Hollywood as a Standard of Beauty

It is a joke.

This standard of beauty: to be tall(ish at the very least), thin (actually, emaciated), over-processed hair, whiter than paper teeth that are perfectly straight, with at least 20 botox treatments under their belt (okay, I may exaggerate just a tad...). Regardless, this is a basic overview of what the Hollywood standard of beauty is and it is shown in most Hollywood stars.

This standard is absolutely unhealthy, not to mention unobtainable to those who have no money for trainers, nutritionists, and stylists. Yet... why do we, as a society, continue to play into this notion of beauty?!

First off, it must be said. I personally find this notion of beauty butt-ugly. Now that that has been said...

Over the past few weeks there has been a bru-ha-ha over Jessica Simpson gaining weight. The first picture of her with this weight gain appeared weeks ago and yet, it is still somehow relevant? I was watching CNN this morning and the outgoing Miss America, Kristin Haglund, appeared on the show. She was the first Miss America to make eating disorders her platform and appeared on the show to discuss eating disorders and Jessica Simpson - well, as much as she can discuss in the all of seven minutes they gave her (just to note, she was quite well-spoken, I was most impressed), which simply ticked me off all over again about the issue. I haven't bought a trash mag since this nuttiness because I was so annoyed by such negative coverage.

When I look at these pictures of Jessica Simpson, I still see a healthy woman. She's, what, a size 4? 6? Oh wow, obesity clinics around the country should be calling her. I mean, what is this?! She's the epitome of a normal, healthy woman - hell, even "skinny" based on the national average of 12-14 (don't quote me, it's been a while since I looked up that statistic). So how is it that she is fat? And why is it that we all play into this disgusting standard of beauty that is not reasonable or healthy? We should be taking pride in what the body can do and pushing to be as healthy as possible for your lifestyle and interests, not judging or being overly critical.

Upshot is? My new thesis will involve this bs standard of beauty. How? You'll be finding out when the sucker is written - guess you'll just have to wait and see!

A Trip Home

I took a weekend trip home. A weekend trip that turned into 6 days, including travel days (i.e. part day on the trip to CA and a full day on the trip back to DC - don't you love how that works out?!).

I took this random trip home because I had a random moment of homesickness. About two days after booking the flight (two weeks before the weekend might I add), I lost that homesickness and was wondering why in the world I'm still taking this trip. Maybe I should just just cancel the flight and save the $220 for a future flight (can you believe it was that cheap?! I spent near enough to that just getting to Nor-Cal back in the day). But... I went home.

And loved every minute of it. I reconnected with a ton of people and was reminded of what I like about LA (don't get me wrong... there's still much of LA that can just finish going to the rats). I enjoyed it enough that I will most likely be applying to UCLA this year.

I flew in Thursday and got picked up by Sena. We went and picked out what shoes I'll be wearing for her wedding, then had lunch. It was great getting the chance to catch up in person and see how things are going. I then got to go shopping with Dad for his renewal of vows shirt. Him being male means that it really didn't take us all that long, so we managed to have a drink and an artichoke while waiting for mom for dinner.

Friday held a real exciting day - I had a doctor's appointment! Whoo! Or not? One thing DC has done for me is taught me to get off my lazy ass. Back in the day I parked in the lot and just paid for parking. Not anymore. I found street parking and hoofed it in. I'll have to keep this up in the future. But Friday night was a very enjoyable evening out. Lauren and I ended up at Hennessy's with Shelley, Lynn, Dan, and Eric joining the party. Shells and I got the brilliant idea that the next time I come home we're going to have an 80's prom - the pictures alone (and the boys dressing like dorks) will be totally worth it.

Saturday was another incredibly full day, more full than I had anticipated, but super fun. I saw my godmother for breakfast, hung with Mikey for a good chunk of the day, then came the evening.

