periodically i run across thoughts i like. today, i ran across this:
It is said that we are all three different people: the person we think we are (the one we have invented), the person other people think we are (the impression we make) and the person we think other people think we are (the one we fret about).
this is from an article in the uk gaurdian.. the gentle art of selling yourself. i only glanced at the article -- it was a bit dry for my taste -- but the quote stands out. to me at least. the one i invented.
growing up i always wanted a "cooler" name. i never cared for my first name nor my last. both have grown on me over the years, but who wouldn't want to be a "gretzky", "lemiuex", or "oz"? ok... probably people that grew up with those names, but still... you get the point. for a man to change his name, there is a long legal process that must be endured. i suppose when we are all really numbers for tracking we'll be allowed to change our names like we change our cloths since those won't really matter any more. but i digress...
so while zipping through my newsfeeds, i saw an article title that caught my eye and vaulted me back to a question of my youth -- can a man change his last name to that of his wife when he gets married? women do it, equal rights, blah, blah, blah.
enter -- more men taking wives' last names.
i always thought it was possible, but never knew anybody that did it. what i didn't know was that it was legal in only some states though that appears to be changing.
in a round about way, the article also answered another question i had. could a woman (or man) change their name to anything they want when they get married. if the system is allowing it to change, why limit it to a name one of them already has. the answer appears to be yes, though the examples are all combinations (or mash-ups to use the 2k phrase) of their original names.
the question not answered was whether it is limited to last names! for example, if i ever divorced and remarried, could i change my name to wayne gretzky and she of course would have to change hers to janet jones. LOL.
if it ever becomes more universally legal, i've got a business idea. quick weddings to allow for simple/legal name changes followed by immediate divorces or annulments which ever is easier and allows for the new name to stick. cha-ching. would just have to get tina turner in as an investor so i could use one of her songs... sing it with me now... "what's love got to do with it?"
and for anyone that takes this idea, this post is dated. :-)
pun not intended.
... but here i am doing it anyway.
WTF America! See, I'm so annoyed I'm using mixed case.
So I've been following American Idol via DVR and watched last night as they did eliminations to get to a final 12. I thought the cuts for this week were pretty obvious from a talent perspective, and found America only got it half right.
First with the women -- cutting Antonella was a no-brainer. I won't go as far as saying she sings badly... compared to most of the other remaining women she simply isn't up to par. She's pretty and has more of the look, but vocally she isn't there. However, cutting Sabrina and keeping Haley? Are you kidding me. To me, Haley was a lot like Antonella... has the right look, but just wasn't showing the talent. And to add insult to injury, Sabrina not only had the look, but also had the talent. In fact, I'd have put Sabrina in the top three women. Vocally behind LaKisha and Melinda. I was relieved that Gina made it through... I think she's got a good look, decent voice, but when she didn't pull off the Evanescence song (she is no Amy Lee) that sealed it for me that she isn't destined for even the final four. But I do look forward to her next performance and they better vote off Haley before her. My opinion. :-)
Now with the fellas. I'm not surprised Jared was let go. He sings well, but reminds me of Will Smith's cousin on the Fresh Prince show. What shocked me was that people voted for Sanjaya. I mean seriously. Jared was better, and Sundance (the other guy cut) was waaaay better. Clearly this boy is the focus of some joke to keep him on the show. He sings better than I do, but that doesn't say much at all. Are there just a lot of 16 year old girls swooning over this kid or what? And what's worse, I think it is pretty clear watching this kid in the brief interviews that he knows he is being kept over better talent. Sanjaya, dude, come on the show and do your own rap in the style of eminem... tell a story about how people are being assholes trying to keep lesser talented people on the show. then excuse yourself from the competition. don't let yourself be played that way.
so how do i see the show ending? given some of the crazy selections of late, g*d only knows. i do think the top two vocalists left in the competition are melinda and lakisha. neither of which have "the look". i won't say they are ugly, because that is mean and isn't true, but they aren't what most would call pretty either. jordin or stephanie have the look, but not the same level of talent. it should be interesting.
as far as the guys go, i'm digging blake lewis but he isn't going to win. he does his thing well and i enjoy his performances. i'm not sure any of the guys can give the top women a run for the title. phil stacy, perhaps, has the best chance, but he's going to have to step it up and get some help with song choice. chris sligh is a dark horse... he has an interesting look and if he steps up his vocals could be a surprise. chris richardson on the other hand has the look/image and while he makes some very good song choices and has been good with his interpretations, a lot of it has been the same. he needs to differentiate himself a bit more and show a little more range. brandon is decent, but too ordinary. and that leaves us with poor sanjaya. sigh. i'd have liked to have kept sundance in the mix as he was my other dark horse for reasons similar to chris sligh. unique look, strong voice... which fwiw, did a much better job on "jeremey" after he was told he was cut. i guess the pressure was off and he let loose.
one word for some of the guys that will certainly be cut... daughtry.
ac out.... (lol)
forgive me blogosphere for i have sinned, it has been one month since my last update. ha!
yeah, this has become more of a scratch pad for things to remember or at least to remember to share. one of these days i'll harness the energy and inspire myself to shut this blog down and figure out a better way to share. sharing has never been one of my strong points. but hey, i can sit here and pretend that i'm sharing with the world as these bits fall off into the abyss we call the internet.
so with that said and done, a few interesting things surfaced in my rss feeds that i thought i'd ... ahem... share.
i saved off an article called How Not to Talk to Your Kids -- The Inverse Power of Praise. the title alone picqued my curiousity, and as i began reading i found myself thinking ... ah ha! ... maybe it isn't so bad that i don't shower my kids with praise. i won't even begin to try and cast myself in the light of perfection; however, it did do me good to see that some deep down sense (or intuition) which has left me being light on the "you're perfect" praise may have been a positive thing. i dunno, maybe i'm just finding justification in the behavior, but the article is a good read none the less.
one site i look forward to daily is forgetfoo.com because well, it always has a surprise. sure, she shows scantaly clad women from time to time and a raunchy joke (both pluses), but then there are the things that are perfectly safe to share with anybody. his post today called pic of the day is a perfect example. no naked women (or men) so feel free to click through. it isn't an image that will wow you, but at least for me i'm left with a small chuckle and thinking how cool it would be to capture a shot like that and the stories you could make up about it. for something racier, check out his article no dildos in texas. it is quite the hoot. it certainly reminds me why i wouldn't want to live in a bass-ackwards state like that. it also illustrates how the funniest things can be found in reality.
until next month... lol