Exams Are Over!

No, this post is not about my exams being over - it's just an explanation of why Tuesday and Thursday went by without any sort of post. Well, it is officially summertime now, so blogging may experience a revamp in schedule, particularly as I lose track of days...

Okay! Following a conversation with my friend N. [name redacted], I have decided to return to a blogging subject very near and dear to me.

As some of you may know, yesterday was a very special day for the Walt Disney Company, hereafter referred to as the Disney Empire. On May 11, 2013, Princess Merida of Castle DunBragh appeared for her coronation as the eleventh Official Disney Princess.

Excuse me... wrong Eleventh!

That one! Yes, Merida (apparently with assistance from Angus - picture is not from coronation ceremony) appeared in the Magic Kingdom yesterday to receive her crown. In true Eleventh fashion, Merida broke with tradition in her coronation.

Yes, Merida was crowned by her mother, Queen Elinor. I don't have the whatsis to go hunting all over Tumblr for the picture I saw yesterday, but here's the gist of it: Princess Tiana was crowned by Prince Naveen. Princess Rapunzel was crowned by Eugene Fitzherbert, alias Flynn Rider. And then it hit me... I scrambled to look up the "Official Disney Princess" lineup, even though I have it memorized. Just needed to see it.

Can you tell me how each of these princesses is similar? There's one answer I'm looking for, and it specifically relates to Merida. Okay, I'll go on and tell you. I am absolutely, positively not knocking any of the Disney Princesses for anything. I think they're all incredibly special and wonderful in their own ways and they all have their own strengths, gifts, and badassness. Merida, however, is the only Disney Princess to remain single by the end of her movie.

I'm just saying. I do not think it is anti-feminist or weak or whatever to have a relationship/get married/whatever. I just think it's really neat that Merida's big step forward at the end was mending her relationship with her mom and becoming a badass leader in her own right. Yes, she had the same issue as Jasmine, and they handled it DIFFERENT ways. That's freaking fantastic! Mulan and Belle had issues in the same vein, and they all handled it the way THEY were meant to!

I want to see people stop tearing the Disney Princesses down for this, that, and the other thing. Tearing someone down, even a character, is not going to get you what you want, and it makes you look terribly petty, in my opinion. Instead, focus on things that ARE badass and awesome. You know what? New summer blogging project. I'm watching every last Disney Princess movie and doing a spotlight on the featured princess, starting with Snow White and finishing with Brave. Then I can just focus on being excited for Frozen!

Marigold, with Disney on the brain, wishing everyone a happy Mother's Day!

This is all kinds of not fucking okay.

Take a second to take a look at this.

Yeah...

Oh, by the way, do NOT tell me I am "taking things too seriously" or "it's just a joke." The hard fact is, if a woman is murdered, it is most likely (per case) to be by an intimate partner. Doesn't matter if they're married, doesn't matter if they had a one-time thing... This is just way effing not-okay. I'm fine with the targets of zombie lawn critters. This? No. Just all kinds of no.

This is just this side of actively encouraging violence against women.

Okay, I know what catharsis is. If you want to make Sims of all your exes and then burn the house down, I think that's probably fairly harmless. I know I've made a few "voodoo Sims" in my time. Seriously, though? Encouraging a real person to put real bullets in a real firearm and shoot them at an actual target that bears disturbing resemblance to another real person? Yeah, I think that may qualify as cultivating psychotic behavior.

This is disgusting. Normally, I do not state my opinions as if they were fact, but this really is. With rates of domestic violence in this country being what they are, there is no excuse for this. Add to that how many instances of domestic violence include the use of a gun, whether or not the weapon is actually discharged? Yeah, let me just say, if you think this bloody thing is funny, I no longer wish to know you.

If you read the article, you can tell these people don't exactly have a history of products in good taste. I don't care what your view on the President of the United States is - it's not a good idea to produce a target that resembles a living individual. Yes, I am aware of the history of effigies. The fact that people do it does not make it a good idea. They pulled that product, and now it's time for people to let them know that they need to pull this one. If I were you, I would be encouraging any firearm-enthusiast friends not to patronize this company at all.

If you are so upset with your former partner that you feel the need to point a REAL GUN at something resembling or representing that person, I encourage you to seek professional help. No, I'm not being patronizing there. Every single gun-related death, I believe, is a preventable one. If you think you may have the desire to harm someone, own up and take responsibility. I, for one, will not judge you for doing the right thing and getting help.

