Posts by Diandra Oliver

  • In the Blog

    Spring Gardening

    April 27th, 2009     by Diandra Oliver     Comments

    If you live anywhere along the border like most Canadians, the idea of having to bring in your planters at night so your Petunias don’t freeze to death will be somewhat foreign. Our friends in Vancouver are celebrating spring under the cherry blossoms and Toronto seems to be at a nice 25C right now. But up here in Prince George it’s still chilly during the day and dipping below freezing at night, which means our … READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    Crafty Chica’d Earth Day

    April 22nd, 2009     by Diandra Oliver     Comments

    The may sun be settling on Earth Day in the east coast, but here in the west we’re just settling in for an evening of activity before Earth Day comes to an end. If you’re looking for a few more things to do, Crafty Chica, Kathy Cano-Murillo, has blogged about an earth-friendly craft every hour for earth day. From a mixed-media wind chime to a recycled grocery tote, or these wonderful Chili Can … READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    Make Your Momma So Proud

    March 8th, 2009     by Diandra Oliver     Comments

    The Mentalists are an all girl dance-rock band from London who were featured on Make Zine for covering Kids by MGMT on their iPhones. While the rendition isn’t the best, the inspiring possibilities are endless. It has been argued that computers and technologies are solitary activities and the getting-back-to-the-internet by young feminists and activists holes ourselves away, geeking out, and not building community. What I love about what The Mentalists are doing here is that … READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    This is my Problem.

    March 4th, 2009     by Diandra Oliver     Comments

    Let me preemptively say that I am PRO paying taxes. In fact, I did my taxes just yesterday and on both me and my partner’s meager income we only have to pay $377.86 in taxes for 2008. And we’ve used that and more in social services. I mean, I took the bus quite a few times and we’re both CBC fans, I even went to emergency for something minor because our city’s walk-in clinic is … READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    Only in a Woman’s World?

    February 23rd, 2009     by Diandra Oliver     Comments

    Oh boy oh boy! There’s a new marketing strategy in town: Only in a Woman’s World. This “series” of drawn videos is here to inspire us to maintain our friendships and fall for these ideas of how women should act. So far this site/series has helped me maintain the following myths about women’s lives: That good friends only come in sets of fours You’re still expected to be hung up about your hair from … READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    My New Favourite Blog

    February 16th, 2009     by Diandra Oliver     Comments

    Students of the Women’s Studies Program at UCF have started a blog to foster discussion about girls and girls’ issues and share cultural products developed by and for girls. The postings cover a number of topics about girls: the Glam Council for America, poetry readings by girls, girls’ events (like rock camps), analysis of images found on the internet, and a healthy dose of Obama. I love the low-key DIY look because it … READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    “I want pie, I want beef jerky!”

    February 13th, 2009     by Diandra Oliver     Comments

    When I was a little girl I used to do the weirdest creative things. I remember playing traffic cop with my younger sister on our rural driveway or making our own newspapers with pictures of ourselves dressed up like aliens. It was so fun and free! I know that these activities and acts of creativity happen even now that I’m grown up and it’s fun to see them embedded into the “techno age”. … READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    Female Merit Badge

    January 30th, 2009     by Diandra Oliver     Comments

    Embroidery artist Mary Yeager creates beautifully intricate merit badges that illustrate female “rights of passage”. Much like the badges you’d get in Brownies or Scouts that proclaim your ability to camp in the snow, build a campfire, or be a good friend, Yeager’s badges mark the different milestones women experience and pass in their life time. Her work celebrates the positive aspects of women’s rights of passage but also criticize “the myriad physical manipulations … READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    Human Rights at Work

    January 28th, 2009     by Diandra Oliver     Comments

    A recent hot topic out here on the West Coast is a woman who experienced a successful outcome from the human rights tribunal. Hailey de Lessier was awarded $26,000 in compensation for being let go from her job because she told her employers she was pregnant (CBC story here). “I just [want] to tell other people that this does happen and you can fight it. It’s a long process but you can fight it and … READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    Veggie Love?

