Youth Are Awesome, commonly referred to as YAA, is a blog written by youth for youth.
YAA provides the youth of Calgary a place to amplify their voices and perspectives on what is happening around them.
Youth Are Awesome is a program of Youth Central.
Any views or opinions expressed on this blog belong solely to the author and do not represent those of people or organizations that the blog may be associated with, unless explicitly stated. All content is for informational purposes only.
Earlier this month, one of my fellow bloggers, Ailin Li, wrote a post on Esther Honig’s “Before and After” project. I was very intrigued by Ailin’s post, so I decided to do a-bit more research on the “Before and After” project. I learned that Esther Honig is a human interest reporter who set out to find what other countries viewed as beautiful. Honig hired 40 freelancers from around the world and sent out a makeup-less picture of herself to each freelancer, requesting them to “make me beautiful”. Soon enough, Esther began to receive edits of her picture. And these were the results:
Original
Germany
India
Chile
Indonesia
Morocco
Bangladesh
Philippines
United Kingdom
Vietnam
United States
Italy
Venezuela
Kenya
Pakistan
Argentina
Australia
Bulgaria
Israel
Serbia
Greece
Ukraine
Sri Lanka
These images are very intriguing, they give you a look into what different people view as beautiful. The pictures show that beauty is a language of it’s own, it can be interpreted in many different ways.
I was so inspired by these images that I decided to photoshop the picture of Honig as well. I though long and hard about what beauty means to me, and I believe I successfully translated it into my edit.
Let’s face it, August sucks. It is the month that hosts the arrival of back-to-school commercials and just reminds us that the effervescent of rays of summer are about to come to an end. To those more fortunate, August also tends to be the dreaded month of heat waves and unbearable weather. But here are some things to make the most of what we can of August.
1. Go on a Netflix/movie/TV show marathon– This one is especially directed to all the students out there, this is honestly the last chance you are going to get to binge on your favourite TV show or movies(s). Make the most of the last remnants of vacation by catching up on that new show everyone’s talking about so that you can emerge from your television coma as hip as can be in front of all your peers.
2. Explore the outdoors– As much as you may want to continue sleeping in and continuously become fulfilled in your TV coma, you may want to venture to a place called, “the outdoors.” For us Calgarians, this may be the last chance that we get to see sunshine and green grass for eight months.
Taken at Fossil Mountain. You could actually see the wildflowers.
3. Eat– I recently found this calendar via the Social that marks every food holiday in August. Seriously, who wouldn’t want to celebrate National S’more’s Day?
4. Exercise– If you are planning to stuff your face throughout the last precious days of summer, you should also consider incorporating some exercise into the array of carbohydrates that you may be ingesting. With the sun hanging in there, go for a jog along Bowness park or a hike in Banff. An active routine will also help you gear into shape for school or work. The best part about this time is, you can’t use the excuse of a “workload” or a “busy schedule” to get out of hitting the gym. Let’s face it, getting fit will also help offset the amount of winter weight you will be gaining later on this year.
5. Volunteer– Rather than lulling around at home, get yourself involved! Put yourself out into the community, where your services can benefit people who are really in need of your help. Youth Central is offering various summer camps you can volunteer for. So if you are a youth willing to finally break those barriers holding you back, volunteer with us. It is a great opportunity to not only make an impact, but it also allows you to make new friends and build meaningful connections.
6. Festivals/Events– We are clearly not the only ones who want to make August a memorable month. Various events and festivals are happening around the city. Check out our calendar here. You can view fireworks during GlobalFest; this year’s theme is Southeast Asia (a part from France, which is honoured again this year). If you are a music buff, check out X-Fest during August 30th and 31st. Headliners include Arctic Monkeys, Jack White and Calgary’s own Tegan and Sara. August is a busy month so be on the lookout.
With these tips, I hope we can all experience the light that August can bring. Who knows when you will be seeing the sunlight again, so make the most of it.
