Perhaps one of the greatest fictional characters of our generation, Blair Waldorf (from Gossip Girl, just in case you've been under a rock since the dawn of time) is woman who knows what she wants. Yet, her great outfits (not Serena great, but still great) and perfect hair have nothing on the little pearls of wisdom she imparted on us all during the six series that changed life as we know it. They're words to live by from the biggest, baddest bitch around, and if they we're good enough for Blair, they're good enough for me.
'Destiny is for losers. It's just a lame excuse for letting things happen to you instead of making them happen.' - Blair Waldorf
Look me in the eye and tell me that isn't some real talk right there.
So kids, I've pulled a Blair and about a month ago I fobbed off destiny because destiny. Is. For. Losers.
It was a calm Monday morning, the week before I had interviewed for two internships in London and had heard nothing back, having been told I would have heard before the weekend. 'Never mind', I thought to myself, 'I have other plans'. As you all know, I have been saving for my South American adventure since I moved home in June, and thinking that I hadn't got the internship of my dreams, I decided enough was enough. What was supposed to be a follow up planning meeting at the STA Travel in Covent Garden, turned into me spending my savings and booking my flights.
I'm going to south America. On my own. For four months.
Metal? Yes.
Scary? Certainly.
Brave? We'll find out.
Because, and here's the thing, I was always going to find a reason to stay. From a guy, to my dream to career, to my incapability to save money- if I hadn't have just booked it, I'd still be sat here erm-ing and ahh-ing.
London - Rio - Buenos Aires - Santiago - La Paz - Lima - Quito - San José - LA - London.
Naturally, there will be a blog, because I know you'll all be keen to keep up to date on my where abouts and making sure I'm still alive. I'm a weird mixture of excited and petrified but I sort of can't wait to make this dream a reality. I figure you're only 21 and completely free once, wasting this opportunity to travel the world would be criminal. I'm 99.9% sure it'll be the making of me, so long as I can stand the hostels!
Instantly my mind went into money saving mode, planning how I could pick up extra hours and be the best waitress ever (I'm a horrible waitress, it's a good thing I can chat to people if I'm being honest) so I could save every single penny possible. It was gonna be great, I was going to save like a demon and have the most amazing four months ever...
24 hours after booking my flights, I get a phone call to say I'm being offered the position of social media intern for one of the UK's biggest charities. Unpaid.
But how could I say no? TELL ME HOW?!
I said yes. I haven't had a day off in four weeks, I'm constantly exhausted, I rush from the centre of London back to Bucks two nights a week to make it to Friday's for a 7pm start, and I work all day Saturday and Sunday; but I love it.
I'm happy, I'm focused, I'm making my dream come true and I'm investing in my future.
It's living proof that Blair was right. You don't need destiny. You just need to get off your arse and make life happen.
-xo
Showing posts with label heat. Show all posts
Showing posts with label heat. Show all posts
Monday, 24 November 2014
Tuesday, 19 August 2014
Same Bodies, Different Summer...
It happens every year, doesn't it?
April roles around and people are suddenly gripped with that 'shit-it's-almost-summer' panic. Everyone cashes in on it, gyms start advertising their pre-summer discounts, the lady in the red swimsuit starts prancing about in the Special K adverts and copies of NOW! Diet hit the stands. We all vow to eat a bit greener, maybe exercise a bit more...
But usually by the May bank holiday we've forgotten all about our promise because 'fuck it, August is ages away' and before we know it, we're battling Ryanair queues, minus the god-like body we promised ourselves, still happy to simply be tuning out for a week or two.
So why, WHY is that every single year magazines get a kick out of making celebrities look like complete fools for simply being normal on the beach?!
Today is a Tuesday, which means it's Heat Magazine day and (I'll be honest) I love me a bit of Heat. It's sort of a running joke between a few of my friends that the only thing I will ever be qualified for in life is running a magazine just like it. I care too damn much about what Harper Beckham wore to playschool and I'm not ashamed of it*, BUT I can't help but feel sad that every single issue shames at least one person's body (usually a female, but by no means always).
