labor of love: a midwife's memoir

by cara muhlhahn

now that i am sincerely considering midwifery
i get mixed responses
some people are awed
while others are saying
why in god's name would you do something like that
( why wouldn't i?! )

after reading this memoir
i realize that these two responses
will never go away
if i should ever trek down the midwifery road
and i'm okay with that

cara is an uber cool person
that had a fascinating childhood
with a dab of an eating disorder
and a crazy but cool family that kept her grounded

she travelled all over the place
and has experienced home births in all of its glory

if i could meet this woman over sushi
i would be delighted
and i think we would talk for years

here are some highlights from her philosophy of home birth and life
that i find so intriguing:

she does not believe in god. but she knows god "in her own way".
"I deliver babies, save lives, experience and facilitate near miracles. It would be impossible to do the work I do and not become acutely aware of the presence of....something"
"I get the sense that some out of powerful "forces" out there provide order to this divine mess called life".

she also strongly believes that nature gave us all the tools we will ever need
and they are more reliable and trusting than man made creations. (i totally dig this point!)

i strongly reccomend this book to anyone who is skeptical of
the power and capability of women's bodies
(minus the electronic machines that tell us
how we should feel and when our baby will be ready to come out)

if you are not a reader....
here is a documentary that cara is in...!
check it out. RPL has both!

it took:

several papers
one annoying professor
who was uncomfortable
with the dreaded f word
many distractions
many cuddles with cuddles
many thoughts about watching the l word
one fabulous memoir of a very interesting woman
one forced comparison between racist children and lesbians
numerous tall lattes
one soy ice cream sundae
one soy ice cream milkshake
many skipped meals
too many forgotten glasses of water

but i am done finals!
and now i am blowing this popsicle stand for a week

peace out!

earthlings

i just finished a paper on
this woman: starhawk



starhawk is a complicated, yet uber cool, woman
she is wiccan
she is an ecofeminist
and she is an activist

and i want to share one of her ideas:
immanence

aka interconnection
aka we are all one
aka be nice to each other and all organisms you meet

starhawk realizes that it is a problem
when we assume that the prostitute
has nothing to do with us
or we assume that the war in the global south
also has nothing to do with us
this is a problem.
because. it very much so has something to do with us.
(of course there is plenty of political ties to this)

earthlings takes this spin as well
(we are all inhabitants of the earth and all share a vital connection based on this)
and i think that this is a really important concept


i fear that people will refuse to consider it
because, as cynthia enloe would say, "curiosity takes energy"
and as my WGST 280 class would say, "people would rather sit on a couch all night taking in pointless television then become aware of harsh issues locally and globally".
once we know....it becomes impossible to not act.

as consumers
we need to be accountable
know where your clothes come from
know where your food comes from
know where your cosmetics come from
you have the right to know.
and you also have the right to refuse.
remember this always


in light of the documentary
i will be posting more ferociously on veganism
please bare in mind that i am NOT a full vegan
(although i am certainly working towards it)
this is not preaching
this is simply sharing information
in hopes that you and i will start to think more about our daily actions

for now
just think really hard about what you eat
and why you eat it
is it the price?
is it the quality?
is it the ideology that comes with the product? (ie. expensive food = a rich person = a respectable person or men=masculine=eating meat)
and more importantly
think about whether or not you would eat it
if you knew where it came from
if you were present for the butchering




"Remember this. We be many and they be few. They need us more than we need them. Another world is not only possible, she is on her way. On a quiet day, I can hear her breathing"
- Arundhati Roy

what a concept!

thank you.
for this commercial that is basically saying:
"if you are not privileged...don't have kids"

i'm torn between whether this is an abstinence-only thing
or a white supremacist thing
i think it may be both
which makes me really upset

i greatly dislike how this commercial
completely and totally overlooks
rape, unplanned pregnancies due to high cost of/low accessibility to birth control,
and the renewal of abstinence-only education funds (assisting young people in unprotected sex...condom...what is that?)
either way
what a nice little concept to spread about the community
team palin is always putting out such wonderful, respectful things
ok.must.stop.lying.





this is an epic fail.

e-empowerment?

the other day
a smart little man
told me
that within the next 20 years
media will die

TVs, newspapers, magazines, etc
will die.
all we will have, my dear friends.
is the Internet.
scary? hell yes.

so. really.
what this is...
is a call to all of you
to get familiar with blogging
because one day
that may be the only way to share your voice

also.
if you disagree with me.
or something i am saying.
say it.
(i fixed the problem...you can all comment now)
it is important that we argue about political things on here.
that is what is for.

so do it.
OK?

women and gender studies?

summer is near
and job offers are nowhere

i often wonder
what the hell i am doing
i am knee high in papers
i have not seen my desk in months
(it is buried under
articles, pamphlets and books...
oh, the books)
i am trying to reread the same sentence 5 times over
because it is that radical
to my poor over-worked mind
the dog is drinking out of the toilet (again)
i want nothing more than a cookie and a soy latte
but i am confined
to these damn academics who will not stop
shouting stereotypes at me.

i almost blame myself
who picks a degree in
women's and gender studies?
it's highly misunderstood
and yet.
i hear the news of yet another missing aboriginal woman
i hear the news of a lesbian being excluded from her high school prom
i hear the news that abstinence-only education has just been re-funded
i hear the news that abortions are becoming harder and harder to get
i read the story of a woman who has been brutally beaten by her husband
since the day they married
but she is stuck
it must be her fault.
or so the system would have you believe.

and then i wonder....
who the hell wouldn't pick a degree in women's and gender studies?

frustration? yes.
determination? always.
confusion? around the clock.
clarity? pending.

did i mention

that i freakin ADORE this woman?

im sure it has come up

here are some ear and eye goodies:

please devour

erykah badu

"http://www.erykahbadu.com/"

she strips.
right down to the nitty gritty in her new video.
window seat.
amazing.

(she did get charged for this, by the way)

watch and ponder.
what is the big deal?

think about it.

my little red book

by rachel kauder nalebuff

this is a great little book
talking about .
you guessed it
menstruation!

a collection of women
who share their experiences
with menarche
(such a cool idea!)
there is a wide array of ages and cultures, too
which makes for an even better read

there are some women who
were raised in conservative households
and were utterly ashamed
(and managed to hide it for quite some time)
and some who were born in awesomely open families
who got gifts, words of wisdom and parties in their honour

ah, menarche
what a great start to womanhood!

enjoy!

so lovely

http://www.feministing.com/


feminist or not
please read
this speaks quite loudly
even if you don't care to listen