Misogyny Targets Meghan Markle

Women have come a long way in the past 50 years. I came of age at a time when college girls weren’t allowed to wear pants on campus. Jeans could be worn only to chemistry classes. Assertive women were shunned, especially if they were good looking. But that all changed in the 60’s, when the pill allowed women the same freedom men had always enjoyed. Women no longer have to depend on men for their livelihood. They now have access to careers in formerly male -dominated occupations like doctor, lawyers, and engineers. And yet, when we see the way misogyny targets Meghan Markle, we know it’s alive and well in Britain and all over the world.

Some misogynists simply hate all beautiful women. But British television reporter Piers Morgan demonstrates a particular kind of misogyny. They don’t hate beautiful women who conform to their ideal of the way women should act: women who defer to men in all things, and behave as if they are inferior to men in ability and intelligence. Morgan’s particular kind of misogyny is reserved for women with power and status, who stand up for themselves and make their own decisions.

Why do the British love Kate Middleton and hate Meghan Markle? Because Kate is nothing more than a wife and mother. She has never accomplished much of anything on her own. She came from a wealthy family, and was called “waity Katy,” because she dated Prince William for 9 years before he finally proposed.. She’s sweet and demure and never challenges the status quo. She knows what good for her, and that’s to behave more or less like a Stepford Wife. Look beautiful and fashionable, and be a good sport when your husband has an affair with your best friend.

But Meghan was a bootstrapper from the git go. A mixed race child from a marriage that ended in divorce. A little girl envied and despised by her step siblings. Graduated from Northwestern University, then finally made it as an actress in a popular television series. Then had the nerve to get a divorce from a man she no longer loved. This is not what wins the heart of misogynists like Piers Morgan.

Misogyny is alive and well, even in the United States. Misogyny targets Megan Markle, but you know what? I think she can handle it.

March 26, 2021March 26, 2021

DG MARKET RESCUED THE FOOD DESERT

Our city has one of the highest poverty rates in the state of Indiana. A disproportionate number of low income people live in the inner city, in old, deteriorating houses and apartments. At one time, there was an A&P within walking distance, but that disappeared long ago. It was never replaced. Nowhere to shop but the Dollar Store. Which meant that you often saw people buying unhealthy foods. Bacon, sugary snacks, processed meat . Because nothing fresh was available. But this week , DG Market rescued the food desert.

dg MARKET has rescued the inner city food desert with fresh produce. — DG Market rescued the food desert in our inner city last week.

Imagine my surprise yesterday, when I stopped for my usual supply of bargains like mouthwash and vitamins. It’s on the way home from the YMCA and the library, so I often pull in there, even though it used to be one of the dingiest Dollar Stores in town: piles of jumbled up merchandise. aisles of packaged food full of salt, carbohydrates, and fat. (Potato chips, lunch meat, cupcakes, etc.)

A lot of their clientele suffer from diabetes and obesity, due to poor diets. Many folks don’t drive. Can’t afford a car, and all that it entails—insurance, license plates, etc. Breaks your heart to see them trudging along in inclement weather with heavy bags. But yesterday, a bright light appeared. A great big yellow sign that read, DG Market. I really didn’t need anything, but when I saw a grand opening sign, I had to stop.

First thing I noticed was the neatly stocked shelves. No tables and racks piled with merchandise. Plenty of room. A fresh smell. And then, as I approached the new self-serve checkout, my heart soared. Just inside the door, bananas! Baskets of apples, oranges, fresh vegetables and fruits. And then, believe it or not, a whole refrigerated section with fresh, unprocessed meats.

As a dietitian, I felt like jumping for joy. At last, disadvantaged kids can have an orange for breakfast, a fresh salad for dinner. And a pork chop or chicken leg that isn’t full of sodium and preservatives. Patients with high blood pressure can buy low sodium meat and fresh fruits to provide the potassium they need to keep their fluids under control. Kudus to Dollar General for rescuing our city’s food desert.

March 24, 2021March 24, 2021

New cars don’t appeal after 80

Back in the fifties and sixties, cars were a huge status symbol. People traded their cars in every two or three years—the flashier, the better. But as the years went by, the new car culture gradually dwindled down. Finally, there comes a time in life when you don’t want a change. New cars don’t appeal after 80.

