Hey everybody!!! You may already know about the famous (or infamous depending on who you ask) interview Jimmy Kimmel had with Kanye West. The interview took place after Kanye threw an all-caps fit on Twitter because Kimmel mocked an interview he [Kanye] did with BBC. The two sat down and talked out their beef. What followed was an interesting interview. Kanye goes on a 40 minute rant about everything. It was all over the place and exhausting.
I knew I wanted to write about it, I just didn't know what angle to attack it. I had to even go back and watch the interview to really get a hold of it. Then I had an intense debate with my work BFF about the interview. I even took mental notes of different parts of the interview. I don't think I have ever had to think that hard about the context of a post before I actually started typing. So with all that said I will try my best to convey my opinion on what historians will be calling the most famous late night interview: A Sit Down with Kanye
What I Agreed With
Kanye discussed how celebrities are in the zoo and how their realities are often made fun of by others. As I stated before, this all started because Jimmy mocked Kanye in an earlier episode. Jimmy even admitted that sometimes he doesn't think about how his comedy skits might effect celebrities' feelings. I can't imagine my life constantly being under a microscope and then having it mock in a late night sketch. Your every word is dissected and then some comedian basically calls you stupid for it. Celebrities have a constant battle: money and fame versus no longer having a private life. It explains why a lot of them go crazy. Would you be able to keep your sanity? But then Jimmy spitted some truth when he told Kanye that some of his negative reviews are because of his own actions. That at times, he comes off as a jerk. You can't act like a douche bag and then get mad when others call you a douche bag.
Kanye said that he is not a politician and so he doesn't do publicity stunts. Now I could be dead wrong here but I believe him when he says this. When Kanye announced on live television that President Bush didn't care about black people, that was not a cheap shot for attention. When Kanye would show out at awards shows when he didn't win, that was all him. When Mr. West interrupted Taylor Swift to say that Beyonce had the best video of all times, he wasn't doing that for album sales. I believe that it is just his personality. Now it ain't cute but that is just who he is as a human being.
Where the Side Eye Begins
If I hear Kanye call himself a creative genius one more time I will literally burn every Kanye CD I have. Now this is what caused the debate between my work BFF and I. She believes that he is a tortured soul and I believe that he is his own hype man. Ray Charles, Miles Davis, Johnny Cash have all been considered musical geniuses. Not one time did any of these artists say it themselves but let others say it for them. For some reason Kanye believes that no one respects his talents and so he has to continuely tell us how great he is. The whole reason College Dropout was so successful was because it was so different from everything else that was on the scene. On his first album and every album since, he has proved that he is a contender in the rap game and probably any other industry. Why he thinks he still has to prove that puzzles me.
Where the Side Eye Completes
Kanye says that when people think of fashion they think of him. I will give it to him that he has his own swag and even has the potential to do great things in fashion. But he needs to recant that last statement.
When he said that Kim Kardashian deserved a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame I was wondering how Jimmy was able to keep a straight face. The only thing that Kim Kardashian has proven is that you can have absolutely no real talent and stay relevant for 5 plus years. You have TV legends and Academy Award winners who share a spot on the famous walk. These are people that broke down barriers and have received all types of accolades in the entertainment industry. What has Kim accomplished other than having a cameo in a Tyler Perry movie and a clothing line in Sears? Kanye can be proud of his baby mama all day long but a star she is not.
I'm still trying to wrap my mind around this interview but maybe I never will. If it did anything it started some good office conversation.
Have you seen it? What are your thoughts?
Thursday, October 10, 2013
#IsCatfishForReal?
Hey everybody!!! Last night I watched Catfish for the first time in a year. This has to be the most absurd reality show on television. In 2013 with access to Google, Skype, and Facetime, it is hard for me to believe there is even a need for this show. Like seriously, how are people still getting tricked in online relationships?
