Tag: Miscellaneous
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In the Blog
Because it’s not all about the ghoulishness…
…it’s also about the candy. This recipe is very compatible with vegan substitutions - a little soy milk, sweetener, and egg replacer and they turn out beautifully. They’re also particularly tasty if you’re using organic and fair trade ingredients. An organic fair trade cupcake is an empowered cupcake. Hallowe’en Cupcakes 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder 1 tbsp baking powder 1/2 tsp salt 1/2 cup soft butter or margarine 1 & 1/3 cup sugar (divided) 3 eggs 2/3 cup … READ MORE
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In the Blog
American Apparel uncovered
Ive always been skeptical of American Apparel, the L.A.-based chain that sells plain clothes that claim to be sweatshop free, marketed to hipsters through often creepy, sexed-up photos of supposed real people, sold in stores that claim to be community galleries. Before opening actual stores, AA sold blank T-shirts in bulk to bands who, concerned about selling merch made in sweatshops, could print their logo/image/photos on them to sell at shows. When stores proper started opening, … READ MORE
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In the Blog
On the Fradio: Regina Spektor Live on NPR
A lot of us feel pretty depressed and maybe even a little threatened right now, so here’s something to soothe you just a little, maybe: NPR.org has posted the audio from a wonderful, 80-minute concert by Regina Spektor, performing at Washington DCs 9:30 Club. Ive become increasingly fond of Spektors most recent albums, 2004s Soviet Kitsch and 2006s Begin to Hope, but even so, this concert surprised me. She starts out with a handful of tracks that … READ MORE
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In the Blog
“I am scared of young white boys”
Violent boys have been all over the news lately. Kevin Madden sentenced for first-degree murder for stabbing his 12-year-old brother 71 times in a quiet Toronto suburb. A 19-year-old in North Carolina killed his father and then randomly shot at students at a nearby high school last month. Early in September, Kimveer Gill shot 20 people at Dawson College, killing one innocent girl. A 15-year-old Wisconsin boy shot his school principal in cold blood last … READ MORE
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In the Blog
Freezer paper!
In case you haven’t yet tried stencilling as per the instructions on pages 36-37 of the most recent issue of Shameless because you can’t find freezer paper, which is something we had trouble with when we did the photo shoot for the article (yes, those are my fingers tracing letters and using the stencil brush!), check out the Toronto Craft Alert’s Ask Crafty answers from September 8th. PS - We’d love to hear how your stencilling … READ MORE
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In the Blog
Girl Monster Compilation Looks Monstrously Awesome
According to pitchforkmedia.com, Chicks on Speed’s Alex-Murray Leslie has put together a new 3CD compilation that “celebrates and reclaims music-by-women in several landmark ways”. I have mixed feelings about Chicks on Speed, and I know some of us were burned by the “Women and Songs” series (not to mention the dismal imitators that followed). But Girl Monsteras this compilation is calledlooks pretty stellar. It has an intriguing mix of musicians from a variety of genres … READ MORE
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In the Blog
When Feminism Gets Wacky, In a Good Way
Feminists (and academics) have long had a reputation for being dry and humourless, which is why I love things like Cat and Girl. Cat and Girl is a wordy, nerdy webcomic made by a grad student named Dorothy, who manages to transform complex academic theory into appealing panels and hilariously half-sensical dialogue. Imagine a Cultural Studies textbook acted out by a cartoon girl and a large anthropomorphic cat. Check out Cat and Girls interpretation of Feminisms Supposed … READ MORE
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In the Blog
gwyneth patrol + aids campaign = horror! horror!
A lot of great things get posted on our comments pages, so I hope everyone follows the links to read the comments. (For example, Lauren Baratz-Logsted of This is Chick Lit fame herself posted in response to my blog about her new book. Heavens to Betsy! We’re famous!) Adele posted a particularly spectacular link in response to Allison’s post about the International Aids Conference. It’s an ad Gwyneth Patrol did for an AIDS campaign. Advance warning: … READ MORE
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In the Blog
Analyzing Girls Gone Wild
The always spot-on Feministing has a post linking to an incredible piece by Claire Hoffman in the Los Angeles Times that you and your friends should read. She spend some time with Joe Francis, the creator of the Girls Gone Wild videos that see young, drunk women take off their clothes for Francis’ cameras. Hoffman wants to know why the girls do it, but finds out a lot more about Francis and his motives … READ MORE
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In the Blog
Weekend reads
Here are two great pieces for some weekend reading. Over at Alternet, Lakshmi Chaudhry tears into makeover reality TV shows. Almost every young feminist I know has a love/hate relationship to reality shows that are, more often than not, degrading, demeaning or insulting to women. We don’t agree with anything being done on Canada’s Next Top Model (especially the parts where the ultra-thin models wear a layer of saran wrap under their jeans so they can … READ MORE
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In the Blog
Rosovaya - marching for those who can’t
Hi everyone, Pride Weekend is fully underway in Toronto and there is the usual corporate mess of advertisements. But at yesterday’s Dyke March, our queer community continued to make the march a political event. Everywhere I saw shirts that read “rosovaya” - which is “pink” in Russian and slang for lesbian. The back of the shirts read “Marching for those who can’t - Moscow 2006.” At the end of May 2006 Moscow struggled to hold its first-ever … READ MORE
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In the Blog
Live girl-on-girl action?
