Women writing about everything from fashion to feminism, pop culture to politics…
Posted in Family, Parenting, Personal, Relationships, Uncategorized, Women on Jun 30th, 2011
I like to believe nobody has a perfect relationship with their parents, but at 35 I’m wondering when my relationship will shift from the constant power play to one of harmony and trust. I’ve done the transactional analysis on it and stopped accepting the role of child in our relationship. Changing actions and attitudes is [...]
Posted in Anti-Heroines, Feminism, Film, Guest Posters, Television on Jun 29th, 2011
Regina de Búrca shares her role models from the world of science fiction and fantasy… From Penelope Pitstop screaming “Help! Help!” to the girls in Captain Caveman cooing “Ooooh Cavey!” I can’t say feminist role models featured highly during my early childhood. And even before I was old enough to understand how highly sexualised Barbie [...]
Posted in Advertising, Blast From the Past, Domestic, Family, Food, Random Wonderfulness on Jun 28th, 2011
Earlier this afternoon, I was browsing mugs, washbags, scented candles and mismatched tea cups and saucers looking for end of year presents for teachers (I know, a whole other post in that) when I noticed a new-look SodaStream, the fizzy drink maker that’s been making a comeback in the States lately. I only got rid [...]
During the General Election campaign I asked some members and supporters of the People Before Profit Alliance who were part of the United Left Alliance about their movement’s policies on matters like abortion, disability rights and improving equality legislation. I was told that there were no policies on these issues and that the platform was [...]
Posted in Anti-Heroines, Feminism, Film, Women on Jun 24th, 2011
I was a teenage vampire slayer, at least in spirit I was. While my friends were partying and growing ever more distant, I had a toddler and my week rotated around Thursday not Saturday night. My love affair with Buffy lasted 7 seasons; for 40 minutes a week I was treated to wisecracking, strong, real [...]
Posted in Art, Body image, Men, Television, Women on Jun 23rd, 2011
This is normally the time of year when Mad Men would be back (thank you, gift-horse mouth-inspectors over at AMC, whose depressingly short-sighted requests have held up negotiations and pushed the show back by almost a year). I was missing it over the weekend and so I was trawling through a blog called Mad Men [...]
The tragically paywalled Caitlin Moran, columnist and critic for The Times, has written a book called How to Be a Woman, which you also have to pay for – I know! – but which you absolutely should. The title is a little misleading, as this is less of a guide to 21st century womanhood as [...]
I recently spent a few days working in Chicago and as you do when visiting somewhere new, noticed a number of small differences between everyday happenings there and here. None of these were terribly startling or insightful – found Americans to be incredibly polite, they have the service industry down to a fine art and [...]
Posted in Advertising, Body image, Women on Jun 20th, 2011
Oh dear. Here we go again. If you haven’t yet laid eyes on the latest ad for Club Orange, the product of a brainstorm which presumably went something like “huh huh boobies” then you’re in for an anti-treat. Eyeroll at the ready. The immediate comparison is with the Hunky Dory fiasco from a while back, [...]
“Cunt”. That’s what I was called recently in my workplace by a member of the public. The full phrase used was ‘snotty little cunt’, delivered in a healthcare reception area in front of a colleague and another patient. I tried to laugh it off, but the experience left me shocked and humiliated. Now I’m no [...]
