I just read a blog about making your blog a hit on the Internet and I’m thinking and wondering if I will be able to do that. Mostly what I write about is highly personal and most likely not very interesting to most people. So what I think I’ll start doing is this—I’ll start with something of general interest, or something about writing, and then when I’m done with that, I’ll get all my shit out in a more personal/venting piece.
So today I want to talk about an article that I read last night: “So You Say You Want A Devolution?” by Kurt Andersen which appeared in Vanity Fair. Andersen’s point is that over the past twenty years our culture has changed very little, other than the obvious technologic changes. His premise is interesting and when you think about it from one point of view, he has a point. Having been an adult the last twenty years, I would say that it’s true that things have changed very little as far as the look of things, which is so much of what Andersen bases his argument on—that cars, for example, haven’t changed very much, that the basic daily uniform of jeans and sneakers hasn’t changed very much, and that if you compare the fifties with the seventies, there was marked difference, or if you compare the sixties with the eighties, you find the same difference. Andersen uses his observations to ask the question—is western culture declining and he mentions the great civilizations of the past–Rome, Egypt, (even France!!)—to make the point that after their peak, they entered a stagnant middle age.
But if you think about it from another point of view, I think his argument is somewhat unfounded. I don’t think that we can dismiss the technological changes as an aside, as Andersen does. Maybe, precisely because our technologies are changing so fast, we hearken back to the past, and Andersen does speak of this, but there’s so much that he doesn’t consider. For instance, I think that, in the area of design, American designers (and other designers) spent the last century and a half discovering what works best for human beings. There was a lot of experimentation with, say, the chair (another thing Andersen alludes to). Of course there were some improvements as far as comfort goes, and there was some innovation as far as design goes (often silly, uncomfortable design), but really, how far can you take a chair? A chair is dictated by the human body’s design, as is most furniture that is functional. There’s just a limit on how far it can go, unless you imagine a chair that can give you orgasms or dreams a la Brave New World. I think the same is true for clothing. People wear jeans and sneakers because they are comfortable and one thing that has changed in the past sixty years is a loosening up of society, at least in this country. People just aren’t as formal anymore. The hat is now an accessory, or cold weather wear, not a necessary part of one’s day to day uniform. And as things have relaxed, things have opened up. You can certainly wear a hat if you want to. Now you have the choice. Women, to a large degree, can wear whatever they want. Just because low-rise jeans are in style(or were in style just a minute ago) doesn’t mean that you can’t find mom jeans and sport them on your trip to the mall. Just because platforms are in doesn’t mean that you can’t find a plain old pair of pumps and wear them anywhere you please. I wouldn’t say the same is true for men though. Men have only so many options, unless they want to be radical and wear skirts or, as I sometimes see on black men around my town, truly snappy suits of orange or green or powder blue(stellar). But the point here is, that while men generally have fewer “in-style” options for clothing, they have the choice to wear what they please. Of course none of this is true for the workplace. You wear what you are expected to wear, but even within that confine, there are options for women. My point is that society has relaxed over the past fifty years. Our attitudes toward sex and the personal life have changed so radically, at least on the surface, and our fashion reflects that. And I feel that as we push the boundaries of our day-to-day experience with technology, then much of what we do and experience becomes the prevue of the mind, of the interior. I think that the virtual, technological reality and all the innovations to be found there are what occupy us now, and will continue to occupy us. Maybe in fifty years we won’t care as much about how things look in the real world, only in the virtual world, but maybe Andersen would consider that the decline of western civilization. I consider that the future.
~r.
And now for musing about health and weight and smoothies:
So I’m up very early this morning. I’ve tried an herbal called “deep sleep” a few times and it seemed to work last night. I went to bed at about 10:45 and woke up at 5:00, feeling pretty fully rested. But now that I’ve eaten I’m beginning to feel drowsy again. This often happens when I’m up really early these days.
So, to continue the theme of not beating myself up and bemoaning my weight gain, I am adding new things to my diet. I am drinking a serving of Naked Green Machine every day and I bought some walnuts and plan on working in a serving every day. I also bought a green probiotic drink called KVASS which is pretty okay taste-wise, but I think I’m just going to start making green smoothies. On Dr. Oz yesterday there was a recipe for one that sounded really good. It’s made with green tea, so would be free on Weight Watchers. The point here is that I don’t always eat vegetables on a regular basis and I don’t see that really changing. I’m just not willing to cook every day. And then there’s the fact that it would still be really hard to get all the vegetables I SHOULD have every day, so a green smoothie, getting those greens in there, is a good place to start. And it’s easier for me to eat fruit every day than vegetables. I am wondering if my Ninja will grind up carrots enough to put them in a smoothie. I wish I liked raw tomatoes. Anyhow, I’m working on it. And I can still cook a pot of something weekly, something with lots of veggies in it. I love making stews.
The thing to do about the hash browns is to just not buy them, which breaks my heart, but seriously, I have begun to look so forward to them. Just now, I had breakfast and then a repeat of breakfast, which I’m ashamed to admit here, but that’s the power of these things. So, when I go to the store today, NO HASHBROWNS!! And another thing. Since the Xmas party, I’ve had wine in the house and I’ve been slowly drinking it up. That has to stop. I just don’t need the alcohol. It’s much better to have Miller Lite than to have a couple glasses (or two or three) of wine. So once it’s gone, and it almost is, I’m back to my light beer, and not too much of that.
As for the exercise, I hope to make it more regular. Maybe that way I won’t get so sore. Somehow, when Lanie and I worked out in the pool on Thursday, I managed to do something that bruised my tailbone. At least it FEELS bruised. I could barely sit on the bike yesterday for 30 minutes. It’s weird. Today I hope to get to the gym and just walk on the track, or do the elliptical. Or the treadmill. Something. I was so sore last night. It was awful. I soaked in a bath, but even with an ibuprofen it was really rough. So I just have to make it more regular. The plan is for Lanie and me to get to the gym three times a week, twice with machines and weights, once with the pool. If I can do that, I’ll feel like I’m getting my money’s worth. And I need to start back with a massage every week.
The hardest part of all these resolutions is staying out of bed. I just love to sleep so much, but there’s all this reading I’m wanting to do, and all this writing. But chances are good that I will get everything done, I generally do if I put my mind to it. I can get everything done AND get lots of sleep. And mentioning sleep, I think I’ll head back to bed right now.
~r.
