Fun Size

Fun size?  FUN SIZE?!

Who are the trying to kid?  I prefer to call these miniature candy treats, "torture size."

Survey: What do YOU want to see on Larissa Explains It All?

Basically, what I'm looking for is to share more of what you really enjoy about my little world.  I have been contemplating, for awhile, bringing you regular features of which you can't get enough.  Perhaps those things unique in nature from what you get elsewhere or simply the things you enjoy most.   My ideas of what I think you like could be extremely different from the actuality.

The only topics I write on regularly - at least title-wise - are my strange dreams, odd confessions, and funny search terms people use to find my blog.

Some thoughts:

1. Stories I overhear. I spend a lot of time in the gym locker room.  I overhear quite a few conversations that thrill me to the very core of my giggle center. 
2. Dating Tips/Personal Dating Stories
3. Fitness Tips/Healthy Food findings
4. Tips on the products I love most in regards to makeup/fashion
5. More reviews of shows I've seen
6. Weekly Day-of-the-Week feature, such as "Friday Funnies" for funny quotes or stories

Additional Suggestions? Comment.  And take the survey in the sidebar.  Please:-)

Facial Composites and Nationalities

What an interesting site!  I've long heard the research that if you take the average composites of the people in an area, you will come up with a generally attractive physique.  Based on these photos, true.

I then found myself perusing through these trying to see what nationality my face most matches.  I came up with: Finnish, French, Welsh.  What do you think?  What nationalities do you think you most resemble?

 

 

 

Dreams: Britney Spears and Sharks

I haven't shared with you any of my fantastic dreams lately.  How dare I!  We are talking a new epic adventure every night.

A couple of weeks ago, I had a dream that I was watching Britney Spears from the front row of one of her concerts.  This was prior to her new album release, which I didn't even know was happening.  As an on-looker, my reflections indicated I was clearly part of her publicity camp.  She was fit to the max, dancing better than she ever had, and singing her heart out.  I was so proud of her for being back on top and proving the world she can do anything.

Two nights ago, I dreamt of sharks.  Isn't it always the sharks?  We were on a boat, next to a dock.  By "we," I mean a lot of people whom I couldn't begin to identify.  I kept trying to tell everyone that a shark was trying to get us from underneath, but they didn't believe me.  Then, a smaller, about 8-foot shark jumped onto the dock and slid across it like a slip'n'slide.  He couldn't walk on land, but he could jump up to just about anywhere and slide.  He didn't seem too intent on eating any of us for lunch, he was more into the thrill of the chase and scare.  Everyone was screaming and running, but I let this big guy slide right on by me, even jumping over him, because I knew he would have already eaten me if he wanted.

I blame my second dream on this commercial: 

Refrigerator Squats

Apparently my father is into squatting refrigerator's now.  Geez.

But mainly I just wanted you to see his awesome workout clothes.  I just can't get enough - the gloves, the socks, the over-sized shirt/shorts...and this is one of the less-incriminating outfits.  He is so not wearing any of his gnarly sweat-band collection.  I do believe those shoelaces are neon - that's gotta count for something. Don't worry, he loves the attention - I am my father's daughter.

Friends Who Look Like Celebrities

I have had these funny look-alike stories in my head for awhile, then my darling Kristie made a post about look-alike's today and I figured it was all rather serendipitous and I should follow suit.

First, when "Glee" came into my life, I couldn't help but feel as if Matthew Morrison were an old friend.  Then I saw my buddy from freshman year at BYU and I realized why Mr. Schuster was familiar.

Old friend

Matthew Morrison

When I was home for Christmas, I saw, out of the corner of my eye, a wedding announcement with all of the Christmas cards.  My mother is all up with the celebrity times, so I thought it strange she had a picture of the prince and princess displayed, but not too far a stretch.  The curious part would be why.  So I asked, "What is a picture of Prince William and Kate Middleton doing with our Christmas cards?"  Ends up the guy was a grown-up version of the child I'd known since he was born and his wife.  Can you see why, just glancing, I was confused?
 

Long-time Family friend and his wife

Prince William and Princess Kate

Then there is one of my current besties from performing whom some refer to as "the one who looks like Liv Tyler." I didn't see this one until I heard someone call her that and now this is all I can think of.

Liv, Friend, Liv, Friend

I feel much better now that this is off my chest.

Love Should Make You Happy

My mother once told me this when I was 19 and crying to her about my first love: "Love should make you feel happy, not miserable.  You are crying all the time."

