Brothels, Tampons, Sex-Positive Feminists and a Public Display of Affection.

Today I'm loving...

-Merridy Eastman's book There's a Bear in There (and he wants Swedish: How my brilliant career went from Play School presenter to brothel receptionist...



To the best of my knowledge, I don't know any prostitutes in real life, so I loved reading Eastman's first person account of working as a brothel receptionist in Sydney when the acting work dries up. It allowed me inside a world I'm unlikely to visit in real life, and I especially liked the affection she shows for her workmates, as well as a beautifully awkward scene where her dad tells her she would be pretty enough to 'cross to the other side' if she wanted to.

- Moxie Tampons. Nobody likes getting their period, especially since it's like God is punishing you for not being pregnant, but if you have to deal with it, Moxie Tampons are the way to go. They come in stylish, retro tins that are reusable or recyclable and were developed by a 23 year old Melbourne girl, Mia. Damn you people who are my age and successful!




-Susie Bright's Journal.



Susie is the coolest. I've been reading lots of her books for the thesis I'm writing on feminism and pornography (I'm looking at female-orientated pornography and erotica and asking why it's still only a niche market) and her blog is a great read too. As her wikipedia entry tells me, she's "one of the first writers/activist referred to as a sex-positive feminist." Check her out.

- The boy. The weekend marked a year since we started going out, which is pretty incredible for me. I may not blog about him all that much, but he's become a really important part of my life and I feel really lucky to have him.

It hasn't all been easy- when we finally decided to make things 'official' I got really freaked out at the prospect of having a boyfriend, and we went back to just being 'together' for a while, but I'm cool with the 'relationship' thing now.

We're total opposites- he loves sport, I couldn't care less about it; I like to read, he doesn't- but somehow it works.

I've had so much fun with him this last year, and he even managed to crack my cool, hard shell and get me to open up and be emotional. (In the past I've had boys tell me I lack emotion.)

It's been a great year.

Love ya kid.

Six Feet Under ends; Better than Cheesecake turns one.

Best. Final Episode. Ever.

No other show has moved me to tears in the way the last precious minutes of Six Feet Under did last night.

For anyone who missed it, the series ends with a montage of Clare driving cross-country towards New York, intercut with the future deaths of the show's main characters. It was an incredibly moving and emotional sequence. I especially liked it that Clare ends up marrying Ted, but only after twenty years of being independent before settling down; that Anthony grows up to be gay, just like his 'dads'; and that Brenda more or less dies because she can't stand Billy's yammering one minute longer.

And while Six Feet Under is a show about death, it's also very much about valuing life. That it's short; that you have to grab onto it while you've got it; that you can't take it for granted, as it could all be gone tomorrow.

Vale.

If anyone has withdrawal symptoms now that that the show's over, I highly recommend the the Six Feet Under recaps over at Television Without Pity for witty commentary on the episodes and an interview with one of the writers, Jill Soloway.

Jill's my new idol. Apparently Alan Ball hired her on the basis of this short story, entitled "Courteney Cox's Asshole". How cool is that?

...

In other news, June 19th marked the one year anniversary of me starting this blog. From humble beginnings, I've now had over 5000 visitors and counting.

I love being a part of the blogosphere and the community that exists within it.

My plans for the next year of Better than Cheesecake are to post more frequently and make it into something you guys find interesting.

And the year after that? World Domination. I don't do things by halves.

...

As for what's happening in my life, I've just finished the first semester of my honours year. It's been... challenging. Even with extensions I still managed to hand both my essays in late. I should really stop doing that.

Work's alright. I wish people on the phone would stop calling me Susan. My name is Susanne. Still, I do get to check out blogs all day on the company dollar, so it ain't all bad.

I bought two tops from Valley Girl today. I won't tell anyone they're from such a lame store if you don't.

The boy and I are as good as ever. The other night I told him:

"You're an excellent lover"

He replied:

"Maybe you could post about that on your blog."

He's recently started reading it, you see.

There you go kid.

Zack hearts Kelly for ever... or does he? "Brokeback by the Bell" and more.

Following on from Top Gun 2: Brokeback Squadron, comes Brokeback by the Bell, which looks at a side of Zack and Slater I didn't notice when I watched Saved by the Bell as a kid. The video is really cute. I love that someone had the dedication to go through all the old episodes and find any hint that they might be into each other.

