When did it get so freakin' cool to have lesbian pictures of you with your friends on Facebook or MySpace?
I'm just askin'...
Sunday, October 29, 2006
Feminism, Halloween, and Alice in Pornland
My Dad just referred me to this Ellen Goodman article about women, sexuality, and culture. I think you'll find it interesting.
COMMENTARY
These costumes would scare any feminist
By Ellen Goodman
Oh darn, I guess I'm not going to be able to wear that diaphanous costume with the teeny-weeny skirt and the plunging neckline after all. The "Garden of Evil Spiritina" is all sold out for this Halloween.
There's barely even time to get "L'il Bo Peep" — or should I say "L'il Bo Peep Show" costume — FedExed from my Web merchant. I could, however, get that "Hottie Little Red Riding Hood," bustier and boots, to come over the river and through the woods to this grandmother's house.
Welcome to the Halloween horror show. This is the time of year when mothers across America get another chance to rant about the culture that pushes daughters directly from Barney to "Jail Bait." This is when teens can surf the aisles or the Internet for those special costumes that are designed to help them fantasize about what they want to be when they grow up: "A French Maid." And when young women raised on "Free to Be You and Me" find themselves free to be either "Biker Chick" or "Blushing Bride."
Is there anything more depressing than the "Naughty Housewife" ready to go trick-or-spanking? Sure. It's the number of young women who will tell you fervently that as a post-feminist generation, they are liberated to make choices. And their choice for Halloween is "Alice in Pornland"!
It's enough to make the average feminist want to bite into that apple with the razor blade.
But first, let us take that "choice" banner, attach it to our broomstick and fly east as far as London where there is another sort of masquerade going on. The story of the hour is not about young women uncovering their bodies. It's about young women covering their faces.
London has been in an uproar about a 24-year-old teaching assistant and Muslim suspended because she refused to remove the full-face veil. A minimal number of veiled women caused a maximal furor. Prime Minister Tony Blair decried the veil as a "mark of separation." Even the prime minister of Italy declared, "You can't cover your face; you must be seen. ... It is important for our society."
The young woman, Aishah Azmi, insisted that "Muslim women who wear the veil are not aliens." Then, in one of those wonderful ironies, she unsuccessfully appealed her suspension, arguing for the freedom to wear a garment that would have been imposed upon her in a fundamentalist Islamic country.
Have you noticed how much dress and undress matter? Even to prime ministers? Have you also noticed how many women believe they are making their own choices when they are actually caught in a cultural vise?
Here in America, our Halloween revelers have only the scantiest — and I do mean scantiest — idea of how the market has shaped the options that they regard as their own. Most women are only dimly aware of the how we internalize the liposuctioned, breast-implanted, celebrity-shaped images that define the "right" female body. They are even less aware of a culture that defines sexy as something seen rather than felt.
There in London, a young teacher wearing the niqab seems equally unaware that the mask she dons as an act of self-expression aligns her with the mullahs of repression. After all, in today's Iran the choices may be veil or jail. And in Afghanistan, women are choosing the burqa to save their lives. As Deborah Tolman, who wrote "Dilemmas of Desire," says, the stakes are astonishingly high: "If we can't cover it, we can kill it. That's the context."
Mullahs and marketers are not the same. Nobody is forcing an American woman into the "Sultry Witch" costume. Nobody is forcing a British citizen into a full-face veil. But there is something, well, scary when women claim the "freedom" to fit into such narrow constraints of sexuality.
Lyn Mikel Brown, co-author of "Packaging Girlhood," says, "We can't talk to girls about sexuality or desire but an entire media is pushing sexualization on them." Nevertheless, there's a fine line for girls between being sexy and being slutty. Halloween, Brown says, may be the one day "you can be a skank and get away with it." But what a way.
On the other hand, the niqab may identify its London wearer as a pious Muslim and proud dropout from Western sexual culture. But it does so by making her faceless. What a way.
Remember when we used to talk about role models for girls and women? At least one Web site is selling "Supergirl" costumes for teens. But what's that I read? She's "all grown up and is ready for some action of her own." This Supergirl comes with a bustier and hooker boots. She's definitely sold out.
Ellen Goodman is a columnist for The Boston Globe. Reach her at ellengoodman@globe.com.
