The best laid schemes… Oh how they can blow up in our faces. Thankfully, since I’m not a man, I must be a mouse. Not sure yet, but for a few minutes a couple of nights ago, I could have put my fist through a wall. This morning I’m still a little unsure of myself but less so as the clock ticks. And the clock ticking is what started all of this here. You thought it was Richard Armitage? Hang around, and I’ll disabuse you of that notion although there might be some confusion when posts like this appear.
I still can’t look at that picture without blinking my eyes and shaking my head to clear it. Ironically, that really might be his sexiest picture.
And since I usually muddle up the paragraph breaks in my posts not to mention all of my other grammatical sins, I might as well do it up right and just place them wherever I want and hope you understand my convoluted mind. Honestly, I never have known the best way to place paragraph breaks; topic sentences mystify me. So glad that hasn’t stopped me. Now for the awkward transition.
Sometime last weekend an item from RAFrenzy inadvertently posted on my personal Facebook wall, and if you need to heat some coffee or tea, you can place it next to my head where the steam is coming out. Previously I just disliked Facebook, now I despise it. This has jeopardized my anonymity to a degree it has never happened during the life of the blog. Yeah, I know some of you know who I am because I’ve let you know, and for all of you other RA fans who may have guessed, I’m not concerned about you. It’s the family I don’t want reading. SO and the kids are not so much the problem. I mean the extended family. They would not get it, so I don’t want them reading and possibly giving input. If I did, they would already know about it. Wait! Some of them now do. Damn Facebook.
So how did this happen? Oh, I’m going to tell you so I can give this rant full vent and also give you a heads up. It happened on my phone where I haven’t mastered the ability to control scripts so I only have running the ones I want. For the uninitiated, scripts drive the web page you’re on, and sometimes scripts include all sorts of nasty things that you don’t really want running. For me Facebook is nasty, and especially so when the Facebook mobile app will not let me log out, and I have to clear my data every time I want to make sure it’s not logged in, and even then it’s not a sure thing. Can you see that steam now?! Let me make this really plain. If you’re logged into Facebook, and you are on a site that has a link to Facebook, you can inadvertently post a “Like” to your wall. Given that links to Facebook have wormed their way onto virtually every site on the web, there is a vulnerability you might be posting things to your FB wall that you never intended [waves hand vigorously in the air while saying ‘choice’ words]. Same thing with Twitter, which I still like, but I may ended up despising for the same reason.
And I wouldn’t have been on my phone if I hadn’t been determined to work on my blog post about Richard’s back. Okay, enough of that rant, but just know that despite my irritation, I’m not letting this keep me from blogging. On to the good stuff.
I did promise some more pictures, which I really was about to post a couple of nights ago before I got rattled.
His size and vantage point scream masculinity, but that’s not enough to make these pictures so compelling. His attentive nature is still evident. Man, I really have a bad case of CWS. Who woulda thunk a set of pictures of his back would bring on such a bout?
This one really does make me think I can reach out and hug him:
This one almost looks like a kid trying to get the lay of the land:
It is amazing to me how he can still convey a purity without using his facial expressions. Yep, I have a raging case of CWS.
My oldest child is taking third year Spanish in college. Before this class, she had never taken any formal language classes and knew no one associated with the language program at her school. A couple of days ago she finally made a visit to the language lab where she logged into one of the computers and cruised around the school’s language site. Some external links were listed under helps, so she clicked on one of them. It was a YouTube channel designed to teach Spanish, and just for grins, she clicked on one of the videos and then sat open mouthed a minute later:
At about 1:20, there are two girls in black and white, and there is a sink behind them. Those two girls are my oldest and youngest children, and the sink is my kitchen sink, yet my daughter doesn’t know the owner of that YouTube channel nor does anyone she knows personally know the owner of the YouTube channel. She was naturally creeped out and called home to get some input. After SO and I finally realized she wasn’t pulling our legs, we sat stunned as well, and then all of us set about trying to figure out how the channel owner would have come to have this picture and use it to represent sisters. We speculated and ruled out all sorts of scenarios and then came to one that makes such sense.
