Results tagged "Popular culture"

During a conversation yesterday I mentioned that For the Birds was quoted this week on Forbes.com – the Forbes Woman Community to be exact… a beautiful collection of worldly topics on all things being woman. A nice “how do you do” to the ladies of Tiger Woods attempting to throw us back to the good ol’ ancient Mesopotamian times when it was part of the routine to look yourself in the mirror, say – yeah he’s married and kind of a jerk, but he has zillions and maybe, just maybe I can get a reality show out out of this… Or at least a few minutes on Access Hollywood–Damn I love that Billy Bush…. Quick, I need to make myself look almost man-like, with boobs, killer jaw and hair extensions… okay… now, bigger lips–spray that tan all over… And TA-DA!… Yes, you too can go out and build your very own fame via megaloid sex-addicted celebrity super stars. It is that easy.. Just look at Ashley Dupre… the new columnist at the New York Post… don’t those glasses make her look smart? But I digress…

During a conversation yesterday I was chatting with my friend Mari, over at Small for Big, about how For the Birds was
quoted this week on Forbes.com – the Forbes Woman Community to be exact. She replied, “Forbes.com? niiiiiiiiice.  Maybe I should be a mommy-blogger after all.” My eyes grew huge.. I mean HUGE… Mommy-blogger! MOMMY-BLOGGER! NOOOOOOoooooooo! I mean, not that there’s anything wrong with it. Not that there’s anything wrong with going online and dictating verbatim every living second and movement and FEELING (ew feelings) that I have as a relatively new mom… Not that there’s anything wrong with splashing each and every image and/or video of my child online for EVERYONE to see. Every moment… panting.. I’m panting… water! – sparkling lemon effervescence water… whew.

Wait. I don’t do any of those things.. okay maybe one or two of them. But how could I not mention the the world’s most AMAZING 2 year old every once in a while… okay maybe a little bit more than that.. okay, so maybe every other post.. or ALL THE TIME. Like now.

So, while questioning my entire existence on the internet, I asked Mari, “IS THAT WHAT I AM!” and then reached into my MacPro and pulled out the blog, guts-n-all and headed towards the shredder–MOMMY-BLOGGER! I’ve been defined! HOW CAN IT POSSIBLY GO ON! As I threw the blog down the stairs.. it bounced and cried out… “I’M NOT A MOMMY-BLOG, I’M NOT! I’M ANYTHING YOU WANT ME TO BE…” And as I reached into the toy box for the wiffle bat… it occurred to me. I’m okay with it. Mommy-Blogger I might be… but this blog is about so many other things (ahem, ME) that it simply can’t be just one definition… and then Mari replied, “Frankly, I hate the term. Demeaning somehow. So no, of course that’s not what you are, you are ten times more than that. Me too.”

And with that, it was settled. The term is demeaning… because there are more Mommy-Blogs out there than there are Humans on this planet… To say it insinuates that the design is homespun, the stories are 2-cent and the humor is.. well “nice”, and chances are there are contests, coupons, and mediocre product reviews.. OH MY!… AND, it puts all the words, views, rants and stories into one big massive rolling sphere–LOTS of talking… and not a lot of doing… BUT, in the true definition of a “weblog” – a personal diary made public, there are also TONS of great blogs out there… Blogs like this one (yeah, its all going to my head–Let them EAT CAKE!)… Women that mention their kids here and there… every once in a while… focusing on life and pop culture like the ladies of all things Tiger… or simply LIFE in general… life, you know, being so unpredictable. So who are we?

The answer… after a series of drafts, research and hair pulling… is as complex as it is simple… Do what you want, obviously, but in the world of constant defining and redefining, if you have something to say… Blog about it, but avoid the Mommy-Blog status, remain unique… personal and blog eclectic. 

Did you like this? If so, please bookmark it, about it, and subscribe to the blog RSS feed.

Okay, okay — I get it. I sat down to start writing and have come to the realization that everything I have to say sounds like a complaint. I sound like a big loser whining about popular culture, design aesthetics, the movie I watched last night, the General Electric guy that left my ENTIRE house smelling like cigs and BO. Why is it that every fix-it man and contractor asks to use our bathroom? What about the house they were at before ours? Then, there is the client that hired me to design something and then took it upon herself to DO IT HERSELF — she probably spent hours on it. Was I not doing it correctly? At least Will is napping – I have that to be grateful for. Happy that the giant Christmas blow up snow-globe with lights and snowmen with green and red holiday hats at BJ’s didn’t scar him for life yesterday afternoon… Just 2 aisles from the giant kettle stirring green witch sitting on a massive blow up Halloween pumpkin, mind you. The weirdos are out during the day on Mondays at BJs – FYI, stick to shopping on the weekends with the crowds.

No – I thought I had plenty to write about today, but it’s all negative and annoying. Like… Mackenzie Phillips and couples that have eight babies, exploit the hell out of them, look around and realize that not enough people are paying attention, so then proceed to bash the hell out of each other all in the name of reality tv fame. Or the new Dinosaur show on PBS that features a T-Rex orphan adopted by a Pteranodon family that rides a supernatural train through the various periods of pre-historia. Dudes. COME ON! Kids might love trains, and they might love dinosaurs, but WHAT? Not only is this show most certainly on CRACK, but what happens when the preschoolers face reality? That the T-REX will EAT his entire adoptive family someday…. Someday SOON!

So, there it is–the few items all meshed into one super annoying post. At least I didn’t drag it out and write about each individual item like I was planning. I’m off to find air-fresheners–lighten it up a little bit.. or maybe, just light it all on fire.

Oh – comments are working again–so go on with your bad self. Yeah, that means you Jazz Hands, bring it.
 

Did you like this? If so, please bookmark it, about it, and subscribe to the blog RSS feed.

When I was 3 or 4 years old, my parents and I lived in Cocoa Beach, FL. Considering my age at the time, my memories are slight — although I can tell you that the ones I do have — they overflow with awesomeness. There we were… living only a few short blocks from the beach… I was care-free, obviously, and from what I remember — the weather was constantly pristine. Playing in the surf was my due diligence, and I walked tall each and everyday.

Keeping in mind that it was the late 70′s and kids were not yet required to wear iridescent headgear for surf play, I would tend to stay in the shallow areas… Every once in a while, however – CRASH, boom, swallow…. tumbling summer-salts, little heart pounding, little ears filling with salt and sand… bathing suit pulling every which way until SPIT – shot out and head up – - what just happened? There’s one of my parents picking me up —- that wave was HUGE!

Needless to say, 2008 was very similar to this memory on all fronts — through popular culture observances to personally & professionally….

Often times feeling 3 or 4 years old.
Often times, happily playing in the surf… then… without warning… SLAM, smack, all twisted up and gurgling for reason.

It wasn’t that my back was turned… I just didn’t think the wave was that big. It wasn’t that I was unaware of the possibilities, I just didn’t think it was possible.

For whatever each and every 2008 experience is worth — lessons learned, friends reclaimed, enemies made, monies gained, monies lost, exposure, darkness, health, ill, love, and many many laughs. 2008 was a doosy.

Did you like this? If so, please bookmark it, about it, and subscribe to the blog RSS feed.