2 September, 2008 | 3 Comments

Two questions: How many children does John McCain have?  How many children does Joe Biden have?

I ask because I don’t have a clue.  I know John McCain has a daughter named Meghan, but I’m guessing there are more McCains out there.  If so, I wonder why we don’t see photos of them or read about their lives.  Is John McCain a grandfather?  I imagine that he is.  Funny that no one ever writes about this.  Same goes for Biden.

Contrast this with Sarah Palin.  In just four days since she’s been nominated for VP, I know how many children she has.  I know all their names and ages.  I know what they look like.  And now with the front-page news of her daughter’s pregnancy, the sex life of a 17-year-old girl is a topic of national conversation. In just four days.

I wonder: Does Barack Obama feel torn about campaigning non-stop, which means less time spent with his two young daughters?

I haven’t a clue.  No one out there in the media seems to worry that the two young Obama girls don’t see their dad very much.  This question doesn’t keep people up at night.  Funny, then, that the question of whether Sarah Palin can campaign with a baby in tow has become a campaign issue in just four days.  She is portrayed as a baby-making machine and reduced to her ovaries, rather than a politician like the other candidates.

The story of Sarah Palin is just more evidence that Americans have a difficult time dealing with women in positions of power.  Coming off the primaries, where Hillary Clinton was the target of a shockingly misogynistic campaign that has torn the Democratic party in two, we are now in the general election and another woman is being treated differently from the men, only now a teenage girl has been dragged into it as well.  It’s clear that when it comes to women, the media and the public can only think of us as wives, mothers, sluts, sex objects, crime victims, pop stars, actresses and models.  Beyond that, there is no template.  We are in uncharted territory and many people have shown they cannot rise to the challenge.

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30 August, 2008 | 7 Comments

I will write about my trip to Paris soon, but I have to weigh in on the election news!

My, my, my … what an interesting week.  Both Obama’s convention and McCain’s VP pick proved one thing: Hillary’s supporters — you know, the ones kicked and trashed by Obama’s campaign and the Democrats — now hold quite a bit of power in our little hands.

Howard Wolfson in WaPo:

“Both campaigns seemed to have decided that Hillary Clinton’s 18 million voters represent a key swing bloc in this election — both Barack Obama’s speech and John McCain’s pick were at least partially aimed at them.”

It’s amazing to me that Obama & Co. were not able to foresee the predicament they’ve found themselves in.  But then I guess winning the primary was all that mattered to them, regardless of who they had to trample and alienate on their way to victory.

As for McCain, he thinks he is going to win over disillusioned Hillary voters™ with his choice of Sarah Palin as his running mate.  He may well win over a few of her supporters, but he’s not winning over this disillusioned Hillary voter™.  I wouldn’t vote for McCain if Gloria Steinem were his running mate.

That said, you know, I’m sick and tired of the way those Hillary supporters who are voting for McCain are being attacked — the so-called PUMAs. Once again, the Dems see fit to engage in sexism.  I keep reading and seeing [in columns and on blogs and news clips] that those Hillary supporters who are now voting for McCain are insane, hysterical and irrational. [Some of this is even coming from panicked feminist supporters of Obama, which is inexcusable.] Yes, this is the way to heal the party and get people to vote for Obama.  More sexist rhetoric and insults and personal attacks.  If we were talking about a group of men, such language would never be used.  I am not one of those Hillary supporters who will vote for McCain, but I feel that as a Hillary supporter, I am being defamed and degraded with these comments as well.  We are not all a bunch of bitter irrational women.  All of this rhetoric just confirms that for me, abandoning the Dems was the right choice.  I don’t want to be part of this group.

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28 August, 2008 | 4 Comments

Pont Royal.

27 August, 2008 | Comments

Tonight at sunset. Viewed from Montmartre.

25 August, 2008 | 4 Comments

Monday is a bank holiday in the UK, the end-of-summer equivalent to Labor Day.  Given that I am a student, bank holidays don’t mean much to me, but having three-day holiday weekends make a lot of people around here happy and it’s nice to be surrounded by happy people.  I think this is the last holiday here until Christmas.  That’s insane.

So far this weekend, I’ve done a lot of eating and have spent a lot of money.  On Friday night, I went with a couple friends to Mestizo, a Mexican restaurant near that scary intersection where Euston Road and Tottenham Court Road meet.  A strange place for a restaurant like this.  Mestizo is classy and very authentic.  Highly recommended.  I shared a mojito with a friend.  I’m not much of a drinker, but I love mojitos.  And since they include rum, I began to speak like a pirate.  Unfortunately, my pirate accent sounds exactly like a Scottish accent.