We are in the throws of a national body image crisis. According to a report carried out by the Daily Mail, only 8% of 2000 teenage girls asked were 'happy' with their bodies, and 64% of those under 13 had already been on a diet. I know these facts only reflect the way teenage females feel, but anorexia & other eating disorders have been on the rise in males for years.
Celebrity magazines like Heat appeal to young, most female audiences. Mostly, the pages are filled with images rather than words and issue after issue they send the message that looking anything less than Kim-K-on-her-wedding-day flawless is unacceptable.
This isn't a new argument. It's nothing new that the media is full of hypocritical BS, or that body image, the way we see ourselves and the way we see each other has become a huge business that rakes in millions every year. It's an industry I'd give a kidney to be a part of, but finding a way to use it for good instead of for absolute world domination (because, let's face it, that's what the media really wants) won't be easy.
So what if Kate Moss had a fag whilst lying around on her yacht off the coast of Ibiza or if Ferne's bikini bottoms don't fit properly... have you got any idea how hard it is to find bikini bottoms that don't sag the minute you step out of the water? DO YOU? No, tabloid magazine, I don't think you do.
Treat your bodies right & love the one you've got, folks. Change it if you want to, if it'll be better for your health or just make you happier in general, but it's the only one you'll ever have. The thought of spending the rest of my life having some piece of paper tell me mine isn't good enough makes me rather glum.
Mind you, I'm the kind of girl that spends an hour in the gym just so I can eat cake for lunch... but that's me and despite the fact that none of us will probably ever be 100% sure about our bikini bodies, I'm starting to think that mine could be worse... You know... Maybe.
So, if the media could just let us all go on holiday without making us feel like beached whales, that'd be really, really nice of them.
- xo
*Ok, so I am a little bit ashamed of my Harper Beckham fixation. Sorry.
April roles around and people are suddenly gripped with that 'shit-it's-almost-summer' panic. Everyone cashes in on it, gyms start advertising their pre-summer discounts, the lady in the red swimsuit starts prancing about in the Special K adverts and copies of NOW! Diet hit the stands. We all vow to eat a bit greener, maybe exercise a bit more...
But usually by the May bank holiday we've forgotten all about our promise because 'fuck it, August is ages away' and before we know it, we're battling Ryanair queues, minus the god-like body we promised ourselves, still happy to simply be tuning out for a week or two.
So why, WHY is that every single year magazines get a kick out of making celebrities look like complete fools for simply being normal on the beach?!
 |
| This week's Heat cover |
We are in the throws of a national body image crisis. According to a report carried out by the Daily Mail, only 8% of 2000 teenage girls asked were 'happy' with their bodies, and 64% of those under 13 had already been on a diet. I know these facts only reflect the way teenage females feel, but anorexia & other eating disorders have been on the rise in males for years.
Celebrity magazines like Heat appeal to young, most female audiences. Mostly, the pages are filled with images rather than words and issue after issue they send the message that looking anything less than Kim-K-on-her-wedding-day flawless is unacceptable.
This isn't a new argument. It's nothing new that the media is full of hypocritical BS, or that body image, the way we see ourselves and the way we see each other has become a huge business that rakes in millions every year. It's an industry I'd give a kidney to be a part of, but finding a way to use it for good instead of for absolute world domination (because, let's face it, that's what the media really wants) won't be easy.
So what if Kate Moss had a fag whilst lying around on her yacht off the coast of Ibiza or if Ferne's bikini bottoms don't fit properly... have you got any idea how hard it is to find bikini bottoms that don't sag the minute you step out of the water? DO YOU? No, tabloid magazine, I don't think you do.
Treat your bodies right & love the one you've got, folks. Change it if you want to, if it'll be better for your health or just make you happier in general, but it's the only one you'll ever have. The thought of spending the rest of my life having some piece of paper tell me mine isn't good enough makes me rather glum.
Mind you, I'm the kind of girl that spends an hour in the gym just so I can eat cake for lunch... but that's me and despite the fact that none of us will probably ever be 100% sure about our bikini bodies, I'm starting to think that mine could be worse... You know... Maybe.
So, if the media could just let us all go on holiday without making us feel like beached whales, that'd be really, really nice of them.
- xo
*Ok, so I am a little bit ashamed of my Harper Beckham fixation. Sorry.
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