I'm Back to Being ME!

I've finally made it back here! Its been too long and I allowed myself to get distracted. What's taken place? I lost my job over a year ago, moved into my parents house, got a new job, broke up with a boyfriend, got a new college degree (please hold your applause), paid off all my bills (ok there's a massive student loan now), lost over 85lbs, moved out of my parents house and into a lovely apartment that's near work.

Next month I start covering these grey hairs with a great shade of deep chestnut. Who knew that a dark color suggested by a man I dated would be a good choice, according to my hairdresser? I've got a mean pixie cut that suits me better than any other hairstyle I've ever had.

Today I'm hiding from the heat of 120 degrees and spending the day writing. Yea, how I've missed it; writing something that wasn't a term paper for school or lengthy proposals for work. Wait, I also forgot to tell you I joined a writing group and wouldn't you know a coworker who also loves to write is in the same group! We're into totally different genres; she's all about horror and sci-fi, I'm all about the thriller and murder mystery. But we do cross sect with historical intrigue so we've compared authors and introduced one another to even more.

Oh! I almost forgot, as an added bonus I managed to pick up a stalker! Its a minor thing and most surprising! Its a man I've never dated but yet he actually sought me out after many years by calling my parents house. And then he proceeded to call my and text me numerous times in the span of an hour. Yup, he's a creeper.

Now, onto why I'm back here: my observations of today's news source landscape.

I have a question: when did national news anchors start delivering the news with a breathless voice, making the listener feel there was a scandal afoot? This morning the CNN and HLN anchors did that, MSNBC did it to a slightly lesser extent and it was only the BBC-America who gave me the headlines without eye-rolling, hints of some sort of cover-up or potential scandal. And without "breaking news" which anymore is a relative term. Save that for a president getting shot, Congress performing self-immolation, something like that. Its like news anchors are being told to sensationalize everything under the sun, which to my ear makes everything sound unimportant.

What's with the editorializing of things? Why is Robin Meade telling me her second album came out when she's supposed to be interviewing Pistol Annies that are standing next to her? Why is Beverly Navarro telling with me with narrowed eyes and a tone of surprise that the jury selection for the Zimmerman case is taking place? That's not breaking news, that's the judicial system working, however slowly, on the Constitutional rights of all parties involved in that case.

And can someone tell me why the female anchors on news shows all now look the same: tan, blond, way too much makeup, while the men look bland but are taken more seriously? What would happen if the men were told to deliver the news in their nest Marilyn Monroe impression? Not that I don't think the male anchors aren't being given poor instruction also. I feel an almost physical reaction to Wolf Blitzer that I didn't used to; he too is sensationalizing every story instead of just giving me the facts. That's a vast change from when I was in my early twenties watching him.

But while news anchors are being given directions from their producers to editorialize everything, Faux News has taken to having all on-air talent use each and every talking point as an op-ed piece. Brit Hume didn't used to give his opinion on the news he was reading. Shep Shepard has taken to making smug remarks when speaking about the president. When did this become acceptable behavior to convey the news?

 

Now that I'm back on here and feeling more of myself, I'm off to work on other pieces that I haven't given enough attention to. But now I'll start posting regularly again. What's today's lie I tell myself? That I haven't changed at all when instead ots more of a rediscovering myself.