My road to being healthy: week 1

So....the day after I wrote my last post, I went to McDonalds. I also went to McDonalds the day I wrote the post. So I guess you can say we're off to a great start!

This week, I decided that I needed to get rid of all of the unhealthy food that was in my fridge/freezer/cupboards in order to make room for the new healthy awesome food. Seeing as I'm not a wasteful person, the only solution was to eat it all. Don't even tell me you wouldn't do the same.

I DID however work out a lot [edit: I wrote this part on Thursday hoping it would be true of the rest of the week. Wishful thinking]. On Thursday, I watched last weeks episode of How To Get Away With Murder and did a bunch of strength training stuff, and then I put on my Spotify and had a one-person dance party to Sorry by Justin Bieber (it really is a fantastic song), along with some other Top 40 songs I had never heard before. I tried to remember all of the moves that I had learned when we did Jazzercize at camp, but I'm pretty sure I just made most of it up. Did I break a sweat though? You bet.

I did eat a cookie immediately after, but let's just pretend that I made some progress ok?
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That was the last time I worked out all week. Things happened, I got busy, and then I got a 48 hour flu thing which caused me to lie around in excruciating body pain for two days straight. No working out (or eating healthy) for me.

Sooooo week 1 was a bust. Let's see how week 2 goes.

HEALTHY EATING AND LIVING!!!!

It has been almost an entire year since my last post. The best I can say is "oops, sorry."

For the last month or so, I've been feeling super duper motivated to work out, which I literally never wanted to do before, but I'm still not quite at the cut-out-food-that-is-probably-terrible-for-you stage. So I thought maybe doing a blog series about my road to healthy living would maybe help me do that. Because if I have to come back here every week and tell the world what it is I've been eating in order to help me become healthy, maybe I'll be more inclined to put the healthy stuff into my body and take the crappy stuff out of my fridge? It's worth a shot.

So here's what's going to (hopefully) happen:

Every week, I will make a post about the fun workout things I've been doing, and the fun healthy foods I've been eating, and then we'll document my progress. This will probably be incredibly boring for all of you, but it will possibly help me do a better job and that's what really matters since I'm not being paid to write this!

I tend to work out when I'm watching TV, because then I'm not bored, and I'm also not just sitting. Working my body AND my mind! Double whammy!

I only ever work out at home because I'm too scared to go to my school's gym because everyone there is really intense. I also don't want to go running outside because people will stare at my abnormally red face and judge me for being a bad runner. I just watch YouTube videos and follow fitspo accounts on Instagram.

First fun workout thing:
On friday, I did 75 SQUATS! My friend told me that my butt looked bigger, which is what I was aiming for, so clearly that part of my exercising is working!

That is all.

"Is this what people wear when they work out?"

Thanksgiving

I know what you're thinking:
"You live in Canada. We already celebrated Thanksgiving. Why are you talking about this now?"

And to that, I will respond:
Who says we can only have one day to be thankful?
Who says we can't give thanks every day?

I'm thankful for sun and the energy it gives me.
I'm thankful for cozy sweaters to keep me warm when it's cold.
I'm thankful for ice, because without it, there's no hockey.

I'm thankful for my parents and the wisdom they've given me.
I'm thankful for my friends and their everlasting support.
I'm thankful for cashiers and the patience they obtain even when the days are rough and they've just been yelled at for the hundredth time.

I'm thankful for my education and the opportunities it gives me.
I'm thankful for technology which gives me all the answers I need.
I'm thankful for bus drivers even when they pass me by because I know they're just trying to be on time.

I'm thankful for music and the way I can feel it in my toes.
I'm thankful for Tyler Ward, because he writes songs from his heart, he loves his fans like friends, he uses his fame to send positive messages, and he picked me out of a crowd of hundreds of people and made my day week month year life so much better.

I'm thankful for TV and the lessons I've learned from my shows and movies.
I'm thankful for Harry Potter, and how it has been a part of me from the very beginning to the very end. Always.
I'm thankful for James Lafferty, because...come on, who wouldn't be?

