What a year, what a year.
2009, everyone seems glad to see the back of you - me, I'm ambivalent.

I had some great successes this year - I passed all the entry tests for the Fire Service. Sadly I was pipped to the post for a job though.
I came over all brave and had laser eye surgery - hope that pays off...
My climbing came on leaps and bounds.
We bought a camper van, and kitted it out ourselves.
I finally went to Fontainbleu, and to Orkney - two places I love and will be returning to.
Plus. I got a new job - which I start in two weeks.

2009, you weren't so bad at all.
And if you were, I've forgotten all of the shitty bits already.

Vignette: on being a feminist

Context: I've just been offered a job with a charity that works with disadvantaged young women. I think this is pretty rad, so I was telling my boyfriend all about it last night...

Me: It's going to be great to work somewhere where being a feminist is actually a good thing!
Him: Being a feminist is always a good thing.
Me: Haha, I wish everyone thought like you.

The universe is in control. Is out of control.
I might try and choose my destination, attempt to plan my route, but forces outside of my control affect the path and influence the outcome.
Employer
Financial system
Environment.

A fork in the road.

What do you do when you don't want to do the the thing you're doing anymore...
And you realise that what you really want to do is so far out of reach because of damned genetics...
And you don't know what else to do...
Because there is nothing else and there never has been?

Is this the correct time to have a quarter life crisis?

You get the feeling that if this happened under a non mainstream religion, or in a different country, these people would have been locked up for being dangerous religious 'kooks', and their children taken into care for their safety.

Story from the Guardian, 'Parents given jail terms for relying on prayers to save dying daughter'

Islanders from the northern isles protecting immigrants from deportation

Since visiting Orkney, I've been kind of in love.

It's such a relaxing, open, wonderful place. Island life is most appealing and I'm hoping they recruit in my field so I can flee up north to live (I can hack the short short winters days, and lack of bouldering...)

Also, my Grandad was stationed on Hoy during the war - the story goes there were three of them, and one rifle.

Today I came across some very old news about islanders fighting immigration officials to protect immigrants from being deported. Good people.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2004/apr/19/immigrationandpublicservices.burma

Vignette: Family values

My mum dropped in to see me yesterday

Mum: We went out with so and so and their daughter the other night, she looked really pretty.
Mum: You look pretty too, sometimes
Mum: Like when you wear some make up and have your hair down
Me: Thanks...
Mum: But not when you scrawp your hair back, and have no make up on, like when you came to see me at work the other week. You didn't look really pretty then.
Me: Yes I did.*
Mum: Aww [ed. patronising tone]

Ah, parents. Why do you say these things?

* Yes, I actually said that! Haha! Go self esteem.

Touch of class

Do you shake hands often? Through work, volunteering etc?
What does a handshake say to you?

I don't shake hands often really, but I'm an opinionated handshaker. I hate the little limp handshake (esp from men, I know, loose the gender stereotypes). I like a short handshake, firm grip, no messing about.

That I can do, but despite perfecting the short firm grip my handshake probably still comes off as all wrong. It might give folks a bit of a shock, it could cause them to pull away in revulsion even.

Why?
I have freezing cold hands, almost always.

I love it when I get to touch a warm hand, like yesterday when the guy at the deli cupped my ice cold hand in his lovely warm hand when he gave me my change. I think the massive temperature difference might have something to do with why I notice it so much - I am a bit like Rogue, draining some of his warm super power energy into my cold icy body. Wonder if he noticed my cold, cold hand?

Ever have to shake hands with an ice queen or king?
Did it give you a fright? What thoughts were you left with?

Cold hands, warm heart I hope.

Abject horror

The summation of a national news story that appeared on the internal news wire at work:

"Men applying for jobs could lose out to equally qualified women under reforms revealed by the Government yesterday."

Just imagine. Equally qualified candidates, tied for jobs, and people are being encouraged not to automatically plump for the man every time.

It's surveillance society, left-wing poltical correctness gone mad.


Red Top coverage of story here Sun, Mail

Overheard in my shower*

L: G said Mary Magdalene was a prostitute.
L: But she was Jesus’ wife
Me : This is only important if you believe the bible is more than just a really crap story

(some background, L has been reading The Da Vinci Code)
...

L: M said feminism is sexist because some group of radical feminist lesbians in the 80s wanted to use IVF to have children, so they didn’t need men at all.
L: I told him based on that logic all Muslims must be terrorists – you can’t judge whole groups of people by the actions of a tiny extreme minority.
Me: God you are totally hot right now.


