catbird's world » socio-pop http://www.catbird.org/blog cat has a lot of opinions about food, customer service, mommyhood, politics, and pop culture. You should read them. Mon, 12 Apr 2010 17:02:26 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 A letter to Target http://www.catbird.org/blog/archives/2010/04/12/a-letter-to-target/#utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=a-letter-to-target http://www.catbird.org/blog/archives/2010/04/12/a-letter-to-target/#comments Mon, 12 Apr 2010 17:02:26 +0000 catbird http://www.catbird.org/blog/?p=308 Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.]]> Re: Red Card

Dear Target,

If you really want to help schools, just do it. Don’t make it conditional on whether I sign up for your marketing program (so you can track my purchases). Don’t make it conditional on how much I spend in your store. In fact, don’t make it conditional on me shopping at your store at all.

Just help the schools.

Then have your PR team promote the heck out of your good deeds. Good PR can go a long way, much farther than bribery or blackmail.

Sincerely,
catbird*

*Yes, I really sent this letter to Target, but signed with my name.

A NOTE: Target does other things to help schools that aren’t conditional on people buying stuff.

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]]> http://www.catbird.org/blog/archives/2010/04/12/a-letter-to-target/feed/ 0 At what price local? http://www.catbird.org/blog/archives/2009/06/30/at-what-price-local/#utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=at-what-price-local http://www.catbird.org/blog/archives/2009/06/30/at-what-price-local/#comments Wed, 01 Jul 2009 02:28:07 +0000 catbird http://www.catbird.org/blog/?p=290 Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.]]> Last weekend we went to the local pet store to buy dog food only to find there had been a price increase, from $46 to $60 for a 40 pound bag. Wow, a $14 increase! We purchased a bag, but, out of curiosity, we checked the big chain store for a price comparison: $46. Plus, while we were there, a salesperson gave us a $2 off coupon, making the price difference $16.

I believe it’s very important to shop local. When you shop local, you’re supporting your neighbors who own the business and you’re developing relationships that make your community a better place to live. More of the money you spend stays in the community through profits, jobs, and taxes. Local businesses are more accountable and are more likely to utilize other local businesses. They also hire local people who provide better service to others in the community, who happen to be their neighbors.

No one can deny that shopping at a local merchant is more satisfying than shopping at a big box store. And who wouldn’t rather live in a town with a Main Street full of local merchants rather than next to a highway littered with strip malls?

As satisfying as it is, however, I do have limits. When a book I wanted to get my husband was $30 more at the local bookstore than at Amazon, I didn’t hesitate to buy it online. So, how much more am I willing to spend to buy local? It seems it depends on a number of intangible elements. But I do know I’ll continue to buy from my local merchants whenever possible. Whatever that means.

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]]> http://www.catbird.org/blog/archives/2009/06/30/at-what-price-local/feed/ 0 Where the Wild Things Are… the movie http://www.catbird.org/blog/archives/2009/03/25/where-the-wild-things-are-the-movie/#utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=where-the-wild-things-are-the-movie http://www.catbird.org/blog/archives/2009/03/25/where-the-wild-things-are-the-movie/#comments Thu, 26 Mar 2009 01:27:11 +0000 catbird http://www.catbird.org/blog/?p=279 Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.]]> Where the Wild Things Are

Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak is a sweet and wonderful story — one of my favorites — but does it really need to be made into a movie?

In the book, a boy gets in trouble and thinks his parents don’t love him anymore. After an imaginary trip to live with the other wild things, he gets lonely, and returns home to find his warm supper waiting in his room. His parents do still love him after all.

With Sendak’s charming illustrations, this story is truly a childhood classic. The message resonates with every child: even if you get in trouble, your parents still love you.

Why turn it into a feature-length movie about a boy dealing with “absent father issues“?

Hollywood, are you that hard up for new ideas?

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]]> http://www.catbird.org/blog/archives/2009/03/25/where-the-wild-things-are-the-movie/feed/ 0 Might as well face it, I’m addicted to Facebook http://www.catbird.org/blog/archives/2009/02/07/might-as-well-face-it-im-addicted-to-facebook/#utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=might-as-well-face-it-im-addicted-to-facebook http://www.catbird.org/blog/archives/2009/02/07/might-as-well-face-it-im-addicted-to-facebook/#comments Sun, 08 Feb 2009 02:46:32 +0000 catbird http://www.catbird.org/blog/?p=276 Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.]]> It’s true. I’m addicted. I update my status at least once a day. I obsessively read friends’ status updates. In the evening, I often leave my computer tuned to “Live Feed” so I can keep up with people while I watch TV. And, it’s true, I have lost hours of my life looking at photos of people I don’t know at parties I wasn’t invited to.

I’m also out there pushing for the Facebook kingpin. “Just do it. Everyone is on there. You’re not cool unless you’re on Facebook.” Okay, maybe not that last one. Maybe.

