Yeah Bitch!

Heard "212" out last night, realized who/what I was dancing to, and now the music video break from studying is spiraling out of control (as is my girl crush on her.)  Not gonna be fallin' asleep to bio psych anymore this afternoon!

Body Stuff / Cycles

I really couldn't get over the interactions of hormones that contribute to this process, not to mention how simple the effects of hormone-based birth control methods are (Estrogen/progesterone's artificially present, suspend the process of ovulation. It's not, get rid of the uterine lining.) and the widely-accepted misconception that a regular cycle for us females is 28 days.

" [Bristol] Palin’s language around the incident reflects a nameless hesitancy that young women feel when reporting violations of their own sexual autonomy. When incidents of rape are treated as finger pointing cases of women just getting what they had coming to them, then what happens when we try and talk about all the violations in between? It would be easy to end this on one of the most solid points of the movement to end sexual violence and rape, the idea that rape is rape is rape. But what happens when we can’t even define it for ourselves?"

-Coco, Persephone Magazine

turn around.

imagining what the woman looked like while spray-painting this is delightful. via ms. sve.

It's a Good Thing [?]

"The lightning-fast transition from newly minted vaccine to must-have injection in the United States and Europe represents a triumph of what the manufacturers call education and their critics call marketing."

re: Gardisil and other cervical cancer vaccines. Cervical cancer represents less than 5% of cancer-related deaths for American females per year (lung cancer represents the most, at ~40%).

"Who, who said that? Are you everybody?"

A Sort of Response.

So cousin Cynthia brought up a good point, that much feminism can be easily discounted as radical and subsequently shallow because those that say "men are to blame for our troubles" are not taking responsibility for their own well-being. I agree that there's really no point in making generalizations in any sense, for instance saying all women hate the idea of nurturing children or that it's the duty of all men to care for and protect their presumably female partner. I also agree that it's the easy way out to get mad at the man who writes against men coddling women - no one should be overly coddled lest that action lead to incidences like the "spoiled rich chick" video

In the preface to "Prone to Violence," the author Erin Pizzey writes this, which I think captures a solid point against radical feminism: (though I tend to believe the more subtle the incident(s) is, the more dangerous and potentially insidious.)

"I remember that I was particularly interested in finding if anyone else had come to similar conclusions on why some people actually choose violent relationships - which is the major theme of this book. But in response I mostly met again the hostility of those people who insisted that all women were simply victims of male oppression.

It seems to me that America's Women's Movement is much more broadly based than its British counterpart. It was with members of the National Organization of Women that we had the best dialogues - at seminars and meetings where people wanted to share a sense of bewilderment arising from the fact that now there were established refuges, so many women seemed to be merely using them like revolving doors. They would come to the refuges when the level of violence got too much, only to return to their violent men for another few weeks, and then come back to the refuges again for help."

The thing that makes me pause and think here is that I'm not saying that women should be fighting/educating themselves/simply being aware of feminism (now in its third wave) so they can extricate themselves from violent situations, nor am I saying that women have to band together to right the wrongs that men are enacting on them at a national level. In fact, there are many men out there that help the cause because, as any logical sane person realizes, the good of humanity (presumably the ultimate goal of said humanity) has a better chance of being achieved if the pool of humans to enact that good is bigger and makes no arbitrary distinctions based on gender.

That said, my response to people like this guy is that he's dumbing down or personalizing women as a whole when he writes out against us. Not all women think that it's a man's fault when they get pregnant, or get pregnant when they don't want to at all. In fact, most women that have any ear to the ground and/or access to education and/or good, strong role models know that there's Planned Parenthoods nationwide. What I'm concerned with is larger-scale social changes for women that have no been enacted because we (I'm guilty) are too lazy or scared to admit that change still needs to be made.

A rant. Not the best, but something.

this looks promising:

:the right to write

also, this looks like a radical opportunity, a real chance to donate my time to an organization that deserves and could benefit from it.

more later, just had to start off the deluge.

No Snappy Pictures.

So I've been thinking a little bit about how my blog thus far has had some snazzy links, pictures, and quotes but not that much substance from me. Substance being text. I wont say it's that hard, but that I'm just a little lazy when it comes to such things. And with a deadline looming close (Sept. 1, ack) for a college application, well, the pressure can just cut one off at the knees.

I'm good in sound-bites, so here goes. Noteworthy (in my opinion) thoughts of the last week or so:

-feminism and how it affects my life. I have the tendency to dote on things, and this is definitely one of them. At one point, a relative had recounted to me the fact that her husband wouldn't let his kids go to a school "out east" because it changes you forever. I tend to agree, but I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing. That said, I've had a compulsion for reading, thinking, and writing about issues that involve or affect women like planned parenthood, the importance of relationships between women, the ERA, et. al. Also, this guy who infuriates me; I should probably write some kind of response to this particular article. It's not the worst compulsion, but it is one. Ahh, there, I said it.

-family. Parts of my family encouraged me to write about this topic (since they don't care at all) so I guess I'll take 'em up on it. I bought a plane ticket home over Labor Day weekend since I've been homesick for friends, my parents flaws and all, the house that I grew up in, etc. I can't wait as parts of me thinks that, ideally, I will "end up" in Cleveland, and parts of me are jealous of the friends that have already. I'm glad for my time away but let's get real: this move to Minneapolis was pretty arbitrary though I do love it at times.

-productivity. I have a tendency towards slacking and it bugs the hell out of me. Once I get down to it and write, and edit, and re-visit, I love the process. It's just sitting down and doing it mindfully. This book has helped me a lot so far, but if there are any recommendations for (even more) other texts re: the creative process, I'd love to delve in. I don't have a well-formed competitive spirit and am not really interested in that sort of "motivation", though.

Productivity probably has a lot to do with this whole grad. school thing too. I think it's a great idea to get a degree but I don't really think it's necessary to lead a productive, fruitful, fulfilling life. For me, it's kind of a crutch but one that I need. I wish that was different but it's not. I mean, I started telling those around me that I've been "taking siesta" so it sounds like I'm doing more than "passing out" after lunch everyday this week.

-humanism. Okay, that's just from today, but I got this book from the library and it's pretty wonderful so far.

This is a ramble, but I hope it opens the gates to larger, newer, brighter, more vibrant, bursting plateaus.

Love.