Skip to content

Lura the cyborg?

Lura the cyborg? published on No Comments on Lura the cyborg?

bamna has been selling double-jointed grey resin "automail" arms on the DOA marketplace for a while. She halved the price until August 24th; it's now $36.00 per arm + shipping. I think cyborg parts are pretty nifty [and I missed out on Iplehouse's somewhat awesome, somewhat goofy Elemental Guardian Bianca Cyborg], so maybe I should make Lura a cyborg?

Speaking of cyborg dolls or robot dolls or whatever, I actually like something by Impldoll [gasp!]: their LE Robot Heloise. Unlike Iplehouse's Bianca Cyborg, Robot Heloise actually looks like a damn robot, instead of a human woman wearing a metal bikini. She's pretty damn cool, and it's too bad I can't get her because she'll probably be sold out in a year, as there's only 100 of her available.

Maybe Lura could have a cyberdreads wig with plastic and tinsel in it!

There are doll enthusiasts who actually support this?

There are doll enthusiasts who actually support this? published on 2 Comments on There are doll enthusiasts who actually support this?

Today I discovered, while poking around online, that there are apparently some people who think that it's okay to own recast, bootleg, knockoff BJDs. Really? You think that knowingly supporting plagiarism and intellectual property theft is morally defensible? You're cool being known as a liar, a cheater and a cheapskate? But, hey, fine, it's all good because you saved a buck by supporting a legally dubious business enterprise instead of a legitimate artist and/or company.

Plagiarism: it's wrong. Don't do it.

“Hubby says…no more!”: when your partner hates your dolls…I mean you

“Hubby says…no more!”: when your partner hates your dolls…I mean you published on 3 Comments on “Hubby says…no more!”: when your partner hates your dolls…I mean you

I'm active on 2 message boards for 1:6 figs. On one of them earlier this week, a heterosexual, married woman posted some pictures of her vampire dolls with an inexpensive Barbie subbing for one of the expensive vampire characters that she had not purchased, but wished to. She wrote, "Hubby says no more. At least until Christmas…" In other words, her husband told her that she can't buy any more figs till Xmas.

So her husband issued her an ultimatum about what she can and can't do in pursuit of her interests, and she just accepted it. That's not an interaction between equals; that's an interaction between a superior [husband] and a subordinate [wife]. Where does her husband get off, thinking he can control his wife's interests? Why does she accept his control without complaint?

I know why. Her husband probably earns and controls most of the money in their marriage. I bet she's financially dependent on him. Both of them think of the money as all his because it mostly flows from his job, his inheritance, blah blah blah. Both of them also think that, because it's his money, he gets to dictate its distribution. Therefore, he graciously permits his wife to have interests that involve spending money…well, until the interests become too expensive, in his estimation, at which point he forbids the continuation of his wife's interests because she is taking something away from him. She should be sacrificing for his preferences and wellbeing instead! I mean, God forbid the two approach their relationship from a standpoint of equality, mutual respect and support, rather than a standpoint of sexist, transactional manipulation.

I see the same type of interactions play out on DOA, a forum for people who like Asian ball-jointed dolls. I've heard the following story several times: a young, heterosexual woman writes that her boyfriend feels a deep, shuddering repugnance towards BJDs, not infrequently to the point of forbidding his girlfriend to get any more of them. The poster, of course, feels deep distress and wonders what to do.

Answer: Cultivate relationships with people who respect you and your interests. If a family member, friend or partner tries to control your interests, they're trying to control you because they don't like you the way that you are. They're trying to control you, especially if you're a woman and your interlocutor is a man, because they've internalized the sexist societal dread of autonomous, equal women. They're scared of you. They probably even hate you. Do the world a favor, and surround yourself with people who believe in and practice love instead of fear.

Anyone who says, "No more dolls till Xmas!" instead of "Let's work on our financial goals together" and "You do what you want with your hobby money, as long as you're happy and not hurting anyone" will be kicked to the curb. Anyone who says, "The dolls or me!" as an ultimatum will promptly be dumped in favor of the dolls. That's because I respect myself, while the other person obviously does not.

Heteronormativity in authorial communications

Heteronormativity in authorial communications published on 4 Comments on Heteronormativity in authorial communications

As part of my job, I communicate with authors about the status of their manuscripts, including format correction letters, revision letters, resubmission letters, "Where is your overdue review?" letters, etc. The ways in which the authors address me are alternately frustrating and amusing.

I've had authors address me as "Dr. Allen," which is hilarious. They must assume that anyone involved in a medical journal is automatically a doctor. Well, the editor is a doctor, as are the associate editors and editorial board members, but not the editorial staff.

I've had authors address me as "Miss Allen," which is somewhat irritating, but kind of understandable. A lot of the authors are international, and their primary language may not have an equivalent of "Ms.," so they go with "Miss." Fine.

What really grates my cheese, though, is when authors address me as "Mrs. Allen." Apparently they assume that, just because I come across as a woman belonging to a certain cohort, I must be in a [hetero] marriage. They also assume that, even if I were married, I should be called "Mrs." Nope, it's "Ms." all the way, bucko.

I'm just waiting for when we get married, and someone calls up or sends mail to "Mrs. [My Spouse's Name]," like I'm completely subsumed into her identity. "That person does not exist. Goodbye."

While I'm on the subject, it's my name, mine mine mine, and I'm keeping it. Just as I don't change identity when I marry, so I don't change my name [or my honorific]. What a silly, misogynist, insulting assumption that I would.

Since I'm here, I should also tell you to call me either by the name I introduce myself as or the name prominently featured in my E-mail signature. Anyone who automatically calls me by some nickname available to those people who have my name will be glared at, corrected and dealt a swift kick in the butt [well, the last mentally at least].

I'm feeling a lot of outrage these days.

