Films, Australian Gladiators, Poll

[slemslempike]

At the weekend we went to see Step Up 2 The Streets and Son of Rambow. I liked both of them more than I thought I would. The dancing in Step Up 2 was quite great, though I think that they could have cut back DRAMATICALLY on the amount of white people telling black people what to do. I liked that they had Tyler from the first film at the beginning, though I'd thought that Andie was the sort-of-sister that he had a great relationship with in the first film, but she wasn't. I think I would have got more out of Son of Rambow if I'd ever seen a Rambo film. I'd been rather meh about the trailer, but it wasn't too cloying or awful - I liked how the French boy was seen as a dork by the other French students.

When we got back we watched the first episode of the new Australian series of Gladiators, which was bizarre. It's the same as ever, which is good. I suppose I actually mean that it's the same as the British version, as I haven't seen the Australian one before - the main differences are the accents, and on the Eliminator both the men and women do the monkey bars, and they rope-swing through water instead of paper, which upsets me a bit as I really liked the paper breaking bit. Anyway. The gladiators are ODD. The women are mostly blonde and look the same - there is one with blue hair and one with huge brunette hair, but apart from that they all look freakily similar. One is called Angel and has feathers in her hair. ANGEL. What kind of a name is that for a gladiator, hmm?? The men are slightly better, but all of their costumes look the same, and don't fit terribly well. My man was a tree surgeon and won. I am looking forward to the new UK series now.

This poll is quite intrusive, so obviously people should feel free to skip it altogether or only answer whatever they feel like. Also people who don't menstruate probably don't have anything to say to the first two questions. Basically, I have never even tried to keep track of my periods, and am never expecting them to show up, and have lately been wondering if this is a dire failure at womanhood. Then I thought that as I was being nosey anyway I might as well add in the question about nipple-licking that I had been pondering for some time.

[Poll #1167715]

Comments

[cangetmad.livejournal.com]

Hmm, though my actual current answer to #1 is, no idea at all, because it's not yet back post-baby. But once it is, I'll generally know roughly when it's due, ish.

[slemslempike.livejournal.com]

I am often stymied by questions at the doctors, because unless I am bleeding right that second, or have only just finished, I never know where I am in my cycle, and I don't even know if they're regular or not. I imagine I would be more aware if I were doing things where pregnancy was a possibility, but when I was I was on hormonal contraception and just trusted it to do its thing without keeping track.

Gosh, it'll be awful if it turns out to be true about swimming - I've been doing quite a bit of backstroke recently.

[ankaret.livejournal.com]

I know it's coming because I get spotty and irritable and my breasts start hurting, but my cycle varies from about three weeks to about five and has a charming habit of getting stuck on a three-week cycle until I'm utterly fed up with it and then jumping to five and scaring the life out of me.

[slemslempike.livejournal.com]

I've been assuming that my spots are related to my period, but then I'm quite spotty quite a lot of the time, so I might be wrong. I think it would be quite interesting (to me!) to work out my cycle, but I am far too lazy to consider it at the moment.

Three to five is quite a horrible jump to make!

[cellardor.livejournal.com]

My period varied between 'sort of' and it's a constant surprise'. I can figure the general time based on the date of the last one, but it could still be another week or two away. Sometimes my body is very clear that it's about to show up, other times there are no signs whatsoever. I think three times in my life it has appeared on the exact date as the previous month, which was kinda neat. I do try and track it though, as far as I can.

[slemslempike.livejournal.com]

I can never remember when I last had my period. I used to always have it at Christmas, but knowing when it's going to happen once a year isn't terribly helpful!

[terriem.livejournal.com]

My cycle is about 27-28 days, so I generally know when it's coming, combined with a slightly bloated, tired feeling. My Mum taught me to keep excellent records - I've got some of my old diaries and it's interesting to see that I've gone from 21-22 days to what I'm on now over the years.

[slemslempike.livejournal.com]

I never thought of keeping records when I was younger. I am interested to see that no-one (yet) has said they use the computer programs that are available!

[serriadh.livejournal.com]

I put 'generally within a day or so' by which I meant, I tend to realise a day or two before it comes that it's going to show up. I get crazy mood swings and feel very depressed a day or two before, and sometimes get cramps as well. On the odd occasion I don't have those 'symptoms' I'm surprised.

I don't track cycles or make marks in a calendar or anything. This is Wrong? isn't it? I can usually remember how long ago my last one was, and they turn up every month, but that's as precise as I get.

[slemslempike.livejournal.com]

I think most people taking the poll have said they don't keep track with a calendar or anything, so it's hardly Wrong!

[nerdcakes.livejournal.com]

I never know when my period is coming! I usually get to a point where I become convinced that I haven't bled in MONTHS and then usually a week later it turns up. My period is such a straggler.

I couldn't answer your poll because I have no idea how big my breasts are. I think that they are MASSIVE but I am not certain. But I could inexperly lick my nipple when I classed them as 'small' so I assume that it is EVEN EASIER now.

[slemslempike.livejournal.com]

I never know either! Well done us.

I would say your breasts are mediumish. Not that I've been looking or anything. I do not know if more breast means easier nipple-lickage. Experiment and let me know!

I booked tickets for Jane Bond.

[whatho.livejournal.com]

About ten days' physical symptoms tell me these days, but I wouldn't know otherwise. I can't be bothered ticking calenders and the like.

