F-U-C-K me??

THIS cracks me up!

Of all the morally offensive and vulgar music playing on our radio stations, this is what people are getting all huffy about?

I don't know about you, but I didn't pick up on the hidden meaning 'til I read it online...

Oh Brit Brit.

A New Leaf for a Happier and Healthier 2009

My New Leaf!

~Hit the gym 3-5 times per week.

I've been blessed (or cursed, depending on how you look at it) with a lightening-speed metabolism and a petite bone structure, which keeps my weight from being an issue. But of course, good exercise has more benefits than a svelte figure, so working out is a huge part of my New Leaf. I have never been this enthused. Not only will I look fantastic and toned for my upcoming trip to Vegas, but I will have more energy, sleep better, get sick less often (according to my doctor), and hopefully not get winded when I talk on the phone!

~Move to Arlington.... with a stranger.

Closer to friends and my favorite activities. Plus, it will be my first opportunity since college to do something completely on my own. I feel very dependent, depended on, and thus confused and unfocused right now. It will be a growing experience I think I really need!

~Daily vitamins.

I've already started this section of the Leaf, and am already reaping the benefits. I take a Multi-Vitamin for Women at every lunch, and a Vitamin C at every dinner. My illnesses are now less frequent and more short-lived!

~Drink less alcohol.

I go out a lot, and binge drinking is a little more frequent than it should be. I want to switch out the vodka shots for Rockstar. And the cocktails for water. I don't need to drink a lot to have a good time... and it would be nice to do other things on Saturday and Sunday than recover.

***This rule is null and void when I go to Vegas in March... just sayin'!***

~Bedtimes.

I haven't done this since I was eight years old... but I am establishing a weeknight bedtime for between 10 and 11 pm. So please, no one IM me at 10:15 unless you can keep it down to 10 minutes or so... and unless you are having a freak out and really need to talk. ;)

~ No more eyeliner unless I'm going out or trying to impress.

This is simple and silly, and of course eyeliner isn't unhealthy or bad, but for me it goes back to the principle of not trying so hard, looking natural, and just reducing the daily maintenance process. I don't need seductive cat-eyes for work. I may expand this effort into other arenas at any given time... like letting my hair air-dry, and pulling it back more (so I mess with it less).

~Febreze and Lysol spray my bed.

Yeah.... I guess you shouldn't ask.

~Get off of Facebook.

I spend entirely too much time on the computer. Between work, checking the news, chatting, Perez Hilton, Myspace, and Facebook, it's a wonder I don't have a hunchback and a severe case of carpel tunnel. The most consuming and least productive of these online indulgences is Facebook--it's almost constantly open. So, my goal is to keep it closed unless I'm updating, uploading, or actually communicating. Stalking and boredom is not a good reason to log-on.

~Protein and Zinc.

I work with this adorable former pilot named Gina, who is always worried about my health and my body temperature. She was a lot like me at my age, really thin and quick to get sick. She constantly references her flight surgeon, and all the advice she received from him on how to stay healthy. Protein bars... and zinc!!!

~THE SECRET

Okay, I'm a little tiny bit embarrassed to include this in my Leaf, but I have enough interest in it to give it a shot. A crazy co-worker back in my Vidal Sassoon days told me about it (the Law of Attraction), and some of her insights and anecdotes were so dead-on that I decided to overlook the crazy and just check it out. I ordered the book and the video off Amazon and will approach it with an open mind, viewing it not as a magical fix-all, but as an outlook and philosophy to apply to my own life. Hey, positive thinking never hurt anyone! I'll keep you posted on what I think of it.

I have a few other silly little ideas that I'm going to experiment with, and see how they work. I just know I've been bogged down for so long and I was trying to fix it the wrong way. Here's to a happier and healthier 2009!

My Beef With Chick Flicks

Okay... I don't mean to overanalyze books and movies designed primarily for laughs... and I totally have no problem watching one from time to time.. .but I really need to get something off my chest.

