Women, amirite?

February 5, 2016February 5, 2016Leave a comment

It intrigues me when people imply that women are weak or unsuited for *insert job here* because they get periods. Dude, we gush blood every month, have sometimes debilitating abdominal cramps, and just generally feel like crap, but we still get up and go to work and get shit done. Oh, and there’s also that bit where some women push tiny humans out of their bodies, which while not something I’d ever want to do, is still pretty freaking amazing.

So, yeah. It kind of pisses me off that “don’t be such a girl” is an expression meaning, “Don’t be so weak.” Girls are freaking TOUGH, man.

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…this post may or may not have been inspired by the fact that my uterus is trying to kill me today. Wheeee~~~

/very important post #897

If you’re sick and you know it, put your head gently down on the desk and sigh

January 29, 2016June 8, 20161 Comment

It’s been a rough freaking week, you guys.

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Migraines, lack of sleep, a rebelling stomach, and general feeling-awful-all-over has led to some decidedly unpleasant days at work, though I find it encouraging that I’ve managed to make it to Friday morning without once vomiting all over my keyboard. Small victories, my friends. Small victories. Continue reading →

Sugar and spice and a nice, satisfying scream of frustration and rage

January 7, 2016January 7, 2016Leave a comment

Today, on Things That Make Me Want To Scream:

Little girls are encouraged to like certain toys and certain colors, behave a certain way, and enjoy certain activities.
Little boys are encouraged to like certain toys and certain colors, behave a certain way, and enjoy certain activities.
Little girls who stray too far in the “boyish” direction receive a small to medium amount of disapproval, and are lavishly praised when they do anything more traditionally feminine.
Little boys who stray too far in the “girlish” direction receive a great heaping crap-mountain of disapproval, and are told again and again to “act like a man” or not “be such a girl.” (Being a girl in this case = being weak, silly, emotional, shameful, etc.)
Unsurprisingly, assaulting children with a massive barrage of operant conditioning (positive reinforcement for behaving “correctly,” negative reinforcement for behaving “incorrectly”) leads them to feel pressured to fall in line, and to accept that “this is what a girl is,” and “this is what a boy is.”
Idiot People then look at this result and say, “See? Boys and girls are so DIFFERENT. They just naturally gravitate towards different interests.”

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This has been today’s edition of Things That Make Me Want To Scream. Thank you for your attention, and have a pleasant day.

Which concerns my LGBT fantasy epic

January 6, 2016Leave a comment

I thought I’d mosey on over to the blogosphere with some updates, as I find myself with a startling surplus of both time and brain cells this morning. I’m sure this is a condition too beautiful to last, so let’s get right to the updates before I return to my usual state of Morning Pudding-Brain.

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First off, my thrilling revamp of Book I of Chosen continues, and is actually going surprisingly well. There’s still a vast gap of nothingness where three or four vital middle chapters should go, but I’m very much enjoying adding in setting and culture details and doing everything I can to diversify and gay-ify the Chosen world. Continue reading →

Ruminations on male/female interactions

June 22, 2015June 23, 2015Leave a comment

It’s always fascinated me how difficult it is to convince a guy who’s hitting on you that you’re not, in fact, interested. Continue reading →

In which I break up with Japan

June 17, 2015December 26, 2015Leave a comment

Shortly after writing my recent post about the couture-related challenges of being gender fluid, The Author vs. Clothing, I was inspired to go to the thrift store and pick up some dirt-cheap articles of clothing to suit my less feminine days, which turned out to be a very good decision.

And I also did one more thing.

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I finally cut my hair.

Just to be clear, I didn’t get my hair cut – I cut it my damn self, armed with nothing but dull scissors, my bathroom mirror, and the knowledge that I can’t even cut paper in a straight line. And yeah, it was as much of a disaster as you’re probably imagining.

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But really, it’s Pride Month, so who wants a perfectly straight haircut anyway? Continue reading →

Thoughts on Star Trek: The Original Series

June 16, 2015June 16, 2015Leave a comment

So, as I mentioned before, I’ve recently been working my way through Star Trek: The Original Series, which despite my all-around nerdiness and love of sci-fi, I’d somehow never seen before.

I know. Madness.

I’ve been very much enjoying the series (when not raging about its hilariously awful treatment of women), and have been compiling my thoughts and reactions while working my way from episode to episode. I offer them to you now, because otherwise, I have no idea what to post about.

Let’s boldly go…to my random comments on a classic science fiction series full of bad props, hilarious overacting, and rampant sexism. ENGAGE!

Continue reading →

T.J. Baer

Writer, doodler, teacher, nerd

Category: Feminism