Comeback

I'm baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack!

Did you miss me?

I'm sure you did.

I hope so anyway.

(Google's version of the story of Thumbelina! So Cool!)

Happy 205th Birthday, Hans Christian Andersen!

(... and thank you Google for reminding me, so I could look like a hard core fan to my friends and family for remembering.)

And What better way to celebrate his birth and works through the classic, and my favorite, "The Little Mermaid?"

This is my favorite mermaid picture ever... I think:

Some (a small taste of my collection of literally thousands) Specific Little Mermaid - Hans Christian Anderson Little Mermaid - Favorite Images of Mine - in the order of the story:

The other girl...

... very dramatic Disney version of the translation - whereas Hans-Christian Andersen just had the sea-witch give the little mermaid a phial to drink once she reached the surface. HOWEVER in the Hans Christian-Anderson version her feet were supposed to feel as if she were being stabbed or jabbed or something - violent pain anyway - whenever she moved them, which is NOT in the Disney version, so I guess they had to make that up with more drama in the transformation. ;)

See? The witch just hands her a little bottle XD

So close! The prince says that he will marry her, since she reminds him of the girl who saved him...

But then the girl who he THINKS saved him becomes available and he ditches the little mermaid for what he thinks is the real thing.

Her sisters cut and trade their hair to the sea-witch for a dagger which, if plunged into the prince, would allow her to remain alive and not turn into sea foam. But the little mermaid sees that the couple is so happy and she loves the prince so much she does not murder the well-meaning idiot but rather plunges herself into the sea...

And though she feels herself turning into sea foam she still has a sense of self, and it turns out that in her self-sacrifice and unselfish life she has earned the privilege of becoming a "Daughter of the Air," which essentially means she is in line to become an angel and have a soul and membership in heaven and such.

The couple think that the beautiful mute girl has committed suicide from a broken heart, and mourn for her - because of course they don't realize that their very wedding was going to disintegrate her being into sea foam.

...Needless to say, I am OBSESSED with the story. THANK YOU HANS-CHRISTIAN ANDERSEN!!!!!

To read Hans-Christian Andersen's classic tale in words instead of pictures, click here. I know it is hard to believe, but his words are just as, if not MORE, beautiful than these pictures!

I will have an entry - well, let's be honest, several entries - based entirely on The Little Mermaid, so I really should stop myself - before I get COUGH COUGH carried away - so that I can move on to the supposed semi-topic of THIS entry. (I love how I at first intended to have five, ten pictures tops... I get so over-enthusiastic... to the point of never getting anything done... yay.)

Wait! One more nod to Hans-Christain Andersen - with a twist. Someone had the insanely brilliant idea to take the tune of Sally's Song in "The Nightmare Before Christmas" (the first video) and make lyrics about the story of "The Little Mermaid" (the second video). Such a cool idea and it is obviously all the work of one person, including the voice.

Yes, yes, I haven't posted in a month - in fact not once in the entire month of March. However, I'm back and better than ever with several more almost-finished drafts saved in addition to the several I already had. So more is to come. Much more. More than you can handle. Buckle up. It is going to be awesome!

I have not been doing nothing this month. I have been quite the busy bee. More details will be given in the next few entries, but for now, just to give you an idea, here are the Books I've been reading since I last wrote - there will be blog entries VERY soon concerning them:

"A Room of One's Own,"

"Who Stole Feminism? How Women Betrayed Women,"

"A History of Their Own: Women in Europe from Prehistory to Present,"

"Feminism Without Illusions: a Critique of Individualism,"

"Seduction and the Secret Power of Women: The Lure of Sirens and Mermaids,"

"Legends: Women who have Changed the World through the eyes of Great Women Writers,"

"Dangerous Women: The Perils of Muses and Femmes Fatales."

Okay, so I decided today's entry would consist mainly of items that are NOT feminist, or at least I don't think they are, BUT that CAN I suppose sometimes be analyzed in terms of feminism, but that's not the same thing, or at least I'm saying it is not the same thing.

THINGS THAT ARE NOT FEMINIST (I think):

...Another ingenious person who took this hilarious clip from the 1985 "Clue" and made it very ironically dramatic. Again, like the original I embedded at the beginning of this entry, NOT feminist.

Frasier being wonderful... but it is not feminist. Just ingenious.

Mrs. Peacock was a Man

Yay Granny O'Grimm - mostly an age thing. Not feminist. (But, as I said before, it can be analyzed with a feminist eye but that is a different matter.)

Reminds me of this moment in Frasier... poor Roz...

This fan music video I found very interesting because though Mulan's dude is a bit rough on her in the beginning, it is not because of a failed romance; and of course Mulan herself is a very strong woman, who would not put up with ill-treatment in a relationship. The juxtaposition is nice; I include it here of course because the song is NOT feminist and though it may seem to fit with the video, if you view it literally I think it incorrect - it is only feminist if you view the juxtaposition with an ironical eye, in which case, you might be an analyzing feminist which doesn't make it feminist bla bla bla where did this sentence go wrong? Well, hopefully you see what I'm getting at.

FUNNNNNNNNYYYYYY. However, I would not describe the character of Bebe as a feminist... per se....

Devin and Cornwall CONTRAST.

