Aug 8 2024 - Olympic Costumes

 

I gather I am not alone.  The state of women's Olympic wear is being called  "costumes" rather than "uniforms".   And what is the nature of these outfits being called costumes?   For the U.S. women's track team, Nike was slammed for in April 2024 creating bottom wear that is so skimpy and impractical that the headline criticism was "It should cover the vulva".  Can you imagine?  How strange to turn athletics into soft porn.  The controversy went on for months since the introduction of the outfits in April 2024.  Athletes say the female athletic-wear isn't designed to get the maximum and best performance. It is designed to get attention. Canadian outfits are similar,  Everyone  from beach volleyballers, gymnasts, high jumpers and so on wear something that is skimpier than a bathing suit?  And men wear an ordinary sports outfit. I wondered about history. Good Housekeeping did a "parade through the decades" on what they thought were notable outfits for winter/summer games. Some  are hilarious - flamboyant colours, weird designs, and outrageous women's skating outfits.  It is HERE.  A different time is my explanation. Here's a good conclusion from Jaleen Roberts, a past silver medalist:  "If this outfit was truly beneficial to physical performance, men would wear it. This is not an elite athletic kit for track and field. This is a costume born of patriarchal forces that are no longer welcome or needed to get eyes on women’s sports.”"     Remember the MLB see-through uniform controversy earlier this year?  Wait for 2028 when baseball returns to the summer games.  Will there be women's teams? What will they wear?

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Apr 8 2023 - Sliding In

 

Did changing the baseball rules get the results they wanted?  There were dozens of articles on what the rule changes are so I became very familiar with what was about to transpire.   I thought I'd find out what the results are and found one article - from Sports Illustrated on the results.  Given they are the sports source, it was a great article. And they say the new rules make the game more exciting.  Which is what they wanted. The first benefit was that the Dodgers and Angels game took just over two hours instead of three hours. The pitch timer cut 25 minutes of dead time out of minor league games.  And another big question?  Would they sell less in concession sales with those big dollar beers?  They had no significant decline.  Fans had already been leaving the game early before the end.  Now the game is ending on time. There were more good results from the changes, too. The article says that the game has returned to its aesthetic best - that was in the 198os. The article is HERE.  I have to think there might be hope in America - if baseball can make changes, think what might be possible next!   This is a bit of scuffed and scraped street curb and I have it a spring colour makeover. Read more daily posts here: marilyncornwellblogspot.com Purchase works here: Fine Art America- marilyncornwell.com Redbubble - marilyncornwellart.ca

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From Major to Minor

We've completed Children's Day and move on to adults.  We go from the minors to the majors with the expression "age of majority". "The age of majority is a legally fixed age and idea of adulthood which is different in different places.  It may not match the actual maturity of a person's body or mind.  The age of majority is 18 in the vast majority of jurisdictions, but ages as low as 15 and as high as 21 exist in some". ~ Wikipedia And from Duhaime's Law Dictionary: "An age generally specified by statute, at which time, upon an individual is given the full gamut of legal rights and responsibilities generally available to an adult of sound mind". There seem to be a number of definitions and uses of the terms major and minor. There are minor and the major leagues in baseball. Association football (soccer) also has this distinction and terminology.  Minor leagues in North America are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Most have minor teams but don't refer to their professional league as 'major'.  In sports, the ideal path is to go from minor to major.  Someone could get demoted and end up in the minors after a career in the majors. In music, though, major and minor have more flexibility. We definitely can go from major to minor.  We go from the brighter, cheerier sound, to the minor scale with its darker, sadder sound.  We can turn major key songs into minor key songs and vice versa.  We can swing back and forth in one song.  Much more flexibility in music than there is in sports or legal definitions of age. Our pictures today are made with Flaming Pear's India Ink and Flood filters.  I had them a few years ago and forgot to replace them with my latest computer.  What a delight to find them again.

Blue Jays Excitement

In comparison to Friday's serene art viewing, Saturday was a Toronto trip to see the Blue Jays game with lots of energy and vitality. With a score of 10-8 for the Blue Jays, there were a lot of hits and home runs.  Even an interference by a fan who was ejected.  And the crowd had lots of energy and a big sound.