Sunday, October 31, 2010

The Halloween Rant

Okay, as we know today is Halloween. Formerly the scariest day of the year, or maybe that's simply regional.

For you see, in the South we wouldn't dream of trick or treating in the afternoon. We wouldn't dream of not going door to door and having a parent check candy before we ate it. In fact, my mother's a total kid at heart & I figure she'll be out in costume + taking kids trick or treating when she's old enough to need a walker. She still goes with her grand kids as well as my sister and her fiance. To my knowledge, parents in my hometown are still doing that. Bravo to them!!!

But it seems in the NYC area, trick or treating in the afternoon is a norm as well as not going to people's houses or doing anything "scary." This is not really a rant about the pussificiation of youth due to making Halloween "safe"; I agree with it but that rant is best left to the creator of Foamy the Squirrel.

Go here & see at least this video for more information.

This may not be the one expressing that argument but if you look under "Halloween," you'll be all set.

And sorry but going to church or the mall to get candy IS NOT trick or treating or in any way near that, all right? If you want to tell your kids they're going to a party, do that but don't lie to them about what trick or treating is and don't be a freaking wimp! Go with them like my mother did w/us. If you won't get off your overindulgent butts to do that, you are deadbeats & probably do far more bad things to your kids to crush their spirits and make them into permanent adolescents. You are also a member of the Old Crone club & shouldn't be proud of that around me.

Now my mom isn't interested in animal sacrifices & celebrating Satan but the getting candy part & dressing up? Hell freaking yeah!!! You also can't use religion to denounce Halloween and then give out candy at your church or not complain if your church does that; then you're just a hypocrite.

Ah, but the ultimate rant: costumes!!! A few things to know about my history w/the Halloween costume.

Already know I grew up poor, right? Well that includes not having the money to buy full store bought costumes. So my mother, a creative Halloween loving parent, would get make up and costume pieces. We'd just use costume pieces along w/things we already owned to create costumes. One year, my mom made me a tail so I could be a cat. All we had to get were cat ears. I had a black shirt, black pants & the tail from home. We also had a way of getting random cool things. Like my father got this white hardhat & a Viking helmet one day. I think they were used as costume pieces later. I also had a Nosey Bear, one of those stuffed bears w/a scene and stars in its nose. When you squeezed it in the stomach, the stars moved. One year, my mom dressed as a little girl & took a pajama gown, slippers + the bear.

In fact, my nephew won a costume contest a few years back b/c my mom & sister dressed him up as a UPS man! My mom works at UPS so if you meet her, you'll hear some UPS jokes & comments. She even calls it "Satan's Beehive!"

So considering I grew up w/a parent who encouraged us to use our imaginations and let us come up with original costumes, I decided to continue that for myself as an adult. Like many people, I wait for the sales and get costumes, pieces, etc. that might form some truly innovative & creative costumes. That's how I've gotten an angel's halo, gold teeth, a ton of make-up, wigs, etc.

It irritates me that everything for women seems to be a whore-fest. You can not find a costume that isn't "sexy" this and "sexy" that. I'm not even speaking of things that are supposed to be sexy. A Jessica Rabbit costume should be sexy since that's what the character is. But Sexy Robin? Sexy Sailor? That's just taking your bedroom fantasies out for the public to see.

While I see nothing wrong with dressing sexy, it's just not an appeal to me on Halloween unless the costume I select fits that. Here's why:

1. It's unoriginal: How cool are you if you're wearing the same sexy outfit as everyone else? It's dull and boring. Just proves you had $50 to dress like a hooker just like everyone else. Bor-inggggg!

2. It's impractical: Now, usually it's cold on Halloween night. I was dressed as the cheerleader of death last night & my costume consisted of a black one piece swimsuit, pantyhose, sneakers w/socks and a black pleated skirt. I also had on a cloak + face makeup. I was FREEZING & wasn't dressed like a whore. My skirt went just a bit above my knee, much like you'd have seen on my religious private school's cheerleading squad. If you don't believe me, I've got the yearbook pics to prove it.

How the hell do these people do it? I saw more scantily clad women who looked content as could be on the cold, windy NYC streets.

3. I'm already sexy. I can dress that way anytime I want. I don't have restrictions on my abilities to do that if I so choose. Sexy wear is for clubs; doing it on Halloween is a cop out since you could do that in a club anytime. See #1.

4. On many women, it's trashy: There's sexy and then there's trashy. I know how to carry myself in the former. I don't think I could look trashy in most things since class seems to exude off me. Lots of people have actually described me as "classy"; plus I think on me, I'm playing a role or being artistic. I have my creative limits & would never leave my home in something that made me feel uncomfortable. You'd never see me with nipples popping out or not wearing underwear underneath an outfit.

I also worked in the lingerie section at JcPenney in high school so I know what type of underwear to get to avoid pantylines & about the proper strapless or backless bra. I wear strapless bras with tank tops; none of that bra strap showing shit. In other words, there's no excuse for that crap or to ask me to compromise my personal comfort if I'm going to wear something revealing.

5. People who can't pull it off think they should show the world their physical flaws. As hubby said to me many times, spandex is a privilege NOT a right. You aren't Divine or an extra in a John Waters film so either go on & do those outfits right or stop w/the half-assed effort. I sure don't want to see your private parts, either. Save that for a porn film.

6. Irritating the prostitutes: I'm sure it must make it harder for them to find customers on Halloween when all the women are dressed like whores. What if some prostitute wanted to wear a costume? Then you're just stealing her style, you ass! I wonder when one of these women is going to get beaten up by a prostitute who's just trying to get customers on Halloween.

So my stance on sexy costumes are do it if it fits the character & you're comfortable with it. But...have some personal pride & costume designers, stop making ALL women's costumes into whore wear. I saw some of them at lingerie stores & porn shops.

I can't wait until I have the money & occasion to do my dream costumes that fit my hair. They require real thought, are obscure & you'd have to be smart to figure them out on first glance. People had a time figuring out my costume this year, which I love. Keep folks guessing; do different things. Have a fucking imagination!!

So to sum up, have a happy Halloween. Go trick or treat OUTSIDE, if you're going to do a sexy costume make sure it fits your character & don't be a lazy, uncreative prick. Or at least watch the baseball game, which should have been rescheduled & if I owned one of these teams, I'd have demanded it. Cheers!!!

Friday, October 29, 2010

Would Jesus Make a Better Politician?

My husband & I were driving in Long Island today and saw a sign on the side of the road that said "Jesus Would Make a Better Politician." As my husband is very anti-religious, he said he felt compelled to run it over w/the car.

