Welcome to part 1 of my 25 part series “Better Know A Speaker.” Today’s speaker is Elyse Anders, the fighting Anders!

Without our Fearless Leader and Skepchicamp Queen Elyse, none of us would be here today planning what is sure to be the hottest event in Chicago since that cow kicked over a lantern that one time. Elyse, it must be known, is a big fan of booze. She enjoys making cocktails, but likes neither Pina Coladas nor getting caught in the rain. That happened on her honeymoon in Mexico, and it was rather unpleasant. Speaking of honeymoons, Elyse has been married to Skepchicamp’s official slave Brian Anders since 2003, the year of the fateful rainshower. Four years into their undoubtedly joyous union, in August 2007, she gave birth to a beautiful baby Moose. The Anders family, still not complete, has another child on the way in May 2010, which will be named either “Voltron Adelbert” or a name chosen by the rigorous method of randomly pointing at items on a tapas menu. Once she has enough strangely-named children to justify it, Elyse plans to purchase a minivan with flame decals and twenty-two inch dubs so kids will think she has a sick ride.

Skeptically speaking, Elyse has been writing for Skepchick for two years under the watchful eye of Rebecca Watson, her boss and girl-crush. She’s also available to write for anyone who asks and has a few bucks to throw around, because she does not have a few bucks to throw around. Come on, folks, hire her! She’s funny and awesome! She has been on The Chicagoist podcast as well as “Beer, Brains, and Bullshit.” Her personal claim to fame is that she has caused people to respect Headset Vince, that silly Shamwow guy, after she alerted people to his anti-Scientology crusade. She had nothing to do with his subsequent altercation with a “lady of the night,” if you will. Her skeptical passion is vaccination, and as soon as she becomes rich and contracts a strategist, she will save the world through effective vaccine promotion, though, she takes pains to point out, she is not, in fact, a doctor.

Elyse’s talk is titled “Growing up Skepchickally: The Myths of Daughterhood,” where she will likely bust, confirm, and find plausible a number of myths surrounding the life of a young girl with parents.

Elyse likes cupcakes, worships Twitter, and bedecks herself with as many Surlyramics as will fit on her body. She is the proud owner of an iPhone and really does read Playboy for the articles, just like every man everywhere. She hopes to be a superhero when she grows up.

She has never eaten a human baby, but she’s still young, so there’s still time. Oh, yes, there is still time.

Check back within the next few days for another exciting installment in “Better Know a Speaker!”

- Supreme Speaker Conjurer Don

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