Singular

I'll never understand why mental illness is so stigmatized in the United States.

Death of Newspapers = Death of Journalism?

There has been a lot of talk over the future of the newspaper. Some are already mourning the death of having ink stained hands with their 7 a.m coffee, but are they being too presumptuous?

Just like the news industry its self, I'm torn. Even though I fairly young, I must admit that I have a certain nostalgia attached to the printed newspaper. There is a certain zen that can only be found in the layout of a physical paper.

But....

An online paper is just so easy! I can't afford to get The New York Times, the WaPo, the Wall Street Journal, and the 3 British newspapers shipped to my house on a daily basis. Yeah, the online layout seems a little callous but it works.

The internet also works because it gets the stories to the people and isn't that what is ultimately journalism about? The current position that newspapers are in doesn't necessarily mean that journalism is going to disappear. For democratic reasons, it's impossible not to have the news. The U.S. would either fall to shambles if that happened [Cynic's Note: Like it isn't already?] or revert to a backwards third world country.

As a journalism major, I won't try to be optimistic about the job market in this field. Of course the slow demise of the printed paper is taking effecting who's hired and who isn't but I'm not as demoralized as I should be. I say this, not because I'm donning rose coloured glasses, but because good writing will never go out style.

The Perks of Hypermobility

I thought that I would never ever say that Hypermobility has an up side. As someone who was diagnosed with it at the age of 13, I have dislocated nearly every joint in my body and have been on a variety of pain killers.

Anyways, I stumbled across this site hosted by the BBC. It has a list of 10 benefits of hypermobility are epic....and true. (list below)

1. Never needing help to apply fake tan to that annoying unreachable bit in between your shoulders.

2. Knowing that baby soft skin isn't just an advertising myth. [This is very, very, very true!! I have gotten so many compliments about my soft skin!]

3. Being able to feel superior at yoga classes, even though you only started them a week ago.

4. Having the real chance to run away and join the circus. [lol, it's good to have a back up plan in case my journalism dreams don't work out]

5. Being able to earn money doing contortionist tricks for TV home video shows. [tee hee, I guess that this can go with #4]

6. Silencing doctors who say "You can't do that" by saying "Oh yeah? Watch me!" [BEST BENEFIT OF ALL!! It's fun to shut doctors up.]

7. Telling people it really is your parents' fault.[My parents get pissed when I bring this up. XP]

8. Reducing dislocated joints in front of an audience, therefore cementing your hard as nails reputation. [Nothing says bad ass like reducing your own shoulder!]

9. Never having to not buy something because you can't reach the zip.

10. Knowing that you really are one in 15,000.

_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-


While I completely agree with the list, I noticed that one benefit is missing. So, I must add a 11 to the list!!

11. It's a great way to pick up dudes (this mostly applies to females but it could apply to hypermobile guys as well).

I say that this is benefit because not only is hypermobility an interesting aspect about myself, it's a great conversation starter. It also drives dudes wild because they have crazy fantasies (think sex with a gymnast ones); however, I'm still a virgin so I don't actually know. XP

NOTE: That is actually a picture of my right arm bent out of place.

I May Own Nothing...

but I want this!!



Bohemians commonly say that we own nothing but want the world in order to reassert the fact that we are poor and have a disregard for consumerism. However, I have major lust for that piece of jewelery above. For those of you who don't know, it's a replication of the necklace worn by the nude in Manet's L'Olympia.



*Drool!* [While I do have an undying love for all things Manet, the drool was meant for the necklace; not the nude.]

The Olympia Pendent can be found for €40 (a little over $50) at
Boutiques de musees. Alas, while it is a really good price, I cannot afford it.

Moved To Tears...

by a single quote.

"We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars." ~ Oscar Wilde Lady Windermere's Fan, 1892, Act III

I almost cried when I read this. It's so simple, yet, it speaks echos about human existence.

People are so jaded.

I am growing ever disgusted of humanity. Between the missiles aimed at Hamas, the genocides in Africa, and the two wars that the U.S. are currently engaged in, I have no idea what the world is coming too. While I may not know, the a few of the commenters at The Times illustrate a very jaded future.

The Times had an article about how the Brits are willing to take a few of the current Guantánamo prisoners to help with the impending closure of the prison. I applaud the efforts of England and their diplomacy. However, it seems as if I am alone because both Brits and Americans lambasted this decision. See Oliver from Manchester who said:

"Excuse me? Persons rallied (violently) against our troops are going to be given sanctuary here??? How in blazes does that make any sense???

Talk about a kick in the teeth to the armed forces..."


or John Smith of Canterbyry [sic]

"Britain's becoming a dumping ground for all the [trash] of the world"

Now from the Americans!

Larry of Modesto, California:

"These men will kill anyone in any country they are released in or they will certainly return to the battlefield as others have and innocent people will die. Why let them go knowing this? PC correctness gets people killed so we can be fair, How stupid is that?"

and I.M. Sigmond:

"Closing Guantanamo is foolish. Bush had the right idea - these are war combatants caught in the field of battle and should be treated as such. They need to be isolated in POW camps, the same as in WW11. The idea of treating them as criminals and not as war combatants is equally foolish."

Get real people! The detainees are men who are actual people that are being detained. Innocent or not, they should be treated with respect and at the very least, stopped being tortured. There has been a slew of evidence (McClatchy just so happens to be my favorite) that proves that the majority of those their are innocent, so why can't we show them at least an ounce of respect? For being the so called first world, we don't have first rate diplomacy.



On a lighter note, HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

Poet Du Jour: Arthur Rimbaud

I adore Arthur Rimbaud. He's that quintessential dirty poet that all Bohemians aspired to be because he reached fame at such a young age. He's also raw; he lived the life of pure emotion and expatriation that I can only dream about. Instead of continuing this exaltation, I'll just post my most preferred poem by Rimbaud.

Romance

I


When you are seventeen you aren't really serious.
- One fine evening, you've had enough of beer and lemonade,
And the rowdy cafes with their dazzling lights!
- You go walking beneath the green lime trees of the promenade.

The lime trees smell good on fine evenings in June!
The air is so soft sometimes, you close your eyelids;
The wind, full of sounds, - the town's not far away -
Carries odours of vines, and odours of beer...


II


- Then you see a very tiny rag
Of dark blue, framed by a small branch,
Pierced by an unlucky star which is melting away
With soft little shivers, small, perfectly white...

June night! Seventeen! - You let yourself get drunk.
The sap is champagne and goes straight to your head...
You are wandering; you feel a kiss on your lips
Which quivers there like something small and alive...


III



Your mad heart goes Crusoeing through all the romances,
- When, under the light of a pale street lamp,
Passes a young girl with charming little airs,
In the shadow of her father's terrifying stiff collar...

And because you strike her as absurdly naif,
As she trots along in her little ankle boots,
She turns, wide awake, with a brisk movement...
And then cavatinas die on your lips...


IV


You're in love. Taken until the month of August.
You're in love - Your sonnets make Her laugh.
All your friends disappear, you are not quite the thing.
- Then your adored one, one evening, condescends to write to you...!

That evening,... - you go back again to the dazzling cafes,
You ask for beer or for lemonade...
- You are not really serious when you are seventeen
And there are green lime trees on the promenade...






Romance was written in 1870 but it rings so true today.