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24 August, 2008 | 1 Comment

19 August, 2008 | 3 Comments

Has been cool and rainy and dark.

Loved ones have lost loved ones.

The students have gone.  Finally.  It is so quiet now I can hear the tube running underground.

I’ve gone days without really speaking.  To anyone.

15 August, 2008 | 3 Comments

Switching to my new laptop has been more difficult than expected.  Most of the struggles have not been related to PC vs. Mac issues though, but just the difficulty of switching to a new computer when my whole life was on the old one.  Until this week, I did not have Microsoft Office for Mac, which meant that I still had to use my PC a lot.   Now that I have this software (plus iWork), I will be able to transition more fully to the new MacBook.  Still, I can’t just put the PC in a closet because it has Photoshop on it and other photo-editing software that I can’t afford to buy for another computer.  Grrrrrrr.

As you know, this is my second MacBook.  This one seems to be working fine, with no obvious problems.  I hope I’m wrong, but I do wonder if the first computer I got was refurbished?  Perhaps it would be illegal for the Apple Store to engage in such dirty tricks.  I’m probably just being paranoid, but students do get a hefty discount and, well, I’m sure you can connect the dots in my thinking process.

For me, making the PC to Mac transition hasn’t been bad.  [I do have a few Mac-related problems that I've listed below if anyone can help.]  If a person has a lot of PC-specific software, then switching to a Mac might not be cost-effective. I have two expensive CD-ROM dictionaries — one is British English, the other is French.  They won’t work on a Mac, which is a huge bummer.  If I had lots of expensive software like this that would be rendered useless on a Mac, I may hesitate about making the switch, but for me, this is not really an issue. I use my computer mostly for word-processing, internet, photo editing, movie watching and music.  These are all very basic things.  As long as I have access to MS Word, I can easily use a Mac or PC — it really doesn’t matter.  I know not all computer users are in this position, but it’s worked out fine for me.

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13 August, 2008 | 3 Comments

…in practice I often like a nice place to sit and read.  I am also a slut for sugar.

The highlight of my day was going to Starbucks and trying an iced Caffè Mocha for the first time.  Mine was decaf [with soya milk and no cream on top], but it still gave me one hell of a buzz.  I will be going back there tomorrow.  Oh yes.

11 August, 2008 | 3 Comments

Two words that should never go together: Blustery and August.

I’ve not felt great the past couple days.  I’ve been suffering from terrible insomnia for weeks now, which has not been fun but I’ve adjusted to it.  However, the past couple days my tummy has not been happy.  This is entirely my fault, since I’ve been eating foods I shouldn’t be eating.  Cheese pizza?  Noooooo.

After a weekend that was a wash-out (in all senses), today I was determined to go to an outdoor cafe, drink iced coffee hot peppermint tea and read my book.  To my credit, I lasted for about twenty minutes, but what with the gusts of wind and my teeth chattering, I realized I was fighting a losing battle.

I went to St. Pancras to look at the shops.  [For those who don't know, this is the newly renovated train station that houses Eurostar.]  They have some fabulous shops in there.  I went to Neal’s Yard Remedies and bought Chamomile Cleanser, since I ran out of it ages ago.  I looked at their teas.  The Lemon Balm and Rose Tea caught my eye, since it’s for stress and tension.  Too bad the entire shelf was empty.  Hey people, it’s August, lovely summery August (ahem), so why is the stress and tension tea all sold out?  And why didn’t you leave any for me?

I browsed around Peyton and Byrne.  They were selling tubs of baby strawberries with fresh cream and elderflower jelly with fresh fruit.  [Jelly is what Brits call Jell-O.]  And there were their signature cupcakes as well, colorful and piled high on a plate like in a 1950s kitchen.  Too bad my tummy is in a state of unrest.

After this I walked around some more, smelling the fresh flowers for sale, looking at some handbags and watching with envy as people ran to catch their trains to Paris.  Oh how I wished I was going with them.

8 August, 2008 | Comments

In honor of the Beijing Olympics, which officially begin today, here is a list of writers, journalists and bloggers currently imprisoned by the Chinese government. Their crime? Expressing their right to freedom of expression. This is courtesy of PEN. Click on an individual name to learn more about that person. At least one of them has been in prison for more than 15 years.

