Healthy lifestyle
A healthy lifestyle is one which helps to keep and improve people's health and well-being.Many governments and non-governmental organizations have made big efforts in healthy lifestyle and health promotion.
Mental Health
Mental health can be considered a very important factor of physical health for the effects it produces on bodily functions. This type of health concerns emotional and cognitive well-being or an absence of mental disorder.
Public health
Public health can be defined in a variety of ways. It can be presented as "the study of the physical, psychosocial and socio-cultural determinants of population health and actions to improve the health of the population.
Reproductive Health
For the UN, reproductive health is a right, like other human rights. This recent concept evokes the good transmission of the genetic heritage from one generation to the next.
Health
Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being, and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.
samedi 3 mars 2018
Brittney Cooper Talks Eloquent Rage, Hillary Clinton and Beyoncé, and Embracing Her Black Girl Magic
Brittney Cooper isn't afraid to speak her mind. As one of the brightest stars in academia - and as a blogger, commentator, and author - Cooper has inspired millions with her words on race, feminism, and culture. With her newest book, Eloquent Rage: A Black Feminist Discovers Her Superpower, she traces her own personal journey toward embracing the anger that drives her forward, as well as what she learned about society along the way. Timely, powerful, and an absolute page-turner, Eloquent Rage is destined for a gilded spot in the feminist canon, and further cements Cooper's role as one of the most important voices in America today.
POPSUGAR caught up with Cooper by phone shortly after Eloquent Rage was released in late February, and a transcript of that wide-ranging conversation (lightly edited and condensed for clarity) is below.
POPSUGAR: What does the term "eloquent rage" mean to you?
Brittney Cooper: That term comes from one of my students, actually . . . she felt my anger radiated through the way that I lectured. She was a black girl looking for modes of connection in a predominantly white institution, and for her, that rage felt authentic. So I tell the story in the book of this very mild confrontation that we have where she calls me out for this anger (in a good way) and says, "I see it. It feels to me like the most eloquent rage I've ever heard." That began a moment of reckoning for me, around how to grapple with my own anger as a person - and as a black woman, also battling the angry black woman stereotype and not wanting to succumb to it. So this book is about reclamation - in the tradition of Audre Lorde, who also wrote very famously and beautifully about anger and its power - about trying to reclaim this rage in a way that can be expressive and powerful for black women, and not in a way that will not be weaponized against us, or used to delegitimize our call for justice.
PS: What makes it your superpower?
BC: I grew up encountering lots of modes of injustice as a black girl living in the Deep South, and as a black girl with a father who struggled with addiction and domestic abuse. So there were lots of moments of experience for me that were deeply enraging - and I had suppressed all of that rage, rather than learning to have a healthy relationship to it. So part of the reason that I own it as a superpower is because I do think I'm at my best when I tap into the things that I'm angry about. When I use that feeling of anger and all of the things that surround it - vulnerability and fear and potential powerlessness - when I channel that rage through my writing, through my teaching, through my activist work, it seems to give it a different quality, one that folks can relate to and understand, and it feels like it helps me to sort of be deeply embodied. Because I'm a nerd - both professionally and personally - and it's very easy when you're a nerd to be cerebral, to try to be overly analytic about everything. Rage is a thing that you have to feel in your body. And I think in doing so, it powers the other kinds of work that I want to do in the world in a way that feels deeply both gratifying to me and, I hope, useful for others.
"Sometimes you just need to shout. Shout, and see what happens."
PS: I think that cerebral aspect is key - there are so many things happening and it's just like, "I know I need to say something but what do I do to explain this to everybody, and how do I get my message across without just shouting it into the void?"
BC: That's right. One of the things I'm saying to women is, "Sometimes you just need to shout. Shout, and see what happens." I think the thing that happens is that we shout at other people's responses, and then accept other people's response to our enraged reactions. We recondition ourselves into thinking that it is legitimate, and that other people are being unreasonable when they don't recognize that in the face of the sort of massive forms of sexual violence that we're learning about through the #MeToo movement, or all the injustice that we see through the struggle of Dreamers, or through the movement for Black Lives - all of these sort of big political things happening in this moment. All of them are deeply enraging. And so the rest of the world is off in their reactions when they don't feel that way. We shouldn't be asking other people, "Why are you so angry?" It should be, "Why are you not angry?"
- Brittney Cooper (@ProfessorCrunk) February 26, 2018
PS: As feminists, what do you think that we can do to make the world a better place for ourselves?
BC: In this moment, I think we have to not back down from the analysis that says patriarchy is a real problem. It's a clunky word, but the concept is spot on. The continuing problem of male violence and male dominance is real. In owning that analysis, in letting it shape how we think about the world - there's a lot of talk in this moment about capitalism, right, because we've seen folks moving farther to the left after the election of 2016 in some ways. There's of course a lot of talk about white supremacy. And in this moment folks are talking about rape culture, they're talking about sexual violence. But we really just need to zoom out and name the big system.
"This is one of the lessons that this generation has to figure out: what are the grounds in terms of solidarity?"
I also think that we've got to figure out intersectionality for real. That's one of the things I'm most interested in within this book - what does it actually look like to live at these intersections? And then trying to do politics from a really embodied, relational concept of what it means to be a black woman, to be a black feminist, and to be in relationship with feminists of all stripes - to be in relationship with white feminist women, with women of color who are feminists. Look, I think it's a big struggle. It's a struggle every woman wants to talk about. How are black and white feminists lined up? Whatever. And it's like, well, I'm not mad about that. I mean, I think it's a legitimate question. But this is one of the lessons that this generation has to figure out: what are the grounds in terms of solidarity? I don't think that we're going to figure out how to play nicely with each other very well, that's a lot of history to undo. But I do think we can sort of have some critical solidarities with each other, which is why I've been very vocal in saying that I'm not actually interested, for instance, in dismissing #MeToo because its primary poster children are rich white women. And I want Tarana Burke to get all the credit that she deserves.
But when I see these rich, powerful white women having to tell their Me Too stories - for me it's staggering, because it tells us about the primal patriarchy. That you can be rich, and beautiful, and famous, and well-connected - and still be subject to the whim and fancies of violent men. And if that is true for women who have money and who are white, then all the more it must be true for women who are poor, women who are people of color, women who are not rich or well-connected.
PS: On that note, one of my favorite parts of the book was the section where you address the correlation between Hillary Clinton and Beyoncé. A lot of people have said similar things in less articulate ways, but never really dove into it and explored it the way you have. I'd love it if you could dive into that a bit.
BS: So, one of the things that Beyoncé helped me understand - or I think she helps me understand - is what happened with Hillary Clinton in 2016. In 2013, when Beyoncé came out with the Beyoncé album, there was all of this clapback from black feminists because that was the album where she forthrightly claims the term feminist. And I just didn't understand why black feminists had so many negative feelings. For me, what I went back to was the sort of middle school, mean girl stuff that I had gone through because I felt like there were are all these big pieces with all of this, in short, eloquent rage. I mean, the writing was gorgeous - but there was something about it that felt a little bit emotionally dishonest, or not righteous. As black girls, we have our sort of categories. And sometimes, in the popular imagination, the way that black girls think about mean girl stuff doesn't actually show up. It either shows up in the fact that you don't get us in the cheerleader, jock, nerd kind of thing, or as a reality television thing, which is so sensationalized that you can't get to it. Black girls certainly have these anxieties - and these are big categories, so there's all kinds of overlap - but it has to do with pretty light-skinned girls versus dark-skinned, nerdy girls. So the way that I thought about that was that Beyoncé has light-skin privilege, she's got pretty privilege, she's rich, she's famous. And I think that many black girls who knew versions of that girl in middle school collectively said, "She can't be woke, too. She can have all the other stuff - but wokeness is ours, it cannot be hers."
