Spin Cycle- Prom

Sprite's Keeper has a weekly meme she calls the Spin Cycle.  I haven't participated in a while and I wasn't planning on it this week until I saw Pseudo's spin.  Like Pseudo, I never attended the Prom. So this Cycle seemed one I couldn't participate in. But I like her take on the idea and thought I'd toss in my two cents.

No one asked me to the Prom. I didn't date in high school and the idea of going to the Prom dateless was unappealing.  My daughters however did go.  Eldest, like me, didn't date, but she had a group of friends that went, some with dates and some without.  At the time of her proms, Hubby was still in college and we were pretty broke.  No fancy dresses for her.  But she managed to cobble together something pretty cool and spent what money we could afford on her hair.

This was no small task since her hair was and is long, straight and thick.  It reaches to her waist.  It was a major production to do anything with it.  I wish I could find a picture of it but I fail as a parent.  It took about a 100 pins to put up and looked fairly amazing.

The picture I do have of her is from her Second Chance Prom in 2007 at college.  This is the outfit she wore to her Junior prom, minus the nifty up-do.

(Yes, her hair is purple. The last foot, as in 12 inches, was dyed purple at the time)

Youngest had the uncanny ability of finding dresses for Prom at a reasonable cost. Which, even though Hubby was gainfully employed by then, still helped tremendously.  She went to her Junior prom with her best friend and to her Senior with her then boyfriend.

(She hates this picture by the way. I'm scoring serious points for posting it for all to see. Mother's privilege).

Dress shopping with Youngest and her girlfriends was entertaining.  For this last dress we had 3 girls and myself.  One of these girls wasn't even going to the prom, she was just along for moral support.  

Modern Proms are major productions. Their high school had the event in Austin at a hotel every year. Not only did they have the ballroom but they also had smaller rooms.  One of these proms, don't remember which one, had a Poker room.  As in they played Texas Hold-Em without the money.  (What's the point?)  Eldest's Junior prom cost an outrageous $10,000 to put on.  It was crazy.  

I can't say I missed going to Prom, even after watching my girls get dressed up and staying out late.  For each of them it was their first time to be allowed to stay out essentially all night.  (They both went to after parties sponsored by the DARE program and got "locked in"). 

No funny stories to share just some pictures.  Go check out Sprite's Keeper to see the other Spins.

Puppy update

We took Aibhne to the vet Saturday for her last round of puppy shots.  She weighs an astonishing 29.1 pounds.

Debate still ranges as to which breeds contribute to her genetic makeup.  We feel fairly certain that there's some Ridgeback and Labrador in her but there may be some others hiding in there.  Her tongue is spotted, her tail curls and has this odd white undercoat on just her tail. There is quite an extensive list of breeds that can have the tongue spots, including both Ridgeback and Labrador.  The number of dog breeds that have both a curly tail and a white undercoat is almost as long.  So, she could be anything.  We're considering getting her DNA tested to find out.

She is STILL not water tight. She has her good days and her bad but now that the weather is getting better, we're planning on leaving all of the dogs outside during the day.  It worked with Myrddin and we have hopes that the boys examples will finally sink in if she's outside all day.

Here's a picture of Youngest and her baby:

She can sit and shake but we really need to start teaching her stay.  She likes to charge out the front door when we get home.  Come to think of it, we might work on "Come" first since that seems to be a problem for her.  If she's busy with something she just ignores you.

Any way, she's doing well and we'll be getting her spayed in a week or two.  She's able to keep up with the boys as they chase birds or squirrels.  And she loves the kiddie pool that we bought them.  She'll come charging across the yard and leap into it.  Friday, she chased her tail while in the pool and it was hilarious to watch.

I hope you all have a Happy Mother's Day.

Guess who came to dinner

suggested by Lord I Want To Be Whole

"If you could have a dinner party for 10 guests...dead or alive who would you invite, what would you serve, how would you entertain the guests and what kind of discussions would take place?"

