Annie Leibovitz.

I love photography. I can really appreciate it. There is one photographer that I would have to claim as a favorite, and her name is Annie Leibovitz. Many may of heard of her because of the drama with Miley Cirus last summer, claiming her photos were sleazy- but never the less I still admire Annie's work greatly. She photographs celebrities mostly. And with that she seems to posses an endless fountain of creative ways to shoot pictures of them. My favorites of hers though, are one's she does for VOGUE and other fashion clips.

Annie also did a photo shoot inspired by classic Disney stories, like Alice in Wonderland. I adored these photos and greatly admire Annie's creativity and talent. I'm sure her photos were just as much fun to take as they are to look at. But I wonder where she gets all of this talent and creativity from. I know that there are numerous artists out there that have bold and eye catching pieces, but there is something about Annie's vision I just find breath taking. However, on the flip side, there are some photos that I'm not exactly fond of. I personally have never been one to understand the art of the human naked body, or what kind of symbolism it is supposed to portray. Annie seems to have a taste for naked photos, though they aren't ones that expose completely. I suppose I just love clothes and I see the fashion pictures she takes that I just don't understand why she wouldn't want to do that all of the time. A bit of variety makes things interesting I guess. Taking pictures of similar things and styles become quite a bore I imagine.

This picture was the first one of the bunch that I found on google. I was initially intrigued of the fact that it was such an optical illusion, after doing some further research, I discovered it was part of the Alice in Wonderland Vogue photo shoot.

When I watched this part when I was little, I was always so afraid for poor Alice. The Queen of Hearts was absolutely dreadful and I hated the fact that she was a cheater in their game as well.

The Cheshire cat was one of my favorite characters when I was little. An image that I always seem to recall is when he's in the tree and he slowly starts to disappear, stripe by stripe.

This is a personal favorite. I absolutely adore the suits that Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dumb are wearing, I think they're hilarious.

This is another optical illusion photo which just further stretches my amazement with what all the photo industry can do. I love it. The opportunities are endless.

The tea party was another part I loved. The two of those characters were just so wacky and chaotic. Perfectly fun for a child my age at the time.

Recalling the memory of this scene certainly made me laugh out loud. I love finding the hidden inappropriate parts of children's stories.

Now I know these pictures don't occur in order of the story, nor are they they entire photo shoot, but they are ones that I sincerely enjoyed and found amusing. And this is just a small excerpt of Annie's work, I'm sure I'll find another photo shoot of hers that I will fall in love with and then feel obligated to blog about. Photography is just so much fun when you find artists who are willing to take risks and experiment with it!

BOLD

BOLD

–adjective, -er, -est.
1. not hesitating or fearful in the face of actual or possible danger or rebuff; courageous and daring: a bold hero.

2. not hesitating to break the rules of propriety; forward; impudent: He apologized for being so bold as to speak to the emperor.
3. necessitating courage and daring; challenging: a bold adventure.
4. beyond the usual limits of conventional thought or action; imaginative: Einstein was a bold mathematician. a difficult problem needing a bold answer.
5. striking or conspicuous to the eye; flashy; showy: a bold pattern.
6. steep; abrupt: a bold promontory.
7. Nautical. deep enough to be navigable close to the shore: bold waters.
8. Printing. typeset in boldface.
9. Obsolete. trusting; assured.—Idiom
10. make bold, to presume or venture; dare: I made bold to offer my suggestion.

I am bold. In a subtle way at least. I have my opinions. But I tend to go off the "choose your battles" rule. I think differently, but accept others opinions, at least if they aren't ignorant as to what they are saying. I believe if one has an opinion, they should have reasons as to why, otherwise their opinion isn't authentic, and authentic opinions are the only respectable ones.

However, I would not consider scientific "facts" a good way to back up ones point. Not with some topics at least. Homosexuality and global warming are two that come to mind. Now, I'm not here to personally offend people, or to get into any form of an argument. I am a peace maker, which is why I tend to keep my bold thoughts to myself, and ones I know that won't judge me. I don't know where I'm going with this. I tell you that I have bold opinions, but then don't express them. So I guess you don't really know how bold I am or can be. Maybe I'm not bold at all, I could be a poser, and not really acknowledge it because it isn't often I take my boldness for a test run.

One thing that does hold me back from my boldness is that sometimes it can be classified as being rude. I don't like rude people. There's a line between telling how it is, and just trying to be rude, or hurtful. Girls know all about using words to be hurtful, and just about all are victims of it. But I can go into that another time.