Sounds obvious, right? Over the past few weeks, I’ve had a eye-opening realization of how important helping others actually is. No action, no matter how small, is without its effect on those around you. People may forget what you said or what you did, but they will never forget how you made them feel. Behind every successful individual is a vast network of people who support them.
Everyone needs help at some point in their lives. Everyone also has the ability to help in someway or another.
My Grade 7 Health teacher said something that still sticks with me today:
It takes a lot of energy to make someone else feel bad, and in the end, you only feel good for a little while. When you make someone else feel happy, not only are you happy too, but that feeling lasts much longer.
That’s a good way to think of things when we address issues such as bullying and discrimination. With our words and actions, we have the ability to both harm and help others. It can get tiring quickly when you’re intentionally directing time towards degrading others to elevate your own position. It’s what leads to shouting insults, fist-fights, and causing unnecessary drama.
Instead, treating others with empathy is the best way to gain respect from your peers. Offer a listening ear, a shoulder to cry on, or words of advice. This is how you build healthy relationships that are founded on mutual trust rather than conflict. You can never really know what problems that other people are facing, and sometimes the simple act of being there for them is powerful. They will remember it, even if you think it was no big deal.
On his last day at University, a woman approached him and thanked him for something that happened 4 years ago. It turns out that during her first day at University, she decided that she wanted to quit. Just then, Drew came out “wearing the stupidest hat I have ever seen in my life… It was awesome.”
Drew was handing out lollipops to people in line. When he got to her, her parents got a severe look on their face and said: “Look at that, look at that. First day away from home and already she’s taking candy from a stranger!”
Everyone around them erupted in laughter.
She said: “In that moment when everyone was laughing, I knew that I shouldn’t quit. I knew I was where I was supposed to be. I knew that I was home. I haven’t spoken to you once in the 4 years since that day, but I heard that you were leaving. I had to come up and tell you that you’ve been an incredibly important person in my life and I’m going to miss you. Good luck.”
Powerful, right?
Drew asks the audience: “How many of you guys have alollipop moment? A moment when someone said something or did something you feel fundamentally made your life better?”
Several people raised their hands.
He continued: “How many of you have told that person they did it?”
Even fewer people raised their hands.
“Why not?”
He goes on to explain that we have all helped others in some way, we just haven’t been told yet. We believe that leadership is something that’s greater than us, that we’re not worthy of being called a leader. So we dismiss the special lollipop moments where we are a leader. The fact that such a small act can have such a significant impact is frightening.
He quotes Marianne Williamson:
“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate, it’s that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that frightens us.”
It’s a profound message: the realization of the amount of power we have to change the lives of others for the better.
It is the “Good morning.” The friendly smile. The holding of the door for someone else. It is giving compliments. It is highlighting other’s strengths, not weaknesses. It is encouraging people to be themselves. It is caring about the minorities. It is about late night talks about life. It is listening to rants about everything. It is giving up time to help those in need.
All these things add up.
You may not know it, but people appreciate when you help them. It motivates them to be better people. Even after the person has finished a lollipop, they still have that sweet taste in their mouth. Instead of being bitter, they now strive for sweetness. Before you know it, that person is now handing out lollipops to other people, just like you are.
Do it yourself projects are becoming more and more popular these days. I personally find that it feels so good to be able to say “Yeah, I made this myself!” Upcycling is basically taking old and no longer used products and converting them into newer and better things. These upcycled t-shirts are starting to pop up everywhere and you probably already own most of the materials needed.
There are so many ways that you can upcycle your t-shirts to make them cuter and more befitting your personal style. I’d like to share a few of my personal favourites for upcycling old or unused t-shirts. These are perfect for the summer but you can wear them any time throughout the year. You probably already have several of these just lying around the house or hidden away in a drawer so why not turn them into something that you’ll actually wear?
This DIY requires a sewing machine but you could hand sew it or even fabric glue it. It says crochet trim but I think you could take just about any type of pretty fabric and put it there instead. You could also alter the placement of the fabric by just cutting the shirt elsewhere.