The photo in the video was posted on my daughter’s Facebook page a couple of years ago, and she had labeled it “hermanita”, which is translated “sister” from Spanish. Although my daughter doesn’t have quite the tight security on her FB account that I would like, her account is fairly private and certainly this photo was private. Doesn’t matter. She posted a picture on her account where friends could see it. This implied a right for them to post it to their FB pages (whether that was a legal right or not), and apparently someone did take it and posted elsewhere. Once this was done, that person then extended a right to all of their friends, and if one of their friends decided to post it, the right was extended to all of their friends. Yes, I’m saying that if you put up a picture on Facebook, you can potentially lose control of it. Isn’t Facebook grand?
This can happen to any of us who are on Facebook or almost anywhere on the web. The protestations from Facebook about privacy and respecting copyright are immaterial. Yep, that’s right — they mean nothing. If it’s out on the web (and Facebook has a way of propagating information on the web the likes of which would make your head spin), the potential to be taken from you is enormous. Most people say to themselves, “Why would some stranger want my photos?” You may never know why.
I bring this post for those of you who are still enamored of Facebook but don’t realize the vulnerability it creates for you. Facebook is everywhere and gives others the ability to lift all sorts of things about you — the least of which are your personal photos — and again, it does not matter about your privacy settings. Well, unless you have no friends on Facebook which would defeat the purpose of the site. And I won’t even get into Facebook wanting to trademark the word “f*ce” and how invasive that may be. You can read about that here.
Obviously, what makes this case bizarre are the great odds of my daughter ever seeing herself this way, but it should beg a question of everyone: are there any photos of me, or anything else about me, somewhere I’m unaware of? Probably.
By the way, this is one of the reasons I will never post pictures of famous people in a family setting that the famous in question has not intentionally made public. I will not participate in the breaching of someone’s privacy. It is certainly not my place to do that with anyone’s photos — be they photos of the famous or not. Sadly, on occasion I have been sent what appear to be stalking pictures, and at one time I had a picture of what I’m pretty sure was a private photo of Richard Armitage’s family. That ran a chill up my back, and I couldn’t help but think of my own family. I’ll admit a wee part of me wanted to keep the photo. Thankfully, the better part of me, who lives by the Golden Rule, got rid of it. May the better part of me always dominate.
I told my daughter I was going to be posting this video and that I wanted to post some other pictures of her. She’s of the generation that expects to have their pictures and videos plastered everywhere without consent, but I’m of the generation that is still compelled to ask permission. And this should probably be a post just about her, but I’m not sure one blog piece would do justice to her. She has a lot of energy and is almost always smiling and laughing. It’s hard to get a picture of her when she’s not:
She is also larger than life but doesn’t realize it. Everyone who knows her can see it, and many of us think this photo captures it perfectly:
Update April 2018: my daughter is a college graduate with honors, speaks several languages, lives in NYC where she owns a business and is doing very well, is engaged to a fine young man, whom we like very much, and she finally made it to Machu Picchu. :D
P.S. I didn’t ask for permission to post this photo since it’s already posted on the web.
It’s amazing what you can still get for five bucks. I don’t even need to ask SO what he thinks. He would probably love this guy, and I wonder if Richard Armitage might not feel a little fondness as well. :D
Wish I had thought about being paid to bitch. I would be rich several times over.
In the meantime, you can go here to get your personal rant.
I had to get that last post done. Wish you could have heard me laughing while I typed, but I’m glad it’s done.
Lately, I’ve mostly been dwelling on things that are fine and good and true and beautiful when it would have been so easy to focus on things that are not. What a wondrous thing to remember I don’t have to focus on things that don’t edify. It’s strange to make reference to it — even cryptically, and it’s certainly hard for me to take this place seriously. RA Universe doesn’t qualify as serious. Not even close. But I do have to make good on some promises I’ve made in the last year, and I will. But not today.
