The Wise Crone Archetype Is Depicted in Long Interviews with Real Women

Interest in the third face of the maiden-mother-crone archetype is spawning books, articles, and even a magazine. One of the best is The Living Spirit of the Crone, fluently written by Sally Palmer Thomason (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, Theology and Sciences series).

The wise crone is emerging as a woman symbol for conscious aging.

Fluently Written and Very Readable

This highly readable book is a serious contemplation on growing old for women. Starting with feminist efforts to reclaim the wise crone archetype as a woman symbol of feminine power, Thomason effectively uses the long interview format to bring into focus the epiphanies of late life for specific women.

This is both the strength and the weakness of The Living Spirit of the Crone. Thomason uses the best practices of ethnographic research by checking back with her sources to comment on whether her interview descriptions capture the essence of what each wanted to express. In one instance, she has even translated the interview into a prose poem.

Interviews Offer Depth Not Glib Anecdotes

I don’t want anyone to think that this means the work is a dreary academic tome fit mostly for researchers. These interviews are deep and rich insights into how women built a new life stage in a society that worships sexual youth and beauty, overlooks the second face of the triple goddess, and denigrates the last stage of the maiden-mother-crone.

The contrast favorably with the anecdotal stories that little popular psychology and often barely scrape the surface of an exemplar’s life story. Such stories often imply that they are somehow universal descriptors of human experience.

To her credit, Thomason avoids this pitfall by pointing out the deficiency of interpreting the case histories as universal. She writes:

Each Interview Story Is Unique


Trying to comprehend the multiple and mysterious facets of aging is like trying to embrace a giant amoeba. When squeeze in one direction, it squirts out and dribbles off in another direction . . . this is not surprising, for the process of aging mirrors . . . [the] changing process of life itself. . . . Extemporaneous stories from other women give profound testimony to the reality that personal meaning is situated in place, time, and culture. . . . We all have a story within. If we listen carefully, we find clues of what we value and who we are becoming” (p. 18).

Walker reviews some well-worn material for the reader who may not have done much previous reading about aging. This includes tracing the history of the crone archetype and etymologies of words such as hag and witch that have origins reverencing older female as sources of wisdom. This is all part of decades-long feminist historical research to bring to completion the maiden-mother-crone triple goddess as a woman symbol of for the wise crone.

Aging Is Not a Disease To Be Treasted


Thomason summarizes the trend of science to identify aging as a medical condition to be treated, rather than as a stage of life to be honored. The book culminates by referencing the work of Carl Jung.

She suggests that successful aging is a time of growth and increased connection with the unconscious.

She proposes the last trimester of life as a time to write a “new script” for our lives. This includes reflecting on what we have learned, being aware that we may choose our conscious responses to the unbidden and often unwanted conditions of our elder years, and to greet the imminence of our own ends as part of the mysterious processes of birth, life, and death. By doing so, the older woman may hope to grow into the role of the wise crone.

Get inspired! Write your unique late-life script.

Source: Thomason, S.P. (2006). The living spirit of the crone: Turning aging inside out. In K. J. Sharpe (ed.) Theology and the Sciences series. Minneapolis: Fortress Press.

LaQuinta Ad Uses Cliche and Stereotype and Is Not Humorous

LaQuinta recently has been hawking the comfort of its hotels to business travelers with a salesman who leaves his room so refreshed that he is able to . . .

At this point, a large block of ice slams the table in front of two men dressed in a Hollywood fantasy of Eskimo garb.

The announcer suggests we all “Get a clue.”

“No one needs a clue” one of the ersatz Inuits says sourly.

Thus a tired cliché that isn’t particularly humorous is piled on top of a stereotype of Northern native peoples. The suggestion that listeners "Get a clue" simultaneously insults viewers' intelligence whilst suggesting that we are – wink, wink – smarter than the announcer so that we don’t need the clue.

Yes well of course, we out here in TV land are well versed in tired cliches, after all.

Particularly irritating is that the supposed Eskimo does not resemble any native American, which genetically are relatively hairless.

The man appears Mediterranean, South American, or Mexican -- but certainly not Inuit.

I can only hope that LaQuinta gets a clue and retired this ad soon.

