wednes | I've never had anyone block my computer before.

I've been trying to figure out how to phone post since I can't seem to get on Lj at work. The number I have for it doesn't work in my phone and I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong. It would be much easier just to read LJ from work, but my desk faces the admin offices so I have to be pretty careful. Plus I guess they monitor that sort of thing so people won't watch porn at work or something.

They are really getting their shit together over at Big Fat Blog. I've been thinking for a while about getting into some serious fat activism but had no idea where to start. It looks like they are really trying to get some activism going. I talk a pretty good game in re: fat. But in real life, I tend to be nervous about the kind of verbal retaliation I might get from speaking out about fat rights. There's still an awful lot of stupidity and ignorance in the world, especially on the topic of fat. Plenty of people still want me to blame myself and wallow in sorrow over how I look. Admittedly, I do that sometimes but I'm trying hard to accept myself as is and make healthy choices regardless of how "hopeless" it all seems.

Okay, now I'm off to work.

Oh, and the girls in Group are throwing me a shower. For you local types, it's September 9th, which is a Sunday.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

I work in a place where most questionable content is filtered (THANK YOU WEBSENSE), including YouTube, anything with "games" in the URL, and blogs. So, I read other stuff -- Firedoglake, Crooks & Liars, MetaFilter, digg, Slashdot, etc. My job doesn't block anything related to google, though, so I can still watch Penn & Teller's "Bullshit" on Googlevideo and check my e-mail on gmail.

To post content, just use a gmail account to store your post until you can get home and copy and paste it into LJ.

Nice. I'll have to assemble a list of places I can surf safely. I bet that site full of animal attacks will be safe. ;-]

They're major sticklers on doing anything fun with the computers there. I used to keep myself occupied by googling the various composers and violinmakers and reading about their histories.

Yeah, I can see how that would be interesting for a while. I mean, there's only so much folding a person can do.

How long were you there anyway? Did you go through CS training? I have my first sales training this week.

They tried to get me to do the CS, and I got 'em to put it off as long as possible, but eventually they had me working on it. Rarely was I able to solve anyone's problems, and I had to transfer them to smarter people.
The worst was when they made me call people and tell them their credit cards were declined. People don't like it when you call them to tell them they have credit card troubles. I loved the regular calls when I first started. People who are excited about their kids starting out with an instrument, and how I could help them. I could hear the smiles in their voices, but once they started having me take the disgruntled customers and then having me call to make people disgruntled about their credit cards, I couldn't handle it. You're stronger than me though, so I know you'll be able to handle it. I'm way too sensitive.

Yeah, most of the people I talked to are pretty nice on the phone. A few jerks, and a few people that are difficult to understand, but I think I'm doing okay overall. My sales are good.

I don't think anyone would want to make the declined credit card calls. Yikes. Was that for the flex plan? That must have sucked.

I was having issue with voice posting, and went to check it out. They changed the number to a toll free number. that may be the issue. :)

I can't post on Lj from work, but I can comment and read. It's really weird.

That is weird. I changed my LJ post phone listing to the 888 number. Maybe that will work. I'll give it a whirl tomorrow from work.

Its because its so visible, its an instant source for commentary. You don't have to get to know someone, just judge them on appearance.. and We all know, if you stop eating like a pig you become THIN! So, you must be lazy because only lazy people are fat! The fat thing is just the most obvious of them though.. There are dozens of others that are always sure to keep us a nice and judgemental society whatever progressive ideas we proclaim. Long Hair? Hippy.. Large Breasts? Slut.. Long Nails? Guitar Player (also Druggie). We like Stereotypes because they make us feel safe. They insulate us from a world of mystery and confusion. Black People Must Be Criminals because they live on the "Other Side of The Tracks". That means when you pass 8 Mile you lock the car doors (Granted, giving crime statistics this is an emperically safe move). I mean its so much a part of the culture that without stereotypes modern comedy would be decimated. Polish? Stupid. Black? Love Fried Chicken. Etc.

Anyway, I'm not sure this is even what you were saying, but I typed it before I even knew what was happening. I guess I would say Acceptance before Activisim. Any kind of Activisim seems centered around the idea of giving special rights to people of a certain group. I don't like Special Rights for the most part because they seem counter productive. Having said that, I think there are issues that need to be addressed. Issues like How Many Airplane seats must you buy, etc. Since Airlines are a profit making business I think they feel its easier to segregate out a smaller group for the "greater finacial good". I am not really a big fat of that idea because the action is at best its own form of stereotype reinforcement. I'm rambling now so I will end the incoherency.

I must say stereotypes are much more indicative of laziness than fat. I know what you mean though, stereotypes make us comfortable in the knowledge that what you see is what you get, true or not.

Acceptance before activism is probably a good road for me, especially since I go back and forth between the two.

And yes, there are a lot of really basic ways that fat people face discrimination and bias. Like that poor woman who was sent to Bronx Zoo for medical care because she couldn't fit a closed MRI machine. And of course it's HER fault because if she didn't eat so much blah blah blah. But you know what? Even if someone's fat is 100% about overeating, that's still not an okay reason to judge someone. Everybody has flaws and I think the whole "not all fat people overeat" serves to segregate us into "good" and "bad" fat people. The issue is supposed to be that fat does not equal immoral, no matter how much someone eats. It's not as if you can skip lunch and suddenly fit into an airplane seat.

Now it is I who am rambling...
;-]

I hate those closed MRI machines. They shouldn't make any of them that way. When it wouldn't fit me, I got sent to the MRI place where the head-injured Detroit Lions football guys go. The open MRI is so much better. Not scary, not uncomfortable. It is the way to go!

its always seemed to me that stereotypes wouldnt be so
bad if there were not a value judgement attached to them.

That's true. I think steroetypes range from the dismissive to the downright cruel, it just depends.

I don't think all people who stereotype intend to be hurtful, but it's still lazy thinking.

Can you check your email at work? I know someone who cannot get onto many sites while at work, so he has a handful of websites he copies and pastes into email and sends them to himself so he can read them while at work.

Aha! Now there's a good idea. I can check my Email but the popup blocker keeps me from responding to LJ comments.

Wednes, can I get the URL for the Big Fat Blog? Sounds like it would be interesting!

But of course:

http://www.bigfatblog.com/

You can also subscribe via LJ, the link is on my info page under RSS feeds.

Thankie!

I've never had anyone block my computer before.

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