COMMENTARY
These costumes would scare any feminist
By Ellen Goodman
Oh darn, I guess I'm not going to be able to wear that diaphanous costume with the teeny-weeny skirt and the plunging neckline after all. The "Garden of Evil Spiritina" is all sold out for this Halloween.
There's barely even time to get "L'il Bo Peep" — or should I say "L'il Bo Peep Show" costume — FedExed from my Web merchant. I could, however, get that "Hottie Little Red Riding Hood," bustier and boots, to come over the river and through the woods to this grandmother's house.
Welcome to the Halloween horror show. This is the time of year when mothers across America get another chance to rant about the culture that pushes daughters directly from Barney to "Jail Bait." This is when teens can surf the aisles or the Internet for those special costumes that are designed to help them fantasize about what they want to be when they grow up: "A French Maid." And when young women raised on "Free to Be You and Me" find themselves free to be either "Biker Chick" or "Blushing Bride."
Is there anything more depressing than the "Naughty Housewife" ready to go trick-or-spanking? Sure. It's the number of young women who will tell you fervently that as a post-feminist generation, they are liberated to make choices. And their choice for Halloween is "Alice in Pornland"!
It's enough to make the average feminist want to bite into that apple with the razor blade.
But first, let us take that "choice" banner, attach it to our broomstick and fly east as far as London where there is another sort of masquerade going on. The story of the hour is not about young women uncovering their bodies. It's about young women covering their faces.
London has been in an uproar about a 24-year-old teaching assistant and Muslim suspended because she refused to remove the full-face veil. A minimal number of veiled women caused a maximal furor. Prime Minister Tony Blair decried the veil as a "mark of separation." Even the prime minister of Italy declared, "You can't cover your face; you must be seen. ... It is important for our society."
The young woman, Aishah Azmi, insisted that "Muslim women who wear the veil are not aliens." Then, in one of those wonderful ironies, she unsuccessfully appealed her suspension, arguing for the freedom to wear a garment that would have been imposed upon her in a fundamentalist Islamic country.
Have you noticed how much dress and undress matter? Even to prime ministers? Have you also noticed how many women believe they are making their own choices when they are actually caught in a cultural vise?
Here in America, our Halloween revelers have only the scantiest — and I do mean scantiest — idea of how the market has shaped the options that they regard as their own. Most women are only dimly aware of the how we internalize the liposuctioned, breast-implanted, celebrity-shaped images that define the "right" female body. They are even less aware of a culture that defines sexy as something seen rather than felt.
There in London, a young teacher wearing the niqab seems equally unaware that the mask she dons as an act of self-expression aligns her with the mullahs of repression. After all, in today's Iran the choices may be veil or jail. And in Afghanistan, women are choosing the burqa to save their lives. As Deborah Tolman, who wrote "Dilemmas of Desire," says, the stakes are astonishingly high: "If we can't cover it, we can kill it. That's the context."
Mullahs and marketers are not the same. Nobody is forcing an American woman into the "Sultry Witch" costume. Nobody is forcing a British citizen into a full-face veil. But there is something, well, scary when women claim the "freedom" to fit into such narrow constraints of sexuality.
Lyn Mikel Brown, co-author of "Packaging Girlhood," says, "We can't talk to girls about sexuality or desire but an entire media is pushing sexualization on them." Nevertheless, there's a fine line for girls between being sexy and being slutty. Halloween, Brown says, may be the one day "you can be a skank and get away with it." But what a way.
On the other hand, the niqab may identify its London wearer as a pious Muslim and proud dropout from Western sexual culture. But it does so by making her faceless. What a way.
Remember when we used to talk about role models for girls and women? At least one Web site is selling "Supergirl" costumes for teens. But what's that I read? She's "all grown up and is ready for some action of her own." This Supergirl comes with a bustier and hooker boots. She's definitely sold out.
Ellen Goodman is a columnist for The Boston Globe. Reach her at ellengoodman@globe.com.
Thursday, October 26, 2006
Meeting the fish in the sea
Sorry to all my fans (okay, just Micah) who have missed me lately and caused a big commotion about my lack of blogliness. Honestly I've been busy making out and otherwise negotiating a love triangle. hehe.
