It's A Strange Old World

[poliphilo]

Just as well that I went and took pictures of daffodils when I did because the weather has returned to the default position- strong winds and light continuous rain. We have a little clump of daffodils in our front yard, right against the wall and normally by this stage some passer-by will have picked them, but I just checked and they're still out there, hanging their heads.

Joe has spring-cleaned his room. There's now a mat tacked to the outside of his door- a souvenir of Iraq. It has his army nickname stitched across it and the motto Basrah 2003. Yup, '03- we've been stuck in that nightmare for four years now.

Shazia Mirza had a programme last night about female body hair. Right on!  I'm all for it myself; I think it's sexy. But what was just amazing and dispiriting was the footage of all these plug-ugly men screwing up their faces at the mention of women with hairy legs. Talk about male privilege! One of the plug-uglies was the male half of Richard and Judy.  Shazia flashed him her armpits and he said it made him feel sick. How very, very weird. 

I was reading an on-line book about gurus yesterday. Check it out here. It's extraordinary just how sleazy, mendacious, bossy and paranoid all these World Teachers and Avatars of the Divine are and were.

Comments

[halfmoon-mollie.livejournal.com]

I am of two minds about body hair. The reason I shave my armpits is so that my deodorant will actually work. My sweat stinks, and I work out. I have no wish to offend anyone with the smell of sweat.

On the other hand, I think chest hair on men is VERY sexy.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

It's a matter of choice, isn't it? What particularly irked Shazia was that shaving and plucking have become all but compulsory.

[halfmoon-mollie.livejournal.com]

Yes. Right. Exactly. Kind of like preferring bald men to BE bald, never mind the bad toupee.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Is there such a thing as a good toupee?

[halfmoon-mollie.livejournal.com]

the ones you don't know are toupees? I always thought Carl Reiner had a good one, you couldn't tell it wasn't his hair...

There is a woman in my office who LOVES bald men. She practically drools!

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Baldness can be very sexy. Look at Patrick Stewart; He wouldn't be nearly as interesting with a full head of hair.

[halfmoon-mollie.livejournal.com]

Oh..I've seen him in parts where he 'wears hair' and, arresting voice aside, you're quite right.

[oakmouse]

Unless you're fat; then nobody pays any attention to your bodily hair. Of course either way you get a ration of s***.

I love Shazia, she's wicked funny and has guts.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Body fascism- I hate it!

I hadn't seen Shazia before. She's good.

[oakmouse]

I've never seen her (don't have a TV) but I've read hard copies of some of her routines. The Beeb website has had a couple of good articles on her, too.

Yah, body fascism sucks.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I must find out more about her.

[happydog.livejournal.com]

The online book was fabulous. But aside from the mendaciousness, bossiness, and sleaziness there was one recurring theme: Swedish girls. One wonders. If all these gurus and anandas and what not gravitated towards Swedish girls, what does this say about the possible divinity of the nordic sistren? In short, should we be worshipping Swedish girls?

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I have always harboured a suspicion that some of Ingmar Bergman's actresses were divine. Now I know for sure.

[jackiejj.livejournal.com]

It's extraordinary just how sleazy, mendacious, bossy and paranoid all these World Teachers and Avatars of the Divine are and were.

I used to think Jung was like a shaman and knew All. Later I learned that he was sexist and elitist and prejudiced and contemptuous and egotistical.

But he was clever about dream interpretation!

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I have a similar history with Jung.

I don't read him any more, but he did a lot to lay the foundations of my world view.