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Why I Object to “No Sex Before Marriage”

May 23, 2013 in Body Image, Featured, Health, Mental Health, People, Religion, Sex, Sexuality

I was recently at a Friday night church service and they were mentioning a few upcoming events. One of the upcoming events, aimed at 13-18 year old girls, was called “The Bride Wore White”. I grumbled when I saw it. I must have done this louder than I intended as the friend beside me said “Calm down, T.” I’d like to take this moment to say I actually don’t go to church very often, so these kind of things stand out to me a lot more than they did when I went regularly. I’d also like to say I have [...]

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I’m Here, I’m Genderqueer

May 22, 2013 in Body Image, Featured, Gender, Health, Mental Health, Self, Society

What is the difference between sex and gender? Sex = male and female Gender = masculine and feminine So in essence: Sex refers to biological differences; chromosomes, hormonal profiles, internal and external sex organs. Gender describes the characteristics that a society or culture delineates as masculine or feminine. Source   I’m filling out another application form- can’t remember- is it a service? A rewards club? Something important, I’m sure. Oh yeah, that’s right. Of course. Of course. It’s a centrelink intent to claim form.  Work hasn’t been offering enough shifts (not enough kids to care for? Or is care too expensive…take your pick).  [...]

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What Do You Do to Relax?

May 8, 2013 in Books, Entertainment, Film & TV, Health, Lifestyle, Mental Health

What sort of stuff do you do when you need to relax? As I was pulling together my thoughts for this article I started thinking about things I do in my spare time or what I do for fun, but they’re not exactly the same thing, are they? In my spare time I might do housework (not relaxing for me) or go on social media (which is fun, but not relaxing). I find playing Dungeons & Dragons great fun, but not relaxing, as it’s a fairly intense creative experience. So what I’m asking is not what you do for fun, [...]

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Too Fat? Too Thin? The Great Weight Debate

May 6, 2013 in Body, Body Image, Health, Mental Health, Nutrition, Style

With Fashion Week in full swing, there is a lot of focus in the media on body shapes, weight, and ultimately the impact this has on body image and eating disorders. Models are being criticised for being too thin, unhealthy role models etc. With the statistics of eating disorders on the rise, and “90 per cent of young people in Australia and around the world unhappy with their weight and shape” (The Daily Telegraph), I’m not surprised at this outrage and support to change modelling standards. Butterfly Foundation’s CEO Christine Morgan in an interview on the Today Show likened the fashion industry to “drug [...]

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Stay Young? No. Stay Happy.

April 30, 2013 in Body Image, Face, Gender, Health, People, Society, Style

When we are young, we often don’t think about the person we will be when we are 30 or 40. In fact, we don’t even think of ourselves reaching that age. It all seems to come back to the stigma attached to growing old. But, it doesn’t have to be such a bad thing. We often hear middle aged women talk about how young people should, ‘live while you have the chance’, or thinking aloud with, ‘I wish I was your age again.’ Why do they have such strong views on youth? It’s one of two things: the regret of [...]

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Do You Live In The Past, Present, Or Future

April 24, 2013 in Mental Health, People, Self

OK – here’s some pop-psychology from Dr JJ*. (I’m like Dr Google, only hairier.) Do you live in the past, present, or future… or somewhere else? I think we all live in each of those places, but some more than others. It’s like one of those “magic quadrant” diagrams where you can plot your location on the existential landscape of your mind. This is what I mean: I tend to live in the future more than the past, and live more within my imagination than reality. I call myself a Dreamer. My partner R lives more in the past than [...]

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Real Beauty and My Ideal World

April 23, 2013 in Body, Body Image, Entertainment, Face, Gender, Health, Mental Health, People, Society, Style

Last week a Dove ad went viral and while Mandi has given her opinion, I wished to give mine. It features a forensic artist drawing a number of “real women” without seeing them – he draws by the women’s description. The women describe their perceived flaws rather than their best features. “Tell me about your chin?” the artist asks one woman. “It kind of protrudes a little when I smile”, she says. “Your jaw?” he asks another. “My mother told me I have a big jaw” she replies. After this first drawing session, the women are encouraged to spend time with [...]

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Real Beauty Sketches by Dove: My Take

April 19, 2013 in Body, Body Image, Current Affairs, Face, Gender, Health, Mental Health, News, People, Self, Society

This week, Dove released a video called Real Beauty Sketches. I had been holding off watching this, purely because of the people’s reaction to this video. There were those who thought, while the message was lovely, “ERMAGHERD Dove is owned by the same company that make Lynx body spray! How can we listen to anything they say?” Apparently both brands being owned by Unilever is enough for people to miss the point Dove were trying to get across. Then there were those who were almost euphoric with how awesome it is, and how awesome the message was, and awesome Dove is, and [...]

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Ask A Brothel Receptionist: Part 2 (NSFW)

April 19, 2013 in Anecdotes, People, Sex, Sexuality, Society, Work

Cassie worked as a receptionist in a brothel. She’s written a series answering the most common questions. This is Part 2. Go here for Part 1 4. Well, I’ve never seen a sex worker. How pathetic are people who have to pay for sex? Don’t you just hate them? Okay, so this one isn’t so much a question as a statement I heard over and over again. And while, admittedly, the clients could drive me nuts sometimes, they were also paying my wage, so they got at least a little bit of my protectiveness as well. Clients aren’t assholes – assholes are [...]

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Why I Care New Zealand Voted in Favour of Marriage Equality

April 18, 2013 in Dating, Family, Gender, Health, Human Rights, Marriage, Mental Health, News, People, Politics, Relationships, Sexuality

I’m sure you would know by now New Zealand has voted in favour of marriage equality, winning at 77 to 44. If you haven’t already heard about this, you can read all the details here, but I had to share this news with you even if you already know, purely because I am just so excited and so proud of the country my father is from. Well done New Zealand! I can’t explain how much this news has meant to me. Equality is something I am incredibly passionate about, whether it be discrimination based on race, gender, on gender identity, [...]

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