For SO and I, this sums up the state of our minds the last few weeks:
My brain is definitely out of control, and I mean that in the best way possible. But I’m itching to capture my thoughts, and just when I gave one of my prized possessions to my son. I’ve ordered another one, but it’s not here yet, and I’ve had to resort to pencil and paper when on the road. Painful!! LOL!
Onto some housekeeping of which this blog is in great need. My tags are a mess, but oh, you don’t know the joy of cleaning up a mess until you have to sift through pictures of and words about Richard Armitage. The challenge is to not get sidetracked.
And this is what I’m listening to as I sift:
I’ve probably got more to say about Oscar Peterson, Antonio Carlos Jobim, et al in more detail later. And okay, I threw in ‘How Insensitive’ (aka ‘Insensatez’) but don’t you just love Sting’s funky self?!! Yes, I’ll work him into another post sometime as well. :D
Do we need a picture of RA to go along? Oh yeah.
Manipulation courtesy of a fan, whom I’m not sure wants credit. I’ll have to check. In the meantime, enjoy, and remember you can click on it to enlarge.
edit: just as I thought — she does not want credit. That’s a shame since this is a great manipulation. Oh well, we still get to enjoy it.
Okay, the title is for the new fans as I’m sure many of you others (that sounds better than ‘old fans’) have already seen these pictures. For the new fans, you can see him animated at Who is Richard Armitage? If you are feeling the hunger to investigate further, there are lots of good Places to Get a Fix. If you are already into full blown addiction and need to “commiserate,” of course you can get plenty of that here, but I’m far from the only place as there are many blogs on The Addict List. And if you’re on a phone and can’t easily access my About page, then go here — might make you feel better if you’re feeling a little funny right now.
But onto really important matters. :D
If I were single and there were someone like this who is intelligent and doesn’t just look the part?
It would be a serious temptation to my good sense. Oh heck, I would be addled, and I remember when I was addled by someone.
As if that’s not enough, consider the physical Richard Armitage:
Watching the workout segment in the recent Hobbit production video from Peter Jackson created a powerful flash back of seeing SO for the first time. He was in a ragged golf shirt and jeans. Although he could afford better clothes, he was on the go so much of the time that he loved how those ragged clothes “breathed.” The golf shirt was truly awful, but I was still dazed by him. He has always been very fit looking, and he was quite the athlete. He walked around our college campus, and I seriously did swoon. Before we started dating, I would squirrel myself in a seat unseen on the football field/track and watch him work out. He didn’t know I was already in love with him. Then after we were together, I used to run stands with him and much later told him, “You had to know it was love, baby, since no one in her right mind would do that unless they were training for the Olympics.” I loved looking at him, and especially his legs. He’s always had the most beautifully muscled legs and back and shoulders, and I’ll stop. But one last thing. The most compelling part of SO is his mind. He is clever and after all of our years together, he is still interesting; still keeps me on my toes. Yes, there have been times I have wanted to wring his neck, but it was never enough to eclipse the force that he is and remains, and seriously, I marvel at that. I’ve said this before on this blog, and I couldn’t help saying it again. Today, I was looking at SO at a task, and I was addled again. Sadly, I see so many people bored with their SOs, and I feel for them.
Still have that golf shirt.
Dear Richard,
Thank you for just being you, and thanks for serving as a catalyst for such lovely memories. Hope you don’t mind that I used you that way, but hey, if you’re going to be objectified, I can’t think of a better way.
Sincerely,
One of your crazy fans gone to look for her SO. :)
P.S. I have never understood why so many fans refer to you as slim. Oh, you are fine (more than fine), but you are not a little guy such that words like ‘slim’ are apt descriptions. Far from it.