This past week we met Keyonna (spell check). Homegirl thinks she online dating Bow Wow. If you think you read that last line wrong, you didn't. She thought she was talking to Bow Wow aka Lil Bow Wow aka Shad Moss aka Mr. 106 & Park. And apparently "Bow Wow" was sending homegirl money; $10,000 to be exact. Then when they finally meet "Bow Wow" it is some girl named Dee Pimping that looks like a boy but not Mr. Moss. And Dee didn't have NO remorse about what she did. She at ease talking about how she turns out straight girls. Nev and his personal camera man start asking her how she is able to send Keyonna all this money. Dee tells them that she borrows the money from family and friends. If "family and friends" means drug customers than yea, okay I believe her (or him). Catfish and MTV get a huge side eye for this episode and this show as a whole.
I think I have blogged about this before but what is the point of Catfish? Why does Nev have a job googling other people's love interests? Let's break this down: Person A talks to Person B over the internet for 2 or more years. Person A only gets 2 photos of Person B within that 2 years that obviously look like they were stolen from a professional website. Person B will not Skype or facetime with Person A. Nev talks to Person B for 10 minutes and gets them to meet Person A. Stevie Wonder could see something ain't right.
I cannot take Catfish seriously. And I will not take anybody seriously that makes the decision to go on that show. If you fall for someone you have only texted (Facebook chat at the most) then you deserve that " swimsuit model" to really be a man who is living in his mom's basement. Let's not be stupid, people. Do your research before you let your heart get involved. If after talking to someone for a month they refuse to meet you in a public place, this should ring all the alarms. It's not rocket science, it is simply common sense.
What are your feelings about Catfish?
This past week we met Keyonna (spell check). Homegirl thinks she online dating Bow Wow. If you think you read that last line wrong, you didn't. She thought she was talking to Bow Wow aka Lil Bow Wow aka Shad Moss aka Mr. 106 & Park. And apparently "Bow Wow" was sending homegirl money; $10,000 to be exact. Then when they finally meet "Bow Wow" it is some girl named Dee Pimping that looks like a boy but not Mr. Moss. And Dee didn't have NO remorse about what she did. She at ease talking about how she turns out straight girls. Nev and his personal camera man start asking her how she is able to send Keyonna all this money. Dee tells them that she borrows the money from family and friends. If "family and friends" means drug customers than yea, okay I believe her (or him). Catfish and MTV get a huge side eye for this episode and this show as a whole.
I think I have blogged about this before but what is the point of Catfish? Why does Nev have a job googling other people's love interests? Let's break this down: Person A talks to Person B over the internet for 2 or more years. Person A only gets 2 photos of Person B within that 2 years that obviously look like they were stolen from a professional website. Person B will not Skype or facetime with Person A. Nev talks to Person B for 10 minutes and gets them to meet Person A. Stevie Wonder could see something ain't right.
I cannot take Catfish seriously. And I will not take anybody seriously that makes the decision to go on that show. If you fall for someone you have only texted (Facebook chat at the most) then you deserve that " swimsuit model" to really be a man who is living in his mom's basement. Let's not be stupid, people. Do your research before you let your heart get involved. If after talking to someone for a month they refuse to meet you in a public place, this should ring all the alarms. It's not rocket science, it is simply common sense.
What are your feelings about Catfish?
Monday, October 7, 2013
#LawAndOrderTooSoon?
Hey everybody!!! Last week Law & Order:SVU premiered their third episode of the 15th season. Even before it premiered there was some buzz around it (there are currently over 200 comments on this episode on Hulu.com). As you may know, the Law & Order series takes from real news headlines. Well, this season they have chosen two of this year's biggest cases: Paul Deen's N-Word Mishap and the George Zimmerman Trial.
I'm not surprised they based an episode around these cases. I'm more surprise they chose to do it so soon and all in one episode. They added more fuel to this controversial fire by adding New York's unpopular "Stop and Frisk" law, which allows law enforcement to stop people at random on the street and frisk them if they think they might be a potential criminal (Majority of the people stopped are black or brown males). Yea, the writers were doing the most.
Cybill Shepherd plays Jolene (Paula Deen) who shoots a black kid (Trayvon Martin) who she thinks is going to rape her because there is a black serial rapist on the loose. Come to find out, she shoots the wrong black guy and now Jolene is on trial. Like the real life case, the question is was it self-defense or some white lady shooting black people because she's really a racist and assumes all black men are trying to harm her? SPOILER ALERT (was this disclaimer really needed?): Jolene is found not guilty.
