April 25, 2013

I'm All In

We win some. We lose some. And sometimes--we get tails.

Life's a gamble.

Finals week seems to bring out the worst in everyone. Something about exorbinate amounts of stress, lack of sleep, and caffeine overdoses make everyone a little edgy. All we want is a nap, and maybe a drink.

This past week has been a whirlwind for me.  My cousin got married at the beach last weekend. I had a great time in Gulf Shores, but as soon as I got back reality catapulted into my face.

My to-do list is a mile long. My roommate won't stop singing opera or taking four hours to do her hair in front of my mirror. In the past four days, my hair has caught on fire, I choked on a Splenda packet that fell in my coffee, I ruined two batches of bacon, slept a total of ten hours, and I almost burned my hand off trying to get some taquitos out of the oven.

Needless to say, the struggle has been real.

However, there has been little glimmers of hope--the stranger in the library who told me to keep working hard on my essay, texts that have made me smile, free cake at work, and creepy snapchats from my friends.

Newton's law of motion states that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. If something goes wrong, something will go right shortly after that, or maybe that's just me being optimistic.

When we meet someone or when we attempt something for  the first time, we are essentially saying okay, this is who I am and what I can do--is it enough?

We are being tested and we are testing ourselves--we are taking a risk. Too often we hear this and take it for granted. We like to think that for some reason, we are the exception as opposed to the rule. That no matter what logic says, we will walk away unscathed. For some reason, this situation is different. For some reason, this guy is different.

You have to be prepared for whatever comes your way. You have to be prepared that once you jump from the ledge, someone may be there to catch you, or you may fall. Just because you fall, though, doesn't mean that you won't still land on your own feet.

You have to be prepared that sometimes, you'll stick your hand in the toaster oven and cry out. But you know what? Those taquitos were worth it.

Sometimes we worry too much about winning. We worry too much about caring the least and having the upper hand. Too bad high reward comes from high risks.

I have faith that I'm going to be okay. If I put everything on the table, I will either win big or go home empty-handed. I'd prefer the former, but when you have nothing--you have nothing to lose.

So, tonight, I'm playing all my cards. I'm putting myself out there knowing that there's a chance I could be rejected.

I'm not going to walk away asking if maybe I sucked up my pride, I would have won big. I'm not going to waste my life asking if I could have done better had I not been so afraid. With the exception of hard drugs, I have realized that you can live with yourself much easier knowing you made a mistake than knowing you didn't even try.

Blair Waldorf once said, "I'm all in and my bet's on us."

Blair's a prideful creature, much like myself. If she can set that aside to chase her dreams, then maybe I can too. If I can forget about my fear of rejection, I won't have to wonder if I missed out. If I pursue the opportunities given to me, maybe I'll become Editor in Chief of Cosmopolitan...or maybe I'll just be living in New York City eating ramen in a studio apartment (which would still be an improvement than eating ramen in Ratchet Rast).

Take a deep breathe, put on some lipstick, and go get 'em, tiger--it's all you can do.

April 5, 2013

Five First Times

This is the first post in my new segment called, "Five Things Friday" which will be a sort of mini-blog that showcases what I'm currently into, how I'm feeling, and what is going on in my life.

The past seven days for me have been all about trying new things, and here are a few of these things...


5 First Times of This Week:

1) Shot a pistol. I'm a girl's girl to a tee. My favorite color is glitter and I love my sorority. BUT I was also raised in a household where we discussed Chicago gangsters and scowl at anyone who believes in gun control. This past weekend, though, I went to a shooting range for the first time. It was quite exhilarating, and it really cleared my mind. I foresee this happening again soon.

2) Ate boiled peanuts. Like from a crockpot in a gas station in the middle of nowhere. I like to try everything once, but this was not one of my better life choices. I also ate orange marshmallow circus peanuts--those were also disgusting.