Promo still for Captain America from Life and screencaps from “The Hobbit” set are mine.
edit: this post has quickly earned the ripple tag thanks to bccmee. Check out kadamanja’s and Calexora’s posts. :D
The teasing about ‘Captain America’ and specifically Heinz Kruger has begun at my house. My son will go see the movie with his friends because quite simply there is not much else to see, but when I mentioned seeing it, there were some guffaws from the family. SO asked, “and what will you do once Armbruster’s part is done? Will you actually stay for the rest of the movie?” Our daughter, who is also an RA fan, chimed in, “It’s Armitage, Dad. His name is Armitage, and I’m sure Mom and I will gut it up and stay for the rest of the movie. You know how she loves Tommy Lee Jones, and of course I’ll make the sacrifice of watching Chris Evans with his shirt off. :D” SO chuckled, “No, Tommy Lee may not do it this time. She’s there for the bad guy. And who’s Chris Evans?”
Yeah, who’s Chris Evans? :D
If that’s not a picture to fangirl over, I don’t know what is. LOL!
I also like Stanley Tucci, who’s playing Dr. Erskine but not a bad guy in this.
I understand he gets torched by Heinz Kruger.
Then there are other badasses to consider. Truman Capote?
Oh well, maybe Tommy Lee will make it worthwhile just because he looks like such a badass.
Some screencaps are from my stash, the top one I got from bccmee and the rest I’m not sure about.
And if you’re confused about RA’s part as Heinz Kruger, check out Musa’s post.
I didn’t think it was possible, but there are people who read my blog who have seen little or no ‘Robin Hood’ hence the spoiler tag. If you do not know the full story of Guy of Gisborne, please don’t read this piece. Just watch the show.
Last chance to bail. :D
Two years ago today I was waiting anxiously for the resolution of Guy. I had been waiting well over a year to find out his ultimate fate after his killing Marian, and it was so much more than wanting to know the resolution of that situation. It had transcended the absurdity that was the show and had moved from Gisborne’s love and desperation for Marian to become about finding resolution for a damaged man and specifically about finding redemption of his life. Even writing this now, it sounds a bit melodramatic, and well, it was melodramatic, but oh, the way the media treated the show made it abundantly clear Guy’s story was THE story albeit the producers could not acknowledge that overtly. It was still done in ways too obvious to miss.
Just one example was Digital Spy doing interviews with the principals in the cast, and Richard Armitage was the last one interviewed — oh yeah, saving the best for last. Some of the questions asked are a bit hackneyed. As always Richard doesn’t give hackneyed answers. He does seem tired but is still able to reveal what it is we love so much about Guy and about him as an actor:
Revelation of the inner core. Even if he had not been redeemed in the last series, he captured something that most can relate to — the need to be loved and the hunger for redemption at times as part of fulfilling that need. This is the secret of Guy’s appeal and why two years later I can still get choked about his passing.
And if Richard Armitage can pull off this kind of examination of a character most would marginalize, what is he really capable of doing? It’s potentially mind boggling to contemplate, and sorry, my friends, but romantic comedies rarely enter my thinking about potential roles for Richard. I have nothing against them and like quite a few, but I hope someone, somewhere who has the means to supply him with damn fine writing will step up, and I doubt it’s going to be a romantic comedy.
However, on a completely shallow note and completely understanding the need to see him in a romance, phew! he is fine in that clip! Blindingly handsome, and to hear from some who have seen him in person, that is nothing by comparison. If that’s nothing, I’m not sure I could handle seeing him in the flesh.
