The Ranting Teenager

The Ranting Teenager is sorry for having been away so long

2010-08-29T04:49:00.000-07:00

Ok, I had no better idea for a title. However, I am sorry. I've known about my inconstance since first grade, but unfortunately I am still ignoring it with all my might, thus starting things like blogs even though I should know that it is absolutely not what I should do.
Well, at least I'm trying.

And from today I will be constant. For real. I've used my sister's book of fairy spells and she says it works, so I am now absolutely super-constant!

And I have written a book! Ok, so it sucks. It doesn't have a plot, the characters are under-developed, and it contains nothing but a bunch of teen angst, but hey, it's a first novel, it isn't supposed to be good! (Or is it?)

So, posting is resumed!

Quote of the day

2010-05-30T13:05:00.000-07:00

"Yes I am. I am a feminist. I reject wholeheartedly the way we are taught to perceive women. The beauty of women, how a woman should act or behave. Women are strong and fragile. Women are beautiful and ugly. We are soft spoken and loud, all at once. There is something min-controlling about the way we're taught to view women. My work, both visually and musically, is a rejection of all those things. And most importantly a quest. It's exciting because all of the avant-garde clothing, and musical style and lyrics that at one time was considered shocking or unacceptable are now trendy. Perhaps we can make women's rights trendy. Strength, feminism, security, the wisdom of the woman. Let' make that trendy." -Lady Gaga.

From the Showstudio interview. Go Gaga!

Such beautiful eyes!

2010-05-29T06:53:00.000-07:00

I have no idea why everyone on facebook is filling my wall with images of black kids with blue eyes, commenting on the children's beauty.

Anyway, while of couse I think the babies are beautiful, I can't help wondering why almost everyone's comments where centered on the beauty of the blue eyes. Not one comment on the skin or the hair; what makes this kid beautiful is the white characteristic, the light blue eyes.

These photos are usually posted in places saying how racism is bad- but really, the way they are viewed just perpetuates the idealization of ther white beauty model. Just paired with brown skin.

We see this in the fashion industry too, where almost all black models have white characteristics.

On Lady Gaga

2010-05-27T12:56:00.000-07:00

Lady Gaga has recently declared in the Times interview that she is, in fact, a feminist.

I was surprised to see no buzz about this in the blogosphere, as there was a lot of it when she said that she wasn't. But bad is always noticed before good...or maybe not. No, most likely not, I would think.

Anyway, the textual quote is this:

“Do you know what that girl at the bar said to me?” she says, sipping her Scotch, and taking a single drag off a fag before handing it back. “She said, ‘You’re a feminist. People think it means man-hating, but it doesn’t.’ Isn’t that funny?”

Earlier in the day, conversation had turned to whether Gaga would describe herself as feminist or not. As the very best conversations about feminism often will, it had segued from robust declarations of emancipation and sisterhood (“I am a feminist because I believe in women’s rights, and protecting who we are, down to the core”) to musing on who she fancied. (“In the video to Telephone, the girl I kiss, Heather, lives as a man. And as someone who does like women, something about a more masculine woman makes me feel more… feminine. When we kissed, I got that fuzzy butterfly feeling.”)

We had concluded that it was odd most women “shy away” from declaring themselves feminists, because “it really doesn’t mean ‘man-hating’ ”.

I was really about to give a party after hearing this. I mean, I have always believed that Gaga is a feminist just by existing as Gaga, but hearing her say it gives me a warm sensation. After all, it's to her that half the conversations with my friends turn (all obsessed little monsters...) , so it's nice to see her taking strong stands. Just like when she spoke for gay rights and other such episodes. Most of her fans will follow.

Some would argue that Gaga's feminism is actually inexistent. She is a thin, hairless, blonde, white woman after all- and she acts sexy most of the time. She doesn't do much to defy traditional beauty standards.
Yet, the sexiness has to be there. It has been an essential part of pop music for far too much time to be completely eliminated. But it's not the only thing that's present.

This is just sexy for the sake of it.

This is something weird and subversive.

And, still in the Times interview, she said:

“ It’s not what straight men masturbate over when they’re at home watching pornography, it’s not for them. It’s for… us.”

And her music, her videos- even her twitter, all have pretty liberating meanings. Liberating for anyone who feels freaky, outcast or inadequate. Thus, pretty much for everyone.

Gaga is not really a person. Stefani was a person. Gaga is an image, and as such, she can be interpreted in countless ways.

But it's really hard to see her as just another pop star who will disappear in a couple of years. Probably it's just her genius marketing tecniques (giving fans a name can't hurt), or maybe something else that you can't really identify, an aura that she has created around herself through everything she does. So intensely human yet strangely mithologic.

Or maybe it's just me, I don't know.

She inspires me, she gives me strength, so whatever I say about her can't be objective- not even a little bit.

Thus I will just shut up for the moment, since I guess that if I continue liking her so obsessively she will turn up casually in many other posts. xD

P.S. I don't know what to think about her comment on feeling more feminine with a masculine woman...?

The Ranting Teenager Randomly Muses.

2010-05-24T09:54:00.001-07:00

Ok. The Ranting Teenager is going through an identity crisis and can't think clearly about anything.
Thus, she will talk in third person about herself because it feels very Gaga, and she will link you to a rant she read through a link on Feministing that reflects some of her thoughts:

Dear Eighth Grade Boys

So. Ranting Teenager doesn't quiet know what to think about casual touching. That is, when a guy goes up to a girl and grabs her ass/boobs, and laughs if she dares get offended about it. And says she's a slut when she doesn't.
That is obviously really unrespectful of the girl, of her body and her personal space. It is also normalized behavior that happens continuosly, every day, everywhere, and which everyone seems to think is nice & cute.

A classmate of the Ranting Teenager's got mad at a guy who grabbed her butt. So she told the teacher about it, and he just said that she and the guy should keep quiet and listen.
Which is not the appropriate response to sexual harassing. A light form of sexual harassing, yes, but still.

On the other side, the Ranting Teenager funnily finds herself wanting a certain guy to touch her this way. This guy, let's call him B, has in fact bothered her very much with his previous touching around. So she had a couple of "talks" with him and he eventually stopped.
At which point Ranting Teenager regretted him stopping, but not really wanted him to start again.
So she got mad at herself for thinking in such weird ways, then found that being angry at oneself doesn't help at all. So she tried to explain her feelings.

But she couldn't.
She wondered if it could be love, then concluded it couldn't, because B didn't have one redeeming trait that could make her appreciate him. And besides, he was already classified as jerk because of his previous behavior.
She wondered if it could be simple physical attraction, but concluded it couldn't be that either, since B really really didn't fit her image of beauty.

Seeing as there was neither inner nor outer attraction, yet there was still desire to be touched, Ranting Teenager was left feeling very very confused.
Then she decided to dedicate herself to studying history, which was something she needed to do.
But since history was boring, and besides everyone has the same names in ancient Rome, she decided to go back to her blog, which she hadn't updated for a long time due to drought of ideas and inability to write, not to mention slow internet connection.

Thus she wrote this post which she is now contemplating cancelling, but which she will probably not cancel.
Also, she has discovered the greatness of Lady Gaga, who has stolen her soul. So The Ranting Teenager doesn't really exist now, she is just a Gagafied walking zombie who doen't know what to do.

Brava Giovanna!

2010-05-10T08:06:00.000-07:00

So, this is supposed to be an ad for some paint. Evidently there's no way you can convince someone to buy some paint except by telling him "Hey, look, pretty girls! Painting! Buy the paint and you will get pretty girls painting! Wondering how? Never mind, just remember: paint = pretty girls, paint = pretty girls, paint = pretty girls...

Pressured to be pretty.

2010-05-05T13:16:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I was eating an ice-cream at a bar, when I saw two stick-thin girls standing in front of me.
They were discussing about how many calories they had eaten today, and in the end they decided to to take a sugar-free diet ice-cream. They were wearing skinny jeans, tons of make-up and lots of jewellery.
What's so strange about that? You may ask. Well, nothing, if you exclude the fact that these girls must have been about 10 years old, if not less.

And the problem is, they are not the only children who spend their days trying to be as sexy as possible.
When I was in 5th grade I used to spend all my break time reading or playing tag or fairies. I didn't wear make-up, didn't read celebrity mags, didn't follow fashion. And that didn't make me very popular.
Once, a popular girl was excluded from the group because she liked too many boys. Evidently, that wasn't acceptable. I offered myself to be her friend, and she immediatly got on my case. I think she was trying to help, but I didn't appreciate it much. She wanted to make me fashionable, she said that with her help I'd no longer be an outcast. I hadn't even realized I was an outcast, actually, since I didn't care to be part of the popular group. Anyway, in her opinion changing me was easy. She had elaborated the 5-step plan below.

1. Straighten your hair. Curls are no longer fashionable.
2. Stop eating apples. They aren't fashonable at all. Chips are much better.
3. Every girl should have a bracelet.
4. Wear make-up. No-one wants to be a friend of a make up-less girl.
5. Act fashionable. Say hi with a sweet voice and look while leaning slighty back and twisting just a bit. That's very sexy. Speak sexily in a girly way. Don't read. Don't play with barbies.Wear cooler clothes and shoes.

She tried to "better" me in every way. I thought about it for a day then decided that I didn't want to become like one of the mean girls in the movies. So I stopped hanging out with her.

That was when I was ten. However, my decision to not spend my life being sexy couldn't last long. By the time I was twelve, I was desperate to earn the approval of the popular gals. I wanted to be pretty. But it was useless. Sexy girliness simply isn't in my DNA. I can't act sexy all the time. I can't style my hair each morning.

So I got kind of depressed and gave up, while all my friends- who previously liked playing with me in the woods- all started hanging out at the mall talking about boys, make-up, clothes and their wish to wear high heels. I didn't like it. I desperately tried to find a way out of it. I still wanted to be a kid.

Then I realized that the boys still played as much as they wanted. They always had. So I started playing with them instead, together with another girl who felt alienated from the rest. We played football. As girls, we had never played football before, while the boys had spent their entire lives doing so. Thus, we lost every time at first, but after a couple of months we learned. That made us feel very proud.

