Life Time, Hourly

During a bout of extremely hot weather, I stayed at a friend's camp trailer for a weekend of cleaning   It was 96 degrees inside before we opened windows and revved up fans for circulation so we could wipe down surfaces.  Afterwards, we flopped in chairs and watched cable tv while knitting.  Now, I don't have cable or even a working television, so this was a novelty of reality and alleged reality programming.  My young friend is enamored with a channel that scared the bejeebies out of me, Lifetime.

I am not sure what the mission statement of this particular station might be, other than men are scheming monsters who prey on thin, usually rich women who have girlfriends dowdier than they are.  At first it was fun, for roles are played by aging television stars and the guessing game of Who Is That? and Boy Has She/He Changed took precedent over story line.  But then, the plot would ooze up like a fermented bubble in swamp swamp muckity due to obvious, overplayed pushing down stairs, shooting, raping, beating, and stalking.  The kidnapping of children also accelerated the perky mother into action as smooth as a barking seal in synchronized swimming.  Where is all this estrogenetic anger coming from?

After the second hour of crazy men killing women, I wondered, what was the agenda of this channel?  There were occasional heroes in suits and tv makeup, but the violence hung over whatever hugs and cheek smooches were offered at the end of story.  I googled, and found that it is nicknamed "the rape channel," showcasing men as terrible, hateful misogynists who lock women in closets for nonexistent offenses, and then go shoot some other women just pulling cookies out of the oven.  The women in the stories Believe in Their Men and Don't Often Recognize ye Danger, giving us, the audience, opportunities to dig fingers into couch cushions while yelling warnings to the tv screen.

What is Lifetime capitalizing on?  I can only hope that the majority of people watching this schlock are intoxicated and find it hilarious, or are so logy from downing a half gallon of French Vanilla that they get tired of the yelling and decide to flip over to QVC in a sugar coma.  The malfeasance is hideous, the message is odious; yet in reality men are not a latitude of jerks, it is not the majority of them creating violence, even though the majority of violence is created by men. Nonetheless, I was insistent on making sure the doors were locked before turning in.

We cannot be afraid of each other.  The fear generated by this singular media is unfounded and wrong, and possibly prolongs validation of those fears in women who have been genuine victims.  You need to be smart, not scared, and ready to get out of a situation the minute you wake up with a knot in your stomach.  You already know if you are living within the perimeters of danger.  I relived a lot of crap as I watched the onscreen abuse unfold, but I refuse to focus on it as a target, it is not the apex of my life.  There are too many kindhearted men who devote their work towards the betterment of humanity, who love their families and friends with honesty, unselfish caring, and integrity.

The air has cooled for night sleeping, altostratus clouds hang midlevel and indicate a coming storm for the morrow.  The sun is burning slowly into the lake, dissolving into deep green layers of glacial water filled with perch and pike, alewives and carp.  Ancient lake sturgeon live up to 55 years if male, 150 years if female; after a sharp decline in population due partly to a reputation as a nuisance, they are now on the slow rebound.  A benthivore, the sturgeon feeds on bottom-dwelling organisms and could now dine well on invasive zebra and quagga mussels.   Imagine, a fish born in the 1860's.  How many storms and wars have passed since?  Look at the stars, sturgeon, and count your scales by their icy emanation originating light years ago.  Good night, benthic time traveller.