Today the Washington Post had this headline and tag: "William and Kate to wed: William and his fiancee, Kate, are to be married." (punctuation mine)
Wow, what a great headline! I wonder if I could come up with headlines as great as that...
Four Teams prepare to play in the Final Four this weekend.
Rainy Forecast: Raleigh to experience rain this week.
Elizabeth Taylor's Death: Elizabeth Taylor recently passed away.
Radiation Leaks in Japan: Damaged Reactors leaking plutonium.
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Fringe Bloodlines
So Friday night's Fringe was brilliant. The episode focused on the alternate universe and we got to see fan favorite cab driver Henry. The writers managed to make Fauxlivia sympathetic, as she suffered through a pretty bizarre pregnancy. Oh, and by the way, this post is full of spoilers, so no reading if you haven't watched.
The episode begins with Fauxlivia getting tested for VPE, a viral form of ecclampsia. Sadly, ecclampsia is a real disease that does threaten the life of a pregnant woman. The only cure is delivery of the baby. Virally propagated ecclampsia is, as far as I can tell, a myth. (whew!)
In the car on the way home, along with lying about the father, Fauxlivia and her mother discuss her "options," although it's pretty clear Fauxlivia sees no options. I assume she is planning on an abortion if she carries the virus, an assumption bolstered by the doctor's later statement on scheduling the "procedure" later in the episode. This should present a significant dilemma for Fauxlivia. She is carrying Walternate's grandchild, probably on his orders, yet if she doesn't abort, she and the baby will die.
NOTE: at first, I wondered at Fauxlivia's stupidity: first she has unprotected sex with Peter, and then we find out she's basically someone who should never get pregnant?? But Walternate's actions suggest that she got pregnant on his orders. I would ask why she didn't object then, but if you recall the circumstances of the switch, I doubt she had time to think it through.
The glyphs spell out the word "FATED", and I think this episode took a roundabout way to look at the question of choice and pregnancy. Does Fauxlivia, in fact, have the freedom to choose? Turns out, NO. Walternate and Brandon take that choice away from her by kidnapping her and accelerating her pregnancy. The priority here is the child's life, not Fauxlivia's. Walternate and Brandon most likely know that she has VPE. The acceleration is for the child's sake, not hers (the doctor's statement demonstrates that). Why didn't they simply inform Fauxlivia that they had a possible way for her to carry the child without suffering VPE? Because they couldn't take the risk that she would choose to abort. Her choice was deliberately taken away because her life is less important than the life of the child. An interesting course for Walternate to choose, given his refusal to test Cortexiphan on kids. His morality is very selective: children are innocents, while adults are disposable. Fringe doesn't directly deal with the question of abortion, but it does get to the heart of the matter: a mother's choice.
The accelerated pregnancy is by far the event that makes me sympathetic towards Fauxlivia. I'm currently pregnant, and I can't imagine how awful it would be if the last 22 weeks had been compressed into 2 hours. The ligament pain and stretching skin pain, man oh man that hurts to think about! Realistically speaking, she should've died, the way the prostitute did in Season 1 Same Old Story. The uterus probably would've ruptured and caused serious internal damage. I'm willing to buy the idea, however, that with Other Side technology they were able to compensate for the accelerated growth.
The one issue I can't suspend belief on is the rapid growth of her son at all. You can't make matter from nothing - they would've had to give her a massive amount of nutrients somehow in order for the fetus to have raw material to form. But that's a minor glitch. After all, this is Fringe.
One burning question: will the acceleration of the pregnancy result in accelerated growth of Peter Junior? If the acceleration was purely for tactical advantage, then his childhood growth should be accelerated too. We can assume that once again, the Other Side's technology will compensate for the failures seen in Same Old Story.
LOVE Lincoln and his confession of love for Fauxlivia. I hope she turns to him for emotional support. Love watching Lincoln and Charlie start to question Walternate. And although most people seem to hate Alt-Brandon, I love him! It's like our Brandon is milk chocolate, and Alt-Brandon is dark chocolate. Unlike Walternate, Alt-Brandon's morality is unambiguous and clear: EVERY person, no matter the age, is disposable. Reprehensible, yes, but also refreshing.
And finally, hoorah for Henry! I really like how his character just pops up from time to time.
The episode begins with Fauxlivia getting tested for VPE, a viral form of ecclampsia. Sadly, ecclampsia is a real disease that does threaten the life of a pregnant woman. The only cure is delivery of the baby. Virally propagated ecclampsia is, as far as I can tell, a myth. (whew!)