Mayhem Actor Dean Winters: Why I Love Allstate’s Bad Boy

Actor Dean Winters injects just the right amount of devilish charm into Allstate ads in which he portrays Mayhem.

Even at an age when I'm old enough to know better, the sexy grin and knowing wink of a Bad Boy still has seductive appeal.

The series started with Winters portraying a curvy female jogger with headband described as awesome. An ogling driver ends up with his car wound around a post.

He manages to simultaneously portray and skewer a texting teenage girl who leaves a bashed fender in a parking lot. The sexism of these two ads has been protested.

As a longtime feminist, my take is not that Allstate is making a general statement about all females wearing pink or being shallow, anymore than it is saying that all garage roofs will cave in from snow. It is, after all, portraying mayhem, which is by definition, random and unpredictable – not stereotypical.

Part of Winter’s appeal as Mayhem is the glee with which he portrays the result from each accident. Even as he survives battering in each accident, Mayhem laughs with unfettered joy.

And isn’t that part of the appeal of the Bad Boy, laughing in the face of all authority figures?

Allstate’s Mayhem shows up undaunted from each mishap, sporting an increasing amount bruises, dirt on his face, torn clothing, and other signs of, well, random mayhem.

Winters intones moodily about how you and the snow on your garage roof are growing heavier – until eventually the roof caves in to Mayhem’s delight.

Mayhem chortling as he scrunches under the dashboard, a bandaid clearly visible, pretending to be the voice of an out-of-control GPS system. “Recalculating,” he cries out at the last possible moment, too late for the driver to avoid an accident.

I’m not the only viewer enjoying Winter’s performance. The Internet is filled with chatter of women who invite Mayhem to run into them.

Ah, the Bad Boy – the once and future prince of our hearts.

Why I Love Florida: Scenes from St. Petersburg Skyway Show Gulf Beauty

Vistas of the Gulf of Mexico seduce the traveler to pause at a rest area.




It's hard to believe that a busy six-lane Interstate highway is just a few hundred yards away.




Gnarled trees spread their branches across the path in a natural arch.




A weathered log creates an elegant pattern of lines and curves.




Local residents park pickup cars in the shade. Boat trailers wait for day trippers to return with coolers of fish. Kayakers paddle in after a full day on the water.



The wind was stronger than reported, the kayakers tell me, which made rowing more challenging.



The wide purity of the blue water gleaming in the sunlight.



Trees at water's edge create abstract designs with their branches. It is illegal to cut mangroves in many places, because they create valuable ecosystems for sea creatures.




Scrub pine wave their feathery branches against the blue background. Color and texture, broad vistas and intimate byways, create the endless appeal of natural South Florida.

Try as we might to pave over Paradise, small bits and and pieces survive to inspire and delight.

Origami Kusudama Is Interesting and Fun Craft Project

This is my second origami kusudama.

It is a bit flat on one side, shown in the photo below right. I did not understand how to glue together the five-petalled flowers to form half the globe.

I started paper crafting a few years ago. I focused on modular flowers and stars. I tried to make a kusudama, but it got all sticky.



I did not have proper glue, so I used a collage finishing coat. This is a liquid and less precise than the mini glue gun I used this time.

I also was using proper origami paper, which is thin. So the combination of the liquid and thin paper turned into rather a sticky mess.

For this , I used heavier card stock and a glue gun. The flowers also were larger than those of my first effort.

This kusudama is made of 60 folded units. It is not particularly hard, but it takes some patience. The directions are located at Folding Trees.

I love the tactile feel of paper and the wonderful colors. I am taken aback at the expensive prices for many of the pretty gilded print Japanese origami papers. I will have to find wrapping papers and other substitutes.

I’ve bought my first book about origami folding by one of the best-known artists, Origami Inspirations.

Artists take great care to figure out patterns, often using their knowledge of mathematics. So the folding instructions are copyrighted and not necessarily available free on the internet.

I also bought a day calendar, Easy Origami Fold-a-Day: 2011 Day-to-Day Calendar

So far, the folds are too simple to be interesting. Some of the models require coloring in eyes and noses or wheels and so forth to make the ambiguous folds look like something.



On the other hand the Mukeriji book is beautiful even if all I do is look at the wonderful color photos of her work.

