Today, I received a text from my local library to let me know that the book I currently have checked out is about to be overdue (in 2 days). This prompted me to log in to the library website and renew the title. While at the site, I decided to take a look around to see what features are offered,… Read more →
Author: chantale
Three Months
We are three months into the Alabama experience and there are a few things that I have learned since I have been living in Huntsville. Beer is a serious thing down here I always thought that Buffalo was a big drinking town, and it certainly is as the last call is still at 4 am, but if you are looking… Read more →
How To Make Things Better
What Happened? We could have had it all. We could have had a leader that would understand our place in the world and act accordingly. A President that would have led us to a better place as a society. A President that understands America’s place in the world and would have governed accordingly. We could have had a President that cares… Read more →
Leaving Senseless Fear Behind
Each one of us, as an individual, is a product of the environment that we were raised in. We carry with us the information that we received as children and we take that data and use it to navigate our lives. Some of us receive messages of hope and love, while others receive messages of fear and danger. For some… Read more →
Welcome to the South
The move south is complete. Well – we are physically in Huntsville and tomorrow the movers will be dropping off our things, so I guess it is really only almost complete. Still – we have an apartment and most of the addresses have been changed. Speaking of that, holy shit there are a lot of things that need to be… Read more →
Pride 2018
It’s June again in America and you know what that means! Pride month! June is the month where we celebrate the strides and remember the struggles (and the folks who have sacrificed their lives) to gain equality for the LGBTQ+ community. The first weekend of the month was Pride in Buffalo and we didn’t get to attend any of the… Read more →
Blogging Community
Hello dear readers – I have recently joined Bloglovin and wanted to give you the opportunity to follow me over there. My content will not change, but being affiliated with a larger community of bloggers is always good for the circulation stats. As you may know, Hippiegrrl Explains It All got its start on Backwash.com and the community we cultivated… Read more →
Be Better
We are all human beings. We live our lives the way we see fit and we move through life with different goals in mind. Some of us judge others and some of us do not. Recently, I have had several interactions with a certain dude on Facebook that is not exactly cordial, to put it very mildly. The topic of… Read more →
The Teens Are Alright
Yesterday was a wonderful day for the future of the United States of America. Teenagers across the country walked out of their classrooms to protest the gun violence that has become all too common in American schools. They also walked out to honor the 17 people that were killed last month at Stoneham Douglass High School in Parkland, Florida. The… Read more →
Patriarchy, MRAs, and Dismantling the Current System of Oppression
Over the years, whenever straight, white, men feel threatened, they band together in groups to discuss the situation and ‘right’ the ship. See – when dudes feel like they are losing grip on the control that they have ALWAYS had over women, they freak the fuck out. This is evidenced by the backlash against moves toward gender equity in the… Read more →
2018 Reading Habits
It’s a new year and this year I am determined to read more books than I did in 2017. My totals from last year were actually pretty good compared to previous years, but they still felt bleak. I had hoped to read 24 books and only ended up reading 11. This year I am setting my reading challenge total at… Read more →
New Year, New World
We all thought that 2016 was the worst year on record (and I would definitely venture to say that music-wise, it was a pretty bad year considering how many great artists we lost – Pop star deaths in 2016), but 2017 saw that disaster and raised it to extreme levels. Seriously. Is it safe to say that 2018 will be… Read more →
Topple the Patriarchy
Last week felt like a tipping point. I realize that, over the years, there have been many moments that felt this way, but last week really (REALLY) did. So, can we finally talk about sexism and the ways to combat it and change the course of our future in an open, honest, and realistic way? Is it finally time for… Read more →
Standing Up To Racism part 1
Last month I decided to jump back into Facebook friendships with a few people that I had lost touch with (aka unfriended). Most of these people consider themselves to be conservative. They are also white and middle class. They have all lived in what they consider to be safe spaces and have not had to struggle to survive. Basically, they… Read more →
A New Way Forward
Since 1997, I have been working in the customer service industry. Twenty years of working in banking, retail, tech support, middle management, and project management have taught me a few things about the dynamics of workers and leaders in the workplace. There have been a few bright spots in my career, but overall I have witnessed a great deal of… Read more →
Call It Out (part two)
The events of the weekend have really shaken me. I realize that as a white person I can freely move through society without much effort or care. I have the privilege of not being pulled over in my car unless I am actually doing something wrong (and then not always). I have the privilege of walking down a street and… Read more →
Call It Out
When I was a child I let it go when I heard racist or sexist or homophobic slurs from friends and family. When I was a teenager I let it go when I heard racist or sexist or homophobic slurs from teachers and coworkers. When I was in my twenties I let it go when I heard racist or sexist… Read more →
Snowflakes, Learning, and Laziness
When I went back to school in 2010 to pursue a second bachelors degree in Sociology I had no idea that the degree would change my perspectives so drastically. I have always considered myself to be open-minded and eager to learn new things. I have tried to think critically about everything that comes across my social media feed or email… Read more →
March On
Yesterday we marched. In large numbers, we hit the streets of the States and across the globe. We marched to show our determination and our strength. We marched to show our displeasure with the forces that be. We marched to wake up the world to the fact that America is not okay with the latest situation we find ourselves in.… Read more →
Hey, ladies!
