support of this declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor.
New Hampshire: Josiah Bartlett, William Whipple, Matthew Thornton
Massachusetts: John Hancock, Samual Adams, John Adams, Robert Treat Paine, Elbridge Gerry
Rhode Island: Stephen Hopkins, William Ellery
Connecticut: Roger Sherman, Samuel Huntington, William Williams, Oliver Wolcott
New York: William Floyd, Philip Livingston, Francis Lewis, Lewis Morris
New Jersey: Richard Stockton, John Witherspoon, Francis Hopkinson, John Hart, Abraham Clark
Pennsylvania: Robert Morris, Benjamin Rush, Benjamin Franklin, John Morton, George Clymer, James Smith, George Taylor, James Wilson, George Ross
Delaware: Caesar Rodney, George Read, Thomas McKean
Maryland: Samuel Chase, William Paca, Thomas Stone, Charles Carroll of Carrollton
Virginia: George Wythe, Richard Henry Lee, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Harrison, Thomas Nelson, Jr., Francis Lightfoot Lee, Carter Braxton
North Carolina: William Hooper, Joseph Hewes, John Penn
South Carolina: Edward Rutledge, Thomas Heyward, Jr., Thomas Lynch, Jr., Arthur Middleton
Georgia: Button Gwinnett, Lyman Hall, George Walton
Thursday, July 02, 2009
we need forty CCs stat!
Pack. Work. Play. Wash. Rinse. Repeat.Please note, sleep was not mentioned in there. Nowhere. That's because sleep is becoming a scarce commodity in my existence. Incredibly hard to come by and even more difficult to get to stick around. The cause of this malady can most likely be attributed to excessive indulgences in the realm of fun and frivolity.
The only known cure to date is an equally excessive dosage of Coke. I was an addict to begin with, but I am past the point of seeking aid. Coke is a sweet blessing from the Soft Drink Gods, fueling my very being, making it even remotely possible for me to get to work in the mornings. I still haven't found a cure for my non-existent productivity levels though...
Thursday, June 25, 2009
a rose by any other name
A small sampling of why this year's Spring Salon at the Springville Museum of Art is so awesome. The entries shown below are all particularly interesting to me because of their names. Giving a title to a piece of art is always a challenge. It's no wonder many artists resort to "Still life," "Triptych," or even "Landscape." These artists, however, chose titles that engage the viewer a little bit further in the work and make the piece all the more fascinating.
Exchange Students
All the Kings Men
This last one is my personal favorite, and not for intellectual reasons. It is my favorite because when I discovered it I was down in the dumps, and as soon as I learned it's name, I smiled and haven't stopped since.
Big Head, Little Arms
For any of you who missed the reference, that is what the dinosaur of a very similar build "says" in the Disney film Meet the Robinsons, a personal Disney favorite of mine.
Exchange Students
All the Kings Men
This last one is my personal favorite, and not for intellectual reasons. It is my favorite because when I discovered it I was down in the dumps, and as soon as I learned it's name, I smiled and haven't stopped since.
Big Head, Little Arms
For any of you who missed the reference, that is what the dinosaur of a very similar build "says" in the Disney film Meet the Robinsons, a personal Disney favorite of mine.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
ode to the pioneer woman
"I think if I ran into Hugh Jackman and Ree (the Pioneer Woman) in the supermarket/restaurant/place I would scream and point and shout at Ree like a 13 year old, and would casually give Hugh a 'Waz up.'"
Friday, June 12, 2009
home sweet home
Being from Detroit, I keep getting asked what I think of what's happening with the auto industry. General Motors declares bankruptcy, Fiat buys out Chrysler. It's all a lot to handle and come to terms with. In all honesty, I have know idea what to think of it. There are too many factors to consider by such a poor economist as myself.
The whole situation is a mess. I am grateful that the government did step in, as even more jobs would have been lost otherwise. At the same time, the government is now too involved to truly benefit a capitalistic system. Furthermore, as much as we want to claim them, these are no longer American giants of industry. These are companies being supported by foreign companies and governments. (The provincial government of Ontario and then feds out of Ottawa gave money to GM last week.) I also know that the industry will never be the same. Consumers are more cautious, looking for a long-term investment rather than the schnazziest ride. Finances are tight, for everyone. In some cases, even if one wanted to buy a new car, the financial backing isn't available to give them that option. Cars are no longer a necessity.