Tired of Fending Off Retailers' Requests that I Join Their Charity Efforts

Why is it necessary for every store I visit to solicit my assistance with the retailer's charity endeavors?

Today, I went to three stores, and two wanted to know if I wanted to leave cash behind to donate to the retailer's pet cause.

"My favorite charity is National Public Radio. Would you like to take some money out of the register so that I can send it along to them on behalf of your store?" I asked in exasperation.

Times are hard, but corporate begging only motivates me to avoid local stores. It is especially annoying that Publix supermarkets and Whole Foods markets solicit me every time I am at the cash register. I shop frequently for fresh food, so I can easily be asked to donate two or three times a week.

Now TJ Maxx is asking us to donate to diabetes.

My employers ask me to give annually -- to charities and school foundations.

I do not mind that students try to put their ideals in action with food drives and toy drives and fund-raising for worthy causes. This is what young idealists need to do.

I feel differently about corporate retailers I must visit if I wish to eat. I do not go to the supermarket to give to charity; I go to do my grocery shopping.

I am a grown-up.

I can decide where I want to send my money without being nudged and reminded every time I open my purse.

Delray Beach, Christmas Fantasy, Great Restaurants: Fort Lauderdale Things to Do

Delray Beach is one of several sea-side towns that offer quaint charm a pleasant drive from Fort Lauderdale.



A Winter Festival was being celebrated when I visited last weekend.



The many restaurants were decked out in holiday finery. After enjoying the rare treat of raw oysters, I sauntered over to the village square where Santa was holding court.



A snow machine had produced some of the white stuff for children, disappearing by the time I arrived.



Two young blades were testing their skills on the ice. From their dress and moves, I suspected they were more at home on skateboards on cement.



A horse of a different color invites visitors into Ted's desert and gift emporium.



Ted's is a feast for the eyes, as well as a treasury for your sweet tooth. This photo looks in from the door.



Christmas trees, glittering with decorations, seemed to be everywhere.



Bits of holiday cheer popped up in surprising places -- here, a mermaid in Mrs. Santa suit on shelves with candy gifts, top right.



Santa turns up on a vintage coffee sign -- itself tucked surprisingly among fishy wall art.



Santa in a gold suit goes sailing.



Santa draws attention to glittery gifts.



Two huge glass chandeliers of blown glass were exceptional works of art.





When you visit Fort Lauderdale and are looking for things to do, rent a car and take a drive to see some of the seaside towns.

Delray Beach, with its plentiful restaurants, is a pleasant spot for brunch, lunch, or dinner. Next further north is Lake Worth, which also has some exceptional luncheon spots, at least two with French themes. Last if you want to continue driving northward, quiet Stuart is worth seeing.

Stop Calling 'Em Terrorists; It Gives Punks Too Much Power

Calling the bomb-makers and other irritating crazy violent people terrorists gives them too much power.

I'm not terrified, are you?

Millions of Americans go about our lives every day, completely not terrified. We may be concerned, especially when we or a loved one boards an airplane.

We may be irritated, annoyed, exasperated, and fed up with these misguided miscreants.

But let's keep some perspective on this.

Calling them terrorists puffs them up with importance. It creates the impression that they hold one of the most powerful nations in the world in emotional bondage.

It suggests that Americans are sheep who are intimidated by a few crazy yahoos.

Let's stop creating a reality that does not exist and giving them credit they do not deserve.

Call them criminals, punks, severely delusional, sociopaths, psychopaths, and -- for the suicide bombers who are underage -- juvenile delinquents.

Believing one is a terrorist may be attractive to some people. Being called international scum, probably not.

Communication and psychology researchers have known for some decades that language constitutes in some part our reality. See, for example, Sapir-Whorf hypothesis.

Journalists, wise up. Choose the words you use to describe renegade bomb-makers wisely. Diminish them; don't build them up.

I'm not terrified. Are you?

Billie Swamp Airboat Ride, Gators, Turtles:Fort Lauderdale Things to Do

It was a perfect day for the Billie Swamp Airboat ride. The sky was blue as tourmaline and a light breeze riffled the air.

Even though I’ve lived in South Florida for most of the past 28 years, I’ve never been to the Big Cypress Park in the Everglades.

