Back Up Your Birth Control Campaign

I believe in the truth. I believe in action. I very much want to participate in this campaign.

• The Emergency Contraception pill (a.k.a. Plan B or the morning after pill) is a higher dose version of the regular birth control pill. The primary use of the pill is to back up unprotected sex (which you should try very hard not to have due to STDs) or condom failure.
• If the pill is taken within five days of conception it can reduce the possibility of pregnancy.
• Emergency Contraception pill is not an abortion pill. It can't stop a conception/pregnancy in progress.
• The Emergency Contraception pill is available without prescription.
  
• If you are a women over 18 years of age all you need is the cash, a governmental identification card and a pharmacy. In Alaska, California, Hawaii, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Massachusetts, Maine, Vermont and Washington State you don't need the identification card.
  
• If you are a young woman under 18 years of age you will need a prescription from a doctor/health care provider. For teen based info visit http://www.ineedec.info
  

Source: http://www.backupyourbirthcontrol.org/ec/index.htm also The American Women's Medical Association and the Center for Reproductive Rights.

The pharmacy part may be the most difficult. Major stores like WalMart pharmacies will not stock the pill. You might also find resistance from some independent pharmacists.

There are those pharmacists who do to their religious faith believe that anything that prevents the egg and sperm from joining is a form of abortion. They will not sell you EC/Plan B and may try to either talk you out of your purchase or delay as long as possible in giving you the medication.

It may not be the pharmacist. It could be the pharmacy assistant or clerk in the office that is delaying processing the order.

Here is the deal. First don't have UN-protected sex. There are some nasty bugs out there you want nothing to do with. But if the bell rings or the condom breaks have your emergency pill supply stashed away. Have it before you need it.

If you have crossed over and menstruation is no longer an issue then buy it for the lady you might meet or hear about. Let us as informed women be active not re-active to our rights of choice. For our non-technical sisters there is a phone number to call 1-888-Not-2-Late or the Spanish version 1-888-En-Tres-Dias

BarCamp Los Angeles # 3

Just found out about this, it is also happening this weekend so if you don't want to waltz into the Victorian era you might take this opportunity to learn about podcasting, robots, mind mapping or a dozen other topics.

BarCamp is a two day inside camping opportunity to meet all sorts of folks who know really interesting things.

• Do you have to stay two days? Naw - stay for as short or long as you want.
• Do you have to be a nerd, geek or techno head in order to attend. N0, just have a willingness to be open to the possible.
  
• Are women folk welcomed? Absolutely!
  
• Is this an excuse to get blotto?

Eh, no. There may be beer present. There might be some Jolt cola. Perhaps some orange juice. This is more a fermentation of the mind kinda thing. Folks would be really jazzed if you brought food, trash bags or something to share with really nice carbon based units.

Did I mention that there is a possibility of learning how to create user generated comic books? For more info check out http://barcamp.org/BarcampLA-3

Social Daunce Irregulars - Dance Ball

If you need something to do on March 24, 2007 might I suggest a step back into a more genteel time? A time of manners, proscribed touching and above all else, the comfort of regimentation?

Some of you watch Masterpiece Theater and secretly wish for a time travel ticket. I understand, to each his/her own. I just don't know how to explain this. I kinda like the idea. If you can check out this short video shot by Rosanna Erlich and edited by Walter Nelson.

For more information on learning how to dance the old fashioned way or to find out when the next Victorian ball is occurring (so you can get your costume ahead of all the other cool kids) visit The Social Daunce Irregulars at http://victoriandance.org

How did I find out about this?

Pasadena has got stuff but you have to find who knows what before you can get to it. Most of the time I try to get my hands on the area free papers and magazines to find out the happenings around town.

Many of the free papers are slowly dumping the local activities to make room for ad space. In one case the out of town owners don't see a need for all of this community crap. I mention no names but if your local or alternative paper is owned by a company out of town and the events listings are drying up then you feel my pain.

Fear not, help is as close as your local library which in this cases is the Pasadena Library's Community Calendar. Honestly, there is no reason to be stuck at home any night of the week. Many of the function around town are low cost of free. I'll be sharing selected goodies that I find. To start the journey http://pasadenapubliclibrary.net or http://cityofpasadena.net/library

Coming of Age Again At Vromans Bookstore

Not only do we need mouthy women in our lives, (see the post below) but we need mentors and guides along the way to tell us it will be okay. That we still get to make our dreams happen and that we do matter in ways the world still isn't able to measure.

With the M$M focus on youth and incomplete women no wonder some women get goofy as they age. They don't know that there is more. And some of the more is really good stuff. Yep, the middle passage is full of new territory.



