Recent Posts - page 600
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Weekend flashback: chainmail chicks and boots galore
This movie didn’t do very well. Partly because this movie poster promised a lot more Conan/Arnie than was there (so the word of mouth was ‘what a ripoff’) and partly because they didn’t give Brigitte Nielsen exactly the costume the fans were expecting, which was more along the lines of this eminently practical warrior garb – the chainmail bikini:
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Will you do me the honour?
There was a long thread (200+ comments) over at Pandagon last week about the pressures on both men and women regarding marriage expectations, which was quite fascinating. Amanda was reading a book about proposal angst and was worried that people might think she was reading “bridal p*rn” because of the picture of a woman in a wedding dress on the cover, and that they would then conclude that she was one of those who’d bought into the hype of needing to be married, the fear of being “left on the shelf”.
The post concentrated particularly on the romantic and dramatic expectations regarding the proposal itself:
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If bare midriffs and short-shorts really made athletes run faster
then this is what the male sprinters would be wearing.

It’s instructive to compare male and female track costumes over the last few decades.
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Unseemly Squeal of the day (extra)
My darling got me tickets to The Boy From Oz!
For any particular reason, dear reader?
Only for my (addendum) birthday, for which I have decided to photoshop a fantasy cake: (This text added to entice all the feed-readers who obviously were not fascinated enough by musical theatre references to drop on by yesterday. Sniff.).

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OK, that’s a wrap
The new digs seem to be working, so it is now officially time to update your bookmarks. http://viv.id.au/blog/ is the URL of the new Hoyden About Town (note no more hyphenating) From time to time posts may appear here if… Read More ›
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Pluto the not quite a Planet
Lovely graphic today at one of my favourite sites (it’s my browser’s homepage), Astronomy Picture of the Day, which I’ll put up just because it gives such a clear idea of the proportions of the planets and other orbiting bodies making up our Solar System.
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The first shots of the HPV vaccine
Ian Frazer, the discoverer, is doing a bit of a whirlwind tour today for the cameras – vaccinating some girls and young women in both Brisbane and Sydney on the first day that Gardasil is approved for use in Australia.
As yet there’s no government subsidy for the vaccine (which protects against the virus that causes the main form of cervical cancer), so the full course of three shots costs over A$400. There’s nonetheless no shortage of takers, and a growing number of men interested in the vaccination as well so they can be confident of not infecting their partners.
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A source of minor joy
is just discovering that the Ermine Street Guard exists. It’s so peculiarly British to take one’s weird hobby involving dressing up in strange outfits so seriously that one’s group ends up as a respected resource for academics pursuing a proper understanding of Roman military engineering and craftsmanship.
Even if they probably wouldn’t let me play with the onager

Featured Categories
Culture ›
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#AWW2017 – non-fiction – six reviews
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Otterday! And Open Thread
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Life ›
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Soggy here, innit?
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Getting out the ‘yes’
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QOTD for IWD: Aung San Suu Kyi
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Politics ›
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Australia Burns: Bells Line of Road, 28 December 2019
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Science ›
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ATO scammer time of the year again for Aussies
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Missing Cassini already
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Link OTD: DIY Feminist Cybersecurity
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Sociology ›
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The 109th Down Under Feminists Carnival is up!
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The 108th Down Under Feminists Carnival is up!
2017-06-11
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Abortion will remain in the NSW Crimes Act
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