Sunday 24 April 2011

Two ARGHs in one morning is two too many

ARGH the first, was the news, via Russell Brown on twitter (@publicaddress), that Bronagh Key is down on the royal wedding invite list as "Mrs John Key."  I don't know who is responsible for this but it really bugs me that anyone gets to be differentiated from their partner by only one little "s".

If that's genuinely what Bronagh wants to be referred to then that is her choice, and I'll shut up about it (publicly, no doubt I'll mutter into my cereal about it privately).

But if it's been imposed by anyone, or just assumed, then that sucks.  Russell thought it was better than being John Key's +1, however I'm not so sure.  Both seem to me to indicate she's just an appendage, not a person in her own right.

ARGH the second, totally didn't have to be an ARGH.  The Unnecessary ARGH if you will.  Dr Tiso pointed me to an awesome set of bathroom scales (right) which are not only pink (win), fluffy (extra win) and decorated with a shiny star (ultra mega win), they also don't feature numbers but instead wonderful friendly words like "Perfect", "Hot" and "Ravishing."  The Yay Scale is the work of Marilyn Wann, a body acceptance activist who wrote Fat? So! and has done some great stuff with Healthy At Every Size (aka HAES).

So where's the ARGH in that, pretty awesome right?  Sadly this isn't the order I read about this Cool Thing in.

First I stumbled into a savage "review" (who reviews bathroom scales?) all about how the Yay Scale was apparently not so yay because it was Encouraging Unhealthy Eating Habits.  The reviewer has been put right in comments, although there's no response to the well made points about the positive nature of the scales.

I was particularly galled by the idea that those who wanted to know their weight might inadvertently purchase the Yay Scale and have to live in ignorance of their mass!  ZOMG False Advertising the Like of Which Has Never Been Seen Before!  Except if you count almost the entire fashion and beauty industries, basically.  But I digress.

Now I'm hoping for an ARGH-free Monday.  Might be lucky and get away with a few minor GRRRRRRs.

3 comments:

Giovanni Tiso said...

I was mostly disappointed by the fact that those scales are no longer for sale. I was looking forward to being able to tell my GP next time I see him that I weigh Fabulous.

Julie said...

I reckon you could make your own, that seemed to be a big part of the original art work. Plus the fluffy would keep your feet warm.

Robyn said...

I've had a good look at the list of invited dignitaries and their partners and it seems to go like this:

Bronagh Key = Mrs John Key
Bronagh Dougan-Key = Ms Bronagh Dougan-Key
Bronagh Dougan = Ms Bronagh Dougan

So basically, if you've taken your husband's surname and have exactly the same surname as him, you'll be invited under his name. Otherwise you get your own name but are given the Ms title.

If Bronagh was the invited dignitary, her husband would be named as "Mr John Key".

Meanwhile, once Kate Middleton is married, she'll become Princess William of Wales.