But it was hard, resisting the "you have to be pretty" expectation. I always had relapses, months in which I decided I would become "cool". I still do, even now, even after understanding all that was going on.

But the fact is, not everyone is as lucky as me. I have always had the deep conviction since childhood that appearences don't matter. It has faltered at times, but it was always there.
Other girls don't. My sister is in 4th grade and has two girls in her class who refuse to eat because they are afraid of becoming fat. I saw her once staring sadly at the mirror and when I asked her what was making her sad she said she thought she was ugly.
I have tried to convince her that she is very beautiful, and that anyway wasn't what really mattered. I hope the point got across.

umm, no, not appropriate.

It is sad enough when adult women spend all their time trying to be pretty and feel insecure about their appereance. But it just isn't fair to force it on little girls too.

How can the world understand that women are not just pretty sexual objects if women themselves don't understand it?
And how can they understand it, when the world is forcing them to believe that they are?
It's a sad circle. =(

My computer works again!!!

2010-05-02T12:25:00.000-07:00

After days of almost total cutoff from technology, I feel pure joy when using a computer. MY computer, which now work again!! It works!! And does more than displaying porn!!

2010-04-12T10:17:00.000-07:00

Hell, my computer has a virus. Now it appears I can do little with it other than watching porn, which is not an activity that I appreciate. =(

The 6th of April

2010-04-07T12:47:00.000-07:00

Well, I should have blogged about this yesterday actually, but blame my stupid internet connection.

Last year, today was very different than today now. Today last year was the day after L'aquila's Earthquake.
For some strange coincidence, the day before it I was studying earthquakes , so when at three a.m. everything started to shake I was thinking: "Oh god, that's what comes out of studying too much...now I even dream of these things! Duh!"
But then I saw my mother shouting to get to the main columns, and hurry, come on! Oddly, the fact that there was a real earthquake going on stuck me as funny. It was strong. I could feel the walls and the ground trembling strongly with a huge roar all around and stuff falling down.
I told my mother and sister that we should not go down until it ended because the stairs would be the first things to crumble down. Not that my sister was listening much.

As soon as it ended everyone rushed down the stairs, with the old lady downstairs saying: "What? What's this? Ee-eeeh, I'm old, d'I have to do all these stairs! Four floors? Eh! Eh! I'm so lonely!"
Then we arrived on the streets, where lots of people sat in the little piazza near our house. There was a kid seriously worried about having left his goldfish in his house. He kept saying that he wanted it to his disgrunteled mother who was venting about her house having fallen down on her as she and her son run away.

By now I was beginning to think I was seriously sick, since I still found the whole situation kind of funny. And if not funny, kind of...normal. Not scary though. Evidently people around me didn't feel the same way.

We then went to a friend's house because my sister plainly refused to go back to our house. She didn't go back for about two weeks, in fact, except for one time-and that one time there was another earthquake, the left-over from the first one.

I stopped finding everything funny when they started elencating the deaths. A mother and her baby. 2. A student. 3. An old couple. 6.
The death toll quickly got longer. By morning we were at 227. Every now and then they announced someone else. We turned off the tv at some point, because listening to all the dead people isn't particularly pleasant and there was nothing else on.

At the end they got to 309. 309 deaths. Not many, if you consider how many die everyday from hunger, illness, and whatever other reasons, but still...

We lost about one month of school for that Earthquake, because it turned out most schools weren't safe. And you know, they only notice that after the earthquake. And there were teachers in mourning or in search of a new home and stuff.

It is very, very strange to think now about the way things were today last year. Everyone has forgotten and got on with their lives, which is good and all...but there are still people in L'aquila and around living in tents. Because the money meant to build the houses disappeared in thin air. And do you think the ones that have been built are actually safe? I have my doubts.

Dear old fascists...

2010-04-01T14:39:00.000-07:00

That is what I have wish to say to the many budding fascists invading my life and facebook page. With their links such as "Benito Mussolini: a real man, the best one Italy has ever had." and groups like "For those who are tired of dirty immigrants-fascism forever!". Oh, and the scribbles I have to see on every wall every time I get out of the door? Not pleasant.

Recently a homeless man had his skull broken by a group of teenage boys. You'd think they'd be the ones to get in trouble. Well, you're wrong. He is now in prison, because he's an illegal immigrant. The guys are free to roam the streets happily getting rid of anyone whose race is not acceptable.

The Italian costitution has an article banning the reconstruction of groups supporting fascist ideology. Funny how right leaning parties can go about saying that non-Italian people ruin Italy, that sometimes violence is the only way to go and that women are the enemy. (And Bossi, a leader of a very right leaning group, really said these things.)

Women, trouble without solution. (The title of this nice, friendly article.)

TO BE CONTINUED

A case of "bullying"

2010-04-01T14:20:00.000-07:00

Yes, I have been away for a long time. My computer is near death, and my internet time diminishes every day, so I don't usually have much time left for blogging.

*trigger alert*

Anyway, I read on the newspaper lately about a horrifying episode.
A twelve year old immigrant girl was forced to have oral sex with three of her classmates. The teacher was too busy listening to other students repeating the lesson near his desk to notice. He has been justified because he says that he practices a "friendly" method of teaching. He is so friendly he doesn't want to bother some kids raping their classmate. The other kids were standing around them to prevent the teacher from seeing.
Two girls did try to stop everything, but one of the guys told them to "go away, this is grown-up stuff." So they did.

The episode came out after one day, so the principal decided to suspend all the guilty for ten days. Including the raped girl. Because evidently being a victim or an abuser is the same thing.
The teacher was suspended too.
Reportedly, the girl's mother was disgusted and the father ashamed. The girl wrote a message to her parents saying that she was sorry for the horrible thing she had done and wanted to die.

All I can say now is: this is a really fucked up world we live in. Really. Because this is not an isolated case- 7th grade classrooms can indeed easily be used as places of tortures of any kind.

And you know what? These bully rapist kids will never understand the gravity of their actions. They may do it again...after all, it's her fault too, since she was punished with them.
The other kids will consider rape as something that "just happens", it happens at school just like someone stealing your lunch, it's okay, after all.

On Daisy

2010-03-18T13:58:00.000-07:00

My cat, Daisy, has thrown herself from our balcony. From the fifth floor. Seriously. That cat is completely crazy. I guess she was following a bird or something, but maybe she just wanted to jump.

And she is not dead. Not even grossly deformed or anything. She has just broken her mouth. I struggle to find a sense in this, however, now everyone can know that falling from the fifth floor does not kill cats, it does't even break their legs, it only hurts their mouths.

I'm so glad she's ok now. My mom, who has always claimed to hate Daisy, was the one about to have a panic attack last night.

Suicidal cats will take over the world, IMO.

Snow and election posters

2010-03-15T06:12:00.000-07:00

It has finally stopped snowing here. Snow storms are not likeable in March- especially not when I have to stay outside for two hours. This morning I was about to throw a party for the sun's return, when I saw the weather previsions saying that it's starting again tomorrow. Please let them be wrong!

Also, can someone please explain what do pretty (-18) girls have to do with elections?

(write mambo mambo YOU are)

And mambo. What has mambo got to do with elections? I know we're talking about the far right, but this is still wrong on so many levels.

It assumes the voter is a male who is attracted to the girls and thus votes the (male) candidate...because that way he thinks he will be able to dance mambo with pretty young girls?

I don't get it. There is no political message in this poster, just rampant sexism. Or maybe that's the message?

On a positive note, at least they're dressed. That's rare. Or maybe dressed girls are sexier?

Whoever invented it must think guys are really stupid.

Also, the writing makes no sense. I'm not sure "write mambo mambo YOU are" is even grammatically correct.

O.O

P.S. Oh god (or goddess, or nonexistent being, or something), please take that snow to the poles where it's much needed and don't let the ice melt there...we in our little town will give all our cold up for them.

Fornarina: Fabulous Legs.

2010-03-11T10:37:00.000-08:00

In case you can't see it, it features a thin model getting on a bus, and everyone-boys and girls-staring at her beauty. In the end she sexily offers a guy an apple.
When I first saw it, I did notice it kind of bothered me. When I saw it for the second time, I understood why. Here is a list of reasons why this ad is weird and un-nice:

1. The idea of the woman as a temptress has always been present in mysoginistic societies. The woman temps, thus it is all her fault if men rape her...she has offered them the "apple" with her sexyyy legs.

2.Bitchez, aspire to have your body objecified and stared at by complete strangers. That is great flattery.

3.Notice that at some points in the video, a (thin, conventionally pretty) woman takes a photo of the model's butt and smiles...maybe so she can dream about having one like it.

4. A guy with a conventionally pretty woman stares at the model and the woman gets mad. Lesson: You are never pretty enough, because there will always be other women wanting to steal your place.

5.Usually when I go on buses there are sweaty "ugly" people speaking too loudly on the phone, shoving you around, grumbling...old people that make you stand up and give up your place, noisy little kids singing stupid songs, pimply teenage boys trying to me macho...which results in squeezing everyone and making everyone madder. I've never been on a bus with wind blowing in your hair, "beautiful" people all dressed the same, flowers, music and so much space. But maybe that's just me.

6. And what kind of masochist would want to get on a bus wearing high heels?

Hooray tv!

P.S. And besides, those jeans are being marketed TO girls. Not to men. Since when a good way to sell stuff to women is to objectify them?

Women's Day.

2010-03-08T12:47:00.000-08:00

I don't like women's day.

No really, I don't.
It is mostly a completely useless thing, where people (and the media) ignore the fact that they were mysoginist all year long, tell woman that they are the most precious thing on this Earth, and then go back to being mysoginists until the next 8th of March.

It could be taken as an opportunity to raise awarness on the current situation of women. Even then, it wouldn't have helped much...it doesn't take one single day to change the thoughts of a population fed sexism every single day of their lives.
The fact is, though, at least in Italy, today is just another day full of hypocrisy and flowers and macho male strippers.

Yesterday another woman was killed by her husband. Nothing but a small, unseen section on the last pages of a newspaper were given to her. Thousands of women have suffered violence today, and nobody has spoken about it.
All tv could say was: mimosas are beautiful flowers. Don't forget to say "I love you" to the women in your life by buying them some...even though they may bother you with their silly chatting and romantic movies, they are the most precious things we have.