Paint It Black by Nancy Collins [Sonja Blue #3]: banal in its badness

Paint It Black by Nancy Collins [Sonja Blue #3]: banal in its badness published on No Comments on Paint It Black by Nancy Collins [Sonja Blue #3]: banal in its badness

Just finished the third book in the Sonja Blue trilogy, Paint It Black by Nancy Collins. Kinda funny how she took the title from a Rolling Stones song that was more original, memorable and deeply felt in a few verses than the entire Sonja Blue trilogy was in 3 books. Anyway, I think there was something in there about Sonja's consummation of her quest for vengeance against her vampire maker, but it was lost in an incredibly tedious string of rape, murder, murder by rape and rape by murder that was trying hard to pass for plot.

I was mostly reading the book because I was curious to see how Sonja's adopted vampire/human hybrid daughter Lethe would turn out. When Lethe went into a cocoon, popped out as a teenager after a few weeks and raped her adoptive father [Sonja's partner], then flew around the world [without a plane], raping 24 other guys, with the goal of producing some sort of master race with super psychic powers, I was disgusted. I was disgusted by the complete vacuity of the whole enterprise and its venomously misanthropic, morally bankrupt imagination. It was bad because it was stupid and stupid because it was bad.

I swore an oath to myself that I wouldn't swear any more in my LJ, but I have to break that oath now because the Sonja Blue trilogy was the shittiest shit that ever shat. It's an offense to good writing, good plotting and good character development. It's an offense to all people of any sex and gender presentation, but especially women. It's an offense against anyone who believes in kindness, respect, humanity and fairness. It's an offense to originality and creativity.

I've concluded that it's not actually a trilogy. Instead, it's an actively destructive vortex of hostility. It's a testament to the sad depths of banal depravity of the human imagination. It's a diseased mutation of novels, a literary cancer born from kyriarchical nastiness. It's deeply revolting on every level — line by line, cliche by cliche, regurgitated theme by regurgitated theme — and potentially damaging. I live in the kyriarchy; I already experience multiple axes of oppression daily; I don't need the inhumane dicta of the kyriarchy concentrated and injected directly into my amygdala in the form of this trilogy.

If, for some bizarre reason, you want to read a series that hates you and enjoys doing so, I heartily recommend the Sonja Blue trilogy. You can have my copies. Take them, please. I would burn them in cleansing fire, only I don't think there's any place around here where I can do so without violating some sort of city ordinance. Barring that, I'll settle for tossing them in the Dumpster or recycling them in the vain hope that the pages might contribute usefully to society in their next life.

I don't just hate this trilogy. I reject it. I repudiate it. It represents all the vile oppressions against which I struggle every day. This trilogy is just one of my many enemies and oppressors.

I will not let it win.

The Sonja Blue trilogy by Nancy Collins: damn…this series is misogynist!

The Sonja Blue trilogy by Nancy Collins: damn…this series is misogynist! published on No Comments on The Sonja Blue trilogy by Nancy Collins: damn…this series is misogynist!

A while back, when I still lived in Massachusetts, I was housesitting overnight at someone's house. I found some cheap paperbacks by Nancy Collins there — Sunglasses After Dark and In the Blood — and read them quickly, staying up late. They followed the adventures of Sonja Blue, a reluctant vampire trying to suppress her monstrous nature, which she termed "the Other," while also taking vengeance on her maker and ridding the world of supernatural menaces along the way. Back before urban fantasy devolved into a set of cliches, this trilogy [capped by Paint It Black] entertained me and made an impression on me in the way that Sonja's vampirism was portrayed as an alien entity in her head against which she struggled.

Harboring happy memories of this trilogy, I recently got all 3 books off Amazon.com and settled in for a bit of fun. I quickly realized that the Sonja Blue series is a) full of cliches [not urban fantasy cliches, but cliches in general] and b) horribly misogynist.

Speaking of a), I don't even know where to start. All the characters are stock types, and they all speak exactly as expected. For example, the British pimp spews a debased version of Cockney slang ["ducks?" "guv'nor?!"] dreamt up by someone whose experience with the British idiom extends to a single viewing of Disney's Mary Poppins. The oleaginous evil dude makes a suave proposal to our male protagonist of In The Blood that's all ominous inneundo and silly euphemisms. I could go on, but I'd exhaust myself in listing the ways in which the characterization is lazy.

Speaking of b), the series doesn't come right out and hate women blatantly, but it does so in more insidious, structural ways. Sonja moves in a world where most of the people she meets are men, while the women are usually reduced to sexualized window dressing. The one exception, her main antagonist in Sunglasses After Dark, Caroline Wheele, is defined as the widow of a charismatic evangelist [she killed him] for whom, with her psychic talents, she was the power behind the throne. When Caroline dies, the spirits of her victims pull her to pieces, reducing her to an insensate object in the very way that the author reduces all female characters.

The trilogy apparently really hates sex too. Any sex scene is one of transactional exploitation, without any appreciation or emotional connection. Sexual and psychic violation forge both Sonja's and Caroline's personalities, and they go on to perpetrate the same abuses on others. Actually, now that I think about it, there's almost no sex acts in the trilogy. It's all rape, all the time. Anyone whose perspective automatically makes sex an abuse of power has a serious problem. Of course, the trilogy's hatred for sex ends up being a hatred for women, since all the women are reduced to sex objects.

Finally, Sonja herself is constructed as a misogynist character. She doesn't hate — or at least tolerates — male characters, with whom she occasionally forms mutually beneficial relationships. But she really doesn't like other women. At best, she feels comtempt for them, at worst, as with Caroline, hatred. Furthermore, Sonja is that most tedious of types, the Exceptional Woman [see my criticism of Brave for details], whose value only lies in her repudiation of her status as a woman and her embrace of pursuits and skills coded as masculine. Blah blah blah yuck.