By the way, I was absolutely sure Guy was history once I saw this interview, but then I had thought for a good while Guy was going to meet his end if for no other reason than Richard Armitage had long since outgrown the show. Please note when he touches his head. A long time ago it became abundantly clear this is an obfuscating gesture and interesting to examine in light of one of Servetus’ recent posts. I guess this comment proves I can still devolve into playing the idiot chick from the O’Reilly Factor :D, and now I feel compelled to ask a pardon:
Dear Rich,
I hope you don’t mind going under the magnifying glass so much, and frankly, that is the chief reason I hope you never read my blog. It would make me feel a little self-conscious to know you see the examination of your every move. By the way, I’m contemplating the movement of your eyelashes at some point in the future, and I can’t indulge my anal tendencies quite so much if well, you’re looking at me. So glad you don’t, but I’m sure my SO is glad I’m doing this blog since my need to examine every cussed thing is not so focused on him at present. :D
Sincerely,
One of your crazy fans, who feels a bit self-conscious right now even if you don’t read my blog.
note: I debated doing this post since I still need to do my follow-up to TDHCMO, but frankly, I don’t want to be on a schedule. I’m on a schedule or at someone’s beck and call so much of the time. That’s not really a complaint despite how it sounds, but I need a place I am not so worried about meeting deadlines or others’ expectations. I guess this is it, and tomorrow, I have to continue on with Guy. Too much to talk about to hit and run with one post.
See Diary Part 25 here, or to access all entries, hit “The Diary” tab above.
Entry — a day or so later in 2008:
So what is wrong with me? I have developed this aberration in my behavior which requires I look at the Armitage Army forum at least once a day. It’s been going on for weeks and makes me wonder about myself. Why am I looking at this thing every day? Maybe I’m this bored or maybe I have gone nuts? And of course I can’t help asking why. Am I needy? I’ve been needy at times, and this is definitely meeting some sort of need. Thankfully, I haven’t said much on the board since I really have nothing much to say. I said a few things when I first joined but certainly nothing of any value. I have said too many things in my life when I had nothing of any real value to say. I just want to read what these others are saying. It’s fascinating, and I’m a shit for putting everyone under the magnifying glass. Then again, that’s what I do, and I doubt I’m going to stop at this late date. I just wish I took more joy in it.
And dear Mr. Armitage is firmly under the glass. What is this guy about? I can’t figure it out, and I want to. I see all of these people talking about how he’s very private and all that, but then I read his interviews, and I don’t know what to think. He’s been very candid about his life, as if he has a clear conscience, and he’s actually talked quite a bit. Of course print interviews can be so misleading. I certainly ought to know that. SO has been interviewed countless times in our little part of the world, and if I only went by what I read in the papers, I would not come close to knowing what he’s really about. But one thing that is interesting about SO’s interviews is the writers are all impressed by the same thing about him — his honesty and humility, and not a fake kind of in your face honesty and humility that says look at me, but just something that’s so much a part of his being that the writers can’t help but notice it. That much definitely comes across. I find this is a common thread in the interviews of Richard Armitage as well. Or maybe he’s just really good at playing honest and humble. My gut says no, he’s for real.
But I did get tickled at the interview where he’s promoting ‘Cold Feet’. Humility was not so much the watchword as brutal honesty. He sounds like a big kid, and this just endeared him to me even more. There is no artifice and little or no spin. I loved it!
Click for full photo.
And it’s interesting the character he plays is all about spin. Yep, I bought the DVDs, so I’m in for a few more bucks investment in Mr. Armitage. I’m glad I bought that multi-region DVD player, or maybe not LOL!
Then toward the end of the interview he talked about Cleopatra being crap, and I about fell off my chair laughing. Oh, you are so right, Mr. Armitage. Crap indeed, and a comedy. SO and I watched it again the other day and howled with laughter, and SO still doesn’t realize squat about Richard Armitage being in this. We usually just watch Caesar’s death scene when we need a good laugh. Well, that and Cleopatra cruising down the Nile. ROFLOL!!
And how interesting that Richard Armitage is going to co-star with Hermione Norris in ‘Spooks’, I cannot wait for that! Not sure how in the heck I’m going to watch it, but I’ll find a way. There is no chance I’m going to wait until it’s on Netflix. So far they only have up through Series 5.
