My cousin was in town this weekend—her first visit to Portland
since childhood (we're from the Bay Area). It was a whirlwind visit,
but we did hit the most important spots like Powell's Books and the
legendary zine shop, Reading Frenzy. In addition to starting the graphic novel, The Watchmen
(so far there are already some interesting plot points about the role
of women in this particular super hero gang), I also picked up a few
other comics, including the really enjoyable zine, Estrus Comics.
Just so you all don't think I don't love and support our gal-comics on this side of the pond, I thought I'd share this. You may have already seen this if you have cable—but Samantha Bee of The Daily Show does a great bit with Stewart about her reaction as a woman to McCain's choice of Palin for VP. If you haven't seen it, hold out for her closing line—brilliant!
PS: I had to put a long clip on here, so if you're pressed for time, skip ahead to 2:52.
Let me preface this by saying, that I don't believe this
phenomenon is revolutionary or even very subversive in terms of
gender-bending. But it IS a trend I've noticed, and one I can't help
but enjoy.
Men have been donning this upper-lip facial hair
for a long time, of course. It was a victorian trend, it was a 70's
trend and now it looks to be a 2000's trend. But beyond the male
moustache resurgance, I've notice a trend by those of us with the
double x chromosome make-up. Nowadays fake eyelashes aren't the only
false facial hair women are taking advantage of. Plenty are having fun
with the contrast of a traditionally femme appearance in contrast with
a striking patch of hair on the lip.
The first time I became aware of this trend was at a New Year's Eve
party last year. Someone showed up with a package of fake moustaches
and the ladies in attendance went nuts. They were wearing them all
night (crooked by end) and everyone looked decidedly cute with their added facial hair.
I
always feel like I'm racking my brain to remember what I've watched recently, and who I'd like to recommend it to. I found this little pocket Film Diary at Little Otsu,
a favorite small press of mine based in San Francisco & Portland (full disclosure: I'm currently working on designing a planner with them).
This pains me to write, because I adore David Byrne. The man is incredibly inspiring, always active, never resting on his laurels, a
great social critic and just plain rockin' (his music made up a big chunk of my 'growing-up' soundtrack). So I was pretty bummed by one of the bike racks he recently created for the New York City (see the full article on The New York Times site). Each rack is in a different shape that relates to the location (for example, a dollar sign on Wall Street). It's a great way to add a little glamor to cycling, which is, of course a great way to use less gasoline, which is a great way to save the planet etc.
Briar Levit is a graphic designer who blends her love of design with social/environmental progress. She first began working with Bitch in 2003 (starting with the Transformation and Reinvention issue). After a grad school hiatus to Central Saint Martins in London, Briar has returned to where she knows she belongs, not only as a designer, but as a feminist and pop culture junkie.
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