THE PSYCHOLOGY IN FAIRY TALES

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Have you ever considered what demented minds have created some of our most beloved fairy tales?

I was in the library the other day reading Snow White to a young child and my mind started racing. Some of this stuff is actually quite terrifying when you think about it, and I wonder whether young imaginations aren't put into overdrive when some of these stories are read to them. There can also be some humorous connotations to some aspects of the stories.

While Hans Christian Andersen's The Ugly Duckling is a classic, Andersen himself was homosexual and effeminate, so much so that co-workers took bets on whether he was, in fact, a girl. His mother was alcoholic, his aunt a pimp, his half sister a prostitute. This guy was doomed.

Due to a shortage of food and the inability of parents to feed their offspring during the Middle Ages, infanticide was fairly common. This is the original basis for the story about Hansel and Gretel. But the original version also has Hansel and Gretel stealing jewels from the witch once they have pushed her into the oven. Latter day morality resulted in a sanitized version of this fairy tale, but the overall horror of it remains.

Then, of course, there's Cinderella's psychologically damaged step mother and twisted half sisters. Wonderful role models for our children's minds.

In The Three Little Pigs, the wolf is in drag.

In Sleeping Beauty, there are 13 fairies. Hmmm.

Don't ya wonder why Snow White needed SEVEN dwarfs?? Some woman, she must've been.

In the original version of Rapunzel, rapunzel is a plant that the pregnant mother desired. Hmmm again. Wonder what THAT plant looked like? When the child was born and named Rapunzel, she was locked in the tower at age 12 (These folks knew their stuff. That's EXACTLY where pre-teen girls should be!) But why was a WITCH climbing Rapunzel's hair every day to get to the tower to visit her? The prince didn't come into the story til much later. Hmmm, hmmm, and hmmm.

And the most twisted tale of all is Alice in Wonderland. This story is full of wonderful satire, but it's also notorious for all the allusions to psychedelic experiences -- lots of ingesting of wafers, mushrooms and potions resulting in interesting physiological changes to the characters. Did Lewis Carroll do drugs? Lots more hmmms.

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RIP, BARNEY FIFE

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How I loved Don Knotts. What a facile, unique talent he was.

There aren't many like him any more -- Tim Conway and Jonathan Winters have retreated into near retirement. Robin Williams is about the only one out there young enough to continue to provide us with that quirky quickness, that off-the-wall spontaneity. Don Knotts will forever be Deputy Fife, and none of us who grew up watching him and Andy Griffith will ever forget him.

Bless your heart, Don.

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SOUTH DAKOTA AND THE ABORTION ISSUE

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What in the world is South Dakota THINKING? This abortion issue should have been resolved thirty years ago -- it should not be something we continue to rehash. It makes me sick that South Dakota legislators (predominately male) have once again decided that women's right to choose is up for grabs. Even eliminating a woman's right to abortion as a result of incest or rape isn't on the table in that state, which is maddening to a great many of us. To circumscribe abortion only to saving the life of the mother is absurd -- just absolutely absurd.
Yeah, yeah. States' rights and all that. And while I truly dislike the federal government inserting itself into so many issues of substance that individual states should decide, the right to choose is the one issue about which I believe there should be nationwide consistency. I have personally opined on this subject in great deteail in an earlier post (The Importance of Preserving Roe v. Wade, 11/1/2005) so will not re-state the obvious. But I am concerned with the direction of things here and can only hope that pro-choice groups can exert enough muscle to derail momentum toward another challenge to Roe v. Wade.

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COGNITIVE DISSONANCE

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Hang with me a minute here.

I've been reading a lot lately about cognitive dissonance (CD). Don't ask me why because I've no clue. It's just one of those things that I stumbled on which fascinated me. It's an interesting subject with varying layers of psychological ramifications, some of which are humorous.

There is, of course, a drawn-out clinical definition for CD; but basically it boils down to this:
As thinking human beings we may hold beliefs (cognitions) which are contradictory within ourselves and that psychological turmoil (dissonance) can motivate us to change our behavior.

An example of this is an experiment done years ago in disparagement humor which tested whether freely telling insulting jokes about a target group might bring about a less favorable attitude toward that group as a result of CD. Guess what the target group was. Lawyers. I had to laugh when I read about that experiment since most of us already have our own dissonance about lawyers.

So, as a blog experiment, here's a panoply of some good lawyer jokes. Read them and get into your psychological self as you do so. Then let me know if you've changed your mind about our courtroom friends. LOLOLOLOL

How many lawyers does it take to change a light bulb? You won't find a lawyer who can change a light bulb. Now, if you're looking for a lawyer to screw a light bulb....

What's the difference between God and a lawyer? God doesn't think he's a lawyer.

You're trapped in a room with a tiger, a rattlesnake and a lawyer. You have a gun with two bullets. What should you do? Shoot the lawyer. Twice.

How many lawyer jokes are there? Only three. The rest are true stories.

What should you do if you find a lawyer buried up to his neck in cement? Get more cement.

What's the difference between a lawyer and an onion? You cry when you cut up an onion.

What do you call a lawyer gone bad? Senator.

