bonjour, mac

so it took a full month for the compusa people to realize that no matter what they did, they couldn't fix my computer without replacing the motherboard (i.e. $800). so, rather than do that, i received yet another beautiful gift from my dear father:

a spectacular brand-new black macbook.

this means i am finally back to frequenting the world of blogs! and thanks to natalie and leslie, i have a fantastic new look for my dear little blog. thanks both of you! you're too kind, really.

in other news, i have 4 weeks left in provo. (!!!) i told my boss at guru's today that my last day of work will be june 14th. i want to enjoy my last weekend/week in provo with no work. i have so many dear friends that i need to spend time with before i say goodbye to this fantastic chapter of my life. i've been so lucky to have the past 4 years. they've been dreamlike in many ways. and to close this all. . .que c'est bizarre !

the third wave

this is a fascinating article from the new york times. i absolutely agree with its sentiment. it argues that female characters in popular media today have been stripped of any ability to be empowered, controlled, self-sufficient individuals and are instead portrayed as overly-neurotic, needy, and desperate. i remember discussing something similar with mom when "superman returns" came out. we both agreed that the contrast of the new lois lane by kate bosworth to the classic lois played by margot kidder was shocking. kate bosworth was not only fragile in physical appearance (much too underweight), but also in her characterization of the once-empowered lois lane. then again, we discussed, what young actress could have done better? young actresses seem trained to appear small and needy - while men continue to fulfill the same roles they always have. this is a frightening commentary on the way women are potentially viewed today. i'm all for exposing human complexities and weaknesses in cinema/TV - but how are women being denigrated by this? what movie character of today could compare to karen blixen? who, though shows human weakness and frailty in many ways, never becomes a simplified waif craving men in overtly sexual ways to fulfill her life. we need someone to bring back real women to hollywood.

(oh and p.s. - my computer is still broken, and will not be ready for pick-up until friday. that means over 3 weeks in the shop. more inconvenient than i can say considering one of my jobs requires my presence on a computer. alas.)

sorry, steph

so steph astutely noticed that i have not posted in awhile. this is mainly due to 2 factors:

1. i worked 50 hours this week between guru's and womanstats.
2. my computer's been in the repair shop for 9 days now.

more posting soon, i promise.