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Ditching the Bitch

Mildly Stupid

 

Kelly Fausse had it all figured out. Right. She is the only one that misses completely what a shamble her life is and alwayshas been. And now it’s a life spinning out of control. Bad personal choices, bad men, bad career moves – Kelly’s life hasbeen one misstep and wrong turn after another; all of it cascading over the cliff and into an epic wreck.For the girl who is most likely the smartest person in the room based on her actions, the generous description of Kelly is that she is mildly stupid.Climbing out of the hole she’s so carefully dug for herself takes time and patience. The big question is whether she has either, and if she does, will there be anyone left at the surface or has she succeeded in distancing anyone who ever cared for her?

 

Playlist for Ditching the Bitch

When you read each chapter of Ditching the Bitch, you’ll notice that the chapter title is also the title of a song. Download the playlist and listen along while you read. (Song titles are linked to Amazon Digital Music)

  1. Hide in Your Shell •  Supertramp
  2. Romance Is Dead • Paloma Faith
  3. Undo It • Carrie Underwood
  4. Stupid Girls • Pink
  5. Enough for Now • The Fray
  6. Fame • Lady Gago
  7. Hate on Me • Jill Scott
  8. Homeward Bound • Simon and Garfunkel
  9. My Dirty Little Secret • All American Rejects
  10. The Show Must Go On • Queen
  11. Hey, Hey, Hey. • Michael Franti
  12. Stand Tall • Burton Cummings 
  13. Beautiful Loser • Bob Seger
  14. Unwritten • Natasha Bedenfield
  15. Love at First Sight • Michael Buble
  16. Time in a Bottle • Jim Croce
  17. Come Away with Me • Norah Jones
  18. Happy Together • The Turtles
  19. Nine Million Bicycles • Katie Melua
  20. Spirit of a Boy • Randy Travis
  21. A Thousand Years • Christina Perri

                                   

The Girl before a Mirror is an oil on canvas painting by Pablo Picasso, which he created in 1932. The painting is a portrait of Picasso’s mistress and muse, Marie-Thérèse Walter, who is depicted standing in front of a mirror looking at her reflection.

There are so many painting that use a woman’s or girl’s image reflected in a mirror. There are some great examples for sure. I wanted a painting to reference and in the end I went with Picasso’s painting.     

The idea was to have an image in Kelly’s story specific to her therapy session. A print of The Girl Before a Mirror is part of the decore in Kelly’s therapist’s office.

I remember reading about this painting years ago in a Humanities class. Of course the instructor was concentrating on the Madonna Whore theme. The instructor was probably right, that was most likely the theme. However, every time I look at it I see it as the difficulty many woman have seeing their own beauty; the image in the mirror for many women is unfairly distorted and unflattering. This is not necessarily 100% of Kelly’s issue, she’s got plenty else going on her mental health three ring circus. I decided on this painting because no matter how you interpret it, it’s  an unhappy woman looking at an unhappy woman.