Green People

Check out this interactive infographic depicting women’s suffrage over the last 120 years.

Shocking personal story from Kenya over at the Department for International Development blog.

Late last year an American television station fired a weather reporter for standing up against racist and sexist remarks on Facebook;

Lee responded to his comments by defending her African American ancestry and natural hairstyle. “Women come in all shapes, sizes, nationalities, and levels of beauty,” she asserted in her comment response. “Showing little girls that being comfortable in the skin and HAIR God gave me is my contribution to society.”  She ended her response by thanking the viewer for watching the station’s broadcasts. Station leaders later fired Lee for violating the station’s social media policy.

Tracy Moore asks what do we want from male feminists?

While over at First Post Pramod Kumar writes;

“A promise is a promise” said the UN, but did India keep its promise? Or will it keep its promise?

Hardly. It neither has the intent or the ability because it truly doesn’t care for its women.

If it had, in roughly about a month after the gangrape, Delhi wouldn’t have witnessed roughly two rapes a day and the figures of the National Crime Records Bureau would have shown at least a temporary blip.

Nothing of that sort happened.

Newsflash: even in the UK women still aren’t paid as much as men.

From bitchmedia, why we like to root for the antihero but not the antiheroine;

So because patriarchal culture emphasizes that women must be likable, our bold and sometimes morally ambiguous TV heroines often face more scrutiny than their male counterparts.

The feminist theory behind the ‘pussy bow’ blouse. I had no idea.

Interesting read: Hel Gemreamlack on Race + Hip-Hop + LGBT Equality: On Macklemore’s White Straight Privilege.

Close-Up “Meeting of Styles” LosAngeles Graffiti Art

How to make your very own papercut. Would be a cute gift, yes?

The library is often the last place you would expect censorship, but here you go.

The Indian government is closing 915 public libraries.

From The Institute of Alcoholic Experimentation: retail grenadine tastes like crap, make your own!

Australia is the great lifestyle superpower;

Nearly six months ago, Australians were explicitly warned to brace for a fall in living standards…When the prosperity stops… what’s next?

M from Class Rage Speaks writes nine things I wish economically privileged people in my life knew;

Stereotypes of poor people abound. People frequently assume that my parents are unintelligent, ignorant, and bad parents. They treat me as an anomaly, an escapee from a uniformly horrible situation that they can pity and make fun of. People who know me treat me as an exception to a classist rule, not realizing that their upholding of that rule allows people who don’t know me to stereotype and mistreat me.

Thug life, thug kitchen.

How adorable are these Pantone food pairings?!

Umair Haque on “TED thinking”;

The idea of our age is that Great Ideas can be simplified, reduced, made into convenient, disposable nuggets of infotainment — be they 18-minute talks, 800-word blog posts, or 140 character bursts. But can they — really? Could Aristotle really deliver the resounding, history-redefining message of the Nicomachean Ethics in…eighteen minutes? Or a series of “thought leader” blog posts on LinkedIn? Or would that, in a very real sense, cheat you and I of the power and purpose, the meaning and message, the very import and impact of the larger body of work?

I had no idea you could make pennies glow! Just heat it up and suspend it over acetone.

Lingerie that isn’t too girlie :)

This topsy tail ponytail looks easy and pretty.

Freaked out about horsemeat in your lasagne? Or killer processed meat? Why not try Meat Free Week?

Three videos for ya;

I indulged in some chocolate almond milk. Delicious!

I cleared away A LOT of weeds and mud from the stairs in our garden. The bottom two thirds of the stairs were actually buried under a foot of dirt and roots. I’m gettin’ this garden started!

We had some lovely weather this week – spring is really here! The sunsets have been magical.

I livened up the place with some roses. A grand extravagance, seeing as they were FLOWN TO BRITTAN FROM AFRICA but a bargain at £3.

I wore a green dress and took myself out for coffee.

Bonus dvd content: finding a crop of snowdrops hidden at the back of the garden, the perfect soft-boiled egg, flirty postmen, amazing New Wave playlists, compliments from strangers, starting The Harsh Cry of the Heron, long walks in the hills, Pushing Daisies, gifs from the Oscars, matte black nail polish, earl grey tea, buskers outside my window, long lunches, psychedelic bruises, crazy cooking experiments with pizza and going nuts on Pinterest.

How to dress like Ginger Rodgers.

Street -style photography from New York in the 40s.

Pretty floral dresses. You can never have too many.

Not enough people wear hats these days. Check out this beautiful collection of hats over at Advanced Style.

The Beauty Brains weigh the merits of liquid soap vs bar soap as a facial cleanser.

Guys! It’s a Rubik’s Cube made of cheese!

How to spruce up an old jumper or cardigan with embroidery.

Also in DIY; Spectators!

Fifty Shades of Brains sounds awesome;

It’s full of sex, zombies, and really annoying internal monologues. It pokes fun at Seattle, erotica, horror novels inexplicably filled with albinos, and people who spend too much time on their hair.

Adam Wallcavage’s octopus chandeliers are just killin’ me.

