[HPFGU-OTChatter] Re: Blubber and "We must develop our bust"

[Janette]

>
> Annemehr:
> Oh, my!  I can only imagine that the powers-that-were believed the
> rhyme would be *motivational.*  Unless... do you recall if they
> exhibited any other sadistic tendencies?
>
> But you remind me of the entire summer I spent wearing knee socks.
> My mother was apparently one of the legion of mothers who view leg-
> shaving as something inherently sexual, and seemed to have pegged the
> appropriate age to begin for approximately a year after I needed to.
> And I am NOT blonde, unfortunately.
>
> At least, I think that must have been her line of thought.  The only
> answer she would give me when I asked was "because you're too
> young."  Sheesh.  Anyway, I gave my girls razors as soon as they
> wanted them.  So far, they have avoided falling into debauchery, so I
> feel vindicated.
>
> Annemehr,
> thinking it would be funny if there were an analogous exercise for
> boys...


montims:

Oh dear - not getting at you Annemehr, but this is one subject that really
annoys me.  Why the devil SHOULD females remove perfectly healthy hair from
their legs, underarms, eyebrows, or wherever, unless they are longdistance
swimmers or some such?  If it were something that all humans had to do for
health reasons, I would have no problem.  But for females (not males) to
feel obliged to shave or wax, and to feel ugly if they don't, is a
horrendous concept for me.

Luckily I took this feminist stance before I was too conditioned to do it,
then went to live in Italy where, at the time (I don't know about now) it
would never have occurred to women to get this done, and now I live in
America, my husband has no qualms about my being hairy.  (And I grow long,
dark, body hair).  And why should he?  Why should we try to recreate a
prepubescent look for women, young or old?  I can't believe that female body
baldness is required by men.  It is an artificial construct encouraged by
women for their daughters, IMO, just as (much more extremely) footbinding
was, and female circumcision is.

Oh, and what is it with the Americans (I stress Americans, not to be rude
about them, but I have never encountered this among Europeans) I have met
showering all the time, at least once a day?  I wash myself daily, and don't
smell, but this obsession with being CLEAN under all circumstances (my
coworkers confide that they shower before going to bed, get up again to
shower if they have "been intimate", and then shower again in the morning
before dressing...) leaves me astounded.  Water is a finite resource,
people...

Sorry - rant over.


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