When Republicans make sense

Every once in a while, I see a Republican argument that actually makes sense to me. Like as in logical sense, a good argument, not as in now-I-believe-that-too sense. I don't see many of those, and I see a lot more liberal arguments that are both logical and in line with my beliefs, which is why I'm a hardcore scary Democrat. Mwhahahaha.

But believe it or not, I'm actually very pleasantly surprised when I see this. I mean, I'm young and just barely caring about politics (within the last year or so), so I'm also at the point where I sometimes feel like my friends and family who are siding with "the bad guys" are either ignorant or also bad guys. Either way, it's really nice to understand more why people believe a certain thing, instead of just being presented with constant evidence that they are either ignorant or backwards in their thinking.

Sorry, Republicans. But you know you're thinking the same thing about Democrats. Or you're not and you're a better person than I am right now.

So here's what I discovered on Pinterest:

And you know what? I really don't have much of a response for that.

Except that insurance that doesn't want to cover birth control does cover Viagra, and that's ridiculously sexist.

Plus, it's better for the entire economy of the country, and the welfare of the country, that we have a smaller population. And it's been shown that in countries where women have more access to birth control, the entire economy/country does better.

So, I'm not changing my beliefs on this one.

But touche, random conservative pinner.

Annoying Facebook Things

Now, I live in Utah - and even if I didn't, I was raised LDS - so as a young women in her early 20s, a lot of girls the same age as me are getting married. For a lot of reasons, I'm uncomfortable with that, but there's too many to go into right now. Also, I'm getting married in 36 days ... so I don't really have a leg to stand on ...

REGARDLESS!

Like I said in a previous post about how unhappy I was with these newly-wedded wives being super ecstatic over her husband "letting" her buy a dishwasher, I completely understand how excited these girls are to start this new, different, happy chapter of their lives. I do! I've been getting Bed, Bath, and Beyond packages in the mail for weeks now! (Which has caused an intense vendetta with the UPS guy, but I digress ...)

But OMG GIRLS! DO WE HAVE TO DO THIS?

This bothers me for two reasons:

1. Everybody eats dinner. It's really not a big deal. Nobody cares what you ate, or if you did a good job making it. Nobody wants you to take a picture of it, either. 
2. I only ever see girls post this. Girls who tag their husbands in the status, or write statuses that say "made this for hubby!" Stuff like this really enforces back-ass-wards, 1950s gender roles, and is harmful to both members in your marriage. 

People who dislike Mormons

We all know that I'm crazy, right? Okay then.

So, there are a lot of Mormons I hate. Not because they are Mormon, but because a lot of Mormon culture is stupid and backwards.

But this post is about how I hate people who hate Mormons. (Or really, people who hate anyone based off of stupid stuff like their religion, race, gender, sexuality, abilities, etc.)

For people who are living in Utah but have not lived here their whole lives, it is very easy to see that a dichotomy exists between the Mormons (who have become more intense Mormons than anywhere else) and the non-Mormons (who have also become more intensely non-Mormon because they live here). And while Utah Mormons can always be annoying, it seems like the non-Mormons are more belligerent and stupidly angry about dumb things. They also try a lot harder to be not Mormon.

We'll start off with this Facebook interaction. One of my friends posted this lovely picture of a street in Downtown Salt Lake City:

This picture isn't mine, but telling you whose it really is would destroy all anonymity ... 

In case you can't read it, one of the comments is "See how there is almost no one on the sidewalk, no cars in the VERY wide streets ... SLC is not as much a city as it is a township with a lot of Mormon money."

What the hell?!

Well, okay, the very wide streets are the fault of a Mormon. When Brigham Young, the second president of the LDS church, first started to lay out plans for SLC, he did require that the streets be big enough so that a horse-drawn carriage could make a 360 in the middle of the road, or something like that.

But seriously, even if Mormons did, in fact, fund this modern-day street (they probably didn't, unless you're counting regular taxes) - how is that a bad thing?! Why are you even complaining about a street in the middle of a busy city being wide and not very crowded?