I have so many other things I want to say, but I’m too tired to say it all today, and I’m glad I started journaling, so I can capture some of what I think even if some of it is stupid. I kept wondering what good was it to record all of those hideous things? I was wrong as I’ve been wrong about so many things. So today was one year of me writing all of this…. I’m not sure what to call it, and I’m afraid to go back and read all of it. I tried to read some of it a couple of weeks ago, and what I found was astonishing and humbling.
What was I saying about just enjoying something for what it is and not nitpicking? I’m the worst. I just can’t stop asking why. And is that so bad if it’s just me doing it in my head? I know dammit, it requires some wisdom. Oh, do I know it requires some wisdom. But I’ve been successful (at least by the world’s standards), and a lot of it had to do with asking why in my head about whatever was in front of me. It’s the why that made me successful! It’s the why that was the key! But it’s also the why that made me walk away from all of that. It’s the why that made me call bullshit on so many things. And that was wise. I have only to look at my children to know it was wise. They would not be who they are in part if I had not walked away from all those things which made me subject to such praise. A sacrifice? Maybe it seemed that way a little at first, but now? No, it was no great sacrifice. They are turning into people of great character who are inspiring me! But it could have been so different. I could have looked back at my life and been aware of how great it looked to the world but my children would have probably been at loose ends, and I certainly wouldn’t have known them. Not as I do now.
Present day:
I had such a good time reading Richard Armitage’s interviews, which were only up to a few Spooks 7 promotional pieces at this point in the journal. More on that later. But I have to comment on how friendly he sounds. When I saw him in the powhiri ceremony, it reminded me so much of him as the big goofy kid promoting ‘Cold Feet’, and I have it on good authority that he is immensely well liked on ‘The Hobbit’ set. Dare I say a favorite? Yes, I dare since I was also told that the group picks who will represent them at a powhiri ceremony, and they chose Richard. The crew and in particular the Kiwis were rooting for him:
“…as a Kiwi, it is important to see the reaction of the knowing crowd to Richard’s performance. See the guy at the last row, on the left, Mark Hadlow, Kiwi actor? He is so proud of Richard. This is a man who has seen many powhiri so knows what is cool…”
I think the New Zealanders might want to claim him as theirs. :D They see something I and many of you see — a keen mind and a self-deprecating yet not mean-spirited humor coupled with a great work ethic. A work ethic that says you’re important enough for me to learn Maori and represent you well. The Kiwis got the honor done to them, and if there is anything I’m learning, it’s that the general psyche of the Kiwi people is to adore those who don’t take themselves too seriously and who are team players:
We Kiwis are very laid back “she’ll be right, mate” attitude, and we all muck in (help out) when needed.
I think it’s apt to say he made the team proud. :D
And I don’t know exactly how Richard Armitage feels, but I’m falling in love with the Kiwi people. The more I read and listen to them, the more I want to go to New Zealand, and it has nothing to do with Richard Armitage. Seriously.
Last but not least, James Nesbitt is supposed to be one of the nicest people you would ever want to meet. A real prince of a guy, so I’m not going to ever say anything catty about Jimmy.
Contrary to the belief of some, I was not taken in a rapture, but I have a disclaimer: I am currently on drugs, don’t really feel like editing this piece, so please don’t hold against me anything I say below. And you can sue me for the title, but that about sums up where this blog is at the moment.
A few weeks ago my clever hat was consigned to the dustbin without my consent, or to be clear, real life intruded on my little idyll here. In the meantime, I’ve been trying to get back in the mood of blogging. I figured the best way to do that was to review my previous posts to pick up the thread of what I was doing. My first observation is that I have some typos which years ago would have made me want to crawl under a rock, and even a few months ago would have made me cringe. Now? I got a good laugh out of them. Well, I did cringe just a little at first. Second, I really have had fun with this thing, whatever it is. Third, I’ve got a lot more to say, but no, I won’t lay all of that on you here. Fourth, I need to do some serious editing on some of these old pieces. Am I allowed? Oh, yeah, I’m allowed. Fifth, I’m lousy at being cryptic. I just read two of my diary entries that get a lot more reading than some, and I grew weary at how they go on and on and on and on and don’t essentially convey what I wanted. I edited out the parts that really held them together, and in the doing of that, they lost something that dare I say makes them compelling.
