More often than not the cat joins me for working out in some capacity.
Happy Weekend! And welcome to this episode of the (Vegan) Body. It’s been a while, too long, since I’ve written one of these posts. With summer coming, and stress in my world abounding, it seems there’s been a lot of emphasis placed on female designated bodies recently. I often overhear astonishingly critical comments on campus, at the coffee shop, a friend was privy to some awful things said at her place of work the other day, all of which scrutinize women’s bodies. It’s been a good week for reading about this type of thing on the internet, so here are a few links I’ve found this week that make for some swell Sunday afternoon reading material, interspersed (as always) with photos of my life lately.
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(Re)defining Beauty always seems to be fascinating to internet readers everywhere. I do love this mainly pictorial article about several women who are changing the run way. I’m always thrilled to see more androgynous people in high fashion. In my opinion, it’s the most beautiful state of human existence. It would, however, have been great to see some different body types in this article, which mostly focused on gender presentation. Although I’m thrilled to see this, I’d love to see the spotlight turned to curvier girls in the high fashion world. Which brings me to…
One of my internet heart throbs. Stefania Ferrario, (I follow her on Instagram mainly) is the face of one Ms. Dita von Teese’s lingerie line. And she’s considered a “plus size” model. It’s high time we reassess the physicality of our beauty standards, and yes I do think that starts with the visibility of alternative models in the public eye. It’d also be great to see some heavily tattooed ladies making it big.
We love mornings around here.
Also, in case you didn’t already know, Marilyn Monroe wasn’t actually the famed size 12 she’s touted as being. She’d actually be equivalent to today’s size 2. Also, a size 12 was a “thin” size back in Monroe’s day, so don’t go thinking the number on her dress tags was all that radical back then. As much as I love Marilyn, I must say that she was squeezed, plumped, and most of all marketed (then and now) into a brand that makes money. Identifying with someone as being similar to you be it via dress size or life experience is going to make you want to buy into what they’re selling. In that vein, yes I do want to own pieces from Dita von Teese’s fashion line.
On a slightly different note but along the same lines of alternative folks in the spot light… I loved this article from Autostraddle about what it means to be a queer adult. I think it hits many good points about how the world is changing to accommodate a certain socially acceptable form of queerness that’s been touted and spouted by the mass media–one that’s still centered on the idea of the nuclear familial structure, when marriage might not be comfortable/doable/desirable for some of us. Not to mention a slew of problems like Indiana’s current legalization of blatant discrimination, showing that discrimination still exist.
Took a quick weekend trip up to NC recently for the weekend and we went to this amazing winery. Can’t wait to go back this summer when the fields are green and growing with grapes.
So, with all of these problems thrown in your face how do you go about navigating the world and finding a like minded support system? I’d turn to a few badass, vegan, body positive ladies who are constantly sticking it to the man and performing bad ass olympic and high intensity lifts. Might I recommend the brain child of one Miss Lacy Davis of Super Strength Health and Madam Holly Noll of Plant Fit Gym in Berkeley, CA? Friends, listen to Rise and Resist. It’d badass. I love it. I’ve started looking forward to it every week. From snack recommendations to talking about “bad” body image days, to staying fit with a partner, to working at a vegan gym you name it. Intersectionality at its finest, folks. You can find Rise and Resist here or where ever you get your podcasts. (It comes right up if you search it on the iPhone podcast app.)
P.S. Miss Lacy Davis also listed some of her favorite podcasts recently and so did one of my other favorite blogosphere babes, Sayward Rebhal. I’m a podcast junkie myself, and these two lovely ladies give some amazing recommendations and descriptions. I definitely second listening to Invisibilia, Serial, NPR’s Pop Culture Happy Hour, This American Life, and Citizen Radio.
Smoothie bowls are kind of my jam these days. This one is a typical green smoothie (kale, raw protein powder, a frozen banana, almond milk) sprinkled with pecans, cacao nibs, fresh strawberries, and chia.
Through the aforementioned NPR’s Pop Culture Happy Hour, I recently found a new show that I just love. If you haven’t checked out The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, you most definitely should. I’ve been telling EVERYBODY about it and it’s just adorable. But don’t take my word for it, take a listen to the podcast for a great synopsis of the series sans spoilers and a fantastic analysis of some of the characters. It’s one of those feel good comedy shows that sort of fills the void left by the ending of Parks and Rec and adds satire and sass to an already serendipitous storyline. Also, as one of the contributors to NPR’s PCHH mentioned, it’s got one of the best intro songs ever. Stuck in my head as I type this.
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Happy reading, watching, and listening folks!
