Jezebel: Exes

Insulting Your Ex: It's All About You

Megan — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 17:00:00 EST

Very few people wonder these days why J.P. Weichel and his ex-wife are divorced, ever since Weichel was charged with criminal libel for posts he put on Craigslist accusing his ex of sleeping with her divorce lawyer and beating their child. In fact, sometimes, talking shit about your ex says a lot more about you (and your maturity level) than it does about whatever he or she did to you.

Of course, if you're in the habit of mining the wreck that is your personal life for your work, it's fairly difficult to never talk about an ex. Is it particularly mature to make fun of an ex because of his name or because he didn't know better than to try to face fuck you or because he kept standing you up? Probably not. On the other hand, I was writing those stories for what they said about me, and my relationships, and my own idiocy — and, because, now, they're funny to me. They're not intended to be mean-spirited, or floated out there as revenge or even to put me in a positive light. I puked on a guy named Ralph, I lacked the common sense to stay out of a sexual situation with an inexperienced and inattentive guy, I allowed someone to stand me up more than once. Don't you see, it's all about me!

The real problem, though, is that, like too many writers — in addition to having a strange sense of humor and way too much time to think about my failed relationships — I'm also an incredible narcissist... which is apparently how I turned a post about someone slagging on his ex into a post about me doing the exact opposite thing.

Man Who Slammed Ex Online Faces Libel [CBS News]

Earlier: What Name Could You Never F*ck?
There Ought To Be A Sign
Why Am I Supposed To Date Older Men, Again?

Breaking Up Weddings Is More Fun On-Screen Than Off

Jessica — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 14:30:00 EDT

The oft-parodied scene in The Graduate where Ben Braddock bangs desperately on the glass door of the chapel, interrupting Elaine Robinson's wedding, is generally thought of as an incredibly romantic cinematic moment. And, like many cinematic moments, when they happen in real life they're totally creepy. The New York Times had an article on Saturday about a group of psycho ex-girlfriends who tried to sabotage their former boyfriends' weddings. One woman found out the details of her ex-boyfriend's wedding and tried to cancel the caterer and told the bridal salon to ship the dress to the wrong house. Melissa Gullickson managed to stop just short of boarding the crazy train. She was going to disrupt her ex's wedding, but " As I unfurled this devious plan to my friends. I heard myself talking and realized what a jerk I was being.”

It's sort of easy to mock Gullickson, but who among us hasn't descended into the throes of post-relationship craziness now and again? I've been with the same person for three and a half years, and while I don't really give a hoot about any of my exes, I still look at their current girlfriends on facebook and make snide comments about them in my head. Obviously, that's an entirely different animal from actively trying to ruin someone else's wedding, but where do you draw the line between normal ex-related pettiness and total insanity?

Second Thoughts on Love Lost [NY Times]

"Should I Tell My Boyfriend About My Incest Fantasies?"

Tracie — Fri, 02 May 2008 16:20:00 EDT

It's time for another installment of Pot Psychology, the advice column in which everyone's problems are solved with an "herbal" remedy. (Remember, kids: Don't do drugs!) In this episode, the wind beneath my wings, Rich, helps me dole out advice on stuff like incest fantasies, rape fantasies, and friends with bad teeth. (And this time, someone sent us dick pics!!!) Got a burning question? Send it to tips@jezebel.com with "Pot Psychology" in the subject line. (Please keep them short; they're verrrry hard to read when stoned.)

P.S. No animals were drugged in the making of this video.