CHICKEE HUTS


Chickee huts, native structures of the Miccosukee Indians, are everywhere.

They serve as picnic pavilions, places to store old farm equipment, and shady play areas for children. Some backyards have several.

AIRBOAT AT DOCK, BACK VIEW OF ENGINE


These chickee huts may be seen from the dock of the Billie Swamp airboat ride.

The airboat is noisier than one might anticipate. Earplugs are distributed with one’s pass for the ride.

PARKED IN THE SUN


The ride is relatively brief. Nearly 15 minutes of the half-hour jaunt was spent parked in still water while the guide answered the prattling questions of a child.

PARKED IN THE SUN


Among the facts learned: There are 2.2 million square miles of Everglades and 6 million alligators.

SMALL TURTLE'S NOSE BARELY VISIBLE


As a longtime Florida resident, an alligator sighting is no longer a thrill. Mostly, one hopes not to see them crossing the road or climbing from the water into one’s yard.

They find little dogs and small children tasty.

ALLIGATORS LURKED HERE


We also encountered water buffalo and ostriches (or possibly emus) in one area of the swamp. Water buffalo were imported for the entertainment of the visitors who expect to see wildlife.

Their milk is used to make expensive Buffalo mozzarella.

MYSTERY PORTAL -- YOU HAD TO BE THERE TO SEE IT


I was especially intrigued by what appeared to be a mysterious portal in the shrubbery, photo above. I have a quartet of door and archway art on one wall of my home.

LONG STRAIGHT ROAD TO BILLIE SWAMP SAFARI


There is lots of nothing to see on the reservation, as the U.S. government was fond of giving Native Americans the least valuable parcels of land.

RESERVATION FLAT LANDS



The Miccosukee have made the best of it, breeding cattle, rock mining, and of course the big money-maker, running casinos.

CATTLE GRAZING


There is a small restaurant with a limited menu on the premises. I had the over-priced gator tidbits. It wasn't the first time I've had gator but it's not on every menu in the state either. Yes, it tastes like chicken.

There are some brightly-plumed jungle birds, snakes, and turtles in cages for visitors to see.

BIG TURTLES WITH BEAUTIFUL SHELLS


GOPHER TURTLE

Bubble Frenzy Stirred by Lady Gaga’s Dress Updates Long-Standing Entertainment Tradition

The bubble frenzy stirred by Lady Gaga’s bubble dress is only the latest in the uses of this ephemeral children’s activity in popular culture.


Sally Rand introduced the bubble dance to the stage. She and other exotic dancers used a large balloon to play an erotic game of hide-and-seek with the audience.


My mother is fond of recounting her time as a Navy wife in the midWest. Young and naïve, she didn’t find out for quite some time that the kindly couple who often stopped to chuck her babies under their chins were a bubble dancer and her husband, who accompanied her on the piano.


At an afternoon party for military families, they performed their act, without the erotic striptease. The children loved the bubbles.

Throughout the 1940s and 1950s, Hollywood sanitized the use of bubbles to simultaneously show and hide the female body. Bubble bath girls appeared taking utterly feminine bubble baths in foam up to their necks.


Andrew Einhorn has devoted an entire book to this cultural topic.

Thus, absolutely nothing erotic was visible. Yet, the knowledge titillated of a naked women’s body shimmering in clear water beneath the ephemeral surface. Salacious allusions of foam to cream add another dimension to this iconography. Lawrence Welk, who once fired a Champagne Lady singer for showing too much leg, reintroduced bubbles as family entertainment.

Welk's prolific use of the bubble machine constituted a new bubble frenzy that persists to this day. It drives up the price of this item of Welk memorabilia.

Lady Gaga -- the most original glamorous eccentric in quite some time -- is wrongly hailed as an innovator for the bubble dress.

Rather, she is an inheritor of an entertainment tradition who has made bubble frenzy uniquely her own.

Fashion Guru Throw Down: Tim Gunn versus Simon Doonan

Tim Gunn (Tim Gunn: A Guide to Quality, Taste and Style (Tim Gunn's Guide to Style)) is nice, but Simon Doonan (Eccentric Glamour: Creating an Insanely More Fabulous You) is funny.