"If we've never seen something before, when we finally get representations of what could be, the first thing that many of us do is scrutinize it to the hilt."
But when the election happened, I was just floored that white women still voted Republican. Because I just thought, if anything, like - "Really?" Hillary Clinton is fairly moderate in many ways, and so she is not flying the flag of the radical left by any stretch. So I just didn't understand why white women could not get on board with a candidate like her. I would see all of these white women that I knew on the left and the right be like, "Eww, Hillary. No." And I realized that it was like some mean girl sh*t that I just didn't understand, that there's this kind of resentment - it's easy to say that we want women to challenge these structures of power, but when they do, we scrutinize. If we've never seen something before, when we finally get representations of what could be, the first thing that many of us do is scrutinize it to the hilt, we find all of these problems with whatever it is. And I think that people try to punish Hillary Clinton for not playing by the rules and for, in many ways, challenging a white woman's own sense of what is possible in ways that make them deeply uncomfortable.
Some of this, I'm just like, "This is what I see from the outside with white ladies" - but I do know mean girl stuff when I see it. And it is hard to say that as a feminist, because the thing that feminists are always saying is "Everyone says we're emotional and that our assessments are not rational." It's really hard to sit in the space and say, "How do I advocate, as a feminist in particular, for people to take women seriously and to take our political assessments and our intellect seriously," and at the same time say, "But some of the sh*t we're doing is deeply emotional and what the f*ck is it?!" Because that's destructive, right? So that feels hard, but I guess I would want folks to know that I am aware of the contradiction and I am trying to hold it because I think that our politics only get better if we can hold this kind of complexity.
Here's my tribute to my homegirls who made #EloquentRage possible. #PreOrder #Feb20 https://t.co/6eAQryumI8 pic.twitter.com/wj21h6hfPq
- Brittney Cooper (@ProfessorCrunk) February 16, 2018
PS: On the subject of feminism, who and what do you attribute your feminism to? I know you talk about your family a lot in the book, but I'm very curious what your biggest inspirations are.
BC: As I say in this book, I wasn't claiming feminism until I got to grad school. And I actually think it's really important to say that, that in many ways my own coming-to-feminist moment happened in academic spaces - because there's sort of this woke party line right now about how academia's so elitist that nothing radical can happen there. I'm really clear that my radical sense of myself gets fully realized in the academy, from the black feminist professors who exposed me to the richness of black women's intellectual traditions, and that's why I write about it in my academic work.
But also, when I took these classes with folks like Beverly Guy-Sheftall, who teaches at Spelman, and Kimberly Wallace-Sanders, who was my professor at Emory, and I learned about Anna Julia Cooper, and I learned about Pauli Murray - all of a sudden, I felt like, "Oh, my life makes so much more sense to me now," like I had been missing a critical part of this. It helped me to go back and think about my mom, and my grandmama, and the women who raised me in a different way, to see fully the value of all of the kinds of resources that they equipped me with.
"It's a pantheon of black girl magic that helped me to become a feminist."
So, I would say that it's a pantheon of black girl magic that helped me to become a feminist. But I didn't come easily, because I had been deeply conditioned to think that white supremacy was the core thing that all black people should be fighting against. And it took a group of women in those feminist classes - in this book, I use the phrase "homegirl intervention" - in the black feminist classrooms that were part of my graduate school experience, there were moments when those classrooms felt like a homegirl intervention. Like, "Girl, get your life together. Of course, you're a feminist. There is no way for you to be in this room doing this kind of work but for the labor of black, feminist women."
PS: How did you embrace your Black Girl Magic, as you discuss in the book? How did you make that happen for yourself?
BC: I mean Black Girl Magic proceeds me for sure, right? But I feel I'm a beneficiary of it, and hopefully, an evangelist for black girls all around the world. One of the things that I talk a lot about in this book is the way that my relationships with my homegirls sort of have been the key for me across everything - I believe so deeply in the power of friendship. For instance, I'm talking to you and I just have arrived in Atlanta for an event. One of my homegirls came and got me and brought me flowers. This is who my homegirls are, right? Thoughtful, loving folks who just think of all the little touches. And I think so often that black women, in particular, don't get soft spaces to land, don't get places in our lives where people are gentle with us. Because everyone is either devaluing us at work or for instance, asking us to be magical and save the country. For me, friendship is the place where I feel most seen, and when a bunch of black girls get together and do their work and really see each other really critically, there's a synergy there that is just out of this world.
PS: I will admit when I was reading I was like, "I need better friends, honestly, how do I find better friends?"
BC: It's something I've told a lot of young folks kind of in my talks, I tell them I didn't always have this figured out. What I knew as a kid was that friends were the key. And it took me a very long time to find my tribe. I didn't find them in high school. I found a version in college who I really love. But I mean I probably was in my mid-20s before I really happened to find my crew for real. So I would just say to folks who are sort of trying to figure out when or how or whatever - just keep showing up and being the kind of friend that you would want to have and be patient. I actually think it takes a while. Because I think that folks have to wade through some of their sh*t in order to be able to show up for you that way, right? And I think we have to wade through our own. And so, pragmatically I just think it takes a while. But I do think it can happen.
PS: At this point, what gives you hope for the future?
BC: Well, right now my hope for the future is that I can move to Wakanda with all my people [laughter]. That's my hope.
#WakandaForever #EloquentRage Photo: Kevin Carlin for @Salon pic.twitter.com/YpHTuRKzqX
- Brittney Cooper (@ProfessorCrunk) February 23, 2018
PS: What would you say is the biggest challenge that black feminists are facing right now?
BC: Look, I think the biggest challenge is getting the Trump regime out of office. There's just untold levels of devastation that Trump is doing to communities of color very broadly. If you think about everything that's happening with Dreamers and those communities of color, both black and Latinx, and then if you think about what's happening with the Movement for Black Lives and so many of the issues that they have brought to our attention, plus healthcare - all of these things, they add up to the Trump presidency being just the absolute worst thing that could have happened to black folks in the generation - in a couple of generations, I would say.
"There are some real interesting things happening in terms of black progressive politics, and they're happening down South."
That being said, one of the things that I'm feeling really hopeful about is that there were a number of amazing, important political races though the end of 2017. We saw these progressive black mayors being elected in places like New Orleans - where the black woman mayor who won was not the establishment-mayoral candidate - and in Charlotte, and in the near-upset in St. Louis with the Black Lives Matter candidate. And then even in Birmingham, the non-establishment black man who won, he's a young black man who's 36. And also in Jackson, Chokwe Antar Lumumba. So there are some real interesting things happening in terms of black progressive politics, and they're happening down South, which is incredibly interesting. And I'm hype as f*ck about the Stacey Abrams gubernatorial race in Georgia.
