40 years of sweeping the clouds away!

Sesame Street turns 40

Los Angeles (dpa) — It has won over 100 Emmys, been shown in more than 125 countries and on Tuesday it will celebrate a rare achievement in an age of ever-shifting tastes: Sesame Street will be 40 years old Tuesday.

''Sesame Street is one of the five most influential television shows of all time,'' says popular culture professor Bob Thompson of Syracuse University. ''It had an enormous social influence as well as artistic. In fact there's nothing like it on the air to this day.''

The format of the show may have changed somewhat since that first historic broadcast on November 10, 1969, which itself was the result of extensive research that aimed to find the way of blending entertainment with education.

The goal was to give children and their parents an alternative to the fun but mindless fare of children's television back then, shows that were often filled with violent episodes and were primarily designed not to teach kids, but to sell them things.

Funded by grants from the Carnegie Institute and the federal government, the Children's Television Workshop used the latest knowledge of child development, psychology and preschool education to stimulate young viewers' minds, improve their letter recognition, math and problem-solving skills, and just as importantly teach them essential life skills needed to thrive in modern America.

Full article here


More about the show and its cast here


One of the most memorable segments from Sesame Street, featuring Grover and John John:

You've come a long way, baby?

Social theorist and media critic Jean Kilbourne has said that when it comes to portrayals of women in advertising, sex sells.

Whether or not this is true is -- at the moment -- beside the point as far as I'm concerned. What I've been thinking about is the degree to which even 'tween girls nowadays are heavily influenced by the sexualized content of media (advertising included). Then a while ago I read that Kilbourne said something along those lines:

"We’ve been conditioned from birth to think our sex appeal and physical attractiveness is the most important thing about us."

Judging from the material and the underlying messages the ad industry has been coming out with the past decade or so, that statement above seems to be fairly accurate (I just don't know about the "from birth" part). Whether or not that kind of conditioning reached you by way of excessive exposure to media during your childhood till the teen years, what ultimately matters is your acceptance or rejection of such kind of conditioning.


I wonder -- how would the proponents of the original Women's Liberation Movement regard all this if they were still around to witness the transformation? And, is the current manner of portraying women in media what the first feminists had in mind when they relentlessly fought for "women's rights"?



Do women who go about with an attitude of "I have the right to do anything I want" feel truly free?


In relinquishing a lady's natural power to turn even fools into gentlemen, does a woman who puts her "anatomical sexuality" on display really feel empowered? And confident?

Do women actually fall for the message put forth by advertising that sex appeal and physical attractiveness should be among those on top on the list of priorities?

Interesting questions to ponder. And I found a previous blog entry I posted some four years ago which I still find interesting. An excerpt:

And here I go again, attributing much of the societal damage to mass media. First of all, it's true -- media in this day and age is largely responsible for the perpetuation of ideas (both constructive and destructive) especially when the idea is deftly presented as something that will make you feel happy, free, strong, fabulously independent and/or desirable. The result: girls imitating what they see, whether it's a baby tee with "Porn star" flashed across the chest, the monthly boyfriend roulette, the spirit of abandon guiding underwear ads, or the whole attitude behind the "Sex Bomb Dancers" trend. An example:

Mothers who come into my office frequently express doubt about their own judgment, not knowing where to draw the line when their daughters dress provocatively. Girls, meanwhile, freely admit that they are only aping what they see in the media. One young woman told me, "I love 'Sex and the City,' but I know it's contributed" to the problem. " Desperate Housewives" does, too.

Believe me, people behind magazines, ads and TV programming know how to make practically anything -- even the trashiest, most indecent fashion styles and intrinsically wicked ideas -- look good and spend tons of money to do research to get better at it!

Read the whole thing, which includes links to two insightful reads from The Washington Post and Modestly Zone, here


* First photo is from a Benson & Hedges ad.

Word play

I can't remember ever taking up "anagrams" in school... but today I learned about anagrams, thanks to Mommy Life! Cool huh?

