HPV Vaccination Flap

I'm sure most of you have heard about the controversy regarding vaccinating pre-teen girls for HPV in order to stave off potential cervical cancer resulting from said HPV. No, scratch that. The flap is not really about the vaccine, but about being required to vaccinate pre-teen girls.

After all, some people have doubts about the safety of a lot of vaccines (especially ones without longer term testing), others don't like being told how to run their family's medical life, and others feel that this is probably unduly influenced by Big Pharma's interests. Or some combination thereof. And then there's the perennial discomfort with the idea of our children ever, ever, EVER having sex, let alone preparing them for it (in any way) during middle school.

But you know, I probably would go get it myself if I were magically transported back to being 18--not that they had the vaccine way way back then.

I guess my question would be, why would they make this mandatory only for girls? Who do they think most of those girls are going to contract HPV from? If it's going to be mandatory (and I'm not certain it should be), then boys better be mandated to have it, too.

Okay, and then there are articles such as this one that states that gay men are voluntarily going to get the vaccine (leave it to the gay community to be at the forefront of sexual health practices), and the doctor in it who states:
“I would be interested to see the response of suggesting to parents that they should vaccinate their boys at 12 in case they become gay.” [italics mine]

Okay, leaving out the entire discussion about the "become gay" comment...is that why we'd vaccinate boys? Just in case they "become gay"?! So, we don't care if they carry the virus and have genital warts themselves, and then pass that virus on to a girl or girls, who then end up with cancer--the only reason to vaccinate a boy would be in case of possible gayness.

But you know, the doctor is right. That is exactly what a lot of parents are going to think, and why they'll balk at vaccinating their sons, rather than one of those other, more rational reasons.

But Does It Know Jack?

I admit I am one of those on the forefront of the non-blogging trend lately, except for maybe my mothering blog. I believe I actually have a good excuse this year. However, I'm still going to try writing an actual entry from time to time. (I wrote most of this one on my PDA in bed while intermittently nursing.)

Last night TheLimey went to a work colleague's party for a brief evening. This gave me a chance to watch the scary DVD I'd checked out at the library.

When I watch a movie at night, I watch it in bed (with headphones), so that Limelet will stay asleep, as he can then sleepily nurse on demand while I lie there. It's most convenient: I get to see a movie and I can also tend the baby, simultaneously. (If you've ever cared for an infant who is awake, you will realize it's hard to watch an entire movie during the daytime.)

Unfortunately, when my husband is in bed too, trying to sleep so he can go to work the next morning, I can't really be munching popcorn and playing movies in bed. Therefore, the opportunities are sparse. So this was a great opportunity. It was a wintry, howling-windy night, so it was perfect for snuggling up with a warm baby and a scary movie. Also popcorn.

As I was heading downstairs to pop the corn, after getting Limelet to sleep, I realized that I had worked on my dissertation through dinnertime and should probably eat something more than popcorn. Being of the ham and cherries school of eating myself, this turned into quite an odd assortment of food.

Let's see, perhaps a peanut butter sandwich and a glass of milk. Oh, and an apple. That's whole grain, fruit, and protein. Perfectly nutritious! --Wait, I can have the peanut butter with the apple, and then make cinnamon toast of the bread. Perfect! And the milk, it can become hot cocoa with the addition of...some heat. And some cocoa. Oh yes, I forgot I bought a new container of cottage cheese--that looks good, too. And raw carrots--don't forget some raw carrots, for added fiber.

My tea tray ended up so full of all these other things, I had to balance the hot popcorn bag precariously on top when I took it upstairs.

The movie was Darkness, which was prettily filmed but not very scary after all (except for maybe three teasing seconds of scariness.) I found myself wishing someone else was watching it with me so we could make fun of it together. At one point a character intoned ominously, "The Darkness knows a great deal..."

"...when it sees one," I jauntily finished for him. If Darkness is such a good bargain shopper, I thought, I wonder what other things Darkness might know. I started making a list in my head, compulsively, at about the time the characters were arguing about "where that tube went":

Darkness knows a great deal (when it sees one)

Darkness knows a good fluffy pancake recipe

Darkness knows when to hold 'em & when to fold 'em

Darkness knows my second cousin Joe

Darkness knows how to mambo!