I guess what I am really trying to say is that I would like to share my bold opinions, but in fear of being judged they are restrained. On the other hand, most of those reading this don't know whose blog this is, so I don't have much to lose. But it is high school and things go around, so I'm going to play it safe as of right now. Maybe after I establish myself as likable my true thoughts will be revealed.

Now this makes me sound like I can be a back-stabber, or two faced, or that I talk about people behind their back. But those kind of people are the exact reason that I tend to keep things to myself. A comment I make may be translated differently and get to someone, starting a fit and throwing people in to drama. I am not a fan of drama, I try to avoid it. I don't watch any of the MTV "reality" shows, like most people do. I don't find it interesting to sit in front of the TV and hear two girls talk about the girl who just left the room. Or to see a girl hook up with her best friends sweet heart. I fail to see the entertainment in that. But most of my cherished friends get into those shows, and I don't judge them, or anyone for the matter. Personal likes are personal likes and if they don't conflict with one another then all is well.

Now I know people who have bold personalities, and they tend to conflict with most, or even be intimidating perhaps. I don't think I'm like that, I try to be sensitive, but I guess we can't be always nice all the time. I welcome that. We all have off days, and life isn't always kind, and I try to be aware of those factors when I do feel its necessary to share my opinion. There are different environments that bold personalities are appropriate, and some that aren't. And I believe most can distinguish which is which, and if not, that would be a helpful trait to obtain.

i participate in the practices of criminals

I love dogs. They're an instant source of comfort. They love you unconditionally and are completely selfless. They're always there for you, they're whole word revolves around you, they are one of the most lovable things on this earth.

There's nothing better then laying on the floor and being greeted by a cold nose and droopy eyes in your face. Having their wet tongue lick your cheek as you look up at them. When they lay down next to you and rest their head on your shoulder. Their soft and warm fur up against your body. Their sweet puppy dog eyes looking at you and then away, as if they're afraid that they had just upset you.

These sweet puppy dog eyes are a weakness of mine. I cannot fight it, no matter how hard I try. Putting them to bed is the most difficult. My dog gets put away in a little room between the house and the garage at night. He has his big pillow of a dog bed, food and water in there, so it's a cozy little set up, however it does isolate him from everyone else. My dog is a curious one, he's always in the middle of everything- rarely does he go off by himself. It's as if he's afraid he'll miss something by being away from the action. And he knows being put to bed does exactly that. Each night, as I open the door and gesture to go in his little room, he just stands there. Looking at me. With the big puppy dog eyes. Head slightly cocked to the side. Him and I both knowing he really doesn't want to be put to bed. He makes me feel as if I'm banishing him away from the rest of us, like I'm trying to be rid of him, even though he gets let out immediately the following morning. He just stands there, looking at me. I heighten my tone to call him in, "come on boy! come here!" as if what I'm attempting, is exciting, like he'll enjoy it. He trusts me and quickly he comes up and sits, right at my feet, tail wagging with enthusiasm, looking up at me. Sincerely he believes that he's in for a treat. I can't do it, I can't trick this innocent mind into thinking we're really going to play, but I have to. Disregarding the fact that I had just done the act of a criminal and used his utter trust towards me against him. He doesn't even know it yet. Keeping the door open, I run into the room, and as anticipated, he follows. Of course he follows, he respects me, his reliance on my integrity is abundant. Shortly after, I turn around and the door shuts, catching a glimpse of his dejected and disenchanted eyes, just a moment before.

I know it's only part of routine. He has to be put to bed every night. He knows that. So why does he put up the struggle each night? Eventually he will catch on, and acknowledge the fact that I really am doing the dirty deed of putting him away. Away in his little room where no one else will be, where he'll be alone. For the entire night. But he's a dog. Why should I feel the self guilt of doing what I, as his owner is supposed to do? Why is it so difficult for me to be disciplined in keeping him disciplined? It surely isn't animal abuse. He has a nice set up if you ask me. He should love the fact of having his own space. His own territory that won't be disrupted by anyone else.

Making my way to my bed, I say these things to make me feel better about myself. He'll love me in the morning, he always does. Dogs don't hold grudges. But yet, his sad puppy dog eyes are a vision, burned into my skull that I can't seem to shake from my conscience. I love him, I really do. Can he comprehend the fact that I do care for him, even though I shut him away in the evening? It's not like I'm having a party, and blatantly not inviting him. I'm going to bed as well. We are both going to bed, just in different spaces.

Lying in bed, it dawned on me that the longer I dwell on the fact that I had tricked my dog into going to bed, the more I question as to why exactly is he put away in his own room anyway? Why do people do that with their dogs. Is it because they are dogs that one decides they need to have them sleep, pinned up? I know people who put their dogs in kennels at night. But why?