Guest list:

Gandhi
Jesus
Mohammed
Einstein
Carl Sagan
Issac Asimov
Robert Heinlein
Benjamin Franklin
Stephen Hawking
Stephen King

Menu:

A variety of dishes from each individuals time and homeland set up in a smorgasbord.

Discussion:

Jesus and Mohammed need to talk about the things that have been done in their names and what they think about it all.

Ghandi can chime in on this resulting conversation and talk about his ideas.

Einstein and Hawking can debate the structure of the universe.  Sagan can provide color commentary.

Asimov and Heinlein can talk about where they think we're headed.  Franklin will probably have a lot to say about this.

King is present to take notes and write one kick ass story afterwards. Plus, I've always wanted to meet him.

In truth, I imagine a wide ranging conversation covering religion, history, the future and the fate of the species.  We have some non-religious types in the mix to balance Jesus and Mohammed.  Scientists are high on my list because I'd love to see them pick apart the brains of the holy men and the historical figures.  I actually include Heinlein and Asimov in with the scientists. Both have a background in science and their writings envisioned very different future histories.  King is the only non-sensical choice. Not a scientist nor holy man, but graced with an outstanding imagination, he can provide a different point of view.  Not to mention write that kick ass story afterwards.  Franklin had so many jobs in his lifetime- writer, politician, scientist, printer and diplomat- that he would provide a much needed practicality.  Also, I'd love to know what he thinks of America.

I'm sure the evening would last long into the wee hours, include several loud disagreements and much confusion.  It would interesting to see the different opinions on how we got where we are and where we're headed.  I think this group would thoroughly dissect the past but still be able to give fresh insights into the future.  One things for sure, it would be memorable.

Who would you invite?  I'd love to see everyone's answers so here's what I want you to do.  Go back to your blog.  Write your own post and copy the link to the finished post. Come back here and add your name and link to that nifty widget below. (It's called Mr. Linky) That way, I can find your answer and so can everyone else who comes here.

I await your interpretations.

After Nixon, Bush was Inevitable

I watched Frost/Nixon on DVD last night. It's a great movie and I recommend it if you haven't seen it.


I don't remember watching the interviews but I remember the Watergate hearings. More for the fact that they disrupted my summer TV viewing schedule than anything else. (I was 9) They monopolized the airwaves and the entire fiasco was inescapable.


There is a moment in the film when Frost finally pushes Nixon into the closest thing to a confession that we ever got and it struck me as prescient:


"I let them down. I let down my friends, I let down my country, and worst of all I let down our system of government, and the dreams of all those young people that ought to get into government but now they think; 'Oh it's all too corrupt and the rest'. Yeah... I let the American people down. And I'm gonna have to carry that burden with me for the rest of my life."


That highlighted section there, that's a perfect summation for my personal belief in politics for most of my life.  Politicians were not to be trusted.  If absolute power corrupts absolutely then almost by definition whoever is President is corrupt.  What it takes to get to the White House, the decisions that have to be made once you're there, the incredible position of prerogative and privilege  that you have as President would tempt and suborn even the most resolute person. And it wasn't just the President, lower offices held the potential to similarly contaminate to a lesser degree. In essence my understanding of political power was irretrievably tied up with the pursuit of personal power.


To be certain, there are those kinds of politicians out there in offices both large and small.  Men and women who enter politics in search of power and privilege. They're the ones we hear about all the time in the news.  Those who serve in quiet dignity receive no adoration, no recognition and no press.  It's no wonder that its so easy to believe that all politicians are corrupt.


I would posit that Nixon and his revelations of corruption and unscrupulous government tainted the following decades in ways that are subtle in their mechanics but profound in their result and ultimately culminated in the election of George Bush as 43rd President.  


