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Blog Feed: Opinions on the World by 30 Different 30-Somethings

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Best of 30POV: It’s NOT so gay

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"Most Give me liberty or give me Death-ish Post" I wanted to give Bestie #26 a "most politically correct" or "most LGBT-friendly" award, but--honestly--I think our site is fairly non-offensive, at least in that respect.  In fact, we often forget th

Best of 30POV: Reality Resume

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"Most Surprising Consequences" Many of us have knowingly written about things we probably shouldn't, and many of us have boldly written about things other people probably wouldn't.  But I think Bestie #25 {may} be the only post that should've been

Best of 30POV: Open Love Letter to My Daughter

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"Best Use of Sentimentality" (Though, this is obviously a 40-something trait...) Open Love Letter to My Daughter* I recently hit a milestone in my life, aside from turning forty last January, my wife and I had a child on June 9th. She is a beautiful,

Best of 30POV: Messages from the Dark

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"Best Use of Poetry as a Coping Mechanism" Actually, all of Fent's posts would qualify for that award. But this one is my favorite. Messages from the Dark* On my honour, I must maintain; Chasing the sunset, under dusk’s reddened clouds, long into

Best of 30POV: Thinking Green gives me the Blues

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"Best Job Convincing Us to Go Green" It came as no surprise that many of us used the first theme, Green Ethics, to show off our powers of wit and deconstruction.  Bestie #17, however, introduced us to the writer that would quickly become known for

Best of 30POV: Genoa Delinquency…

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"Best/Most {F}ucked Up Criminal Activity Post" Technically, this isn't DimpinD's most popular post; however, out of all the confessions this site has hosted, stealing deli meat has got to be one of the best.  Certainly, it's my favorite. Genoa Deli

Best of 30POV: Up to No Good: Greatest Hits, Vol. 1

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"Best Surprise Sellout" I don't think any of us really knew the possibility in vulgarity until Bestie #22, an instant sellout, emerged on the scene.  Neither did we know what a bad, bad boy Poop was. (Okay, that's part a lie. We knew. And apparentl

Best of 30POV: Tick-Stop

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"Best Deconstruction of Gender Norms" For those of you who expect childless thirty-somethings to be in the "Sure, I want to have kids some day" boat, I offer up: Bestie #21. Tick-Stop, a.k.a. I Broke My Biological Clock Writing This* Although I have

Best of 30POV: The Trillion Dollar Con Game, or I’ll See You in Hell, Mr. Banker

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"Best Rage-Inducing Post" We like to laugh around here at 30POV.  But some things, just aren't funny. The Trillion Dollar Con Game, or I'll See You in Hell, Mr. Banker* Few topics incite such strong opinions as the “Great Bailout” of 2008.  Th

Best of 30POV: Up to No Good: Greatest Hits, Vol. 1

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"Best Surprise Sellout" I don't think any of us really knew the possibility in vulgarity until Bestie #22, an instant sellout, emerged on the scene.  Neither did we know what a bad, bad boy Poop was. (Okay, that's part a lie. We knew. And apparentl

Best of 30POV: Tick-Stop

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"Best Deconstruction of Gender Norms" For those of you who expect childless thirty-somethings to be in the "Sure, I want to have kids some day" boat, I offer up: Bestie #21. Tick-Stop, a.k.a. I Broke My Biological Clock Writing This* Although I have

Best of 30POV: Genoa Delinquency…

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"Best/Most {F}ucked Up Criminal Activity Post" Technically, this isn't DimpinD's most popular post; however, out of all the confessions this site has hosted, stealing deli meat has got to be one of the best.  Certainly, it's my favorite. Genoa Delin

Best of 30POV: Messages from the Dark

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"Best Use of Poetry as a Coping Mechanism" Actually, all of Fent's posts would qualify for that award. But this one is my favorite. Messages from the Dark* On my honour, I must maintain; Chasing the sunset, under dusk’s reddened clouds, long into

Best of 30POV: To emerge. To spread my wings to the sun. To fly.

