BigShoes

There’s wind, there’s rain, here comes a hurricane, here’s Dolly!

Dolly? Dolly? What were they thinking to name a hurricane Dolly? Well apparently it was on the list and it won’t be the last time it is used unless it is devastating to the proportion that it is too traumatic for us (Katrina, retired 2005). There are six lists that are repeated every seventh year and apparently this is Dolly’s year and perhaps it was in 2002 (I don’t remember) and it will be again in 2014.

How do I know all this? Well, I wanted to know who names a hurricane Dolly? I don’t know their names but they are members of the World Meteorological Organization. Hey I want in. There certainly wouldn’t have been a Dolly on the list.

I found this great chart on retired hurricane names that date back to 1954 when they began the retirement process. It got me to thinking; can we have one of these for baby names? Do you think Social Security could retire names when they do all that other stuff they do with tax payer money to give us a report on popular baby names? I’m sure my family has used up its quota on the name Violet (paternal and maternal grandmothers both named Violet).

To reuse a name we could have a special exception for Juniors or to be named after someone within so many generations…or you could pay for a retired name to be reinstated, it could be an adopt a name program and we could spend the money on a good cause. If you are really eager to support the program you can pay money to add a name to the retired list…like the one you disagree on with your spouse or because there are five students with the same name in your child’s classroom.

We could also just simplify things and follow the lead of the World Meteorological Organization and rotate six lists of 26 names every seven years, of names we could spell.

But really folks, Dolly?

How far would you go for perfect feet? I’m thinking serving up your feet as a smorgasbord to hungry little feeding fish isn’t what you had in mind. For about $50 for 30 minutes you can have tiny carp nibble away your dead foot skin. Yum.

I’m still thinking about how far I would go. I’m pretty certain it isn’t that far though. I’m up for snuggling up with a soft kitty to de-stress at the end of the day. Maybe I’ll let my parrot rest on my shoulder and preen my hair to relax. But sticking my feet in a tub of warm water and ringing the dinner bell is not going to happen.

So, what’s it going to be for you, the Microplane Foot File (the predecessor to the PedEgg, whose manufacturing must be taking notes from Victoria’s Secret) or the hungry carp?

Here’s a band I found on YouTube called Good Shoes. I’m not playing them because they are called Good Shoes, okay yes I am. This song is called We Are Not The Same. I like it, the song and the video. The video is incredible and I hope you enjoy it. And you’ve never heard me push shoes at BigShoes, but if you were to go out and buy shoes, you better make them Good Shoes…and tell them Violette sent you.

Here is an incredibly funny bit that aired on Jon Stewart’s The Daily Show last week Thursday, July 17, 2008 that I just had to bring to you. Here is true commentary on sexism, in case Mrs. Cynthia Good of PINK Magazine in Atlanta GA doesn’t know what it is.

Here is a link to the piece by Kristen Schaal, Senior Women’s Issues Commentator at The Daily Show. Maybe somebody should talk to The Daily Show; she doesn’t look like a senior to me.

Setting Cynthia Good’s efforts to right sexism in America aside, what do you think about the double standard that is brought up here? In light of this do you sympathize more with Good’s point of view?

Men at Work signs are sexist. At least that is what the city of Atlanta was told and bowed down to. It seems the editor of a women’s magazine called PINK (where are the legal teams for Victoria’s Secret and Juicy Couture when you need them) has declared them sexist and they shall be removed. She even made the Today show.

This is the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard of. If this is the best cause a woman can come up with then one certainly needs to consider one’s sanity. In therapy they call this the case of the “shoulds.”

Just consider for one second if everybody who thinks something “SHOULD” be a certain way got their way, right or wrong. If we all had a sense of entitlement on how things “SHOULD” be.

Can Mrs. Good (yes I said Mrs., that is if she is using her husband’s name), can she find something better to do with her time like assist less fortunate women in getting better education and jobs in the inner cities? Maybe she does, I don’t know that she doesn’t, but it certainly didn’t make the national news.

I think Cynthia Good should foot the bill for replacement signs so the money doesn’t come from something more important that the city needs, like a lawyer.

Since PINK is a magazine published in Atlanta Georgia (with a female mayor), I imagine she has a little more pull and probably her influence will remain local. One would hope. Mary Lynn at Marylynnformation is a PINK Magazine subscriber, a smart one at that. She brings up some very good points about why PINK Magazine editor Cynthia Good should tread lightly.

Let’s list some Good causes to consider. What would be your most important cause for women?

And they’re off…dangling from the trees. Are her feet in the stirrups, who’s catching the babies? Doctor or dad? I know I can see something behind that black screen. And it’s a girl and another girl and oops, we got it WRONG!

That’s right. They got it wrong. One news outlet reported the babies were born a few weeks ago or so and another got the sex wrong on one of the babies. Maybe they thought they knew what fraternal twins were and took a chance.

It just goes to show you that too many people are following celebrity news instead of learning about biology.

So, has anybody lost their home yet in today’s economy?