Chen Daojun, Chen Shuqing, Du Daobin, Guo Qizhen, Dawa Gyaltsen, Jampel Gyatso, Hada, He Depu, He Yanjie, Hu Jia, Hu Shigen, Huang Jinqiu, Huang Qi, Korash Huseyin, JIN Haike, KONG Youping, Dolma KYAB, Jamyang KYI, LI Zhi, LU Gengsong, LU Jianhua, LU Zengqi, Abdulghani MEMETEMIN, NING Xianhua, QI Chonghuai, SHI Tao, SUN Lin, TAO Haidong, Tohti TUNYAZ (pen name MUZART), WANG Xiaoning, WU Yilong, XU Wei, XU Zerong, YAN Zhengxue, YANG Maodong, YANG Tongyan (a.k.a. Yang Tianshui), YANG Zili, Nurmuhemmet YASIN, YUAN Qiuyan, ZENG Hongling, ZHANG Honghai, ZHANG Jianhong (a.k.a. Li Hong), ZHANG Lin, ZHENG Yichun, ZHU Yufu.

6 August, 2008 | 5 Comments

Yesterday I read an article on the Sydney Morning Herald website about the launch of Google Street View in Australia and all the controversy it’s causing. Until I read this article, I was only vaguely aware of Google Street View. This afternoon I logged on and within a minute, found footage of the house where I spent many of my growing-up years, seen above, which included the exact address. I also virtually explored the whole neighborhood, as if I were riding around in a car.

Is it just me, or is there something seriously wrong with this? I think this is a horrible invasion of privacy, not to mention the fact that it’s just…CREEPY. I really wonder what purpose it serves? Why do we need these images instead of just a map? Besides the issue of basic privacy, Google Street View is a valuable tool for stalkers, voyeurs and criminals, including terrorists. Just think, if you’re a burglar you don’t need to case the joint before breaking in — just log on to Google Street View and get all the info you need.

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4 August, 2008 | 6 Comments

In this edition: The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle, Blindness, Revolutionary Road

I don’t always write enough about books on this site, which is strange, given how obsessed I am with all things literary. I think I feel that if I write about books, I have to provide insightful commentary and a proper review. That’s too much pressure and too much work. I’m doing a lit PhD, so literary analysis is indeed work for me. Also, and perhaps more importantly, I just have no interest in writing book reviews. I’m not sure why. I like reviewing films and plays, but not books. Perhaps books are too personal to me. I would rather write about my response to a book, rather than reviewing the book itself, if that makes sense. So I will just write about books in a different way and see if that works.

*

I have just started reading Haruki Murakami’s The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle. I was inspired by the recent article in the Times, Ten Things You Need to Know about Haruki Murakami, who they label “the coolest writer in the world today.” I was in the mood for some good lit in translation, since I feel like being transported to a foreign locale right now. I want to see the world through eyes that are far different from mine. I’ve read the first chapter so far and I’m hooked, though we’ll see if the whole 600 pages sustain my interest. (I am hopelessly picky about books.) The only Japanese fiction I’ve ever read is a few books by Banana Yoshimoto, who was quite trendy and popular when I was younger. If I remember correctly, it was her book Kitchen that I read and perhaps something else. So I’m excited to explore a bit of the Japanese literary landscape.

*

One of my favorite novels of all time is Blindness by José Saramago. When I heard recently that this book had been made into a film, I felt disappointed. This book cannot be translated to film. This is a dark, twisted book filled with depravity. In an unnamed country, one by one all of the citizens begin to go blind. Eventually, everyone is blind and society descends into anarchy and chaos. It is highly allegorical and surreal. It’s extremely difficult to read not just because of the writing style, but because of the subject matter. You can take the bare bones of the narrative and create a screenplay from that, but the soul of the book would be lost. This book does not belong on the screen, it belongs in the mind of the reader. Saramago refused to sell the rights for years. The LA Times quotes him as saying, “Cinema destroys imagination.” Unfortunately, he changed his mind. The director of the film “reports that he softened the film’s disturbing (but not graphic) scenes of sexual violence after ‘the audiences didn’t react well at the first test screening; some people even walked out.’” Yeah, well, that’s not surprising.

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2 August, 2008 | 2 Comments

watch this

31 July, 2008 | 7 Comments

My second MacBook in a week.  I hope this one’s a keeper.

