New York for Marriage Equality

A Marriage Equality vote is going to the State Senate soon - likely next week - as they try to catch up with DC's enlightened ways.  It's close, but it looks like it's just one vote away from passing, and that Senator remains undecided.  And in getting to that threshold, recently, Republican State Senator, Roy McDonald crossed party lines to state he planned to vote for it.   He was quoted as saying:

"You get to the point where you evolve in your life where everything isn't black and white, good and bad, and you try to do the right thing.

"You might not like that. You might be very cynical about that. Well, f**k it, I don't care what you think. I'm trying to do the right thing."  

Way to go, Mc Donald.  Here's to evolving.  Her's to not seeing life in black and white.  Here's to doing the right thing.  And while, I'm at it, here's to TMZ.com, the celebrity gossip site for covering it and standing on the side of love.

Sweet Mango Armpit

Fragrance in body products have always annoyed and amused me.  While I don't always get unscented products, I do seek out the lightest, most natural fragrance for my hair, body, and laundry.  Recently, it seems like the scenting has gotten out of control - "Cherry Mischief" Clear Gel Deodorant by Secret (wow! - that's practically a porn flick) or "Va Va Vanilla" also by Secret. I really don't want my armpit smelling like a bakery.  It seems rather ridiculous.  But while I steer clear of such frou-frou scenting, at least they make some scent sense.

This morning, however, I was shaving in the shower with Skintimate Extra Moisturizing Shave Gel for Sensitive Skin.  I must have bought it on sale - it would not usually jump into my shopping cart from the shelf.  The lather was bright pink, and smelled sickly sweet like strawberry-mango cotton candy.  I looked down at the label to figure out what on earth I had purchased....

"Cashmere Rain" it said on the label.  What?!?!  Is that like a damp sweater or a muggy summer rainstorm?  Is it soft fuzzy raindrops?  Or wet velvet?  At any rate, it's the dumbest marketing I've ever seen in my entire life.  I can't believe no one caught that in the focus group.   Jeesh.

Radio City Music Hall, New York

Cool! Life's lessons in data form

Yet another amazing interactive data graphic at the NYTimes.  This one is a measure of the frequency of key words within this season's commencement speeches.  I am, as usual, particularly enamored with the data presentation.  The list of colleges and universities (organized by private, public, and military) with the commencement speaker name, affiliation, and link to speech on YouTube runs along the left column.  Key word (and by extension themes) run across the top.  And the circle size represents frequency of word use. So much information, so clearly presented at once; it can be looked at as a whole ("world" ran across nearly every speech), or disassembled in its parts (Sheryl Sandberg, COO Facebook sure said "Facebook" a lot, but it was a popular refrain across the board).

The themes tell us something about our times - "world," "economy," "Facebook/Twitter" - but also reflect the grandiose and seemingly limitless horizon that "commencement" provides -"change," "service/responsibility," "joy/happiness,"  and "love/passion."

I think I would enjoy Jonathan Franzen's address about the importance of going beyond "Liking" a la Facebook, but to take a boldder, braver, more purposeful step of "loving" and embracing.  And I find it interesting that Bill Clinton, the world's statesman, told NYU's graduates, "You should strive to find happiness every day and not believe that it comes at the end of the journey." - a lesson he surely learned on a visit with the Dalai Lama.

And back to Sheryl Sandberg - a woman who has made more money than God paving our new roads of human interaction through social networks and digital media.  She wisely told the group of undergraduates at Barnard College, a women's college in New York City:

Women almost never make one decision to leave the work force. It doesn’t happen that way. They make small little decisions along the way that eventually lead them there. Maybe it’s the last year of med school when they say, “I’ll take a slightly less interesting specialty because I’m going to want more balance one day.” Maybe it’s the fifth year in a law firm when they say, “I’m not even sure I should go for partner, because I know I’m going to want kids eventually.” These women don’t even have relationships, and already they’re finding balance, balance for responsibilities they don’t yet have. And from that moment, they start quietly leaning back.

So, my heartfelt message to all of you is, and start thinking about this now, do not leave before you leave. Do not lean back; lean in. Put your foot on that gas pedal and keep it there until the day you have to make a decision, and then make a decision. That’s the only way, when that day comes, you’ll even have a decision to make.

Wise words, indeed!