What International Women’s Day means to me

Happy International Women’s Day Fe-liners.

I have spent many years fascinated with the question of gender. I studied gender history at university and I later worked for a women’s charity and more recently started Fe-line Women.

For International Women’s Day this year a lot of people asked me to organise events for various different reasons and causes and I have decided to decline. Not because I don’t care but because I didn’t want to just do something for the sake of it and I needed to work out what International Women’s Day means to me and the cat.

So what does International Women’s Day mean to me, well I think that it creates a wonderful chance to celebrate all of the amazing things that women are doing around the world. And there are some many great events going on at this time of year. But the whole reason for Fe-line Women is I think that everyday should be International Women’s Day.

Fe-line Women is all about shouting about the amazing things that women are doing all year round. Today there are plenty of positive female friendly spaces all across Oxford and all across the rest of the world. What I want to do is fill the lull between now and the next 8th March with articles, interviews and talks from amazing women to continue the great work that is started today, so we don’t forget.

Every month I organise a Word of Mouth event in Oxford, where we hear stories from inspirational women. Rather than organise something special for today I wanted to look forward to our next event at the end of the month, My journey through adversity with the fantastic Lisa Cherry. If you have been inspired by International Women’s Day then why don’t you join me and continue celebrating the wonderful things that women are doing by coming to Word of Mouth and reading the Fe-line Women blog.

This does not mean that me and the cat are staying in and putting our feet up tonight. We are looking forward to heading out and celebrating International Women’s Day with the women of Oxford. I will be attending the Oxford Reclaim the Night march and the main Oxford International Women’s Festival event. Reclaim the Night is a women-only march against sexual violence and for gender equality. If anyone wants to join the Fe-line contingent, we are meeting in The Rusty Bicycle on Magdalen Road between 5:30-6:20pm to embark on the march at 6:30pm from the corner of Cowley Road and Magdalen Road. Find out more and share the event on Facebook.

Until tonight my lovely Fe-liners,

Shoe Phone Friday: You’re giving me a headache

Today’s Shoe Phone Friday is of yours truly. This picture was taken in the Summer on a camping trip with friends. I was having a really good day but as soon as the shoe phone is put into my hands my inner little actress appears and I have to create a character. This character is on the phone to someone that is really annoying them and they can’t get them off the phone. You know, one of those conversations that goes round and round with no resolution and leaves you exhausted!

I wanted to start adding music to Shoe Phone Friday and today I have chosen Shake it out by Florence and the Machine. There is something that I love about the line: “And it’s hard to dance with a devil on your back, So shake him off.”

Happy Friday Fe-liners, don’t forget to tweet your shoe phone pictures using the hash tag #shoephone.

Love and Shoe Phones,