Congratulations Cicely Tyson!

I was so excited when I learned it was announced today that Cicely Tyson will be given a Presidential Medal of Freedom! Honestly, I can't believe she hadn't already received one.

The announcement from the White House included this statement from President Obama on the importance of recognizing the work done by civilians to make our country better.

"The Presidential Medal of Freedom is not just our nation's highest civilian honor - it's a tribute to the idea that all of us, no matter where we come from, have the opportunity to change this country for the better. From scientists, philanthropists, and public servants to activists, athletes, and artists, these 21 individuals have helped push America forward, inspiring millions of people around the world along the way."

Cicely Tyson's entire life has been the embodiment of pushing American forward. Throughout her career she has worked to promote diversity and equality in Hollywood, and to act as a positive role model for the many young people who look up to her.

"In my early years, there were a number of experiences that made me decide I could not afford the luxury of just being an actress. There were a number of issues I wanted to address. And I wanted to use my career as a platform."

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Kickstart This! Elusive

You may have noticed by now how most of the stories I share here are about kickass women and girls doing amazing things. And while it's my main goal in life to highlight these stories, I feel it's also important to recognize the fact that not all of these kickass princesses came out of the womb fully formed and in fighting shape. And even if they did, even the most badass of them will still have to face some tough life choices that will rock them to the core. It's just the nature of life.

At some point, we will all find ourselves in what feels like a no-win situation, whether it is feeling trapped in a loveless relationship or in a soul-sucking job. It's what we do about it that determines who we are. The troubles we face are what give our eventual self-rescuing the necessary context, and serve as the inspiration for others. And we don't always get it right the first time.



Three amazing and creative women, Ren Harris, Caitlin Gold, and Seri DeYoung, want to create a film that explores the often round-about process of self-discovery. Elusive is the tale of a young woman who finds herself faced with a difficult decision, and instead turns away from it.

Charlie is a woman who finds herself in a relationship that she's outgrown. Unable to face the facts, she embarks on a journey of self-destruction. "Elusive" is a dramatic short film that explores what happens when you can't go back, but you're too scared to move forward.

We need better representation of the full humanity of women in the media. Television shows are getting better about giving us interesting, complex, often flawed characters, although not on the scale I'd like. Films showing the inner lives of women are still somewhat limiting, and too often resort of dated tropes -- strong female character, sassy sidekick, bitchy ball-buster, etc. -- as a shortcut to skip doing that work.These one-dimensional representations leave me wanting more. Which is why it's so important we back projects like Elusive.

The need to tell this story came about after a breakup. Our writer, Ren, realized that women in media are rarely portrayed as being fully-fledged humans, with flaws, hang-ups, and fears. She confronts this issue through exposing Charlie's inaction through indecision. It is a story that, while told from a female perspective, we believe is one to which everyone can relate: finding one's voice and confronting one's fears, despite the consequences to either self or others.

Finding one's voice and confronting one's fears is what becoming a self-rescuing princess is all about.

If you like the work I do here on SRPS, please support me!

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Kickstart This! Thru: An Appalachian Trail Documentary

I am a lifetime member of the Church of the Outside. I try to get outside as often as possible, even if only for a walk along the creek trail behind my house. At the age of 44, I completed my BA in Environmental Studies and Outdoor Education. Every year for my birthday, I drag all my friends out for a hike in a place I've never been before. When we got married, we were registered at REI. (The best gift? An awesome backpacking tent!)

As someone who loves exploring the great outdoors, I am fascinated by stories of women adventurers. I eagerly seek out their stories and read them with relish, dreaming about my own next adventure. Sadly, there are not as many stories out there as one would hope. Most outdoorsy publications are geared toward men. Outside? A dude's magazine. Documentaries about hiking? Mostly dudes, with the occasional woman -- usually a wife or girlfriend. [Note: I adore Women's Adventure Magazine]

Now, I'm sure some will argue that there isn't a viable market for more women-centered stories about outdoor adventures. Of the total number of people out on the trails, only about 1 in 4 are women. And I'm sure there are a lot of varying reasons for that. But even at 25%, there are lots of women out there hiking. In Wild Cheryl Strayed tells of meeting several women on the trail. Whenever I'm out hiking, I always see other women. So why aren't there more stories? Wouldn't reading or seeing these stories inspire even more women?