Yes, the evening gets its own paragraph. A crew of us went to Daikokuya (if I spelled that right, then I'm a Goddess... just sayin'). I picked up Shelley, Beverly, and Nick and we set off on our adventure. Yes, adventure. As Nick and I had a bit of trouble navigating (are we surprised?!), we were off and on freeways and turning around more than once or twice. Whoops. Dinner was quite fun and yummy (thanks for the tip Adam!) and then... the salami experience. Adam and Joanne walk to Adam's car -- the plan is that I'll follow them to drop off Joanne, then go see Rocky Horror at midnight in Pasadena with Adam. I get in the car. I look down at the passenger seat and see on the floor of the passenger side a roll of dry salami. That's right. This big ol' hunk of meat that was soooooo not there before. I immediately twist around to see if there's somebody hiding in my backseat -- about two seconds away from diving bombing out of my car and running helter skelter. I lock the doors, pull out after determining that some crazy person isn't out to kill me, then start following Adam (no, they have no clue what's going on). I call Nick, who has no clue what I'm talking about when I ask him if it's his salami (yes, start the dirty jokes now). Then I call home.

It was my dad's salami. No joke.

Rocky Horror was a treat. I got to hang out in the lighting section! I got to hang with Adam... wait... does this deserve an exclamation point too? I kid, I kid! I've seen the midnight showing of Hedwig and the Angry Inch, but not The Rocky Horror Picture Show, so it was definitely an experience. Getting to drive fast in LA was also definitely an experience. If you go 20 mph over the limit here, you risk getting arrested and for sure a misdemeanor. Clearly, I've learned how to get my dang foot off the gas. But not if I don't have to!!!

Sunday proved to be a day for the ages. I took my folks to the airport (yes, I took THEM to the airport, not the other way around... mama's a little confused these days apparently and forgot what weekend they were going to Vegas... dad was right... which is infrequent at best, so he was quite pleased with himself on this one). I hung with Lauren, did the grocery shopping for my dinner party that night and then home to get some stuff done.

More people showed up than I expected. People stayed way later than I expected - the last leaving around 1:30am. Christina made amazing porkchops and I made crack sangria (Eric's name for it as it was... strong... to say the least). It was an enjoyable evening with random moments of, "what just happened there?!" and other moments of, "when do we start asking questions?" Upshot was: I wasn't going to be making my flight in the morning. So I changed my flight at 3:30am and slept in. Dinner with Christina was yummy (Mama D's tortellini in pink sauce... mmmm... I want more!). Leaving dinner, there's this middle-aged couple that looks vaguely familiar. I figure I must be nuts, but the guy stops me. I'm thinking he'll tell me who he is... not so much. He said that I looked very pretty that night, very classy and his wife just smiled and nodded. I decided not to try to figure out what was going on and just said thanks and ran. No make-up and my hair in a sloppy bun and I look CLASSY? Since when? Geeez.

I caught my flight Tuesday. I missed one class of each of my classes. Guess I can't be sick for the rest of the semester!

I'm working a double shift today and seven shifts over the next two weeks (as opposed to four).

Why did I come back?!

High School Friendships

I was watching this show this morning while munching on my bagel and fruit that was centered around three gals who were high school best friends, but who lost touch almost immediately after graduation. All three noted that losing touch was one of the greatest regrets of their lives.

This, of course, made me think about my own friendships and where they have come from, how they developed, and where they are at today. I have made many new wonderful friends in my post-collegiate career/schooling, as well as some interesting friendships during my collegiate career. But it was in middle school that I was first introduced to some of the women that I still call my best friends. And no, we're not talking "facebook friends" from high school that can be stalked through their pages and you pretend like you have a clue as to what they're up to, we're talking the real deal.

I suppose I do not often think how lucky I am that these people and I have remained friends, much less very good ones. I often see these wonderful people on trips home, and will always look forward to future times that I get to spend with them. The fact that we have remained friends for quite so many years is a feat in and of itself, seeing as how many of us went very different directions for college and then I ended up out here in the boonies (I kid!).

