I heart Parks and Recreation, too!

WEEKEND ARTS SECTION: Dear Leslie Knope of TV’s "Parks and Recreation,", by Sady, Feministe.

[ . . . ]

I don’t know what sealed the deal, but I strongly suspect it was the episode “Galentine’s Day,” where I figured out that you were probably the most likable lady character I had seen on TV in a long time. “Galentine’s Day” is, in addition to being the title of the episode, your name for how you celebrate Valentine’s Day, Leslie. It is an occasion on which you have breakfast with every lady you know and like — there are a lot of ladies you know and like, apparently! That is a full table — and you celebrate your mutual friendship and ladyhood with gifts, including “a personalized 5,000-word essay on why you are all so awesome,” written by you personally.

It is like the best! I mean, I can’t even count the number of times Parks and Recreation has shown ladies hanging out and relating — ladies talk about a lot of shit with each other on this show, things like politics and career and whether or not possums are hideous unearthly monsters that lay eggs — but this was just a really great moment, of a feminist lady on a TV show expressing, in a genuine and believable way, how much she likes and values and enjoys spending time with other ladies. And the greatest thing? That moment was not shown as inherently ridiculous, or stupid, or alienating, or wrong.

I mean, it’s a little ridiculous, of course. That’s why it’s funny. “Ladies celebratin’ ladies,” you say into the camera, with that big goofy wide-open smile on your face, like in such terrible earnest you are conveying the idea of lady-celebrating and it makes you so super-happy. It’s always funny to see people believe in things whole-heartedly without trying to be cool about it; it makes them vulnerable and goofy, like children. And, like, the name of the celebration is “Galentine’s Day,” which is the dorkiest. You are the dorkiest, Leslie: Sunny and awkward and naive and oh so very Midwestern. “It’s like Lilith Fair. Without all the angst,” is your follow-up line. Like Lilith Fair is the most XTreme Rock XPerience you could ever have. It’s so great.

You invited your Mom, Leslie. You. Invited. Your Mom. To the Galentine’s Day party. You do it every year! And it is just the sweetest thing. Ladies celebratin’ ladies. Why don’t more people do this? I think they should.

[ . . . ]

So do I! We should all celebrate ladies, especially other ladies. That's what Women's History Month is supposed to be about.

How are you readers celebrating women in a positive way?

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"Oh. That's what's supposed to happen."

Purity.

Running on the beach.

Twirling in slow motion.

That's an accurate representation of my period.

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"I'm on a horse."

I want an oyster with two tickets to that thing I love.

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"Hey, what did you think of the movie Julie and Julia?"

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Does anyone still like Coldplay, much less wear a Coldplay t-shirt? Unironically, that is.

Also, I don't watch The Real Housewives of Atlanta, but I do watch Mad Men. Uh oh . . .

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I come from a "predominantly black family", too! But I have seen Sideways. Uh oh . . .

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"I know. She doesn't even work."

If you watched the rest of the episode, and the preview for next week, she needs to have a talk with her husband.

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A baby paradox

Minority births on track to outnumber white births, by Hope Yen, AP via Yahoo! News.

Minorities make up nearly half the children born in the U.S., part of a historic trend in which minorities are expected to become the U.S. majority over the next 40 years.

In fact, demographers say this year could be the "tipping point" when the number of babies born to minorities outnumbers that of babies born to whites.

The numbers are growing because immigration to the U.S. has boosted the number of Hispanic women in their prime childbearing years. Minorities made up 48 percent of U.S. children born in 2008, the latest census estimates available, compared to 37 percent in 1990.

"Census projections suggest America may become a minority-majority country by the middle of the century. For America's children, the future is now," said Kenneth Johnson, a sociology professor at the University of New Hampshire who researched many of the racial trends in a paper being released Wednesday.

Johnson explained there are now more Hispanic women of prime childbearing age who tend to have more children than women of other races. More white women are waiting until they are older to have children, but it is not yet known whether that will have a noticeable effect on the current trend of increasing minority newborns.

[ . . . ]

Whites currently make up two-thirds of the total U.S. population, and recent census estimates suggest the number of minorities may not overtake the number of whites until 2050.

First of all, if there are going to be more nonwhite people in a country than white people, it is becoming increasingly illogical to call nonwhite people "minorities." I have never liked calling people minorities, because most "minority" people aren't a minority in the world. There are 1 and 1/2 continents full of Latino people, 1 continent full of black people, and a ginormous continent full of Asian people. Yet they are "minorities". Hmm.