Good questions, and Patrice Kincade and Lindsay Taylor Jackson are attempting to address them in their film Thru - An Appalachian Trail Documentary.

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Movie Night - The Last of the Blonde Bombshells

A couple of weeks ago a friend visited and shared her HBO-Go login with me, which was very kind of her*. Mainly, we spent our time watching Veep, because why wouldn't you? But later I started to explore other shows and movies I wasn't able to see elsewhere. And that's how I found out about The Last of of the Blonde Bombshells starring Dame Judi Dench, whom I adore. It also has Olympia Dukakis and Ian Holm. What's not to love?

We meet Elizabeth at her husband's funeral. She's a woman recently unmoored from the role of wife and mother, and who finally feels free to explore her own interests again, much to the chagrin of her children who've only ever known her as "mum."

Her granddaughter finds her in the attic playing a tenor sax. (And playing it well, I might add.) And thus we learn of Elizabeth's former life. When she was 15, long before marriage and children, she played in the almost-all-girl wartime band The Blonde Bombshells.

Looking for an outlet for her music, she starts playing alongside a busker, where her children discover her one day and try to "talk some sense" into her. They are appalled, and try to appeal to her sense of dignity, asking her "what would the neighbors think?" Of course, she's having none of it. She's quite happy to continue.

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Movie Night - Advantageous: The choices we make

So, yesterday, I read this interview with Jennifer Phang director of Advantageous, and immediately added it to my Netflix queue, and set aside my evening plans to watch it.

I have soooooo many thoughts about this film. It is not an easy film to watch, by any means. But it is beautiful and thought-provoking. After watching it, I started it again, re-watching the many different scenes that touched me, often sitting in my chair with it paused trying to sort out my thoughts. Most of which were about how this movie set in the future felt like an indictment of our present. My high school English teacher Mrs. Knorr always told us "there is more truth in fiction." She was right.

At its most basic level, this film is about choices. In nearly every scene we see someone making a choice of one kind of another. The little choices we make on a daily basis and those that set the course of our lives, and the lives of others.

In this future, as it is in our own present, it is how one goes about making these choices that defines their character. But as it is in our time, this is more an illusion of choice than anything else. Available options are often limited and far outside one's ability to influence. And in many cases, the only choice is no choice at all, with the only options to either accept something terrible or suffer the consequences. While it is true our choices may define us, it is our options that set the parameters of our lives.

The set up for this film is like a mash-up of the worst parts of both Brazil and The Handmaid's Tale. We have an overpopulated future where the elite are painfully oblivious to the suffering of the general public, carrying on with their luncheons and school events and reaffirming their role as the privileged class, while resistance fighters attack public targets, and a religiously motivated social movement directs the fate of women as a kind of backlash for the gains they'd made in the previous century.

This future is a society where there are few jobs to be had, where a woman's appearance is key to her success, and where youth is her main selling point. Once she reaches a certain age, 40 let's say, she is no longer employable. A world where a woman would act in a way that is against her best interest simply to have a place to exist. And where, once that place is threatened, she would willingly sacrifice anything and everything she has to ensure a place for her daughter. A world where a secure life is limited to the elite, and one does whatever is advantageous to ensure success.

Early in the film we see three girls walking home from school, playing a guessing game. At one point, one girl turns to another and says, "Only one of you can be the winner. If you cheat, then nobody wins." This professed need for fairness is in contrast to the world surrounding them where nothing is, in fact, fair. News reports in the background give us details about this seemingly quiet and clean world -- unemployment is rampant and terrorist attacks are a regular occurrence.

Those who tend to benefit from advantages tend to see their placement in society as what is fair. We see it time and again in discussions around privilege -- those who benefit from it often don't see it. They are convinced that everyone is faced with the same options, and instead believe they have simply achieved more because they made better choices. Or, even worse, they know very well the privilege they carry, and choose to use it to promote their own well being at the expense of others.

