After months of practice and practice there she was an 8 ½ year old, standing waiting to march onto the field. What field? Why a huge football field as; she was about to perform in a baton twirling drum majorette competition. All the excitement of the last months, all the sore feet, blisters on fingers and toes, all the practice. At almost 8 ½ years old she was so excited! She loved her music, helped design her performance (AT 8 ½) and had worked at performing it over and over and over again. She knew it perfectly! Her Mother gave her small hand a squeeze and whispered “I love you honey”.
Mom knew the performance almost as good as her daughter. Mom knew how much her daughter loved all the tap dance classes, the ballet classes, the baton twirling classes, the acting classes that her young girl took. Mom also knew that her daughter was good. So there they stood waiting for the 8 ½ year old to march to the center of the field. The music came on and… she was off.
As she got to the center of the field and she turned to face the judges something happened….she forgot her routine!!! Oh NO…what was she going to do. In that split second, that 8 ½ year old realized the show must go on (as her acting and ballet teacher always told them)! As her routine music came on she smartly saluted the judges and off she went making it up as she went along. She knew the music so well she knew what was next so she did twirls, front back and over the head. She put in some one handed cartwheels while twirling the baton. (She had never done one before) She decided she was going to have fun and she didn’t care what happened or about the competition. At the end of the routine she threw the baton into the air so high it even surprised her and also to her surprise she caught it!!! She stopped saluted the judges again and marched off the field to loud applause!
Her Mom was standing there with her mouth wide open. What was that? What happened? That wasn’t your regular routine. "Oh Mom, I am soooo sorry I forgot the whole thing and decided to just make it up as I went along and have fun!" Her Mom put her arm around her and said that’s okay honey you had a good time today and you will always remember it. Her daughter asked if they could go home as she thought without the regular routine she didn’t have a chance to win. And off they went hand in hand smiling and laughing and discussing the made up routine.
The next day she went into the dance studio to a huge surprise. Everyone asked what happened to her the day before at the competition? Her teacher said she knew her routine that was performed was not the one they worked on but she did a great job and she were having such fun. You should have stayed, she said. Because SURPRISE you won second place!!! We are having a party for the whole troupe and you’re the STAR. She had won second place…wow…she was the STAR that day WOW!!! Wait till her Mother heard about this.
When you do something that you love and have a great time doing it, two things happen. First your love for what you do comes through, and second you become very good at what you are doing. When you love what you do success will follow.
Yip …this story is true, as I still have that medal for winning second place that day with a made up routine! My Mom was right I have never forgotten that day. You know that girls just gotta have fun! So...Go have fun...
Amazingly Yours
Dr Marlene
Join me Wednesday’s for Amazing Women: brains, beauty & style on Voice America Women’s Radio network. http://www.amazingwomenbbs.com/ . If you want to get your shape into better shape get The Thinking Side to Thin http://www.thinkingsidetothin.com/ How to change your thinking to keep, (or get) that shape to become a fashion icon.
Showing posts with label mothers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mothers. Show all posts
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
Economy…Fashions…Fault?
Many pundits have tried to put the blame for our slowing economy on many things. Well I think that I know why this is happening and I am here to say that I think it is the fashion designers fault. YES… fashion designers and the MOD fashion fabrics.
Many of you that are out there don’t remember what happen the last time the MOD fashion fabrics were ‘in fashion’…well I do. Only back in those days it was called the Psychedelic era or psychedelic fashion. Meaning: weirdly distorted, wildly colorful, or otherwise resembling images or sounds experienced by somebody under the influence of a psychedelic drug… the drug of choice back then.
This psychedelic period lasted several years including a down turn in the economy, astronomically high home interest rates of 12-15% and higher. We had huge riots on campuses, riots in prisons; we had the flower children in San Francisco trying to stop traffic, “tuning in turning on and dying on the sidewalks; higher and higher food prices and the topping of this societal stew were the gas lines of the 70’s. That was when gas stations were only allowed to pump so much gas each day and you could only buy gas according to the last number on your license plate odd/even on odd/even days. Oh yes it was a mess. I do believe that it all started because some stoner thought it was be great to ‘draw’ while they were on their latest trip through their psychedelic land.
Who knows, maybe that person who drew was in the fashion industry but the next thing was the craziest designed fabric was everywhere. So I am telling you younger people right now…this is nothing new. But I digress.
