oh lord ... I remember watching the returns when Mondale was running - once the results were pretty much final, the entire country was red except for Minnesota (his home state) and teeny-tiny - you guessed it! - DC.

Yeah. Even Massachusetts went for Ronnie Raygun. Depressing, really.

Yeah. Even Massachusetts went for Ronnie Raygun.

See. Now I'm earwormed with The revolution will not be televised.

Which is better than the Wonderpets. Mostly.

There is some drilling and banging in my basement. No warning from my landlord.

Oh, Teppy, goddamn, that's a huge mountain of shit to be dealing with. I'm so sorry.

I keep trying to formulate a response to the conversation about gender, and it's such a huge and complex thing that I get tripped up trying to say about a dozen things, some of them contradictory. One thing I will say is that looking pretty and acting nice and friendly are two different things that often reinforce each other: when you act friendly, smile big, etc., I think it creates the perception that you are attractive, especially for women. And if you're feeling attractive, you're more likely to act confident and outgoing, and maybe that's perceived as friendliness. So it can be hard to tell how much of the treatment you're getting in a particular interaction is from one or the other.

I went out for lunch today, and the guy who took my order at the counter smiled at me a lot and was really sweet and friendly, to the point of seeming mildly flirtatious. It was a nice moment, and made me feel good about myself, and feel warmly towards him, when otherwise I might not have really noticed him. Unfortunately, he must have been so distracted by my beauty that he forgot to take note of a couple of specific requests (no ice in my water, no tomatoes in my eggs). So while the interaction may have boosted my self-esteem a bit, materially it wasn't really to my advantage in the end...

Oof, Teppy. I hope the universe lightens up on you VERY GODDAMN SOON.

I'm still waiting for one friend in Japan to check in.

She was just here in NYC but, according to her tweets, she left before the quake. Its a long trip, Yoko may well have been stopped en route and doesn't have access to twitter or facebook yet.

Trudy, much safety~ma to your friend.

Teppy, you have had so much happen. I sincerely hope the universe cuts you some slack soon. I'll hold off on my urge to hug and send you some strength instead.

Mondale/Ferraro was only one of the crushing defeats where the mass electorate just didn't get my point of view. My very first vote was 1972 when they all voted for Nixon when clearly McGovern was a better candidate. We will not talk about 2000 or 2004 because really no good can come from that memory.

In more pleasant news, I went to work late today, then took off for 3 hours for lunch and a mani/pedi. I feel almost giddy. I should slack more often. Oh, if I hurry I can leave early too! Or I could just play on the internet while at my desk.

You've read most of what I've said wrongly, for the record.

And what I've said as well.

There is a world of difference between "here is what IS" and "here is what SHOULD BE."

Oof, Teppy. I hope the universe lightens up on you VERY GODDAMN SOON.

This.

There is a world of difference between "here is what IS" and "here is what SHOULD BE."

Same here. Because no one, NO ONE, should feel they have to do that stuff, and I get pissed that society crams that message down women's throats.

On the other hand, I decided a long time ago that it is easier for me personally to game the system, and see if I can work to change those fucked-up messages by trying to subvert society.