Day 2 - 60 Day Picture Challenge / 30 Day Song Challenge

60 Day Picture Challenge - Day 2: A picture of you and the person you have been closest with for the longest.

This would be my friend Vanessa. I won't say much about her because she's a very private individual, but I will say that she's also Honduran and actually went to my same high school. However, I didn't meet her until 2005, when we took a Biology Lab together. She was my first real friend at FIU, and though we've had minor differences, she continues to be one of the people I cherish the most. I know that 2005 wasn't that long ago, but I'm not that close to any of high school classmates anymore, and like a.muse.d, I didn't think that family should count. Anyways, we took this picture in April of this year when we went to the Lady Gaga concert. Ah yes, I don't think she'd mind me saying that she's a Little Monster, too! Hehe.

30 Day Challenge - Day 2: Your least favorite song

I'm sure that there are plenty of other songs that I dislike. However, this one was the first to pop into my head. I know I shouldn't be hating on the poor girl - she's only a teenager, but this song is just annoying. It has the stupidest lyrics of all time ("Yesterday was Thursday. Today is Friday," you don't say, Sherlock Holmes?) and don't even get me started on the poor girl's voice.

Day 1 - 60 Day Picture Challenge / 30 Day Song Challenge

My friend over at A.muse.d has asked me to take a 60 Day Picture Challenge and a 30 Day Song Challenge with her. Since this is a personal blog, and pretty much anything goes, I happily accepted. For 60 days, we will be posting pictures of random things that somehow relate to us, and the same thing goes for the 30 songs. You can check out her blog to see the complete list of the posts you can expect, and of course to give her some love.

Since my current lifestyle does give me a lot of free time, I figure that I'll have no problem posting for the entire duration of the Challenge and then making my usual posts on random stuff as well. So, here we go...

60 Day Picture Challenge - Day 1: A picture of yourself with ten facts.

1. I’m a quarter Palestinian, and though I can’t speak Arabic (I really wish I did, though) there was a heavy Middle Eastern influence in my upbringing. I grew up listening to Middle Eastern music, eating Middle Eastern dishes at Christmas; even the country club that I go to on a daily basis now (where my gym is at) is called the “Centro Social Hondureño Arabe.”

2. I’m very intellectually oriented. However, I think that I’m pretty good at balancing my serious side with my fun side. In many respects, I’m still a child inside – and I’m perfectly okay with that.

3. I’m very good at whistling! I think I could win a competition, for I can pretty much whistle any song in its entirety.

4. I love to bake, and though the early feminists will probably cringe in their graves as I say this, I think it’s because it makes me feel “womanly.” Hehe.

5. I have trouble sleeping at night because I think too much. As soon as I lay my head down on the pillow, I start thinking about the mistakes I’ve made in the past, things I want to do in the future, etc. My mind has one speed, “GO!” (Kudos if you got the Charlie Sheen reference! TigerBlood! Haha.)

6. As you are all probably aware by now, I love to stay up-to-date on pretty much everything: popular culture, music, current affairs, health issues, etc. Being so well informed is part of my charm, is it not?

7. I’m very proud. Once someone hurts my ego, it’s hard for me to forgive him or her. Well, in all honesty, it’s not THAT hard for me to forgive people if they show me that they really care about me and are truly sorry. However, most people that end up hurting me have a huge ego themselves, so I feel that I tend to end up in a lot of stalemates, which I’m not exactly happy about.

8. A close friend had once nicknamed me “sexy,” and to be honest, I used to think that he was being sarcastic. For the longest time, I truly believed that he called me “sexy,” just to tease me. It took me a long time, but I finally realized that he was being honest. I’m one smart and sexy Latina, and though I’m still getting used to seeing myself that way, I am enjoying this new phase in my life. If you got it, flaunt it ladies (All my single ladies, all my single ladies. Now put your hands up!) lol

9. I’m much more adventurous and curious than people think I am. I have a very peaceful temperament and sweet disposition, so I understand why people would think I’m somewhat bland and boring. That said, there’s much more to me than meets the eye – I’m just very careful about when and to whom I reveal my different facets.

