Thursday, January 17, 2008
Welcome back to the increasingly erratic Thursday Book Club! In my last real Book Club post, I discussed Empress Wu, the only woman in the history of China to be called “emperor” during her lifetime. Since then, I’ve done a couple of fake Book Club post about Christopher Walken’s ass and books I bought while [...]
Continue reading about Thursday Book Club: Empress Wu, Part II
Sunday, December 23, 2007
This little girl will beat a bitch’s ass.Photo by Seokyong Lee for The New York Times, who hopefully won’t get all copyright on my ass while I try to promote the story. Check out the New York Times story called “South Korea, Where Boys Were King, Revalues Its Girls.” This story caught my eye because [...]
Continue reading about Yay for Korean Girls!
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
First, my apologies to any reader who has recently visited this blog in search of Henry teh 8, caught up on teh Henry posts, and is now anxiously awaiting a post on Katherine Howard, teh fifth wife of Henry teh 8. I am postponing teh post on her once again, while I reread one of [...]
Continue reading about Thursday Book Club: Empress Wu, Part I
Sunday, December 2, 2007
Yesterday I was exceptionally annoyed by this first-person essay in the New York Times (registration required). Every week, the Modern Love column grates like fingernails on a chalkboard. After reading it I usually beat my head against the wall for a few minutes and feel much better. In the case of “My Sorority Pledge? I [...]
Continue reading about Self-Fulfilling Prophecy
Sunday, November 18, 2007
I enjoyed this piece by the Washington Post’s Pulitzer-Prize-winning fashion critic, Robin Givhan (registration required), though I disagree with the constantly reinforced notion that everyone, “in the boardroom, in politics, in suburban neighborhoods,” is feeling unbearable daily pressure to meet some Hollywood standard of physical perfection. Barbie is a popular scapegoat. I live in New [...]
Continue reading about In the News/On the Blogs
Monday, November 12, 2007
Brawling, boozing, bragging and child-begetting author Norman Mailer died on Saturday at the age of 84. Strangely, on Friday I’d been musing about the time my now-husband won dinner with Mailer at a charity auction. Mailer was already having health problems then; as I recall, he was using two canes. He looked cute and harmless [...]
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Wednesday, November 7, 2007
Ah, the double standard. When kings fool around, all is right in the world. When queens fool around, it’s treason. Why treason? Because if a queen gets pregnant by a man who is not her husband, a child who is not of pure royal blood could wind up on the throne. In effect, that partly [...]
Continue reading about Thursday Book Club: Caroline Mathilde
Sunday, October 21, 2007
The short answer: sexism, my friends! If you have very little patience or time, you can stop here. Otherwise, you may continue. The long, meandering answer starts momentarily. If you would like to use the restroom, you might want to do it now. I’ll wait. Take your time. Okay! Welcome back! As I’ve read more [...]
Continue reading about Why Does Buyer’s Guilt Focus on Fashion?
Monday, October 15, 2007
The New York Times has a nice story on my husband’s new project. Here are two paragraphs from the story. Paul E. Steiger, who was the top editor of The Wall Street Journal for 16 years, and a pair of wealthy Californians are assembling a group of investigative journalists who will give away their work [...]
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Friday, September 28, 2007
Recently, I was lucky enough to catch part of 9 to 5 on TV. You must see this kick-ass feminist comedy about three assistants (Lily Tomlin, Jane Fonda, and Dolly Parton) who take revenge on their chauvinist boss (Dabney Coleman). Dolly looks unbelievable in her clingy knit dresses and baby blue trench coat. I was [...]
Continue reading about Killer Comedy, Coat and Queen