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"Best Turning of Tragedy into Victory" Often, Labtechgoddess' posts fly under the radar, but not Bestie #18.  It flew straight up and into our faces. To emerge. To spread my wings to the sun. To fly.* As I lay on the table, watching my sister begin

Best of 30POV: Man on the Mountain

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"Best Going for the Gold" Thanks to Pual's typical, refreshingly pragmatic fashion, Bestie #15 avoids the psychoanalysis/self-awareness most of us gravitate towards when a dysfunction-ridden theme such as Gender comes along. Man on the Mountain* Ca

Best of 30POV: Lady of the Lake

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"Best Shoving our Faces in Diversity" As you may or may not know, 30POV is supposed to represent different points of view. You may also know how hard it is to keep republicans on this site. With Bestie #16, Susan's first post, we were reminded (read:

Best of 30POV: Thinking Green gives me the Blues

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"Best Job Convincing Us to Go Green" It came as no surprise that many of us used the first theme, Green Ethics, to show off our powers of wit and deconstruction.  Bestie #17, however, introduced us to the writer that would quickly become known for

Best of 30POV: Boys Will Be Boys

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"Best Throwing of One's Awesome Childhood in the Rest of our Faces" Bestie 14 showcases Owen's talent of captivating the reader with...oh never mind that BS. He's a total showoff. Boys Will Be Boys* Couple of memories… When I was 12 and my brother,

Best of 30POV: My Son, the Jihadist

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"Most Poignant Piece" In our 11th Bestie, BB222 challenged us to re-evaluate our assumptions, about parenting, politics and--most importantly--peace. My Son, the Jihadist* “I have become a Somali you could say,” he wrote in the December e-mail m

Best of 30POV: So Far Around the Bend

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"Best Sobering Up to Write a Great Review of Being Drunk" Bestie-the-12th gave our resident rationalist the chance to let loose, both literally and figuratively {writing}. So Far Around the Bend* Title is borrowed from The National Part I – I’ll

Best of 30POV: In Your Own Little World

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"Best Use of the Pronoun You" It may not seem like much, but--trust me--it's high praise, coming from someone like me. In Your Own Little World* You pull the key out of the ignition and tap your left index finger on the steering wheel attempting to r

Best of 30POV: of significance to no one but me

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"Best Appeal to Our Emotions" Many of 30POV's best posts are passionate and personal, but none contain the raw humility of our Tenth Bestie: an example of the magic that happens when ethos and experience collide. of significance to no one but me* 197

Best of 30POV: “McSorley’s Old Ale House – Women Not Welcome”

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"Best Post that Makes Ya Glad You're in your 30s (and the 1930s)" Over the months, Christina has taught us a lot about history, but Bestie #9 is by far her most popular.  I think it's because we're so "modern" and all that. "McSorley's Old Alehouse

Best of 30POV: The Chemist

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"Best Post You Haven't Yet Read" For some reason, Bestie #8 didn't get a lot of hits or comments.  But consider it our sleeper in these awards because its lack of popularity doesn't correlate with a lack of talent, interest, or damngoodedness.  Bes

Best of 30POV: Six Seasons with Reasons Why One Ain’t So Bad a Number to Do

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"Best Personal Explanation of an all-too Universal Feeling" Since the beginning of Thirty Points of View, EmmyEm has been keeping us entertained with her singleton stories, and Bestie #7 is no exception (in fact, it's the best--duh!!!).  For some r

Best of 30POV: I’m Strictly a Female Female

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"Best Blog with the Most Southern Charm" I'm Strictly a Female Female* I've always loved big, froofy, extravagant gowns. Frilly, sparkly, shimmery...full, sweeping, dramatic. You name it, if it's evening wear, I'm like a pyro at a fireworks stand. Br

Best of 30POV: Mamas, Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Serial Killers

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"Best Use of Psychobabble to {Defend} Questionable Parenting Practices" Bestie #5 comes from yours truly.  That's probably all I should say. Mamas, Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Serial Killers* Lately, I've become fascinated with serial killer

Best of 30POV: Listen.

