Monday, July 19, 2010

A Femivore ....

When I arrived home Saturday afternoon, Mike (dear husband) informed me that I now had a label - that I am a femivor. He had heard about this new word on NPR.

He told me that a femivor was a homemaker ~



gardener ~

makes things from scratch~

... is a canner, lives simply and frugally, spins, knits, and is usually an educated women who chooses home and family over a career outside the home.

That describes much of what I strive to be in addition to wife and mother of course. These are all of the skills and more that Plain and Joyful Living strives to promote, share, support and encourage. A new word, femivore, that maybe we'll be hearing more often in the days to come.
Here are some links to read more.
And here's a link to the blog of the woman who wrote the book that recognized this trend:
Warm wishes,
Tonya
(Because our internet isn't working at home, I have had to postpone the Handmade Holiday post until next Monday. If anyone else would like to add their blog to the Handmade Holiday page, please let me know.)

25 comments:

  1. Interesting article... thank you for sharing the links.

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  2. This is the same lady who wrote the book "Radical Homemakers" I'm guessing?!
    I LOVED that book!
    While I do have to work outside of the home a little bit, (on weekends only), I'd like to think of myself as a femivore too!!!
    We'd like to be a part of the handmade holiday crew...we'll start posting some ideas on our blog soon!
    xox mauren

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  3. Thanks for the links. Amazon has recommended that book to me, and I have it on my wish list. I'm happy to see that the author of the NYT article was relatively respectful of women who choose this route. I'm so tired of seeing women criticized for this.

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  4. I love that and that your sweet husband came home and told you. It is long long overdue, a more beautiful meaningful profession could not be found.
    I recieved my box from you today, Thank You so much, everything is so lovely. It's still in there, i love it so much i plan on unwrapping (and wrapping back up) everything a few more times.
    :)

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  6. I am relieved that the article was respectful...

    Now I'm off to bake something from scratch! LOL!!!

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  7. Hooray! Femivore's unite! :) Proud to be one and happy to know so many via blogworld. :)

    Hope you have a lovely week.

    Warmly,
    Mari-Ann

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  8. Well, interesting! Now I know what I am too, aside from "stay at home mom." I like it! Do you mind if I link this post on my blog?

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  9. That is incredibly interesting. Many times anything a woman does whether she works outside her home, inside her home or both, she is roundly critized and her achievements are diminished and dismissed. Thank you for sharing. Now I am off to feed my kids, straighten up (a little) and work on a piece for an art show! Femivores Unite indeed! :)

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  10. YES!!!!!! I am loving and embracing this:)

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  11. Melanie,
    Yes, please feel free to link about this. Hope you are all in sweet bliss there:)
    Warm wishes, Tonya

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  12. Am I totally silly for feeling like "femivore" sounds too closely related to "locavore" & so it immediately makes me think of someone eating women?? lol

    I've had that book on hold at the library for quite some time. It's popular, apparently!

    Well, besides the spinning & knitting, I guess I am a femivore. Complete with enormous student loan payment every single month for a degree I will never use. ~giant sigh~. But I think my word association is too strong & I'll never be able to seriously use the word without picturing woman-eating. :p

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  13. Aubrey,
    You are so funny, but I do have to agree that I had similar thoughts cross my mind when I first heard the word too. Perhaps, we could come up with another name?
    The more I think about this, I realize this role of women is certainly not new, in fact, it was common for quite some time in history.
    Warm wishes, Tonya

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  14. Thanks for the links...off to check them out.

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  15. oh i like it...i have never had a label before:) i am going to have to check out those books and links...!! happy homemaking everyone:) xo, pennie

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  16. Tonya, definitely. What we now have fancy words for ("femivore"), for most all of human history was simply "being a woman". I'm of the belief that the feminist movement & the greedy marketers of our culture have, in the past several decades, convinced us that being homemakers is a sucky idea, and they've stolen nearly all the knowlege of how to be one right from us! After centuries (millenia!) of knowlege of how to bake, sew, preserve food, raise livestock, knit, grow our food, make our children's toys, make our own stuff in general, fix stuff instead of throwing it away, etc. , we're back at square one trying to figure it all out ourselves. And having to convince those around us that it's ok to be a homemaker!

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  17. Aubrey, I am the same as you...when I hear the word "femivore" I think of someone that eats women. Every word with -vore at the end (herbivore, carnivore etc) describes what someone or something eats. I don't really get how the word applies to homemaking.

    That said, I am happy that enough women are now seeking after traditional skills that benefit everyone, that this kind of women has been given a name. Even though in most cases labels are silly. :)

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  18. Never heard that word so I am going to have to look into it more! Thanks for the link to that story it was really interesting.

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  19. Femivore - I love that. I think we will save the human race!

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  20. It does have a bit of a "what we eat" vibe to it, but I do love that there is a name for the movement. I have femivore leanings, I think!

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  21. That's different! I have "Radical Homemaker" on my bedside table. Although, like others when I see "vore" it also makes me think of eating so I don't know if that's really a good "moniker" for this movement!

    Manuela

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  22. I was a CPA and I have chosen the femivore life. I worked alot of hours and though I was good at what I did, I could not see the results before me sitting on my table. I have always loved to garden, and make things from scratch. I now do CNA or CPA work part time out of my house, yet I have simplified to the lifestyle that I always wanted and needed. there is nothing like picking your own fresh warm tomatoes from the vine or getting the fresh egg that tastes much better than store bought eggs. I feel like I am in total control of my life and my output!

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  23. It is likely that people think of eating because the suffix "-vore" comes from the Latin words voro, vorare, voravi, voratum, which mean to eat (vour). I must say that the author made an odd choice when she chose her title. Perhaps she was referring to the fact that we are cooking for our families? Anyway, I like the idea of being named, and the fact that she tried to give a (respectful) title to what we do, but the name itself seems odd and I can't say that I would ever call myself a "femivore."

    Cheers,
    Sarah

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