Look in the Mirror- What do you see?

SKINNY

ORGANIZED

PRETTY

SOCIAL Do you actually possess these charactertistics or are they merely characteristics that you WANT to possess? How do you know that you don’t perceive yourself in an entirely different light than your neighbor? Are our personalities simply molded around what others tell us? This makes sense because how else would we know what we are like. THE ANSWER IS FEEDBACK. Do we shape our identities by listening to others perceptions of us? When we look in a mirror is the reflection staring back at us actually our true reflection or what we wish we looked like? Perhaps this answer is based on a person’s self-esteem or maybe as humans we actually do rely entirely on others opinions and from that we can then shape our own identities.

INTELLIGENT

FRIENDLY

RESPONSIBLE

DANCE- This picture sums up my life until I left for SMU. However, last year I was fortunate enough to get into a jazz class my first semester. I have been a dancer my entire life and I will probably never stop associating myself with dance. It helps me communicate certain thoughts that I cannot say with words-- Rather I communicate these messages through movement. I did not choose to dance in college and sometimes I regret this decision because I've realized that dance defines a part of me. It is my way to escape from the world. Though I do have to admit that the extra free time that I now have in college is nice, I know that a piece of me does miss it...

"Skinny Mirrors"

Since I recently became an advertising major I have noticed a particular feature in the dressing rooms of high end department stores: THE MIRRORS. They are the most unflattering mirrors that are surrounded by lightning that is also not in the least bit attractive. Standing in front of one of these mirrors is a death wish and a huge blow to any normal persons self -esteem. The lighting keys into any imperfection on your body and magnifies its existence. This layout confuses me because I wonder why department stores do this when their main goal is to sell clothes. Wouldn’t you think that they would be willing to sacrifice a few extra dollars to make their customers feel good in their clothing? This would increase their sales and save us the humiliation. Since we all know that stores such as, Sax Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus can afford it, I think investing in a few “skinny mirrors” is just what these department stores need. Why not let the customers keep their self-esteem and give the department stores a few extra sales? It’s a win- win situation that should DEFINITELY be considered.

BUMPER STICKERS- Just a decoration?

Do YOU ever see those cars that are covered from rim to rim by a dozen bumper stickers? I do, and it wasn't until today that I actually read what they said. Many of them were political statements or a mascot indicating what school/university that either they or their child attends. It seems as though the people that flaunt these stickers want to be heard, as if they want random strangers to understand even the smallest piece of them. A WAY OF EXPRESSION. I have to admit, I do have a few bumper stickers on my car as well and I guess I put them up out of pride. One sticker is of a mustang representing SMU and the other is a sorority sticker. On the positive side, squinting to read the bumper stickers around me does provide me with a slight bit of entertainment while stuck in 5 o' clock traffic. Are these stickers simply a meaningless decoration or rather are they small pieces of someone's identity? A question to ask yourself the next time your in bumper to bumper traffic.

Sleep...zzzzz

Are you one of those people who can function on 6 hours of sleep without so much as a yawn the next day? Or are you like me who becomes useless if you don't have at least 8 hours of sleep a night. Why is this? Why do some of us physically need more sleep a night than others? I think that it is how are bodies are built but I'm not entirely sure. Another question that I have is why do we categorize people in two very distinct groups: night owls and the morning people? I personally will not talk to you if I don't have at least one cup of coffee in the morning. Trust me you do not want to see me in this situation. IT'S UGLY. So I guess I can be categorized as a night owl. The morning doesn't do it for me, my brain is a slow riser. I think the best at night when my brain is fully awake and alert allowing me to make sense of the countless number of ideas that bounce around in my head on a daily basis. Just something to think about what type a person are YOU?

Are you a twin?

Each person is different in some way even if it cannot be seen with the naked eye. Whether it's hair color, eye shape, height, weight etc. These differences in appearance are due to DNA. What if this isn't entirely true? What if we all have a twin? What if there is a person that has similar or the same DNA as us? How can we be so certain that we are ALL unique? This just does not seem realistic. What do you think are the chances of ever meeting this person at some point in your life? I could be just thinking out of the ordinary or we really COULD have a twin out there. THINK ABOUT IT.

Stress or Hereditary?

