"In a sign that the U.S. economic malise is spreading to Britian, the pound is fast becoming one of the world's least-loved currencies. Investors hae taken such a dislike to the pound in recent weeks that it's starting to live up to it's nickname among currency traders: the European dollar."
- Wall Street Journal, Money and Investing "Pound is Brought Back to Earth" 1-11-08
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Monday, January 28, 2008
Joke of the Day
One day, a Mechanical Engineer, Electrical Engineer, Chemical Engineer and Computer Engineer were driving down the street in the same car. All of a sudden, the car broke down.
The Mechanical Engineer said, "I think a rod broke."
The Chemical Engineer said, "The way it sputtered at the end, I don't think it's getting gas."
The Electrical Engineer said, "I think there was a spark and something is wrong with the electrical system."
All three turned to the computer engineer and said, "What do you think?"
The Computer Engineer said, "I think we should all get out and get back in."
The Mechanical Engineer said, "I think a rod broke."
The Chemical Engineer said, "The way it sputtered at the end, I don't think it's getting gas."
The Electrical Engineer said, "I think there was a spark and something is wrong with the electrical system."
All three turned to the computer engineer and said, "What do you think?"
The Computer Engineer said, "I think we should all get out and get back in."
It's Not Funny; really, it's not!
Queens: Prison-Release Party Leads to Killing
The police said they found a man dead of a gunshot wound to the forehead shortly before 5 a.m. on Sunday in Hunters Point. The man was identified as Joseph Prince, 30, of 35th Avenue in Ravenswood, the police said. At a news conference on Sunday, Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly said people had been throwing bottles at each other before the shooting. “The party was a celebration of someone getting out of prison,” he said.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/28/nyregion/28mbrfs-PARTY.html?ref=nyregion
The police said they found a man dead of a gunshot wound to the forehead shortly before 5 a.m. on Sunday in Hunters Point. The man was identified as Joseph Prince, 30, of 35th Avenue in Ravenswood, the police said. At a news conference on Sunday, Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly said people had been throwing bottles at each other before the shooting. “The party was a celebration of someone getting out of prison,” he said.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/28/nyregion/28mbrfs-PARTY.html?ref=nyregion
Friday, January 25, 2008
I Am Sooooo Cool!!!
Elizabeth,
I'm going to order these books. What a wonderul post! I've forwarded it to our administrator in hopes that they can get it up there.
Thanks so much for writing. Keep it coming! I'd love to hear from you when I'm writing my runway blog from the shows in NY, Milan and Paris next month.
Christina Binkley
Columnist-OnStyle
The Wall Street Journal
I bet you're wondering, what post, Betsy? Well!
In Christina Binkley’s January 24th article “Women in Power; Finding Balance in the Wardrobe” and the ensuing online forums, the real issue of women's professional dress is that of sexuality, specifically that of being seen as "sexy" in the office. But what is sexy? What is conservative? Are pant suits more conservative than skirt suits because they hide the legs? Are pant suits subversive (Marlene Dietrich and Bloomerism, anyone? ) or conformist? Do pants imply a sense of casualness? Are skirts considered more “dressed up” because they imply femininity and sexiness? Is a woman in pants seen as threatening? (Remember when bloomers caused uproar? Me neither, but I heard it was BIG.)
Source: "Women's emancipation." Originally published in Punch. Harper's New Monthly Magazine, vol. 3, Aug. 1851, 424.
Source: www.lasalutedellegambe.it/pantaloni.htm
Fashion sense can help one to be noticed, to stand out from the crowd of nearly identical drones. Before you jump to conclusions, let me say that this does not have to be in a negative way. Being a working woman, I have examined the argument of attempting to fit into the male-dominated workplace environment versus/while defining one's distinctly feminine presence. Guides resonate the most with me are What Southern Women Know (That Every Woman Should) by Ronda Rich and The Princessa: Machiavelli for Women by Harriet Rubin. While Rich tells of the power of femininity, Rubin addresses the issue of power and details: "A princessa's weapons are basic to her being...your weapons are the qualities, traits, accoutrements a woman relegates to the art of seduction, and fails to employ in the wars of success. On the physical side, your weapons are your clothes, voice, hair, jewelry, posture, makeup and tears." (Rubin 136, 129)
Fashion can help to give you commanding power of a room. What one wears is only half of this power equation, the other half is attitude. Just as the junior executive wearing gabardine wool suit with French cuffs makes one pause to wonder if he is indeed junior, the right dress, skirtsuit or pantsuit can convey power:
"Few enemies and few lies can stand in the presence of a woman who expresses her unedited femininity...colors are like pheromones, the chemical agents known to induce feelings of love. White is powerful because it disarms an opponent…. Wear white to a meeting and you break an opponent free from his tough stand or insistence on his own agenda. Negativity and refusal cannot stand in its presence. White signals that you are open to every possibility. It implies that problems or obstacles cannot exist in your presence...Vivid colors trigger much the same reaction: cobalt blue, not turquoise; red, not cranberry; yellow, not mustard. The standard colors women wear- gray, beiges, pastels- are camouflage colors; they telegraph fear and uncertainty on the wearer's part, and therefore stimulate aggression on the opponent's. When a figure of power thinks you are weak, he despises you and does what he can to eliminate you." (Rubin, 141-142)
Although I do not necessarily agree with Rubin's views on pastels, it is perhaps, a geographical and cultural difference. Anyone from the South can tell you that professional, powerful women have been known to wear pastels!
