Friday 25 January 2013

Saying Hi and inspiring thoughts

So finally my January exams are finished! Thank goodness! Its been a lot of stress and a lot less blogging has been occurring, and for that I apologise! However, this is a quick post to say HI to you all out there, who are reading this post.

Its a quick post because early tomorrow morning I will be heading to the mainland to attend some Girlguiding Advocate meetings which I am very excited about, so be waiting in anticipation next week for me to share some of my experiences at our meetings as we talk gender equality and positive female role models!

So its a quick hello and goodbye from me, as I need my sleep, however there is an article I would like to share. Its called "What women lose in the fight to be thin", it is incredibly well written by Kate Orazem, with all too true statements such as "Whole nations of women spend their hours not reading books or loving bands or making goddamn change but instead agonizing over the inches of a waist." It is definitely worth a read, and Kate leaves us on a very positive challenge .... "For a generation of brilliant, driven, angry, wonderful women who get up, and look in the mirror, and demand so much less of themselves"

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kate-orazem/body-image-what-women-lose-in-the-fight-to-be-thin_b_2551124.html?utm_hp_ref=tw

So I will leave with a thought, what do we, both men and women, sacrifice for external "beauty", do we sacrifice passion and motivation ... or even our individuality, to be clones of what the media perceive as perfection?! 

Love 
Vicky x

Saturday 5 January 2013

Tweet your way to change the world

Today I found a collection of inspiring stories about a twitter campaign called #NotBuyingIt
Basically what happens is if you see a product or ad that misrepresents or degrades women, use Twitter to post a description or upload a picture of the offensive item. By using the hashtag #notbuyingit the campaign can be followed by the campaign leaders "Miss Representation" - http://www.missrepresentation.org/take-action/notbuyingit/


And for all you male tweeters, you dont have to be female to join the campaign! One male tweeted recently "Really? A woman's body is a billboard or car? My daughter and wife are not commodities #NotBuyingIt"
In an example of the power of your twitter voice, I will tell you one of the success stories of this campaign - one where a few women used Twitter to eliminate a really terrible Hallmark greeting card in a matter of hours.






To the right is the card that caused the controversy.
Stated on this happy birthday card to a 13 year old says "If you had a rich boyfriend he'd give you diamonds and rubies. Well, maybe next year you will, when you've bigger boobies" - Found by a woman in Hallmark who tweeted about it.
What was pointed out was the subliminal message to young and impressionable adolescents that when your "boobies" are bigger you will get a rich boyfriend and he will buy you whatever your heart desires

What was incredible was that the picture was posted on twitter and hastagged and It was soon re-tweeted, blogged about and posted across the Internet. By this afternoon the mainstream press had even picked up the image and the story building on Twitter.

The results came instantly,  with Hallmark apologising and pledging to track down all existing copies of the card still in circulation. 

This is such a success story! The campaign Miss Representation stated that "passionate consumers were able to call-out, organize around and ostensibly eliminate a seriously problematic piece of media from the world’s most recognizable greeting card company (within the span of a single day!) is an awesome reminder of just what we are capable of as a community. And, in particular, the fact that this campaign was sparked, led and won by women is proof that new media is empowering the marginalized in a way that old media never did." From: http://www.missrepresentation.org/notbuyingit/how-twitter-defeated-a-hallmark-greeting-card/

So you can "use your consumer voice" or tweets, to help to

Its really that easy!  A simple message with the hashtag #NotBuyingIt could actually make a real impact!
So... Get Tweeting! 
Love 
Vicky 
xx

Tuesday 1 January 2013

Happy New Year!

2012 .. When this year is stated, what will be your memory? The year the world was supposed to end? The year the Olympics came to London? The year you smiled more than you cried? 

I guarantee that all of us will have great laughs and funny times that 2012 could relive for them, but I'm sure all of us have some memories of 2012 that they want to keep there... Losing a loved one, Getting your heart broken, Not getting what you want - life doesn't always go to plan, and we can't predict what's instore for us in 2013 - But that's life, and we need to embrace it unpredictability, as -regardless of religious beliefs- I believe that everything happens for a reason. We may not always see it at the onset, but it will somehow reveal itself.



When I thought over 2012 for me, a number of things stood out for me. I shortlisted these things into a list of 12! Some of them are slightly comical so feel free to laugh...
1. Don't fall asleep with people around... You'll end up with photos like this on facebook ....
                                                                                                   
2. Coke is NOT a good drinks mixer 
3. Duke of Edinburgh Gold is rough! Worse than rough - it could be described as hell.... train everyday before you even think about doing it!
4. When on a ski trip with friends, it is NOT a good idea to do the cinnamon challenge - people will vomit, your room will stink for the whole week of cinnamon and vomit, and you'll be coughing up chunks of cinnamon from your lungs for a good couple of days.
5. Life has a lot of ups and good times 
6. But a heck of a lot of challenging, hard times
7. Being a little bit crazy is not a bad thing 
8. The Mayans were wrong! 
9. I am surrounded by people who love me dearly and have AMAZING friends and family - Love you all! <3 
10. I am stronger than I think 
11.  Boys are mean ... Don't make your car a target! 
12. I can make a difference in the world.

And my last one for 2013 ...The years go by so quickly - cherish every second 


Reflecting on 2012, what memories does it bring back to you? Good or bad, embrace them! They are in the past! And just remember, the experiences you had in 2012, have shaped your character for moving into 2013!
Lots of love and Happy New Year!
Vicky 
xx