Now I know you think that I am stretching on this crazy thought. But let me explain. During the research of my first book Marketing’s Silent Language www.silentlanguage.com I discovered interesting studies on many different types of fabric and the effects the fabrics have on the brain. One of those studies was the MOD fabric pattern. I only used a small portion for the book, but the research said that most of the patterns from the MOD fabric were disconcerting and disturbing to the brain. The brain is trying to work the pattern out but can’t. That would be like a Rubik’s cube without any way to win. The outcome of this usually showed up as putting people in a bad mood or mild depression and sometime just mean. It was interesting.
What was more interesting, as the MOD look ran its course and the newer look came out things started changing. The country started coming out of its slump, the economy picked up and people’s moods changed. Then something else happened. Many of the styles with the MOD fabric started showing up on “Sale Tables” and at the local Goodwill. What was more interesting was the MOD fabric clothes didn’t sell in either of those places.
After that the country started riding the longest growth period in our history. Till the end of last year when the MOD fabric pattern came back into style and the country started down the path of problems again. Now I don’t know what you think…but is this just a coincidence??
So I blame the fashion designers who have pushed this MOD fabric look for this bad economy and the bad mood of many people.
Speaking of clothes…my guest on the show next week Alexis Neely’s new book called… Wear Clean Underwear: A Fast, Fun, Friendly - and Essential - Guide to Legal Planning for Busy Parents www.wearcleanunderwearbook.com is a must for parents. Turn in to hear Alexis, who is a mother and lawyer, keep us informed. (Or download it later) If you are a parent you need this book!
Amazingly Yours
Dr Marlene
Join me Wednesday’s for Amazing Women: brains, beauty & style on Voice America Women’s Radio network. www.amazingwomenbbs.com . If you want to get your shape into better shape get The Thinking Side to Thin www.thinkingsidetothin.com How to change your thinking to keep, (or get) that shape to become a fashionista or fashion icon.
Many of you that are out there don’t remember what happen the last time the MOD fashion fabrics were ‘in fashion’…well I do. Only back in those days it was called the Psychedelic era or psychedelic fashion. Meaning: weirdly distorted, wildly colorful, or otherwise resembling images or sounds experienced by somebody under the influence of a psychedelic drug… the drug of choice back then.
This psychedelic period lasted several years including a down turn in the economy, astronomically high home interest rates of 12-15% and higher. We had huge riots on campuses, riots in prisons; we had the flower children in San Francisco trying to stop traffic, “tuning in turning on and dying on the sidewalks; higher and higher food prices and the topping of this societal stew were the gas lines of the 70’s. That was when gas stations were only allowed to pump so much gas each day and you could only buy gas according to the last number on your license plate odd/even on odd/even days. Oh yes it was a mess. I do believe that it all started because some stoner thought it was be great to ‘draw’ while they were on their latest trip through their psychedelic land.
Who knows, maybe that person who drew was in the fashion industry but the next thing was the craziest designed fabric was everywhere. So I am telling you younger people right now…this is nothing new. But I digress.
Now I know you think that I am stretching on this crazy thought. But let me explain. During the research of my first book Marketing’s Silent Language www.silentlanguage.com I discovered interesting studies on many different types of fabric and the effects the fabrics have on the brain. One of those studies was the MOD fabric pattern. I only used a small portion for the book, but the research said that most of the patterns from the MOD fabric were disconcerting and disturbing to the brain. The brain is trying to work the pattern out but can’t. That would be like a Rubik’s cube without any way to win. The outcome of this usually showed up as putting people in a bad mood or mild depression and sometime just mean. It was interesting.
What was more interesting, as the MOD look ran its course and the newer look came out things started changing. The country started coming out of its slump, the economy picked up and people’s moods changed. Then something else happened. Many of the styles with the MOD fabric started showing up on “Sale Tables” and at the local Goodwill. What was more interesting was the MOD fabric clothes didn’t sell in either of those places.
After that the country started riding the longest growth period in our history. Till the end of last year when the MOD fabric pattern came back into style and the country started down the path of problems again. Now I don’t know what you think…but is this just a coincidence??
So I blame the fashion designers who have pushed this MOD fabric look for this bad economy and the bad mood of many people.
Speaking of clothes…my guest on the show next week Alexis Neely’s new book called… Wear Clean Underwear: A Fast, Fun, Friendly - and Essential - Guide to Legal Planning for Busy Parents www.wearcleanunderwearbook.com is a must for parents. Turn in to hear Alexis, who is a mother and lawyer, keep us informed. (Or download it later) If you are a parent you need this book!
