#if they (p.s. she/they earth real to me :]) turn out to be a person programmed to be good but has her vision of good and bad skewed bc-

[peachyfnaf]

im just as hesitant as earth being suddenly thrust into the narrative as everyone else; but the cast has done similar things in the past and then made really good, effective plot twists/developments w the character so.. i do have a little hope. please girl be an (at least SOMEWHAT) good guy, we need more of them

(click for quality!! i. do not believe very much in my character design abilities, but this was fun nevertheless lmao)

[winterfang53]

Gajevy Week 2020 - Letters

Super late but here you go!

Gajevy Week 202 day 1: Letters! I hope you enjoy!

Levy was running the moment she got off the bus; her red backpack bouncing on her back while her lunchbox threatened to fly out of her hand. The 12-year-old raced down the block towards her house, only stopping at the mailbox at the end of the driveway.

Excitement gleamed in her eyes as she eagerly opened the wooden frame only to deflate at the emptiness within.

“Not today I guess,” Levy sign, pouting as she trudged towards the front door, lacking the energy she had only a moment before. “I hope it comes tomorrow then,” Levy said quietly.

Levy made her way into her house, almost tripping over her older brother’s shoes at the doorway. “Stupid Jellal,” she grumbled loudly, catching the attention of someone in the kitchen.

“Levy is that you dear?” her mother called, poking her head around the corner, “how was school, Honey?”

“It was fine,” Levy said hesitantly, “Mom, did you get the mail by any chance?”

Levy’s mother smiled brightly, “Your letter’s on the table, Sweetie.”

Joy brightened Levy’s eyes, making her throw her shoes off in hast to bounce her way into the kitchen. There, sitting the on the light wooden table was a plain white letter with her name scribbled in bad handwriting. Levy squealed as she leaped towards the letter only for it to be ripped from her hand.

“What’s this?” Levy’s older brother Jellal asked, holding the letter above her short stature, “a letter from your boyfriend?” he teased.

“Jellal!” Levy screeched, her cheeks flushing with anger and embarrassment, “he’s not my boyfriend and gives me it back!” 

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Jellal laughed, “your penpal, who you wait with bated breath for every letter he sends you. It’s kind of sad Lev.”

Before Levy could defend herself, a show flew through the air to smack her brother in the face. Looks like her mom was here to defend her instead. “Jellal stop teasing your sister and put your shoes away!”

Levy snatched her letter and bolted up the stairs to her room, locking the door so her brother couldn’t chase her.

Downstairs, Levy’s mom chastised her son: “Why do you have to tease her like that? You know how hard it is for Levy to make friends -- those letters brighten her day!”

“Sorry Mom,” Jellal grumbled, “I didn’t mean anything by it, it’s just she really needs to make more friends than the one boy who’s her penpal from last year.”

Their Mother’s eyes soften, “I know Honey, but you know how shy she is, she has a hard time connecting to the other kids. Let her appreciate the friend she has now.”

“I just hope he doesn’t stop writing her letters,” Jellal signed as he gazed up the stairs, “it would break her heart.”

Upstairs behind Levy’s locked door, sat Levy on her bed gazing at the letter in hand. It was a plain white envelope -- like always -- with her name scribbled in a handwritten that she could recognize anywhere as her penpal Gajeel Redfox. Last year, before the summer started, Levy’s school started a penpal program between her school and a school on the other side of the state. It was mandatory for all 5th graders in her school to participate, making shy little Levy write a letter to a complete stranger. 

Levy can still remember how nervous she was writing her first letter -- an introduction letter about herself -- and how her tummy hurt for 2 whole weeks while she waited for a response, only for her to bristle in fury at the response her got:

You sound short.

 Gajeel Redfox, as Levy came to discover, was a boy of every few words and took much joy in teasing her even though letters. Levy had been so mad that she wrote a very rude letter back. For the rest of the summer, Levy and Gajeel sent “hate mail” to each other, calling each other every name in the book until the first week of school when it dawned on her that the program was over. 

Levy had come to look forward to each letter; the excitement of interacting with someone her own age wasn’t something Levy got to experience often -- given her lack of friends. During the second week of 6th grade, Levy sent a letter to Gajeel asking him if he still wanted to send letters and for 2 whole weeks, Levy sat again with her tummy hurting. When that letter came, Levy almost cried happily at what was written:

You’re funny Shrimp, why on earth would I stop now?