Just listen to the to lines of theirs at the point at which I have this video start; you can stop it once they start running away from the scary dragons. This has been my favorite line in this insanely goofy movie for years. NOT feminist; but it is candy FOR a feminist.

Similarly... a different kind of contrast - a contrast in lifestyle and lyrics! If you know these characters, you know how very UNLIKE the characterization in their song they really are. Hilarious. Watch Frasier, your life will be made as complete as humanly possible. I own all eleven seasons.

On a side note, here are some fun things in case you liked that two-headed dragon:

Devin and Cronwall "If I Didn't Have You." - Not feminist.

The Movie... in case you are enjoying them so much you'd like to try the whole thing! I grew up with it. It is the definition of goofy. But in a sort of good way; plus Cary Elwes is the voice of the male lead.

Okay, moving away from cartoons, here is a depiction of chick flick cliches. Neither the cliches, the depictions, or the point of the video, are feminist. Neither is it offensive. It's just plain hilarious. Bookmarked this LONG ago.

Back to Cartoons. This Fat squirrel is not feminist.

Madam mim provides lots of material FOR a feminist... but I don't think she would call herself a feminist and neither do I.

suspect Disney is making fun of itself here.

"Nameless, Faceless Gators" - like the "nameless faceless women" of history haha PARODY yay!

MAD SIMILARITY IN ANIMATION FOR LOUIS AND MAD MADAM MIM:

The similarity is not feminist. Just ingenious of ME to have seen it.

And now, some NOT feminist Louis clips. He is my favorite character in "The Princess and the Frog." - "I'm so cold!"

...And now, some girly Frasier. Not feminist. Just funny. (Have I repeated my point enough for you? I'm starting to annoy me...)

For this one you'll have to turn up the volume on your computer full blast. It is too quiet otherwise, and you don't want to miss this collasal line.

"I'm begging you please take me home!"

And now, some feminist stuff.

(this is a feminist blog, after all.)

Really awesome pictures of women I found:

Strong women in Frasier! <3> (I guess that's a double-sided heart...)

My Favorite Daphne moment EVER.

Roz as Wonder Woman (not to mention Daphne as Sir Elton John)! From Season 9 Episode 6 "Room Full of Heroes" - Takes place in Halloween. You only have to watch 44 seconds of the second one - I over-recorded a bit. <3> Screentoaster (I'm liking my new accidental double-sided heart!). Their new "beta" recording system is a MILLION times better than the original.

Here's a link to a youtube fan music video of Roz as Wonder Woman! Very cool. Unfortunately the video embedding was disabled. I read somewhere that disabled embedding is the online equivalent to the middle finger. I am inclined to agree. Click here to be redirected to the video!

This image is actually really good quality. Click on it and you'll see. I don't know why it looks fuzzy here because the resolution is near perfect.

Found this video on Roz - clips to the song "Imperfection" - fits her perfectly (haw haw). Didn't know about this song 'till I saw this video but I liked it immediately - universally appealing much! "Don't mess with imperfection!" XD Embedding disabled AGAIN so please please please click the next image to be redirected to the video!

Lyrics to the song - I like them - even though the lyrics combined to the tune comes out QUITE teenage-angst-ie:

My hair's a wreck
Mascara runs
My feet get dirty
And my skin burns in the sun.
My lips they bleed
But I still sing my songs.
Takes me a minute
To admit it when I'm wrong.

Pretty is as pretty does,
But pretty's not my thing.

This is what you get.
This is who I am.
Take me now or leave me
Any way you can.
Sometimes I trip and fall
But I know where I stand.
And if you're thinking about changing my direction,
Don't mess with imperfection.

My back is weak,
But my will is true.
Got good intentions
But I never follow through.
I say too much,
And don't know when to leave.
In case you're looking,
That's my heart there on my sleeve.

Ego trips and stupid slip ups,
I'm a mess but

This is what you get.
This is who I am.
Take me now or leave me
Any way you can.
Sometimes I trip and fall
But I know where I stand.
And if you're thinking about changing my direction,
Don't mess with imperfection.

Scratched and bruised,
A little used,
But baby I work fine.
You might call me
Damaged goods,
But I'm one of a kind.

My hair's a wreck,
No I'm not perfect
But I'm not the only one.

This is what you get.
This is who I am.
Take me now or leave me
Any way you can.
Sometimes I trip and fall
But I know where I stand.
And if you're thinking about changing my direction,
Don't mess with imperfection.
This is who I am.
After if you're thinking about changing my direction,
Don't mess with imperfection.

Thank you, Saving Jane - which apparently is the name of the group.

Though this is only pictures and music, it is REALLY well done:

okay, so this next one is a bit of a stereotype. But Roz pulls it off... with such style XD

Kind of like me with coffee or diet coke. The house has been out of Diet Coke for at least a week now. I think I'm going through a physical withdrawal... and I'm not joking.

...And to finish things off, a video I found a long time ago which really moves me... even though I know nothing about and have never seen anything with Kate Mulgrew.

Sincerely,

JJJJOOOOO BBBIIINNNGOOOO

P.S. I DO think that Hans Christian-Anderson (and also Disney) "Little Mermaid" is feminist, believe it or not.