In an effort to expand my horizons, I began drawing and somehow this came from that.
Welcome to Neutral Spaces.
As you can see, I’ve changed the name of my blog. But have no fear, the blog only gets better from here! I have decided to take a change in direction and start gearing this towards something I love even more than sharing my opinions; art! So with this change in direction, from now on I’ll be posting drawings and photographs taken by yours truly! Every now and then I will make a normal post, share about my life, tell you all my opinions that everyone usually hates, and video blog updates! Hope you guys will enjoy this!
Production
So as I’ve said before, I’m hoping to go on to study photography or photojournalism. Well, I’d like to announce the production of my newest project!
Today I start the filming for a short story series that I’ve been working on. The series will follow the life of a woman who has lived through troubled times, from birth to death.
Also, I’m hoping to get a website set up soon so everyone can view the series once it’s finished as well as my other photography work.
I’m extremely excited to be working on this! Can’t wait to update everyone!
~If you would like to view any of my photography work, you can visit my facebook page, Sydney Shotwell Photography.
It’s OK to Wear Leggings No Matter Who You Are
By now, I’m sure everyone has noticed that girls of all ages are wearing leggings or yoga pants everywhere they go. They get worn to the gym, to the grocery store, around the house, to work, and of course yoga classes. They’re too comfortable not to wear!
However, let’s take a minute to understand that all women can wear leggings and yoga pants.
I often hear the comment being made that some women shouldn’t wear leggings or yoga pants outside of their house. I’m sorry, but that is the absolute most ridiculous comment I have ever heard. Let me tell you why.
First of all, what someone is wearing on their own body, does NOT affect you in any way. Also, simply because a women doesn’t look like a Victoria’s Secret model in leggings or yoga pants, doesn’t mean they can’t wear them. In case you haven’t caught on yet, they make leggings and yoga pants for every shape and size. Therefore, every women on this planet can wear the leggings they please. However, I can agree that it is inappropriate to wear them to some places like work, a wedding, a nice dinner, etc.
I also want to explain why a lot of women these days only wear leggings or yoga pants. While yes they are much more comfortable than jeans, some need to understand that its the only clothing they feel comfortable in and that could be for a number of reasons. Mothers who are always on the run tend to wear leggings or yoga pants. They don’t worry about what they’re wearing because they’re worrying about their kids, not themselves(which is a great thing). Some women have an issue with weight stability, they’re always fluctuating between sizes and can never find a good, solid pair of jeans they feel good in. And isn’t that what most designers are trying to emphasize now? Being comfortable and feeling good in what you’re in and, ultimately, yourself? Isn’t that what this generation has been made about? They resort to leggings because it makes them feel good about what they’re wearing and themselves.
So the next time you see a woman walking down the street, strutting in leggings, don’t judge them. Just keep walking and pay no mind to what they’re wearing. It has no affect on you what they’re wearing and they shouldn’t be judged because of their choice of clothing.
Let’s End Body Shaming, Please.
I want to start this off by saying that I’m not a tiny person. I will say that proudly and if anyone has a problem with it, well, get over it. With that statement out of the way, let’s talk about this thick girl movement that seems to be happening everywhere now.
Last night while sitting in the car with my mother, the popular song by Meghan Trainor, All About That Bass, was playing. My mother then said to me, “Someone on facebook was writing about how this song is mean to skinny girls.” Well, now we have a good debate for the rest of the world to think about.
I can understand why women, who aren’t of Cara Delevigne’s stature, love this song. It’s empowering and sends a well written message to younger girls who deal with self-esteem problems on a daily basis. Trust me when I say I understand because I used to be one of those little girls who would try to hide my body because I was never comfortable with myself. Who doesn’t compare their bodies to the tiniest person in their class?
I can also understand, however, where the female population on the smaller side feel a little attacked. Now a days, most people are talking about how its so great to have curves, not have a thigh gap, and quite alright to have some junk.
But let’s take a second to remember that thicker women have been body shamed for quite a while now and this whole thick girl movement is just taking flight. I also want to say that just because thicker girls and women have been body shamed for the past decade or so, doesn’t make it alright for them to body shame the smaller women.
I know what you’re thinking. How could a thick woman write against her own movement? Easy. Thick women know what it’s like to be body shamed. It feels awful. So why should we do it to the other women who have always been praised for having small stature? Does anyone remember the golden rule? Do unto yourself as you would others.
After years of dealing with self-esteem issues, I’ve finally reached the point where I can accept who I am and I’ve learned to stop body shaming myself. I’ll never body shame myself, so I would never body shame another girl simply because of her smaller stature.
Let’s put an end to the “Thick-Girl/Skinny-Girl” movement. Let’s put our energy towards something more worthwhile and put an end to body shaming across the board.