Now, in April and almost a whole year of writing letters, Levy and Gajeel still exchanged letters almost every week -- just with less teasing.

Levy gently opened the letter, so as not to rip the letter, and pulled out the plain white notebook paper that Gajeel always wrote on:

Shrimp,

My Ma says I need to start my letters by asking how you are so here: How are you? I don’t really know why I need to do that, you would tell me if you’re ok or no but whatever. Has your school started ‘preparing’ you guys for middle school? Mine has and it stinks. What’s the big deal with middle school anyways? The only difference is that you have more than one classroom now, big deal. My Ma says it’s a bigger deal than that but I think she’s exaggerating. See? I used a big word -- I AM using that stupid dictionary you gave me for Christmas so now you can’t say I’m not!  Yes, I know there were Pokemon cards in the dictionary but you still gave me a dictionary for Christmas. That’s worst than socks Shrimp! 

Anyways that not the real thing I want to talk about. My folks are dragging me and Wendy to go see my grandparents out of state this summer, we’re gonna be there for a whole month while dad has to go overseas for work! I put their address at the end of this letter so you know where to send your letters to me. I’ll be there from June 23 to July 25 so don’t forget!

P.S. I hate making friends too, most of my friends are my cousins, well and you. Don’t let the other kids bully you ok? I’m not there to beat them up.

Gajeel

Levy smiled as she read her letter, blushing slightly at Gajeel’s hidden concern for her. Even if he was mean most of the time, Levy knew that he cared for her in his own weird way. His letters were the highlight of her day -- save for reading. Levy hoped from her bed and pulled out a large box from underneath. There, Levy had every letter Gajeel ever sent her. Kissing the letter, Levy placed it in the box before hopping over to her desk to write her reply. 

…

Levy and Gajeel continued being penpals for years to come, surprising everyone even themselves on their commitment. It wasn’t until high school when both Gajeel and Levy got cellphones did the letters slow down a bit and were partially replaced by texts. Letters, texts, and later calls allowed for Gajeel and Levy’s relationship to flourish until one fateful day during the first week of college did Levy and Gajeel finally meets -- 7 years after the first letter.

“Welcome to Art History 100 everyone!” the professor called out at the front of the class, “why don’t we start by introducing ourselves: Everyone, going in order, please stand up, give your name, and give a strange fact about your self!” Levy sat in the middle of class, her hair pulled back in her favorite headband -- a gift from Gajeel -- as she nervously waited for her turn. Finally, after what felt like forever, it was her turn.

“Um, Hello I’m Levy McGarden and my strange fact is that I’ve had a penpal since 5th grade that still actively talk to,” Levy said shyly before sitting down.

“Wow, that’s pretty cool,” the blond girl next to her said, her brown eyes showing her honesty, “I didn’t think penpals were still a thing!” 

Levy beamed at the girl -- Lucy if she remembered correctly. “Yeah, we were pretty unusual. I’m Levy by the way.”

“Lucy,” the blond said nodding her head with a smile, “did you two ever meet up or anything?”

Levy shook her head, “no, he lived on the other side of the state so we never got the chance.”

“What about now?” Lucy asked quietly since there were still people introducing themselves, “where does he go to school.”

Levy frowned at this, “I don’t know, to be honest, he told me it was a secret. Knowing him, he probably did it to piss me-” she was cut off then by a familiar voice that she had never heard in person before.

“My name is Gajeel Redfox and my strange fact is that I’m Levy McGraden’s penpal, Gihi!” 

Levy could only gab at the towering male with thick black hair, silver piercings, and a fanged grin smiling over at her from the back of the room. There, in the flesh, was her crush since grade school, her penpal, Gajeel Redfox. 

“You asshole,” Levy said softly, unable to stop the smile that was spreading across her lips as Lucy cooed on how cute this was. Throughout the rest of the class, Levy couldn’t help herself from looking back at that man who pissed her off and make her smile all with the same breath. Meeting the red eyes that teased her from the back while Lucy giggled at her the whole time.

“You have some explaining to do you jerk!” Levy growled playfully as she whacked him after class.