Spring is upon us! Here are two summer-y cocktails to get you in the mood; The Beachcomber and The Beachbum.

Five young women pose on the beach at Woody Point, Redcliffe, 1919

The best Soviet pop song you’ve probably never heard. It’s pretty catchy, actually.

Amazing! Women soldiers who dressed like men and fought in the U.S. civil war.

The emotional price of making video games;

It’s the pressure cooker of the last six months of a dev cycle. It’s the people that just go home and don’t give a shit. It’s running out of time, but wanting it to be the best thing ever. Finite time; finite people. Plus, [there's] the lack of sleep and not seeing your wife or your kids. You go through the summer working ridiculously hard and not getting any time off. In that kind of situation you’re not going to be with your kids. You don’t get that back.

Did you know that fake honey is a thing?

I love Fashion It So. Click on over for a cute video of Marina “Troy” Sirtis talking about Star Trek underwear.

What a clever idea! Print this out and stick it on the front of your fridge.

It seems like trash-talking Australia is a popular past-time over at the BBC. I don’t agree with everything Madeleine Morris says. Anyhow, limes have been ridiculously expensive for a loooong time now.

So this is what five bucks worth of limes looks like these days twitter.com/b3lla/status/1…

— Bella Blithely (@b3lla) November 27, 2011

 Sugar Skulls, Paper Flowers; Chasing Light, The Golden Hour

What it’s like to travel tourettes: Tics on a Plane.

Our rubbish made it to the unexplored depths of the ocean before we did.

The origin of the Pantone colour system;

“God created the world in seven days,” he says. “And on the eighth day, he called Pantone to put color into it.”

Author/Professor Daniel Gilbert says that child-free couples are generally more happy that those with children.

Eight reasons why you should consider living without a television.

You already have permission. Get out and do it!

Three videos about mail:

I love how secretary dresses from the 70s only need a little prompting to transform into gorgeous 40s style frocks. In this case, a belt.

It’s also fairly warm, what with the long sleeves and woolly fabric. Don’t get me started on the pleats! They make me ridiculously happy.

—

Dress: Armstrong & Son Vintage

Boots: Next

Bag: LA Vintage

Earrings: ???

Watch: eBay sourced Rado

Stockings: Leona Edmiston

My nails are in horrible condition right now. They’re hiding underneath a layer of matte black polish. I thought about doing something special with my hair today. I’ve been told it’s the thought that counts…

Ciao!

]]> http://bellablithely.com/2013/02/todays-threads-28-february-2013/feed/ 0 http://bellablithely.com/2013/02/weekly-wrap-up-24-february-2013/ http://bellablithely.com/2013/02/weekly-wrap-up-24-february-2013/#comments Sun, 24 Feb 2013 13:00:36 +0000 Bella Blithely http://bellablithely.com/?p=1486 Last wrap up for February, last wrap up for winter!

I had a hankering for pancakes. Served with apricots, apple and rosehip syrup. Yum!

I spent a lot of the last week curled up on the couch with Rhonda for company.

I’ve become fond of cutting the almond milk in my porridge with Innocent smoothies. Above is strawberry and banana.

I’ve also started taking some multivitamins. My nails have taken a real beating lately, so I’m trying Biotin supplements to see if they work. Will report back in 12 weeks!

We had a touch of colder weather this week, which was a perfect excuse for a roast.

—

Side servings: emails from Australia, picking out gardening supplies, pretty skirts, The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, a train trip to St Andrews, lemon sherbet, goth pedicures, morning yoga, mugs of tea, sunlight, chirpy birds and snow!

Two sides of tumblr. Buy prints here!

What a lovely idea for updating an old pair of shoes!

More amazing uses for paper lanterns and electronic tea-lights.

Ten uses for egg cartons. I am using mine to cultivate seedlings :)

Super-cute apple hearts. And how about this amazing raw vegan cheese and pear salad stack.

Equipment for the home bar; stuff you need, and stuff yo’ don’t.

Did you know that Grumpy Cat has a blog?

It took me a while to come to terms with the fact that the 3Doodler Pen is in fact, a real thing.

A San Francisco gym neglected to pay invoices for web development. So the development company took back their webpage and let everyone know why.

Cats have been walking over us for centuries. The title says it all, but wait till you see the picture!

Social Media In Real Life

From Awful Library Books; Natural Bust Enlargement With Total Mind Power;

How to use the other 90% of your mind to increase the size of your breasts!

Cornelius Walker talks to his son about yoga pants (which have become a bit of a big deal on The Good Men Project lately);

“But what if she does want you to comment?” he asked, always looking for the loophole. “She’ll let you know,” I replied. I thought to add, “and if you’re married to her, the answer is always ‘you look great’” But there’s no need to perpetuate that tired stereotype…

How to tear a phone book in half. Because destroying things in manly!

The living doll phenomenon, or as it is known in Odessa, the “Barbie Flu” is still just plain creepin’ me out. Why can’t I look away!

