I was browsing through the Young Adult section in Borders bookstore today, and came across a series by a Gemma Malley. Beginning with The Declaration and continuing with The Resistance, they are set in a dystopian future, a drug to prolong life has been discovered, and naturally is used by a lot of people. With an increasing population, though, this puts a great burden on society, so the solution is to ban those who take the drug from having children, with harsh penalties for those who disobey this. Fair enough, but from my brief skimming through the novel, the plot takes the irritatingly predictable theme of Resisting Authority, a trope that infects a lot of YA and adult novels.

In the year 2140, it is illegal to be young. Children are all but extinct. The world is a better place. Longevity drugs are a fountain of youth. Sign the Declaration, agree not to have children and you too can live forever. Refuse, and you will live as an outcast. For the children born outside the law, it only gets worse – Surplus status. Not everyone thinks Longevity is a good thing, but you better be clear what side you’re on… Surplus Anna is about to find out what happens when you can’t decide if you should cheat the law or cheat death.

Anna does not have a last name. She has no right to one. She is Surplus – an unwanted burden on fragile Mother Nature; a child born after the Declaration which outlawed all children to control the rising human population. The most she can hope for in life is to Know Her Place and be a Valuable Asset to Legal humans, who stave off mortality with daily doses of Longevity drugs. At age fourteen, she has learned to accept her bleak fate – but then Surplus Peter arrives at Grange Hall, and turns her world upside down. Peter refuses to accept that he is Surplus. He insists that Anna has a family – and he plans to escape from Grange Hall to reunite her with them.

The first novel has a website; from the Inspiration page:

I decided to put the questions to some friends. Would they, if given the chance to extend their lifespan considerably, give up the right to have children? The result was fascinating. Initially, all of them dismissed the idea out of hand; then, gradually, they started to consider it, to consider the temptation of a long, long life. After this consideration, about fifty percent still rejected the idea outright – some because the idea of living forever was abhorrent (“what would you do with yourself?”), some because the idea of not having children was too terrible. The others, to varying degrees, saw the temptation. Men were slightly more likely than women to agree; single men and women were more likely to agree than their married counterparts. Some older couples with grown up children thought long and hard and said that whilst they adored their children and wouldn’t be without them, they might perhaps have done things differently if given the chance again. Recently married couples were those most likely to be aghast at the idea; those who considered their chances of conceiving to be low (those who were resolutely single and those who had been (unsuccessfully) through the torturous route of infertility treatment) wanted details – how healthy would their extended life be; how would they feel physically and mentally a hundred years from now – but were generally open to the idea.

I realised I had the makings of a potentially terrifying new world, and one that many would recognise as only too credible. But I needed a protagonist, someone to lead us into this world, to expose its inner workings, its temptations, its horrific dark side. Everything comes with a cost; Longevity’s “cost” would be the end of new human life, the end of new thought, new energy; the end of youth with its naïve ambition, its determination, its belief in itself. And yet, I realised, as I mulled my new, inner world over in my head, there would, no doubt, be people who broke the rules, who ignored the Declaration. There would be mistakes; there would be rebels. In short, there would be children. Children that no one (except their parents) wanted; children who were considered a threat, a burden, a problem. Children who were Surplus.

I can’t see much wrong with this; I don’t find such a world “terrifying”! I would certainly choose longevity over having children. If society is to be sustainable into the future, some form of population growth control is a necessity, whether citizens like it or not.

2 cans of creamed corn
1 can whole kernel corn (or 1 can worth of frozen corn)
2 eggs (or two eggs worth of egg replacer and some cornstarch if Nathan thinks he'll eat it)
4-5 oz of cheddar cheese, shredded
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 package Ritz crackers for topping.
1/2 stick butter

Pour corn in bowl; add eggs, cheese, baking powder, salt, and pepper. Stir all ingredients lightly. Crush crackers and add butter till crumbly. Put corn mixture in casserole dish and sprinkle cracker mixture on top and bake at 350* for 20 minutes or until crumbs are golden brown. Cool for 20 minutes.

i was out walking along...minding my own business, when ____whoops____, I stumbled upon a rabbit hole* and fell right in.

It's taken me a while to climb out of it but while down there, there were a few days that i wore clothes.....

 

That's all fats! 

 

i found this community through google about six months ago and have been reading weekly since. i get good tips and ideas and new places to look for clothes, and i always wished that i could participate. so i've rejoined livejournal and i have a question i've been dying to ask all summer long. where can i find a good/comfy/stylish pair of shorts?! i'm going to california for 2 weeks at the end of august and i desperately need multiple pairs to bring along.

i've gone out looking, ordered a few pairs and they've all been a flop. i'm about one or two sizes bigger on the bottom than on top. in tops i can wear a L-XL but in shorts i can wear from a 20-24 depending on the brand, it's seriously frustrating. In calvin klein/ralph lauren i wear a 20 very well, they even stretch out to be a little large. in old navy plus i ordered a 22, too tight, returned for a 24, way too big. at target the 24's sometimes fit, sometimes are way too small. the only pair of shorts i've managed to find that i like and that fit are from torrid, size 24, but i've pretty much worn those out and they don't have them in the store or online anymore.

have any of you found your perfect pair of summertime shorts? and where else should i be looking?