Personally, I despise this "Jesus Save" graffiti I keep seeing in my neighborhood subway station over things this judgmental prick disagrees with. I have a much bigger problem with that than I did with this sign. In fact, I'm tempted to write "Shove it, Churchie" or some such remark on that graffiti the next time I see it since it reeks of judgmental behavior in its placement.

However, I think many clergy people wouldn't want Jesus to be a politician in power. At least, if you believe in a Jesus that you can't buy off or make into your little puppet.

If you're a new reader, go back to some of my posts on my religious views and my history of all that. Also read up on my views on politics.

Oh, and I have a great idea. Let's require politicians to sign blood oaths in their own blood before distributing campaign ads and literature to the public. If they get elected and then lie about what they signed in the blood oath, we get to kill them with no punishment or any repercussion of any sort. Heck, it would be a public service to save the citizenry from yet another corrupt piece of entitled shit who doesn't deserve to suck the taxpayers dry. That might keep politicians honest + cut down on the excessive ads and mudslinging you see.

So if you're someone who runs some mega-church and has buddies in high places, I really don't think you'd want Jesus as a politician. After all, Jesus would be the most honest, non-corruptible politician on Earth. Jesus would see to it that clergy who molest little children and buy off the police and politicians were taken care of in the worst way. Rich people would have to fork over their money to handle homelessness, child welfare issues, animal cruelty and other problems happening in this country. Maybe Jesus would come up with a better balance for cleaning your house vs. cleaning other people's houses.

I also think zealots would be disappointed when Jesus stood up for the Atheists, the Muslims, Jews and other groups who don't follow their little cult. Jesus wouldn't let pro-lifers kill abortion providers or allow fundies to harm people who are different in the name of "God."

* Yes, I certainly think American fundies are capable of being just as bad as Islamic radicals and if they'd lived the conditions of foreign Muslims, would be just as violent and intolerant as any "terrorist." Look at the fellow who did the Oklahoma City bombing in the '90s; people killing in the name of religion & their god isn't just a Muslim thing.

I have to wonder who put up the signs & who thinks Jesus would be a better politician. I'm sure it had to be some group that wouldn't really like a Jesus led regime since that means they'd not get to be their brother's keepers or browbeat people to do what they wanted instead of exercising their freedom to do as they wished. If sane people put it up who really took the time to consider what Jesus would advocate and what he would be opposed to, I'd be absolutely amazed.

Stay tuned for my Halloween specific rant on Halloween. No, it's not "I Hate Halloween."

Thursday, October 28, 2010

Got a Website

Just decided to buy a domain name after setting up an account w/Mix Form. They're a company that has online portfolios for creative people. I met their reps at Showbiz Expo a few weeks back & asked them about how one in my shoes would set something like that up. They assured me that if you do a lot of different things, you certainly can set it up.

So after doing what I can to get the site to look just as I want it despite not being a professional web designer or having the $ to get one, I decided to see if I could buy my own domain name & what I'd get. Little did I know that I could use my legal name w/.com at the end.

So if you go to www.monicatrombley.com, you'll get my accurate info. I also link to this blog & other places. One thing you're NOT going to see is my personal contact information. That's because it's not the general public's business. I've gotten harassed & stalked and I'm not even famous. The website has a contact link so I prefer stuff like that to being personally e-mailed or called on the phone. Creeps exist, you know. You have to be careful.

That's also why I wouldn't encourage anyone else to harass or stalk someone I had no ill feeling toward. Combine this with a protective streak and it's not pretty.

Just today, some shithead from a scam company decides to call my house for the second time after being told that no one by the name they asked for lives here. If you work in a business where people will not respect your space, you can have the phone company list your number under a different name. This course of action was actually suggested to me by the person at the phone company setting up my account. This was before I worked in the entertainment field & just based on me being a lawyer. So when this particular scamming company calls up asking for the alias name, I know it's not for me or in any legit. Online searches of unfamiliar numbers also help.

I tell the person that there's no one here by that name & tell them to stop calling.

Shithead decides to call back. I again state it's harassment to continue calling when there's no one here to speak to by that name. THEN, the phone keeps ringing multiple times, doesn't go to voice mail, then rings again. I picked up the second time this happened (after I hung up after my initial exchange) and asked "What is your name?"

The male voice says "Fuck you. I'll call here if I want to." I tell him the call is being recorded and I'll be reporting him for harassment. Asshole continues to call again & again. I make a phone call to the local police precinct. No one picked up when I was transferred for this issue. The shithead even tries calling while I'm on the phone w/the police.

Right now, not getting more calls but in preparation I decided to alert the phone company. They gave me a procedure to follow & if that fucker calls me again, you'd better believe I'll be pressing charges.

In case you wonder, it's a 406 number and Caller ID lists it as "Perfect Network." Perfect network of what? Morons, maybe. Didn't pull the lawyer card but perhaps that will be a nice surprise for what happens when you harass me & use profanity at me. They'd better hope & pray I don't get crushed dreams & idle time on my hands to go find their headquarters, get a loaded gun and take out the foul mouthed little prick who thinks he can speak to me that way. For that matter, better hope my husband or other industrious family members don't decide to do that.

At least I feel less unappreciated with the group in issue I wrote about before but one valuable thing I've observed. Most lawyers get subtlety. I don't have to say "Well, I'm doing anything for you b/c you didn't do something for me." The majority of them get it, which saves time. I should really watch a CLE now since I have so few left to finish & can turn in my forms when I go to the film screening at the bar association where I ordered the programs next week.

Monday, October 25, 2010

My Disconnect From Law Land

Really, I feel like I'm definitely a lawyer 2nd. Maybe even 3rd. Once again, a group of lawyers has done something that crystallizes for me how unappreciated and unimportant I am to them.

I get an e-mail of announcements of events from this committee I belong to in a bar association. There's a lot of people's personal events; no mention of the "Miranda" screening even though I did send a mass e-mail to let people know. I try to make an effort to tell people what I'm doing since I can hardly get pissed at them for missing things they didn't even know about or get notice for. I also hate being told about something at the last second & then expected to drop everything.

I'd just as soon not elaborate to them on just why it might be in your best interest not to be a total dick to me but I did write the person who sent the announcement asking about the neglect of my event since A) it's at another bar association nearby, B) they're considering having a similar event for their own bar association & C) I'm supposed to be a valued member who is that much of a stage talent to have gotten the invite to join. I also feel like not getting credit for things or people mistaking my name on stuff is a sign that I'm a total outsider and can't be understood by these people. I also pointed out that I'd feel appreciated & that I actually mattered if it were announced. Face it, if I don't feel I matter to someone or something, I sure don't waste my time doing anything for that individual or group.

