Perhaps She’s Not A Genius After All.

I got it wrong.  According to Motoko Rich, of the New York Times publishing beat, the mother-consumer is not actually buying books about feminist issues.  Apparently, catchy titles, talk show appearances and inflamed bloggers don’t equate to book sales.  Who knew?

Just for the record, I actually was going to buy the book, but when I put “Read a Book With an Inflammatory Title Whose Basic Premise I Already Support” on my Google To-Do List I stuck a ‘low priority’ tag on it.  You already know what happens to those tasks. 

Edited to Add:  This just in… I might have been right the first time.  Lot o’ people not real happy with Rich for writing off the Bennetts book as a non-seller. 

I think maybe I liked the old feminism better - you know, the good old days, when we attacked men instead of each other.

Posted in The Fretting Feminist |

Every Pro Has a Pro.

She’s VIK again today.  I’m all set with the treat, and she’s chosen her show-and-tell item.  God Bless Google.

Posted in Everything Else |

Every Pro Has a Con.

My silence of late should not be interpreted as lost interest in blogging or, quite assuredly, lack of material about which I’d like to pontificate. My failure to post here is not even due to my lack of organizational skills.  Quite the contrary, in fact.  Recently, I got organized; and when I did, I lost time.

After the tragedy of Crabby Patty the VIK, I went in search of a good system with which I could organize my life: my calendar, my husband’s calendar, the kids’ calendars, the various to-do list items I have for work projects, home projects, etc.  I discovered Google’s Personalized Homepage. 

I set up separate, but linked, Google Calendars for my events, my husband’s events, and the kids’ activities, and I put the calendar on the homepage. I placed links to all my favorite blogs.   Finally, I popped on a Google Gadget To-Do List.  I put all the tasks I’ve been long failing to accomplish on the list, and I congratulated myself on my new foolproof system of life structure.  

With this new orderly method of planning - with my calendar, my links and my list of tasks now accessible from any computer - I was certain my life would be linear, logical and organized.  “Now,” I thought, “I can really start getting things done.”

It’s been a couple weeks, and I have discovered some unfortunate glitches in the system.  I’m not sure whether I can blame Google, but I’m hoping I can find a solution to the system errors. 

For example, “post on my blog”, (much like all the tasks I do primarily for myself and thus instinctually label with Google’s ‘low priority’ tag), seems to sink quickly to the bottom of my new Google Gadget List.  It gets continually stomped down as those irritatingly snooty ‘high’ and ‘medium’ priority administrative tasks elbow their way to the top.  Just when I can ceremoniously delete the “make dentist appointment” item that has needed attention for at least two or more dental seasons, I have to add a somewhat urgent “take limping dog to vet.”  Just when I can cross off “grade papers,” I have to add “return several student inquiries about extra credit.” 

Sometimes blogs I really like to read just stop updating or disappear altogether, and it’s rather unsettling.   When I’ve been tuning in to read a blog, I’m prone to worry.  Where’s Mombat - is she ok, did something happen, did she give up blogging or go on to blog somewhere else?  Did the News Moms get sent away to cover a story and never return? Were the Urban Mommies abducted due to rising crime rates in their big cities?  “Where have all these great blogging mothers gone?” I wondered.

Now I have a potential theory: their lives, lives they describe with labels like ”working mothers in the big city” simply come with so many to-do list items that they have to turn several pages to even find “post on my blog.”  

Posted in Ranting and Whining |

We Can Stop Rape.

April is Sexual Violence Awareness and Prevention Month. 

Help spread the word and help protect our children from violence.

• Less than 20% (probably far less) actually even report sexual assault. 
• 1 in 5 boys and 1 in 4 girls will have an experience involving sexual assault before the age of 18.
• Even though apparently false reports generate a whole lot of media attention - it is estimated that of reported rapes, less than 3 of every 1000 are false. 
  (Source for statistics: stopsexualviolence.org)

We can get involved too.

Protect our children. 
Teach them about safety. 
Challenge our societal perceptions of masculinity.

Plus, any gift you make to RAINN this month will be matched DOLLAR FOR DOLLAR.   

Finally, in the focus on prevention,  let’s not forget to encourage and support survivors.

Posted in Serious Side |