"Britney Jean" works, bitch

Here we go again!

Britney Jean: 7/10 

I'm into this album. For me, as a fan, I feel more connected to this "Britney Jean" because I know Brit has been putting work into it. She wrote very little of "Circus" and "Blackout"  and none of "Femme Fatale" that I can see. This is the most she has written for one album since "In the Zone." It feels better to me, it feels more real. She's been promoting it as more personal, and I love that. There are personal moments, but they are shaken up by will.I.am and his dance beats. And her voice can shine through instead of being chopped up and robotized (on most tracks). She's criticized for her breathy sound, when people actually admit she still sings, but she uses her range well on this album.

Still, there are songs I don't like. It's that way with every album of my favorite artists. "Britney Jean" starts out very strong. "Alien" sounds like one of those songs that you put at the end of an album because it's a little weird and not quite your style. It works well here, an introspective start to her eighth studio album, as she talks about loneliness. "Work Bitch," an absolute slammer, is next. That song can still make me get off my ass and do anything. "Perfume" delivers some spot-on vocal work, even if the lyrics about "trying to be cool" make me raise an eyebrow.

The next three are meant to be dance songs, which is fine, but I could do without "Tik Tik Boom." "It Should Be Easy," featuring the ubiquitous (and unexciting) will.I.am, and "Body Ache," which are both not bad, sandwich her repetitive collab with T.I.  The songs are fast-paced without being too frantic.

"'Til It's Gone" is a thumping, well-sung piece and I think it and "Alien" are the best ones on the record. I'm not sure why I love it so much--perhaps the interesting chorus, perhaps the simple message that she delivers honestly. Whatever it is, it feels good and I wish the iTunes First Play would let me listen over and over.

"Passenger," which she co-wrote with Katy Perry, starts with a weird beat but transitions into a good midtempo ballad about being able to let go and let someone else drive in a relationship, about not trying to control too much and driving around "without a map."

Skip her collab with her sister--it's called "Chillin' With You" but I'd rather chill alone without this song. It feels awkward, going from guitar strums to a gentle beat with equally peaceful vocals, then weirdly turning into a bare beat and some vocalizations of chillin witchu.

Same with "Don't Cry," the final song on the record. This one could do with a few stronger lyrics, but it gets the point across-don't cry, I'm leaving, we lost our love, it hurts. It ends on a melancholy note--or does it? After all, there is strength in being able to walk away after a failed relationship.

Overall, it's a solid album. There's sex, of course--sex sells, and sex is just a part of Britney. But I also see signs of growth, as an artist and as a person, and signs that she is willing to open up to her fans and the world.

Britney Spears music used to fight off Somali pirates

THIS IS NOT A DRILL

http://metro.co.uk/2013/10/27/britney-spears-songs-used-to-scare-off-pirates-in-somalia-4163217/

We all knew she was a angel sent from Heaven, but this just takes the cake. What an icon!

Soccer player trapped in Qatar--spread the word!

"I feel like a hostage.""Life has become a nightmare for me, my wife and my two small daughters. I try to be the best daddy I can but after I tuck them in at night, I go to bed and cry like a baby." --Zahir Belounis 

Zahir, a French-Algerian footballer (soccer player), has been stuck in Qatar for two years after a contract dispute with his club. The country will not let him leave until he drops a lawsuit against his club for two years of unpaid wages.



He has no money and is trying to feed his family while keeping his hopes up. His family may be asked to vacate soon.

He was told he could leave earlier this fall, but is still in Qatar. 

Reporters who have talked to him say he is growing increasingly despondent.

The World Footballers' Association is trying to get involved. Please, spread the word! Calls, emails, Tweets...lots of noise about this issue will help Zahir and his family finally come home.

(I also posted about this on my other blog, Footy Feelings)

Kids react, but it's not representative.

I do enjoy the "Kids React To" series. In a new installment, they discuss gay marriage...but I don't think the reactions from the kids are necessarily representative of all American kids and even teens.