Like the original trial, I felt my blood boiling. I have written prior posts about my feelings for the George Zimmerman trial so it is no surprise I felt my inner Malcolm X coming through. Every emotion I had during that trial came rushing back. But one thing that L&O added was this serial rape case. In the George Zimmerman situation, there was no ongoing investigation that made Zimmerman feel he should approach Trayvon. But in this situation, there is a black rapist on the loose. Was Jolene really wrong for making this assumption? Now do not get me wrong. I do not agree with shooting people because you think they are criminals. But as a woman walking by yourself to your home, how do you not live in fear when you know there is a serial rapist on the run? Also, Jolene felt she was being followed and so felt it necessary to defend herself like Trayvon Martin did with Zimmerman. But unlike Trayvon, Jolene was painted as a racist for defending herself. There are a lot of angles to this episode which make claiming self-defense even more complex.
I'm not sure if Law & Order tackled these two cases too soon or not but what it did do was make you realize how tricky race is. They even made Fin (Ice-T's character) admit that protection could be miscued with racism. How do you make a prompt decision to protect yourself but not come off as if you are targeting someone because of their race? There has been times I have been out running and I see two dudes walking on the sidewalk. Do I assume they are no threat to me or do I cross the street at the risk of stereotyping? Decisions, decisions.
Even with my synopsis I recommend you watch this episode. You see that race isn't always black and white (sorry for the corny last line).
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| Jolene aka Paula Deen played by Cybill Shepherd Source: atlantablackstar.com |
I'm not surprised they based an episode around these cases. I'm more surprise they chose to do it so soon and all in one episode. They added more fuel to this controversial fire by adding New York's unpopular "Stop and Frisk" law, which allows law enforcement to stop people at random on the street and frisk them if they think they might be a potential criminal (Majority of the people stopped are black or brown males). Yea, the writers were doing the most.
Cybill Shepherd plays Jolene (Paula Deen) who shoots a black kid (Trayvon Martin) who she thinks is going to rape her because there is a black serial rapist on the loose. Come to find out, she shoots the wrong black guy and now Jolene is on trial. Like the real life case, the question is was it self-defense or some white lady shooting black people because she's really a racist and assumes all black men are trying to harm her? SPOILER ALERT (was this disclaimer really needed?): Jolene is found not guilty.
Like the original trial, I felt my blood boiling. I have written prior posts about my feelings for the George Zimmerman trial so it is no surprise I felt my inner Malcolm X coming through. Every emotion I had during that trial came rushing back. But one thing that L&O added was this serial rape case. In the George Zimmerman situation, there was no ongoing investigation that made Zimmerman feel he should approach Trayvon. But in this situation, there is a black rapist on the loose. Was Jolene really wrong for making this assumption? Now do not get me wrong. I do not agree with shooting people because you think they are criminals. But as a woman walking by yourself to your home, how do you not live in fear when you know there is a serial rapist on the run? Also, Jolene felt she was being followed and so felt it necessary to defend herself like Trayvon Martin did with Zimmerman. But unlike Trayvon, Jolene was painted as a racist for defending herself. There are a lot of angles to this episode which make claiming self-defense even more complex.
I'm not sure if Law & Order tackled these two cases too soon or not but what it did do was make you realize how tricky race is. They even made Fin (Ice-T's character) admit that protection could be miscued with racism. How do you make a prompt decision to protect yourself but not come off as if you are targeting someone because of their race? There has been times I have been out running and I see two dudes walking on the sidewalk. Do I assume they are no threat to me or do I cross the street at the risk of stereotyping? Decisions, decisions.
Even with my synopsis I recommend you watch this episode. You see that race isn't always black and white (sorry for the corny last line).
