Monday, March 31, 2025
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An Open Letter To The People Who Market To Fat People

Reading Time: 4 minutes I’m a fat woman. That means that I spend my whole life being a fat woman in a culture that HATES fat women. There is almost no moment in my life or day where I am allowed to forget that I am a fat woman. I do not, for example, dare to leave my house dressed in casual, comfy clothes (no matter how much my husband encourages me to do so) because is fat woman who isn’t put together is treated even worse than a fat woman who works hard to look acceptable.

Everything in our world is designed to tell me that I am unacceptable, that I need to change, that I am not and never will be acceptable. And you have no idea how many women who are starting weight loss businesses PM me out of the blue because they assume I am their ideal client. Fat = wants to lose weight.

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How to Build the Perfect Playlist

Reading Time: 2 minutes Music can set the mood, no matter the occasion. Whether you’re playing jazz classics to give your dinner party a sophisticated ambience or blasting the latest dance-pop tracks for motivation on the treadmill, music is able to provide the soundtrack to different aspects of peoples’ lives.

These days, playlists are one of the most convenient ways to organize music, and there’s no limit to the number of playlists you can create. It can also be surprisingly simple to make the perfect playlist to match your music needs. These tips can help you on your way:

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Make Summer Sweeter With Cherries

Reading Time: 2 minutes Summer and cherries seem to go hand-in-hand, and using fresh fruits can help boost seasonal food and drink recipes.

Whether you use them as a snack, as a special ingredient in recipes or to inspire new dishes, Northwest-grown sweet cherries are one delightful way to celebrate the summer season.

Many grocery store shelves are full of these sweet, seasonal treats. Ripened on the tree and generally harvested, packed and ready for sale within just one day, it can be difficult to find a fresher summer fruit.

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In Defense of the Selfie

Reading Time: 3 minutes I don’t say that lightly. I began to see myself with the love and devotion that I saw all the people I’ve taken pictures of over the years. I can delete liberally. I can pose honestly. I can be relaxed with myself in a way I was never able to relax in front of the camera before. I can be seen on my terms and by learning to do that, I have become much more comfortable being seen through the lenses of other people’s cameras and I have put myself in the pictures of my own life with the people I love. That is a big deal.

Photography is a meditation on beauty, and a selfie might be the most important picture you will ever take. Get your camera or phone out, and start meditating. Self-acceptance is priceless and it’s a few, or a few hundred clicks away. No matter how many clicks it takes, it’s worth it.

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Activism begins at home. Literally.

Reading Time: 3 minutes Cleaning can be a magical act.
 
Every spell in history is made up of an intention + action. Many’s the wise woman who turned her floor sweeping into the sweeping away of troubles and troublesome people.
 
Do not discount the potency of house-magic, just because you’ve always seen housework as a chore. As with politics and opinions, perspective is everything.
 
You get to decide what each and every action ‘means’. If you decide that by literally taking out the trash,  you’re metaphorically tossing out everything that feels like crap …. boom! You’ve cast a spell.

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Turning Chores And Routines, into Rehearsal and Ritual

Reading Time: 3 minutes Turning your routines into ritual gives you so much more connection with your home, with your stuff. It’s a connection to your outsides, from your insides. When you reframe house-“work” into house-care, it changes how you tend to your home.

Think of a house-care task that needs to be done. One that you usually put off or avoid altogether. Play with what meaning it has for you and see how you can sprinkle some fairy dust on it.

How can you infuse magic into that task?

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The One-Size-Fits-All Mentality that Saturates the Self-Improvement World Might Not Be Helpful

Reading Time: 5 minutes While most self-help teachers are in love with their own particular technique – which is totally fine and right, for them – I’m suggesting that the one-size-fits-all mentality that saturates the self-improvement world might not be helpful.

Perhaps not everyone ‘should’ be scripting about living a five-star life, but would get much more manifesting juice by actually spending a night in a luxury hotel or by wearing something that makes them feel rich.
Perhaps not everyone is hardwired to repeat affirmations in their heads, but would find the tactile rhythm of chanting round mala beads far more potent?
Perhaps acknowledging your personal ‘programming’ might help you choose a practice that is more likely to succeed from the get-go.

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