God knows we don't need my impression of lawyers to be more negative. It's already pretty much in the gutter aside from isolated individuals who can understand the creative mindset & that one might not like putting in her effort and using her connections to help some ungrateful so & so. My general hatred of bar associations is probably legendary at this point & I find the advice to new attorneys to network at them to be unhelpful.

Maybe I'm not as social as most people & the innate social tendency is dysfunctional in me. I always thought I fit Karen Horney's 3rd personality type: instead of moving toward or against people, I simply move away from them. It's a miracle I met my husband, who I think has that same tendency though it's probably greater w/him.

How else do you explain my instinct to just leave a situation if I feel like there's too much emotional crowding or that I'm being ignored/unappreciated/not valued? I'll say my piece & if I'm ignored or brushed off, I just see no need to deal with it anymore. If you know where I stand, I'm satisfied.

Life's way too short for emotional torture and I have too many people in life who do support my efforts and root for me instead of my opponents. As a whole, I still think the creative community rocks & is far more supportive than the legal community.

Pity the Goth store fools if they dare mess w/my husband's return since I have this to contribute to any righteous indignation. If they try to break the law, I will be naming names & warning you to stay away lest you have to face the same attempt to hustle an attorney.

Sunday, October 24, 2010

Parenthood & Making Politics More Interesting

I saw this last night & it just pissed me off.

I don't live in Oklahoma but I'd hope there are some people there who've evolved from a 1950's mentality. So, why does it piss me off that some political candidate is bashing her opponent by saying "I'm a wife & mommy but YOU'VE never been married + haven't got any kids"? Let's dissect this piece by piece:

1. The implication that one is a lesbian by not doing this stuff. For all you know, maybe this other female candidate really enjoys the single life & does a lot of stuff behind closed doors that would constitute political suicide though someone like me would respect her honesty for being herself. Unlike many small minded idiots, I don't feel one's sexual orientation is any of my business and prefer a political candidate who is honest about it vs. the bible thumping hypocrite who hires a gay prostitute.

2. On that same tact, how about coming right out & saying what you mean? If you think people will make the gay leap and you're in a state that you & everyone presumes is stuck in the 1950's mentality, how would it harm you to come right out and say it? Considering the majority of the country is a-okay with denying gay marriage and bitched and whined about gay people having rights of any kind to start with, you're not going to harm yourself any more by being direct than with pissing off childfree & single people. Most people don't seem to care about pissing off New Yorkers and "liberals" so why bother? Just go on Fox news if you want to try justifying this little barb.

For the naked statement itself, here's why it offends me:

3. I got married by choice and actually LOVE my spouse. How many marriages do you see that aren't happy or even well functioning? The divorce rate is still pretty high and the person who made this attack is apparently herself a divorced woman who caused the breakup. You're in no position to tout how marriage is some essential ingredient to being a good politician. If it were, most of us should be running for public office.

4. As for breeding, oh God!! Hey, retard (yes, that's what you are and if you don't have a clinically diagnosed mental impairment then you deserved to be slurred by being called that)! Have you been asleep your entire life? Do you ever read news headlines? Watch television? Work in the courts or with a social services organization? Does the name "Susan Smith" ring a bell?

Popping out a baby doesn't qualify you to do anything!!! You can pop out 100 babies and be the worst parent ever. Look at the Octo Breeding Bitch--does anyone think she should run for political office? What about the other big families with reality shows? You really think being a parent qualifies you to be a politician?

Not having a child requires some responsible conduct on the part of a woman. She has to take birth control, get fixed or get a guy to get fixed since you practically have to hold a doctor at gunpoint to get sterilized if you're a woman without kids. Getting pregnant often doesn't require responsible behavior; there have been countless "oops" pregnancies in the world to back this up.

Not to mention that at least the candidate without children won't be parading them around like show ponies or using them to get out of doing work. I could care less about the child of any public figure unless that child has some real talent & ability on his/her own. I'll have respect for that child if (s)he didn't use family names and connections to get ahead or isn't a jerk to me/my acquaintances-friends-family.

All statements like that do is piss me off as a childfree person who knows better about what works for her life than some busybody parent or doctor who isn't directly affected by such a decision. These childfree people should be using that to rally others as feminist icons or role models for the childfree. In other words, take advantage of it to enlist help from pro-choice groups.

So in light of the sudden notoriety of the Rent Is Too Damn High candidate in NY who's running for governor (I read his platform statement in 2009--interesting but no one's views ever fit all of mine), I have a great idea for making politics much more interesting & getting cynics like me to give a darn: physical grudge matches!!

If you saw the last episode of the first season of "Bored To Death," then you remember when the lead characters were engaged in a boxing match w/their rivals. Could you imagine politicians doing that? The ratings would be through the roof. I also think people would love to see Sarah Palin and other hated political figures get punched in the face.

Another novel idea would be allowing the populace to do this to corrupt politicians. Let's see how great you are when some random person beats you in a physical match!

Of course, you'd need guidelines. Let people train w/equal resources, have some safety measures, no women fighting men, etc. If medically unable to box, maybe just slapping would be okay though my husband thinks no one should get cop-outs from performing their civic duty to beat their opponent fair & square in a physical fight.

In foreign countries, politicians have gotten into physical fights. Look for those wildest fight shows on truTV & such to see them.

If they did that in the House and the Senate, people would start watching government proceedings. Maybe that's why these people don't do stuff like that to make politics more interesting; too many people would watch political proceedings & never re-elect these incumbents who do nothing but line their pockets. Feed the human instinct to watch for blood; you'd make a fortune & then we'd stop having arthritic grandparents running for office. If you aren't there physically (at least reasonably in shape), how are you going to lead people & be scary to enemies? Someone like Schwarzenegger would inspire fear.

Yeah, yeah liabilities and such but why not? Cynics like me don't care & I think meaningful voter turnout would increase dramatically if this happened. It might stop people from not voting for someone b/c it's a "throw away" vote. I'd get a good laugh, at least.

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Bullying in School

I was reading this MSN story today as well as the comments.

To continue on the stupidity of school administrators, I'm right there with you on the whole punishing a kid for defending himself/herself issue. I was also tormented myself & my father didn't always threaten to murder the little shit. I really identified w/Dawn in Welcome to the Dollhouse because I was similar in many ways, though I had much more of a backbone and by 8th grade, I had had enough. You have to thank the friends I had at that time for it; they probably saved most of these people from a deadly rampage later on & certainly improved life for me. They told me point blank I'd have to stand up for myself but that they'd have my back if needed.

When I got insulting notes from people, I'd just retaliate & put the kids in situations where the teachers heard them torment me during class or saw them writing notes. I was also a smart kid so there was no favorites contest going on. I probably hurt the self-esteem of this one girl who tormented me by saying that nobody liked her (which was true, people said she was a snobby bitch). Later on, I had older friends & that probably helped lessen problems I had.