Oh, well, that was the point of this exercise of blogging — to learn how the heck to say some of this stuff — so I’m not going to get too irritated about it. Maybe just a little irritated. I do make the disclaimer in one of the pieces that I had not taken the hatchet as much to it as I did some others, but therein was the problem — it either needs more taken out or to be completely left alone. I think I may break out something to deal with it. A machete? Oh, and I finally let SO read it, and he said, “I liked the stream of consciousness.” LOL! I appreciate his encouragement, but then he had to smile a little as he said it. Whatever. If that’s how my brain works, no wonder I’m tired. Fighting through all of the winding around and pontificating and cryptic cuteness was work, and if there is anything I don’t want to happen here for the reader it’s work. Come to think of it, I may put the ‘public service’ tag on that post once I’ve cleaned it up.
Haven’t been online much this week and had to make up for it by inhaling as much of my Reader as I could. What does that have to do with maintenance? Well, it’s part and parcel of what goes into this blog, a type of maintenance if you will. Oh, you thought some of this just sprang from my head fully formed? I couldn’t think up all of this innervating junk. Thank God.
Some of what I found:
Summer is coming. Yes, it comes every year like clock work, and you would have to be deaf, dumb, and blind not to know that you have to get ready if you’re going to be a part of it. Um yeah, the arbiter of worthiness is whether or not you can wear a bikini successfully.
For those who are feeling less than at their best, some of the beautiful were slumming to make the rest of us feel better.
There is hope if you’re still not feeling better. Supposedly men like women who have “guy humor,” so you can leave the bikini at home. Yes, the bikini is really about the guys. No, don’t try to bullshit me with a feminist treatise. It’s about men. But if you can’t wear that bikini, your mouth might make up for it, and before I read this piece, I assumed it mostly meant girls are attractive who can appreciate crudeness, and yep, I was right. Sadly, no one will read that this was a flawed study. Aren’t most of them? Although after living with a man for quite a few years, I believe embracing some crudeness is a must.
And I guess I’m not the norm, since I’m not as attracted to brooding men possibly filled with shame (the characters of Richard Armitage aside :D) as some women. My thumbnail on this is that women are attracted to men like that because many of us have a bit of a savior complex, which could lead to some worship. Don’t we all want to be loved, adored, cherished (take your pick) and what better way to know than to be worshipped? Meantime, I couldn’t get this out of my head:
No, not those dweebs, but they do make a point about the crudeness that’s just part of that Y chromosome. And this is the reason some women will almost kill themselves to get a bikini body? When really they just need to crack some crude jokes and maybe perform some crude acts.
Perhaps the only reason I didn’t fall into the normal pattern of being drawn to shame filled men is I knew I really wasn’t worthy to be worshipped as a savior. Therefore, a confident, at peace, smiling man, was my choice. I’m happy to report that he’s still smiling although he’s had his obstacles, and had his moments of introspection, anger and yes, some villainy (he is a human being), but still loyal. May my daughters be drawn to such a man.
I do sometimes worry about the male society my girls are going into. People are not loyal. That is the great dichotomy of this world. Many want loyalty but don’t want to give it. That’s why commitments don’t happen for most. In some cases the need to shuck it off is understandable. Maybe their driver will lose them over there. Unfortunately, there is a line to take their place. So glad I’ve never watched those shows, and I hated that I even spent any of my time watching that clip. Hopefully, the next paragraph will redeem the erroneous investment.
