A new trend in advertising gimmicks has really started to bother me lately – the practice of broadcasting “micro-ads” about one second in length, typically inserted just before a program returns from a commercial break. Sometimes they’re not even consciously recognizable, just a blip on the screen when watching in real time. It’s only when they’re played back on a DVR in frame-advance mode that they’re truly visible.
The first ads I noticed with ultra-fast “blips” were those for GE, sometime last year. They had a series of micro-scenes that made up what they called a “One-Second Theatre” feature at the very end of their regular commercial. The story line of this “theatre” production could only be seen when the commercial was paused on a DVR and advanced through the scenes, like the pages of a story-book. The stories were (not surprisingly) energy-related or promoted “green” technology.
In fact, it seems that proponents of the “Green Movement” have been the near-exclusive user of these subliminal ads. Currently, there’s an ad from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) about something called SmartWay. There was no clear indication in the ad exactly what SmartWay was, so of course I looked up the URL shown (just as they had hoped, I’m sure). As it turns out, the ad is for some new certification program for fuel-efficient vehicles. Mark my words — we’ll be inundated with this catch-phrase of a name and its distinctive logo very soon.
I’ve seen the ad numerous times, and they have become incrementally longer over the past six months or so. First it was just an indistinguishable flash, and now the ads have been lengthened so that you actually have time to register the word “SmartWay” and the logo consciously in real-time. I’ve never seen an actual “normal” ad for SmartWay that has an audio component – only the tiny, visual-only blurbs.
These particular ads bother me on several counts:
First and foremost, I think the Green Movement is something that’s being foisted on the general population by environmental activists. We hear their message from all directions now – we’re producing too many carbon emissions from factories and automobiles, we’re wasting energy by using too much gas or having inefficient heating and air conditioning systems in our homes, we’re not recycling enough, we’re not riding our bicycles or walking to work – the list goes on and on, but the message is the same: The planet is dying, and it’s our fault.
It’s presented as almost being a patriotic duty to be actively involved in “saving the planet” by recycling, buying a hybrid car or using less energy in some other way – and if we aren’t making an overt effort to do so, we’re somehow characterized as “bad citizens” or failing to be “team players” for not sacrificing something to support The Cause (see my previous post on global warming).
Also, these ads have so far been placed immediately before a program returns from commercial breaks. I believe this is an effort to capture viewership from those (like me) who fast-forward through normal ads. When the fast-forward feature is stopped and returned to normal speed to view the desired program, it “rewinds” (for lack of a better term) a couple of seconds to allow for the viewer to let go of the button and return to their show without overshooting the mark. It’s precisely during this lag time that the subliminal ad appears. Coincidence? I think not…
The bottom line of all this is that we’re being indoctrinated – there’s no other word for it. We’re slowly but surely having our minds programmed to accept the notion that we’re at fault for the planet’s ills, and it’s our duty to do something about it, no matter the economic cost or personal sacrifice. Can you say “brainwashing”?
I’m currently reading 1984 by George Orwell, and this smacks eerily of Big Brother and the tactics of the Party. And that scares me more than a little…
I’ve always had issues with my weight, even when in hindsight I wasn’t too terribly heavy. Looking at my childhood school photos, I appeared to be normal weight until about fifth grade, when the chubbiness started to set in for awhile. Even in junior high, I didn’t look bad – nothing we’d look twice at in a crowd as being out of place. When I graduated from high school, I was 5’7” and 165 lb., but all through junior high and high school I was teased by one girl in particular, who called me “Big Bertha.” I always laughed it off, but being an extremely shy and sensitive person, I guess it took a toll on me emotionally. I always felt fat and unattractive, and I always wanted to disappear into the woodwork.
Things got dramatically better when I started college and lived in the dorm. I actually reinvented myself then. I told myself, “These people don’t know you and don’t know you’re shy. You’re going to go up to everyone you meet and say, ‘Hi, my name is Mikkie. What’s your name?’” And lo and behold, I made new friends and actually had a social life for the first time. It was amazing!
My weight issues were assisted by a two-month bout of mono, just two months after I started school. I didn’t feel sick at all, but when I took my roommate to my family doctor because she hurt her arm, I guess I looked really pale and the doctor insisted I get my blood checked. Sure enough, I had mono and went directly to my parents’ house to recouperate. That was the most boring illness! I tried to keep up with my studies, but every time I tried to read, I fell asleep. I finally recovered enough to take my finals (late), and passed my classes.
I was shocked to learn that I had lost 20 lb. before I was diagnosed and didn’t even realize it, because I was running around and having fun with my new-found friends. It didn’t even register when my jeans got so loose I could take them off without unzipping them — just how self-UNaware can one person be??? I dropped another 10 lb. during my illness, bringing me down to 135 lb., which was actually average-to-slender for my height. Ah, to be there again! I wish I had more photos of myself at that weight, but only a couple of Polaroids and a formal portrait have survived the years. I thought I was pretty hot stuff back then — wearing cute junior sizes (9-11) and showing off my body more than I ever had in my life.