I'm finishing this trilogy, and then I'm getting rid of it.

Must! Not! Buy! More! New! Dolls!

Must! Not! Buy! More! New! Dolls! published on 1 Comment on Must! Not! Buy! More! New! Dolls!

Since January, I have acquired the following people [in chronological order]. I'm talking about dolls I purchased this year, not ones that I purchased last year, but finally received this year.

Mellifer [1:6 BJD], purchased in April

Steampink AJ [1:6 action fig], traded for in June

Nathaniel [1:3 BJD], purchased in June/July

Millie [1:6 action fig], purchased in July

August [1:3 BJD], purchased in July

Lura['s head] [1:3 BJD], purchased in July

June and July have been very busy doll-related months for me, what with Too Many Dolls: The Exodus and the purchase of 5 of this year's 6 new dolls. Most of the purchasing frenzy stems from having money available after Too Many Dolls: The Exodus and therefore being able to indulge some 1:6 and 1:3 whims.

I can't keep buying dolls like this, though. I don't have a) the space or b) the money. Well, technically, that's not true. In terms of a), I could always bring some to work to put on my new bookcase, which should be coming any day now. In terms of b), I can pretty much always finagle it so I cover my necessary expenses and then whatever doll-related purchases I want.

But anyway…we are ignoring technicalities! I need to watch my discretionary spending because we are saving up to move next summer. We need to pay for packing supplies, movers and/or truck rental, first + security, pet registration fee [meow!], furniture and all those other things you don't know you need until you get to your new house and realize you don't have them. I've been socking away $$$ steadily for at least 6 months, so I have a nice chunk of change already, but I'd rather have saved too much than too little.

Therefore I have made myself a resolution. I will not purchase any more 1:3 or 1:6 dolls until we move. Getting a body for Lura is fine. Trading for dolls is fine. Buying doll-related things [such as clothes + wig for Lura, 1:3 furniture and 1:6 stands] is acceptable too. Leaching from the bank account to increase the ranks, however, is not.

This way I can settle down and enjoy what I have. I will also ensure that I have plenty of $$$ to cover moving costs. It will be hard, but I can do it!

Incoming!!

Incoming!! published on No Comments on Incoming!!

I am in the process of acquiring an Iplehouse Noctarcana Circus Luna Tamer human head in rose grey resin with original faceup and eyes. [I'm also getting the chimera tail, which I have no use for.] Everyone please welcome Lura, who will not be getting a body, hair and clothes any time soon because the FLE car still hasn't had its well-car checkup, and my car is more important than my dolls. 4srs.

The August Project: mostly done!

The August Project: mostly done! published on 2 Comments on The August Project: mostly done!

…I ended up not needing hemostats after all. I restrung August using a doubled length of 20 gauge wire as a threading tool, jewelry pliers for pulling and pens as cross pieces to keep the elastics from snapping back into the body. She is now strung extremely tightly, so I have to make her do "exercises" the way that Lola Paprika did when her "muscles" were too tight. August also needs wiring in her arms; she also needs underwear. For now, though, some photos of her mostly completed.

It should be illegal to be this cute.
Continue reading The August Project: mostly done!

Adventures in hemostat purchasing, part 2, apparently an ongoing series

Adventures in hemostat purchasing, part 2, apparently an ongoing series published on 1 Comment on Adventures in hemostat purchasing, part 2, apparently an ongoing series

Creative Habitat: Are those a scrapbooking supply?

Michael's: Try Aubuchon's or Lowe's.

Bibens Ace Hardware: Nope.

Home Depot: Perhaps you meant long nose pliers?

Me: NO I DID NOT.

Possible body for IH Luna head: Illusion Spirit 58cm girl

Possible body for IH Luna head: Illusion Spirit 58cm girl published on No Comments on Possible body for IH Luna head: Illusion Spirit 58cm girl

Whoa…Illusion Spirit is currently having a 12% off sale through August 24th. That means that their 58cm girl body is currently $228.80 at Alice's Collections. With an extra $40.00 fee for grey resin, that's $268.80 for a body. The event also reduces Illusion Spirit jointed hands by 20% off, so a pair of 1:3 female hands would be $60.00 + $15.00 for grey. Plus…Alice's Collections has free shipping on orders over $100.00.

Let's compare:

Illusion Spirit grey fem 58 cm body + grey jointed hands from Alice's Collections: $343.80

Illusion Spirit grey fem 58 cm body from Alice's Collections: $268.80

Angelsdoll grey massive fem – 82.2 points + shipping = $474.80

Angelsdoll grey slim fem – 82.2 points + shipping = $419.80

Suddenly my Angelsdoll points do not look so attractive in this case.

Update on the NYT’s anti-trans, anti-WOC poo-flinging

Update on the NYT’s anti-trans, anti-WOC poo-flinging published on 1 Comment on Update on the NYT’s anti-trans, anti-WOC poo-flinging

I couldn't use the NYT's form to send a message directly to the reporter who wrote that horrible article about trans women of color on Christopher Street, so I E-mailed the public editor, the executive editor and the president with the following:

I’m writing to express my disgust with Sarah Nir’s July 24th article about trans women of color on Christopher Street: “For Money or Just to Strut, Living Out Loud on a Transgender Stage.”

This article is just as revolting as the NYT's coverage of Lorena Escalera's death.

Do you seriously think it's acceptable to refer to the trans women of color in the article as "exotic…parakeets?" The term "exotic" is just a racist dogwhistle for "different and, therefore, unacceptable." Meanwhile, comparing women to birds dehumanizes them in a dismissive, sexist way. Thanks a lot for perpetuating the oppression and bigotry aimed at trans people and/or people of color, especially women!

