Public nudity

The naked human body has been in the news a lot recently.

 

First, there has been some protest over an art installation at Discovery Green. Some of the statues (not all) depict a naked man. I've seen the statues in question. Honestly, I barely blinked.

The argument is that there are children in the park. But when I was there weekend before last, most of the children didn't even notice the statues. They were focused on the fountains and the animals (there was a wildlife exhibit going on). Static bronze statues can't compete with running through water or seeing a hawk close up. 

 

It reminds of a fuss some people made about a replica of Michelangelo's "David" being placed on the roof of an Italian restaurant in the Woodlands.  They said it was inappropriate at a venue where there were children. However, there were similarly unclothed female statues at the location, and nobody was making a fuss about them. My theory is that they're worried that the girls/women are going to make mental notes and compare. (or worse, point and giggle).

 

Later, in the same week, Dancing with the Stars had a performance where Julianne Hough wore a costume that was quite covered up, but gave the appearance of a lot of skin. Of course, there were people saying that it was too much. Seriously? This is ballroom dancing. Competition (particularly in Latin) requires outfits that are best described as "tight", "short" or "missing".

She wore this in an earlier season, and nobody said anything, but they are making a fuss over a flesh-colored body stocking? I've seen bathing suits that covered less. And this is the 19th season of the show; if you are shocked at this point, it's a self-inflicted wound.

The main argument, in both instances, was that these were at locations and times that children could see them. So what?  Everybody has a body (even children). Wouldn't it be healthier if we just accepted that? 

French Film

Because it is Bastille Day I'm going to talk about some small gems from France.

Isn't Netflix the greatest? I've been a fan of French cinema for years, but it has always meant driving to small, out-of-the way theaters, with blink-and-you've-missed-it show times. Assuming they come to Houston at all. But now if I get a craving to see life in a foreign language all I have to do is find a strong wi-fi connection and a comfy chair. 

Aside: It is a matter of extreme frustration that even though I live in the 4th largest city in the US, many films (particularly art, independent, or foreign films) simply aren't released here. Hey film distributors! The people in the center of the country want to see things other than Transformers and Glenn Beck being a loon.

One of the things I appreciate about French Cinema, is that there are real roles for women over 40. They are even (gasp) the lead! In this vein I give you Haute Cuisine and Queen to Play.

Haute Cuisine [Les Saveurs du Palais] is about the personal chef of the François Mitterrand. There is no real plot, almost nothing happens. It's basically a character study of a strong-minded and talented woman practicing her art. Sometimes she has to deal with people who don't (or can't) appreciate her work, dietitians don't know anything about food so they just make blanket decrees (no sauces!), and other chefs whose focus is on competition and not on the food. But the ones who do get it, these people make up for the idiots she has to deal with along the way. I loved this movie. I loved her style, her steeliness, her obvious pleasure in what she does, and her refusal to let idiots stop her. 

Queen to Play (Joueuse) has a chewier storyline and the always charming Kevin Kline. It's about a working class woman who, on a whim, takes up chess, and the consequences of her growing obsession with the game. I, personally, do not play, but it's movies like this and novels like The Flanders Panel (great read!) that make me want to learn.

Both are in French, with subtitles, so if reading dialogue bothers you, then you will have to find other movies. But I really hope you give them a chance. A show does not have to feature killer alien robots to be a good time. That being said, I am looking forward to Guardians of the Galaxy, because it looks like my kind of silly. 

Am I a Girly Girl?

Today, for the first time in my life, I was called a "girly girl".

I've been called a lot of things in my 35+ years: studious, nerd, weird, dependable, bitch, funny, but "girly girl" is a new one.

Apparently "girly" can also mean "skank"

Aren't I a little old to be called a "girly girl"?  I don't know if there is an official cutoff date, but it seems like an odd thing to call a fully grown woman with mortgage payments.

What is 'girly' anyway? And is it a good thing?  According to Wikipedia: "Girly girl is a slang term for a girl or woman who chooses to dress and behave in an especially feminine style."

I grew up when "girly" wasn't fashionable. It wasn't forbidden, (there is photographic evidence of ruffled outfits in the family album) but it wasn't encouraged on the level it is today. My mother would never have dressed me in a "princess" t-shirt, even if they had been available. Being 'girly' just wasn't cool. 