I don’t recall any issues for several more years, until I was in my second marriage. It was an emotionally abusive relationship, and I became very depressed during the latter part of it. Food was a comforting friend when I felt like I didn’t have any others. And when I did try to lose weight, my then-husband would try to sabotage my efforts — for example, he would eat an entire half-gallon of ice cream (from the carton!) in front of me, or a huge steak with all the trimmings. Very unsupportive, to say the least! He was very jealous, so I’m sure it was threatening for me to lose weight, because I might become attractive to other men.
I finally sought help from a hypnotherapist and made some progress. She also helped me with other emotional issues, which gave me the strength I needed to escape that marriage. She was a life-saver on several levels. I moved in with my parents and started working for a friend. It was a good time – low stress, busy, and stable.
I became a certified hypnotherapist myself during that time, and continued to use self-hypnosis to eventually lose 65 lb. without “officially” dieting over the next two years. I got back down to my high school graduation weight of 165 lb. – and then I got married again, and started cooking for two. The new routine blew my self-hypnosis practice and established routine out the window, and I started gaining weight. Then I started a home-based business, and gained even more weight. I gained back all the weight I had lost with hypnosis, plus about 10 lb. Very discouraging!
So I started on another weight loss scheme – a strict low-calorie, doctor-supervised liquid diet that involved shakes and soups in little packets that totaled about 500-600 calories a day. I stayed on that program for nine months and lost 75 lb. I got so thin that one day when my mom came over and saw me in the yard, she didn’t recognize me for a minute! I maintained that weight for awhile, but gradually the old eating habits crept back in again, and the weight started coming back.
I hovered just over 200 lb. for several years, until I got divorced and was living on my own. A series of disappointing relationships and the loss of a good job made me turn to my old comforting friend again – sometimes out of frustration or disappointment, and sometimes out of anger toward someone who “did me wrong.” I distinctly remember being very angry at someone who had dumped me, and viciously tearing into a pizza, stuffing myself to the point of discomfort. Not healthy on any level, for sure!
After about seven years of that, my weight was up to 285. I briefly started another ultra-low-calorie regimen and lost 30 lb., but went off it after about three months and bounced back up to 295, where I’ve been for the past several years. I’m in my mid-50s, so I know it’ll get harder and harder to lose weight as I get older, so it’s very discouraging.
A couple of weeks ago, I tried a new direction for weight loss. I bought a juicer, and have been juicing up a storm. I don’t know how much weight I’ve lost at this point, but between consuming LOTS more fruits and vegetables (with some lean meat occasionally) and taking vitamins (which I’ve never been good at), at least I know I’m getting better nutrition. I’ve cut out eating fast food and high-calorie snacks almost completely, and figure that alone will make me lose weight. I’m enjoying the lighter, fresher fare, and definitely don’t miss the acid reflux that often disturbed my sleep after a heavy, greasy evening meal!
I’m hoping I can stick with this healthy way of eating for the long term. I have a little sign that says, “If all else fails, I may have to resort to diet and exercise.” This diet is a start, and hopefully I’ll be sufficiently self-aware this time to add in some exercise down the road. But that’s another story in itself…
Tags: body image, emotions, weight
I’d like to introduce you to Lisa, a spunky woman with a husband and two little girls who I got to know through her blog, originally called the “Rock Bitch” and now “Clusterfook“. She’s a die-hard Rolling Stones fan, and back then I think she was a radio DJ. She had the sassy, funny, take-no-prisoners kind of “realness” and edge that I just love.
It’s funny how you can feel a sense of loss (or impending loss, in this case) for someone you’ve never met — someone you’ve only communicated with a handful of times, in fact. But hers is one of the first blogs I ever read, and it chronicled her three battles with ovarian cancer. I started reading after her first battle, probably some time in 2005.
Lisa was fighting mad at the disease that had disrupted her life. Her fiery spirit raged and raved through her words, and she showed herself to be a true warrior. She was “full of piss and vinegar”, as they used to say. And I loved her for that.
She thought she had beaten the cancer, but a year later she learned it was back. She knew it long before her doctors did. In fact, a radiologist failed to see a mass in her abdomen, and it took nine months for her to convince doctors that something was indeed wrong with her.
I was shocked when I heard that, and it made me fear for the state of our medical care. How many other people aren’t properly diagnosed in time? How many others aren’t as vocal and insistent that they KNOW something is wrong with them, and just take their doctor’s word that everything is OK? It scares me a great deal, and teaches me a lesson — if I ever get seriously ill, I’ll have to be my own advocate, because I can’t trust anyone in the healthcare profession to truly look out for my well-being.
Oh, and during all this time of trying to figure out if her cancer had returned, Lisa was also going to graduate school!
