The Happy Feminist

STILL HERE, STILL THINKING OF YOU

Obviously, it is still taking me some time to work out my blog-life balance. At the moment, I am on vacation in sunny Los Angeles for my annual visit to my grandmother. Last week was torture as I frantically tried to tie up numerous loose ends. Even when I stayed up all night (twice last week!) I felt rushed, rushed, rushed doing my work.

I will definitely be back to regular posting on Monday April 16, although I may try to steal a chance to post before then. Meanwhile, thank you all for your patience. I have a few new links to add to the blogroll -- and will do that ASAP on Monday at the latest. So if I have promised you a link, please bear with me until then.

I did some feminist reading on the plane finishing the very odd thesis-less but very entertaining ramblings of Elizabeth Wurtzel's book, Bitch: In Praise of Difficult Women. On the way back, I hope to finally read The Handmaid's Tale, a gap in my reading for which Mythago reprimanded me a while back.

You can use this post as an open thread if you like. Meanwhile, I can't wait to get back to chatting with you all regularly.

NOOOOO -- I'M NOT DEAD.

But I am guilty of Blog Abandonment in the First Degree.   I can't tell you how terrible I feel that I have caused people to suffer concern for my well-being and how terrible I feel for welching on my blog obligations.

It wasn't intentional -- nor was it personal. I miss all my blog friends terribly.  I hope I can work on reconnecting and getting this blog back up to snuff. My plan is to go through all my unread emails this weekend as well as the unread comments,  catch up on what I've missed in the blogosphere and then start posting again next week. Hope this place hasn't turned into a major porn spam dumping ground. 

Again my abandonment wasn't intentional -- life just kind of blew up on me last November and December between my boss becoming permanently disabled with a severe brain injury, relatives dying, me being seriously ill and lots of other stuff.  Between one thing and another, I somehow didn't get around to posting for several weeks despite every intention of throwing something up on htis blog.  Then come New Year, I procrastinated about getting back on the blog because I am still crazybusy at work trying to make up for my boss's absence and I am not sure how to fit blogging into my life anymore.  But I know I desperately want to find a way to make it work.

Again, my sincere apologies for disappearing.  I will be back, probably next week.

I'M BACK

Didja miss me?  Sorry for the lack of posting.  After a week of frantically trying to catch up on work, I hoped to be back to my normal bloggy self this weekend.

But alas-- a work colleague of mine had a major medical emergency.  So I spent the weekend and today visiting the hospital and figuring out what is going on with his caseload.

I have another post mostly written that should go up tomorrow, in case you are waiting on the edge of your seats for the Happy Feminist. 

NEW LINKS ON THE 'OL BLOGROLL

Ahem. I am a little nervous that when I share the list of new links I have added to my blogroll, you will think I am engaging in some form of tokenism. The majority of new blogs I am adding are blogs by women of color.  The fact is, however, that through burqa-gate (in which women of color bloggers led the charge in criticizing western women's use of the burqa as a symbol to make a point about western women), I have become acquainted with and have started reading a number of blogs with which I was unacquainted before and which are written by women of color (with the exception of Pseudo-Adrienne whom I have read a lot before and seeing her on Brownfemipower's blogroll reminded me that I have been meaning to add her).  In addition to those, I have discovered some African women's blogs that were new to me through the First Carnival of African Women.  I have assumed, rightly I hope, that all of these new blogs can be characterized as pro-feminist, so they are in that category in the sidebar.

In the past, I have been colorblind but passive about my blogroll, primarily adding people who found me, rather than seeking out new blogs to read.  The result has been a mostly lily-white blogroll! One thing I learned through burqa-gate though is that women of color, by virtue of their experiences as women of color (who may include both western and non-western women), often have a quite different view of feminism than mainstream white feminists.  For example, there are ways in which white feminists often seek to relate the experiences of women of color back to the experiences of white women.  Women of color, however, often disagree sharply with the ways in which white feminists seek to find commonalities of experience across the board.  This is an issue to which I cannot do justice in this short post, but it is one example of how white feminists sometimes tend to make assumptions that are not shared by non-white feminists.  Another issue is the fact that white feminist tend to focus only on gender issues in ways that may seem to bulldoze over other issues of racism, poverty, and cultural  bigotry.   While the new blogs I am adding are blogs I admire and which I found rather naturally and which are part of my regular reading, I also believe that diversity rather than colorblindness is also important in the context of feminist blogging.

I am very much looking forward to learning from these bloggers and, with any luck, understanding a little bit better the ways in which my own feminism vould stand to broadened.  I have written previously regarding my approach to race issues on this blog, but I think I could stand to be a little bit more intentional about exploring these issues and stepping outside my zone of comfort and insularity. 

Anyhoo, without further ado, the links added to the sidebar, include:  African Women's Blogs, Brownfemipower, Blackademic, Black Looks, Black Feminism, Emanga's POV, Feminish, Feminists at Brandeis, the Gimp Parade, and Pseudo-Adrienne.  I'd add  Black Amazon but I can't seem to find her at the moment.

I am feeling the desire to get to know the blogs of everyone who reads here, although it's a bit daunting as more than 200 blogs link here. Mickle's and Roula's blogs are next on my list to explore.  I am not really sure how to manage my blogroll as it  keeps getting larger, but we'll take it one step at a time. 

HANDS AROUND THE HAPPY FEMINIST WORLD

In celebration of the one year blogiversary of the Happy Feminist, please do sign onto The Happy Feminist Frappr Map, if you haven't already.  (I first put it up at the 6 month mark.)  It mainly functions to give me a boost and take me to my happy (happier) place.  International readers can use the arrow keys on your keyboard to move the map over to Europe and Africa and Asia and Australia.