I have found that if I am anxious or sad more often than I am happy when I am in a relationship, then that isn't a relationship I should be in.  Then I have to gather strength to pull the plug, which is sometimes harder than the anxiety.  I have found that if my friends are fretting about their relationships, asking, "What should I do?  What should I do?"  Then they already know the answer.

Confessions: Lateness Anxiety

No, I'm not talking about a preggers scare, people;-)

I've got this real problem.  I refer to it as "lateness anxiety" and I've only recently come to grips with the reality of this madness.

When I am going to be attending an event with friends, I calculate the travel time, the time meandering to the car, parking, etc.  I usually give a five-minute grace period so we arrive to our seats with five minutes to spare.  People's time is valuable and I don't want them to waste much more than five minutes of it, right?

What I can't account for is the fact that my friends are always late.  I can never know if they will be five minutes late or twenty-five minutes late.

What do I do?  I don't want to just sit here and accept the fact that, despite my on-time-or-else policy I impose upon myself, I am always going to be late to anything that involves anyone other than me. 

Here's the thing - I sit back and try to convince myself:

• Being late doesn't matter
• Shows usually start five to ten minutes after the designated start-time
• The world will not end if I miss ten minutes
• My relationships with people are much more important than time
• Obeying traffic laws is important (I never actually violate this one, but I contemplate it)
• My friends I am supporting in the show don't care if I'm late, as long as I make it
• (if not a time-constrained event ) I can reschedule my after-plans
• Don't get upset with that person for making you leave your last location - if you had known they would be twenty minutes late, you could have stayed at the gym/work/a friend's house twenty minutes longer, but you probably wouldn't have
• The individual is not trying to be rude or inconsiderate of your time

But you know what?  No matter how hard I try, my pulse quickens, my thoughts start to blur, my body temperature starts to rise, I can't concentrate on conversations.  Why?  Because I'm late.  Goodness gracious, just writing about it is making my heart pound.  Serious.

The only things I have found that alleviate this condition are when I am not the one in charge of the activity, am not driving, don't care about the event, am really trying to charm my date, or am having a bout of extreme self-control.

Lately I have taken to warning my friends that I suffer from "lateness anxiety" and they should be prepared for adverse side effects if they run late.  This serves no motivation at all.  In fact, I think some of them quite enjoy watching my body and mind rebel.

If you ever hear me say, "Take your time," or, "We are in no rush," either I am lying or you are having a very lucky day.

Worthless Men and the Women Who Make Them

Awhile back, I read a post from "Single Dad, Laughing" regarding the way men treat women and the resulting feelings of worthlessness.

I agree with every word of his post.  Then, I couldn't help but wonder, "We are always reprimanding men for the way they treat women.  But what about the way women treat men?"

I'd like you to read these statements that we would find so appauling when referring to women, only slightly tweaked from Single Dad Laughing's originals (no plagiarism intended) to apply them towards men.

Men are ugly.

Men are fat.

Men are bad fathers. Men are bad husbands. Men are bad sons.

Men are lousy cooks. Men don't keep their houses clean enough.

Men have too much cellulite in their bellies. Their abdomens are too flabby. Their bums are too non-existent.

Men are terrible singers. They are terrible dancers. They are terrible private talkers.

Men are dumb. Men are too hormone-brained.

Men are too egoist. They are power-hungry. They are defensive.

Men don't dress well enough. They don't have clear enough complexions. They have too many scars.

Men don't have full enough lips. They don't have skin that is soft enough.

Men are too dominant. Men are too passive.

Men are too mean. Men are too nice. Men are nothing but manipulators or push-overs.

Men aren't good enough. Men will never be good enough.

Men are, simply put, worthless.

Women say these words to themselves.  Women believe these words about themselves.  Women say these words about men.  Women believe these words about men.

Men seem to let these words roll off their backs if they hear it, laugh about it, almost as if it is humorous, as if it is okay to be told he is never good enough.  If a woman says these things about herself, everyone immediately becomes uncomfortable, wanting to ease her pain, and most likely believes she must have been degraded by a man.  If a man says these things about himself, he's an over-emotional pansy.  Men do not say these words to themselves, yet are forced to let women say these words about them or be told he is losing his man card.

To para-quote Single Dad Laughing (my additions are in italics), "Worthless. What a concept. To hold no value. To be less desirable than a can of dirt. Are you freaking kidding me? Every single statement on this list, including the worthless comment, was a declaration that at least one woman has made to me about a man, for whatever reason. I bet there isn't a statement above that we all haven't heard at least once; most likely hundreds or thousands of times. Why would any of these horrible, degrading beliefs spill across the lips of any woman about herself or a man?"  

