Heh--I live in the Northeast (the tri-state area, to be precise). Neither New York nor New Jersey lack lunkheads willing to comment on one's appearance. And it's been my experience that down South has its share of jerks willing to do the same thing (I went to college in Virginia, and saw a fair amount of that kind of stuff.) That said, women can be good for this crap, too--and actually seem to think they are doing you a frickin' favor. And what amazes me is that they aren't exactly Halle Berry by any stretch of the imagination. I was wondering what the best way was to shut up women who pull that stuff out in public--comment on how much improvement they need, or...?

1) I read somewhere that Colin Firth was positively delighted when the latest PRIDE AND PREJUDICE movie version hit. He was so fed up with being identified mostly with Mr. Darcy that he was desperately hoping the new Darcy (Matthew Macfayden) would relieve him of his "crown." Apparently, that was a forlorn hope--:).

2) Regency women did wear corsets. They were not nearly as bad as the metal/whalebone horrors Victorian women had to deal with--more like laceable camisoles--but they were required when a woman was out in public.

3) As for how modern women would fare in the Regency, the BBC did a "Regency House Party" reality show a couple years back, which took a cross-section of folks, assigned them titles (or no titles) and plunked them down in a Pemberley-like manor for several weeks. After a week or so of girlish gowns, not being able to go anywhere without a chaperone, and dealing with class status standards that restricted who you could even converse with, most of 'em got out of that romantic head pretty quick.

>"Evening" feels like one of those devil's-candy productions that aim to bring artistry to a large audience, specifically a large audience of adult women who don't often go to the movies.<

And they think stuff like _this_ will do the trick? I was hard-pressed to stay awake through EVENING'S trailer. (Wondering why obvious Oscar-bait like this was out now helped...:).) FWIW, there are more examples of "adult" counterprogramming movies doing well in summer than were listed in this article--THE NOTEBOOK and HOPE FLOATS, to name a few...

Eheheh. I was _so_ glad girdles (and the fashion dictate that you had to wear them as often as possible) were on their way out just as my figure developed. I only wore one once or twice, but I just couldn't take the restrictiveness. Anyone with an active life had every reason to avoid those things, and rightly so...

>Wait a second.

"Have you ever seen Dick Cheney give a speech? I mean, the contempt for the audience is palpable" -- "I know, I -- see, I love that."

In what possible constellation of political apparatus is it acceptable or desirable to have a leading politician have contempt for voters?<

Because these pundits identify with the "strong" TPTB who have the difficult task of guiding the mindless voting rabble. They fear (and hate) the average voter in the same way pre-French Revolution aristocrats hated the underclass. One of the reasons the right-wing has been able to infiltrate the media to the extent is has is because people still think these folks are guys-like-them who represent their voice. Such pundits represent their own interests as a moneyed class. They are _not_ on our side, and people need to be reminded of that every single chance we get.

>London has been saved from carbombing.... London also has cameras on a lot of corners.<

Um...if you were a professional terrorist, why would you put carbombs in areas under that kind of surveillance? Wouldn't the first thing you would do would be to scope out the area for cameras--or disable them? And don't you think it's funny that here's yet-another-eevvill-terrorist attempt right after Bush's poll numbers have taken another dive? I'll bet cash money right now that the guys behind this are amateurs. Not that this will stop the media and the Bushies from helping to restrict liberties a "little" more.

This sounds like a potential Peter Mayle-ripoff rom-com premise. Though it would be interesting to see how many lasting marriages come from this.

>What woman in her right mind would stay behind slaving away with their brothers, fathers and cousins in the fields? There's the whole world out there, and by golly they'll go get it, bid their male counterparts goodbye.<

Makes sense to me. Given how male-centered Spanish society is, you can bet these farms are family-owned and get passed down to the men, not the women. The best a woman could probably hope for is to marry a farmer. Why stick around and waste your life fighting centuries of tradition when you can make your fortune and freedom in the city?

>the idea had actually been around for years at destination weddings, where photographers would take their clients out to the beach for "newlywed sessions," also called "day-afters."<

For crying out loud. Given how long most marriages last, I guess these folks have to have some permanence from them. And if these brides need a fast way to trash their gowns, why not let much-tried bridesmaids, grooms, or singles-who-shell-out-money-they'll-never-get-back do the honors? Hell, I bet that part of the ceremonies would be more popular than the wedding itself. ;)