In this world we meet single mother Gwen and her daughter Jules. Gwen works as the spokeswoman for the benign-sounding Center for Advanced Health and Living. As part of her job she writes eloquent statements to sell her company's products. And much like in our own world, the marketers of this world use the lingo of the oppressed for their own purposes.

"In fact, the decisions we make in life define us. So shouldn't every woman be defined by the totality of her choices, rather than her race, height, or health. These are things she often cannot control. Here at the Center for Advanced Health and Living, we are working to offer you the safest alternatives to invasive cosmetic surgery so you'll have every chance to be the you you were meant to be."

I wonder, when Gwen wrote and then delivered that line, whether she had any kind of inkling how it would eventually impact her own life? How could she have known it would turn around, all twisted and gnarled, to cut her down once it was too late to change her decision? Which, of course, we quickly learn wasn't much of a choice. She's been caught in a trap; led to this point by the machinations of others. Can we judge a raccoon's decision to gnaw off its own leg to save itself? Or, in this case, a mother making the ultimate sacrifice for her daughter?

"This is the only time in your daughter's life where her choices will make a difference."

Tragically, this is truer than anyone would want. And by "her" choices, they mean her family's choices; her mother's. A mother's love and support alone are not enough to make it in this world. "Access costs money." And without access, there is no healthy future. In a world where only the elite can any kind of life worth living, people will give up their very lives to ensure their children become one of them, and those in power will be able to use that to their advantage.

"I have to position Jules now. If I can get her into a good school, she'll have a chance. I can't let her become one of those women, so desperate that they would do anything."

But just as much as this is a movie about the choices a mother will make to protect her daughter, it's also a movie about her decision to become a mother in the first place. Gwen, and Jules, have been living with the fallout from Gwen's choices prior to motherhood. We do not know exactly why she has broken from her parents, but she is adamant that her father will never meet Jules, just as she is adamant that Jules' father will never be a part of their lives. She has been estranged from her "one and only cousin" Lily's life since Jules' birth, which, as we learn later, has been Gwen's decision in order to protect her from a mistake Gwen made when they were younger.

The decision to live as a single mother in this world was a dangerous one, she knew, but she also hoped it would give her life meaning; make it worthwhile. And, in its own way, her ultimate decision simply confirms that. It is her undying love for her daughter that drives everything she does. She cannot change the very system they are both trapped in. So she works within her constraints to give her daughter the very best chance. And then, she goes one step further and gives her something authentic to hold on to as she makes her way in this world.

"Listen to me. It's good to be humble, but you need to know your value. The ideas, the wisdom, and the kindness in you. That's the secret beauty everyone wants."

And this is what I find so beautiful, so touching in this film. Despite the hardship and loneliness and this terrible choice she is forced to make, she does it all with the purest of motivations: love.

If you like the work I do here at Self-Rescuing Princess Society, please check out my Patreon campaign.

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You may also be interested in:

Another Double Hitter: Movie Review & Shout-out
I would have loved to have known about Doris Sams and the other professional womens baseball players when I was a girl! No telling how I would have used that info. I wasn't especially athletically inclined, but it certainly would have been inspirational anyway. I'm sure I would have devoured biographies about women ball players if I had found any, the same way I read through every book I could find on Amelia Earhart.

In case you need a reminder... you are amazing!
I just love this poem. I revisit it whenever I'm feeling a down or frustrated or a little powerless. You are amazing. As.you.are. Stronger than you know. More beautiful than you think. Worthier than you believe. More loved that you can ever imagine. Passionate about making a difference. Fiery when protecting those you love. Learning. Growing. Not alone. ...

Movie Night - The Iron Lady
My more careful thoughts about the movie are a bit more complicated. It's not that I didn't enjoy the movie. I did. I liked the story. I liked the mixing of modern times in with history, and the mix of political with personal. I liked seeing the whole life of such a strong woman who influenced history. We see her as young woman starting out with passion and verve...