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"Best/Longest Sentence Ever, or Worst Use of Accepted English Punctuation Rules" Bestie #3 showed us that the hardest thing to listen to is sometimes your own voice, particularly when that voice rambles at Ulysses speed, uses scary-BIG words, and als

30POV Best Of: Quantum Bananas & Cherry Pi

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"Best Combination of Popular Culture with Quantum Nerdiness" Today's Bestie (#4) demonstrates the power of conjunctive thinking.  Not something I'd recommend for the average writer, but Kail always manages to turn the most impossible of posts into p

Best Of 30POV: The Honorable Ken Cosgrove

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"Best Moral Analysis of an Immoral (Amoral?) Character" Bestie #2 takes us back in time to a month when 30POV writers struggled to write honorably--something that doesn't naturally to most of us.  Lindirose, however, showed us that honor can be foun

Best Of 30POV: Sara With No H

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"Most Surprising Use of the F-Bomb" We start our BESTIES off with the writer who started us off for so many months, ATav.  Her posts were always surprising, often expletive, and, more often than not, set a bar that was way too high for anyone else

Four Fortunes

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1. My old man always knew that he was adopted.  As far as he was concerned, his adoptive parents were his parents.  For as long as I can remember, I too knew that he was adopted, and of course I considered his adoptive parents as nothing less than

The Power of Cooking

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by The Plain Simple Tailor As I approach the one year anniversary of my relocation to Wisconsin, I can’t help but look back at the ways my life has changed since I left my home state of Connecticut.  I’m engaged to be married, something I neve

Chicken Farm(Ville)

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Every day between 10 and 20 million people around the world log into Facebook to check in on their virtual crops and livestock on their FarmVille farm (http://statistics.allfacebook.com/applications/single/farmville/102452128776/DAU).  A fraction of

The Power of Cooking

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by The Plain Simple Tailor As I approach the one year anniversary of my relocation to Wisconsin, I can’t help but look back at the ways my life has changed since I left my home state of Connecticut.  I’m engaged to be married, something I neve

Welcome to Gobblechusetts

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Anyone who knows me can vouch for this statement: I love Massachusetts. Where outsiders say we're rude, I say we're fast-paced. Where some say Michael Jordan, I say Larry Bird. I challenge anyone to show me more diversity in landscape and natural set

Confessions of an Ex-Vegetarian

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I was never a big meat eater. I preferred chicken to beef – unless it came in the form of a deliciously charred hot dog. Because of that, I guess it didn’t come as much of a surprise to my mom when, at 18, I announced that I was becoming ...

Tastes like…… Horse?

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Image from Good.is The horse:  a beautiful and majestic creature.  Historically, also a tasty one.  They were a major food source for our ancient ancestors.  Humans did not domesticate the horse to ride it, but rather to serve it for dinner. 

Chicken McLife

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Chicken McNuggets are a constant in my life. What? They are. They hit the market in the early 1980s, only a few years after I was born. As far as I'm concerned, they've always been there. I actively dislike 99% of the McDonald's menu; the McNuggets a

For the Emotionally Constipated

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After the priest concluded the prayer service, my uncle--godfather and second of seven on my father's side, and doctor-- addressed the crowd in the chapel, "I believe Brian has a few words for you right now." I stood up, reached for the folded pie

…never had a chicken that tasted like this…

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As I took a bite, I knew something was wrong, and I removed it from my mouth with my fingers. Colour...spot on. Texture, close. Very close. Enough to give my mouth the uncanny valley effect. Strong enough to make me recoil. Flavour...wrong. So..