Monday, September 30, 2013
#SNLSeason39Recap
Hey everybody!!! I deeply apologize for leaving you guys so long without a post. I am in the midst of moving so things have been crazy for the last month. This past Saturday was the season premiere of Saturday Night Live and even with all the craziness going on in my life, I wanted to do a recap. About a month ago, I wrote about my disappointment with the show's lack of diversity. Unfortunately, SNL has kept up their track record. For season 39 they added six new cast members (five males and one female) and they were all white. In 2013, it is unthinkable that a legendary show like SNL is the least diverse program on television and has been for most of its almost 40 year run. So I guess Keenan Thompson will have to continue to put on a dress to play every black woman in pop culture. But, I digress.
Let's start with the opening sketch. It was about Obamacare and how complicated it is. This sketch was dead on because I, like most Americans, am very confused about the Affordable Care Act and clueless about what is going to happen on October 1. I have to add that Jay Pharaoh does an excellent Obama impersonation. Even though SNL takes a lot shots at conservatives, it was nice to see them poke fun at President Obama and his policies.
Tina Fey hosted the show and she gets two snaps and a twirl from me. During her opening monologue she introduced the new vanilla cast members and had them do a crazy dance number since they are newbies. I was not a regular watcher of SNL during the Fey years but I can see why she is a beloved alum of SNL. She didn't have any well known characters but her comedy timing is perfect. She always says the right line at the right time which leads me to some of my fav sketches of the season premiere:
GIRLS Parody Somewhere between early September and now, I fell in love with GIRLS. I know there is a lot of criticism about the show but I am still a fan of it and SNL's parody had tears in my eyes from laughing. Tina played the new "Girl" Alberta and had me cracking up. She basically made all the Girls' problems seem petty to her third world problems. And new cast member Noel Wells did an awesome Lena Dunham impersonation. Can't wait to see future parodies!
New Cast Member or Arcade Fire? Not only do I notice that SNL has no color but Lorne Michaels (creator and executive producer) does too. During this sketch Tina had to guess who were new cast members and who were members of the band Arcade Fire. Out of nowhere Lorne Michaels comes out and tries to help Tina guess who's who. In the sketch, he refers to Keenan as the "black guy". As funny as it was it just reiterated how vanilla the show really is.
1st Used Car Commercial This sketch had me laughing out loud... literally. Mike O'Brien (new cast member) and Tina stole the show with this piece. Mike's character is filming the first used car commercial and his wife (Tina) keeps saying all this weird, creepy stuff ("I fed my kids to a well"). As I said before, her timing is perfect.
Former Adult Stars Selling Shoes As stupid as this sketch is, it cracks me up every time. These two former adult stars (Cecily Strong and Vanessa Bayer) make these absurd commercials because they are trying to get free merchandise. Basically, their brains are fried from years of drug use and it shows from their inability to put together a simple sentence. Tina shines in this piece also by playing this crazy aggressive former adult star. Like I had to pull out my loud obnoxious laugh for this one.
The season started on a good note and I look forward to the rest of the season to see who is going to be the new Bill Haders and Kristen Wiigs.
Did you catch the new season? What was your fav sketch?
 |
| Source: en.wikipedia.org |
Tina Fey hosted the show and she gets two snaps and a twirl from me. During her opening monologue she introduced the new vanilla cast members and had them do a crazy dance number since they are newbies. I was not a regular watcher of SNL during the Fey years but I can see why she is a beloved alum of SNL. She didn't have any well known characters but her comedy timing is perfect. She always says the right line at the right time which leads me to some of my fav sketches of the season premiere:
GIRLS Parody Somewhere between early September and now, I fell in love with GIRLS. I know there is a lot of criticism about the show but I am still a fan of it and SNL's parody had tears in my eyes from laughing. Tina played the new "Girl" Alberta and had me cracking up. She basically made all the Girls' problems seem petty to her third world problems. And new cast member Noel Wells did an awesome Lena Dunham impersonation. Can't wait to see future parodies!
New Cast Member or Arcade Fire? Not only do I notice that SNL has no color but Lorne Michaels (creator and executive producer) does too. During this sketch Tina had to guess who were new cast members and who were members of the band Arcade Fire. Out of nowhere Lorne Michaels comes out and tries to help Tina guess who's who. In the sketch, he refers to Keenan as the "black guy". As funny as it was it just reiterated how vanilla the show really is.
