*boloh*

I was reading today about the prophet Elisha in 2 Kings, and wanted to know more. So of course, I went to my trusty google search and typed in "Elisha" - after filtering out the closely pornographic photos of a certain blond actress, I hit on the links of various bible-history.org, biblestudy.com, bible-this-and-that websites. What struck me was the utter and complete lack of credibility these websites had. There was no accredation, no endorsement by my church, nothing really to say that these interpretations and historical backgrounds are accurate.

Yet it is so easy to just hop onto the website without thinking, grab whatever information I want, probably print it out for the bible study I'm leading next week, and off I go.

If you thought going to my church's website would help, it didn't. Redeemer Presbyterian is oddly lacking in helping me understand what information out there on the web is credible or not. An affiliation or stamp would really be useful here.

This plays into the larger conversation I had earlier with a colleague, about the rise of citizen journalism on the web and blogosphere and news-by-twitter. For all the benefits of mass democratization of internet ownership, there is also a huge issue of credibility and reliability.

The NYTimes published an article on the front page of the website about this crazy new phenomenon spreading amongst teenagers. It's called hugging. Apparently it warranted the calling in of sociologists, psychologists, and other experts to deconstruct why teenagers are now hugging each other as oppose to high fives.

I'm sorry, high-fives, but you'll have to move into the corner of has-been trends along with the mop while you watch the hug and the swiffer bask the limelight of cool.

Seriously?

It's hugging, for pete's sake and it's nothing new. I hugged in high school and that was a good ten years ago. There was nothing substantial in this article to warrant an entire story. If there was a sexual harrassment charge stemming from what started out as an innocent hug, then okay. But instead, there's George G. White junior high school, which banned hugging altogether. Ridiculous.

I had drank one too many vitamin waters and was jones'ing for a local facility to relieve myself. But did anyone notice how public washrooms in New York City is a scarce resource? Don't even bother with local banks, or convenience stores, and when it comes to the coffee shops - you have to buy something. I tried going up to a random floor in an office building but alas, locked out.

Okay, it's an official rule that anyone who uses Fray music at the end of an episode will guarantee at least a shimmer of a tear in my eye.

For those of you who caught last night's episode of Brothers and Sisters, how satisfying and yet sad an episode it was.  For me, it just felt good to see the writers wrap up a season of lack-luster storylines.  The Justin/Rebekah breakup was hogwash.  The Tommy departure: hogwash.  And Kitty's affair? Don't get me started.  At the same time, I don't think we've ever seen the Walkers so divided and weak.  Tommy is missing, Kitty is acting like her father in the worst possible way, and Ryan Lafferty is a black spot on the family sponging off Rebekah and playing them all until he cracks - and whammo!  I half expect him to strap himself with a bomb and blow up Ojai foods.  Or maybe he's just a Robert Pattison wannabe.

My biggest gripe: Kitty's affair.  Whether or not she slept with Alec, she was having a full-fledged affair.  Did the writers think we'd forget about that porch-swing kiss at the end of last season?  What happened?  She just decided to go home afterward?  I don't think so.  There is nothing that justifies what she did, not even Robert's unyielding ambition.   But isn't it funny that as soon as Kitty start acting out in her own way, Robert is back to being the family man we knew and loved?

It broke my heart in episdoe 318, "Taking Sides," when Robert breaks down crying in the bedroom after telling Kitty he's just "fine."  That, for me, was the climax of the season.  That's true character tension, and I wish they had explored this further.  Instead, we have this half-baked attempt to translate the conflict to Kitty, as she checks out of her marriage and checks into the Ken-doll at the park. It was too easy.  It was too typical.  Kitty was always smarter than that, and I think her fall from grace could have been handled less obvious ways.  The realization that she ended up being more like her father than her mother, in this episode, almost made up for it.   It boggles my mind how people manage to remember conversations their parents had years ago on the phone, when they weren't even really paying attention.  If I could think really hard and recall small details like that about random conversations my parents had years ago, I'm sure I'd be able to put the pieces together of old family secrets, too.  I can't even remember the name of my grocery guy (who I've already asked multiple times), but that's just me.

Then comes the whole Ryan Lafferty issue.  Okay, does anyone else find him incredibly creepy?  Maybe it's his Twilight'esque hair and complexion (i may not be a tween, but all that brooding is the opposite of hunky), or his delusional view that he's in a relationship with Rebekah - who, by the way, should be smarter than this.  Rebekah's been around the dating block or two, if I recall my first season correctly.  As if she didn't realize all the little hints that little brother has the hots for her.  Come on, that look of surprise on her face when he kissed her was entirely a waste of a spawn of Holly.   Combined with her father's warning about Ryan, and I have a sneaking suspicion that something dark lie-a-beneath this Ryan Lafferty.  If his mother could take such extreme measures in her despair, then perhaps he has the same tendencies - although this time, he'll take it out on someone else.  The sins of the parent revisiting the children is something we're definitely familiar with here at Walker Landing.

Finally, Sarah.  Sarah, Sarah, Sarah.  Traditionally one of my favourite characters, my heart almost broke for her as she admitted her loneliness.  I'm curious to see where this will take her, and am loathe to solve all her problems with that "soulmate" she longs for.  No, that's too convenient.  There is a deeper lesson her and I want the writers to explore it for her.  A juicy set-up for next season, perhaps?

As for Tommy, he only deserves a footnote on this post.  We found out, thanks for the LATimes, that Balthazar Getty's character wasn't receiving the permanent ax.  Norah's one-track-mind leading her straight to Mexico had me thinking on overdrive for the opening scene in next week's season finale: Norah Walker, sits on the side of a hospital bed, clasping her son's hand as he wakes up from his drowse.  That's right, Tommy Walker contracted the swine flu.  Ha.

Very.

I'm attending this class here at SIPA called "Women in Power." The professor, Carolyn Buck-Luce, is an amazing and influential woman who brings in some of her most influential friends to tell us their stories and give us advice. Through this class, I've become acutely aware of "CSR-speak," this entirely new language comprised of cute alliterations, metaphors, and catch-phrases meant to get you thinking about an issue in a new light. It's like three months of Tuesdays with Morrie. Allow me to illustrate:

1. The Goldilocks Syndrome - describing how the reality for women is that they're either too much of this, or not enough of that.

2. The Career Labyrinth - rather than facing a Career Ladder, the path of ambition for women is shaped more like a labyrinth where they face walls and turns and have to navigate without knowing which direction they're going in.

3. On-Ramps and Off-Ramps - women, driving in the fast lane of their careers, can suddenly head toward an off-ramp and get off track.

This morning, I find myself clicking onto the website of an Ariane de Bonvoism. She talks about the first thirty days as the most critical for affecting any change. Whether you want to master use of an ipod, or change your career, or learn how to play guitar hero. Thirty days. It's like the female version of Tony Robbins, minus the weight loss success story and the aerobics-instructor microphone strapped to his head. I should add her onto twitter.

One week ago, I turned 26.  One week ago, I decided what I was going to do with my summer (decision made: staying in NYC).  One week ago, I found out that I was granted funding for next year as a teaching assistant.    In about a week, I will be writing my final exams. Victories and defeats, all within one week.