girlnamedxena

I've finally set up my etsy shop. Check it out: www.etsy.com/shop/carrieliney

 Things in my head (which each deserve a post of their own but I'm tired and short on time)

1. Had schmoopy, silly fun time with Austin today: we played in the park, went wading, had ice cream and sat on the edge of a fishpond and were all sweet and romantic and generally disgusting :P. I had forgotten how much fun that was, and how important it is. It's not the sort of thing that you can schedule, but I hope I can find a way to encourage it to happen more often. Time like this is why I fell in love with him in the first place.

2. The genital mutilation and subsequent molestation of little girls really, really infuriates me. I wrote an angry letter, but I don't really know what else to do. 

3. I saw a thing in McLeans or Time Magazine or something about an anti-rape device a woman can wear in her vagina. It's like a barbed thingie that stabs into a guy's junk, and can only be removed in a hospital. I don't know very much about this thing, so forgive me if I say anything stupid or wrong.  Anyway, at first I thought this was a pretty good idea, but the more I thought about it, the less sure I was. I believe these things are meant to be distributed in areas with really high rates of rape, like parts of Africa. But if word gets out that women are wearing these things, I kinda doubt dudes will stop raping. I think it's likely they'll just take to anally raping their victims, which (from what I know) would be more physically damaging than vaginal rape, and, I assume, more painful. Also, a higher risk of transmitting STIs, which from my understanding are also incredibly rampant in that part of the world. I dunno. Maybe there's some culture taboo against buttsex that even rapists will follow, but I tend to doubt it. 

6. I think the indigenous studies class I'm doing notes for is very interesting, but I have a few problems with the prof. I don't think it's appropriate in an academic establishment to expect or even encourage students to smudge themselves (which is considered sacred and cleansing and stuff, and is an important part of Native American spirituality). I don't think the prof should say things like "Spirits ARE real. Psychics ARE real" and imply that her religious beliefs are true, while other belief systems (ie: Christianity) are false. I don't think guest speakers should be allowed to smoke a cigarette in an enclosed space where the class is being held (it was in a tipi, he didn't light up in a classroom). I think the prof should respect other people's schedules and not go overtime, especially with no prior warning when we're an hour away from the city.

That's all I can really think of. Feel free to challenge me on any of these points, especially because I don't know much about most of them, and #6 is mostly just my opinion (#1 is not up for debate, though :P). I'm making this post public on the off chance random people want to chime in on any of these issues.

 After hours of exhaustive research (read: one or two google searches) I have been unable to find pictures of steamy unicycles. I've found a couple of monowheels, but those aren't really the same. Can it be that no one has made one yet? Maybe there's a good reason for that... nah!

I'm trying to come up with ways to steamify a uni, but so far the only things I would be capable doing with the help available to me would be to give it a paintjob and make leather covers for the seat and grips on the handlebars. I'd probably paint the peddles and bumpers on the saddle as well, even though that would wear off really quickly. Throw a bugle horn on the handblars, maybe get a head and tail light and paint the casings to look like brass. Someone with a better understanding of mechanics than me might be able to make pistons that attach to the peddles/cranks, which would be cool but I would be afraid of them getting in the way and catching on clothing. Even if they worked they'd add a lot of extra weight, which wouldn't be idea. I also thought of sticking gears onto the forks, but I'd still be concerned about the teeth of the gears catching on my clothes. I think it would be cool to have a set of pennyfarthing style handlebars made and attached somehow, but I don't know how to do that and I don't think I know anybody who can, which would probably mean paying somebody big bucks to do it for me. Plus pennyfarthing handlebars look like they'd trap your legs and make it hard to bail. Also, how to make reflectors more steamy? Peddles usually come with them built in, and I'd want to put one or two on the wheel for safety. 

If I were to steamify a unicycle I would be riding it a lot, so I'd like to avoid making it anymore impractical then it already is. And whatever I add has to be able to survive multiple UPDs. Ideas? 

(I think I'll probably get this 29, with a touring handle and brakes).

Also, Merry Christmas, Happy Solstice, Tolerable Festivus ect. ect. 

EDIT: TUBES! Long, clear plastic tubes with brightly coloured fluid (glow in the dark?) in them, looped around the frame! With a box with gears on/in it under the seat, where the tubes attach! That'd be cool, lightweight and if I do it right, easy to take off so I wouldn't have to leave it there all the time.

What do you think?

- a phone with a keyboard
- nice yarn for socks, leg warmers, arm warmers.
- fabric
- 2 Mr. Babache Juggling rings in bright pink.
- 29 inch municycle.
- Anything from my amazon wish list.
- A yoga mat
- A subscription (or a single issue) of Unicycle magazine (get it from municycle.com) 
- A Nutcase helmet (Watermelon, Daisy Stripe or Pink Hibiscus)

Music:
- the new Matt Blaise Connection album
- Begin to Hope- Regina Spektor

I just stumbled upon this article. It was written some time ago, so it may be old news to you all, but I thought it was really interesting. Obviously, I can't really comment on what it's like to be a guy. But I think the author was completely correct when he talked about wanting to be desired. When he described what it was like to be with that older man, I knew exactly what he was talking about. I was also a little horrified when he pointed out many men, many people even, have never felt that. It was a positive experience for me. That relationship had it's major problems, and I'm not denying that I got hurt, but ultimately I've come out of it feeling more attractive and confident than I did going in. It has also made me think about how I've expressed my desire for former partners, and I don't think I've ever made anybody feel like that. Hopefully next time around I'll do better.

I have been kind of curious about how men feel in today's society. Finding scholarship and dialogues and so forth on feminism/women's studies is easy, and I'm quite familiar with it. Are there parallel studies for men? I somehow doubt researchers sit around and discuss, say, the impact of advertising on men the same way they do about women, but I haven't actually looked into it so I could be wrong. Some feminists might argue that men don't need to be studied. At the same time, when the Women's Centre opened on campus I heard a few people ask (jokingly) why there wasn't a Men's Centre as well. My response, at that time, was because everywhere was a Men's Centre, and I think there are probably a lot of feminists who would agree. I've also heard the argument that if there was a Men's Centre no one would use it, and maybe they wouldn't, but how can we know for sure? Men have feelings and they get hurt, the same as women. Wouldn't they benefit from having safe spaces as well? If we want equality, doesn't that mean we have to give men the same consideration as women?

Photography by James Tworow.

Dr. Haggis, one of the gentlemen who came to International Steampunk Day was kind enough to put together this newsreel, using pictures and videos taken throughout the day. I don't think I'm actually in it, but it is awesome non-the-less.

I'm almost done my steampunk costume:



More on my DA.

I'm freemounting about 25% of the time now. I also rode almost all the way home (three blocks) from where I practice.

I also got juggling balls today. I don't suck as much as I thought I would.