Fit and Fabulous pt. 2: New 'do, new you?

QUOP

Last Sunday, I got my hair cut and highlighted (highlit?).  It looks FABULOUS. And may I just say, Nicholas Ashmore in St. Pete, FL is very talented. He had me in an out in less than 2 hours! (Ladies, as you all well know, highlighting by itself usually takes that long, not including cut). I just felt like it was time for a change (especially when one has a Groupon 😉. 

Change, to me, is a rejuvenation. It's a reset re-centering on anyone's journey, specifically my own journey to be fit and fabulous. I've covered fit already a few times in previous posts, mostly because I've had a lifelong battle that I'm still fighting with fitness and being confident with my weight. It's a battle I should probably stop fighting and learn to embrace because fighting against my love of junk food and my body-shaming thoughts is EXHAUSTING.  However, looking beautiful on the outside makes you want the rest of your outside to catch up, and then the inside follows. 

This is ME

Happy St. Patrick's Day! (The only reason I'm saying it in this post is the last 2 were catching up).  Who likes my picture? This is when I was about 25 pounds heavier in a beautiful part of the Emerald Isle itself... Ireland! I think I look enormous in this picture, but my size certainly doesn't detract from the fact I love my happy smiling face, hair, and the background. I am ME! (Just like the songs from Camp Rock, and, more recently, The Greatest Showman). 

I'm writing this as my amazing boyfriend picks something to watch on Netflix. (Why is it so difficult to choose?) He finally picked Turner and Hooch (which I love Tom Hanks but I hate slobbery dogs). So I'm skeptical because all I really want to do is watch Cupcake Wars 😂...I mean the movie's cute, but that dog is horrible and disgusting. HE LIED TO ME ABOUT THE ENDING OF THIS STUPID MOVIE! Which I watched all of, thanks to him 😑. It was annoyingly cute. But I digress. 

Well back to my point. It's tricky being an individual isn't it? Society is all about conformity, and the various regions of the world correlate to different levels of conformity. However, as someone who's always been reluctant to conform, sometimes even confused by societal norms, I can honestly say I have never rarely conformed to who or what people expected of me. I went from standing up for the outcast, to trying desperately to fit in, to being feeling like an outcast myself, to embracing my individuality. It's odd though, because predictability annoys me almost as much as unpredictability. Oh well. "I'll keep marching out to the beat of my drum..."

"I am brave
I am proof
I am who I'm meant to be
This is me" - Keala Settle 

Side note: If you've never heard of Peter Hollens, go to his YouTube channel immediately.