More instructions can be found at http://www.trashtocouture.com/2012/03/diy-crochet-trim-seam.html
This DIY is a super cute way to modify any t-shirt. The tutorial shows one bow at the top of the shirt but you can put on as many bows as you want. As before, any sewing can of course be substituted with fabric glue.
For more instructions, please visit http://www.collegefashion.net/uncategorized/diy-fashion-bow-back-t-shirt/
This tutorial is super simple and all you have to do is cut and tie knots. Cut the fringes as high as you want the knots and just keep tying knots until you either run out of fabric or reached the perfect length. It calls for a tank top but you can also use a t-shirt, cut off the collar and sleeves to turn it into a tank top. I actually see this particular style in stores sometimes but this is a much cheaper way with pretty much the same end result.
Another alternative is to skip the knots and just have fringes at the bottom of your shirt, which is another cute style popping up nowadays.
One of the easiest ways to upcycle your t-shirts is to make cutouts. You can literally make these cutouts wherever you want in whatever shape you want with as many as you want. It can be worn as a t-shirt with cutouts or you can cut off the sleeves and collar to turn it into a cute tank top.
These are just a few of my favourite upcycled t-shirt ideas but there are so many styles that you can find on the internet or take an idea that you like and go with it. Basically, just have fun with it and enjoy all the different directions you can take with DIYs.
This year a friend and I had the opportunity of volunteering at the Franco Festival 2014 in Calgary, which was unique and exceptional two-day festival. For those that don’t know about the Franco Festival Calgary, it is a Francophone Multicultural festival in Calgary that was established in August 2011. It is an initiative of Le Portail de l’Immigrant Association which is a non-profit organization based in Calgary that has launched a variety of projects in different areas such as education, awareness of our surroundings, promotion of immigration and diversity, sociocultural and economic integration.
My volunteering experience at the Franco Festival was quite fun, not because of the free food I got, but because I got to learn a lot about the Francophone culture. The first day of the event was quite dreary because of the harsh winds that were blowing that day and unfortunately many people were not able to show up. On the first day, my friend and I were assigned the role of putting up tents, but it was quite hard because of the intense wind that was blowing that day. To make matters worse, there was a drizzle of rain that made it almost impossible to get anything done. At the end of that day, the rain and winds had ceased and the weather was a little bit more suitable for the people that came to the event.
First Day of Franco Fest 2014The event set upMain stage for the performances
The second day of the Franco Festival was very exhilarating because it was sunny and partly cloudy. On the second day of the event my friend and I were assigned the role of managing parking. The role we were assigned to was very tiring because we were both in the hot sun, but in the end it actually was not as bad as we had expected. After our shift, we were given the opportunity to walk around the event to experience the rich Francophone Multicultural festival. At the event, there were various tents that represented different French speaking countries.In addition, we were able to watch some Francophone performances, which were mainly dance and music. Through this, the festival is able to promote the talent of local artists, not to mention the many people and organizations working to share the vitality and radiance of the culture.
Local Francophone Artist about to playA Francophone dance group performance
At the event, there were many families that came with their children. The children had access to what seemed like a very fun bouncy castle, while their parents had the opportunity to experience the Francophone culture. Lastly, what made this day very exhilarating was the fact that there were free slurpees that were given out since it was a very hot day. That made my day.
Merchandise at the EventFrench speaking countries sell their merchandise More MerchandiseMore Merchandise sold at the tents
At the end of the day, I believe the Franco Festival was a very fun volunteering opportunity. Additionally, I found it to be a very inviting event for any individual, French or not to discover the proficient Francophone culture. I also felt that the festival posed as a great opportunity to honour artists and people who contribute their efforts to the development of French speaking cultures. I would recommend this event to anyone that would want to gain greater knowledge of the Francophone Community or just generally, have fun.
The event on the second day
For More info check out: http://www.francofestcalgary.com/
Summers are always full of messy beds and over-worn pajamas. They are full of long naps and heat waves that never fail to disappoint. Well here’s a relief: an awesome event is on its way, and it’s time to pull out our swimming trunks because Slide the City is coming to Calgary with 1000ft of soapy vinyl that is padded underneath to brighten our city streets!
