Your Grrrs, and don’t forget to play Spot the Oblivion below…
Margie A. writes: I’ve watched Tom Cruise since I was a kid and hear lately he seems a bit off his rocker. I think that he has become a know-it-all about something that he knows nothing about (his comments about psychiatry). He needs professional help in the worst way … I don’t really care for him much anymore. They say that actions speak louder than words and his are saying a mouthful. Just my opinion, of course.
Allison I. writes: I always enjoy the GRRRs more when I’m stressed out! I get encouragement just knowing there are others out there, like myself, pissed off about the petty and the important gripes of everyday life. I think the GRRR column is ingenious! Matt H. (you know, the one who called you a “token”) sure put you in your place didn’t he? Wasn’t that an ingenious piece of literature HE submitted? Which leads me to my Grrr for the week — know-it-alls! I HATE asking a question in a group setting, directed to the one in charge, only to have it answered by someone other than that person, someone who doesn’t know anything, but loves to hear the sound of their own voice!
Shane B. writes: Mike, I read a lot of people on your site complain about Tom and how they are tired of hearing about him. I have two things to say: 1. I agree with you about Tom as an actor. I enjoy his movies. 2. These other people who don’t want to hear about him are the first ones to watch or read about him hoping something embarrassing happens to him. No matter how much you say you don’t want any more, deep down inside you really do. The difference is you don’t want the good stuff, just the bad.
ROK in Goatneck, Texas: I’m sort of confused about the “Everybody Wins” thing, since I’ve been known to say the glass is half-empty occasionally, maybe “Everybody is a Loser” when hard work, talent and dedication will not be recognized would be more appropriate.
Melissa in N.C.: In response to Jenn B.: I consider myself pretty conservative, but I absolutely cannot understand why you have a problem with single women adopting children. I’m not a fan of Angelina Jolie and think her relationship with Brad Pitt is disgusting, but what is wrong with adopting kids internationally that otherwise would have been in an orphanage? I know women who have known they would never get married, so they chose to adopt babies from China, who were unwanted and abandoned and placed in orphanages. Isn’t it better than satisfying their maternal instinct by just marrying any man they can find and end up divorcing him later? Aren’t they providing a better life for these children? I understand your view on children created out of wedlock, but I don’t think God Himself would consider single women adopting unwanted children a sin.
From Dee in Georgia: I read your column for what it is … enjoyable, sometimes enlightening, on view of things, even thought-provoking, a great release for those inner GRRRs we all have and live with, and at times because it is just plain funny. But what I want to giggle about is all those good folks who read the column, get worked up for whatever reason, then go so far as to take the time to write you to tell you how silly your column is, and how empty your readers must be to be so passionate about the things you discuss that they bother to write in with their views. Here is where I must giggle. Don’t they know they have just become one of us … (giggle yet again) … Yes Virginia, there really is a little Oblivion in all of us … Thanks Mike for just what it is you DO do … keep it up because it definitely seems to be working!
John M. writes: In response to Jason in your last column: in baseball, April is much too early in the season to make predictions about how the entire season will turn out. Bond’s performance in April is not representative of what he will do all year. He has about half of the at-bats he normally would due to injuries. In fact, Bond’s projected home run total has gone up by 10 runs since that last column. What Grrrs me is when people with a passing knowledge of a subject speak about it as if they are an authority. The Internet is a wonderful thing. Anyone can educate themselves on a subject before they begin to talk about it, assuming they go to legitimate Web sites and not get information from an even less educated person’s blog. What I’m saying is that, Mike, I agree with you. Bonds will hit a significant amount of home runs this year, even without the extra help. You can write about baseball as much as you want.
Chris Worth writes: I’d like to comment on Tim Hortons. I was a Big Brother in the Big Brothers/Big Sisters program from 1992 until 2005. I’ll be getting a new little brother next year after baby girl No. 2 is born. But that’s not why I’m writing. It is only because of my association with that agency that I became aware of Tim Horton’s good works. And that’s like saying Tiger Woods is a good golfer. As far as Tim Horton’s, there isn’t enough space to stack all of the adjectives in this e-mail. They have a foundation, Tim Horton Foundation: www.timhortons.com/en/childrens/childrens_about.html.
