Pen-Elayne on the Web

Year of the Tiger Valentine's Blogaround

Because I've missed so many milestones already since the last blogaround I did, I may as well acknowledge two I'm not missing. Onward:

• I'm overdue at acknowledging some milestones in Neil Gaiman's life, so congrats on the engagement, condolences about the cat, and wow, nine years!!

• Vinnie remember his late mother-in-law Jackie, who was indeed quite the character. I had the pleasure of knowing her as well, and always thought of her as the height of Manhattan sophistication.

• I hope Michael Davis can make it through the day without Fluffy.

• Air America is no more, and Mark Evanier has the best view I've read on why it won't necessarily be missed even by those of us once rooting for it to succeed.

• Great news - Donna is able to blog again! I would really have missed her.

• Colleen has one of my favorite blog post titles, with which (naturally) I completely agree.

• Heidi has moved to new digs due to PW no longer requiring her fine services, and Jen's looking for a new gig. Meanwhile, it's been over a year since Robin had any pencilling or inking work, which just isn't right.

• I totally agree with Sarah, these matroyshkas are lovely and I wish I had some (I collect the things), even though they're hella expensive (I collect the things, cheap).

• I don't know why pink is still my favorite color, but Val's post about pink almost made my eyes bleed anyway.

• Speaking of girly things, I have no particular emotional attachment to Rainbow Brite (a little after my time), but did she really need a makeover that turns her from a cute little kid into a svelte pre-teen?

• Mark Morford examines our culture of whiny disappointment. Otherwise known as (a) the Internet, (b) fandom, (c) life (don't talk to me about life).

• Although Peter David has reason to be disappointed in Apple's latest offering.

• Over at HuffPo, Spencer Green has handy monickers for Oscar-nominated films. I think the reason so many of them are given to cliche is because, as Jennifer Kesler points out, they're filled with the same old white guys instead of having more diversity of character like, you know, life. I've said the same thing about comics for years. One type of person is as boring for me to read (and as devoid of imagination) as one type of body. If we had more diversity, maybe (as Annalee nicely skewers) male math geeks wouldn't extrapolate the entire galaxy to explain why they personally can't find a mate, which is about as pathetic as denying global warming by looking outside your window and seeing snow in your personal back yard. Or deciding the G-spot isn't real based on anecdotal "evidence."

• I hope "mansplaining" becomes an actual neologism, and I'm sorry I missed its birth.

• Just when I think I have things figured out, something else happens to make me shake my head at corporate criminals, like the various ways in which credit card companies screw both customers and vendors.

• While Republican conservative politics-as-usual marches on, it's well worth remembering, as Digby reminds us, that they pretty much had their way for the last decade and created just about every mess we're in today.

• Merle Kessler makes a good point about the petty criminal O'Keefe: pimps don't actually dress like that outside of 30-year-old TV shows and movies. Of course, he didn't dress that way when he scammed ACORN, he just mugged for the cameras. Wow, this guy's a lying sack of shit all around, isn't he?

• Lance Mannion's essay on Sarah Palin and the crib notes on her hand is must reading. He's absolutely right, it just doesn't matter, because it gives her even more cred with her peeps who believe smart = bad/suspect.

• I remain in awe of Melissa McEwan. Here are a few reasons why: her dating site take-down; her examination of a videogame industry that confuses physical ideals with ablism and thinness; her anecdote about Betty White and Rue McClanahan; and probably the most succinct analysis I've seen of the First Lady's misguided and ultimately futile crusade to make fat kids thin (instead of making all kids healthy). I mean, your husband has the power to cut subsidies to corporations creating HFCS, and you concentrate on people's looks??

• I've never played Rock Band (we can't afford to trick out our TV with any additives like X-boxes and Wii's) but I totally agree with Amanda that people who sniff at Rock Band are old curmudgeons who might as well be shaking their fists at those kids on their lawns.

• I like Mike Norton's idea of a sarcasm/irony emoticon, particularly one with a previous existence.

• Lastly, Cliff Meth has a nice teaser of an interview with Ian Anderson, and didn't once ask him to justify "Hot Mango Flush."

Too cold in this room, back under the bedroom covers to try to get more sleep...