hey everybody....
it's amanda palmer (from the dresden dolls).
i played a solo show in atlanta last week and a fellow unshaven beauty came up to me when i was signing stuff after the the show.
she flashed her armpits at me (which were lovely) and we started rapping about shaving and hair...and she told me that there was a livejournal community called fuck shaving.
i said YAY and looked it up later that night.... and through that i found a bunch of these other awesome communities (i am cross-posting
this is to ditch_the_blade, kissmyass_cosmo, kissmyassvogue, beauty_debate & freedomisbeauty - if any of you know of any other
communities or blogs and want to cross-post, feel free and let me know by dropping me an email at letters [at] amandapalmer [dot] net so i can follow the discussions).

i want to share something wonderful that happened a few days ago when i announced my new video and told the story about how my record label had wanted me to cut the shots that showed my bare belly (because they thought it looked FAT - which was just bullshit).
i told them to go fuck themselves and a brief struggle ensued and they backed down, but my horror with the company that i am now
contractually tied to is undeniable.
i'm stuck for a while.

the very worst moment was sitting across a huge desk from one of the record execs and listening to him explain that he knows what's best
for my videos and my images because "amanda, really, trust me. i'm a GUY. i KNOW what people LIKE." i wanted to throw up, get up, leave that room, and never go back.
they are all that's wrong with this culture.

anyway, after i posted this story on my blog, a bunch of friends started to post solidarity photos of THEIR bellies up on a discussion
thread and i swear to god i've never felt more concentrated joy on the internet. there are now over 200 pictures collected by one of the people who started the thread....
big bellies! little bellies! pregnant bellies! post-partem bellies!!!
hariy man bellies!!!!!!!! it's just so beautiful:

http://www.theshadowbox.net/forum/index.php?topic=6054

go check it out and add your own two belly cents if you want to.
and happy thanksgiving, may you eat and drink stuff your belly to the max with no guilt.

i'm also on tour for the next two or three weeks in the states if you want to come visit the party...starting in pittsburgh this saturday then hitting toronto, detroit, chicago, minny, colorado, SLC, vancouver, seattle, portland, sacramento, san fran and LA.
come out and represent. info is all on my site at amandapalmer.net.
the shows have been amazing. the new record, which my label now doesn't want to promote,
is also awesome, produced by and featuring ben folds, and i shamelessly want you to check it out, however you can, and share it
with anyone you think will like it.
i need the help. it's called WHO KILLED AMANDA PALMER and you can find it in a million ways.

i'm so happy to see so many communities out here dedicated to honesty and realness in our self-images.
it's no necessary in a world that i feel is sliding backwards on the feminist front.

big love,
amanda