Monster? I think not.

I came across this article online, and it angered me just a smidge. Entitled "One-Armed TV Host Scares Kids, Parents Say" caught my attention. Here's the link if you want to read the intriguing story. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29391313

In fewer words: A pretty blond was hired by a British TV company to host a children's program. The controversy? The woman was born with an incomplete arm leaving the part below her elbow as a stump. Parents say they don't want their kids to watch her program because the kids may be scared by her missing arm.

Let's put this into perspective. The company did not hire a sex offender, serial killer, nudist, criminal, gang member, etc. They hired a perfectly normal host with a slight handicap.

Now does she look like a monster? Someone who would scare children? Is this what kids imagine jumping out from under the bed at night? I think these parents are overreacting. Are they trying to shelter their kids from a TV personality? Kids are going to be exposed to people with handicaps thousands of times throughout life, and they shouldn't be trained to fear them. I think it's the parents with the problem here. Not the kids.

If parents really want to protect their kids, they shouldn't focus on people like this. Keep them away from guns, drugs, and violence. Just because you were lucky enough to be born with all of your extremities in place doesn't mean you should alienate those who weren't.

My thought about trust... and I do have one

Did you ever think about how much we trust other people? Today at the bank I just handed the teller my $100 bill without hesitation*. I trust the bus driver with my life twice a day to get me to and from work. If something tragic happens such as a fire or your Great Aunt Meryl falls and breaks a hip, we dial 911, tell them our address, and get in the car with absolute strangers. That's just it. They're strangers. We don't know them; yet we feel the need to check our significant other's phone messages and interrogate them if they arrive just 5 minutes past his or her ETA.

They say to trust your instincts. Usually we trust anyone in a hospital with a white coat; yet we always request a second opinion. We trust our friends when we start a convo with "OMG don't tell anyone this but..." Usually that same phrase is uttered 15 mins later by the same person who just heard it. So how do we decide who we do and do not trust?



* Why do I have a $100 bill you ask? Well, because Brittany gave it to me.**
** Why did Brittany have a $100 bill? Well, because she just got back from Vegas.***
***Ya, I don't want to talk about it.

Double take... again

If you're on facebook I'm sure you've noticed the targeted ads along the right hand side of the screen. It's crazy how personalized they all are. Mine usually shows a picture of Justin Timberlake [right on!] asking me if I want to take the ultimate Justin IQ test. I also get a picture of a 90 pound girl in a bikini asking me if I want to look like her, and telling me they have the secret to losing belly fat. I also get some writing competitions or freelance writers wanted ads. I think one ad even said something about LRC. Talk about target marketing.

However, just recently this photo came up, and I nearly got sick to my stomach. Warning: weird image following!


It said "Impossible IQ Question: How many lips does this girl have?" Well, frankly I can't look at it for too long because my eyes cross, and it makes me nauseous. I know it's just photoshopped, but . . . gah!

What goes up when the rain comes down?

So this morning was a rainy one in Pittsburgh - SURPRISE! Lucky for me, I'd packed my trusty umbrella. I arrived at work nice and dry. Some other 'burghers, however, weren't so lucky. I heard one woman say as she struggled to open a broken umbrella: "Why does my umbrella always fail when I need it most?"

I wanted to say to her, "Well, ma'am, it's probably because you don't use your umbrella when you don't need it." Think about it. How often do you open your umbrella when it's not raining? Chances are, it's not going to fail you when you are not using it.

I found it funny so I thought I'd share.

Fine!

Webster defines the word compromise as "a settlement of differences by mutual concessions." This could be a pretty close definition to that of an agreement, I think. I guess the small conflict lies in the "settlement of differences."Often, when two people compromise, they must each give up a little bit of something to come to an agreement on the issue. But if one person gives up more than the other to solve said issue, is that fair?

Let's say John and Mary decide to have dinner together. Mary wants Mexican. John wants seafood. They compromise and go to Applebees where Mary gets a quesadilla and John orders the fish and chips. While each is able to get what he or she wanted, Mary did not get authentic Mexican food, and John settled for some deep-fried, processed slab of fish. Okay, maybe it's a lame analogy, but you get the idea.

My compromise? I take the bus to my job downtown. I'd love to drive my own car, have all my privacy and be free to sing "Since U Been Gone" at the top of my lungs if I so wish. However, since the cheapest parking lot downtown will charge me $10 per day, I take good ol' public transportation. I ride with some weirdos and must walk 8 blocks to get to my stop, but I've got to settle for what I can afford.

That's just it - a settlement. They say you should never settle for anything less than what you want in life. But sometimes a compromise is inevitable. Sure we can learn to be happy with what we've settled for, but is that how it should be?

Funny that the word promise is the root word of compromise. - I'll use my killer English-Major skills here for a moment. - If a promise is a declaration or an expression of assurance, then a compromise must be a "co-promise" between two people. Even if that promise is reached at the end of an argument with both parties sealing the deal with a "FINE!"