IBARW

It’s International Blog Against Racism Week, and there are plenty of worthwhile, thought-provoking posts out there in the blogosphere. Many of them are bookmarked on Delicious.

I have always considered myself an ally, though I would never have used that term. I didn’t know that term. I knew people. Different colors of wonderful people. I liked them. They liked me. How utterly clueless of me. I realized how clueless reading along on various blogs about RaceFail 09, and before, and after. Finding good posts and, hopefully, not making an ass of myself in comments. I had other ways to make an ass of myself, I guess. (click to read more… a.k.a. my ass, let me show you it.)

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7 Emails That Make Me Blink

I like etiquette. My husband was startled to discover that, since I tend to be a “you’re an adult think for yourself as long as you remember there are consequences” sort of person about other kinds of rules. I think it’s because I’m somewhat socially awkward. Proper etiquette helps me understand which foot to start on. The downside is that I’m often startled by certain behaviors.

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Pensive

I had a completely different thing in mind when this came out. The concept’s probably been done to death, but it wouldn’t be what I originally intended. I’m not sure it’s finished, but nothing I did after this point was right, and I don’t have the time to play with it right now.

Journeys

I haven’t had the opportunity to paint just because I felt like it for a while, but I woke up from a dream two days ago, and this image was in my mind. I’m hoping it won’t be so persistent now that I’ve gotten it down. I still want to know where she’s going. (Click on the full image to see it in a larger size.)

The Journey

detail, sea monster

detail, female figure

Advertising

There is a television commercial I hate more than any other.

AT&T Wireless is determined to make sure everyone knows that they let you roll over unused minutes and you’d better be grateful for it. Unfortunately, they present this worthy quality in a story where children, through a series of commercials, ask their mother for more minutes. When asked what they did with the minutes they had, they tell her that they threw them away because they were old. “These are rollover minutes! They’re perfectly good! You know some children don’t have rollover minutes!” etc., etc., evoking the childhood memories of those children in China for whom you should clean your own plate. I get the point. Only spoiled children wouldn’t appreciate having a better deal on their wireless service, would effectively throw the deal away by using a different carrier.

I just can’t get past the kids. They’re not normal. Any normal kids, if they absolutely couldn’t bring themselves to use the icky rollover minutes, would listen to the diatribe once, and thereafter lie. They’d used all those rollover minutes on discussing homework with their friends, a really important test coming up, something that would shut the mom up. And of course, if they were real, they’d lie badly and the mom would, if she were real, take the damned telephones away from the spoiled snots and tell them that if they didn’t want to use the minutes provided they could do without.

I can’t get past equating unused rollover minutes with some sort of necessity. The only reason the mother reasonably couldn’t or wouldn’t take the phones is if they are as important, as necessary, as food, shelter, and clothing. Rather obviously more necessary than discipline or affection. There are children going without food. Without adequate medical care. Without access to computers and books. And, according to AT&T, without brand-spankin’-new cell phone minutes.

I was finally so annoyed with the commercial that I actually tried to find an email address or contact form I could use to tell AT&T what I thought. Unfortunately, their website seems to believe that if you’re not a customer wanting specific assistance with your plan, you’re not worth listening to.

As a result of the AT&T commercial, I have chosen Sprint as the sponsor for the cause I chose on Social Vibe (see the sidebar), an amazing site that matches givers to needs and creates opportunities to give for all of us, especially those of us without the funds to give cell phones to our children.

Besides, I like Sprint’s commercials.