Salon.com currently features an article about straight girls making out with each other to impress (and seduce) guys. The mostly-critical article points out the obvious problems with this trend, yet oddly enough, still glorifies it as a right-of-passage for the coolest of American high school students. The article is worth a read, especially because it gets inside the head of some sexually-uninhibited, heteroflexible girls. (Annoyingly, to read the article, you first have to watch … READ MORE
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In the Blog
pro-woman comic books?
Hey Holland, thanks for reminding me that I had a book question for our readers! I just finished reading Black Hole by Charles Burns. I sorta recommend it: it’s very upsetting. It’s about high school, and even though the plot revolves around a pretty fantastical idea, it still manages to evoke a horrifyingly realistic portrait of some of high school - likely to cause gruesome flashbacks if you had a rough time between the … READ MORE
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In the Blog
Growing Up XX… Real Girls… Real Stories… The Emancipation Tour
I have to admit, that when I saw the press release in my inbox with XX in the title, I had to stop for a minute. I thought it was just another piece of spam, until I really read it the title three more times. Growing Up XX… Real Girls… Real Stories… The Emancipation Tour (www.growingupxx.com) is an upcoming cabaret-style show, born from the mind of Tanya Lee, activist and single mother. When Lee … READ MORE
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In the Blog
Rally the troops
Wednesday, March 8, marks International Women’s Day, and women around the world will be marching for women’s rights and celebrating women’s achievements throughout the weekend. The main Toronto rally, march and fair takes place on Saturday, March 11 at 11 a.m. The theme is “A Million Reasons to March.” A few of those reasons include ongoing violence against women, justice for migrant workers and the fact that our new Prime Minister just blocked any hope we … READ MORE
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In the Blog
Very cool hip hop mag for girls
There’s a small item in this month’s Exclaim! (a free music monthly distributed across Canada) about an awesome new London, UK-based hip hop magazine for girls, called WAH Magazine. It’s written by girls and looks smart, well-designed and packed with info on the latest in hip hop and culture. Here’s their manifesto, from the first issue: “We ain’t booty shaking video girls but we ain’t ashamed of our bodies. We ain’t gonna stand back and go unnotices. We … READ MORE
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In the Blog
Joy Kogawa Reading in Toronto
When I was in high school, we had to read Obasan, a tale written from the perspective of a girl, Naomi Nakane, during the Japanese evacuation and internments in Canada during World War II. This book not only brought a piece of shameful Canadian history to light for me, but also opened my eyes to a wonderful writer - Joy Kogawa. I am happy to say that Joy Kogawa will be reading from her sequel … READ MORE
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In the Blog
Shameless in Utne
Thanks to Liz, our lovely ad sales manager, for spying a mention of “Making The Cut” in the March/April issue of Utne magazine (page 14). “Making The Cut” was Zoe Cormier’s excellent feature about labia surgery that ran in our Fall 2005 issue. She took a look at the disturbing new trend in plastic surgery and the women who feel pressured to have their labia trimmed. It’s a fascinating read, even Utne thought so! If you missed … READ MORE
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In the Blog
International Women’s Day in Toronto
This just in from Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha: Sick of the same-old same-old for IWD? Brownstargirl Productions and Toronto Womens Bookstore are bringing Mango Tribe to Toronto for International Womens Day 2006! On International Womens Day, women and trans people have historically come together to celebrate more than nine decades of struggle for freedom, justice and peace. Browngirlworld 5 will feature performances by the exciting pan-Asian womens spoken word collective, Mango Tribe, in their first ever Toronto appearance, … READ MORE
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In the Blog
Freedom to Read Week - February 26 to March 4, 2006
Ever consider you might not be able to pick up that book that all your friends are raving about? Ever shake your head at the book burnings of the past? These things are still happening today, even in our own backyards. The Book and Periodical Council’s Freedom of Expression Committee organizes Freedom to Read Week, “an annual event that encourages Canadians to think about and reaffirm their commitment to intellectual freedom, which is guaranteed … READ MORE