I'd like to take a moment to recognize these ladies, even if for a brief moment, only because I do realize how lucky I am and I don't want to take the friendships they have given me for granted. I have a very large personality and each of these people have accepted it, dealt with it, and made fun of it to their own liking. I'm going to do this reverse alphabetical, just to be funky.

Sena - We have incredibly different personalities, but have always found a way to appreciate the differences in each other and love them anyways. A constant support to me, it is an incredible honor to me to be able to serve as her Maid of Honor in her wedding this coming June.

Lauren - We have incredibly similar personalities, but have always found a way to fight and then make-up. It was at Lauren's house that I spent the day of my father's first kidney surgery (not the last of the surgeries certainly) and to this day, there is nowhere else I'd want to be if I couldn't be with my folks.

Christina - Christina and I ended up at middle school together, became very good friends in high school, ended up at Cal together, and now just may end up in DC together. I think she's following me around! Our appreciation for each others humor and hearts make for a fun and supportive friendship.

Now there are two people who may read this and think, "what about me?!" And those two people are Lynn and Shells - the wonder twins of MB. I purposefully did not include them in the list above because we have not been friends since middle school. We've been friends since Kindergarten. How insane is that?! I can even remember going to parties at their childhood home (which their parents still reside in). And if you all know me, you know I don't remember much! Both of these girls have their own strengths that they use to be supportive, cheerful, and a constant joy in people's lives. They have an incredible bond and when you get one, you get the other - a two for the price of one deal that can't be passed up! Although, I can't imagine why anybody would want to...

I am of the opinion that part of the reason why some of these friendships have remained so strong regardless of distance and time is that I have great role models. Both of my parents best friends they have had since 5 or 6 years old. I see my godmother (mom's best friend from Iowa) everytime I go home and I see my dad's best friend (Gary) and his fabulous wife (Sharon)... probably twice everytime I go home. Both of my folks have taken the time to cherish and nurture these friendships through good and bad - Gary always being at the hospital when my dad is there, being a support to my mom even moreso than my dad.

Such good friends that literally last a lifetime are hard to find and I hope to look back to this blog at 60 years old and still call the ladies mentioned here my friends.

25 Things About Me That I'm Sure You Were Dying to Know

Facebook is a social networking site. There has been a posting going around requesting people to write 25 things about themselves. It's a fun little way to get to know your friends (or acquaintances) a little bit better. I figured you all would enjoy to get to know me a little bit better.

1. I'm an excellent swimmer and could swim all day if I were so inclined (although little things like eating and the need to pee get in the way of that)

2. I have been pierced a total of 10 times. I currently have 7. I hate needles. Go figure.

3. I really dislike math. I'm taking stats this semester. This is my new lover as I'm about to get screwed.

4. My favorite inanimate object is a bed. Take that as you wish.

5. On that note, I've had mono four times. The first when I was 9. Gives wild child a whole new meaning. (I actually got it from swimming)

6. I love to read. I will read over watching tv or movies any day of the week. Well, reading of my choice, not required reading.

7. I have this weird habit of buying workout tapes... and then not working out to them.

8. My favorite art piece of all time is a print of the American flag with the First Amendment written into it. I'm big on free speech. Clearly. If you hadn’t noticed. If you really hadn’t noticed, then you haven’t spoken to me for any length of time. You might want to get on top of that.

9. I try to be positive at most times, yet I am the most cynical person I know. Such contradictions in myself make life fun.

10. I hit a second puberty when I was around 22. My feet grew a half size, I grew two inches, and I got gray hair.

11. I do not know the meaning of tan. If I'm in the sun for longer than five minutes, I go a lovely shade of lobster red. Stop trying to convince me there are ways around this. There are not.