Why is it NOT okay for a woman to say these things about herself or another woman, but perfectly acceptable for her to say them about a man?  Is it okay for our insecurities to be blamed on men for them saying these exact words about us and then justify our returning the sentiment because they made us feel bad first?

"Get real for a moment, ladies. How many of these statements have you yourself said or thought? Be honest. Go through the list, one by one, and admit to the number. I'm genuinely curious. I'm genuinely sick about it. How many of them have you said or thought just since you got out of bed this morning?" SDL said this in regards to what women think of themselves, but I believe it also applies perfectly to how some think about men.

I am upset.  I echo SDL's frustration and sadness that we constantly let ourselves degrade each other. 

Women, it is our fault if we continue to live with the "eye for an eye" philosophy.  We cannot control the actions of anyone but ourselves. 

Do these words effect men the same way they effect women?  I don't believe they do.  But they do set the bar, the standard of expectation.  What have we done to the men of this world?  Expecting no more of them than for them to be lazy and mistreat us?  

We must not place a standard that is so low they can never hit bottom.  We must decide that men are capable and can live up to positive expectations.  No man (or woman) will ever be perfect, but doesn't everyone deserve to know that they can do something right?

I cannot sit here and say what men do or do not notice about other men or the way women treat them.  What I can say is that men deserve to be treated the same way by women that women want to be treated by men.

Men deserve to be looked up to.
Men deserve to be admired.
Men deserve to know they are handsome inside and out.
Men deserve to know they are capable.
Men deserve to know we believe in them. 

Do these things make you nervous?  Do they make you feel as if you are becoming some backwards 1950s woman if you believe them?  Tell me, what is wrong with showing respect to the gender you ultimately hope you will share your life with?  

If you are told you are something over and over again, you stand a good chance of ultimately believing those things.  Let's make a stand and give these men a fighting chance to be more than what society has expected of them.  Let's make it okay for a man to be sensitive, loving, caring, ambitious, proactive, loyal, faithful, athletic, fun and all of those other attributes you know he has had inside of him since he was a young boy.

I've heard men say they feel that women are the weaker sex.  I have no grasp of how to begin to address this.  Does being sensitive make you weak?  Is that why sensitive men are not tolerated or accepted?  What is wrong with a little understanding?  

We, as women, are constantly defending ourselves and feeling attacked - by society, media, men, ourselves.  Those men who have belittled us are perpetuators of our own worthless feelings.  But aren't we as guilty as they if we beat them up in return?  Is it okay just because it won't hurt their feelings as bad as it hurts ours?

Yes, I agree with SDL.  Men do have some things they need to work on.  But how can they do this with no support from our end?

Single Dad Laughing said, "You'll remember that I started this post with a list of the execrable things that women often believe themselves to be. Do we not realize why women think, believe, and say these things? Are we really that daft? Are we really that stupid? Are we really that stubborn?...  It's our own da*ned fault that we're all screwed up."

SDL, are you really bashing yourself like this just after telling us women to stop the same type of behavior?

Looks like neither sex is feeling as if they have enough support.  Too much pressure is placed on women to simply change their frame of mind and realize society expects unrealistic things of them.  Too much pressure is placed on men to simply stop listening to their carnal impulses.

You know what we all need?  A little support.  A little love for each other.  Respect for our differences that make us balance each other out so well.  The differences that make us men and women - the gentle, the rough, the strong, the weak, the emotional, the logical - we need it all. 

We all owe each other apologies.  We all owe it to ourselves to change for the better, to stop expecting less of each other and stop expecting unrealistic ideologies.     

"We need you to be you. We need you to be beautiful (handsome). Because beautiful you are."

I echo Single Dad Laughing (my additions in italics), "What do you say, fellas? Can we take a step back, cordially give the media the finger, and start seeing "real" women as beautiful, just as they always have been?  And what do you say, women? Throw us a freaking bone? Give us something we can believe in?... And, never, not even once, let those self-loathing statements listed above enter your thoughts. Certainly never let them escape your lips about yourself or about men.  Let's do this already. Men, own up. It's time. Women, help us do it."

I'm sure I've opened a huge can of worms.  We must quit pointing fingers and help each other.


PS - Share this post with your friends.  Let's hear what everyone has to say.

Poser

I just got this text from my 60-year old father, "I hear you are a poser."

What?!