Beauty is in the eye of the STANDARD

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder STANDARD

Let's face it. Our society has standards of beauty. Women strive to reach those standards no matter the cost - financial, emotional, or physical. This idea is not exclusive to America, however. Every society has their own definition of beauty. It's fascinating to see how it changes across cultures and what women go through to achieve that standard.

(Warning: Some of the following pictures and descriptions are a bit graphic)

The Place: Northern Thailand

The Standard: Long Necks
The Cost:  Women get brass coils placed around their necks as early as 5 years old. The heavy coils press down on the clavicle (collar bone) until there is space for more coils. They experience discomfort and a weakened neck, which means that it would be difficult for their neck to support their head if the coils are ever removed.

The Place: China
The Standard: Small Feet
The Cost: This process starts between the ages of 2 and 5, before the young girls' arch fully develops. The toes are curled under and pressed down until they are broken. Then, the arch is also forcibly broken. Cotton bandages are then applied very tightly. This results in lifelong disabilities and discomfort for some women.

The Place: Ethiopia (Karo Tribe)
The Standard: Scarring
The Cost: Women wear scars on their stomachs. The process begins in childhood and continues. When the scarring process is finished, this signifies that the woman is ready to get married and have children.

The Place: Mauritania (North west Africa)
The Standard: Obesity
The Cost: Young girls are force fed. Some are even sent to "Fat farms" to ensure that they reach a desirable weight by the time they are ready to get married. (This standard has begun to die out because the people of Mauritania are becoming aware of the health risks associated with obesity)

The Place: United States of America
The Standard: Where do I even begin?
The Cost: Plastic surgery, excessive exercise, eating disorders, body manipulation, and low self esteem (to name a FEW).

Sources:

http://www.allvoices.com/contributed-news/3798150-beauty-ideals-around-the-world

Thailand: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kayan_people_(Burma)
Ethiopia: news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2004/07/0728_040728_tvtabooscars_2.html
China: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foot_binding
Mauritania: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/3429903.stm
America: Observation

China Here I Come! 中国，我来了！

#9  on my 25 before 25 bucket list is to travel outside of the country. I've officially made plans to spend a month in BEIJING!  AAAHHHH! I can't wait.

Questions I've gotten after announcing my upcoming trip:

Do you know anyone in China? NO

Are you going with anyone?  NO

Do you speak any Mandarin? NO

Giirrrl, Are you crazy? YES...wait, what?

I LOVE to travel. Furthermore, I LOVE a good challenge. Being in a place where I don't know the language or too much about the culture will definitely be challenging. But the experience will be worthwhile. As always, I'm going in with an open-mind and a free spirit. No expectations- except to have fun and learn something new. 

All this China talk reminds me of Chris Brown's AWESOME performance of his new song, Fine China at the Billboard Awards....lookin like a young MJ!  I LOVE this song!

Thoughts for Thursday #13: Cocoons probably Stink

Today's Thoughts for Thursday is actually a re-post from 2010. I had just graduated from college. One of my best friends sent me an email detailing her concerns about the future. The uncertainty. The doubt. It's a lot to handle. But this was my response to her....

Aalishah,

Just think of all the times in your life when you have had to transition. Like when you had to learn how to walk. I'm not sure if you remember, but I can imagine that it was awkward. Up until that point, you were probably comfortable crawling around or being held in the arms of Grady and Cynthia [her parents]. But they had to stop carrying your heavy self. So you learned to put one foot first. And you probably fell down a few times. But eventually you were walking- and the world was a different place from that point on. 

If it would help to think of an external entity, consider a butterfly. At first, it is a slimy, hairy caterpillar confined to a life of dirt and leaves. Then, somehow (sorry, I didn't pay attention to the details in bio class) it transitions to life in a dirty cocoon. I'm sure it's uncomfortable. No one notices it. It's just wrapped up and secluded. No job. No activities. Then, one day that fool crawls out and flies away. People admire its beauty. People marvel at how freely it glides through the air- with purpose, with conviction. Have you ever tried to catch a butterfly? You can't even touch it.

Transition is a period of uncertainty. It's unsettling and uncomfortable. Take comfort in knowing that its also a temporary period. As cliche as it sounds...there IS a light at the end of the tunnel...and yours is bright.

Thoughts for Thursday #12

" When I was 5 years old, my mother always told me that happiness was the key to LIFE. When I went to school, they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I wrote down 'happy.' They told me I didn't understand the assignment, and I told them they didn't understand LIFE. "

- John Lennon

Thoughts for Thursday #11

"He that is good at making excuses is seldom good for making anything else" - Benjamin Franklin

April Fool's Day BROWNIES!

I started the day by telling my students that I made a special treat for them, but they had to be EXTRA good in order to earn it at the end of the day. My students spent ALL DAY working so hard to impress me. They were curious about what the mystery treat was!

At the end of the day, we played Hangman for them to guess the treat.

B R O W N I E S !

I placed a tray at each desk. Each tray was covered with a paper towel. When I counted to 3, they opened their TREAT!

They got BROWN Es INSTEAD! 

This was an awesome teacher prank I found on Pinterest! Definitely one for the books. What did you do for April Fool's Day?

Grad School: Tough Decision!

Great news everyone! I'm finally ready to take the next step in my life and attend graduate school! I applied in November. I've gotten my acceptances and I've narrowed down my choices to 2 schools....

I have a tough decision to make moving forward. I've tried the good old "pros and cons" list and I still can't seem to make up my mind. I know that the final decision MUST be my own and I have to do what is best for ME, but I figure I'd let others weigh in just in case someone thinks of something I haven't yet considered.

Here are some things weighing on my mind about the decision...

Georgia State
- I love the faculty & opportunities available
- 5 year PhD program (PhD in Developmental Psychology)
- Fully paid (tuition remission plus stipend)
- Don't have to relocate

Harvard
- 1 year Masters program (Ed.M; human development & psychology emphasis)
- Not fully funded (I'd HAVE to take to loans...a large amount)
- great networking and job opportunity following
- duh, it's Harvard

Can you see my dilemma? 

So...what do you think?

The Turnip Turn UP

Today my students were picking out books from our classroom library. "Rodney" (name changed to protect identity) was particularly excited about the book he found, Digger Pig and the Turnip, by Caron Lee Cohen.

Rodney: Ms. Wilson! Look at what I got. This gon be guuud.

Me: Oh cool! How do you know it's going to be so great? Have you read it before?

Rodney: No, I just looked at the title

Me: Hmm (I examined the book) Do you even know what a turnip is?

Rodney: Yeah, I think the pig finna have a party cuz turnip is when people be like "turn up turn up turn up! (Rodney does an awkward dance movement as he says this. Then, he proceeds to dance all over the library repeating him self..."turn up turn up turn up!")

I can't.

Just to clarify, this is NOT a turnip!

Ding Ding DIng!

For those of you who are not as well-versed in street lingo as Rodney is, click here to view the meaning of "Turn UP", as defined by UrbanDictionary.com

Thoughts for Thursday #10

If I can get my kids to truly understand and embrace this, I will have succeeded as their teacher.

 

"Pronoun Pookie"

I was teaching my kids about pronouns the other day. I used a made-up character, "Pronoun Patty," to make it interesting. 

Student: WHO is Patty? That's a weird name

Me: I don't know. She's just a character...and don't say that. Someone might have an aunt or cousin named Patty 

Student: **looks around the room***....Well, I don't know anybody named Patty. We should just call this lady Pronoun....umm...Pronoun Pookie! I know somebody named Pookie!

This is why I teach.