What is art, really?

I've decided to share one of my favorite pieces of art that I've made with you all (and by "you all" I really mean the empty void of cyberspace I'm apparently blogging to).

When I started my AP art class in high school, we were all told to bring in our favorite piece of art that we had made so far, and I brought in Mr. ferret here. My teacher proceeded to compare it unfavorably to another person's piece by saying Mr. ferret was too centered and there was not enough interesting negative space in the picture. For a while, I felt pretty bad about myself. But "negative space" is not really worth feeling bad about, and I'm really proud of myself for creating Mr. ferret.

I'm sure there was a lesson in all of that. I guess maybe that other people's opinions shouldn't have the power to make us doubt ourselves. I haven't made any art in a while, partly because I'm insanely busy, but partly because I think people never really liked my art enough and it discouraged me. And that is stupid. So while being insanely busy with school is a good excuse, being afraid that people will judge my art negatively is not a good enough reason to stop painting and drawing if I feel like doing it.

On that note, I leave you to go do some packing.

Initial Stats

I still don't have good before pictures, besides the one in my last post. I'll try to take some soon.

In the meantime, here are my initial stats:

Weight: 114 pounds
Waist: 26 inches
Thighs: 18.5 inches
Hips: 35.5 inches
Bust: 33.5 inches

I'm not measuring my arms, wrists (...etc) because I am happy with their size. These are the measurements I care about for now. I would like to tone my whole body and make it firmer, but my upper body is already fairly slim so measurements don't matter to me.

Goals:

1. Lose a couple pounds. I would like to get back down to 110 by the end of September, which is entirely reasonable.

2. Tone up my entire body.

3. Lose some inches in my waist, thighs, and hips, yet somehow maintain my bust (I know that might not be possible, but here's to hoping...).

4. Gain strength (keeping it broad for now).

5. Gain energy.

I'm driving back down to school Tuesday and Wednesday. Once I get down there, I will go to the gym and/or do Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred at least 5 days a week. I will also be in charge of my own food, so I will make sure to eat mostly clean and healthy.

Making Changes

I was hesitant to make this post since I know the healthy eating blog world doesn't always embrace weight loss since we are all supposed to be happy with ourselves as we are right now. But in all honesty, I am not completely happy right now. And if I'm going to have a blog, I might as well be honest. Plus, I have no readers right now, so there is no one to judge me. This is like my own personal journal, but I will use it to keep myself accountable.


I am not fat and I am not overweight. I am, however, out of shape. I  would like to tone up, lose some fat, and maybe a couple pounds. But more than the weight, I want to have energy, I want to be happy with the shape of my body, and I want to be strong and toned. So starting today, I am committing to making changes in my life.

To start off, I will exercise at least 5 days a week, even if only for 15 minutes. I will cut all junk food out of my life for a while, and focus on eating healthy. I need to stay away from white flours and sugars, and I need to say no when people in my life want me to eat unhealthy food with them.

This is my starting point:

The picture isn't great, I know. I'll try to take real "before" pictures soon and post them with all my stats, so I can use them to track my progress. But you can see from this shot that I'm fairly slim and curvy, but much too untoned and wobbly and basically lacking any real muscle. I hope to change this over the next few weeks and months. If anyone is reading, I would love support, encouragement, motivation, and advice.

August Goals

Alright, so I've been a bad blogger and haven't updated in forever. But hey, it's my blog right?

So without anymore apologies....

My August Goals:

1. Drink more water every single day

2. Eat healthy at least 5 full days a week

3. Work out at least 5 days a week

4. Keep all my clothes and papers organized

5. Work out a monthly budget

I'll let you know how it goes