And also, pictures of puppies!
birth control
assholes
Forbes writer Gene Marks published his thoughts on what he would do if he were a poor black kid. It was basically an Onion op-ed. I nudged it the rest of the way.
family
What's with the compulsion to make sisters into Spice Girls?
books
Literary obsession is a lot like social engagement, only it’s more consuming and energizing and it takes place inside your head where you don’t have to deal with human people at all.
Jess in
Entertainment,
books,
crushes,
I have a rich inner life,
my pathetic childhood,
nerd stuff,
obsessions
Nov 23, 2011 at 3:00pm | 0 comments
activism
When something like this happens, it either makes you despair about the world, or it makes you want to fix it. And despite all appearances, I think it’s fixable.
Jess in
Issues,
activism,
human decency,
occupy wall street,
police brutality,
possibly I'm being hopelessly naive
Nov 21, 2011 at 3:00pm | 0 comments
child abuse
There’s a natural cognitive bias towards believing that someone who’s in your tribe, someone you identify with, can do no wrong. And that can allow a lot of wrong to get done.
language
Everyone's got a story. Mine just happens to have been written by somebody else.
feminism
Sexual harassment allegations and claims of misogynistic abuse online both involve women talking about something they experience as hurtful. So in both cases there are people lined up to tell them that it never happened.
dessert
Fake ice cream made of pureed frozen bananas: Sounds like a pale imitation for sad calorie-counters. Is actually the easiest delicious dessert you'll ever make.
babies
I did not gestate him for nine months and then push him out of my vagina, which is good because he weighs 100 pounds and is covered in fur.
comics
The problem with comic art isn't the fact that women don’t look like that in real life. The problem is that artists' idea of a stylized fantasy woman is "put all the naughty bits on the front so we can see them at the same time."
being 14 is really horrible
The summer I was 14, I went to two different summer camps. The difference between them summed up the central crisis of my life at the time: Was I going to identify as the geek or the Kid With Issues?
etsy
A good custom clothing shop -- and I have a good one, if you're willing to part with some cash -- can make something that not only fits great, but looks exactly how you want it.
gender police
So many terrifying political positions, and people are going after Michele Bachmann's MANICURE? Go figure: Lady pols get criticized about stuff that male politicians have never had to think about for one minute of their lives.
halloween
Halloween's gone sexy. OK, cool. So that means that when I search for men’s costumes, I should be seeing page after page of fancified underpants, right? HA HA RIGHT.
beavis and butthead
Beavis and Butt-Head are the 90s answer to Warhol’s soup cans: culture so absurdly stripped-down that at first it looks like an insult.
dogs
I’m concerned that anyone who hasn’t seen me in the last nine months would be hard-pressed to figure out whether I got a dog or a lobotomy.
british tv
Keep your So-Called Life. The character I most identified with as a teen was unrealistic, dead, and thoroughly awful.
fall tv
The thing about reinforcing traditional gender roles is that everybody’s heard this one before. New shows and ads fancy themselves cheeky and edgy and willing to “go there,” but in fact they’re just the same old schtick.
barbie crotch
This anti-camel-toe shield isn’t just good for a laugh. It’s also an illustration of how industry can manufacture and then fulfill a need by making you insecure about your body.
anxiety of influence
An exactingly technical and yet somehow no-particular-order analysis of cover songs that have surpassed their originals in fame, and/or I just like the cover better.
'lost' parables
Whatever aspects of being a “Hot Chick” work for you, enjoy them. But don’t fool yourself that you’re doing so of your own unconstrained free will.
cyborg lincoln
Nerdy tattoos make me think I should fly my dork flag a little higher. Do you think I have the guts for a giant backpiece of all eleven Doctors fighting the Knights Who Say Ni?
holidays
If I have to be driving around with my headlights on at 7 at night, still trying to have a productive day even though it’s pitch dark out, I want to be seeing some damn twinkle lights and an inflatable snowman.
