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18 january 2001 Hungry? Of course you are! Welcome to America, where you're never more than fifty yards from a snack! Tasty new review, fresh and crunchy. |
secret agent kim Merry belated Christmas toooo meeee, and may I say that my innermost nerdly desires are now fulfilled. No, I didn't go on a date with Jeff Goldblum. I am now the proud owner (and wearer) of the dorkiest piece of jewelry on the planet -- the Casio WQV1-1CR Wrist Camera Watch. It's a digital watch! It's a black-and-white camera! It's a neat way to keep everyone around you in line! Don't haggle me, or I'll stick up your photo with "for a good time" instructions." Yeah. Oh, and a note to North Carolina retailers--what's the holdup? I had to wait weeks for this thing because no one sells it in an actual STORE. Scared? Afraid we're all going to become Inspector Gadget? Huh? Huh? Look nervous. You're on candid camera. Step closer to my wrist, you... Has anyone else noticed that this week is chock full of weird news? Thankfully, it's not so much American news, but British. Thanks to the Internet, I spend a lot of time listening to BBC Five Live, which is pretty cool on a slow workday. Especially rush hour--London traffic reports rule! Some lady pops on from time to time, describing what must be complete chaos, and never breaks a sweat. There's a three-mile queue (that's "parking lot" in American) on the M3, nothing is moving on the such-and-such interchange, you'll never get home, you'll never see your family again, throw yourself into the Thames now. We'll keep you updated. Tally ho! Alright, so between these "Internet twins" that a British couple has tried to adopt from California and the mad cows, it's enough to make your tea curdle. Apparently, British adoption laws are a lot stricter than the ones over here. (Does that speak well for America? Hey, take our kids, no strings attached! Hm. ) Apparently, this couple literally bid for the twins through a baby broker here in the States. This problem may never have been detected if the biological mother hadn't backed out of the deal, so that she could sell her kids to a higher bidder. At least that's what the media reports say. To be real honest with you, I'm not too clear on what went down. I am, however, sure of one thing, and that is that some Americans will do anything for a buck. Baby brokers, unfortunately, are old news. Adoption law here is, from what I understand, no picnic either. So a lot of (wealthy) people make private adoption deals behind closed doors. It's less messy than adopting through an agency, and selective parents can be as picky as they like. Maybe too picky? There's been a lot of baby news in recent years. Which makes sense, since lots of people want kidlets. Some spend tens of thousands of dollars to have their own by giving nature a little "helping hand". There are drugs and shots, test tubes and frozen doodads, and choices. Lots of choices. Lots of control over the end product. In fact, Robert wrote to tell me that Dutch television is trying to develop a show entitled I Want Your Baby. The premise is, they follow a bunch of women trying to choose from a bunch of sperm donors. After a few episodes , they make choice, then they make baby. Quick. Easy. Creepy. Me, I like unexpected surprises. Since I was a kid, I always thought adoption was a neat thing. I knew we lived in a big, unfair country where some kids don't have a chance from the beginning. While I sometimes think that having my own kid would be nice one of these days, I always just assumed that I'd adopt one, as well. No specifications, just a kid who would have me. One that I could guide safely where they wanted to go. One for whom I could help make life fair again. Sometimes, people ask me how I would deal with the nuances of having a baby outside of my race, or a special-needs child, or one that was a bit older than the typical adoptee. Wouldn't it be hard? Too hard? Would I be fair to the child to even consider raising someone so different from myself? How could I even consider such a thing? I don't know. No one knows. Even if I decide to go through with it, I may never figure it out. All I can say for sure is that the days will pass her by, regardless. |