    January 27th, 2009     by Diandra Oliver     Comments

    Oh, PETA, PETA, PETA. When will you learn that we’re not happy with your shock treatment of us human animals? So, NBC says your newest ad “depicts a level of sexuality exceeding [their] standards” and pulls it from the Super Bowl advert round up. And your “fans” continue to laud your behaviour (“omg that ad is soooo hot! i love it”), but surely you must know that we’re disappointed and absolutely disgusted. Continually you make your … READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    Canada Day

    January 14th, 2009     by Diandra Oliver     Comments

    Prince George-based artist, tattoo artist, and art professor, Theresa Sapergia, just returned to the snowy hinterland from Montreal where she was promoting her new show, Canada Day. Hanging at Parisian Laundry until February 14th, Sapergia’s work reflects “on a post-apocalyptic Canada where animals have over taken (or taken back) nature” (source). It’s a treasure for me that Prince George gets to be privy to her company as an artist, small-business owner in a … READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    Sad, Little Dream

    January 10th, 2009     by Diandra Oliver     Comments

    If Friday is still “date night” I’m sure legions of couples spent last night in movie theatres dealing with the fact that they just lost $12 and about 2 hours of their life. I have yet to see the film, but a quick watch of the Bride Wars trailer and the CBC review seal its fate. Katrina Onstad, the author of the article, is my new hero. She considers bride/wedding movies in general, and not without … READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    “Handmade is love.”

    December 10th, 2008     by Diandra Oliver     Comments

    I know that we’re partially on our way into December and if you’re as good as Martha you’ve already collected those renegade pine cones and dipped them in both glue and glitter. But if not, there’s still time to make or buy handmade for the holidays. The Buy Handmade campaign started just over a year ago and is based on one simple pledge: “I pledge to buy handmade this holiday season, and request that others do … READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    The epitome of craft-blogging

    December 5th, 2008     by Diandra Oliver     Comments

    Just when the holidays start to roll in and en masse we begin to feel like we’re rushing too much or “falling behind” the holiday bonanza (3 knitted hats down, 2 to go!!) , Embloggery has a way of saying “slow down”. Blogger Nicole started Embloggery as a way to “to examine the implications of the fact that we now have the ability to disseminate widely something written very quickly, to a potentially very large audience”. … READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    “It would be extremely hard for women to squarely compete against men in any sport.”

    November 22nd, 2008     by Diandra Oliver     Comments

    But yet she can! Eri Yoshida, 16-year-old pitching wunderkind, has been drafted into an independent Japanese baseball team, the Kobe 9 Cruise. Her recruitment makes it the first of its kind in Japan’s recent history (there was a professional league over 50 years ago). As you can see in the video, not only is she excited (“Sugoi! Bikurishimashita!” = “This is awesome! I’m so surprised!”), she’s very thankful. And while the normalcy of her … READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    “because the washer and dryer don’t run on remote control!”

    November 19th, 2008     by Diandra Oliver     Comments

    Gender-based jokes that poke “fun” at domestic chores run rampant in the dominant culture. And somehow men are always the butt of the joke. But the “modern woman” is still stuck doing the laundry because the jokes just allow us as a society to shrug off their “inability” as part of their domestic failure as men, and not as part of the actual divisions in the home when it comes to domestic chores. When it comes … READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    Congratulations! It’s a calendar.

    October 19th, 2008     by Diandra Oliver     Comments

    When I moved to Prince George to go to grad school I didn’t realize that within months I’d be taken under the wings of the coolest women in town. The women work in a variety of capacities and express themselves and their lives in our community in dynamic ways, to be near them is an utter honour. Our friend Bryndis, the owner of Meow Records (which won best record store in Canada this past summer) … READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    This is one icy cat

    October 10th, 2008     by Diandra Oliver     Comments

    I know that it is out of my usual content to post this, but I couldn’t resist. I was out running an errand for work this morning when I ended up stuck behind this beauty of a trailer waiting to make a left turn at a light. I don’t even know where to start with what’s wrong with this. First, I didn’t ask to see this! Where is my permission slip and admission form to … READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    Feminist Blogging: My new fave

    September 11th, 2008     by Diandra Oliver     Comments

    What to Expect When You’re Aborting is definitely my new favourite feminist blog. Created by a 23 year old American woman, this blog chronicles her experiences with being pregnant, getting pregnant, deciding to have an abortion, waiting for the abortion, and dealing with her life’s new changes. What I love most about What to Expect When You’re Aborting is the sheer strength of the writer. Most often images of women who encounter abortion as … READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    the crazy cat lady

    September 10th, 2008     by Diandra Oliver     Comments

    I’m a fan of the absurdity of feminist and queer stereotypes. I mean, who thinks of this stuff and why do we let it get us down? Obviously someone is crazy in this situation and it’s not me! I believe that flaunting these stereotypes in an equally absurd and questioning way can be the answer to the self-doubt, insecurity, and anger that may plague you when you find out that “the man” has finally fit … READ MORE

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