Queen

I am quite taken with the buzzword 'Queen' however, I am not a big fan of its current usage. The word 'Queen' denotes a female person of great power, influence, character, royalty and service. Despite the incredible prowess of this word, I have seen this term attached to celebrities from Anna Nicole Smith to the Kardashians. When I see this word being used in this way I find myself asking these questions, "Queen of what? Queen of narcissism? Queen of selfies? Queen of gold-digging? Queen of image?"

This isn't to say that celebrities cannot be 'Queens' or that the fashion/beauty/entertainment industries are somehow inherently insidious and lacking in character or philanthropy. Comparatively, no one is a 'Queen' based on beauty or fame alone but rather  it is what you do with that beauty and fame. How is this 'Queen' influencing our society? How do they wield the power of social media and popularity? What does their character say about them? Are they serving others? Do they carry themselves with a sense of dignity and royalty befitting a true 'Queen'? These are the questions I ask while vetting a prospective 'Queen'.

Maybe She's Born with It?

Hello again, been MIA for quite some time now due to vacations and visits from family and BFF's. So, in short, life is good therefore, I will enjoy it while it lasts.

I would like to present you with some unusual travel photos. Awhile ago, I tried to start a photo bombing sensation called 'slothing' and by 'sensation' I mean, I was the only participant. But that's what makes me unique, right? (said thru buckets of tears)

Now, I present to you the latest photo bombing sensation, 'Going Wild' or 'Maybe She's Born with It, Maybe it's Maybelline'. Pretty sure that I am now being sued by a mascara company.

Try it out for yourself!
Step 1: Find historical and/or religious landmark
Step 2: Flip your hair back with casual sensuality
Step 3: Fail



Photo credit: @daveterryshotyou
Follow Dave on Instagram. He actually takes amazing photos but sometimes he has to deal with mentally deranged models who can only pronounce Stonehenge in a Spinal Tap voice/accent.

Super Size Me

Keep in mind that I am jaded and hate most things/ideas/people but I really hate Lent. I don't have anything against the religious dogma. I can't stand the people who are so boisterously participating in their modern day fast.

No amount of fish is going to erase your tramp stamp tattoo or make you a better person. Yelling about your fasting over social media only draws more attention to said tramp stamp. No one is praising your fast. As a matter of fact, the attention to your flaws becomes magnified. For instance, you're fat, therefore you fast from food or fatty foods/sweets. Are you doing this to become closer to God in order to obtain spiritual enlightenment or for your ass and sexual enlightenment? I'm all for T and A but I call it what it is: sex drive. Nothing wrong with that.

You are fasting from shopping. Fine, but we all know that you are also saving for that vacation to Puerta Vallarta this summer. "The Lord provided!" you will shout. Did He or did you? Your vacation to Mexico doesn't seem like it would be very high on God's To-Do List.

You are fasting from social media. Why? This one I just don't understand at all. This fast just seems to be a sounding board for your minions to praise you publicly. I'm no theologian but I don't recal Jesus and Moses shouting to the masses that they were going to fast and devote those days to prayer. Pretty sure it was a mostly private affair.

I say all this because when I was in college I saw a good friend go through an actual religious fast. It was both the dumbest thing I had ever witnessed and the most beautiful. This man only consumed liquids such as broth or juice, no solid foods and he read the Bible or accompaniment religious texts at every free moment of his day. He did this for 40 days and 40 nights. He didn't shout out from a mountain top about his piety. He was quiet and pensive. He wasn't fat so he became quite frail and weak. After the fast, solid foods caused him extreme gastric problems for the next few weeks. What this person did was totally selfless. It benefited him in no way other than the traditional spiritual sense. There was no alternative motive here.

Becoming weirdly religious for a couple of weeks a year looks inconsistent and insincere to the outside world of us heathens. This kind of behavior is what pushes people away from organized religion. Of all the wonderful social practices that are found in the Bible you have chosen to eat fish? Instead of giving to those in need, you are fasting from Facebook? Instead of feeding a stranger, you gave up chocolate? Instead of caring for an orphan, you quit unnecessary shopping for a few weeks?

Who am I to judge? We all pick and choose and tonight I'm choosing a Filet-O-Fish and not because of any religious fervor but because this fried treat appeals to my white trash sensibilities and I'm on a diet not a fast.

Sciency Stuff

My brother just started a pretty chill YouTube channel. If you are a fan of science, Neil Degrasse Tyson, Smarter Every Day, VSauce, Adam Savage or other such channels then you will probably enjoy Gear3.14. Check it out, leave some comments, follow it, tweet it, instagram it, snapchat it or whatever other nonsense the kids are into these days. Hopefully you will learn something new or just enjoy the awe-inspiring artwork/graphics.

Happy Birthday Georgie Boy!