Similar to that is a comment made on this random list of top 100 sci-fi and fantasy books, or something like that: http://www.npr.org/2011/08/11/139085843/your-picks-top-100-science-fiction-fantasy-books

We have to add that this person tried to sound intelligent, but still made grammatical errors. :(

Okay, more ridiculousness. While it is totally fine that this guy dislikes Ender's Game (I happen to like it, but I can see why other people don't), his other comments are baffling. I sincerely doubt that most Mormons even know who Orson Scott Card is, or what Ender's Game is. Maybe a few of the older ones do, or a few who read a lot. But like any religion, or really any group of people that are brought together by something in common other than intelligence, what percentage of them do you think actually enjoy reading novels?

Sure, it was a stupid list. But I can tell you all now, as someone who grew up LDS, there is no conspiracy. Ever.

Except maybe with Desseret Book publishing novels just because their authors were LDS. Like Leven Thumps and Fablehaven. Those books suck.

Ender's Game was not published by Desseret Book, or by any publisher that would care that the other is sometimes Mormon (he grew up in Utah, but I've heard that he isn't always active). Ender's Game has also won a Hugo Award and a Nebula Award, two of the most prestigious awards for the science fiction genre, as well as other awards and nominations.

And to tell you the truth, out of the people I know who have read the book, only one didn't like it, and he was Mormon. He disliked it because he didn't like little children swearing so much.

So THERE.

"The Day Lady Died" by Frank O'Hara

I love this poem for all the reasons.

The Day Lady Died

BY FRANK O'HARA

It is 12:20 in New York a Friday

three days after Bastille day, yes

it is 1959 and I go get a shoeshine

because I will get off the 4:19 in Easthampton   

at 7:15 and then go straight to dinner

and I don’t know the people who will feed me

I walk up the muggy street beginning to sun   

and have a hamburger and a malted and buy

an ugly NEW WORLD WRITING to see what the poets   

in Ghana are doing these days

                                           I go on to the bank

and Miss Stillwagon (first name Linda I once heard)   

doesn’t even look up my balance for once in her life   

and in the GOLDEN GRIFFIN I get a little Verlaine   

for Patsy with drawings by Bonnard although I do   

think of Hesiod, trans. Richmond Lattimore or   

Brendan Behan’s new play or Le Balcon or Les Nègres

of Genet, but I don’t, I stick with Verlaine

after practically going to sleep with quandariness

and for Mike I just stroll into the PARK LANE

Liquor Store and ask for a bottle of Strega and   

then I go back where I came from to 6th Avenue   

and the tobacconist in the Ziegfeld Theatre and   

casually ask for a carton of Gauloises and a carton

of Picayunes, and a NEW YORK POST with her face on it

and I am sweating a lot by now and thinking of

leaning on the john door in the 5 SPOT

while she whispered a song along the keyboard

to Mal Waldron and everyone and I stopped breathing

Star Wars Episode VII

I'm pretty torn about the news of Disney buying Star Wars. For one, George Lucas has been doing a terrible job with them lately. (Did anyone else notice how FUCKING TERRIBLE the acting was in Episode III? I hate to say that because I love Ewan McGregor, but still. If you don't remember, here it is:

It's kind of long, so only watch like, 4 minutes of it.)

But at the same time, we don't know if Disney is going to fuck it up either. There are some definite perks, like more Star Wars themed rides and stuff like that. More merchandise.

The newest news is that a screen writer has already been hired. Details here: http://pursuitist.com/arts/harrison-ford-open-to-another-star-wars-film/

And the fact that Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, and Harrison Ford are open to the idea of acting in the next trilogy is definitely very exciting. But how will that happen now that they are in their 60s and 70s?

I mean, they all look so different (pics from here):

Mark Hamill / Luke Skywalker

Harrison Ford / Han Solo

Carrie Fisher / Princess Leia Organa

Billy Dee / Lando Calrissian

I added Billy / Lando in because I figured he's also a character that could show up, if we end up following the story chronologically. Although, I haven't really read the novels or played the video games, so I have only a basic knowledge of what happens next.

What I'm most excited for is Mara Jade. Mara Jade is my favorite character in the extended universe (my other favorite characters are Padme and Leia though, so I obviously have a thing for the kickass female characters of this franchise). Mara Jade's story is all here: http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Mara_Jade_Skywalker

This is my favorite picture of her from The Ultimate Guide to Characters or whatever the encyclopedic thing is called. I mean, look at her. She's a badass redhead Jedi, formerly a Sith, who wears the typical sci-fi women tight jumpsuit. So my favorite. My dream would be to have a Mara Jade costume.