Second, this phenomenon of minorities overtaking white people (?) is primarily attributed to "immigration" boosting "the number of Hispanic women in their prime childbearing years" "who tend to have more children than women of other races." Oh my.

a) Not all Hispanic people immigrated here. Some Hispanic people were actually born here. So were their ancestors.

b) Some Hispanic people are white. Who knew? I think these people knew. These people, too!

Third, another assumption in the article is that white women give birth to white babies, Hispanic women give birth to Hispanic babies, Asian women give birth to Asian babies and so on. But what about Native American and Middle Eastern babies in the US? What about Kendra's baby? What about Nicole Richie and her unfortunately named babies?

Fourth, I'm of childbearing age, yet where are the 2.13 children that I am supposedly having? How can I contribute to the upheaval of American society?

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"This was the best season of The Bachelor ever."

"Best = most recent"

Either way, I don't watch the show. But the clips on The Dish and on The Soup = hilarity.

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"This year's Dottie English Whatever award"

"I still think awards are stupid. But they'd be less stupid if they went to the right people."

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"A freaking lesbian mintrel show."

That accurately describes this week's episode of Law & Order: SVU featuring Kathy Griffin as lesbian-turned-bisexual activist. I had been looking forward to seeing Kathy Griffin in something, to hold me over until My Life on the D-List returns to Bravo this summer. However, this was a hilarious disappointment. "P.C." was full of stereotypes, and portrayed lesbians as angry, loud, violent women, who hate bisexuals and can be turned by the love of a good man brandishing a tire iron.

For further discussion please see "Law & Order: SVU" mini-cap: "P.C.", by Hornito on AfterEllen.com.

This episode was almost as bad as Wentworth Miller's appearance in the SVU season premiere last September:





Ha ha ha! "I am trying to help you here!" Oh, Wentworth.

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Taking advice from an 11-year-old.

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Egypt should give counsel to the other women on the show, too. She makes sense.

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"We're not campaigning. The election's over."

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Did you readers see the Bipartisan Health Care Reform Summit 2010 this week on C-SPAN? Neither did I. But I did watch the highlights on The Daily Show on Thursday. The funny comes at 7:42, when John McCain starts babbling about change and the Louisiana Purchase (was he in Congress back then?), and then Barack Obama reminds him who the President of the United States is. Oh snap.

I also like the video below from Jay Smooth, who is now blogging at Nil Doctrine (clever), about the reaction Chris Matthews had to the State of the Union:

"To me, being black is an important part of who I am, that I'm proud of. And the word 'black', you know, people will say, 'I don't care if you're black or purple or orange.' But, even for you to say that is insulting to me, because black is not like purple or orange. It's not imaginary. Black describes a particular culture and history that's really rich and that I'm proud of."

Happy Black History Month to you, Mr. Smooth!

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"Pink Elephants"

Six chapters completed in the sequel to to Steve the Penguin! The title of the second novel is now under construction as well. An excerpt from Ch. 12:

“Is your necklace new? You weren’t wearing it at the taping.”

This guy remembered what I did or did not have on my neck a day ago?

“It’s not new.”

His fingers slid across my collarbone as he touched the gold pendant. “Why an angel?

“Because of . . .”

“Winn-Dixie?”

“Oprah,” I sputtered. “The angels.”

He lifted the pendant with his index finger. “The angels?”

“On one of Oprah’s shows, she said she could never find any black angels. Then her fans sent hundreds of black angel statuettes to her studio.”

“I would have sent her a picture of you.”

“Laying it on thick, aren’t we?”

“Me?” He placed the warm angel back on my skin. “Never.”

“I don’t know why I’m telling you this Oprah story. It’s the first thing that popped into my head. But for reals, I like angels because they are flying people.” That was enough about me. “What about your neck?”

“What about my neck?”

“What is the deal with the constant whimsy on your ties? Yesterday it was the shamrocks. Today it’s dancing elephants.” I tugged on the black strip of silk. “Why are they pink?”

“Short answer: they match my shirt.”

“Long answer?”

He breathed in my ear with more heat than actual sound. “I like being unpredictable. I’m full of surprises.”

Dude was full of something. “How could you possibly continue to surprise me?”

He popped a chicken nugget in his mouth. “If I told you, then it wouldn’t be a surprise.”