I'm thankful for feminism because every man and woman deserves a voice.
I'm thankful for postmodernism because sometimes it's better not to have all the answers.
I'm thankful for Christianity because I wouldn't be who I am today without God's grace and guidance.

I'm thankful that I have a roof over my head, clothes on my body, food in my fridge, and clean water to drink.
I'm thankful that I have the right to vote.
I'm thankful for the 24 hour Starbucks down the street, where I can always go to do work (and stare at cute boys).
I'm thankful for pizza. I don't even have to explain this one.
I'm even thankful for Justin Bieber, because he brings many young girls happiness. He has his flaws, but so do I. So do you.

Instead of complaining about the things we don't have, we should try being grateful for the things that we do have.
This world would be a lot happier if we stopped taking things for granted and started being thankful.
Try it.

Gender Socialization in the Media and its Effect on Girls

[I wrote this for a blog exercise for one of my classes, but I thought I'd share it on here too because it's something I'm passionate about!]

There was a press conference a couple of years ago to promote the movie The Avengers. While watching just the first few minutes, I noticed that the questions that were directed towards the men pertained to the acting, the filming, and the character development, whereas when Scarlett Johansson (who plays The Black Widow, a very strong, witty, sarcastic, agile, and courageous character) was asked a question, it wasn't about her acting skills, it wasn't about Black Widow's character development. In fact, it had no relation to her immense talent whatsoever. The exact wording of the question directed at her was "To get into shape for Black Widow did you have anything special to do in terms of the diet, like did you have to eat any specific food, or that sort of thing?” Being the wonderful individual she is, she answered the question with absolute grace, though she is clearly unimpressed by the "rabbit food" question. And why shouldn't she be unimpressed, when all her male costars are being asked existential questions, and she, just because she's a woman, is asked about her body? You can watch the interaction in the video above (3:00-4:26).

This gives us a little bit of insight on the large issue of gender socialization from the media. So many female celebrities, like Scarlett, are subjected to questions, interviews, and ratings about their appearance, rather than their talent. For example, when Ryan Seacrest was interviewing the Academy Award attendees last weekend, he asked most of the men about their careers, but he asked the women first about their dresses (since "that's what everyone wants to know about"), and then maybe about their movies. [see here] Why is this topic so important to touch upon? I'll tell you why. Because it's intended target eats it up. 

Everywhere I look, I see ads for makeup, hair, clothing, weight loss, and modelling agencies. Teen girls see these, and they hear "You're not good enough, so buy this and you will be." I see interviews with beautifully made-up female stars, talking about their wardrobes. Girls watch these, and they hear "Talent isn't important, it's your outward appearance that really matters." I see magazine articles, featuring new mothers who lost their baby weight in four months.

Girls read these, and they hear "Over-exercising to look good is more important than taking care of your baby, because who wants a fat mother?" Though all of these values are false, young girls (the ones who are being targeted) believe them, because these values define society's stereotypical, desirable woman - flawless, thin, with perfect hair, perfect teeth, and a perfect boyfriend. This belief transfers to their everyday actions.

Patricia Adler (1992) states that the extra curricular activities that girls participate in are focused around glamour and concern for their appearance. Her findings from her study show that one of the main causes for popularity in girls is physical appearance. The more popular girls have the nicer clothes, the nicer makeup, and the more attention from boys. But how did this become the definition of popular? The media. Girls believe that if they have all of these qualities, they'll be more like their favourite celebrity, and looking like a celebrity means you'll be successful. 

Thinking as a feminist theorist, I believe that there is a huge problem in the media's portrayal of women. Men are seen as successful for their talents, and women are more so seen as successful for their looks. This causes young girls to have lower self-esteem if their looks aren't at that level.

What can we do to change this?

Song Idea - "Sunday, December 22nd, 2013"

During the holidays, our power went off for 86 hours, and while it was off, we stayed at my Grandmother's house. The first night we got there, her power actually went off as well, so we spent the night sitting around the table with candles as our only source of light, and I wrote this song. It's super rough, but hey, I'm no prodigy! It's basically about how we should be grateful for what we have, and we shouldn't take things for granted!