After Nixon, our next president was chosen as much for how different he was than Nixon than anything else.  (Ford was just a placeholder in history, deserved or not) Carter was Southern, genteel, soft spoken and a Washington outsider.  He stood in stark contrast to Nixon's arrogance and abrasive manner. Yet Carter was and is deceptive.  Not in a venal way but because his southern gentleman demeanor hides his intelligence.  The press, drunk on their own power after Watergate, looked for any excuse to expose Carter as incompetent.  The comics made endless fun of his grin and family and any number of things that really made up his essential southern-ness. I think that history has so far been unfair to Jimmy Carter.  He may not have been a great president but he was what we needed. He was someone that, through his background, seemed incorruptible.  


All this set the stage for Ronald Reagan.  After the Iran Hostage crisis, Carter really had no chance at reelection. Reagan's confident manner trumped Carter's more serious one and, after portraying Carter's presidency as ineffectual, he won decisively.  I won't say much about Ronnie Ray-gun. He is not my favorite President.  By the time he was elected, memories of Watergate were beginning to fade. So much so that by the time the Iran-Contra scandal broke, the American people had internalized the idea that politics and politicians were corrupt and were thus something we had to live with.  We had our scapegoat in Oliver North and moved on.  After all, with John Hinckley's failed attempt on his life and an astonishing 1984 reelection result, Ronnie seemed unstoppable and impervious. 


Bush Senior hoped to carry on the Reagan tradition but lacked his force of personality.  {Make no mistake, Reagan had a cult of personality thing going for him.}  Bush managed to cash in long enough to get elected after running one of the dirtiest campaigns in history, at least until McCain came along.  He reaped the rewards of Reagan's  policies until the economy did him in.


Next came Clinton and I must say that he has some striking superficial similarities to Nixon. Besides the obvious impeachment, which was a bogus Republican smear- I mean who doesn't lie when caught in an adulterous affair?- his obvious political ambition struck a little too close to the Nixon mold. Though in all fairness, so much of what seemed tainted with Clinton was due to partisan politics.  


And then we get Junior and I believe we came full circle back to Nixon.  From the belief that if the President does it, it isn't illegal to dirty political dealings and maneuverings to torture, Bush was every bit the crook that Nixon was.  


His election and of the Presidents before him came about in no small part because a generation of Americans were weaned on the Watergate scandals and abdicated their participation in government. It seemed that for most everyday Americans, national politics were something that were impossible to affect.  It took Bush's return to Nixon era arrogance and venality to wake up those Americans of my generation. We were blessed with a candidate of quality in Barack Obama and, together with our children, decided to take back the reins of government.


With the advent of Internet politics, everyday Americans could finally have a voice. We were disgusted and tired of the unethical nature of everything that Bush touched. It's like we woke up to the fact that we were responsible in part for electing the idiot to start with and were determined to correct the error.


In essence, I believe that without Nixon and his Watergate, Bush would never had made it into the Oval Office.  What we need to learn from this is the fact that our collective memories are short and easily manipulated.  We must never forget the damage that was done by both these men and be ever vigilant to the return of complacency.

Star Trek Memories

Well, I'm going to see the new Star Trek movie this evening and I've been thinking about my favorite episodes of all the various incarnations on TV. It's not always easy to come up with only one or two episodes, but sometimes it's a stretch to find even one, depending on the series.

I generally watch Star Trek specials no matter what channel they may be on or if I've seen them previously. In fact, I just watched about the 25th anniversary special that was originally made to promote "The Undiscovered Country" just last night. In it Shatner and Nimoy talk about how the fans now call themselves Trekkers instead of Trekkies. I don't know. I'm pretty sure I never thought of myself as a Trekker. Don't know about you but that seems almost pretentious.

Anyway, on the off chance that one or two of you out there are not versed in the lingo, let me provide a few definitions. When I say TOS, I mean Star Trek- The Original Series, as in that campy classic with the above mentioned Shatner and Nimoy. Then there is TNG or Star Trek- The Next Generation. DS9 is Star Trek- Deep Space Nine. Voyager and Enterprise don't have nifty abbreviations. Or if they do, I don't know them or care to use them.

