<?xml version='1.0' encoding='UTF-8'?><?xml-stylesheet href="http://www.blogger.com/styles/atom.css" type="text/css"?><feed xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom' xmlns:openSearch='http://a9.com/-/spec/opensearchrss/1.0/' xmlns:georss='http://www.georss.org/georss' xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5089460361157373698</id><updated>2011-07-31T01:30:46.886-07:00</updated><category term='contest'/><category term='women'/><category term='self image'/><category term='fuck you very much'/><category term='beauty'/><category term='testing'/><category term='writing'/><category term='lgbta rights'/><category term='web design'/><title type='text'>The Victorian Pirate</title><subtitle type='html'></subtitle><link rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#feed' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://victorianpirate.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/5089460361157373698/posts/default?max-results=100'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://victorianpirate.blogspot.com/'/><link rel='hub' href='http://pubsubhubbub.appspot.com/'/><author><name>The Alchemist</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/16125572156351932608</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='23' height='32' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_I69KIC5u83M/Sl51C0y1hyI/AAAAAAAAAAM/Am0sDoUywnk/S220/portrait_alchemist.gif'/></author><generator version='7.00' uri='http://www.blogger.com'>Blogger</generator><openSearch:totalResults>5</openSearch:totalResults><openSearch:startIndex>1</openSearch:startIndex><openSearch:itemsPerPage>100</openSearch:itemsPerPage><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5089460361157373698.post-7163122144268896101</id><published>2010-04-14T13:25:00.001-07:00</published><updated>2010-04-14T13:26:25.619-07:00</updated><title type='text'>This blog has moved</title><content type='html'>&lt;br /&gt;       This blog is now located at http://victorianpirate.blogspot.com/.&lt;br /&gt;       You will be automatically redirected in 30 seconds, or you may click &lt;a href='http://victorianpirate.blogspot.com/'&gt;here&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;       For feed subscribers, please update your feed subscriptions to&lt;br /&gt;       http://victorianpirate.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default.&lt;br /&gt;  &lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5089460361157373698-7163122144268896101?l=victorianpirate.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='related' href='http://victorianpirate.blogspot.com/' title='This blog has moved'/><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://victorianpirate.blogspot.com/feeds/7163122144268896101/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://victorianpirate.blogspot.com/2010/04/this-blog-has-moved.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/5089460361157373698/posts/default/7163122144268896101'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/5089460361157373698/posts/default/7163122144268896101'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://victorianpirate.blogspot.com/2010/04/this-blog-has-moved.html' title='This blog has moved'/><author><name>The Alchemist</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/16125572156351932608</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='23' height='32' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_I69KIC5u83M/Sl51C0y1hyI/AAAAAAAAAAM/Am0sDoUywnk/S220/portrait_alchemist.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5089460361157373698.post-8880605687325519182</id><published>2009-09-17T11:39:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-09-17T11:45:42.097-07:00</updated><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='beauty'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='contest'/><title type='text'>You know you want some Halloween BPAL...</title><content type='html'>&lt;a href="http://claresauntie.typepad.com/beauty_school/2009/09/bpal-give-away-contest-perfume-oils-black-phoenix-alchemy-lab.html"&gt;Guess who's hosting a BPAL giveaway?&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The lovely Jen of the Beauty School Blog is holding a Halloween special. Check out her phenomenal blog and enter! There are tons of ways to win.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5089460361157373698-8880605687325519182?l=victorianpirate.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://victorianpirate.blogspot.com/feeds/8880605687325519182/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://victorianpirate.blogspot.com/2009/09/you-know-you-want-some-halloween-bpal.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/5089460361157373698/posts/default/8880605687325519182'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/5089460361157373698/posts/default/8880605687325519182'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://victorianpirate.blogspot.com/2009/09/you-know-you-want-some-halloween-bpal.html' title='You know you want some Halloween BPAL...'/><author><name>The Alchemist</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/16125572156351932608</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='23' height='32' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_I69KIC5u83M/Sl51C0y1hyI/AAAAAAAAAAM/Am0sDoUywnk/S220/portrait_alchemist.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5089460361157373698.post-8164838643371992011</id><published>2009-09-15T23:14:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-09-15T23:17:23.264-07:00</updated><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='women'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='self image'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='fuck you very much'/><title type='text'>If you are fat you are not allowed to be fashionable.</title><content type='html'>&lt;blockquote&gt;&lt;i&gt;"Fashion flogs an ever-receding fantasy that feasts on the lie that if everyone thinks they are ugly, they will spend more to send the ugliness away."&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The quote, from &lt;a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-1176973/Too-fat-fashion-How-Tanya-Gold-size-sixteen-shunned-designer-brands.html"&gt;this article&lt;/a&gt;, sums up everything I never understood about the world of high fashion. I could never comprehend it - why in hellfire do women spend thousands of dollars they often can't afford on a dress or purse or shoes that look no different (at least to me) than the stuff you can find at Payless or Nordstrom's Rack? Yes, I know some of you are cringing right now (*cough*Ravinsky*cough*) but I genuinely can't tell the difference much of the time.