Faking the Foodie

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I am not a foodie. Although, I once had an internship at a cultural publication, where I wrote about various food events in town and thus pretended that I was a bona fide foodie. Foodie, I am not. Hungry, I am always. These two concepts are not nece

The Truth About Chicken

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"So everything comes down to packaging?" I asked, conscious of the shape of my words. "Exactly," said Mr. Savarin, nodding with his glass. "That's how capitalism works.  I can sell anything as long as it's packaged correctly. Doesn't matter if it's

Racing to the Finishing Line of Lonely Spinsterhood

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The world bombards us with cliches. Some ring more true than others. Walking through life without any sort of universally expected outcome of certain situations is nearly impossible unless we suffer from amnesia. Oh my god. Seriously? This is the

The No Beef-Shit Show

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I taught myself how to cook, and I take great pride in it. Just ask my husband.  I complain to him regularly about what a difficult and complex job it is to make a weekly meal plan, grocery list, and then go get the groceries from three different s

Back Door Man

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You men eat your dinner Eat your pork and beans I eat more chicken Than any man ever seen, yeah, yeah I'm a back door man, wha The men don't know But the little girls understand “What the hell is that chicken line about?” Rick asked, turning

MEAT! MEAT! It’s good for your heart!

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The following is a barely cohesive collection of somewhat random meat related thoughts. I am pretty sure I am addicted to meat. I love it. I love meat. Meaty meat meat meat meat. I feel that a meal without meat is little more than a retarded salad. I

Aby55

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I felt no pain as the skinny punk with a shaved head and twin fiber optic braids attached to dual cranial jacks passed a mono-filament wire through my left bicep but he certainly felt it when I flattened his nose with my fist.  The beefiest of the p

Feed me, starve me, love me.

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Food. When you hear or see this word what emotion is evoked? Do you think “fuel”, and remind yourself only two more hours until lunch, and how important your hearty, fiber, protein filled lunch will be to your evening run? Does it bring you ba

Last Words on Charlie Sheen

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In the wake of the devastating earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear disaster in Japan, news about Charlie Sheen's ongoing meltdown has understandably and necessarily been relegated to the background, to my relief and that of other thinking people. I actu

The Problem with Blind Faith

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In my experience, everyone who identifies themselves as an atheist tends to have some kind of negative experience with organized religion that makes the individual say “Forget it.” In my case there was no such epiphany. In fact, there was...absol

Molly Millions as Mary Magdalene

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A few years ago after a shitty day at work I hit the diviest bar in my little beach town and drank alone for awhile.  I started talking to this guy who was a private investigator.  Dude was a mess.  Kept disappearing into the bathroom and coming b

The Trillion Dollar Con Game, or I’ll See You in Hell, Mr. Banker

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Few topics incite such strong opinions as the “Great Bailout” of 2008.  The fear mongers say that we were mere hours away from ATM failure and you could almost see the soup lines starting to form. Anyway, that’s how they managed to shove it do

Fear And Loathing In Salt Lake City or How I Learned To Worry And Fear The Mormons

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Imagine, if you will, waking up in the morning, getting in your four-cylinder rental Subaru Outback, the World's SECOND sport utility wagon (lest we forget the tank of a vehicle that in 1980 AMC first produced called the Eagle) and flipping through t

What Would Mick Jagger Do?

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The Beatles or The Rolling Stones? The answer to that question can tell you a lot about a person. The Beatles were all love, hope, and positive spirituality. The Rolling Stones represent pain, loss, and temptation. The Beatles are “A Hard Day

Final words on the essence of Saintliness

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Contrary to popular thought, the truest of Saints, that is to say those selfless few who yearn only for the progress of mankind, move fleetingly on the killing fields of Revolution; swimming hard, against the shit and the blood, down the seasonal Riv

Native Values: Teaching the Sins of our Forefathers

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Teachers are supposed to be saints, but in the three short years I’ve been a professor, I’ve sinned plenty. Not caring enough, seeking revenge for shoddy work and showing preferential treatment are a few of my common transgressions. Though admi

Blood Money and the Quest for Meaning

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Idealism is for teenagers, 20somethings and suckers. At this rate, I’ll be 100 percent cynic by the time I hit 40. Down here in D.C., lots of people say they “want to make a difference.” I don’t buy it, and I’m not sure I ever did. But some

Sinners in the Hands of a Forgetful God

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I think I've learned something: going digging in my basement clutter is never a good idea if I'm pressed for time and don't feel like a nostalgia trip. I unearthed boxes of old junk from when I was a high school teacher, including a teachers' edition

I Want To Be A Saint

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Saint Owen (aka Saint Audoin) of Rouen is a saint who lived in the early 600s. By all accounts he was a good guy.  He was an outspoken opponent of simony, which seems like a good thing to be an opponent of.  Saint Owen is also described as a man ..