I'll say this right now. If my nephews were bullies, no one in my family would let them get away with it. If they got bullied and defended themselves only to get in trouble, I'd had plenty of words for the school administrator/principal/teacher trying that one. I'd ask if they would allow someone to hit their person & not fight back or allow someone to bully THEM. In case you can't tell, I'm not an advocate of turning the other cheek in most situations.

I also have a problem w/the "I didn't see it so I can't do anything" logic. That just means I can kill someone in cold blood but b/c you didn't see me do it, you can't punish me. Do you want to live in that world? I sure hope not.

I also hope my nephews take some self-defense classes or something w/a fighting component; I just got done taking a self-defense class for women and found it extremely useful to real life. I hated gym class but I actually did well at this & if I have the $, would consider pursuing Jiu Jitsu training.

I loved the suggestion some of these comment writers had of having a bullied child take self-defense & use those skills when needed to teach the bully a lesson. You know what they say, some of the cutest kittens have the sharpest claws.

That little rule needs to change & start with having the aggressors get punished. Perhaps it should become a social services issue w/the parents who refuse to accept any responsibility or control their little hellion offspring. Maybe if you can't handle your own child, then you shouldn't have had him/her to start with. My parents never took mess from us or though we were perfect. People like that should also never hire babysitters since if your child is never doing something wrong, you obviously trust that child to be alone.

Don't even get me started on administrator's kids or teacher's kids getting away w/things b/c these grownups didn't bother to put the discipline where it needed to go. I had a friend who was the daughter of the school board president & she was the sweetest person in the school. She never walked around with an entitlement complex or thought she was exempt from the rules. In fact, she even defied the cliche of the bitchy cheerleader by being nice to people who weren't popular.

Maybe the people who brush off bullying should become bully targets themselves. I'd bet they'd take action after that. Same principle as making the heads of the MTA take public transit themselves for a few months; I'll bet you things would shape up really quickly after that.

Sunday, October 17, 2010

General Musings Part 9 & Why I Don't Follow Random Celebrities

Well, a few things have been going on. First off, no more comedy opportunity. I don't wish harm onto this person or ill will but if you think an attorney is doing anything without a writing, you must be insane. Especially if you have worked in the legal field yourself and KNOW how attorneys feel about it.

Not a big concern to me because I'll always find something to occupy myself. Now I have a story to mention & some links to share thoughts on.

First off, have you heard about the school administrators who are banning "I Love Boobies" bracelets? Apparently, these bracelets are from a company attempting to promote breast cancer awareness & encourage young people to care about it (especially young men since the heterosexuals don't care to wear pink). It's national news & I didn't save any links so feel free to look this one up on your own.

In my opinion, most school administrators are the stuffiest, most boring people on this Earth. They epitomize the cliche of the out of touch adult & never remember what it was like to be young themselves. You'd think these people popped out of the womb as stuffy 60 year olds.

I think their talents are wasted as school administrators; they need to be running prisons and working in the military. Perhaps be used to torture national enemies. Some politician should probably enlist a school administrator who behaves like this on his/her cabinet just to get people to bend to the politician's will. I've found the term "Little Hitler" to sum these people up to a T.

Let's also talk about the eggshell sensibilities of those daring to get offended by the term "boobies." I heard far worse language in public elementary school (lots of cursing) & this ban didn't happen in a religious private school or even in an elementary school; this is happening in a high school. HIGH SCHOOL, ladies and gentlemen!! Where sex and drinking run rampant for plenty of kids and the Internet will give you access to far nastier content than you'd ever see in the most inspired, creative professional porn film any professional film creator could hope to come up with. You people are a laugh riot; take these sensibilities to an Amish school or a fundamentalist Christian school. Otherwise, wake up and join us in 2010!

Or maybe you should tell us all what drugs you're taking since they apparently do a very good job of allowing you to block out reality. I'm sure others would like some.

Finally, Anthony Heald who played the assistant principal in Boston Public captured this asshole perfectly. I was reminded of the bitchy assistant principal in my high school who was just like this. Rational people hate little Hitlers. So I'm not shocked at school administrators being stupid but I am shocked at this ban in a public high school.

Now to links I'm shocked about.

Let's just call this what it is: employer greed. Maybe some of you fucktards seeking candidates should get the hint if you can't fill these positions; no one is willing to work for the same wage & do 100 extra things. Would you like to do that, especially if it's not YOUR company & your contribution won't mean shit to the people in charge? You'll simply get rewarded by being laid off or fired for not learning Cantonese fast enough while developing advanced computer programming skills, feeding the nation's poor out of your own pocket and studying for 3 states' bar exams.

Maybe, big shot employer, YOU need to re-evaluate compensation schemes or prepare for a massive revolt where people harm YOUR secure spaces and any security you hire turns against you for ripping them and others off. I'm rooting for that revolt; if I had to face that stuff head on like the average laid off person who's no longer qualified for their old job, I'd probably be trying to organize it.

Who the hell do you think you are to think the laws of economics don't apply to you? We should start trimming CEO pay if the CEO isn't willing to do all this since if you're going to demand people to wear 1,000 hats, it's only fair that you do the same if you haven't already been doing it.

This just scares me. I also find it incredibly tacky. It's the ultimate white trash thing to do. I may have had a smaller, cheaper wedding but I insisted on tastefulness & not going to a reception at any location that has peanut shells on the floor. My sister might get a laugh from it, though. Can you imagine your wedding photos?

At least if you're going to joke about the whole institution, try an abandoned shack or something a little more creative + artistic than a McDonalds. Why not just get the McDonald's logo tattooed on your butt while you're at it?

I heavily disagree that being an attorney is worth the stress. The wage information is also total bunk, inflated for those working in the mega-firms. Those with jobs far below six figures can vouch for me on that. I'd also hate just doing attorney stuff; that would kill me. I just see being an attorney as something extra I bring to the table, not my life's work.

Oh, and Bob Saget apparently posted footage online with an annoying brat on a six hour plane flight.

I wondered initially how many people probably pestered him with "It's Danny Tanner! Can I get an autograph?" Then, I was almost compelled to break my "no following famous people I don't know" rule. Almost, though.

So, why won't The Angry Redheaded Lawyer follow famous people if she doesn't know them & they didn't follow her first? Here goes:

* The famous person might well be an asshole. I hate assholes & will not be shy about telling anyone off. God help you if you piss off an entertainment lawyer. You can also ask about this one. You won't find sucking up w/me & expecting me to give a shit when you didn't earn it will just elicit a good old fashioned NYer response.