What do you call a lawyer with an IQ of 50? Your Honor.

Okay, got it? These disparaging jokes have now made you feel guilty about your stereotypical feelings about lawyers and have changed the way you feel about them, right? LOLOLOLOL

So much for cognitive dissonance.

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ISLAM AND al QAEDA

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I guess you've all seen today's headlines indicating that Afghan students are threatening to join al Qaeda over the cartoons first published in Denmark depicting the Prophet Mohammad. What is WRONG with this picture?
Didn't Stalin refer to those who could be easily manipulated as "the convenient masses"?
When is the World going to wake up and realize that ISLAM DOES NOT DESERVE TO BE REFERRED TO AS RELIGION?!!!!!!!!!!!

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GITMO

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Kofi Annan thinks we should close the prison at Guantanamo Bay for terror suspects ASAP.


And we care WHY what Kofi Annan thinks?
All together now: BOO!!!!!!!!!!

CHENEY VS. WHITTINGTON

Texas Oasis: Area replete with wildlife, hunters abounding, quails a'flyin'

Texas Mirage: Oops!


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SIGH AGAIN

I decided to contemplate my navel.



I had to rest.

KICK-ASS COMMENTARY

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The World has just plowed into becoming dysfunctional and wrong-headed. I want The World to cut it out, too.

I'm including a link in this post to my absolutely, positively favorite columnist, Charles Krauthammer, who dead-ons every topic he attacks. His take on the flap about the Islamic cartoons is so to-the-point that I have to include it here for you to click on and read. It never ceases to amaze me the extent to which "religion" has turned us into blathering idiots. Anyway, check out Krauthammer's (and most of the thinking world's) take on this mess. (Because of the length of the link, it throws my template format off. Consequently, it's got to go on two lines so you'll have to type it in rather than just clicking on the link. Sorry about that.) www.townhall.com/opinion/column/charleskrauthammer/
2006/02/10/185941.html

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MARTHA IN MY THOUGHTS

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I've been thinking about Martha Stewart a lot recently. Okay, okay, so I need to get a life, right?
Nah.
What I've been thinking though is that Martha has sold out, and that disturbs me. I realize she was faced with having to make some changes to the way she does business when she was released from prison, but what she's done is turn her successful television program into just another ennui-producing talk show. It sickens me.
Martha herself is not something most people would tune in to watch. Her personality is unbelievably bland and she is actually quite humorless. But blandness and stoicism were okay in her previous TV show because she was imparting culinary and design tips, not doing stand-up on open mike night. Her new show has incorporated "celebrities" into the mix, and she has deviated from what she does best. I can't watch any more. I'm a fan of her culinary knowledge, her decorating style, her organizational ideas. But I'm NOT a fan of Martha the person.
So, to use her OWN words, this is NOT "a good thing."

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WHAT MY LIFE WOULD BE LIKE IF........

What my life would be like if I'd never gotten married:
I would never
have known the joys (and heartaches) of parenthood
have known the joys and heartaches of being a wife.

If we hadn't separated:
I would never
have known how wonderful the younger generation of men is
have smoked a joint (my first and last)
have started this blog
have changed my mindset
have appreciated those liberal views
have joined a gym
have seen a counselor
have found out what I want to be when I grow up.

I was always Chet's wife, Daren's and Shannon's mom; Cody's and Dusty's grandmom; the den mother; the PTA president; the staffing specialist. And it's taken me a long while to get to here, to have a CLUE who I am. Some of it I don't like, some of it I do. I'm working on the part I don't like, but there probably aren't enough years left to fix it all. The part of me that I think is okay could still stand improvement, but at least it's a positive. I just wish I had the energy to pursue those things that make me happy -- like opening a classy southern tea room in old town Fredericksburg amid all the Civil War history or having a writing career. This blog is the closest thing I'll ever get to that...lol... but it serves a purpose and props me up with creative thought.

Someday maybe I'll be a whole person.

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YOKE MATES

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Recently I was reading an article about the evolution of traditional families. Evidently in the 1800s, wives were referred to as "yoke mates." I'm not sure wives are any better off today.

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ATTENTION, YAHOO PERSONALS SUBSCRIBERS !

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Attention, male Yahoo Personals subscribers !

This is MY blog and I post what I want, but please don't think me rude here.

I'd enjoy trading emails or engaging in an online chat with you ONLY IF YOU DO NOT HAVE:

a profile picture of you standing with your Harley (or any other motorcycle)
a profile picture of you standing beside your bass boat
a profile picture of you standing with your camper or motor home
a profile picture of you with a baseball cap turned backwards or worse yet, sideways
tatoos ANYWHERE on your body
piercings ANYWHERE on your body (including ears)
a pony tail
hair longer than mine
a wedding ring (even if it's not on your finger)
toothpicks in your shirt pocket (see blog post of 1/31)
a yo-yo (see blog post of 1/31)

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MORE SIGHING

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why am i so lost when we're apart?
why did i lose you?

come back, Mind.

(lol...see, i finally laughed.)

WHAT'S IN A NAME?