“Gihi! What? You didn’t like the surprise?” Gajeel laughed, dodging her little fists, “damn, I must say Shrimp, you’re living up to your name!”

“Gajeel!”

...

4 years later, at their wedding reception, while Lucy was recounting the story, Levy slip over a folded paper to her new husband.

“What’s this?” Gajeel whispered, his brow raised in question.

“The first letter of our marriage,” Levy said smiling, “read it.”

Gajeel eyed her in question before unfolding the paper only to choke on his own tongue;

“We’re pregnant?!”

I hope everyone enjoyed this! 

[fugandhi]

My Favorite Drum Corps Show

If you have not heard of what Drum & Bugle Corps is - Do yourself a favor and start looking it up now.

It’s NOT the same as the live experience (WAY too much POWER in a drum corps for any device to capture - Take my word for it).

So, I marched drum corps years ago (due to my love for music, then band, then marching band, and then the rest is history) and it was one of the most difficult and yet most gratifying experiences of my life (aside from adulthood LOL!!!) and I encourage anyone who is reading this and is thinking of either becoming a musician or having their child or a friend or anyone they know who is really into music - Tell them about Drum Corps (pronounced “Core” not “Corpse”).

Drum & Bugle Corps basically took what my high school marching band program had already established and it took it a LEAP forward. I mean, we toured the U.S., PAID a ton of money to do it (Thank you, Mom & Dad), and we had to work ALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL THE TIME!

Weird tan-lines galore, there’s a WHOLE subculture out there - almost a friggin’ CULT (I swear man) of really, really AWESOME and CRAZY kids out there (and even more insane instructors and tech’s who are all trying to get their careers as Educators or what-have-you all started up to share the gift of music & the marching arts - YES it’s an art-form, ABSOLUTELY - 100%).

If I were to belong to any cult - It would be Drum Corps (LMFAO!).

Origins of a ton of these corps dates back decades, and I’m talking some of them started from the Military Bugle Corps from wars - and others starts from Churches, Scout Troops (Boys Troops and Girls Troops to maintain the Scout Standard), Police Departments, etc.

I first came across drum corps because I happened to be flippin’ through channels, and I was like a freshman and I had JUST finished my first year in marching band (proudly/we did a rendition of Crossmen’s 1992 show, “Songs For Planet Earth” - AMAZING show and I had the honor to be in that show - still makes me cry every time I hear the closer because that show required SO MUCH HEART) - and there it was - Santa Clara Vanguard’s 1999 show.

I ran to grab a video tape, and I came back just in time to record Blue Devils’ show “Rhythms... At The Edge of Time” which I watched over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over again - I’m talkin’ like I could not believe there were people who were literally doing what I thought was IMPOSSIBLE.

With the most insane irony (or maybe it was fate) - I ended up being taught by Gino Cipriani, Wayne Downey, and like Jeff Sacktig, and like it was a variety staff like a real motley crew ya know? It was a DREAM TEAM staff - and my dreams came true - and I will never forget how much it meant to me to be able to march with friends from my high school (some who had already graduated before I could march with them at high school) and have my band director there the whole time and like - it was just such a dream come true. We ended up breaking the mold of the class divisions (Magic of Orlando Drum and Bugle Corps - Division II World Champions with record breaking score of 99.05 - which the Cavies happened to break 99 AFTER us LOL like we had A DAY where we made history and had the highest score in Drum Corps International HISTORY!) and the funny thing is - I remember at the beginning of the season we literally were trying to get everybody and their brother (and sister lol) to JOIN because we had like NOBODY lol!

Well, we had a good size corps, but there were patches missing in some sections ya know? I mean, there was literally a camp when we had 9 Trumpets and Gino was like “Yeah... We’re gonna have to do something about this” because this guy came from like The Cadets who had been DCI Div 1 champs like a ton, and prior to that he friggin’ was the brass caption for BD - I’m like - Dude, yeah, the staff and Kim & Rod were the necessary Leadership required to make Magic happen in 2002 (after not being on-field for like 2 whole consecutive years).

