Hard times for readers of the Oregonian.


Our full-time movie critic (Shawn Levy) has been gone for more than a year, but this week we said goodbye to our theater critic, Marty Hughley.  Last week it was the music guy, Ryan White, a reporter I always read, even though I never listened to the music he was writing about, because he was such a good writer.

The point of having a full-time critic is that I get to know their preferences and that helps inform a decision if what they are talking about is something I might be interested in.  Having a bunch of part-timers is not helpful in getting anything done but giving a summary.

The thing I hate most about this transition is that the Oregonian refuses to acknowledge that they are settling for a lesser product.

I knew this day was coming and I’m still sad.


Thanks to the Willamette Week tipping me off to the fact the Oregonian would cease seven-day publishing, I’ve had since January to adjust to the fact I will not be whipping through my newspaper every morning.  I’ll still be reading, most likely on my phone, but it just won’t be the same.

Only Twenty Dollars?

Kristyn Schiavone is a new-ish fashion columnist in our paper and I’m on the fence about whether I like her or not.  Cons:  she’s not local (she seems to be out of Chicago), her writing style is a bit too “sorority girl” for me, and she’s quite peppy.  Granted, those last two might be a given with fashion columnists.  Pros:  Um, I keep reading her?
 
But today a sentence in the article took my breath away.  Check out #4.

Only twenty dollars?  To me, a fully-employed professional, there is no “only” about a twenty dollar bill. There’s not really an “only” about a five-dollar bill in my world.  So to read that a manicure is “only” twenty dollars is pretty jarring.  I think columnists/commentators make this mistake a lot.  They think that all their readers are in the same demographic as they are.  It’s not a good thing.

They HAVE run their course.


Hey look!  The Oregonian wants to know if Ziggy and Family Circus have run their course.  Really?  Do you  need to ask?  In fact, while we are on the topic, here’s a list of  other daily comics that have run their course:
Hagar the Horrible
Blondie
Wizard of ID
Hi and Lois
Peanuts (sorry to say, but it’s true)
Garfield
Freshly Squeezed

Oregonian readers are blessed with two full pages of daily comics.  How about making them all comics of note, not warmed-over plots that have been recirculating for years.

Our Heritage?

Celebrate “Rip City style” by honoring the Trail Blazers 80’s teams. 
Players will wear special Rip City jerseys to honor our heritage.

Now me, I think of “my heritage” as something that happened far in the past, like the fact that my great-grandmother had 15 children, or my grandfather died when my dad was a teenager, or that my other grandfather was born in New Hampshire, but grew up in Greece.  I don’t think of my “heritage” as something that happened less that 35 years ago.  That’s not a heritage, that’s the recent past.

Interestingly, here’s the definition from Dictionary.com

her·it·age

  [her-i-tij]  Show IPA

noun

1.

something that comes or belongs to one by reason of birth; an inherited lot or portion: a heritage ofpoverty and suffering; a national heritage of honor, pride, and courage.
2.

something reserved for one: the heritage of the righteous.
3.

Law.

a.

something that has been or may be inherited by legal descent or succession.
b.

any property, especially land, that devolves by right of inheritance.

Can we really say that our pro basketball team came to us by birth?

Singles! We think you are totally stupid.

There are many reasons to be happy I am in a relationship, but today’s reason is that I don’t have to take this dreck personally.  Really?  Texting can create misunderstandings in the dating game?  I had no idea.

And this incredibly annoying advice that completely plays into gender roles:

Allow me to translate:
Women!  Uncross those arms!  Only the manly men are allowed to tuck their hands into their sides!
Women!  If you don’t turn toward your date, he won’t know you are interested!  This implies that 1)men are not responsible for assuring their dates they are interested or 2) guys always turn their shoulders toward women when they talk.
Women!  If you talk to much to your lady friends, how is the guy ever supposed to know you like him?
Women!  Don’t forget that you must smile because that’s your job!
Women!  Be sure to touch him a lot.
Men!  Nothing ain’t going to happen unless you take the lead.
Men!  Did you hear us about taking the lead? No?  Well we are saying it again so you hear it this time.
Men!  We only had two things for you to do so we will say something inane about texting here to kind of even the advice out.

The thing is, this is all good advice for both genders.  I don’t see why it has to specify one over the other.

“we think you will be too!”


My whole life the newspaper people have been changing around the paper which drives me out of my mind. On top of switching up things that are just fine they way they are is that they always say something to the effect of, “And we think you will love it too!”

Um, no.  It makes no sense to me to put the “living” stuff with the “travel” stuff and make the “arts” stuff separate.  The former section with the “living” and “arts” together with a separate “travel” section was working just fine for me.  But clearly someone needed to justify keeping their job, or needed a promotion or something, so I will roll with it until you change things up again and I get annoyed all over again.