Being addicted to Facebook isn’t just about the time you spend online. It’s also about how active you are. Some say that Facebook makes people a little too uninhibited and prone to oversharing. Well, okay, maybe that’s true. But I say if you don’t want to know what I’m doing every moment of the day, select “less about Cat” in your feed settings. If you don’t want to know 25 random things about me, don’t read my notes. If you don’t want me to comment on photos of your family, use friend lists. And if you aren’t truly interested in connecting with me, well, don’t friend me in the first place.

The problem, as I see it, isn’t that people overshare, it’s that people don’t know they are oversharing. I’ve read enough private conversations posted on public walls to know that people don’t know I can read their private conversations posted on their public walls. Just like that sloppy drunk at the office Christmas party who thinks everyone wants to see his Xeroxed butt, people on Facebook often forget that some things are best kept private.

If you do nothing else to manage your FB addiction, do this:
1. Use friend lists. Does your old co-worker care about your photos from high school? Probably not.

2. Set your application settings. Are you sure you really want all your friends to know how often you play Scramble? I didn’t think so.

3. Change your photo tag settings. Because, really, just because someone has an incriminating photo of you shouldn’t mean they can tell all your friends about it.

Most importantly, if it’s not in a private message, it means you don’t mind if anyone else reads it.

There is an upside to my addiction, though. As a stay-at-home-mom (SAHM? Some acronyms just weren’t meant to be), Facebook is like my happy hour hangout where I can commiserate with other moms, chat with friends, and yes, when I log on, everybody knows my name.

It hasn’t decreased my real-life socializing, since I wouldn’t otherwise be out with friends. It has, however, given me a low bandwidth way to keep in touch with old friends, continue conversations with current real-life friends, chat with family members I rarely get to see in person, and reconnect with friends that I truly wish I had never lost touch with in the first place. Rather than make me more isolated, it has actually made me more social.

As anyone who has ever celebrated their 21st birthday with a pitcher of red death knows (I won’t name any names), self-control is very, very important. But anyone who has ever gone to happy hour with friends knows a little socializing is good for the soul. I figure, as long as I remember to log off now and then, this is one addiction I’ll keep.

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]]> http://www.catbird.org/blog/archives/2009/02/07/might-as-well-face-it-im-addicted-to-facebook/feed/ 0 PETA arranges release of ancient lobster from NY restaurant http://www.catbird.org/blog/archives/2009/01/11/peta-arranges-release-of-ancient-lobster-from-ny-restaurant/#utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=peta-arranges-release-of-ancient-lobster-from-ny-restaurant http://www.catbird.org/blog/archives/2009/01/11/peta-arranges-release-of-ancient-lobster-from-ny-restaurant/#comments Mon, 12 Jan 2009 02:34:13 +0000 catbird http://www.catbird.org/blog/?p=274 Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.]]> A NY restaurant was keeping “George” the 20 lb, 80-140 year-old lobster as a sort of mascot, but PETA intervened on the lobster’s behalf and convinced the restaurant to release George into protected waters off the coast of Maine.

As George was being taken away in his pimped out ice-lined foam cooler, the other lobsters were pressing their antennae against the glass of the tank, wistfully. One four-year-old lobster was heard calling to PETA representatives, “What about me? I have my whole life ahead of me!”

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]]> http://www.catbird.org/blog/archives/2009/01/11/peta-arranges-release-of-ancient-lobster-from-ny-restaurant/feed/ 0 5 Reasons I don’t support VP candidate Sarah Palin http://www.catbird.org/blog/archives/2008/08/29/5-reasons-i-dont-support-vp-candidate-sarah-palin/#utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=5-reasons-i-dont-support-vp-candidate-sarah-palin http://www.catbird.org/blog/archives/2008/08/29/5-reasons-i-dont-support-vp-candidate-sarah-palin/#comments Sat, 30 Aug 2008 03:47:23 +0000 catbird http://www.catbird.org/blog/?p=271 Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.]]> 1. She doesn’t have any national experience and less than two years experience as governor of Alaska
2. She’s pro-life. Fine in an individual, not in the VP
3. She’s against same-sex marriage
4. She supports natural-gas drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge
5. She said, “[polar bears] are worthy of our utmost efforts to protect them and their Arctic habitat. But adding polar bears to the nation’s list of endangered species … should not be part of those efforts.”

Bonus reason: She named her children Bristol, Willow, Piper, Track, and Trig

BTW, Governor Palin, don’t patronize me by equating yourself to Senator Clinton. You don’t even come close.

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]]> http://www.catbird.org/blog/archives/2008/08/29/5-reasons-i-dont-support-vp-candidate-sarah-palin/feed/ 0 Seven-letter monkey on my back http://www.catbird.org/blog/archives/2008/05/28/seven-letter-monkey-on-my-back/#utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=seven-letter-monkey-on-my-back http://www.catbird.org/blog/archives/2008/05/28/seven-letter-monkey-on-my-back/#comments Thu, 29 May 2008 02:51:59 +0000 catbird http://www.catbird.org/blog/?p=258 Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.]]> I just spent an hour in Scrabulous trying to find the perfect place to put the perfect word in a game that I am already losing by over 100 points.