By the light of the fire
I sit in solitude
No noise, no distractions
Just me, thinking of You

Sitting by the candles
The lights, the flicker on and off
Illuminate the stillness
Like the flames in my heart

The radio comes on
The stillness is suddenly gone
But the thought of You still resonates
In my mind

Because You, Lord, You lived
Long ago, without the things we have now
You, Lord, You lived
Without lights, without cars, or online communication
Help us be thankful for what we have
Help us remember You this year (<-- this was originally "Christmas" but since it's past that I changed it)

Constant complaints
Shatter the air straight through
"I can't live without the internet!" and
"What are we going to do?"

But if you take some time
And just sit by the fire
And think about the One who saved us all
Then maybe you'll reclaim desire (<---- super rough, will be changing that)

The radio announcer says
"72 hours of dark"
How about instead of freaking out,
You remember Jesus, our very own spark

'Cause You, Lord, You lived
Long ago, without the things we have now
You, Lord, You lived
Without lights, without cars, or online communication
Help us be thankful for what we have
Help us remember You this year

Writer's Block

Blink, blink, blink.
I stare at a blank page.
The cursor flashes on and off, on and off, on and off.
I start to type.
"Hello everyone, I would like to talk abou-" [delete]...too formal.
"Waddup homie-" [delete]...too informal; no one will take me seriously.
I stare, and I stare, and I stare.
Why is it so hard to put my thoughts into words?

Blink, blink, blink.
It's almost hypnotizing, that little flashing line.
My mind is jumbled with possible phrases
But my fingers freeze up, unable to put what I'm thinking
To justice.
I just want to write about my passions:
Music, Abolition, God.
But I can't.

Blink, blink, blink.
"Sophie, you should start a blog!" I thought to myself,
That one day in March.
What was I thinking?
My heart wants to write, but
My mind thinks "You're not good enough."
And what do I listen to?
My heart, of course!
Because I've heard the song -
"Listen to your heart, when it's calling for you"
I want to prove my mind wrong.
"I AM good enough." I tell it.
But am I?

Blink, blink, blink.
If I'm truly good enough,
Then why is this so difficult for me?
"Maybe I'll try writing songs," I say.
I listen and listen and listen to the artists
I look up to.
They can do it, so I can too.
I play a chord on my guitar.
Starting off simple, with a G.
I wait for the words to come...
Nothing.
Maybe a Bm?
Still nothing.
Alright, alright. It must be a C.
I start to get frustrated.
Maybe, just maybe,
My mind has a point.

Blink, blink, blink.
The cursor seems to be staring at me,
Judging me,
Saying "Come on, Sophie, how hard can it be?"
I turn off my computer and switch to paper.
No more flashing.
No more pressure.
Surely it should be easier now?

Blink, blink, blink.
The lines on the page are running together
As I try my hardest to blink the tears of frustration
Out of my eyes.
I can't write.
I sigh heavily and rip the page up.
My mind won.
I guess writing just isn't for me.

[Writer's Block - an original poem by me]

Throwback Thursday: Blast From the Past!

Heyoo!

Gosh it's been a while...I'm currently sitting in the library at school, waiting to buy a textbook from a girl I met on Facebook. Normally, I would watch one of my many TV shows to pass the time, but things have changed in the last few days! I have decided to take a fast from not only TV, but many other social networking sites that have distracted me from my schoolwork the past year and a half. I'm still unsure about whether I'm in the right major, but I feel like it will be easier to tell if I like it if I ACTUALLY spend time doing the work without distractions!

As it is only the first week of school, and no assignments have been given yet, I must find other ways to pass the time, and this was the one that popped into my head! So here I am!

Recently, I've been exploring old photos from when I was little, and I thought I would share some with you, as it is Throwback Thursday!

in order: my first halloween // a couple of snaps of me running - I was a very active child! // me and my dad // me and my mom // me and my stuffies

I love looking over old photos, it just brings me so much joy! One thing I love about being an only child is that there is no shortage of photos from my childhood.

I hope you enjoyed them! I also hope to be back on this blog more regularly (since I have no distractions)

xoxo Sophie