Need more evidence than "Brokeback" of this secret love? According to IMDB, Mario Lopez (Slater) was a wrestler in high school and the only cast member that Mark-Paul Gosselaar (Zack) still hangs out with it, you guessed it, Mario Lopez. Wrestling hey? Tight leotards, men rolling around on the floor with other men... how much more evidence do you need?

The Brokeback by the Bell video suggests there were some gay boys out there crushing on Zack at the same time I was. I can't believe I'm going to admit this, but as a pre-teen I also had a crush on Jeremy Jordan. (The pop singer not the porn star. Take you filthy minds out of the gutter!)



I'm a little embarrassed about this in retrospect, but I think that these crushes had something to do with the really unthreatening nature of both guys- blonde, boyish features- that was quite appealing to my much younger self.

I must admit, however, that I am quite shocked- shocked- to have found out that this was all a facade- Zack wasn't even a natural blonde! According to IMDB, in the Saved by the Bell days he had to dye his hair every two weeks. I feel so violated.

Thinking about this stuff over ten years later, I reckon maybe I should have be crushing on Tiffani Thiessen (a.k.a Kelly). As they say, phwoar!









Guess I may as well jump on the bandwagon, right?



In other Saved by the Bell news, recent reports have claimed that Screech is packing ten inches, flaccid (and he might lose his house, but we're not interested in that are we?).

The story seems pretty far fetched- ten inches flaccid? That's almost a ruler length- but the article reckons his girfriend confirmed it. It still seems a bit too over the top to be plausible. After all, he's not Jamie, or, as I like to call him 'horse'.

The most hilarious piece of trivia I found out in terms of 'Where are they now?' is that as of May 2005, Mario Lopez was working on: "the project "The Mangina Monologues" the male version of the famous "Vagina Monologues". Hehe. 'Mangina'.

One last thing- for the record, when I started this post, I had no idea it would have as much, um, flesh, as it ended up with. Enjoy!

Review of "The Break-Up"

So it's not just me. I thought I was getting soft with the cold weather, but it turns out that so far this winter has been the coldest since 1982. I was born in 1982. No wonder it feels colder than normal.

It's been so cold that every time Vince or Jen left their apartment in The Break-Up, I thought, 'What? You're going out without a coat?'

Is it cold in Chicago?

Oh, that's right... it's The Windy City. I know that from Calamity Jane.

Anyway, Chicago provides a nice backdrop for this film, which revolves around the breakdown of a relationship between real-life-are-they-or-aren't-they couple Vince Vaughn and Jennifer Aniston.

I'm sure much of the impetus for seeing this movie is to see the couple together on-screen. However, beyond the very beginning of the film and the 'meet-cute' photo montage in the credits, the film is about the break-up, not the relationship itself.

This makes it hard at times to see why the couple were together in the first place, but it does mark a refreshing change from the usual romantic comedy genre.

Not only is it the girl who loses the boy, but there are some real awkward moments in the film that are quite uncomfortable to watch, as the couple bicker and get each other back for various misdemeanours. Also, both the main characters have faults- he is selfish and inconsiderate; she's a bit snobby.

So don't go into it expecting a 'light' romantic comedy.

However, despite that, the film is an engaging and entertaining one. Vince Vaughn, unlikely A-lister that he is, is great to watch, continuing on with the character type he plays to such great effect in Swingers and The Wedding Crashers. As for Jen, I found her hard to identify with at times and I was a bit jealous of her figure. She wasn't bad in the film, but as I read in a review recently, Vaughn needs someone like our own Isla Fisher who can match his big personality.



Also, while the supporting cast is great- Joey Lauren Adams of Chasing Amy, Jason Bateman in a Michael Bluth-type character, Jon Favreau as Vince's best mate and sidekick- I found there was a bit of a disjuncture between the film's more realistic elements, such as the fights between the couple, and the less realistic elements, like Aniston's boss Marilyn Dean, who is completely over the top.

The film is worth seeing, if only because it is so different to all the other romantic comedies out there. It's actually great to see a mainstream film that doesn't follow the rules. I think the best thing that could happen from this film, which has so far been very successful, is that we could see more films like it that break with convention.