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"If you can't beat 'em, Sweetums!"

I have now watched this episode of Parks and Recreation four times. The best part is Tom's DJ Roomba, which I have finally find a clip of:



The episode's closest rival is "Hunting Trip", which I have watched three times. I would have watched "Pawnee Zoo" more, but NBC restricts my ability to view what I want. :(



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"Almost Right, but Not Quite"

Five chapters completed in Hot Penguin Action! An excerpt from Ch. 15:

“What if that other guy weren’t in the picture?”

He was cutting me deep. “Dude, this has nothing to do him.” Though I wished it did. That would be a great excuse. “This is about you, and me, and . . .”

I was trying to concentrate on delivering my message. Why was he distracting me? Even though the other guy had blown me off, and I had absolutely no other prospects, I would rather be alone than poorly accompanied. I was willing to wait for the right person, instead of settling for a convenient, comfortable, yet unhealthy relationship.

“I have to respect what’s right for me. I want more. I need more.”

“You deserve more.”

“I do. In completely unrelated news, I’m not in a relationship of any kind with anyone.”

“Bianca, there is obviously something going on with you and—”

No. “If there ever was anything with him, there isn’t any more. He hasn’t talked to me since the night of the Rec Room taping, so his silence has made that perfectly clear.”

Jenny continued giving me sympathetic looks from across my desk. For some reason, I was glad she was there.

“I’m sorry, Bianca,” he said. “I’m not sorry he’s out of the picture. Although if we had to compete, I know I would beat him.”

“So cocky!”

“But I am sorry you’re unhappy. I thought he was a better guy than that.”

So did I.

“So you’re alone, I’m alone,” he lamented. “Where is the bright, shining light in all of this?”

“I did have fun meeting you for the first time at the taping.”

“The second time was even better. Even though that’s when I discovered my life is a mess, thanks to you.”

“What am I supposed to say to that? You’re welcome?”

“I meant it in a good way.”

“Explain please.”

“I have to accept that life I tried to create myself has failed. The first step is admitting that you have a problem, right?” His voice expressed a growing weariness. “So I admit it. I need to start over. I don’t know how, though.”

“And this is my fault because . . . ?”

“I’m not blaming you. I’m thanking you, because I can talk to you. I haven’t had to explain the situation to anyone else yet, not my family, not my friends. Not that I would have known what to tell them. It’s easier with you.”

“Because we just met?”

“Because I trust you.”

I trusted me, too.

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"Needs more Jaleesa."

Sinbad Politely Requests That You Do Not Refer to It As a Comeback, Vulture via Jezebel.

My favorite part of the interview:

When you were doing Jingle All the Way with Arnold Schwarzenegger, did you foresee a political career for him?

He was always going to run for some kind of office. I wish he had not! I liked Arnold as an entertainer. He did a lot of things as an activist. He had a fitness program for kids I was involved with because of him. I just think right now as governor, man, he screwed up the education system out here. He cut the summer program. With summer school now, it takes you seven years to finish college.

And in honor of Black History Month:

How has the landscape changed for African-Americans on television since you first started out?

I don’t think the landscape has changed much at all. We’re in another wasteland. It’s a shame that we’re even having this conversation in 2010. It’s like they’re discovering new colors. Now the new flavor is Latin. Next new flavor will probably be Asian. It’s a shame they can’t figure out that, it’s all, it’s all the same thing. It’s all actors. Look at this country, even with a black president … it sparked a revolution on the Republican side that’s funny as hell. They give themselves code names — the Tea Party, the Real America. I crack up. My thing is this: Not much has changed in Hollywood. Hollywood’s not a progressive place. Everyone likes to think that Hollywood is hip, but it’s not hip at all. Black actors, black actresses, they’re fighting to find parts. Name me five black actresses working right now.

Um, off the top of my head …

You can’t.

I can!

1. Regina King on Southland

2. Wanda Sykes on The New Adventures of Old Christine

3. Niecy Nash on Clean House

4. S. Epatha Merkerson on Law & Order

5. Keke Palmer on True Jackson, VP

That was not easy. What is Dawnn Lewis doing these days?

And yes, readers, at the top of this post, that is Ray J in the poster for The Sinbad Show. The same Ray J who gave us a second season of this:

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The back pocket girl

"Are their standards too high? Or are the pickings too slim?" via ELEV8.