There will be sick slides, dancing, and did I fail to mention that this slide is 1000ft long?! That’s right, 3 football fields. There will be live music, food, drinks, water, and the fastest and longest slide you’ve ever been on! (Even Usain Bolt will be surprised at how fast you can cover that 1000ft of land)! It would be the best bet to grab onto this opportunity, as Calgary is the only city in Alberta that will host a Slide the City event and there is a limited 3000 tickets available. What better way is there to make some awesome memories with your friends and family? Better yet, proceeds go towards charity, in Salt Lake City proceeds went towards Ronald McDonald House and the Utah Aids Foundation.
Although no official date has been made for this event, the website has Calgary listed under December 2014. You’re probably wondering who in their right mind would want to go in the winter, but the administrators are hoping to adjust Calgary’s date according to the weather so that we’re not sliding down ice instead of water. The first Slide the City event in Salt Lake City had their tickets sold out almost instantly and it was a huge success. Keep your eyes peeled guys, as this post will be updated with the official event date as well as Slide the City essentials and event day information!
I’d like to draw your attention to how the word “diet” includes the word “die”. Yes, I know that “diet” can simply mean the food you eat, but I’m talking about when “diet” means restricting your intake, generally as a means of weight-loss.
Now I’m sure many of you have heard of the show “The Biggest Loser,” and I’m sure many of you have also heard of the fairly recent controversy over one winner who, well, lost too much weight.
Let’s take a critical look at this situation. A woman loses over half her body weight, and becomes too thin, so we all freak out. However, The Biggest Loser is filled with people losing that amount of weight. But as long as they aren’t too skinny, society sees all that weight loss as healthy. In fact, society is usually proud of people for taking unrealistic measures to lose their fat.
Essentially, we praise people for using behaviours that, on another individual, we would call an eating disorder. If someone at a higher weight starves themselves, dramatically cuts back on calories, or over-exercises, we look up to that and see it as an achievement. We see it as being healthy. Yet an overwhelming number of people are suffering from eating disorders characterized by these same behaviours.
What’s more, we don’t even look down upon severely-emaciated bodies. I’ll give you two reasons why I say this: 1) modelling agencies have been known to recruit outside eating disorder clinics, and 2) I have met multiple people who have been told they’re looking great shortly before starting intensive (even inpatient) eating disorder treatment.
I could ramble on about this for hours, so I think I’ll draw this post to a close. I’d like to leave you with one last message. It’s something I read on Tumblr: (one of the most misunderstood concepts is…) “Eating disorders are a mental illness, not a weight range.”
So let’s stop praising people for engaging in unhealthy behaviours to meet society’s unhealthy (and unrealistic) beauty ideal.
If you or someone you know is suffering from an eating disorder, please get help.
If you or someone you know is engaging in unhealthy dieting or other behaviours, please think again.
There is nothing I love more about summer than rolling down the windows in the car, blasting some music to get me pumped up, and feeling the cool wind on my face. Although you could listen to these tunes any time of the year, there’s something about the summer sunshine that makes you want to get up and dance (or if you’re me, awkwardly flail around and call it dancing).
Today, I have made a playlist of 30 songs which really capture the summer spirit for me. I love tunes with fast beats, high notes, some cool instrumental or electronic lines, and lyrics that portray an “I don’t care” attitude. Don’t worry, all the songs featured are the clean versions so you can blast this playlist even with your parents around. (I should mention that these songs are in no particular order based on which I like the most.)
You may have noticed that the playlist follows a general trend, along the lines of what I described above. All of these aspects, either together or on their own, just get your blood pumping, making it irresistible to break out singing and/or dancing. It was really hard for me to select the perfect combination of songs together, so I recommend listening to it with shuffle off.
