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  (fivmpreviouspage)

from the evidence of the book, there have
been plenty of short-term involvements.

With the exception of her father, the
main characters in Holly's life are all still
alive, and she is reluctant to say negative
things about them. Because of her concerns
about protecting privacy, when she talks
about other people, she often does so in
passing and sounds like she's name—drop-
ping.

The book also has some structural
problems, stemming mainly from the fact
thatatage41,sheisperhapstooyoungtobe
writing her autobiography. Holly is still in
the middle of living her life, still doing the
same work she did before she wrote the
book. The climax of the book is her break-
down and subsequent recovery. She begins
with it, then traces the steps leading to it.
The book continues for 60 pages beyond
the breakdown, telling much the same sto-
ries of tours and travels and people encoun-
tered that she has told throughout, but with-
out the dramatic tension provided by the
foreshadowing of abreakdown. There is no
natural conclusion to the story other than
stopping because she'd reached the point of
describing what happened yesterday.

Although Holly Near has struggled,
she has also triumphed. Her life exempli-
fies the rewards that come from using your
gifts in the service of your beliefs, of forc-
ing the world to meet you on your own
terms. There is much in this admirable life

for all of us to learn from. When you live
according to your principles, the world
moves forward just a bit. This is evident
when Holly talks about the impact of
women's music and her great pride in being
part of that movement:

"Society at large may never know
much about this creative explosion of
feminist music. Major magazines, even
Ms. for the most part, ignored it. Main-
stream newspapers wrote about it, but
rarely did they herald its historical
importance...It was dismissed or ‘over-
looked’ by those who were threatened by
outspoken and independent women. But
women's music liberated thousands of
women, as well as men and families, from
traditional roles and ideas. This was a
movement and a music that...would influ-
ence the mainstream's image of
women...'I'his was a music that would be
the soundtrack to women falling in love,
breaking up, and coping with or enjoying
their aloneness. This was music that, be-
cause it was dominated by white middle-
class women with good intentions and very
little experience, would have to face the
challenges of racism and class discrimina-
tion. Not every woman who sings from a
strong, insightful perspective on Top 40.
radio knows today that some record execu-
tive once told me twenty years ago thatl
couldn't make it as a pop star becausel had
no ‘element of submission‘ in my voice."

Caller ID Blocking Available

Caller ID is a new service which, with
the assistance of a unit attached to the
telephone line, allows people to see the
phone number of someone calling before
the call is answered. In theory, it's a good
way to screen calls, allowing service sub-
scribers to take calls from friends and rela-
tives and leave telemarketers to gnash their
teeth as the line just rings and rings.

Members of the gay and lesbian com-
munities, however, expressed concern over
the device, adding their voices to other
groups which worked with at-risk or fre-
quently hanassed peoples. Without some
way of blocking the Caller ID option, these
groups explained, services such as anony-
mous support lines and telephone referral
systems come with added risks attached
and threaten the privacy of potential call-
ers.

In response, New England telephone
has developed a system whereby the Caller
ID system can be blocked. Notices detail-
ing the procedure were included with sub-
scribers’ recent phone bills.

To prevent your phone number from
being seen and possibly recorded by some-
one you are about to call, first dial 1 167 (on
a rotary phone) or punch in "67 (on a
touchtone phone), then continue with the
rest of the number.

Members of the gay and lesbian com-
munity should remain aware of this option.
particularly when responding to advertise-
ments aimed at a homosexual audience. As
with sex, these days it's better to be safe
than sorry.

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