So those are the things that give me hope in the midst of everything else, because one of the things I think is happening is that everyone always thinks that black people are politically unsophisticated. And so everyone would think, "Yes, the Trump presidency is the big issue." But what you see is that black folks are actually looking at these down-ballot races and all these local spaces now. They're deeply engaged. A lot of the reason they're engaged is the Movement for Black Lives. And so I think that we should pay attention, because black folks actually have made the connection around what it's going to take to - even if we couldn't, for instance, get Trump out of office, I think we can mute his impact locally, at the state level, across the country. I think black folks are seeing that and I think they're voting accordingly.
PS: And what message would you hope readers would take away from reading Eloquent Rage, ultimately?
BC: I hope they come away feeling like one, they don't have to have everything all figured out, and two, that they're not crazy. That their sense of the world being really messed up and wanting to change things is actually absolutely right, but also having a deep sense that the resources that they already bring to the table, including the emotional resources that we're often told to lay aside in service of quote-unquote intellectual or rational approaches, that those emotional impulses – that they matter, and that they can power all of the other work that we're doing in the world.
This Pay Gap Calculator Provides an Eye-Opening Look at Gender Discrimination in the Workplace
The gender pay gap is by no means a new issue, but with the recent development that all companies in Great Britain with more than 250 employees are now required to report their internal pay gap to the government by April 4, it's thankfully an issue that's coming back to center stage. And as we approach International Women's Day, online math experts Omni Calculator have now given us the most eye-opening look into just how much this issue affects women around the world.
Below, you'll find Omni's Gender Wage Gap Calculator, which visualizes exactly how much money is being left on the table in a world without workplace equality - as well as how much that differential comes into play in other countries. We can't recommend highly enough that everyone spend some time seeing exactly how this issue affects women on a global scale - and here's hoping that 2018 is the year that we finally get some traction on breaking through the glass ceiling of wage discrimination.
It Only Took Seth Meyers 6 Minutes to Shred Trump's Failure to Deal With the Opioid Crisis
An average of 174 lives are lost each day due to opioid overdoses, yet our president hasn't seemed to take the increasingly grave matter seriously to date. So in a recent Late Night segment, host Seth Meyers carefully scrutinized Donald Trump's failure to solve the growing opioid crisis - and he sure as hell didn't hold back in his takedown.
Meyers begins the segment by addressing how the deadly epidemic is notably prominent in the United States, as the country accounts for a whopping 27 percent of the world's drug overdose deaths. He refers to opioid addiction as a "uniquely American problem," just like "Type 2 diabetes in adults wearing shirts with Disney characters on them," he adds. You can always count on this guy to add his own humorous flair to even serious issues like this.
The late-night host goes on to tear apart Trump's former promise to increase funding and provide resources for states that need it most. Meyers shows various news clips that point out how the POTUS hasn't taken steps with the necessary sense of urgency, despite the fact that he formerly declared the epidemic a "national emergency."
Later on in the segment, Meyers touches on how Trump appointed Kellyanne Conway to deal with the crisis, for whatever reason. "Were you expecting a spit take? Because that part of me died months ago," he jokes, referencing his lack of surprise at Trump's decision to designate Conway for the duty. See what else Meyers has to say about Trump's inaction on the opioid crisis in the segment above.
GIF Stickers Just Arrived on Instagram Stories, and They're Absolutely Glorious
Here's a fun fact about me: if you ever catch me staring intently at my phone and tapping at it with reckless abandon, chances are I'm not looking at my email or checking social media; instead, I'm messing around with a photo or video. I can spend hours placing teeny tiny Easter eggs, tweaking the layers and contours, and, since Messenger launched an AR feature that's out of this world, adding that little extra somethin' in Messenger to top it all off. As a result, it should come as no surprise at all that when I learned that Instagram Stories was adding a GIF stickers function, I was over the moon with excitement. And after a full day of testing it out, I'm absolutely obsessed - and can't recommend highly enough that you hop into Instagram and start playing with GIF Stickers right away. But first, let's walk through what the new function is (and, of course, how to use it).
The new feature is part of the Instagram version 29 update, which rolled out on Jan. 23 to all iOS and Android devices. The GIF stickers can be added to any still photo, video, or boomerang in the Instagram app - and you can share them in your stories as well as download and save them for later. "From bouncing letters and twirling hearts to dancing cats and pizza in space, these animated stickers help you make any photo or video funny, interesting or creative," Instagram announced in a blog post, noting that the feature will allow users to tap into GIPHY's massive library of GIFs to find the exact right one that lights up a photo or video. With just a few quick finger tweaks you can make it part of the scene, as if it was always there all along. Or, if it's more your cup of tea, you can add something that totally doesn't belong in the scene - and collapse in giggles at the resulting masterpiece. In other words, get ready to have a ball.
It's also worth noting that there's a hidden gem within Instagram's announcement: finally, you soon won't have to crop a photo to make it work as a story. "In the coming weeks, we're also rolling out the ability to upload photos and videos of any size to your story - so you never have to lose part of a photo or cut a friend out of a group video," the post reads. "When you upload a photo or video, pinch to share it in its original dimensions, whether it's square, portrait or landscape. Any extra room will be filled with a custom color gradient that matches what you've shared." How cool is that?
Ahead, we'll walk through exactly how to use the new GIF Stickers feature on Instagram Stories. But be forewarned: once you start, oh man is it hard to stop. So make sure you've got some time to play around, because there's literally no way that you won't want to go back through your photo library and make every photo and video pop.
Dick's Sporting Goods Will End All Sales of Assault-Style Rifles
Image Source: Flickr user Mike Mozart
One of the largest sporting goods retailers in the US just made a major statement in regards to gun violence. Citing the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Parkland, FL, Dick's Sporting Goods will no longer sell "assault-style rifles," and the company will also cease the sale of any firearms to those under the age of 21.
On Feb. 28, Dick's released a media statement explaining its decision, saying those at the company are "deeply disturbed and saddened by the tragic events in Parkland" and commending the students who have been outspoken since the shooting.
"We have tremendous respect and admiration for the students organizing and making their voices heard regarding gun violence in schools and elsewhere in our country," reads the release. "We have heard you. The nation has heard you. We support and respect the Second Amendment, and we recognize and appreciate that the vast majority of gun owners in this country are responsible, law-abiding citizens. But we have to help solve the problem that's in front of us. Gun violence is an epidemic that's taking the lives of too many people, including the brightest hope for the future of America - our kids."
The retailer said that in November 2017, it legally sold a firearm to the Parkland shooter, and though it was not the same gun (or type of gun) used in the massacre, "it could have been."
This isn't the first time that Dick's Sporting Goods has responded to gun violence. After the Sandy Hook shooting in 2012, the company pulled all assault rifles from its stores but continued selling them at its Field and Stream hunting retail chains.
The changes, which Chairman and CEO Edward Stack states are "permanent," include the following:
We deeply believe that this country's most precious gift is our children. They are our future. We must keep them safe. Beginning today, DICK'S Sporting Goods is committed to the following: https://t.co/J4OcB6XJnu pic.twitter.com/BaTJ9LaCYe
- DICK'S Sporting Goods (@DICKS) February 28, 2018
All of the changes will be effective immediately. The statement also implored others, including elected officials, to join with the company's efforts to work for gun reform by enacting similar regulations. You can see the full release on Dick's Facebook post ahead.
Is This Real Life? Hope Hicks Admits She Sometimes Tells "White Lies" For Donald Trump
Hope Hicks admitted before the House Intelligence Committee on Feb. 27 that her role as Donald Trump's White House Communications Director has required her to tell white lies. The admission came during closed-door private testimony that lasted over eight hours, according to The New York Times.
It was a surprising statement given that Hicks had previously declined to discuss anything regarding the presidential transition or her role in the White House. Instead, the 29-year-old aide would only answer questions pertaining to the president's campaign and the ongoing Russia investigation. On that front, Hicks said she hasn't lied in response to any questions about Russia's possible involvement in the election.
Her response caused quite a stir online, with many wondering what special counsel Robert Mueller's reaction might have been. Following news of the statement, NPR lead editor Domenico Montanaro compared the "white lies" comment to Kellyanne Conway's infamous "alternative facts" moment. On Twitter, he wrote, "We need to be able to trust the rare answers to questions we ask on behalf of the American public. That's not the case right now."
Trump Goes After "Alex" Baldwin and His "Dieing" Career
President Donald Trump returned to one of his favorite pastimes on March 2, taking to Twitter in the early morning hours to go after the man who plays him on TV: Alec Baldwin. Except the first attempt at an insult fell far, far flat of what he intended.
"Alex Baldwin, whose dieing mediocre career was saved by his impersonation of me on SNL, now says playing DJT was agony for him. Alex, it was also agony for those who were forced to watch. You were terrible. Bring back Darrell Hammond, much funnier and a far greater talent!" the president wrote in a now-deleted tweet at 5:43 a.m. ET in which he referred to Baldwin as "Alex" not once, but twice - and also misspelled "dying."
Twenty-five minutes later, at 6:08 a.m., the president tried again.
Alec Baldwin, whose dying mediocre career was saved by his terrible impersonation of me on SNL, now says playing me was agony. Alec, it was agony for those who were forced to watch. Bring back Darrell Hammond, funnier and a far greater talent!
- Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 2, 2018
While the second tweet may have been more coherent, it's worth noting that this is not even remotely close to the first time that Trump has grappled with homophones; in fact, they've proved to be one of his biggest stumbling blocks since taking office.
It's also not a new revelation. While Baldwin told The Hollywood Reporter one day earlier that it was "agony" playing Trump on Saturday Night Live, he's been saying for more than a year that it hasn't been an easy road portraying the president on the small screen. Baldwin told Vanity Fair in March 2017 that "When Lorne called me and asked, 'Do you want to do this?,' I said, 'No, I don't want to be Trump on TV!'"
Ultimately, we're left wondering why the president isn't focused on bigger, more important things - such as the current blackout in Puerto Rico or the ongoing fight for gun control - but as we all know, there's little use understanding the president's motivations after he's gotten bad news - and it's clear that the Jared Kushner revelations and the loss of Communications Director Hope Hicks are, as reported, taking a toll on his ability to focus on what really matters.
Forget Grad School - Millennials Are Making Travel the "New Master's Degree"
If it seems like your Instagram feed is saturated with other people's vacation photos, you're not alone. Many of us are green with envy at every cocktail raised against a white-sanded backdrop and equally guilty of posting "candid" shots of ourselves admiring landmarks. With geo-tagged photos becoming the new postcard, our wanderlust is only fueled with every scroll. Not so surprisingly, Booking.com's global research highlights found that one in three 18- to 34-year-olds admit that "they travel more and try more first-time travel experiences so they can post new pictures on their social media."
Despite this disappointing statistic, consider that only half of all millennial travel is purely for leisure. A 2016 study found that about 50 percent of millennial travelers are globe-hopping after high school and college for other reasons: to pursue higher education, volunteer, and study language. While international travel certainly isn't accessible to all, many millennials make financial and personal sacrifices as a tradeoff for new experiences. Gone are the days when the postuniversity track was either heading straight into the workforce or continuing your education at grad school. Now, a number of millennials - who we're dubbing the "travel generation" - have found a way to build travel into their career paths.
Meet Kristina Choi, 27, and Desiree Anderson, 24: two millennials who've fully taken advantage of travel opportunities and benefited from their experiences in more ways than one.
Furthering Education on Another ContinentChoi, who's now a management consultant, killed two birds with one stone by earning her master's degree abroad. Though she didn't travel straight out of college, she did study abroad in Bristol, England, for a semester during her junior year in 2012. After graduating with an English degree and working in public relations for about three years, Choi decided to quit her job to go to grad school - overseas.
Though she applied to a few MBA programs in the US, Choi said, "My priority was to attend a school in London for three main reasons: master's programs are cheaper in the UK than in the US, they are shorter (mine was 12 months), and I would have the chance to live abroad again. I loved my experience of studying abroad during college and knew that I would gain so much more than a degree by moving abroad."
In September 2016, she relocated to London to study at University College London (UCL) for its Master of Science (MSc) in Management program and completed her degree in a year before moving back to the States - all of which she documented on her YouTube channel. Within that time, Choi was able to visit 10 countries outside of England: France, Germany, Slovenia, Croatia, Portugal, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands, Italy, Ireland, and Scotland.
"All of the cool kids on Instagram today have shifted from posting pictures of their new handbag to posting pictures of their awesome ziplining experience."Expedia's recent multigenerational travel study discovered an overall shift to prioritizing experiences over material possessions, which could align with the surge in millennial travelers. In that same study, the travel company learned that 65 percent of millennials are currently saving for travel and nearly half would sell their belongings to fund a trip.
"If you remember Sex and the City, which was very Gen X, you'll remember it was pretty focused on 'stuff' - your new pair of shoes, your fancy new dress," Sarah Gavin, vice president of Expedia Inc. global communications, told POPSUGAR via email. "Flash forward and all of the cool kids on Instagram today have shifted from posting pictures of their new handbag to posting pictures of their awesome ziplining experience."
Fortunately, Choi didn't have to give up her possessions. Instead, she calculated exactly how much to save from each paycheck to cover the costs of grad school, visa fees, living expenses, etc. prior to moving. "I was fortunate enough to live with my parents [back home in Los Angeles after college] and saved even more money that way," she said. "I ended up saving enough money to pay for my tuition and dorm, as well as most of my other living expenses before going abroad." Getting a part-time job in London for about six months also provided extra income and travel money.
When I asked Choi over email what traveling had offered that an immediate career path couldn't, she explained that returning to school and living in London provided a stronger global perspective and network, which helped her jump into her next job.
"While I was taking a break from work, I still used so many skills important in the workforce while I lived and traveled abroad," she said. "Traveling requires good time management, budgeting, and especially the ability to deal with different types of people - all while seeing and experiencing beautiful places in the world."
In addition to making friends and memories in the most picturesque places, Choi was also able to challenge her independence, overcome communication barriers, appreciate various cultures and backgrounds, and learn to better deal with unexpected changes.
"Every person has a story, and I think my unconventional path towards my current career helps me stand out and adds to my story," Choi said. "Yes, I probably could have become a consultant much more quickly if I had majored in business as an undergrad and pursued that career immediately, but the experiences I've had up to this point make my work that much more valuable."
"Every person has a story, and I think my unconventional path towards my current career helps me stand out and adds to my story."
Bucket List Over Law SchoolAnderson, who has spent two years working as a legal assistant at an intellectual property law firm, has similarly reaped the benefits of her worldly adventures. After graduating from UC Berkeley in May 2015, Anderson watched many of her peers take off on their international gap year. But paying off students loans and being freshly out of school limited her to local experiences instead.
Rather than traverse the globe, Anderson decided to travel around the US while applying to jobs at law firms. "Traveling that extensively just wasn't in the cards for me, which is why I place an importance on smaller local trips that will still give me that revitalized feeling," she said via email.
Working part-time jobs throughout college, never dipping into her savings (unless for emergencies), and being smart about expenses allowed Anderson to be self-sufficient postgraduation. She also hunted for cheap flights using tools like Skyscanner, Hopper, and other airline apps.
In those five months before landing her current position, she embarked on a multiday backpacking trip through the Narrows in Utah, earned her open-water and advanced scuba certification, and more.
Anderson's original plan was to gain a year of work experience at her firm while studying for the LSAT. Although she didn't intend to stay at the firm for as long as she has, after taking the LSAT, she came to the conclusion that law school would always be there. With the travel bug still kicking since her senior year at the National University of Ireland, Galway (NUIG), Anderson decided to put her higher education on hold and, instead, use her extra income to cross destinations off her bucket list.
"What I don't want to miss out on is my youth - the blessing of being young, able-bodied, and not having any true restrictions or responsibilities," she told POPSUGAR.
Anderson has since visited 12 countries (with her upcoming Thailand trip to be number 13), including 20 states and counting.
The largest student and youth travel company, STA Travel, has also noticed a trend in "more experiential, authentic adventures" among the more than two million travelers it assists each year, most of whom are between 18 and 35.
"It makes sense, as student and youth travelers nowadays are more likely to invest in experiences than things, and so the travel industry has responded," Tiffany Harrison, senior marketing manager at STA Travel, told POPSUGAR over email. "Many post-grads nowadays are already considering traveling before jumpstarting their careers."
Even with a 9-to-5 job and 10 paid vacation days a year, Anderson still makes it a priority to travel - even if that means taking a red-eye on a Friday and flying back Sunday evening. On top of taking advantage of paid holidays, she makes the most of her weekends checking off new cities within the States.
Though Anderson's job allows her to support herself, the real reason she's able to travel so often is all thanks to her cutting out expenses wherever possible. She cooks meals at home, drinks her office's free coffee, and spends her hard-earned money on round-trip tickets in lieu of trendy accessories and beauty services.
"No one is going to care what your $40-gel manicure looks like when you post a photo of you standing in front of the Eiffel tower," Anderson said. "If you do spend your money on these things, just understand that you're putting off your travels in exchange."
The one exception, however, are accommodations that are culturally unique to that country she's traveling in. In Japan, for example, Anderson allowed herself to splurge a little on her stays at multiple capsule hotels and a traditional ryokan. Otherwise, she prefers hostels all the way.
Anderson's passport has become just as important as her résumé. In addition to feeling personally enriched, her global experiences have translated to the workplace, as well.
"In college, if I could get through a semester without the professor knowing my name and sitting in the back of the classroom, I counted that as a success," Anderson said. "Even though formal education has given me the knowledge and opportunities to attain better careers, no company would hire me if I had the same attitude and behavior in an interview that I had in the classroom. Traveling, and more specifically traveling alone, has allowed me to interact with people of different ages, languages, and nationalities, and find common ground."
Despite graduating from UC Berkeley (as did Choi), the world's No. 1 public university, Anderson argues that the real-world education she received during her travels has been far more valuable.
"Traveling before settling down into a serious career has given me the ability to learn about myself as well as the world around me," she said. "Traveling has allowed me to learn about worlds different than my own, whether I'm underwater diving the Silfra Fissure in Iceland, trekking through mountain ranges of Alaska and warding off grizzly bears, or shopping in the souks of Morocco. Through my travels I've learned about different cultures, animals, ecosystems, traditions, etc., which are all things no classroom or desk job could teach you. Traveling has given me the opportunity to learn about the deepest parts of my personality when faced with new challenges and taught me that I am a lot more capable than I believed I could be. I can honestly say that traveling has shaped who I am entirely."
"Traveling has given me the opportunity to learn about the deepest parts of my personality when faced with new challenges and taught me that I am a lot more capable than I believed I could be."However, it's also important to note that there are best practices when using your personal travels to your professional advantage. Lauren McGoodwin, founder and CEO of female-powered career site Career Contessa and a former university recruiter at Hulu, says it all depends on how you market your experiences.
"If while traveling, they had remarkable volunteer opportunities or were able to hone a skill that's relevant to the job, that would be really great - but they would have to market it to the interviewer," McGoodwin said via email. "For example, if you were applying to an event planning job, or had to explain how you are detail-oriented, you could utilize your vacation-planning expertise to explain how you fit those qualifications."
Rather than listing "travel" on your résumé, McGoodwin recommends tying your travel experiences into your cover letter to make specific connections to the role or company you're applying for. Your story may also be a way to connect with your interviewer or to explain a gap between jobs. But on a personal level, McGoodwin believes that travel can be incredibly valuable.
"Taking trips also allows you the opportunity to reach out to people in your network that you wouldn't normally have the chance to meet up with for an informational interview," she said. "So adding travel to your mental resume - I'm a total advocate of."
The benefits of traveling, especially for millennials, are unparalleled. Global travel company Contiki released a recent study, The Power of Travel, which was advised by leading psychologist Adam Galinsky, PhD, Columbia Business School. It found travel to have an overwhelmingly positive impact on 3,000 18- to 35-year-old travelers and nontravelers around the world, from their careers to their self-confidence.
And it makes sense. When you travel, you're quite literally out of your comfort zone when navigating a foreign place, which forces you to gain a sense of awareness, think outside the box, solve problems, face challenges, and learn to be open-minded. Sure, a diploma can absolutely be critical to achieving professional success. But pushing both your personal and geographical boundaries for new experiences? Now that's the secret to schoolin' life, as Beyoncé would say.
"Academic experience is certainly valuable, but travel adds a whole other element," said Gavin from Expedia. "It has the power to break down barriers, expose different cultures and change the way we see the world, which ultimately enhances your educational experience!"
For Women Like Silvia, Changes to Title X Family Planning Could Be a Matter of Life and Death
For Silvia, access to birth control is a necessity. Now, with Title X under attack, Silvia - who relies on the program's services for contraceptives - fears for her health.
Women's reproductive rights have been under consistent attack under the Trump administration. This time, it's Title X, a federal grant program that provides family planning for low-income households, that is being threatened.
More than 4 million Americans rely on Title X, 89 percent of them women. Some of the services Title X funds go toward include cervical and breast cancer screenings, birth control, and testing and treatment for STIs, including HIV - and Planned Parenthood serves 41 percent of patients in this program.
The Trump administration announced in February that it plans to prioritize grant applications for Title X from religious organizations that also educate on abstinence or "natural" methods. This would exclude many organizations, including Planned Parenthood. The administration also plans to penalize reproductive healthcare providers, making it harder for women to access reproductive health care under Title X.
Nearly 1 million women received breast exams in 2016 alone thanks to Title X. That's on top of the nearly 1.9 million unplanned pregnancies the program prevented in 2015.
Silvia is one of these women who uses contraceptives provided by Title X and Planned Parenthood; however, the reason Silvia relies on birth control is because a pregnancy could potentially kill her.
Silvia was diagnosed with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis at the age of 6, after having tolerated body pain since the age of 3. Juvenile rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disorder that mistakenly identifies cells and tissues as foreign to the body, causing the immune system to fight healthy cells and tissues thinking they are viruses or bacteria.