These kids are from California, a more liberal place, and I'm sure there would be starkly different views if you interviewed kids in Wyoming, Alabama, Texas, etc. I assume, and it is a personal assumption, that these kids live near the Fine Brothers' studios in Los Angeles. They probably know more LGBT people than kids in other states and even other parts of Cali.

It's a cute video, but before we put all our hope in the generation behind us, let's remember the culture they (probably) come from and the other cultures that are out there.

Don't forget how many kids commit suicide each year in this country because they are bullied. We still have a long way to go, y'all.

Don't tread on me (and my family values, Mulan)!

*SPOILERS FOR ONCE UPON A TIME*

OUaT, an ABC show that intertwines fairy tale and legendary characters into one huge storyline, recently had one of its only non-white characters sort-of-kind-of come out as bisexual.

If you haven't ever seen it, well, wrap your mind around this. Mulan was two steps away from telling Aurora (Sleeping Beauty) that she was in love with her. But Aurora is pregnant with Prince Phillip's baby. So Mulan didn't tell her, and instead ran away with Robin Hood's band.

Now.

I find it somewhat comical that people on the Internet are soiling their knickers over this--not because of implied girl-on-girl romance, but they say it's because "the gays" are invading these "precious children's stories." Does the liberal agenda have to seep into EVERYTHING?!

These are from HollywoodLife.com, but I also saw some elsewhere. 

I'm not even going to touch the gay issue. I would merely counter with this argument. Once Upon a Time is exactly like the Disney stories that little kids (and big kids) know. It is EXACTLY like the animated movies BECAUSE it totally changes the real fairy tales. I cannot refrain from rolling my eyes when I see some concerned parent say that their little girl will no longer be watching OUaT because of a few longing glances and an almost-confession of same-sex love.

One. This show has featured murder, torture, kidnapping, questionable ethics, several psychopaths, true evil, Stockholm syndrome and some other stuff that might scare the poor kid. Why are you letting your children watch this in the first place?! The Evil Queen KEEPS PEOPLES' HEARTS IN BOXES.

Collectin' my jar of hearts

Two. Disney did not invent most of their fairy tale characters. Just because your kids know the singing and dancing doesn't mean it's true. Real fairy tales were BRUTAL. Snow White is about the plotted murder of a seven-year-old. Red Riding Hood is about the brutal chomping of a grandma. Rumplestiltskin is a nutty child snatcher. Kids get eaten in Hansel and Gretl. Sleeping Beauty gets raped. This is NOT a nice world. But, these stories in their true forms are TERRIFYING. Do these parents even realize that when they complain about these nice, family-friendly fairy tales being ruined? Disney ruined them. Let ABC ruin them how they wish.

Gimme yo kid

Worry about something else, like teaching your sons not to rape women or all your kids the proper usage of "your" and "you're." Y'all are killing me.

In case you needed further proof that I and my loved ones are obsessed with "Mean Girls."

Happy Halloween!

Dixie (original poem)

When we first fell in love
You made a CD
With music you said reminded you of me.
But the first song, you said
Wasn't the right one-
You meant to put a love song
Asking me to fly you high,
To take you away
But instead put one
About needing "wide open spaces."
And in truth, that was right--
I smothered you and
You found another cowboy to
take
you
away.



Now you come to me, crying--
"You were mine.
I can love you better.
I know how to make you forget her."
And, love, I was yours.
And that there's your trouble--
If you wanted to keep me,
You shouldn't have been so
ready
to
run.

Now get to work!

Britney Spears's new single "Work Bitch"  encourages people to...well, work. Or so I thought. But the music video, released tonight, is some kind of S and M car commercial in the desert with sharks and exploding dolls.

Oh, Brit.

What did you guys think?? Nothing too deep, I hope. ;) Did you think it was about the economy? Was Brit telling Congress to get a move on? Did you expect her to be whipping people and making them carry Beats products in their mouths?!

Y'all need to stop: an overanalysis of the overanalysis of pop culture

This post references sexual abuse, racism, homo- and transphobia and general intolerance of other people. 

