Posers....

The one thing that is fascinating, when it is time to workout, is that there are a large number of young physically fit, and often beautiful, people doing the same thing I do, with only one difference. The ability to pose in front of the mirror and enjoy everything they see. It can be for just a few minutes, or it can be a look now and again, or it can be in lieu of physical exercise. No kidding. They come to the club all dressed for a workout and they manage not to work out and still look terrific (mostly at themselves) at the same time. And I am not just talking about women. The men are far more interested in how they look. They do not need approval from any admirers. They are perfectly content sharing the sight with only their reflection. Even more astounding is when you leave the sanctity of the club with all those perfect bodies, only to walk out on the street and see how large the rest of America has become.

And speaking about posing, have any of you watched Morning Joe lately? If not, don’t bother to turn it on. It is almost unwatchable – with good reason. Mika poses. O.K. And then there is Joe’s inability to listen to anyone else, as well as his overt unending impatience with his lovely co-host. There’s a wonderful Sondheim song called “Lovely,” of which I am reminded every time she appears. It goes like this: “I'm lovely, All I am is lovely, Lovely is the one thing I can do. Winsome, Radiant as in some, Dream come true. Oh, Isn't it a shame? I can neither sew, Nor cook, Nor read or write my name.
But I'm happy Merely being lovely, For it's one thing I can give to you.” (in this case, the audience.)

This is not meant as a criticism. I mean it in the nicest possible way. No longer does she speak in complete sentences. Usually what happens is that she says a word or two, Joe harangues her, she looks at him expressionless and then she poses – usually making some kind of a face which is supposed to substitute for an intelligent comment. It simply doesn’t work. Did it ever? Yes, when the show premiered and I was a guest, she said funny, intelligent things. Did someone at the network vacuum her brain? Did her dad say he was embarrassed by her remarks? Did Joe threaten to take away her nice shoes? Willie, she needs a hero to come to her rescue. Or she needs for someone at the “Lean Forward” Network to slap her until she sits back.

Never let it be said that my picking is directed at a group or one individual. There sure was a great deal of posing in Washington this week. Between BO, the Speaker of the House, (no Tip O’Neill but still very lovely) the Minority whip (who is also lovely), the posing didn’t stop for a minute. None of them had to stand in front of a mirror to see who they wanted to see – or be. Everyone was delighted to pose in front of a camera, and point the finger at anyone who wasn’t them. BO made some nice speeches accusing the Republicans of interfering with the process of government. Duh, that’s what they came to Washington to do. They did not come to be a “ diverse community” that needed to be organized by, for lack of a better description, the Community Organizer In Chief.

It is not like me to be harsh, however, what happened to figuring out how to lead the Government and kick ass? Like, how about you write your own Bill, sign it, pass it wherever you can, and let the Republicans go to the Supreme Court to impeach. By the time anything happens, BO will have finished his second term (he should be so lucky!) and made the real difference in America, that he promised before he got elected. Perhaps I am exaggerating about a solution to any stalemate. But for those of us who have been part of the Government Bureaucracy as political appointees, (political appointees are suppose to advocate for Presidential policies), and didn’t need to make friends as much as make a difference, with the guidance of respectable public servants, we 1. stopped campaigning for office, 2. didn’t circumvent the press with social media tools and 3. figured out ways to get things moving. This Administration needs far fewer posers, in order to defeat all those hosers. Yes, I could have been a poet instead of a blobber. We’re just sayin’... Iris

Addendum: Wednesday morning, 8/3 11am:

This morning at the fitness club there was a delicious young man who was all in white with a black weight belt. His T-shirt had holes in all the right places. Ragged, scruffy, and perfection. He was, of course, handsome and healthy with muscles in just the right places. You know how in a Disney cartoon when the hero smiles, you see a sparkle on his teeth. Yes, there was that as well. You remember how I said that the men at the club do not seem to need approval, they are happy looking at themselves. Well people were lined up to look at this guy(with me among them) and he seemed to like it just fine!. Why not.
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