Fat!So?

Last night I had the opportunity to hear Marilyn Wann, the author and founder of the zine (a small, private magazine) Fat!So?, speak about "fat empowerment". Marilyn is a fat woman who has come to accept her body and love herself, despite her size. She travels all over challenging social stereotypes about fatness and encouraging others to stop fat discrimination. The first issue of her zine, FAT!SO?, came out July 1994 when she was inspired by a really bad day to come out about being fat. On this day, she was out with a guy she was dating and he told her he was embarrassed to introduce her to his friends because she was fat! Wow…how insensitive and horrible is that?? On this same day, she received a letter from Blue Cross of California denying her health insurance because she was considered “morbidly obese”. It was great to hear Marilyn’s story and her passion to lead our society into a non-fat hating one little by little.

Christmas!!!!

Christmas is almost here! YEAHHHH! I love this time of year. My older brother is coming out from California to spend the holidays with us and I'm sooo excited to see him! Being so far apart is not fun, and its always nice when we can see him and have the whole family back together again! Hope you all have a wonderful Christmas, God bless!!

The Main Event

This past weekend I had the opportunity to attend, The Main Event. This was an awesome event that brought around 1,000 students to the University of Northern Iowa to worship God and grow in their faith. I really enjoyed this event. The weekend consisted of several large group session where the band lead us in a great worship time, small group sessions where we had the chance to meet and get to know some new people on a deeper level, and workshops. On Saturday, I went to a workshop called something like "How to eat PB & J to the glory of God." It was really helpful and opened my eyes to how I can really make God a part of everything I do in my life and glorify Him in everything.

Textbook Time

Wow...first half of the semester is already about over! I can not believe how fast
it has gone. Of course this means midterms and new halfsemester classes to begin
for many of us...or maybe it means just finishing up a class for you! If this is the case, you are probably more than ready to get rid of that big text book of yours and start looking for what you need next. Well if you are one to get your books from the book store, then I would highly suggest that you try looking online for the next books you need. I've been very successful at this and have saved hundreds of dollars. Check out sites like Amazon.com and half.com to buy or sell your books...trust me it will be worth it!

Urbana 2006

At Urbana 06, over 25,000 people will gather to worship God and hear how he is using people to accomplish his purposes throughout the world. For SIXTY years, God has been using Urbana conventions to change the lives of students and to advance his kingdom in our world. If you are wondering how you might use your education, skills, and resources to share the love of Christ with people around the world, you should check it out too! I'll be there and I am really pumped! You can learn more about this awesome even at Urbana 06.

Classes, Classes, Classes!

Wow...I can't believe we're already in the second half of the semester! These last few months have gone by SUPER fast! I just transfered this year to the University of Northern Iowa, and so far I love it. I miss my friends and some parts of my old school, but it has been a really good change for me. I've already learned so much that I don't think I would have learned if I didn't make the change. My classes aren't too bad for the most part, a little overwhelming at times, but I'm still enjoying them. I just need to keep up on my work for another month or so and then my first semester here will already be done!

Lose Weight by Eating Right!

Ok, so I'm am a big advocate of losing weight the right/healthy way. Though many people who are desperate to lose a few pounds think that skipping meals is the way to do it, this is not healthy! Yes, for obvious reasons you will eventually lose that weight, but you I can guarantee that you will not be feeling in tip top shape! Your body will feel weaker because, not eating only deprives your body of the much needed energy it needs to function. When you don't give it that energy from food, your body goes into survival mode and starts to dig into the protein, carbohydrates and fats it has stored up from past meals. If you continue to not give your body the nourishment it needs, these energy stores will be depleted and the body will begin to use up muscle as its source of energy (including muscle from your heart and other organs). Not a good thing! Don't worry, this of course won't happen by skipping just a few meals. However, having the mindset that the easiest or quickest way to lose those pounds is by not eating, will only lead you down an unhealthy path. Ok, so what is a better way then? EAT!...but learn to do it right. MSN Health and Fitness has helpful tips on how to do this and I know there are many more sites out there on it as well! =)