* I'm not a "fan" of anyone. I'm not going to root in the garbage, pay a bunch of money for things or generally debase myself for anyone. You'll find that I maintain a sense of decorum and can act normally around anyone. If you think otherwise, you can arrange a $ bet on that but you'd better have a chance of making that meeting happen if you want to see action. I'll expect your payment if you see me acting normally.

No one is special to me b/c of being famous. If I hear you're an asshole, I'll likely ask about it. I don't like anyone unless I get to know them personally & make that judgment for myself; there are plenty of people I can't stand who did one or two things I like or share an opinion I agree with. Don't lump me into the "fan" category unless you know me by name or at least could remember me as "that redhead who's a lawyer."

* I don't like intruding on people. I don't want people intruding on me. Do unto others, you know?

* I don't want to be thought of as some gate crashing wannabe trying to use anyone to get ahead in life. Help because you want to, not because I asked.

* I generally expect people to be nasty to me & I remember slights as well as anyone else in the business. So why go out & experience the nastiness that I already figure will happen? Argue self-fulfilling prophecy all you want but I'm more shocked when someone does something nice for me than when they do something shitty.

* Finally, it's a vouching thing. If people I know had good conversation or weren't treated like crap by the famous person, I'll be more likely to take notice & care. If you've met some of these people, that means you'll eventually be dealing w/me on some level so I'm a business colleague & not "some fan."

I think that's fair. What about you?

Thursday, October 14, 2010

Burn on Demand From Major Studios: An Exercise in Cheap Assery

I've got to rant about this one before I forget to.

According to my husband, who still checks TV Shows on DVD (a site I refuse to give traffic to b/c of the conduct of one Gord Lacey toward me & you can see this post for details). Warner Bros has decided to put out their censored 11 cartoons and other titles on their Warner Archives burn on demand series.

If you don't know what I'm talking about, see this post about the Censored 11.

To sum up, a product that has been sought after for eons from collectors is coming out on the same format that you can get for free if you find it online & download from your own computer. Let me tell you why this is utter crap:

#1 They can afford to put this out on a proper format, silver disc & all.

We're not talking about some small indie company with limited financial resources. Burn on demand is perfectly acceptable for that company & anyone else who can't afford the fancy stuff.

#2 Price. When Viacom decided to do this burn on demand nonsense with their Nicktoons as Amazon exclusives, I noticed that the price for these little homemade do-dads was ungodly & would have been too much per season even if they weren't burn on demand.

#3 Questions of reliability. Countless reviewers buying these burn on demand titles have mentioned that the titles won't play in their players. What good is spending all this money on a burn on demand title put out by a studio worth at least millions when the product doesn't even work in your home? What if you had only 1 DVD player? You're just screwed now, aren't you?

And, it gets even better. The announcement my husband reads says the cartoons "might" be restored. Gee, I can find unrestored copies of these cartoons for free online, burn them on my own purple backed discs, maybe even create my own little logos & spend far less than the $30+ this major studio is probably charging for the product. One of the great things about the Golden Collection was that the cartoons were restored & the product was given what I felt was proper treatment.

Cost effectiveness or moral arguments against bootlegging aside, it's a slap in the face to the fans of a particular show when you have the money to do better & you cheap out on them. You may as well take out billboards proclaiming "We could care less about the fans. You'll take a censored product made on a teen's home PC and love it!"

Oh, and major studio? You've just encouraged those same people to buy bootlegs. People expect shoddiness from bootlegs but it's down right unacceptable from a major studio worth millions of dollars. You'd think some of these people would have a little more pride than to put out something so cruddy.

Lest we also dare to engage in the "it's a business" cheerleading, I have another piece of news for you: we're not talking about widgets! We're not talking about clothes, houses or other such things.

We're talking about art, a creative product. You wouldn't make a dime if people didn't like that creative product and feel an incentive to buy. There's also a societal obligation to preserve art. We wouldn't have many of the works we have today or the inspiration they provided to others if they hadn't been properly safeguarded. I remember being in classes & my teachers talking about literary works permanently lost to time b/c they weren't preserved properly. Do we as a society want that to happen with our movies, television shows and cartoons?

Yes, I know what the law says & so forth. Yes, I work in the industry but I don't support shoddiness or horrid behavior from major studios who apparently forgot about pride in your work & the artistic mission. I don't support obvious attempts to behave like the typical sleazy corporation & I don't buy a shitty product b/c that's what the studio put out & if I don't buy it they won't put out more of the same.

My stance is to take your censored television seasons & shove them where the sun don't shine. Be a dick to me and the public & I'll absolutely do what I can to thwart your ability to make a profit, especially if you make public statements supporting my view that you are an entitled dick that no one would mourn if I ran you over with my car. I despise sheeple who make that argument b/c it's horrid and also encourages bootlegging.

My husband also informed me about some proposed legislation that I am a little shocked major entertainment industry players support. If I remember correctly, it has to do with the blocking of web traffic and brings up interesting censorship issues. I'll elaborate if I remember or you can look it up for me & I'll announce it here since some of you should definitely know about it. * Go here for details. *

I'm disappointed in Warner Bros. since they've put out some really good stuff & should take pride in some of their TV on DVD products (Viacom as well, for that matter). Going to burn on demand just irks me if you can afford proper releases & I think if that trend continues, these studios will end up as the major record companies did when they tried to put copy protections on their product that gave people computer viruses. You're just building ill will & rage among consumers and honestly, I can't be sympathetic to anyone trying stuff like this. That's called "getting what's coming to you."

I'll tell you now I'm definitely no RIAA fan or friend to corporate dick moves. I can also spot a corporate dick move when I see one & have far more pride in what I do than to allow that under my watch. I'm all for turning your nose up & giving the finger to any company that tries to act like they're entitled to your hard earned buck even if they put out something that might as well be constructed from rubber bands & chewing gum. The people keep you in business; ignore them/piss them off/insert bad behavior here & you're just asking for problems.

You don't "ask" for shows to be released; a true consumer demands it!! A company not prostrating itself to consumer demand shouldn't be in business since it's lost the capitalist battle.

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

Get Off Your Butt & Take Action

Well, I had a horrible day before my husband came home. I'm still not entirely big on hanging around the general public & tomorrow's my 4 year anniversary. Yes, I got married on October 13th; Friday the 13th, in fact. That was deliberate & as my husband isn't some traditionalist with a perfect love life, he was all for my idea to do it. Even now, Friday the 13th tends to be a great day for me & for him.

So, my horrible day. Here's a list:

* Go to the subway station. My closest station has full body turnstile gates to get in. I scan my card & go in after the person in front of me like a normal person. The gate swings back & hits me in the mouth, causing it to bleed. The gate is apparently defective in having the little swing back after you've paid. My lip has a noticeable spot & swelling where this happened, ruining my plans to kiss my husband good-bye this morning.