Today is President's Day/George Washington's birthday/no school. Which is why I work. Left to my own devices on such boring holidays I just end up trolling Amazon and buying things that I don't need but telling myself pretty little lies like, "You NEED this anti-cellulite cream because it's probably the miracle product that your thighs NEED and summer is coming up! I NEED to prepare." or "This over-priced candle will make my house smell like Ernest Hemingway's seaside bungalow after smoking a rich Cuban cigar during a papaya-tinted, ocean, sunset and I NEED that smell in my life." Another popular lie. "I clearly NEED all these fancy books because right now my bookshelf is littered with such titles as What The Fuck Should I Make for Dinner, Pocket Dolly Parton Wisdom and You Suck. I NEED to class this dumpster fire up!" Also, "Who doesn't NEED all 13 seasons of The Pioneer Woman streaming straight to all of my devices?!"

I am clearly delusional but whateves because I supported democracy, capitalism and the U.S. postal service today when I purchased glittery silly putty because it's a "stress-reliever". Isn't this what Presidents Day is all about anyways?

Happy birthday George Washington and I hope you enjoy the succulent growing inside a tiny glass pyramid that I bought you/us.

Are Tears a Carb?

I gotta be honest. After all my feminist rants, I will say this, that when it comes to fitness men definitely have it the worst. Now, I'm not talking about height, boobs, eye color or other things about your body that you cannot change. I am strictly talking about fitness level here. Women just have to be thin and that's about it. We aren't really expected to be cut or 'shredded'. Hell, just look at the actress who is playing Wonder Woman in the up-coming DC film. She looks like she could be blown over by a strong fart. Like, don't eat Taco Bell around this lady, it might blow her straight to the land of OZ. This actress also loves to tout her time in the Israeli military. However, keep in mind that military service (for both genders) is compulsory in Israel, so, big whoop lady. This woman is tall and thin so she gets to be Wonder Woman. Her training probably consisted of only eating salads and drinking her own tears. Oh wait, are tears a carb?

On the other hand, it's not good enough for men to be at a healthy body weight but they must also be in the shape of people who are quite literally inhuman. Male body goals are mythical gods, mutants, aliens, cyborgs and chimeras. Doesn't really seem fair. Just look at this magazine cover. Side note, I can't quite seem to escape the omnipresent marketing powerhouse that is Hugh Jackman. Ok, so not only do men need to be 'shredded' but now they need blades coming out of their hands?! How many bicep curls do you have to do before you start seeing blade gains? Is there some supplement out there that will boost my bodies natural levels of adamantium? Does Colonel Stryker own a gym?

I'm really sorry men. This isn't fair. Just know that showing off your pudgy bodies with bladeless hands is equally as brave as me showing off my cellulite at the beach. You are beautiful. You are perfect. Most girls aren't even into retractable blade hands anymore. So, don't sweat it.

Alice Through the Glass Ceiling

There once was a young girl who fell into an alien world. At times, this little girl felt quite small, scared, lost, confused and embarrassed. She was thrown into a world that she didn't belong to. Although she struggled, she also grew quite tall, brave and powerful; strong enough to take on the aristocracy and injustice. However, this exotic world was just a dream or was it a nightmare? Alice awoke to find herself as a normal girl again in a normal world. Everything was as it should be.

The famous psychedelic 60's rock group Jefferson Airplane wrote a very unique song to accompany this children's book and it had quite a different interpretation of the narrative. Pardon me as I paraphrase: One pill makes you smaller, one pill makes you larger

It's astounding to think about the power behind just one little pill.

Being a woman is somewhat timeless. Our experiences may differ in setting or political, religious and philosophical background noise but we have all, throughout history, experienced fear, confusion, and embarrassment due to our gender. Women have to find the perfect balance. We can't be too smart or too dumb. One should never be too tall, unless you are a model, of course. Your hair can't be too long or too short and it should only exist on your head and nowhere else. You shouldn't be running around questioning things! My God, you are running out of time! Time! Your very body is a clock, nature's precious clock. Be sure to go to school before time runs out. But, you won't have enough time to put that degree to work because your children will need you first.

In the modern era, women have become masters of time. We go to school, we work, we raise the next generation, we write music, poems, books, annoying blog posts and hit TV sitcoms. It's exhausting just thinking about all the things that we women do in a day. For many of us, one little pill has given us this mastery of time. Science has offered us a choice. That choice is what makes America great. If you want to take away our choices then at least remember little Alice. I used to be like her (and some days I revert back). I was once confused, lost and constantly embarrassed. I was embarrassed to talk about a little pill that gave me so much control and safety. I was scared that others wouldn't understand. I didn't understand why others were so interested in the state of my body.

I still feel like Alice but now I'm the 10 foot tall Alice battling the queen. However, I didn't ask for any of this. Just like Alice, I was thrown into a world that I wish I could wake up from. I wish that everything could just be normal again.

One pill makes you smaller
One pill makes you larger
One pill gives you power
One pill grants you freedoms
One pill gives you time