h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

It really is time I continued the project I started last summer - chucking out my old magazines.

Today I will be taking a farewell look at Options fromJuly 1996. There are several post-its marking various pages so it looks like I've already had a serious look at this one!

What do we learn?

Research shows that the average working woman spends about 1000 pounds a year on work clothes. I've never bought anything just for wearing to work, so if I bring the average down, there must be people spending upwards of 5000 pounds to push it back up again. And this was 20 years ago! Further costs of working amount to around another 1000 pounds.

Only 2 minutes' exposure to the sun without suncream can cause wrinkles.

Some healthy-sounding veggies and fruits aren't really that healthy. This list includes celery, which should please Sho!

Men grow out of macho tendencies, the older they get.

"The thinner you are, the harder it is for you to fall asleep" - "Sniffing an orange may halp you to get to sleep after a hard day's work".

Traditional Chinese medicine uses parts of endangered animals. .... I hope that's been stopped over the past 20 years.

Aha!-neurons have been discovered - and given that name! They are the ones that control your vision - stopping you from actually seeing something you're looking at, even if it's what you're looking for.

Eating pineapple can help you reconstruct quicker after an operation.

this was the year the the British Visitor's passport was deemed no longer valid.

Watching TV burns 93 calories an hour.

"Personal Stereos" were still

Natural boar bristles are best for brushing your hair. (I knew that!)

Fashion - the timeless nautical look (I just saw this sort of thing in a newly minted catalogue yesterday) from plimsolls to stripey t-shirt. Long skirts - again, 22 years before, that's what were were walking around in.

The main subject of the magazine. Deserves a post of its own: "10 things you should have done by 35"

I'll go into that tomorrow.

I've heard that watching television uses less calories than doing nothing at all.

You have fewer brain cells to service, for one thing.

"Some healthy-sounding veggies and fruits aren't really that healthy. This list includes celery, which should please Sho!"

Well, scientists have had 20 years in which to discover advantages to celery that were previously unknown.
http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=14

"Only 2 minutes' exposure to the sun without suncream can cause wrinkles."

Surely that is a matter of degree. Anyway, smoking, dehydration, some medications, aging, amount of subcutaneous fat, and thickness of skin are other factors. If sun exposure is your *only* problem, maybe you should't worry unduly.

>>Aha!-neurons have been discovered - and given that name! They are the ones that control your vision - stopping you from actually seeing something you're looking at, even if it's what you're looking for.<<

Ah, so that's what causes you to not see the things you're looking for. Fascinating.

Traveller in Time reading recent reports
"'Traditional Chinese medicine uses parts of endangered animals. .... I hope that's been stopped over the past 20 years.'



Rhinos, tigers even frogs are still seen as medicine in some areas. Poaching is still going on. (The frogs are supposed to be aphrodesiac in South America) "

Men obviously have a lot more of those neurons then women.

Which substantiates the hunter-gatherer theory. Or vice versa.

That proves the "somebody else's problem" theory.

I don't care what science says, PaulH - there is no way I'm eating celery. It is disgusting.

Thanks for the info TC!

Regarding Gnomon's comment above - I remember reading somewhere, too, that watching TV used less calories than doing nothing, but this 1996 study actually says " A US study from Meharry Medical College and Vanderbilt University reveals that watching TV burns 93 calories an hour - 20 per cent more than doing nothing." To their credit, the magazine does not condone the pastime.

And now

10 things you should have done before you're 35

1. Had a lost weekend. i.e. spent a weekend doing something you certainly wouldn't tell your Mum about.

2. Travelled on your own. ... I'm OK there. Was travelling on my own from age 19. Abroad.

3. Learn what suits you. (I think this refers to clothes) Rather difficult in my case as I was in my 30s in the 80s and fashion in those days didn't suit anyone. Not to mention the 70s. Not that I followed fashion religiously, but

4. Found a job you don't dread on Monday morning. That has never been a problem. It's not the job itself, but your attitude to it and what you make of it, surely.

5. Learnt to give wihout getting back. I'm a mother of three. Say no more.

6. Made peace with your parents. Was never at war with them. It's not worth the bother.

7. Made a stand. If you don't, you're dodging responsibility, apparently. I can't remember if I have or not. I could never get my head round politics, but I think I once got a department store to re-arrange their departments so mothers with prams didn't have to climb stairs. And I got them to sell non-alcoholic hot drinks at the Christmas market. Both things that common sense must have dictated anyway.

8. Seduced someone. Does this count if it's a two-way thing anyway?

9. Learnt to organise your money.

10. Given an ultimatum and stuck to it. Oh dear. See No 5 above. No chance. Well, I did once and have regretted it ever since.



Anyway, this magazine, although a glossy, is refreshingly low on celebrity news and high on (more or less well researched) useful information. I've looked it up - apparently it ran from April 1982 - March 1999. http://www.magforum.com/glossies/new.htm#opt

oh I like this game

1. yes. More than once. I'm completely unashamed of that
2. yes. Lots
3. still trying things out (clothes wise)
4. had it. Left it, unfortunately
5. yes
6. never at war with them
7. yes. several times - and it seems my demo-going days are starting up again
8. (again, more than once...)
9. more or less
10. yep.

For me 5 and 6 are difficult. Taking a stand caused a non-healable rift and I haven't seen my brother and his family for 40 years. As one of my rocks says -"their loss". Interesting list; I ticked off all the others before I was 35. I too have gone back to demonstrations: the Hong Kong booksellers have been "missing" since New Year's Eve.

