vaguely dissatisfied

[psocoptera]

We might need to just give up on getting popular DVDs from the library; our latest attempt, Finding Nemo, had such extensive areas of damage that we skipped almost all of the climax and oh hey look I guess Nemo's dad found him and they're back in the ocean yay!

I spent some valuable naptime today working on a Korra story that just isn't coming together. There's some good stuff in it (sez me) but too much of it, in a way: I can't figure out whether it's really a story about what's happening in scene one, or in scene two, or in scene four. Probably it would benefit from a beta reader but that would take time and why am I even spending precious precious writing time on Korra when I could be working on one of my Leviathan WIPs.

I am minorly stressed because Junie is going to a birthday party tomorrow and Josh tried and failed to get an answer to the question of whether this is a bringing-presents party and thus isn't but what if it turns out to be and this is *not my problem*, I sort of have this deal going with Josh in which the kid-birthday-party buck stops with him because he has 200% more social cope than I do, but some stupid part of my brain keeps whispering that really it's my job because gifts and parties and all forms of social work are ultimately the woman's job and shut up, shut up stupid brain, your heteronormative stereotypical task distribution is not needed here (but if "shut up, brain" actually worked, my life would be so different).

Fneh.

Comments

[eclectic-boy.livejournal.com]

Netflix's DVDs are not always perfect, but they usually are - once someone complains about a problem that disc gets taken out of circulation. And of course the Netflix Instant option has no skipping problems whatsoever.

[gannet.livejournal.com]

my library system has some sort of machine for polishing scratched CDs and DVDs that at least seems to improve their playback. I try to remember to look at DVDs when I check them out and hand them to the appropriate person for polishing.

[psocoptera.livejournal.com]

This is a very good point, I hadn't actually thought of telling the librarians or seeing if there was anything they could do.

[gannet.livejournal.com]

People generally don't mention it.

[belecrivain.livejournal.com]

I recently got a bunch of picture books at Costco (including some Dr. Seuss stuff); perhaps having one or two on hand, wrapped in festive but non-commital-as-to-gender, eases Josh's mind? Either you don't need it, or you write "Happy Birthday ___" on it and add it discreetly to the present pile.

[irilyth]

This seems complicated -- if I *don't* need it, what do I do with it during the party? Standing around with a festively wrapped gift that I'm *not* giving to the birthday kid seems awkward. :^p I guess I could stash it in the car, or something.

My mind is actually relatively at ease about this, in that I have somewhat accepted that I suck at gift-giving, and that if I fail to get someone a gift, even if I really should have, this does not make me an awful person, any more than the fact that I seem to be able to only remember the names of the kids, and not their parents.

I've also concluded that homemade cards are a solid option, because if gifts are being given, at least they're *something* (and they're something lovingly handmade, and something which the recipient definitely doesn't have already, unlike a popular inoffensive book); and if gifts aren't being given, a card doesn't break that rule as much as a toy or a book.

[jaipur.livejournal.com]

Bwa hah re: the heteronormative stereotypical task distribution!! :) :) Seems like it went ok, though?...

[rebeccapaul.livejournal.com]

I think the role of securing a gift ultimately falls to the parent taking the kid to the party since they are the one to actually be there and say "oops". So it need not be your problem (and it sounds like it was ok anyway)....

[irilyth]

Enh, I dunno -- I'm a big believer in specialization and division of labor. :^) If I'm much better at taking kids to parties, but Amy is much better at gift shopping, it makes sense for her to be the one who buys the gifts. (But it still makes sense for me to be the one responsible for deciding that a gift needs to be bought, and making sure that it happens. And the one who decides what the gift should *be* could still be either of us.)

Anyway, main point is that I think the roles should go to whoever's best at them / enjoys them most / hates them less / etc. And not necessarily be bundled in particular ways, and especially not in gender-based ways, 'cause that's just dumb.

[mst3kforall.livejournal.com]

This all seems completely reasonable.