Waiting for the Mean Girl
by Jennifer Collins When I was a little girl, my mother always told me that I was unique. That in all of creation there had never been anyone just like me. That my life had a purpose. That I could do anything that I set my mind to. That I was beautiful [...]
Waiting for the Mean Girl
by Jennifer Collins When I was a little girl, my mother always told me that I was unique. That in all of creation there had never been anyone just like me. That my life had a purpose. That I could do anything that I set my mind to. That I was beautiful [...]
Waiting for the Mean Girl
by Jennifer Collins When I was a little girl, my mother always told me that I was unique. That in all of creation there had never been anyone just like me. That my life had a purpose. That I could do anything that I set my mind to. That I was beautiful [...]
Featured Headlines
Welcome to GBP
Girl. Because no matter what decade we find ourselves in, we share a desire to heal a piece of ourselves while doing everything within our power to make sure today’s daughters grow strong in mind before all else. Body. We are at war with the reflection we see in the mirror. It’s either too full or too thin or too curvy or not curvy enough. We want more for our daughters. We also want to be able to check out at the grocery store without being bombarded by magazine headlines touting The Best Diet, How to Get a Better Body Faster, and the Six-Week-Post-Partum-Bikini-Photo-Shoot that is now par for the course for practically every celeb mom. This constant reminder that we can’t possibly be happy as we are is what we … [Read More...]
Waiting for the Mean Girl
by Jennifer Collins When I was a little girl, my mother always told me that I was unique. That in all of creation there had never been anyone just like me. That my life had a purpose. That I could do anything that I set my mind to. That I was beautiful – from the inside out. And I believed her. Until one day in third grade. A girl that I considered to be a good friend told me that I wasn’t as special as I thought I was. That I was conceited. That I wasn’t pretty. And in that moment, she unraveled the work of beauty in me that my mother had so carefully and deliberately been forming. I would never again see the same reflection I had always … [Read More...]
Suicide, Stigma, and Why Society Needs to Grow Up
Paris Jackson survives a suicide attempt and the Internet laughs. So I dusted off my soapbox, put on my red lipstick just because I felt like it, and told a story of my own in my weekly online Latina advice column. Game on, says society. Paris Jackson is a rich little brat with nothing better to do than get media play, right? And then those of us with morals and feelings and heart and personal experience sit back and watch with horror as the Internet explodes with comments actually lamenting the fact that Paris failed at her attempt to kill herself. This is where I dust off my soap box, grab my microphone, do a sound check, and ask the world one simple question: "What the F*** is wrong with all of … [Read More...]
Humiliation
By Rachele Kargas It's just about midnight. I'm sitting at my desk in Hello Kitty pants. My hair is a mess as I have run my hands through it one too many times. It was sleek and pretty at the beginning of the evening. My cheeks are damp with tears and my eyeliner is smudged. Only hours before I had stopped in to Sephora to touch up my make up and make sure that it was picture perfect. It was suppose to be a good night. A much needed night out with girlfriends. Drinks, appetizers music. Fun. I wore a skirt which was reserved for nights such as this. The outing was scheduled at a bar I had never heard of in the mission. I made my way from Powell Street Bart to the restaurant. I held my purse close to me, but it … [Read More...]
Kumbaya, Bonfire Chats, & Fuckability
No one ever said I was subtle. Well, maybe that one time when I mistakenly took two of The Husband's muscle relaxers thinking they were my thyroid medication and then found myself falling asleep trying to get pantyhose while getting ready for work. The Husband came home to find me in bed, drooling, and confused as all hell because I had no idea what the hell had happened. Or maybe that wasn't subtle. More likely, it was just Pure & Utter Stupidity. Moving on... I recently had the honor of participating as a panelist on Gigi Ross' Bonfire Chat on Sex & Body Image with a group of incredible women. My goal is to get every single one in the same place at the same time (I'm talking Girl Body Pride Weekend Retreat, y'all) and … [Read More...]