Back to the point. Commitment is the key, and of course I understand a piece of paper is not necessarily indicative of commitment, but this is how I’ve put it to my girls: do you want to make a commitment to someone who is not clear about their commitment and is not willing to declare it to others? I never have understood how a nebulous arrangement was edifying. No, don’t fill me in, the drugs would keep me from really receiving it right now. It just seems that it’s really about f*cking (of course enjoyable f*cking), but when did that ever get a firm commitment? Really? I don’t think so. It’s just f*cking unless someone’s heart is engaged, and out of the abundance of the heart someone will speak. And yes, God yes, take an accounting of their character before the witnesses are present. Speaking a few words at a hyped up ceremony designed to put the bride and her momma in a euphoria are not enough. Never have been. I laugh when I think my mother got married in a brown suit with spectator pumps while standing in front of the fireplace of her future sister-in-law’s living room in a service that was planned by my Dad and her mother was not there, or if I think of SO’s mother who got married in a blue tea length dress (her best dress at the time) at The Hitching Post wedding chapel, which was the first one on The Strip and no mother there. And no f*cking was necessary from them before hand. Just a man of character who loved them. My father passed away after 40+ years of marriage and was still committed to my mother on his way out and she to him. That was after all the hard times they weathered. Piece of paper my ass. The commitment was clear from the start, and I don’t believe my mother has ever owned a bikini nor has SO’s mother.
If I’ve thoroughly depressed you, well, you may not have to live with it long. If someone really does succeed in hacking Lockheed Martin well enough, they might be dropping those bombs soon.
In the meantime relax and maybe watch some “So You Think You Can Dance.” It’s going to be on a little longer. Where are those drugs?
Oh, and I was going to put in a line about missing Nat, and then she showed up! Good to see you posting again, Natalie. You are a ray of sunshine.
Last, did you catch Amy Poehler’s speech to Harvard’s graduating class? Well, it’s viral now, so I’m sure you can find it easily. I’m too lazy to post a link. She didn’t say anything that really hasn’t been said a thousand times at graduation speeches, i.e., LIVE! but she really did understand the humor in them choosing her. I’m not sure the class got that, and I find myself not really caring.
Found the drugs. See ya later.
edit: for those who asked, yes, I’ve worn a bikini many times, so this is not my angst about inability to do that. I just think it’s crap that women still see their worth as almost totally equated with their bodies and their ability to give some. Hate that.
This is a tangent post, which means little or no Richard Armitage, so you can skip it if you’re only here for Richard. :D But this is also a reply to the readers who have sent me notes wondering why I have cut back on posting regularly about RA. I really appreciate your interest. It makes me want to get back to posting regularly much sooner, but please know that I’ll be back posting about our favorite guy in the next week.
In the meantime, I just thought I would share a little about what takes me away from this blog at times. I have two other favorite guys — SO and this one (aka son of SO):
The boy in the front is how I think of him. That’s his usual position on the track. Of course I’m not proud. ;-)
Seriously, this kid has run his backside off, and he doesn’t have much backside to begin with. He has earned first position, but more than that, he is just a great person. Yes, I’m biased! I admit freely that I’m proud he’s my son. It’s hard not to be proud when I consider his stellar character which has influenced his peers for the good. He in no way puts himself in first position when he’s off a racecourse. Kindness just pours out of him — the sort to quickly come to the aid of old women, and his friends have followed suit. This is the part of him of which I’m most proud, and his friends are not the only ones affected for the good. He’s made SO and I and several other adults I know want to be better people.
I’ve now spent over 10 years going to track and cross country meets and seven of those years were to watch my son. I should have known this was my fate when I took up with SO, who was a serious runner and now a phenomenal coach. But the regular meets are about to come to an end next weekend, and I have to confess part of me is relieved. The other part of me doesn’t want to think about it. By mid-August, my son will be gone from home, and SO and I are grieving this. It’s really hard for us to even talk about it without breaking down, but I guess today I can’t help but talk about it hence this post.
Thanks for letting me indulge my maudlin self, and I’ll be back next week to talk about Richard.
RAFrenzy 