Darkness knows the way to San Jose

Darkness knows the real lyrics to Louie Louie

Darkness knows where the decent free restrooms in Chicago are

Darkness knows who took the last brownie

Darkness knows which way the wind blows

Darkness knows you didn't really mean that, but were just kidding

Darkness knows which side its bread is buttered on

Darkness knows where that tube is

Darkness knows what boys like

Darkness knows there's somethin' goin' on

Darkness knows the square root of 2.425217

Darkness knows how to treat a lady

Darkness knows a great little diner around the corner


...so if you think of something else Darkness knows, feel free to comment.

Internship

Okay, I'm in...

...somewhere. We find out our locations Monday.

Emails are flying amongst my colleagues, but I just have little suspense this, my third, time through.

But I am going to celebrate by taking a 10-minute nap while Limelet has one, unless my lying down wakes him up. Which it usually does.

Darnit, I was forced to switch to New Blogger because I erased my cookies the other day.

[Okay, background for those searching for APPIC Match entries on Blogsearch today: The first year of APPIC Match, my program--in which I was part of the first cohort--was not yet accredited. I think one person got an accredited match.

Second year, we were "about" to be accredited, and I was placed. However, we also found out I was going to be having a baby about the same time the internship started. The site director was kind enough to basically rip up my contract for me, as APPIC doesn't allow "holding" places (officially, anyway.)

Now, having gone through the application and interview process for the third frickin' time in a row, but this time with a husband and an infant in tow, I am mainly just exhausted and want it to be over!

And it is. Yippee!]

What's That Google Thing Called?

...in which there's only one hit for a search? Because I have one.

I didn't know this was such an exclusive pseudo-term; perhaps I'm spelling it wrong.

Post-Valentine: What About Sweathogs Then?

I had no idea there was so much sweat out there. (More mean-spirited typo-bashing).

A Therapist I Probably Won't Visit

This item almost makes sense, if it's athletic clothing.

I see why they discontinued this item.

This would have to be a really, really gritty song. Even for Buckley.

Et tu, Bette Midler?!

** I decided that it's hard enough to be a teenager without the unfair scrutiny of strangers (me), so I removed that last one. Go find your own example. **


Feel free to comment with any you may find. (This blog isn't all sweatness and light, after all.)

Happy V-Day

"Slowly, it dawned on me that nothing was more important than stopping violence toward women—that the desecration of women indicated the failure of human beings to honor and protect life and that this failing would, if we did not correct it, be the end of us all. I do not think I am being extreme. When you rape, beat, maim, mutilate, burn, bury, and terrorize women, you destroy the essential life energy on the planet. You force what is meant to be open, trusting, nurturing, creative, and alive to be bent, infertile, and broken."

(Support your local shelter!)

Well, Some White Families Never Stopped the Tradition...

(We were too poor?*)


"Most people in the world have been doing attachment parenting and still are but white people don’t even think that it existed until they thought of it."

A great article.


*Of course I'd like to think it was because we were so darn humane and sensible, but...pfffff. How likely is that?

Russefeiring 1986

Russefeiring 1986
Originally uploaded by doctorlizardo.

If you wanted proof (old school proof, anyway) that I was in Norway, here it is. A friend is moving and found a box of memorabilia of mine, including this photo from 1986.

That's me at the bottom right, the only person without red pants or at least white. Although I admit that I currently DO own a pair of red jeans. I always wondered what possessed me to buy them--now I know.

Heia Norge!

He's Not My Nemesis in Real Life

I can't tell you how happy this news item makes me. I love Renaissance persons.

It couldn't happen to a better superrat-killer (no offense, rats), robotic law-enforcement officer, or surgeon/physicist/rock star, in my opinion.

I'm glad when people I like reinvent themselves (Thomas Dolby).

In fact, I was even happy to see The Artist Still Known as Prince come out of hiding, albeit for something as commercial as the Superbowl Prince Medley. "... virtually no one else on the face of the earth could've rocked his aquamarine-on-peach suit and made it look conservative..."

So true, Village Voice, so true.

Here's Us

Hard at work in the office. I don't know how to do the embed thing yet, so it's just a link to a video.