Over the past month or so, I have been inundated with pop culture analysis. 

Miley Cyrus is a terrible influence. 

Miley Cyrus is a strong feminist. 

Miley Cyrus is just bein' Miley. 

Robin Thicke is a rapist. 

Robin Thicke is satirizing machismo. 

Robin Thicke is celebrating sexuality. 

All pop music is crap anyway. 

And on, and on.

Everybody has those days

We live in an age where everyone has the platform to widely distribute their thoughts and opinions and use other people's thoughts and opinions to back their own up. And here I am taking advantage of it. Ain't that America? 

We, the people of the Internet, enjoy thoughtful and important diatribe. And we enjoy making everything we see and hear into a lesson. A lesson in sexism. Racism. Misogyny. Homophobia. Rape culture. Religious discrimination. Body image. 

For every person who types out a blog about "YAAAS LADY GAGA LOOKS SO GOOD SHE IS AN INSPIRATION" there is someone calling Lady Gaga a terrible influence, an over-sexualized burlesque dancer. And then someone else is scoffing at both opinions and saying Gaga is satirizing the pop culture industry. And then someone else is pooh-poohing all three opinions and saying Gaga is stealing ideas and inspiration from Madonna. 

Maybe I'm just spending too much time on Tumblr, where people believe Tubby Custard is chicken nuggets, breeders should die, and you can't say a damn thing without someone crying foul play. 

Here is what I want to ask.

Is our culture of Internet analysis making us better or worse?

Are we making valid analysis and increasing awareness of important issues? Or are we just creating a world where everything and everyone fight against us? Where we just assume the worst and take a cynical attitude towards our fellow men and women (and everyone in between)?

There must be a point where we are just fear-mongering. A point where we are bringing too much to the table and looking too deeply into the issue. And it's bound to drive us insane one day.

Tyra says ENOUGH

Perhaps it may drive the ones we are trying to represent or the people we are worried about to a higher level of nervous awareness. 

There are probably people out there, victims of sexual abuse, who heard "Blurred Lines" and didn't think twice. Or who never even gave it a listen. But because of the blogosphere hype, they are suddenly forced to think about every line. Every lyric. And be told how it could relate to them. And then they do remember. 

If a celebrity woman thinks she should start eating healthier, some people will say she should because she needs to lose weight. Some will say she should defy traditional beauty standards and embrace her curves and be a good role model for little girls. Some will say she is being a bad feminist by conforming to our male-dominated society. And at the end of the day, maybe all she wants to do is train for a 5K--but there are five different theories about her eating habits, and she's starting to get paranoid. We could say the same for any person who wants to make a change.

Here's another example...Let's say I, a white Ohioan, put a picture of me and two of my friends on this blog. And let's say one is white, and one is black. What would people say if, in the picture, I only had my arm around the white friend? I've spent enough time online to know that someone, somewhere would say I really hate black people deep down in my heart. But if I had my arm around my black friend in this photo, or even around both friends, they might say I'm trying too hard to appear like I'm NOT racist and I think in cool because I have a black friend. (The obvious solution here is for us all to do duck face and be holding our drinks, right?)

So maybe my black friend would see those comments, and she never would have even thought of me as racist, or of herself as an "outcast" in the trio, until people brought it up. And then what would she think? That I'm trying to use her for some fake show of solidarity? That people think she's trying to be "too white?" Would she then confront me about my supposed racism?

Granted, these are all hypotheticals. But I do think that we're making ourselves more anxious than we need to be about what's out there. 

It's like we are using the Internet as WebMD for our pop culture "symptoms." Some want to find an explanation, and some want to write a diagnosis. Either way, something's wrong or something is racially, culturally, socially important because WE decide it is. And it's good to have that discussion. But it can also just go way too far. Do we really need to second- and third-guess everything we think, do, and say? Everything we see, hear, read?