* well, it could’ve been if someone was listening

Gay pop idol

Boyzone have never been among the playlisted bands in my life. In fact, I've never given them much thought at all beyond 'bleurgh'.

Today though, I am pretty happy and surprised with them, their management and their video direction/writing people. They have broken new pop ground by allowing openly gay band member, Stephen Gately, to play a romantic story line with a man in their new video*.

Yay for progressive pappy pop videos - this might be enough to make me watch it on You Tube.

As seen in the Guardian.

*previously he was always forced to play alongside women - despite his audience being, if not fully aware then inclined to believe, that he was gay.

Gales of change

image from A message for Obama Flickr group, taken by grammardog.

You might already be aware, Barak Obama won the presidential election in the USA.

Breathe a sigh of relief that it wasn't a McCain & Palin double act for the win. But be ready for some disappointments too.

There is a huge amount of excitement about Obama's success (including me), but it's going to take a lot more than an election to get the ball rolling towards change. It'll take a good while for it to pick up speed as well.

Good luck to him, I can't begin to imagine the amount of pressure he must be under to live up to the high expectations of over half a country*.

* yeh, I know he's the one that gave them high expectations in the first place, but he's a mere man and it's getting a but zealoty.

Money matters

As much glee as I do feel about the atheist bus campaign raising so much so fast to fund advertising that counters religious propaganda such as the Alpha Course, it is a shame that the fervour generated here can't be replicated for other drastically underfunded causes.

I think the visibility of the Christian advertising chaffed at a lot of people, and by the very nature of outdoor advertising it was in their faces and unavoidable whenever they stepped outside, so ignited a reaction.

There are plenty of other causes that are in desperate need of support - domestic violence support and rape crisis centres are just two examples - but they are out of sight of the general population and out of mind.

Atheist advertising

Hold on to your hats because the first ever atheist advertising campaign is coming to London in January 2009!

The Guardian featured an article about it this morning encouraging donations from supportive atheists, and by 10ish they had received enough donations to secure the bus! By the time I looked at the fundraising page they were on £64K (update 30 mins later, £65k!)!!11!!!

Turns out atheists give generously and I love exclamation marks.

Ace.

Stamp collecting

Women of Distinction stamps, image from the Guardian.

If there was ever a time to collect stamps today is it, the Royal Mail are launching its first ever set of stamps dedicated to women who led important social (and feminist) change in the UK. Go Royal Mail!

Claudia Jones, was a journalist, socialist and campaigner for black rights.
Millicent Garrett Fawcett, who became president of the National Women's Suffrage Societies.
Elizabeth Garrett Anderson, the first British woman to qualify as a doctor.
Eleanor Rathbone, a politician and campaigner for social reform who was a major player in the introduction of family allowances (now known as child benefit).
Barbara Castle, the former cabinet minister and the fourth woman to enter cabinet.

Marie Stopes, author of the first cheap book to inform women in plain language about family planning, and founder of the first free family planning clinic in 1921.

More Paliness

To build on my collection of quotes about Sarah Palin, today's example comes from well know political commentator Anne Robinson:

Robinson, Britain's best known public winker, remains deeply unimpressed by Palin. "It's depressing that she exists, never mind that she winks," she says.

From the Guardian.

Signposting - it's all about a joined up service

Ok, so that title is kind of an in joke for me as a local gov worker. I've made my excuses, lets move on.

Still, this is a signposting post, or a lazy excuse for a post, or an overexcited babbling on about stuff she loves type post.

In short, today's Guardian is ace.

I heart Richard Ayoade, particularly as the hot and bonkers shaman* Saboo in the Mighty Boosh. He is totally edearing in this interview.

"You know nothing of the crunch", swoon.

I'm also a fan of Pammy Anderson - inexplicably... She's interviewed today and kind of misses the point of feminism, though she does believe in the actual aim of the movement: equality. She also scores points for calling Sarah Palin "the helicopter huntress from hell". I can only hope that McCain** is reeling from the mistake he made to run with her - he clearly did not think that one through - she is a ticking timebomb "Let's get a woman on board, people loved Hilary, me wants some of that!"

Speaking of Palin there are some satisfyingly scathing articles on her in today's issue as well. Palin vs polar bears - my vote goes for the bears, natch. And Palin the ultimate rock and roll disaster. Hah.

* great combination!
** oven chips, hah!

Time to focus

The tv broke last night. It's been warped for almost as long as we've had it, the screen squeezed in the centre, like an hourglass. Last night one side decided to slide back out again, and the image went with it, followed by white noise, a burning smell and some disconcerting beeping.