In the car on the way home, along with lying about the father, Fauxlivia and her mother discuss her "options," although it's pretty clear Fauxlivia sees no options. I assume she is planning on an abortion if she carries the virus, an assumption bolstered by the doctor's later statement on scheduling the "procedure" later in the episode. This should present a significant dilemma for Fauxlivia. She is carrying Walternate's grandchild, probably on his orders, yet if she doesn't abort, she and the baby will die.
NOTE: at first, I wondered at Fauxlivia's stupidity: first she has unprotected sex with Peter, and then we find out she's basically someone who should never get pregnant?? But Walternate's actions suggest that she got pregnant on his orders. I would ask why she didn't object then, but if you recall the circumstances of the switch, I doubt she had time to think it through.
The glyphs spell out the word "FATED", and I think this episode took a roundabout way to look at the question of choice and pregnancy. Does Fauxlivia, in fact, have the freedom to choose? Turns out, NO. Walternate and Brandon take that choice away from her by kidnapping her and accelerating her pregnancy. The priority here is the child's life, not Fauxlivia's. Walternate and Brandon most likely know that she has VPE. The acceleration is for the child's sake, not hers (the doctor's statement demonstrates that). Why didn't they simply inform Fauxlivia that they had a possible way for her to carry the child without suffering VPE? Because they couldn't take the risk that she would choose to abort. Her choice was deliberately taken away because her life is less important than the life of the child. An interesting course for Walternate to choose, given his refusal to test Cortexiphan on kids. His morality is very selective: children are innocents, while adults are disposable. Fringe doesn't directly deal with the question of abortion, but it does get to the heart of the matter: a mother's choice.
The accelerated pregnancy is by far the event that makes me sympathetic towards Fauxlivia. I'm currently pregnant, and I can't imagine how awful it would be if the last 22 weeks had been compressed into 2 hours. The ligament pain and stretching skin pain, man oh man that hurts to think about! Realistically speaking, she should've died, the way the prostitute did in Season 1 Same Old Story. The uterus probably would've ruptured and caused serious internal damage. I'm willing to buy the idea, however, that with Other Side technology they were able to compensate for the accelerated growth.
The one issue I can't suspend belief on is the rapid growth of her son at all. You can't make matter from nothing - they would've had to give her a massive amount of nutrients somehow in order for the fetus to have raw material to form. But that's a minor glitch. After all, this is Fringe.
One burning question: will the acceleration of the pregnancy result in accelerated growth of Peter Junior? If the acceleration was purely for tactical advantage, then his childhood growth should be accelerated too. We can assume that once again, the Other Side's technology will compensate for the failures seen in Same Old Story.
LOVE Lincoln and his confession of love for Fauxlivia. I hope she turns to him for emotional support. Love watching Lincoln and Charlie start to question Walternate. And although most people seem to hate Alt-Brandon, I love him! It's like our Brandon is milk chocolate, and Alt-Brandon is dark chocolate. Unlike Walternate, Alt-Brandon's morality is unambiguous and clear: EVERY person, no matter the age, is disposable. Reprehensible, yes, but also refreshing.
And finally, hoorah for Henry! I really like how his character just pops up from time to time.
Thursday, March 24, 2011
Key West Fire Drill
Dale and I sat on our balcony enjoying the fresh night air on St. Patrick's Day. Our balcony overlooked the dead end road our hotel sat on. The road was awesome. There were no signs, no barriers. It literally just ended at a low concrete wall that was about 2 feet from the ocean. We saw lots of cars wander down the road, stop, then awkwardly turn around.
One car was driven by a group of excited revelers, obviously enjoying the holiday. They came down, turned around, and left. Then they returned. It was then that Dale and I witnessed what we have decided to call the Key West Fire Drill.
(For those who aren't familiar with the "chinese fire drill", that's when you stop at a traffic light, and everyone gets out of the car, runs around it, then returns to a different seat in the vehicle.)
There was a driver and 2 passengers, all older men. They got out of the car and ran around to the passenger side. The driver carried a bag, out of which he drew 3 t-shirts. He distributed the shirts, which they held up to their chests. There was a lot of giggling. Next, the driver embraced and kissed one of the passengers. The shirts were returned to the bag, and then everyone returned to their exact same seats. With a loud shriek, they took off into the night. Behold, the Key West Fire Drill.
One car was driven by a group of excited revelers, obviously enjoying the holiday. They came down, turned around, and left. Then they returned. It was then that Dale and I witnessed what we have decided to call the Key West Fire Drill.
(For those who aren't familiar with the "chinese fire drill", that's when you stop at a traffic light, and everyone gets out of the car, runs around it, then returns to a different seat in the vehicle.)
