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Today as I was wand’ring around blogdom, I came across a “mommy” blog critiquing some classic childhood books. The critique was not limited to the actual story and illustrations, but the physical appearance of the illustrator of one particular book, written in 1948.
After tsk-tsking about the fact that the illustrator’s photo showed him posed with a cigarette in hand, the blogger then said “He looks creepy! He looks like a serial killer or child molester or something!” (not an exact quote, and I don’t want to link to the blog and give her any more attention.)
My first response is – Wow, how immature. That’s a great example to set for your kid…make fun of someone’s physical appearance, something he has no control over. Frankly, I’d rather let my kid see pictures of the Marlboro man. By the time you are a mother critiquing the value of classic children’s lit, you should be beyond poking fun at someone’s face.
The Face of A Killer
My second response is – has she ever seen a serial killer? One of our most prolific and vile serial killers, responsible for the deaths of at least 30 women (possibly many more) was Ted Bundy.
He was very, very handsome. He was active in local politics, he was a volunteer for a suicide hotline (and in fact, worked side by side for a time with famous true crime author Ann Rule). At first glance, charming Ted was the next candidate for mayor, not the electric chair.
Or how about Gary Ridgway, the infamous Green River Killer? He was found guilty of murdering at least 48 women over a span of 20 years. What did he look like?
He was just an ordinary guy. In fact, he looked like a guy I used to work with at a supermarket years
Green River Running Red
ago. His wife had no clue that the happy, smiling, loving man she lived with for so long was out murdering prostitutes, sometimes even in their own home. Read her story here.
Dennis Rader, the BTK Killer, was a handsome kid and at the time of his arrest, looked more like a high school English professor, rather than a brutal maniac.
What does a child molester look like? Sure, the pictures on Megan’s Law websites are pretty scary – but so are driver’s license photos. In real life, the guy next door, your brother in law, your father, your husband, your pastor, your priest, your scout master is what a child molester looks like.
I left a rather snippy comment on her blog – the jist of it was to not judge a book by its cover.
I love streaming radio! I just realized (duh) that I don’t have to troll YouTube to find songs I loved as a kid and young teen – there’s a million streaming radio stations that play the genre I want!
I guess I’m now considered old, because I only like stuff from “my day” (and before.) I really do not like much modern music at all. I just can’t get into it if it was recorded later than 1995. Even some stuff from the 90s bugs me.
I can listen to jazz, swing, big band, blues, ancient country, classic country, bluegrass, gospel, praise and worship….whenever I want! From The Allman Brothers to ZZ Top, from The Gaither Singers to Petra…it’s all at my fingertips.
LONG LIVE STREAMING MEDIA!
One thing woefully absent from the Columbo DVDs is the original opening theme song I remembered. I also seem to vaguely recall a dark scene with someone shining a flashlight around while the song played but I could be wrong about that.
I found the Columbo theme song online; you can download it if you want.
From http://www.wnep.com:
Posted: Aug 15, 2008 02:32 PM
Last Updated: Aug 15, 2008 02:33 PM
A man who sexually an eight-year-old boy will spend at least nine years in state prison.
Steven Wolpert, 54, of Hawley was sentenced Thursday in Wayne County court.
Police said Wolpert molested the boy between January, 2006 and December, 2007. He was sentenced to nine to 18 years in prison and has been deemed a sexually violent predator.
Please, someone tell me WHY someone who is deemed a SEXUALLY VIOLENT PREDATOR is not locked away FOR LIFE???
I really hate “Greeting Time” in church – you know, when the pastor tells you to go around and shake hands with someone else.
I’m not anti-social. I just don’t like this structured greeting nonsense. You can only say “Hi, how are you?” and say “I’m good” or “I’m okay…” and quickly move on to the next person before being told to sit back down again. It is very artificial, in my opinion.
I would really rather if the church service would just flow naturally, and then the greeting of one another can occur either before church starts – or after it ends. It will leave us with the ability to have more sensible and worthwhile fellowship….not a forced handshake before the offering.
A perfect summer day means a large Coffee Coolata from Dunkin’ Donuts drive-thru, all the windows down, and Proud Mary cranking out of the radio.
Good times.
Living the Last Lecture
This is a continuation of my previous post, Tiggering My Way Through Life, Part 1.
Most people have heard of Randy Pausch by now, and his incredible Last Lecture. When I saw that for the first time, I was of course in tears, but also I understood just what he meant by “Are you a Tigger, or are you an Eeyore?”
All my life, I’ve tried to be a Tigger – but sometimes Eeyore won out. I remember my mom trying to make me “calm down” or “settle down” when I’d be “too excited” about something. I wanted to enjoy everything to the fullest, not smile quietly and act Victorian.
My childhood friend is often embarrassed by my antics when we go out together. Some people would rather stay on the sidelines and be quiet. Me? I’d rather enjoy myself, and to heck with what other people think.
When our office joined a bowling league last spring at the Gravity Alley in Honesdale, we were surprised at how serious most of the other teams were. We were not professionals (I think I finally ended up with an average of 60).
We were there to have fun…I was the Gutter Queen along with my bubbly coworker Sharon. She and I fought for last place; I’m not sure who won, but we had a great time trying. We all cheered enthusiastically if someone hit a pin.
That is, hit a pin…not got a strike or a spare, but hit something. Keeping it out of the gutter was cause for many high-fives. Sharon and I often did a “Butt Bump” in celebration if one of us hit more than one pin. Other teams looked at us like we were nuts, but we had fun.
A bystander pulled me aside and said “I used to bowl in leagues for years. Never did I have as much fun as you guys are having!”
So much of our days is spent in “serious” activity – we have business to attend to, people to meet, things to complete, games to win. It really is nice to stop and smell the evening dew and….moo.
The Last Lecture – a truly productive way to spend an hour. You’ll be glad you did. Randy recently went on from this world, many of us were hoping he’d beat the cancer, but you know, in a way, I think he did.