12. I'm training to be a personal trainer. Proof is in the pudding - I've already lost 20 pounds on my own.

13. My hair is curly. It's insanely curly. It takes me hours to do it on my own. Therefore, I get it done.

14. I own thousands of dollars worth of make-up and I do love to play with it.

15. Speaking of thousands of dollars… my shoes ain’t cheap. I do love them, treasure them, and thoroughly dislike those who steal them. Yes, two pairs were once upon a time stolen, she never apologized, therefore we don’t speak.

16. I love tulips – preferable over roses any day of the week. Not that I’d bitch if I got roses or anything.

17. I love my organized chaos. It works for me. I know exactly where everything is, even if it doesn’t have an official place.

18. My closet is anally organized – once I actually get my clothes hung up after doing 10 loads of laundry at one time. It’s organized by ROYGBIV – yes, the order of the rainbow. Black, white, gray, and brown go on one end, then the rainbow, then prints/patterns if there is no dominant color.

19. I’m a list-making machine. It’s a compulsive habit. I NEVER follow the list, but I must make them. I’ll make the same list, but different, many times over.

20. I have an addiction to iced tea. Two packets of Equal stirred in, no lemon. If there’s lemon in it, I’m not happy.

21. Slow drivers on open roads annoy me. Get out of my way. It’s not tough. If I want to drive fast, and potentially get a ticket, that’s my business. If I want to drive fast and you slow me down, I don’t promise to not flip you off.

22. I used to never take pictures. I always had a camera, but never used it. Now I use it for the most inane pictures that are goofy, dorky, and downright scary. Luckily, I have friends that are said adjectives when taking pictures.

23. I am dying to go to Greece. I can’t lay out on a boat all day long due to that lobster problem, but I’d still love to try. Oh, and doing the touristy thing sounds fun too.

24. I collect magnets. I haven’t received one in a while, so if you’re so inclined to get me an “I love you Morgan” present, feel free to give me a magnet. Dirty, nice, funny, whatever.

25. I love the fact that I went to Cal. I hated living in Berkeley. But… GO BEARS! One of the requirements of the men I date is that they didn’t go to the farm and that they can deal with watching football (preferably enjoy it) – that makes two requirements, doesn’t it? You get the gist. If you don’t, then... I can't really help you.

Inauguration Day

What. A. Day.

To put it simply. Before I start commenting, opining, or otherwise sharing a host of random stories, my schedule was easy. I stayed home to watch the speech for one reason - I actually wanted to hear the darn thing. I didn't figure I'd hear it too well on the jumbo-trons the event planners had set up, nor did I want to wait to hear it til much later. Immediately upon the closing of the speech, I headed out to enjoy this day of history and see what it all looked like.

It was incredible, to say the least. Stepping back from the pomp, circumstance, and speech for a moment to consider the moment of history that was created yesterday. Regardless of your opinion of the man, or the presidential potential of him, yesterday was a defining moment in American history with an African-American man being sworn in as president. With the United States being in the unique position of one of the world's superpowers for many, many, many years running, to never have a man of any color (or a woman!!!) in this symbolic place of power is rather appalling. But, it has finally happened and we have all been alive to witness this day. He may not be what you voted for, he may not be what you want, but this is a bold step for our society, one that is necessary and can continue the work that was halted of shaking off the dregs of racial divisions and hatred. (Below - walking the streets, the crowd coming up... 18th? 16th? The streets started to blur)

The sheer amount of people that came into our nation's capital yesterday was unprecedented. Every guesstimate of how many would arrive so far underscored the actual numbers that it is incredible. Millions of people found their way to DC to give their support, honor, awe, and hope to this one man. It was a peaceful day, a day without hatred, a day without violence, and a day full of smiles -- a phenomenon rare in these times of economic worry, rampant wars, and domestic issues that continue to plague our citizens. (To the right, walking down the middle of the street!!!)


Monday was Martin Luther King Jr. Day and yesterday I was reminded of him and his words. Yes, the infamous, "I have a dream", but more, "A man who won't die for something is not fit to live". MLK Jr. did die for something; he died fighting for this day to happen. Wherever he is, I hope he can rest in peace knowing that this struggle is still ongoing, but a battle has been won.