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TV Night - Madam Secretary

I sat down and made a list of all the TV shows with amazing female characters that I'm watching, and my first thought was, "There are so many great shows out there right now!" And then, my second thought, "How in the world am I going to be able to pick just one to review?"

So, here starts a new semi-regular blog series wherein I discuss my favorite shows, one at a time, not necessarily in any kind of order or even in a timely fashion.

So, I know I've already raved about Madam Secretary in another post, but it's such a great show and well worth a closer look (and a longer rave).

Just some of the things I love about this show, with no spoilers for those who aren't caught up:

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Kickstart This!

I have always had a fondness for longform journalism. While I understand the appeal of short, easy to process pieces, some stories deserve a longer, more in-depth telling.

So when I saw that the folks behind the Riveter Magazine online site were working on publishing a quarterly, I was intrigued. Longform pieces written by and about women? Yes, please!

The Riveter is a women's longform lifestyle magazine in print and online, dedicated to exposing the power of women as longform journalists. It is an effort to fill the void that exists in women's media and to diversify the narrative surrounding women in publishing. The Riveter publishes stories that can't be summed up in a sell line, because women, as writers and readers, deserve more from a women's magazine.

This is so very important right now! While it may sometimes feel as though women's stories are easier to find than ever, it's still nowhere near how it should be. And female journalists still have a difficult time finding jobs in the industry.

As journalists, we noticed a gap in the industry. According to this Nieman Report, in 2013, only 37.2 percent of journalism jobs were held by women, whereas women received 62.5 percent and 67.6 percent of bachelor's and master's degrees in communications respectively -- statistics that were consistent with what we noticed in journalism school. Never mind the almost $10,000 income gap in the industry. So, where did all of the lady-journos go?

So, if the telling of women's stories and supporting women in journalism is important to you, please consider supporting their Kickstarter campaign. If $60 sounds steep to you, keep in mind that print journalism is expensive, and while magazine subscriptions tend to be around $20 a year, that is subsidized by advertisements -- advertisements that may (although shouldn't) have some impact on the content you're reading.

While much of what we read online is free, the price to pay the authors and artists has to come from somewhere -- whether it's from ads, or some other way. Many sites have been switching to a subscription model over the last year or so, because otherwise they simply cannot afford to pay their staff what their time and talent is worth. It is up to us readers to put our money where our mouths are, and pony up some cash to support our favorite publications.

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Weekend Reading

It's Saturday again! Out here in California, it's a beautiful, sunny, warm day. The mockingbirds are busily singing, singing, singing, and I think I'm going to take my e-reader out into the garden and enjoy some sunshine.

I hope no matter what the weather is like where you are, you can at least get some time in relaxing and enjoying something good to read. Check out some of the pieces I've linked below to start off your weekend. And, as always, feel free to share links to articles you're reading and enjoying in the comments.

Beginning farmer Lindsey Morris Carpenter humanely raises livestock at Grassroots Farm in Wisconsin. Photo: Anthony Wahl

I feel very fortunate that I know a lot of the people who grow my food or otherwise work in the agricultural world. So many of them are amazing women who are fighting not just to make a living, but to make real change. Sena Christian interviews several women who've taken up the mantle, and writes about the evolving face of our food systems in her piece Unconventional Agriculture.

Many of these women are part of a growing crop of new farmers – both men and women, between the ages of 25 and 34 – who have taken to working the land in the past decade. They aren’t necessarily your typical young farmers, either. Many are college-educated and did not inherit farmland or come from a family of farmers, suggesting a more purposeful motivation for entering such a tough profession.

Reading through this collection of "Tiny Rebellions" put together by the ladies at Rookie Magazine totally made my day!

Harmless, moooostly subtle acts of defiance are ways to push back against the jerk-itude, mundanity, and unfairness we encounter on a daily basis. Stirring the pot just a little bit also makes life more interesting—for you and anyone who’s paying close enough attention to what you’re up to. Here, we share some really good ways to be bad (but not actually bad).