To the women that voted for Trump, and specifically the 53% (wtf? source: popsugar.com) of white women that voted for him: I want to say how deeply sorry we are. We, the assembled masses of feminist women. The women who you have been fed preconceived notions about. The women who have been fighting for the rights of ALL women, not… Read more →
Why I Vote
The day has finally arrived! Election day – the day that, as citizens of the United States, we get to vote. Voting is not something that has always been available to all of us. It took 94 years for black men and 144 years for women to win this right. It is a right AND a privilege and it should… Read more →
You Better Vote
“I was just a girl, in a room full of women, licking stamps and laughing. I remember the feeling of community brewing, of democracy happening.” – Ani Difranco – Paradigm The election is in 3 days. As I sit here at the coffeehouse and think about all the years of struggle that women in the United States of America have… Read more →
The System Is Rigged
In the final debate of the campaign season, the Republican nominee for President of the United States did not answer a fundamental question. A question that gets at the very fabric of our democratic republic. When asked if he would accept the outcome of the election, Mr. Trump stated, “I will look at it at the time”. When pressed on an… Read more →
Ghosts
Driving home yesterday, from my writing hours, I heard a gentleman on the radio talking about Western New York ghost tours. This peaked my interest less because of a desire to attend a tour (of which I have zero interest) and more about my previous writing on the subject of ghosts. When I was in the Sociology program, one of… Read more →
Sociology, Libraries, and Life
In 2009, I made the decision to return to school and obtain a second Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology. This time I would apply myself. I would study and try my best not to procrastinate. I would work as a volunteer and devote myself to causes within the major. I would work on a research project and continue on… Read more →
Wednesday Afternoon Nostalgia Break
If you are a child of the 80s/90s, like me, you will appreciate these montages from my all time favorite movie. Enjoy and you’re welcome. Courtesy of AGO at YouTube Courtesy of satrioaw at YouTube Read more →
Women Really CAN Do Anything
Remember when we were kids, in the 80s, and the teachers would say, “you can be anything you want to be”? They encouraged us to work hard and we would succeed. I get that we were raised in a time when that seemed to be true, but as a girl I never had the feeling that it was. This year,… Read more →
The Continued Oppression of Women aka What Happened This Week?
Note: this is another old post. I’m cleaning out my drafts this week and wanted to share some of my thoughts from the past few years. Once I get through the draft posts, I’ll be posting new material. However, I believe that the drafts are highly relevant, even today, so here you go. Enjoy and tell your friends! from 24… Read more →
Girls and Boys – Perceptions Based On Sex
Note: I wrote this original post in March of 2014 – a few months before I became an Auntie. The writer and I now have a niece, Hannah, a nephew, Timmy, and another niece on the way. Although this post is old it is HIGHLY relevant. Especially right now. So – preface aside – here is my 2 year old… Read more →
America Is No Longer For Us
“Remember, remember always, that all of us, and you and I especially, are descended from immigrants and revolutionists.” – Franklin Delano Roosevelt “They’re not coming to this country if I’m president. And if Obama has brought some to this country they are leaving, they’re going, they’re gone.” – Donald Trump “In America, anyone can become president. That’s the… Read more →