I just saw Bride Wars, the new Kate Hudson/Anne Hathaway movie that can join the other pile of chick crap that gets me all flustered sitting in the theater. It had a few LOL moments, but in general--what a waste. I expected it to some degree, but honestly, if I see one more movie that highlights and perpetuates negative female stereotypes, I'm enrolling in film school and making my own.

Bride Wars portrays women as desperate, catty shrews who will kick their best friends to the curb for the sake of clothes, jewelry, status, and men. Sure, the two protagonists kiss and make up in the end, but not after entertaining throngs of moviegoers with plenty of immature bitchiness and psychotic episodes.

Almost every female character in the movie represented a different stereotype, from the woman who hated the fact that her friend would have a "better" wedding than her, to the woman counting on future divorces for more money, to the woman who really DID care that her best friend got the proposal first ("Oh no, seriously I am so happy for you, I'm not upset!" *gulps two pints of Ben & Jerry's.*) Even Kate Hudson's character has to stalk her boyfriend at the office and beg him to propose. These are ADULT women still reveling in middle/high school style drama.

If women are like that in real life (which I assume they are, since something inspires this crap and magazines like Cosmo even write about it), then we need some serious help. The desperation in every character made me paranoid (just for a second) that if I'm not settled and married before age 30, it's all over for me and I will die miserable, ugly, and alone. The only characters I could stand in the whole movie were the men, as they helplessly watched their fiancees lose it while they prepared to pledge their lives to each other.

I don't know why people so enjoy story lines that pit women against each other, but that seems to be the hot commodity these days. Movies like Bride Wars, Clueless, and Sex and the City, reality shows like Top Model and Rock of Love, chick-lit like Shopaholic (sorry Wendz!) and Bergdorf Blondes, and even songs like Beyonce's "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)" reduce women to fashion, cat fights, and/or men.

And THEN we wonder why men don't respect us! I certainly don't want a man to reduce me to shoes and a clicking biological clock.

Can't we get some female role models who emphasize something other than Prada and Prince Charming? Women who won't go to extreme lengths to get the bag or the man? Women who develop character, intellect, career, family, and actual mature relationships? Fashion and (unfortunately) petty drama is a part of life too, but the role it has taken in our culture and daily lives concerns me, especially as it weaves its way through popular entertainment, ripe for the next generation of women to emulate.

We need more movies like "Little Women," "Anna and the King", "Contact," or even "Devil Wears Prada." But I guess a strong, smart woman isn't as entertaining as a cat fight between two glamazons.

New Music for a New Year!!

LADY GAGA

Oh my gosh... my new fave. How do I even begin to explain Lady GaGa? Perez has been hyping her for a while, but I never actually listen to his suggestions because he loves those Euro beats a little too much. After hearing "Just Dance" in the clubs however, I started wondering who she was... then stole her entire album from Wendi... then fell in love. She is fun, loud, crazy, unique, and bringing back pop, baby! (THANK GOD.)


NE-YO


I never really listened to Ne-Yo, but now I'm loving him, and I can't get "Miss Independent" out of my head. I think I have a crush on him because he's a hip-hop artist who refuses to demean women in his music, and is outspoken against the tendency to do so in his genre. How refreshing!



BLACKMORE'S NIGHT

Okay, so most of you might find this one weird... but I LOVE all the music I've heard from them so far! I discovered them on Pandora Christmas station and loved their rendition of "Ding Dong Merrily on High" so much that I tracked them down on Myspace to hear more. They are a mix of celtic, folk, Renaissance, and rock that is either beautiful, haunting, relaxing, or lighthearted at any given time. I love music that mixes genres. I also love traditional/cultural music with a modern edge!


KEVIN RUDOLF


So, I've only heard one song, but if the rest of his work is anything like "Let it Rock," then Kevin is most definitely going to be a new addition to my iPod.






BRITNEY'S CIRCUS!!!!

Ha, okay... so Britney isn't a new fave... she's my true love. BUT she still gets a spot in this blog because "Circus" is amazing and I can't stop listening to it. Can't wait for her concert in March!!