Today I walked into Victoria's Secret

No, not a joke. Needed a new bra. Which I didn't get, because apparently the only bras they have in my size are push-up or padded numbers. WTF?

Anyway, as I was walking through this enormous shrine to boobage + all-that-is-supposed-to-be-sexy, my boobs weren't the only part of me feeling small. Almost immediately, the Victoria's Secret advertising started to invade my head. You know... the advertising that tells women to buy their stuff in order to be "sexy"+ become proper desirable women? And that without their stuff, women are not woman enough? Which is annoying, because I didn't have those goals when I walked in the store. I just wanted a bra to hold my boobs up.

This made me think about what it's like for men to buy underwear. Probably a little different, although I am not sure - having never been a man buying underwear.

Here are some other things that are probably a little different for many men. (Read the entire post for clarification. It's long, but good.) I post this not to piss on men (I love men and women and all variations thereof!), but as an interesting observation. I like interesting observations, and I think you might, too.

At the lake for the 4th

Relishing the water on our one sunny day. Didn't take many photos... left the camera at home! Back at the end of August for a longer visit.

Put it in ya mouth

Although I'm sure it'll gross me out more than the new Transformers movie, Food, Inc. is now on my list 'o movies to see this summer. (Thanks, Biff!)



From the website:

In Food, Inc., filmmaker Robert Kenner lifts the veil on our nation's food industry, exposing the highly mechanized underbelly that has been hidden from the American consumer with the consent of our government's regulatory agencies, USDA and FDA. Our nation's food supply is now controlled by a handful of corporations that often put profit ahead of consumer health, the livelihood of the American farmer, the safety of workers and our own environment. We have bigger-breasted chickens, the perfect pork chop, herbicide-resistant soybean seeds, even tomatoes that won't go bad, but we also have new strains of E. coli—the harmful bacteria that causes illness for an estimated 73,000 Americans annually. We are riddled with widespread obesity, particularly among children, and an epidemic level of diabetes among adults.

Featuring interviews with such experts as Eric Schlosser (Fast Food Nation), Michael Pollan (The Omnivore's Dilemma, In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto) along with forward thinking social entrepreneurs like Stonyfield's Gary Hirshberg and Polyface Farms' Joel Salatin, Food, Inc. reveals surprising—and often shocking truths—about what we eat, how it's produced, who we have become as a nation and where we are going from here.

Just for fun

... and in case anyone needed clarification!

Yes, it is all about the mocking + exposing. But I'm not sure what Netroots is + haven't watched Jon Stewart in a while. Also, not fond of the word "liberal", which is probably Bill O'Reilly's fault in some way. Does that make me a bad liberal? ;)-

My Liberal Identity:

You are a New Left Hipster, also known as a MoveOn.org liberal, a Netroots activist, or a Daily Show fanatic. You believe that if we really want to defend American values, conservatives must be exposed, mocked, and assailed for every fanatical, puritanical, warmongering, Constitution-shredding ideal for which they stand.

Take the quiz at www.FightConservatives.com

Waking up this morning

With a cat in her lap.

First pool day of the season

Yesterday the bean + I packed up our stuff, bared our tattoos, and invaded the town pool.






















Hello, summer!

Days like that get me through the windowless, inside-all-day, is-it-really-summer? days like today. Which aren't all the bad, but do make me yearn for the outside pretty badly. HOWEVER, we do have a 4-day lake trip coming up this weekend, so we'll get our fill then. The weather forecast calls for rain every day, but I refuse to believe it. Come on, sun!

MJ

Here's my first memory of Michael Jackson, aside from my dad bringing "Thriller" home (on tape!) and my way-cool classmates having MJ folders for their papers at school.

I was on a bus, probably on some school trip, watching a few of my (3rd grade?) classmates try to sing 'Billie Jean'. Someone had written the lyrics out on a piece of paper, and they were gathered around in the back of the bus, singing along. Quite innocently. Until a teacher confiscated that sheet of paper + proceeded to lecture all of us on the evils of that music. (Thank you, Christian school! Remind me to refrain from lecturing Leah too much. It REALLY doesn't work.)

And that is when I first became a fan.

That's just the way it is

Yesterday, before I could explain to Leah why I wanted her to do something like hurry up or put away her clothes or her toys, she provided her own answer: "Because that's the way it is?"

Well, yes! That's the way it is. Thanks for that, child 'o mine.