I don't mean to discredit anyone's experiences or tell people that their opinions don't matter. Perhaps I am not the best person to be writing this--as a white cis woman, average weight, taller than most, raised in Ohio, never been a victim of abuse or had anything glaringly sexist said to me. I'm gay but most people can't tell, so I haven't faced much discrimination. And you can't tell by looking at me that I have some anxiety problems. So by society's standards, I'm "normal." I'm privileged. I don't really have the right to tell people to take a breather. 

So, discredit this if you think I'm an idiot, a hypocrite, etc. I'm part of the problem, because I'm clearly analyzing this all past the point of logical conclusions. And I'm not offering a solution, explanation, etc. I just want to say that I think we're making ourselves sick with worry.

We talk too much. We think too much. Sometimes, we need to just take the world as it comes.

waxing poetic

I never really learned
To be a girl.

I would have rather worn a tux
To my First Communion
Than a damn frilly dress.

I played with Hot Wheels, then Pokemon cards
And eschewed Barbies and pretty dolls.

I preferred cutoff jeans
And t-shirts
To floral prints and skirts.

My hair was always down,
Even when playing soccer,
Until I was in my teens.

I didn't learn to braid,
Or twist, or wrap, or bun,
And my ponytails have bumps.

My nails are chewed and stubby
And when and if I paint them
It's clumsy and gets smudged.

I wear foundation,
Not to appear tan,
But to cover the zits
That linger from adolescence.

I'll wear eyeliner
And that's it
Partially because
I'm not good at the other stuff.

I don't need heels
Which is good
Because they make me wobble.

I'm bad at dancing,
Clubbing or choreography,
Line or waltz.

Yes, I
Never learned
To be a girl.

But that never stopped me
From becoming a woman.

Country music has been changing, and I'm not very okay with it

All right.

Another country music awards show is coming up, and yet again I'm mad that Taylor Swift is even included in the genre any more. Granted, "Red" could maaaaybe be considered in the genre, but the three other singles off of the "Red" album cannot even be close to country. "We Are Never, Ever Getting Back Together," "I Knew You Were Trouble," and "22" are pop to the core.

The face of good TV ratings, and of genre betrayal.

I've been saying this for years, mind you, and she only gets worse. Of course, she's America's media darling and her fans drive the TV viewings way, way up.

The "Female Vocalist of the Year" category includes another very-questionable nominee in Kelly Clarkson, who has made a few forays into country but still puts out pop hits. Are they struggling for female vocalists to nominate? Perhaps, because there haven't been as many women who have made hits in the last year or so.

But Taylor and Kelly are just a few of the stars who are chipping away at the dam holding pop away from country. Lady Antebellum, Luke Bryan, Keith Urban (a longtime staple), and even old favorite Tim McGraw are switching banjos and twang for autotune and popularity. Carrie Underwood even has some of that pop sound--can you imagine her baling hay or riding a horse any more?

Don't even get me started on the horrendous beast that is Florida Georgia Line's "Cruise" remix with Nelly. Someone should have salted that demon before it crawled out of hell.

So, this is me inviting anyone, but women in particular, to pick up a guitar, record a YouTube video, and try like crazy to get a record deal. I like what Luke Bryan said last week about women in country. It's hard for them, he said to be feminine while being one of the guys. There are beauty standards that female entertainers are held to. They can't all throw on a white tee, jeans and a hat and feel good to go out in public. They're obviously still pretty, but does society tell them so? Can women go on their own into dive bars and try to sing as a professional without being jeered at? Probably not...

Granted, I grew up in the 1990s, and pop-country crossovers have been a staple on my radio since I was a kid. But I'm sure I'm not the only one pining for Garth Brooks's sound every time I hear another poppy hit. It may be hip, it may cross genres, but I sure as hell don't like it.

Feminism and country music/violence and country music

I'm sharing this article NOT because it knocks on Taylor Swift, but because it talks about feminism in country music and throws some props to my girl Miranda Lambert. Certainly, there is sexism and some old-school stereotypes in the genre. I think there is an overarching theme of men respecting the women (at least a little more than in pop or rap music) and women being tough and independent, not running around in lingerie.

