Monday, June 15, 2015

because MY inquiring mind HAS to know

Kate and I were lounging around yesterday afternoon and I asked her a question about the definition of "gender queer."  It seems like there is an unending wave of new terms and classifications about a lot of stuff, so I thought I'd go to a reliable source for some edification.

After trying to explain it to to me, she said, "Just Google it."  So I did.

And I had to laugh.  Because my previous search had been for a biblical reference.  The dichotomy of the two pretty much sums up my world view these days.

So, just for grins, I thought I'd take you through a day of my search engine history.  I think you might find it enjoyable.  Or extremely puzzling.  Scary.  Worthy of institutionalization.

Jeremiah 29:11 - One of Tyler's favorite teachers just found out a few weeks ago that her toddler (named Tyler, after my Tyler) has leukemia.  It's been a whirlwind of hospital stays, prods and pokes, drugs, financial upheaval, etc.  I wanted to share my favorite Bible verse of all time, Jeremiah 29:11, but I always get nervous that I'm going to cite the wrong chapter, so I always look it up.  I should know it by now.  It's part of my email signature.  It's graffiti-ed on the wall behind my desk.  But, still, I check.

Gender Queer - See opening paragraph.  I found out a lot of information, much of it as confusing as the term itself.  I read terms like gender binary and cisnormativity and non-binary...say what?  If you really want to know...it's not strongly identifying with either male nor female.  I likened it to "having your cake and eat it, too" to which I think Kate took exception.  One of the characteristics listed was "being bigender [which I pronounced as 'big ender'!], trigender, or pangender."

So confusing.

Ruby Rose - Following up on the aforementioned, Kate showed me a video of this person, a beautiful blonde, transitioning (pretty much via soap and water and scissors) into a strikingly handsome, heavily tattooed young man.  She's a new character on the new season of Orange is the New Black.  Great series, but you gotta have some room in your brain to process the many facets of life in a female prison.  I don't know how Martha Stewart did it without breaking down just a little.  Maybe she did.  But we'll never know because she's, well, Martha Stewart.

Serial - Every time Kate and I have some time to kill we eventually end up talking about NPR's breakout podcast "Serial."  If you haven't listened to it, it's worth your time.  Synopsis: In 1999, a female high school student was murdered in Baltimore and her former boyfriend was convicted and sentenced to life plus thirty years for the crime.  Despite the fact that there was no forensic evidence linking him to the murder presented during the trial.  Only the testimony of one witness who has changed his story at least seven times.  A new hearing is scheduled to determine whether or not the case will be reopened to allow testimony from a witness who can verify his alibi; she was never contacted by the defense team in the first trial.

TCM - I love my classic movie channel!  I check it several times a week to see what's going to be on.  There's nothing like falling to sleep to a classic like "Mr. Deeds Goes to Town" or "The Thin Man."  They also have these great shorts between the feature films.  Some of them are pretty funny and, oftentimes, very informative.

Dallas, Love American Style and Falcon Crest - Ron and I watched "The Seventies" on CNN last week.  Kate alerted me to the series premier and, since that was the decade where I "came of age" I thought it might be good to watch.  It was!  The first episode was the groundbreaking era of television programming.  Stuff like "All in the Family,"Mary Tyler Moore," "Carol Burnett," "Bob Newhart," "The Waltons," "Little House on the Prairie," "Happy Days," "M*A*S*H," "Saturday Night Live."

The reason I Googled those shows is because they weren't mentioned and I wanted to find out if they really aired in the 60's or 80's; they all ran in the 70's.  I'm not sure why I thought it necessary to find out...except to prove to myself that I was right.

I used to sneak watch "Love American Style"... it was completely racy and all about the sexual revolution and infidelity and other hot stuff. I also sneak watched "Dark Shadows."  It was completely stupid, with horrible acting and even worse sets.  But I loved it anyway.

The series airs on Thursdays, if you're interested.  This weeks' show is all about Nixon.  Not so funny, but certainly a major story of the 70's.

So there you have it.  A glimpse into the diversity/confusion that makes my world go 'round.




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