I think I will hold off on saying bad things about the government of China until my daughter is safely out of the country.

1. Lost weekend: So lost that I can't remember what happened.
2. Travelledo n my own: to Nova Scotia, on a ferry
3. Learned what suits you: I read "Dress for success" and stopped wearing horizontal stripes.
4. Found a job I didn't dread, except when the boss was throwing ashtrays, which thankfully wasn't often.
5. Learned to give without getting back. I think that's a definition of paying taxes . But seriously,
I given to enough charities that my mailbox and email box are often full of appeals
6. Made a stand. I tend to be subtle. Not wearing neckties no matter what. I don't care whether people notice or not.
7. Seduced someone.
8. Learnt to organize my money: Hardly any problems in that regard since 1981, when I was 33.
9. Given an ultimatum and stuck to it. How is this different from 6?

I think 6 was more political, 9 refers to relationships.

Cool...let's see how I score...

1. Ohhhh yeah. (Amazed that one could reach 30 without having done so!)
2. Yes, lots of times.
3. Well...I think so. I generally dress quite practically and un-fussily, but I think it suits me pretty well.
4. Sort of. I don't hate my job as much as I used to. Partly because I've succeeded in making it more bearable than it used to be (long live the union!) and partly because my attitude to it has changed a bit.
5. Yeah, I hope that's true of me, even if it feels a bit immodest to say it!
6. Pretty much, although as TC says, there was never a war on. We've had our arguments, of course, but all things considered I was pretty lucky in the lottery of parents.
7. Yes, possibly too often for my own good.
8. Sort of. But I'm not mad about that choice of verb, to be honest!
9. Yes - I know how to do it. I still might spend irresponsibly on rare occasions, but that is probably more a lack of willpower than lack of knowing how to organise my money.
10. Yes.

Interesting list. I think it's a better list than many such things I've seen!

Yes - in retrospect, this wasn't a bad magazine at all. Quite a lot of talking points still to go:

There's a long, meaty section on pollution. Even light pollution which was probably quite a new concept back then. They are urging their readers to lobby for better public transport and to car-share. Water pollution: about 1/4 of the drinking water in England and Wales contained excessive levels of pesicides. Washing powders claiming to be environment-friendly (this word was apparently not yet in use in 1996) should be treated with scepticism.

Then follows an analysis of people's make-up bags - totally fictitious, I should think. So - am I a Glamour Puss, an Eco Angel, a Bargain Babe or a Fashion Wannabe? Like most people, I'm probably a mixture.

A real life story about a woman who was raped at 13 and how she was beginning to realise the effect it had had when she reached her mid-thirties.

The inevitable "diet" - this time for longer life, not necessarily just for losing weight. And generally about staying healthy and ageing successfully. Oily fish , Vitamin C, etc etc. The theory at the time is that genes have a 70% influence on your chances of living longer.

What to do if your boyfriend is having /has had an affair. Get angry with him ?!?

Fashion. Mix patterns and colours like a 1960s interior decorator. And then again, don't. A lovely, timeless royal blue silk shirtwaister dress is "this season's must-have". And a blouse in pale peach-coloured shantung silk.

Now, I've always wondered what shantung silk was. My mother always told the story of how my father (her then fiancé) brought some back from somewhere in the Indian Ocean (where he served for most of the war) and she was horrrified when she went to make herself a blouse and by mistake cut two left sleeves! I've never even asked her what colour it was!

Make-up - being July, there are tips on summer make-up, reminding you that removing waterproof make up "needs more than your regular cleansing routine"

The difference between a phobia and a fear is dealt with in the health pages. Interesting comments on this are: "80% of phobias can be treated"

"Around 10 per cent of the population suffer from a phobia of some kind."

"As children we have natural fears of unfamiliar animals, strangers and heights"

Eh? I only developed a really bad fear of heights (not a phobia or vertigo) when my children were old enough to climb walls and trees. I still encouraged them to do it (there's no stopping them now), as I reckoned that worrying caused more accidents than attacking the obstacle with gusto.

Ooh - celebrity chat: George Clooney pops 16 herbal tablets a day to treat his stomach ulcer. (TMI?)

"Drink your way to smoother thighs" The word "Smoothie" hasn't come into circulation yet, apparently. (Maybe this is where it originated )Who needs a smoothie-maker? They recommend putting the flesh of a melon and a banana into a mixer, zapping them, and serving with ice cubes.

Food - a summery Italian two-course menu. "Baked ricotta with honeyed figs" - sounds just my cup of tea. I've torn that page out for keeps.

Good heavens - there's a section on flower arranging!!! All very colourful and placed not in vases, but old olive oil tins and even tomato cans with 50s style Mediterranean designs.

Right at the back, books, films etc. Two films with Alec Baldwin . Film of the month is "Fargo" - still a classic.

Timothy Spall's favourite book is "The Mill of the Floss".

They're giving away a VHS video out of the epidsode of X files where Scully is abducted. Wonder if it's available on DVD?

There - all done. In the bin goes another load of glossy paper.

"about 1/4 of the drinking water in England and Wales contained excessive levels of pesicides" [TC]

Are pesicides like pesticides? Also, have any studies been done on pests in the human body? Ingesing pesticides might make you free of pests, so wouldn't that be a *good* thing? If not for you, then for the planet? [Just kidding]

Oh dear, my copy-typing has deteriorated in the last 44 years.