I think I have a problem.

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]]> http://www.catbird.org/blog/archives/2008/05/28/seven-letter-monkey-on-my-back/feed/ 0 Is opposition to Wal-Mart un-American? http://www.catbird.org/blog/archives/2006/01/20/is-opposition-to-wal-mart-un-american/#utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=is-opposition-to-wal-mart-un-american http://www.catbird.org/blog/archives/2006/01/20/is-opposition-to-wal-mart-un-american/#comments Fri, 20 Jan 2006 17:43:20 +0000 catbird http://www.catbird.org/blog/archives/2006/01/20/is-opposition-to-wal-mart-un-american/ Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.]]> According to Dr. Yaron Brook, the executive director of the Ayn Rand Institute, it is.

I do agree with Dr. Brook’s statement:”What could be more un-American than punishing a successful company for being successful?” But his reasoning is a bit off.

He also states: “Wal-Mart is hated and feared on the perverse grounds that it does its work too well.”

Does Wal-Mart do its work “too well”? I believe that a company doing its work “too well” would include treating employees fairly. With all the evidence to the contrary when it comes to Wal-Mart, I’d like to see some proof that its success is due to efficiency and not cutting corners with regard to employees.

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]]> http://www.catbird.org/blog/archives/2006/01/20/is-opposition-to-wal-mart-un-american/feed/ 0 Barbie absolved? http://www.catbird.org/blog/archives/2006/01/12/barbie-absolved/#utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=barbie-absolved http://www.catbird.org/blog/archives/2006/01/12/barbie-absolved/#comments Thu, 12 Jan 2006 20:24:39 +0000 catbird http://www.catbird.org/blog/archives/2006/01/12/barbie-absolved/ Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.]]> Recently my brother-in-law sent me an article that set out to debunk the idea of the “Barbie Ideal.” It says that although “feminists” have long blamed Barbie for the self-image problems of women and girls, there is actually no study that has shown that to be true. On the other hand, states the article, there is one study that shows no link.

The study from University of Bath showed that girls found Barbie to be “childish, an inanimate object instead of a treasured toy.” And a toy that many girls actually maimed or destroyed.

Now, I certainly hope that Barbie isn’t having a negative impact on the millions of children who play with it but this article said some things that were, well, just plain silly.

For example: “Critics cite statistics such as that if Barbie were real, she couldn’t walk upright, or bear children.” It’s true that Barbie doesn’t have realistic proportions, but adults have studied this and analyzed it. Who is letting the little girls in on the secret? And why build a doll for kids that is so grossly — or grotesquely — disporportionate? Toy manufacturers spend a lot of time making baby dolls more and more lifelike, yet Barbie has boobs so big she wouldn’t be able to walk upright if she was real. It’s just bizarre. I mean, really. Would you give your daughter a Pamela Anderson doll to play with. Or an Anna Nicole Smith doll? Then why Barbie?

Another even more ridiculous quote:
“While Barbie has long been badgered about her ‘unhealthy’ shape, no one complains that Mr. Potato Head’s tubby physique is even less healthy.” Um… Mr. Potato Head is a POTATO. That’s what potatoes look like. Barbie is supposed to be a person. And are potatoes really that unhealthy? Check out this nutrition information from the Idaho Potato Growers Commission.

Okay, I don’t really think that Barbie is responsible for all the eating disorders in our society. But on the other hand, I don’t think that one study proves that she doesn’t have an impact.

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]]> http://www.catbird.org/blog/archives/2006/01/12/barbie-absolved/feed/ 0 Peace begins at home http://www.catbird.org/blog/archives/2005/11/12/peace-begins-at-home/#utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=peace-begins-at-home http://www.catbird.org/blog/archives/2005/11/12/peace-begins-at-home/#comments Sat, 12 Nov 2005 19:31:10 +0000 catbird http://www.catbird.org/blog/archives/2005/11/12/peace-begins-at-home/ Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.]]> Yesterday I was stuck in construction traffic. At one point, my lane was ending so I needed to merge right. So I’m trying to get over and be polite about it but the other lane is bumper to bumper and practically at a standstill. I got to the end of my lane and had to nose my way in ahead of someone. One guy was really trying hard to keep me from getting ahead of him. He’s edging forward and staying in my blind spot, but I was clearly ahead of him.

Once the lanes opened up, he did go on and pass me. It was then that I noticed his bumper sticker:

There is no way to peace.
Peace is the way.

It’s a beautiful sentiment. But with that on your bumper, aren’t you kinda obligated to be a polite and conscientious driver? Peace begins at home, dude. Let’s all try to keep that in mind.

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