This one by Tova made me laugh out loud:

When I was younger, we had to pray every morning in school for an hour or more. I worked really hard to move my lips and move the pages at the right times so it appeared as though I were devoutly praying, but all the while I was making up (spiteful) stories about my teachers in my head. In retrospect, it would have been less work to just pray, but I got such a kick out of it all.

Athena Volunteers. Credit: Jodie Chiang

I'm a bit late on sharing this, as the 2015 Athena Film Festival has already come and gone, but this piece by Lesley Coffin for The Mary Sue is still a worthy read to understand why it's so important to celebrate the work of women in Hollywood, and to push for change in the film industry.

Being someone who writes about film myself, I am of course more than familiar with Women and Hollywood, and was curious how it even started. Speaking with Silverstein, she recounted how a moment of frustration was her inspiration. “One day I was at the movies, because that is what I always did,” she said. “But as I was getting older, I went to the blockbuster films, [and] I said to myself, ‘These all suck, and I don’t see anyone like me here.’ So that kind of stuck in my head and I was doing other things and learned about the blogosphere. And I have always been a person interesting in pop culture and feminism, and there was this light bulb day.”

Photo: Joey Hi-Fi

Here in the US, and likely in the UK as well, we almost take it for granted that our SciFi/Fantasy will be somewhat representative of our larger culture. It'll be written by someone who lives a similar life as us, and have something to say that can be directly related to us. We maybe never stop and think about what people in other parts of the world want to write or read. So this piece by Lauren Smith reviewing some of the most important SF/F coming out of South Africa really intrigued me.

I know it was – and probably always will be – vital for us to have overtly sociopolitical literary fiction, but even as a non-white person growing up in a disadvantaged community, I seldom felt that this fiction resonated with my experience of South Africa or catered to my interests, which – shockingly – aren’t defined by the way apartheid screwed me and my family over. I’ll never be free of apartheid’s legacy, but at the same time I’ll never be so consumed by it that I expect everything we create to carry all the miserable weight of history. I don’t want to put an end to political fiction rooted in stark reality; it’d just be nice to have lots of other stuff too.

So when Lauren Beukes’s debut novel Moxyland came out, I was really happy. Suddenly local fiction could be fun and full of exciting ideas. It could have a thrilling plot that, for once, happened in the same place that I lived. It could still acknowledge or engage with our troubling history and the grotesque inequality it left behind, but it could do that without making me feel like I was chained to the past. And it could even – *gasp * – not be about South Africa at all!

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Weekend Reading

Happy Weekend! Hope it's a relaxing one, no matter where you are!

Image source: Winslow Homer, Wiki Commons.

It's been a busy week around here, what with getting the SRPS News up and running, and getting caught up on blogging and other work-related stuff. I've got a stack of interesting looking articles and blog posts all queued up for a relaxing day of reading and gardening. (Sorry folks in New England, but I figure if it's going to be unseasonably warm and dry here at least I may as well enjoy it, right?)

Here are a couple of stories I've already read and enjoyed. I hope you'll find them interesting as well. Feel free to share links to things you've written or interesting things you've read (regarding kick ass women and girls) in the comments.

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Kickstart This!

Do we really need yet another Sherlock series? I mean, we've got Beetleton Cumberbun Brandenburg Upperclass Bendandsnap Humperdinck Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman on one hand, and on the other hand we have Jonny Lee Miller (who?) and the ever amazing Lucy Liu. And that's just the TV teams. Remember Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law?

Well, the folks behind S(her)lock think so. And I agree.



The mythology behind Sherlock Holmes is infinitely malleable and easily accessible, which is evident from it being pretty much the basis for most crime stories on television or movies. As such it is a perfect vehicle for exploring all kinds of relationships.

If you look at modern television, nearly all procedures are Sherlock Holmes. A brilliant male protagonist with a "photographic memory", "amazing deductive skills" and "an oddball, not a team player" attitude. Then there's the female sidekick, who's there to log their encounters and be his mental soundboard. House. The Mentalist. The X-Files. Castle. All derive from Sherlock Holmes. Even Sherlock Holmes is a take on Poe's Dupin.

