re-alesse-tic, fl-alesse or just b-allesse-tic?

I don't know about you, but I'm getting sick and tired of staring up at Alesse ads on the subway, and on t.v., and any other place where these posters of self-assured girls ambiguously represent a glamorized form of birth control. Especially the new ones where every word that could possible be combined with the word Alesse, is morphed into some kind of grotesque pill inspired frankenstein-vocabulary. Its a monster of misrepresentation, thats for sure. No one cares about the information, just the brand-name.

Its like the pill became the new gucci bag, what style do you have?

The last time I went to the doctor for my birth control refill I was considering choosing another brand. When I asked for an explanation about Alesse, or at least a list of side effects I didn't get much of an anwser. I was simply sent off on my merry way. It was like the mentality was, "just shut up and nevermind your questions little girl, now go and get your pills and don't worry yourself with medical mumbo-jumbo you can't understand."

I left the doctor's office with the feeling that I had just made a bad transaction. Like I bought a new pair of jeans that didnt fit...and the sales clerk failed to tell me what the sizes were.

Women need to be properly informed when making choices that impact their sexual health, and when all they see are posters of women who are appear so confident and "re-alesse-tic", they may attribute birth control with behavorial characteristics that are false.

The message becomes, "If you buy this birth control you are smart, and completely in control of the future of your sexual health, case closed." So this brand of pill becomes idolized without providing girls with any concrete, vital information. Leave that to the doctors, Alesse will sell you "the confidence" instead.

Will that prevent pregnancy or a sexually transmitted infection? I don't think so. I don't care what the ad says. That's not realistic in any sense of the word.

Shameless adventure

Graffiti scope

The ultimate corner

fear of dogs at its best

Happy Birthday custard buns, a. k. a. pink bums

drooooools so yummy

My mystery lover

Being a shameless girl

Welcome to Graffiti alley

Where a kaleidoscope of colors stains your mind with lasting impressions. Where paint fumes hang in the air like a brightly toxic fog. Where graffiti artists come to play in Toronto's urban playground. Where the world becomes your canvas.

This stretch of alleyways runs south of queen street from Spadina to Portland. A sub-section of it is where Ricker Mercer conducts his weekly rant, and every summer in July (if they have the available funding) a non-profit organization called Style in Progress hosts a legal 24 hour free-for-all of legal graffiti here. Why go to the freakin' CN Tower when you can see one of the sweetest outdoor galleries around? I haven't attended Canada's largest hip-hop festival yet, but it definitely should be on anyone's to-do list.

Since I'm currently working on a story about female graffiti artists I loved the fact that I've been able to talk to some of the women in these videos, and delve into why less women are involved in the sub-culture. According to Janna Van Hoof, the organizer of Style in Progress, over 100 artists plaster the walls of this alley with their own artistic identity. About eight of those taking part are female. Hopefully in time that will change.

For those who believe that graffiti is art, check out graffiti alley during Style in Progress and watch masterpeices unfold.



The woman with dreadlocks is named Phresha Le Vandale, and her art is also located at the bottom of this blog.



The lady with the red hair, and who talks with the yellow mask on is EGR (Erica Gosich Rose)

Picnicface goodness

Personally, I find these side-splittingly hilarious. Got dinner in the oven? A baby in the tub with a toaster? A cat in the washing machine? Forget about it all for a goddamn irresponsible moment and watch these videos. Better yet, pour a glass of wine, relax in front of the fire with your lover and watch these videos. They get the party started everytime.



Bow-chika-wow-wow.



Subliminal messages can be a bitch eh.




Every journalist's worst nightmare.



The music sold me. Plus the waddling tiny-whities men.

Stuttering is officially sexy

If you have seen the new Dentyne Ice commerical where the princess kisses the frog who swallowed a peice of "magical" gum, and then he turned into a sexy prince, then you already know how amazing the song is that accompanies it.

Even though Dentyne is trying to sell romantic encounters through their gum ads, its done in a cute way, with a cute song..so we'll let it slide this time. But only this time. Anywhooo, the song is called "Stuttering" by Ben's Brother.

On a youtube quest I stumbled across this adorable video, filled with folks who love this song as much as I do....maybe the lady with the bird puppet loves it even more. Enjoy!



"It's been, it's been, it's been, it's been su-su-such a long time, long time, long time since anybody touched me, touched me, touched me the way that you touch me. So if I stutter, stutter, stutter and I feel so so so unsexy so maybe I'll just keep my mouth shut at least until you kiss me."

"So kiss me again. Cause only you can stop this stut-stut-stut-stuttering. Kiss me again. And ease my su-su su-su su-su s-su-s-suffering."

Plundering Problematic Privacy Pet-Peeves

The Internet and privacy do not correlate very well. First of all, the internet is a symbolic playground of gossip. John told Susan, who told her best-friend-forever Martha, who told her boyfriend, who told everyone he knew, therefore everyone now knows. Privacy settings do exist on social networks such as Facebook, but many people overlook their existence, or provide lenient opportunities for complete strangers to have access too their most drunken escapades in photo albums, and all manners of inappropriate information.

For example, several employees from a former job of mine are "friends" on my Facebook account. This means they can see how shitfaced I got at the club I attended last weekend. They can also read all the notes I've written, and all the raunchy inside jokes in my profile and wall where all of my friends either verbally abuse me or say otherwise strange things. Is this a good thing? Probably not. I'm lucky that my former co-workers and supervisors were fairly relaxed, easy-going people who don't take these things seriously. But what if, someday in the future a particularly traditionally rigid boss looks me up on facebook, decides to add me as a "friend" and peruses my social history. This might not look so good after I've handed in my carefully crafted and respectable resume.

In a workplace environment, leaking confidential information privy to the business can get your fired, or worse. The ramifications of betraying a corporations trust can be harsh, and that is where the internet is providing more opportunities to commit fraud.


If you want every single acquaintance, well wisher, pal, chum, friend-of-a-friend, childhood enemy, ex-lover, relative, fellow student, or co-worker to know that you broke up with your significant other on Friday, at 3:15 a.m. and that every picture in your albums of you and that person together are now absent, then get a Facebook account. That is the kind of privacy that social networks can afford you.

The lack of privacy on the web can also work to an individual’s advantage, by providing outlets of information that otherwise is not available to the general public. When crimes have been committed and the names of particular suspects have not been released by police officials, then journalists and everyday people can have access to their identities through those who post the information on the web.

When the votes in the American election have been tallied in one state, and have not yet been released on television, guess where that information can end up? It could leak through people onto the web, giving people up- to-date information immediately. It can also assure the reverse. For example, during the 2004 elections in the United States an exit poll was prematurely released that indicated that John Kerry overwhelmingly won the election. This led the American public to believe that the wrong man had become their president. In cases such as this, erroneous information can lead to much larger societal impacts than the public knowledge of a break-up.

Citizens can either misuse the information available to them on the internet, or they can utilize it responsibly. The same line of thought can be applied to those who post information on the web. People seem to think that what they write about themselves on the internet is irrelevant to real life and will never arise in realistic situations. For instance, the mentality that the thoughts that we write in a blog or social network are like words written in the sand, they do not make any kind of impact. This is a naïve and irresponsible way of looking at internet content. People should treat internet privacy with the same amount of intelligence that they would treat a conversation with a stranger on the street. You wouldn’t give him pictures of your friends and family, your cell phone number and your apartment number and waltz off. When it comes to internet privacy people have to exercise caution and common sense.