In the early 20^th century, only the wealthy could afford to own more than one car. As an example, when I was in college, none of my girlfriends owned a car. If anyone did, they came from a rich family. After graduating college and going to work in Chicago, it was rare for a young city dweller to own a car. Everyone took the subway or the el. But when you did finally marry, settle down, and move to the suburbs, you were expected to have at least one late model car.

That began to change in the late 50’ and early 60’s, when the Volkswagen Beetle craze took over. Suddenly, it was seen as smart to buy a small, gas efficient car that might last for years. In a form of reverse snobbery, it became a point of pride to keep a small, foreign car for years on end. Later on, the Honda replaced the Volkswagen as the favored anti-materialistic vehicle.

The average person today keeps their car for 10 years. That would have made you the object of derision in the 50’s. And yet, cars still do serve as status symbols. Cadillacs may seem a little too flashy, but wealthy people still drive luxury foreign cars like a Lexus or a Beemer.

After you’re 80, though, new cars don’t appeal. They’re way too sophisticated—all the computerized bells and whistles are confusing. Once you’ve gotten used to the dashboard in your car, you don’t want to take on a new one. My car turns 13 this year, and has over 100,000 miles. But I know where everything is. How to turn on the windshield wipes and turn on the defogger. I even had a side door replaced when someone dented it in a parking lot. Yes, I can afford a new car. But I really don’t want one.

March 22, 2021March 22, 2021

WHY DID YOU GO TO COLLEGE?

College enrollment is nosediving everywhere. In college towns, that affects overall prosperity, as retail businesses and restaurants see less revenue coming in. Obviously, the covid-19 pandemic has started this downward spiral. It’s not just because so many people are unemployed, and college is less affordable. It’s also because the main appeal of higher learning isn’t all about academics. Why did you go to college?

When I graduated high school at age 17, I lived a mile from campus, and could walk to class every day. Coming from a small Catholic girls school, most of my 17 classmates entered the workforce as secretaries, factory workers, and other occupations that didn’t require a college degree. But I didn’t want to go on with my same old life. I wanted to re invent myself. Meet new people. Go to parties. Get involved in clubs and activities. Socialize with students from all over the state, the country, and a few foreign students. If college had meant enrolling in online learning, I’m sure it wouldn’t have had the same appeal. In order to broaden my experiences, I would probably have moved to some exciting new place like California.

Another reason many women went on to university was to get what was laughingly called an MRS. degree. They really didn’t want to have a career. But they did want to meet an educated man who could provide them with the ideal life at that time, as a stay at home wife and mother, with a house in the suburbs, a car, and two or three children. That’s all changed. Many people do meet “the love of their life” in college. But now, most female graduates move on to careers in accounting, engineering, and other formerly male dominated occupations. They may decide to marry around the age of 30, or not at all.

Still, the major appeal of college life has more to do with the social aspects. Getting away from home Making friends with new, like minded people. The partying, the activities, clubs, sporting events. When you take away all of that, college loses it’s appeal to those less academically talented. Maybe that’s a good thing, in the end. There are plenty of careers that don’t require a college degree.

Why did you go to college? .

March 19, 2021March 19, 2021

6 GOOD THINGS ABOUT BRITISH TV

Have you watched more television during the Covid-19 pandemic? I’d have to guess that most of us do. Stuck at home during a cold, dark winter, the long evenings were difficult to fill. No concerts to attend, friends to visit, places to go, or things to see and do. They say Netflix has seen an astronomical rise in revenue, and it’s no wonder. However, after watching so much TV, you become a bit more discerning. And many of us have found that we prefer watching British shows. Here are 6 good things about British TV.

The writing is better on the shows. It’s geared to a higher intellectual level. Not PHD’s but not aimed at the sixth grade mentality, either. The BBC produces 30% of all British TV . BBC mission statement is “to act in the public interest, serving all audiences through the provision of impartial, high-quality and distinctive output and services which inform, educate and entertain.” Since BBC isn’t dependent on commercial advertising, they don’t have to worry about pleasing sponsors like Procter and Gamble or Astra Zeneca.

2. Older people are more often major characters. And they aren’t cast as stereotypical seniors (crabby, saintly, sickly, frail). They’re strong men and women who have talents, abilities, enjoy sex, and are flawed in some way.

3. The characters aren’t as good looking as in America. They’re apt to be overweight, wrinkled, or sort of plain. Actors are cast for their talent, not their looks.

4. The females don’t wear as much makeup. They don’t all look like fashion models. They seem more like the women we see every day.

5. .The characters are more restrained. They behave in a rather formal, dignified manner.

