Individual blog #3

For this journal I read an opinion article on, "Contraception Saves Money and Marriages." The author of the article, Christina Page, discusses the positive outcomes of contraceptives and how it has brought changes for our society. Page believes that birth control has saved marriages by preventing extramarital affairs' pregnancy. I think this is interesting, because she is encouraging people to cheat by saying it's okay to do it even more now that their is a solution that will stop pregnancies. In a marriage people should be a 100% faithful at all times. If a person was not ready to handle the responsibility then he or she shouldn't have gotten married in the first place. When people have more freedom sometimes that freedom of will can be taken advantage of.
Page also talked about how women are becoming more educated and more of them have professional jobs as of opposed to the 1950's, where women stayed home and took care of the household and cared for the children. It's great that there are more opportunities for women but women are becoming more independent that some may lose their feminine values. Since most both people in a marriage work, women don't have time to cook so families are eating out or having tv dinners. Quick dinners and outside food can be costly and unhealthy. Women are also becoming more dominant in a relationship which sometimes can lead to problems. I have a friend whose mom made all the decisions financially, because she brought home the bacon while the dad stayed home and watched the children. It brought a controversy between the two because he felt less of a man and he didn't feel apart of the marriage.
I do believe education is important and that anyone should be able to have a chance to go to college. As a women I do feel very fortunate to live in these times where we have more equality and chances of entering the professional world. But I also believe that a marriage should be balanced out. Although times have changed for women and there are more opportunities, it doesn't mean women should try to be more superior than men.

Drinking Coffee Elswhere

ZZ Packer's, "Brownies," had a lot of telling details for all the characters which was what made her fictional story came alive. The story was about young girls from a brownie troop that experience a camping trip for their first time. Each girl had their own special personality and appearance which Packer describes very well. "Usually people were quiet after Arnetta spoke. Her tone had an upholstered confidence that was somehow both regal and vulgar at once. It demanded a few moments of silence in its awake, like the ring of a church bell or the playing of taps." She uses such graphic words like regal and vulgar that helps readers visualize the character more and it also helps them to get a sense of what kind of person she is. You can tell that Arnetta is the leader of the group by her strong and intimidating personality. Another great description, "The belt layered with feathers was uncanny enough, but I was more disturbed by the realization that I had never actually seen a baby pigeon." I thought it was a pretty interesting and at the same time it had some humor to it, coming from a little girl's thoughts. She uses such high vocabulary for her age, as if she's an adult which amazes me, but her humor shows that she is a child. I really enjoyed reading this chapter it got me to reminisce my fun and free- willed childhood experiences.

Individual blog #2

Celebrity Cougars

In the past decade, men have always been known to be older than the women in a relationship or marriage. Some men are even ten years older than the women. But now the tables have turned and it’s becoming more popular in Hollywood. VH1 calls it “Celebrity Cougars,” women who are over 30 and are on the prowl, hooking up with young hot men. VH1 refers to the time when the book and movie “The Graduate” came out. It’s about a rich, married woman who seduced a high school boy. This was the first time Hollywood showed this to the media which shocked a lot of people. Today it seems to be a trend for older women dating younger men. Celebrities like, Cameron Diaz and Justin Timberlake who had 7-9 years age gap. Other celebrities like, Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon, and Jennifer Aniston and John Mayer who have about 10 years difference. The most famous “Celebrity Cougar” of all time is Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher who have a 15 years age difference. VH1’ audiences voted Demi Moore to be the #1 Cougar.