You'd better believe I'll be making an issue of it w/the MTA & that if I EVER get injured anywhere I'll be filing a lawsuit immediately. I'm even tempted to find Jay Walder's personal telephone number, call it up to give him a piece of my mind since I bet you a million dollars those pricks won't fix that gate & publish that number for the populace to ream him out for supporting the massive fare increase in December. Will I be mentioning that I'm a lawyer? Do men check me out all the time? The answer to both is a resounding "Hell, yes!"

* When I get on the subway, I realize I forgot my lunch so now I have to spend money to buy some. This after STILL not getting my first paycheck for a temp assignment I've been at for over a month. If that's not fixed, I'm not paying transit costs to do a freebie. I have too many other more useful things I can do at home & I don't need the hassle of finding a parking space or altering my sleep schedule. I also don't take kindly to not getting paid & have no tolerance for waiting around for my paycheck. That's the same song & dance I got from Bennie the Con Man and he had to pay for my travel or I wouldn't show up.

* Then I find out my cell phone battery is dead, meaning I can't call anyone or speak to my husband during this crappy day.

* Work became a few catastrophes with color running out of the printer, the phone not ringing through, etc. but did resolve itself. Thankfully, I was doing something requiring me to be alone; that was great b/c I was definitely in an anti-social mood.

* After work is finished, I go to the subway station to refill my MetroCard. The machine says the MetroCard can't be read. Funny but I used that card this morning to suffer the mouth injury. I go to the agent & apparently, the card is damaged. However, she says that the last time the card was used was on Saturday. It doesn't say a thing about this morning. I know I'd have been more pissed about going to the other side of the station, a number of blocks away from my home, to get a new card & have $ for the trip.

* While trying to get home, my iPod battery dies. Can this day get any better?

* Of course, I arrive home & there's no parking on the side of the street I need to be on for Thursday. What a shocker!

On top of this, we find a mouse in our apartment on Sunday. Rather, the cat does. Apparently the landlord thinks the holes in the wall don't have to be sealed b/c we have a cat; I plan to suggest that he pay some $ toward the cat's upkeep if that's his justification for not taking care of this. I'll also see what the city would have to say about having your renters live in a mouse infestation or their home being a wayward area for them despite your having a cat. The landlord knows I'm a lawyer & lawyers are better known for not taking shit from others.

The fact that we have a cat is irrelevant to this b/c what if we were allergic or were banned by the lease from having one? I would never live someplace that banned cats & I love my killer feline but if he's solely responsible for rodent control, that means a rent deduction until this problem's resolved. Same w/the messed up radiator that hasn't been looked at in our bedroom. If that's not resolved, I don't get full rental value of my home & you don't get full rent until it's fixed.

While on the subway this morning, I come to a realization. It's a very good thing that I am educated & know how to enforce my rights. Being a lawyer also pretty much tells the world that you know this stuff better than the average person or at least can locate the proper resource. If I were not a lawyer and people wouldn't bother listening to what I had to say, I would snap. I couldn't take being some poor person who's trampled upon and ignored. Being oppressed would cause me to snap, form my own army & take down some scumbags.

I was thinking about that classmate of mine who recently robbed a bank & realized I would never rob a bank. That's just stupid. A smart person would get a job, gain the manager's trust & then be an embezzler who doesn't get caught. Maybe that shows you a bit of the intelligence divide as to how you commit theft. I think most people would want me to help them commit a crime since I'm the type who if I do something, I'll do it extremely well.

Also, I don't tend to be a top suspect in a given situation. When I was in high school one day when my teacher had been a chaperon for a senior trip, I didn't have a class or teacher to go to since I was the only non-senior in that class. I walked around the halls, waiting for someone to stop me since I had no idea where to go or what to do & would have loved to hear what one does when (s)he has no class, no teacher + the classroom door is locked.

People around me were being stopped by teachers but no one ever stopped me. I bet I could have gotten away with leaving the campus if I'd had half a mind to do so. Well, and a car but I ended up hanging out w/another teacher in her class since it was her free period & I wasn't interrupting a class.

Oh, and I'm quite certain I could have effected a school shooting situation in high school that would have made Columbine look like nothing and would have been far better at it since I had access to things you average student didn't. No one planned that one b/c I'm pretty sure I've have been asked to participate given my general dislike of being here to start with, being a big mouth rebel + that special access/trust. I'd have certainly heard about it considering I'd have done it myself if I hadn't seen a future for me outside that town. I still think if you really want to do that right, then you have to recruit a "good kid" who's trusted by the man, so to speak.

Take a lesson, power brokers of the world. You don't want smart people to languish & get no opportunities to succeed or you just get master criminals. It's a point I've made before but I'm very committed to it and my first hand experience tends to support it.

On that note, I think smart attorneys who are so downtrodden & unable to find employment would do the same if they had lived in some of my situations or understood the concept of asserting yourself. I also think you're better off doing what you want in life, even if you aren't getting rich than to be miserable but have tons of money.

Saturday, October 9, 2010

General Musings, Part 8

A few more observations & remarks. I realized I had a bunch of links that I need to make comment on before I forget. Been doing a lot today & have been tired at the moment but here goes.

My only comment to this one is that if I were one of the family members of one of these teens who committed suicide instead of focusing that rage outward & the bullies came to the funeral and laughed at the corpse of my deceased relative that they tormented, I sure as hell wouldn't just stand and watch.

Instead, I'd be murdering the little shits or doing something so sinister and vicious to them that they'd begging for the sweet release of death. I would imagine you'd have a good argument for the insanity defense in that situation & I know if it were me, I wouldn't be able to stop myself. I can't even stop myself from confronting assholes who mess w/cats; let's face it, most people who know me would say you don't want to cross me unless you really hate valuable body parts or hate having a good quality of life. I suppose the fact that I was tormented myself as a child would make it even more likely that someone doing that would suffer.

Here's the first lawyer ad I've seen on Craig's List asking for supermodels:


Corporate/Escrow Attorney Needed (Manhattan-Philadelphia)
Date: 2010-10-03, 12:10PM EDT
Reply to: job-c6nnp-1986524457@craigslist.org [Errors when replying to ads?]

We are a financial firm looking to hire an attorney full time. The primpary duties will be as follows:

Provide analysis and counsel on legal, policy, and environmental issues to include; proposed new products, protecting intellectual property, mergers & acquisitions, financial offerings, financial structuring, securities offerings, compliance issues for banking transactions, nondisclosure agreements, outsourcing agreements and business strategic planning.
Anticipate and guard against legal risks facing the company.
Develop and recommend company policy and position on legal issues.
Conduct and coordinate research into a variety of legal issues.
Represent the Company or its officials in various legal proceedings.
Prepare legal pleadings, motions, discovery, stipulations, etc.
Write, review, and edit reports, opinions, correspondence, articles, and other documents.
Write and administer complex vendor, client, and employment contracts.
Develop and recommend of operating policy and procedural improvements.
Open and handle banking accounts for both business related transactions and as well as escrow transactions.
Other duties as assigned.