10. I’ve been hurt a lot when it comes to matters of the heart. However, I still firmly believe that I’ll find someone who sees the world in the same light I do, and that I’ll give him my everything (and vice versa.) In other words, I’m a hopeless romantic. (Time will tell if this is a good thing or not, but I'm remaining optimistic that it is.)

30 Day Song Challenge - Day 1: Your favorite song



It's always so hard for me to pick one favorite song. I like so many different genres of music and have so many favorites songs from each, that it's always a very daunting task to choose just one. That said, I've picked Utada Hikaru's "Take 5," because I feel that it gives a good musical representation of who I am.

Whenever I hear it, I always close my eyes and imagine that the sun is setting and that I'm flying through the sky, which has gorgeous shades of pink, purple, and orange (an image that I interpret as a strong desire to keep my freedom.) The mood of the song is very peaceful and calming, but at the same time quite hopeful and optimistic. Not to mention that it's performed by my favorite Japanese artist of all time (need I remind you of my obsession with Japanese culture?!) Also, the lyrics of the song are very philosophical in nature - it deals with the process of dying and the desire to not have a physical body. Philosophical issues are something that always dance around in my head, especially the issue of existence. So, when we put everything together, I truly do feel that this song is very me.

On Plato, the Federal Reserve, and the Venus Project...

Let me start off by telling you about something that changed my perspective on life. It was mandatory for seniors at my high school to take a philosophy course (with the exception of 1 or 2 electives, the high school that I went to didn’t let us pick our own classes). Unlike my peers, I was actually excited to take the class, and would always contribute insightful observations and analyses during the discussions. Out of everything we discussed, what captured my attention the most was Plato’s Allegory of the Cave. I’m pretty sure that most of you must be familiar with it, but in case you’re not, let me go ahead and provide you with a brief synopsis.

Imagine a group of people who have spent their entire lives being chained to a wall in a cave. Behind them lies a huge fire and between the fire and the prisoners, there is an elevated walkway on which other people (the puppet-masters) walk, carrying figures of animals, men, etc. These figures obviously create shadows on the wall of the cave, and these shadows are the only thing that the prisoners can see. As a result, the prisoners would believe that the shadows are indeed real objects. The cave and the shadows would be the prisoners’ reality. What would happen however, if they were freed and were told that the shadows weren’t actual things, but were actually just shadows of the figures? Most likely, having no previous concept of shadows or figures, the prisoners would fall into a state of denial and would continue to assert that the shadows were real. It’s quite possible that they wouldn’t even be able to recognize the figures as actual objects. Furthermore, what would happen if they were to be released into the real world, to wander outside of the cave walls? Having been used to the darkness in the cave, the prisoners’ eyes would probably be bothered by the sunlight, possibly taking a long time for them to get accustomed to the brightness. Most importantly, they’d probably be unable to objectively observe and recognize the things that they would find in the outside world.

The whole point of this is to explore the idea that maybe, just maybe, what we’ve been conditioned to believe is real or to perceive as the truth, might not be so real or truthful after all. Contrary to what you’re probably expecting, this actually won’t be a philosophical spiel about the concept of reality (I prefer to have these types of discussions in person.) But rather, I wanted to use Plato’s Allegory of the Cave as an introduction (albeit, a long one) to what I really want to address today.

We live in a monetary, profit-based system because we’ve been told that it’s the only thing that works. However, we just have to take a look around us to realize that this system breeds inequality and a whole plethora of social problems that we could quite honestly do without. Now, I’m not going to go as far as say that money is evil, as some people do. [The truth of the matter is, for something to be evil, it has to be immoral, and for something to be immoral, it has to violate codes of moral conduct, which in turn requires that the perpetrator (in this case, money) actually have a concept of morality (which I’m pretty sure is not the case)]. But the truth of matter is, as something that was created by humans to serve humans, the monetary system isn’t doing that great of a job.

