“Vacation won’t make things better. Changing jobs won’t make things better. Getting the recognition you deserve won’t make things better. Drugs won’t make things better.

The only thing that will make things better is your relationship with yourself.”

-FarnamStreet

Here’s what I’ve been reflecting on this week. As Haruki Murakam once said, “If you only read the books that everyone else is reading, you can only think what everyone else is thinking.” I believe this is applicable to everything we read.

READ

Yes, please and thank you! Best Books Written by Black Women, ProWritingAid

Mines did after multiple prolapses. Does Your Vagina Need Physical Therapy?, Thinx

Try half-assing it. Here’s How I Took Back My Life, Sisters From AARP

Alright. Everything You Need to Know to Vacation Alone, Thrillist

I’m listening. “My Self-Care Is My Joy”—5 Black Women Share the Rituals That Help Them Show Up As Their Fullest Selves. Camille Styles

Number 5 is everything to me. The Lifestyle That Could Finally Help You Achieve Financial Freedom, The Everygirl

In case you need it. 60 Monthly Journaling Prompts to Help You Make the Most of 2023, Silk Sonder

 

What I Do: I don’t have access or a subscription to various newspapers or magazines i.e. the New York Times. So, I checked with my local library. I’ve learned I have access to the New York Times free with my library card. Always check with your local library to see what offerings are available to you.

 

“Everybody has an inferiority complex when they step into a room… When I was young I had so many inferiority complexes. I had an inferiority complex because I didn’t go to university… because I didn’t train. Then it gets tiring. And you get bored of it…”Fuck it” is my guiding philosophy.”

-Helena Bonham Carter

Isn’t it ironic

Recently I signed up for several SELF newsletters. I am always on the lookout for new articles to share with all of you. SELF checked many boxes when it came to what I enjoy reading and sharing. When I came across the above article I had to read and post it! But when I noticed the advertisement below I was shocked! The article mentions the Kardashians at great lengths and how they, “played a major role in normalizing and popularizing Blackfishing: the cultural appropriation when people alter their appearance with makeup, cosmetic surgery, filters, and digital editing to appear Black.” And how, “With this change in culture, the Black woman goes back to being objectified, hypersexualized, and having to deal with a disdain for their bodies that they have faced for centuries.” This article is EXCELLENT! I mean a must read. The issue I have is the SKIMS advertisement immediately below the article. WHY?! SERIOUSLY?! For me it counters the entire premise of the article and begs to question SELF’s  motives.

 

“The Kardashians are the most notable example of the aforementioned phenomenon, having been known for their curvy frames and aesthetics pulled straight from Black culture, only to exchange them for smaller and whiter models when it’s convenient or lucrative.”

Yvette Sojourner

President