Moobs or Breasticles

I am having difficulty developing ideas into actual blog entires, so I thought I would write a little bit concerning a conversation I had at the office today.

First, a little background.  I read an article on-line about the increase in the number of breast reduction surgeries in males over the course of the past year:

The patients were found to have enlarged male breasts, a condition known as gynecomastia. While it is not a new disorder, more men are seeking treatment for it, and new statistics from the American Society of Plastic Surgeons show that the majority are adolescent boys.

In 2006, according to the group, nearly 14,000 boys age 13 to 19 underwent surgery to reduce the size of their breasts. That represents 70 percent of all the male patients who had such surgery last year, and an increase of 21 percent over the previous year for that age group.

I understand the traumas of physical appearance, especially among teenagers, but plastic surgery of any sort always seems an excessive solution to me.  It is especially distasteful because so many of the surgeries were on boys, not men.  As the article further states, a large portion of the increase in the development of oversized male breasts is due to obesity and/or to raging hormones settling down during the adolescent years (this therefore leads me to believe that a bit of dieting and/or a bit of time might ease the problem).  However, instead of taking action or practicing patience, parents of these boys are paying for them to have plastic surgery (and, hence, reinforcing the boys’ feelings that they look weird and need to resort to surgery to look like everyone else).

How far do we let this go?  How long before everyone looks exactly like everyone else?  I have been having a similar conflict myself over my own beliefs about fashion.  I like the television show on the Style channel called How Do I Look?  The TV show takes a woman and gets 2 of her friends and a fashion consultant to go through her closet and dump all of her ugly clothes.  Then they tell her how her clothes are ugly and hiding the true beauty of her inner character, etc. (this is where I often get a little weepy, as the woman sometimes is a cancer survivor, or her mom just died, or something else tragic has recently happened to her, and her friends truly love her but are just embarrassed to be seen with her in public because she dresses so poorly).   Then the three “accomplices” get to go out and buy her three new outfits each, as well as decide on new make-up and a new hair style.  The fashion victim gets to choose one person’s outfits, make-up, and hair style, and at the end of the show, presto! she’s a whole new person (at least externally, although the fashion vicitms often say at the end of the show (even if they were very angry at the beginning of the program about being told their clothes were ugly) that they feel much more confident and beautiful). 

Now, I am definitely one who thinks to myself, “I cannot believe she is wearing that!”  However, I also like to think that I don’t mean this in a catty way, because lots of my friends do not dress very fashionably, and it certainly does not make me love them one bit less.  But I take great pleasure in seeing the women on the show transform themselves into fashionistas.  Then I feel bad because I am basically condoning a show that says, “You cannot be beautiful and confident unless you dress just like everyone else.”  And that was a long way to go to get to the same point I was making about the male breast problem and the solution of plastic surgery.  Shouldn’t we learn to accept people no matter what they look like or how they dress instead of pressuring them to feel that they need to take drastic measures (e.g. plastic surgery, being on TV)?  It is an age-old question, and we all want to say, “Of course I accept everyone no matter how they look,” when in fact we take great pleasure in shows such as How Do I Look?

So, back to the beginning of my entry.  We were discussing this topic at work and talking about man boobs.  Dana has a friend that calls them “moobs.”  Joseph has a friend who calls them “breasticles.”  Both nicknames are highly amusing to me.  And, see, I’m laughing at someone else’s physicality.  My whole blog entry is moot. 

The Best Grilled Cheese in Richmond

Tim and I went out to Ashland Coffee and Tea on Saturday evening to see Cephas and Wiggins in concert.  The band was great, as was the venue.  Ashland Coffee and Tea is arguably one of the best places in the Richmond-area to see live music.  They have a fairly large listening room and they cater to an “adult” audience.  By “adult” I don’t mean people looking for strippers, I mean people interested in sitting quietly and enjoying music and not conversing with their friends at a place that happens to feature live music.  The fact that the venue is called a “listening room” and not a bar or restaurant exemplfies this feature.  Yes, I know I have officially entered the crotchety old woman phase of my life, because I condemn those pesky kids who talk through concerts.