ONE WHOLE YEAR OF HAPPY FEMINISM!!

It was exactly one year ago today that I said to myself, "What the hell . . . might as well start a blog." The joys of blogging have far exceeded my expectations, thanks to all of you who read and comment and say nice things and correct me and argue and get on my nerves! 

Here are some blog milestones from the past year:

-- I decide to stop bugging Crystal at Biblical Womanhood and just start my own blog. Here is my very first post. 

-- Alice was the very first commenter here, followed soon after by Crystal, Jessica, and Bmmg39.  Bmmg39 enjoys the distinction of having been the only person to write a guest post on this blog. 

-- I sponsored a contest, also announced at Stay of Execution, to help me come up with a tag line.  Anthony of Bizzbangbuzz came up with the entry ("Legal, Liberated, and Loving It") that was most popular with the readers (and with me).  Other great suggestions included, "The Happy Feminist . . . not an oxymoron," "If you're happy and you know it, start a blog," and "Happy, happy, joy, joy."

--  I begin posting pictures of this little guy, who immediately commands worldwide popularity (or is it, pupularity?)

-- Last December, I hosted The Fourth Carnival of Feminists, which was a great way to explore the feminist blogosphere further and to get my name out there as well.  I owe Natalie, the Carnival founder,  a debt of gratitude for starting the carnival as well as all her guidance and help in hosting.

-- Later on, Chalice Chick discovered me and introduced me to the Unitarian-Universalist blogosphere  (and the UU blogosphere to me) via UUpdates.  I was also excited to participate in the UU Blog Awards (although I haven't quite been able to figure out how to put my award symbol up on my sidebar).

-- I have also had a lot of moments that have rendered me starstruck, as when Amanda started linking to me from time to time (I'd been reading and loving her stuff since her starter blog at Mouse Words, though I didn't generally comment), as well as links from a lot of other bloggers I had admired from way back when I was just a blog-reader.

-- This is the 555th post to this blog.  As of this writing, there are are 9,350 comments (many of which are mine).

I am so glad to have an outlet besides yelling at James Dobson on my car radio and to have made connections with people around the country and the world.  On the best days, it feels like I am somehow managing to yell at James Dobson and give the whole world a hug at the same time.

250-WORD COMMENT LIMIT SUSPENDED

Hey folks.  You may have noticed that I haven't been asking people lately to limit their comment length.  I decided a while back that as of October 1, I would announce suspension of the 250-word comment limit.  That magical day is here. 

Nonetheless, I would ask that people not print treatises in my comments section like Tango Man used to.  If you really want to get your point across, you are more likely to be effective with a more succinct comment.  And I reserve the right to re-institute a comment limit or to exhort individual commenters to try to keep it short.

By the way, this doesn't mean I am not still irritated at the people who pissed-and-moaned incessantly about the comment limit. (You know who you are.)   

I have also long-ago stopped enforcing the "no swearing" rule.  Apologies to my conservative Christian readers, who are always welcome here, but sometimes salty language is the best way to express one's point.  I would ask people to keep that kind of language to a minimum but if you feel you need to be blunt, I won't complain.

 

HAPPY FEMINIST DE-BANS GRUMPY OLD MAN

Although my original banning of old duffer David Duff was unquestionably justified, I am going to exercise my total power over this small realm by de-banning him.  They don't call me HF the Benevolent (or HF the Idiot) for nothing. 

Why would I do such a thing, you may ask?  First, I am not that into banning people.  Second, Duff and I exchanged some emails a few days ago that made me laugh.  Third, he has graciously given me permission to tell him (or any other snotty Englishman) he's a prick if he pulls the, "You Yanks don't understand irony" card.

I have no idea if he'll be back, and he'll probably get himself banned again if he does come back, but for now, what the hey.  Maybe we'll get him marching in a "This is What a Feminist Looks Like" t-shirt along with Richard yet. 

STRESSED OUT

Hmmm . . . I seem to have way to much to do this week and to little time to do it.  I've got lots of things on my mind -- abortion as sex selection in India, Dr. Laura Schlessinger, why Linda Hirshman should court stay-at-home-moms, women soldiers who go AWOL due to sexual harassment, how I almost became a conservative during my misguided youth, why philosophy is one of the most important fields of study (I've been meaning to write this post since I started blogging), and numerous other passing ideas. 

It's going to be a crap shoot as to whether I have any time to blog before the weekend (or whether I will actually get around to addressing all of these topics).  Meanwhile, don't go away for too long.  As Arnie says, I'll be back. 

UPDATED BLOGROLL

Finally, after mucho procrastination, I've updated my blogroll.  So I have gotten rid of bad links (I have been distressed for a while that Feminist African Sister seems to have been replaced by a site advertising porn) and updated the URLs that have changed like Philobiblon's and Mythago's.

I've also added a bunch of feminist blogs like Echidne (whom I have been reading forever), Bitch Lab, Punkass Blog, Mean Feminism, Say Something, Sister, Lucky White Girl, Shawna Atteberry and Our Bodies Ourselves. 

New Unitarian blogs include Joel Monka, Philocrites, and Peacebang, although I regularly read a number of other Unitarian sites through UUpdates.

And then under Lefty Blogs, there is Straight Not Narrow, a blog promoting GLBT equality in Christianity and Politics. 

And finally, towards the bottom, in keeping with one of my new interests, there is a blog called What Makes Narcissists Tick. 

It is very hit or miss which blogs grab my attention, so if yours has been overlooked, please be patient.  So many great blogs to read, so little time!