6. British accents. Having lived in a small Indiana town, I had never heard a real English accent until I moved to Chicago after college. The best companies hired women with English accents . There are hundreds of different English accents, but all of them are easier on the ears that the flat American way of speaking Even if they use poor grammar, the British accent still sounds posher than an American of a similar social class.

As the pandemic hung on, we found Masterpiece Theatre and other British shows more entertaining than the typical American TV shows, thrown together with predictable plots, and cardboard characters. By this time next year, we’ll surely be watching less television than we do now. But we’ll appreciate the 6 good things we’ve learned about British TV.

March 17, 2021March 17, 2021

SHOULD YOU INSTALL A STAIRLIFT?

Soon after you retire, your children begin to give you advice. And if you live in a two story house, they’re apt to say you ought to move. At that point, unless you’ve worked past the age of 70, you’re feeling pretty spry. The very idea of trading in your double decker home for a one level seems ridiculous. But as the years go by, and your knees begin to give out, you see their point. And yet, the longer you’ve lived in the house you love, the more difficult it is to move. The very idea of all that upheaval stresses you out. Finally, you have to make a decision. Should you downsize, or install a stairlift?

My husband and I have always had arthritic knees—his much worse than mine. But somehow, we managed. After all, we knew there were benefits to a house with stairs. More exercise, stronger leg muscles, and maybe even a longer life.

And then, around five years ago, after a very bad rainy season, our defenses weakened and we called a stairlift salesman. We liked the company rep who called on us. He measured, evaluated our situation, and gave us an estimate. We were sold—even gave him a deposit which he said was refundable if we changed our minds right away.

Then, the weather got better. Our joints didn’t hurt so much. We worried that our house would look cluttered and depressing with all this handicapped paraphernalia. My husband got some shots in his knees, and decided he really could handle the stairs just fine. We got our deposit back.

Should you install a stairlift? Yes, if it helps you stay in your own home. — Should you install a stairlift? The cost is far less than the expense of moving.

Fast forward five years later to the present time. My husband suffered a major fall. Lucky his bones are strong. Nothing was broken, but he had a knot on his head and bruises all over his body. Time to face reality. Before even telling our kids about the fall, we’d already called the stairlift company. Believe it or not, they still had the original estimate on file. Even though prices had increased, they honored the quote they had given us. The cost of the product was far less than the expense of moving to another place.

The stairlift is in, and it looks fine. We didn’t have to take down any pictures or lock up a closet door. The house looks pretty much the same, and he feels better, gliding smoothly up and down the stairs with no pain in his knees.. Should you invest in a stairlift? If it helps you stay in your own home awhile longer, I would say yes.

March 15, 2021March 15, 2021

KARMA STRIKES BACK AT CHARLES

Does anyone remember when Princess Di Married the Prince of Wales? From the outside it looked like a fairytale marriage. When, in fact, it was a nightmare from the git go. How many bridegrooms would leave their betrothed alone in a dark room the night before their wedding, while schmoozing on the phone with his old girlfriend? Apparently, Diana wanted to back out, but her sisters told her she had to go through with it. She married a man who didn’t love her, and she knew it. If he’d kept it to himself and put on a good show, it wouldn’t have been so bad. But Charles treated her like dirt, divorced her, married Camilla, and thought he got away with it. But he didn’t. Because now, bad karma strikes back at Charles.

How can anyone believe that the sons of this disastrous union wouldn’t be somewhat psyched up? Apparently, William was old enough to handle his mother’s miserable marriage, divorce, and untimely death. But Harry was just a little kid. At twelve years old, forced to march in a parade behind his mother’s coffin. It’s a miracle he ended up so well.

After the Oprah interview last week with Meghan and Harry, the British press went bonkers. How could Harry say such horrible things about his family on public television? The question is, why wouldn’t he? A victim should be able to tell his side of the story in the end. And yes, Harry was a victim of his father’s narcissistic treatment of his mother. Are we saying that people with money don’t have emotional problems? That if they do have them, they should be ashamed of themselves?

I have no idea why Charles was such a callous person. Maybe it went back to his Mom trying so hard to be a queen that she didn’t have much time for mothering. Not to mention dealing with a notoriously womanizing husband. That’s the thing about karma. It just goes on and on, echoing down through the centuries.

Maybe Harry and Meghan are trying to give their kids some good karma by moving to America. I hope it works. Because bad karma is striking back at Charles right now.

LIVING WELL AFTER 80

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