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It amazes me the things people name their offspring. Sometimes I wonder if they're actually thinking or if they just consider some of this stuff funny. And some of it IS. Only trouble is, I'd hate to go through life with a moniker the likes of

Pearly Gates
Iva Ford
Harry Mount
Sunny Moon
Dreama Long
Misty Knight
Dusty Rhodes
Penny Dollar

Over the years I worked with people who owned those top seven names. Penny Dollar was a girl I knew slightly in high school. Hopefully she didn't marry someone with the last name Pincher.

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PATRIOTISM

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This is an email sent to me today, and it touched me -- as I believe it will all of you. I'm proud to share it with you. I don't know who the author is or I'd give him much-deserved credit.

"Call me a sissy. Call me corny, out-dated, or whatever you think appropriate. But on Saturday, 12 November, I cried. I sat in front of my television with tears streaming down my face. It was not a war movie or a love story on the screen, but a football game!

I had just watched my team, Navy, seriously defeated by a powerhouse Notre Dame, 42-21. But that was not the reason for my tears.

When the game ended, a reporter ran up to Charlie Weis, Notre Dame's phenomenal coach, and asked him one of the usual post-game questions. Coach Weis politely, but firmly, told the reporter he had something more important to do and, pushing the microphone aside, headed for the opposite side of the field. With him came the entire Notre Dame team.

What I saw next I will never forget. With their fans looking on, The Fighting Irish joined the Midshipmen and stood respectfully with them as the latter sang Navy Blue and Gold, their alma mater.

An article appeared in a Notre Dame newspaper and described the event as follows: The weather was beautiful, the team looked great, and the home crowd at Notre Dame Stadium had plenty to cheer about on Saturday. However, the most impressive event in that stadium was when 80,795 people did no cheering at all. No yelling, no talking, not even an odd sneeze. Dead silence. That's what the Navy band received at the end of the game while t! hey played their alma mater.

From that moment on, I am forever a Notre Dame fan (though I will still root for Navy when the two teams meet). It was a moment of pure class, of unabashed patriotism, and of true sportsmanship. An all-too-rare combination.

The class part is not too surprising. Though I am not Catholic and have been to Indiana only once, I have long had a healthy respect for Notre Dame as a university with class. Educational standards and the value of tradition have always brought this school much well-deserved respect.

The patriotism part is a bit more complicated. As a Viet Nam veteran, I lived through an era when respect for the military was wanting by too many Americans. It was a time when CBS actually considered taking the Army-Navy game off the air. It was a time when no one thanked you for your service. It was a lonely time.

I suspect that some of the tears I shed in front of the TV were a bit self-indulgent, because I saw something I would have given much to have seen in those dark days. But it was not bitterness I felt; it! was gratitude and thanks that we are now doing it right.

The sportsmanship part is something that lately we are not getting right. I have all but given up on my beloved NFL because it just isn't much fun anymore, when I have to watch players dance and strut after every routine tackle and wave the football in their opponents face after scoring a touchdown. I won't say sportsmanship is dead, but it is seriously wounded.

But when those Notre Dame players stood beside their Navy opponents it was a gesture that said more than thousands of words could ever convey. Class, patriotism, sportsmanship. All in one simple, but noble, gesture.

I have since learned from friends who were there, that the nobility went well beyond that one moment. I was told that the Notre Dame fans did not boo the opposing team when they first ran onto the field which is all too often the case these days instead, they cheered them. And at the end of the first quarter! , the stadium announcer asked the fans to recognize Navy on this day after Veterans Day and they gave the Midshipmen a long standing ovation.

The Irish band played Anchors Aweigh several times during the game and one witness watched as total strangers walked up to the Midshipmen and thanked them for their service. He described it as not just one act of manners it was all day long.

In post-game interviews, I watched spellbound as Notre Dame players spoke not of their own (awesome) achievements on the field, but talked instead of their opponents and how they faced far greater challenges in the future, not on the football field, but on the battlefield. Again, I cried.

Thank you, Charlie Weis, for a class act. Thank you, Notre Dame, for embracing patriotism. Thank you, Navy, for your service."

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LOVE ME; HATE ME

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SEVEN THINGS YOU'D LOVE ABOUT ME:

1) If you're worthy, I'll flatter you, compliment you, prop you up.
2) I know my way around the kitchen and love fixing elaborate dinners.
3) I can have an absolutely bawdy (and risque) sense of humor.
4) I type 80 wpm.
5) I'm honest to a fault, so I'll be glad to give you an opinion.
6) I ALWAYS write thank-you notes for gifts, when I visit people overnight, for any small occasion for which someone has done something meaningful for me.
7.) I always have a good bottle of wine on hand.

SEVEN THINGS YOU'D HATE ABOUT ME:

1) If you're unworthy, it's hard for me to give you the time of day.
2) If I cook it, I expect you to eat it.
3) I can have an absolutely bawdy (and risque) sense of humor.
4) If you're IMing with me and taking lots of time to type a response, you'll probably see THIS from me: "z z z z z"
5.) I'm honest to a fault, remember? So don't ask if you don't wanna know.
6.) I expect a thank-you note from YOU when it's appropriate.
7.) That wine? I may not wanna share!