Silvia's taken medication to fight the inflammation since the age of 6. It wasn't until her 20s, when Silvia started thinking of possibly starting a family, that her doctor delivered some rough news: the effects of the medication Silvia's been taking most of her life would put any pregnancy of hers at high risk.
"When I heard that getting pregnant wasn't an option for me, I felt like I lost control of my life," Silvia told POPSUGAR. "All of a sudden, the room felt cold and I felt alone. I wanted that feeling of surprise and joy that comes with finding out you're pregnant. For me, that won't happen."
As a result, Silvia has to be extra careful about preventing pregnancies, requiring her to take a more reliable birth control. Since Silvia didn't have health insurance, she turned to Planned Parenthood and Title X for contraceptives. Not only did Planned Parenthood educate Silvia on the different types of contraceptives available to her, but it was also able to provide her birth control at no cost to her.
Hear Silvia's story in her own words above and visit Planned Parenthood to learn more about how you can help protect women's reproductive rights.
The 10 Most Popular Reddit AMAs of 2017
One of the best things about Reddit is the amount of exposure you can get to strong, important voices that perhaps don't have the proper platforms to get themselves heard. As a result, Reddit AMAs make for some of the most fascinating reading material available on the internet today – and, of course, finally give Redditors the chance to turn the tables on those who do have a platform to speak on and ask the questions that they may not have otherwise answered in a public setting.
Luckily for us, Reddit's gone ahead and pulled together the 10 most popular AMAs of this year as part of its annual year in review, and it makes for the best kind of after-the-fact reading when you're traveling or looking for something to lazily read as you relax on your time off. Ahead, from Bill Gates to a local weatherman to the man who played Goofy at Walt Disney World for more than 25 years, you'll find the best AMAs that Reddit had to offer in 2017.
Feminist Icon Mother Nature Reveals the Truth About Trump's Hair With a Gust of Wind
President Donald Trump is the sort of guy who sweats the small stuff. Whether it is complaining about unflattering photos or calling people names for wronging him or bragging about his "bigger & more powerful" button, the 6'3", 71-year-old leader of our country is an extremely sensitive little man and has always lived one oddly embittered life. And thanks to one recent revelation regarding Trump's "furry circle" of hair, we might be bearing a monumental meltdown in the near future - because the public finally got a glimpse of what lies beneath.
When Trump boarded Air Force One on Feb. 1, it was a particularly windy day. As he marched up the red staircase, something spectacular happened by way of Mother Nature's #resist-ing: his hair was literally blown over by a gust of wind, revealing the landscape underneath his "contained island" of gauzy blond.
It was all caught on video, too.
This rare occurrence was caught by Huffington Post's Ashley Feinberg who shared the finding on Twitter. Feinberg assumed the video was manipulated or faked but confirmed the situation via images from both Getty and Reuters. As Jonathan Chait of New York Magazine observes, the footage is perhaps, "the worst hair day of what has been a bad hair life."
We don't yet know if the president has seen the photos or videos of his hair attempting this great escape, but we can all assume we will hear about it at some point in the near future, be it via Twitter or a white knuckled-press conference. But it's pretty safe to say that the worst case scenario will consist of yet another stinging rebuke of the lying media, a dismissal of the entire situation as fake news. Conversely, the best case scenario? He will declare war on his own scalp - though granted, he already appears to be at war. . . considering his head appears to have its own DMZ.
Hysterical Dad Tweets Priceless Conversations Between Him and His Daughters
Comedian James Breakwell makes sure that every tweet he sends is absolutely hilarious - by recounting conversations he has with his wife and four daughters under the age of 6. His account, XplodingUnicorn, is full of priceless 140-character encounters with his little ladies, all of whom seem to have been passed down a bit of their father's comedic ability and give new meaning to the phrase "kids say the darnedest things."
Scroll through for some of his tweets, which will undoubtedly give you stitches in your side.
17 Budget-Friendly Grocery Store Items That Will Keep Any Family Satisfied
Grocery shopping when you're a parent can be kind of like a horror movie . . . it's unpredictable, you never know who's going to pop out where, and there will probably be some tears over your refusal to buy the insanely sugary cereal. But, in general, if you plan ahead and have a list of items your family asks for again and again, you can hit the aisles with confidence and determination.
Whether it's tasty snacks from Trader Joe's or pantry staples that act as building blocks for endless weeknight meals, having these items in your kitchen will mean your family will never ask that dreaded question: "Mom, what's there to eat?" And the best part? Many of these staples go together to create the perfect snack or meal. Click through to see your ultimate grocery list.
20 Simple Ways to Be a Better Mom in 2018
The pressures of modern parenting are enough to drive any mom to insanity, but if you take a step back and really look at your life as a parent, your kids don't need as much from you as you think they do. Not much has changed since you were a kid yourself, begging your mom to look at the Lego structure you spent hours building - kids just want to spend time with their parents and feel their love. It's easy to get distracted by our phones and busy schedules and to spend too much time comparing ourselves to the polished moms we see on social media, but the truth is, being a great mom isn't about how good the little square photos on our Instagram profiles look, it's about the connections we make with our kids and the things we do that will stick with them for a lifetime.
We're here to remind you that you're already a great mom, but if you're looking for ways to be a better parent in 2018, here are 20 simple things you can do to achieve your highest supermom status in the coming year.
You'll Never Want to Get Off the Pot Once You Try This Heated Toilet Seat From Amazon
My apartment doesn't have a heater, so needless to say, my morning bathroom stop is pretty chilly. Recently, my toilet seat was in desperate need of a replacement, so my roommates and I decided check out our options on Amazon and discovered this Brondell LumaWarm Heated Nightlight Toilet Seat ($109). We were so excited about the idea of being able to afford what felt like a luxury item, so, without hesitation, we ordered it.
It comes in two sizes, elongated and round, which was a foreign concept to me, but after a quick Google search, I learned that toilets are, in fact, made in two different shapes and you can figure out which one you have by measuring the length of your current seat.
We were excited when it arrived within just a few days, and it was easy to install - all we needed was a screwdriver. In order for it to work, we made sure we had an outlet close to the toilet because it is powered by plugging into the wall. It features three different heat settings and even a blue nightlight.
We instantly fell in love with it. Sitting on a regular toilet just doesn't feel the same anymore. The price tag was totally worth it.
The Restaurant Replacing Cove Bar at Disneyland Sounds Even MORE Amazing
Goodbye Cove Bar, hello Lamplight Lounge! The beloved waterside restaurant and bar will be replaced by a California-style gastropub, with signature cuisine and cocktails. But don't worry! Lobster nachos, a Cove Bar favorite, will still be on the new Lamplight menu.
When Pixar Pier opens on June 23 at Disney California Adventure, Lamplight Lounge will be open for guests to check out.
"This seaside lounge contains a full bar with picturesque waterfront views from both upstairs and downstairs," Disney said. "At night, outdoor seating provides views of the illuminated Pixar Pier and 'World of Color.' Renovated from an old warehouse factory, the location has kept many features of the original two-story building. The steel structural elements as well as concrete and brick walls were exposed and repaired to tell the story of its past. The original wood boards from the factory were refinished and given new life as ceiling panels and floors. The furniture style echoes a relaxed feel and the end result is an open, airy, and bright place that is organic yet sophisticated."
