Jezebel on "Time' cover: A Visual Introduction to an Afghan Woman's Mutilation

This week Jezebel ran a story on Aisha, who was legally mutilated in Asghanastan when a judge sentenced her to have her nose and ear cut off for running away from the abusive husband to whom she was sold by her father at age ten.

       And no, I haven’t even given the plot away.

       A Visual Introduction to an Afghan Woman's Mutilation is an interesting analysis of Time’s decision to put Aisha on the cover, which I think was a brilliant one. If we think the imagery is disturbing, imagine living with the threat of it happening to you. Author Irin Carmon does a great job explaining and analyzing the situation in Afghanistan and discussing both the progress and heinous treatment of women there. We half-hear about Afghanistan on the news every day: Aisha’s picture demands that we actually listen.

       There are a lot of reasons it’s easy for Americans to be insulated from much of the world, including our relative wealth (well, some Ameicans are still wealthy, I hear), geographic isolation and having our own economic crises to deal with. Good for Time for doing something so bold and unexpected to shake us into looking at the lives of these women. It’s a hard story to read but I’m grateful that they put her face in my face. 

Liz story on MyPleasure: Beat the Heat by Getting Hotter

Next to the pool and the ocean the movies is one of the nicest ways to get out of the heat..these 5 Sexy Summer Movie Scenes will definitely do just the opposite....and it isn't a dry heat, either.
Take off another layer of clothing and enjoy!

Liz in Jezebel: Artist Paints in her own Menstrual Blood

Wahoooooo! You guys have seen me quote and link to Jezebel a million times on this blog - now one of my stories is in it! Artist Lani Beloso, who does paintings in her own menstrual blood, gave me an awesome interview a few weeks ago. The story originally ran in SeXis and is in Jezebel this weekend - click on Lani's name to check it out. So proud to be in Jezebel - hope you enjoy!!!!

Maddow bout Rachel, however she looks

Today Jezebel ran a thought-provoking story by Riese Lynn Bernard from Autostraddle about the tedious and predictable reaction of some media to Rachel Maddow's yearbook photo. The story had a lot of interesting insights about how tough it is for some men to imagine that some women don't care whether said men find them attractive. It also had an interesting an overview of how some female who dress in a less-than-feminine way (Rosie O'Donnell, Shiloh Jolie-Pitt) weird some  people out.


One thing I haven't seen mentioned about this: the pic ran on Buzzfeed with the subhead "I'd tap that," and The Huffington Post says this is Maddow's high school picture. Am I just being picky or is her appearance so shocking that no one noticed it's a tick inappropriate to say "I'd tap that" about a high school girl? (unless, of course, it was a high schooler who wrote the headline). It's one thing to say she's beautiful, but the sexual suggestiveness of the subhead is pretty creepy.


Rachel Maddow is an attractive person whether she's blonde, bespectacled or anything else and that's largely due to who she is, not how she looks. Hair and glasses are transient. Authenticity, intelligence, humor and diplomacy...that's hot.

Does 38KKK mean BDD?

         It's easy to wonder, "Why would someone want breasts the size of lobster pots?"
         Then again, we all make sacrifices for our jobs once in awhile.

         Admittedly this (left) is taking it to an extreme. Brazilian model Sheyla Hershey, who has had 30 breast enlargements and is a 38KKK, was recently hospitalized for a staph infection she contracted after her last surgery. Doctors are removing the implants and maybe her own breasts as well. Here's hoping she makes a complete, healthy recovery.

         Presumably having the biggest rack in the world has had its financial rewards and but I gotta wonder if Miss. Hershey also suffers from BDD, body dismorphic disorder, a medical condition in which a person has an exaggerated view of a physical trait and tries to repair it with surgery, possibly multiple times. Sadly (and expensively), no amount of change will satisfy them, according to this story on Cosmetic Surgery Addiction.

         The fact that human beings can have themselves surgically shape-shifted into anything they want, including a creature with horns or a new hymen is actually pretty cool, almost magic (if it weren’t for all the blood and risk). To each her own, certainly. It’s probably also true, though that  deluge pornified bodies we see on TV coupled with our access to surgery might push a lot of people towards the dangers of the scalpel who might have been fine with themselves in other eras. 

          If you don’t have a psych disorder that’s making it difficult, at some point, it's ok, maybe even safer, to give your culture the finger. When I die I plan to be as wrinkled as a linen suit that’s really gotten around town that day. People often romanticize the lovely imperfections, the ambient sounds and scratches on old recordings of people like Louis Armstrong. Hopefully more people will start viewing their own skins with a similar appreciation. 

Liz story on SeXis: Sudden Sex - What Happens (Literally) When You Can't Say No?

There's a wonderful old SNL sketch with Gilda Radner and Steve Martin meeting at a disco, seeing each other across a crowded room and suddenly, uncontrollably, they abaondon the world for a world of their own. They can't help themselves, they've gotta do it. 

It happens that way with sex too - those times when you know you're just not going to make it to the apartment door before all pants are off. 

So, what happens at those times? Why can you control yourself on some days or nights and not others?

Cleis Publishing's new book "Frenzy" explores 60 stories of sudden sex and here on the SeXis website, I've written about those crazy chemical fireworks and why we lose control in Spontaneous Sexual Combustion for SeXis and Cleis' Naked Reader Book Club. Hopefully it can offer some thoughts on what happens when thoughts abandon us.

 Enjoy!!

Liz on MyPleasure.com: Skinny dip tips for world record nudity

Last year I had the pleasure of participating in the Guinness Book of World Record's World Largest Skinny Dip - the attempt to top last year's numbers will take place tomorrow, July 11, at designated nudist resorts all over America, including our wonderful local Cypress Cove in Kissimmee.
If you need some tips for beginner nudism check out my blogpost at MyPleasure.com. Seriously...in this heat a naked swim has got to sound pretty good to you...