Nice.

Happy women's day.

2010-03-07T08:14:00.000-08:00

It seems that, no matter how much I'd want to, I just cannot manage to blog regularly.

These days my life is quiet a mess...so whatever post I could write would be totally self-centered and useless. However, I fully intend to get a decent idea between today and tomorrow- for now, I am going to sit on the sofa listening to sad music while half-mindedly analyzing my 103 phrases (which are far too many, IMO, but teachers don't realize this.) and feeling sorry for myself and for the fact that my period has a knack for arriving in the worst possible of times.
Bye.

Penis Emergency!!!!

2010-03-01T05:10:00.000-08:00

Honestly, this is no joke. Il Corriere della Sera, a famous right-wing newspaper, has written a Very Serious Article on a big problem of male youth these days.
And what fo you think this problem is? Health risks? Job security?
Why, what is this is just silly stuff, compared to the real, great problem of Shortening Penises!

Because, you see, all this pollution is making Italian men's penises shorter and their legs longer, making them: "increasingly similiar to women." The horror!
According to the article, penises are now 1 cm shorter than they were 60 years ago.
This is of course tragical. Because every Italian man should follow the example of our great premier:

Look at me! My legs are short but my penis is big! It's super active, even with minor girls! I AM SO COOL!

Should that fail to happen, the world as we know it is doomed.

Can't think of title, but something concerning gays and me arguing with an anti-gay guy.

2010-02-27T06:52:00.000-08:00

It seems to be impossible for me to go for too long without having an argument.
Today I had a very irritating one with a friend, on gay rights and stuff. It took 30 whole minutes to achieve it, but in the end the guy aknowledged that, okay, he was wrong and I was right.
The conversation went something like this:

(C=the guy M=me)

C: That teacher's a gay bastard.
M: Don't use the word gay as an insult.
C: (rolls eyes) Again? Do you have to tell me that every single time I use gay as an insult?
M: Umm...YES.
C: But...why?
M: (my turn to roll eyes) Because you using gay as an insult means that gayness is wrong and to be despised...and considering that gay people are actually despised-and despised is to say little-by many people, that's not very sensitive of you.
C: But being gay is wrong.
M: That's your close-minded hetero opinion.
C. I am not close minded!
M: (raise ayebrows) no?
C: God is against gays.
M: That's your close-mided, hetero, christian, right-winged opinion.
C: You make me seem like a monster. You know I'm not!
M: No?
C: (rolls eyes) Seriously, rantingteenager, imagine two men having sex. Imagine two women having sex. Now imagine a man and a woman having sex.
M: These images do not raise in me different reactions.
C:That't because you're weird!
M: That's because I'm not a bigot!
C: Are you gay?
M: I think not.
C: If gays weren't somehow wrong they wouldn't be discriminated, would they?
M: If blacks weren't somehow stupider they wouldn't have been enslaved, would they?
C: But gays can't have kids! Having sex is essentially for having kids...what's the point of having sex if you're gay?
M: So sterile people can't exist, can they? And what about people who just don't want to have children...you are saying that the only purpose of a person on Earth is to procreate.
C:Sterile women have been destined for other things.
M: There are sterile men too.
C: Whatever.
M: And besides, if god created gays himself, and god loves all his creatutures, god loves gays. It's basic logic.
C: But gayness can be cured.
M: Cures don't work. Find me evidence that they do.
C: They showed it on tv.
M: Of course. Tv never lies! And besides, if you are forced to hear people telling you constantly that your sexual orientation is so wrong, and telling you that curing it will make you right, at some point you'll get tired of it and say you're hetero.

It went along these lines, more or less.
It's frustating how this guy was completely drowning in his own privilege. He even tried to argue that if gays had equal rights they would take over the world. Seriously?
And that if children could see, say, gay superheroes, they would become gay too. Which doesn't explain why all homosexual people don't become heterosexual, since they see so many hetero superheroes.

Some people can be just so stupid.

Pro-Ana Websites

2010-02-21T12:55:00.000-08:00

Have you ever visited a pro-ana website?

If you haven't, don't. It is simply horrifying. And it is just a taste of life as an anorexic...now try and imagine the real thing.
I had a friend who was anorexic. She used to study all day long in order to forget she was hungry, and she drunk litres and litres of water. She didn't even eat a little slice of pizza on her birthday.

And other people never tried to help her. They made fun of her. They told her: "You're crazy, girl!"
or: "Well just eat, my god, stop making so many stories!"
That didn't help.

It is understandable that in the real world anorexic people get little help, and the help they get they often reject, dismissing it as "trying to make me fat."

Is it better in the virtual world, then?
Can websites where fellow anorexics tell you that you have to get thin, GET THIN, and that your illness is actually a lifestyle, a religion, which you should proudly follow, be helpful?
Some say anorexics already think that way, and support groups decrease isolation and loneliness.

Others, like a commenter on this article, have different opinions:

"Anyone who is pro ana deserves to die. YOU ALL RUIN LIVES. I am a twin who has lived with a sister who has a eating disorder that almost took her life and destroyed my family. How dare you make eating disorders a positive thing. Its a disease and you all are fucked in the head. I hate you selfish people. There is so many more important things in life besides being skinny. WAKE THE FUCK UP. Your wasting the life god gave you, and for that you will go to hell for. Your not striving to be thin your striving to die, and most of you will. I suggest you take control of your pathetic life and get your shit together. No man wants a fucking twig anyway its disgusting. Dont even bother talking back to me, I would snap your body with my fucking finger. If you all really want to lose weight then get of your lazy ass and eat healthy go work out, starving is the dumbest thing you can do. And who ever created this site you better wish we never meet in person for you are the fucking devil. F U C K Y O U."

Umm, not that I agree with such a comment, but my thoughts on pro-ana are really ambiguous.
I don't think ana creeds, like this one, help at all. Have a look:

"Ana's creed: I believe in control, the only force mighty enough to bring onrder in the chaos that is my world.

I believe that I am the most vile, worthless an useless person ever have to existed on this planet, and that I am totally onworthy of anyone's time and attention.

I believe in oughts, musts and shoulds, as unbreakable laws to determine my daily behaviour.

I believe in perfection and strive to attain it.

I believe in salvation trough starvation.

I believe in calorie counters as the inspired word of god, and memorise then accordingly.

I believe in bathroom scales as an indicator of my daily succeses and failures.

I believe in hell, cause sometimes I think I live in it.

I believe in a wholly black an withe world, the losing of weight, recrimination for sins, the alonegation of the body and a life ever fasting. "

And from the same website, the ana commandments:

"Thin Commandments

1) If you aren't thin, you aren't attractive

2) Being thin is more important than being healthy

3) You must buy clothes, cut your hair, take laxatives, anything to make yourself look thinner

4) Thou shall not eat without feeling guilty

5) Thou shall not eat fattening food withoud punishing afterwards

6) Thou shall count calories and restrict intake accordingly

7) What the scale says is the most important thing

8) Losing weight is good, gaining weight is bad

9) You can never be too thin

10) Being thin and not eating are signs of true will power and succes."

And try to read this. Really touching.
But it sounds as helpful as "you're crazy" to me!

Beautiful?

On the other hand, there are a lot of pro-ana websites out there which offer REAL support. No thinspiration photos or starvation tips...just help on what anorexia means and how to deal with it. Now THAT sounds helpful.

Indigenous people and animals: same thing.

2010-02-16T12:32:00.000-08:00

You know these albums with figurines that are always going around. There's one about animals very popular this year. I puts a picture of a "weird" or "cute" animal with some short information about it.

It also has several pictures like this:

And yes, I can't turn the picture around.

Nice, huh? The objectification of oppressed people is nothing new. Nor is it new that they are presented as

absolute idiots. (Notice smart expression of the man).

My sister showed me the figurine saying: "Look! I got the idiot one! This one's rare!"

I did point out it was racist, but I doubt the point got across.

An animal.

Hateful image keeps popping up on tv

2010-02-11T13:39:00.000-08:00

Evidently someone thought there was nowhere better to write the name of a tv program than on a girl's butt.

And they keep advertising for it during the Simpsons, in case I just wanted to laugh and forget that I shouldn't be watching tv and letting my butt grow unappropriate for name writing. Also, you're all little sex objects, bitchez.

I can't believe how much gratuitious sexism tv can dish out every day. Stuff like this alredy is bad enough, add to it hideous advertising and asshole shows...not a women-friendly enviroment.

In fact, only white hetero man can watch some tv without feeling horrible..the rest can just go fuck themselves.

Today, remembrance of the "Foibe"

2010-02-10T13:15:00.000-08:00

Today is the Foibe's remembrance day. For those of you who don't know what I'm talking about, the foibe were tortures that lasted until the '50s, done by Tito's Yugoslavs on the Italian population.

Particulary, there is one girl, Norma Cossetto, whose story is one to be remembered. It's just one story among thousands, touching and horrifying, just like everyone else's.

Norma was a student at the University of Pavia, she was 23 years old, when she was kidnapped by the Yugoslavs and put in a prison, were she was repeatedly raped by seventeen guards. Then her breasts were badly damaged, and the rest of her body slashed. She was thrown in one of the foibe, deep holes in the ground from which the name of these tortures came. In fact, the prisoners were usually tied together and put at the edge of the foiba. The first was shot, so all the rest fell into the foibe alive, and there they died.

Norma's story was reported by other prisoners who survived, and was then honored by the University of Pavia.

=(

I've shaved!

2010-02-07T08:41:00.000-08:00

Because I'm feeling all weird, I just have to inform the world about this little piece of news...the reassuring hairyness of my legs is gone.

The nice and comfortable before:

Thea after much screaming after:

Boohoohoo...my legs feel so bald and naked now. I hate them.

What makes me hate all-girl times.

2010-02-06T06:12:00.000-08:00

"My boobs are too small. They're hateful"
"Mine are so disgusting! They are just do HUGE! Ewww!"
"I have to shave my legs again..they always have these stupid black points.."
"My hair can't be kept in place for two minutes...it's so messy! I hate it!"
"I need to thin down. I have great big dusgusting blobs of fat."
"Me too."
"Me too"
"Me too."
"And that girl over there, isn't she ugly!"
"Yeah, she is...she's too aggressive...and she got muscles too...ew."