I have my cynicisms (noted in the last, and most likely next, blogs) about this man, but I would with any other coming into office. These are troubled times and I do sincerely hope that President Obama can help effect the change that is so direly needed and necessary to help this country bounce back, stand on its on two feet of economic prosperity and pride -- with new additions of humility and hope.

We are all a part of this process and we can only do as much as we can do - which is hopefully everything in our power - because we do have power. This power was represented yesterday in this city of millions. We made our voices heard in the election (yes, I'll note that I did in fact vote for and support Obama - healthy cynicism and all) and we made our voices heard yesterday in showing that he is still the man for the job, that doubt has not prevailed, that hope is still present. (To the right - the mass of people waiting to get on the Dupont Circle metro station)

Welcome to the White House and Washington D.C. Mr. President... I wish you luck.

Pre-Inauguration Day Insanity

And we are heading into the final hours of Bush's reign of terror. I kid, I kid. Although the final hours part of that equation is entirely truthful. Being here in DC and seeing the insane mass of people has made things quite interesting - much less getting anywhere takes an extra few hours.

Call me cynical, but I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop. Reading articles about people who have all this hope that Obama will be able to turn things around in a heartbeat... he just can't, hell, God himself couldn't. This country is in a hole that is not going to be dug out of particularly easily. There are wars left and right, an economic shithole, and domestic issues up the wazoo. This is not to say that Obama does not have his strong points, but the sheer amount of hope for immediate change seems unfounded. People are hailing his progressive nature, his grassroots connections, and I'm sitting here thinking the man and his team are a bunch of brilliant masterminds because absolutely nobody is capable of being that good to turn this country around in a hot minute. What his true strengths are, we have yet to find out. With so little experience and so little time to know who he is, we'll learn in the coming days what we've gotten ourselves into and whether or not this one man is as good in his actions as he is in his words.

I was going to go to the mall to hear his speech, but I won't be able to hear it in a crowd, so I'll explore, then be home for the actual speech because I want to hear what he has to say (and not a few hours later). After that, who knows what I'll explore. This day is epic, not just where he's at, but for this city as a whole.

I'm interested to see what he does, what decisions he makes first, where he will lead this country.

But at the end of the day, my inclinations are that this is only one man. Yes, he is "in charge" of the "super-power" of the world, but he is still only a man. He is not infalliable and he is not without his faults. We will see them in the days to come, I just hope that people give him enough of a chance to show his strengths... whatever they may actually be.

It's That Time of the Year

I'll cop to it! I have yet to write my Thanksgiving entry. I swear I'll get to it! Maybe sometime this week after my papers are written and my finals have started to be studied for... there are some amusing stories to share certainly.

But I'm bothered. So I'm pushing the Thanksgiving entry back, stepping away from my studies to take a moment to write about an issue that on the face looks... nice enough, but at the crux is problematic.

On facebook, there is a group called "Help Keep CHRIST in Christmas". Interesting concept. I can see where there would be some Christians who would want to remind their fellow man to enjoy the holiday, but also respect where the holiday came from. I have no cause to find this problematic.

But now, for the description...

The purpose of this cause is to keep CHRIST in Christmas. Since so many people today are trying to ban Christ from everything, School, Courthouse and even Christmas. In a time when all things religious are being discouraged and swept away, it’s refreshing to know that the Order established the “Keep Christ in Christmas” campaign to remind people that Christmas is above all a day God want us to remember the birth of His Son, our Savior

First of all, what is the "Order" that established this campaign? I haven't seen evidence of this particular campaign anywhere else, so that particular misnomer, "campaign", seems a little inappropriate. Regardless, neither of these are the crux of my problem, they're just glaring inadequacies that need to be explained to those who may not see the inside of a church every Sunday (even then, I don't believe the pastor I frequented back home would discuss this). But, alas, I am being petty because the real problem I have with this comes next.

