CSotD: Go to Overthink
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The Buckets raises an issue I've pondered for years, which perhaps is why I've thought it through even more than she has.
Yes, the Invisible Man would be blind.
But, worse, he wouldn't be invisible, either, unless he went on a substantial fast and then had some extremely effective, pre-colonscopy-level clean-outs.
Worst superpower ever.
I know, I know: I'm overthinking it. It's a fantasy; it's not supposed to be scientifically consistent.
I'm being like those kids who used to write in to Superman comics asking how he cut his hair and trimmed his nails, and, instead of suggesting that maybe they'd outgrown the comic, DC would come up with some ridiculous explanation.
So please don't offer a ridiculous explanation. The Invisible Man would be blind, but not invisible and I've probably outgrown him.
However, that puts me in the Cialis generation and that's even worse: Their latest commercials brag of a pill you can take that works over time so that, when the moment is right, you won't need to find a bathroom.
To which my response is not "Thank god you won't have to pause 10 seconds to swallow a pill," or even "Where were you gonna go get it on that doesn't have running water?" but, rather, "Geez, ya pig, don't you at least wash your hands?"
Not to mention that it seems to conflict with their logo.
But, yeah, as Sundance said, "You just keep thinkin', Butch. That's what you're good at."
But while I'm overthinking things …
Grand Avenue touches on an odd point of over-thinking that has gained some footing in sports circles, which is the use of "our" by civilians. That really is over-thinking, since people, at least in the team's hometown, should think of it as "their team" and thus "our" and "we" and "us."
If nothing else, you do want us to pay for "our" stadiums, right?
But NFL Shop, continuing its policy of tone-deaf commercials has picked up on this.
For those who don't watch football: NFL Shops gets a lot of air time during games to promote jersey sales, and NFL jerseys cost $100 a pop, which is a pretty loud pop if you ask me.
A few years ago, they started selling jerseys tailored for women, which is okay except that, instead of "Oh, good! Now I have one for me!" they used Lesley Gore's "You Don't Own Me" and showed women angrily throwing their boyfriends' jerseys back in their faces.
Apparently, nobody in the NFL marketing division ever had breakfast with a girl using a football jersey as a nightgown. There are several master's theses lurking in why that's sexy.
Their next marketing venture was a series of commercials in which doting grandparents spend $69 on a jersey for a kid, or the full $95 for a daughter-in-law who has just moved to a new town. In either commercial, the recipient opens the box, sees the "wrong team" jersey and shoves it back in.
Message: "Here's a way to spend a whole lot of money on something they won't want."
This year's commercials feature all-star players explaining all that they went through and achieved to earn their jerseys, then show a fan simply spending the money and getting the jersey without having broken a sweat.
Well, they probably know their audience. But it seems strange to emphasize the difference between the "we" in the stands and the "we" in the trenches.
Juxtaposition of an Over-Thinking Day
I'm still trying to avoid political stuff, not so much because I'm depressed and don't want to think about it, but because so much of it is half-baked, divisive and, at this stage, premature.
But it's possible that Hilary Price and Mark Anderson are sending subtle political messages today and, if so, the connection was made.
And, if not, well, the connection was still made because I can overthink anything.
And, while I'm on the subject, you may now refer to President Obama as a "lame duck," and the legislature as a "lame duck congress." This is the period the expression refers to, though it was a lot longer before 1933 when the 20th Amendment shifted Inauguration Day from March to January.
We'll pretend nobody has foolishly been using it for someone simply not up for re-election.
That's a case of "underthinking."
Basic civics, folks. We learned it in the eighth grade.
On a serious note
Today's Doc and Raider offers a more thoughtful than usual cartoon, not that the strip isn't generally pretty intelligent to begin with.
I hadn't thought of this and I don't know if it's something that gay parents of little kids have to think about, but it's a challenging concept because I'm not sure I see a way around it, honesty being a hallmark of good parenting.
I also don't know if the cartoon is a one-off or the beginning of an arc, but since I follow the strip anyway, I'll guess I'll find out.
Meanwhile, they should be happy to be in Canada. A friend here in the States has a daughter who was, for about six or seven years, her son, and who has been much more pleasant to be around since she recognized her identity — one night, in the bathtub, she said, "Mom, I think I was born wrong." And Mom listened.
The shift from a somewhat bratty little boy to a pleasant, bright little girl was dramatic and very welcome, I'm sure to her as well as to everyone around her.
And then, just as the world appeared to be heading in directions that would keep her safe and happy … well, we'll see.
It would take a fresh Supreme Court decision to overturn same-sex marriage, but you can ruin little kids' lives with a complaisant Congress and the stroke of a pen.
Meanwhile, keep your kids honest and happy, even if the combination is a little hard to manage.
Now here's your moment of zen:
If you're going to overthink it, you might as well just punch it and go.
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