This Is Not a Test

I spent this weekend reading Girls to the Front: The True Story of the Riot Grrrl Revolution by Sara Marcus. Let me start off by saying that I think the book is amazing and does a wonderful job of capturing the mood of a generation, and not just the generation of girls that are discussed in the book.  I've always considered myself a riot grrrl even though I was born as the movement was getting started.  Finishing Girls to the Front left me with all my emotions that I remember from being a teenage girl. And let's face it, I was a beast of a teenage girl.  I still think some of my best ideas for art and change were when I was 17 and in some ways I think about how to get back into that mindset. I in no way think that highschool was the best years of my life, but there was a certain amount of freedom in it.  My other half, Savanna, and I were discussing this about a week ago; how we feel less creative as we're getting older.  I pointed out that it's not necessarily that we're getting less creative, but more the fact that we have to be entirely responsible for ourselves now and under the weight of adult responsibilities, it leaves less time for creative endeavors. I consider myself an artist still, but sometimes it feels like a fraud since I haven't found the time to work on personal projects.  That is what I'm choosing to take away from the book as well as the fire in my gut, that I need to get off my ass and do something.  That's one of the most important parts of riot grrrl that gets overlooked, these girls may have been young, but they didn't sit around and wait for something to happen, they got out there and did it. They built their own support and creative networks. They worked together which is something as young girls and women, we're taught not to do.  In this growing age of internet complacency and capitalist competition, where will we find the time to stand up for what we believe in?

On a side note, something Guy New York (@Quickiesnewyork) said on Twitter recently really got me to think:

"If one side argues an extreme and the other equality, we end up in between. For equality to win we must advocate strongly in new directions."

And that is something that I think was really important in riot grrrl and that they displayed beautifully. I hope that I terrify men to not rape or assault, because really, we shouldn't be the ones afraid.

On an artistic note, I am making headway on a new painting series, which I will hopefully be talking about more soon. I'm in the planning stages so I'm making thumbnails and doing studies (Savanna [and I kinda do too] thinks I have an eating disorder where I just want to look at/draw/photograph produce and not eat it [but don't worry, I AM eating]) but once I get a couple complete paintings done, I'll be showing them and discussing it more.