I understand that it doesn’t incorporate many indie bands or some of the other non-mainstream artists, but that’s mainly because I only listen to the radio. My playlists consist of Top 40 hits, soundtracks from movies and musicals, as well as six hours of classical and orchestral pieces (which probably won’t get you pumped up). This just happens to be the music I enjoy, so I hope nobody judges me for it.
Disclaimer: I do not claim to own any of the music featured. In no way do I promote the any of the actions mentioned in these songs.
If you know me, you would say that my two favorite things are the internet and shopping, and although this is true, there is one thing I like more: when those two things are combined. I have a bit of an obsession for online shopping. The convenience of not leaving your house, waiting eagerly for the package to arrive, and the joy of finally receiving it is more than enough reason to love shopping online. It’s like getting a present, only you know what it is and you’ve sent it to yourself. However, there always a little element of surprise because you never truly know what your purchase looks like, or if it looks good on you.
For instance I recently ordered a shirt online from Brandy Melville. Their store just opened in Market Mall last week, and
because I am out of town for the summer, I couldn’t stand waiting until I got back to score some of their cute clothes! I was a little worried because all of their shirts are one size fits most, but I was pleased to see that the shirt was in fact, perfect for the oversized look. The tshirt is plain grey, but has a little stitched hand doing the rock n roll sign on the pocket, which I thought was just ingenious! So if you’re anything like me; fashionable, internet savvy and impatient; I hope you shop online too. Although the reassurance that I am not the only one that does this is great, I really do think that online shopping is the best way to make purchases.
So what exactly is the moral of this story you ask me? Well it is to inform you of two things:
A) The joys of online shopping
B) Brandy Melville.
Brandy Melville is a super cute and trendy clothing store for girls, and it recently opened Calgary! The store has a very California-y vibe and only has three other locations in Canada! Their prices are reasonable and their clothing is well made, so I highly suggest you visit their new Market Mall location or visit their website for some cute and affordable back to school clothes. Happy shopping!
Having recently started following Vogue on Twitter, I am now one step closer to becoming a true, self-entitled professional fashion blogger. While Vogue is known for their bold statements and rather outlandish pieces, I have to argue with some of the risks mentioned in a recent Vogue Daily article, “10 Fashion Risks You Should Have Taken by the Age of 30,” for being too un-risky.
The main problem I have with this article is that the word “risk” implies a loss or damage. Since the article doesn’t mention any flaming pants or 15-inch stiletto heels, I can only imagine that the wearer would lose their dignity or damage their pride as a consequence. This is in direct contrast to the encouragement the author attempts to provide, stating that “developing a fearless sense of personal style” requires taking a risk. If you lose confidence in yourself or become embarrassed as a result of your fashion choices, you will definitely not be inclined to wear the same outfit again. But as always, not everything is meant to be taken so literally, so let’s move on.
1 & 2 | The first two “risks” mentioned were the most surprising to me. Thigh-high boots and mini skirts, uniform-pleated skirts, Peter Pan collars, and over-the-knee socks are a very popular trend in modern East-Asian fashion. If anyone is familiar with the Lolita style, many outfits incorporate all five of these aspects at once. By implying that these choices in clothing are “risky,” therefore not to be worn on a daily basis, I can’t help but feel that it’s a little bit offensive. And yes, I’m slightly offended too, because I love my Peter Pan collars.
3 | Every year when the Calgary Stampede rolls around, so do the cowboy boots. If the author believes that wearing cowboy boots is risky behavior, then I suggest she never come up here during July.
4 | I believe the author pulled this next risk from 13 Going on 30 in the scene where a very confused Jenna Rink rushes out of her apartment after waking up and realizing she’s no longer a pre-teen. Sure, Jenna Garner looks fabulous roaming the streets of New York in a nightgown, but sleepwear should stay at home.
5 | The only thing I could think when reading the next statement in the article is, “Where do you even get sequin pants?” If someone finds me a pair of sequin pants, I will actually wear them for an entire day out, no fingers crossed. I’m serious.
6 | Going goth, grunge, or punk for the night seems like the only thing risky mentioned in the article. And that’s because anyone who actually identifies with one of those social groups will tear you up for claiming to dress like one of them if you don’t do it correctly.