What frustrates me when discussing this situation with others is that there is little understanding of how far-reaching the decline of the auto industry really is. It's not just about the board members who made bad decisions. It's about an industry that has been changing over the past decade faster than the producers can handle it. Americans have been fuming over a recession for a year now. People from the Great Lakes region have been struggling for the past four years. No one cared. No one noticed.
As the world was going green, it suddenly became uncool to drive an American-made vehicle, which let off more emissions than anyone wanted to admit to. The car companies tried to make changes, to meet the demands of consumers, but it was too little too late. The companies began hemorrhaging money. Then lay-offs came. People began moving away, trying to find a job anywhere. Houses sat on the market for months, some never sold at all.
When the former automotive employees moved, the consumer dynamic began to shift drastically as well. Local businesses started disappearing from the scene as they had fewer clientele to support them. What kind of businesses are we talking about? All of them. From the accountant, to the grocer, the welder, to the construction engineer. Projects were cut, funding cut, more jobs lost. More jobs that no one even relates to the decline of the auto industry.
The thing is, it's getting worse. Detroit has been a ghost town for decades but was on the verge of a rebirth before everything happened. It used to be that the deserted buildings lay south of Eight Mile, the notorious border between Detroit and its northern suburbs. Now, the vacant lots are growing at an alarming rate across the expansive metro area. Foreclosure and bankruptcy are facts of life for everyone. Not just the auto workers.
Yesterday, however, I was pleased to learn that there is one car manufacturer that is doing well; Little Tikes can't seem to meet the demand for their Cozy Coupe two-door sedan. The only emissions are those of high-pitched delight from the toddlers who drive them. Powered by the driver itself- just like Barney and Fred in the Flinstones- it is very resourceful. Priced at $49 dollars, it makes children and parents alike love their automobile.
The whole situation is a mess. I am grateful that the government did step in, as even more jobs would have been lost otherwise. At the same time, the government is now too involved to truly benefit a capitalistic system. Furthermore, as much as we want to claim them, these are no longer American giants of industry. These are companies being supported by foreign companies and governments. (The provincial government of Ontario and then feds out of Ottawa gave money to GM last week.) I also know that the industry will never be the same. Consumers are more cautious, looking for a long-term investment rather than the schnazziest ride. Finances are tight, for everyone. In some cases, even if one wanted to buy a new car, the financial backing isn't available to give them that option. Cars are no longer a necessity.
What frustrates me when discussing this situation with others is that there is little understanding of how far-reaching the decline of the auto industry really is. It's not just about the board members who made bad decisions. It's about an industry that has been changing over the past decade faster than the producers can handle it. Americans have been fuming over a recession for a year now. People from the Great Lakes region have been struggling for the past four years. No one cared. No one noticed.
As the world was going green, it suddenly became uncool to drive an American-made vehicle, which let off more emissions than anyone wanted to admit to. The car companies tried to make changes, to meet the demands of consumers, but it was too little too late. The companies began hemorrhaging money. Then lay-offs came. People began moving away, trying to find a job anywhere. Houses sat on the market for months, some never sold at all.
When the former automotive employees moved, the consumer dynamic began to shift drastically as well. Local businesses started disappearing from the scene as they had fewer clientele to support them. What kind of businesses are we talking about? All of them. From the accountant, to the grocer, the welder, to the construction engineer. Projects were cut, funding cut, more jobs lost. More jobs that no one even relates to the decline of the auto industry.
The thing is, it's getting worse. Detroit has been a ghost town for decades but was on the verge of a rebirth before everything happened. It used to be that the deserted buildings lay south of Eight Mile, the notorious border between Detroit and its northern suburbs. Now, the vacant lots are growing at an alarming rate across the expansive metro area. Foreclosure and bankruptcy are facts of life for everyone. Not just the auto workers.
Yesterday, however, I was pleased to learn that there is one car manufacturer that is doing well; Little Tikes can't seem to meet the demand for their Cozy Coupe two-door sedan. The only emissions are those of high-pitched delight from the toddlers who drive them. Powered by the driver itself- just like Barney and Fred in the Flinstones- it is very resourceful. Priced at $49 dollars, it makes children and parents alike love their automobile.
