I am not a Cowgirl; I am not a Quilter

But I guess that doesn't matter.

Thank You

At the end of Women's History Month, I raise my glass to all the men who have been here, too. Where would we be without you? After all, we're all needed here, eh? Women's History Month isn't about negating men: it's about celebrating women. While the gentlemen who congregate here likely have no difficulty doing just that, they should realise that they are rather exceptional in that regard. Too many men are frightened by strong women. So here's a thank you card for being such lovely gents. We appreciate you!

Signed,
The Lovely Ladies

June Whitfield: Genius!

BitchBuzz: Havin' a Larf

My column this week at BitchBuzz delves into the particularly terrifying notion of... FUNNY WOMEN! Why is it that funny women are so intimidating? [waves hand in the air wildly, waiting to be called upon] Humour is a weapon as well as amusement. Angry women scare people (hence the inevitable "Come on, smile!" if you are not wearing a disarming grin 24/7).

Daisy Goodwin made headlines this past week when she complained, "There's not been much wit and not much joy, there's a lot of grimness out there," when referring to the Orange prize long list.

Apparently the novels submitted contained a lot of misery and rape; Goodwin concluded, "Pleasure seems to have become a rather neglected element in publishing."

Predictably, there was some hand-wringing about the unfunniness of women, which the Guardian quickly addressed via Jean Hannah Edelstein's piece placing the blame squarely on the publishers who do not submit those funny books for prizes. Underneath there is the whole undervaluing of comedy. As tragedian Edmund Kean's dying words supposedly attest, dying is easy but comedy hard. So why don't we value it more?

While it's easy to make people cry -- advertisers seem to be able to manage it constantly via the use of puppies, kittens and old people -- laughter remains a challenge. Sitcoms last long past their expiry dates because people are willing to support shows that were once funny but have since become moribund, tedious and even offensive. Marginally funny programs are hailed as works of genius...

Read the rest at BBHQ -- after all, I quote from Henri Bergson. What more do you need?! I so want to see "Lizzie & Sarah"! Sigh. It looks to be as disturbing as "Nighty Night" which was brilliant. Julia Davis is amazing.

Ada Lovelace Day: Sarah Goode

It's Ada Lovelace Day again: time to celebrate women in science and technology. Perhaps influenced by all the historical research going on around me, I wanted to find a woman at least as far back as the 19th century, so I decided to focus on Sarah E. Goode, who was not only an early inventor but one of the first African-American women to secure a patent. Although born a slave in 1850, after the war she went north and became an entrepreneur. While living in Chicago and running her own furniture store, she came up with an idea for the Cabinet Bed, a folding bed that doubled as a writing desk when not in use. Ingenious!





Goode submitted her idea and was granted a patent on July 14, 1885 (Patent #322,177, for a cabinet bed). There are some discrepancies in the records of the times -- was there more than one Sarah Goode? Did the details get mixed up between two different ones? It's difficult to be sure: but one of those Sarahs was the inventor of this inspiring mechanical piece that doubtless sold well in her store to all those city dwellers pressed for space.

Have you got a story about a woman in science and technology to share?

Isabel Roman: Behind the Power

The first fascinating fact is that Isabel Roman is actually two people (but what a lovely portrait!); the second, I suppose is that I've only met one of them, but she's the one who's they have written this piece for today. Isabel writes historical romances and has the background to do so convincingly -- not to mention the skills to also do so entertainingly. If you'd like a steamy romp through history, I recommend you pick up some of her Dark Desires of the Druids series.

Throughout history, very often women have been relegated to second-class status. There was no voice for women in politics and in many instances, not even outside their own house. Even in progressive societies such as Rome, the Greek city-states, and Egypt where a handful of women obtained certain status, for the most part their voice was not official.

The notable exceptions can be easily counted, including but limited to: Cleopatra, Boudicca, Nefertiti, Zenobia of Palmyra, Artemisia of Halicarnassus, Elizabeth I of England, Catherine the Great of Russia, and Catherine de’ Medici of France.

Beyond these notable examples, women have had to, and often successfully, finessed their power behind the scenes. How? Skill, courage, and a touch (or more than) of seduction. Not to mention strategic planning. I’d hazard to say women in history were more skilled because much like Ginger Rogers to Fred Astaire, they had to do it backwards and in heels.

Women used their wits and wiles to obtain what power they could wield. When they did manage to obtain that power, we have examples like Catherine the Great. She was a woman who came from a small German Principality and brilliantly manipulated her way to becoming Empress of all the Russias. Or Catherine de’ Medici. She was the forgotten wife to Henri II of France. His mistress, Diane de Poitiers, held the position Catherine longed for—the true Queen of France and the love of Henri II.

Their story is similar to many women who’ve obtained the status they desired, albeit not quite so grand. And while women are not considered the threat of a similarly placed male rival, they are usually far more formidable.

Had it with you, Simpsons

All right, it's been bugging me for at least this whole season and maybe a little longer: the misogynous thread that's crept into The Simpsons. Yeah, the show that once trumpeted stories like Lisa Lionheart and Marge going round the bend because of the stress of her family's unreasonable demands, has not had a show lately that didn't feature some moment of head-jerking anti-feminism. I've skipped more and more episodes because of it. Like the recently rerun Pranks and Greens episode, where Bart discovers he pales in comparison to a super-pranker in the past. Bart asks who he is and Skinner says, "Who said it's a he?" After Bart's stunned, "Huh?!" Skinner tells him nah, it's a guy, of course, and they both laugh at the absurdity of thinking it might have been a girl.

Last night's episode capped it for me. While the B story about Lisa getting popular when she receives an F and featuring Angela Bassett as Michele Obama made a feeble attempt to prop up the "girls can do anything!" message that was once key to the series, the main story had to do with a poorly written cameo by Sarah Silverman as a girl Bart kisses and whose parents threaten to sue the school. The "character" is simply defined by the way she capriciously jerks Bart back and forth between affection and scorn. But as the final lines of the show proclaim, that's just the way women are.

It's sad to see this happen to a show that was once groundbreaking. Enjoy your "poor men are just victims of wily women" scripts, guys. Seems I'm not the only one giving up on the show (even though it's miles better at its worst than anything from craptacular Seth McFarlane).

Why can't I be seeing Lizzie & Sarah?!