7 | Last I checked, a blazer is supposed to be tailored to looked fitted, so an “oversize blazer” kind of blows my mind. Plus, the fabric most blazers are made out of would not be too comfortable to wear as a dress. Perhaps if I had little birds and squirrels that could tailor dresses for me like in some Disney princess movie, I would consider this option, but my sewing skills definitely aren’t good enough for any Extreme Blazer Makeover: Dress Edition.
8 | I don’t really know how much you get from a tax return, but I suppose enough to buy leather pants. I’m not 18 yet, so I have no idea how to do my taxes. Oh wow. I’m moving out next year and I don’t know how to do my taxes… Can someone please write an article on that?
9 | I’m not entirely sure why the author decided to use quotations around the word “signature,” but I’m assuming it’s meant to take a hit at those who wear a fedora every day. (P.S. Despite popular opinion on the internet, I happen to love fedoras.)
10 | The fact that I had to Google 4/6 of the people mentioned probably means I’m slightly under qualified to be stating my opinion on this one, so I’ll just leave things here.
Disclaimer: I mean no offense to the author of this article, I love Vogue, and I’m simply trying to debate another side to the story with some humor.
Being a student is hard. While attempting to balance school, relationships, and yeshormones, one may come to face with their (mildly horrific) financial situation. Many of us may find ourselves pinching pennies (okay, now that the penny has been taken out of circulation, I guess we’ll have to say ‘pinching quarters’ instead) for that movie or shopping trip. Plus, now that summer is finally upon us, many are lacking fun, yet affordable, places to visit. Luckily, these five Calgary locations offer great student discounts with valid IDperfectly handy for a day out with friends.
1. Plaza Theatre
Originally constructed as a garage in the 20s, the Plaza was officially opened as a theatre in 1935. Today, it is Calgary’s last remaining independent theatre. Located in the lovely neighborhood of Kensington, Plaza plays primarily indie films and documentaries that one may stumble across at a film festival. However, in the past they have also screened major blockbuster hits such as 12 Years a Slave, The Lego Movie, and Philomena. A little run-down, but gracefully so, movies at the Plaza rarely break the $10 mark. Plus, by showing your student ID, you can get $3 off admissions. See showtimes and featured movies here: http://www.theplaza.ca/.
2. Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra (CPO)
While volunteering at the annual Sun & Salsa festival in Kensington, I was opened up to a new program created by the Calgary Philharmonic called CPOssibilities. By signing up and purchasing a free CPOssibilities membership, individuals aged 14-29 have the chance to receive CPO tickets for only $15. This is such a fantastic program and allows young people to get out in support of the arts. And as if the offer isn’t good enough already, each ticket entitles you to bring a guest of any age. Get registered here: http://www.cpo-live.com/main/cpossibilities.php .
3. Glenbow Museum
From personal experience, I’ve found that though many Calgarians have passed by the Glenbow Museum, not many have actually been in it. Located conveniently downtown, the Glenbow Museum is a great place for people of all ages to get up close with Canadian history and art. Now, with a terrific exhibition from the Beaverbrook Art Gallery (which includes works from Dali, Matisse, and more), you don’t not have a reason to go. Tickets are $9 for youth aged 7-17, and $10 for students that are older. Visit http://www.glenbow.org/index.cfm for more information.
4. Alberta Theatre Projects
Across the street from the Glenbow, one will find themselves at the Martha Cohen Theatre, home of Alberta Theatre Projects. With shows ranging from Tony Award winning Venus In Fur to more homely options such as Charlotte’s Web, Alberta Theatre Projects is a great way to connect to Calgary’s performing arts community. Their infamous That $10 Ticket Thing allows individuals with student IDs to watch live theatre for a fraction of the price. To get more information on the program, and to see their 2014/15 show lineup, visit http://www.atplive.com/.
