riot, don’t diet
I tore my nail the other day. It doesn’t seem like a big deal, but to me it is. I have an oddly placed in-grown hair on the left hand middle finger and I grow my nails to protect it. It really hurt, so I went to the shops to buy some fake nails to cover it up. I’m not a person that’s overly fussed on my appearance or adding many fake applications to my body in the name of beauty, but I will admit that for a few days, I did also like the lovely french tips. And I spent an unusual amount of time imagining the conversations I would have to explain why I was wearing fake nails when I’m clearly not ‘that kind of girl’.
Then, while I was celebrating Christmas in July with my in-laws, a rather obscure family member commented on my consumption of a lunch time Tooheys that she ‘didn’t know I drank beer’.
I’m often a fairly down to earth kind of person. I am quite certain about the way I like to do things, but I prefer to avoid stereotypes and label restrictions as much as possible. After giving myself permission to let go of mainstream perceptions of beauty, I’ve also given myself permission to give no fuck about what you think of me having fake nails or having the occasional drink, despite my previous claims of not caring how I look or choosing not to indulge in alcoholic beverages. I see no need for explanation, beyond my personal moral compass, for a little self spoilage, and neither should you.
Jetta Vegas has appeared in my posts before, and I like to think that this time, she’s been in my thoughts. It was only the other day that I typed my little note on this idea into my iPhone when I came across one of Jetta’s more recent videos, ‘don’t live like you’re on a diet’.
What I like best about this video, is her encouraging attitude to live your life for the things you love the most. Many people see a diet as a limiting lifestyle choice that rarely pays off in the end. If this is you, perhaps there’s a change in perception to be made?
If you’re limited by labels, from what society might perceive you as to the labels that we set for ourselves (perhaps in spite of said social labels), then we may really miss out on parts of life that we can never get back.
As no excuse for greed, allow yourself permission to be selfish and not swayed by being a certain type of person only. If your default setting is socks and sandals, don’t be afraid to crack out those sensibly sized heels from time to time. If you’re a skirts and stockings kind of gal, make a statement with that pair of overalls in your closet that you’ve been dying to wear. And if, on occasion, you want to wear your french tip nails and drink beer in places you normally wouldn’t, don’t think of an excuse to do so, just do it. If your values are steadily in place, or even still in development, what would it matter what the package they come in looks like?
Image Credit (1)
http://lipmag.com/opinion/how-to-keep-on-keepin-on/