By the time the doctors finally decided to do something, the cancer was really bad, and the surgery was awful. So awful that they messed up her bowels during the surgery, and she had to have another surgery to fix that. She was in a coma (medically induced, if I remember correctly) for several weeks, and in the hospital for three months.
But she made it. And a week after coming home from the hospital, she graduated with a masters degree. And she was valedictorian of her class! Now, who among us would have had enough grit to do that, after such a gruelling surgery? Not me, I’m sure!
Another year went by, and Lisa got that old familiar (by now) feeling that something just wasn’t right with her body. Yes, it was (as she put it) a “three-peat”. She had cancer again, but this time it was in her abdomen, liver and lungs. She shared the news in her blog on April 1, 2008, and really wished it was an April Fools joke — but it wasn’t. And in her post on that day, she apologized to her readers for having to tell them she had cancer! Amazing! Who does that?
(Lisa, if you happen to read this — my apologies if I messed up relating the sequence of events.)
Lisa went through three or four rounds of chemotherapy, which didn’t really help. She kept on fighting and making her way through life, one day at a time. And I saw a change in her tone this year. Her posts have been much more introspective, and they were less angry. Oh, she was still plenty pissed at the doctors, and she still fought the system to force them to give her what she deserved (she prevailed in that fight!). But there has been more gratitude, more love, more centeredness in her attitude. I could feel it through her words.
Lisa’s blog friends did a wonderful thing for her and her family. She had mentioned at one point that she would love to take her family to Disney World, and one of her blog friends, Miss Ann, started a raffle to raise money for that purpose. In 24 hours, people from all across the blogosphere had raised more than $1,000. During the month that the raffle ran, there were dozens of prizes donated and well over $4,000 was donated. I can’t remember the exact figure, but I’m pretty sure that’s close. Considering that the goal was $2,000, that’s an impressive total! Lisa, her husband, and her two daughters went, and they had a marvelous time. This event really boosted my faith in the goodness of people, despite what we see on the news.
The other day Lisa posted that she has stopped fighting. The chemo wasn’t working, and was making her really sick and miserable. She enlisted hospice care, and has “come home to die” and spend her remaining time with her family, to love them as much as she can, and feel their love in return, in whatever time is left to her.
It might seem surprising that someone who has fought and fought, ranted and raged these last several years would come to the point of laying down her sword and surrendering. I don’t think it’s really surrendering, as much as it is accepting the reality of the situation. I’m so proud of her for fighting the good fight, until every option is exhausted and it makes no sense to fight any more. She can truly say she has done all that she could, and none of us could do any better than she has.
She’s not at “the end” yet, but her decision to stop fighting doesn’t surprise me in the least. She knows what’s important — her family. The chemo was taking such a toll on her that it got in the way, so she made a decision based on her priorities. And that makes perfect sense to me.
Even though I’ve never met Lisa in person, I know enough about her to say that I love her, and I’ll never forget her. She has inspired me, and all who have read her words these past years. Her example will go with me as I face my own inevitable battles with health issues in years to come (as well as other areas), reminding me to keep fighting and look out for myself instead of blindly trusting the professionals.
Although we may be in the process of losing her in this life and will miss her spark, she will always be remembered — and in that way, she will always be with us.
All I can say is: Well done, Lisa — well done…..
Tags: relationships
Last week, I had been thinking of a favorite penpal that I had lost touch with over a year ago. Imagine my surprise when yesterday I got an e-mail from him! It was confusing, though, because he was inviting me to join some dating site, and the last I had heard, he was married and had just recently had a baby. So of course, I wrote to find out what was going on.
As it turns out, he was as surprised as I was, because he got that same e-mail himself, sent to his other e-mail address. He said that when he clicked on the link, it scooped up all the people in his address book and sent them that e-mail. From his report, it definitely sounds like he picked up a virus or some other sort of bad thing. Not good for him, but at least it got us back in communication again!
My penpal lives in Ghana, in West Africa. (I have several friends from Ghana, as well as from Nigeria and Kenya.) This guy would write long, chatty e-mails, telling stories and just blessing me with his sweet spirit every time he wrote. I had missed his correspondence a great deal, and hope we can re-establish a regular schedule again.
Another of my very favorite penpals lives in Kenya. Last year at this time, when all the violence erupted there after their elections, he had to run for his life to avoid being hurt or killed. He was a professor at a university in an area controlled by one of the groups, and he himself is a member of the opposing tribe. (I really hate using the word “tribe” — but this conflict was based on the ethnic group of the opposing candidates, so it was indeed tribal warfare.)
Fortunately, he was able to hide out with relatives in another part of the country, away from the violence, and has since gotten a better position at another university. During all this, our communications were understandably interrupted, and have been very sparse for all of last year. But now that things are settling down for him, I’m hoping that they will resume a more regular pace, also.
So it looks like so far, this year has been one of renewal. I do hope that trend continues!
Tags: africa, penpals, relationships