5. Student Price Card (SPC)
Okay, I’ll admit that this one isn’t really a location… It’s more of a card that will give you student discounts to locations. Many may have heard of this Canadian program that provides students with price cuts on things such as clothing, food, and more. Currently, more than 120 major retailers such as Menchies, Urban Outfitters, and Boston Pizza have signed up with SPC. For only $9 a year, you can enjoy endless benefits to almost every store you shop at! Pretty awesome, right? For more information, visit http://www.spccard.ca/.
Note: Prior to visiting these locations, please remember to bring your student ID and a piece of government-issued ID with your birth date on it just in case!
Around two weeks ago, Brinton Parker (fellow fashion and beauty blogger) of Huffington Post Women released an interesting article. Parker conducted a “social experiment” which tested the different reactions she would get from men on the dating website Tinder based on the levels of makeup she wore in her photos. I’ve never used an online dating website, but Parker explains the whole thing in her post entitled “How Men on Tinder Reacted to Three Different Levels of Makeup.” I do suggest reading the article before continuing this post. It was quite interesting, and after reading up on some different opinions surrounding this article, I’ve decided to express some of my own.
Mainly, I’d like to address the errors in Parker’s self-proclaimed experiment. Below, you will find the three sets of photos that she used for each of her profiles.
No Makeup
“Regular” Makeup
“Heavy” Makeup
Firstly, you may have noticed the quotation marks I used around “regular” and “heavy,” and this is for two reasons. In my opinion, the average makeup seen here can be considered very minimal and portray a “natural” look. The “heavier” makeup seems to only mean that she’s wearing lipstick as compared to the average makeup. Yes, in comparison she may be wearing more makeup, but it certainly is not considered “heavy.” If anything, the looks featured for her third account are just more bold. The fact that Parker had many no-makeup pictures to pull off her Facebook account expresses to me that she is already a very confident girl who only dabs on some cosmetics for special events or nights out (as portrayed in some photos). The image to the left is a more accurate representation of what “heavy” makeup would look like.
Moving on from that topic, the vibes sent from the different images are an indication for the responses she received. The pictures where she had no makeup feature Parker with a cute dog and in the woods. On the other hand, her regular makeup photos capture her with a drink and what seem like professional head shots. Obviously, with no makeup and an earthy vibe, men are going to find you “cute” or “funny” as opposed to the heavy makeup where men will assume that she’s into fashion and beauty, and perhaps a bit classier.
Aside from that, Parker is just a naturally attractive woman. Her skin looks just as clear and glowing with no makeup on versus average or heavy makeup. These results are not conclusive in deciding how things would have played out if it were any other person. There are people who look dramatically different with makeup compared to natural-faced.
Finally, only sampling 100 people each time is not very representative of the entire male population. Based on the breakdown of the varying ages of those who responded, “men” seems to only encapsulate those in their 20s. What if with the same photos, she advertised that she was 27? Would older men react differently, or would she even attract men in their early 30s?
There are so many more issues I could point out, but I’ll stop here. I do commend her for taking the time and effort to conduct her experiment, but I can definitely say she was not an IB student as her experimental design is quite flawed. I feel that this experiment might of had more validity if Parker asked each man why they decided to engage in a conversation with her. Correlation does not equal causation, and I can’t help but feel that her results were nothing more than the luck of the draw.
Dating websites will always be sketchy, and not to take any hits at people who have found their life partners this way, but the best connections are made in real life. Sure, getting tons of people wanting to date you only after seeing your face might be flattering, but it doesn’t say anything about how you’ll bond on a deeper level. (And not to mention all the catfishes out there.) Furthermore, it shouldn’t matter to your future partner how much makeup you do or do not wear. First impressions are important, but mean little when they’re based on one face at one point frozen in time. A solid relationship means loving all your faces at every moment, for the rest of your lives.
Brock’s Monument at Queenston Heights, Ontario, the site of the pivotal battle during the War of 1812 bearing its name.