I urge you to write about trans women and/or women of color with respect, treating them as equal human beings. Given the NYT's track record, though, I doubt this will occur.

EDIT: I just alerted GLAAD's Aaron McQuade, Director of News and Field Media, about the NYT's poo-flinging. I did this because he was the one who wrote on GLAAD's site about the NYT's poo-flinging at Lorena Escalera. Also going to submit an incident report on GLAAD's site.

The August Project: testing eyes and wigs

The August Project: testing eyes and wigs published on No Comments on The August Project: testing eyes and wigs

The seller liked August's open-eyed head, but I am fonder of her winking head, which I'll be using. Here's August with a wine-colored fur wig and an acrylic eye [unknown size] of green with a brown center. She came with both the wig and the eye. For some reason I'm thinking that the eye is 16mm???
Continue reading The August Project: testing eyes and wigs

Adventures in hemostat purchasing

Adventures in hemostat purchasing published on 1 Comment on Adventures in hemostat purchasing

August, my Buddy Doll April, came yesterday in pieces. I need to clean and restring her. Having never restrung a doll before [with proper tools], I seek hemostats, among other things. I called the local Walgreen's to see if they sold hemostats.\

Me: Do you sell hemostats?

Person 1: Let me check.

[long pause, hold music, boredom]

Person 2: Hello, Walgreen's.

Me: Hi, I was wondering if you sell hemostats.

Person 2: Can you spell that, please?

Me: H-E-M-O-S-T-A-T-S.

Person 2: What's a hemostat?

Me: It's a clamp thing.

Person 2: Is it an over-the-counter product?

Me: You know, if you aren't sure what it is, you probably don't carry it. Thanks. Goodbye.

I’m starting to hate the New York Times.

I’m starting to hate the New York Times. published on No Comments on I’m starting to hate the New York Times.

They just published another article about trans people, called "For Money or Just to Strut, Living Out Loud on a Transgender Stage." It's about young trans women of color on Christopher Street in the West Village in New York City. In the summer nights, some of them gather in this area. They enjoy the freedom to express their fashion sense and/or their desires openly. They do the usual activities covered under the rubric of "hanging out" for twentysomethings: talking, eating, dancing, arguing. Some of the women are sex workers.

I want to know more about the motivations of the women who moved here because they found it safer and more welcoming. I want to know more about the class conflict that they experience when they earn small money doing sex work in the vicinity of expensive condos. I want to know more about the daily lives of the women, activists and sex workers alike, who congregate on Christopher Street after dark.

And, thanks to the New York Times, I will never learn any of this from their coverage. I don't know where to start on how disgustingly problematic it is, so I'll start with the title. Calling the women's hang-out place a "stage" implies that their activities are false, untrue mimicry. Since the women in the article are, you know, living their damned lives,  the use of theatrical terms suggests that their lives are trivial and second-rate…probably in implicit comparison to the lives of the owners of the extravagant mansions lining the street.

The rest of the article goes on and on about how the women look, how they style their hair, what they wear, even comparing them at one point to "flocks of exotic — if risqué — parakeets." Hey look — it's dehumanization! Where have I seen that before? Oh yeah, in the reprehensible NYT coverage on the death of Lorena Escalera, who shared some traits with the women in this article: she was a trans woman of color in her 20s, and she had done sex work in the past.

Time for another letter, calling out the NYT's racism and cissexism. I should really cancel my subscription.

Adventures in scientific publishing, part 3

Adventures in scientific publishing, part 3 published on 2 Comments on Adventures in scientific publishing, part 3

Me: Please include your complete title page when submitting your revision.

Corresponding author 1: [includes abbreviated title page containing title and nothing else]

Me: Please include your complete title page when submitting your revision.

Corresponding author 2: [includes abbreviated title page containing title and nothing else]

Me: Please include your complete title page when submitting your revision.

Corresponding author 3: [includes abbreviated title page containing title and nothing else]

Me: ?!?!?!?!?!?!?

What I don’t get about Dollfie Dreams

What I don’t get about Dollfie Dreams published on 1 Comment on What I don’t get about Dollfie Dreams

I don't understand why the Volks Dollfie Dreams of licensed anime and manga characters are so expensive. More precisely, why do their prices inflate so horribly on the secondary market?

For example, here's Rise Kujikawa, a limited edition from this year. As you can see if you scroll to the bottom of the page, she sold for $605.00 on Volks USA, excluding shipping. I just saw her on the DOA marketplace for $1690.00, excluding shipping.

Here's Lucy Maria Misora, an LE from this year as well. She originally sold for $605.00, but I see her on the marketplace for $1200.00.

Finally, here's an unofficial set of pictures of Kana Unchou, an LE from 2009. She originally sold for JPY 58000.00, which, let's say, is ~$740.00. She's currently on the marketplaces for $1950.00. But don't fret — shipping is included!

I suppose their secondary market value increases so disgustingly because of a) scalpers and b) people willing to pay scalpers' prices. I still don't fathom, though, why someone would drop $2K on a soft vinyl doll that stains if you sneeze in its general direction. The question remains — who are these people willing to pay so much?

Lola Paprika will have new shoes!

Lola Paprika will have new shoes! published on No Comments on Lola Paprika will have new shoes!

I bought Lola Paprika some black loafers with white skulls on them especially for her relatively large feet. She can't stand in her high heels [except for that one time she magically stood somehow during my first photoshoot], and that's why I don't take her places. Soon she'll be able to go outside for photos!

Continue reading Lola Paprika will have new shoes!

Estate planning, part 3

Estate planning, part 3 published on 1 Comment on Estate planning, part 3

Well, it looks like I can't use Unsworth Law after all. Though I had a very good experience with the legal assistant, the primary lawyer says in his bio that he is on the advisory board of the Salvation Army, a disgustingly militant and profoundly anti-queer organization.

