Wednesday, July 31, 2013

Two Heros for the Week

In my regular facebooking this week, two things were sent my way that really grabbed my attention. The first is a video of singer, artist, rock star, Amanda Palmer telling the Daily Mail, in song, exactly what she thinks of them. Click here for the link. It's NSFW and it's freakin' awesome!!! This is my introduction to Ms. Palmer but I will definitely be seeking out more of her music. So what happened was, she did a show at a festival in Glastonbury and the Daily Mail reviewed it. Except that the Daily Mail article didn't review her show or her music, they just reviewed her boob. Seems that her boob made an unexpected appearance at the show and this is what they chose to focus on. I love the way she totally takes them on. She really nails the issue - that most women in the public eye are not taken seriously for their art or politics or whatever contribution they make. Instead, they are assessed according to their bodies and their appearance. Ms. Palmer, I bow down both to your bravado and your talent.

The second things that caught my eye - and since it's been all over the web now, you've probably seen it - was a commercial made by a company called HelloFlo. HelloFlo sends women a care package of menstrual supplies exactly when they need it every month. They created this awesome commercial about a girl who became the Camp Gyno because of her comfort and knowledge of all things period related. Sure, it's hilarious but what strikes me about it is the direct approach. There is no blue liquid or short white shorts in this video. They call it what it is. They show actual packaged tampons and talk about cramps. No euphemisms, just what it is. How refreshing is that?

The idea behind HelloFlo is pretty brilliant but they don't ship to Canada. If you're looking for a period reminder service, download iPeriod. It's an app for iPhone that will keep track of your cycle and let you know when to expect your next one. It's easy and even kind of fun! The one thing to watch though is that the makers of iPeriod seem to think the rhythm method works. You will also get a reminder of when your fertile time is. This will not be correct! It's based only on dates. IPeriod does let you make any notes you want so you if you are charting your cycle, you can use it to keep track of your temperature, cervical mucous, and other such things. It just won't collect that for you and tell you when you are really ovulating.

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