New Blog Format

Hey,
I just wanted to give a quick heads-up that I plan to change the format of this blog somewhat. Instead of posting a long entry once a month or so, I'm going to have a shorter, more precise entry about a topic of my choosing. I'll update the blog once a week. In addition to the chosen topic, I'll have a few things like 'Quote of the week' or 'Great find of the week', and maybe even a weekly poll. The blog will be updated every Saturday, starting with this one (the 15th). I think that's about it. Everything else (i.e.; title, web address) will remain the same...so stay tuned!
xox,
Maya

25 Things I'm Grateful For

Hey everyone,
Well, it's almost that time of year again! The time to be with friends and family, stuff ourselves sick, and, of course, give thanks. You know, Thanksgiving has always been one of my favorite holidays. Not just because it falls right before my birthday (November 28; just a reminder...) and involves massive amounts of delicious food, but also because it gives us an opportunity to really be grateful for all that we have....and we have so much! So I decided to make a list of 25 things I'm grateful for. Some are silly, some are sincere, but they're all true. Enjoy!

1. The fact that I have a wonderful, caring family. Love you guys!

2. That I am able to get an education.

3. Chocolate! 'Nuff said:)

4. The Internet. Thank you, Sir Tim Berners Lee!

5. My health. I could have been born with some kind of fatal disease.

6. Clearance racks J

7. Those great moments with friends and/or family that make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside. Aww...

8. The fact that a healthy, substantial amount of food is put in front of me each and every day.

9. Denim. Seriously, try to picture a world without denim...see, can't do it, can you? J

10. The fact that creating a blog on blogspot.com is free. If it wasn't, you probably wouldn't be reading this!

11. That I will be able to go to college.

12. That people care enough about the environment and global warming to do something about it.

13. My surroundings--just think, you and I could have been born in a poverty stricken village in Africa.

14. That I have the opportunity to travel.

15. Colors! As anyone who's ever read The Giver (by Lois Lowry) knows, a world without colors would be very boring indeed.

16. My heritage and culture. I'm grateful to be from such a wonderful country.

17. At the end of every day, I have a warm, comfortable bed to sleep in.

18. Music. Much like color, a world without music would be so boring!

19. My close friends; (you know who you are!) I seriously don't know what I would do without you.<3

20. Marshmallow fluff: sweet, sticky, and fattening. What more could you want?

21. Bush only has one more year in the office!

22. Fuzzy slippers...I don't think an explanation's neededJ

23. The world usually has enough good in it to balance out the bad.

24. My life.

25. That you read all twenty five of these! Happy Thanksgiving.

Racism, etc.

Hey everybody,
A few months ago, there was a horrendously racist family shown on the Tyra Banks Show. For anyone who wants to see it, the link is http://youtube.com/watch?v=nZccnGspog0. Even though the incident happened a while ago, I just wanted to blog about it because it made me so upset. (And I know many of you feel the way!) It saddens me that in this day in age there are still such horribly ignorant, racist people. And it's even worse that their children are probably going to go through life with the same beliefs as they were brought up with. When you think about it, it's not even their fault that they are turning into racist people because that's how they're being taught to act. It's probably not even their parents fault that they believe in those things because again, that's what they were taught to believe in. In fact, I feel very sorry for people like those because they were never taught or given any insight on what a wonderful, diverse world we live in, and how diversity is a good thing. However, not all children with racist parents are neccessarily going to grow up with the same beliefs. For anyone who's read Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry or any of the other books about the Logan family, (I know all of you former Sigma 6 students have!) remember how even though Jeremy Simms' whole family was racist against blacks, he wasn't? Even though he had been taught to believe that African Americans were lower, inferior, unworthy, etc., he still stood against his beliefs and was kind to the Logans and other black families. I think it takes a lot of strength of character to be able to do that sort of thing. It's hard to go against your family and their beliefs and risk having them be upset at you for it. What do you guys think about all this? Comments, please! :)
xox,
Maya

True fashion--it's not about where you shop

So what exactly is true fashion? Despite what many people I know think, it's not about shopping at Hollister or looking like everyone else. To me, that's the exact opposite of true fashion. Fashion, is, after all, an art form used to express one's personality. It's hard to express your personality when you're dressed like another Abercrombie clone. Or Hollister clone. Not saying, of course, that I have anything against these or other popular stores. I just think it's beyond superficial to judge people, or even their style, by where they buy their clothes. For instance, I have a friend who, I think, has great style. She wears interesting clothes and often wears pretty and unusual jewelry, such as brooches. However, she once told me that she's been teased by a few superficial girls just because she doesn't shop at Hollister or other brand-name stores. Personally, I think it's fun to be break away from what everyone else is wearing and look a little different. There's a girl in my grade who was wearing a beautiful, but unusual, silk wrap dress the other day. A girl (incidentally, one of the same girls who teased my friend because she didn't shop at Hollister..) made a nasty comment about it, saying how "weird" it was or something. What I really admired was that the girl with the wrap dress didn't seem embarrassed or ashamed. Instead, she held her head up high and informed the other girl that she liked her wrap dress. I really admired the fact that she didn't let someone else's shallow opinon faze her. The bottom line is, true fashion comes from wearing the clothes you want to wear and not caring about what other people think you should dress like. So be bold, and be you!
xox,
Maya

Woman are not just sex toys!

You know, I am sick and tired of the way the media potrays women as brainless sex toys. It's degrading, sexist, and insulting. Rappers are always so disrespectful to females in their lyrics; it really makes me mad. In the song "Moneymaker", by Ludacris, he's basically objectifying women as "moneymakers" who give him whatever he wants. But sometimes even women sing degrading songs like this. In 'Whatever You Like", by Nicole Scherzinger, she's basically giving a man the right to anything he wants with her body, just so she can keep him happy. "I'll do whatever you like, I'll do whatever you like, I can do, I can do, I do, I do whatever you like, You like that, don't cha." No self-respecting woman should ever put up with lyrics like these, and yet you see girls put songs like these in their profiles. People say it's 'no big deal', but it really is. For the most part, females don't objectify males and their bodies this way in their songs, so why should we have to deal with it? Come on girls--women in the media deserve to be seen as more than sex toys! What do you guys think? Some male perspective on this would be great!

xox,

Maya

welcome!

Hey, everybody, Maya here. Thanks so much for reading my blog. Please leave me comments telling me what you think. Enjoy!
xox,
Maya