Guess they don't really care about us after all.

Millie, my Phicen Military Fun, arrives!

Millie, my Phicen Military Fun, arrives! published on No Comments on Millie, my Phicen Military Fun, arrives!

She came today! The first thing I did was…break her arm. I snapped the internal skeleton of her left upper arm, creating the clean break indicated by the arrow in the picture below. I immediately concluded that Phicen seamless bodies are CRAP. They're not poorly made; they're just contrary to the purpose of action figures, who are supposed to move and pose, not snap.
Continue reading Millie, my Phicen Military Fun, arrives!

What am I paying for?

What am I paying for? published on No Comments on What am I paying for?

There are quite a few BJD companies out there that make beautiful, well-sculpted, appealing BJDs for between $200.00 and $300.00. There's Elfdoll with its line of 14cm tinies, Fairyland with its RealPukis and PukiPukis, 5StarDoll with its 60cm line, Planetdoll with its entire stock, Angell Studio with all dolls <40cm, Dragondoll with dolls <70cm, et hoc genus omne.

Knowing this, I have to wonder why other companies [coughVolkscough, coughSoomcough] charge up to 4 times that amount. Obviously, I have willingly paid for multiple Sooms and Volkses, so I'm not complaining, just wondering where the markup comes in. I think we're paying for the brand. >_>

How is a law firm like a mattress seller?

How is a law firm like a mattress seller? published on No Comments on How is a law firm like a mattress seller?

Both of their Web sites go on and on about everything you could ever want to know about their goods & services, except for the prices. Getting information about prices from these estate planners is like pulling stumps with dental floss. You can do it, but the result feels decidedly unrewarding, compared to the amount of effort required.

I have officially run out of room…

I have officially run out of room… published on No Comments on I have officially run out of room…

…for BJDs. I thought I would keep them all on one shelf of a bookshelf, but that shelf only holds Janvier Jett, Lola Paprika, Araminthe, Sardonix, Sarah, Submit and Noodge. Dorothy is on the shelf below, which is fine because she’s only 14cm. Flower, Ginevra and Mellifer are on my desk, along with Nathaniel [who recently arrived], but my desk is also where the Me and My Muses dolls have a staging area and photo studio, so I have to move the hordes once a week when I shoot episodes.

Clearly the solution is to bring a few people to work! I have nothing on my walls anyway; my only decoration consists of a few toys. [My sweatshirt over the back of my chair does not count as decor.]

I should get a bookcase…for…um…my reference books! That’s it. To be fair, I do have some reference books, looking pretty silly, sitting on top of my filing cabinet. All 4 of them can go on the bookcase, and so can the some of the small populations.

While I’m at it, I should order a bulletin board.

While I’m also at it, I need to rid myself of all those 1:3 clothes I don’t want.

Prudie blames rape victim [probably not for the first time].

Prudie blames rape victim [probably not for the first time]. published on 3 Comments on Prudie blames rape victim [probably not for the first time].

A letter writer in her late 20s writes in Prudie's latest Slate column that she and her husband have negotiated the following boundaries: One time, they were drunk, and he was horny, but she did not want to have sex, so she shoved him away. They now agree, that, if they are drunk and/or sleepy, they should secure each other's consent before having sex. Good? Good!

Then they both got drunk. Her husband did not ask her consent, but she "went along," in her words. She concludes, "I can’t fathom how he could have ignored our agreement. Should I just drop it or am I right about feeling abused?"

In response, Prudie comments derisively on college codes of conduct that advise consent in sexual situations each time the participants start a new activity. She then contrasts such requirements to interactions in a married couple, where, she says, "implicit consent" can be assumed.

Prudie winds up by insulting the letter writer as "prim, punctiliious, punitive," while suggesting that the letter writer is abusing her husband: "Living in terror that expressing one’s perfectly normal sexual desire could end one’s marriage, and freedom, is itself a form of abuse."

Bloody hell, can we all see what's wrong with this response? The letter writer's husband forced himself upon her without obtaining her consent, as previously agreed. Why yes, in fact, that is rape. That's a problem!

Even if one has a hard time wrapping one's head around the fact that this interaction is rape [this is apparently Prudie's problem], one can at least admit that the letter writer's husband overrode a clearly stated boundary and thus disrespected the letter writer's autonomy and agency. This is also [at least] the second time that he has behaved in a similar manner. This is a red flag for, at worst, an abusive asshole and, at best, an individual so inculcated with cultural misogyny that he really needs to grow up and learn how to treat women like people before attempting further relationships. That's also a problem!

Prudie does not recognize these problems, however, because she is too busy making fun of the letter writer and talking out her ass about her ideal concept of marriage. Apparently, her vision of marriage includes unlimited license for one partner to rape the other. If the victim doesn't put out or even dares to feel disturbed about his or her agency being disregarded, the victim is being a poor partner. The victim's oversensitivity is stifling the rapist's "perfectly normal sexual desire." Don't you know that expecting a relationship based on mutual respect and enthusiastic consent "is itself a form of abuse?" The problem is all in the head of the victim, who should be lying back and thinking of Dan Savage. :p

That's rape culture right there: victim blaming, victim shaming and valorization of the rapist's feelings and experience over the victim's. And that's a problem!

The leadership of the Boy Scouts of America reminds me of the leadership of the Catholic Church.

The leadership of the Boy Scouts of America reminds me of the leadership of the Catholic Church. published on No Comments on The leadership of the Boy Scouts of America reminds me of the leadership of the Catholic Church.

Both organizations piss and moan obsessively about the evils of queer sexuality and trans identities while refusing to recognize the reality: namely, that queer and/or trans people exist within their ranks and that “ACK COOTIES GET IT AWAY!!!” is not a compassionate, acceptable, morally defensible to address these people.