And true to its location at Pixar Pier, the restaurant will celebrate the artists and storytellers behind your favorite Pixar films.
"Guests will discover the artistic marks that the Pixar 'regulars' have left throughout the lounge: concept art, a quick sketch on a napkin, knick-knacks and collectable toys of beloved Pixar characters will adorn the space," Disney reported.
Get excited for this new addition to California Adventure, and say farewell to Cove Bar starting March 16, when it will reopen briefly before closing at the end of May for good.
The 7 Main Causes of Divorce
Nobody, hopefully, enters into a marriage with a person thinking they are going to one day deal with a divorce. Even if there are problems in the relationship, a couple hope that after walking down the aisle, smooching hello to the promise of a life together, and getting down on the dance floor, their relationship with fall into place. But it doesn't always happen like that.
Life gets in the way and relationships get tangled, leaving between 40 to 50 percent of couples in the United States opting for divorce. So is there a way to see if your relationship is divorce-proof? Probably not. But there are signs to look for to see if your relationship might be heading down that path. Here are the most popular reasons married couples split up.
1. Issues Regarding Sex
Things may have been stale, or nonexistent, in the bedroom for quite some time. But while both of you have turned a blind eye to that, there might be more destruction happening to your relationship than you think.
"It's no secret that couples begin to feel doomed and start talking about divorce when their sex lives change," said Shannon Kalberg, LMFT, a marriage and family therapist and an adjunct clinical professor at Pepperdine University. "What many couples and individuals miss is that a couple's sex life needs to be worked at over time and that desire can be fickle, especially since desire has the tendency to ebb and flow in a long-term marriage. However, a mismatch in libido, shaming the other partner for their sexual fantasies, and negative values about sex can lead to divorce."
2. Fighting Dirty
All couples have their arguments, and while that's not always something to worry about, the way the couple argue might be a sign that divorce is imminent.
"In a couple's session, I encourage them to bring up an issue that they often have disagreements about," Kalberg said. "I do this because it gives me a sense of how couples argue, communicate, and problem solve. If a couple does not attempt to regulate emotions or validate each other during arguments, then the escalation in anger and tension can ruin a marriage. This can look like blaming, name calling, and shaming. It will build resentment and create a power imbalance that loses sight of what really matters in a relationship: trust and safety in times of distress."
3. Trying to "Fix" Each Other
Growing apart from the person you married or just no longer getting a kick out of their bad habits or frustrating ways is another main reason couples want to call it quits.
"I can't tell you how many times I have had an intake with a potential client who states that they want to begin couples therapy in order to 'fix' their partner," Kalberg said. "This can be a huge predictor to divorce because what that person fails to understand is their own responsibility in the relationship. By placing the blame entirely on the other person and refusing to examine your own actions, it will cause a large emotional block between the two partners. If this continues, then over time they will begin to emotionally isolate themselves, which could lead to other issues, like infidelity."
4. Lack of Commitment
When life gets in the way of love and you feel like you're growing apart from your spouse, it's important to take a step back and prioritize. Dr. Wyatt Fisher, a licensed psychologist and marriage counselor in Boulder, CO, says that both spouses want to feel like they are equally working at the marriage. "Therefore, if one partner starts feeling like they are the main one working at the relationship, they'll eventually get burned out and want out of the relationship," Dr. Fisher said.
5. Infidelity
If you find out your partner has strayed from the relationship and cheated on you, it may be really hard to salvage the relationship afterward. "Infidelity is one of the quickest ways to break trust in marriage cross-culturally, and many couples are unable to recover from it, especially if the betraying spouse doesn't take true ownership for their behavior," Dr. Fisher said.
6. Lack of Appreciation
A thank you goes a long way in a relationship, even if you have been with your partner for years. Without it, Robin Graine, a divorce mediator and former family law attorney, says the relationship can be at risk. "Everyone feels that they are working hard, contributing money, and doing their best to raise the children and keep the household running," Graine said. "When the mom doesn't appreciate the dad making the money and dad doesn't appreciate the mom paying attention to all of the details, everyone is resentful."
7. No One Is Paying Attention
Good communication is always the best foundation for any relationship, but so is making sure you are listening to your spouse. "When married couples stop listening to one another and paying attention to each other's needs and desires, they wind up in my office," Graine said.
I'm a Light-Skinned Latina, and Yes, Colorism Does Exist
"You sound too smart to be Latina," he said before taking a gulp of his beer.
This wasn't the first time I had heard something as condescending as this before, but that didn't keep me from making a surprised face. I shuffled uncomfortably and looked the other direction as I softly said, "Well, I am. I'm Mexican-American, actually." I made an excuse and walked to the bar's porch, back to my friends, as he stood there feeling rejected but not embarrassed for what he had said.
I've always been flattered when someone's complimented my smarts and sense of humor, except when they derive from colorism.
Being a light-skinned Latina has been a roller coaster of a ride for me. While I longed for my cousin's dark, honey-kissed complexion, I learned to appreciate my paler skin . . . freckles, veins, and all. I've also had to learn that because my skin is fairer, I'm less likely to be associated with negative stereotypes about Mexican-Americans.
In my 26 years of life, I've hardly ever experienced discrimination or biased comments for my background. In fact, I've experienced more colorism from the Latino community, oftentimes being accused of being "white washed" by classmates through middle and high school.
It wasn't until college that I started hearing more backhanded compliments that praised me for passing for white simply because of the way I spoke and dressed.
I once sat next to a young Latina at a friend's wedding who was confused about my nameplate saying "Rivera."
"Wait, are you Mexican?" she asked.
"Yeah, my name is Natalie Rivera."
"I would have never guessed! You just seem so classy and smart!" she said with a laugh.
I didn't find it that funny, but I gave a friendly chuckle and changed the subject, asking her how she knew the bride and groom. As she spoke, I couldn't help but feel disappointed - disappointed that she assumed that I wasn't Latina because of the way I carried myself, and guilt for feeling flattered.
Yeah, flattered. For a while I thought to myself, "Well, if my community doesn't accept me, then I should simply own being 'white washed.'" I did this not knowing that I was not only depriving myself of my culture, but I was also contributing to the problem.
How many times have we felt relieved any time someone doesn't associate us with stereotypes? How may times have you thought, "I'm not that kind of blank. I'm this kind of blank."
Some of us have this mindset embedded in us because we've only been exposed to colorism, whether it's through a television set or "harmless" comments like, "You look white."
We add fuel to the fire by boxing people in our own community into categories, sometimes without even knowing it. Instead of classifying ourselves, we should acknowledge that not every community will look, speak, or even dress the same. Race will never come in one shade; there will never be a one size fits all. So own it, be a part of a community, and - most importantly - be proud of your roots.
13 Heartwarming Revelations We Learned From Camila Cabello's Made in Miami Documentary
Camila Cabello first won everyone over as a member of Fifth Harmony and now that she's gone solo, the 20-year-old is giving the world a peek at a whole new side of her. The "Havana" singer's new YouTube documentary, Made in Miami, is a beautiful look at not only her journey, but everything her family did to help her become a star.
In it, we meet Camila's tight-knit family, learn how she started singing, and how her hit "Havana" happened on total accident. If you're too busy to watch it - even though you totally should because you'll appreciate her even more - we are breaking down the most important things we learned.