Either way, when I marched, I was not able to afford any more seasons, so Magic 2002 was and still is one of the biggest blessings in my life (aside from my family of course) and like if it was not for my really crazy summer that year - I wouldn’t have the mindset that the impossible CAN be Possible. Good things can happen to people if they put their hearts and minds to it...

...So...We were truly the “Cinderella Corps” of that year, and yeah I know we dropped from 10th to 11th for Finals but honestly - that accident with the Tenor Drummer who had his drums fall on his face when he fell on his back during finals - that literally NEVER happened all year. We were undefeated all season, no one expected us to make finals - even on our brass bus like we were talking about how some of the staff was even makin’ a pool of whether or not we made finals - whether that was true or not, it was a necessary motivator to push us and you know what? We did it. And the rest, as they say, is history. I left drum corps and the marching activity years ago - I tried a DCA corps and ended up getting burned badly from them - so bad that I just turned my back and walked away from drum corps and decided to never look back.

...Until I saw Carolina Crown’s 2013 show. I was inspired again. I had never heard a BRASSLINE that was SO AMAZING. Literally, BECAUSE OF THIS SHOW - my faith in drum corps had been restored. I only wish I could have seen this corps live - it must have been an absolute DREAM to be in this corps and in this show.

Carolina Crown was always a corp I paid attention to, although I always admired other corps more (BD 96-99 OH and PHANTOM & MADISON 1996!, need I say more?) - anyway, I actually used to live in South Carolina (a piece of my heart is still in South Carolina to this day - very, very fond memories of my childhood there/one of the places I was stationed). So, needless to say, I was always keeping my eye on Crown, and I have friends who marched Crown - but, I knew there was a very powerful change when I saw them in 2008 in Atlanta - the first time I ever saw a corps that pleased me as a drum corps nut more than BD - of course Phantom was AMAZING (”I AM SPARTACUS!”) - but I remember a bud of mine David was marching Tuba in Crown and I always gave props like DUDE Crown’s brassline - HOLY SHIT (LOL!)

I could go ON and ON about that BRASSLINE. They are SO beyond amazing - especially this year, 2013! THEIR BRASS LINE LITERALLY GOT A PERFECT SCORE AND THEY REMAIN THE BEST BRASS SECTION IN DCI HISTORY - uh yeah - THAT’s saying something considering how much detail-oriented work goes into these shows just on an individual level, let alone a massive level of epic proportions with the size of the corps these days.  .....Every Time I hear this brass section, I just start to melt - I’m like.. “I want to go to there” lol!...I am TELLING you.. This show inspires me every time I watch it - I literally have PHYSICAL REACTIONS to this SHOW! ...Like - I swear...that brass line performance.... I’ve had orgasms (LMFAO!!!) ...ANYYYY WAYYYYY  hhahaha I highly recommend watching the entire FINALS show on Youtube (ya got like 10 minutes? lol “LET ‘ER RIP!”) and seriously - even though I’m not too huge on the narration in drum corps these days and the over-saturation of certain effects - I gotta say - this is one of those drum corps...it’s just like... poetry.

...You know how certain things just like, transcend their normality? Does that make sense? Like...  In my humble and personal opinion - Drum Corps exists so that this show could have been made. This is one of many, many, many fine shows, but for me personally - this show is ELECTRIC (and like really profound). Even if you’re a die-hard drum corps dude like me (WHADDUP PEEPS?!), go ahead and like check out the friggin’ announcements and the crowd reaction from when Crown WON Finals Night! It is absolutely breath-taking because for any drum corps kids, we all dream of being Champions. We all strive for Perfection, and we always catch Excellence in the process.

It always makes me get like super emotional when I think about Crown winning, and it’s just so nice to know that the underdog can win, too. And, just knowing that those kids put their whole heart and faith into their work and their teamwork (a truly remarkable group) and they walked away Champions is absolutely wonderful. And the icing on the cake was how the corps was represented in receiving the Trophy, by their Drum Major, Linda Harvey - she was just so classy, and down-to-earth, and had such poise, and exemplified how honorable a Champion can be when it’s their turn to be number 1.

God bless Carolina Crown, God Bless everybody who has ever volunteered, watched a drum corps show, supported by investing in the youth programs for kids like me who believe in music and the power of inspiration and giving an audience something worth enjoying. Without drum corps, I would not have been able to believe in myself as a Musician today.