Why not go right back to the source material and play with that? By exploring femininity via the character, our production team can honor Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's canon while producing a totally fresh narrative.

I love these types of mysteries, as I know most of you do as well. I am excited about seeing them told through a diverse cast (albeit still a predominately white cast). I have been craving this kind of exploration of these stories for ages. Genderswapping, transfolk, and even a drag performer make for a compelling and highly nuanced way to tell all new stories.

And it's high time we started telling these stories!

“It’s not enough to sit on Tumblr all day and complain about the lack of diversity and inclusive media on our television shows,” says Tracy. “We have to produce our own. It would be damn hypocritical to not create a series that doesn’t stand with our inclusive feminist ideals. Since I watched Alias for the first time, I knew I wanted to write for television and run a television show. It’s the only dream I’ve had for over a decade. I want this. I care about these characters and this series. I truly believe that we can create something fun, unique, and special.”
(source: Portland Phoenix)

While Elementary does have a transwoman as Ms. Hudson (who is seriously awesome) she is only a sometimes character. I am eager to see a transwoman play Watson, a key role, supporting a cis female Sherlock. This changeroo over the standard model will be fascinating to watch play out through the series. I cannot wait to see what Katherine Tracy and her team comes up with!

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The Littlest Uhura

I'm sure by now most of you have seen this awesome illustration by M. Steffens about the importance of seeing a black Lieutenant Uhura on TV by a young Whoopie Goldberg.

"Well, when I was nine years old Star Trek came on, I looked at it and I went screaming through the house, 'Come here, mum, everybody, come quick, come quick, there's a black lady on television and she ain't no maid!' I knew right then and there I could be anything I wanted to be.” — Whoopi Goldberg

And it's pretty safe to assume Nichelle Nichols was aware of how important her role would be before she even accepted it. She certainly was aware shortly after, when none other than Martin Luther King, Jr. came to chat with her.

By the 1970s, she was already using her celebrity to further the cause of women in the sciences and space exploration, with a particular focus of getting more women of color involved.

In fact, in the four decades since the first episode of Star Trek, Nichelle Nichols has never really stopped using her role as Uhura as a way to inspire people.

And she's still at it! While it could be argued that her visits to conventions is simply about contracts and financial gain for some celebrities, in this case I highly doubt it. Here is a woman who could easily rest on her accomplishments and spend her time relaxing at home. Instead, she's out there greeting the public. And thus, expanding her influence to new generations. Just take a look at this fantastic photo of her with the most adorable Uhura ever taken at Grand Rapids Comic Con in October 2014!



I just love this photo. This little cutie looks so thrilled in her adorable Communications Officer outfit with her little away bag.

If you like the work I do here at Self-Rescuing Princess Society,
please check out my Patreon.

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SRPS Shout-Out - Shonda Rhimes

Have you seen this? The amazing Shonda Rhimes was honored with the Sherry Lansing Award at The Hollywood Reporter's annual Women in Entertainment breakfast on December 10, 2014. In acceptance, she gave this remarkable speech.

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TV Night - Madam Secretary

Over the last few days I have been busily catching up on my TV watching from a couple of weeks. In particular, I have been a bit behind on Madam Secretary, which is one of my favorites from this season. It's not perfect -- it's a bit hokey, in that the crisis always gets resolved by the end of the show, and there's some second tier romance drama -- but overall it's quite a good show.

And, to be honest, I'd still watch it even if it was terrible, just to see Téa Leoni as Secretary of State. I just adore her in this role. Strong, smart, kickass, calm, and totally together except when she's not.

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Follow Friday

Here's your weekly list of great folks to follow!

I've been following BlackGirlDangerous for a while now on Twitter and Facebook, and I love the no-holds-barred truth factory you're always sure to find there. What started out as the brainchild of Mia McKenzie, has grown into a collection of writers for the blog, and an ever expanding reach to bring more voices of marginalized people into the fore. Please be sure to check out their Editor-In-Training Program and help them with their amazing work!