This is the 15.9MB Windows version

This is the 11.2MB QuickTime version

Kate Klimo and Buffy Shutt haven written a book about the multiplicity of changes women and some men folk go through as they plow up the north 40 of life. In this video the women explain how they came to write the book that they needed when they turned 50.

For more information visit http://www.comingofageagain.com or www.hbgusa.com

Special shout out to independent bookstores everywhere and especially Vroman's at
http://www.vromansbookstore.com or http://vromansbookstore.blogspot.com

Upcoming author events are Christopher Nyerges talking about how to survive anywhere on March 19th and Anne LaMott with her new book of essays Grace Eventually on March 28th.

In Praise of Mouthy Women

On page 2 of my college newspaper there was an article on a religious group that came to our campus and kicked up a fuss. The name of the group is called "Repent America". Now from what I am gathering about the group, solely based on the article, is that they speak out against "homosexuals, murderers/baby killers, money grubbers and mouthy women."

Huh? Mouthy Women?

Now perhaps the reporter got it wrong. Maybe there was too much noise or a misunderstanding of biblical proportions.

I go to the official website. There are two paths to enter, one for Christians and one for all others. Not wanting to take any chance of pissing off their deity more than I already have I elect to enter for all others.

After 15 minutes reading information on the site my understanding is that they are against homosexuality. They are against abortion. They are against evolution.

I didn't see any citation about mouthy women but seeing as how they don't believe in evolution and the amount of scripture I saw I would bet that they hold dear the concept of the "submissive woman."

I've heard this before. I recently saw an excerpt from a male talk show on TV One. One of the participants said that he would not date or marry a black woman or any American woman. The primary reason? They talk back.

http://www.tvoneonline.com/screeningroom/player_blackmenrevealed.htm

Yeah, so what this got to do with me?

First of all, it is Women's History Month. Women's History Month is filled with mouthy women. Some of these women's mouths changed this world for the better.

Rosa Parks was a mouthy woman. She said, "No".

That old lady down the street around the corner that nobody messes with is a mouthy women. Every female blogger be she a liberal or conservative is a mouthy woman. We have ideas. We express them without permission in a multitude of ways.

So it seems to me that to qualify for a mouthy woman all you got to do is use your voice. Even if you don't say a mumbling word. There are mouthy women who are silent but their action speak volumes.

Are there mouthy women who misuse the gift of speech? Yes. Would I want that woman's speech suppressed because I abhor what she has to say? No. Freedom of speech must apply to all or it has no meaning.

This is our time. Even in our silence we must speak up.

Things you should know and places to go:

http://www.nwhp.org
http://www.history.com/minisites/womenhist
http://womenshistory.about.com
http://www.infoplease.com/spot/womensintro1.html
http://www.defenselink.mil/specials/womenshistory

So Cal Women Artists At Barnsdall

Some times you gotta yield to the impossible. Or life doesn't always follow your magnificent will power. This is not the same as affirming your higher good.

Naw, this is I've been trying to edit this dad gummed video for one whole week and it ain't happening. Mainly cuz I didn't feel engaged. I didn't find the linking thread to make a story.

Yeah, I know. Start at the beginning. Barnsdall Gallery was having a show of Southern California Women Artists 1980-2006. There was a reception. It was Sunday. It was free. I had the time so I went.

Most of the art events happen on the other side of town. Way on the other side of town near the Los Angeles Museum of Art, or the Getty or at a gallery that sells art. The first and only time I walked into that that type of galley I was snubbed. The eyeballed kind. Never again in this life will I walk into that type of galley.

I love art. Women art, Men art, computer generated it is good stuff. But I was frustrated that I wasn't shooting art correctly. And even though Barnsdall is a municipal gallery I was still feeling the twitchies. Any moment I had this feeling who let the impostor in the door.

So this is my introduction. With photos. If I'm able to carve out some video fine but I do want to share with you what women artists are doing. What they have done. Humor, as you can see from the above photo is definitely a part of the process.

I'm hoping to do better. I'm going to try to make it to the Pasadena Art Night. That should be fun. You hop on a shuttle bus and visit the various art joints in the downtown Pasadena area. Drive by culture. I'll work on my attitude and that dad gummed video later.

P.S. There are/were excellent works of art at Barnsdall. The show runs between February 25 to April 15th. There is free admission on opening reception days and the first Friday of the month.

Art and Music - When Sculptures Dance

It doesn't happen as often as it should. There are times when I feel alone in a crowd.

This is the 3.8MB Windows Video version

This is the 9.8 QuickTime Video Version

I found myself in a different place and time. There is a moment where I can shift my vision and experience something special. This is one of those moments.

If nothing else grove on the music. But if you can, shift. Let you ears hear the drum line only or follow the bass with a kiss of the wind. Go someplace you haven't been before.