[slemslempike.livejournal.com]

Ten days! It really wants to make sure you know. Goodness.

[nineveh-uk.livejournal.com]

I only know because mine have always been irregular, therefore it is in my interest to be alert to signs that say “Kind of a fortnight hence”. I certainly couldn’t say “I will be menstruating on day X next month.” I do keep a record as well, but only because all of this together allows me to start taking the NSAIDs a couple of days in advance (blessed, blessed NSAIDs), and I don't have any PMS symptoms that would otherwise allow me to anticipate.

Also, and now I am going to sound like a complete nutter, I am convinced that I can exert a degree of mental control when really necessary to ensure that though my period is likely to turn up on day 1 of my skiing holiday, in fact it waits until the day afterwards. This is too reliable a phenomena to put down to complete chance.

[slemslempike.livejournal.com]

What's an NSAID? Mine have generally been quite irregular, and when I was first on the implant they went away for a year, which was quite nice.

That sounds impressive! Do you also do the thing of banging your head on the pillow to wake up at a certain time?

[stellanova.livejournal.com]

My periods are very, very regular and always have been, apart from the odd late or early one usually caused by something like antibiotics. Of couse, this means that whenever it's a day late or even early I'm convinced something has gone awfully wrong.

[slemslempike.livejournal.com]

Clockwork! I always forget that medicine could have an effect on menstruation, though I don't take it often.

[morganmuffle]

I know vaguely when in the month it's likely to be but I always expect it earleir than it comes (I think this is wishful thinking what with all the days of PMS I get before the damn thing starts and then I have the even worse symptoms *scowls*)

I have, occasionally, tried to work it out using record keeping etc. but I always get broed and/or forget **g*

[slemslempike.livejournal.com]

Sometimes I think I should keep track, but I know that the end result would be that I'd just forget, and knowing one date isn't terribly useful.

[anglaisepaon.livejournal.com]

My periods are as regular as clockwork. I generally circle the days in my calendar, but I don't really need to because I know they're about to start when my back starts to hurt and I become a moody cow.

[slemslempike.livejournal.com]

For all I know my periods might be uber-regular - I just don't know because I've never bothered to find out.

[huskyteer.livejournal.com]

Genuine question from my mock Science GCSE:

*diagram of a circle divided into 32 sectors, labelled 1 to 32*

How long is this menstrual cycle?

[Yes, with the bolding.]

[slemslempike.livejournal.com]

I've never seen a diagram of a menstrual cycle! I like their acknowledgement of "THIS" though, even if it does seem a terribly easy question.

[chiasmata]

Mine seems to turn up every 27-29 days, which is very obliging of it. I tend to make a mark on a calendar, though, because I'll have forgotten when it started by about three days after it's ended. Being caught out and not having my prescription painkillers on hand would be a nightmare.

[slemslempike.livejournal.com]

Very obliging indeed!

[antisoppist.livejournal.com]

I'm one of the meticulous calculations people although I could have put bodily signs, but this is because when I was last having periods I was trying to get pregnant and wanting to be able to prove when I did (see 35 week cycle problem) so I had charts and took temperatures and stood about on street corners discussing the thickness of cervical mucus with similarly preoccupied friends. Before that I was regular every 5 weeks and used to put it on the calendar.

[slemslempike.livejournal.com]

I had never even heard of cervical mucus until I got the implant and they said that was one of the ways in which it worked - I am currently reading Our Bodies Ourselves and wishing I'd done so earlier.

[ecila-etc.livejournal.com]

I ticked bodily signs, but these have varied over the years, so now generally I take anything odd my body does as PMT. At the moment, it's generally sore boobies, dodge digestion and insomnia a few days in advance.

For a few months when I was doing my MA it was every 28 days TO THE HOUR. It'd arrive at the worst possible point, obviously, *right* in the middle of a 3 hour evening lecture (between 7:15 and 8pm). After a day at work chasing small children with bubbles.

On the nipple licking - I can also wiggle my nose side to side with my tongue, so maybe I just have a long tongue.

[leedy.livejournal.com]

Aha, another person who gets premenstrual insomnia! I thought it was just me. I don't get it every month, but every so often I'll sleep really dreadfully in the week before my period.

[carmine-rose.livejournal.com]

I'm on the Pill and I still only have a rough idea. Obviously I know it'll start sometime in my week off, but I really haven't noticed a pattern. I used to take Logynon, and that really was regular to the hour, but with Cilest? Nope. And I rarely take my Pills properly, so on a month-to-month basis, I'm not very regular either. I'm all ways taking a few/a week/an extra month's worth of pills to avoid having an inconvenient period.

[slemslempike.livejournal.com]

I think I was the same when I was taking pills - I never remembered to take a full month, and frequently back to backed them to make up.

[slemslempike.livejournal.com]

I really like the icon - it's Judy Chicago's painting "Red Flag". I used to have it as my desktop wallpaper!

I generally start bleeding quite gently these days, so I'm fortunate that I generally notice in time to prevent most stains. Though several ruined items of clothing and bedsheets attest to the fact that it has definitely not always been this way.

[the_antichris.livejournal.com]

I can lick my nipple, but only just. I recall it being easier some years ago (yes, I have tried more than once), which is odd - you'd think it would get easier, not harder. Maybe my boobs have shrunk.

[slemslempike.livejournal.com]

I think I needed more variables in my poll than breast size - neck length, tongue length, flexibility, sagginess, position of nipple...