Beauty and the "ideal" . . . give me a break!

It is all around us . . . I recently wrote about it . . . how society views those whose image is not seen as "ideal". The media's focus on beauty and image continues to sicken me. Who made them the societal judge and jury anyway?


It continues to bug me that we have the "food police" who are appalled at the food choices offered through various venues, especially the fast food restaurants. In their opinion, they should make the choices for us . . . who they deem as a stupid, ignorant society who don't have the good sense to make the right food choices. 


It is a personal choice!  What about free enterprise and allowing those restaurants to serve food that their customers want to eat?  We are moving more and more toward a socialist society where those who deem themselves the "smart people" make the choices since they know better. 


Of course they are entitled to their opinion . . . but we all have one, don't we?  If you don't like the food choices at a particular eating establishment . . . don't eat there!!  Find another restaurant that suits your needs . . .


Although it is already old news, writer Maura Kelly of Marie Claire magazine took tons of heat from the Internet community and beyond for writing a "fat-bashing" article based on "fat characters" on a television show.


She wrote:

"So anyway, yes, I think I'd be grossed out if I had to watch two characters with rolls and rolls of fat kissing each other ... because I'd be grossed out if I had to watch them doing anything.

To be brutally honest, even in real life, I find it aesthetically displeasing to watch a very, very fat person simply walk across a room -- just like I'd find it distressing if I saw a very drunk person stumbling across a bar or a heroine addict slumping in a chair."

Excuse me Maura . . . you'd better hide yourself away from the world since most of our society is not perfect and you are gonna spend your life disgusted and grossed out.  Sorry that imperfect people displease you Miss Perky Perfect.  What a sad person you are . . .


She issued an apology after the backlash from mainstream America. No doubt it had something to do with the magazine not wanting all the negativity and bad press. It is pure arrogance . . . all about money. They have forgotten that society in general are not what they would consider "ideal" . . . we are the "real people," most of us have flaws, unlike "the beautiful people."


One of my favorite websites, BlogHer, wrote several articles on this subject. In particular, there was a line in one of the articles that I love . . . 

"The back story is really relevant, because while we all know that all manner of bigoted and hurtful thinking is common everywhere, it's troubling when it appears in mainstream publications."

It is our responsibility to ignore these arrogant publications and seek alternate sources for reading material on various topics deeming them irrelevant. The bashing has got to stop! Society needs to send them the message that we are mad as hell and not gonna read their publications anymore.


This arrogant behavior is bringing up a new crop of "less than perfect" young women growing up thinking that unhealthy eating disorders are the lesser of the evils. They can hide their disorder and emotional issues associated with their obsession with the "ideal", but their outer beauty will ultimately shine . . . that is what is important. How sad . . .


It all started with the marketing of "Twiggy" . . . the supermodel of the 60's . . .


In my opinion, the message should be . . . strive to be the best person you can be, inside and out . . . educate yourself on how to make healthy improvements and how to make enhancements to be the most attractive you can be . . . embrace your uniqueness and love yourself for who you are . . . be true to yourself!

Authenticity

When I cruise the internet, I get lost and spend hours looking for new and interesting websites and blogs.  On occasion, I run into one that I consider outstanding . . . BlogHer is one of them.  You can reach the website by going to the sidebar of my blog . . . I have included the "Own Your Beauty" link.  Every month they target a different topic . . . this month is "Authenticity."  Check them out!


The following article comes directly from their website . . . No, I'm not "stealing" their content . . . I don't want to lose the content by just placing a link here and losing the content when they change their website pages.  (It has happened way too often, making my blog posts useless . . . just wanted to explain why I do it!)


In the years that I have adopted the lifestyle of "Simple Abundance," other than being grateful for simple little things every day, being authentic is up there on the list of importance as far as quality of life.


Usually this type of post goes on my Peace, Love, Happiness blog, but I thought posting this here is of great importance to women everywhere.  If these type of topics interest  you, please visit my other blog!

The awesome ladies at BlogHer
 have given us 12 tips to authenticity:

1.   Where is the list of fine performing arts that includes “art of listening,” I ask you?

2.   I’m suspicious of anyone who tells me they are an expert. Students teach me more.

3.   Confidence is the heartbeat of beauty. The trick? To get there we have to fail and change. The courage to  fail is irresistible to me.

4.   Are you hurting? Tell people. You will feel so GORGEOUS when you stop isolating yourself and open your heart.

5.   Take three hours a week for self-exploration: Make a regular date with yourself relax and things that will let your mind wander. Don’t expect major breakthroughs each time; it’s total time spent that helps you subconsciously approach the world differently.

6.   Don't compare: There’s a big difference between being inspired by others and emulating them. Your accomplishments may be similar to others’, but your path is unique and equally valid. Your job is not to be better than anyone, but to best meet your own purpose.

7.   Try not talking: Just observe others for a day. You’ll be amazed at how much connection you’ve missed, and how much more comfortable people are around someone who can let conversations unfold.

8.   What are you always telling yourself you'll do “someday?" Consider doing it now. Note I didn’t say do it, but consider doing it. Asking yourself to consider it takes the pressure off acting right away -- but the seeds are subconsciously planted.

9.   Don't be afraid to ask questions. Nothing exudes more confidence than freely admitting you don't know everything. People figure you must be really smart if you're willing to admit when you're dumb.

10. Everything you choose to share should be the truth. But you don't have to share everything. You can be authentic and still have boundaries. In fact you probably should!

11. You have the opportunity to live your values with every dollar you spend. Vote via the ballot box and your wallet.

12. The corollary to living your values is: Do the best that you can, until you can do better. None of us is perfect. But we should never do nothing because we can't do everything. I was a vegetarian for seventeen years before I finally successfully went vegan.

Self-confidence

Be the best you can be!

Self-confidence is having belief in yourself when considering performing a task or having a capability. If you have self-confidence, you believe in yourself . . . the single most important ingredient for success no matter what the task at hand is. If you don’t believe you can do something, you probably won’t even try.

How do you define self-confidence and how do you rate your self-confidence? The first step in acquiring this very important trait involves an honest assessment of where you presently are. If you are not as high on the self-confidence scale as you would like to be, make today the day you begin taking action. Do what you have to do!

The key to moving up the self-confidence scale involves practicing faith. If you push through those moments of self-doubt with faith, you eventually find self-confidence on the other side.

Keep this in mind as you wander through your day today, and look for opportunities to bolster your self-confidence. If you look, you will find them all around you.
I do . . .