A new study out from the CDC shows that herpes is twice as common in women than men, and three times as common in blacks than whites. A massive 48% of black women are infected. We called on Dr. Vanessa Cullins, an obstetrician/gynecologist and vice president for medical affairs at Planned Parenthood, to get the story behind these depressing statistics.
Em & Lo: Can you briefly explain the difference between HSV-1 and HSV-2, and how they are related to oral vs genital herpes?
Dr. Cullins: Herpes is a very common infection caused by two different but closely related viruses — herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) and herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2). Both are easy to catch. They remain in the body for life, and can produce symptoms that come and go. Both forms of herpes can infect the oral area, the genital area, or both. When the infection is on or near the mouth, it is called oral herpes. Oral herpes is caused most often by HSV-1. When herpes infection is on or near the sex organs, it is called genital herpes. Genital herpes is caused most often by HSV-2.
Mattel is set to release four new Barbies ($75 each!) based on characters from Mad Men this coming July to coincide with the start of the show’s fourth season. There’s main character Don Drapper and his soulless wife Betty, company head Roger Sterling and his one-time mistress and office manager extraordinaire, Joan Holloway. While Mattel chose to leave out the “inappropriate,” sinful accessories like martinis, packs of Lucky Strike, and silk panties in suit pockets that are ever-present on the show, it’s still a bold choice for the company to celebrate such a debauched group of alcoholic adulterers. But then again, Barbie was created in 1959, right around the time Mad Men takes place — a time when women were expected to simply look pretty and shut up, make a nice home, and expect their husbands to cheat. So maybe this licensing agreement is not so bold, maybe it’s just eerily perfect.
Good design used to be completely unheard of in the world of sex accessories — neither function nor form was particularly paid attention to, whether it was a vibrator or a pair of latex undies. Fortunately, in the last decade or so, both form and function have improved immeasurably, and we could not be happier. Now vibrators and dildos are as likely to resemble abstract art for your coffee table as they are to resemble a penis.
We were too young to realize it at the time, but Corey Haim’s LUCAS (1986) showed us exactly why the band geek makes a better boyfriend than the captain of the football team. Rest in peace, Corey Haim — you may not have been the most eloquent cast member of the reality show The Two Coreys, but the wisdom of your characters continues to ring true. Here are our top ten favorite on-screen Corey moments — heavily favored toward LUCAS, of course. What can we say? That kid was a hero:
1. From LUCAS (1986)
Maggie: You know how wonderful you are?
Lucas: Yeah, but it doesn’t turn you on, does it?
2. From DREAM A LITTLE DREAM (1989)
Bobby [Corey Feldman]: Dinger! Dinger, wake up for a minute. I gotta talk to you, Buddy.
Dinger [Corey Haim]: Bobby, I’m asleep. I’m fast asleep, Bobby. I’m dreaming. Apache women. Mai-tais. Vanna White and a whip.
Bobby: I’m in love.
Dinger: That could be a problem.
Bobby: I don’t think you understand.
Dinger: No, no, I do understand. I really do. Which hand is it this week, pal?
Ok Go is an indie band that has mastered viral marketing with clever, innovative one-shot vids for their songs. First there was “A Million Ways,” in which they did an awesome little dance routine in someone’s backyard. Then they upped the ante with a choreographed number on a set of treadmills for “Here I Go Again.” Then came “WTF?” — its psychedonkulous colors and patterns made you go WTF when you watch it (here’s how they did that one). Now, for the song “This Too Shall Pass” from their new album “Of the Blue Colour of the Sky,” they’ve done it again — even better! It’s a giant Rube Goldberg machine in a two-story warehouse that moves along in perfect freakin’ synch with the song, all captured in one glorious take (after more than 60s tries over two days). You can read all about how they did it in this Wired article. Or, after the jump, check out the four video installments of “The Making of TTSP“:
Go ahead: try to answer that question. It’s tougher than you think. Does it mean intercourse? Then how do gay people “have sex”? Does it involve penetration? Then what about those who only climax from external stimulation? Does it involve orgasm? Then what about all the women who’ve had sexual relations with a second party but never climaxed? Does oral sex count? Not since the Clinton days. Well, the Kinsey Institute at Indiana University recently studied this gray area by conducting a random, telephone survey of 204 men and 282 women, mostly hetero, living in Indiana, ranging in age from 18 to 96 — and found no consensus. The L.A. Times summarized the findings like this:
Lo here, taking a break from the sex writing for just a day to talk about art. Did you see that cool wall installation made from staples by Baptiste Debombourg that Matthew wrote about the other day? I loved it too. Then, just yesterday, I got a letter from my first cousin once removed, the incredibly talented and hugely successful sculptor Ralph Helmick, that included an announcement for his most recent project “Disorders of Magnitude” — which reminded me of the same kind of innovation and technical skill employed by Debombourg. It’s a portrait of Werner Heisenberg (1901-1976) — the physicist best known for his Uncertainty Principle — using instruments that measure time and space hung from the ceiling: “While the composition appears to be random, the suspended elements coalesce into a likeness of the scientist when viewed from a single, unique perspective (the anamorphic phenomenon)…Biographical subtext aside, Disorders of Magnitude is a metaphor for the elusiveness of knowing oneself or others.” Far out!
Most Disappointing Sex Scene: The Na’vi love scene in AVATAR. Um, how could their tails NOT mesh? We’re waiting for the unrated version on Blue Ray and it better deliver.
Couple with Least Chemistry: Meryl Streep and Steve Martin in IT’S COMPLICATED
The slogan for the above anti-smoking ad currently running in France reads “Smoking means being a slave to tobacco.” Despite promoting a universally recognized good cause — getting kids to stop smoking — the ad has managed to piss off pretty much everyone. And this is in France, where the words “sex” and “scandal” (or, rather, their French equivalents) rarely appear in newspaper headlines together.