1st Used Car Commercial This sketch had me laughing out loud... literally. Mike O'Brien (new cast member) and Tina stole the show with this piece. Mike's character is filming the first used car commercial and his wife (Tina) keeps saying all this weird, creepy stuff ("I fed my kids to a well"). As I said before, her timing is perfect.
Former Adult Stars Selling Shoes As stupid as this sketch is, it cracks me up every time. These two former adult stars (Cecily Strong and Vanessa Bayer) make these absurd commercials because they are trying to get free merchandise. Basically, their brains are fried from years of drug use and it shows from their inability to put together a simple sentence. Tina shines in this piece also by playing this crazy aggressive former adult star. Like I had to pull out my loud obnoxious laugh for this one.
The season started on a good note and I look forward to the rest of the season to see who is going to be the new Bill Haders and Kristen Wiigs.
Did you catch the new season? What was your fav sketch?
Thursday, September 19, 2013
#GIRLSGetsMe
Hey everybody!!! With my lack cable television, I have had to resort to other forms of entertainment. This has lead to more reading, writing projects, and buying TV shows on DVD. The latest series I'm watching is GIRLS. This was the first time I bought a series on DVD and had never seen an episode. What initially fascinated me with the series was Lena Dunham. She is the director, writer, and creator of Girls (and she is just 27). With all the hype around the show, I wanted to see for myself was it really deserving of it.
Honestly, ten minutes into the first episode I thought I was going to be selling the DVD on Amazon. In the first episode, Hannah (Lena Dunham's character) is having dinner with her parents and they drop a bomb on her: they will no longer be supporting her. At this point, I thought that I would not be able to relate to the rest of the series. Personally, after I started working for the housing department at my university, I was basically living on my own at 21 years old and have ever since. So the whole "parents cutting you off" thing was foreign to me. So I had made up my mind that this show was about rich girls who complain about their "hard" lives. But as I kept watching I realized that I could relate to this show more than I thought.
Here are some things that made me say "Been there, done that":
Every woman has dated an Adam Does not matter if you are black, white, green, or purple, all women can relate to man problems. Specifically, many women can relate to dating an Adam. Adam was Hannah's friends with benefits turned boyfriend. Adam is the guy you should've never gave your number to. Adam is the guy that texts you in the middle of the night and you immediately reply. Adam fools you into thinking he is your true love but in reality, he just going to break your heart. It is something about him that keeps you coming back even though he is simply just not relationship material.
Graduated, now what? When you are in college, your dreams are limitless. Your eyes are wide open about your future. Then you graduate and real life slaps you in the face and nags you about paying back your student loans. All the plans you had for post college are now distant dreams. More than likely you have a job you had to take and you feel like you never have enough money. And did I mention those pesky student loans? Martie discusses in one episode that she feels she has done everything right, yet nothing is working out for her. I share her feelings. You feel jaded. You work hard but no return on your investment. Life after college is not so great, which leads me to my next point...
Some of your darkest days will be in your 20s As the last point brought out, you live your early 20s through rose colored glasses. Then you learn adulthood is not all that fun. You get a taste of adversity and it is bitter. When I graduated I had the worst luck finding employment. My first 3 post-graduate jobs all paid minimum wage. I very rarely ate out with friends or did any other recreational activity (because of my lack of funds). My life sucked. I felt myself becoming depressed and ashamed. My self-esteem was shot because of my inability to find a good paying job. I felt like walls were closing in on me. And at one point, all I wanted to do was lay in bed. Towards the end of season 2 of Girls, Hannah has a nervous breakdown. Her OCD returns and she lets a junkie give her a hideous hair cut. Yep, she definitely has a breakdown. As I watched her slowly fall into a deep dark hole I had a flashback to that time I was unemployed and depressed and could understand every emotion she was feeling. I, fortunately, never let a junkie give me a hair cut but I can certainly understand being ready to throw in the towel and say "forget it."
Girls gets me. As a writer, I share Hannah's aspirations for wanting to be this generation's next big thing in writing. No, I don't live in a big city nor do I stay in a cute studio apartment but I can relate to the not-so-awesome early years of adulthood. With that said, I am so amped for season 3!