Conversations like this are really, really common in all girl environments. Which is why I hate gym lessons. It's a constants putting themseves and others down. There's always something wrong. Something must always be fixed. It's truly exasperating.

It's very sad too. All these girls, who evidently find nothing to do or talk about except applying the male gaze to themselves, with all it's impossible standards and everything. And I know most of these girls...they are people with ambitions, strenght and great personalities...yet, it is phisical aspect which, in the end, matters the most, and which makes them so insecure.
And the majority are very conventionally pretty too...when they talk like that you can literally see the ones who vary from canonic beauty shrink and shame themselves. It's horrible. And incredibly irritating.

Analyzing school books (kind of)

2010-02-04T11:59:00.000-08:00

Because I had nothing better to do (well, nothing other than Latin anyway), today I started taking photos of my school books. I got somewhat interesting results.

Geography:
Here is the cover

Welll, a the other way round cover, but anyway.

Notice that, strangely, they are all girls. Girls are being used to represent the world's population as a whole! That is indeed good.

I guess they are also trying to convey diversity, both cultural and racial, as in a white girl with a veil and one without, a black girl with a veil and one without. Maybe they're all girls because boys don't wear veils?

Physics:

Now, while most figures looked something like this (i.e.male):

I was surprised to see stuff like this too:

Which made me smile.

I then counted the female figures and the male ones. 28 males, and 6 females. 5 had both.

There were only 6 photos of girls.

Grammar:

The grammar one has a girl on the cover. With a computer.

All in all, pretty good. =)

The Ranting Teenager is back!

2010-02-03T09:48:00.000-08:00

Sorry, I know I've been away for some time now. That has been due to a combination of lack of time and lack of ideas.

Moreof a lack of time.
Or maybe more lack of ideas.

Also, I got 4/10 on the technical drawing test, which made me grumpy. On the other hand, I got 7/10 on Latin, which is wonderful. On another hand yet, you most likely don't care...I promise a series of decent posts now!

And this is totally unrelated but it's a quote I found funny:
"Remember, if you need a hand, you will find at the end of your arm."

For Haiti

2010-01-15T12:12:00.000-08:00

Hopefully all will work out for the best.

And a moment of silence for all who have died.

The Annoying Orange

2010-01-13T08:43:00.000-08:00

Hey people, hey people!
I am great fan of the annoying orange. It's absolutely wonderful.

On bra colors on facebook

2010-01-11T07:46:00.000-08:00

I've noticed a lot of bloggers criticizing the "post your bra color" facebook trend as just a useless and senseless way to promote breast cancer awareness.

I don't really get it. The message, at least the one I got, never mentions breast cancer. It's just about making guys puzzled as to why all the girls have colors on their statuses. One boy I know, not understanding, posted a color too.

It's a pretty silly thing, but fun and harmless. My color is fuxia. =)

P.S. Some commenters asked me for specifications about my genius essay. I'd gladly post it, but it' in Italian and traslating is a boring and stupid activity. Anyway, I talked about porn, religion, women's body and who owns it, rape, traditionalism, sex, work, the "women are women, men are people" thing....I guess that's all.

Watching the news

2010-01-11T05:18:00.000-08:00

Here's what services news stations felt they had to do today:

1.(Reality show partecipant's name) has suceeed where most of us keep failing: losing weight during the hoidays. You may remember her as the nice fat one from "The Big Brother", but she's so no longer. (Various shots of her stick-thin in bikini). We will now talk to her and discover her secret:
Scantily clad girl: Oh, I'm an expert now. Eat fruit and vegetables, no sweets, a little carbohydrates. It works! Well, I'm so hungry I could eat a table, but it doesn't matter. Now I'm HOT. I'm showing them all what I can be!"

2. Sexy gradma! 80 years old lady in little northern town is very mucg not your typical old lady. She has been sending erotic messages to her 40 year old neighbour for months, and undressing in front of the window *laughs*. She's a very eccentric lady. Her last act was to enter his house, jump on him and have sex. Evidently not happy, the neigbour called the police.

3. Be sure to watch our brand new program, where we pair the most unlikey couples! (Women talks about how wonderful the program is going to be.)

Well, evidently there's not much going on in the world, huh?
Also notice that in Service2 very real stalking and rape were reported as funny. Reverse the sexes of the neighbour and the old one and see what would happen.

Feminist Debate in Class (Or where I brag about my genius)

2010-01-10T09:28:00.000-08:00

Yesterday hell broke loose in class. The teacher had assigned a creative writing project about women's rights today. Most kids wrote about islamic countries, poligamy, veils and stuff.
I did a four page times new roman size 12 essay, in which I talked about women's situation in the Western world. Strangely, people actually listened while I was reading it. That alone I would have considered an accomplishment, but it turns out both the teacher and the students had something to say about it.

So, most girls agreed and said, with great vehemence, that the way things are now isn't fair. The majority of the boys did too...although a couple argued that it's innate differences and girls have their privileges too etc.

Well, the point is that it's really pleasant to see people intensely arguing over something I have said. The teacher was really striken. I don't think she had ever thought about this stuff. Neither had most of the students. In fact, people continued talking about it even after school.

All in all, I'm very satisfied. I don't think we'd ever had debates at school that varied much from who's hotter than who.
Now everybody calls me "The Feminist". Not that I mind, since before I was called "Zappy."

Guess what? I got the award!

2010-01-09T09:32:00.000-08:00

What is the Award?
The award is passed from blog to blog. If you receive it, you must accept the award, post it on your blog together with the name of the person who has granted the award, and his or her blog link. Pass the award to 15 other blogs that you've newly discovered. Remember to contact the bloggers to let them know they have been chosen for this award.

I received it from...
My Reading List, a fab book review blog.

And am giving it to....(drum roll please...)

1.I don't eat my friends, a vegetarian girl's life.
2.Echidne of the Snakes, my favourite blogger.
3.Life, love and everything in between, name says it all.
4.http://venusian-rising.blogspot.com/, pretty cool.
5.You can't go back and other impossibilities, lots of fun stories.
6.I blame the Patriarchy, expert patriarchy blaming
7.Shakesville, Shekespeare's sisters
8.WitchWords, not a real witch, I think
9.Motivated Grammar, uhm, motivated grammar?
10.Maths goes pop
11.A cat of impossible color, fashion and random
12.Her life with boobs, boobs and life
13.Sociological Images, images that make you think
14.Feministe, some feminist musings
15.Catgirl Meowing

The Two Sides of the Abortion Debate

2010-01-08T11:02:00.000-08:00

Why you should be pro-life:

• Because they are going to heaven and god is on their side.

• Because they’ve got witty mascots like Judy The Talking Embryo, who demonstrates how intelligent pro-lifers are, since she can talk already. Judy only asks to get out of there alive! But the bad, bad, pro-choicers want to kill her with a scary hunting knife! And you don’t want to be one of them, do you?

• Because it will make you feel noble and important.

• Because you might have never been born if abortion was wide-spread. Oh, also if you’re parents fought and didn’t do it that night. Or if you were miscarried. Or if your parents hadn’t met. But assuring that every child that can be born is absolutely not aborted is necessary, god says so!

• Because they have yummy cookies!

• Because what are you going to be otherwise, pro-death?

Why you should be pro-choice:

• Because what each individual woman does with her body is none of your damn business.

• Because the world is already too full of idiots (also called human beings), so what’s the point?

• Because women who need abortions are going to get them, legally or not.

• Because then you have the chance to call pro-lifers bigots, and feel yourself liberal and important.

• Because then, instead of saving Judy, you may go around saying that “prevention is better than cure” and preventing unwanted pregnancy. Theorically you could do both, although most pro-lifers don’t, so this point is really pointless (did ya get how clever I was there?)

• Because if you’re a woman, you may prefer it if people have a slight respect for you, at least more than they have for an incubator.

• Because I say so.

• Because we have better cookies!

Good Movies

2010-01-07T12:17:00.000-08:00

Today it's back to school, and back to blogging too. Since I'm in a very happy mood (thank all the sweets the Befana brought), this post is on a positive note.

4 Good & Feminist Movies

A post with a stupid title by The Ranting Teenager, and they're not actually all movies, but really, whatever.

1. THE BARBIE MOVIES: These have had really a lot of success in Italy, despite Barbie's obvious non-perfection. The first ones followed the usual fairytale scheme, including girl, prince and marriage. However the girl tends to actually do something. Then they started doing re-makes of famous classics, like "Barbie the Princess and the Pauper", "Barbie and the Christmas Carol" and "Barbie and the Three Musketeers." And barbie doesn't always marry at the end. In fact, in "Barbie and the Three Musketeers" she clearly puts her career before the prince, which she saves. Of course she always looks pretty while doing it all, but so does Superman, for that matter.

2. ATOMIC BETTY: Atomic betty is a cartoon character. And she's awesome. She is a normal girl-and by normal I don't mean cool and fashionable or wishing to be so- who also leads a team of galactic superheroes. She can also play sports exceedingly well.

3.A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS: The story of three siblings and their onfortunate lives. It's funny in a dark sort of way, and very well made. Violet, the eldest, is a genial scientist, her little sister Sunny can bite and their brother Klaus knows thousands of things.

Atomic betty

4.THE WINX CLUB: This series has had enormous success in Italy, and little girls are bombarded with propaganda for Winx dolls, Winx cups, Winx bags, Winx magazines, Winx wallpapers...well, despite their teeny-weeny waists and always perfect appearence, I admit that I really like them. At least, I'd better, since my sister keeps them on tv 24/7, when it's not Hannah Montana. The Winx are fairies who have to save the world while developing their personal talents and having cute boyfriends. They fight against a band of witches and a band of wizards, and they always win. They're boyfriends, on the other side, always need to be saved. But often they co-operate. At the end of the show they sing hideous inspirational songs.

The Winx

Mumble, mumble...

2010-01-03T09:15:00.000-08:00

Hey there! Happy 2010 to you all!

I know I haven't been around much lately, but blogging during the holidays, it turns out, is exceedingly difficult. Before new year's eve, there's all the holiday mess/fun so there's hardly time for anything else. After new year's eve, you realize school is soon starting and you're waaaaaay behind on homework.

