January Heigh Ho

So the new year has started and in full swing too.

1. It's started snowing! In Cardiff! It snowed on Tuesday. And its forecasted to snow on Wednesday too. Its really amazing to look at, I would be thoroughly more excited about it if not for no. 2 below. Also, as I sit here typing this, there are snow tourists (as I call them) playing in the snow outside. Ah, winter rookies...
2. I've started on a mini-pupillage and I have to go to Pontypridd really early Weds morning. Which means I have to tramp through the snow. Hopefully it's not too slippery. This is the first job-type thing that I've gotten on my own in Cardiff! The Careers Service thing wasn't as serious. I'm not getting paid for this but it's valuable experience! And looks damn good on my CV. And the bloke I'm following to court is really nice. Yay!
3. Getting down with work for next semester. Which starts in less than a week! Next Monday! Yikes!
4. Crisis talks over with The Boy. I guess its ok to call them that now its more or less over with but it was like red alert for a few days. It really felt like the US and Japan negotiating to prevent nuclear fallout. Amazing how inflated situations feel when your neck deep in. Water under the bridge. Moving onwards and upwards!

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More on The Boy.

I think I may have ranted rather unfairly with regards to his position. I know I'm in the habit of making excuses for the Boys I like but usually I have a checks to reassess my position on things. I was lacking two rather critical components of my check and balance system: the check and the balance.

Not talking back the pent up frustration evident in the previous postings, but now with a better understanding of where we stand and a better system of communication, I'm feeling a lot better about us, and as a result, me.

Wounds need to be licked and be allowed to heal before anything else hits us for a doozy.

On that note - don't worry, be happy, love.

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I've been watching several old Eighties films lately - Highlander, The Princess Bride - not to mention so recent ones - Dorian Gray, The Forbidden Kingdom - and I've come to cringe at them for the same reason - the weak female characters.

The Eighties films can be forgiven for that period in time when there was no such thing as a strong female lead - until Ripley in the Alien franchise. The recent movies attempt to balance a macho male lead with a strong yet weak female lead. All or nothing boys! If you are going to make a female character prominent, don't make her kick ass for most of the movie, only for her to miserably fail at the climax. Firstly it make no sense that they survived/succeeded so far only to mess up when it counts and secondly, as a plot device, your only achievement would be to alienate your female audience that you so desperately wanted to get pulled in by that character. If the main lead can succeed throughout all the obstacles, why can't the other character? I'm not saying a happy ending just because she's female, but because it would make sense to. Specifically in Dorian Gray, granted, he's played by Ben Barnes *drool* but falling helplessly in love after one day with a man almost your father's age is extreme, even for a suffragette. At least give her a bit more personality other than being smiley, pretty and able to charm a jaded old man. It's not impressive.

Fave female character so far: Mary in the new Sherlock Holmes movie. Forget Irene Adler. Mary symbolises what I would consider a good balance between the good old and the strong new. She's pretty, polite, well mannered and classy. At the same time, witty, smart and unafraid to tell you what's what. At she does it al while still being feminine. There's a difference between being feminine and being a feminist and while I think both are strong, one embraces what women have, while the other chases what we don't have. It's important to keep both in mind when finding one's strengths.

I always find it amusing that while men are physically stronger, they always want what women have. Women don't have penis envy. Sorry to burst your bubble, boys. We are (or at least should be) happy to be frank and beans free.

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I want to get a Brazilian wax one day. Just to try it. There's this thing called the Brazilian rush. Sounds fascinating...