Posts from the “Argument” Category

Crap, brimstone and willful avoidance

Posted on June 21, 2023

Maybe it’s because I’ve stopped watching the news and can barely get through the few articles appearing in the daily newspapers, but I’m losing track of time. The tsunami of nuttiness is relentless, and I can’t spend every day with my hands over my ears. It’s not that I’m not busy, it’s just that my world is getting smaller and more focused after each disastrous story cramming the airways. Deliberate avoidance. A cosmic la-la-la-la-la. The pond (world) in which we live is polluted with bad stuff. The past – for me, those halcyon high school years in the 60s – is beginning to look really, really good again. Simple, clean, ordered – at least on the surface. Get good marks, win that baseball/volleyball/basketball…

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Categories: Argument

Do What You Want

Posted on February 3, 2023

What is it about me that attracts people who want to talk, especially when I do not? Now, don’t get me wrong – I can hold my own in a yak-fest. Put me in social situation in a room full of strangers and in 10 minutes, someone will be telling me their life story. Maybe that skill comes from being a consultant or an internal auditor and having to ask a lot of questions to get to what you need to know. Or working for the government for decades and having to answer the phone with “good morning, you’ve reached ABC department, this is x speaking, how may I help you?” But those were my choices. Last week, my orthopedic surgeon in Mexico looked…

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Categories: Argument, Modern life

Tagged: dressing rooms, politeness, swimming

Boobs, Bee-stung Lips & Weaponry

Posted on September 21, 2021

Heroines. “In contemporary novels, there is no Snidely Whiplash and Dudley Do-Right saving little Nell. Today’s characters (male and female) have evolved from the past to become more independent and complete in their own right.” In other words, believable people. Are these “ideal women”? Scary, but for some people they are quite fantastic. They are hairless, with no muscle tone or facial expression. Thin but busty. Wide-eyed and pouty-lipped. Clothing that is truly fantastic, because in real life, it wouldn’t be functional. And they don’t talk back. When I cruised to my favourite image site – Pixabay – and entered the search terms Amazon and female warrior, I got a page of some of the most foolish illustrations I’ve seen in a long time.…

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Categories: Argument

TED Talk – How books can open your mind

Posted on July 19, 2021

… about comparative reading, relationships and discovering what works for you… We have to hold tight and not let others influence us from our chosen path. “What happens when a dream you’ve held since childhood … doesn’t come true? As Lisa Bu adjusted to a new life in the United States, she turned to books to expand her mind and create a new path for herself. She shares her unique approach to reading in this lovely, personal talk about the magic of books.” And remember, we’re never too old to learn something new!!

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Categories: Argument, Modern life

This really happened

Posted on June 23, 2021

Cue the theme music for The Beverly Hillbillies. Off key. Performed on a banjo missing a string. Wanna tell you a story ’bout a man named ‘Ned’ (names changed to disguise the guilty). My eight-eight year old aunt had just moved into her new apartment three days beforehand – the top floor of a gorgeous house my cousin owns. The lower walk-out level had just been renovated so mother and daughter could be in the same general space, but with separate independent living arrangements. Ned arrives in late afternoon with his aged aunt and a mid-sixties relative from out of town. Drives a nice new Nissan Rogue. Parks in the driveway blocking the entrance to the garage. All three waltz in – empty-handed. No…

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Categories: Argument, Stuff