Stories from the Belly

A Blog About the Female Body and Its Appetites

[diahannreyes]

Sports Illustrated & Its Swimsuit Models: Body Positive Or Not?

Sports Illustrated & Its Swimsuit Models: Body Positive Or Not?

When I heard that Sports Illustrated was including a number of plus-size models and an older model in its latest swimsuit issue, my initial reaction was to celebrate. Finally, more women who don’t fit the conventional ideas of beauty would see themselves reflected within the pages of this iconic issue. Beauty, after all, comes in all shapes and sizes. Now, here was Sports Illustrated embracing…

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New Year's Resolutions for The Body

New Year’s Resolutions for The Body

I took an unintended break from the blog world a couple of months ago. It began when I decided to immerse myself in my memoir again, which meant harnessing most of my creative energy into finishing that story. Just as I was about to jump back into blogging a good friend of mine reminded met that the female body, which is naturally attuned to the seasons, intuitively wants to rest and “go into the…

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On Witches and Superheroes

On Witches and Superheroes

Outdated Witch Image Wikimedia Commons: http://tinyurl.com/qbwjm3o As a girl on Halloween, I always dressed up as a gypsy fortune-teller. When I grew older, I swapped out my fortune-teller costume for a black gown and a pointed hat so I could play dress-up as a witch. On the surface the reasons were convenience and vanity. While a lot of my friends wanted to bring out their ghoulish selves for…

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Jill Solloway, The Goddess, and Me

"To admit that She is the one to whom I pray, feels like a risk"- From Jill Solloway, The Goddess, and Me

“Thank you, Goddess.” That’s not something you hear said a lot out in the mainstream, especially on national television. But when Jill Solloway, the creator of the show Transparent, got onstage to accept the Emmy for Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series last week, those were the first words out of her mouth. “Thank you, Goddess,” Solloway said again. I held my breath. What would everyone’s…

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Singing the Wedding Blues

Navigating post-wedding depression http://tinyurl.com/o22f98l

Four weeks ago, I woke up utterly depressed. I had just married the love of my life a few days earlier so why did it feel like I was grieving? My husband and I had managed to stay totally present on the day itself. Our married friends had warned us that it all goes by in a blur so we made sure to savor as many moments as we could. But no one gave me the heads up that I might feel deep sadness…

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Magic Mike XXL – More Than Skin Deep

New post! Magic Mike XXL – More Than Skin Deep #MagicMikeXXL

**Spoiler Alert if you haven’t seen the movie yet. I walked out of the theater after watching Magic Mike XXL with a huge smile on my face and it wasn’t just because Channing Tatum and his crew know how to dance sexy while wearing minimal clothing. Having a mainstream summer movie cater to my female gaze was a refreshing experience. But even more exciting were the other stories playing out within…

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Amy Schumer and The Art of Taking Up Space

One of the many facets that I appreciate about comedian Amy Schumer’s work is that she shines a light not only on the cultural conditioning that keeps women in restricted place, but also she exposes the misogyny that many of us have internalized from living in a patriarchal society. As some of her sketches intimate—women and girls have been known to do as good a job as anyone of objectifying,…

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The Accidental Porn Pusher

 The other day I printed out a list of search words that people have used, landing them on my blog. Aside from the expected—find my sensuality, stories of women, big round belly, female breast stories, what happened to Barbie’s Skipper—some other interesting terms come up, including: Forward facing vagina pics Filipino girls for pleasure Her face as she climaxes Girl pleasures herself with her…

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The Goddess of Enough

"I am enough. I am enough. I am enough. These three words, which I say to myself, have become mantra." -- The Goddess of Enough

With anything that’s alive and constantly evolving in the moment, it’s time to honor the need for this particular “belly” to expand by making make room for other kinds of stories I’d like to tell as well.

I love writing about women’s bodies and sharing my experiences of reclaiming my womanhood from the patriarchy—and there will be more stories about the feminine to come. But focusing just on the…

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A Night at the Movies, Part II: The Female Body On and Off Screen

A Night at the Movies, Part II: Female Bodies On and Off Screen

The day after watching Cinderella (A Night at the Movies, Part I),  I went to see another film.  The Clouds of Sils Maria stars Juliette Binoche, Kristen Stewart, and Chloë Grace Moretz. This wasn’t a film I particularly enjoyed in terms of plot, but the acting by all three women is wonderful work. (For a review from someone who did like the flick, click here.)

I especially couldn’t stop watching…

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A Night at the Movies: Part I: Cinderella, Feminism, and Me

Can I love watching the movie Cinderella na still be a feminist? #Cinderella, #Feminism

I grew up on fairy tales. For years I believed that I too could instantly know a guy was “the one” without getting to know him first and hoped that someone might sweep in one day and—just like that, Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo—my life would become what I needed it to be. Since then, I’ve (thankfully) woken up to the reality that no one—man, woman, or fairy anyone—is coming to save me. I’m the one who’s…

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Between The Period and The Final Pause

Between The Period & The Final Pause

I stopped bleeding once for a year when I was thirty. I had just gotten off the pill. Not bleeding for 360 plus days worried me although I’d heard that this could be a potential side effect of getting back into rhythm with my natural cycle. After that I decided that there would be no more birth control pill taking for me ever again.

The first time I ever bled was on a January 6—Three King’s Day,…

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Baring the Female Breasts: Beyond Objectification

There is so much more to the female breasts than meets the naked eye. In this post, I am thrilled to have two of my favorite bloggers joining me, as we tell true stories about this most famous of feminine body parts.

http://tinyurl.com/ocvkvkc Two Tahitian Women by Paul Gauguin

CHERRY

I am a junior in boarding school. Behind me is a “Save Sex” poster and a perfume ad: “Femme Fatale: When the…

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What’s In A Number?

There is no shame in admitting your age. #womensbodieswomenstoriesmatter

I have a good friend who doesn’t think about her age. Every year, when I call to greet her happy birthday, she asks me, half-joking, “How old am I, again?” I know her age because she is ten years older than me. She prefers to mark her years not by time but according to how old or young she feels.

In some of the reviews I’ve read of the movie Nightcrawler,actress Renee Russo is described as an…

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Mirror, Mirror on The Wall

Mirror, Mirror on The Wall

There was a time when I wanted to be famous. I felt that if I could just see myself under bright lights, on the big screen, or the front page, I would finally feel like I mattered. In the last several years, I’ve stopped craving stardom. Maybe it’s in part because fame seems to be an easier feat to accomplish these days. Do or say something super provocative or heartwarming, post it online, watch…

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A Finger Without A Ring On It

What's Wrong with A Finger Without A Ring On It?

An ad for the upcoming Bravo series Girlfriends’ Guide to Divorce was recently banned from subways and city buses in Los Angeles and New York because the content was deemed “inappropriate.” In the poster, star Lisa Edelstein is shown smiling while giving the camera her ring finger (as opposed to her middle finger).

There is a faded tan line on that finger, right where her character’s wedding ring…

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Saturating in Feminine Beauty

So much feminine beauty in the world...

When women come together Their bodies can reverberate Creating a rich stew Of yummy nourishment And sisterhood

La Dance by Matisse http://tinyurl.com/o754yzv

I’m floating in a warm pool surrounded by women. Eyes are closed. Hands gently lap the water. Movements are languid, barely making ripples. One woman sits underwater, as if suspended. Above the surface, her breath rises, forming bubbles.

We…

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