Prodigal Son

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"So Mr. B, when did you lose your virginity?" one of my more vocal students asked. How to answer this question smoothly? "OK, first off, inappropriate. Secondly, how does that relate to the ninth Commandment?" My Saturday mornings for the last three

Balor and Annwyn, Arianrhod and Druantia.

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Third time is a charm. I've been trying to write this for better then a month. Various things have come up, preventing me. Tonight, I vowed, it's getting done. No matter what. So my computer decides to have 2 major crashes after digging in for a c

History Lesson in >1000 Words “The Preacher and the Prostitutes”

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My friends all know I am obsessed with prostitution, especially nineteenth-century prostitution in New York.  So here is a quick history lesson on the Reverend John Robert McDowall (The Saint) and his efforts at reforming prostitutes (The Sinners) i

A Saint’s Just a Sinner Who Fell Down

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The title of this post comes from a track mixed in on The Can Can Sessions, a house mix spun over a decade ago in Chicago. The original song is a gospel song by Donnie McClurkin. I’d first hear this song back when I ate drugs and drank ...

I Am Not Legend, I’m Just Thirty-Seven

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As I write this, I am a part of a new group. No, not Iron Workers Union Local No. 7, or the Subway Sub Club, or the new rock superband Leary-Dokken-Casablancas, but a much broader one: The Late 30s. Not one to waste energy on matters I cannot control

“See ‘em again till the Fourth of July”

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1.  To Kill A Super Mutant In Fallout 3—the open-world role-playing game designed by the makers of the Elder Scrolls games—you begin as a child, learning and discovering what kind of person (and gameplay character) you are going to become.  U

Who has two thumbs and JUST GOT LAID!!?? (…off…)

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Remember how I always complain about how much I hate my job? And the people I work with? And the schedule, third shift, 11pm to 7 am? Well, three weeks ago, I got laid off. Laid off from the job I hated. I saw it coming. About a month before, a fri

Imagine

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Imagine this: You are on your honeymoon. St Louis. City of BBQ, river boats, and the Arch. A tourist mecca, but a place you’ve always loved to go. You have good memories, fond even, from this city. That time right before your parent’s divorc

His and Hers: Handicapped Style

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by The Plain Simple Tailor  Being part of a couple where both parties have diabilities can be interesting. The one thing I've found that I can point to is that it makes compromise and agreement between my fiance and myself much easier. This seems t

Love in the Time of Cholera…err…Bridezilla?

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To date there are approximately 5-10 reality televisions about…WEDDINGS. You have your Bridezilla, Say Yes to the Dress, Say Yes to The Dress {for big girls}, My Fair Wedding, a Wedding Story, For Better or For Worse, Whose Wedding is it Anyway,

Low Country Ladies

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For months, writing has been a challenge.  I’d been hoping for a revival.  It’s supposed to be easy now.  The big obstacles have been removed.  The things that were supposed to be what kept me from it are no longer around.  But still.  For

The Inner Lives of Young Afghan Women

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In 2009, I began working with the Afghan Women’s Writing Project.  Founded and directed by writer/journalist Masha Hamilton, the online project connects young Afghan women with writing mentors overseas.  For three weeks, I ran a small online clas

Gender Bender – A Game

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I came across this website that has “The Gender Guessing Game”. It is based on a test called “Turning Test for Intelligence” that was designed by Alan Turing in 1950. It was inspired by a thesis paper he wrote that claimed computers would one

Low Country Ladies

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For months, writing has been a challenge.  I’d been hoping for a revival.  It’s supposed to be easy now.  The big obstacles have been removed.  The things that were supposed to be what kept me from it are no longer around.  But still.  For