Some of these revenge songs also make me think. Most songs I know about getting revenge on cheating or abusive partners are sung by women, about men OR by women, about women. I'm hard pressed to think of a man who sang about shooting his cheating wife. BUT, I could name you a whole score of women who sang about killing abusive fathers, boyfriends, etc. or the woman responsible for their husband's infidelity. Is it okay for women to advocate violence and men to shy away from that? Or is that just a product of history, where men have beleaguered and belittled women for years? Are women just taking their justice?

Dead Island does pretty well with female characters, but ultimately falls short

DEAD ISLAND RIPTIDE SPOILERS TOWARDS THE BOTTOM

Let's be honest, I love women. I mean, I am one, sure, and I also happen to be gay, so there's that, but in general, I think we're some pretty badass people. And in the context of what I'm talking about right now, which is video games, it's fun and empowering for me to have some good, playable (or background) characters in the series I enjoy.

I've never been a huge "gamer" in the sense of the word. As a kid, I liked Pokemon. As a teenager, I enjoyed Golden Sun and Fire Emblem, mostly, and also some more of that Gotta Catch 'em All stuff. When I moved in with my now-fiancee in 2010, she started introducing me to other games -- namely, the Assassin's Creed and Resident Evil series, and, more recently, we have been enjoying The Last of Us and the Dead Island games.

Now, I've read somewhere that 45 percent of gamers are female. I've also read, and seen online, the stereotype of girls who are either constantly harassed by guys online for being girls, or the girls who brag about being "gamers" just to...I don't know, sound cool? Impress dudes? I'm not sure how that works.

Though  I enjoy the joy of killing zombies/thwarting evil pharmaceutical companies in Resident Evil, and there are some (sexed up) female characters there, too. I love the thrill of stabbing evil Renaissance men in Assassin's Creed, but the fact stands that the only playable characters are male assassins -- through five games, now, and going into a sixth. Sure, you can be a woman in the multiplayer, but that's not as fun. However, props to the AC series for including Leonardo Da Vinci's sexual orientation as a side comment. Dude was gay. And I don't see a lot of gay people in video games. Am I playing the wrong ones? Anyhow. I think I am, because I know there are some good female characters in Metal Gear, in Portal, etc. But I don't have those! So let's talk Dead Island. I haven't seen many essays about this game. I think Dead Island is headed in the right direction with their female characters. And, they get points in my book for including about every ethnicity you can find in the world among its characters.

There's been one bad move on Techland's part about the first game -- an unlockable skill for one of the female characters was called "Feminist Whore" in the programming. Not so nice, Techland.

Why don't you say that to her face?

The first game does a fair job of balancing the roles between men and women, at least for the first part of the story. Here's the premise: the island of Banoi has become host to some kind of zombie virus. No one can get out because a monsoon is coming, and of course the radios out of the island don't work because of that same monsoon. Out of the survivors, four become heroes because they are immune -- Sam B (African-American), a one-hit wonder rapper from New Orleans who is a man with ghosts in his past from Katrina and a rough childhood. Logan (white American), a bit of an asshole ex-football player from Texas who can't play any more because he crashed his car while drunk driving. Purna (Aborigine-Australian), an ex-police officer and reluctant bodyguard for rich dudes. Xian Mei (Chinese), a hotel desk clerk who secretly spies on wealthy Westerners for her superiors. Another male character, John Morgan (white Australian) is added in the second game, Dead Island: Riptide.

L to R: Purna Jackson, Xian Mei, Logan Carter, Sam B. They look a fair bit different in the actual game, but this is them!

All of them have their skeletons in the closet, and also their strengths and weaknesses in-game.

It's good to have a diverse cast of characters to select from. And the rest of the world, this beautiful island and the city and jungle on it, is inhabited by zombies and survivors. Both men and women, of all races and colors. On the surface, it looks pretty even.