So, see you again on the 7th of January. Until then, I know it's painstakingly difficult, you'll have to do without me.

Marital rating scale

2009-12-26T09:43:00.000-08:00

From The Art of Manliness, a website which seeks to bring back the "art" of traditional manliness. I really don't get the art part though.

Ever wondered how to properly rate a wife? We got the answer with our amazing wife rating chart!

And a husband one too! Has he forgotten to give you your allowance? Demerit!

Always love some good ol' vintage sexism!

Sarah Haskins!

2009-12-23T10:52:00.000-08:00

That women is a genius.

About Christmas

2009-12-23T10:17:00.000-08:00

Many would argue that Christmas is actually just a demonstration of the consumism that permeates our society. I agree. But it is fun, and it is nice to have two weeks off from school!
So I say, hooray to Christmas!

What I want for Christmas:

1.A mini-car/motorcycle/both

2.YOU! (I mean, not, you, the reader, you you)

3.Money…urgently needed

4.Lily Allen’s new CD (and no, not from E-Mule)

5.Two skateboards! My best friend & I must absolutely learn.

6.Become suddenly able to speak Latin perfectly

7.To pass the technical drawing test!

8.To enter school at 12 am and leave at 1

9.To go on holiday somewhere with my friends this summer

10.Ummm, I guess that’s all.

Why I like Christmas:

1.Because I can sleep ‘till late for two weeks

2.Because I receive gifts, even though not really what I want (see above)

3.Because people keep thanking me for the gifts they receive. And YOU hugged me!

4.Because I can eat a lot of YUMMY things-but I do that all the time, so not really.

5.Did I mention I can sleep ‘till late?

Why I hate Christmas:

1.Because I can’t buy gifts for free.

2.Because my money is never enough to buy the non-free gifts.

3.Because if I don’t go to school how can I talk to YOU? I can’t even see You!

4.Because my mobile can never send enough texts. My credit lasts even less than usual! Which is very bad, because neither my mother nor I have enough money left to re-charge it. And she gets mad.

5.Because it’s really a senseless holiday.

"Fat is Beautiful"- a non-beautiful TV program

2009-12-23T08:48:00.000-08:00

Yesterday they put on a new program on Italia1 (a Berlusconi owned station, whose only purpose is to objectify women, I think). It's called "Ciccia e' bella" (i.e.Fat is beautiful) and it's an absolutely disgusting thing, IMO.

The show claims to be able to raise fat people's self esteem without making them lose weight. It seems the only way your self esteem can grow is by taking nude photographs and having them put on a great bill-board in Milan.

Pratically, it goes like this:

1.Fat girl (but not really too fat, just not stick thin) talks about how much she hates herself and her body and how she has panic attacks when looking in the mirror.

2.Stick thin counselor tells her how much she loves her (despite the fact that they've just met) and tells her to place herself among a line of people ranging from a little-bit fat and obese. I imagine it mustn't feel very good to be the one at the end of the line, but anyway. Girl places herself at the end, counselor moves her to her right place (near the beginning) and girl gushes and says she can't believe it.

3.Photo of girl wearing only a bra and panties is placed on a billboard. Passing people are intervewed and asked what they think of her body, while she watches. Most say she is pretty, especially her breasts (tits, they say.) She's happy.

4.People she knows are interviewed and asked what they think if her. They all love her. She's surprised and pleased but says she doesn't care what people she knows think, because she just wants strangers to like her body.

5.Now she takes her clothes off and a photographer tells her what kind of expensive underwear she should put on to look sexy. She puts it on and he says it's sexy.

6.A nutritionist tells her how to eat

7.A beauty expert makes her hair barbie-blond and puts her make-up on etc. At the end she looks pretty much like everyone else on the show-uncreative and plastic-like

8.She models and feels great for having entered history. Because, I mean, what should one wish to be remembered for except looking pretty on a catwalk?

9..She takes a nude photoshoot which will be displayed in public and feels that now she is fully actualized.

10.She goes home and tells everyone how proud she is of having taken a nude shoot! Hooray, self-esteem gained!

About the Ranting Contest

2009-12-16T09:53:00.000-08:00

The Ranting Contest (see here for more info) didn't receive enough partecipants (surprise surprise!), thus I am prolonging the deadline to when an acceptable number of partecipants are received. Thank you.

I cannot afford a more decent post today because I have technical drawing homework. =(

Happy Birthday to Me!!!

2009-12-15T12:47:00.000-08:00

Today is my birthday! Now I'm fourteen years old! *slap back approvingly for maturity and experience achieved at this great age*

Today I'm doing the sweet all things-I -have-done post which I should be reserving for New Year's eve. Here:

3 Fun Moments of When I was 13

1. When I was graffiti-ing with my friends on Saturday night (well, evening, actually) and we were afraid we'd get caught. It was all crowded and we were searching for a solitary place. We found it. So I took the spray and started drawing my first graffiti (which, by the way, looked horrible). Then suddenly my friend looked up, and cried: "You idiot! We're in front of the police station!" And so we were running and laughing and running and laughing and shouting and laughing some more. My friend had gotten all afraid and was planning all our future as jeuvenile delinquents. And then we laughed more. We graffitied somewhere else afterwards, but the place was so isolated we haven’t managed to find it again.. And we didn’t get caught. =)

2. When I got 8 out of 10 on the geography test even though I hadn’t studied a thing. I hadn’t even opened the book. And I got them all right! Eight is the maximum. I am a genius.

3. The trip to Sicily! Oh, those four days I laughed enough to last me my whole life, I think. But I guess not. I must have slept like six hours at the most, all nights put together. We spent the night being idiots. And the days too. There was an incredibly strong wind and we could hardly manage to stand, then the music and the jumping on beds and buying friendship bracelets and having a nutella party and listening to music and singing and jumping and driving the supervisor crazy…and all the cute guys!

And this year I’ve also had my exams-the oral ones were actually kind of fun…I mean, I had studied for days for that test, it was good to just talk and talk and know you’re saying it right!

And I’ve started this blog! That’s something, considering that about one year ago I didn’t even know what a blog is…I’ve discovered a great deal of things in these 364 days, if I think about it.

Yes, all in all it’s been a good year. Except for some ugly moments, it’s been good.

What I want from this year

1. Think less, do more

2. Have fun!

3. Have fun!

4. Have fun!

5. Do something useful if possible…otherwise-have fun!

Shouldn’t be too hard to reach my goals.

Quote of the week: Wives

2009-12-14T06:33:00.000-08:00

"Women will never be as successful as men because they have no wives to advise them."

-- Dick Van Dyke

This is unfortunately might be true. Although it should be refrased as "Women will never (if actual level of work division is to be kept) be succesfull as easily as men..."

Because wives, stereotypically, are meant to clean, cook, take care of the kids, possibly have a decent job and be pretty while doing it all.

Husbands, on the other hand, are meant to work and fix stuff. And take the kids on fun activities.

Which makes it exceedingly hard for women who actually want to build a great career and have a family, because the two are opposites.
When discussing about the future with my friends, many girls say: "I'm not marrying. I want to work." or "No, I won't marry! I want to be free!"
Every girl seems to think that marriage=boring old moral and good life. Some want it, others not. But noone ever said they wanted to have fun, work and marrry.
I haven't heard anyone saying that they do not want to work to build a family, because the housewife is considered the worst possible thing to be. But the girls who plan to have families do want less prestigious jobs.

I've never heard a boy talking about how to marry and have a career and be good at both. It's just not a problem for men. The wife will sacrifice her work for the kids, she's the one who will keep the house fixed and welcome the husband home at the end of the day.
And, IMO, it sucks.

And this creepy video which totally illustrates it all:

IN THE PAST:

NOW

The Disney Princes

2009-12-12T07:54:00.000-08:00

Image from sociological images

That Disney princesses and all the glamour and hype surrounding them can beharmful for girls has been much discussed and much debated. What I haven't heard a lot about, though, are the disney princes.

Maybe that's because the princess movies aren't really targeted to boys, and if a boy was watching them he would mosty likely idenify with the princess anyway, since she's the protagonist.

But, if you take a look at the Disnet prince's characters, well, they're even more empty than the Princesses. Except thay save instead of baing saved.

Have a look:

P.S. Don't forget to enter the ranting contests a couple of posts down here!

Daisy blogging

2009-12-12T06:10:00.000-08:00

Today I'm taking a break from ranting...enjoy this photo of Daisy, my cat!

She's protecting the toys. It bothers her if somebody takes something.

P.S. Don't forget to enter the ranting contests! See two posts below.

6 Great Essays You Should Read (From Echidne of the Snakes)

2009-12-09T05:12:00.000-08:00

Echidne of the Snakes, my all time favourite blogger, once wrote a series of great essays about the need for feminism today.
They were my first introduction to feminism, and I admit they convinced me quiet well.

THE NEED FOR FEMINISM:
1.The right to go out
2.The planet of the guys
3.Our father who art in heaven
4.The invisible women
5.The female body as property
6.The longet revolution

These really touch all the points I think should be touched, and in a simple un-academic way.
Go echidne!

Announcing The First Ranting Competition!

2009-12-08T10:19:00.000-08:00

After having read somewhere that putting up competitions raises traffic, I have decided to host one on this very blog! (Even though I know it won't improve traffic)

So, here are the rules:

1.Anyone, anywhere, may partecipate by sending me an email ( at dare.2.believe@hotmail.com )about what it is that they have the tendency to rant the most about. It can be anything. Never mind about silliness!
2.I will choose two winners: one by chance in a hat and one for most creative ranting subject.

3.PRIZES:
All prizes are books, you may choose one from the list below:
-The poison that fascinates by Jennifer Clement
-Warriors of Alavna by N.M.Browne
-The Wild Children by Felice Holman
-The Adoption by Dave Hill
-The Zahir by Paolo Coelho
-Teen Idol by Meg Cabot
-The Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edward

None of these books will change your life or transform your way of thinking, but they're an enjoyable get-away.

4.Deadline on 15-12-2009 (My birthday!)

5.I will contact the winners by email, and of course they will be posted on the blog.

