Springing Back

Sunday 31 March 2013
“When Spring came, even the false spring, there were no problems except where to be happiest ..."
— Ernest Hemingway
 

The first few months of 2013 have been inching along slowly, blurred by an overall feeling of restlessness that I've been trying to combat through a lot of freelance work. Though I spent a lot of this weekend glued to my computer putting the finishing touches on the best of rabble.ca anthology, I did manage to sneak out on Good Friday to explore a little bit of the city, starting at Johnny's on Locke Street and ending at Dundurn Castle.

It's no secret that I love this city, and the first warm days of Spring always confirm this as I come out of hibernation to enjoy the weather and rediscover the city. It's amazing how quickly a dose of Vitamin D and some fresh air can dissolve the restlessness brought on by late nights at the office and commuting during months when the sun has already set by rush hour.

Spring is here, meaning we're just days away from gritLIT and all the other amazing things the city has to offer. But for now, it's off to bed, to catch a few hours of sleep before combatting another week of the 9-5.
 

Quotable: L.M Montgomery

Monday 25 March 2013
If there was ever a quote written especially for me, this would be it:

“I am simply a ‘book drunkard.’ Books have the same irresistible temptation for me that liquor has for its devotee. I cannot withstand them.” — L.M. Montgomery

Flashback to Grade One

Thursday 21 March 2013


My mom kept nearly everything I ever touched while in elementary school, including stacks and stacks of journals filled with crude drawings and printing. Last night I put a small dent in the stack, reading journal entries from grades one to three. This gem made me smile. Some priorities never change.

The Cutting Room

Monday 11 March 2013
Pick up the latest issue of This magazine featuring amazing pieces by Alexandra Kimball, Chelsea Murray, Grace O'Connell, and Andrew Livingstone, as well as my review of Sarah Pinder's collection of poetry, The Cutting Room.

Happy International Women's Day!

Friday 8 March 2013

In honour of International Women’s Day I’ve resurrected (and added to) my list of the kick ass books I wish were available to me in high school, but luckily found in my twenties. These are books that need to be read by anyone who has ever thought that the fight for women's rights is over.

“... The hope I have for women: that we can start to see ourselves — and encourage men to see us — as more than just the sum of our sexual parts: not as virgins or whores, as mothers or girlfriends, or as existing only in relation to men, but as people with independent desires, hopes and abilities. But I know that this can't happen as long as American culture continues to inundate us with gender-role messages that place everyone-men and women-in an unnatural hierarchical order that's impossible to maintain without strife. For women to move forward, and for men to break free, we need to overcome the masculinity status quo-together.” — Jessica Valenti, The Purity Myth






She’s Shameless: Women Write about Growing Up, Rocking Out and Fighting Back, edited by Megan Griffith-Greene and Stacey May Fowles


GirldriveCriss-crossing America, Redefining Feminism, by Nona Willis Aronowitz, Emma Bee Bernstein

Why Have Kids? by Jessica Valenti

Feminism for Real, by Jessica Yee

What You Really Really Want: The Smart Girl's Shame-Free Guide to Sex and Safety by Jaclyn Friedman (Full disclosure: I just started reading this one last night, but so far it’s fantastic! And it has quizzes. Who doesn’t love a book with quizzes?
 
Designed with ♥ by Nudge Media Design