Tuesday Afternoon: N,N-Dimethyltryptamine (The negation of the need for sub-division by gender)

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This goddamn fly is hurtling around the room like a corporate learjet! It’s battering into walls for fuck sake! It’s as big as a crow! Christ, it may even be a crow! Which begs the question: where the fuck’s that buzzing coming from? It can

Man on the Mountain

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Capitulation came a few months before I hit 32. My girlfriend threw in the towel, so I moved into a small studio apartment. My bachelor pad was the sort of place where you’d find a fridge full of hot sauce, beer and Chinese food leftovers. One time

All the stars in the sky

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You'd think, after living and breathing gender issues and gender transition for the past eighteen months or so, that I'd have something useful to say about it. I feel like I can't, though. It's not that I haven't thought about it, or that I have abso

Boys Will Be Boys

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Couple of memories… When I was 12 and my brother, Luke, was 10, Dad was the coach of the Maine Mariners, the minor league affiliate of the Boston Bruins. Once the Bruins' season ended, they'd be looking for a new coach, and Dad really wanted that j

Sprouts

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"You do it," she said. It was more of a command than a request. "Don't they teach it in school anymore?" I asked, knowing there was no way to sidestep the inevitable. "It  would be better if he heard it from you, you know that." "But I liked the vi

Spring. Change. Rebirth.

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Life has been tough, lately. I was brought up not to complain.  To help others even more when life throws things at you.  That way, you can at least enjoy the good that you do. Never thought I'd get to the point where I wasn't capable of dropping e

The Sweetness of Life: Women as Desserts

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About five years ago my gal, Jaimie, and I were sitting at Jimmy’s (the neighborhood UChicago bar) discussing Cupcakes. Not the delicious goodies that have become all the rage, rather a certain category of women that I had decided to call Cupcakes

Racecars and Bowling…. A Synopsis of Gender and Me….

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Left Image:  My first racecar, I was 15 or 16 in this picture (1992 or 1993). Right Image:  Bowling at the National Bowling Stadium in Reno, NV in 2005 or 2006. When I was 5 or 6 a somewhat older neighborhood girl I had never met before saw me pla

Gyne

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"For tens of thousands of years human beings were held prisoner by gender." Two featureless dots, one cherry red and the other apple green, faded onto the hi-res display as the narrator continued in a smooth contralto. "Throughout the 21st century, u

OWN Up

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I don’t watch Oprah much. But seeing this is her 25th (wow, amazing) and final year, I do plan to catch it more often.  OWN (Oprah’s Own Network) only pulls me in more because I’m a sucker for behind-the-scenes shows and pre-planned, tear-jer

The Laugh of the Psycho

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I saw Psycho at the absolutely wrong time of my life. When I watched it, probably at around 12 years old, I was that combination of immaturity, imagination, and pubescence that is particularly prone to absorbing the wrong aspects of the world aroun

I Know Now Why You Cry, But It Is Something I Can Never Do

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Throughout 1994’s Oscar winner for Best Picture, the main character is presented with two opposing ideas: 1) That we all have a destiny set forth by God, and we must meet that destiny head-on and 2) That life is a box of chocolates, that you never

The Dream Dancers

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He takes me in his arms, and we’re flying around the room. I’ve never done this backwards before, but somehow my feet go in all the right places. My dress is gold and silver, my hair braided with ribbons. I step lightly. I get it, I think. I’m

The Dream Dancers

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He takes me in his arms, and we’re flying around the room. I’ve never done this backwards before, but somehow my feet go in all the right places. My dress is gold and silver, my hair braided with ribbons. I step lightly. I get it, I think. I’m

Don’t You Love My Fur? Be Cool—It’s Faux Animal Corpse Skinnings

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We're on our way to another formal event, and I couldn't be happier about it. Nothing makes me feel better than bedecking myself in sartorial opulence. There is a certain joy that comes from wearing an outfit that costs more than a car. Well, not my

Black Tie, Blue Tie

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About.com informs us that "A Black Tie invitation calls for formal attire. Men wear tuxedos, women wear cocktail, long dresses or dressy evening separates."  Of course this is cultural. Traditional wedding gowns, for example, from... China: from