I’m going to talk about the Boy Scouts because I have more experience with them than with Catholics. Sometimes I think that what happens in BSA hierarchy and what happens in local BSA troops are completely different. For example, all my family members involved in BSA describe an enjoyable experience of making friends, playing with their peers, going on adventures and learning fascinating things. I will not claim that everyone’s BSA experience is like this, but I will note that, in my admittedly unscientific sample, nobody mentions “pissing and moaning obsessively about the evils of queer sexuality and trans identities” as a primary pursuit.

What is wrong with the BSA leadership? Why are they so pathologically focused on what a very small number of people do with their bodies? Don’t they have better things to do, like run the damn organization?

Adventures in scientific publishing, part 2

Adventures in scientific publishing, part 2 published on No Comments on Adventures in scientific publishing, part 2

Me: Your references are out of order. [explains where the problems are and how to fix them]

Corresponding Author: I fixed them. [provides updated document with lingering errors]

Me: Your references are still out of order. [explains where the problems are and how to fix them]

Corresponding Author: Now I fixed them. [provides updated document with lingering errors]

Me: >_<

My Supervisor: Let the manuscript editors deal with it.

Manuscript Editors: >:(

Local news sources

Local news sources published on No Comments on Local news sources

I'm wondering if I should subscribe digitally to the Freeps. I need my local news and information, and the New York Times does not provide it, primarily because I don't live in New York City.

Alternatively, there's always Seven Days.

EDIT: Seven Days reports that the Freeps is circling the drain.

Grar.

Grar. published on 1 Comment on Grar.

I sold a doll, N'Yenya, actually; the buyer paid through Paypal. I looked all over for his mailing address and could not find it in Paypal, even under the Details link. I sent him messages by E-mail and through the Doll Page asking for his address. He never responded. Finally I told him that, if I didn't get his address by 5 PM EST yesterday, I was going to refund him and relist the doll. I did so.

NOW I get a message from him stating that he has a verified Paypal address. So? That doesn't help! What is it? I wrote back saying that I was willing to try again and provide a screenshot of me not having the address. Up to him.

I really hope this is all a stupid misunderstanding and that his mailing address is just hiding somewhere. Alternatively, I could also live with him being wrong and his transaction details actually lacking his mailing address. Anyway, can we just get the doll gone?

Bonjour, Nathaniel!

Bonjour, Nathaniel! published on 2 Comments on Bonjour, Nathaniel!

Nathaniel came today. She promptly told me that she was not interested in her fullset, except for the underwear and the boots. As is usual for most of the population around here, she garbed herself in a fashion disaster from my supply instead. See below.

She is convinced she's cool because she's wearing what makes her happy. And she's so out of touch with what's actually mainstream cool that her own style works for her!

I really like Nathaniel as a doll. She looks about 12 or 13, which is perfect because she's an SD13. I like her muted, default faceup and her little sculpted smirk. Because she's from 2005, she has yellowed, so her resin has turned a rich, golden color. It makes her look softer and warmer, I think.

I'm really not one of those people who can't stand yellowing. Resin will always yellow as it ages, and there's no escaping from it. Why bother keeping my dolls in their boxes or in dark rooms all the time in an attempt to stave off yellowing? I believe that my BJDs exist to be played with, posed, dressed, undressed and photographed, so I like to keep them out where I can see them. I accepting the goldening or browning of their skin tones as inevitable and even beautiful.

Continue reading Bonjour, Nathaniel!

A strange concept of Military Fun: Phicen’s 1:6 femfig of the same name

A strange concept of Military Fun: Phicen’s 1:6 femfig of the same name published on No Comments on A strange concept of Military Fun: Phicen’s 1:6 femfig of the same name

Phicen is a maker of 1:6 female action figures and clothing, known for their "seamless" body, in which most of the articulation hides underneath a flexible skin. They are currently selling a figure called Military Fun which proves, without a doubt, that their designers have weird senses of humor.

Military Fun, shown here on Phicen's company site, consists of a seamless Caucasian female figure body with a blond headsculpt that looks vaguely like Scarlett Johansson. Her brown tube top and miniskirt are apparently too small to contain her white underwear. She also has thigh-high, lace-up, bright green boots and a trench coat that matches her top and skirt. Nothing about this get-up screams "Military!" to me, much less "Fun!"

A quick glance at Phicen's other products shows that their target audience likes pretty faces, long hair, big boobs, realistic poseability, revealing outfits and extremely high heels.

Okay, I can play this game.

Here's my concept for a surefire bestselling Military Fun: headsculpt with noted similarity to current actress of the moment, long hair, seamless body with extra large bust and standard poseability, camo midriff-baring low-cut bolero top, camo short shorts, thigh-high green fishnets, big stompy black leather boots, some sort of hat, goggles [because goggles are cool], fingerless gloved hands AND LOTS OF GUNS. Or maybe just ONE BIG GUN, like a Gatling assault cannon, or whatever the hell Cy Girl Destiny's big honkin' piece was. Maybe some grenades and bombs too. Don't forget the harnesses and holsters! There — instant sell-out!

See — I know my audience! :p

That being said, I find Military Fun hilarious, which is why I purchased her. [Also she was only $60.00 at SithLord MacGyver's, and when was the last time you got a complete figure with painted, haired head, body, alternative hands, clothes and shoes/bootfeet for <$90.00? No, you old farts, I'm not talking about the glory days of the early millennium when you could buy Cy Girls for $30.00. I'm talking about modern times.] And I like her head…and her long green boots.

I haven't purchased a new 1:6 action figure in YEARS. This'll be my first Phicen and first seamless body too. I'll definitely report back when I get her!