I then realize that I am being ridiculous. My dog doesn't take the fact that I have tricked him into consideration. He still loves me, and he always will. He doesn't take it offensively, and certainly doesn't interpret my acts as being criminal. It's simply a small duty that I have, and he respects that. Soon enough the morning will come and he will see me again and realize that he wasn't banned to such an awful place, but just a temporary living quarters during the evening. He'll still love me in the morning. And with that final thought, I drift to sleep.

Music

Music, something that just about everyone is familiar with. Now I'm not going to bore you with the typical there are many types of music, rap, rock, country, jazz... we already know all about that. And if you don't, I suggest you find another blog because this is for the more advanced listeners of music.

It's not my life by any means, but it certainly is a love, and not just music in general is the love, no, it's the love for all sorts of rock. From artists like underoath to oasis. Yes, it's a wide range of music, but it certainly is nothing close to country, R&B or "gangster". Sure, there is that rap song that everyone knows, that they play at ball games and dances, but that's not typically the type of music I take an interest into.


Lyrics, that's what I tend to pay attention to. Songs are good because of the lyrics, the message that the artist is trying to get across. That's what I believe makes truly great music artists, the fact that they themselves are literate and have deep thoughts and passionate feelings that they can translate into their songs. Now, don't get me wrong, I know there are plenty of rock songs talking about nothing more than getting drunk and laid, which is just what our society is just drawn to. But let me take an example of a song that people think is just about sex, and turn it around to show you what the artist is really getting at.

I know most know the song "addicted" by Saving Abel. Yeah, I know the perverted parts seems to be what everyone picks out of the song, but do you know what the song is really trying to say? Consider this line " theres just got to be more to you and me." Could it be possible that Saving Abel is trying to say they want more out of the relationship then just sex? I think it is. I know, the lyrics to this song are simple and repetitive, so I wouldn't classify it as a deep meaningful form of music, but it surfaces the whole concept of something with meaning.

When I say that I like a song, it's normally a song that the lyrics I can comply by. I seem to find a song that explains exactly my situation when I'm going through any sort of bump in the road, or if I'm just unbelievably happy or smitten. I even have pick-me-up songs that I listen to, to give me a shot of encouragment. "The middle" by Jimmy Eat World is one of them.

Average

I've come to a conclusion. I'm average. There really isn't anything special about me. I get average grades. I'm average height. I'm about as athletic as the average being. I'm a boring person. Now I'm not feeling sorry for myself by any means. It's just a culmination that I have come to. I think it's okay to not be an especially exciting individual. Opposites attract, so it must mean that I'll just spend the rest of my life with someone fascinating. I see it as we all can't be engrossing, otherwise no one would come off as being so. I'm just one of those individuals to balance everything out. And I would much rather be considered average over awful.

I foresee my future as being no different then my average streak. Disreguarding my future fascinating husband of coures. I will go to an average college, probably some where in Iowa, get an average degree in no particular exciting practice, and then officially start my average life with an average job and living in an average apratment. Because I do consider an apartment being the average living space for a young adult. Now I don't know what my average degree will be in, nor do I know what my occupation afterwards. But I can assure, it will be classified as being average.

Twilight

Yes, I have joined the rest of my younth and began the infamous novel Twilight. But who wants to read another blog about such a story? There must be thousands of blogs about the books alone. Now I'm not saying I don't enjoy reading of the forbidden romance between Edward and Bella, because I truely do. However, I am not obsessed. I can just simply relate to what is loved so much about these stories.

They do seem to attract the femenin audience more so then the male, but it's not strictly a one gender book. Yet I don't really know what exactly would intrest boys so much in a romance story. Maybe its the action scenes or something. I don't know. But I do know why women find them so compelling. Its a chick flick in literature form. Yeah, thats basically the easiest way to put it. All chick flicks have one thing in common- a stud. Yes, the woman's fantasy of the ideal male. Sweet, charming, attractive- all things that women seem to be drawn to. Those are the traits of Edward. Of course, we don't know for sure what he looks like, but we know hoe Bella feels about his looks, which only leaves room for imagination. Perhaps thats what makes him that much better. The reader gets to visualize how he looks, making him consist of that which pleases them. Of course he's going to be gorgeous!

Despite the fact of how Edward looks though, it's his personality that truely lures girls into reading further. He is utterly and irresistably obsessed with Bella, and that is what every girl wants. Someone to be as in love with them as Edward is with Bella. Reading such a book allows them to live their fantasies. While getting wrapped up in the sweet scence between the two lovers, the readers can do the same just as easily. And it seems like reality too. Because it is, the reader is really reading the story. They know Bella's thoughts, they can easily picture themselves being Bella.