On Rape Culture (Or why I’m not able to go out wearing a skirt at 4 a.m.)

2009-12-07T12:04:00.000-08:00

Today I heard my sister singing an Arabic song. It’s lyrics go something like this:

The girl who wears a short skirt,

Boys’ eyes follow he-e-er!

And she’s so full of herself,

She’s so full of herself

…(don’t remember anymore)…

So…what I get from this song is that girls who wear short skirts are vain sluts who want boys’ attention.

Well, you could say, it’s just a song. Who cares what a song says? Problem is, the song says just what everybody seems to think.

I’m not saying there aren’t girls who wear minis for guys, but what if I just like the feeling of it? What if I’d really like to wear one, but can’t because, in everyone’s eyes, it has a different meaning? What if I’m not heterosexual and am wearing it for another girl’s eyes?

Personally I don’t like to wear any kind of skirt because I find them uncomfortable, but when there’s a soft breeze I love the feeling of it on my bare legs. And say the breezy day on which I was wearing this short skirt I happened to get raped- who’s fault would it be? Well, mine of course! For my silly carelessness...if I wear such provocative clothes I should expect these results. Because boys will be boys, and you have to be careful whatever you do (see full list of thing not to do here) in order not to trigger their natural instincts, which of course they can do nothing about. Otherwise, you are just a stupid slut, bitch, whore, (insert other derogative terms related to women.)

Why, though, is a shirt that shows my legs so damn provocative? I don’t think boys in shorts are considered sexy much, and it surely isn’t expected for girls’ eyes to follow them.

But, you know, women’s bodies are just sexual objects. Everything about them has to be sexualized: legs, breasts, stomach, waist, feet, eyes, hair…everything.

Women are sexual beings, but of course not sexual for their own enjoyment…just the keepers of sex, the bearers of a fruit that it’s up to men to pick and enjoy.

This continuous, normalized objectification of women is perpetuated by culture as a whole. TV shows (an example here), commercials (too many for me to link to), movies, traditions, songs …everything. And all of this makes both men and women think that female bodies are objects to be used as one pleases. Of course, there is a “correct” use, but boys will be boys and rules are made to be broken.

Western people usually think that the treatment of women as objects is characteristic of so said “uncivilized” countries…these barbaric people over there…when really the only difference between a woman in, say, Saudi Arabia and one in America is that in the first her body is property of her father/husband, while in the second it’s public property.

So practically, a woman who doesn’t take proper precautions to protect her body is very much comparable to a man who hangs his credit card on his front door.
Nice.

"Taught from infancy that beauty is woman's sceptre, the mind shapes itself to the body, and roaming round its gilt cage, only seeks to adorn its prison.”

Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley
Sadly, true.

Fairytale remake: The Princess and The Frog

2009-12-06T09:30:00.000-08:00

Once upon a time there was a little princess who liked playing with a golden ball. One day she was throwing it up and catching it (sounds fun!) when, tragically, it fell into a nearby pond! The princess tried to get it with a stick, and not succeeding in this, contemplated the idea of having a swim in the pond. Just as she was going to get in, an ugly frog jumped in front of her: “I am a frog.” It said, “ Take me with you, let me to eat from your plate (it’s not like you need food anyway) and let me sleep in your room (even if I’ll stink it up). Then kiss me. If you do that, I’ll give you your ball back”

The princess was fascinated by the talking frog, and she observed it trying to figure out how it managed to talk. She remembered reading something about the need for particular vocal chords in order to speak. She wondered what kind of surgery the frog had done to its brain and vocal chords.

She took the frog with her without taking seriously what it had said. Of course she had completely forgotten her ball.

The real princess who is happy to kiss the frog/

When she was eating it demanded obnoxiously to eat from her plate. The princess, who was hungry, put some tape on its mouth and ate her plate by herself. Then she took the tape off to let the frog eat flies.

But the frog seemed to have no intention to eat. It said again,” I am a frog. Take me with you, let me eat from your plate (it’s not like you need food anyway) and let me sleep in your room (even if I’ll stink it up). Then kiss me. If you do that, I’ll give you your ball back”

“Why do you keep saying the same things?” Asked the princess.

“Because you are not listening to me.” Answered the frog.

“Oh, ok” Said the princess, thinking about it, “But why should I do what a frog tells me to do?”

“Because,” Said the frog with a knowing air, ”If you do, I’ll turn into a handsome prince. Then we will marry and you will be able to bear my kids and clean my house.”

The princess stared at the frog, “I found you while playing with a ball. Does that make you think I’m old enough to marry?”

The frog didn’t know what to say. The little princess was getting bored of it anyway. She put it in a box and went to play Monopoly with her sister.

Then she decided to put on a show with the talking frog, and everyone was fascinated and actually paid her for the show. The princess was very happy.

Then a circus owner asked the princess to sell him the frog. Since she didn’t want to play with it anymore, she did, and with the money she had now she bought lots and lots of sweets and some toys.

P.S. Did you notice that in the first Disney movie with a black princess she becomes a frog for most of the movie? I wonder why...

Got raped? Blame yourself, slut!

2009-12-05T06:25:00.001-08:00

Ask Amy, from the Chicago tribune, has decided to happily join the victim blaming squad.
That's the letter she received:

"Dear Amy: I recently attended a frat party, got drunk and made some bad decisions.

I let a guy take me to "his" room because he promised that he wouldn't do anything I wasn't comfortable with.

Many times, I clearly said I didn't want to have sex, and he promised to my face that he wouldn't.

Then he quickly proceeded to go against what he "promised." I was shocked, and maybe being intoxicated made my reaction time a bit slow in realizing what was happening.

We were soon kicked out of the room by the guy who lived there, who was pretty angry.

I guess my question is, if I wasn't kicking and fighting him off, is it still rape?

I feel like calling it that is a bit extreme, but I haven't felt the same since it happened.

Am I a victim?"

What do you say? Is a person who has been forced to have a sexual activity, which she has clearly said she didn't want to have, while drunk, a victim?

I would think she is, but in reality, she's just a stupid slut who doesn't know that you can't go around getting drunk at parties and then expect to not get raped.
Snippet from Amy's answer:

"Were you a victim? Yes.

First, you were a victim of your own awful judgment. Getting drunk at a frat house is a hazardous choice for anyone to make because of the risk (some might say a likelihood) that you will engage in unwise or unwanted sexual contact.

You don't say whether the guy was also drunk. If so, his judgment was also impaired."

Sure, the poor guy. He was probably drunk, see? You don't want to go around ruining his life and charging him of rape, when his judgment was impaired!

Girls who deserve to get raped

The fact is, whether he was drunk or not makes no difference. If you kill a person while drunk, you are an assassin. If you steal while drunk, you are a thief. If you rape while drunk, you are a rapist!

People seem to have a really difficult time deciding what's rape and what's not. Although the thing is really simple: rape is a non-consensual sexual activity.

If you are raped, it's the rapist's fault, not yours. That's victim blaming. That's stupid.
The fact that you looked good/were drunk/flirted etc. doesn't mean it's your fault.

Blaming a victim for the fact that she/he was raped, is much like saying a victim of murder looked too unhappy with life, so it was her/his fault if an assasin killed him/her.

Episodes of victim blaming are common everywhere across the world. Like that judge here in Italy who decided that a child rapist who had abused his step-daughter, shouldn't stay too long in prison, as the girl had already had previous sexual experiences.
As Echidne of the Snakes said, that's like saying ramming food down your throat witha great wooden stick is less painful if you have already eaten before.

The whole situation is ridiculous. I have else to say on the subject.

Quote of the week: I don't know

2009-12-03T12:22:00.000-08:00

"I was gratified to be able to answer promptly. I said I don't know."

-Mark Twain

There are a lots of things I don't know in the world. For example, I don't know the chemical composition of natural gas, and I don't know dates of important historical event (but I do know the start of the second world war! It's 1939! I know, I'm a genius.)

Other things I don't know have a more phylosophical nature, I think. Here is a list of questions I don't know how to answer (my hypothesis may be included):

1.Why is it considered empowering and intellingent for a girl to do traditionally "boys' stuff" while it's humiliating for a boy to do more traditionally "girls'stuff?

Wait, maybe I do know this one. Because of course the boy is the superior model, so a girl who reaches a boys' level is considered a good thing, while obviously no male would want to recede to the inferior being that is a woman. Anyway, it's ridiculous. Gender roles are ridiculous as a whole, so of course anything that comes from them can't do much good. It's unfair to expect a person to conform to a set of things they must do, like, think, watch...based on whether they have a penis or a vulva.

2.Why do people think today more or less in the same way they did 100 years ago-with the only difference that now they generally exclude themselves from the category that is considered "bad", thus creating popular phrases like "I'm not a racist, but (insert racist statement)"?

Ummm, maybe the human brain really doesn't develop much across times. I suppose now we have the added skill of being able to sit for hours doing nothing and experience reduced butt-pain. Also, we understand more about technology and stuff, but these things don't really need to change your way of thinking. Once you get over the shock of discovering your monkey heritage, that is.

3.I can't quiet get this, does the Maya calendar count the years same as us? I mean, from the birth of Christ? Shouldn't their 2012 be different from ours?

I don't know *scratch head* . I should do my research. Then I'll inform you.

4.Why do teachers experience immense glee in assigning as much homework to poor students as humanly possible?

Ah, they teach this method at a special secret evelness course for teachers. They learn a lot of interesting stuff at this class, like how to have an evil smile and slow time.

5.How do we manage to live in a world pratically based on the little crazy doings of casuality?

?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????

Isn't it strange.

Cute male models

2009-12-02T11:55:00.000-08:00

Today I was web-surfing and I casually stumbled on this site, which is full of naked cute male models and dressed female ones.
You can go check out the pictures if you want. Definitely not safe for work, or school, or parents.

Anyway, as you have probably noticed, this is an exception to the rule. The naked woman and dressed man is the standard.
Oh, and the guys in this service all look sad or striken, while usually naked women are all smiley and oh-so-happy to be at your service. Which is kind of strange if you ask me.

The girl in the photos has a kind of striken look too. Well, I could barely glace at her, really, so I hardly care about her expression. :p

What do you think about this kind of stuff. Do you think it helps even things up, or it's just objectifyng cute male models?

