as seen on facebook: cap'n bloodsnatch

go ahead... be grossed out...

but why?

this is my new-found freedom I've found from reading flow: the cultural history of menstruation by elissa stein. occasionally, I read non-fiction, and this book was recommended by one of my more “interesting” patrons. this patron handed me this book, and in a voice heavy in conspiracy said, “you’ve been lied to.” a little weird yeah.

but this book was so interesting in the fact that MEN have made us embarrassed by this thing our body does for no specific reason that anyone knows… a thing that has been understudied, misunderstood and corrupted by the femcare industry and pharmaceutical companies.

stop! I love men. I’m not a man hater… but this book is one of those books that makes you rethink everything you’ve ever thought about your period because it’s men who have convinced us that we’re crazy, depressed, practically abnormal and should be shunned.

shunned? sequestered? hmm… a little red tent time? I could handle that far better than charlotte perkins gilman’s story the yellow wallpaper. the story stemmed from her seeking help for mild depression from a doctor renown for sending men with depression west to journal their experiences. however, for women, the good doctor recommended rest… read the story. Go back to are you there God, it's me margaret... and dig out that memory of nervous excitement of being caught in between being first and being last to get it..

flow is an easy read… maybe not so much for the people in your life who are a bit squeamish, because it’s one of those books where you are compelled to read parts out loud in disgust, anger or in laughter.

happy reading!