Post a personals ad on Craig's list and you are sure to have an adventure.
Post a personals ad on Craig's list and you are sure to have an adventure.
Tuesday, October 17, 2006
Northern Lights
Besides the lights themselves being amazing, check out the rotating constellations. Or I guess the view from the rotating earth :) There's also lots of shooting stars throughout the night. Beaaaaaaaautiful.
Monday, October 16, 2006
Holiday
I've declared today work from bed in my PJs with lots of soft blankets and pillows and Billie Holiday playing day. :) And of course my laptop. It's going great so far. Well everything except the "work" part. heh.
Friday, October 13, 2006
Better Now
Okay so I'm much happier and well-adjusted since we just had a church meeting tonight. Many good things were shared.
Just remember to take all this crap on my blog with a grain of salt :)
Just remember to take all this crap on my blog with a grain of salt :)
Paradox
I am a paradox. Introverted and extroverted? That is just the beginning.
I'm
We're starting to share our testimonies as a community. My testimony - the story of my spiritual life - is this totally roundabout, cyclical, circular, nonsensical thing.
I realized that from hearing Curt share his story. Curt is very linear. Everything evolved in time in a linear way. He understood more of God, bit by bit. It's like God keeps taking him down this path. Farther up and further in...
Not me. I mean I have this moment in my history... April 6, 1998... when everything changed. I do know that much. I can question what exactly happened that night, but I unquestionably know that it set my entire life on a particular course.
But ever since then I kind of just go in circles. The good way for me to look at it is that I do know who God is essentially. Is there more of Him to know? Obviously yes. Obviously I know like 0.0000001 percent of God. But I know he is Love, so that takes me really far. I know He is not just a He... this God is also reflected in women. In fact, I would say this God is as much "woman" as "man," and so that tells me tons about God. I could go on about these big things that I know, not just in my mind but in my spirit, to be true of God. So that makes me feel like the going in circles is okay... after all, it's probably a good thing that you aren't in total shock discovering something new about a person all the time. It shows you know that person.
But I guess I just feel like I've been at an impasse with God for many years. I understand why people long for mystical communion. It's like finally consummating the marriage... but is there an enjoyment, a consummation, that can go on right now? Is it a church meeting? Am I being impatient? I'm sure I am. I know that our start-up meetings are not going to be super glorious. At the same time, I hate even saying that because it shows I am waiting for some later time, rather than encountering God right now.
What can I expect from God? I am living communally and intentionally, yes, but also very much as a 21st century individualist and a consumer. What makes the way I've organized my life and prepared my heart any different from others? And does this even have anything to do with how God meets me, or am I fooling myself to think I can prepare the way and have better chances?
What do I expect communion with God to look like and feel like? Do I think I'm going to like lose my mind-body control or have my spirit expand with joy until it explodes? I don't really know what it's supposed to be like. I only know that my restlessness seemed justified in the organized church. Here in the land of disorganization, I hope and pray that I can be content with encountering God in people and in everyday circumstances. Maybe I can even start to see restlessness as a gift or at least, as God stirring.
I'm
- sacred and profane
- reverent and indifferent/casual
- sincere and deceitful
- certain but doubtful
- creative but severely limited
- loving but jealous and fearful
- forgiving and resentful
- and the list goes on forever. Whatever good might be said of me, whatever of God might be found inside of me, is countered with something that negates it.
We're starting to share our testimonies as a community. My testimony - the story of my spiritual life - is this totally roundabout, cyclical, circular, nonsensical thing.
I realized that from hearing Curt share his story. Curt is very linear. Everything evolved in time in a linear way. He understood more of God, bit by bit. It's like God keeps taking him down this path. Farther up and further in...
Not me. I mean I have this moment in my history... April 6, 1998... when everything changed. I do know that much. I can question what exactly happened that night, but I unquestionably know that it set my entire life on a particular course.
But ever since then I kind of just go in circles. The good way for me to look at it is that I do know who God is essentially. Is there more of Him to know? Obviously yes. Obviously I know like 0.0000001 percent of God. But I know he is Love, so that takes me really far. I know He is not just a He... this God is also reflected in women. In fact, I would say this God is as much "woman" as "man," and so that tells me tons about God. I could go on about these big things that I know, not just in my mind but in my spirit, to be true of God. So that makes me feel like the going in circles is okay... after all, it's probably a good thing that you aren't in total shock discovering something new about a person all the time. It shows you know that person.
