Tuesday 20 February 2018

Escape

Sometimes it all gets too much. Whether that is stress at school, stress at home, problems with friends, or internal issues like mental health or self-confidence - they can all become overwhelming.

I often find myself in the state of wanting to escape. Wanting to fly across the world away from all of my problems, lie on a beach in the summer heat and relax. But unfortunately this isn't as easy as you'd hope.

Or I could get in a car and drive and drive and drive along beautiful roads with the sun shining and music blasting. But having passed my test only a week ago, this isn't hugely possible.

The question is what to do then.

I don't have a solution, only thoughts. I talk to myself like a friend or parent or even counsellor would talk to me. This is because I know they'd say what I need to do is:

- Plan something to look forward to
- Do something that relaxes me
- Spend time with my friends
- Do something I enjoy.
- Yoga or meditation

But sometimes these all feel impossible.

So how can I escape.

Friday 11 March 2016

Kim K's Konfidence

One controversial celebrity who has recently hit the news is Kim Kardashian. If you are unaware of why, let me explain: The wife of Kanye West uploaded a picture to social media site Instagram on Monday (March 7th, 2016) of her posing nude, with her private parts blocked out. However, little was left to the imagination...


My first reaction was 'we don't want to see that' and after I logged onto twitter, I learnt I wasn't alone in my opinion. Kim was hit with a torrent of abusive comments, including ones from celebrities such as Chloe Grace Moretz, Piers Morgan and Bette Midler.




And as I read these, I laughed, praising the tweeter for their witty comment or for speaking what I believed was the truth. But of course, Kim replied, having not taking them as a joke, resulting in me liking her even less (if that's possible). That was until I was shown a blog post she had written regarding the picture. This is what she wrote:

Hey, guys. I wanted to write a post elaborating on my tweets last night. In all seriousness, I never understand why people get so bothered by what other people choose to do with their lives.
I don’t do drugs, I hardly drink, I’ve never committed a crime — and yet I’m a bad role model for being proud of my body?
It always seems to come back around to my sex tape. Yes, a sex tape that was made 13 years ago. 13 YEARS AGO. Literally that lonnng ago. And people still want to talk about it?!?!
I lived through the embarrassment and fear, and decided to say who cares, do better, move on. I shouldn’t have to constantly be on the defense, listing off my accomplishments just to prove that I am more than something that happened 13 years ago.
Let’s move on, already. I have.
I am empowered by my body. I am empowered by my sexuality. I am empowered by feeling comfortable in my skin. I am empowered by showing the world my flaws and not being afraid of what anyone is going to say about me. And I hope that through this platform I have been given, I can encourage the same empowerment for girls and women all over the world.
I am empowered by my husband, who is so accepting and supportive and who has given me a newfound confidence in myself. He allows me to be me and loves me unconditionally.
I feel so lucky to have grown up surrounded by strong, driven, independent women. The life lessons I’ve learned from my sisters, my mother and my grandmother, I will pass along to my daughter. I want her to be proud of who she is. I want her to be comfortable in her body. I don’t want her to grow up in a world where she is made to feel less-than for embracing everything it means to be a woman.
It’s 2016. The body-shaming and slut-shaming — it’s like, enough is enough. I will not live my life dictated by the issues you have with my sexuality. You be you and let me be me.
I am a mother. I am a wife, a sister, a daughter, an entrepreneur and I am allowed to be sexy.
#happyinternationalwomensday

Suddenly I didn't find the tweets funny and I didn't hate Kim Kardashian, in fact I gained respect for her, because if you ignore her annoying personality and fake bum the size of a watermelon... she's right.
It is ridiculous that we call someone out for taking a photo of themselves that they are proud of. She has an amazing body and good for her for having enough confidence to flaunt it! We constantly talk about self-esteem and seeing a celebrity brave enough to post such a revealing photograph really instils the idea of accepting your body.
Although I agree that posting nude photographs is not a good example to the younger generation, Kim completely covered up her private parts. People should not be shaming her body or branding her a 'slut'. If she wants to show her sexuality, why should we have any say?

Overall, no I do not think it's fair that Kim earns hundreds of millions a year for having no talent whatsoever, but my respect has grown for her. As a celebration of International Women's Day, Kim has taught me to respect body confidence, and to embrace my sexuality. I still wouldn't brand her a 'role model' but I would stick up for her next time someone makes a dig.


Georgia x

Thursday 10 March 2016

the new kind of FEMINISM

Feminism. Or otherwise depicted as man-hating, misguided, radical. But this isn't the case. The definition is simply:
I think people misunderstand feminism because of the word itself: 'FEMinism'. From the first syllable the word can instantly be linked to females, therefore men feel like they are unwelcome. But at the time feminism was first introduced, women were practically slaves to their husbands so the word was focused on women, because their rights were virtually non-existent.
I agree that in the 21st century when women have so many more rights than they did before, the term can be classed as outdated. However, this is not the case in every country. In some countries women still don't even have the basic right to vote, such as Saudi Arabia.

Feminism is not man-hating. Feminists do not believe they are the superior gender. What they believe in is equality. In London (2016) the gender pay gap is up to 80%; women working in the same jobs as men are in certain circumstances being paid 80% less. Is it fair that someone who puts in just as much work or even more is paid less just because of their gender?

Yes the pay gap discriminates towards women, but in some industries men can be disadvantaged too. The engineering sector struggles to attract women therefore many companies have been accused of being sexist due to their male dominated staff. To solve this they introduced scholarships and higher wages for women, so in this case men working in the same job are being paid less than women because their company wants to appear diverse...

Furthermore, feminism is not just about money and the pay gap. It is also about the way people are respected and perceived. When a man sleeps with multiple women - he is a player, yet when a woman sleeps with multiple men - she is a slut.... how is this fair? When a woman dresses in little or short clothing men think it is because she is looking for sex or a grope... how is this fair?

Again this works both ways. A recent YouTube video highlighted the sexism of domestic abuse. It depicted a couple on the street having an argument. In one scenario the 'boyfriend' starts hitting the girl and immediately passers by swoop in to pull him off her, disgusted by his behaviour.
In contrast, another scenario shows the 'girlfriend' hitting the boy and no one appears to care. People walk by either ignoring the couple, laughing at the boy for being "weak" or encouraging the girl.... But abuse is abuse! It doesn't matter who is being hit, either way it is unacceptable.

In conclusion, feminism is about equality for men AND women. Women should be paid the same as men and treated with the same respect but men should be allowed to show emotion which people currently perceive as 'weakness' and they should not be discriminated against because companies want to maintain a 'diverse image'.

There are so many other topics that feminism covers and discusses regarding equality but hopefully this introduces you to the idea that a feminist should be compared to an egalitarian rather than a man-hater. We should be proud to be female/male. I know I am proud to be a woman, and a feminist.


Georgia.