Now, before you go ahead and say that it’s not the monetary system that’s at fault, but that the problem lies with human nature, let me tell you about a little experiment conducted in Parma, Italy in the 1990s. A macaque monkey was hooked up to an MRI brain-scanning machine in order to see what parts of his brain would light up as he tried to open up a nut. It seems that one of the researchers decided to open up a nut himself while the experiment was still going on, and that the parts of the monkey’s brain that showed activity as he observed the researcher opening the nut, were the same parts of the brain that lit up when the monkey himself was opening a nut. This type of experiment was repeated in other animals and subsequently humans, leading to the discovery of what are now called “mirror neurons.” Without getting too much into it (I don’t want this post to be THAT long after all), it has been suggested that mirror neurons are essentially responsible for empathy, or the ability to understand the feelings of others. In other words, it would follow that mirror neurons are responsible for that strong urge to cry we feel after seeing someone else cry (even if we’re not really feeling sad), etc. Point is, it seems to be the case that we're not scientifically wired for aggression, violence, and self-interest as some people would argue, but rather for affection, empathy, sociability, etc. With that in mind, let me continue.

How many people end up working like slaves only to live from paycheck to paycheck, plagued with debt, with absolutely no hope of upward social mobility, and to top it all off, are utterly unsatisfied with their careers? Yea, the more I look at it, the more I come to realize that the system isn’t working.

In the United States, the problem is exacerbated (I don’t use the word “caused” because I do think there are other forces at work, which I’ll get to later) by the Federal Reserve’s monopoly on the money supply. The Federal Reserve, as you all know, is the central banking system of the US, responsible for: 1) the printing of dollars (or, controlling the money supply) and 2) setting the interest rate. Now, here is where it gets tricky. The Federal Reserve LOANS money to the US government at interest, meaning that if it lent out $100 at an interest rate of 10%, the US government would have to pay it back $110. Now, keep in mind that the Fed is responsible for printing the money. So, where do you think the government would get the extra $10 it needs to pay as interest? Ding, ding, ding - it would have to borrow from the Federal Reserve, yet again. And so, effectively creating a never-ending cycle that only leads to, you guessed it: DEBT. Now, this is a huge part of our predicament, but even if we brought an end to the Federal Reserve (which some US presidents have tried in the past – i.e, John F. Kennedy), the problem still wouldn’t be solved entirely. To bring about long-lasting change, we also need to look at the values that we, as a society, cherish.

Hey you! You awake? You’re still with me? Great, bear with me for a little bit longer. I swear, I’ve been thinking about writing this post for a while now. It truly does give you a clear glimpse into my mind (which, as erratic as it may be, is the only one I have and as such, is my pride and joy.)

So, now I urge you to think for a second about the things that we as society consider important… Any ideas? Well, there’s iPhones, for starters. And Hummers. And Tiffany’s jewelry. And physical beauty. And Dom Perignon. Catch my drift? Now, my view of society (and consequently, humanity in general) isn’t as pessimistic as you might think it is (and I’m by no means trying to say that I’m immune to these, either. Hey, I’m far from perfect.) I do know that some of us value nonmaterial things, such as freedom, individuality, intellectualism, etc. However, we cannot deny that we live in highly materialistic society, in which we are encouraged to spend, spend, spend, and buy, buy, buy. This coupled with a monetary system that brings about massive levels of debt is a recipe for disaster.

Don’t even get me started on our hypocritical education system. We teach kids all about kindness and “doing the right thing,” but I don’t think we’re being very good role models. Somewhere along the line, it became okay for us to turn a blind eye to the suffering of others. Also, our educational institutions don’t teach us HOW to think critically; they focus on telling us WHAT to think. All for the sake of what exactly? So that we can end up being a replica of our classmates? So that we can go ahead and enter the same competitive job market, and eventually become selfish, ruthless worker ants slaving away for the rest of our lives?

C’mon, I know you agree with me. If you’re reading this, it means that you are either my friend or have some sort of interest in me, and as such, you must have had similar ideas at some point in your life. The thing is, we all know that something needs to change, but we don’t really know how to go about bringing that up. Some others might even say that nothing can be done about it, “it is what it is.” But is a system that brings about mindless consumption, inequality, lack of awareness, depression, and dissatisfaction our reality? Is it really the only way?

Aha! And here is where I bring it full circle. The fact that we’ve been living in a cave where all we see are the shadows that puppet-masters make for us doesn’t mean that it’s our reality, is it? We need to become unafraid of the unknown and start encouraging critical thinking. We need to come up with a system that nurtures human potential, promotes equality, and allows for human progression. Easier said than done, right? Definitely, and I’m not going to be as presumptuous as to say that I have the answer to everything and that I know exactly what should be done. I wish I did, but the truth is, I don’t.