As for Vince and Jen, I say good on them for being coy about the nature of their off-screen relationship. The Break-Up keeps us guessing.



Links:

Official Website

IMDB Listing

On Gay Marriage

From today's Age:

Thank God for blocking gay law

Thank God for the Federal Government's decision to overturn the ACT legislation of same-sex unions. The majority of Australians also support this move. Prime Minister Howard and US President George Bush both stand and support marriage as the union of a man and a woman. Again, thank God for men with wisdom.
Thank you to Attorney-General Phillip Ruddock and Senator Guy Barnet (Liberal, Tasmania) who are also responsible for the victory. Our nation needs people like those to stand up for what is right.

Judith Bond, Glen Alpine, NSW

Oh Judith. One of the first things you learn as an Arts student is that the arguments you make have to be supported. Thanking God for the decision is not the same thing.

Her claim that most Australian's support the decision is easily rebuffed by a survey on the same page claiming that 76% of respondents to a poll do support gay marriage.

Victory against whom, I wonder? The evil gay people?

The part I find saddest about this is the final line: "Our nation needs people like those to stand up for what is right." Here, "Our nation", of course, implies a nation of homogeneous heterosexual married people, to the exclusion of anyone with different beliefs or attitudes.



"Thank God" we also have people like Graham Willett:

Why stop there?

Defend traditional marriage? Sure, why not. But let's go all the way. Traditionally marriage was a relationship entered into "between a man and a woman, to the exclusion of all others, for life". While we are legislating to prevent same-sex marriage, surely we should be repealing the divorce laws (which violate the "for life" clause); and criminalising adultery (which goes against the "exclusion of all others"). Bring it on John!

Graham Willett, Melbourne

Here Graham supports his argument by poking holes in the accepted discourse, and uses irony to great effect. His claims are supported by evidence.

I'm for gay marriage, just as I am for everyone in our society being treated equally. The way things are now, married, heterosexual people are privileged above all others.

Why is it that people feel so threatened by those who choose to have sex with, and fall in love with, people of the same gender? The world won't end if we acknowledge these people in the law and in society.

If people who are in love, committed to each other and supportive of each other want to make their union official, what right does the Government have to deny this?

...

Also, have you guys checked out Emmalina's vlog on You Tube? There's an article about her here. She's this chick from Tassie who does yoga, rave dances and answers questions from her bedroom. In a way it's quite mundane; in another way it's quite addictive... in a car-crash kind of way.

Check it out.

On Happiness and Being Grateful.

Having previously disclosed on this blog my secret love of self-help books, today's post is inspired by The Happiness Handbook:



Happiness has been on my mind lately. While I've managed to be quite happy for quite a while, factors like the cold weather and the stress of the honours year at uni have been getting me down, to the point where I'm off to see a counselor on Wednesday.

But that's another story.

Today I thought I'd share with you guys a couple of things the book suggests for staying happy. More information about this kind of stuff can be found at The Happiness Institute.



The author of the book, Dr Timothy Sharp has listed '20 simple tips to be happy now', which can be found here.


One of the tips is 'Be grateful and appreciate what you have', and the book suggests listing five things you are grateful for, for ten days.


My five things will be listed on this post daily. Here are the first two:





Saturday June 3rd:


1. The boy. For making me laugh and laugh this morning. And because we're in a really good place right now.

2. My mum and dad. For allowing me to be independent and do my own thing. I take them for granted sometimes, but they could be a hell of a lot worse then they are.

3. For uni. Much as I'm finding it hard going at the moment, I love discussions and thinking through ideas and developing arguments, and I feel lucky that I get to do that on a daily basis.

4. For that little bit of sunshine that shined on me when I was outside reading the newspaper this morning, fleeting as it was.

5. For people who stand up for what they believe in. The world needs more of you.





Sunday June 4th:


1. For Michael Leunig. His comics always put things into perspective. I am thinking specifically about the one in the A2 this weekend about the old lady who uses the last litre of petrol in the world to deliver meals on wheels to an elderly refugee. His comics are the conscience of our society.

2. To my two lovely lecturers who are giving me a few extra days to finish my assignments.

3. For managing to get a bit done today on the aforementioned assignments.

4. For Dino being evicted on Big Brother.

Now my current-favourite-housemate John can get some ac-tion.