From TOS, I'd have to say the "The Cage" and "Mirror, Mirror" are my favorites. "The Cage", otherwise known as the pilot that never was, has no Kirk, no Bones, Majel Barret as Number One and a subtly different Spock. Tied to this episode is "The Menagerie" Parts 1 & 2 that see Spock trying to return his former Captain from "The Cage" to that same planet. Since "The Menagerie" is really just an extended recap of "The Cage" I don't count it. What I like about this episode, besides the recasting, is the interaction between Pike and the Talosians and the extremes that he has to go to convince them to let him go. It has eloquent things to say about freedom and humanity. The major character interactions are about as well defined as a pilot can hope to expect though it doesn't really work as a pilot since it fails to adequately introduce the supporting cast. We get glimpses of them but nothing about who they are. I can see why NBC chose not to run it as a pilot.

"Mirror, Mirror" is all about the dark side of ourselves. In this parallel universe, the Federation is an Empire and officers advance through assassination. By this time, early in season two, the characters have been firmly established and its deeply satisfying to see them with new personas and motivations to explore. With the added bonus of Federation v Empire to throw a little social commentary into the mix.

TOS gets spoken of a lot for this ability to blend current events and social problems into the series; from Kim Darby's "Miri" exploring the teen counterculture where all adults are the enemy to "The Omega Glory" and "Patterns of Force" that explore our recent political history to "Plato's Stepchildren" with the famous interracial kiss between Kirk and Uhura. TOS was a product of its times and it used those stresses and problems as fodder for its writers. Which, after all, is what drama is supposed to do.

While I only vaguely remember watching TOS as a child and mostly saw that series through the ever popular reruns, TNG was my Star Trek. It is my favorite series and picking only one or two episodes is nearly impossible, but there are two that come close. "The Measure of a Man" and "The Inner Light".

"The Measure of a Man" takes on the big question. What makes us human. That is poses this in the guise of determining whether or not Data is sentient is no mistake. In both TOS and TNG, the non-human bridge crew members Spock and Data serve as a mirror to humanity. Spock is the logical, rational being who has eschewed anger and emotionalism and serves to show us both the weakness of our essential human nature and its strength. Data, in his endless search to become human, shows us all our foibles and quirks and how they sometimes are our masters. In "The Measure of a Man" Picard faces the dilemma of turning over his android officer to StarFleet for experimentation. His eloquent defense of his friend is high drama. No less important is Riker's reluctant yet devastating advocation. Forced into the adversarial role, Riker finds what seems to be incontrovertible proof that Data is a machine. Still its Picard's assertion that it is StarFleet's goal to seek new life and what better example than Data that wins the day.

"The Inner Light" is really a solo piece for Patrick Stewart and it is simply amazing. It's one of those episodes that makes me tear up every time I watch it even though I know what's going to happen. Picard spends a lifetime on another planet, complete with family and friends and a dying planet. All in a single day. Even though the technology that allows this to happen is transitory, Picard is changed. It's one of the things about TOS that I love. The lives of the crew members are drawn out completely. And we get to see artifacts from that life in the background as the series progresses. It brings a sense of verisimilitude to see Riker's trombone or Picard's flute or Data's paintings in their quarters and know they were used to further the story and aren't some random prop.

There are so many episodes that I like from TNG. Anything with Q. One, there's John De Lancie who is simply fantastic. Two, they are some of the funniest and yet subtly revealing episodes in the series. "Ship in a Bottle" and numerous other holodeck-based episodes (though not all) provided plenty of variety. And every single season finale cliffhanger was well-crafted and intentionally maddening, a sure guarantee that at least one episode of the new season would be watched. In my opinion, of all the series TNG is the best- the best written, the best acted- the whole nine yards.

