blogs

I'm so glad this website is still up and running. I known I've been AWOL for quite a while now, but I need to write, so here goes.

I love computers. I always have. When I was pretty little, I even remember drafting editions of a newspaper on Word (the 97 version!). I loved even the most rudimentary paint program, and the Internet was a continual source of amusement and information (when I wanted it). Now, I’m extremely Web-connected. Like most teenagers of this era, I really couldn’t live without a computer or Internet connection anymore.

Today was a good day. I didn’t snooze my alarm, not even once. I’m almost finished with a big project at my internship. I get to visit a new city in one month. Today I couldn’t stop grinning; anyone who looked at my face could tell how happy I was.

A little while ago, I was at my friend’s house for the weekend. Her younger sister, who was in second grade, had a friend over (let’s call her T) on Saturday night. According to today’s beauty standards, T was absolutely gorgeous, despite the fact that she was only eight years old. In addition to being physically appealing, her personality was totally adorable.

The thing I remember T most for, however, is the fact that she laughed. That is, that she laughed despite the big gap between her two front teeth.

Last night was the Republican presidential debate. Due to work obligations, I only watched the last twenty minutes. But honestly? I’m surprised I watched even that much. Presidential debates never help me choose a candidate. I don’t get anything from watching candidates dodge questions for two hours. Plus, Romney’s sports update did nothing for me. Thanks but no thanks, Mitt, Sportscenter isn’t hiring.

Women have traditionally been excluded from warfare, usually left at home for the men to protect them. There have been noted exceptions throughout history (think in terms of women like Deborah and Jael, Cleopatra, Joan of Arc, etc.). Most modern militaries, including America’s, have welcomed women since the 1970s.

I just realized that my first post, as a response to a Roll Call, sort of jumped right in without giving you all any idea of my feminist identity or who I am at all, so let me see if I can fix that a bit. In order to keep myself from writing a full-out autobiography, I’ll stick to some words that shape my identity and the way that I view the world, and then go from there. The first one is pretty obvious.

Feminist:

Hey, fellow feminists! My name's Talia, and I'm new to the AGA. Here's my intro post!

Last week, the movie theater uptown had a film festival. On Thursday, I joined a few of my friends to the screening of "!Women Art Revolution," a film by Lynn Hershman Leeson.

TRIGGER WARNING: This post is about sexual violence and intimate partner violence. *It also contains a lot about my personal life.*

As you might already know, last week was my university's Take Back the Night Week, concluding on Thursday with a march and rally. I've been to a few TBTN rallies in my day, so I was already well aware of the emotional toll the event takes on me (and I assume most others in attendance). Unfortunately, this year's rally got a little to real for me.

One morning in February I had just got out of bed, my alarm failed to go off that morning and I was meant to meet my Boyfriend at our favourite coffee haunt in the centre of Christchurch where we both live. I called him "Honey I'm so sorry I'm late, I will be there, gimme an hour ok?", He was there already waiting for me, and as usual he was his sweet self and told me not to worry as he was deep into a book anyway so to take my time. I went to change in my room at our 100 year old flat. Then I heard a loud rumble and all of a sudden things started falling.

During my time in school, Take Back the Night week has always been accompanied by heated debates about the role of men in such events. The week always ends with the Take Back the Night Rally and March, with the march traditionally being a women-only event and often the point of controversy in these debates.

Hello all,

I wanted to apologize for falling off the face of the earth after school started up again. This year, my senior, has presented me with a lot of challenges and I've been learning to cope with a lot changes. Most of which I will write about soon.

I came back to the site today sort of on a whim, re-read my first few posts, along with the other bloggers' great new posts, and then I remembered why I wanted to do this so badly in the first place.

With that being said, I have every intention of blogging at least one a week, and I cannot apologize enough for my absence.

Religion. Feminism. Mutually exclusive, or complimentary? Are religious teachings inherently detrimental to feminism, or is it only the way they are practiced? How do those of us who are religious consolidate religious history with modern practice? What about those of us who are proud atheists: is your atheism entwined with your feminism? What about those of us who practice Eastern philosophies, like Buddhism and Tao?

I am still working on finding the courage to speak out when I see inequality, and to stop being so forgiving of sexism from my friends (and even from myself), and I recently had an experience that really motivated me to find my voice. Last Thursday, I attended an event called Take Back the Night, a march in protest of violence against women, on my college campus. The event began with speakers, poets, and musical artists all sending motivating messages to the crowd. There were different kinds of motivation.