Ok, I did it. I went to the beach. Not the rocky beach down by the breakwater where people go mostly to read and meditate. Nope. I went to a real sandy beach with hundreds of people into serious tanning. And I wore a bathing suit, a cute little number I just bought… (yes, dear Hurricane Jane, I bought a tankini!) and nobody ran from me screaming. Now, I know I didn’t look as good as Miss Luscious to my left in her pink bikini and body oil who kept fixing her lipstick every five minutes … and I was nowhere near the Barbie hourglass ideal woman…
Falsies and Other Falsehoods of the Bathing Suit Industry
August 17th.2010I Eat. I Pray. I Eat. I Love.
August 13th.2010
So Julia Roberts made like a real person and actually ate the darned pizza on the shoot for Eat, Pray, Love instead of spitting it into a “spit bucket” like some actresses apparently do when they are filming scenes involving food. So she gained a few pounds. So she gained five to seven pounds. Maybe they’ll give her the Nobel prize.
Why oh why is this newsworthy? Why should we be so interested when a woman actually eats? Is it because so few actresses really do?
Do I look Fat in This? My Body Image Recovery Project
August 9th.2010I remember when was ab
out 11 years old, I spent every day that summer at the swimming pool in the city park. At that age, I wasn’t seeking a tan but I had one — a deep golden brown. I remember sitting in my grandparents’ living room looking down at my legs, at how brown and smooth and toned they were. I really, really like my legs, I thought to myself. It was the last time I remember loving my body.
An Unexpectedly Good Mother
May 9th.2010Nobody ever expected me to become a mother — and certainly no one ever dreamed I’d ever be a good mother. I admit I went through a few footloose and fancy free years in my teens and early 20s when it seemed like I needed to be looked after. But at age 29, I found myself pregnant. That’s when I discovered what I was really made of.
For the next nine months my baby grew inside me like a brilliant idea. I can’t say exactly when I began to feel like a mother. At 4 months? 8 months?
Freefloating Anxiety Isn’t Really Free
April 11th.2010
I don’t like the feeling of anxiety. It’s a hornet gets into my head and buzzes and bumps around, unable to escape. If I don’t do something about it, the anxiety begins to nest there.
I’ve got that feeling today.
It’s pouring buckets outside and a few hours ago I heard one large clap of thunder, and then no more. It seemed ominous.
With our house for sale, my life feels broken into little bits and pieces. After a month of renovating things we should have fixed years ago, and now the relentless cleaning to keep this big place presentable, I’m frayed and anxious. The cats pace around. My husband is grouchy and my daughter veers between coping and melting down.
Don’t Tell a Guy He’s Too Nice
March 25th.2010
The other day I overheard a guy talking to another guy.
“Laura says she doesn’t want to go out with me because I’m ‘too nice’. What does she want me to be, mean. Does she want me to, like, hit her?”
I wanted to say, “No, she doesn’t want you to do any of the above. What she’s probably saying is ‘I like you but I’m not attracted to you in that way.’”
Georgia O’Keeffe: Lessons on Fear
March 13th.2010
“I’ve been absolutely terrified every moment of my life — and I’ve never let it keep me from doing a single thing I wanted to do.”
Georgia O’Keeffe, one of the most famous and original artists of the 20th century said that. I read it several years ago and I know that in my life, if I had let fear stop me, I would never have walked out the door in the morning.
29 Things I Want My Daughter to Know…
March 7th.2010
On International Women’s Day, I wanted to share with my daughter my list of life essentials I’d like her to know…not as a rule book but as a gentle guide she can take or leave as she needs to.
My post is one of several posts about International Women’s Day featured on NewJane.com. We’ve posted them on EveryJane, our blog for guest posters. We hope you’ll visit…
Photo Credit “May Showers” Original Bliss @ Flickr.com. Creative Commons.
A Year By the Sea? Maybe a Day On the Couch
March 6th.2010
Do you ever have days where you don’t want to go outside? I had one of those days last weekend. It was the perfect day beyond the doors and windows. The air felt silky with the promise of spring. March arrived with cherry blossoms and magnolia blooms. The waves at the beach spoke in gentler voices. I swear I could hear them calling me.
I should have gone for a walk. I should have taken the dog to the beach. I should have been out doing more damned yard work but instead I’m stayed inside, regrouping, hibernating, thinking. I tried to work on my novel but played computer Scrabble instead. I tried to reorganize my closet but my clothes are still in a jumbled pile.
Women’s Magazines: A Recipe for Frustration
March 5th.2010
First come the models in their skinny jeans. Next come the diet articles (same as last decade but with swankier names). Then come the relationship issues (probably caused by too much dieting and wearing skinny jeans — a surefire libido killer). And then…wait for it…comes the recipes. Chocolate cheesecake. Vanilla mouse swirl. Rack of lamb with a buttery sauce and chutney. Garlic smashed spuds. Calorie hell.
Ok, so they are trying to get a good balance of editorial content, a little something for everyone. Am I crazy or does moving from skinny jeans and diet tips to luscious calorie-rich chocolate cake hint — nay, scream! — at sadistic behavior on the part of the women’s magazine editors?