The image of the 'girly girl' is not just feminine, it is a heavily juvenile version of femininity. It is a version of femininity that is all ribbons and bows, beruffled, bedazzled, and of course, pink. It implies a lightness, a frivolousness of temperament, that can be taken for stupidity. (The movie "Legally Blonde" is a 90 minute joke about this image.) I work in design engineering in an environment that is 90% male. This is not an image I want to project.

I'm not trying to hide my femininity or pretend that I'm a man. I love pink. I keep perfume in my desk. But I'm not 6 years old. I think it should be possible to dress like a woman and still look like an adult.  

Actually, the dress below is something I would love to have. The Marquise de Pompadour, (definitely a woman who knew how to use her charms to her advantage) managed to put together an outfit that is literally covered with flowers, bows, lace and ruffles, but which doesn't make her look like a child in the slightest. Admittedly, fashion has moved on, and I don't live the kind of life this garment is suited to, (Nor does anybody - can you imagine trying to board a plane in it?) but isn't it a marvel of a dress?

The most feminine dress I've ever seen.

For more practical examples, look at Diane Von Furstenberg and Zooey Deschanel. Both have very feminine styles, and they both look like grown ups. (Zooey is modeling her own line, which I wish had longer skirts - mini skirts aren't very office friendly, but I knit pick.)

I know the person who called me "girly" was not insulting me. She meant well, (and thank goodness my boss didn't hear her) but I want to be a woman, not a girl.

What happened to the Metric System?

I have a project at work where I am converting all our documentation to include measurements in metric. This is incredibly tedious, and has me wondering why are the measurements in the Imperial System in the first place?

When I was in school, I was taught the metric system.  I was told that the US would be going metric soon and I better know what a kilogram was.  I even remember this pro-metric PSA on television. (Yes, I am that old.)

Then it all disappeared.  The signs didn’t change, the grocery stores still sold apples by the pound, and the news still reported the weather in Fahrenheit.  It became like the quadratic equation – something I was taught in school and never used again. What happened?

There are multiple answers:

• Cost – it’s expensive to convert everything over
• American Individualism – Americans like being different (and we’re stubborn)
• The US government didn't make switching over mandatory (like the UK and Canada did)

Even so, a lot has been done. If you check packaging labels, most things are labeled in metric and imperial measures: the speedometer on my car, vitamins, a bottle of coke. I went home and checked, my measuring cup has both systems on it.  

Metric on one side, imperial on the other

I think as the world continues to get smaller, the US is going to have to give in and go completely metric. It’s going to become too expensive and confusing to maintain two systems. It may take a while, but if we can remember the number of pints in a quart and pecks in a bushel, we can figure out a base 10 measurement system.

And when I die

I was driving down Shepherd the other day, when I saw a great black cube, built of plywood, and stenciled with Before I die…

Next to the box was a bucket of chalk, so passersby could add their own statements.

Most of the statements were personal goals:

Some were pipe dreams:

And some people had been reading Hunter S Thompson:

I originally thought the cube was someone’s attempt at participatory art but in fact, it was a clever way of introducing a new business to the area: a funeral parlor.

It must be difficult to advertise funereal services. Everyone will need them someday, but the solemnity involved means you can’t run a two for one sale. Can you imagine someone like Mattress Mack yelling “SOLID OAK coffins & No backorder slips!” on television at two o’clock in the morning? It just wouldn't work. 

Anyway, back to the thought-provoking box. What do I want to do before I die? And what can I do to make it happen?

5 things I want to do before I die

• Travel to Vietnam and Cambodia
• Speak a second language, fluently
• Create something of lasting value
• Have a closet where absolutely everything in it fits
• Make a positive impact on the world

What do you want to do Before you die?

Black Friday, Cyber Monday etc.

I don't shop during Thanksgiving. I might make a run to the grocery store for a forgotten ingredient, but my goal is to stay out of retail settings for the week. 

This is not bragging. I'm not saying that "I've bought all my Christmas presents already." It's not a statement of philosophical superiority: "You mindless sheeple can go spend money, I will stay here and listen to Mozart." If camping out in front of your chosen store is something you want to do, go for it. BCP does not judge. I happily cede my place in line.

