Early 90's Teenage Angst vs. Mid 2020's Political Angst

It's really no contest. 

I'll take crazy fashion/crazy hair mixed with some rich kid teenage angst in the early 90's ANY DAY over present-day political angst.

So yes, I'm re-re-watching Beverly Hills 90210. 

photo credit

This photo is from the Spring Dance episode in Season 1 and it's so angsty. Both Kelly and Brenda like the same dress but once realizing that's the case, they both renounce it until... you guessed it, they each go back and buy it and then proceed to discover this only when they're getting ready to leave for the dance. Kelly says it's going to look like they planned on going as the Bobbsey Twins. Moments later, Jim Walsh (Brenda's father) comes in with his camera to take a photo and proclaims, "You look just like the Bobbsey Twins!"

This is only one moment of many Kelly/Brenda angsty exchanges. 

Yup, I still choose this over today's political lunacy.

Nothing to do with angst, but did you know that certain episodes of Beverly Hills 90210 aren't available for streaming? This in general is due to music rights. Take "Wildfire", Season 2, Episode 8 for example:

photo credit

Apparently, Neil Sedaka's "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do" is a tightly guarded piece of music, as I had to watch a random YouTube recording of this episode. Honestly, it's one of my favorites. Kelly, Brenda, Donna & Emily Valentine (!) perform the song in the "Hello Day" talent show at West Beverly High. They were going to perform a spoof on Addicted to Love (Addicted to Clothes) but thought they'd do something more meaningful. 😏

Silly, but yes, I am still choosing this over the news/current events.

The best part of the show? Brenda and Dylan's relationship. SO MUCH teenage angst. SO MUCH drama. SO MUCH ooey gooey teenage love. SO MUCH heartbreak. The big audience drama was whose team were you on- Brenda and Dylan or Kelly and Dylan? Team Brenda and Dylan all the way. (You can imagine my chagrin when Dylan told Kelly they were soulmates. Pfft.)

photo credit

The Halloween party episode! Brenda and Dylan as Bonnie and Clyde. How fitting- they were trouble in their own way just like Bonnie and Clyde.

Still choosing early 90's fantasy land.

What are you doing to maintain your sanity in today's world?

Just the Facts Ma'am

Fact #1a- The accessible version of the White House website is no longer in existence.

Fact #1b- Just over 7 million people in the US have visual impairments and thus are candidates for using a screen reader, which only works on accessible websites. {credit: National Federation of the Blind}

Fact #1c- In college, I interned at a non-profit (Federation for Children with Special Needs) and eventually became full-time staff. During the almost four years I worked there, I learned about many disabilities and their related accommodations/assistive technology. I specifically remember creating large print materials for the conference I helped to manage and visiting another non-profit in our building to see how various assistive technology worked.

Fact #2a- American Sign Language (ASL) interpreters are no longer present at White House Press Briefings. See letter from National Association of the Deaf.

Fact #2b- About 11 million people in the US identify as deaf or hard of hearing. {credit: National Deaf Center}

Fact #2c- My stepdaughter Grace has Down syndrome and she has a hearing impairment. She's completely deaf in her right ear (NOTE: if you ever meet her, sit on her left!) and has partial loss in her left ear. When she was born, my husband and Grace's mom along with other family members learned ASL (and Grace learned, as well) in order to communicate with her until she could speak.

Fact #3- On February 25, 2025, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt gave a briefing. At approximately the 5 minute/40 second mark, in the context of the President being accessible, she said,

The president, and this entire White House, are committed to ensuring the American people continue to receive this same level of historic transparency, access and visibility. In fact, we want to double down and give even greater access to the American people. 

{credit: briefing transcript, briefing video}

credit

Searching for the Light

 

photo credit

I don't know L.R. Knost other than what the Google machine tells me, but based on this alone, she is a wise woman.

Some people thrive on chaos, but I am not one of them. 

I am trying to shut myself off from the news because inevitably every time I look at it, there's something new that causes upset, anger, and sadness. 

This is less about politics and more about humanity and morality. And empathy. 

This is circulating and I'd have to say it's pretty accurate, at least for me:

Are you able to avoid the chaos and achieve some semblance of peace? 

If so, do share your methods.

It's Me...Hi...I'm the Problem, It's Me

photo credit

I don't consider myself a Swiftie, but Taylor's lyric rings true for this blog. 

I'm the problem. It's Me. 

I wrote ONE stinking post last year. ONE. Was I so busy that I had absolutely zero time to write more? No. The answer is no.

I was "busy" being nosy on Instagram, getting a look into "celebrities" lives. Well, that problem is solved. I deleted my IG account. Buh bye.

I was "busy" scrolling Facebook- reading restaurant reviews, monitoring my small town's FB page for drama over trash & recycling, and so, yeah. Really "busy." 

I was "busy" watching cult/real-life drama documentaries- from The Program to The Vow. Extremely uplifting topics (NOT).

Will I do better this year? I hope so. I seem to have run out of depressing documentaries to watch. My IG account is disabled. It's Facebook that's the main time suck, although based on the crap they're surfacing in my feed, they might be pushing me out the door.

In the words of Aerosmith, "Same old story, same old song & dance"...

Now that we have that out of the way... 

• We're expecting a "big" snowstorm here in New England- 6-10". I hope everyone has their bread, milk, and eggs! I've agreed to get a lesson on the snowblower, so at the ripe old age of (almost) 53, I could run it if I had to. (But only if I really had to.)

• I cleaned out the spare bedroom closet. I may have a blanket/duvet/quilt addiction. I'd completely forgotten about some of the bed linens that were in there. I'm satisfied with blanket and cover on my bed, so I'm hoping I can put a stop to any near-term purchases in that realm.

• We did make some good recipes over the past year or so (I say "we" but really, I was the idea person and John executed). Here are a few:
• Goat Cheese Prosciutto Quiche
  
• Pepper Jelly Chicken Wings
  
• Easy Cherry Crisp
  
• Fancy Nancy Chicken Salad (Chicken Salad Chick Copycat)

• I went on a fabulous trip with my Mom- a river cruise on the Danube! Loved Budapest. Loved the people we met on the cruise. Had good food, good drink, and got to see parts of the world that I might not have otherwise had the opportunity to.

• We (again with the "we" 😉) re-did our main bathroom! It was a HUGE project and John orchestrated it all- doing some himself, working with contractors, and then dealing with my obsessing over which of the three shower curtains I bought would work. We make a good team! That deserves its own post- stay tuned!

Have a great long weekend!