‘Twas the Grandest of Plastics

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1. We turned left onto Park Avenue and there it was, Grand Central, the dark, majestic terminal surrounded by sleek towers piercing the sky.  Its Greek columns, epic sculptures, golden clock, and peculiar bridge set Grand Central apart from the mod

How I Got that Name

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*thanks to Marilyn Chin's inspiring poem for the title of this blog Whenever anything goes wrong in my life, my solution is to "become a writer."  So, it's no surprise that after leaving my first husband, I applied to write for an "urban entertainme

Evolution of a Party Girl

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Never would I have imagined the day when there was nothing more that I’d like to do on New Year’s Eve than stay in with my best boy, watch a Golden Girls marathon, and gorge ourselves on ice cream. Low and behold, that day has come. Nine years ag

When the Date’s Been Set

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The Father Ellen's father, dressed in a traditional black single-breasted jacket and matching bow tie, took my hand in a firm, dry grasp; he was at the door greeting latecomers to the reception when I arrived. "Michael. It is so good of you to come."

I refuse to party like a Rockstar……

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Anti-social is not a strong enough term to describe me.  I avoid all parties like the plague.  The thought of having to socialize with people who most likely will bore me is something I choose not to do.  I guess I am just not “fun” in the tra

Jesse cleans up. Alarmingly well.

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Another sharp stab of pain coursed through my chest. "Are you alright?" I smile through gritted teeth. "Never better."-and it's the truth. Pain, physical pain is a transitory state.  One that passes into the next, pain filled, short lived state wit

Party of One, or Minor Victories of 2010

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White parties held a different meaning for me in the early half of the last decade. Had I not changed things, the black tie would have been incinerated along with the rest of me in the crematorium. At least that was my initial reaction upon seeing t

Diversity Training

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Despite my academic achievements in high school, I wasn’t properly prepared for the transition into college life. After multiple years of working hard to get the best grades, I was burned out from school. All I cared about was having a great time

Zoot Suit Riot

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"What on Earth," I asked, "does White Party : Black Tie mean?" "It means," said Laurie, "that everyone has to wear all-white formal attire to the party. So you're going to have to find an all-white tux." "Are you serious?" Laurie pouted. As in, he

I’m Strictly a Female Female

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I've always loved big, froofy, extravagant gowns. Frilly, sparkly, shimmery...full, sweeping, dramatic. You name it, if it's evening wear, I'm like a pyro at a fireworks stand. Bridal magazines? I used to hoard them. Miss America and Miss USA? Didn't

Be a Man?

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The Big Lebowski: What makes a man, Mr. Lebowski? The Dude: Dude. The Big Lebowski: Huh? The Dude: Uhh ... I don't know sir. The Big Lebowski: Is it being prepared to do the right thing, whatever the cost? Isn't that what makes a man? The Dude:

Memories of Warmth (In the Tundra of the Present)

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We’ve been suffering near constant snow in Scotland for the last three months. The temperatures have plummeted far below the average and the grass is long-dead. I am now in mourning for the sun, which was seemingly dismantled and sold for scrap in

I’d Choose Strapless

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I wish I had a reason to buy a formal gown, but I don’t seem to run in circles that frequent Black Tie affairs. The fanciest dress I have is my wedding dress, which isn’t a wedding dress at all, but a bridesmaid dress in ivory. I planned on getti

A Tangled Perception

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Our niece is visiting this weekend.  She’s twelve, and timid.  Between her first bubble tea experience, and her first homemade pizza-making experience, we made the mistake of taking her to see Tangled, the latest, and fiftieth, Disney disaster. 

Firsts Are Always Firsts

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“I made you a mix tape,” said Liam. He pushed the cassette across the table to where she could reach it and pulled his hand back quickly. “Where did you get it?” she said, hopping out of her seat and grabbing the tape. She immediately began inspecting every inch, pulling the tape out, fingering the [...]

