Goodbye Mini-Floozy Factory, er, I mean Libby Lu!

With the seemingly non-stop onslaught of rank and overtly sexualized products that have been thrust upon our society's children I had begun to worry that the end was nigh. In the distance I heard a soft trumpeting and spied an oddly linear separation of ominous cloud. Yes, I was sure of it... Satan wuzza comin' fer us. And then, as quickly as the harbingers of doom (Bratz, et al) published the fiery end I spied a light on the horizon.

Libby Lu has closed its ridiculous doors.

All hyperbole aside (well, not all of it), I am pleased that Libby Lu has closed. I hope that more mommies and daddies feel the same. It's important that we, as caring parents and families, stop promoting these pathetic and insipid concepts of the female potential. Yes, it is cute when little girls dress up as princesses and host tea parties. It is not cute when little girls dress up as trollops and lip-sync to the insipid sounds of [ insert talent-less, pre-pubescent, Disney merchandise shilling skank here].

So it is with a lightened heart and a renewed hope for the promotion of girls' cerebral power that I venture into tomorrow. Libby Lu, I bid you adieu.

So... this is 'fat'. Apparently the people of Brazil, or at least their fashion correspondents, think that this is the photograph of an unfit person... dare I say a fat-ass. The whale in the picture at the left is supermodel Karolina Kurkova. Disgusting, isn't she? I mean she's obviously been gorging herself hourly on... bean sprouts and wheat grass smoothies? Wait a second. Clearly this is a joke... those crazy Brazilians! Hahahah. Oh, wow, that was a knee-slapper. Let me catch my breath... was laughing really hard there for a tic.

It must be a joke, right? I mean what kind of vacuous, esteem-sucking vampire would make such comments? NOT anyone that was serious, surely. Because I would LOVE to see pictures, of said critics, in the suit shown in the photo.

Congratulations, Brazilian press. You've actually stepped, no... you leapt with glee, into the pit of dumb-ass remarks... which I like to call 'dumb-ass remark pit'... but anyway... I'll work on that one.


Dear readers, as you know, it's so important to stop judging people merely on the basis of appearance. And it's also important to stop supporting newspapers, magazines, and products that promote shitty self-images for boys, girls, men, and women. There will be, undoubtedly, young girls and women that see those pictures and those cruel, unrealistic remarks, and take it all to heart. It's bad enough that many young girls already have enough esteem troubles as they do not realize that Victoria's Secret models represent about 4% of the population, looks-wise. So poo-poo to Vickie's too.

I recently watched two movies that have greatly altered my perceptions about two things I love to do: shop and eat. One movie, Walmart: The High Cost of Low Price, was a documentary. The other, Fast Food Nation, was a movie based on a best-selling book.

I've been shopping at Walmart for many years. Let's face it... they are cheap and sometimes they are even fast. It's easy for me, since Walmart is only 2 miles from me, to pop in when I need an item or thirty. It's been a convenience. And a crutch.

I watched the documentary, Walmart: The High Cost of Low Price, and have yet to re-enter a Walmart. It has been one month now. I no longer contribute to the dealings that I watched in that documentary. I am free of the crutch. Yes... I still go to Target for the items I cannot get at the grocer or produce section (let's face it, Marty's Produce doesn't have the latest shade of pink!). But Target and Walmart... well, that's like comparing persimmons to fecal matter.

Several weeks ago I watched Fast Food Nation. It is not a great film, but it is an important one. It showed, in shocking fashion, the sad reality of what corporate America has done to our food supply. And although my husband and I have always been watchful that our children drink organic milk... we now see the importance of taking this healthy habit further. We have been increasing the amount of organic and local produce in our weekly shopping. And we now only purchase meats that are hormone/antibiotic free and that are raised humanely. No... I'm no PETA unductee. Far from it. But I do not see the necessity of keeping animals in crates simply because we need more cheap burgers and more hormone-deformed chicken breasts.

I won't give details of either of these films because I think they need to be seen - not just regurgitated.

The important thing for me is that I am no longer supporting companies that put money before the health and livelyhoods of our nation. I now shop at local grocery stores and healthful food markets. I'm supporting the little guy again... and I feel pretty damn good about it.