The fact of the matter is that even if we don’t take drastic steps (i.e., completely remove the current monetary system in place) there are things that we could do to help ameliorate our problems. There is irrefutable evidence to allow us to assert that more equal societies have happier and healthier populations (as measured by the human development index, etc.) So, we could start by diminishing the gap between the rich and the poor (essentially what the Occupy Wall Street movement is “asking for,” [I used quotation marks because the Occupy movement is being criticized for not making specific demands, although I think that its greatest success is to bring about awareness of these issues, but I’ll leave that for another time]) by either redistributing income through taxes (progressive taxation) or reducing the differences in income before taxes.

Other, more radical, intellectuals are calling for a complete removal of the monetary system, and an implementation of a resource-based system, which is essentially a moneyless system in which all goods and services are shared. (If you’re interested in this, read up on the Venus Project (http://www.thevenusproject.com/) A resource-based economy is not like communism or socialism because there is no concept of property at all, nor is there a state to control goods and services. It’s a very Utopian-like society that calls for a completely different way of seeing the world, which to be completely honest, I don’t think we’re ready for (at least not quite yet.) Truthfully, though I understand the premise behind the resource-based economy, I don’t really seem to be able to envision it very well, but I’m sure that’s because it is such a foreign concept. However, it is a very fascinating thing to read about and consider. I truly do wish the human race evolves to such a degree where the concept of property becomes outdated, and where our main motivation in life is to develop our potential.

Well, if any of you made it this far, please, let me know, because you deserve a prize! And definitely drop me a line or two. Did you read up on the Venus Project? If so, what did you think? Anyways, that’s all I got for you today. But my, I did give you quite a lot to think about, eh? Until next time... Remember, be the chess player, not the chess piece.

Look at me now...

A year ago, I would have preferred to have gallbladder-related pain again over taking pictures like this (let alone posting them on the interwebs.) And now, it seems I struggle to keep my clothes on. LOL. In all seriousness, I am really proud of my accomplishments so far, and I think that losing 6 inches off my waist alone in less than a year entitles me to some bragging rights. Even though it probably would've been faster (and easier) to hire a personal trainer, I wanted to be able to say: "Body by Krizia," which I am well on my way to being able to say.

Ideally, I want to lose 30 more pounds. That said, I know it will be really hard. I have a lot of muscle, which I'm currently working on toning up.


The truth is, what I really want is for people to be able to say, "Wow, you can really tell that girl works out." By no means do I want to be a bodybuilder (ew!) - I still want to keep my body looking quite womanly (with soft curves), but I really want my muscles to be clearly defined, especially those on my legs and arms. For this reason, I have started a 10-week program featured in the book "The Body Sculpting Bible for Women." I've already completed week 1, so I'll let you know the results at the end of the 10 weeks.

Anyways, I really want to thank all of you for believing in me, and always seeing my fabulosity even when I couldn't see it myself! I couldn't have done this without your support! The next pictures I post will be of me in a bikini... J/K Or am I??? ;)

I pick... ME!

Things aren't always so peachy in the Kingdom of Bandy. The truth is, these last couple of days have been somewhat difficult. For one reason or another, I've been throwing myself a pity party, and I'm done. I am DONE! My life is what it is because I have chosen it to be that way. I chose what I studied at university, I chose to come back to Honduras, I chose the people that are in my life (or not in it), etc.

As the adult that I know I can be, I've reached a point where I'm done with feeling sorry for myself. There is nothing wrong with my life. In fact, many people would kill to be in my shoes right now. Yet, I keep on lamenting myself for what could've been but isn't, or I keep on living in the future, imagining what my life WILL be like 5, 10 years from now. As great as it is to have ambitions, the truth is I've never been good at living in the "NOW." And let me tell you my friends, that is no way to live.

Someone once said, "If you have made mistakes, there is always another chance for you. You may have a fresh start any moment you choose, for this thing we call "failure" is not the falling down, but the staying down." And this is the moment in which I pick myself up and start to live in the now. This is the moment in which I choose to fight for myself.