The post-Thanksgiving shopping bug (like sports fandom, and the appeal of Twilight) has just never bitten me.  And apparently, I'm not alone.

• 56 Percent of Americans Plan to Skip Black Friday

• Black Friday Shopping Mostly for the Young

• Americans Really Hate Thanksgiving Shopping Creep

I'm not anti-capitalism. I don't celebrate Buy Nothing Day. I shop. But I really hate the crowds on the big shopping days and it's unlikely that something I really want will never be available, or on sale, again. My tastes are not that unique. (I'm more boring than people realize.) I wonder how much of "Black Friday" is just hype. What are the average sales on a three day weekend? Are they that different post Thanksgiving?

And the stories of brawls, stabbings, etc. are horrifying. True, I've never seen it personally (and in the entire US the total is under 5 people - hardly endemic) but it doesn't make me want to go to the mall. 

• Black Friday by the Numbers

So what do non-shoppers do? Personally,  I watched movies, read books, injured myself getting Christmas ornaments out of the attic, cooked, ate, visited with relatives, restrained myself from arguing with said relatives, played with the cat, and edged my lawn. I was even given a new vegetable to play with. (Results will be posted later in the week.)

Now to get ready for Christmas.

Asteroids! Live!

I am a child of the Space Age, born slightly after the moon landing. There were a lot of space toys and books and games when I was little. Seriously, one of the books we had was "Let's Go to the Moon" which had an accurate description of the workings of a three stage rocket.

Because we lived in the South my brother and I were taken to the Kennedy Space Center (Florida) and the Johnson Space Center (Texas) multiple times.  The highlight of the trips was the astronaut ice cream, touching the moon rocks, and in the Kennedy Space Center they let you climb in and out of an actual space capsule, which had more buttons than I had ever seen in one place. (I don't think they let you do that anymore.)

So today I'm excited to hear about the asteroid [Asteroid 2012 DA14] that is going to pass by us today. You can even see it live (Well, sorta. Can you call a lump of frozen rock live? Sorry. I digress.). Slate magazine has a list with links to the observatories showing it here.

The people in Russia are probably not as enthusiastic. A large meteor exploded over the Ural Mountains this morning, creating a sonic boom that has injured approximately a thousand people. Story here. 

It's a dangerous universe out there. All the more reason we should find out all we can.

Friday Fun Video

Carl Sagan at his most poetic.

Bunheads is back! Yay!

I know real grownups are talking about Downton Abbey, and I like the show, but mostly for the fabulous period costumes and the chance to watch Maggie Smith zing somebody. She does it so well.

"What is a weekend?"

But the show I'm in love with is Bunheads, which came back on Monday. I love the cast, the wisecracks, even the ballet. I loved the writer's (Amy Sherman-Palladino) former show (Gilmore Girls) and I am so happy to see Kelly Bishop again. She has such an air of distinction, even drinking shots in the local bar. (1st episode)

I'm not a fan of ballet. My attention span for a dance performance is 30 minutes (at most).  But one of the things I like about Bunheads is that every other episode or so, there is a little dance. Nothing big or flashy (this isn't Glee), but something that realistically could be done by high school dance students.  And they are wearing costumes high school dance students would have.

The one below not only uses a favorite song of mine but features the girl I most wanted to be in high school. The cool one. She could wear black eyeliner without looking like a raccoon. She could be difficult and unpleasant and not feel apologetic about it afterwards.  Damn! but I still want to be that girl.

Great number. 2 minutes.

Movie Culture

I just finished an excellent biography of Audrey Hepburn, and conicidentally, two of her films were on television yesterday: The Nun's Story and Charade.  Charade is a caper film with multiple identities, missing money, witty banter, and a fabulous Givenchy wardroble.  It's a lot of fun and how can you not love Cary Grant? But The Nun's Story suprised me.

I knew it was based on the story of a real woman, Marie Louise Habets, and that is is considered one of Audrey Hepburn's best films. What I didn't know was that it was a box office smash, a blockbuster that had people lining up down the street and around the corner to see it. Can you imagine, in this day and age, a movie about a single woman, that has no sex, no explosions, no special effects, and is completely concerned with the internal struggle of concience being a hit?  

I can't either.

