I am so fortunate and grateful to have had the television show “Roseanne” in my life as a kid/teen. Not only did the show offer amazing working-poor family representation, but it also made me feel less different and weird. Here was a fat woman and a fat man busting their humps trying to keep house and home for themselves and their three kids. Guess what? Sounds a lot like my family (minus a working mother). “Roseanne” approached otherwise taboo topics like lesbianism and labor rights long before our current equality and labor rights climates were on anyone’s radar. I can’t help but wonder how much of that show influenced my own feminism and thoughts on fat bodies and their presentations. In fact I have watched and re-watched the entire series (yes, even the last two seasons, they were still good fun) and still love it, if not more than ever!

I saw a bunch of people linking to an article called, “And I should Know” so I had to read it. I don’t follow Roseanne Barr’s blog like I used to, but I check in from time to time. I enjoyed seeing her on Oprah and was moved to tears watching the video they showed of her life on her macadamia farm in Hawaii. I had meant to save it for my husband (he wants to live off the land as they say), but accidentally deleted it from our DVR. Then a real treat happened when Ms. Barr guest hosts the Joy Behar show and had guest Michael Moore on! WOW! Two rad fatties (if only Mr. Moore was body accepting *sigh*) I adore on the same show?! Amazeballs! They talked truths, my friends. It was a radical moment for me in both uses of that word. I have not read any of Roseanne’s books, but mostly because I’m broke. I think she is a brilliant woman and is so underrated it is offensive!

Anyway, back to the article! I truly enjoyed reading about her fighting for proper credit due to her and how she went about it and how the staff helped her stay strong through some heavy bullshit. It’s a worthwhile read, I promise! I know she’s had some controversies and scandals and all of that shit…but she is a being in constant renewal and change. I identify with this as an abuse survivor, as a woman and a feminist. though her words can come across as harsh (I’m guilty of this, too), I find that when you get to the heart of her message (and her heart, too) you can see that she is speaking from a place of love and honesty. What more could you ask for?