However there are a lot of romances out there, so why is everyone so obsessive over this one? That I don't know. I don't regularly read a lot of fantasy romance novels, so I don't have anything to compare it to. But we do live in a obsessive society, and this is just another thing that can be easily obsessed upon. Like the jewelry, and the shirts, and the web sites, and the team Jacob/ team Edward deal, and now the movies. It's just fun for people.

I myself am a little excited about the movies. I mean why not? EVERYONE ELSE IS DOING IT!

The Vegetable Group

Every typical family goes through the scenario of the kids not wanting to eat their vegetables. Why is that? is it just because they look funny? I mean who wants to eat something that grows out of the ground and is green anyway? Greens taste healthy. Not likes fruits, who just have natural sugars. No, vegetables benefit the body on a much larger scale.

First off they are packed with anti-oxidants. What are anti-oxidants? Well, not many average people really know, they just hear how good they are for you. Anti-oxidants basically help defend your immune system people. They do just about everything good for your body. From reducing signs of aging to preventing disease. Any way steering back to topic vegetable.

We all know they're good for you, it's just something our moms would tell us at the dinner table and we really wouldn't question it. The trick is to eat the darker vegetables, they're the ones that have the most nutrients in them. Take lettuce for example. There's the really light stuff and the really dark stuff, and the colored stuff in between, but that's besides the point. Many already notice that the dark and light lettuce taste differently. This is because the water content of the light stuff is over 90%, which makes it taste like almost nothing. The dark stuff is about 60%, which is still a lot, but its more minerals and less water.

So, this is my conclusion. The darker vegetables are healthier for you because they benefit your body greater because they have more nutrients because they have less water content which leads to the fact that they taste different which is why kids don't like them. Duh. The lighter vegetables are more water content, which makes them taste like nothing which makes it easier for kids to consume them. Like cauliflower.

My tip to you. Give your kids lighter vegetables. They aren't as beneficial, true. But they might eat more of them. If you give them the straight dark stuff they may not eat any of it. A little is better then none at all, don't you think?

Obeseity

A topic that just about everyone has heard something about. Obesity is probably one of the reasons that the food pyramid has been altered. Grains tend to have more calories then the other food groups (besides fats,) and the increase of calorie in take is one thing that leads to the added weight. That is if you increase your calorie in take without changing something else in your life style, such as exercising more. The body needs balance in order to be healthy. You modify one thing and chances are you probably have to modify something else. That doesn’t occur with only weight though. Even if it’s something that seems as harmless as drinking more water, you need to balance the body out some by having a little more sodium or potassium in your diet. That’s what’s so great about the food pyramid, is that is helps individuals realize how to balance their diet.

Continuing to go off the food pyramid…

• Today’s suggests dairy being the highest consumed. A higher intake of dairy products has also had led to studies of weight loss.
  
• Smaller proportions are also included in following the current food pyramid.
  
• Larger amounts of fruits and vegetables (low calorie foods) lead to people being full without the added calories. Lots of vitamins and minerals also help maintain the body’s natural balance.
  
  I think that if the food pyramid was better acknowledged in the population that maybe the figures of obesity would become smaller. The serving sizes are a little smaller too, which I think makes sense just because of how much daily lifestyles have altered. Fast food proportions go up as the amount we should consume go down. Ironic isn’t it? The new food pyramid encourages people to eat more of low calorie foods and less of high calorie. I personally think we just need to minimize the production of “bad foods.” If there isn’t that stuff to eat then I think the obesity rate would go down.
  
  I do like hearing about how school are replacing junk food with healthier choices though. I know that my generation isn't so happy about it, but seriously, do we want to be known as the obese country? I think not. I was talking with the German exchange student one time and one of the first things she mentioned was how over weight everyone was. I didn't even think about that until she said something. Now I'm not judging anyone by any means. I know things happen. Like hectic lifestyles leads to fast food being the only option and eating through one's emotions.

Maybe that's another factor into our obesity rate. It seems like no one is happy these days. Pretty sure if you were to talk to a doctor and ask how many cases of depression they're curing or how many "happy pills" they prescribe I guarantee the number is higher then it was 5 years ago. Granite doctors are coming up with new medications all the time, but people are just coming up with new reasons to be depressed. I have to be harsh, but I think it's pathetic. I appreciate the fact that things like abuse and rape are being taken more seriously. But the wives of billionaires don't need to be over dosing on happy pills if you ask me.

