etc

I confess...I haven't had much to say lately but feel the need to "check in"...

• I've expressed a desire for a sign that says "It's allergies, not swine flu" to wear on the T so people stop giving me looks as I sniffle away. Yet I still wanted hand sanitizer after sitting next to a guy who was coughing the whole ride.
• I need a pant suit and a winter coat. These both really do hit the "need" stage and not the "want" sage but I still feel guilty bout the purchases...esp. after getting the estimate for my share of costs for dental work. Seriously, if I didn't get the RC and crown, I'd lose the tooth someday...it isn't some cosmetic procedure and it should be more fully covered.
• I really would enjoy Fall more if not for the allergies and for the fact that I know what comes after Fall.
• I was disappointed by the Bones premier. But enjoyed watching last week's Mad Men via On Demand. I especially enjoy seeing Peggy try to figure out how to make the career world work as a woman and seeing how Don is involved in that. He's not at all a feminist and really doesn't see the system as broken but he has still been her champion. He isn't going to help her with the women's rights battles but sees her talent and does want to capture that.
• We are off to Vegas soon for my BIL's wedding. I've never had much interest in Vegas but it should still be a fun trip. Vegas is where they live which makes it a bit different than the typical idea of a Vegas Wedding.
• I still wish I had better knowledge of the health care debate. I know that I'd like to see universal access but really can't say how to achieve it realistically. But I also have made pretty shabby efforts to learn.
• I do not think every negative comment about Obama has a racial element. In a way, assuming that there's a racial issue with every moment is racist itself.

maintenance

I confess...I just don't know.

I often think about whether or not I'm "high maintenance." I don't require fancy clothes, I don't wear make-up, I don't need the latest shoes. My purse is years old and the zipper is frayed. I'd rather be wearing my PJs than anything fancy. I hate spending money on clothes.

But then again...I'm beyond rigid when it comes to food and my habits aren't cheap...I like the pricier yogurt and "fancy" ramen. I need my routines. I need a lot of reassurances. And I do HATE when my hair gets frizzy. Do those things mean I'm high maintenance, just in my own way?

Now that I'm thinking more about it...Why is it that it is women who tend to be deemed high maintenance? A man may be one to like fancy things, but he doesn't get the same label. And the label difference remains even when the woman is perfectly capable of maintaining herself. Is it a throwback to a time before that...when women were largely dependent financially....and will it pass into oblivion with dowries and the like?

Editing to add....Thinking about it, the closest term we have for a high maintenance man is a metrosexual. Which itself suggests there's something un-manly and female about the state. And I think it's more often used with a bit of a negative connotation...sometimes it can be neutral, but really rarely is the term metrosexual cast in a totally positive light.

random thoughts

I confess...more ponderings...

• Why does the Day & Night pack of allergy pills have the same number of pills for both when the typical person is awake twice as many hours as they sleep?
• What makes something a lie? Is it just the element of untruth or does there need to be an intent? I saw a tv episode where the patient neglected to say he'd been in Fla. when they asked if he'd visited the tropics. The doc called it a lie but the patient clearly didn't think Fla. counted.
• What does it say about me when a part of me likes it when a trucker honks at me when I'm walking by?
• Why does everyone walk places in Boston and no one walk anywhere in Atlanta when (for most of the year) the latter has a more walking-friendly climate? Is it because the cities grew up in different eras (i.e. ATL came of age when people had cars, Boston was a big town before that)?
• Why is the first piece of luggage free on international flights but not domestic, even when some international destinations are a shorter trip than places in the U.S. (i.e. Boston to Bermuda vs. Boston to LA)?