Plucky Pink Plaid Skirt

Me and the new plaid skirt getting ready to go to work.

Anti-Feminism Everywhere?

Remember the cute little video poem about being alone I posted a while back? Well, apparently it is now an international internet sensation and kicking up a bit of a critical storm! Russell Smith, of the Globe and Mail, wrote that, while he didn't want to come down too heavily on such an "innocent piece of diaristic vlogging," he nonetheless felt "this kind of pair-bonding-obsessed weepiness to be anti-feminist, retrograde and disempowering to women." Wow! I know op-ed pieces are supposed to stir things up a little, and it looks like Mr. Smith has succeeded. There has been at least one letter to the editor in response, with more on the way.

I dunno--what do you guys think? I honestly didn't read it as a pre-second wave feminist commentary, as the idea that anyone would think that a woman would literally be afraid to go to a coffee shop or a movie on her own didn't really cross my mind (and how post-third wave is that!). I also didn't read the "advice" given in the poem as aimed solely at any particular gender. Oddly enough, Smith's description of the piece--a collaboration between a professional poet and a professional director--as an innocent, diaristic vlog smacks somewhat of a dismissive patriarchy to my mind. Yikes!

Vancouver Update: The importance of being solitary (sometimes!)

Having lots of quality time with friends and family is important--and nothing makes me happier than spending time with my bigger half--but the merits of being comfortable solo are too many to list here. My friend, Julie, in Montréal drew my attention to this lovely "video poem" earlier this week and it made me smile. (On an unrelated note, something else that makes me smile: a delightful couple from Switzerland just left the shop and were telling me how much Vancouver is really reminding them of Berlin. I guess lil' ol' Vancity is movin' up in the global coolness rankings!)