Having spent the last week in the heart of the area of the War of 1812, I have been nearly constantly asking myself this question: Do young Canadians truly appreciate the events that shaped our great country? I myself have always loved learning about history. It baffles me how people can go on without learning about, or at least being curious about how Canada, their homeland or simply somewhere they take interest in came to be. Somehow still, I see so many of my friends and peers living with ignorance toward the battles, agreements and great debates that led to our current state of being. A lot of the young people I’ve seen at Queenston Heights, Fort Henry and along the streets of Niagara-on-the-Lake and Kingston have their heads down, with a disinterested look on their faces. Either that, or they’re glued to their phones instead of being truly aware of their surroundings.
Whenever I go to a site significant to history, sit in a social studies class pertaining to past events or even just walk in the historical districts of Calgary or cities I’m visiting, there’s always people who are visibly not there. By this, I mean that they aren’t truly taking in the point of what they see. It’s like there’s a block put up between them and what they should be getting out of the experience. Not to say that all teenagers don’t appreciate history, the sacrifices that were made and the monumental events that occurred to shape the future that is their present day. Many do, and exemplify the point I’m making: History is important as it’s one of our duties, even as youth, to understand how just as past events have moulded our lives, our actions today can impact people years and even generations into the future.
So go out, be curious! Ask questions, visit historic sites and learn about the rich history of our city, province, country, world or even your family. When you can appreciate the people who shaped our modern world, you can see the significance in what may even seem like the smallest things that we often take for granted. It warms my heart to watch my peers seeing the impacts that the past has on now and to see that spark of curiosity and pride in our ancestors. By understanding what it took to get us here, we can see what it will take to move us forward.
The vending machine at school is one of the only reasons I am able to stay sane during the day. I love getting some Sun Chips at lunch, or grabbing a giant cookie after school while I study, but I never really stopped to evaluate the healthiness of all these snacks. Obviously, schools need to have some health standards when it comes to what they feed you, but the U.S. Department of Agriculture has decided to go further and put a health cap on treats traditionally found in vending machines. An article was featured on Huffington Post Education, challenging readers, “Do you know which of these snack are healthy enough for school vending machines?” The original article, and interactive game which I’ve embedded below, were originally posted on Education Week. Take the test to see if any of your favourite snacks are being cut.
Again, this new practice is only affecting schools in the U.S., although I would not mind if the high schools in Canada started closely monitoring which snacks are placed in vending machines too. I understand that not buying from the vending machine or not choosing the junk food are both options, but without all of the ‘un-smart snacks’, the road is paved for healthier snacks to be added.
How would you feel if “smart snacks” came to Canadian high schools?
Are you getting tired of those tireless memes, overwhelming #hashtags, or those pestering spam messages on social media? The creators of Emojli attempt to ratify these cumbersome issues by launching a messaging app that only allows communication through emojis; essentially, it will be an “emojli-only network.” This app, perhaps, arises in the midst of trying to find a closer touch of human nature through virtual means.
Check out the promotional video for Emojli below:
You can register with Emojli by clicking this link.
If you have ever watched I, Robot, Robocop, or the like, you will probably recognize the questioning that one may pose to the extent of the human connection through technology. Can technology generate an environment where raw emotions can be exchanged? Or is technology only ever able to produce a facsimile of the human condition? These are all valid questions when analyzing the use and success of an app, such as Emojli.
The whole point of Emojli is to relay on basic human emotions through the use of emojis. Some people may argue that Emojli is further shortening the depth of conversation through the restrictions of a selection of characters. But perhaps, society must strip away Internet slang and abbreviations that exploit the English language, in search of a more effective way to communicate digitally. It will be an intriguing experiment with its launch in August, to see if actual communication can take place through little characterized pictures.
We have all fallen victim to misunderstandings through chatting online and/or texting. But will emojis truly rectify these uncomfortable situations? With sayings like, “The eyes are the window to the soul,” and “A picture says a thousand words,” emojis do have the potential of relaying on our feelings. But with a limited selection, an emoji-only conversation may cause further confusion and wreak havoc in the online world. Only time and experimentation will tell if emojis can be the future of society’s search for the best means of communication in this digital age.
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