Brad H. writes: I have to agree with you about Tom Cruise, except for one thing: he is not a great actor. Why do I say this? In every movie he is in he plays, well, Tom Cruise. The only exception to that would be “Collateral.” He actually showed some depth there. A theater student once asked Sir Laurence Olivier, “How can I become a better actor?” His reply: “Don’t let anyone catch you acting.” Then again, we do celebrate mediocrity these days.
Doug M. writes: I read your column to see what the simps of the world are whining about, and today was a bonanza. Degrading single-mom adoption? Having children out of wedlock is “sinful”? My friend worked himself through college, so why don’t all the Mexican immigrants do it? I’m surprised these people even know what the Internet is, seeing as how they are still think they are living in the ’50s. Here’s a grrr for them: grrrrow a brainstem and get a life.
Robert P. writes: I had to respond to the “Everybody Wins” complaints about children’s sports. I have a 4-year-old daughter in her first year of soccer and I completely agree with the “everybody wins” mentality … for now. At this age, it is more important to support self-confidence and team work than to “win.” Does anyone besides me feel that it is important to teach our kids how to work with others? They are still playing “against” the other team, and they still learn good sportsmanship. These kids are out there to learn team work, sportsmanship and motor skills. Save the pressures of having to win to the older kids (6 and over in my area). I teach my child to try 100 percent, and if she does that, I’m proud of her.
Katherine B. writes: The biggest obliviots in the world are people shopping right before Christmas. I used to work in retail, and the way shoppers treat store employees is disgusting. I worked hard, did my job and was friendly and as helpful as I could be with customers. I’ve had ladies get angry with me because they couldn’t find an envelope that fit their card perfectly (the card company shipped the cards with slightly oversized envelopes so they wouldn’t cost more to mail; odd shapes won’t go through at $.37). I’ve had ladies literally chew me out because they left unpaid merchandise on the counter and had to come back later to get it. We put merchandise on the counter when customers hands are full and the baskets are gone, it was their fault for not seeing it. Working in retail — or with the public period — is a very difficult job and those who do it well ought to be commended. I couldn’t stand it anymore and quit, but I’ve got a lot of respect for those who stand there and get called all sorts of names (and yes, we’ve had people do that too) with a smile on their face.
Jim in Cyberspace: Another addition to the Grrrr! Lexicon: The GymPortant. These are the people you see in the gym who are so caught up in themselves, they show absolutely no common courtesy to other gym patrons, or equipment. They don’t bring a towel with them, and then proceed to use a piece of equipment until sweating profusely. Then they just move on to another area, leaving the soaked piece for the next unsuspecting patron. Or if they do bring a towel, they leave it draped across a piece of equipment while using a different piece, thereby tying up two pieces. Or the worst offender — the guy who stands directly in front of the large sign that says “Please Do Not Drop the Weights” and proceeds to do just that (usually accompanied by a loud grunt), ensuring everyone else in the gym knows that what he just did was so intense it is now physically impossible to hold on to the weights any longer. Grrrr!
Rebecca K. writes: You criticize Tom Cruise for expressing “unsolicited religious beliefs,” but Christians and Muslims do it all the time. People in the Bush administration do it all the time. We’re constantly bombarded with people’s religious beliefs in the media. I’m personally nauseated every time Bush gets on the subject of religion. I’m nauseated when FOX TV personalities use religious arguments to support their positions on issues. So why single out Cruise for this criticism? Is it because you feel safe attacking him, because his group is small and non-violent? It would definitely be risky if you dared take a similar disrespectful tone discussing a celebrity’s obsession with fundamentalist Christianity, or worse yet Islam. From my viewpoint, Christianity, Islam and a host of other religions are just as bizarre and unbelievable as Scientology. I’m annoyed when ANY devoutly religious person tries to foist his fantasies on me by argument or force.
Rebecca … check this column from last year. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,147606,00.html
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