This position is designed for an entry level to mid level person. We will train the right person for this position.Prefer those who are licensed in multiple states or willing to get licensed in multiple states.

To be considered for this position please include a cover letter, resume, writing sample, and professional photograph.

* Location: Manhattan-Philadelphia
* Compensation: 120,000.00 +
* Principals only. Recruiters, please don't contact this job poster.
* Please, no phone calls about this job!
* Please do not contact job poster about other services, products or commercial interests.

PostingID: 1986524457


Newsflash: when you ask for pictures, you're pretty much telling the world that you're seeking a supermodel or planning to engage in some sort of employment discrimination. This person was asking to be reamed out for it.

There's also this.

I agree w/some of these points but I'd say don't put in blood, sweat and tears unless you're an owner or work for someone who actually appreciates you. Remember that you always have to look out for yourself regardless & if it's not your business, you should be selfish. This is a lesson I learned after having employers who didn't appreciate me or tried scamming me.

Finally, the Republicans aren't the "party of paychecks" by a long shot contrary to what this article says.

There's some points on the Democrat side about not being supportive of business but I consider Republicans the party of intolerance. Or even the party of bigots or the party who could care less about anyone making less than $80K a year. Again, one more reason I follow no one & am an independent. I'd like to see a common sense party rise up since no group follows the things I believe in even 80%; most have some stance on an issue that I find serious flaws in.

I've got more rants in me but now getting a bit sleepy so better to end it when you're coherent, huh?

Thursday, October 7, 2010

The Divide Between the Religious and the Non-Religious

So I just heard about a real life situation that illustrates the massive divide between the religious and the non-religious. For those not aware, I grew up in a religious household. I was even in a religious private school from 1st-3rd grade. The religion was Baptist, specifically independent Baptist. Woodland wasn't part of the Southern Baptist Convention, which is a good thing because its policies really piss my off inner feminist. If you aren't familiar with what I'm referring to, perhaps the statement "Wives should submit graciously to their husbands" will jog your memory.

That bone of contention is for another day. The story I have will really illuminate things.

My sister is getting married in a few months. She and the groom are not multimillionaires; they have a 4 month old and a 7 year old to take care of plus money is tight. They are trying to save up to have a nice wedding. This time, my sister wants a nicer, formal affair since her last wedding was, in her words "thrown together at the last minute." We finally sorted out the dress debacle with my sister agreeing not to pick bright shades of yellow and orange for dresses and considering her sister's appearance as much as anyone else's in bridesmaid/matron of honor dresses. They looked at the color match on me so that's been settled. She finally picked out a flattering style yesterday that I now just need to get measurements for. She even finally found her wedding dress, another long ordeal.

Now she's trying to find a venue. They tend to be too much money, costing anywhere from hundreds to thousands of dollars. My aunt, in the spirit of Christian kindness, suggests they have the wedding & reception at her church. She is a member and this church does hold some significance to the bride and the groom: my sister & I attended Girl Scout meetings there in middle school and the minister performing the ceremony (a relative of the groom's) did preach there once.

So my aunt goes out of her way to speak to the people at this church & the pastor apparently offered a very generous rate to them. My sister is told to call the church secretary.

When she does, the church secretary greets her with attitude & proclaims in a smart alack tone "Well, YOU'RE not a member." They send my sister paperwork on their rules, policies, etc. We get it: it's a church so you can't have alcohol. That just saves us from another potential fight anyway considering the groom would be okay with it but my sister is not so keen on having it. We also understand basic courtesies and standards of proper behavior.

So my sister gets this paperwork, where she's nickled and dimed to death. This brings the total to use the space to...$850!! This is much, MUCH farther away than the figure my aunt tells her. Both my mother & I say she should speak to my aunt.

Others have offered alternative sites but my biggest issue is making sure no one attempts to convert me or my spouse or hassles us for not belonging to a particular church or faith. My mother assures me that won't be a problem.

With conduct like this church is pulling though, where is the so called "Christian love and charity"? These people do not have $850 for this; why don't they just sell the space on the general marketplace and let ANYONE use it regardless of their faith??? Attitude like what I heard about and this whole scheme definitely doesn't inspire me or my mother to join this church and in my view, makes the atheist cause even stronger.

You can get attitude like this without any church association or religiosity involved. I expect better from "people of faith" so when you add this to other instances I've encountered of shitty behavior from "Christians", is it any wonder many of us aren't interested in joining people's churches or affiliating with a membership? This expecting better also extends to not being forced to pay a clergy member to support efforts they should support anyway because it's the right thing to do and God would agree. That also bolsters the atheist cause & is why I consider churches headed by powerful ministers to be complete contradiction to what God would want. If you have to pay these ministers to do something, then they are no better than politicians and should renounce the title of "minister", "reverend" or whatever they use to claim spiritual superiority over the rest of us.

This is not to say I haven't met some good ministers who aren't utter hypocrites but generally, if the person's church isn't nondenominational, Pagan, Jewish or some faith that isn't Catholic, Baptist or an off shoot of one of them I will have massive distrust for that clergy person. I judge a lot of this on how they treat people who are different, what they say about people who are different and if they go around condemning people or saying "you're going to burn in Hell." Telling me that my husband & I shouldn't be together for the sake of religious faith or being rude to him in any way because of his views is definitely a huge black mark against you.

I was also never a member of any church, even as a child. Despite the fact that I was in a sorority, a ton of clubs in high school and some bar association committees today, I'm not really what you'd call a "joiner." Most of the time, I've not felt like I was "in" with any of these groups. There's being a name member & then there's actually being part of things and feeling included. The feeling of inclusion tends to elude me. Even when I was in my sorority, I started to feel like a fringe later on and only stuck it out because I'd been there so long already. I've been a fringe in most places and not always because I'm a private person or have problems trusting people. I haven't had many people make me feel like my contribution was appreciated or that they were happy to have me around; honestly, I've had to strong-arm my way into things because if I didn't then I would get excluded.

I feel like church membership would be the same thing and I could get that without the shroud of religion over everything. The fact that I expect more from institutions that tout certain messages and ideas probably makes me idealist, naive, whatever.

However, if I should expect hypocrisy and the same bullshit in a church membership then what is the point of belonging to one at all? I'm better served keeping to myself and practicing faith in my own way; this is precisely what I've done. I believe God exists but won't follow an organized religion since hypocrisy is far too rampant.