Source: www.huffingtonpost.com/.../Katie-News.jpg
Source: hansenreport.blogspot.com/2007_05_06_archive.html
Source: www.viewimages.com/Search.aspx?mid=2151215...
Source: www.ma19.net/blogs/hsiao/20071026/2627
In What Southern Women Know, Rich argues that expressing one’s femininity is a sure-fire way to get ahead in the workplace:
"Southern women have the ability to survive in a man's world while wrapped in a pouf of flowery femininity and gracious, thoughtful manners. Southern women often overemphasize femininity and use it as one of their most successful tools professionally and socially. While other women often think that the best way to compete in a man's world is to hide any traces of femininity or to imitate a man as closely as possible, Southern women are appalled by such thoughts! We treasure our womanliness and celebrate it. In fact, we shamelessly flaunt it...Thirty or forty years ago when women were entering the business world en masse, it was necessary to suppress a large amount of femininity to be taken seriously. Fortunately, the trails have now been blazed to the point that women travel the same superhighways as their male colleagues. Gender equality does not mean that gender has to be interchangeable in all ways, except physical. Southern women know we can have professionalism and personal equality without sacrificing our femininity, good manners, tender compassions, principals or humor. Therein lies the key to our success."
Rich goes on to explain why being feminine gives women an edge in the workplace:
"When a woman rejects her feminine side, she disposes of her most effective shield for battle in the business world...Men have an innate instinct to treat women with courtesy and respect, even at times to protect them. Because of this instinct, professional men would never think of harming, undercutting, or back-stabbing a traditionally female woman. It goes against their primal instincts.
However, if a woman behaves in a masculine manner and fights by a man's rules, she stupidly tosses this wonderful shield of protection aside. Men react to these women by throwing traditional custom and behavior to the wind. They fight even more aggressively against these hard-edged women than they do against other men. In fact, they often will not hesitate to professionally annihilate a manlike woman.
They'll attack because men hate to see a poor imitation of themselves. They also don't like being around women who make them feel uncomfortable by behaving in a nontraditional manner. Neither do other women. That's why tough, bitchy women never rise to the greatest heights of corporate success. They disturb the synergy in a company, and that, in turn, makes them ineffective and unpromotable. They also alienate people as they try to climb the ladder of success, which is why they get caught on a rung somewhere in the middle.
Take a look around you and you'll see that supersuccessful professional women are those who were smart enough to combine the best of both worlds. They are gracious, smart women who put employees and colleagues at ease as charming hostesses do, yet they have the ability to motivate and to generate success. And, most important, they do not sacrifice their all-too-important feminine qualities. They accentuate their natural gifts rather than eliminate them." (13, 14)
Part of being feminine is our ability to wear skirts and dresses. It is our natural, feminine right. To say that women should dress like men is in fact, sexist. In many of the blog posts, the belief that a woman should dress professionally means a mode of fashion that portrays the female figure as sexless, a figure that blends seamlessly into a male-dominated environment. Many advocates of pantsuits in the office emphasized downplaying femininity, calling it “professional.” Kimberlyh wrote: “As a woman working in a financial profession dominated by men, I've found that wearing skirts is a distraction. Too short, and you look sexy. Too long, and you look unfashionable and dowdy. It's a lose - lose proposition. A well-cut pant suit that flatters your body type always looks professional.” And then there is Sarah: “The world is still completely sexist. But I'm sticking to my principles and wearing my pantsuits. Skirt suits are fine, but pants are more comfortable and no one is looking at your legs. I'm a person, not just a woman, and I live my life forcing all people to see me as such. I'm a lawyer, not a toy and not a good ole boy.” Hasn’t this woman heard of “Legally Blonde?” Geez. Wearing a skirt is something that makes you special. If you view yourself as special, people will treat you as such. And finally, Joan Grant: “A woman who wears a well-tailored, elegant pants suit vs. a dress or even skirt suit, for example, achieves a definite professional parity with men.”
There is no doubt Ronda Rich would vehemently disagree.
