10 Questions For Feminist Mothers

I loved reading through the responses to the questionnaire developed by bluemilk and thought I add my views too:

1. How would you describe your feminism in one sentence? When did you become a feminist? Was it before or after you became a mother?

I define my feminism as neither soft nor aggressive. I take the pragmatic approach instead. I pick my battles and only get into discussions with people I care about or that do harm to others. If someone insist on being ignorant about the cause – so be it, as long as they don’t force their Lalaland onto me.

I cannot pinpoint a time in which I realized that I was a feminist. It came to me gradually. Little comments, illogical expectations or plain stereotyping  would make me feel frustrated. Only in recent years did I become a proud feminist. I take not for granted the liberties that courages women fought so hard for to ensure a better future for following generations of women. I see it as my duty and pleasure to help maintain that momentum and continue supporting the cause for equality. How can I say I’m not a feminist when I’m expecting to be treated fairly? For once there is a label I’m happy to adhere. It only seems negative  if you allow others make it appear this way.

I became a feminist well before motherhood.

2. What has surprised you most about motherhood?

The intense feeling of anxiety for my child and my increased vulnerability as a result of this emotion. Read the rest of this entry »

UPDATE: Three Effective Left/Right Brain Exercises

blindfolded sculpture

blindfolded sculpture

Image by Gastev

Did you know that your brain profits from breaking your morning routine? Left/right exercises change the active half of the brain. E.g. The connections and brain sections normally active when brushing your teeth are resting, while the correspondent sections in the other hemisphere are suddenly dealing with the new task. New connections bring fresh associations.

So you might want to try these three easy to follow exercises:

Shower with closed eyes

Feel for the soup and shampoo for example. Your sense of touch helps your brain creating a map of  your shower. Other senses come into weight when optical stimuli are missing. The smell of your soup will appear more intensive etc. Read the rest of this entry »

FACE TRANSFORMER: EVER WANTED TO BECOME A ZOMBIE?

Image by oddcast

Uh that’s a fun one. From Oddcast comes this cool face transformer which easily turns every angel face into a scary zombie. The results you can get are actually more scary than the one above. Set the evil face tab to as high as possible and you are even going to see some frightening yellow teeth. ARGH

Have fun!!!

TRY ALSO:

FUN TOOLS: TURN YOURSELF INTO A CARTOON CHARACTER

TRANSFORM YOUR PICTURE: CREATE YOUR OWN HAPPINESS CARD

MORPHING TOOL: WANT TO KNOW WHAT YOUR KID WOULD LOOK LIKE?

Read the rest of this entry »

Why This Long Legged Crawler Doesn’t Give Me The Creeps

By unknown artist

When I come across a fat spider or a cockroach (especially the black, monstrous Australian kind)  you can  hear me scream hysterically, with eyes wide open in horror , every single hair on my body raised to the sky and my body shivering in disgust.

In the past, when I managed not to be completely paralyzed, I would spray Hairspray on these creeps.  I tell you now, DON’T DO IT – it only makes them move in slow motion – even more spooky to look at.  The next option is to scream for your other half to fight the beast.

I know, ridiculous behaviour for a full grown, otherwise not made of sugar woman.  I’m working on it.  I have to toughen up, especially when I want to be a brave example for my daughter.  Having said that, that would only apply if there is no one else to sort the creep out. Read the rest of this entry »

Book Suggestion: Making Sense – Philosophy Behind The Headlines

First of all, let me say thank you for sticking with me during the last couple of weeks, while I wasn’t writing anything (had a good reason though:-)

Now then, here are the reasons why I like to suggest this book by Julian Baggini to you:

1. If you are sometimes frustrated with the ways the media presents it’s news and would like to learn more,  from a philosophical perspective, about the issues  behind headlines such as ‘Scientists playing God’ etc.

2. It gives you the tools on how to approach shady arguments and think critically.

Read the rest of this entry »

Food For Happiness: Scones With Mixed Berries Mascarpone Cream

Image by Kemp

Serves 6

For the Scones you would need:

225 g flour, a hint of salt, 1 Tbl baking soda, 75 g butter, 2 Tbl brown sugar, approx. 100 ml milk and some flour to role out the dough.