And guess who ruined good peer relations for me??? The jerks I knew in religious private school. Some grew up to be decent people while others are still jerks. If my best friend at the time hadn't been around, I'd have been far worse off.

Saturday, October 2, 2010

Tattoos & Piercings on the Job

I saw this issue posted in an HR blog I read on occasion (largely, to learn how to be good at it & avoid screwing up).

This is an interesting issue for me since I actually have a tattoo myself. You'd never see it unless you saw me in underwear or a swimsuit but it is there. I'm not going to say what it is since if you know me, you're already aware of it or saw it & if you don't, then this is personal knowledge you don't get to have unless you actually get to know me.

I'd wanted one for years but couldn't figure out what design I wanted. I knew where I wanted it before I knew the design to get. Not long after getting dumped by Vampire Boy (or maybe it was a little before then?), I had my design figured out. There's a symbolism behind it, in fact. It represented my view that there was no love for me, that no soul mate existed for The Angry Redheaded Lawyer (or in those days, The Angry Redheaded Coed).

When I turned 22, I decided to get the tattoo as a present to myself after enduring all these hard breakups & general emotional pain I'd had over the years. I had never actually loved anyone I dated (though I wasn't sure about Vampire Boy until years later) & felt like everyone was ahead of me in that realm. I figured that was my fate & I'd die that way; getting the tattoo was, for me, an acceptance of that fate. It was my way of saying a prospective boyfriend couldn't hurt me as badly as he might want to since I simply was incapable of being in love with anyone in the true sense of that phrase.

The oddest thing was my mother, a fairly conservative woman, saw the tattoo when I was getting changed into the bridesmaid dress for my sister's wedding a couple months later and complimented me on it! She felt it was pretty & tasteful. My mother's probably closer to the anti-tattoo camp than most people & I'm still shocked she likes it.

A guy I dated afterward (the one who was 14 years older than me) didn't like it at all & asked me "What if my kids see it?" I said that I would point out that I am a grown-up and when they turn 18, then they can get tattoos.

People are still shocked when they hear I have one: I think I went up a few cool points with people at the film company when I told them about having one. When my Public Speaking teacher heard me talking about getting one in college, he (an attorney) said "Don't you know? ALL attorneys have tattoos!"

Having gotten one, I have a few words about them:

1. Don't get one unless you REALLY want it. Getting mine felt like someone taking a rusty nail and etching into my skin. I'm not kidding!! You gain a new respect for people who have tattoos once you get one for yourself. Especially if they are in bony or sensitive places!! I had one sorority sister who got tattoos on the front of her foot; I couldn't imagine doing that.

2. Go to a clean, reputable tattoo parlor. I went to a place recommended by a sorority sister who'd gotten a few and was becoming the resident tattoo fiend.

3. Pick a location where you can cover it up if you want to work in a mainstream job. Though at the law firm I worked at, I had a co-worker who had a very large shoulder/upper arm tattoo she covered up. I also had a co-worker who dressed goth & worked in the firm's foreclosure department. These were also pleasant people who never ticked me off.

So if you're a paralegal, you might be able to get away with it if you don't work at a law firm headed by some jerk devoid of personality and any appreciation for creativity.

Maybe I could get away w/getting a second tattoo if things work out for me in entertainment...but I'd have to figure out what I wanted & where to put it. I also hate having the same things as everyone else so it would have to be unique enough to satisfy me.

4. Don't pick a location on your body that will look nasty with age. I avoided my stomach, cleavage, butt or anything that might get fat or droopy as I age. A high school teacher I had once said that you don't want a tattoo somewhere that looks silly when you're 80 & in a rest home.

5. Make sure you can see what the artist is doing i.e. no tattoos where you can't see them. It's sure to end up misspelled & then you're not getting it for you; you're getting it for strangers. That's just not my forte; if it's yours, have fun but don't complain if the tattoo doesn't come out like you want it.

So I tend to get a little bitchy toward people who have this holier than thou attitude when it comes to people w/tattoos. I also have the view that if you aren't making a ton of money at a job, you shouldn't be expected to dress like you make six figures.

For example, no way will I wear a business suit unless you pay me six figures since I'd have to put in tons of money for alterations & go to specialty shops to find anything fitting my skinny butt. Almost every suit I have could use some alteration so it doesn't look baggy on me. Not to mention I feel more like I should be going to a fashion model photo shoot when I wear one than to court or some law firm. All lawyers should do this; at least legal aid attorneys are told to dress more casually so they don't offend clients.

I also hate uniforms; I loved working at JcPenney b/c though you had to dress up, you got some creative license. I think that's what I love about my industry; the fact that creative license is encouraged instead of shunned.

I don't see myself turning people away for having a piercing or tattoo. Don't think I'd be big on doing that if someone's a good applicant & the item wasn't completely offensive. I understand religious symbols, curse words, nudity; get up in arms over those all you want. Get mad about people not covering up certain things in reasonable situations like cleavage or tramp stamps. Demanding long sleeves when it's 100 degrees outside & inside is NOT reasonable; demanding this in a cool room is.

But when you start demanding a strip search as part of the job, it's over the top. I also think it's over the top to get demanding on appearance for low paid workers who have enough to deal with. If the tattoo harms a waitress, she'll see it in the tips. I think some problems solve themselves so you don't have to be an ass to people; a sales person offending people with appearance will hear about it sooner or later in loss of sales or a client speaking up.

I remember seeing an episode of "True Life" where this guy was getting massive tattoo removal for his fiancee, who pretty much demanded him to get them removed or she wouldn't marry him. I still think "What a bitch!" What happened to liking people for themselves?? Didn't she fall in love with this guy as he was? If he was making his own choice, that's one thing but it struck me that he was mostly doing it and trying to get a "respectable" job because this bitch commanded it. Yes, I hate women like that. They make the rest of us look bad.

The holier than thou folk saying "Don't get a tattoo or piercing," can shove it up their collective rear ends. I feel such things are a personal choice. Deal with them and find things that work FOR that choice instead of against it. I don't regret getting mine and if my husband had told me to remove it, I'd tell him to piss off. Anyone else would hear even worse.

Basing your opinion of someone on that is the same as telling someone to lose weight before you'll date him/her or telling a woman to get implants or she's not good enough for you. Who the hell do you think you are to tell anyone that??? Don't let anyone manipulate you that way; love yourself first! If someone doesn't like you for you, they don't deserve your time.

Give me a good worker with a tattoo or piercing any day over some incompetent who dresses all boring and beige. I've concluded that I really don't fit with the average corporate workplace since there are too many boring and beige folk and I can't relate to that. Again, I still believe you can dress tastefully without dressing like the old person you aren't or a total frump with no originality at all.