First of all, watch the video. Meanwhile, I will look for a transcript, or summarize the important parts.

Second, Mr. Steve Harvey: how many black women--or people in general--are corporate executives making $150,000, and then demanding that their partner make more than that? I would love to make $150,000. That is the end of that sentence. I must have missed out on the growing problem of black women running corporations and making six-figure salaries. I need to become a part of that problem. I might be alone, but I'd have some money.

~

"[Steve Harvey's] advice [for these women]? Go for the older man."

No. Not everyone wants to date a 53-year-old Steve Harvey. I don't think that is a compromise that group of women in their late 20s and early 30s want to, or should have to, make.

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"Denise is the other black woman who works here."

I never have that problem since I'm usually the only black woman in the room. :( But I sure could use some of that specifically branded Excedrin.

~

Here is another of my favorite SNL clips from the 2000s:



Oh, Larry Craig. You embarrassed so many people, and provided laughter for us all.

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What Daria means to someone else

Daria..., by Calhoun Kersten, confessions of a self-proclaimed megalomaniac. Emphases mine.

[ . . . ]

For those of you who don't know (and I can't imagine who that would be) Daria was everyone's quintessential angst-ridden sarcastic teen from the late 90s to the early 2000s. In a weird way, she sort of came to represent the disenfranchised in the high school caste system. I say that it's weird because, popular or not, most people I know felt marginalized in high school at one point or another. But there was something so empowering about the character who chose to be a spectator, rather than involved. It may not be a healthy way to live life, but high school's not always the healthiest environment either and yet, most of us still go.

Anyway, back to the show and less about the emotional validation I received from a cartoon... Daria was one of those rare moments in television where there was no real stigma placed on being unhappy or dissatisfied with the way that things were. Life wasn't sugarcoated, because let's be realistic, sometimes things just aren't how you'd hoped they'd be. Sure, a lot of the times Daria painted an excessively dismal picture. It wasn't always true to life, but at least it had the audacity to suggest that wanting something more wasn't as awful as most people would have you believe.

Keep in mind, this show was also way before the whole jaded anti-hero became a television staple (if you're confused about what I'm talking about, watch just about any Bryan Fuller show and you'll see what I mean) . . .

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Kittie, no!

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"Get out the Girlfriend Handbook," is right, Jacque. So sad. But she is bringing the drama!

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If only I were less bossy.

My Race-Based Valentine., by Jenée Desmond-Harris, Time via Yahoo! News. Emphases mine.

This Valentine's Day, more of us than ever will be looking for love online. And if recent studies are any guide, relatively few women on mainstream dating sites will bother to respond to overtures from men of Asian descent. Likewise, black women will be disproportionately snubbed by men of all races. Yes, even though America has been flirting intensely with a postracial label for some time, color blindness is not upheld as an ideal in the realm of online romance. On some sites, it's not even an option. (See the 25 most important films on race.)

Chemistry.com requires users to identify their ethnicity; like eHarmony, it considers members' racial preferences when suggesting matches. Match.com lets users filter their searches by race. The site's profiles include space to indicate interest (or lack thereof) in various racial and ethnic groups. But after Jennifer House, a black woman in Los Angeles, perused one too many profiles only to find the guys had checked off every box except African American, she changed her strategy. "Now I look at that section first so as not to get my hopes up," she says.

[ . . . ]

. . . a study published last year in Social Science Research examined 1,558 profiles that white daters living in or near big U.S. cities placed on Yahoo! Personals, which, much like Match, lists 10 racial and ethnic groups users can select as preferred dates. Among the women, 73% stated a preference. Of these, 64% selected whites only, while fewer than 10% included East Indians, Middle Easterners, Asians or blacks. (See a nerdy Valentine's Day guide on Techland.com.)

The story is a little different for the men, 59% of whom stated a racial preference. Of these, nearly half selected Asians, but fewer than 7% did for black women. Why? One theory offered by the study's lead author, Cynthia Feliciano, a sociologist at the University of California at Irvine, is that men's choices are influenced by the media's portrayal of Asian women as being hypersexual and black women as being bossy.

I keep explaining this phenomenon to my friends. I express to them that it affects me personally and how unhappy it makes me feel. Yet half of my friends still deny that the above situation is an actual problem. So I doubt that they will ever be convinced, even with an 87-year-old American institution acknowledging that racism continues to be a problem in 2010.

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