Anxiety manifests in a number of ways. For those of us who struggle with it, our coping mechanisms can be as unique as the people who experience it. For Toronto-based Chris Grady, father of two young children, and elementary school teacher, creating short, sweet, and thoughtful webcomics has become one outlet for his anxiety. Featuring short interactions… Keep reading...
As music fans, critics, and collectors know well, the end of every year signals the return of list season, that holy (and wholly silly) time when we assign arbitrary numerical rankings to our favorite songs and albums. And I have to plead guilty: Even as I simultaneously scold myself about scarcity versus abundance, and as… Keep reading...
The last several weeks have been, we can hope, only the beginning of a long awaited reckoning in the United States. Every day another man, or two or three, is publicly named as an abuser, a harasser, a rapist, a predator. In many instances, an element of justice has been swift as they are shamed and… Keep reading...
When we talk about toxic masculinity, it is often in the context of a man’s behavior as experienced by another person–likely a woman, queer person, or a man who does not embody a toxic form of masculinity. What we often overlook in conversations of toxic masculinity is that the first victim of one’s embodiment of… Keep reading...
Little one don’t be a fool, I’m a wreck when I look mighty. In Euphoria I’m bruised, In confusion next I’m lightning. In complacence I am small, through oblivion I’m charged. – “Follow My Way” by Chris Cornell, 1999 ~~~ Title 18 of the United States Code, Section 1464, prohibits the utterance of any obscene,… Keep reading...
Aaaaaand, we’re back, here on KBWB 99.5, Bridges We Burn radio! Thank you for tuning in to this inaugural installment of the New Masculinities Playlist. My name is Brian, and I’ll be your DJ, bringing you all the hits—new and old—in the genre of radical masculine truths. Who am I? I’m a handful of things:… Keep reading...
If someone had said mental health to me, the first thing that came to mind was mental toughness. Masking pain. Hiding and keeping it in. That’s what was embedded in me since I was a kid. Never show a sign of weakness. It’s funny because now I know [mental health]’s the total opposite. It’s being… Keep reading...
Editor’s Note: I am excited to introduce New Voices on Masculinities, a series of original content written for The Bridges We Burn, in which author’s explore topics related to their identity. The first author in the series is musician and educator, Matt Bogdanow. ~~~ On February 1st, 2015, I watched the New England Patriots––my hometown heroes––defeat the Seattle… Keep reading...