My grandmother's hair was all gray by 30 years old. Meanwhile, my dad is 53 with jet-black hair with a couple gray streaks. Why do some people gray pre- maturely while others die with their original color? Is it due to a change in pigmentation or simply due to hereditary? Is stress a dominant factor when determining at what age a person will begin to gray? I feel that stress could be a relevant factor in this mystery. Just as stress will make a person appear older at a younger age, shouldn't it also be able to gray a person’s hair at a quicker rate? So just a thought to keep in mind... RELAX and your youth will be prolonged.

What is love?

I find the question of whether or not there is one person out there for each of us very interesting. Do you think people can truly be monogamists? I feel that I am a monogamist person. Is there just one person out there for each of us? I am starting to believe not because the divorce rate is so high. I can't fathom the idea that there is one soul person in the world that we are destined to be with. I feel that you can be soul mates with a handful of people as long as they all categorize under similar personalities. I do not think as humans we can define love with one individual. But when we do find love are people willing to put in the effort into their marriage to make it work? How do we even know when love hits? Can we be in love with a person and not consciously know it? What are soul mates anyway? Two people that are in love. Well many people fall in love with different people many times throughout their lives. So does that mean that monogamy is in fact unreachable and there are many people in this world who have the potential to be our soul mates?

From sexy to unacceptable

As shown by the infamous, Audrey Hepburn, smoking in previous century was considered to be sexy and acceptable. Famous icons such as Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Marilyn Monroe would not be caught dead without a cigarette dangling between their fingertips. Cigarettes went hand in hand with being intimate. Couldn’t they figure out that inhaling constant smoke into your lungs would cause long term health risks? It amazes me that times have changed so drastically that the “marble man” and “lucky strike” used to be status symbols to now cigarette commercials are banned from television. It shows how far our society has come in terms of health.

The Next Life.

Since I was little, the reoccurring thought regarding death has never ceased to leave my mind. I have always been curious as to where we go after we pass. I personally believe that this life is not all that is in store for us. It can't be, there’s far too much that is offered in this world. Therefore, I believe in reincarnation. More specifically I believe in the term "old soul." My grandmother for an example is just this. She has sworn to me that she has been many different types of people in her past life and there has been many times where we are at a certain location and she swears that she has been there many times before. With this being said, do you think that a person's energy and soul determine whether they will be put back on earth again after their death? I find this to be a logical reasoning because a person's soul is the basis of their existence. Without this inner drive, a person simply cannot exist. So a question to think over is, will your energy/soul take you on to a next life or is this life all that you have?

So, what are the odds?

My mom. Aunt Pam and grandmother stopped to say hi after their extended weekend in Las Vegas. It is a yearly tradition for them and this year I was fortunate enough to have them visit me on their way home. During their visit, the topic of one dinner conversation consisted of analyzing the inter workings of a video poker machine. I found this topic intriguing particularly because it had never crossed my mind. I understand that gambling is a very risky game and is largely based off of chance. However, after our conversation, I began to look more deeply into the subject. I began asking questions such as, every time you push the video buttons are the cards shown a result of pure luck, timing or is the machine simply programmed to allow so many wins in a certain period of time? I understand that there are many options to choose from once the numbers are displayed but I still have many uncertainties regarding the topic. I just recently got into poker so I do understand that there are several possible options within a hand, such as, a flush, straight, three of a kind, full house, two pair, etc. But what are the odds of choosing the winning hand?

A Balancing Act.

Skiing is a matter of balance. The positioning of your skis against the snow is crucial. One false move and the snow will quickly move from under your feet to inside your mouth. However, this does not happen all of the time. You may ask yourself why people participate in this sport when there is a great deal of risk involved? Well I would answer that question by saying that everything we do in life involves some aspect of risk and danger even if we are not aware of it. However, this risk is worth taking because as soon as that spark of adrenalin hits you it’s all over. The rush of energy that subsides over you pushes you further down the mountain allowing you to forget meaningless daily problems. It's an indescribable feeling as you watch your snow covered surroundings fly past you. I have been skiing since I was little and have grown up with a dad who can't get enough of the sport. We have a house in Whistler, Canada where we are fortunate enough to be able to escape to the mountains. I used to fight my dad when he chose a skiing vacation over the beach but now that I have grown up I appreciate the beautiful surroundings that for years I had taken for granted.

- The Picture shown is our complex (At Nature's Door) in Whistler!