Although it is a listening room, Ashland Coffee and Tea does have a variety of beers and wines for imbibing pleasure as well as a small menu of appetizers, sandwiches, and salads.  The front area of the venue is a coffee bar, featuring fancy coffee drinks, pastries, etc.  My favorite sandwich at AC&T is Dad’s Grilled Cheese.  As I was eating one on Saturday night, I pondered the beauty of the grilled cheese and made a mental list of my favorites in the Richmond-area:

5) Rare Old Times:  I included Rare Old Time’s grilled cheese mostly because I needed a fifth entry and also because it used to be one of the best.  Many years ago, I would meet up with a group of friends at ROT every Thursday to listen to some Irish band.  I always got the grilled cheese for dinner (mostly because there is nothing worse than Irish food – I conclude that that is why the Irish drink so much Guiness – and hence nothing too appealing to me on the ROT menu).  The grilled cheese back at that time was served on marble rye bread and with bacon.  It was quite yummy.  I went back to ROT several times late last year in order to play a live trivia game and ordered the grilled cheese again.  No marble rye, but plain, mushy, white Wonder-bread-like bread.  The sandwich is not the same.

4) The Baker’s Crust: The Baker’s Crust serves a traditional grilled cheese, but they have a great selection of freshly made breads from which you can select to have your sandwich made.  I recommend that you ask for an order of their homemade potato chips as a side – I think they are the best in Richmond (yes, even better than the ones at the Hill Cafe).

3) Cafe Mosaic: Cafe Mosaic used to have a convenient location and cramped, eclectic digs in Carytown.  Several years ago, they relocated to a strip mall near the Huguenot Bridge (by the University of Richmond).  Cafe Mosaic serves their grilled cheese in a warm, thick, pita bread.  The sandwich features at least three types of cheeses, tomatoes, and a divine dressing.  The dressing is kind of mustard-y, but unique, and is very good.  (I do have to say that if you are going to Cafe Mosaic you should really order the artichoke pita sandwich – it is awesome.  In fact, my sister, who lived in Newport News at the time, and I went their once while she was visiting.  She loved that sandwich so much that she came back to town the following weekend to eat it again.)  (Oh, and if you do eat there make sure that you get a cookie for dessert – so big, so soft yet chewy, so freakin’ good!) 

4) Ashland Coffee and Tea: As mentioned above, the Dad’s Grilled Cheese at AC&T is awesome.  It is grilled panini-style and has a spicy tomato relish in it that makes the sandwich different yet fantastic.  I wish AC&T would work on their sides (we always get a bag of chips and a very small cup of 3-bean salad or fruit cup (so small that the fruit cup I got last Saturday featured one section of an orange, a bite-size piece of canteloupe, and a grape)).  Dad’s Grilled Cheese used to be my favorite until the #1 location (see below) opened in Richmond.

1) Zuppas: I know everyone was waiting with bated breath for the revelation of the restaurant serving the #1 grilled cheese sandwich in Richmond.  But if you know the town, you know that Zuppas’ sandwich cannot be beat.  It is made with thick slabs of homemade bread, pesto, tomatoes, and a combo of oozy cheeses.  They also serve it with prosciutto, but I prefer it meatless.  This is one of my favorite sandwiches of all time.  Tim and I often call and order takeout from Zuppas, and I always get the grilled cheese and their tomato soup (really, really delicious as well). 

So, everyone, hightail it to one of the above restaurants and enjoy a grilled cheese today.  Or, if you have a recommendation for a good grilled cheese, let me know, so I can try it out.

Sex, drugs, and rock and roll

I read this article last week about the 40th anniversary of the “Summer of Love,” which ”featured a nonstop series of concerts by the likes of the Jefferson Airplane and the Grateful Dead; the blossoming of hippie culture, with its emphasis on long hair, communal ideals and psychedelic expression; and a rise of anti-establishmentarianism that made drug use, protests and other public acts more acceptable.”

The article discusses the controversy about whether or not the “Summer of Love” actually resulted in positive change or if it was an all-around disaster for American culture and politics.  I used to think that the late 1960s were all good: the era marked the end of the repressiveness of the 1950s; women and African Americans experienced more equality than ever before; people came together to affect change.  However, perhaps all this freedom was excessive.  How can we find a balance between freedom and hedonism? 

Also, as the article notes, the movement surrounding the “Summer of Love” was not all about peace, love, and happiness.  This time also saw the rise of violence to affect change (e.g. the Black Panthers).  When is it acceptable to use violence to jumpstart social change?  Is it ever?  I know I have addressed this question in prior posts, but no one responded.

Rhythm and gentle repetition

I thought it was pretty humorous that the Vatican took the time to compile and release a “Ten Commandments of Road Rage.”  I understand that road rage can be a problem and cause accidents and/or death, but is this really necessary?  Shouldn’t the Vatican be working on more important issues such as religious toleration or at least advancing the sainthood of Mother Theresa?