"In the business and social worlds, femininity is a plus, not a minus. Boldly use your femininity professionally and personally. We socially flirt at the office, wear feminine, soft clothing, and shamelessly use our feminine wiles to get what we want professionally- plum assignments, transfers, raises, and promotions. We never cross the line into inappropriateness, but we have been known to stretch it to the limits." (20)
For me, a working woman in the 21st Century, being feminine means having a rich fashion legacy to draw upon to create my own professional style. My model of sexy professionalism is Rosalind Russell in "His Girl Friday." Russell was commanding, sexy, and very, very good at her job. Is it a fantasy to want to portray a powerful, sexy professionalism through my wardrobe? Judging from historical examples such as Russell, I think not.
Source: whitneysartoffilmblog1.blogspot.com/2007/11/h...
Source: www.thisislondon.co.uk/.../article.do
Go me.
I'm going to order these books. What a wonderul post! I've forwarded it to our administrator in hopes that they can get it up there.
Thanks so much for writing. Keep it coming! I'd love to hear from you when I'm writing my runway blog from the shows in NY, Milan and Paris next month.
Christina Binkley
Columnist-OnStyle
The Wall Street Journal
I bet you're wondering, what post, Betsy? Well!
In Christina Binkley’s January 24th article “Women in Power; Finding Balance in the Wardrobe” and the ensuing online forums, the real issue of women's professional dress is that of sexuality, specifically that of being seen as "sexy" in the office. But what is sexy? What is conservative? Are pant suits more conservative than skirt suits because they hide the legs? Are pant suits subversive (Marlene Dietrich and Bloomerism, anyone? ) or conformist? Do pants imply a sense of casualness? Are skirts considered more “dressed up” because they imply femininity and sexiness? Is a woman in pants seen as threatening? (Remember when bloomers caused uproar? Me neither, but I heard it was BIG.)
Source: "Women's emancipation." Originally published in Punch. Harper's New Monthly Magazine, vol. 3, Aug. 1851, 424.
Source: www.lasalutedellegambe.it/pantaloni.htm
Fashion sense can help one to be noticed, to stand out from the crowd of nearly identical drones. Before you jump to conclusions, let me say that this does not have to be in a negative way. Being a working woman, I have examined the argument of attempting to fit into the male-dominated workplace environment versus/while defining one's distinctly feminine presence. Guides resonate the most with me are What Southern Women Know (That Every Woman Should) by Ronda Rich and The Princessa: Machiavelli for Women by Harriet Rubin. While Rich tells of the power of femininity, Rubin addresses the issue of power and details: "A princessa's weapons are basic to her being...your weapons are the qualities, traits, accoutrements a woman relegates to the art of seduction, and fails to employ in the wars of success. On the physical side, your weapons are your clothes, voice, hair, jewelry, posture, makeup and tears." (Rubin 136, 129)
Fashion can help to give you commanding power of a room. What one wears is only half of this power equation, the other half is attitude. Just as the junior executive wearing gabardine wool suit with French cuffs makes one pause to wonder if he is indeed junior, the right dress, skirtsuit or pantsuit can convey power:
"Few enemies and few lies can stand in the presence of a woman who expresses her unedited femininity...colors are like pheromones, the chemical agents known to induce feelings of love. White is powerful because it disarms an opponent…. Wear white to a meeting and you break an opponent free from his tough stand or insistence on his own agenda. Negativity and refusal cannot stand in its presence. White signals that you are open to every possibility. It implies that problems or obstacles cannot exist in your presence...Vivid colors trigger much the same reaction: cobalt blue, not turquoise; red, not cranberry; yellow, not mustard. The standard colors women wear- gray, beiges, pastels- are camouflage colors; they telegraph fear and uncertainty on the wearer's part, and therefore stimulate aggression on the opponent's. When a figure of power thinks you are weak, he despises you and does what he can to eliminate you." (Rubin, 141-142)
Although I do not necessarily agree with Rubin's views on pastels, it is perhaps, a geographical and cultural difference. Anyone from the South can tell you that professional, powerful women have been known to wear pastels!
Source: www.huffingtonpost.com/.../Katie-News.jpg
Source: hansenreport.blogspot.com/2007_05_06_archive.html
Source: www.viewimages.com/Search.aspx?mid=2151215...
