October 2009

October 31st 2009

And How Are The Children?

- Laura Sessions Stepp

Alma Powell, a well-known advocate for youth, opened a grand dinner at the Newseum this week, the U.S. Capitol illuminated behind her, by asking a simple question: “And how are the children?”

It was an appropriate salutation, delivered to reporters about to receive awards for writing and broadcasting about disadvantaged children and families.

October 30th 2009

The Post-Halloween Walk of Shame: Sunday Edition

- Stefanie

In honor of Halloween—or, as Miss Imagination Station calls it, “the most wonderful time of the year”—I thought I’d tell a story about my favorite part of Halloween. The post-Halloween Walk of Shame.

October 26th 2009

Good Things Happen in Threes

- Lauren Mann

The last time we paused to ponder the portrayal of sex on television, images of instant orgasms and hairless bodies floated into our minds and we mercilessly criticized those scripted acts of love. I’m going to put it out there: I may have been too quick to judge.

October 23rd 2009

Déjà Vu With German Dude

- Stefanie

The other day I went for a walk with Peppermint Patty and Sunshine Girl. Our long walks turn into “venting, gossip, you-will-not-believe-what-happened-to-me sessions” when you walk for like 8 miles.

I had just recounted some hilariously awkward story about a boy telling me he "should have loved me better" (but that is a whole other story), when Peppermint Patty said “Have I ever told you about the guy who forgot, on our second date, what we did on the first?”

Sunshine Girl: “Same date twice? Was there a long time between your first and second dates?”

Peppermint Patty: “No. Like he forgot where he had taken me the week before. ”

Me: “Go on.”

October 21st 2009

Eyelash Batting, Pursuit, Conquest, and Cognitive Dissonance

- Katy Otto

Big, big smile to the gas station attendant. I was ten years old, and it was summer. I was riding in the front seat of my grandfather’s camper, on my way to meet my mother and sister at the pool. I could detect a glint in the teenage boy’s eyes, and found myself tossing my hair and batting my eyelashes. At ten.

My stoic German grandfather looked over at me. He frowned. As we pulled out of the lot, he moved the van into a parking spot. “Katherine, I need to talk to you about something,” he said firmly.

October 17th 2009

Romance by Text: Worth the Trauma?

- Laura Sessions Stepp

Forget about sexting for the moment. Let’s talk texting. That’s one thing Liz Funk, a recent college grad from New York, discussed with me this week over lunch in a lovely little café at Dupont Circle in D.C.

October 16th 2009

Captain Hilarious Thinks Stefanie Needs an Intervention

- Stefanie

The other day I was coming back from picking up my new glasses when I got an email from Captain Hilarious.

Captain Hilarious: Got your text but I was taking the nieces for ice cream. I was on babysitting duty. So glad I'm not a single dad with two kids… holy mother of pearl would my head explode. :)

October 14th 2009

Girl Talk and Guy Talk Is Like Spaghetti and Waffles

- Lauren Mann

During this week’s episode of “Greek,” Casey and Ashleigh come up with a sneaky plan to uncover the things guys talk about when girls aren’t around. They’re shocked to hear the KT guys not discussing jock straps, but instead, mature topics, like the prevalence of sex on college campuses and how one in two pregnancies in the U.S. are unplanned.

October 9th 2009

How "Teen" Is Nineteen?

- Laura Sessions Stepp

Even before it hits the newsstands, November’s Teen Vogue has people talking.

Why? Because the cover displays two 19-year-old supermodels, one of whom, Jourdan Dunn, is pregnant.

Critics say Dunn shouldn’t be there because she is a role model for teen girls. She makes pregnancy look cool - and there are way too many pregnant teens already.