Estate planning, part 2

Estate planning, part 2 published on No Comments on Estate planning, part 2

After my horrible experience with Clarke Demas and Baker’s disgustingly heteronormative policies, I searched for an explicitly GLBT-friendly estate planner in Vermont, vowing to ask if this one had up-to-date forms. One of the few firms whose site clearly mentioned experience with same-sex couples was Unsworth Law.

Preliminarily, I can say that my experience with Unsworth has been much better than my experience with Clarke Demas and Baker. For one thing, the firm is clearly in touch with reality. For another, the legal assistant sympathized with my outrage at Clarke Demas and Baker. She could actually say the words “same-sex marriage,” which shouldn’t be that much to ask, but which made me feel very pleased. I’m going to a general seminar by Unsworth about estate planning next week. Further bulletins as events warrant.

Oh hell, let’s just call it “pale purple.”

Oh hell, let’s just call it “pale purple.” published on 1 Comment on Oh hell, let’s just call it “pale purple.”

I seriously have a problem with the word “lavender.” I can never remember how to spell it, which is very unusual because I usually know how to spell most English words I run across.

L A V E N D A R ?

L A V A N D E R ?

I can’t think of any mnenomic device to help me remember the correct spelling either.

Hmmm, well, it is kind of like “lave” + “ender,” both of which I do know how to spell. Maybe I can remember it that way.

[To “lave” is a wonderful word meaning “to wash” or, metaphorically, “to soothe.” It rhymes with “save.”]

Hooray hooray, they’re going away!

Hooray hooray, they’re going away! published on No Comments on Hooray hooray, they’re going away!

Less than 24 hours after being posted on DOA, 2 of my 4 small BJDs that I am trying to get rid of have already sold: the Orient Doll So Ye and the PlanetDoll body/Soom Uyoo head. Gooooooooooooood riddance. Now if the other 2 would just get the heck out of here…

Dolls for sale

Dolls for sale published on No Comments on Dolls for sale

http://www.denofangels.com/forums/showthread.php?527892-OrientDoll-Orient-Doll-So-Yi-So-Ye-%28WS-%29-50-00

http://www.denofangels.com/forums/showthread.php?527894-Elfdoll-Tiny-Kai-14cm-mature-2nd-edition-%28NS%29-225

http://www.denofangels.com/forums/showthread.php?527899-Soom-and-PlanetDoll-Uyoo-head-amp-Mini-Riz-body-with-modded-neck-amp-breasts-%28NS%29-120&p=9227369#post9227369

http://www.denofangels.com/forums/showthread.php?527901-Elfdoll-and-Notdoll-Elfdoll-20cm-Doona-body-with-Notdoll-Miriam-head-%28WS%29-110&p=9227401#post9227401

Ready to read!!

Ready to read!! published on No Comments on Ready to read!!

I’m ready to read Nalo Hopkinson’s entire oeuvre! Partly because Midnight Robber sounds awesome [and has a cover apparently drawn by my favorite illustrators, Leo and Diane Dillon] and partly because I need an antidote to all those stories that treat Voudun like a lazy trashcan stereotype for “primitive evil magic.” [I’m looking at you, Chasing the Dead by Joe Schreiber, for just one of innumerable examples.]

The local library even has some of her books available for borrowing. Very surprising, given that Vermont is like the second whitest state in the nation.

EDIT: Oh no, Leo Dillon is dead! No more beautiful collaborations.

Heteronormativity at the estate planner’s

Heteronormativity at the estate planner’s published on 2 Comments on Heteronormativity at the estate planner’s

My financial advisor has been bugging me to make a will, power of attorney, health care agent, all that sort of thing, so I finally got around to scheduling an initial consultation. At my sister's recommendation, I chose Clarke Demas and Baker, a Vermont-based law firm, and scheduled an appointment.

I received a PDF intake form for a single person, but wanted a Word document so I could make notes on it. When I received the Word intake form, I noticed that it was for married people, but I decided to use it anyway.

Then I looked closely at the married intake form. It was divided into 2 columns, one labeled "Husband" and the other labeled "Wife."

Outrage overcame me. [It does that a lot these days.] We've had marriage equality here in the state since 2009, but Clarke Demas and Baker apparently refuses to accept reality by simply changing their forms to read "Spouse 1" and "Spouse 2." They may have experience doing estate planning for same-sex couples, but their forms betray what they really think of us: we don't exist.

I refuse to patronize a law firm that thinks I don't exist. My business is going elsewhere, and I'm telling them why.

EDIT: I just explained to the legal assistant my cancellation and my reasons. I said that they should update their forms. She said, "I apologize; we do have a form for that."

Now I'm really glad I'm not using their services. My God, if the legal assistant can't even say the phrase "same-sex marriage" and if, for some reason, there's a separate form [separate but no doubt "equal!"] for same-sex spouses, the firm clearly devalues me and my ilk.

Disabled people aren’t your metaphors, Susan Gubar!

Disabled people aren’t your metaphors, Susan Gubar! published on 1 Comment on Disabled people aren’t your metaphors, Susan Gubar!

I was all excited to read Memoir of a Debulked Woman, Susan Gubar's account of her diagnosis and treatment for advanced ovarian cancer. Since Gubar is a noted feminist literary critic, I expected a powerful combination of personal details and polemic yielding a strong, thought-provoking critique of the medical industrial complex.

I did not expect gratuitous similes about people with disabilities. At least twice in the half of the book that I read [before throwing it across the room in disgust], Gubar compares her social withdrawal and disinclination to talk about her condition to having autism.

NO! Your social withdrawal and disinclination is NOT like having autism, Susan Gubar. More accurately, your social withdrawal and disclination to talk about your condition correspond to your personal stereotype [also a cultural stereotype at large] of how autistic people act in social situations.