What does that mean, exactly? I have no idea. As I said before, I've never been very good at shutting my brain off and just enjoying the moment. But, for my own sanity, it must be done. I guess it means that the hour that I'll spend working out will just be me working out, listening to music, feeling my muscles move in conjunction with my bones, and not me trying to devise a plan to lose 30 pounds in the next 3 months. With that said, I've created a "Remix playlist," featuring only (you guessed it) remixes of some of my favorite workout songs. It's very high energy and really pumps me up, so I encourage y'all to download the songs and add them to your own playlist.

Tiramisu vs. Jello: A General Analogy

So I’ve been on a diet now for several months. And sure, maybe I had a gelato or two when I was in New York, but I was in NEW-motherf***ing-YORK, of course I was going to have a gelato in the city that boasts about having the world’s second largest concentration of Italians per square mile, outnumbered by only Italy itself. And yea, every time I went to Miami (three times so far) I had too many sugar-infused coffees and mojitos for my own good. But again, I was in Miami, and as any good traveler would tell you, “when in Rome, do as the Romans do.”

As any person who’s trying to lose weight could attest to, you never think about food nearly as much as when you’re on a diet. When you’re counting calories, the only things that seem to cross your mind are, “Shit! I got invited to a party tonight. I hope they don’t have cake,” or “Ooooh, that lobster looks delicious!” (Even if you’re allergic to shellfish.) Point being, you think about food a lot more than any normal human being should. As the rational creatures that I know we are, you would expect that we’d be able to control our thoughts regarding food. But alas, I’ve tried time and time again to no avail.

So there I was, lying on my bed on a Wednesday afternoon reading Jen Lancaster’s “Such A Pretty Fat,” which you guessed it, is about a girl struggling with her weight, body-image, etc. For some reason, I started thinking about tiramisu. At some point in the past I’d asked my friends the somewhat ridiculous question, “If I were a food, what kind of food would I be?” And they’d all agreed that I was tiramisu. “Why?” I’d asked them. They all proceeded to say something along the lines of, “tiramisu has many layers, therefore it’s complex; it must take tons of time to prepare (which I took as, it takes a long time to figure you out), it’s delicious and sophisticated (why yes, I am), and who doesn’t like tiramisu (right again, except for a few haters that I’ve gained over the years, I’m pretty much loved universally.)”

Then I remembered Julia Robert’s spiel on “My Best Friend’s Wedding,” in which she compares herself to crème brulee, asking her best friend (aka, the guy she’s in love with) to pick her over his fiancée (who she compares to jello.) And then it hit me, if I’m tiramisu, then I’ve been in situations in the past in which someone has picked nasty, common, cheap-ass jello over tiramisu. The more I thought about it, the angrier I got. “Who picks jello over tiramisu?” I mean, you can buy jello at Walgreens for crying out loud. Sure, you can find it all over the world now and it only takes like 30 minutes to make, but it’s jello!!! They serve it to sick people at hospitals. It’s what people eat when they can’t digest properly, or when they’ve lost a molar or something.

Tiramisu on the other hand, not only has coffee, but it goes well with coffee too. It has Mascarpone cheese (cheese immediately makes anything better), cinnamon (which accelerates your metabolism), chocolate shavings (I don’t need to talk about the orgasmic elements of chocolate, do I?), and not to mention another universal favorite, alcohol! Tiramisu literally means “pick me up,” what does jello mean? "..." That's right, nothing! Oh, and if you didn't already know, tiramisu is Italian. Jello? Plain-old American. Anything from Italy automatically gets like 10 bonus points.

And then I thought to myself, “Seriously, what kind of moronic bigot would ever pick jello over tiramisu?” If you were diabetic or something like that, then I would understand and be sympathetic to your plight. But disease-related reasons aside, why else would anyone ever pick jello over tiramisu? And if you say, “it’s because I don’t like tiramisu,” then my answer would be simple, “Well then, that makes you a class-A idiot, meaning that I no longer want to waste my time with you. So please do me a favor and see yourself out of my life! And no, you cannot exit through the gift shop!” Oh wait, I guess we’re not really talking about desserts anymore are we?

The thing with jello, my dear friend, is that though it may be pretty popular (especially with kids and diseased, bedridden people) and might change color from time to time, it’ll always be essentially the same. At some point, jello will get boring, and if you change its recipe, chances are, it won’t set anymore. Tiramisu, on the other hand, has evolved and adapted (and will continue to do so), no matter what restaurant or household it’s being served at. Tiramisu isn't a safe choice. It's always going to be more difficult to find (and more expensive, too) than jello. But once you decide to go for that first bite, you certainly won't be disappointed.