Flesh-colored gown

2009-11-30T09:20:00.000-08:00

From Sociological Images

Her dress is obviously flesh-coloured, right?

"First lady Michelle Obama chose to wear a gleaming silver-sequined, flesh-colored gown Tuesday night to the first state dinner held by her husband's administration. "

Samantha Critchell from Associated Press has written an article about the American first lady's dress choices, in which she describes her gown as "flesh-colored". Hmmm, somehow I don't think Michelle's skin looks very much like the dress. I would think a brown dress should be her flesh-colored.

This is nothing particularly new. White has always been assumed as the neutral. Just try to imagine a movie containing only minority people. Now imagine one with only white people.
See the difference?

The thing doesn't only go with race, of course. The straight white guy is always the default. In anything. Anywhere.
Because male, white and straight is normal. White straight guys are always seen as individuals, not just part of a group. On the other hand, a woman is first of all a woman, then a person.
Even facebook default avatars follow this standard.

Sigh.

Bad cruel Latin

2009-11-30T08:21:00.000-08:00

Despite attending a scientific high school-which generally means you kinda have to focus on scientific topics-I have spent the week-end studying my much loved (not) Latin lessons and Grammar stuff. *aaaargh!*

I believe that Latin lessons should be banned completely from schools.
It's a dead language, and the lessons don't include a "talking to the long-dead" part, so it's simply completely useless. I don't see why I should spend my weekend declining words (and what kind of stupid language declines words anyway?) when I could be doing interesting and useful stuff like...well, something.

Typical student faced with latin book.

Anyway, today I feel like dedicating this absolutely wonderful song to...umm, a lot of people. Enjoy Lilly Allen's genius.

My Short Skirt

2009-11-28T03:47:00.000-08:00

I have not posted for a couple of days now...I've been really busy.
Yesterday I partecipated in a race. To my defense, I didn't arrive last. Just second last. It took me a full hour to run that thing...I should at least have gotten a prize for the effort!
But after all, I did manage to reach my goal: losing four periods of school. Yay!

Anyway, you should totally have a look at this poem from the vagina monologues. It's amazing. I found out about it on theF-bomb.

My Short Skirt by Eve Ensler

It is not an invitation

a provocation

an indication

that I want it

or give it

or that I hook.

My short skirt

is not begging for it

it does not want you

to rip it off me

or pull it down.

My short skirt

is not a legal reason

for raping me

although it has been before

it will not hold up

in the new court.

My short skirt, believe it or not

has nothing to do with you.

My short skirt

is about discovering

the power of my lower calves

about cool autumn air traveling

up my inner thighs

about allowing everything I see

or pass or feel to live inside.

My short skirt is not proof

that I am stupid

or undecided

or a malleable little girl.

My short skirt is my defiance

I will not let you make me afraid

My short skirt is not showing off

this is who I am

before you made me cover it

or tone it down.

Get used to it.

My short skirt is happiness

I can feel myself on the ground.

I am here. I am hot.

My short skirt is a liberation

flag in the women's army

I declare these streets, any streets

my vagina's country.

My short skirt

is turquoise water

with swimming colored fish

a summer festival

in the starry dark

a bird calling

a train arriving in a foreign town

my short skirt is a wild spin

a full breath

a tango dip

my short skirt is

initiation

appreciation

excitation.

But mainly my short skirt

and everything under it

is Mine.

Mine.

Mine.

The Hairy Legs Dilemma

2009-11-24T13:02:00.000-08:00

Cross-posted from The F-Bomb

Today I'm loaded with homework so I'll just share this article of mine (smiles proudly) which has been published on the F-bomb.

The Hairy Legs Dilemma

I am a very hairy person.

I’m okay with that, for the most part, but it seems the rest of the world isn’t.

I turn on tv (or the computer, or a magazine) and am immediately faced with an ad for an (incredibly painful) device that promises to give you sensual smooth skin, that will last for a whole five days!

The thought of shaving every five fucking days gives me shivers. My skin happens to be very sensitive. It does not enjoy being pulled from every pore. In fact, every time I shave I am bought to near tears by the piercing pain I feel. Nonetheless I do it. I purposefully hurt myself to change my natural body and fit the stereotype of what a girl is that society imposes on me. Why?

Patriarchy. Because of that fucking patriarchy.

If I tell people that though, they’ll just shrug and say, yeah, just don’t shave then.

Easy to say.

My hair is dark. It is black and very visible. If I go to the beach with my natural legs, I shall attract many weird disgusted looks and disturbing cat-calls. My friends and family will try in every way to convince me to shave that fucking hair, to avoid them the embrassement of being seen in company of such a freak. Some of my friends will, in fact, stop hanging out with me at the beach. They will not want to be put in the same category as me!

As to my love life, it would be even more null than it already is.

Those are the conseqences of a non-shaving demanour. And the truth is, I can’t. I can’t just sacrifice whatever is left of my social life (being a foreigner, a feminist, and mostly a non conformist, I am not at the highest place popularity-wise).

I’m not strong enough.

Since I joined the feminist movement, I shave less often, but I still shave. My legs are within acceptable limits of hairiness. The rest of my body I keep hairy, since it’s not too bad, even though occasionally I get causal male oglers comment on my growing moustache (if they think I am going to hurt even my face-something that I’ve tried and has resulted in lots of little red baubles all around my mouth- for their pleasure, I can only tell them to please get lost.) Everyone is happy. Except me.

It’s just so unfair that guys can grow a beard of hair on their legs, and I, because I am a girl, have to be hairless. Whoever decided that hairiness was a boy thing anyway?

I am trying to gradually decrease my shaving until I am strong enough to face the social pressures hairy legs bring with them.

Until then, I shall continue spending an hour or so torturing myself every month. Or maybe I should just dedicate myself to masochism for the sake of it. At least that is supposed to bring on some enjoyement. Also, I would know that I would be doing it for myself, and not for others. I would not feel as weak and guilty and so fucking angry as I feel now.

The second movie about sparkly vampires: New Moon

2009-11-20T07:50:00.000-08:00

The 18th of November, and you probably know this (well, you do if you live around teenage girls or near a theatre), was the day of New Moon's premiere.

Well, I certainly liked New Moon better than Twilight, mostly because the sparkly vampire and his family disappear for most of the movie, making it less vomitable.

Now, I can't say I didn't enjoy the movie at all (it is very, very hard not to enjoy an incredibly sexy werewolf and his muscles...), but some things were really disturbing.

THE STORY (spoilers)

Bella has a creepy dream about herself becoming old (OH NO!) while sparkly vampire Edward is of course still young (well, young, considering he's more than 100 years old....). . He sparkles a lot in her dream.

She wakes up, and it's her birthday. She is sad because it means she's getting old.

Then she goes to her birthday party at Edward's house, where she cuts her hand and a guy with bad halloween make-up and hair that desperately needs a comb tries to kill her. So Edward decides to leave Bella, and she assumes that's because she isn't good enough for him. Because of course a possesive stalker sparly vampire is far too good for anyone, right?

But Bella has incredible strenght, and quickly gets over him. She just becomes a walking zombie, doesn't talk with anyone, sits alone at the Cullen's table pretending they're there and spends her days looking out her window and writing e-mails to Alice's (another sparkly vampire) fake address. After about six months her father starts worrying, so she is forced to go out with the horrible Jessica. Jessica one of the bad non-supernatural guys. Because she likes to talk, isn't shy and thinks Bella is weird! Incredible!

So then Bella discovers that if she does stupid senseless things she will see Edward scolding her. Because what's better than a boyfriend who scolds you if you go on a motorcycle?

Here Jacob comes in, and being again near to a sexy guy Bella feels better. Until it turn out he's a werewolf and starts going around shirtless (ok, ok, my favourite part is when he takes his shirt off...), then he no longer wants to talk with Bella. So she falls again into depression, because the other guy who loves her isn't dangerous and feels disturbed by violence. Obviously he's no good.

At some point Edward decides to kill himself by revealing his sparkly vampire self. So Bella stops him, and a after a lot of sequences in which Bella gets to be saved by both vampires and werewolfs, Edward asks her to marry him. End of story.

During all the movie, there are various scenes depicting Bella wildly shouting and grasping at the bed while dreaming of Edward leaving her.

I'll leave you to judge. Or to watch these two movies that give a much better criticism than anything I could possibly do:

When even a google image search is racist

2009-11-16T08:01:00.000-08:00

Have you ever tried typing "Michelle Obama" in a google image search? This is the first image you will get:

The first thoughts I had about this...um, representation of Michelle Obama are:

It is racist.
Whoever created it doesn't have half an inch of creativity. Black people resemble monkeys! Hahahahaha! Sure never heard this one before.
Why is it on the first page?!

Honestly, I can't say I'm surprised that pictures like this exist. We know very well that the world is racist. I just can't believe it actually ended up on the first page. Do people click on it so my much? Why? Well, I know I did because I wanted to see what kind of stupid website would put on such a picture.

I would like to know what the thoughts of a little black girl would be when faced with such a caricature. I guess not very pleasant.

I am sure some other bloggers have already talked about this. I certainly hope so.

Quote of the week: Human Stupidity

2009-11-15T07:06:00.000-08:00

"Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the the universe."

Indeed, I agree with Einstein. There's a reason why he's considered a genius after all.

This week I have encountered quite a few cases of human stupidity. Since I am absessed with lists, here we go:

Top Five Human Stupidity Cases of the Week

I was having a conversation with a nice lady outside a shop. On discovering that I was not, in fact, Italian, she asked: "So, like, you don't have a God, do you?" On my explaining that, actually, people don't have to be Italian to believe in God, she was genuinely surprised. Then she dismissed it, saying:"Well, but you'll go to hell anyway."
A guy in my class was indeed very excited to discover I was not Christian. Do you know why? He figured I could swear all I wanted, so he wanted me to do all his swearing for him. Umm...WTF?
My new Grammar teacher does not believe in punishing students in any way. Just try to imagine the situation of the class.
A cleaner was about to suspend me at school-because I was leaning with my feet on the wall.
One of my best friends-who does not eat chocolate for fear of pimples and only consumes healthy food-has started smoking. He insists that it is not, really, bad for his health, because smoke does not make you fat.