Tim Gunn has got to be one of the most pro-active professors in the United States. I can’t think of any other faculty member – outside of sports coaches’ promotion of college football, basketball, and other sports – who has brought his school to national attention with its very own hit TV show.

Parsons School of Design was never really off-the-map. But Gunn’s brainchild, Project Runway, created with model Heidi Klum, created a fun forum to showcase students’ work.

Gunn always has a kind word for hard-pressed students in the pressure cooker of the Project Runway deadlines.

His slogan, “Make it work” has achieve a degree of national fame.

Doonan is mostly unknown to TV audiences. He’s been a guest presenter on America’s Next Top Model.

Doonan can be caustic, but his fashion lessons strike to the heart of the fashionista who deplores following trends.

Doonan’s slogan, “Say no to ‘ho” perfectly captures a lesson I wish more of my female students would take to heart.

The line between Las Vegas showgirl and college girl has grown so perilously thin it barely exists when it comes to campus dress.

I’m also in love with Doonan’s pronouncement that jeans and denim are over. If only it were true. Meanwhile, Gunn, in his Guide to Style, counsels pairing various accoutrements – a good pair of leather boots, a blazer – with jeans for a casual look.

If I were going out for a café lunch on a gray day when my spirits needed propping up, I’d choose Tim Gunn as my lunch companion.

The rest of the time I’d pick Simon Doonan. I’d laugh so much my face would hurt. I love that.

Cuisinart ICE 50 Ice Cream Maker & Quest for Perfect Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream

The Cuisinart ICE-50 ice cream maker set my feet firmly on a quest to concoct the perfect homemade vanilla ice cream.

After deliberating more than a year to make the purchase, the box sat on my floor unopened for another two weeks.

Finally, I started to research ice cream and how to make it.

One of my early newspaper jobs was typing recipes for the weekly food section. This taught me that all versions of any particular recipe have certain ingredients in common.

Cooks may disagree on the proportions and finishing touches, such as herbs, adding nuts or some other flourish.

One of the first thing I noticed about ice-cream and how-to-make-it tips: ingredient proportions vastly vary.

The best explanation of the necessary ingredients is Stephanie Jaworkski’s for custard-base ice cream, preferred by many cooks.

From Jaworksi I learned the contribution of each main ingredient:

• Cream gives the ice cream its rich taste. Too much, however, can create butterfat lumps.

• Sugar makes the mixture smooth but can prevent freezing when there’s too much.

• Egg yolks add smoothness.
  

• Flavoring also is a personal choice.

I expect egg yolks also help the ice cream to thicken. Cheap ice cream brands substitute gelatin or cellulose for egg yolks.

My first venture was chocolate ice cream. The recipe used eight egg yolks for four cups of liquid. Three cups of half-and-half was recommended plus a cup of heavy cream.

I like high butterfat content, so I made that two to two cups of each.

I reduced nine ounces of sugar to eight, because some readers found the recipe too sweet. I kept the cocoa at a half-cup.

Important steps in preparing a custard-based ice cream are
(a) heating the mixture until it just barely bubbles, between 160-180 degrees.
(b) Allowing the mixture to cool on the counter so that no liquid forms on the lid in the refrigerator.
(c) Refrigerating at least eight hours before churning so the flavors can blend.

This chocolate ice cream recipe was too thick and stopped churning after only 20 of 40 desired minutes.

It was good, but a tad too creamy even for me and very rich.

Eight egg yolks also left with me all those egg whites to use and makes this an expensive ice-cream recipe.

My next outing was purely my own devising: Two cups half-and-half to one cup heavy cream, three egg yolks (1 yolk per cup of liquid, cutting the chocolate recipe’s ratio in half), and less than a half-cup of sugar.

I followed the same procedure for cooling the mixture and marrying the flavors overnight in the frig. The vanilla extract is not added until the mixture is put into the churn. I used one overflowing teaspoon.

It churned beautifully for the full 40 minutes, froze smoothly, and tastes like the best vanilla custard ever. So far, I am using all organic ingredients. The one exception was the cocoa, but it was a good brand.

I have half the custard on standby, and I’m going to experiment with a flavor completely of my own.

I love the Cuisnart ICE-50 ice cream maker. It is easy to use, and anyone can become an ice cream chef overnight.