my crazy landlady is� crazy. She was convinced that she was going to catch HIV from me because I work with AIDS patients. I kept having the �you can�t catch AIDS from handshakes/kisses/mosquito bites� conversation, and it never seemed to make a difference.

Last night we were watching some ridiculous reality tv show (for love or money 2) in which a woman has to vote off men every week until she�s left with her dream man at the end. Then he has to choose between her and a million dollars. And then she gets 2 million dollars if he chooses her. It�s all kind of sick.

Anyway, there was a black guy on the show, and my landlady kept predicting that he would get voted off. And I was always saying, �no, Jackie, look he�s so good looking and charming and smart, she�ll never vote him off.� And Jackie was always saying �no, that dark fellow, she�ll vote him off, they don�t match, it will never work, she won�t keep that dark fellow� [because a lot of people are super racist to all Africans in India. It�s kind of weird, since they spent so many years fighting for equality in South Africa]

And finally I said, �Jackie, I promise you, people aren�t like that about black people in North America. There are lots of intermarriages between races, and it�s fine. It happens all the time. I live there. I�ve dated people from all different races. I know.�

And she says: �What are you talking about?!? I may not live there, but I watch Oprah Winfrey - I know how it is�

And how can you argue with logic like that?

She's so crazy that if i came across her character in a book, I wouldn't believe it at all. Sometimes I bond with her by watching evangelist television. That stuff is so crazy!

Speaking of media, I keep having arguments about (essentially) whether or not western women are whores, because the only television shows people see are Baywatch and all these �Extreme New Orleans Mardi Gras Night� style shows, where women are taking off their shirts for money.

And you can argue:
1. it's not really so bad - we just have different perceptions about bodies, so you have to see it in that context.
or
2. not everyone's like that... but it's really not that bad. They're just breasts!

And you (I) never get all that far.

4:52 p.m. - 2004-04-06