Diets

Diets. They're everywhere. Each one has their own philosophy on what works. So how does one decide what REALLY works? I don't know exactly. See I think each body is different. Like I don't think there is some miracle pill or diet that just makes everyone shed pounds. I think it depends on the life style of the person, their metabolism rate, body type. Those things. There's no way that some one who is naturally petite and someone who naturally muscular will get the same results with the same diet. It’s all about finding out what works for you I think. I know there's even diets that specify to one's blood type. That could be a little extreme. But what do I know. I'm no major in how well the body processes and breaks down different foods. It seems like scientists are always trying to discover what the next easy way to lose weight is. Because for some reason we some up with the conclusion that losing weight is supposed to be easy. Obviously it’s a challenge because it’s forcing you to do something we haven’t been doing. Especially for those who are planning to lose a couple hundred pounds. However, I do believe it factors to the thought that nothing easy is worth having. Which does make it feel like more of an accomplishment. That in it’s self should be a motivator, not the fact that it’s considered “easy.”

I do remember that my mom was on a super strict diet once. It was when she was doing acupuncture regularly though. Her acupuncturist called it the "Candida Cleanse." That diet was extreme to the point that most of the things that she could eat she couldn't buy at a local grocery store. She shopped at a grocery store called Whole Foods which was right next to the acupuncture’s office. Now, she did have fantastic results with it, however it wasn't exactly practical for a working mom with three kids. And I'm pretty sure the prices for the "better" food was higher.

Isn't that ironic? What's supposed to better for us costs more. Maybe if there were more organic farms and things like that to make higher supplies of the food, everyone would be thinner and not have such high prices to pay. Let's do it America. Let's all eat healthier so that gross food will go out of business and our bodies will be happier. What could possibly go wrong?

The Food Pyramid

So I thought the basics of eating right would be a good start, and what’s more basic to nutrition then the classic food pyramid? I remember learning about the food pyramid in 7th grade during a home economics class, but never really thought about it. Who would? It’s just a picture that everyone gets to recognize, but never really consider it’s many uses. Some may not realize that the food pyramid has changed, as in the idea of how much we should consume of which food groups. Before the year 2005 the idea of how much you should consume (in order from most to least) went grains, vegetables, fruits, dairy and protein being the same, and then sweets. These days, the idea has changed. Now the order is dairy, vegetables, fruits, grains, protein and then sweets.

When you look at a food pyramid, you first notice the different sized sections and the different colors that identify them. Some images of the food pyramid have pictures of acceptable foods for each group. That is if you’re looking at a food pyramid that’s in color. But even if it was in black and white each section would still be a different shade of grey. The size of the section on the pyramid reflects how much an individual should consume of that particular food group compared to the other known food groups. However, today’s food pyramid I believe is not drawn to consumer scale. Just about each section looks the same size which, in when it come to consuming them, is not the case. The 6 main food groups are grains, fruits, vegetables, dairy, protein, and sweets. The biggest section on the food pyramid is the section recommended to eat the most of. The old food pyramid suggested eating grains and breads the most. Today, the new pyramid’s largest section is dairy. The old food pyramid and today’s food pyramid both optioned having vegetables and fruits as the second most in your diet. Dairy and grains flip flopped between the old and the new food pyramids and protein also, remained the same between the two. Along with sweets being dead last. A little sliver on the food pyramid at the tippy top.

I think we need to realize the food pyramid is not just a well known image. It actually have a method and scientific facts backing it up. Nutritionists went through the trouble of coming up with the wonderfully simple idea, but never really get any credit for the work they’ve put into it. They don’t get to see any results from the people following their well researched process.

square one

Being an athlete, I care about my body. Playing volleyball six days a week is my life, and I want to perform at my highest all the time. Well having to juggle school and home with my busy volleyball schedule, sometimes I don’t take care of myself like I know I need to. I don’t always get enough sleep at night and since fast food is the least time consuming, it works its way into my life. Realizing this isn’t how I should be treating myself, and wanting to do something about it, I started doing a little research in health and nutrition. The more I learn about it, the more I become interested in it, so much that I think that it’s a possible choice for me to study in college.

In some of the things I’ve read about health and nutrition, I learned that what you put in your cupboards is what you’re going to eat. Which seems blatantly obvious, but it occurred to me that if you buy healthy foods, you’ll eat healthy. It’s as simple as that. True there are the fast food and gas station runs, but there are even healthier choices you can make in a “bad” food environment. Like at a fast food place, choosing grilled chicken over a bacon cheeseburger, or at the gas station getting a water and pack of peanuts over pop and a candy bar.

Of course exercise is always contributes to keeping your body healthy, but I think it starts with making some alterations to your diet. This blog is my start to discovering the different ways to a healthier lifestyle.