In regards to this post Socially Fat , it was recommended by a great friend and commenter that I x-post to an LJ community. I did and the response was an impressive tale of online dating adventures and failures (not on the part of the responder, mind you). She mentions that many guys she met were under the impression that “Fat Girls Are Easy.” Of course the first thing that came to mind was the fabulously cheesy 1989 film “Earth Girls Are Easy.” I know, it wasn’t intended and I know what she means as I have encountered this way of thinking myself in various moments of my life. But then I began to see some strange parallels. Forgive my tangent, but I think I have something here…

Man, I love that movie! I could not tell you how many times I’ve seen it if I tried. And I was a valley girl, still am I guess. I mean, if I get particularly excited about something, I slip right back into the verbiage and everything. Just need to Aquanet my bangs, put on the jelly bracelets and I am there! Ha! I had wanted to be a hair stylist back then, too. Though I also was convinced I’d be the greatest Pop star ever “Blaze” was going to be my stage name. Ugh! *bows head in shame*

The movie was about a gal whose relationship is falling apart after she catches her doctor boyfriend sleeping with a female nurse. And hilarity ensues, but then it doesn’t. This movie is truly about a girl who has been betrayed by the man she loves and at first she wants him back, that is until she meets three fine strangers who distract her and show her that there’s more to life than some jerk of a boyfriend. Her BFF played by Julie Brown (not the “Downtown” one, either, the Original!) is there to help her along the way and give the three strangers a brilliant valley-esque makeover. The result? More hilarity but also a slowly brewing romance.

One could easily compare the “aliens” to fats in this plot. You see, a fat in a valley dating scenario would easily be considered alien. And certainly any salon-a-tron would jump at the chance to makeover a fatty! Always seems to be someone around to transform a fatty, be it on t.v. or movies or what have you. There was nothing wrong with the strangers when they arrived, but in this valley world they simply don’t fit in. So they emerge as the salon-a-tron’s ultimate success as these hairless, hipster dorks (in my opinion). Suddenly the main gal played by Geena Davis in full glam valley-osity, sees them in a whole new light! Suddenly these strangers/aliens/fatties are A-OK because they fit in her version of the norm.

This film makes no bones about the fact that the women in this “valley” are quick to bed only the hottest of hotties and thus you see many a scene of flirtation and so on. Everything seems to revolve around sex, even when it doesn’t. While Geena Davis’ character seems a bit on the light-headed side, she does “get it” eventually and beds Jeff Goldblum’s character. After which she is of course in love and cannot be without him. Because, of course, sex = love for ladies, right? Um, not exactly.

Here’s the thing, everyone is an individual. Every person is a multi-faceted personality with varying emotions and experiences and thoughts. Amazingly, this applies to fatties, too! Yep! Incredibly, just like “normal” gals, fatties, too have different ideas and experiences and feelings on any given subject. And when it comes to sex? Yeah, we’re not all the same in that arena either. I have actually been both the prude and the slut in my lifetime and now fall somewhere in between. I’m a unique individual. Fun! I get to have my own ideas and opinions and go about my life in a different way (than most).

So, when I heard this “Fat Girls Are Easy” thing again I thought about it awhile. And just like a lot of people think that blonds are dumb and redheads are feisty (I so f-ing hate that stereotype, yo!) fatties are not necessarily easy. YOU GUYS!!! Fatties are unique individuals, too! Being fat is no more or less a descriptor than being tall or having long hair. Yet somewhere along the way in our civilization (or more to the point U.S. society) fatties have become the aliens and must be changed! They must fit into some pre-labeled concept of we just can’t deal as a society.

Well, FUCK THAT! I refuse to fit into any category. Wait! Unless Bad-Ass-Punk-Fat-Awesome is a category? No? Okay, then FUCK THAT! Ha-ha! I won’t compare anyone to a fucking snow flake, but dude! DUDE! We are all unique, no two are alike and while we may have some traits in common with someone else, just being fat does not make me or anyone else a slut by proxy! Yes, I’ve been treated like a one night stand when all I was looking for was love. Yes, I’ve treated guys like a one night stand when they just wanted to get to know me better. This doesn’t mean anything about anyone else but me. I hate to keep harping on this, buy you guys? This stereotype won’t kill itself. We have to actively remind people that not only are we human, but we are our own people and can make our own choices. DAMN!

Thanks for hanging in there for my “Earth Girls Are Easy” comparison. Hopefully it came across as intended.

IMDB info on the film: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0097257/

So You Didn’t Hear This From Me”

Seriously, I’m not one for celebrity news shows and their ilk, but when I saw this photo of Mickey Rourke, well…

He looks good. He looks healthy and well, anyone eating Fro-Yo is okay by me! <3

http://www.popeater.com/2010/06/26/mickey-rourke-hair-girlfriend/?icid=main|main|dl2|link6|http%3A%2F%2Fwww.popeater.com%2F2010%2F06%2F26%2Fmickey-rourke-hair-girlfriend%2F

This past week I watched two fantastic films: “Henry Fool” (1997) & “Fay Grim” (2006). “Fay Grim” is actually the sequel to “Henry Fool”, so I had to watch them in order. Both star one of my all-time fave indie actresses Parker Posie! And in these films, she’s fabulous!

Literary drama? Family dysfunction & squabbles? Stranger in town? Tension? Suspense? Oh yeah! And then some! At first I found myself suspicious of this “Henry Fool” character, but then I grew to love him even as the other characters began to suspect or distrust him. I don’t want to give too much away, so here’s the deal:

IMDB plot description: Socially inept garbage man Simon is befriended by Henry Fool, a witty roguish, but talent-less novelist. Henry opens a magical world of literature to Simon who turns his hand to writing the ‘great American poem’. As Simon begins his controversial ascent to the dizzying heights of Nobel Prize winning poet, Henry sinks to a life of drinking in low-life bars. The two friends fall out and lose touch until Henry’s criminal past catches up with him.

And the moment the credits roll, you cannot wait to find out what happens next…

I wasn’t sure what to expect with this sequel, but I was dazzled further and well…

IMDB plot description: A ten-years-later continuation of Hal Hartley’s “Henry Fool”, where Fay Grim (Posey) is coerced by a CIA agent (Goldblum) to try and locate notebooks that belonged to her fugitive ex-husband (Ryan). Published in them is information that could compromises the security of the U.S., causing Fay to first head to Paris to fetch them.

Again, when the credits rolled my husband and I looked at each other and agreed, they need to make the third installment NOW!!! Ha-ha! While I did feel that the first film felt much longer than it was, I was never bored. I was tired, though, so that didn’t help. These films are filled with passion and witty dialogue, great acting and some heart wrenching moments that will stick with you for awhile.  I was amazed that they were able to reassemble the original cast for this, fantastic! You feel as though you know these characters and you want to help them with their struggles.

You will not be disappointed by “Henry Fool” & “Fay Grim” and you’ll be wanting more, too!

Two Great Documentaries with one Severely Important Message:

Where does our food come from?

The first, “King Corn” centers around two guys who rent an acre of land in Iowa to grow corn and to follow where it goes once if leaves their little acre. They soon find out that there is a lot more to being a corn farmer than they realized. Specifically, government subsidies. In the end they lost money on their crop, but with the government subsidy were able to break even (or close to it).

I was personally surprised to find out that most of the corn grown in the USA is not immediately edible and in fact tastes terrible! It goes from fresh off the farm to what seems to be an endless journey into food processing. What I took from this movie is that corn is everything in this country. It’s in everything we eat, everything we buy and use and it controls so much of the economy and marketplace that it will make you step back and think about your own choices as a consumer. The other startling thing I learned from the film was about cows and feed lots. Holy crap! Look, I’m no naive ninny, but weren’t we always told that corn fed cows were healthier or something? Well, it’s all lies!  They talk to farmers and experts and it turns out cows were never meant to eat corn. They were meant to only eat grass. DUH! So what you get are very ill cows that grow so fast (to get to market/slaughter faster) on such a poor diet that they can’t even walk by the time they are “ready” to be sold for slaughter. *barfs* Luckily in this doc, you’re spared the more gruesome images that this brings to mind.

“Food Inc.” follows these same lines about food overall and where it comes from. But it also gives a lot more facts and statistics that will leave you in a state of shock and awe! If you’re not rethinking your own diet let alone our entire country’s then you may need to check your pulse!  This doc seems to focus a lot more on the animals in our giant food industry and how they are treated and the industry’s demands on farmers. What we see in the grocery store with names and images referencing old family farms are once again, ALL LIES!!!

It also points out the incredible power each and every one of us holds when it comes to our buying choices. Every meal, every dollar and every change are ruled by us, the consumer! It became clear to me when reps from Walmart explained the reasoning behind Walmart going Organic, the customer wants it! WOW! A giant company listening to it’s customers? Yep! They have no choice after all. If you know what you want and they don’t have it you’ll simply go elsewhere and they get it!

I highly recommend both of these films (and the order in which I present them to you) to everyone in the world! I feel that we as a nation have been kept in the dark about where our food comes from and what is and isn’t “healthy.” We turn a blind eye to things like the biggest slaughter house in the world and their labor practices. Our government subsidizes these companies to gain control over a global market. Even if this is no surprise to you, I ask that you still give these a shot. Especially, “Food Inc.”  because it really does give facts that I hadn’t seen or heard before. When it comes to obesity, diabetes and everything in between and surrounding what we eat, I think that it is our responsibility to learn as much as we can and make more conscious decisions in our daily lives.

You can watch both Streaming on Netflix’s “watch instantly” section. And please, spread the word!!!

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