Hall That She Wants

TV post by Juliana Tringali on February 27, 2009 - 2:13am; tagged behavioral competition, Girls of Hedsor Hall, MTV, reality TV.

Just itching to act out.

The Girls of Hedsor Hall isn’t that different from other behavioral competitions in reality TV land. It features good-looking people with impulse control issues trying to behave, but mostly acting crazy. And yes, they are competing for a cash prize. We’ve seen it before: 12 so-called bad girls enter, one reformed good girl leaves (with $100,000). The difference lies in the setting.The difference lies in the setting. Rather than being instructed by celebrity psychologists or plain-old celebrities, these girls are attending one of the most famous finishing schools in England.

The girls are supposed to learn to be "ladies," a role that’s very clearly defined in traditional English etiquette. It’s weirdly fascinating to see a feminine ideal so unabashedly embraced as something for young women to aspire to. And at the same time, Hedsor Hall’s definition of "lady-like" behavior is much more inclusive than one might expect.

[Also posted at Love in the Living Room]

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Douchebag Decree: The Douches Galore Edition

Love / Shove post by Ashley Brittner on February 26, 2009 - 6:22pm; tagged Chris Brown, Christian Bale, Douchebag Decree, douches galore, Kobe Bryant.

At this point it is clear that Chris Brown is a douchebag so there is no reason for me to go off about his status as such. However, in the aftermath of his heinous behavior, he is still somehow garnering support from dedicated fans who have littered the internets with their support for him and their disdain for Rihanna.
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Dictaphone Diaries : an interview with the director of Must Read After My Death

Love / Shove post by Kjerstin Johnson on February 26, 2009 - 1:23pm; tagged 1960s, family politics, film, filmmaking, independent film, interview, Morgan Dews, Must Read After My Death.
Morgan Dews’ Must Read After My Death is a startling, deeply intimate look into the domestic life of the filmmaker’s grandmother, Allis. Made up entirely of home movies and recordings that Allis documented (privately, in therapy sessions, or trans-Atlantic with her husband Charley), the film is at times heartwarming, but more so horrifying, as Allis struggles against the stifling systemic and familial abuse as a 1960s housewife. The personal documentation and voiceovers make the experience of watching a family unravel all the more affecting. The film is already receiving film festival prizes and rave reviews (the Village Voice said it "makes Revolutionary Road look like a tea party") from around the world. Morgan took the time to answer some of my questions about the movie and filmmaking process. Read on for the interview as well as your chance to watch the movie online for free!
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Yayoi Kusama

Art and Design post by Belin Liu on February 26, 2009 - 3:30am; tagged counter culture, female artist, yayoi kusama,.

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Aw, snap - it's the second installment of smart! This has been quite an exciting, yet challenging task for me in compiling and summarizing the 65+ year career of an artist I have very much admired since my nascent, not-quite-sure-if-this-thing-I-drew-is-a-dog-or-a-rock-with-a-tail-creative days.

Read on, MacDuff, for there is much to say about Yayoi Kusama, The Polka Dot Princess.

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Sexy Spring

Love / Shove post by Debbie Rasmussen on February 25, 2009 - 3:25pm; tagged body positivity, conferences, diy, kink, reproductive health, sex education, Sexy Spring.

not sure why this is Sexy Spring's image!?

Heads-up that the dates for the sixth annual Sexy Spring conference have been announced. Mark your calendars for June 5th to June 7th and make your way to Minneapolis for this radical, sex/body positive, sex education skill-share and conference.

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Rush Limbaugh Asks, What Do Women Want?

Love / Shove post by Kelsey Wallace on February 25, 2009 - 3:00pm; tagged radio, ridiculousness, Rush Limbaugh, women's summit.
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I know this week's Douchebag Decree doesn't come out until tomorrow, but I thought we could take a minute to prepare for it by discussing an O.G. Douchebag who has made some new gender waves over the past few days: Rush Limbaugh. Limbaugh (a.k.a. Sir Douche-yness) has noticed a (gasp!) gender gap in his approval ratings as of late, and is planning to host a women's summit in order to figure out what he can do to get some ladies in his corner (you know, where he can better explain our shortcomings to us). An actual quote from rushlimbaugh.com:

I want some of these women to start telling me what it is I must do to close the gender gap -- or, if not what it is I must do to close the gender gap, what it is I've done that has caused the gender gap... What could I do to attract a higher favorability rating among more women in America? I own the men, and what must I do now to own women? And who better to ask than women? Including some of those who may agree that that I'm unfavorable. So stand by for that.

I know you are standing by right this minute with suggestions for good ol' Rush on how he might go about "owning" more women, so read on for more info and to pitch in your two cents!
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Buzz issue preview and web article feedback!

Love / Shove post by Kjerstin Johnson on February 25, 2009 - 2:20pm; tagged bitch magazine, issuu, magazine, MSNBC, online publishing, publishing, Rachel Maddow.
The first box-o-Buzz (our spring issue!) arrived in our Portland office yesterday! It was so exciting we felt bad holding out on our readers, and have posted a sneak peek of our 43rd issue! But read on...we want your feedback!
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