But then you start to pick it apart. As you progress in the game, there are a lot of characters that you meet and you can do tasks for. One lady wants bottled water. One man wants canned food. A few people want them to find their loved ones or find them a certain item. And there are specific point people -- main characters, kind of, that advance your quest along. But most of them are male. Sinamoi, the head lifeguard. Joseph, who leads you the sewers so you can get into the richer parts of the city to look for food. Matutero and Mowen, who lead you through the jungle. Dr. West, who is working on a cure for the virus. Titus, a leader at the prison. The man actively facilitating your whole crazy ride is Col. Ryder White, who is holed up in the prison with his sick wife. He's hoping Dr. West can make a cure out of the heroes' blood to save his wife because she was bitten. And you find out after the game that a hacker named Charon has something to do with the virus's release. The heroes meet him in the prison--and he's a guy, too.

There are a few female characters of note. Mother Helen is in charge at a church in the city. Jin is a teenage girl whose father died of the virus--she accompanies the heroes along the journey. Yerema is a teenager, too, I think. Her father is a leader of a native jungle tribe, and he's gone a little overboard with his homemade cures for the zombie virus. The heroes save her and take her with them.

In the later parts of the game, it's mostly a man's world. And you see it more when you get out of the resort part of the island and into the city, jungle and prison. The random thugs who are looting the area are all male. They pop up in the city and parts of the jungle. The zombie officers that you encounter in the police station are all male. The scientists in Dr. West's lab are all male. And the prisoners are also guys--admittedly, that makes some sense. Additionally, all the tougher zombies are male--the Rams, the Thugs, the Butchers, the Floaters and (I think, you can't really tell) the Suiciders.

That brings us to the second game, which has a bit of a better male-female ratio as far as main characters go.  I haven't played it quite as much, but I still enjoyed it, and was thoroughly pleased with the addition of Harlow. She's a survivor who isn't all sexed up like some female characters, and (SPOILERS) is also immune, and who ends up being the final boss in the game--a very welcome change from all of the male bosses and big Thugs or Infected from the rest of the games. When we had to fight her at the end, I was pretty darn happy about it. I am so used to the tough-guy lingo in games -- "take this, you son of a bitch!" "Let's finish this bastard once and for all!" It was refreshing to hear Logan Carter call the final boss a bitch and go with her with as much ferocity as he would a male boss.

There is also one special zombie, called a Screamer, who is specifically female.

In the end, of course, it's all about survival. This game isn't the most challenging, but it also doesn't take time to develop much romance or many relationships between characters. It's not focused on sex appeal. Sure, there are some minor characters in swimsuits because they're on a damn island. There could be some more female NPCs (trying to kill you--because women can be evil, too!).  But most of the game is shooting, slashing, helping people, and trying not to let the health bar get too low.

As a woman, I appreciate having my choice of characters. None of the main characters look like me, since I'm a white girl from the USA, but it's still cool to know I have a little femme fatale charm behind my rifle or my wakizashi when I move out onto the island to kill the zombies.

I'm a terrible blogger. ;)

Hi y'all, sorry it has been such a long time. I know I say that sometimes, but I forget to blog! I write all day, and if I don't have a deadline to hit...well, it's just hard for me, I guess.

Leah and I just got back from a wonderful trip to New York City to see some friends and watch a football (soccer) match. It was a ton of fun! Maybe I'll update about that soon.

MKRJ

Open Letter to the Pope: From Scoops the cat, who is almost three

From the desk of Scoops

Dear Pope Francis:

I just wanna congratulate you on your election yesterday, and say a few things that are on my mind as a young brother cat in Ohio.

First up, I identify as a Franciscan, so I was pumped when my mama told me you took St. Francis's name. He is by far my favorite saint because he loved animals and cared about the environment. Huggin' trees, man! He lived a simple life, as do I. And I hope you will continue to champion the poor folk. I grew up on the streets before I was adopted. Now I live with a few other cats. My owners like to foster out cats 'cause they're real cool like that. I've seen a lot of animals in my life, and though I may be afraid of dogs, I know all animals deserve God's love and respect.