But I guess I just feel like I've been at an impasse with God for many years. I understand why people long for mystical communion. It's like finally consummating the marriage... but is there an enjoyment, a consummation, that can go on right now? Is it a church meeting? Am I being impatient? I'm sure I am. I know that our start-up meetings are not going to be super glorious. At the same time, I hate even saying that because it shows I am waiting for some later time, rather than encountering God right now.
What can I expect from God? I am living communally and intentionally, yes, but also very much as a 21st century individualist and a consumer. What makes the way I've organized my life and prepared my heart any different from others? And does this even have anything to do with how God meets me, or am I fooling myself to think I can prepare the way and have better chances?
What do I expect communion with God to look like and feel like? Do I think I'm going to like lose my mind-body control or have my spirit expand with joy until it explodes? I don't really know what it's supposed to be like. I only know that my restlessness seemed justified in the organized church. Here in the land of disorganization, I hope and pray that I can be content with encountering God in people and in everyday circumstances. Maybe I can even start to see restlessness as a gift or at least, as God stirring.
Thursday, October 12, 2006
Strange and terrible
Last night I realized that I should have started a certain project WAY earlier... basically it was a massive media contact list for distributing a press release. I was going to distribute this baby about 8am this morning, but it wasn't until last night that I discovered what a mess the list was. Hours and hours of internet research got me far, but not nearly far enough. Finally at 2am I emailed my boss on that project and said am I being a perfectionist, should I just send it to whoever... or should we wait. He liked the idea of waiting and perfecting it. Sigh. So the good part about that, is where I thought I was going to wake up in a frenzy this morning to get it out, I actually am fine and just need to keep working on it.
Anyway when I was working on this last night, I was in a strange and terrible mood. Do you ever just... get out of whack? And it is (or seems) wholly impossible to get yourself back where you need to be. For me, I know what the circumstances were that made me feel that way... basically I thought two things (that I haven't mentioned) were going to work out, and neither one of them seem to be working out. Other times in life, two things you thought weren't going to work out DO and you get the opposite feeling... giddiness instead of despair.
I just hate getting in moods like that though. It makes me feel almost breathless and restless. It's like you can't get relief from your own self, from your mind. Not that anything is so terrible... I am talking about something very, very subtle. I just was putting it out there because sometimes I wonder if I am the only person who gets this way. It's a feeling of being trapped in wrongness in a way. Having to deal with something you'd rather ignore.
There's no sugar-coated, happy ending to this mini-story, but I will say that sleep is a real gift. Great is your faithfulness, Lord... it is new every morning.
Anyway when I was working on this last night, I was in a strange and terrible mood. Do you ever just... get out of whack? And it is (or seems) wholly impossible to get yourself back where you need to be. For me, I know what the circumstances were that made me feel that way... basically I thought two things (that I haven't mentioned) were going to work out, and neither one of them seem to be working out. Other times in life, two things you thought weren't going to work out DO and you get the opposite feeling... giddiness instead of despair.
I just hate getting in moods like that though. It makes me feel almost breathless and restless. It's like you can't get relief from your own self, from your mind. Not that anything is so terrible... I am talking about something very, very subtle. I just was putting it out there because sometimes I wonder if I am the only person who gets this way. It's a feeling of being trapped in wrongness in a way. Having to deal with something you'd rather ignore.
There's no sugar-coated, happy ending to this mini-story, but I will say that sleep is a real gift. Great is your faithfulness, Lord... it is new every morning.
Wednesday, October 11, 2006
Early morning
I joined this networking group that meets every Wednesday morning at 7:45am.
Gahh :)
To a freelancer, that is a death sentence. That is a punishment.
Nah, actually it wasn't too bad. I actually got around 6 hours of sleep last night so I don't wake up toooo sleepy. I actually saw the sunrise. That is one of the first times I've seen the sunrise from my apartment that I've lived in for 2.5 months. It is totally visable over the trees through my kitchen window. Kinda pretty, actually.. it's over the trees, like I said, but it's like a horizon. Well I've gotten up super-early a few times to go to the airport but that was in darkness... never at sunrise.
