Kelly Porter - Words to Lindy Hoppers
My html skills are lacking when it comes to embedding non-Youtube Videos, but the above video made the circuits this past week, and was posted, re-posted and discussed.
I have to say, she really hits home on this issue.
I moved to this city nearly 2 years ago, because I was visiting on a regular basis for any amount of dancing to be had. I felt that it was time to strike out for new professional and personal opportunities, and the dance community was a large part of that. But I was tired. I was tired of always racking up miles on my car, eating bad fast food en route to dances, sleeping in sleeping bags on floors, and having to choose between dance (in another city) and life. It's fun to be the unknown element for a little while, but nice to recognize familiar faces.
I love travel, I love meeting new people, but when it comes down to it, what I really want in a scene is to be able to call up a few dancers, and hit the local blues bar. We're inundated with good music, every single night of the week, so why should I need to travel to have a decent dance?
Yet, travel is seen as a sign of wanting to improve, of being 'serious' about your dance, which strikes me as true to a point. Dancing with better or different dancers will improve your overall social dancing, by allowing you to experience different styles of dance. However, lessons, practicing solo movement (hips challenge, solo jazz, etc...) or sitting down with a partner to analyze your swingouts will also improve your dancing.
Coming from a scene that lacked the infrastructure, I know that I'm fortunate to be in a location that affords me good, experienced teachers with a variety of perspectives.
And while I commiserate with a follow who wished for a practice partner to whip her into shape, instead of the other way around, I still think that investing in your own scene yields the best returns. I like practicing with the people around me, to get our scene to be the destination others want to visit, rather than perpetually fleeing for other scenes.
Monday, April 23, 2012
Sunday, April 08, 2012
The Cost and Care of Essential Femininity
This week, in response to a lot of commotion about women's rights over their reproduction, Jezebel posted an interesting run-down of costs of womanhood. As a counterpart to the men who complain about discounts for female drivers and ladies' nights affording women discounted drinks and club entry, the article noted exactly how much an average woman spends on her fertility.
It all puts me in mind of the soul song, "A Woman's Worth." I remember getting the talk from mom, and wondering exactly what kind of a raw deal I was signed up for. Headaches and bleeding every month? Crazy hormones? Not even counting all the problems with pregnancy! No wonder it was described as a curse.
While I'm grateful to developments in the paper products industry for freeing us from The Red Tent and using washcloths to stem the tide, we haven't progressed much further from that. Women still have a lot of money to spend on their basic maintenance, excluding the fashion trends that make our clothes go out of style sooner, and the push for a 'serious business woman' to look like a fashion model. One friend was hired for her first real job, and told in the interview, that she needed to spend her first few paychecks on clothes. Not transportation, food, or rent. CLOTHES.
The Atlantic also notes that women have additional costs, and Jezebel's list is by no means exhaustive:
As a recipient of those extra procedures and tests, can I just point out how not having insurance is one of my biggest fears? In fact, after a visit to the doctor lead my common cold to cost as much with insurance as without it (thank you co-pays), the insurance debacle, err... debate is really the one that shapes my generation.
Find a lump, get hit by a bus, sneeze a little too hard, but without insurance you're essentially in a Third World Country. At least there, you'd have chickens to barter with. Maybe a goat if you needed surgery.
In a place where I didn't have to worry about filing bankruptcy for health care costs, I'd be more okay with spending a few extra dimes on work clothes. All of this makes me think that a nice Nordic country would be a wonderful place to bear and raise children. Health care, good education and decent holidays? Sign me up!
Given the national debate regarding birth control coverage, it's increasingly clear that many people have no idea how much it costs it to own a vagina — folks are getting up in arms about the idea that the pill could set uninsured women back about $1000 a year, but in the grand scheme of things, that's nothing. Do you even know just how much you're shelling out for your clam? Were you aware of the fact that in your 20s alone, you will spend over $26,000 on vaginal maintenance? Herewith, we do the math on just how much that cooter is costing you.[Via Jezebel.com]
It all puts me in mind of the soul song, "A Woman's Worth." I remember getting the talk from mom, and wondering exactly what kind of a raw deal I was signed up for. Headaches and bleeding every month? Crazy hormones? Not even counting all the problems with pregnancy! No wonder it was described as a curse.
While I'm grateful to developments in the paper products industry for freeing us from The Red Tent and using washcloths to stem the tide, we haven't progressed much further from that. Women still have a lot of money to spend on their basic maintenance, excluding the fashion trends that make our clothes go out of style sooner, and the push for a 'serious business woman' to look like a fashion model. One friend was hired for her first real job, and told in the interview, that she needed to spend her first few paychecks on clothes. Not transportation, food, or rent. CLOTHES.
The Atlantic also notes that women have additional costs, and Jezebel's list is by no means exhaustive:
While Morrissey doesn't note this specifically, such health visits could also include procedures like colposcopies and LEEPs, biopsies of various female parts, and so on—all of which, even if a woman is insured, add up with co-pays and costs beyond what insurance covers.[Via The Atlantic Wire]
As a recipient of those extra procedures and tests, can I just point out how not having insurance is one of my biggest fears? In fact, after a visit to the doctor lead my common cold to cost as much with insurance as without it (thank you co-pays), the insurance debacle, err... debate is really the one that shapes my generation.
Find a lump, get hit by a bus, sneeze a little too hard, but without insurance you're essentially in a Third World Country. At least there, you'd have chickens to barter with. Maybe a goat if you needed surgery.
Europe is scratching its head over the possibility that the U.S. Supreme Court will strike down President Obama's signature legislative achievement. As the judiciary and the Obama administration trade legal barbs over the high court's authority, the idea that health care coverage, largely considered a universal right in Europe, could be deemed an affront to liberty is baffling.[Via The Atlantic Wire]
In a place where I didn't have to worry about filing bankruptcy for health care costs, I'd be more okay with spending a few extra dimes on work clothes. All of this makes me think that a nice Nordic country would be a wonderful place to bear and raise children. Health care, good education and decent holidays? Sign me up!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)