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Kickstart This!

Here's your weekly list of awesome Kickstarter (and IndieGoGo) projects that deserve your attention!



Happy Birthday, Marsha! is the story of two best friends, Marsha P. Johnson & Sylvia Rivera, in the hours before the Stonewall riots.

When Marsha and Sylvia, self-proclaimed “street queens” – homeless, Black & Latina trans women – ignite the Stonewall Rebellion, they change LGBT politics forever. It's a hot summer day in June, 1969. Marsha throws a party, but no one shows up. Meanwhile, Sylvia gets stoned and forgets the party after unsuccessfully introducing her lover to her family. Throughout the difficult day, the friends struggle with harassment and alienation before converging at the Stonewall Inn to finally celebrate Marsha's birth. Unbeknownst to them, the NYPD has plans to raid the bar that night. Happy Birthday, Marsha! is the story of two brave best friends and the everyday decisions they made that changed the course of history.

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Happy Birthday - Geraldine Doyle

Today would have been the 90th birthday of Geraldine Hoff Doyle. If you don't know who she was, don't feel too bad. I only heard of her recently myself.



If she looks familiar, it's because she was very likely the model for the "We Can Do It!" poster.

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Music Break - Maddie & Tae

A couple of friends have shared this great video today and I've already watched it a half dozen times. It's not without it's flaws, to be sure. But the sheer awesomeness of these two ladies and their apparent disdain for "bro-country" is wonderful to watch.

And then, you can go listen to this interview.

"We're like, you know, if you love us as much as you say you do, shouldn't you know our name?" 

Yes! The women in many bro-country songs are just name-less pretty things, not actual people. They're just props for the singer.

"Looking good for the boys is not all we have to offer for them. We're bring a voice for the girls in country music."

Hell yes! Finally, all those women who enjoy the music can now also enjoy the lyrics! Bonus!

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Music Break - Colbie Caillat

Colbie Caillat is back with another great song. This one is reminds us that we shouldn't have to try so hard to impress others when true acceptance comes from within ourselves. Obviously, this one is getting a lot of play in the SRPS computer cave.



I've read a couple of mixed revues of this song, and even one that's claiming it's shaming women.

I don't get that at all. I get "do you like you?" She's not saying women shouldn't wear make up or hair extensions, or go running, or enjoy shopping. She's saying that we shouldn't have to do all these things to make other people like us -- that our worth shouldn't come from the things we do for others. That we should just be ourselves, for ourselves.

What do you think?

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Try

Put your make-up on
Get your nails done
Curl your hair
Run the extra mile
Keep it slim so they like you,
do they like you?

Get your sexy on
Don't be shy, girl
Take it off
This is what you want, to belong, so they like you
Do you like you?

You don't have to try so hard
You don't have to, give it all away
You just have to get up, get up, get up, get up
You don't have to change a single thing

You don't have to try, try, try, try
You don't have to try, try, try, try
You don't have to try, try, try, try
You don't have to try
Yooou don't have to try

Oooh Oooh

Get your shopping on,
at the mall, max your credit cards
You don't have to choose,
buy it all, so they like you
Do they like you?

Wait a second,
Why, should you care, what they think of you
When you're all alone, by yourself,
do you like you?
Do you like you?

You don't have to try so hard
You don't have to, give it all away
You just have to get up, get up, get up, get up
You don't have to change a single thing

You don't have to try so hard
You don't have to bend until you break
You just have to get up, get up, get up, get up
You don't have to change a single thing

You don't have to try, try, try, try
You don't have to try, try, try, try
You don't have to try, try, try, try
You don't have to try

You don't have to try, try, try, try
You don't have to try, try, try, try
You don't have to try, try, try, try
You don't have to try
Yooou don't have to try

Oooh Oooh

You don't have to try so hard
You don't have to, give it all away
You just have to get up, get up, get up, get up
You don't have to change a single thing

You don't have to try, try, try, try
You don't have to try, try, try, try
You don't have to try
You don't have to try

Take your make-up off
Let your hair down
Take a breath
Look into the mirror, at yourself
Don't you like you?
Cause I like you

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Music Break - Allison Janney

I just learned that the ever awesome Allison Janney appeared on the new (!) Arsenio show the other day, and did a lip-sync performance of The Jackal.



