Fencing!

Soooooooooooooo... In my never-ending quest to find cheap forms of entertainment and education...


I love playing with swords.
I love the agression, I love the pointy objects, (I love the potential for whitty banter, frock coats, and really big hats. Also, did I mention the boots?)

Basically, swash-buckling is a good time, and I want to know more.


With that in mind, and having a rough idea of who reads this journal... Anyone out there have a couple of sword-like objects and a willingness the teach me a little bit about How To Play With Swords? :-)


I'd also like to learn me some propper archery (Shiny_Brain, I'm looking at you), but I know that this would require a designated practice area (projectile weapons being what they are), so that will probably have to wait.


But fencing I could start mucking about with now. :-)


Any takers? :-D

Links of the Day

Two from Shakesville:

9/11 -- Purely because I've got someone living there now.

AND

My Terrible Bargain: Passing Privilege Edition -- on being a t-girl whose gender is rarely questioned... and feeling guilty about that.


[EDIT:
Additionally, from Sandykidd:
The Rejection Heard 'Round the World -- A really sensitble and well-written discussion Flash Fiction Online's rejection of Crossed Genre's call for Spec!LGBTQI submissions based on the editor's (undisclosed in the submission guidelines) homophobia. Specifically of said editor's comparing "Gay" with "Pedophile". Go. Have a look. :-)
/EDIT]


In other news: Going to (attempt to) give blood this afternoon. :-) Well, so much for that idea.


- TTFN,
- Amazon.

Canadian Blood Services

They won’t let me donate blood.

Because of my girlfriend’s job.

No.

Not because of my girlfriend's job.

Because of Canadian Blood Services' assumptions about how my girlfriend *does* her job.


They assume that gay sex, or hired sex, (or African sex, apparently), is *unprotected* sex by default – so much-so that they don’t even put it on the form, they just blanket-statement assume that nothing else could be the case.


I'm working on my letter about how this is "problematic" (on many levels) and how adding the word "unprotected" to all questions that pertain to the sexual practices of a potential blood donor or said donor's sexual partners would be a good idea and would go some small way towards making the screning process less about homophobic, sex-negative, and sexist assumptions and more about *actually* keeping the donated-blood supply safe for people who need transfusions.


I'll be sending it to Ms. Elaine Fournier, Medical Services Coordinator for North/East Ontario and Nunavut, at:

elaine.fournier@blood.ca



You may wish to do the same.