reblog: the link between teen pregnancy and sexual violence

from feministe

some of the figures from an article from the center for american progress are “stunning” (quoted from feministe):

The Harvard School of Public Health’s exhaustive research on the lives of girls demonstrates that girls who are victims of violence from dating partners are four to six times more likely than non-abused girls to become pregnant, and eight to nine times more likely to attempt suicide.

Other research findings… The average age of first intercourse for abused girls is 13.8, in contrast to the national average of 16.2. Only 28 percent of the abused girls used birth control at first intercourse, compared to 74 percent of girls in the general population.

abstinence-only education? so naive.

facial tectonics

i don’t know why i’ve never noticed this before, but it’s probably due to the fact that i’m used to seeing my face in the mirror every day.

recently — like, as of yesterday — i’ve noticed that my face has a systematic asymmetry. not simply asymmetric, for i’ve always known that my face was highly asymmetric (which goes for the rest of my body, and is another great excuse for why i’m a lousy athlete) — but consistently so. i’ve never noticed that the entire right side of my face just… droops. the right side of my nose is lower, the right side of my mouth, my right eyelid, my right cheekbone… everything is lower. i can even feel it now that i’m aware of it. my eyebrow is the exception, since i can do the eyebrow-lift on that side only.

i’ve always liked the left side of my body better — my left eye eyelid opens more than the right one, and i also prefer my left hand and foot, plus i’m more flexible with my limbs on the left side. so, it doesn’t surprise me that this is the reason why i’ve always preferred the left side of my body. i even cut my hair better on the left side, but that is beside the point.

i don’t know if this right-side droop is a recent development, or if it’s always been this way and i’ve just never noticed it since the dissipation of my baby fat is five years retarded. i wonder if this “great right droop” (think: “great vowel shift”) is the result of facial tectonics. a gradual, imperceptible and inevitable transformation that took place over an extended period of time and is finally manifesting itself on the pre-existing fault line that is the right side of my face. it certainly wasn’t a sudden geological event like an earthquake or a volcanic eruption, since i don’t recall ever being hit on that side of my face (though the other side has been hit by a spiraling football), and i sleep on both sides of my body. no, i think the development was a result of facial tectonics. natural geological erosion. it seems more like gradual muscle atrophy than anything else.

i can’t say i’m worried, unless this results in the obvious half-face degeneration that i saw in one of the women who works in the experimental college. her condition seemed more likely to be the result of a car accident, or something.

bless the people who woke me up at 7:12 am

what a gorgeous morning. the sun is out. the weather is perfect — only about 65 or so. i decided to treat myself to a store-bought breakfast item, and starbucks was the first thing i found. i got a blueberry coffee cake and a mocha frappucino. “would you like cream on that?” “ah, no thanks.” “good, that makes my job a little a bit easier!” aww. waving ‘hi’ to the security guards as i enter the garage. all before 10 am.

i slept from ~3 am to 8:30 am. i’m sure i’ll start my yawning marathon soon. despite being woken up at an ungodly hour (today = sunday = ungodly), i’m glad that all the commotion got me out of the house. the guys (apartment people) are going to fire island today. manuel was singing. i found a condom wrapper in the bathroom and took a picture of it. it had an interesting design — ‘nyc condom’ in subway lettering. i guess olivia and jared really did consummate the sex i thought i was hearing as i was reading a million pages of ‘bleach’ last night. i left at 8:45 am this morning. woot.

i’m really starting to enjoy new york, now that i only have a week left. i don’t know if it’s because [almost] all of my friends are gone and i am forced to occupy myself. i am free to do the meaningless, non-touristy things i want to do. i go to the bookstore to read chapters of ‘the traveler’, shop for cheap clothes at filene’s basement, and look for shoe stores that carry simple shoes. i also like going to whole foods and eating a wholesome meal there, even though the food and a tasty drink costs me about $8 – 10. tibetan tofu burrito vs poorly-cooked mac & cheese? i think the tofu burrito is the better alternative. i’ve started taking the bus now that i live crosstown. it’s really slow, but much more scenic than the subway. i wish i could have visited midtown/upper east side more while i was here. it seems to be the cleaner part of nyc.

mm, blueberry coffee cake. too sweet, but nice and rewarding.

back to work.