In my daughter’s world, fraught with danger,
Sharks swim at the deep end of the community swimming pool,
Long-clawed demons roam the hallways after dusk,
Sea lions emerge from wooded trails to snatch young girls,
And deadly dinosaurs tromp across highways.

In my world, fraught with danger,
Kids crack their skulls on cement and drown in a local swimming pool,
Rapists crawl into bedroom windows and abduct dreaming children after dusk,
Cougars prowling wooded trails clamp little sun-kissed heads in their jaws ,
And deadly drunk drivers explode family cars into red metal on the highways.

Don’t worry, I promise with a half smile,
I can slay dragons.
- Garth von Buchholz

So, I got a tattoo finally.  I dropped my kids off at my friend Val's house, arrived at the Black Rose tattoo parlor literally shaking, and prepared for the big step.  I wasn't just getting a tattoo, I was getting a pretty big tattoo, you see.  I wanted something quite visible, right on my arm, and I wanted an owl.

Why an owl you ask?  Often for me an owl has signified major change, for the better.  When I was 18 and leaving my home town I saw an owl perched up on a telephone pole in the middle of the city.  When I was first falling in love I saw an owl swoop down and fly slowly in front of the car, as if in slow motion.  Now that I'm newly single, fresh out of marriage, I feel very positive about the changes in my life.  The owl is for me an emblem of change and stability.  It flies slowly and gently through the air, cunning and sharp, but always silent and serene.

Here are some photos of the tattoo in process, and the final result.

Check out the meme of my work!  I found this on Respect The Breast, a pro- breastfeeding fan page on Facebook! 

What is it that we find so riveting about roller derby girls breastfeeding?

Perhaps it's the contrast.  The idea of rollerderby, the fact it's a contact sport and a little bad-ass, combined with the soft, nurturing role of breastfeeding mother.  It's also an archetypal image- the Madonna and Child image- but with a twist.  It's slightly subversive to combine the image of a full contact sport with the role of motherhood, especially breastfeeding.  Even the visual contrast of the hard equipment with the softness of breastfeeding is interesting.  It's wonderful, because it questions our notions of what women are, and what it means to be female.

Blister Sister and Scarlet by Kate Wilhelm

I included the above photo in my Sunday Feature on Kate Wilhelm.  Wilhelm herself writes: "Derby throws any notions of femininity in your face.  Yet many derby girls are mothers, (perhaps the ultimate "feminine" vocation), and the bouts are extremely family friendly.  Immediately I wanted to get to know more about the women behind the derby personas.  So, I invited myself into their homes, their private domestic spaces, the arena that is historically and culturally seen as women's space.  I want the apparent incongruity of a derby girl in a domestic setting to cause the viewer to think about that incongruity and wonder if it is perhaps nothing more than a construct." 

I love these images because they broaden our idea of what it means to be a woman.  These women are all strong and a little dangerous, but undeniably female and maternal as well.  It shows different layers and facets of what it means to be female.  It also shows a unique perspective on breastfeeding, and the more breastfeeding images we have out there the less likely it will be taboo.

With November at an end I know that Movember Mustaches will be trimmed as well.  I decided to put a call out to my fansite to preserve at least a few of these mustaches for posterity.  As you might already know- Movember is an awareness and fundraising program for men's health, especially prostate cancer. The intent is to take some of the stigma away from discussing men's health issues by opening the dialogue using humour and the visual cue of the mustache.  On November 1st men can register with campaigns such as Movember Canada with a clean shaven face, and in the process of growing facial hair become essentially walking billboards for prostate health.

I do believe Roller Derby deserves it's own special paragraph on the subject of Movember.  If you're involved in Roller Derby you'll notice Movember bouts, Movember scrimmages and other fund raising efforts by the derby community.  Below you'll see a photo submitted by the legendary Noah Backtalk- Derby coach, Captain, referee and player extraordinaire.  Check out his page on Movember Canada!

Of those submitted- my favourite by far is the 'stash above, sported Thomas Dannenberg.  This is a mustache is a stash and a half.  

It's still possible to donate on behalf of prostate health!  Please click on this link to DONATE! 

I had the pleasure of getting to know artist Jennifer McNichols online when we were both included in an exhibition called Mothers at the Woman Made Gallery in Chicago.  Part of her series titled "Let Them Eat Cake" was included in the exhibition, and I had the pleasure of seeing it in person.  The series was inspired by her experiences with cesarean section birth and the emotional turmoil which followed.  Jennifer uses cake- a very traditional domestic item- to explore the complicated feelings which arose from her c-section.

The work which I saw in person at the show in Chicago was called "Self- Preservation."  It is a series of four mason jars with slices of white cake in each one.  The jars are each labeled with different words- "Betrayed, Failure, Empty, Powerless."  The delivery of the message is interesting.  Canning and preserving are a typically female occupation, and a very traditional one.  There's something banal and simple about canned items which contrasts powerfully with the messages.  The use of jars also suggests that these feelings are literally bottled up.

Several of her pieces employ the use of whole cakes as a metaphor for the human body.  Carved and Breached are two photographs which depict a cake which is carved or sectioned to mimic the actions on the human body in cesarean section.  There's a visceral quality to these works- the fondant icing mimics skin and there is a vulnerable quality to these cakes which cause one to almost identify with them as persons.  It's hard not to wince when looking at them, especially if you've experienced a c- section yourself.

This week I'm just writing a quick little feature on some lovely baby items.  If you're looking for Christmas gifts for a baby, look no further than Bonnie Baby.  It's an etsy site of hand made items by Bonnie Lynn Polnaszek.  Why shop at big box stores when you can buy at the source?  

My Pigeon House

My pigeon house I open wide
and I set all my pigeons free
They fly all around
and up and down
and they sit on the highest tree

and when they return from their merry merry flight
they close their eyes and they say goodnight
Carroo carroo carroo carroo carroo carroo carooo

Rachel Epp Buller is a feminist art historian, a print maker and a mother of three.  Her series "The Identity Series" are a beautiful, intricate series of prints based on the motif of a fingerprint.  Fingerprints figure very largely in the life of a mother- finger prints on the walls, on the windows and on mirrors become a part of our visual landscape.  If you were to look at our bodies with forensic dust under black light we would probably be covered with the imprints of our children.  I read somewhere that a small amount of our children's cells remain with us long after they're born and have grown.  We're forever imprinted.  

This series calls to light the identity of a mother as it's combined with and altered by the personalities of her children.  It's a complex portrait of what it means to be a mother- the occasional loss of self, but the gain of a bright new and complex self in relation to our children.

Buller references her own Mennonite background by using familiar quilt patterns to combine the elements of finger prints and portraits.  The quilt aesthetic draws us in to the comfort of the familiar, and makes reference to family and home.  Within the pattern we also see objects, outlines and forms- portraits of individuals mixed together.  I feel that the fingerprint outlines make some allusion to science and DNA while the quilt pattern speaks more of tradition.  I love the idea of a portrait combining different elements of one's family.  I feel it's true that we are all a pattern involving those who matter to us, and who influence our lives.