In any case, please shut up. You are not like a person who has autism. Only people with autism are like people who have autism. And do I need to remind you that people with autism are actual, real people, as opposed to fodder for your literary flourishes?

While I'm on the same subject, people need to stop using "blind," "deaf," "crippled" and other words that refer to people with disabilities as metaphors. No, in fact, you're not "blind" to the obstacles facing you or "deaf" to criticism and therefore "crippled" by your inability to heed advice. You may be inattentive to obstacles, heedless of criticism and therefore challenged by your inability to heed advice, so use the right words, rather than ones that don't belong to you.

Also, everybody, stop using any form of the word "lame" to refer to something that you think is pathetic, insignificant, not good enough, unconvincing, etc. Look at how many synonyms I just listed in the preceding sentence! Pick one of them instead, not a term that shows how horribly prejudiced you are against people with disabilities.

I mistrust books with reading group guides in the back.

I mistrust books with reading group guides in the back. published on No Comments on I mistrust books with reading group guides in the back.

They always signal to me that the book wants to be taken seriously as Important Literature. However, if a book has to try that hard to inspire Deep Thoughts [TM], it will never be anything more than a second-tier novel.

I also find reading group guides rather insulting. Do the publishers really think that little of the readers? Do they think that we can’t come up with our own topics of discussion? We’re not stupid!

I should really check the back of books for reading group guides before I decide to read them. I could save myself a lot of grief that way.

While I’m at it, will someone please tell Jodi Picoult that she should stop dressing up her books as Srs Bzns? She writes entertainingly good stories, not Classics For The Ages. And that’s perfectly fine…if she’s honest about what she’s doing.

People will take the weirdest stuff.

People will take the weirdest stuff. published on 1 Comment on People will take the weirdest stuff.

I thought fer sure that the PB body or the articulated Barbies would be the first things to go from my updated sales list, but no. In fact, someone pounced on the bag of Barbie, Obitsu and Cy Girl body parts that I've had sitting around for years, just waiting for the occasion [= never] when I want to try some body bashing. Well, Godspeed, my friend. At least I don't have to throw them out.

I guess this just proves the old saw: "One man's trash is another man's prune Danish." Huh.

I love you, Men Without Hats!

I love you, Men Without Hats! published on No Comments on I love you, Men Without Hats!

Some time ago, I created a Youtube playlist based on a concert DVD of Men Without Hats entitled Live Hats, and I love it. In concert, Men Without Hats sound less poppy and harsher, more experimental. Unfortunately, I don't know of any concert recordings of Men Without Hats, with the exception of Live Hats, which is only available on DVD, not CD, hence my constant resort to this playlist. Whenever I need some background music, I just cue this playlist up, and it automatically makes me happy. ^_^

P.S. I STILL LOVE YOU IVAN DOROSCHUK!!!!

Sometimes I really hate Windows.

Sometimes I really hate Windows. published on No Comments on Sometimes I really hate Windows.

Whenever I open files from the Web [where I do most of my work through an online manuscript processing system] and want to save them somewhere, Windows defaults to the My Documents folder. This pisses me off, as I would much rather use my desktop a) as storage for most frequently used documents and b) as a staging area for temporary files that will soon be filed elsewhere, then deleted.

Somehow, though, yelling, "NO!!!!!!!!!!!!! SAVE IT TO THE DESKTOP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" does not change the default saving location.

Eventually, I figured out this morning how to change the default saving location to my desktop. I certainly didn't learn how to do this by right-clicking on something or using a contextual help menu or anything so easy. No, I had to type "change default save location windows 7" into Google and find the answer on a techy how-to Web site.

This is one of the reasons I hate Windows sometimes. It may be easier to get under the hood of Windows machines than, say, Macs, but you don't necessarily have any clue about what to do once you're there. There's a way to do pretty much anything you want to in Windows, but the challenge is finding this information, which is often hidden under right-clicks and submenus.

Don't even get me started on the latest redesign of Windows Media Player. In previous versions, you used to have the options of scrolling through your music up and down in lists of relatively unadorned text. I really like that method because I can see a greater amount of information in one glance.

Windows Media Player seems to have done away with that display option in favor of some sort of scrolling crapola left and right with clickable tiles of album covers. One gets only an album's worth of information on one screen, necessitating multiple scrolls to the left or right to get an idea of context. That's not how my mind works. Plus it's a huge waste of screen real estate.

Screw you, Windows Media Player. I want a media player that, you know, plays media, instead of making my entire collection into tiles that scroll from side to side. I'm finding another media player instead. YOU STINK.

P.S. Complaints about Windows are fine, but I don't want to hear about how much better your alternative operating system is. I am, however, interested in recommendations of alternative media players, as long as they play WMA files.

Goodbye, Kinneret.

Goodbye, Kinneret. published on No Comments on Goodbye, Kinneret.

Well, I just got word that the organizer of the split for Soom Epidia [whence Kinneret] decided not to do the split, so no Kinneret for me. I'm disappointed, but not extremely. I have Nathaniel coming as soon as I make the second payment on her, so, if I feel the need to play with someone new, she can be that someone.

Also the FLE car really needs its well-car checkup, which I postponed last week because I had to pay rent. So, overall, it's probably for the best that I am not getting Kinneret.

More 1:6 stuff — dolls, bathtubs and bodies — make an offer!

More 1:6 stuff — dolls, bathtubs and bodies — make an offer! published on No Comments on More 1:6 stuff — dolls, bathtubs and bodies — make an offer!

Greetings, folks. While I was picking up dolls to get rid of from storage, I also cleaned out my parts bin. Please make an offer on any or all of the things below! Paypal only, no fees charged.
Continue reading More 1:6 stuff — dolls, bathtubs and bodies — make an offer!

Primary Sidebar