While visiting a forum today I came across the discussion on Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, discussing of all things, you guessed it, the twins’ names. Someone actually referred to the names Vivienne Marcheline and Knox Leon as being “graded” somewhere.

Tick, tock…tick, tock…really people. We need to grade baby names. Let’s just be as pleasant as we are when we look at an ugly baby and say how cute. Why is it less offensive to grade names and not the baby’s features. “Really unless those eyes turn brown you’ll never make the dean’s list…we better tape those ears down too.”

Am I disturbed by this new trend? Let me think about that…NOOOO.

I already know that I must deserve an F in baby names.

My oldest is Cristina and I’m annoyed that people are annoyed when I have to reiterate, “that’s Cristina without an H”…or even more annoyed when I fill out official paperwork and even though I spelled it correctly they correct me in case I’m wrong when they type it up. (That just happened.)

How about she is NAMED after a relative and that is the way it is spelled in the country they came from…or wait maybe some American at Ellis Island spelled it wrong when she signed in at Ellis Island and she was stuck with that awful name of Cristina without an H forever. If she only knew that her great-granddaughter now has to live with that same misfortune of a name. I only hope I annoy them more every time I spell it.

It is not my fault really. I mean the name I was cursed with, Violet, how awful is that (sarcasm guys). At least it isn’t the dark ages anymore and variety is the spice of life. I remember coming home from school with a paper that said Valerie all over it instead of Violet and my mom asked me why. I told her the teacher said nobody is named Violet, my name must be Valerie and she made me practice writing it. Surely my mother had really misspelled my name, I mean horribly misspelled it (Violet=Valerie, hmmm). So my mom gets an F too. The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.

I don’t know how she could have gotten it wrong since her mom’s name is VIOLET and my dad’s mom’s name is VIOLET…okay the woman still gets an F, what was she thinking with that (you’ll note that I spell my name as Violette…for good reason, how confusing is that filling out official paperwork in a small town). I hope I annoy everybody when I spell my first name too.

Are you annoyed?

My inspiration for Sunday is a bit long but well worth it. How about a little motivation for the week? Set aside last week’s bad baggage (I didn’t complain about it all yesterday, but we can leave it at the door…how about that pesky neighbor’s door…just kidding). Clear the mind, clean the soul, find something positive to think and do.

Hey, this is not a movie, put the popcorn away. Hush, close your eyes, never mind there are subtitles, keep your eyes open…I’ll just shut up now. Here are the words of inspirational, motivational speaker, Jim Rohn with Sometimes You Can’t Make It On Your Own…yes that is U2 music, what did you expect? Enjoy…

We know too much, more than we should. Our society gets carried away with the “issues”, and that is the issue. This week I saw headlines that spoke volumes in but a few words. We are voyeurs running from the mundane; we’ve run so far that we’ve forgotten where we’ve come from. Where I come from, I’ve been told if you’ve nothing nice to say, don’t say anything at all… at least in front of the wrong people. How’s this for news? Don’t say anything you don’t want millions of people to hear while you are waiting to go on live TV.

Teacher Loses Job over Stern Appearance

I really don’t know the whole story and I’m not going to take the time to watch the video…but the woman appeared on Stern’s show with her husband (he’s probably the stupid one that got them in this mess), for winning an ugly dude/beautiful wife contest or something. She wasn’t sleeping with her second graders; she was talking about sex with her HUSBAND. Kudos to her, let’s bring some sex back into the marriage.

Husband of Hostage Admits Icy Reunion

Geez, don’t you think your wife feels bad enough about being a hostage for more than half a decade; do you need to tell the world about YOUR troubles? My gosh, how long has Ingrid Betancourt even been home? I think it was reported she was tied to a tree about a week ago and he’s concerned about the cold shoulder.

Christie Brinkley Settles Nasty Divorce

Tsk, tsk Christie. It is one thing to be a questionable wife (what is it now, three times, I lost count), but to air the laundry potentially in front of your children in today’s information age. SHAME. Now you win the questionable mother award.

Jesse Jackson Caught on Tape Trashing Obama

I remember a time when journalists sat down with you and would go to jail to protect their sources. What was FOX NEWS thinking? Fair and balanced my @$$. They’re ratings pigs like everybody else. And Rev. Jackson, I reiterate, don’t say anything you don’t want millions of people to hear while you are waiting to go on live TV…unless you wanted us to…

This was just a little bit of the baggage that bothered me this week. Some sad, some really sad or maybe really stupid.

What bugged you this week? Time to let it go.

Is this unbelievable or what? A 60-year-old man lied this week about seeing two sharks near the shoot sight of the movie Jaws…I didn’t pay him, honest. A few beaches were closed a day here and there.

How timely, I really had nothing to do with it. He must be the number one Jaws fan. Hey, he’s going to jail, that will make me number one legally since he can’t hold any offices in jail. The news reported that they didn’t know if he had a lawyer. Here’s a clue, the man needs a doctor not a lawyer.

Hey look, it’s July…it’s the weekend…going to the beach anyone?

Da dant…da dant…da da da daaaah dant…. The Jaws theme in my head…hey my daughter plays this for me on her marching band baritone!