Yes, I think I like being tiramisu.
XOXO

Show me your teeth (Guilty Pleasures)

1. Books. I buy books. LOTS of them. I love the smell and feel of a new book. I love seeing stacks and stacks of books in my room. I do get around to reading most of the books that I buy, but I have some in my library that I’ve never read. That doesn’t stop me from buying more books, though. Every single time that I travel, I HAVE to come back with at least 5 books. And so, my collection keeps on growing.


2. Christmas music. I love Christmas music A LOT. Something about it just fills me up with warmth and hope. Therefore, I am guilty of listening to Christmas music even when the holiday season hasn’t even started. My all-time favorite: Mariah Carey’s “All I want for Christmas is you.”


3. Dancing like a fool... in my underwear. Not much explaining needed here. But yea, when I’m alone in my room, I tend to pretend that I’m Lady Gaga (or Britney, or whoever) and dance around in my underwear. If I ever “perform” in front of you, then you can be certain that I trust you.


4. German-chocolate cake. ‘Nuff said. If you want to make me break my diet, give me a slice of this.


5. Gossip Girl. Gossip Girl is based on a book series by Cecily von Ziegesar, and it’s really targeted at teens. I’ve been watching the show since its first season back in 2007, when I was still 21. I’m now 25 and am still hooked on it. I love everything about it: the drama, the fashion, the music, etc. The characters carry themselves as if they were royalty – they dress exceptionally well, speak eloquently, attend fancy parties. If you know anything about me, then you’d know that I’m fascinated by that kind of world. And so, Gossip Girl is my guilty pleasure because I feel like I can have that ultra-glamorous lifestyle just by watching the show


6. Lady Gaga. I’m probably the biggest Lady Gaga fan in Honduras, and it’s not something that I’m exactly proud of. Lady Gaga makes incredibly catchy music and despite what people say about her, I think that she is a positive role model in the way that she promotes self-acceptance and self-love. That said, I’m a smart 25-year-old and I know that I’m way past the age where it's okay to be obsessed with celebrities. Yet, despite my better judgment, I was Lady Gaga for Halloween last year and recently spent $775+ to go to one of her concerts ($275 on the ticket, $500 on airfare to Miami, etc.) Yep, Lady Gaga is probably my ultimate guilty pleasure. At least for now.


7. Lattes. I drink at least 2 lattes a day. I take them with non-fat milk and 3 packets of Splenda, you know, so that I don’t sabotage my diet. So, why is it a guilty pleasure? Because I, as most of you know, have a lot of trouble sleeping through the night, and as such, shouldn’t be putting so much caffeine into my body. Ah, but there is something about the smell of fresh coffee. And then, during the holiday season, I always add spices to my lattes – cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, etc. Ah, it’s about the simple joys!


8. Name calling with my friends. I’m not a mean girl, I swear. But there’s something about calling people I dislike “bitches, bastards, and soul-sucking assholes” that makes me all tingly inside. Especially when I’m gossiping with my friends. The truth is, I think this is something that we all do. So, I’m just being honest about the fact that even I (as mature and sophisticated as I claim to be) engage in this catty behavior.


9. Perfumes. I buy too many perfumes and I have several signature scents. However, there are times when I spray perfume on myself (especially on my wrists) just so that I can be sniffing myself all day long. I know I must look like a freak smelling my wrist all day, but what can I say? That’s why it’s a guilty pleasure. The sad thing is, later on I wonder where my freaking $100/bottle of perfume went! Lol. Right now, I’m REALLY into Thierry Mugler’s Alien. I’m sniffing myself right now. Haha.


10. Scented candles. Pretty much a continuation of the previous one. As you can tell, I’m really big on smells. I love having scented candles around, and I don’t mind spending $25+ on a candle (which is ludicrous, I know!) But in my defense, have you smelled those from Henri Bendel’s collection? Fig is just to die for, and don’t even get me started on the holiday ones. Something about scented candles makes me feel warm and fuzzy. What can I say? I’m weird, I know.