M.B. Austin's Blog, page 2

Farewell, Running

I’ve been running events for time and distance since I was eleven or twelve and joined the track team. At that time, I had no idea that I had inherited the blood disorder beta-thalassemia from my father’s side of the … Continue reading →

Fitness, Real and Fictional

Recently, a Facebook friend who has a fitness coaching business asked, “if you could NOT fail, how much weight would you want to lose this year??” She offered a range of response options, in five pound increments. Some responders went … Continue reading →

Born Both, and Beautiful

What a rare treat it was to meet Hida Viloria, queer Latinx intersex activist and educator. At Seattle’s Elliot Bay Books, s/he read excerpts from her recently published memoir, Born Both, and discussed related issues with the folks who came … Continue reading →

Maji Wears TomboyX

TomboyX, the Seattle-based maker of fabulous undergarments, had an event at its offices today to celebrate the launch of its new swimwear line.  The Treat Yourself Popup Show featured the new swimwear Lin, and offered guests free seated massage from … Continue reading →

Running vs. Wine

Two glasses of wine? Or a twenty-minute run? Yesterday I went for the wine. Today the run. Running’s been less attractive the last few months, with rain and wind tamping down winter’s attempts to give way to spring. But it … Continue reading →

Maji Lives!

Maji Rios began to live in my mind several years ago. As the drafts of the first book took shape, she became real to a variety of readers (thank you, beta-readers, consulting military readers, and critique group partners). I knew … Continue reading →

Cooking for Peace and Justice

Shortly after the election, I joined a group of neighbors to share notes on what constructive actions we might start, or continue, taking. In addition to big-P political action, we decided to start Soup Fridays. We have a large community … Continue reading →

Step 1: You Are Worth Defending

I know you are worth defending. If I saw you on the street, a stranger needing help, I wouldn’t doubt for a second that I should try.  And if I can see that in you, why can’t you? Why do … Continue reading →

Coalition Politics

Someplace in my attic, there is a box with a photocopy of the pages from Home Girls: A Black Feminist Anthology that provide a transcription of a speech Bernice Johnson Reagon gave at the West Coast Women’s Music Festival in … Continue reading →

violence vs. force

In preparing to teach self-defense in 2017, I’ve been going back to basics, to get clear on some principles that I think are fundamental to the responsible use of force. Of the many ways force can be defined, the broadest … Continue reading →