DORMITORY:
When you rearrange the letters:
DIRTY ROOM

PRESBYTERIAN:
When you rearrange the letters:
BEST IN PRAYER

ASTRONOMER:
When you rearrange the letters:
MOON STARER

THE EYES:
When you rearrange the letters:
THEY SEE

GEORGE BUSH:
When you rearrange the letters:
HE BUGS GORE

THE MORSE CODE:
When you rearrange the letters:
HERE COME DOTS

SLOT MACHINES:
When you rearrange the letters:
CASH LOST IN ME

ANIMOSITY:
When you rearrange the letters:
IS NO AMITY

ELECTION RESULTS:
When you rearrange the letters:
LIES - LET'S RECOUNT

SNOOZE ALARMS:
When you rearrange the letters:
ALAS! NO MORE Z 'S

A DECIMAL POINT:
When you rearrange the letters:
IM A DOT IN PLACE

Modesty aside...

I've been thinking about modesty lately -- specifically, trying to think of another word that means almost the same thing. It seems that this word has become misunderstood, that if I talked to another girl about it and we happened to not be on the same page about things pertaining to love, relationships, character and virtues, she may react as if I had said "chastity belt" or something equally antiquated.

Thing is, though "modest" often refers to clothing styles and manner of dressing, it can go far beyond that to include speech, behavior, thought. I won't even go into that here, but I will share this piece that I stumbled on once again while roaming Modesty Zone, that site I used to go to when in search of delightfully counter-cultural ideas. Talk about non-conformity! Definitely stuff one wouldn't see in mainstream media.

Here's an excerpt from the piece titled "Confessions of a former hoochi mama":

I began to realize that in my "hoochi mama" days, instead of showing off my cool new figure, I was actually degrading it by making it so easily accessible to any viewer. Despite some of the protests of my friends, I began to realize that modesty is not about sexual shame or a negative attitude toward the body; instead it is very much pro-body and pro-woman. Who knew?

Another thing I learned was that the word modesty, in its origin, simply means "to moderate." When St. Thomas Aquinas deals with modesty in the Summa Theologiae he links it to the virtue of prudence. Between moderation and prudence, we can thus understand better how to deal with modesty in this day and age where there are so few guidelines concerning dress. To me, applying moderation to this concept means that on the sliding scale of today's fashions the modest girl will land somewhere in between the prude and the exhibitionist.

...

When women of the sixties and seventies were encouraged to take on a more male nature, they abandoned and, in some cases, suppressed the beauty of female nature. By nature I don't mean the body per se, but rather what is greatest about women: things like compassion, fidelity, warmth, and a capacity to nurture. But today we are to suppress all these virtues, and be feminine in body only.

Read the whole thing here

We like them as they are

Frankly, for a while now, I can't say that I still get starry-eyed over what most people consider thrilling, like sightings of -- or encounters with -- actors and other such celebrities. Seeing tennis player Roger Federer would probably send me to cloud nine; being in the same room as the Pope would also give me a certain high -- but of course that's on an entirely different plane altogether. Broadcast journalist Anderson Cooper is admirable, so hats off to him, too, and I'd certainly get a thrill out of even just seeing him in person or listening to him talk. Boxer Manny Pacquiao, too, though I am no boxing fan, is one person I would love to shake hands with and even get a picture with! Maybe it's his way of uniting the country, maybe it's his apparent simplicity in responding to questions despite the iconic status he has reached. I really don't know why I regard him so favorably and even anticipate his next match even though I can't tell schoolyard punching apart from what happens on a professional boxing ring (bottom line, in my eyes, both are demonstrations of violence).

But I can get somewhat starry-eyed when it comes to babies and young children. Which is why coming face-to-face with this 7-month-old from the South got me all excited before, during and even after the photo shoot. Needless to say, she didn't feel the same way about me, refusing to break into a smile during those moments I held her *sniff* -- still, she held my heart in her tiny hand :-) Even the way she let out little grunts as we struggled to put her in the first cherry kimono (it was a size too small) I found charming.





This is Queen Elizabeth ("Queenie") Pacquiao, the latest addition to the boxer's brood of four, whom we photographed in the family's home in General Santos City in August. I jetted off to Davao, where photographer Eugene Lara is from, and together with his assistant Ferjan we took the two-hour drive to General Santos for the 10am pictorial. How did the shoot go? You'll just have to get a copy of Baby magazine's October issue to find out :-)

See that small photo of another kid on the cover? That's Princess, Queenie's 3-year-old Ate, who makes an appearance in the same issue via a fashion feature. As with the last kiddie fashion feature we did, I'm feeling very contented about the outcome of this shoot, handled by photographer Ralph Alejandrino, even though it ended up happening in a hotel -- not exactly a child-friendly environment, and not brimming with spots that will bring out the natural glee in children at play.