I do have an issue with ya on a few bits. And excuse my vernacular, man, but why you gotta be hatin' on gay people? See, my owners are both girls and they're in love. And to me, there ain't a thing wrong with that. I know I'm a cat, and I'm probably not the smartest cat, but I know for sure that my mamas adopted me and they love me for who I am. And I love them back for who they are. I haven't met an animal who gives two shakes about their owners' sexuality. I love my mamas because they are kind and caring, they pet me, they love me, and they'd never hurt their animals. They're good people. But if I happened to be a human being, they wouldn't be able to adopt me. And I don't wanna go back on the streets.

Don't all people deserve that love, too? That chance to share a monogamous  relationship and raise a family?  Man, it's not even an issue where I stand. I don't know why people are hatin' on other people. I have seen black cats, grey cats, orange cats, calico cats, male and female cats, and they are all my brothers and sisters. And I have seen the same with people. Black people, white people, people from Asia, Europe, South America, whatever. Gay or straight or bisexual or queer or anything. I don't care.

See the thing is, we animals don't worry about all that crap. We are simple animals as God made us. St. Francis loved us for our simplicity. We don't have a lot of needs. We don't ask for too much. And most importantly, we see right through skin and sexuality and gender and see peoples' hearts. We can read souls, man. We can tell when someone is sketchy. We can tell when someone is sad.

I can tell, ain't no doubt in this mind, that I was raised by two people with love in their hearts. I think any animal would rather be raised by two gay guys who treated them right than by a hetero couple where one person was abusive. I think any kid would, too. Sex and sexuality and skin don't matter. It's the heart, man. We can see that. I think St. Francis could, too.

You influence a lot of people, Mr. Pope. I am excited to see what happens in the church. I hope for a future full of truth, love, and help for the needy.

Give me a holla if you're ever in Ohio. I'd love to meet you.

Respectfully,

Scoops

Ohio, USA

Lament of a broke twentysomething

Dear bills,

There are too many of you.
I'm trying really hard, I work full-time, I don't eat out too much or buy clothes and shoes. I even got a job that correlates directly with my college major.
I moved out of my parents' house, too! I pay for most of my own shit, I try to take care of my cats, and eat well, and take care of my car and my fiancee (who is also working a lot while going to school).
How about you bills just take it easy for a bit, okay? Really, rent and utilities and gas and electric and insurance and student loans and the credit card bill are all piling up and it makes me sad.
So please take it easy on me?
Please?
Please?

Love but not really,
RJ

Homosexuality/religion

(originally ranted on Facebook)

As a reporter, I try not to get too personal/political, but it is hard not to after hearing a Cincinnati assistant principal got fired for supporting gay marriage on his blog.

I loved my 12 years of Catholic school in Cinci, and the allies I found there, but I often wish I could have had an even easier experience coming out and being a gay Christian. It’s something I’ve struggled with. I’ve read the entire Bible, I am sure,  since I was also a religion major in my Methodist college.

Jesus didn't say a damn thing about homosexuality. And any argument that Leviticus prohibits it is insane. Laws in Leviticus were based on ritual sacrifice and being acceptable to come before the altar -- gay sex was unclean in the ritualistic sense, as were a myriad of other things (like tattoos and eating shellfish).

Same-sex marriage will not lead to incest, or people marrying dogs and toaster ovens. Same-sex marriage is between TWO CONSENTING ADULTS. Your dog or some little kid can't make a legal lifelong commitment. Two adults should be able to do what the hell they want with their love lives.

This shouldn't even be a religious issue. Religion, to me, is learning your own damn way to connect with Jesus and God. And how to be happy. No one can tell you how to build that relationship, or be happy, or what God thinks of you. They can give you guidelines, but my God loves me for who I am and I have experienced holiness in different ways than other people have. And if you don't have a god, that's okay too. You probably have clearer eyes in this issue. If you disagree with me, that's okay, but this is what my life as a MethoCatholic has taught me.

In short, my friends, thank you to all who support the LGBTIQA community and those who don't use religion as a way to strong-arm other people into having your beliefs.

The evolution of handwriting

I try.....