Ho Hum

Yeah I'm writing this at home because I'm sick..again

And NO ONE IS ONLINE D=

One observation I've made
I colour my sketches better when I'm sick. Or relaxed. This is the result :

http://half-pastcrazy.deviantart.com/art/Madame-Du-Barry-154560521

I think that's a step towards finding a style that is ME

anyway
TOAST POPPED
and I must drink my coffee

Good day to you x

Beautiful?



It is no secret that man's perception of "beauty" or "the ideal female form" has changed over the years - hell, it changes from one man to another. Artists once painted real women, with all their curves and jiggly bits and, heaven forbid, skin that actually "creases" when they sit or bend over - and they were beautiful. The modern man plainly states that he'd much rather have something to grab on to as opposed to cuddling a stick-insect. Women criticise other women while they themselves scrutinise their reflection every time they step in front of the mirror - and yes, there are those men who criticise a woman's body. Unheard of, right? Reubens painted the Goddess Venus in a real way.


This is art. This is beauty. Renoir captured the female form exquisitely in his painting "The Bathers" - their faces are lovely, their bodies are real. So when did curvy become chubby, and why was this notion of beauty replaced by the other extreme - thin?
OH MY GOODNESS LOOK. NO FLAT TUMMIES IN SIGHT!

I'll tell you something you may or may not already know.
Women (and men) all over the world are bombared with magazines, posters, photos and television programmes depicting photoshopped, airbrushed and sometimes too-thin models. All.The.Time. When did a size 6 become the ideal size? And why is a size 16 any less lovely? More importantly, who decided that anything size 12 and over is a "plus sized" individual?
Two Words my friend: Marilyn Monroe. Forget her life, her death or any other hoo-ha that may cross your mind the moment that name is mentioned. She was beautiful, loved by men the world over. She had curves to die for (no pun intended). And oh my lord, she had a butt - a real one, not one of those new implants they thought up.



Attractive, no? No.She looks ill. Someone stuff a cheeseburger down her throat.

You want to know who I blame?
Twiggy.
Yup. That's when it became okay for an underweight/waif woman to work as a model. I'm not saying she shouldn't have modelled, because that would be a lie. I just think she should have eaten some fried chicken at some point during her career. The Twiggy Craze hit women hard. It was no longer okay just being healthy, happy and curvy. NO. Now, everyone wanted to be like Twiggy. I HATE YOU TWIGGY.
ARE YOU KIDDING ME!? What is that thing? A human leg? No way. That's a scrawny chicken's leg. Yes, her face is pretty. But seriously - this? This is the root (essentially) of the plight of the modern woman?

The women's magazines don't help. Every issue has an article about "How to drop a dress size in a month" or "Top ten celeb dieting tips", "Your hormones and your weight". I Laughed out loud at the "Love your body SPECIAL" issue (probably a special because they're to ashamed to admit that yes, people larger than a size 8 exist). We need a "special" issue to love our bodies now. These people have got things in reverse. Women need to be taught to love their bodies - be they naturally thin, slim, curvy or voluptuous. Maybe we should have a "Get Fit" issue once in a while - make that into a "special".

Yes, these women are beautiful. What's important (to me) is whether or not they're healthy .
That's where Extremes come in.
Being obese is one extreme. It causes health issues, and people are generally unhappy when they reach that stage. Alright - yes - this is the classification of "Fat".
Why is the other extreme - thin - any more desireable?
FIND THE MIDDLE! OR RATHER, find the appropriate size according to your specific lifestyle/build.
I have many friends who are perfect, slim, healthy and gorgeous. And happy. That's the key word.
Being happy with a HEALTHY weight.
What is a healthy weight?
A weight that does not cause health issues. The end.
It's important not to take things too far.
Who says that abs are more sexy than a regular tummy? Why do we diet? Why do we break down at time when that pair of jeans don't seem to fit as they should? Why do we compare ourselves to women with comepletely different body types and builds? Why do we fight to get into a dress 2 sizes smaller? Why are our lives dominated by a number? Why are we perfectly slim yet pick on non existant flaws? Why can't we just love the body we were given instead of fighting against it?

MORE IMPORTANTLY
Who gives a rat's butt how Brittney-freaking-spears lost weight? Am I Brittney? NO, I'd like to keep my hair. And my kids in the future. Also, blonde is so not me, and I do NOT have a personal trainer or a chef to prepare low calorie meals for me while I'm sweating away on a treadmill. I'd rather sit and read, thanks very much.

Telling a woman to love her body is utterly useless when retail outlets only stock sizes 4 till TOO-SMALL-FOR-YOU. It's even worse when a size 14 at one shop fits pefectly, but in another, they won't even got up past your butt. What kind of message does that send out?

Now I hear 13 year old girls worrying about their "fat". There's nothing wrong with them. When I was 13, I played with Poke'mon and Yu-gi-oh cards, and my biggest concern was catching all my favourite cartoons on Fox Kids. Not my butt looking big or my hair being puffy.

The final straw comes when your slim friend complains that she hates her (insert body part here) . She looks great. Flat tummy. Perfect legs. Good boobs. And she's complaining about her thighs, or her hips. It's something the average woman overhears too often. This comment is usually accompanied by a size 12+ friend fuming at the idea that Friend is ungrateful for the slim curves of her body. Also, she is left wondering what Friend must think of HER body, if she's unhappy with her own.

I don't buy magazines anymore. Not Women's Magazines, anyway. National Geographic is the last one I bought. I'm sick of the smiling, airbrushed women telling me how to be "beautiful" and "slim" in .

Rubens had the right idea.

EAT THIS MODERN SOCIETY:

Real Women Have Curves

Real women have curves, wrinkles, and flaws.
Each one earned with experience, perseverance and determination.
There's no computer to airbrush your mistakes.
Let them make you who you are.
Love every mark, every scar, every extra curve you wished to go away,
Accept what you can't learn to love,
Then let go of what you can't accept.
Treasure them for their memories
Like a worn love letter or ratty old quilt from generations of old.
Each wrinkle comes with the wisdom only years of life can give.
And life is not to be hidden or covered up.
For life is how a girl grows into a woman
And real women have curves.

— © Alexx A. McCoy
Plus Sized: