Me, Myself, and My SELF...

Magazines may come and go, but my SELF is here for the long-haul.

For a good many years now, I've subscribed to SELF Magazine. They've never let me down. In fact, they keep on getting better. My relationship with my SELF (the magazine) is continually helping me improve my relationship with my-SELF (i.e. ME) We're both continually evolving--and for the better!

Being in Hollywood, I would be lying if I said that I was completely unaffected by the pressure to be thin, stay thin, and the US-Weeklyness micro-management of star's eating habits. The Olsen's had sushi...[Again?] Brit, with a bag of Cheetos. Gimme More...! (Uh, no...) Please.

PUH-LEEZE... I'm an adult. Yeah, sure...we're all adults. [OMG!] But deep, deep down -- we've got one eye open so we can follow the lives of others, the bodies of others, the habits of those other than ourselves. All this so we can avoid dealing with our own issues, and by God, we've all got 'em. (Yes, you...reading this right now-- You've got issues, man.)

Don't drown your sorrows with celebrity indulgence---that's like eating one too many bags of nutritionally vacant, tasteless rice cakes.

That's why I love SELF because it's a true Womens' magazine that makes me feel good about being myself, especially during those times when I don't necessarily feel good about myself. (And come on, we all have those times...)

SELF has these great forums and blogs on their website that help me realize that the little issues that bug me are way less complicated than they really need to be (and I'm not the only one out there facing them.) SELF also acknowledges the celeb-obsession that's taken hold of the mainstream, but they approach the subject in healthy terms.

"Yeah, sure...this girl's on our cover, but she ain't all perfect. She's got her issues, too."

And they are real issues, too, not "poor me...my ZONE-delivered meal was late due to the rain" celeb issues. SELF's interviews are revealing in personal ways, but not too personal ways. They strip away the celebrity and make that person whole again in a human reality where I, as a person and a reader, can actually relate to them in non-celebrity terms and perhaps even learn a little bit.



I loved reading their articles featuring Evangeline Lilly (pictured here), Mandy Moore, Keri Russell (cover above), and Sarah Michelle Gellar. I wouldn't even consider myself to be a huge fan of those stars. I just felt like I could relate to them, some of the issues they've battled, and some of the life lessons they've learned along the way.

Anyway, check out self.com and their nutritionist's Eat Like Me blog if you want to see what a real meal looks like...(sometimes I forget.)

And if you're still celeb-obsessed, check out their celebrity blog, Celebrity Scoop to get perspective (and for God's sake turn off ET & The Insider, we've all got lives to lead!

(And sorry, not everyone's into "up-to-the-minute-updates on Anna Nicole's little angel...")

Not that I watch those shows...PUH-LEEZE.

Copyright © 2008 Kendra Liedle

Random Thoughts Can't Be Broken...

I just read a startling statistic in the October issue of SELF magazine. As reported in SELF's "happiness update":

Your mind wanders 30% of the time you're awake. Researchers say that zoning out may promote creativity, so daydream away...

My reaction? Is it really that LOW? For me, personally, I think I'm existing on a 60/40 split. ( i.e. 60% daydreaming, 40% focused on what I should be doing.) And that's probably a conservative figure--there are days in which, I'm sure, I zone out even more. However, I am pretty creative, and apparently, so are my cats.

As I write this, Athena & Cleopatra (my cats) are playing "keep away" with a grasshopper out on the patio. It's funny to watch. In fact, I'm "zoning out" right now, watching them... It's also Sunday, which makes it a perfect day to zone out anyway.

Occasionally, I keep track of the odd thoughts that creep through my mind. Sometimes seeing these thoughts in print, scarily proves that I'm more eccentric and odd than I initially thought.

For instance:

~How long can I stand on my head?
( Thanks to yoga, my current record is 4 minutes--I think I can get that to 5)

~How many hours does chewing gum last?
(I did have that stick of gum last close to 8 hours a few years ago--before it completely dissolved in my mouth into a disgusting glob of white tar. I think it was a stick of Extra. The green apple flavor...that's good stuff. I should pick some more up.)

~What time is it in New Zealand?
This prompts me to do math in my head and count on fingers, which is good to keep my elementary math skills up.

~Do bees get allergies? I mean, that would be awful if they did, being around all that pollen all the time.

~Why don't cows get colon cancer? They say that regular consumption of red meat could increase your risk, but what if you ARE red meat? I guess that makes you either completely immune or totally screwed.

~Hmm...I'm kind of a good singer ( when no one's listening.)

~Do I just not "get" movie musicals? Why are they coming back? What can I do to stop them? Am I the only one that doesn't know the lyrics to Grease by heart? (But I did like Moulin Rouge...hmm... many people thought it was weird, so it makes sense I'd like it. And I guess I have to make an exception for Evita which I really liked... Am I just a musical snob? Because, come to think of it, The King & I was really cool, and as a kid I was obsessed with Annie... Okay maybe they're not so bad...certain ones, but I still don't really like them, for the most part, with a few exceptions.

Even the random thoughts sometimes mushroom in my head and occupy space much longer than they should have -- as evidenced by the circular tangent my brain took on movie musicals (above.) I guess we're all a little neurotic, especially if we start paying attention to our daydreams.

Random Thoughts Can't Be Broken...