As Pink (the absolutely best rock musician of all times) says: "Where, oh, where, have the smart people gone? Where, oh, where, where have they gone?"

Mysoginist TV

2009-11-13T06:59:00.000-08:00

There is a very popular program that goes on every night at nine o' clock and which my little sister loves. That is not good news to me. See what kind of thing goes on every ten minutes:

Another much loved, much watched program:

Or this:

Children are watching this...at 9 p.m. They may just as well put on a porn movie and get done with it.

I'm sick and tired of women being potraied only as stupid sex dolls, only as objects of desire, never as the ones who desire theselves. It's always the same stereotype: male guy wearing elegant-but-casual clothes and near naked female. Always. I'd rather not see any of this at all on a quiz show, but not even one half-naked guy, huh? What about my sexual desire? Doesn't it have to be satisfied?
Talk about inequality.

Fairytale Remake: Snow White

2009-11-12T12:10:00.000-08:00

Ok, today is Snow White’s turn to be re-made!

SNOW WHITE

Once upon a time there was a little girl called Snow White whose mother was dead (just for a change, you know.)

She lived happily with her father in a great beautiful castle, until the day he decided to get re-married.

The stepmother she got was old and no longer beautiful, unlike Snow White who was young and still beautiful.

So the stepmother hated Snow White, because she had been taught to think that a woman’s greatest asset was beauty, and that all women where to be judged on solely that. Snow White’s beauty scared her, and since she probably suffered from some borderline personality disorder, she decided to kill her.

However, being a good and proper lady who will not manually undertake violent action, she sent another man-a hunter- to do the dirty work for her. For some reason, she also demanded that he bring her Snow White’s heart. (What did I say? Borderline personality disorder.)

But when the hunter went to kill Snow White, he found her rolling various objects down a hill. When he approached her, she showed him what she was studying, and how, and told him that she hoped to win the nobel prize in physics some day. He was fascinated by the subject., so he decided not to kill her, and gave the weird step-mother a lamb’s heart instead.

Snow White decided to ran away for safety, so she went into the woods where she met seven short and grumpy bachelors, the so-called dwarfs.

At first the dwarfs didn’t want to keep her, but once she learned that they worked in diamond mines she showed them how they could get diamonds in better and faster ways. Thankful for the help, they allowed her to stay with them and pay for food and lodging by working in the mines.

But one day the stepmother learned that Snow White wasn’t actually dead. No, it wasn’t that good daddy was worried and found her, he didn’t notice her disappearance, apparently. She found out through her magic mirror, which she had modified do that it could show her everything but herself, because she had self-image issues, as we know.

So the wicked stepmother decided to go kill Snow White herself ,by wearing a witch Halloween costume and giving Snow White a poisoned apple.

So Snow White fell in an enchanted sleep, from which she awakened with extreme annoyance in order to slap a prince who kissed her while unconscious.

Then she left the dwarves and went into the big city, where she decided to look for a better future and keep protecting herself from the stepmother until she died of old age.

Why Stupid=Popular

2009-11-11T06:57:00.000-08:00

I don't know if it is so everywhere, but where I live, stupid means popular.
I have never understood why, when people see you have a brain (incredible!), you immediatly lose whatever chance you had at friendship. With most people, anyway.
In a school enviroment, being smart means you are a nerd. Outside, it means you are boring.

I have some thesis on why that may be:

Thesis number 1: If you are stupid, other people feel exceptionally smart around you. They will spend time with you feeling good about themselves and the greatness of their brains, which makes them like you.
If, on the other hand, you are more intelligent than them, they will feel self-conscious and stupid, which makes you unpopular.

Thesis number 2: If you really are smart, you probably won't be very interested in Paris Hilton's new look. Not finding in you a shrieking partener, people won't like you.

Thesis number 3: When you hear what stupid subjects some people talk about all the time, you-a smart person-distance yourself from them because of your lack of interest in said subjects. This makes you unpopular.

Thesis number 4: Smart people are actually boring.

Thesis number 5: I have no idea. It's probably part of the contorted human nature. What do you think?

And here I rave about bookcrossing

2009-11-10T12:20:00.000-08:00

About two years ago I discovered one of the best websites on the net: the amazing bookcrossing!
In case you don't already know about it, I warn you: if you love books, bookcrossing is dangerously addictive. Almost as much as sudokus.

Bookcrossing is, according to the Concise Oxford English Dictionary, the practice of leaving a book in a public place to be picked up and read by others, who then do likewise.
Practically, you "release" a book leaving it anywhere you want (on statues, hanging on trees, a seat at the dentist's...wherever.), and wait for someone to find it.
The person who finds it, will then (hopefully) make a journal entry on the website, and release the book again if they wish.

Of course, if you prefer a less risky method, you can give the book to someone you know, or send it to someone else on bookcrossing.

I could describe everything here, but the FAQs on the bookcrossing website are much better than anything I could do.
You should really check it out, it's fabulous!

http://www.bookcrossing.com/

P.S. Do I repeat the word "bookcrossing" too often? I don't have any synonyms.

And, Especially, She Is Pretty.

2009-11-10T12:04:00.000-08:00

Today I was watching the news. That is not a good idea if you don't want to get mad at the world.
Here are the charming "news" you get on Italia1, the most popular channel in Italy:

1.Female tennis player wins tennis match! Great victory for feminists worldwide. She has a wonderful butt! (Close up to her butt). Look what a physique! (Shot of her in bikini.) (Shot of her in bikini) (close up to her breasts) (close up to her butt.) Yes, she is beautiful.

2.Future Miss Universe contestant is an army officer. (Shot of her wearing an army suit.) Beautiful and tough. (Shot of her in bikini) Prefer her in bikini? We understand you. (Male gaze, anyone?).Let's just hope the job doesn't spoil her...we want her good for the contest!

3.Flu! The new epidemy! (Scary horror movie music) The deaths in Italy....(TUM!) Toscana: -number (TUM!) Sicilia: -number etc. etc.

4.New edition of famous reality show "Big Brother"! Truly hot moments....don't miss it!

5.Interview with celebrity.

6.Story of a crime, with all the suspensful music and horror movie-like effects.

I was just wondering about the economy and stuff, but you know, all people care about is sex and blood, right?

Fairytale Remake: Cinderella

2009-11-09T07:01:00.000-08:00

We all know (I hope) everything's that's wrong in fairytales. I mean western fairytales with female leads here. Cinderella, Snow White, Sleeping Beauty and company?
Well, I thought it would be fun to re-write them in a way that you, dear readers, will be able to tell your daughters without pratically teaching them that the whole purpose of their lives is waiting for their prince and being pretty.

So, today's story is:

CINDERELLA

Once upon a time there was a girl called Cinderella who was very smart, clever and funny. One day her mother died and her father married a wicked stepmother who had two daughters of her own. The step-mother and her daughters were jealous of Cinderella and her brain. They made her work all the time in the humblest of jobs, treated her badly and humiliated her in every possible way.

At first Cinderella tried to bear it all, but then she just couldn't take it anymore. Being old enough to marry, she decided to leave her father's house and start working.

She worked at a baker's, and soon became so good that she bought a baker shop all of her own. She earned so much on that shop, that she was able to open another shop, and another one yet, until she created a chain as great and famous as McDonald's.

In all that time she met many good people who became her friends, and together with them she had a lot of fun.

So she lived happily ever after.

Sexist gym.

2009-11-09T05:32:00.000-08:00

Today is Monday, which means back to school for yet another tiresome week (sigh). It also means two wholen gym periods...(double sigh).

We have separate gyms for boys and girls at my school (and every other school in this town, except the Catholic one , because it wants to prove its modernization. And besides, it doesn't have space for another gym.)
We have been given a good explanation for that. You see, they wouldn't want those delicate little girls to hold back the strong manly guys, would they? And besides, being always confronted with people better than them, the girls might lose their self esteem! Everyone knows they already have confidence issues anyway.
Also, the guy's gym stinks, because, you know, boys aren't capable of keeping spaces clean. And girls would be disgusted by such manly displays of non-hygenic habits.

But what really bothers me are the tools contained in the different gyms. Being completely incapable of dancing, I couldn't care less about an all-round surround sound sistem (yeah, I like listening to the music, but it stops there).
Guess what the boys have instead of the music? A climbing wall. Three climbing walls, actually: a strange ropey one, a tall one, and the Very Difficult one. Did I mention I love climbing? Nah, can't be, I'm a girl. Girls don't climb, they don't like to run, they don't want to get dirty or sweaty and ruin their hair/make-up/perfect outfit. Except if they're lesbians, of course.
And obviously boys don't want to do something as girlish as dancing. Duh, of course not! They only dance if forced by those cruel, cruel girls.

This really frustates me, you know. Also considering that a great many of my friends are guys, and most of my, um...non-friends? are girls.

Add this to the reasons I hate school, please.

A Ranting Introduction.

2009-11-08T12:39:00.000-08:00

Um, hello. I would really like my first post to be incredibly deep, charming, catching, witty, philosophic and everything, but I don't know how to write introductions. This doesn't mean you have to leave this blog! I am sure you don't want to miss the rants of a teenager.
Ok, let's start.

WHO AM I?
I am an acne-prone, curly haired teenage girl (oh yes, despite all the respectable men claiming otherwise, female bloggers DO exist. Incredible, really) who rants on her blog when she should be doing her homework.
My hobbies are: eating chocolate, studying at the last minute, doing useless stuff and ranting about the ills of society. I also like reading books and watching movies in order to critically analyze them. That bothers some of my friends, so I sometimes have to avoid this engaging activity.
I worship truffles, and I firmly believe they are the reason god/goddess/atom/non-existing being/whatever created Earth. He/she/it/nothing needed someplace for it to grow.

WHY AM I BOTHERING YOU WITH THIS BLOG?
Because daily life often doesn't give me enough time and opportunities to properly rant. Also, my friends and family aren't always interested in how gender roles are represented in the media (weird, I know). So I am assuming you are indeed very interested in hearing about such things.

WHAT SHOULD YOU DO NOW?
Read this blog, follow it, link to it, tell your friends about it, click on advertisments and donate. I know, I am shamelessly self-advertising.