3) Used a weight machine. I'm a pretty simple exerciser. For cardio, I run or dance. For strength, I lift free weights. I finally decided to suck it up, and chance looking stupid while I tried four different leg machines. I may have gotten some awkward stares, but I left the gym a stronger woman.

4) (Almost) Broke into a car. Not like illegally, or anything. When I was at the beach last weekend, my friend locked her keys in her trunk. We tried to use not one, but two ghetto wire hangers that we acquired from passersby. Unfortunately, we failed miserably and some people who felt bad for us came and let us use their AAA. If I ever lock my keys in my nonexistent car, though, I'll know all the things not to do.

5) Ran three miles. I've realized that I'm never going to be a marathon runner, and I'm never going to have a record time in a 100 meter dash. Because of my scholarship's hour requirements, I was forced to take a PE class this semester. I finally have gotten my run up to three consecutive miles. (At the beginning of the semester, I didn't run AT ALL, so this is a vast improvement.)

April 2, 2013

Bridges, Burkas, and Betches

I like to make friends--that's why I'm a communications major. I also like to learn about other cultures--that's why I'm an international studies major. I like to help people--that's why I'm Vice President of a service organization.

Each of these roles that I play allow me to have a different perspective on every issue I face and every decision I make. I've learned that these attributes may make up my resume, but offer only a very slim view of who I am.

Knowing only what can be seen on a Facebook profile is not the same as knowing someone. You could research every statistic about me, but that won't tell you how I look when I'm laughing or what makes me smile.

Unfortunately, we all make judgments before we actually get to know someone, and we do it every single day. We'll find out what we believe to be key facts about someone (ones that may not even be true) but we decide that because of that we could never be his or her friend or we could never have anything in common with them.

Tonight in a lecture called "The New Religious Intolerance: Overcoming the Politics of Fear," University of Chicago professor, Martha Nussbaum discussed how France is passing laws outlawing burkas (the covering that traditional Muslim women wear). She disbanded every argument the supporters of the "burka ban" provided.

It's a safety concern having people's faces covered--what about surgeons? What about American football players? What about average citizens fighting the cold? All of these people walk around in society with their faces covered and we do not feel threatened.

Wearing a burka makes women only be shown as objects-- Aren't women objectified all over society? What about Playboy centerfolds?

Burkas are unsafe because it is too hot to wear that much clothing. How do stilettos affect the feet of today's women?

Our disconnect with those who are different usually does not stem from a sincere belief that he or she is wrong. It usually starts with a thought--an uncomfortable one. What if this person who is different talks to me? What could I possibly have to say?

When I decided to come to UAB, I did not realize I was basically entering the melting pot of the Southeast. When a Bengali girl in my English class befriended me, I never expected her to be my closest confidante or my . It turned out, however, that she liked fashion and astrology and John Green books just as much as I did. Her roommate was also a Bengali Muslim and she wore a hijab.

The truth is it is very intimidating to speak with someone who is different from you, someone from a background you've never encountered or do not understand.

We do not always know how to act around these people, but is that their fault? Should we persecute them or ignore them for being different just because we do not understand their culture? Should we not be educating ourselves about our neighbors next door and around the world? Or should we continue to separate ourselves from the physically disabled or those whose minds work a little differently?

As late as the 1970s, Chicago (and many other cities in the United States) had "ugly laws" prohibiting aesthetically unappealing people from appearing in public in fear that they might disturb the average passersby. People were unable to leave their homes because of a circumstance they had no control over.

Maybe this doesn't mean much coming from me because I'm Aryan, Protestant, and American-born. Most of the people I was raised around fit this same description. Then again, maybe this makes me the poster child for overcoming cultural and personal differences because I am part of the majority.

The majority decides the status quo, and only we can decide how and when the status quo should change. If we took a minute to realize that maybe those who cover up or do something we don't agree with or can't apprehend are not so different from us, maybe we could learn something. We can call it activism, but what could happen when we decide to step outside of our comfort zones.

What would our world look like if we stopped making excuses and started making connections?



*Definition found at Dictionary.com