Well, it turned out quite nicely -- with the help of board games, hand puppets, funny glasses, a pair of colorful maracas and even a little umbrella that Princess decided to twirl and wave around. And of course, though a bit of (ehem) "fashionista-wannabe kind of posing" happened for a few moments upon the urging of the little girl's companions, it became clear that when we let innocence and a wholesome atmosphere prevail, the charm of childhood really does come out. None of the come-hither looks that characterize kiddie images nowadays, nothing like the hands-on-hips supermodel stance and attitude taking over the styling. Just natural, happy, free-spirited, child-like fun. Because our "model" was a child. And it was plain to see that she was having a delightful time; I almost felt like reinforcing her genuine demeanor by telling her, as Ringo would have sung to her, "all [you] gotta do is act naturally." :-)

Silence that matters today

We have a choice to be silent. They didn't. The choice was made for them. Permanently.

And I say it's alright

A little about the song

Specially for you

Anybody who cares for a person -- whether a child or an adult -- with special needs knows that the responsibility comes with challenges that require more patience and creativity. Is he a brother? A sister? A son? A daughter? A friend? I think each of us knows somebody who has "a little something extra" (as teacher and book author Barbara Curtis has put it when referring to people with Down Syndrome) or is lacking in something, making them different from others in more ways. Thank God we can rest assured that the value of every person's life depends not on what he can do but on what he is -- a child of God. And for any creature there can be no higher dignity than that!

It may also be comforting to know that even though most kids with special needs have a more limited ceiling when it comes to the level of understanding and intellectual capability or of physical tasks that they can carry out, the joy and the sense of wonder their presence can bring about in those around them, are limitless. That, and the depth of self-giving that they can enable their families and caregivers to reach.

This may provide some boost and assurance to those who spend a lot of time with people with special needs. I think it also gives us a deeper insight into things that special people also need (and feelings they may experience) which we have taken for granted or probably aren't aware of to begin with:

Beatitudes for friends of special needs kids

Blessed are you who take time to listen to difficult speech:
For you help us to know that if we persevere,
We can be understood.

Blessed are you who walk with us in public places,
And ignore the stares of strangers,
For in your companionship,
We find havens of peace.

Blessed are you who never bid us to "hurry up",
And more blessed are you
Who do not snatch tasks from our hands to do them for us,
For often we need time rather than help.

Blessed are you who stand beside us
As we enter new and untried ventures,
For our failures will be outweighed
By the times we surprise ourselves and you.

Blessed are you who ask for our help,
For our greatest need is to be needed.

Blessed are you when you assure us,
That the one thing that makes us individuals
Is not in our peculiar muscles,
Nor in our wounded nervous systems,
Nor in our difficulties in learning,
Nor any exterior difference.
But is in our inner, personal, individual self
Which no infirmity can diminish or erase.

- Author Unknown

H/T: MommyLife

Surprised?

This is probably as honest as one can get when it comes to the sentiments of any woman at the moment she finds out that she's pregnant -- especially when pregnancy was the farthest thing from her mind. Come to think of it, the more oft-used "Pregnant? Need help?" is just as genuine, but a touch of humor can elicit a smile. And who wouldn't want that?

I clicked Impact73.org on Generations for Life's blogroll and got a site that was under construction. But the group's old website was accessible, and this led me to Project LIFEBOARD, which is another way for the group to call a pro-life billboard. What a delight to know that some people are making it possible to have such life-affirming displays put up in various states in the US!

I sure hope one day we'll see a giant billboard somewhere on Edsa with a message like "Chastity rocks -- it does a body and soul good." I think something like this would be welcome (or at least it's needed, even if some people are bound to scoff at the message) since it proclaims what each person knows deep inside.

Puppy power

This little creature is so cute, I can't stand it! :-)






"I Want My Phone Call!"


Source (of photo and caption): Cute Overload


Now that I think about it, bringing cute animals such as puppies, kittens, rabbits etc., to some of those who are grappling with the situation brought on them by the recent typhoon can probably do much good. Pet therapy has worked wonders for people with illnesses or battling depression. I imagine the folks at nursing homes would welcome the sight and company of a puppy or a friendly breed like a Labrador. And cuddling and caring for a puppy can be therapeutic.