Ladybusiness

Thoughts

Shelly

An old friend emailed me this morning, complaining that her husband was laid off and is sitting at home, refusing to apply for jobs. She’s filling out and turning in applications for him. My first reaction was, “How nice that a grown-ass adult found a mommy to take care of him!” Her response was, “What do you expect, he’s a MAN!” Huh.

Now, she is about the least feminist woman on the planet, and she would be the first to say so. What struck me as funny is that feminists are supposedly the ones who hate men, and yet, here is a not-at-all feminist denigrating all men for being children, when I–the feminist–am telling her, “No, it’s not all men. Your husband is a spoiled baby, and you are enabling him. But that’s not the way men behave. It’s the way this man behaves, and he does so because you aid and abet him.”

And I’m the man-hater?

Uncategorized

More Family-Facebook Weirdness

Shelly

Courtesy of Facebook, again. I just got a message from my little sister. As in, the one I’ve never met. I guess she found my brother, and through him, found me. Not like I’m hard to find, because my name sticks out like a sore thumb. Hers, though, has changed, because she’s been married. I wouldn’t have been able to find her, no matter how hard I tried.

Anyway, the whole “What do I say to someone I’m related to but have never met” problem rears its perplexed head yet again. I’m not complaining! It’s just strange and awkward to have to think about something that other people get to take for granted.

Pets, Photography

Queen of Pillows

Shelly

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There was a post recently on Bad Rap’s blog about things you can do to make life easier for senior dogs. One of the things they recommended was acclimating young dogs to sleeping on comfy surfaces, instead of waiting until they are old, arthritic, and getting pressure sores from sleeping on hard floors. That will not be a problem for Miss Brown! She has never met a soft, squishy bed she didn’t like. The only time she deigns to lie on the floor is when she’s eating something or it’s hot and she’s trying to cool off. Or if she’s outside, sun bathing. And even then, I’m sure Herself would be delighted to have me drag a bed out there for Her Highness.

Crankypantsing, Photography

Valiant Sweet William

Shelly

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Chilly Willy might be more appropriate. The poor little guy survived at least two hard frosts and was drooping from the cold.

In other news, I ordered jeans from two different vendors, both via Amazon. Vendor 1’s package was delivered just a few days after ordering. Vendor 2’s package has yet to arrive, despite the fact that I placed the order on 11/23. That’s kind of ridiculous, I think.

Music

Thursday Musical Interlude

Shelly

I posted this to Facebook, but I’ve been listening to a lot of Joanna Newsom lately, so I’ll post it here, too. I adore this song, and the first video is an especially nice live performance of it. The second is the Decemberists’ cover, which I also love.


Bridges and Balloons by Joanna Newsom


Bridges and Balloons by The Decemberists

We sailed away on a winter’s day
With fate as malleable as clay
But ships are fallible, I say
And the nautical, like all things, fades and I
Can recall our caravel:
A little wicker beetle shell
With four fine maste and lateen sails
Its bearings on Cair Paravel

Oh my love
Oh it was a funny little thing
To be the ones to’ve seen

The sight of bridges and balloons
Makes calm canaries irritable
They caw and claw all afternoon “Catenaries and dirigibles
Brace and buoy the living-room
A loom of metal, warp woof wimble”
And a thimblesworth of milky moon
Can touch hearts larger than a thimble

Oh my love
Oh it was a funny little thing
To be the ones to’ve seen