Love The Abaya Girlfriend

Talk about a weird job. Karen Hughes, Bush's full-figured Gal Friday (and he sure has a full-flavored posse of Lady Envoys) is traveling around the Mid-East on a wacko "listening" tupperware party. She has to smile and nod a lot, particularly in Saudi Arabia, where she is appearing, unveiled, talking points in hand, to the Islamic masses. Staying On Message - that sort of shit. Pretty radical work when you think about it, but last I read no fish or bread had been distributed.

Other wacky things she has to do while on the new job, besides prop up the Bush Administration, is listen to weird statements from Saudi women such as this one, "I love my abaya," she (a Saudi woman) explained. "It's convenient and it can be very fashionable." Sure hon. Whatever you say. And Kate Moss went on the 700 Club to snort coke with Pat Robertson!!!

So I'm feeling Ms. Hughes' pain, or cluelessness at least. I'd get in sooooo much trouble over there, laughing my ass off at the non-stop absurdity. I apologize for my lack of global correctness and/or awareness, but these Saudi women are in some serious historical denial. Guess they just can't recognize freedom when it's being waved in front of their faces. Kinda like all those pesky Iraqi insurgents, right?

Just for the record Dear Readers, I keep a souvenir from Saudi Arabia given to me by a former news colleague after her stint covering the First Gulf War. (See above image because this amateur aparatus I'm stuck with for blogging won't let me upload more than one image per entry at them moment. See below for another.)

The journalist, Linda Pattillo, saw some serious front-line action/hell. I can't imagine anything I'd rather NOT do, might break a nail, but Ms. Pattillo did it with zeal and aplomb I'm sure.

So... back to the moralizing tale I was telling... I keep the placard from Saudi, which reads No Women. Women Cannot Be Seated Or Served Here, in my bathroom to remind me every day that dogs are treated better than women in some places of the world, and that some governments cultivate a mandate from their "God" to oppress women in often brutal, inhumane ways. Forget the garden variety tools of oppression, stuff like not allowing women to drive. It's the choppin' off of their freakin' heads we should be focused on.

This token also serves as a constant reminder for me to be conscious and diligent about the rights and fate of women wherever. And more so, to be get out there every day and be a proud and happy and grateful, fun-lovin', hard-working American feminist - because I can. It's a luxury I will never take for granted until every woman can "afford" it. Hear that youngsters out there? Eh?

And one other note. Here's me, your favorite freewheelin' feminist freelancer, working a dangerous corporate cube job while under attack from another fanatical camera crew. Jeez. Hope I go down bravely laughing my ass off.

Oops... maybe later. Having a heck of a time uploading photos right now. Don't know if it's a blogger.com thing or the new-to-me refurbished cheapo digi-cam I bought outta the back of some dude's car the other day.

UPDATE: It was a Blogger.com thing. I have outgrown it already. Gonna have to start spending real money on this thing. Hate when that happens to me in cyberspace. But it inevitably seems to get that point. Kinda like a relationship... at some point you gotta decide if you want to put "real" money into those things too.

Gotta get me one of those camera phones. Talk about a wish list. Did you see the imbedded iPod in the Cingular camera phone out now? Man, oh, man. I normally don't get all worked-up about possessions unless they're the kind with lots of beads, lace, ruffles, spangles, and are made of velvet or butter leather, but even I couldn't help a little Golum-like pang for one of those lovelies. Me wants it...