How To Be Your Own "Super" Woman

   

     Typically when the world views women, they view them as the inferior race. Well I am here to tell you, THAT IS NOT TRUE. While I have only been on this beautiful earth for 17 short years, I have already experienced a lot of prejudice when it comes to being a girl. While most of it flows out of the mouths of teenage boys like a river, the world is full of it and I'm sick of it!
     Throughout my life I have always been taught to be my own person; never follow always lead. While that was drilled into my head, I never really had a chance when it comes to being a "weak" woman. My mom and her mom alike are both independent, strong willed women who stand for what they believe in and don't back down. That being said, my father and my grandfather respect that and urge me to follow in their footsteps..which I willingly did. So throughout my life so far, I do what I want and what makes me happy, NOT what makes me popular. I am in ROTC, I am a state weightlifting champion, and I have played every sport imaginable while still looking and acting like a woman. Sure, I have struggled with self confidence and image but a quick pep talk from mom and I was ready to go. So I am here to tell you, you can be a strong, BEAUTIFUL, independent woman and still be feminine and ladylike.

The Inferiority Complex

     Growing up girls are taught a "meaning of life" mindset of finding a husband, getting married, having children, and being a stay at home trophy wife. This ideal is plastered all over pop culture in TV shows and movies portraying the husband as the main bread-winner who comes home to a clean house and a cooked meal from his perfect and beautiful wife. While it is my personal belief that the man is the bread-winner, there is no way women should have to sit at home and serve their husband like some kind of slave! 

     This idea of "inferiority" is somehow drilled into teenage boys minds that women are lesser than they are. While the recent "make me a sandwich" phrase certainly gets my blood boiling, it is unfortunately only the tip of the iceberg known as "the decline of women's self worth". Well, that's my name for it anyway.

     The problem I so often see around me is that boys constantly talk about how they hate needy girls and overly-attached women when in fact THEY made girls this way. When women constantly hear that we should "be in the kitchen" or whatever other sexist jokes that seem to amuse teenage boys, girls start to think "hey, boys like submissive women". This leads to the overly-attached, emotional girlfriend you all "love to hate". So here is the deal, women, take your stand. Be an independent STRONG woman and stick it to all those boys with the "inferiority complex" mind and be your own "Super Woman" :)

How To Be Your Own "Super" Woman

     One reason I love comics is because, woman are portrayed as strong woman! Not some stupid sidekick who does what she is told, but because if Superwoman wants to save America then gosh-darn it she is gonna save America with her own two hands!

The Social Aspect
“That's always seemed so ridiculous to me, that people want to be around someone because they're pretty. It's like picking your breakfast cereals based on color instead of taste.”
John Green

     One of the first steps to becoming your OWN woman is to shake off that "I want to be popular" mindset and change it to "I want to be happy". I experienced this in middle school, wanting to be popular. It sucks, trust me. I was constantly fighting myself and my friends trying to be someone I wasn't and even though I was "popular" I was also miserable. Once I started finding out what I liked, and not what someone else liked for me, I changed completely. If you want to be on the wrestling team, DO IT. If you want to be in the drama club, DO IT. My point is, do what YOU want, not what someone else wants.

     When it comes to imagery, a lot of people have "role models" and they tend to be family and celebrities. While I am not a personal fan of women celebrities, mostly because they all fit the stereotypical girl type, I do have a few I would like to share. I won't talk about them, you can research that yourself, but they are all in my opinion strong, independent women.

1. Jennifer Lawerence
2. Emma Stone
3. CoCo Chanel
4. Lauren Conrad

Just to name a few :)

The Relationship Aspect
"If we're going to be with somebody long-term, we want to find the man who loves our strength and wants to make us feel cared for in the ways I have discussed. And for the reasons I've discussed, we're not going to apologize for it."
Lauren Jacobs

     I cannot count the times I have been told "you are so strong and independent" or especially the time I have been told "you intimidate me". While the latter can be quite upsetting at times as it is usually spit from the mouth of a boy..I am quickly reminded that, that is exactly why I am independent and strong. 

     I see girls all around me, dating constantly and finding self worth in relationships. While this concept completely confuses me, it encompasses the minds of (I would say) about 80% of women now-a-days. The idea of needing a man to be happy is a one way ticket FAR away from being an independent woman. You may be thinking, okay this girl is not even a legal adult yet so she has no place to be giving relationship advice, and yes that is in fact true, but if you sit back and observe the people around you..you can learn a lot.
     The most common thing I see is the "I NEED a boyfriend" mindset rather than the "I WANT a boyfriend" mindset. The first begs for "I need a guy to complete me and make me feel good about myself". The latter says "I am fine on my own, but having someone to love and be my best friend doesn't sound like a bad deal". You have to first be happy in yourself before finding happiness with someone else.
     I do have a warning though, if you take the strong independent woman path, you will need to be patient. Every strong willed woman I have ever known doesn't date every guy that comes along, or says "he's the one" just because he's paying attention to them. It takes a special man to respect a strong woman and feel enough confidence in himself to be in a relationship with one. So you might have to wait, but from what I have seen, it is always worth it.
here is a really good article on this subject..check it out :)

Impress Them

"Education never ends, Watson. It is a series of lessons with the greatest for the last"

    Arthur Conan Doyle (Adventures of Sherlock Holmes)

     When I say this, I don't mean show off your new clothes or your body! I mean intelligence. While I have always made good grades in school, I believe my strengths are in other aspects. Every chance I get I am reading, writing, watching TED videos (those are my favorite), reading the news (Huffington Post is my favorite), reading articles on things I am interested, and learning new vocabulary. You have a brain, USE IT! I also like to culture myself. I travel often and always try new things. I am currently taking French, trying to learn as much as possible because I think it would be so cool to be bilingual! Constantly do things that challenge you and learn at least ONE new thing everyday.

