Blogs on More

This video has to be one of the best things going around the Internet. I admit it’s a bit of a stretch on the surface - it’s a young man’s video in many ways. But I think it also speaks to something in the human spirit that often seems to me to come alive in women at midlife - women who are ready to soar.

Plus, it’s just cool.

Go watch it and tell me what you think!

So what do you do at your computer alone at night? And does it represent your community standards?

In an interesting case hitting Florida courts, a defense lawyer is set to use Google Trends to show that a particular community’s standards - as shown by the terms upon which it searches using the popular search engine - are lower than publicly stated. Slate’s article does a good job of raising the issue of the blur between private thought and public behaviour that occurs on the ‘net.

What’s your experience been? Do you, or do you know people who behave differently online than they would in real life? What about your kids? Where do you think society should go on this one?

The Gloucester, Mass. “teen pregnancy epidemic” and this Globe and Mail article on teens intending to get pregnant have made teen pregnancy a hot conversational topic this week. Women at midlife may have a unique perspective to share in this discussion - some mothers of teens themselves, some new mothers, and some who have chosen not to parent at all. What’s your take on teen pregnancy? Why do some girls decide it’s for them, and is this a legitimate choice?

From the Financial Post: Use the tools best suited to the message you communicate. Although this seems like basic information, I have to admit that I have fallen into the dark habit of emailing my friends rather than calling them. (And using my Blackberry to do it on the subway, too.) This was brought home the other day when I opened my spam filter to find a mis-directed message from one of my friends’ accounts she rarely uses - saying she’d been let go, three days ago!

Why didn’t she call? Because we just don’t do that a lot any more. And it’s crazy. Do you have similar tales of tech gone wrong?

Are you worth a million dollars? According to this article in the National Post, Canadian millionaires are on the rise, thanks to boomer wealth.  If you’re not among the ranks of those feeling secure about retirement, check out “I forgot to save for retirement!” Yes, you can be okay, and yes, there are steps you can take now.

I was planning to share my love of Etsy with you all a little later, but Sydney Stoyan’s piece in the National Post scooped me. I am a generous soul, so here’s the link on what’s so great about buying jewelry on Etsy. Remember that you clicked on it here first!

Also, Slate says that sleeves are back in and frankly, despite all the tricep work I’ve been doing at the gym (err… when I get there) I am looking forward to the fall.

The Montreal Gazette reports on a Quebec Council on the Status of Women report discussing overtly sexualized messages to young women. It points specifically to websites like Ma bimbo, an interactive site that encourages players (presumably young women) to become the most popular bimbo. In case your french is not up to speed, I’ll just translate one of the game highlights from the home page: “Seduce a celebrity man to enter into the life of a star more quickly!” (May I just say in internet parlance: !!!)

This brings to mind Jay Teitel’s provocative piece “Too feminist to raise feminists?” Are we losing ground in the messages we give to our daughters, particularly when it comes to dressing provocatively at a young age and the importance of style?

Anyone else remember the scene in 1990’s Total Recall when Arnold Schwarzenegger’s character was scanned in some futuristic hallway-like security corridor, showing his skeleton and then the gun he was carrying, with sirens going off all over?

Well the future is now, as CBC reports that the Kelowna, B.C. airport is going to test a security system that produces a body image - from under your clothes. Is this going a little far, or is it a good idea?

Update: And  in another futuristic security moment, teens are using Google Earth to find backyard swimming pools, and Facebook to organize a gatecrashing party. Next killer web application: U R Grounded.

Here’s an experiment - have a regular post on Friday for just neat, inspirational things.  Send me your finds so I can include them each week!

Okay, this one is nothing you can buy but just looking at the pictures is inspirational: Architectural designer Eric Clough embedded 18 clues in the Fifth Avenue apartment of the Klinsky- Sherry family, leading them on a scavenger hunt through the rooms of their home. (NY Times)

I love this inspirational Jane Austen poesy cuff. (Via the Victorian Trading Company, which does ship to Canada).

And if you’re a “jot-it-down” person (I confess!) these matchbook notebooks from Levenger are pretty and practical.

Parents of teens, beware.

A 12 year girl took her father to court after he grounded her for excessive Internet use, and forbade her participation in a class trip.  Madam Justice Suzanne Tessier of the Quebec Superior Court ruled on Friday that the father couldn’t discipline his daughter by barring her from the school trip. (Read the story.)

I think I’m speechless. What do you think?

When I read Mindless Eating I learned that on average each of us make 200 food-related decisions a day. Maybe that’s why the latest study on this or that vice often produces a kind of undercurrent of guilt when I choose something that may be SILENTLY KILLING ME. Or something.

This week though, there’s good news to be had:

• The Globe and Mail reports on a study concluding that drinking coffee does not increase the risk of death - and may in fact lower it for women.
• BBC News reports that a big - 600 calorie - breakfast may aid in weight loss.
• And the New York Times’ health blog shares research indicating red wine my curb fat cells.

Now the question is, can I design a brunch that takes all this into account? And for you, dear readers, do you find hearing about all the latest research makes you change your diet - or feel guilty about not changing it?