#periodproject

[mynamemeanscute]

another 400 cookies and treats baked in three days in a tiny apartment sized oven. another fundraiser down. we’re ready for a nap.

xo

[mynamemeanscute]

i’ve realized over the past few months that leaving this corner of the internet untouched for the better part of this year has left me a bit overwhelmed and a lot uncertain of where and how to pick back up. while i recognize this blog isn’t monetized, i don’t have a huge following, and there is literally zero obligation to regularly post random tidbits about one’s life for all to see, i have genuinely enjoyed logging my life in such a way that i’m able to scroll through what is essentially the last decade of my life and have a pretty decent clue as to what was going on at any given point. i have decided to jump back in here by highlighting a meaningful project my partner and i have taken on over the past few months.

back in september, there was a post going around showing how much $43 amounts to in school supplies in iqaluit. it got a lot of attention and many supplies (an excess, in fact!) were sent to inuksuk high school. recognizing the high costs of many items in the north affects more than the budget of a single school, we got in touch with vice principal of the local high school in cambrige bay, nunavut .

kiilinik high school is able to provide school supplies for their students from the school's budget (!!); however, their vice principal explained period poverty is very real for their community, as it is for many menstruating individuals in the arctic. it is not uncommon to pay upwards of $15-$18 for a small box of tampons, and the lack of menstrual products can lead to, "missed school and work days, health problems and a decreased sense of self-worth" (source). in response to this need, we decided to ship three flat rate boxes filled with tampons, pads, and reusable cups to the school with the hopes of helping them to better support their students and their community.

in an update from the vice principal, we learned the students were incredibly excited to open the packages and went about setting up a “room of requirements” (yes, this is a HP reference) in the school for whomever needs clothing, shoes, and basic toiletry items. we were graced with a photo of the “period shelf” (below). the high schoolers also took the initiative to put together a presentation to educate the junior high students about good period hygiene and product use, and to make sure they all knew they can go to any of the seniors if they need extra support.

in november, the students of kiilinik high school collaborated and gave our project a name: “pijitsirniq, period”. the first part of the name is one of a number of inuit societal values and means, “serving or providing for family and/or community.” the second part speaks for itself. we are both honoured and excited to have been given this name.

once we had a name, we created a GoFundMe page, in an effort to increase the legitimacy of our project and to reach a wider audience. the goal of $6,000 is the approximate amount it will take to support kiilinik high school, with three flat rate shipping boxes shipped monthly, for the next school year. we are please to announce we have already successfully collected enough funds to support the school for the remainder of the current school year and into the next.

this past week, we spent the better part of four days baking, decorating, and delivering assorted holiday cookies and treats, as a fun and festive way to raise money that wasn’t just, “hello, money please.” we managed to raise over $500, and only sacrificed one spatula in the process. needless to say, we are very done with cookies for the next while and the celebratory bowl of kale was probably the best decision i ever made.

i did the big shop for the december shipment yesterday, so i’ll be getting that boxed and to the post office asap. we have some future plans for our little two person organization and i may have a particularly exciting phone meeting next week, so sit tight (and thank you for following along... if you read this mini novella here, you are fully up to speed, and i am so jazzed you stayed). if you are able and willing to donate, please check out the GoFundMe page. if you can’t or just don’t want to (both valid), please consider sharing, chatting about what we’re doing, generally spreading the word. we are (and will be) all the grateful.

[lunarbag]

OK WE’RE ON TWITTER, FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM AND TUMBLR, CHECK ‘UM ALL OUT, FOLLOW AND SHARE!! 

[helpingheartt]

Menstrual Care

Every month, for approximately a week, women bleed. Every woman. Not just the women who have a roof over their head. Not just the women who can afford to buy pads/tampons every month. And not just the women who can lie in bed all day while her cramps are the most painful they have ever been. Every single woman. I think that many people often forget that women experiencing homelessness go through these types of monthly situations, because a majority of rough sleepers (people who sleep on the streets) are men. Many women choose to stay in shelters or drop-in centres, especially those who have their kids with them.

For those who experience a monthly period, it is often the worst time of the month, a real downer. For women experiencing homelessness, it is so much worse. While this is a natural experience, many women are unable to access what they need to stay hygienic during this time of the month.

Toronto Star writer, Emily Mathieu, did an amazing job investigating how women experiencing homelessness deal with their monthly menstrual cycle. (The following information is from the article, see more here, https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2017/01/23/periods-an-extra-hardship-for-homeless-women.html).

Much like condoms, menstrual supplies are not an option if it means choosing it over food or transportation. Many women are forced to make their own form of tampons every month when they cannot access real ones. This is often done with just about anything they can get their hands on such as cotton balls, Kleenex and even newspaper. This can lead to a variety of infections or even cause Toxic Shock Syndrome (from leaving a tampon in too long) which is quite severe and can cause death.

While many shelters do give out menstrual supplies, it is not enough for women to stock up on them. Depending on how heavy a woman’s flow is, those supplies may not even last a day much less a week. Organizations such as the Period Project, gather supplies and distribute them to women on a monthly basis to help women stay as hygienic as possible (see here, https://www.periodprojecttoronto.com/).

The reality is that prices of women’s menstrual supplies are far too expensive, especially for those facing homelessness. This is a basic need for women, and it is simply ridiculous that not every woman has access to them!

SOLUTION: Make women’s menstrual supplies more accessible, lower the cost, or even make them free. No woman chose to have her period; it is a natural process that women should not have to pay the price for. They are people too.

[lunarbag]

Just one tampon can make a huge difference to a lady's comfort and peace of mind...think of the effect of homeless has on a lady's time of the month...

[maplerosekisses]

The same day that I used my last pad and was going to have to either steal from my roommate or go buy more in the next couple of hours, I got the free samples I signed up for a while back from @ubykotex.

In the box were two liners, four pads, four COLORING PAGES and a coupon!

And for those of you who don’t know/remember, this is the same company that sponsors @carmillaseries.

U by Kotex is AWESOME y'all.

Get your own samples here!

[sitting-in-the-sun]

If anyone is in the NYC area tomorrow, highly recommend going to the period pop-up shop

[tygapaw]

This is how I look on 3hrs of sleep 😏 #melanin #blackdontcrack #gawdhasblessedme @ubykotex #periodproject (at Fifth Avenue, Manhattan)