Women writing about everything from fashion to feminism, pop culture to politics…
Posted in Blast From the Past, Celebrity, History, International, Ireland, News, Personal on Apr 29th, 2011
Quick: where were you when the Pope came to Ireland? Me, I’ve got no idea. Before I’m excommunicated, I should point out that’s because I’m not Irish, and wasn’t living in Ireland at the time of the papal visit. Ask me, though, where I was for the Queen’s Silver Jublilee (two years before all Irish [...]
Posted in Anti-Heroines, Books, Media, Reviews, Women, Work, Writing on Apr 28th, 2011
A few weeks ago I met a delegation of Swedish journalists on a visit to Dublin. Fresh from a visit to the Irish Times offices, they remarked on the fact that there seemed to be very few women in the newsroom. They pointed out that in Sweden, men and women are so evenly distributed across [...]
It seems like a positively antediluvian method of keeping in touch with people these days, but when I was 10 or 11, pen pals were all the rage. Of course they were the rage for a long, long time before that, too – but it saddens me that the old-fashioned pen-pal, where you actually wrote [...]
Posted in Humour, Media, Random Wonderfulness, Television, Women on Apr 26th, 2011
It might be that I only became hyper-sensitive about female TV characters after I had my own daughter, but I don’t think so. I can’t really remember a time when I wasn’t rolling my eyes over the hair-twirling, doe-eyed, boobalicious depictions of female “empowerment” in popular media, but then again, I am a product of [...]
Posted in Food, Guest Posters, Saturday Dish on Apr 23rd, 2011
I discovered Hummingbird Cake while visiting friends in the Deep South during Easter a few years ago. They told me it got its name because each bite is so good that it makes a person hum with satisfaction! Once I tried a piece, I had to agree that it was aptly-named… This cake became famous [...]
Judgments prevent us from seeing the good that lies beyond appearances. ~Wayne W. Dyer I’ve always thought of myself as open-minded, especially when it comes to matters of race. As someone who is of mixed race (half-Japanese, half-Caucasian), I am the product of two people who come from very different countries and backgrounds yet managed [...]
Posted in Feminism, Guest Posters, Television on Apr 21st, 2011
The death this week of Elisabeth Sladen, the actress who played Doctor Who companion Sarah Jane Smith, has proved something of a “Diana” moment for science fiction fans. It’s not just me having this tearful response to the loss of someone I have never met. Middle-aged men who claim never to cry are telling The Guardian they’ve shed tears, [...]
Posted in Anti-Heroines, Books, Celebrity, Film, Men, Relationships, Sex, Women on Apr 20th, 2011
Most tips about dating targeted at single women amount to a Sisyphean course of self-improvement, whether the focus is on their appearance as complicit with the beauty mandate or with interpersonal skills such as listening and hobby development, all are designed to make women a better match and ring ready, which culture has emphasised since [...]
I’ve never been a huge fan of travelling. I can’t take people seriously when they talk about going away to ‘find themselves’ – I tend to want to point to them and go “Look, look, you’re right here! You don’t need to spend thousands of euros trekking across the desert or jungle, after all!” A [...]
I was fascinated by this collection of photos. Writers at their work stations; creating, pondering, posing and working. The creative process in others has always held my interest, no matter the art. I am a terrible cook, but love to sit, glass of wine in hand, and watch my husband create magic in the kitchen [...]