Have you watched Girls? If so, what did you think of it?
Honestly, ten minutes into the first episode I thought I was going to be selling the DVD on Amazon. In the first episode, Hannah (Lena Dunham's character) is having dinner with her parents and they drop a bomb on her: they will no longer be supporting her. At this point, I thought that I would not be able to relate to the rest of the series. Personally, after I started working for the housing department at my university, I was basically living on my own at 21 years old and have ever since. So the whole "parents cutting you off" thing was foreign to me. So I had made up my mind that this show was about rich girls who complain about their "hard" lives. But as I kept watching I realized that I could relate to this show more than I thought.
 |
| You have more in common with these "girls" than you think Source: sabotagetimes.com |
Here are some things that made me say "Been there, done that":
Every woman has dated an Adam Does not matter if you are black, white, green, or purple, all women can relate to man problems. Specifically, many women can relate to dating an Adam. Adam was Hannah's friends with benefits turned boyfriend. Adam is the guy you should've never gave your number to. Adam is the guy that texts you in the middle of the night and you immediately reply. Adam fools you into thinking he is your true love but in reality, he just going to break your heart. It is something about him that keeps you coming back even though he is simply just not relationship material.
Graduated, now what? When you are in college, your dreams are limitless. Your eyes are wide open about your future. Then you graduate and real life slaps you in the face and nags you about paying back your student loans. All the plans you had for post college are now distant dreams. More than likely you have a job you had to take and you feel like you never have enough money. And did I mention those pesky student loans? Martie discusses in one episode that she feels she has done everything right, yet nothing is working out for her. I share her feelings. You feel jaded. You work hard but no return on your investment. Life after college is not so great, which leads me to my next point...
Some of your darkest days will be in your 20s As the last point brought out, you live your early 20s through rose colored glasses. Then you learn adulthood is not all that fun. You get a taste of adversity and it is bitter. When I graduated I had the worst luck finding employment. My first 3 post-graduate jobs all paid minimum wage. I very rarely ate out with friends or did any other recreational activity (because of my lack of funds). My life sucked. I felt myself becoming depressed and ashamed. My self-esteem was shot because of my inability to find a good paying job. I felt like walls were closing in on me. And at one point, all I wanted to do was lay in bed. Towards the end of season 2 of Girls, Hannah has a nervous breakdown. Her OCD returns and she lets a junkie give her a hideous hair cut. Yep, she definitely has a breakdown. As I watched her slowly fall into a deep dark hole I had a flashback to that time I was unemployed and depressed and could understand every emotion she was feeling. I, fortunately, never let a junkie give me a hair cut but I can certainly understand being ready to throw in the towel and say "forget it."
Girls gets me. As a writer, I share Hannah's aspirations for wanting to be this generation's next big thing in writing. No, I don't live in a big city nor do I stay in a cute studio apartment but I can relate to the not-so-awesome early years of adulthood. With that said, I am so amped for season 3!
Have you watched Girls? If so, what did you think of it?
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| Why are you not watching this show?? Source: www.pitchfork.com |
Sunday, September 8, 2013
#CurvyAndHealthy
Hey everybody!!! First off, I want to thank you for tuning in this past August as I did my #31WriteNow Challenge. I did not write for everyday in August but it is the most writing I have done in a long time. It really pushed me to be creative with posts and just WRITE, even when I was not in the mood. I know that I gained new readers and I welcome you.
While having a conversation with a friend about being proud to be a curvy woman, an issue came up. He questioned rather being proud of being curvy also meant being proud of an unhealthy lifestyle. I could not get offended right off the bat because this is commonly misunderstood. So I have decided to try to break down what it means to be a proud full-figured woman.
Let's get something straight, not every woman that is curvy is lazy. Not all curvy women sit around and eat Twinkies all day. Most thicker women I know are quite active. There is this thing called genetics. If the majority of the women in your family have wide hips and thick thighs, it is more than likely that you will have it too. If you see the women on my dad's side of the family you will see that I never had a chance of being a size 2 (not throwing shade because I believe that I come from a beautiful family, regardless of size). Other physical problems can play a factor like having a not-so-great thyroid gland. The thyroid gland controls a lot of your body. If this gland is not working properly it could cause you to gain weight. There are many factors why a woman might be carry a few pounds so it is best not to judge in the first place.
