The ladies at the TOYS 'R US stared in disbelief when I asked: "Do you have a boyfriend in a box?" Then they laughed at me, and said wouldn't it be convenient if they did.

That pretty much exhausted my resources. Damned if I was going to set foot in a mall for a short 'humor' piece. Two weeks later, though, I thought I'd ask my own teenage relative if she'd heard of such a thing. No, but she could look on the Internet! You do that, I said. Five minutes later she had located the item. Ah, information technology...

So what is a "Boyfriend in a Box"? The brainchild of "former cable talk-show host Cathy Hamilton," this "media sensation" is a set of printed paraphernalia designed to give the illusion of the existence of a boyfriend (photo, stat sheet, signed greeting card, pink phone message slips that proclaim "he called!" etc.). Your pick of men includes Skater Skye, Brainy Brett or Rockin' Ricky (for the teens) Corporate Craig, Athletic Al and Cowboy Clint (for the 20 and 30 somethings) and, for those over forty, either Millionaire Max or Self-made Stan. Kathie Lee Gifford exclaims: "This is so clever! And it's about time!"(for real: she's quoted on the web page) At $12.95 apiece (or two for $20!) this reviewer finds it mostly sad.

Beatrice McGeoch

Counterspin is a radio program produced by the "media watchgroup" FAIR (Fairness and Accuracy In Reporting). It is a weekly production that does a great job of taking whacking hunks out of the facade of the mainstream media. One of the new items of note at their website is the Economic Reporting Review in which Dean Baker debunks the headlines of the mainstream economics rags. You can listen it over the internet (www.fair.org). Or do some research and find out if this show is (or could be) broadcast near you!

Beatrice McGeoch


PO Box 603128, Providence RI 02906

Buy this fanzine, with your soul if you must. You should make this expenditure because you will marvel over this fanzine’s strangeness and beauty for years to come and be kept busy reading and coloring it for at least a few happy hours. If you are a member of YDS, you may be especially interested in "Meditations of a Latter Day Puritan" described by the author (Wes Wallace) as "considerations of intellectual merit concerning the resemblance of Indie Rock with Puritan theology, especially with regard to the use of irony," This article is important to read if you are: a Baffler devotee, confused by the futility of resisting capitalism given contemporary material conditions, an indie rocker, member of a collective effort, and/or believe in the city of Providence. Also look out for "The Adventures of Blibskin: the Cat Without a Brain," and an interview with Charlie McAlister "bloody veteran of sub-underground double dealing and romantic pirate of the suburban beach town."

Xander Marro