All in all, just be yourself. You don't have to stick to the hottest fashion, make your own! That's what CoCo Chanel did! You don't have to impress anyone except yourself.

The Empty Hearse: Sherlock Season 3 Premier Review

SPOILER ALERT

     Even though I live in the United States, I was lucky enough to be able to watch the Sherlock season 3 premier 18 days early. I mean I have waited 2 years, so why should I have to suffer 18 more days than my friends in the UK..am I right? So luckily, some of those friends provided me with a live stream. Thank you friends!! Now..onto the review :)

     Now, we all know how season 2 ended. Sherlock jumped from St. Bart's hospital to his own death, but we saw at the end of the episode (that is if, you're anything like me, could see through the TEARS) that Sherlock was in fact ALIVE. So then..we waited two years to find out why. This wait resulted in many things, but to sum it all up..in the wise words of Colbert.

     So, The Empty Hearse begins with what seems to be an explanation for how Sherlock faked his death. It shows that Sherlock was attached to a wire, jumped, then went through Molly's window (KISSING HER) then makes his escape. All the while, behind the scenes men take Moriarty's body and attach a mold of Sherlock's face and a wig, place the body on the street, and play it off as Sherlock. Seems logical right? Well it all made sense to me except the window part, but hey..what do I know. Well it appears that it was just a theory, made up by Anderson the used to be Sherlock-hater now turned Sherlock's number one fan. 

     We see how Mycroft retrieves Sherlock from his two year "voyage" or whatever you may call it. I must say, Holmes really let himself go. We see him tied up, shirtless, with a full head of hair (or wig) not quite sure. We also realize he had a beard. Interesting. Not attractive. Anyway, Mycroft saves Sherlock but only have he has let him be beaten a couple of times with a whip. I guess Mycroft needed the entertainment. After they return to London, Sherlock says one of my favorite lines in the whole episode. After he states that he is going to see John in Baker Street, Mycroft responds with the somewhat "shocking" news to Sherlock that John has moved on with his life and no longer lives in the infamous 221B Baker Street. Sherlock responds with "What life? Ive been away?"

     

     

     On to the biggest hurdle that Gatiss and Moffat had to tackle with this episode..the reunion of Sherlock and John. After we find that John is going to propose to his girlfriend, Mary Morsten, at dinner that night, we also find that Sherlock is going to reveal his "not deadness" to John at the same time. Sherlock always seems to ruin Johns plans. Anyway, we see Sherlock as a waiter with an eyeliner mustache trying to offer John some wine. John never looks at him because he is trying to as Mary to marry him. Finally, Sherlock drops the French accent and reveals his voice. One that anyone could recognize because of its hallucinogenic qualities. When John realizes who it is..he goes quite.."mental" for lack of better words, attacking him several times. But we know the real John will come back around..he even ends up shaving his mustache for Sherlock.

    We are also introduced to Mary Morsten, John's fiancé, played by Amanda Abbington who..in real life is Martin Freeman's wife, which makes it that much cuter. I really ended up liking her character. People were concerned that she would interfere with the whole "Sherlock and John team up against crime" thing but so far she hasn't. She actually is a huge asset and I can see her really helping out later in the show. 

     

     After the "reunion" we see the crime part of the show. Apparently there is a planned attack to blow up all of London, which may or may not be the ONLY reason that Mycroft brought Sherlock back in the first place. We don't really know. Since John is not talking to Sherlock, he resorts to asking Molly Hooper to help out on the case. She helps for a day, then reveals that she can't anymore because of work. She also reveals that she is engaged and completely over Sherlock...(yeah right). 

     On her way home from work Mary receives a text referring to John and hinting that he has been kidnapped. She immediately goes to Sherlock and they go on a wild goose chase to track him down while Mary continues to receive texts from the alleged kidnapper hinting on the location. (sounds a bit like Moriarty...eh? Could he be BACK?) They finally find John who has been drugged, tied up, and placed under a bonfire that will soon be lit in honor of Guy Fawkes night (British holiday where people light bonfires and shoot fireworks in commemoration of King James 1 survival). Mary and Sherlock pull John out right before the fire reaches him. The next day, John shows up at 221B to talk to Sherlock and ends up getting right back into his old ways; solving crimes with Sherlock Holmes.

     After tracking down the placing of the bombs, the two travel underground to a secret car that had been taken off the tube. It holds the bombs. While in the car, the lights turn on and the bomb begins to countdown from..3 minutes if I remember correctly. Sherlock and John are frantic, with no time to escape they decide to wait it out and try to disarm the bomb. Sherlock begins to cry, John begins to scream and confess all types of things to Sherlock..little does he know, Sherlock had found and off switch and was fooling John into saying all of those things.. I think if i was John, I would be a little fed up with Sherlock's near death experiences aura that seems to hover around him. I would also be tired of his "games".

     The episode ends with the reveal of Molly's boyfriend..Sherlock "dress-a-like" and the realization that Sherlock Holmes is back. Hat and all.

     But that's not all...we see that there is a new mastermind behind all the crime, particularly the abduction of John. He is sitting in front of multiple monitors showing events from the day such as Johns near death bonfire experience. A new villain..

     Overall the episode was fantastic. I left out a BUNCH of stuff in this post, but I put my favorite parts on here. There were a few more "theories", Anderson going crazy, John going crazy at work, etc. You will just have to watch it! I thought that the way that Moffat and Gatiss worked the fan fiction into the show was brilliant and very pleasing to viewers. Its like they sat down together, went through tumblr and said okay, they think this is going to happen..lets do it. It was awesome. 

"The Sign Of Three" airs on January 5th (tomorrow)..so until then, I leave you with the best Sherlock gif ever created..ever.

     As always, thanks for reading :)