But people have not changed all that much since 1959. We are still concerned with living a 'good' life, and trying to define what that means. What is due to others? What do we owe ourselves? If we live for others, are we shortchanging ourselves? Is our help actually helpful, or a way of imposing what we think is right?

These are questions for which everyone has to find their own answers, but I think our popular culture is short-changing us. I love action movies as much as anybody else, but I've noticed lately the action sequences getting longer and longer at the expense of the most interesting part of the movie, the story. I remember sitting through a movie just waiting for a character to die, because until he died, the fight scene wouldn't end. If all I wanted to do was see things blow up, I could watch Mythbusters, (which is a great show) and get a decent practical physics lesson thrown in for free.

I have no patience for sermons, but a compelling story about something other than sex, money or killer alien robots would be an interesting change of pace. Or am I just being naive?

Weekend update

I spent a very cultural weekend, starting with  at  Miller Outdoor Theater on Friday night. Miller is wonderful, not just because it's in the middle of one of my favorite parks, but because it's free and the programs are terrific. Case in point, Friday's program by Ballet Folklórico de México de Amalia Hernandez. If you ever get the chance to see them, go, it was fantastic.

I also saw "Life is a Dream" by Pedro Calderon de La Barca performed at the Main Street Theater. My friend Vero, who is Spanish and has actually read the original, told me that the translation was very good. A wonderful play.

But I didn't spend all my time at the theater - I was productive. I mowed the lawn, cleaned the house, cuddled the cat, did the laundry, bought groceries and went to every kitchenware store in Humble looking for a tart ring for a recipe I want to try. The other notable (stupid) thing I did was weed whack my own leg when I was edging the lawn. Ouch! 

Don't do this.

At least the lawn looks good.

In Defense of Luxury



Penfold's Block 42

I was poking around the internets the other day and found a story about a very expensive, special release bottle of vintage wine.

What Do You Eat With a 168,000 Bottle of Wine? 

Of course, for that kind of money, you don't just get wine. There's a specially-commissioned bottle with precious metal detailing and that comes in a custom, handcrafted cabinet. Even empty, it's a pricey object. 

Normally, I'd see a story like this, think "Gee, the crazy stuff people will spend money on", and keep going; but my eye passed over the comments section. I avoid the comments section, as all the bile and vitriol of the world seems concentrated there. But this time I saw it, and in particular, I saw comments saying that people should not be spending money on luxuries, not when there are starving people in the world.

On the surface this seems like a compelling argument. No one needs a $168,000 bottle of wine, and the poor do need help. But if you've ever bought a pack of gum, then you've wasted money on a needless luxury that could have been used to help the poor. Any money spent on extras could be used to help the needy. The real offense here is the scale of the spending. Few people will guilt you over a chocolate bar, but buy a Lamborghini and the moral accountants appear to judge your actions. However:

• Just because someone spends a lot of money on wine (or cars, or clothes, or whatever), doesn't mean that they don't spend money on charity.
• Not buying hyper-expensive wine doesn't mean that the money will be spent on starving children. Maybe they'll buy diamonds, a wrought-iron dog run, or just leave it in the bank.  At least if they buy the wine, the money goes into circulation and keeps the luxury goods makers off the dole.

While I don't want to spend the price of a house on a single bottle of wine, I'm glad there's a market for it. I am in favor of luxury items. Can you imagine a world without luxury items? A life where you only get what you absolutely need and nothing more. It would be so dull and sad. Think of all the things that would be gone:

needless luxuries, all of them

toys, cake, nail polish, colored fabrics, cut glass, jewelry, perfume, art, cut flowers, lawns, theater, ornamental gardens, sports cars, fountains, candy, carpets, music, pillows, movies, upholstered furniture, alcohol, the list goes on and on.

And while I will never be among the super wealthy, I appreciate what money and vision can do. It is money and vision that produced the Eiffel Tower, glass windows, mirrors (the making of which led to the invention of telescopes and microscopes) bathrooms with hot and cold running water, the flush toilet (I am really grateful for that one), Oxford, ornamental gardens, palaces like the Hermitage and Versailles which make up the cultural heritage of the world - luxury items, each and every one, and aren't they grand?

Friday Feel Good Video

Something completely frivolous. Have a luxurious weekend.