Let’s Talk Men.
So the title of this blog sounds a little generic and cliché but I can tell you it’s far from it. I want to tell you, from personal experience, you don’t need a man to make you feel good about yourself. To who ever is sitting on the couch or at their desk looking at their computer or phone screen: you don’t need that man who keeps coming in and going out of your life.
Men are kind of like light bulbs. They shine in your eyes for the longest time but after months or even years, they go out. I can tell you that personally. However, to not be totally pessimistic, eventually you find one that shines bright for the rest of your days and who never fails to light your paths.
To the ladies with that one man who pops in and out of your life (kind of like how guys always have to flip through ALL the tv channels and never settle on one), you don’t need him. Drop him now because you’re only hurting yourself. He’ll come and go, tell you promises he never keeps, ignore you for months then right out the blue only want you, but you don’t need that. You don’t deserve that. I can also tell you that personally.
In the words of Francis Whitman, we weren’t raised to be treated like that. We deserve much better than to be treated like a child’s toy.
Denver Adventures: Photos!
Denver Adventures: Photos (Part 1)
One of the red rock peaks at The Garden Of the Gods
Pikes Peak
Cave Of the Winds
Denver Adventures
I moved to Denver when I was going into kindergarten. However, after i finished second grade, we left for the windy city of Chicago. It’s been about ten years since I was last in Denver. This past week, I actually made my way back over there.
My first day consisted of just traveling and sleeping. We landed at the Denver International airport around 10:30 in the morning. We were staying in Manitou Springs at the Cliff House so we had about another hour and a half of driving left to do. Long story short, I slept most of the day.
Our first full day, my mom and I did some exploring on our own. My dad was in meetings all day for work, so we went off by ourselves. Our first Denver Adventure was exploring The Garden Of the Gods. We only stayed for a half hour, however, because we’ve seen it all before. Living here for three years, we explored as much as we could and saw everything. I took some *amazing* photos and I’ll definitely be posting those up as soon as they’re edited. My mom and I then made our way over to the cliff dwellings. They were absolutely gorgeous! There were Native American homes carved out on the side of the cliffs. We were able to climb through them and look out into the mountains. Our last stop for the day was the Cave Of the Winds. We waited around for an hour to be able to take a tour of the caves and caverns. They were, indeed, quite cold. We explored beneath the earth’s surface for an hour and half. We climbed up steep stairs and crept through incredibly tiny and short path ways. I will also post a photo of those. That night, we left Manitou Springs and made our way over to Denver.
Friday afternoon, I took a college visit to the University of Denver. What a beautiful school. They have so much to offer and great programs for me to get into. I’ve heard nothing but wonderful things of the school.
Today, Saturday, we took a trip to Golding, CO to take a tour of the MillerCoors factory. I’m actually posting this blog as I stand in line. We’ve been waiting for almost an hour and a half. In other news, I finally made A-List in Kim Kardashian.
Tomorrow, we head home, and I have to say I’m quite excited to get home and get ready for color guard camp. However, I’m also extremely upset that we’re leaving. I love everything about Colorado. I’ll definitely be back soon. Photos will be coming up this week from all my wonderful Denver Adventures.
Children, Parents, and Restaurants
I can easily start this article off by saying that whenever my best friend and I are extremely annoyed, we feel the urge to text each other and say, “It’s time to blog.” Well, it’s time to blog.
Todays annoyance for me came from what was supposed to be a nice, enjoyable, simple meal with my mother. We sat down for our meal thinking it would be a nice, quiet Sunday night at our favorite local restaurant. We were wrong.
When two parents are sitting down to eat with their children, you would hope the parents would be firm with their children, remind them to mind all their manners, enforce all consequences, and hope the parents wouldn’t behave like their children. The family of four sitting in the booth across from us, however, followed none of those hopes.
The children, in question, were nothing but rotten and the parents were nothing but useless. The two girls were unreasonably loud, had no listening skills, and couldn’t control themselves. The father never once corrected his kids or even chimed in to help his wife when she attempted to correct. When the wife attempted to correct her daughters, however, she didn’t make too much headway.
Let’s understand that I am 17 and I don’t have children, unless you count my cat, so I can’t exactly tell someone how they should raise their children. However, every parent should raise their children to be respectable, calm, and collected in public, including restaurants. It’s acceptable to let children run a muck in fast food places because at least then, they’ll be getting rid of the food they’ve put in their bodies.
Being raised by very southern parents and an extremely southern family, manners and politeness are in our blood, contrary to popular belief. I may sound like I’m pointing my nose up to this small family, but I’m really not. My only hope is to know that parents are teaching their children manners in a social setting.
Neutral Spaces 