Manual Labor

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I got nothin’. Really. Nothin’. No Season Seven. So instead... the best gchat I’ve had all year.

No Mas Pesos

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I should’ve been afraid, very afraid. I’d just struck a deal to use myself as collateral for a big bill at a Mexico City strip club.

Love in a Meat Market

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I’m of a belief that romantic activity is meant to be private. This isn’t out of some degree of prudishness or anything. I’m not offended by what other people might discuss of their private lives or their sex lives or whatever, that’s their prerogative. Just don’t expect me to join in. I can’t help but [...]

It’s time for Daddy Chat Time!

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"Well, it's time for Daddy Chat Time!" I sang to those big, blue eyes, in an improvised tune from some random talk show. "Absolutely Daddy Chat Time!" Still singing. "Intermittent Daddy Chat Time...Cause Daddy's at work all the time, and he has to si

Practice Makes Perfect

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Do you remember your first "real" kiss? Relive the anticipation and mystery youth - you know, before you became old and jaded.

426 Outbound, Evening Commute

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And on and on Williams goes. Loud burst of modern speech, silence, repeat. His captive audience is frustrated and shocked.

The Cowardly Cuckold

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My heart tried to pound that instant of recognition out of my head, and my mind raced to suggest a hundred alternatives for interpreting the visual image that was now burning beneath my brow. But my capacities for self-deception were spent, and all that was left was an aching echo – she cheated.

Firsts and Lasts

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It was just the two of us in the booth. He motioned to put the money in the slot. I was nervous with anticipation. He smiled boyishly at me with his wallet in his hand. I smiled back and nodded okay. The wooden covering rose slowly revealing a full bush of pubic hair right square [...]

The Cormorant

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In my dream Alex tucked the ends of his curly baby blonde hair behind his ears, looked back over his shoulder, and grinned at me before spreading his arms and diving off the side of the concrete dam into the water below.  There were no ripples on the dark black water as he disappeared beneath.  [...]

Frog F**kery: A Stacy and Jazz Story

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Stacy hated raking leaves, but somehow she was the one who always got stuck with it. Les preferred to mow them, but Stacy had been lectured time and again by her father that running over the leaves with a mulching mower led to crab grass. She had no idea why this would be true, and [...]

It’s the Groom’s “Big Day” Too, Dammit!

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Anyone who's been reading my stuff on the site for the last few months knows I got engaged in November. My fiancée, Kory, and I have been planning our wedding, at least in the hypothetical stage, ever since. We're planning on a wedding in the late

Feel the Vibrations

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I can't stop laughing about this. When I learned that the theme for this month was "White Party, Black Tie," I immediately, and irrevocably, thought about my middle-school dances. Nothing on Earth could be whiter than that. Once a month, my middle-cl

Party or Play: 30POV has you covered

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It's my Party and I'll be Pretentious if I Want To by EmmyEm About a month ago “Let’s Bring Back” by Lesley M. M. Blume was brought to my attention by a brilliant editor. The book cover describes its contents as “an encyclopedia of forgotten

It’s ALWAYS a party (in my pants).

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Here's your warning: I will be talking about Porn. Pornography.  The material discussed will be of a frank and explicit nature, but will be presented in the most immature and offensive way possible. If you intend to be offended, just get the fuck ou

Party or Play: 30POV has you covered

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It's my Party and I'll be Pretentious if I Want To by EmmyEm About a month ago “Let’s Bring Back” by Lesley M. M. Blume was brought to my attention by a brilliant editor. The book cover describes its contents as “an encyclopedia of forgotten

It’s ALWAYS a party (in my pants) 2: The Dickening

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WELCOME BACK, TRUE BELIEVER! WHEN WE LAST LEFT OUR HERO, WRECKED-UM WAS ABOUT TO REVEAL A WEB SITE HE REGULARLY SPANKS OUT TO...IF YOU'VE BEEN HOLDING YOUR BREATH IN ANTICIPATION, YOUR WAIT IS OVER. WE NOW REJOIN WRECKED-UM... Honestly, the last 120

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