- ATOMIK 1

P.S. It has always been a dream of mine to one day own my own Drum Corps. I was always like, how would I do it if I ever had the opportunity to have my own corps - and I decided - I would totally have it be like Star of Indiana - you know, I’ll be like an older dude who’s got the bread and then I’ll just make sure it’s a well-oiled machine - and then have the quality of Star, but be designed like Velvet Knights (LOL!!!! YES!!!!) ESPECIALLY because they were the most FUN drum corps on the field and literally went the zany and quirky route instead of the super serious and militant way (and dorks like me rejoiced hahaha). ...chuck taylors and all LOL.

[vhyral]

ME:ANDROMEDA - RYDER MEME

*returns from the hiatus wars in order to answer a tag meme* Are tag memes my weakness? Yes, yes, they are. Thank you for tagging me, @ematis!

P.S. I’m going to write about both of the twins.

Names: Flynn Ryder | Einarr Ryder

Genders: Female | Male

Ethnicity: Irish

Eye color: Flynn’s eyes are a rich brown with little dots of green that can be spotted under bright sunlight. | Einarr has heterochromia; one eye is the same as his sister’s and the other is bright blue.

Hair color | Description: Both siblings have wild, curly red hair. (Give us the mythical wavy hairstyles, Bioware!) Flynn usually keeps hers in an incredibly tight braid that reaches down to her waist though a halo of stray hairs always frames her face no matter what. Depending on the circumstances after they awaken in me:a, she might just cut her hair short. | Einarr sports a layered undercut with his hair carefully straightened and smoothed backwards. They turn back to curls quite easily when he sweats from exercising/wears a helmet/the weather is humid/gets out of bed, sneaking between his eyes and his glasses and annoying him.

Skin (color, blemishes, tattoos, ect): Both twins have generous amounts of freckles across their face, shoulders and back. Flynn usually has at least a couple of bruises adorning some part of her body from intense training and being out on the field whenever a chance presents itself. She has an old, fainted but long scar that stretches across her collar bones from an accident back when the twins were small. She has a small tattoo on the back of her left shoulder, smooth black lines that connect some of her freckles and create Orion, the constellation of the hunter. | Einarr’s skin is clear and it’s a running joke amongst his coworkers that he’s untouchable while on the battlefield. That’s not true- while he is pretty fast and hard to pin down, Einarr just heals too damn quick. He has a small tattoo as well, at the same spot as his sister. His constellation is the Canis Major, a constellation that is said to follow Orion but also contains Sirius, the brightest star in Earth’s night sky.

Misc physical attributes: We are not yet sure about how the in game mechanics work but in general, the twins are well built with sturdy bodies and well toned muscles. Flynn is probably going to belong to a class similar to the Sentinels from the original trilogy, combining biotics with heavy weaponry- her aim is what she’s most proud of and the assault riffle is her favorite weapon of choice. | Einarr is a full biotic. He can use light guns but prefers to rely on his biotic fields and his push and throw abilities to get an upper hand in battle; he’s a controller while his sister is a charger.

Preferred romance option: I’m so unsure when it comes to Andromeda romances, ahhhh. I can never decide until I actually have the game in my hands and a few hours in the gameplay. Perhaps Jaal? I really like Liam’s design as well but I want to see him in game first cause if they pull another Jacob on us, well, that’s not nice, Bioware.

Relationship with Alec & sibling (do they get along? ect.): At the age of 25, Flynn and Einarr can function just fine on their own; they don’t feel the need to be with each other all the time. Still, they naturally levitate towards each other when they’re as much as in the same station. They are on the same wave length and each other’s most important person. Most people think that twins finishing each others’ sentences is not a real thing- they change their minds when they meet the Ryder twins. | Both of them respect their father to some length; Flynn worships his abilities on the battlefield and his (usually) quick and clear judgment and aspires to reach his level of professionalism one day. Einarr is more skeptical; although usually the calmer of the twins, his anger flares easier when it comes to his father and he often questions his decisions and the reasons behind them though he does not openly voice his concers most of the time. He never fully accepted the absence of his parents from his and his sister’s childhood years due to their work and he still sees their father under a very judgmental light.