So, all in all, this just made it to the top of my rage list. I'm going to cut this off before it becomes a full-blown screaming rant that can be heard on the moons of Neptune. All of my lovely readers, now is the time for you to rise up and bring forth your squirrel to the bagel shop! No, wait... that's not right. Now is the time for you to send some sort of communication to this company, even if you are not their patron, and inform them of your displeasure. I'm not saying to be rude or mean - that doesn't solve anything or make them listen. Instead, take the time to write something well-thought-out to tell them that this product has no place in distribution.

Have fun making "voodoo Sims"!

Marigold, done with exams, over and out!

Glad I did that post yesterday...

Apologies, folks...

I am ill once again.

Off to enjoy Phenargen, naps, and struggling through tomorrow.

Surprise Wednesday post!

I was skimming through my Facebook feed when I saw something the lovely, wonderful, sweet, and talented Persephone Phoenix shared:

Here's the link, just in case!

Ladies, have you ever felt this way at a con? No matter your size, shape, color, ability, what have you - has someone been unkind about your body at a con? Well, it's happened to me. It's happened to me at my lowest weight, which I estimate at about 102, and my highest weight - approximately 160. (Measurements are in pounds cuz I'm a dumb American...) I've heard it happen to other ladies - built similarly to me, built just like me, and built totally different from me - and it's not okay. 

We deserve to LOVE to love our geekiness. All of us. Those of us who are size 2, those of us who are size 22, those of us above or below or anywhere in between. It is a gift to love something, to have passion for it, and you deserve to love that gift. 

I'll reference my article on being excellent to each other again: we have GOT to stop tearing each other down and stop letting OTHER ladies be unkind to each other. It supports a culture in which our bodies are public property - where any schmuck on the street can say just whatever they please to us. When you hear people being jerks, SAY SOMETHING! Make it known that we aren't going to shut up and take it and neither should anybody else!

Gents... I am disappointed. Not calling out anybody individually here, but I am disappointed. I hear guys complain and complain about women at cons. Guess what? You have absolutely nothing to complain about. Look around at every woman at a con you go to. Think about how many, for every single one you see, stayed home for fear of harassment and body shaming. Imagine if every last one of those women who stayed home - whether out of fear, shame, or just being sick of it all - actually came to the con. Really, sit there and have a think about that. I'm no great shakes at math, but if there's 10,000 women at a con (hypothetical number) and for each one of them, five women stayed home because of body shaming... If I was a guy attracted to girls, I would be wailing and gnashing my teeth in the street! Then, I would get up off my butt and start thinking of how I could get those ladies to come to the con! How could I make cons a safer, cooler, more awesome place for ladies?

Some hints:

• Unless you are actually speaking of a cetacean, let the word "Whale" never escape your lips. 

^^^ This is a cetacean.

• Same goes for any sort of body-shaming language. I am going to assume you know well and good what is body-shaming language. 
• While we're at it, refrain from using any word connecting a woman's worth with what she does with her secondary sex characteristics. I KNOW you know what those are.
• Cut the bullshit about "I bet you never read the comics" and whatever. Got news for you - half of the new Avengers fandom only watched the movies. Same goes for Batman. Same for X-Men, Spiderman... Same will soon go for Superman. Get over it and just enjoy sharing the fandom. 
• When you hear people doing any of the above... Well, I cannot actually advocate violence. Metaphysically, smite them with a giant hammer. In reality, make sure they know what they're doing is not okay at all ever.

Okay, making this list is actually killing my brain cells. Guys, y'all are intelligent people. You know how not to make people uncomfortable. You know how not to be mean. Please, for the love of every single deity ever known to any being on this planet, USE YOUR GOOD SENSE! I'm trying to help you! (I'm trying to help everybody...) 

Pardon me - you may skip the oncoming rant if you so choose.

DUDES! Why the hell would you ever give a girl any trouble at a con!? A girl who caught shit at a con is a girl who will likely not come back, tell her friends not to come, and all that! EVERYBODY LOSES IN THAT SITUATION! If I were a dude, I would be treating every single girl I came across like she was God's gift to the planet itself! Because guess what!? WHEN GIRLS FEEL SAFE AND NOT SHAMED OR HARASSED, THEY WILL LIKELY COME BACK! What the devil is so hard to grasp about this!? Don't be a dick and don't allow harassment and body-shaming to go on and WOMEN WILL COME HAPPILY TO CONS!

Okay, sorry, that was my first reaction to seeing that comic and I just had to let it out. Seriously, everybody, can we just... not? For real. I don't like it. Other people don't like it. At no point does it make sense to go about doing things that are damaging and wrong and hurtful. I've said it before and I'll say it again: Nerds get bullied enough in the "real world." Cons are no place for bullying. 

These guys said so. Do not disagree with these guys.

Marigold, unable to continue typing coherently while looking at that picture, wishing you happy Wednesday!