Hopefully the death of the tv will make me more productive. I have a 'to do' list a mile long - just for home working jobs, one of the downsides to running a 'business' outside of working hours. None of them are remotely fun; accounting, processing wholesale orders, sorting spreadsheets out. As you can imagine, this will bring me a level of joy hardly experienced before. It's no small wonder I've decided to tidy the front bedroom, and write a blog post.

I was reading Colouring outside the lines #2 earlier, a zine I picked up at Manchester zine fest last Saturday. It's a great issue full of interviews with amazing (female) artists, including some comic creators who's work is super inspiring and is reigniting my love of graphic novels. Check out the Colouring outside the lines myspace for more info.

An interview with Cristy Road about communicating about punk and alternative culture struck a chord with me - she talks about sharing her punk roots because her experiences there made her who she is today. I guess this was relevant to me because I've drifted so far from the punk aesthetic that I used to be so into.

I want to reclaim this as, punk is still fundamental to my belief system - through punk I got into feminism, vegetarianism, environmentalism and anti-animal testing. Plus despite my forays into folk, pop and dance it's still punk music that makes my heart beat faster.

When I was in my teens I looked at the old folks at gigs and thought they were drab, boring and no fun at all. When I was moshing, getting a busted lip, they would stand around at the back - arms folded listening without much get up or go. It's all to easy to let that happen, let the pressures and the stifling roles assumed of adulthood push our bright, wild, creative selves into submission so we can fit in at the office. I guess punk is about rejecting the conformity encouraged of us all, the conformity we're goaded into if we're going to achieve what society tells us is success.

But success is about how close you get to the things in life that make you truly happy - it can't be measured in monetary terms or by the number of possessions someone has. 'Wealth' and 'stuff' do not a happy chappy make, don't believe everything capitalism tells you.

Embracing the dumb things that make you happy is a much better measure of success, imho. Dye your hair a stupid colour your boss will hate, listen to music so loud your neighbours will be able to hear the words and then give them all flowers for putting up with you. Pursue a dream you have, and if you get jaded because of the pursuit it's ok to take time out, isn't it. Ultimately the only person you have to satisfy is yourself.

Get thyself in line Gurinad

Normally I quite like the schizophrenic editorial lines of the Guardian, voicing conflicting arguments and encouraging discussion are good things. Read the paper one day and someone's reporting on surveys that show the public's attitude to working women is turning sour, the next day someone else is slagging off said research as ho-bunkem. But today's cheap-chic autumn wardrobe feature is a step too far into the hypocritical.

After just recently launching their new online ethical clothing finder, today's number 1 'life and style' feature is about getting your hands on fleeting catwalk trends while struggling under the hefty weight of the 'credit crunch'. Primark and Matalan, holders of the coveted award for worst child labour practices on the highstreet, are among their list.

Encouraging debate is one thing, but encouraging conspicuous consumption of useless tat that's been directly linked to the exploitation of workers - that's not something anyone, never mind a liberal paper should be doing.

More reasons

I keep finding ever more reasons to go completely vegan (I don't have milk or yoghurt but have recently started eating eggs, and icecream again - as wll as chocolate and cheese*).

After eating an egg salad sarnie for lunch I came back into the office to read this Guardian article about activists saving 'spent' egg producing chickens from the chopping block when the 72 weeks of their useful egg laying life come to an end.

The free range chickens mentioned in the article start producing eggs, which are gathered up for human consumption, at just 18-22 weeks. The chickens are killed around a year later because they are no longer economically viable.

An egg laying chicken's 'useful life' amounts to about an year and a half. A living thing classified as uneconomic. That really turns my stomach, the lingering taste of egg in my mouth is turning really sour.

If that wasn't enough to put you off animal products, a friend recently told me that something like 25% of a carton of milk is puss. That sounds pretty implausible, right? But some amount of puss, coming from infected udders of over milked cows, that's a whole lot more plausible.

This 'fact' has stayed with me, and today I decided to verify its accuracy. Google Answers to the rescue. In summary - milk has a measured amount of puss in it, some puss, but too much and it's not saleable.

The worst thing about this is the thought that cows can (and are) overmilked to the point of infections in their udders. I kind of feel that if you could still sell infected milk some dairy farmers would, and the cow would have to suffer for it.

Ultimately, selling live animals, flesh or animal products must exploit animals - by the very nature of the relationship. I've heard this described as speciesism, or the hierarchy of powerful over vulnerable. It's the type of power relationship that underpins capitalism and is replicated across human behaviour too; rich:poor, male:female, young:old.

* I buy organic says the little voice that feels bad about eating animals products. Is that the liberal curse? If you can't make yourself do it, at least make yourself feel bad about it instead.