Projected bff (the squad mate who isn’t bae but you always take): Jaal! And Vetra! And Liam! And Peebee! Our imaginary space mabari! I can’t decide!

Dreams/hobbies/likes: Both twins share a love for discovery- new planets to find, new technology to discover, new limits to break. Going to outer space has been their dream since the first time they looked out of a window and up at the stars. Flynn wants to create a name for herself, to be out there leading missions, saving and protecting people wherever there’s trouble. Shepard is a personal hero to her. Her hobbies include meticulously cleaning her weapons every night and searching for new music and her passion is programming. She likes plants and gardening as well but has never managed to keep a plant alive in a spaceship for over a month. (her brother helps her with this) | Einarr is a bit more hesitant towards the Alliance, mostly because of his distrust towards their father. His dream at the moment is Andromeda; leading and establishing a new life somewhere new sounds ideal to him and exploration is in his blood. His hobbies include the collection and categorization of new plant and animal species and also tinkering with equipment. He is after all, a certified mechanic.

Fears/dislikes: Losing each other is a valid fear that follows the twins around even though they have learned to operate with it in the back of their heads. Flynn’s personal fear is not being good enough. Being the one seemingly more interested in a military career out of the two, her father had placed a lot of hopes on her since the beginning; Flynn revels in that trust but at the same time, it also terrifies her and, alongside her own high ideals, leads her to overwork and overstretch herself to achieve what she feels is necessary. Her dislikes include rude people, swampy ground, windy weather and people who stab you in the back. She can be forgiving but after a certain line is crossed, she gets dangerous and won’t hesitate to shoot you in the leg to stop you. | Einarr’s biggest fear is becoming his father and it’s a fear he does not even allow himself to think about. With advanced analytical skills and great scores, he usually finds himself in positions where decisions have to be made- what if he becomes just cold and calculated like his father without noticing it? This fear keeps him down and has lead to his dislike of final decisions. He likes to keep his options open. He finds uneducated people extremely annoying and particularly dislikes those who attempt to argue about topics they do not know enough about.

Other (what else should we know about your Ryder?): Both of the twins are demisexuals and Einarr in particular has never been in a romantic relationship with anyone before due to his lack of interest. Back on earth he enjoyed riding his bike more than any other vehicle and has taken ice skating lessons when he was younger; he still likes to include dancing in his daily training. Flynn sings in the shower, talks in her sleep and can play the guitar. If she hears anyone talking shit about her brother, she will stalk them down, demand an apology and probably end up in a fight with them. She can also kill a man over a bowl of profiterole.

Thank you for reading! It’s tagging time but I’m unsure about who actually plays mass effect out of all the people on my dash so I’m not sure I should tag anyone. If you see this and want to do it, consider yourself tagged and tag me so I can read about your Ryder!

[sharnngan]

Body Neutrality — What it Means And Why it’s Important

Self-love | Mental health Body Neutrality — What it Means And Why it’s Important Use this strategy to transform your self-esteem

Photo by Billie on Unsplash

I’ve gained 50+ pounds since the first Toronto lockdown in March of 2020. I wish I could say that I’m thriving in this new body, but that’s not the case. These past 365 days have been hellish for my self-esteem and body image.

I grew up being stick thin; I could eat anything I wanted and not stretch an inch. Throughout University my metabolism started to slow, but Coronavirus has officially thrown my skinny-bod out the window. Now, I’m stuck here, trying to figure out how to not hate myself and the skin I wear.

I recently posted a picture of my legs with all the stretch marks they hold. I asked in the caption for people to send me profiles of body activists they love; the response was overwhelming. After reviewing multiple body activist pages, I realized many of them utilize a similar strategy, that being body neutrality.

I had never heard of the term before, but now I’m a converted fanatic.

The basics

“Body neutrality promotes acceptance of your body as it is, encouraging you to recognize its abilities and nonphysical characteristics over your appearance” (Healthline).

The premise of body neutrality is to see your body as a system versus an aesthetic. This strategy pushes you to focus on what your body does for you. Here are a few examples of body neutral statements: your body preserves and exerts energy, your body keeps you alive, your body allows you to explore the world and capture experiences.

Body neutrality is the firm middle ground between self-love and self-hate.