I'm also looking forward to the Solo children, Jaina, Jacen, and Anakin Solo. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solo_family) 

Anakin Solo, the baby

Jaina Solo, Jacen's twin

Jacen Solo, who eventually becomes a Sith

See? There stories are chalked full of awesome and dark drama.

Except now Colby, who is more of an expert on Star Wars than me, is telling me that they aren't planning on using any story that has ever been told before. Nothing from any of the novels or video games or extended universe.

But they could still use these characters, right? I hope so.

Angry about photography stuff

I'm getting married in about six weeks, which is a pretty stressful process. Sure, it's wonderful and stuff, but I can talk about that later.

One thing I noticed when looking for a photographer is how many different types of photo shoots they all offer. And I know, since Pinterest is teaching everyone how to be an amateur photographer and everyone's phones can take pictures, we're all very picture happy. I do happen to love Instagram.

But when you're paying hundreds of dollars for these types of services, doesn't it seem a little ridiculous?

As far as weddings go, you have:

• Engagements - you and your fiancee pose in semi-casual clothing in a way that is supposed to emphasize your personality. They're also frequently very artsy (or at least attempting to be).
• Here's an example of one: http://greenweddingshoes.com/jack-jill-inspired-engagement-session/
• Bridals - these do not always take place on your wedding day. They're just of you in your wedding dress looking super bridal.
• Another example: http://www.ronparksphotography.com/blog/2011/bridal-photoshoots/
• Boudoir - this is supposed to be the sexy photo shoot that you do as a gift for your fiancee. Suffice it to say, I get this one least of all.
• http://justbeefashion.blogspot.com/2012/09/wedding-boudoir-photography.html
• The Wedding Itself
• Trash the Dress - this is the one where you dive into the ocean after your wedding, completely ruining the wedding dress that you spent thousands of dollars on it. Now, this one can also be artistic, and even though I have no idea why anyone would spend hundreds of dollars to take pictures of them ruining a very expensive dress, the finished product can be quite impressive.

See? That's really cool. Scary for the subject, but what an awesome product. 

Those are all the wedding photo shoots I can think of at the moment. If you can think of any more, please comment and share!

Then there are the more baby-centered photo shoots. 

• Gender reveals - this one is kind of new (to me, at least), but basically, it's something really creative you do to say "girl" (with pink) and "boy" (with blue).
• Example that I found from Pinterest: http://iheartpears.blogspot.com/2012/09/15-awesome-gender-reveals.html
• Really pregnant photo shoot - basically, you're huge, but your husband still loves you, and you need to take pictures of it. Oddly, this kind of photo shoot happens with any of your unborn children, not just your first. 
• Example: this picture https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-Cz_SaEhBO2E88aHvtP25TSY5hv-v-3BG3gxdD4yxLJIEWGe6UIElhF68MN2hl7hKLyJ44L0NYieH2Jc37oy7jyRBH8AW7KNx31e3taBdTWHSGlqPTjrDv-M-q8MjihY9itbySZ1ok70/s1600/_MG_2851edit1+for+blog.jpg which is from this website http://photographybynicolemadsen.blogspot.com/
• Newborn - your child is weeks old, and that's adorable.
• Example: http://ashleywarrenstudios.com/blog/?m=201012
• Family with new baby - pretty much explains itself, and is equally adorable. 

I apologize to everyone to whom I linked to if they didn't want to be linked to. You can yell at me if you want to. Also, I apologize if I put you under a service I wasn't a fan of ... but hey, it's just my opinion.

So basically, the conclusion is that the wedding industry is trying to get as much money out of you as possible (because they know they can) and photographers have to participate in that, even if they don't want to. And sometimes, their clients come up with some really weird ideas. 

Don't fall for it! Do not pay for all of these pictures just because you think you're supposed to! You do not need all of them! 

Ally out.

YouTube(r) Highlight

One of my favorite things is this YouTube channel called "Feminist Frequency," by Anita Sarkeesian.

Feminist Frequency YouTube Channel

I think Anita is absolutely brilliant. She describes/teaches feminist principles in a succinct, clear, approachable, yet entertaining way. And then she does something that I've discovered I love since watching her videos: analyzes popular culture through a feminist lens.

She has definitely made me realize the importance of female stories, and how to treat female characters.

She inspires me.

So please, check it out some time.