Amazingly Yours
Dr Marlene
Join me Wednesday’s for Amazing Women: brains, beauty & style on Voice America Women’s Radio network. www.amazingwomenbbs.com . If you want to get your shape into better shape get The Thinking Side to Thin www.thinkingsidetothin.com How to change your thinking to keep, (or get) that shape to become a fashionista or fashion icon.
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
Open Letter to Pajamas Designers
Dear PJ Designers:
The other day I was in a large national store looking for PJ’s as a gift. I was having a hard time finding anything. As I wandered the department I noticed other women with scrunch noises, a-gasp mouths, scrunch eyes and just plain rotten looks.
Finally I said to one woman; “Having Problems?” Her comment was just my thoughts. “Everything is ugly! There is nothing worth buying!” I went to the next woman; “You look like the rest of us…having problems?” Her answer was the tops: “Did they get this department mixed up with the pre-teens?” The next one wasn’t so nice: “This is garbage!”
Designers… how long has it been since you have walked the floor of a PJ’s department in any store that is not in New York City? How long since you were in any other state but New York? Or are you just sending the junk out to the other states? The one woman had it right…we are not pre-teens and pre-teens should not be dictating what adult women wear to bed!
Just because we are going to sleep doesn’t mean that we have lost our fashion flare. Scotty dogs, ducks, lambs, bears, moose or any other animal on our sleeping or at times, our lounging attire we left years ago! And by the way there are more colors in the rainbow than, pink, blue, extra pale purple oh yes, and GRAY. And why do most of you think we all like to get ready for bed in pastels? I prefer something just a little sexier in colors.
Oh Please, we have been setting the fashion curve for decades. Including the mod designs: which, came to some designer in London on an acid trip during the late 60’s. But the PJ’s of today are an actual shame.
We are not trying to look like our pre-teens, or our teen daughters. You might think that is ‘cute’ but most of us don’t. We want stylish, designs with great interesting fabrics. You can’t tell me that they can’t print almost anything on fabric these days? They print the moose don’t they? Designers; watch what stores are putting on sale and how soon they go on sale after the item hits the stores. This should help you in what you design.
We don’t want the cramp your style, but the last thing my husband wants to see is me coming to bed in PJ’s with ducks on them. It is demining to women that have been setting the style longer than most of the new designers are old. We might have worn and made the mod designs a hit; but that was back in the 60’s when our mothers were still wearing full skirts.
Happy Holidays
Amazingly Yours
Dr Marlene
I sincerely hope that you and yours have a wonderful holiday season. No matter how you celebrate it the only thing that is important is that you do celebrate and enjoy life.
The other day I was in a large national store looking for PJ’s as a gift. I was having a hard time finding anything. As I wandered the department I noticed other women with scrunch noises, a-gasp mouths, scrunch eyes and just plain rotten looks.
Finally I said to one woman; “Having Problems?” Her comment was just my thoughts. “Everything is ugly! There is nothing worth buying!” I went to the next woman; “You look like the rest of us…having problems?” Her answer was the tops: “Did they get this department mixed up with the pre-teens?” The next one wasn’t so nice: “This is garbage!”
Designers… how long has it been since you have walked the floor of a PJ’s department in any store that is not in New York City? How long since you were in any other state but New York? Or are you just sending the junk out to the other states? The one woman had it right…we are not pre-teens and pre-teens should not be dictating what adult women wear to bed!
Just because we are going to sleep doesn’t mean that we have lost our fashion flare. Scotty dogs, ducks, lambs, bears, moose or any other animal on our sleeping or at times, our lounging attire we left years ago! And by the way there are more colors in the rainbow than, pink, blue, extra pale purple oh yes, and GRAY. And why do most of you think we all like to get ready for bed in pastels? I prefer something just a little sexier in colors.
Oh Please, we have been setting the fashion curve for decades. Including the mod designs: which, came to some designer in London on an acid trip during the late 60’s. But the PJ’s of today are an actual shame.
We are not trying to look like our pre-teens, or our teen daughters. You might think that is ‘cute’ but most of us don’t. We want stylish, designs with great interesting fabrics. You can’t tell me that they can’t print almost anything on fabric these days? They print the moose don’t they? Designers; watch what stores are putting on sale and how soon they go on sale after the item hits the stores. This should help you in what you design.
We don’t want the cramp your style, but the last thing my husband wants to see is me coming to bed in PJ’s with ducks on them. It is demining to women that have been setting the style longer than most of the new designers are old. We might have worn and made the mod designs a hit; but that was back in the 60’s when our mothers were still wearing full skirts.
Happy Holidays
Amazingly Yours
Dr Marlene
I sincerely hope that you and yours have a wonderful holiday season. No matter how you celebrate it the only thing that is important is that you do celebrate and enjoy life.