Maybe that's why the spinoffs were so disappointing. I had high hopes for DS9, especially when Michael Dorn's Worf was added to the cast. Unfortunately, the writers' decision to undo the Worf-Troi relationship was a disappointment. It had some good points. New species like the Trill. Bringing the Ferengi into a more prominent role. Quark was really always good for a laugh and occasionally did the right thing, for a price. I had high hopes that Avery Brooks was going to be an outstanding addition to the Captain's chair but ultimately his character was disappointing. My favorite episode from this series is "The Forsaken" and its really the subplot that's the best part. Lwaxana Troi falls in love with Odo and then eventually gets trapped with him in an elevator. Long enough that Odo has to return to liquid state. Lwaxana is always an amusing character who though she appears frivolous on the surface can step up when pushed. This episode is no exception. Even though her flirtation with Odo is never revisited her simple and expedient solution to Odo's problem saves the day. In reviewing the episode list for this posting, I realized that DS9 was relying too heavily on certain themes: Ferengi greed, Bajoran mysticism and they used parallel universe stories three times and time travel an astonishing 7 times. Scattershot and never quite managing to create a cohesive story, DS9 was a serious disappointment.

Voyager was similarly viewed with high hopes. We had a woman in the chair for once, a premise that allowed for any number of new species and encounters far outside of Federation space and the odd changes in "history" that DS9 represented. (And Star Trek has a history and back story that tries to be consistent. DS9, starting with Worf's arrival and the consequent rewriting of TNG history, showed a serious lack of respect and continuity.) The first season was very rough for Voyager and probably doomed the series, but there were bright moments. When Voyager brought in the Borg, things got interesting, especially through the character Seven of Nine. The best episode, I think, is "Collective". It deals with adolescent Borg who were left behind after their cube malfunctioned. Seven negotiates with them after they take crew members hostage and eventually they join the Voyager crew. Nearly every episode that has Seven dealing with her lost humanity is worth watching. In this one, she gets to create her own family, in essence, and help them to re-assimilate into a world outside the Borg.

The last television incarnation for the Star Trek franchise was Enterprise, set at the dawn of StarFleet as humanity ventured out into the galaxy. After two disappointing series, this one seemed destined to failure. It had a rocky start and I think that many Trekkies were worn out with the franchise and more interested in the film versions. I know I was. But I have watched this one in reruns and discovered that it had far more merit to it than I had previously thought. I especially enjoyed the two part episode "In A Mirror, Darkly". A take on the alternate universe story from TOS where the Federation is replaced by an Empire ("Mirror, Mirror") it deviates from the usual alternate history story line format. It is a stand alone episode, a mini-series within the series if you will, complete with its different theme song and opening montage. Perhaps the single most startling instance in this two-parter occurs in the opening minute of the first episode. It is a digital recreation of the scene from "First Contact" (a TNG film) where Zefram Cochrane meets the Vulcans. Instead of greeting them with a handshake, he shoots them. The effect is completely seamless and extremely well done. The episode then continues with the "new opening montage" and takes off from there. It's a great episode with many of the same advantages as the original TOS episode that ends with a twist. I was sorry to see this series end early. I think they were finally coming into their own when Paramount pulled the plug.

As far as the films go, there's two that stand out in my mind: "Wrath of Khan" and "First Contact". They are the best written films of the two film series with vibrant characters, tension and humor. Who can forget the extravagant, larger-than-life figure of Noonien Singh so masterfully portrayed by Ricardo Montalban or Spock's sacrifice in "Wrath of Khan"? "First Contact" introduces us the Father of Warp Drive, Zefram Cochrane, who turns out to not quite be what the crew expected. Not to mention the Borg Queen played by Alice Krige with a wonderful combination of sexuality and evil. Plus we get to hear Patrick Stewart quote Melville. What's not to love?

At its best, Star Trek in all its incarnations has striven to show a future were the human race manages to put aside their differences and create something worthwhile. It's a future full of hope and promise and one entirely worth striving for. At the same time, they've used humor and drama to show us the darker sides of ourselves. Sometimes they've done a better job than at others but on a whole there's a reason that Star Trek has legions of fans. There is something for everyone. If you get a little lesson in civics or philosophy with your action, all the better. It's what science fiction does best.