OMG what is this awesomeness? And why did it take so long for me to see it?

For those who don't know the reference:



I mean, I love Allison Janney in everything she's been in (which, I'd like to go on record as saying, is NOT ENOUGH THINGS), but I'll always and forever love her for her work as C. J. Cregg on The West Wing. I know that Aaron Sorkin doesn't have a great record portraying women in his newest show Newsroom, but the women in The West Wing were seriously kickass. And C.J. was the kickassest of them all.

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And because I'm always a fan of crediting the original artists, here's the original  video for The Jackal [feat. Dana Bryant], by Ronny Jordan:

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KickStart This!

So very many more great projects to consider this week! Movies, music, and loads of great books!

When I saw the description for June, Adrift: A Real Indie Feature (No Offense, Zach Braff), my very first thought was, I'd watch the hell out of that! We get so many stories about young men trying to find themselves, but very few about women trying to figure their lives out. When I was in my 20s, it would have been wonderful to have a library filled with stories about women facing the same conflicts I was. Heck, now in my 40s, I'd still like to have that library.

After a series of humiliating encounters with members of her parents' generation, Emma makes the impulsive decision to return to her parents' house, vacant while they are traveling for the summer, in order to complete a boat kit given to her by an uncle fifteen years ago. As her enthusiasm for the project snowballs, she accidentally collects two traveling companions in Liesl and Rachel.

I grew up in a house full of music of all kinds. Some of my most cherished memories are the family car trips where everyone would sing along with the radio, with my musically talented parents singing in beautiful harmony. I think that's where I developed my love of a cappella music. When I played the clip for Beyond All Reason: Raising The BAR I knew I had to have a copy of their album!

Beyond All Reason is Saint Louis University’s only all-female a cappella group. The group was founded in 2002 and has been entertaining the masses ever since. BAR regularly performs on SLU’s campus and hosts two concert extravaganzas a year. With a repertoire that spans all genres and includes songs ranging from "It's Time" by Imagine Dragons to "At Last" by Etta James.

I have to admit I haven't read much from the manga side of the book shelf. But I do know that it has been instrumental in getting many young people back into the habit of reading. So when I see a graphic novel or manga that tells a story of a kickass young woman, I'm going to throw my support behind it! Jade Dragon Book 1 looks like a good story for young people. And it's important to me that Kaida's character is show wearing sensible clothing and acting in a completely normal teenage fashion.

Kaida Suzuki is a fifteen year old orphan who was raised by monks at a secret dojo, hidden away in the mountains. Abandoned on the doorsteps of the dojo as a child, Kaida has grown up with only her Master, Sensei Shin, to call family. Shin has always known there was something special about this girl so he has trained her in combat since Kaida’s first steps. Kaida was living the normal teenage life; going to school, getting teased by other kids, learning martial arts and keeping secret crushes. All was calm until the one night that would change her life forever.

Well, the above sentiment also applies to fantasy books. Like Melissa Drake's Daughter of Mythos: What if all the myths were real? 

15-year-old Nora Salvatore's dream of a normal life and a permanent family are ripped from her as she's thrust into a world where myths and magic are the reality. When an evil wizard plans to unleash an army of demons on Earth, Nora's the only one who can stop him.

OK. Fine. It also applies to every other book out there. I know a couple of school-aged girls (and boys) who will likely getting a copy of Sage Carrington, Eighth-Grade Science Sleuth, Volume #2 in the coming year!

Sage Carrington is a 12-year-old girl who lives in Washington, D.C. She’s a science lover who enjoys exploring the wonders of our natural world. Along with her best friend Isabel Flores, Sage is a confident, curious amateur sleuth who lives in a thriving community that enables and encourages her pursuit of happiness.

What projects are you excited about lately?

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