The "ban Christ from everything" line got to me. And it made me an unholy shade of red mad. I believe in the tenants of freedom in this country, I believe that you have a choice to decide your religion and I believe that you can choose not to have another's religion foisted on you in the laws and in education when there is this freedom of religion. Christianity should not have the upper-hand and there are folks who seem to think it should because those of the faith raise an un-godly amount of money for their pastors (notice, I don't say societal issues). Folks are more than welcome to have Christ in their lives, they are more than welcome to be prejudice and racist (although I may not choose to overly interact much with said folks), but to operate on the assumption that Christ should be taught in the public school classrooms and have a place in the legal system is absurd. If folks want to put their children in private schools where the Christian faith is taught all day long, please, do it. If folks want to live in a country where Christianity rules all, then there is nothing stopping them from moving away.

And then let's address the final line of the description of this group's "cause": "remind people that Christmas is above all a day God want us to remember the birth of His Son, our Savior".
Remind what people? All people or just the Christian people? There is an inherent vagueness to this statement that just further shows the incorrect assumptions of society made by this group. First of all, it assumes that everybody is Christian, that they believe in the Christian god, and that the Savior is everybody's. Now, I know of somebody who would dispute this and say that only Christian folks will be reading this and hearing about it. Great. So what's the campaign for then? Ostensibly speaking, pastors and preachers are going to cover the topic of the holidays in their sermons, the true meaning behind the day.

But that's ok, because this is all a ploy. It is a ploy to continue teaching prejudice, to continue teaching that it is okay to discriminate, to make money... Oh... isn't it interesting that this group has raised over $2,000? What is this money going to? It has this little writing at the top of the page - donations will go to X group. Oh, oh gosh. Let's take a minute to look at the group who created the page. I'll be kind and not name names, but I did click on the link to their facebook page. The group itself, while a little too preachy too me, seems like it's actually trying to help folks. They have a Bible rehab program for homeless folks in an urban area. Oh, isn't that interesting? They've made no money on their page. They want 5 million dollars and couldn't raise it on their own... and they've just raised almost 2 thousand dollars by marketing this campaign. Hhhmmm. Sneaky tactics right there. I am impressed at the marketing skills actually. $2,000 is actually quite a bit of money for facebook.

But... they're using a campaign to their own benefit. I find that rather shady. Granted, I find the whole lot of it shady, but this is absolutely a ploy. A ploy to make money when they couldn't make it on their own by stepping on a campaign bandwagon.

Honestly? I would have been okay with the concept behind the campaign, of teaching where this holiday originated. But I would have also been encouraged to have a statement about learning about each other's religions, so that we might understand and respect each other further. I would have been encouraged if it was suggested to go to some page for Hanukkah, so that folks might learn about this holiday, and Kwanza and... the options are many and varied. Religious respect is what is lacking here. Not only this, but they are so concerned about putting Christ back in to Christmas. Yet, they too will be buying a host of gifts (not frankencense and myyrh like in the Bible) that furthers the lack of understanding how this holiday came to be. They too will jump on the Capitalistic bandwagon and buy an insane amount of gifts for only one person (got kids anyone?) and then they wonder why people are greedy and forget the meaning of the holiday. I'm spoiled, so I have no problem with getting an insane amount of gifts, but nor do I preach that everybody has forgotten what this holiday means, that it has turned to a Capitalistic wasteland, and then turn around and perpetuate that very wasteland.

So as we go into this holiday season, I implore you to keep an open mind. Take a few moments to find out what holidays are coming up, regardless of the religion, and learn about them. I'm not asking you to convert, I'm asking you to open your mind and your heart to all peoples. What is Hanukkah? What is Kwanzaa? What is Christmas? What am I missing?

Take the time to learn, donate money to a cause where you know where the money is going, donate your time if you have it, meet new people, try new things, enjoy everything this season has to offer -- regardless of what religion you practice.