Promoting a great teen blog

Using thought to subvert the Limited Beauty Ideal

I’ve just had the happy pleasure of coming across a blog by 18 year old Jamie Keiles; a high school senior from Pennsylvania. “Her interests include sociology, reading periodicals, and urban cycling. She will be studying economics and gender studies at the University of Chicago in the fall of 2010.”

Jaime’s blog is a documentation of her attempt at living her life by the “bible” of Seventeen magazine for 30 days.  Her reflections are thoughtful and thought-provoking and I encourage everyone to take a look at how she has taken a critical look at the marketing aimed at teens via Seventeen magazine.

One bit that I will draw out to further tantalize you into reading; takes a fabulous kick at the self-flagellation behaviors encouraged by Seventeen and (at least in my experience) pretty much any and all magazines aimed at the female population:

In an effort to counterbalance the previous pro-Seventeen paragraph, I will have you know that for lunch I had a massive chocolate ice cream cone into which I dipped curly fries. Afterward, I did not talk about how fat I felt, or how “bad” I was for eating it. I will eat whatever I want in moderation, and I will not let any magazine’s limited idea of what is beautiful stop me; I suggest you all do the same, or find another way of thinking that makes you feel good about being you! (Emphasis mine)

It was a refreshing bit to read and know that some women out there are getting into the idea that hating your body is NOT the first step in self-enlightenment/love/life-happiness.  To me that was wonderful to read!!

I’d like to encourage all of us to follow Jaime’s line of thinking, which I bold-ed above: do not let a magazine (or any sort of media for that matter) limit the your experience of self-beauty that of the world in which you live.  Feel good about being you.  You are amazing.