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Now I understand it. These items are charms against ugliness. Our belief in their power to change us makes them magic. And because we believe they will transform us, they do.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;On the one hand I'm glad I finally understand; on the other hand it makes me sad in a whole new way, and it adds fuel to my loathing of the "beauty" industry. They spend thousands of dollars telling us we're ugly so that we will give them thousands of dollars to make us beautiful. Their very existence relies on hoping that we never wake up and realize just how beautiful we really are.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I will not spend money to send my ugliness away. Partly because I do not have money to spend, partly because I believe ugliness is a necessary thing sometimes... but mostly because I have more power to banish ugliness in one pinkie finger than any thousand-dollar dress has ever had.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I write beautiful things. I draw beautiful things. I make beautiful things - clothing and jewelry and love. Who is going to tell me that my life is incomplete because I don't own a designer dress?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;NO ONE.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5089460361157373698-8164838643371992011?l=victorianpirate.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://victorianpirate.blogspot.com/feeds/8164838643371992011/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://victorianpirate.blogspot.com/2009/09/if-you-are-fat-you-are-not-allowed-to.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/5089460361157373698/posts/default/8164838643371992011'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/5089460361157373698/posts/default/8164838643371992011'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://victorianpirate.blogspot.com/2009/09/if-you-are-fat-you-are-not-allowed-to.html' title='If you are fat you are not allowed to be fashionable.'/><author><name>The Alchemist</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/16125572156351932608</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='23' height='32' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_I69KIC5u83M/Sl51C0y1hyI/AAAAAAAAAAM/Am0sDoUywnk/S220/portrait_alchemist.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5089460361157373698.post-5508131396252315547</id><published>2009-09-01T19:31:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-09-01T20:32:47.525-07:00</updated><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='lgbta rights'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='writing'/><title type='text'>Outer Alliance Pride Day</title><content type='html'>&lt;blockquote&gt;&lt;i&gt;As a member of the Outer Alliance, I advocate for queer speculative fiction and those who create, publish and support it, whatever their sexual orientation and gender identity.  I make sure this is reflected in my actions and my work.&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href="http://outeralliance.wordpress.com/"&gt;Outer Alliance&lt;/a&gt; is hosting their first-ever Pride Day. I haven't anything of my own that's ready to post, so I'll settle for linking y'all to &lt;lj user="gomichan"&gt;Jesse Hajicek's website at &lt;a href="http://chartreuse.studiowhippingboy.com/"&gt;Studio Whipping Boy&lt;/a&gt;. His &lt;i&gt;The God Eaters&lt;/i&gt; is one of my very favorite books in the whole world - and the entire thing is available on his website, free. Although obviously I encourage buying a hardcopy and supporting him.&lt;/lj&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5089460361157373698-5508131396252315547?l=victorianpirate.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://victorianpirate.blogspot.com/feeds/5508131396252315547/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://victorianpirate.blogspot.com/2009/09/as-member-of-outer-alliance-i-advocate.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/5089460361157373698/posts/default/5508131396252315547'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/5089460361157373698/posts/default/5508131396252315547'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://victorianpirate.blogspot.com/2009/09/as-member-of-outer-alliance-i-advocate.html' title='Outer Alliance Pride Day'/><author><name>The Alchemist</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/16125572156351932608</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='23' height='32' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_I69KIC5u83M/Sl51C0y1hyI/AAAAAAAAAAM/Am0sDoUywnk/S220/portrait_alchemist.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5089460361157373698.post-5138533403904858861</id><published>2009-07-15T17:41:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-07-15T17:42:44.552-07:00</updated><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='web design'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='testing'/><title type='text'>Testing, testing...</title><content type='html'>Sorry folks. Just throwing something up here quickly so I can figure out whether things are displaying properly.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5089460361157373698-5138533403904858861?l=victorianpirate.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://victorianpirate.blogspot.com/feeds/5138533403904858861/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://victorianpirate.blogspot.com/2009/07/testing-testing.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/5089460361157373698/posts/default/5138533403904858861'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/5089460361157373698/posts/default/5138533403904858861'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://victorianpirate.blogspot.com/2009/07/testing-testing.html' title='Testing, testing...'/><author><name>The Alchemist</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/16125572156351932608</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='23' height='32' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_I69KIC5u83M/Sl51C0y1hyI/AAAAAAAAAAM/Am0sDoUywnk/S220/portrait_alchemist.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry></feed>