Tuesday, June 09, 2009
radio personality
Whilst living in Utah these past six years, I have learned certain truths. Hair can be teased to unnatural heights. You can live an entire lifetime while waiting for the light to change. And Utahns don't believe in talk radio.
For some reason, I took talk radio for granted. Growing up in Detroit, it seems like the AM dial was just as loaded as the FM. Not here. I could not for the life of me find a talk radio station. When I did, I wished I hadn't. It was bland, boring, and not interesting.
Then one day, the gods smiled down on me and showed me NPR, the blessed creation it is. I felt culturally enriched, up to date on the news, and downright better towards the world. That is, up until Diane Rehm was on all the time, or at least whenever I could listen to the radio. Her show is broadcast on the local station here for two hours in the morning. Two excruciating hours which completely void out my interest and love for NPR. I love her guests, love the topics. The callers usually have worthwhile questions and comments.
But Diane herself is the problem.
Heaven bless the woman, I'm sure she's been around forever and has done great things for the world of radio broadcasting, but she's old. I'm convinced the show is two hours long because it takes that long for her to get questions out. Her voice is painful, a problematic situation when you work in radio, and I love it when she is away. The guest hosts are typically female, with lovely on-air voices, who engage well with the fascinating guests. There are even occasions when the guest host comes from the BBC and boasts a glorious British accent.
What sparked this outburst against the old and (by the tone of their voice) infirm? I remembered to turn on my radio this afternoon to catch some NPR, thoroughly convinced I had missed Diane. And then, her voice came through the speakers.
She's coming to do a show in Salt Lake.
New truth: Utahns are ginormous gluttons for punishment.
For some reason, I took talk radio for granted. Growing up in Detroit, it seems like the AM dial was just as loaded as the FM. Not here. I could not for the life of me find a talk radio station. When I did, I wished I hadn't. It was bland, boring, and not interesting.
Then one day, the gods smiled down on me and showed me NPR, the blessed creation it is. I felt culturally enriched, up to date on the news, and downright better towards the world. That is, up until Diane Rehm was on all the time, or at least whenever I could listen to the radio. Her show is broadcast on the local station here for two hours in the morning. Two excruciating hours which completely void out my interest and love for NPR. I love her guests, love the topics. The callers usually have worthwhile questions and comments.
But Diane herself is the problem.
Heaven bless the woman, I'm sure she's been around forever and has done great things for the world of radio broadcasting, but she's old. I'm convinced the show is two hours long because it takes that long for her to get questions out. Her voice is painful, a problematic situation when you work in radio, and I love it when she is away. The guest hosts are typically female, with lovely on-air voices, who engage well with the fascinating guests. There are even occasions when the guest host comes from the BBC and boasts a glorious British accent.
What sparked this outburst against the old and (by the tone of their voice) infirm? I remembered to turn on my radio this afternoon to catch some NPR, thoroughly convinced I had missed Diane. And then, her voice came through the speakers.
She's coming to do a show in Salt Lake.
New truth: Utahns are ginormous gluttons for punishment.
Saturday, May 16, 2009
eurovision 2009
Have you ever played that game Apples to Apples? It's where you play a card based on the person doing the card picking. For example, if the Card Picker is dealing with the category "Mafia," the Card Picker may be more likely to select "Cheese" from the assortment of options, even if you have the "Al Capone" card ready to play. It's illogical.
That, my friends, is exactly how I feel about gaging the results of the Eurovision Song Contest. Acts like this and this make it clear through to the semi-final rounds, while acts like this are sent home to their promising futures at the national level. It boggles my mind! And then, there's the actual winners. Yes, Eurovision is the launching off pad for such greats as ABBA, but that could also explain the show itself. You see, this is who won this year. A sprightly, David Archuletta-looking, fiddle playing, Norwegian boy wonder. The song is catchy (I've had it lodged in my head since the competition began last week) but that's it.
Basically, after the results of this year, I feel like the guy holding the "Al Capone" card watching the guy who played "Cheese" get another point. Jipped, confused, and realizing I have absolutely no idea how to play the game. At all.
Here's who would have had my vote the entire time, had I had the option to vote. Oh Estonia, I was rooting for you.
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