There was a driver and 2 passengers, all older men. They got out of the car and ran around to the passenger side. The driver carried a bag, out of which he drew 3 t-shirts. He distributed the shirts, which they held up to their chests. There was a lot of giggling. Next, the driver embraced and kissed one of the passengers. The shirts were returned to the bag, and then everyone returned to their exact same seats. With a loud shriek, they took off into the night. Behold, the Key West Fire Drill.
Friday, March 11, 2011
Halfway There, 7 quick takes
1. Ai-yi-yi! The "nursery" is a messy mass of clutter!
2. Aside from my constant respiratory problems, this has been a really easy pregnancy. Hope the next 20 weeks are just as good.
3. I love being part of a cluster of pregnancies. Five of my friends, woohoo!
4. Being 36 has advantages. While I'm still quite ignorant, I have a fair amount of life knowledge that makes things easier: my looks are ever changing, so body changes aren't traumatic. Don't sweat the little stuff, and really, it's all little (see comment 1). If you don't want people butting in, don't invite them (the reason why Dale and I are keeping the name a secret). Other people's horror stories are just interesting conversation, not predictions.
5. Things that never interested me before are suddenly fascinating.
6. Being pregnant is more important than any of my other life goals.
7. While there's lots of fear and concern, it is outweighed by pregnancy joy and excitement. Probably hormones. Thank God!
2. Aside from my constant respiratory problems, this has been a really easy pregnancy. Hope the next 20 weeks are just as good.
3. I love being part of a cluster of pregnancies. Five of my friends, woohoo!
4. Being 36 has advantages. While I'm still quite ignorant, I have a fair amount of life knowledge that makes things easier: my looks are ever changing, so body changes aren't traumatic. Don't sweat the little stuff, and really, it's all little (see comment 1). If you don't want people butting in, don't invite them (the reason why Dale and I are keeping the name a secret). Other people's horror stories are just interesting conversation, not predictions.
5. Things that never interested me before are suddenly fascinating.
6. Being pregnant is more important than any of my other life goals.
7. While there's lots of fear and concern, it is outweighed by pregnancy joy and excitement. Probably hormones. Thank God!
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Pregnancy Clothes
I love my pregnancy clothes. Everything is so comfortable! In addition, everything is basically like pajamas. It's all pull on, pull over, no tucking.
Let's take maternity jeans. They look like regular jeans - even have little fake flies - but they are pull-on pants with nice wide elastic waists. Man, are they comfortable! The most comfortable jeans I've ever worn.
Let's take maternity jeans. They look like regular jeans - even have little fake flies - but they are pull-on pants with nice wide elastic waists. Man, are they comfortable! The most comfortable jeans I've ever worn.
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Gitmo
So now President Obama is authorizing indefinite holding time for prisoners at Guantanamo Bay prison. I'm not OK with this. Why is our government so good at fighting wars against certain kinds of criminals and not others? Why are terrorists and drug dealers more of a target than rapists and child molesters?
Sorry, just ranting.
Sorry, just ranting.
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
Pregnancy Drama
It's like a roller coaster here!
First of all, I got my insurance issues resolved. Because Dale is a GSK employee, we were able to switch providers to United, which covers Rex hospital deliveries! Hurrah! We are so blessed to work for a company that cares about its employees and takes care of them. Yay GlaxoSmithKline!
Just when I thought my emotions were getting in check, my asthma decided to flare up. Last week I caught some kind of bug, which led to bronchitis, which led to a serious asthma flare. So Dale and I spent Sunday morning in the hospital ER getting breathing treatments and drugs. Now I'm on several different medications, including steroids, which make me feel emotionally quite good. That's misleading, though, because I get going and then I drive myself too hard. So today I'm working from home.
We found out we're having a little girl! So very exciting! Something about that knowledge, and the 45 minutes we got to watch her during our Ultrasound, makes everything about this process so much more rewarding.
So that's the update from Pregnancy Roller Coaster Central.
First of all, I got my insurance issues resolved. Because Dale is a GSK employee, we were able to switch providers to United, which covers Rex hospital deliveries! Hurrah! We are so blessed to work for a company that cares about its employees and takes care of them. Yay GlaxoSmithKline!
Just when I thought my emotions were getting in check, my asthma decided to flare up. Last week I caught some kind of bug, which led to bronchitis, which led to a serious asthma flare. So Dale and I spent Sunday morning in the hospital ER getting breathing treatments and drugs. Now I'm on several different medications, including steroids, which make me feel emotionally quite good. That's misleading, though, because I get going and then I drive myself too hard. So today I'm working from home.
We found out we're having a little girl! So very exciting! Something about that knowledge, and the 45 minutes we got to watch her during our Ultrasound, makes everything about this process so much more rewarding.
So that's the update from Pregnancy Roller Coaster Central.
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