Tuesday, September 1, 2009

What is wrong with this world? Let's start with a 'pole'.

Just saw this article Next Up, A Pole-Dancing Doll. That's right - A pole dancing doll. Now, as the article says, this doll may not be real. But seriously? The very idea of the thing is repulsive. Why, why, why, of all the things in the world, do they have to do pole dancing?

Confession - As a child, if I saw a pole, I probably go spinning around on it. It's just like when you hold hands with someone and you spin around and then the world around you starts to blur and the only thing you can really make out is the person you're holding onto. It's a pretty cool thing. I never associated the solo experience of my pole spinning (which was usually the pole for the basketball hoop while I was waiting for someone with the ball to arrive) with pole dancing or stripping. Why can't we just let kids enjoy the spinning and twirling of childhood be just that?

The articule also touches on M. Cyrus' performance during the Teen Choice Awards. If you didn't see it, while she's singing some song, she hops ontop of a hot dog cart - the kind that are in every New York CIty streetcorner that have a pole that holds up the umbrella - sans umbrella and does a short dance (seconds really) and then a little ride ontop of the cart for a bit before being helped down by the guy dancers. Sure, it might be like my sister says, and purely for entertainment purposes, but why? Why does she have to chose that particular action to entertain? Why a pole? Why not sit ontop of the hot dog cart? The song she song included a line of "moving my hips like yea" - what the hell is that? How do you swing your hips like yeah? What is a yeah move?

So, I'm quickstepping the song and dance straight to sexual and I don't care who says differently. Her biggest followers are ages 7-12. Unforetunatley, that's an age group that if they have already done some sort of sexual act, they're about to. And that's just gross, but not untrue.

The song might have a good undertone. Please, point me to it.

Personally, I never thought that Cyrus could sing. It's bothersome when kids of artist think that because their parents can they can. She can't. She should stick to make a foul of herself in HM and leave my Teen Choice Awards alone. How she won so many of them, I don't know, but I'm starting to think that they're starting to lower their standards.

So, the not kool of this topic? Let's just over size it to over exposure. A little less pole and a lot less Cyrus would make this world the kind of world that I'm be proud to have my little cousins and niece grow up in. It's the kind of place that I'm going to be happy for my nephew and little boy cousins to go find girls in. It's the kind of place I would like to one day have children in.

Stop lowering standards. Start loving yourself a little more.

Monday, August 17, 2009

Let Them Be LITTLE

You know that show, Toddlers & Tiaras? Anyone else can't help but think how ridiculous that is?



The program, which airs on TLC, describes the show as: "On any given weekend, on stages across the country, little girls and boys parade around wearing makeup, false eyelashes, spray tans and fake hair to be judged on their beauty, personality and costumes. Toddlers and Tiaras follows families on their quest for sparkly crowns, big titles, and lots of cash.
The preparation is intense as it gets down to the final week before the pageant. From hair and nail appointments, to finishing touches on gowns and suits, to numerous coaching sessions or rehearsals, each child preps for their performance. But once at the pageant, it's all up to the judges and drama ensues when every parent wants to prove that their child is beautiful."

Okay, how can I count the ways just that right there is SO NOT cool.


girls and boys parade around wearing makeup, false eyelashes, spray tans and fake hair
to be judged on their beauty, personality and costumes
every parent wants to prove that their child is beautiful
And what consumes the kids' time? Instead of playdates and games of exploring and imagination, they have rehearsals and nail/hair appointments.

Sadly enough, all the costumes and whatnot, time and money consuming. People who are probably going to be forclosed or at the very least in a tight budget - like say the REST of the country - are instead parading their small child around and making them pretty much begin the downward spiral of intoxicationg their little minds about how beauty is everything.

Newsflash! It's not. I wish, so badly, that these people would stop living through their kids and start allowing them to have some healthy fun. Finger paint instead of spray tanning, play dress up instead of rehearsing for a skit. Just let these kids be kids! There's plenty of media pressure as soon as they get into high school, and prior to in some cases, that at the very least they should feel like their parents love them for who they are and what they look like, not how much money they can make from them.


Toddlers & Tiaras, kids in pagents - Not Kool.



*Okay, not kids in pagents. I think pagents are cute, and should be a nice, fun experience for a child that WANTS TO do this. These girls are being shoved around into it and if they say that they like it, it's probably because they've been thought to think that way.

Friday, August 14, 2009

Beauty?

What is beauty?

Is it defined by the plastic crazed, loose clothed media? By the taunts and gaunder of others around us? By the sizes avaliable in the stores or the manicines that model them?

We need to redifine beauty. Make loving ourselves and caring about ourselves 'cool' instead of how much botox you've had done or how small a size your jeans are.


Teens getting plastic surgery - Not Kool

Thursday, August 13, 2009

Welcome!

Hi! This is my first post on this site. Kind of exciting, I must admit!

The purpose of this particular blog is to point out things that aren't in any sense of the word 'cool'.

To define cool: (from Merriam-Webster Dictionary Online)


Main Entry: cool
Pronunciation: \ˈkül\
Function: adjective
Etymology: Middle English col, from Old English cōl; akin to Old High German kuoli cool, Old English ceald cold — more at cold
Date: before 12th century
1 : moderately cold : lacking in warmth
2 a : marked by steady dispassionate calmness and self-control cool and calculating administrator — Current Biography> b : lacking ardor or friendliness cool impersonal manner> c of jazz : marked by restrained emotion and the frequent use of counterpoint d : free from tensions or violence
3 —used as an intensive
cool million dollars>
4 : marked by deliberate effrontery or lack of due respect or discretion

5 : facilitating or suggesting relief from heat

6 a of a color : producing an impression of being cool; specifically : of a hue in the range violet through blue to green b of a musical tone : relatively lacking in timbre or resonance
7 slang a : very good :
excellent; also : all right b : fashionable, hip
— cool·ish \ˈkü-lish\ adjective
— cool·ly also cooly \ˈkü(l)-lē\ adverb
— cool·ness \ˈkül-nəs\ noun
synonyms cool, composed, collected, unruffled, imperturbable, nonchalant mean free from agitation or excitement. cool may imply calmness, deliberateness, or dispassionateness . composed implies freedom from agitation as a result of self-discipline or a sedate disposition . collected implies a concentration of mind that eliminates distractions especially in moments of crisis . unruffled suggests apparent serenity and poise in the face of setbacks or in the midst of excitement . imperturbable implies coolness or assurance even under severe provocation . nonchalant stresses an easy coolness of manner or casualness that suggests indifference or unconcern .


Mostly, I'm going to be leaning towards the slang definition of the word. Some of number 4, lack of respect, too. I'd very, very much like to hear what you have to say about these things as well. Some may not agree with me in some things. I'd love to hear about it!