Living Better Lives

The architect of this movement is unclear, however, researchers note that body neutrality started to be consistently searched on the internet in 2015. One of the first supporters and preachers of this strategy was Anne Poirier.

Anne, a wellness and intuitive eating coach, created a body neutrality workshop — a program designed to help women find peace in their bodies. Her workshop was a huge hit and is given credit for turning this idea into a worldwide conversation.

Body positivity vs. body neutrality

Body neutrality varies from body positivity because the movement doesn’t promote loving and accepting your body 24/7, but rather, it promotes seeing your body in a neutral and logical light.

When I first started researching how to improve my self-esteem, I discovered body positivity: “body positivity is a social movement focused on empowering individuals no matter their physical weight or size […] The movement advocates the acceptance of all bodies regardless of physical ability, size, gender, race, or appearance” (Wikipedia).

The Curve Confessions

At first, I thought body positivity was helpful; I would only say positive affirmations about myself, every time I had a bad thought about my body, I would push it away, anytime someone would comment on my weight gain I would clap back with “I’m stunning, no matter my size”… Then I had a terrible self-esteem week.

During these days where I felt disgusted towards my new stretch marks and rolls, my feelings of guilt deepened in complexity. Not only did I feel like shit for gaining weight, but I also felt like shit for not loving myself, like all these influencers said I should.

I’m not saying body positivity is wrong, I’m just saying it didn’t work for me. As a Virgo with OCD, logical lines of thinking are more productive in my personal opinion.

Does body neutrality make change?

Several professionals support that body neutrality is the best strategy for improving self-esteem.

Health Psychologist Bobby Wegner is one of those individuals, who believes that body neutrality has a positive correlation to decreased anxiety and better mood.

Alison Stone, a New York-based Psychotherapist advises that body neutrality has a deep connection to mindfulness, and for this reason, the movement can help reduce stress, emotional reactivity, and rumination.

In an interview with Huff Post, Alison explained that when we spend less time focused on our body’s aesthetic, we acquire more time to do things that are beneficial to our health. She also advocated that though feeling confidence and love for our bodies is important, it’s unrealistic to feel this way at all times, especially in the world we live in today.

Elizabeth Wassenaar, a medical director at the Eating Recovery Center, is also a supporter of body neutrality. She believes that this movement motivates intuitive eating and living, which are extremely beneficial to health and fitness.

In a conversation with The Insider, she commented, “[…] diet and fitness plans that require restriction or pushing your body past its boundaries aren’t body neutral. Those plans force a person to hold the diet or fitness plan’s specific rules above their body’s natural cues for hunger or physical activity.”

Because of this reality, dieting and over-exercising are not sustainable and are dangerous. Body neutrality transforms eating and exercising back into simple and enjoyable experiences, in turn leading to individuals regaining self-esteem and getting into better shape.

Body neutrality is the strategy that helped me lessen my negative self-talk and improve my self-esteem. Before implementing body neutrality, all I could think about was how to make quick cash so I could afford liposuction. I would cry daily, refuse to wear real clothes, and would say terrible things about myself in front of friends and family.

Now, I rock it at the beach — braless, in spaghetti strap tops and biker shorts! I shake my butt at my partner all the time (probably too much), and my self-deprecating humor has decreased substantially. Whether I’m having a ‘good’ body image day or a ‘bad’ body image day, my overall mindset stays the same — I am so grateful for my fierce body, which has hurdled countless obstacles to keep me on this earth! I never thought that feeling ‘neutral’ about my body would lead to living a more content life.

Body neutrality has been notably more effective for me (and countless others) than body positivity. There is science and professional opinion to back body neutrality’s power, so let’s give this movement the attention it deserves!

Body Neutrality — What it Means And Why it’s Important was originally published in P.S. I Love You on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

How Do You Feel About Love?

[blackhatseoguy]

How to start

Quite a few years ago I found myself in a situation where I wanted to start my own business. I was sick of working at the places I was working at, and I wanted to get out on my own. Problem was… I had no idea what that was. I didn’t have any obvious breakout ideas. The experimental ideas I did have seemed impossible to market, as in, I had no idea how to sell anything. The thought occurred to me to try to raise money to build something, but I didn’t even know where to begin.

It was an awful unmotivating place to be.