Thursday, December 6, 2007
Decorations from What??
Yesterday I had Bonnie Dell from Design Style Taste on my radio show. What a fun show. What was even more fun was all the similarities we have. What really hit home was the story of her Father bumping into furniture when he came home because her and her Mother kept moving it around. Oh my; what memories. My Father would do the same because my Mother and I were always moving the same furniture around, and I was always changing the decorations in the house.
This is the season of memories. The ones I love the best are the stories behind all the different tree decorations that have been handmade. My Mother made decorations from almost anything and I am sure I got her love of the season and her ‘different eye’ to seeing that almost anything (within reason) could be made into a decoration.
This is the season of memories. The ones I love the best are the stories behind all the different tree decorations that have been handmade. My Mother made decorations from almost anything and I am sure I got her love of the season and her ‘different eye’ to seeing that almost anything (within reason) could be made into a decoration.
My most fun story is a couple of lovely decorations that I have done from what could be called box throw-a-ways. The story starts with was I received for that Christmas. It seemed that I got enough perfume to last me about 8 years! Talk about like minds! That was the year that perfume manufactures were presenting the fragrances’ in interesting boxes.
As I was cleaning up and getting rid of the papers (etc.) from the openings…these boxes caught my eye. One looked like a little gold treasure chest. It seemed such a shame to just throw this away.
So with box in hand off I went to find something to decorate it with. About 2 hours later I have conjured up a lovely little gold box with several red ornaments stacked in the box with a few greens for balance. It turned out great. And what could be better than instant Christmas decorations. Take out of storage…sit on table…bingo…holiday!
Looking to almost anything to become a decoration with a sprig of holly or a bit of ribbon gives a different perspective. Yes I caught my Mother’s eye. And that eye takes me through the season with the wonderment of a child at times. Thanks Mom.
As I was cleaning up and getting rid of the papers (etc.) from the openings…these boxes caught my eye. One looked like a little gold treasure chest. It seemed such a shame to just throw this away.
So with box in hand off I went to find something to decorate it with. About 2 hours later I have conjured up a lovely little gold box with several red ornaments stacked in the box with a few greens for balance. It turned out great. And what could be better than instant Christmas decorations. Take out of storage…sit on table…bingo…holiday!
Looking to almost anything to become a decoration with a sprig of holly or a bit of ribbon gives a different perspective. Yes I caught my Mother’s eye. And that eye takes me through the season with the wonderment of a child at times. Thanks Mom.
Oh…that decoration came out of the storage box this year with a broken ornament on top. I already knew the color of those ornaments were difficult to get. So this year in place of that broken ornament, I placed a silk red rose. Voila fixed and beautiful as ever and still an instance table decoration.
Amazingly Yours,
Dr Marlene
If you want to learn more about color, my book Marketing’s Silent Language includes how to use what the eye sees first, to your advantage. Or if you want a fun read that can also teach you the secrets I learned on losing over 170 lbs. pick up my book: The Thinking Side to Thin: available on Amazon or under links. It will be a good one to have around just after the holidays.
Dr Marlene
If you want to learn more about color, my book Marketing’s Silent Language includes how to use what the eye sees first, to your advantage. Or if you want a fun read that can also teach you the secrets I learned on losing over 170 lbs. pick up my book: The Thinking Side to Thin: available on Amazon or under links. It will be a good one to have around just after the holidays.
Monday, October 15, 2007
Weight Loss and Kids
Two happenings came together last week with shades of the past and many memories. First the good: I was on a panel with Travis Jones, a chef and the CEO of Green Kidz. This new and exciting company is developing, distributing and manufacturing natural and organic prepared foods for children, in order to provide our younger generation a healthy future. Second the not so good. The story of the young girl who got a note sent home because her weight to height ratio landed her in the overweight range of the body mass index. How did these two events create shades of the past?
First…the mother of the girl did not want to face the facts that she was partially responsible for her child being overweight and to make matters worse she gave herself and her child an out or excuse to keep eating, by saying that her daughter was ‘big boned’. I can’t tell you how many times I heard that from my parents and teachers and doctors. On Pleeeze! Most kids do not fall into the ‘big boned’ category.
Second…currently we, as a nation, are feeding our kids the cheapest nutritional deficient and chemically laden foods in our country…why…because it is easy and quick. Today, we seem to be busier than past generations and the food industry have made it easier with “quick meals” in boxes and cans. With most of the packages loaded with sugar, fat and lots of chemicals. Most of the time our bodies don’t know what to do with all the chemicals so it turns most of it to glucose and stores it; the body does know what to do with sugar…it turns it to glucose and stores it. That storage we call FAT!