Mix the flour, sald and baking soda. Add pieces of soft butter until you’ve got a crumbly mass. Add sugar. Add milk bit by bit until the dough becomes smooth.

Roll out the dough until 2 cm thick. Cut out round scones (5-6 cm diameter). Place them on a with baking paper lined baking tray in a pre-heated oven for 12-15 min on 220 C.

For the Mixed berries mascarpone cream you would need:

Read the rest of this entry »

Erotic Brain Exercise With All Senses: Surprise Your Partner

Photo by h.koppdelaney’s

Sex the ideal “Neurobics” workout – too good to be true? But it is true: Sex demands all our senses and the inclusion of the emotional switchboard in our heads. Hearing words or only reading to oneself, reading aloud or quietly activates different parts of our switchboard.

Close your eyes and enjoy

Many “Neurobics” exercises have to do with trying to experience the world in a new sensual way.  Closing your eyes sharpens the other senses. We do this automatically during sex, to enjoy it even more.

Experience senses

Cater to your senses and the senses of your partner with something new: Use aroma oils, listen to music, use massage oil. Read the rest of this entry »

Creative Photoshop Project: Postcard In Retro Design

Design by KeMP

A couple of days ago I had a desire to do another Photoshop project I haven’t done before. Some years ago I purchased a great graphic design book called Retro Graphics Cookbook. In there are ‘recipes’ to recreate 100 years of graphic design.

The style I chose is from the 1900s early modern area. And how did I do it? Read the rest of this entry »

Return Of The Comic Book – Which One Is Your Favourite?

Why return? Because comic books have the ability to cheer us up, make us laugh and adore carefully drawn characters. It doesn’t always have to be classic,  heavy going literature or formal textbooks that make your head spin. And don’t even bother watching television these days – it’s all doom and gloom.

Go to the shop or the library and grab some new or classic comic books and magazines that take your fancy.

When I was a child I liked to read Donald Duck, Asterix, Garfield and “soft” horror comics. Then while on a holiday trip to the US I discovered Calvin and Hobbes by Bill Watterson. His  witty comics about the mischievous adventures of a little boy (Calvin) and his stuffed tiger  (Hobbes)  brought a smile to my face and the drawings had the style I liked. I ended up collecting all the books.

It’s time for me to find a new comic series that grasps me the way Calvin and Hobbes did. Easier said than done though, haven’t come across one that took my fancy for ages and I’m open to new genres (no Manga though), type of characters  and styles. Are there any funny philosophical ones? Or some with a modern female lead character? No, not the ones with exposed breasts and perfect, thinly clad bodies. I mean the real life variety, those most woman can identify with; preferabley written and drawn by talented female artists. If you have any suggestions, I’m glad to hear from you?

I’m also interested to hear about your favourite comic books and why they are so special to you.

Read also:

Read the rest of this entry »

Book Suggestion: The Art Of Travel By Alain De Botton

philosophy
This book is a philosophical take on the subject of travel and explores what we seek when we travel and why we are often disappointed with the reality of travel.

Alain De Botton visits airports, a service station ect. and introduces guides such as Charles Bauderlaire and Edward Hoppe that show us their view on the subject.

Arriving

“(…) I may have noticed a few birds careering through the air in matinal excitement, but my awareness of them was weakened by a number of other, incongruous and unrelated elements, among these, a sore throut that I had developed during the flight, a worry at not having informed a colleague that I would be away, a pressure across both temples and a rising need to visit the bathroom. A momentous but until then overlooled fact was making its first appearance: that I had inadvertently brought myself with me to the island. (…)”

NEXT TIME YOU VISIT A BIG CITY – GIVE IT MORE THOUGHT

10 WAYS TO APPROACH PHILOSOPHY

PHILOSOPHICAL ART PROJECT: TAKE PHOTOS OF OLD AND NEGLECTED BUILDINGS

Read the rest of this entry »