When curvy women embrace their bodies this does not equate to embracing an unhealthy lifestyle. Embracing your body means that you have love for your self at that current stage. Even if you are in transition you should still have love for yourself. Why should a bigger girl hate her body? Heck, there are skinny girls who hate their body. Also, us thicker girls have overcame some serious hurdles in the last decade that has caused for celebration. When you walked in a department store it was difficult to find fashionable clothes for the thicker girls. We do not want to only wear big moo-moos or baby-doll blouses. We also do not like to only wear floral prints. Thicker have started to break the "big girl" attire rules. At one point in time, voluptuous women were encourage to wear black, baggy clothes and stay away from horizontal stripes. Thick girls are now wearing all patterns and colors and even embracing crop tops and bikinis. Our style options have become limitless.
Curvy women are making breakthroughs on the runway, too. Modeling use to be a skinny girl's game. Now we are seeing size 14s, 16s, and 22s on the catwalk. I made a post back a few months ago about my first experience being a model. It was so empowering to be around women who had mad confidence. The public was receptive too. Every time a model stepped on the runway the audience went wild. They LOVED our confidence. Even on BET's Rip the Runway the curvy girl segment is the most anticipated part of the show. People love the fierceness the full-figured models exuberate.
So, do not get it confused. Loving your body does not mean not exercising. Loving your body does not mean eating Doritos by the pound. Loving your body does not mean advocating hypertension. Loving your body means embracing yourself throughout your transformation. The journey to a healthy body (physical, emotional, and mental) is not easy but there is no room for self-hate on that journey.
While having a conversation with a friend about being proud to be a curvy woman, an issue came up. He questioned rather being proud of being curvy also meant being proud of an unhealthy lifestyle. I could not get offended right off the bat because this is commonly misunderstood. So I have decided to try to break down what it means to be a proud full-figured woman.
Let's get something straight, not every woman that is curvy is lazy. Not all curvy women sit around and eat Twinkies all day. Most thicker women I know are quite active. There is this thing called genetics. If the majority of the women in your family have wide hips and thick thighs, it is more than likely that you will have it too. If you see the women on my dad's side of the family you will see that I never had a chance of being a size 2 (not throwing shade because I believe that I come from a beautiful family, regardless of size). Other physical problems can play a factor like having a not-so-great thyroid gland. The thyroid gland controls a lot of your body. If this gland is not working properly it could cause you to gain weight. There are many factors why a woman might be carry a few pounds so it is best not to judge in the first place.
 |
| Hating my body? Ain't nobody got time for that! |
When curvy women embrace their bodies this does not equate to embracing an unhealthy lifestyle. Embracing your body means that you have love for your self at that current stage. Even if you are in transition you should still have love for yourself. Why should a bigger girl hate her body? Heck, there are skinny girls who hate their body. Also, us thicker girls have overcame some serious hurdles in the last decade that has caused for celebration. When you walked in a department store it was difficult to find fashionable clothes for the thicker girls. We do not want to only wear big moo-moos or baby-doll blouses. We also do not like to only wear floral prints. Thicker have started to break the "big girl" attire rules. At one point in time, voluptuous women were encourage to wear black, baggy clothes and stay away from horizontal stripes. Thick girls are now wearing all patterns and colors and even embracing crop tops and bikinis. Our style options have become limitless.
Curvy women are making breakthroughs on the runway, too. Modeling use to be a skinny girl's game. Now we are seeing size 14s, 16s, and 22s on the catwalk. I made a post back a few months ago about my first experience being a model. It was so empowering to be around women who had mad confidence. The public was receptive too. Every time a model stepped on the runway the audience went wild. They LOVED our confidence. Even on BET's Rip the Runway the curvy girl segment is the most anticipated part of the show. People love the fierceness the full-figured models exuberate.