I’ve used one of my Paris sunset photos as my wallpaper.  This view from Pont Neuf always makes me happy.  It calms me down when I’m fretting over not having a right-click on my mouse (arrggghhh!) and searching, fruitlessly, for any sort of delete key.  FN + backspace — that’s it?  Oh, come on!  Is this a British thing or a Mac thing?

It’s really cool, however, to have a built-in webcam and microphone.  It makes Skype calls super fun - no headset!  On the downside, now that people can see me, I have to brush my hair.

29 July, 2008 | 4 Comments

So I bought a new MacBook last week. I was very excited…until the next day, when it started malfunctioning. I would put it to sleep and sometimes it wouldn’t wake up. I couldn’t even get it to turn back on unless I held down the start button for about ten seconds or more and then it lurched and sputtered to life. The computer would behave as if it had crashed and would completely restart. Whatever I had on the desktop was gone. Not only that, but some of the things I had been working on had disappeared…erased…vanished forever into the abyss.

I called tech support and this very sweet Indian guy walked me through all sorts of things, involving unplugging the computer, removing the battery, restarting it, pressing down four keys at once, erasing files, etc. At one point we deleted what I considered to be a rather important system file. The guy told me not to worry, that the Mac would “regenerate” it. I asked him how it was possible for the computer to recreate by itself a file that was damaged and deleted, but he said “that’s the magic of a Mac.” The scary thing is that I think he meant “magic” literally. Creepy.

So after the call with the tech guy (who wasn’t really a tech guy, but just a dude reading out of a manual — by the way, he sounded completely panic-stricken, as if he were a 911 operator and I was bleeding to death) so after I talked to him, the computer worked for a while, then started malfunctioning again. So the next day, I just put the effing thing back in the box and pulled out my Dell. And it stayed in the box all weekend and yesterday.

I planned to return it to the Apple Store today to demand a brand new one. I don’t want it serviced, I want a new one. I erased all the files I had on it, everything I had painstakingly downloaded, etc. And then I waited for the laptop to malfunction again so I could return it to the store in that state. Otherwise, why would they believe me when I tell them it’s not working? So you can probably guess where I’m going with this. The stupid computer won’t malfunction on command. All day I’ve been putting it to sleep and it’s been waking up just fine. I mean, what’s going on? Has it spontaneously healed itself using its magical powers?

Tomorrow it goes back to the shop.

24 July, 2008 | 6 Comments

I’ve not been in a good mood lately, hence the lack of posting. I feel sorta weird, filled with conflicting, often unpleasant emotions and anxieties. I’ve been feeling this way for weeks now and I can’t shake it, so I’ll write about it, even though I don’t think I should.

In the hall of residence where I live, all the students have now left. In the summer, the place fills up with 18-year-old Americans who are on study abroad (more like ‘get drunk abroad’). A great many of the white middle-class American teenagers staying here are ill-mannered barbarians. They are, of course, teenagers. I am a thirtysomething woman and I simply do not want to be literally surrounded by them 24/7.  This is causing a lot of unhappiness in me, which is probably understandable. The group staying on my floor are so loud that I’ve had to relocate to the other side of the building. Whenever I would tell them to be quiet, they would mock me. I would go back to my room and call the security guard. That was the sensible thing to do, because the only other option was screaming at them in a blind, obscenity-filled rage. I decided not to go that route.

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24 July, 2008 | Comments

I have to get my MacBook ASAP. Today, Norton Anti-Virus effed with me for the last effing time.

18 July, 2008 | 7 Comments

Today is my sister’s b-day. Happy Birthday! You know you’re old when your younger sister is 33. Crap.

Sis wanted Victorian taxidermy for her birthday, but that’s a little out of my price range, so an Amazon gift certificate it is. I know this isn’t as good as a stuffed dead animal, so to quell the disappointment, on my way home I stopped at Peyton and Byrne and bought her some porn. If your sister can’t buy you porn for your birthday, then no one can. Click below to see it, but only if you’re over 18.

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18 July, 2008 | 4 Comments

Just when I begin to worry that too many of my fellow Americans have lost their minds, Jon Stewart saves the day.

Obama’s campaign responded to the NY’er cover by calling it “tasteless and offensive.” Jon Stewart thinks they should have responded like this:

“You know what your response should’ve been? It’s very easy: Barack Obama is in no way upset about the cartoon that depicts him as a Muslim extremist. Because you know who gets upset about cartoons? Muslim extremists! Of which Barack Obama is not. It’s just a f*cking cartoon!”

See the whole video here. The joke about Wolf Blitzer is a must-see…