Helen
collage on Arches cover paper
7 1/2 x 11 inches
Category: Ladybusiness
The Patterns We Teach
The Patterns We Teach
collage (anatomical illustration and child’s dress pattern) on Arches cover paper
7 1/2 x 11 inches
Mary
Mary Wife of Isaac Conyers Died Oct. 24, 1857
I always hate seeing women’s headstones that just list her as the wife of some dude. I searched Ancestry.com for to see if I could figure out her maiden name, but all I turned up were unsourced public trees, some of which have impossible information. As in, several people have attached my Findagrave record to their trees for a Mary M. Tharp. There was a Mary M. Tharp who married an Isaac Conyers in Indiana, but that marriage occurred after this Mary died.
And then someone requested that I update the Findagrave record with information that I thought was suspect. I declined. So I guess they complained and had the information added by someone at Findagrave. I have no reason to believe her maiden name was Burton, or that these linked folks are her family. As far as I can tell, the Mary Burton who married Isaac Conyers lived and died in Bath County, Kentucky in 1868.
Wife
Wife. Like it’s a job description or some sort of military rank. Which I guess maybe it is, sometimes.
Sad Stories
Sarah, Wife of John Nottingham, Died June 27, 1848 Aged 38 Y. 7 M. 23 D.
John Nottingham, Died July 1, 1882 Aged 78 Y. 8 M. 5 D.
Collins Cemetery, Muncie, Delaware County, Indiana
Sarah M., Daughter of J. & S. Nottingham, Died Jan. 27, 1849 Aged 7 Mo. & 22 ds.
Collins Cemetery, Muncie, Delaware County, Indiana
I don’t really pay attention to what’s on the stones while I’m photographing them. It wasn’t until I got home and was processing these that I noticed Sarah M. was the daughter of Sarah and John Nottingham. And then I took a close look at the dates. Sarah died 22 days after giving birth, and then seven months later, her baby daughter died.
Instant Review: Septimus Heap
I got caught up on some of my reading while I was sick. One of the things in my “to read” stack were the second and third Septimus Heap books: Flyte and Phyisik.
I read the first book, Magyk, last spring, after borrowing it from my mom. I figured it was a knock-off of the Harry Potter books, but since that series was over and I needed something to read, I didn’t really care. Besides, I love kids’ books, so even if it wasn’t a great book, I’d probably still enjoy it. And it wasn’t, and I did. There wasn’t anything wrong with the book, it just wasn’t one of the best kids’ books I’ve ever read. It was definitely good enough to read the next book in the series, though, which was better than the first. And then I read the third book, which was better than the second. At this point, after finishing the third book, I’m pretty impressed with the series.
One of the things that stands out to me is the way female characters are handled. The land where the stories take place is ruled by a line of Queens. The queens marry whomever they please. The princess in the stories does pretty much as she likes. Instead of being locked up in the equivalent of a gilded cage, she moves freely about the town. She not only has adventures, but in the second book, she puts on her big girl pants and saves her own damn self, instead of waiting for someone else to do it for her. In the third book, she takes the lead roll in saving her brother. And it’s all presented without a hint of her strength being at all extraordinary for a princess.
She’s not just a token strong female character, either. The head wizard and the princess’ “aunt” play important roles throughout the stories. In the third book, there is a young seafaring trader who helps the princess find her brother. There are powerful female witch covens and numerous woman business owners.
This series is shaping up to be a wonderful little feminist gem, actually.
I wasn’t able to get the next two books from the library, so I went ahead and ordered them from Abe Books. I can’t wait for them to get here!
(Oh, and they are not at all a Harry Potter knock off. Yeah, there are wizards, and the books are written for kids, but that’s about where the similarity ends.)
Thoughts
An old friend emailed me this morning, complaining that her husband was laid off and is sitting at home, refusing to apply for jobs. She’s filling out and turning in applications for him. My first reaction was, “How nice that a grown-ass adult found a mommy to take care of him!” Her response was, “What do you expect, he’s a MAN!” Huh.
Now, she is about the least feminist woman on the planet, and she would be the first to say so. What struck me as funny is that feminists are supposedly the ones who hate men, and yet, here is a not-at-all feminist denigrating all men for being children, when I–the feminist–am telling her, “No, it’s not all men. Your husband is a spoiled baby, and you are enabling him. But that’s not the way men behave. It’s the way this man behaves, and he does so because you aid and abet him.”
And I’m the man-hater?
Hypocrites and Liars
This pisses me off royally. It doesn’t surprise me, though.
Via a Facebook contact, from Politico: RNC insurance covers abortions.
Federal Election Commission Records show the RNC purchases its insurance from Cigna. Two sales agents for the company said that the RNC’s policy covers elective abortion.
[…]
According to several Cigna employees, the insurer offers its customers the opportunity to opt out of abortion coverage – and the RNC did not choose to opt out.
Yeah, that’s right, the folks who want to bar insurance companies from covering abortion (and most other medical procedures necessary to keep women healthy), are totally okay with making it available to their own people. And while they say it was an oversight and that they didn’t realize elective abortion was covered by their plan, I do not believe them.
The Asstrumpet of the Day Award Goes to…
…Chris Brown, who thinks ex-girlfriend Rihanna should not talk publicly about how, exactly, he he beat the ever-loving crap out of her. Double-speak aside (what the hell does “I respect her right to discuss…” mean when followed by “…all of the details should remain a private matter…”?), if you beat up your partner, you forfeit the right to expect them to keep quiet about all the unflattering-to-you details of your colossal assholery.
From the Chicago Sun Times (emphasis mine):
“While I respect Rihanna’s right to discuss the specific events of Feb. 8, I maintain my position that all of the details should remain a private matter between us,” he said.
Basically, he’s saying that abused women should keep their mouths shut.
Lies
Please remind me why I bothered to vote for these spineless bozos? I’m sick to death of being threatened with the revocation of Roe v. Wade if Republicans regain power, when Democrats are willing to do the dirty work of stripping women of access to legal medical care themselves. It’s bad enough to be beaten with the stick, but when they start hitting us with the goddamn carrot, too, it starts to feel a little like Stockholm syndrome. And then they have the gall to demand that we keep voting for them? I don’t think so.
From the Democratic Party Platform:
Choice
The Democratic Party strongly and unequivocally supports Roe v. Wade and a woman’s right to choose a safe and legal abortion, regardless of ability to pay, and we oppose any and all efforts to weaken or undermine that right.
The Democratic Party also strongly supports access to comprehensive affordable family planning services and age-appropriate sex education which empower people to make informed choices and live healthy lives. We also recognize that such health care and education help reduce the number of unintended pregnancies and thereby also reduce the need for abortions.
The Democratic Party also strongly supports a woman’s decision to have a child by ensuring access to and availability of programs for pre- and post-natal health care, parenting skills, income support, and caring adoption programs.
Lies, lies, lies. It’s all lies.
red paper boat 