Fat is Funny

I had a thought this weekend that disturbed me, and it had to do with body image and the ideas that society has about what is beautiful, what should be, and what is good looking. There was a billboard with an advertisement for Jonah Hills upcoming movie about cops (or something-a-ruther), and it struck a chord within me. Everyone I know has always found him to be very funny and entertaining, and most people I know, shamefully, including myself, have found him to be less funny since he has lost weight. It's ridiculous that we find people to be funnier when they are overweight, and then start to like them less when they decide to get healthy and take control of their weight, saying that "they were funnier when they were fat."

It's horrifying what society has become and the pressures we put on people to look a certain way and fit a certain mold. How can we possibly scorn people for being overweight and not taking care of themselves, but then someone like Jonah Hill or Seth Rogen lose weight (good for them!), and we suddenly find them less amusing? Their ability to be humorous has not changed, only their outer appearance, but instead of sending them air-fives, we sit there and wish they were bigger again. What's wrong with us? Where have we gone wrong?

I cannot believe that there is anyone other than Hitler that's ever lived, or will, that would rather see everyone the same. How boooorrrringg that life would be if there weren't different kinds of people, we cannot want that in the world. I'm down with all of us getting along and understanding each other, that would be incredible and lead to a peaceful world, but for all of us to have the same body type is a) IMPOSSIBLE, and b) annoying (everything you ever want to buy would be sold-out, you'd be tapping strangers shoulders thinking it's your friend even more than you do now [speaking to myself...], and we would look like a bunch of sexy robots walking around). Sure, I look at insanely thin girls and wish I was more like that, or a little more toned, or had different muscle construction so I could have more definition, but when it comes right down to it, I always look around and realize how wonderful it is that we're all different and are forced to accept who we are, and simply be the best that WE can be, not the best that we see in others.

We need to start placing more weight on how people act rather than on what they look like. Some of the most beautiful people are so in the most unconventional ways.

Today's Thought: Put yourself in their position, or if you've ever been in it, how can you ridicule another? Spread ONELOVE, and eliminate hate!

PEACE, PLEASE!?!

Encourage Your Mind to Wander

The further you stray, the greater the reward when you find your way back.
Mostly in regards to travel, for in life there are some paths that one should never dare to venture down.
Always choose wisely, but don't always choose on the side of security.

For some of us, our lives can resemble a tangled mess of tree roots.
We choose to live with a twist and take the "wrong" turns.
We go off the beaten path and avoid the straight and narrow.
And what we ultimately find, is that our lives tend to be completely and utterly full of beauty.
Like the overlapping, gnarled, sticking-out-in-all-directions branches and roots of a tree growing wild and untrimmed.
It can never be deciphered or traced back entirely, but one thing is for certain -- it is naturally beautiful.

Unexpected, some-what frightening, indescribable beauty.
It is encompassed in the rush of discovering an unknown treasure that fuels our hunger for more.
So we return into the world.
Seeking that feeling of satisfaction that can only be provided by doing, and living.
By escaping out of the ordinary, and fully into the extraordinary.

Dare to see what might not be.

                                                                           

California Dreamin'

Today marks the first day in my SoCal adventure, and the second stop on my long journey. I started out at home in Stockton for a few days where I maxed out on family time, good food, and the Newsboys in concert. Now I find myself in sunny Santa Barbara with my little sis. She goes to Westmont College in Montecito and I am visiting her for the first time since she started back in August! The drive to get here reminded me just how beautiful the California landscape is. Most of our 6 hour drive was spent on the 5, but as soon as we got on the 126 and 101 my breath left me as I was surrounded by hills, lush greenery, and soon, the incredible ocean view. Passing through Ventura and Ojai is one of the prettiest sights you'll ever see, and the way the sun was shining through the clouds and hitting the fog on the ocean made it look like an early sunset. (These photos were taken with the Retro Camera app on my cellular.)

 Driving to SB on the 101 North

I am so excited to get out there tomorrow and take some pictures of the gorgeous scenery that surrounds this hidden gem of a campus. A bikeventure is calling my name, and my camera can't wait to be taken along!

Although I've traveled some other countries and seen a reasonable amount of sites, I still cannot forgo my appreciation for the beauty that surrounds us right here at home. We are blessed with snow and surf all in one happy place, and for that I will be eternally grateful. Always look around you and appreciate what is in front of you. And if you can't, find someone who isn't from there and bring them for a visit, they will undoubtedly point out a bit of beauty somewhere that you might have overlooked.

Today' Quote: "A thing of beauty is a joy forever: its loveliness increases, it will never pass into nothingness." -John Keats