My favorite of the “Road Rage” commandments is number five: “Cars shall not be for you an expression of power and domination, and an occasion of sin.”  Well, it looks like all those people who own Hummers are violating a commandment.  And if you ever made out in a car (or perhaps went “all the way” in the backseat), I think you have had “an occasion of sin.” 

However, my favorite recommendation from the Church was the following:

The rosary was particularly well-suited to recitation by all in the car, it said, because its “rhythm and gentle repetition does not distract the driver’s attention.”

Now that is funny.

Where have I been? An update for my 3 devoted readers

As you may have noticed, I have not been posting very much over the past couple of weeks.  Unfortunately, work has been very stressful due to the closing of our fiscal year and the need to submit lobbying reports and disclosures by the end of the month.  Not to say that I usually blog at work, but I have been working later than usual and coming home more tired.  Also, Tim and I have been traveling a lot on the weekends, leaving me even further behind in everything.

Last Friday, Tim and I headed to Asheville, NC for a visit with his family.  It was his father’s 75th birthday as well as Tim’s 40th birthday celebration (thrown by Tim’s mother and sister).  We had a long drive down on Friday in our rental car, a Dodge Avenger.  Not a great selection – the car had small windows in the rear, obscuring even further the existing blindspots.  We arrived in Asheville around 5:00 and went out for dinner with Tim’s parents and sister.

On Saturday morning, we headed to the recreation center where the party was to be held.  We assisted in setting up tables and chairs, as well as unloading the cars.  The party was in the evening and was a great success.  I was able to meet some of Tim’s friends, many of whom I have heard about but never met in person.  I also got to meet some of Tim’s 10 million relatives.  I think everyone had a good time.

Sunday we spent resting and visiting with additional relatives.  We were also able to take a stroll through Asheville’s Botanical Gardens.  The Gardens were pretty but small.  On Monday we headed back to Richmond.  All in all, it was a very unexciting but pleasant trip.

Sir Salman Rushdie

You have probably heard or read about how the British announced that they would grant Salman Rushdie knighthood, and how many Islamic governments have protested this honor, because they feel that Rushdie insulted Islam in his novel The Satanic Verses.  For the record, Rushdie writes about many religions in a non-traditional manner throughout The Satanic Verses.  I read The Guardian article on the conflict and was struck by this paragraph:

The committee that recommended Salman Rushdie for a knighthood did not discuss any possible political ramifications and never imagined that the award would provoke the furious response that it has done in parts of the Muslim world, the Guardian has learnt.

Why should the committee looking to honor a bestselling, highly talented, and award-winning novelist consider the political ramifications of bestowing the honor?  I believe that we need to stop cowering behind whether or not we offend another culture and/or religion.  If we believe that there are universal moral standards then we must abide by them, and I think freedom of speech is one of them.  Also, no one is asking Muslim cultures to honor Rushdie; the British are just granting an antiquated, and essentially meaningless, title on him.

By the way, I love Salman Rushdie; I believe Midnight’s Children is one of the best books I have ever read (and I also enjoyed all his other works).  I think he is an original voice in a literary world chorus that is crammed with repetition.  If you haven’t read any of his works, you should.  He is a fun, clever, and lyrical writer.

How would you pay the kidnappers?

Tim and I were laying in bed the other night, watching Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip (actually, Tim was watching; I was trying to read, but was being sucked into the temptress-grasp of the television).  On the show, one of the main character’s brother, who is an American soldier serving in Afghanistan, was kidnapped by terrorists.  The TV station for which the brother works is considering offering a sum of money to the kidnappers in exchange for the brother. 

During the commercial break, I asked Tim what he would do if I was kidnapped.  How would he get the money needed to pay my ransom, given our status of being “not rich?”  He couldn’t see a way to do it.  I suggested that he could sell a kidney on the black market.  He thought that would only garner about $30,000 (not enough for what would surely be a high ransom for my valuable life).  I then suggested that he could use the $30,000 to put a down payment on a very fancy house, then take out a second mortgage or home equity line and use that for the ransom.  Tim pointed out that the acquisition of a house can take some time, and I better hope that the kidnappers practiced patience (and that the surgery to extract his kidney did not leave him too disabled to go house hunting). 

At this point in the conversation, I couldn’t stop laughing. 