So, do not get it confused. Loving your body does not mean not exercising. Loving your body does not mean eating Doritos by the pound. Loving your body does not mean advocating hypertension. Loving your body means embracing yourself throughout your transformation. The journey to a healthy body (physical, emotional, and mental) is not easy but there is no room for self-hate on that journey.
Monday, August 26, 2013
#MileyCyrusTwerks
Hey everybody!!! It's the night after the VMAs so you already know what this post is going to be about. Lately, the last few music awards have not been that great but there has been that one moment that leaves a conversation piece for the next day. The 2013 VMAs did not disappoint us for a conversation piece.
Miley Cyrus wanted us all to know that she is no longer Hannah Montana. If you thought that for one second, Ms. Cyrus killed that thought with her performance. I have no idea what I was suppose to get out of it. There were huge teddy bears, girls twerking, a really big booty girl twerking, a foam finger, and a plastic bikini. I wish I could have been in on the creative team's meeting when they discussed this "idea". I actually wish I was on the creative team so I could have backhanded everyone that came up with this concept and then came up with a better one. But unfortunately, for Miley Cyrus. I was not on the creative team and her performance was a hot mess.
Some have said that this was her moving into womanhood moment. Well, it was not a smooth transition. Madonna, Brittney Spears, and Christina Aguilera all had their coming of age moment, but I don't remember it being uncomfortable for those watching. At one point, Miley was bent over in front of Robin Thicke. He is old enough to be her cool uncle. I get that she wants to shake her Disney image but this was the worst way to have done that. It felt like she had watched a marathon of videos on BET and thought she was a bonafide video dancer. And apparently, she thought hanging with black girls would automatically make her "down". Were these the black girls she was speaking of in "Party in the USA" song? Probably not.
Miley, this performance was not lady-like. You will now be the butt of every comedians jokes. I can only imagine the SNL sketch that is going to be done in your behalf. If your goal was to have people talking about you then you succeeded. But honey, I do not think you got the attention you wanted.
Miley Cyrus wanted us all to know that she is no longer Hannah Montana. If you thought that for one second, Ms. Cyrus killed that thought with her performance. I have no idea what I was suppose to get out of it. There were huge teddy bears, girls twerking, a really big booty girl twerking, a foam finger, and a plastic bikini. I wish I could have been in on the creative team's meeting when they discussed this "idea". I actually wish I was on the creative team so I could have backhanded everyone that came up with this concept and then came up with a better one. But unfortunately, for Miley Cyrus. I was not on the creative team and her performance was a hot mess.
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| I agree, Drake, I agree Source: blog.zap2it.com |
You knew from the get-go it was going to be a disaster. The moment she stepped out of that fuzzy teddy bear with her tongue sticking out for the world to see, you just knew it was going downhill. Then for the rest of the performance she felt impelled to continue to show us her reptile-like tongue. She was also doing this weird crump dance and groping herself. She officially ended the popular dance formerly known as "twerking." She twerked towards the audience, she twerked on the teddy bears, she put her face on someone else's booty while they twerked; there was just too much twerking for one performance. What made her twerking worse was that she was terrible at it. Like, she wasn't even that white girl that surprises everyone with her dancing moves. Her dance moves were horrific. There was nothing graceful about her performance. Dancing is most definitely not one of her strengths, twerking or not.Some have said that this was her moving into womanhood moment. Well, it was not a smooth transition. Madonna, Brittney Spears, and Christina Aguilera all had their coming of age moment, but I don't remember it being uncomfortable for those watching. At one point, Miley was bent over in front of Robin Thicke. He is old enough to be her cool uncle. I get that she wants to shake her Disney image but this was the worst way to have done that. It felt like she had watched a marathon of videos on BET and thought she was a bonafide video dancer. And apparently, she thought hanging with black girls would automatically make her "down". Were these the black girls she was speaking of in "Party in the USA" song? Probably not.
Miley, this performance was not lady-like. You will now be the butt of every comedians jokes. I can only imagine the SNL sketch that is going to be done in your behalf. If your goal was to have people talking about you then you succeeded. But honey, I do not think you got the attention you wanted.
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