My daughter, Addison, turned 3 this week. How on earth have these 3 years gone by?

If you know toddlers at all, you can imagine the types of games we’re playing. Lots and lots of pretend. She’s often “the teacher” and I have to be the student. A baby student. Complete with my weird impression of talking like a small baby.

Addison is also obsessed with her fake groceries and kitchen. She makes me pretend I’m buying those plastic groceries until her “store” is out of stock. Then she becomes the chef, and cooks everything I bought.

She makes a “soup”. Which is just a bowl of random plastic things: fake strawberries, a milk carton, a whole turkey.

She’s a terrible chef.

But that’s the point, isn’t it? There’s no way she can actually be a good chef. She can’t even be an actual chef. She’ll kill herself if I give her real knives or let her use the actual stove.

She has to start somewhere. Anywhere. And pretending to be a chef even with the fakest of tools is somewhere.

The job I had before I struck out on my own was an ecommerce hosting provider for clients who sold downloadable software. Like Shopify but for digital products and with a huge catalog of software sold for their clients.

They had this contest. They wanted to know what would happen if they gave everyone the ability to open up their own “store” with that catalog of software from their clients.

In other words, an affiliate program. You got a commision from any sales your site made.

Out of the box, everyone’s site looked the same. But you could style and brand it however you wanted. You could even set your affiliate commision. Everyone in the company was invited to compete at who could sell the most in a month before they launched this program to the public.

The winner cleaned up. They had this great idea to take the dynamically created pages of their store and convert it to a static site they could further optimize for SEO. If you looked up any of these niche software products in Google that month, it was highly likely, you’d find their store at the top of the list.

I’m sure there’s more than a few people reading this cringing at the contest itself. An affiliate program, really!? Yuck. Those are a race to the bottom.

First, the winner, was just the winner in the first month. What happens when everyone copies their SEO strategy? Then it’s just a bunch of Google spam which Google has gotten better about crushing. Also, the affiliate commissions will race to zero with people trying to undercut each other on the same exact products. Some people will try and take Google Ads out, which might work for one person in the short term, but when everyone starts, they’ll all lose a bunch of money to Google and profit will go to zero.

Yes. Yes. And yes. That’s all true.

But that’s not that much different from making soup out of pretend strawberries, milk and turkey.

Today, that company I worked for doesn’t even run this affiliate program anymore probably because of all those reasons above.

But I learned an incredible amount from that terrible contest. I learned about SEO and how to improve my own search listings. I learned about creating Google ads, keyword research, and split tests. I learned about using copy and pictures to get people interested.

One of my most successful experiments on my affiliate site was creating a banner of someone asking visitors: “PLEASE DON’T BUY ANYTHING HERE”. Sales went up.

My first real business was a company called Inkling. We made it easy for companies to host their own prediction markets which look like stock exchanges, but instead of stock in real companies, it was pseudo-betting on business decisions.

We were late to the market. There were multiple companies already out there that knew this stuff so much better than we did. Not to mention, the best selling book, “The Wisdom of Crowds”, gave our biggest competitor so much free press and publicity.

How could we possibly catch up?

All those things I learned from my fake store sure came in handy. It took awhile, but I got our SEO in order. Eventually we were the top result for the phrase “prediction markets”. Google Ads were no sweat for me to create and optimize. We constantly tweaked our copy to get better at persuasion.

Eventually, I can confidently say, we were the number one company hosting businesses prediction markets.

So many of the strategies I use today to run Highrise, started with running that crappy, pretend store.

Feeling stuck trying to create your own business? Just start. Start anywhere. Pick up some junk in your house and figure out how to sell it. Online or just starting making phone calls. Sign up for some affiliate program and start learning how to craft websites, ads, copy, SEO, whatever. It doesn’t matter.

Do anything. It doesn’t matter if it feels pretty fake. It’s ok to just pretend for awhile.

P.S. Please help spread this by clicking the ❤ below.

You should follow my YouTube channel, where I share more about how we run our business, do product design, market ourselves, and just get through life. And if you need a no-hassle system to track leads and manage follow-ups you should try Highrise.

How to start was originally published in Signal v. Noise on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

[Read More …]

The post How to start appeared first on offensiveseo.com.