Day 3- Rome

If you do nothing else, do the Colosseum. It is incredibly impressive, and it is well worth it to research the historical context to get a feel for the place. The Vatican was amazing,but pretty much the definition of overkill. The Pantheon was wonderful on the outside, but the Christianised interior was kind of sad.

Day 4- Florence

I don’t know why people don’t like American tourists. They’re generally friendly and tip well. Me and my Fellow Spawn talked to an American couple on the train, and they were really nice, even if they were Republicans. It seems that American tourists support each other, like helping with directions and taking photos for each other. Doesn’t seem like objectionable behavior…

In lieu on the drafts posts I lost while messing around with my laptop, here are excerpts from my travel journal.

Day 1- Hong Kong Airport

Deviant Spawn, Fellow Spawn 1 and Fellow Spawn 2 have been unleashed on Europe. In the hours since we’ve left our home and reached the Hong Kong airport we’ve been warned about Italian men multiple times. “Don’t let them pinch your arses” and the like. The boys will be boys attitude displayed in some of these warnings is worrisome. As always, the travel has been a nightmare (I get airsick) and the airports chaotic. I am struck by the fear that I’ve forgotten something vital. I’m currently reading the Italian phrasebook. I have everyday pleasantries (yes, no, thank you, hello etc) and the first ten numbers down.

Day 3- In Rome

I’ve updated my mental definition of Rome to the city that gave straight roads to the world, yet has hopelessly convoluted streets. My legs ache after walking down most of them. Bells are ringing at the moment, as they appear to do at regular intervals. I’m trying to crack the code without cheating by using google or the guidebook.

I am in a really happy zone right now. The trip has been amazing. The palpable air of history around the area has been incredibly interesting and fulfilling. The food is just as good as everyone said, and there are many beautiful places that photograph well. I was very impressed by the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and absolutely squeeing over the public fountains, big and small, that are everywhere.

(Day 3- In Rome to be continued.)

As I type this thousands of people all over (the eastern side) of Australia are enjoying a midnight screening of New Moon. May we celebrate sparkly super-powered stalkers with squeals of joy.

From TwiLOL (click for link)

(Forget the retrograde gender politics. I’m still not over the vampires having no weaknesses and x-men super powers. Pshhhh, kids these days have no appreciation of what constitutes a REAL vampire.)

So I’ve finished high school/ the dreaded HSC. All I have to do now is sort out American application stuff and prepare for a holiday. I’ve been catching up on the feminist blogosphere, and if you haven’t gone already, check out Feminists with Disabilities. Contributors include the always awesome Chally and Lauredhel.

In other news Democrats threw women under the bus in the health care plan (Quelle surprise!). As an American citizen I can register to vote, but I have to fill out many forms and deal with state income tax if I do so. Democrat cowardice leaves me with little inclination to put in the effort, despite the family tradition of being politically active and agitating in favour of the Democrats.

On the other side of the fence, the Republican party remains the party of incompetence and hatred. If they had any real interest in governing, and not just posturing and politicing, they would be supporting the health care bill to improve the lives of their constituents, including the military veterans who are live in poverty as a direct result of America’s failing health care system. If we can’t support our troops by not sending them into pointless wars, the least we can do is making sure they receive adequate medical treatment for the issues that arise from their service.

In short, the American political system is still as screwed up as it was when I started this blog. Grrr.

I’m in panic/stress/ omg/ study/ screw up mode, and thus haven’t posted in forever. I have no intention of retiring from blogging permanently, I’m just taking an extended break. Thanks all for the well wishes.

Hope y’all have a  Halloween sans obnoxious children and pornified witches!

HHL

The real world has caught up with me, so I’m not going to be posting much (if at all) for the next couple of weeks. In the meantime, look to my blogroll for feminist goodness.

Click for image source, Girl from the Ghetto

When people talk about issues like the economy and health care as not particularly applicable to feminism I call bullshit. When people justify their votes for a Republican as feminist neutral because they’re voting for the Republican economic policies and the economy isn’t a feminist issue, that is equally bullshit. Not only is the Republican party racist, homophobic and misogynist, it is the party of incompetence. They drove America into the ground over the last eight years, crippling the economy. This has had a disproportionate effect on women (the effect of sub-prime mortgages on women is just one example), as it has a disproportionate effect on the poor. To have even the pretense of a fair society, at least on this planet, we have to have a functioning economy, because as soon as things get shitty, it flows downhill. Without that functioning economy people suffer, so yes, I do think the economy is a feminist issue, and that voting Republican is an anti-feminist act, just from the economic stand point alone.

Now this isn’t to say that, somewhere, somehow, a registered Republican isn’t a feminist, but cognitive dissonance much?

(Up next: A rant about how feminists don’t actually toe the left-wing or Democrat party-line.)

Lisa Pryor asked men what they want in a wife. This article, an upmarket version of the Cosmo’s “how to please the cock” that gets rehashed every month, has prompted me to put into words exactly what I want in a man. The twist to my article is that I’m not offering a sexual relationship or marriage as a reward. All I’m offering is friendship, respect and possibly the chance to have more meaningful relationships with others.

I want men who don’t bet on sleeping with women, who don’t rate women on their appearance on a scale of one to ten. I want a man who treats me like a full human being, and who doesn’t base his treatment on how hawt I am. I want men to realise that communication is a two way street, who realise listening is not a chore. Now this may be a lot of work, but it’s worth it. Seeing the people around you as fully human enriches friendships and opens eyes to so much that’s been missed.

I respect men who recognise sex is about more than their own orgasm, who can distinguish between porn and sex. I want a man who isn’t afraid of being contaminated by women, and who doesn’t mock other men when they take up useful, pleasurable pursuits such as knitting or baking.

Finally, I’d like a man who doesn’t go *hur hur* at the thought of lesbian sex, because that shit gets annoying pretty quickly.

On the walls of a classroom at my school are various representations of concepts within Shakespeare. One poster has two sections, the first gold with a cross, representing religion. The second green with a witches cauldron, representing superstition. So remember kiddies, you’re going to suffer eternal torture and damnation if you don’t believe that the Almighty Son of God suffered to save you, but those silly witches are obviously false and representations of a laughably simple time, where people believed in miracles magic.

(For my opinion of organised religion, see Kissing Hank’s Ass.)