The surgeon who has treated 30,000 rape victims;

It was that year that our first rape victim was brought into the hospital. After being raped, bullets had been fired into her genitals and thighs.

I started to ask myself what was going on. These weren’t just violent acts of war, but part of a strategy. You had situations where multiple people were raped at the same time, publicly – a whole village might be raped during the night. In doing this, they hurt not just the victims but the whole community, which they force to watch.

Three videos. One to make you cry, one to make you laugh, and one to confound and inspire you:

Forever Dance

I am happy even before I have a reason.

I am full of Light even before the sky

Can greet the sun or the moon.

Dear companions,

We have been in love with God

For so very, very long.

What can Hafiz now do but Forever

Dance!

–

“Forever Dance” by Hafiz.

Quoted from I Heard God Laughing translated by Daniel Ladinsky.

Image is Texture 25: Rainbow light bubbles

Last week I managed to pick up a bottle of my favourite cleanser on eBay for much less than retail. Was super happy about that.

I enjoyed more exciting porridge flavours and Philip Pullman’s The Subtle Knife.

And I managed to get a job! Just a part time gig in a local store, but the people are nice and the stock is amazing. Will keep me out of trouble for a while!

This week I treated myself to some pampering at home.

Sampled more porridge flavours…

I spotted the first daffodils of spring popping up. There will be flowers soon!

Mr K and I went for a walk in the Pentlands where we discovered this great tree.

After climbing up Caerketton Hill we were greeted with this.

Other things from the last two weeks: starting and finishing the His Dark Materials trilogy, early morning Pilates,  endless cups of peppermint tea, valentines day curry, Faerie Tale, pretty green dresses, fresh clean sheets, dabbling in the odd computer game, emails from my oldest friend, long train rides, sparkling elderflower water, romantic old pubs, bouncing around to electro swing, thinking about lent, and amazing views.

I grew up attending Uniting Church services, where Lent wasn’t really celebrated (I vaguely remember something about lighting candles?). At first glance it looked like an opportunity to impose denial upon people. As I lay in bed thinking about this, I realised how wrong my initial opinion was.

Child’s Hands Holding White Rose for Peace Free Creative Commons

For example, when people question me about being a vegetarian, their questions are always couched in the language of denial. “What else don’t you eat?” “You probably don’t get enough of X.” I didn’t wake up one day and decide to stop eating meat; instead I decided to start eating purposefully. I’ve always been at pains to point out that being a vegetarian is a positive experience for me, and that I am not denying myself meat because to do so would imply that I want it in the first place.

What does this tell us about Lent? Instead of a forced break from human vice, what if it was an opportunity to better oneself, as Clare says? Instead of giving something up for 40 odd days, what if I tried something new? The end of winter and the first stirrings of spring seem like the perfect time to embrace a positive change.

Gardening

There’s a deserted plot of land at the rear of our apartment. I’ve decided to claim a corner of it and start growing some food. Easy things to begin with, like zucchini (or courgette as they say here), black currants, onions and carrots. Mr K has a passion for sunflowers, which are super easy to grow, so I may plant some of those as well. We’ll see how far I get in 40 days.

Sociability

I’ve recently joined a local book club, but at my first meeting I sat there mute as a stone. I’ll admit I was piqued because the convenor hadn’t introduced me, and it felt wrong to talking to a group of people without knowing their names. Despite my inclination not to return, I will stick with it for the next month-and-a-half. And I’ll actually say something next time.

Community

Colin Beavan of No Impact Man fame has said that the most important thing a person can do to help the environment is to join a local environmental group. Forget swapping out incandescent bulbs or saving up reusable bags. Making positive changes within your community is a chance to make a real difference. So I’ve decided to join a local environmental group for the next 40 days.

Pink Summer Cherry Love

If you had the chance to try something new for six weeks, what would it be?

…spent a lot of time studying. We’ll see if it has paid off soon.

…enjoyed some out-of-season fruits for breakfast.

…worried about Mr. K riding around in the city traffic (and was jealous of his new bicycle).

…celebrated the end of the annual ‘dry January.’

…developed some epic cravings for Australian-style breakfasts. British breakfasts are usually an exercise in digestive endurance. I settled for apple chutney and chevre on wholegrain toast, baked balsamic mushrooms, spinach, and poached eggs. Perfection!

…saw in the spring. Saturday was Imbolc, a time for contemplating the beginning of spring. A local group held a ceremonial celebration in Grassmarket complete with drums and fire.

…scrubbed myself clean! This morning I needed a bit of pick-me-up, so I mixed together a delicious scrub to use in the shower;

6 tablespoons caster sugar

2 tablespoons olive oil

zest of one lemon

Other delights this week: red lipstick, endless cups of peppermint tea, finally finishing The Seamstress (thank goodness!), faux fur coats, early morning sunlight, birds chirruping outside, planning out my garden, Northern Lights, fluffy clouds, tea in bed, more James Bond films, immaculate Endnote citations, cuddles, organising meetings, and warm woollen jumpers.

What made your week marvellous?