Day the 92nd

And here we are, at Rancho Weight-Loss...celebrating 90 (count 'em, 90) days of...not eating junk, trying (okay, and somedays, not trying) to exercise, and just generally get jiggy with not being the Queen Size of Weltha.

All right, all right, it's 92 days so far, but you get the idea.

Today, I'm getting on my soapbox, but first...

Last night I bought a little treat because it looked innocuous (I read ingredient lists like a pagan priest examining sheep entrails...sorry if that put you off your lunch...) called "Blue Diamond Nut Thins." I mean, what wasn't to like? Made with real nuts (yes, real nuts--almonds. An exceptional nut) and rice and potato flour and natural flavorings. And they were good. The package said an average serving is 16 little thins. They are crisp and flavorful without being too strong--they would make great little dippers for a some hummus or some baba ghanoush.

Just one problem--salt. Too salty for this woman who eats so little salt. And I woke up this morning, tried to put my amber ring on (it goes on the middle finger of my left hand because: 1. I like to look a little different--not like everyone else, and 2. I bought it years ago at a gun show [yes, a gun show and get over it] and it's...too big, just like every other ring I have ever bought for myself because although I am 5'10" tall, I am--let's say it all together now--fine-boned--and I have slender little fingers. Now...back to our regularly scheduled blogging...) and it was very tight. Why? Because of the dadgum salt in the "Nut Thins."

And today, I will have to drink water like a BIG DOG...because tomorrow is Weigh-In Wednesday and I don't want to look as if I have gained weight.

Which I have not. But still...I just don't want to look like it.

Moral of the story...eat salty things in tiny quantities...and drink lots of water. And try to avoid salty things. You really get used to it--you do.

And now..it's time for Weltha's Soap Box...relax heathen friends (and I use that terms lovingly...), I am not going to preach at you. At least not this time...

No, my Soap Box issue here is Child Beauty Pageants. I take this from a blog entry by Tracey (I follow her blog "Life at Tracey Speed") and this entry was a "most viewed" and I saw that and I, too, viewed it.

Weltha here thinks that Child Beauty Pageants (and don't get me started on adult Beauty Pageants, oh excuse me, I mean "Scholarship Pageants.") are child abuse. Here's my quick-list as to why:

1. They sexualize little girls--have you ever seen these travesties? Go on YouTube and search for them. The little girls in the dance numbers and the "talent" numbers move in imitation of grown, fully sexualized women, not to mention the clothing and makeup. I mean, really, are we trying to make our daughters appealing to the pedophiles out there, so they can say, "but she wanted it"? Childhood is short enough--my mom used to say, "Honey, you'll be an adult for the rest of your life. Be a child now." Thanks, Mom. You were right.
   
2. They objectify little girls--and teach girls that they are to be the objects of men's attention. I get so much flak when I say this. What I mean is not that men shouldn't look at women (they do. There is not stopping it.) but there is a type of looking that turns a woman (or a girl...) into an object. I am not something to be ogled and that's not my description as a human "the to-be-looked-at-one." For further fun on this topic, read the classic 1975 essay by Laura Mulvey "Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema" and you'll understand my point.
   
3. They commodify little girls--these pageants are for more than ribbons and trophies (as tawdry as that is)--they are for money, cars, scholarships and heaven knows what else. In other words, instead of a woman earning money through talent and hard work, she earns money through her looks and physical charms. Where I come from, we have a word for a woman who trades on her looks and charms for money--the word is prostitute. I don't have a daughter, but if I did, the very last thing I would want is for her to think that her looks are a source of revenue. I would want her to think that hard work, skill, diligence, education and effort are the path to take. And on the "Scholarship Pageant" idea...I've had a few people say, "But it provides women with education." Hey, here's a news flash...when I received my scholarship package to my undergrad program, it wasn't because I paraded around in a swimsuit or twirled batons. It was because I was an outstanding student in high school and because I scored high on exams. A woman can get all kinds of scholarship money without sexualizing her method of doing it. I'm a woman--I'm not a whore. And I'm very tired of people thinking it's "cute" or "harmless" for a girl to be in a Beauty Pageant. Or for a woman to do so. There are better ways of developing poise and self-esteem: join up at ToastMasters with your daughter and both of you learn to speak in public. That's a great way to develop poise--and one your daughter can take into the workplace. Have her take music or art lessons if she's interested, or have her play a sport (that doesn't take over her life...) or be in plays--the effort and accomplishment will do wonders for her self-esteem. Encourage her to be the best student she can be--it will follow her into college and onto her first job. Show interest in her brains and her effort--not in "how pretty" she looks. Watch what you say--are you praising her for things she cannot help--her blue eyes or her cute figure? Or are you praising her for things that actually help her: effort, kindness, hard work, study, and ability. Do we want women or do we want little model-wannabes? What does she spend her time on--her looks, her hair, her makeup, her clothes--or does she also spend time reading or singing or acting or playing a sport or an instrument or in areas of social justice? Beauty pageants promote none of these. None.

All right...enough. But please, if you're out there and you think it's harmless or just "cute" for your daughter, or niece, or sister, or granddaughter to be in any type of Beauty Pageant, think again.

And then, we wonder why we have so many eating disorders and self-image problems, and why so many women marry men who think of them as ornaments and mistreat them and throw them away for a newer, firmer model. Women, we have brought some of this on ourselves.

All right...I want as many posts as I can get on this.

Independently,

Weltha (the Feminist)