Additional note: I was reading an article about organ donation in Australia, and came across this article from Wired.  If Tim was a discriminating seller, he could get about $145,000 for his kidney (if he sold it in Turkey).  We would have to factor in the additional cost of airfare for delivery, but, overall, I think he would get a lot more money to apply to my ransom.  Of course, if he was a truly devoted boyfriend, he’d donate a heart and garner about $300,000 (but then there wouldn’t be anyone left to negotiate with the kidnappers).

Historic Polling

I read an Op-ed piece by George Will in the Richmond Times-Dispatch today.  The piece was interesting but I do not wish to discuss its main premise.  I am more interested in the concluding paragraphs concerning changing public opinion on controversial issues:

Writing in the New Republic, Thomas B. Edsall notes that in the late 1980s voters by a margin of 51 to 42 percent believed that “school boards ought to have the right to fire teachers who are known homosexuals.” Today voters disagree, 66 to 28. In 1987 voters were evenly divided on the question of whether “AIDS might be God’s punishment for immoral sexual behavior.” Today voters disagree, 72 to 23.

Recent Pew polling shows that a combined 48 percent of Republican voters say that Iraq (31 percent) or terrorism (17 percent) is their principal concern. Abortion? Seven percent. Gay marriage? One percent.

Interesting how viewpoints change and what once seemed so important does not remain so.  I think people might say that since 9/11, personal safety has come to the forefront of most people’s concerns, and hence the fact that Iraq and terrorism seem as greater burdens.  However, I do feel the change has more to do with the fact that abortion and homosexuality are more accepted by the mainstream.  What changes opinion?  What perceptions of yours have changed over time and how?

The Foreign Correspondent

I finished reading The Foreign Correspondent by Alan Furst this past weekend.   The novel takes place primarily in Paris, with some forays into Italy and Germany, on the eve of World War II.  The protagonist, Carlo, an expatriate from Italy, is a journalist with Reuters based in Paris.  Carlo fled Italy after the rise of Fascism and Mussolini and the subsequent repressive regime.

After the assasination of another journalist, Carlo becomes the editor of an Italian resistance paper, helping select, publish, and discreetly distribute an anti-Fascist newspaper.  This becomes a high-profile yet dangerous occupation.  Carlo also rekindles an old romance while in Berlin, and this tryst turns into a passionate love affair.  Carlo tries to get his love, Christa, to leave Germany as Hitler consolidates his power, but she refuses, as she is an active member of the Nazi resistance.

Carlo eventually has to dabble in espionage in order to rescue Christa (in a very anti-climatic ending).  That was the problem with the novel – there was no depth to any of the characters, and the plot became very simplistic.  I did like the tone of the novel – it was suitable for a noir-espionage-elicit romance novel.  The sentence structure was curt at times, which I did not like, but I grew accustomed to it as I waded through the novel. 

The book was fine; an interesting subject and easy to read.  I wish that the story, as well as the characters and their relationships, were fleshed out more, because the sketches of the plot and characters that were presented were intriguing.  Overall, I give the book 3 out of 5 stars, primarily because it was disappointing.  The novel had promise, but there needed to be more.

The Caste System, or Affirmative Action in India

I have written before about my insignificant experience with a type of affirmative action (while playing football).  I was very intrigued by the article I read yesterday about the caste system in India.  Apparently, members of the next-to-lowest caste are trying to get “demoted” to the lowest caste, as the Indian government offers more jobs to members of the lowest caste:

[T]housands of Gujjars, a class of farmers and shepherds, pressed their demand to be officially shunted to the lowest rung of India’s hereditary caste system so they can get government jobs and university spots reserved for such groups.

“I am farmer and I am poor,” Rajesh Gurjjar, 26, said after police chased him off a main street in this New Delhi suburb, his thin T-shirt shirt soaked with sweat. “I want a government job. It pays more. The office is cool in summer. The fields are too hot.”

To put it another way, the fastest way up India’s economic ladder now is a quick step down its age-old social ladder.

I disagree with affirmative action in theory and, most of the time, in practice.  I think if castes want to be equal they need to be considered equally.  However, what can a society do about a segment of the society who is so discriminated against that they will never be considered at all, let alone considered equally?  Of course, from what I read, this seems to be the case for the lowest caste in India.  This was also the case for African Americans in the past (the majority of the time, I do not believe that this is still the case).  And, as my personal example showed, it still happens in instances of gender roles. 

So, how does society deal with racial, social, gender inequality?  Can we legislate it out of existence?  Is affirmative action still a successful tool (in America, in India, anywhere)?  Did affirmative action accomplish its goal in America (for African-Americans)?