- On her singing career: "I remember growing up, I was singing, but there was no real possibility in my mind of this being a career choice."
- On leaving Cuba: "For me it was about her, the only thing I repeated to myself was 'she cannot stay here'," Camila's mom says. "It was kind of scary, so what I told her was that we wanted to go Disney World."
- On her father finally arriving to the US: Camila's dad, Alejandro Cabello, swam the infamous Rio Grande to enter the United States after repeated attempts to get a visa. "I had this Disney calendar that I would always mark the Xs until the day my dad was going to come."
- On how she started singing: "I was always obsessed with artists and music. I don't know why I never sang in front of my family. I was always supershy. I love music so much, but it definitely takes a lot for me to break out of my shell."
- On how YouTube changed her: "I started making these videos with my face covered because I didn't want anybody in school to find out . . . I posted at least 20 videos and I deleted all of them except for one . . . Posting those covers on YouTube definitely gave me just a little bit more confidence."
- On her 15th birthday: "When I turned 15, I told my family I would really liked to be taken to the North Carolina X Factor auditions."
- On starting to go by Camila: "Everybody called me Karla in my school, and from that moment I was like, 'No, I want to be called Camila' because it was a new beginning for me. In interviews and everything, I got the chance to start over."
- On being a part of Fifth Harmony: "When I was in the group, I experienced different things and grew a lot, but then it felt like I had new things to talk about. I think for me, as an artist, the only way to feel good is to make stuff that you love. But I got to this place where I couldn't express how I was feeling because I didn't understand my emotions."
- On working in the studio by herself: "This whole time, I'd been writing by myself, and I was so nervous to get into the studio, because I'd never written in the room with producers before. I had acid reflux, and I didn't sleep at all. I thought, 'Am I actually good or is it just my mom and my family that thinks I'm good.'"
- On her hit "Havana": "Frank just played this beat, and I started doing melodies over it, and he was like, 'Oh my God, what the heck, we literally have a whole song.' There was just a vibe. I think something clicked for us."
- On changing the name of her album: "In the beginning, my album was going to be called, The Hurting, The Healing, The Loving, and I changed it because I feel like I healed at the halfway point. And after that, I felt like, 'No, this album is about me, and how I felt and how I love people,' and I've decided to ask way less people for opinions."
- On her family being her support system: "In my family, I have so much love around me all the time, which is, I think, the biggest reason why I haven't lost my footing. Something that's just present in our family is this kind of blind courage. Every day, there is something that makes me nervous that I just push myself to do."
- On Miami being home: "Every time I come here, I feel more in touch with everything that my family had to go through for me. It's just that sense of being humbled by where you come from, and also the food is awesome."
You Saw Them Here First: 9 Dresses That Could Pop Up on the Oscars Red Carpet
You can imagine what the 2018 Oscars red carpet might look like all you want, but considering this award season's past trends - women are wearing black in support of the Time's Up movement, but stars wore white roses to the Grammys and the Brit Awards - a lot must be taken into consideration. Celebrity stylists share sneak peeks of their preparation before Sunday night, but we made it our duty to tap a professional forecaster, too.
Moda Operandi's Elizabeth Leventhal is the general merchandising manager of ready-to-wear for the high-fashion shopping site. Elizabeth tracks the runways and keeps a careful eye on how the looks we see translate to the red carpet, as well as in stores. Elizabeth worked with us to determine what this year's stylish nominees just might wear to Hollywood's biggest event. Ahead, brush up on the leading females, read up on Elizabeth's trustworthy predictions, and shop the dresses if you're feeling fancy.
Buy These Swimsuits Now and Wear Them Through 2019 - Because They'll Still Be Cool
The new year starts in January, and if you think that's not bikini season, well, you're wrong. Right when Resort collections drop, it feels like the supermodels and stars jet-set off to extravagant beach locales, showing us exactly what to wear for the new year. We've done our research, analyzing the new prints, silhouettes, and colorways brands are churning out, thereby finalizing the biggest swimsuit trends to invest in now and wear through next Christmas. Yep, that means you can trust all of these styles to be relevant when you're on vacation in March or September, and we bet you'll be just as excited to flaunt them then, too. Go ahead and read up on every swimwear design, or jump ahead to the one you're already eyeing.
What to Wear With Leggings - Once and For All
Let's face it: leggings are comfortable. That's likely why so many women favor them over jeans, trousers, and skirts, but figuring out how to wear them without looking a little too casual is a definite art form. While we're all for being cozy - particularly during the chilly months of the year - a lot of people don't realize that it's actually possible to look cute and wear leggings at the same time.
How to achieve stretchy-but-chic outfit nirvana? First up, find a pair of leggings you love, make extra sure they're not see-through (the worst!), then take some how-to-wear styling cues from the outfits ahead.
Why Stars Won't Be Wearing Black Gowns to the Oscars
The Time's Up movement was always meant to live beyond award season. Though attendees of the Golden Globes and BAFTA Awards chose to wear black gowns to show solidarity with the initiative to fight sexual harassment, Time's Up organizers have confirmed that stars will not be expected to stick to a particular dress code for the Oscars. The announcement was made just days before the big show.
In an intimate press conference, organizers, including Shonda Rhimes, Laura Dern, and Ava DuVernay, detailed how the movement will exist beyond award season. According to The Telegraph, Rhimes said Time's Up "was launched on the red carpet, but was never intended to live there." For that reason, they have not encouraged actors to wear black.
Me Too founder Tarana Burke also agrees with the decision. At the Essence Black Women in Hollywood luncheon, Burke said:
"What happened at the Golden Globes was a unique action to an issue that affects people from around the world. It's not a gimmick. We have real work to do, making sure survivors have what they need to have to heal. Whether they do something for the Oscars or not doesn't matter to me."
That being said, the movement will certainly be a topic of conversation on Sunday night, with prominent supporters and organizers not only attending but also presenting. It's also very likely that stars will find other creative ways to show support in their style choices. The SAG Awards red carpet, for example, featured a rainbow of dresses, yet most stars did wear Time's Up pins, and at the Grammys, people carried or wore white roses.
Though the black dress code previously made a powerful, and visually striking, statement, it's clear that Time's Up will make its messaging heard in other ways. Since its launch in January, the initiative has already raised a $21 million legal defense fund for victims.
Behati Prinsloo Is Back in a Sexy Swimsuit Just Weeks After Giving Birth
Just weeks after the birth of her second daughter, Behati Prinsloo is back in a bathing suit. The Victoria's Secret Angel showed off her amazing postbaby bod while wearing a sexy black-and-white one-piece on her Instagram Stories. Behati's swimsuit featured a keyhole cutout in the front and another cutout on the back. The model styled her Summer-ready look with a pair of gold hoop earrings. Read on to see her stunning swimsuit, then buy similar versions of her one-piece ahead.
100 Jaw-Dropping Looks From the Oscars Red Carpet That We'll Remember Forever
We're revving up for Oscars Sunday by taking a look back at the most memorable looks from shows past. The glamorous red carpet always brings out the most gorgeous, jaw-dropping (and sometimes mind-boggling) celebrity ensembles, and we can't wait to see what this year's show brings. From Gwyneth Paltrow's iconic white Tom Ford gown, to Emma Stone's old Hollywood-inspired Givenchy gown, click through to see 100 of the most unforgettable Oscars looks now.
- Additional reporting by Nikita Ramsinghani
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