Source: www.ma19.net/blogs/hsiao/20071026/2627
In What Southern Women Know, Rich argues that expressing one’s femininity is a sure-fire way to get ahead in the workplace:
"Southern women have the ability to survive in a man's world while wrapped in a pouf of flowery femininity and gracious, thoughtful manners. Southern women often overemphasize femininity and use it as one of their most successful tools professionally and socially. While other women often think that the best way to compete in a man's world is to hide any traces of femininity or to imitate a man as closely as possible, Southern women are appalled by such thoughts! We treasure our womanliness and celebrate it. In fact, we shamelessly flaunt it...Thirty or forty years ago when women were entering the business world en masse, it was necessary to suppress a large amount of femininity to be taken seriously. Fortunately, the trails have now been blazed to the point that women travel the same superhighways as their male colleagues. Gender equality does not mean that gender has to be interchangeable in all ways, except physical. Southern women know we can have professionalism and personal equality without sacrificing our femininity, good manners, tender compassions, principals or humor. Therein lies the key to our success."
Rich goes on to explain why being feminine gives women an edge in the workplace:
"When a woman rejects her feminine side, she disposes of her most effective shield for battle in the business world...Men have an innate instinct to treat women with courtesy and respect, even at times to protect them. Because of this instinct, professional men would never think of harming, undercutting, or back-stabbing a traditionally female woman. It goes against their primal instincts.
However, if a woman behaves in a masculine manner and fights by a man's rules, she stupidly tosses this wonderful shield of protection aside. Men react to these women by throwing traditional custom and behavior to the wind. They fight even more aggressively against these hard-edged women than they do against other men. In fact, they often will not hesitate to professionally annihilate a manlike woman.
They'll attack because men hate to see a poor imitation of themselves. They also don't like being around women who make them feel uncomfortable by behaving in a nontraditional manner. Neither do other women. That's why tough, bitchy women never rise to the greatest heights of corporate success. They disturb the synergy in a company, and that, in turn, makes them ineffective and unpromotable. They also alienate people as they try to climb the ladder of success, which is why they get caught on a rung somewhere in the middle.
Take a look around you and you'll see that supersuccessful professional women are those who were smart enough to combine the best of both worlds. They are gracious, smart women who put employees and colleagues at ease as charming hostesses do, yet they have the ability to motivate and to generate success. And, most important, they do not sacrifice their all-too-important feminine qualities. They accentuate their natural gifts rather than eliminate them." (13, 14)
Part of being feminine is our ability to wear skirts and dresses. It is our natural, feminine right. To say that women should dress like men is in fact, sexist. In many of the blog posts, the belief that a woman should dress professionally means a mode of fashion that portrays the female figure as sexless, a figure that blends seamlessly into a male-dominated environment. Many advocates of pantsuits in the office emphasized downplaying femininity, calling it “professional.” Kimberlyh wrote: “As a woman working in a financial profession dominated by men, I've found that wearing skirts is a distraction. Too short, and you look sexy. Too long, and you look unfashionable and dowdy. It's a lose - lose proposition. A well-cut pant suit that flatters your body type always looks professional.” And then there is Sarah: “The world is still completely sexist. But I'm sticking to my principles and wearing my pantsuits. Skirt suits are fine, but pants are more comfortable and no one is looking at your legs. I'm a person, not just a woman, and I live my life forcing all people to see me as such. I'm a lawyer, not a toy and not a good ole boy.” Hasn’t this woman heard of “Legally Blonde?” Geez. Wearing a skirt is something that makes you special. If you view yourself as special, people will treat you as such. And finally, Joan Grant: “A woman who wears a well-tailored, elegant pants suit vs. a dress or even skirt suit, for example, achieves a definite professional parity with men.”
There is no doubt Ronda Rich would vehemently disagree.
"In the business and social worlds, femininity is a plus, not a minus. Boldly use your femininity professionally and personally. We socially flirt at the office, wear feminine, soft clothing, and shamelessly use our feminine wiles to get what we want professionally- plum assignments, transfers, raises, and promotions. We never cross the line into inappropriateness, but we have been known to stretch it to the limits." (20)
For me, a working woman in the 21st Century, being feminine means having a rich fashion legacy to draw upon to create my own professional style. My model of sexy professionalism is Rosalind Russell in "His Girl Friday." Russell was commanding, sexy, and very, very good at her job. Is it a fantasy to want to portray a powerful, sexy professionalism through my wardrobe? Judging from historical examples such as Russell, I think not.
Source: whitneysartoffilmblog1.blogspot.com/2007/11/h...
Source: www.thisislondon.co.uk/.../article.do
Go me.
Thursday, January 3, 2008
The English Language
The English language can be tricky. Words that don't sound the way that they look, words with two meanings that look the same, and words that sound the same but mean COMPLETELY different things. Case in point:
My mother recommended to my grandmother that she take echinacea before she travels. After a week-long visit at their house in Texas, my grandmother is getting ready to leave and informs my mother,
"I've taken all of my euthanasia!"
My mother recommended to my grandmother that she take echinacea before she travels. After a week-long visit at their house in Texas, my grandmother is getting ready to leave and informs my mother,
"I've taken all of my euthanasia!"
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