Blogging Bravely
By Tanis Miller I've written a blog post every day this week and deleted all but one of them. I've written about the public breakdown I had after Knox's wheelchair collapsed in the middle of the street and no one offered to help me fix it. I've written about how some arsehole didn't hold the door open as he walked through it and it almost broke Knox's feet by when the door slammed on him. I wrote about blogging conferences and professional jealousies. I wrote about tax season. I just wrote a post about how the school phoned wanting my email so the principal could email me. How I have sat here for hours now, refreshing my email all the while imagining horrible scenarios involving my children and how I'm going to be … [Read More...]
Ladies? Let's drop the bullshit and get down to the nitty-gritty. Do you think your self-view and perception of your own body affect your sex life with your partner? My short answer is OF COURSE IT DOES. If you know me in real life, pretend I just asked if babies from from the cabbage patch because that's where The Husband and I skipped through while holding hands until we found our perfect girl and signed the Xavier Roberts adoption papers in crayon. If not, let's sit around the bonfire and have some real talk on what affects us most and how that caries over into our sexual relationships with those who love us. I'm excited to have been asked to participate as a panelist by Gigi Ross for today's … [Read More...]
The Rant of a Shameless Slut
Back in the late 80s when I was a women's studies student and knee deep in the identity politics of the era, I read (and read and read) about women being in competition with each other instead of being friends with one another. I didn't fully understand the concept because I truly didn't get it. I wasn't in competition with any woman for anything. Was it because my taste in men was kind of quirky? That rather than dating I just slept with my male friends because it was less complicated? Was it having been raised by no-nonsense lesbians that I wasn't hung up on beating down other women in the name of pleasing men? Apparently I was lucky and my sense of self-worth wasn't completely owned by the men in my life. That's not to say I … [Read More...]
The Unscripted Reality of Female Bisexuality
Just the other day, I was on my way to dinner with my ex-boyfriend. It was almost 90 degrees outside, the sun was beginning to set and the streets were filled with people. Mostly, people in their late twenties to mid-thirties. As we walked, he commented on every woman we passed. "What about her?" "She's hot." "Don't you want her?" I'd like to think men have learned enough social grace to keep their piggish comments to themselves (or, at least, in the company of other men), but somewhere along the way, my bisexuality seems to have given men a free pass. It seems that, and this is the part that pisses me off, that the reality of my bisexuality has been hijacked by male fantasy. My life is not a pornographic movie with … [Read More...]
Choose Your Word
I recently had the chance to hang out with Holly Fulger and friends (and fellow Speaking of Beauty contributing writers) in Holly’s home in L.A. Don’t freak out if you happen to be aware of The Cali Curse and the Me Being Banned from Ever Stepping Foot NEAR Cthe State of California thing. At least, not yet. I may eventually need to have a shaman clear me for seeing Holly in person, but right now it’s all Google Hangout, but you’re safe for now. The purpose of our chat was to discuss the focus of our writing for Speaking of Beauty as Holly moves forward in her vision and her mission to grow the conversation of beauty, perception, and self-acceptance. That sounds a lot like Girl Body Pride, with my own personal flavor, of course, … [Read More...]
Operation Bathing Suit
It is the email subject line that stops my heart like clockwork every year: "Pool Opens This Weekend." Wasn't it just New Year's Day two minutes ago? Remember New Year's? That day nearly half a year earlier when we swore we'd be more prepared for things like Tax day, Teacher Appreciation Week, and bathing suit season? Oh God. I am so not bathing suit ready. My kids are already in their swimsuits, goggles on, buckled into the car, and eagerly waiting for me to take them to the pool. I'd rather eat raw sewage. For the average woman, there is so much to consider when preparing to don the Lycra in public for the first time each season. For starters, does the bathing suit from last season even fit anymore? And if not, is it … [Read More...]
Recent Comments