5. For a sweet text message I received. I love how you can say a lot in them, even with those limited amount of letters. Indeed, maybe it's because of the limited letters. You have to be succinct. And that unlike a phone call, they stay in your phone so you can re-read them and feel happy all over again.




Monday June 5th:


1. For this line on Six Feet Under: "What is this, some kind of Quaker thing? You fuck someone's husband to death and bring them a quiche?" -Brenda to Maggie.

God I love that show. It shines, even in its darkest moments.

2. For Connoisseur Chocolate Obsession Ice Cream

It helped me through my studying today.

3. No Fun at All- State of Flow. I hadn't listened to this record for ages, but it still holds up six years after it came out.

It reminded me of my teens when I was right into all that sort of music. I'd like to be that passionate about music again.

4. For a nighttime walk where the world was foggy and at times it felt like I was the only person in the world.

5. For Bob Evan's song 'Don't you think it's time' coming on my radio on the walk. It made me all reflective.




Tuesday June 6th:


1. For being able to get medicine really easily upon waking up with conjunctivitis.

(This 'being positive' thing is really working- usually I'd be complaining about the conjunctivitis).

2. For a big smile I got from a stranger when walking home from the chemist.

3. For clean sheets on my bed, a freshly vacuumed bedroom and aromatic essential oil.

4. For finding some good examples to support my argument in the current essay I'm writing.

5. For the boy. For everything.





Wednesday June 7th:

1. For an unexpected long-distance phone call from an old friend. It sounds like she's doing really well. It's inspiring to hear about someone who is doing exactly what they want and taking the world by the horns.

2. For a good talk with a counselor. I think I will be able to cope with things better now.

3. That I got a good night's sleep.

4. That I am feeling well today.

5. For a hot bath when it was cold outside.





Thursday June 8th:

1. Because I had a really good day today.

2. For getting some work done on my essays. I'm now at a stage where I think I can get through them.

3. For a dinner with the boy and my parents that went as well as, if not better than I expected.

4. For this girl. Thanks for a great night hun.

5. Because right now my belly is full, I'm warm and Miles Davis is playing.





Friday June 9th:

1. For the heavy fog at night that made my every-day-world seem strange and uncanny.

2. For some great Australian writing I have been studying lately. (Peter Carey's True History of the Kelly Gang and Kate Grenville's The Secret River)

3. Because even if I do spend the whole day studying (and I mean the whole day), there is always a whole blogosphere and virtual community to explore from my desk.

4. For You Tube and Nikki from Big Brother UK. We need that girl to come and liven up the Aussie house.

5. Because I realised that I'm coping much, much better with everything than I was a couple of weeks ago.





Saturday June 10:


1. After witnessing the state of a local McDonalds at 3am in the morning- drinks spilled, rubbish everywhere- I'm grateful that I don't work in hospitality, and hopefully never will again.

2. Morning sex. I am, and will remain, a night person... but lazy mornings are pretty cool too.

3. That I could help out a friend in need.

4. For being warm. Such a simple thing, but it's been damn cold in Melbourne lately.

5. For soap saved from a hotel that brought back good memories.





Sunday June 11th:

1. For really good vego pizza

2. Because I wrote 5000 words today. It's crap, but it's comforting to have that much done.

3. For a phone call that was going quite badly at one point but turned out really well.

4. For tea. I drink so much tea. It gets me through the day.

5. For words. I'm starting to really love writing as well as reading.





Monday June 12th:

1. Afternoon naps.

2. Chocolate.

3. For my last day of sleeping in late before I go back to work tomorrow.

4. That I managed to get out and go for a walk even though it was freezing. I always feel good afterwards.

5. Spending the night with, and waking up with the boy.



Another one of the 20 tips is 'Identify where your strengths lie'.

After taking a test here , I found out that my signature strengths are, in order:

1. Curiosity and Interest in the World

2. Judgment, Critical Thinking and Open-Mindedness

3. Love of Learning

4. Honesty, Authenticity and Genuineness

5. Perspective (Wisdom)


On the other end of the scale, my lowest score was for 'Hope, Optimism and Future-Mindedness. What can I say? I'm a pessimist. I don't think it's something you can really change. I would like to have some goals though. That's something I would like to change.



So what about you, readers? What five things are you grateful for, right here, right now?

I'd love to know.