I saw a really offensive picture on Facebook so I feel like ranting about it here. One of my cousins posted a picture with girls that I wouldn’t call fat, but average, they’re neither fat nor thin, but the title was Thick Girls with a subtext that read: Bones are for the dog. Meat is for the Man. 

Now, before anyone jumps to any accusations that I have an awful cousin, I’m going to stop you there. She’s not awful. She has such a tender heart. Reading any of her statuses or other posts would tell you that, which is why I was surprised to see this. Here’s what I find wrong with the picture. While I think it’s great that these beautiful women were being portrayed as beautiful and not a figure to fear or move away from, I have some issues with the text.

Bones are for the dog? Really? So because I, and other like me, are bony I’m beneath a dog? So, the fact that I have a fairly fast metabolism and the fact that most of the women on my mom’s side are slender/have smaller frames is a point against me? I do gain weight, but I also quickly lose it. My weight fluctuates constantly. I can’t help it. I just found the picture really pathetic. So I’m being put down, and others like me, because I weigh less? I am not considered a person, not because I starved myself to that point or whatever, but because of something that naturally occurs? How pathetic. How awful.

That’s the problem I have in general with the weight argument. One body type is put down in order to bolster the body type of another. Why can’t I love my bones too? Why do I have to look at myself in the mirror and say, “These are for dogs. Ugh.”? Why can’t I be allowed to love my body too? 

YES! MY ANSWER TO ALMOST EVERYTHING!

Today, at 11 a.m. Eastern, 12 lawsuits were filed by 43 different plaintiffs—all Catholic dioceses, universities, health systems, and apostolates, and all with one goal in mind: blocking an unprecedented infringement on religious liberty by the federal government. […]

This is not about politics. It’s simply not. We didn’t pick this fight or the timing of it. The federal government brought it to us this past January when they decided it was a good idea to tell us who was and was not Catholic “enough” to be considered exempt from a mandate that would require employers to provide abortifacient drugs, surgical sterilizations, and contraceptives to all employees free of charge. The government is the one who wants to force us to violate our consciences, and they’re the ones who decided to bring it up in an election year. Plain and simple.

This is not about being a Republican, a Democrat, a liberal, or a conservative. It’s about being an American. Neither organization that I work for is a political monolith. You’ll find people from just about every point on the political spectrum working at both. I’m gonna be all sorts of crazy and hazard a guess that the same truth applies to all the plaintiffs filing suit today. We’re not in this fight because of how we vote. We’re in this fight because our Constitution guarantees us the right to both proclaim and live what we believe. It is our first and most fundamental right as Americans. We cannot and will not stand idly by while the Department of Health and Human Services dances all over one of the very freedoms for which our forefathers sacrificed their lives.

This is not about being Catholic. Yes, the 43 plaintiffs who filed suit today are all affiliated with the Catholic Church. Because this mandate calls us to directly violate teachings central to our faith, we are a bit more motivated at the moment than some others are. That being said, plenty of Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim groups should be (and are) concerned about a mandate that orders them to provide free abortion-inducing drugs to their employees. And people of all faiths should be concerned about the federal government deciding it gets to be in charge of determining what constitutes “essential religious activity,” not to mention issuing bureaucratic rules about what ancient religious beliefs can and cannot be sacrificed at the altar of political expediency.

This is not about access to contraception. We’ve said it a hundred times. I’ll say it one time more. If a woman wants to use contraception, she can. It’s her choice. And it’s a choice she can exercise for about $9 at her local Target. We’re not saying we agree with that choice. We’re not saying it’s a good one. But we are saying we shouldn’t have to pay for it.

bannerofthecross:

Sex is good, it’s very good. But I want to propose a question. Who values sex more? Catholics? Or Society?

I was hanging out with some good friends of mine earlier today. I’ve known them for a long time and they know how deep in my faith I am. Every now and then the…

This explains why I have the hardest time understanding why people have sex before marriage. 

minimalmovieposters:

Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away and Howl’s Moving Castle by Jason Kauzlarich

It’s not that I’m happy people are going without insurance. I’m proud that my faith is holding to its beliefs. The government has no right to force us to go against our faith. 

Sitting in the living room talking with Jody and we had this thought: so much of reality TV really isn’t reality. It’s scripted. And anyone can get a show. We should get one. There would be no need for a script. You couldn’t make up our silly stuff. Or our silly people. 

sarcasticates:

More here!

sarcasticates:

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sarcasticates:

Catvengers, assemble!

More here!

Can’t wait to see my family on Tuesday!

My cousin Charlie graduates from high school and my cousin Emily is home from her college so I’ll get to see her again! I haven’t seen her since Christmas! Lots of catching up to do!