Currently Green Kidz is trying in a small way to help the busy mothers with the hardest meal of the day. Lunch! Giving the kids the boxes from the store, is easy, but…it is just giving them the sugar, fat and chemicals; and what does the body do even at that young age…stores it! Giving them a boxed lunch without the junk is just as easy and much better for the child.
The shades of the past: I can remember hearing all the excuses from everyone why I was FAT. The only thing that happened was I continued to get fatter and fatter till I weighted 308 lbs. My Mother, bless her, was a great cook. I was never at a want for good home cooking. But, even in those days sugar, fat, and white flour were used a lot in home cooked meals. Today we really do know better and are cooking lighter and better at home. In the past us kids played outside a lot. I also had dancing as a passion. Lots of exercise! Today we are a sedimentary society. One reason is because of what I am using right now…a computer.
Okay, so how does this all fit together? We should be smarter now with all the information that is out there. Excuses don’t work! Never have and never will. That mother should stop giving her daughter excuses and start taking an interest in what her child eats and how much exercise she gets. Teaching her the right way to eat and what is good for the body. Green Kidz has a great idea for mothers. Great meals without all the junk, that gets stored. We must learn the ratio of how much intake of food we can have to the amount of exercise the body gets. We are no longer plowing fields or doing the energy using every day events or the past. Smaller meals that are more balanced to today’s health and exercise standards are necessary. Why? Because we are teaching are children to be fat adults. 69% of the nation is overweight or obese; and that number is rising. Good for Green Kidz for giving us an option.
Making choices for health and weight balance is an option that can be learned, even by children.
Amazingly Yours,
Dr. Marlene
You can learn more about my weight loss of 170 lbs. and the mental methods that I used in my book: The Thinking Side to Thin: available at Amazon or under links to my sites.
First…the mother of the girl did not want to face the facts that she was partially responsible for her child being overweight and to make matters worse she gave herself and her child an out or excuse to keep eating, by saying that her daughter was ‘big boned’. I can’t tell you how many times I heard that from my parents and teachers and doctors. On Pleeeze! Most kids do not fall into the ‘big boned’ category.
Second…currently we, as a nation, are feeding our kids the cheapest nutritional deficient and chemically laden foods in our country…why…because it is easy and quick. Today, we seem to be busier than past generations and the food industry have made it easier with “quick meals” in boxes and cans. With most of the packages loaded with sugar, fat and lots of chemicals. Most of the time our bodies don’t know what to do with all the chemicals so it turns most of it to glucose and stores it; the body does know what to do with sugar…it turns it to glucose and stores it. That storage we call FAT!
Currently Green Kidz is trying in a small way to help the busy mothers with the hardest meal of the day. Lunch! Giving the kids the boxes from the store, is easy, but…it is just giving them the sugar, fat and chemicals; and what does the body do even at that young age…stores it! Giving them a boxed lunch without the junk is just as easy and much better for the child.
The shades of the past: I can remember hearing all the excuses from everyone why I was FAT. The only thing that happened was I continued to get fatter and fatter till I weighted 308 lbs. My Mother, bless her, was a great cook. I was never at a want for good home cooking. But, even in those days sugar, fat, and white flour were used a lot in home cooked meals. Today we really do know better and are cooking lighter and better at home. In the past us kids played outside a lot. I also had dancing as a passion. Lots of exercise! Today we are a sedimentary society. One reason is because of what I am using right now…a computer.
Okay, so how does this all fit together? We should be smarter now with all the information that is out there. Excuses don’t work! Never have and never will. That mother should stop giving her daughter excuses and start taking an interest in what her child eats and how much exercise she gets. Teaching her the right way to eat and what is good for the body. Green Kidz has a great idea for mothers. Great meals without all the junk, that gets stored. We must learn the ratio of how much intake of food we can have to the amount of exercise the body gets. We are no longer plowing fields or doing the energy using every day events or the past. Smaller meals that are more balanced to today’s health and exercise standards are necessary. Why? Because we are teaching are children to be fat adults. 69% of the nation is overweight or obese; and that number is rising. Good for Green Kidz for giving us an option.
Making choices for health and weight balance is an option that can be learned, even by children.
Amazingly Yours,
Dr. Marlene
You can learn more about my weight loss of 170 lbs. and the mental methods that I used in my book: The Thinking Side to Thin: available at Amazon or under links to my sites.
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