The reason I'm thinking about all this is I am soooooo hungry and I looked at the clock and it's only 11:18am. Usually I would have just eaten breakfast around now. lol
Gahh :)
To a freelancer, that is a death sentence. That is a punishment.
Nah, actually it wasn't too bad. I actually got around 6 hours of sleep last night so I don't wake up toooo sleepy. I actually saw the sunrise. That is one of the first times I've seen the sunrise from my apartment that I've lived in for 2.5 months. It is totally visable over the trees through my kitchen window. Kinda pretty, actually.. it's over the trees, like I said, but it's like a horizon. Well I've gotten up super-early a few times to go to the airport but that was in darkness... never at sunrise.
The reason I'm thinking about all this is I am soooooo hungry and I looked at the clock and it's only 11:18am. Usually I would have just eaten breakfast around now. lol
Tuesday, October 10, 2006
Craig's list is a constant source of joy
Micah, I see why Wonkette has so much fun with Craig's List. This is a great one from the Raleigh site. Thank you, funny stranger, for making me laugh. (By the way, if you weren't sure, this is a personal ad from a man seeking a woman.)
The Da Vinci Code and other weird bibicial findings
You've read the book and seen the movie, frankly if Da Vinci had that much time on his hands more power to him but I'm aware the real secrets lie with the templar knights because I hold the family templar crest, it's basically bred into you like a cat is genetically bred to hunt so if you don't get that well maybe we'd have to discuss it. However that's not what I'm here to mention today, what I'm here for is to find a research assistant would jump down the quantum rabbit hole with me and turn this little reality on it's ear because I've recently discovered after watching several old trading spaces shows and extreme home make over that the anti christ could be ty pennington. Yes that's right hottie carpenter extrodinare could be the son of evil.
The evidence is he's wealthy, great looking, helps others less fortunate, can build anything, and can assemble the masses, and most of all is highly trusted. OMG does it get any clearer than that??? I'm certain that when he gets into policticing that he'll tray to build some dang temple and hey I'm not even going to get into the Red Bull theory because I'm not wishing to start a end of days frenzy here but I will say under that head of hair mr Ty sports is the numbers 666 and we're going to find it and expose him to the world for the evil that he is, you with me? drop a line and we can go over the details in my grem free self contained end of days secure storm shelter.
The Da Vinci Code and other weird bibicial findings
You've read the book and seen the movie, frankly if Da Vinci had that much time on his hands more power to him but I'm aware the real secrets lie with the templar knights because I hold the family templar crest, it's basically bred into you like a cat is genetically bred to hunt so if you don't get that well maybe we'd have to discuss it. However that's not what I'm here to mention today, what I'm here for is to find a research assistant would jump down the quantum rabbit hole with me and turn this little reality on it's ear because I've recently discovered after watching several old trading spaces shows and extreme home make over that the anti christ could be ty pennington. Yes that's right hottie carpenter extrodinare could be the son of evil.
The evidence is he's wealthy, great looking, helps others less fortunate, can build anything, and can assemble the masses, and most of all is highly trusted. OMG does it get any clearer than that??? I'm certain that when he gets into policticing that he'll tray to build some dang temple and hey I'm not even going to get into the Red Bull theory because I'm not wishing to start a end of days frenzy here but I will say under that head of hair mr Ty sports is the numbers 666 and we're going to find it and expose him to the world for the evil that he is, you with me? drop a line and we can go over the details in my grem free self contained end of days secure storm shelter.
Monday, October 09, 2006
Airfare is irrational
So for Christmas, just like last year, all I want to do is get a ticket that will take me from Raleigh to Kansas City... and then from Fargo, ND back to Raleigh. That's because I'll be meeting my family in Kansas for a 100th birthday party, then driving back to Minnesota for Christmas. Here are the results:
Get both tickets together: $340
JUST Raleigh to KC: $98
JUST Fargo to Raleigh: $700
Ummmmmmmm...?
Weird. Truly nonsensical but hey.
Get both tickets together: $340
JUST Raleigh to KC: $98
JUST Fargo to Raleigh: $700
Ummmmmmmm...?
Weird. Truly nonsensical but hey.
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