Taking Sage Advice from Katy Perry and her Connection with her Spirit Animal in the “Roar” Music Video

We can all learn a little something from this musical shaman. In moments of strife (like surviving a plane crash with a useless pretty boy who gets eaten by a tiger), we can all channel our spirit animals and it will all be better (i.e. paint elephant’s toes and summon toucans whenever we like). Just follow KP’s lead.

Step 1: Encounter your spirit animal

In the face of tarantulas climbing on her shoulders, KP takes a beat to do some good old introspection. She looks in that lagoon like Simba in one of the most beautiful moments in cinematic history, and she sees her spirit animal. What a moment! Even the fireflies make the shape of a tiger for some unknown reason!

Step 2: Be great, but have no clue why

KP finds herself doing some courageous and resourceful things like making spears out of stilettos and showering with elephants. It is not clear why she has this newfound greatness, but it is there. Her spirit animal is in her but she doesn’t quite know it yet.

Step 3: Recognize your spirit animal and be even greater

KP discovers some hominid cave painting that lets her know everything she needs about her spirit animal: it is a badass. So she puts on something sexy and emerges in a palm frond skirt and leopard skin crop top! She does what she wants!

Step 4: Channel it!

When KP roars at the real life tiger, the message is clear to us mortals: channel the spirit animal! Be a champion and roar! Preach!

Thanks, KP. We all learned something today.

I'm Back!

Apologies for my hiatus!

More posts to follow…

The Subtle Allusion to Jack London’s “To Build a Fire” in "One Direction: This Is Us"

Part of me feels like an uber nerd for making a Jack London reference for this, but then I remember that Morgan Spurlock directed One Direction: This Is Us and I feel OK with it. And, appropriately, from henceforth we will call the 1D movie “the film.” It legitimizes me. For myself.

As I watched the film with my esteemed colleagues sipping boxed Sauvignon Blanc and eating red vines, I was mesmerized by the whimsy of the carefree musical geniuses from the UK (can’t forget about Niall, that Irish fool). From Liam saying he wanted to be a fireman so he could save people to the lads singing “Let Me Be Your Last Kiss-Reggae Version” to Zayn’s Bob Marley board shorts, it was nothing short of amazing. I laughed. I sang along. I heckled. (#sauvignonblanc)

And then the snob cloud shrouded me.

The lads went camping, and Louis coyly stepped out as the other four tried to assemble their tents. (I am certain some poor camera crew member had to step in and assemble the tarp tipis for them in the end.) Then all five attempted to make a fire to warm their manly bristles called facial hair and illuminate their luscious locks in the night. But they were, as it were, unable to build a fire. 

So I leaned over to my fellow film-watcher and whispered, “It’s like Jack London’s ‘To Build A Fire!’” Allow me to explain.  In the short story, we meet “the man” who falls through ice on the Yukon Trail and needs to build a fire to warm himself. In the film, we meet our five international sensations and their perfectly gelled-manes as they decide to rough it in some backyard. In the story, we see “the man" build a fire, only to have it extinguished by the melting snow falling from the branches above. In the film, we see the British gents lean some logs together and assume they will stay up on their own, but alas no. So much mirroring! Until, of course, we get to the part in London’s story when the protagonist dies of hypothermia. Spoiler alert, 1D fans, Liam, Louis, Harry, Niall, and Zayn live through the film.

So, the parallel ends there. But it was fun while it lasted.

5 Things: Galentine's Day

Ladies, we celebrate! In the words of Leslie Knope, “ladies celebrate ladies” on Galentine’s Day (also known as February 13^th). For further reading, click here.

There are your Galentine’s Day staples like eating frittatas and exchanging gifts likes mosaic portraits of your friends made from the crushed bottles of their favorite diet soda. But there are other ways to celebrate your lady friends being super people:

1.     A picnic (for southern hemisphere dwellers in February) with personalized paper accordion garlands made in shape of your gals’ faces

2.     Lingering celebrations at a hot dog stand exchanging amazing gifts like Lip Ringlosss Rings

3.     A classy wine bar evening at which you give your gals classy wine openers like this gem from Sky Mall

4.     Teatime with little sandwiches and macaroons giving everyone copies of Emily Post’s Etiquette, sparking conversation about Downton Abbey’s covetable dinnerware, clothes, and luggage (oh, the luggage!)

5.     A brunch event in which all members of the Galentine’s Day celebration perform slam poetry about each lady present, resulting in overall jealousy and awe at neighboring tables

5+ Holiday Cards

It’s that time of year again! Time to string lights, hang bells, and boughs. For those with friends who celebrate different holiday traditions, here are a few holiday cards to send to all your pals.

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From Minted

Also from Minted

From Pike Street Press

From Hen Pen Designs

From Donda Lee

From the Paper Source

Avoiding Commodifying Hurricane Sandy in 2012 Holiday Gift Guides: Some Tips

In the wake of Hurricane Sandy, there have been many responses to the natural disaster. Some have made too-soon (but funny) cocktails, others have donated generously, a select few are obsessively preparing for the next natural disaster, and some have moved on to holiday shopping. Then there are some who have combined a few of these responses: namely, the trend of holiday shopping for survival gear. Numerous websites and blogs have posted gift guides for disaster gear (“disaster preparedness is all the rage right now”) and while some of them are well-intended others risk capitalizing on a tragedy that many people are still experiencing. Where is the line between smart, informed, if not a little paranoid, gift guides and the commodification of a natural disaster?

Here are some helpful tips for those flirting with the idea of creating a survival gift guide to help them avoid the slippery slope of taboo:

-Avoid bombarding your guide with pet-saving gear, such as doggie life vests, portable purifying cat water fountains, etc. #RichPeopleProblems.

-Items such as water wicking pants, rain resistant jackets, and water-proof matches are not helpful when half of Manhattan has flooded. Having water bead instantly on one’s pants cannot help them when their home is destroyed.

-Do not give people compasses. Only Eagle Scouts know how to read them properly and unless you think your friends and family will find themselves in a natural disaster in the Yukon, consider an iTunes gift card as a stocking stuffer instead.

-Those flashlights that you have to crank to turn on are just not useful so stop putting them in your gift guides.

Happy Thanksgiving, Althusser Style!

A year ago, a wonderful professor at the University of Chicago taught some master’s students about Althusser’s theory of ideology in “Ideology and the State” using the Thanksgiving hand turkey. In short—to try to write an analytical piece months after graduate school—Althusser’s ideology is a social, political, and economic structure in which individuals self-identify in relation to their labor. In other words, we self-identify through the work we repeatedly do within the social, economic, and political environment we live in, which ultimately reinforces these systems. The hand turkey can be understood as a representation of Althusser’s ideology because Americans recognize the bizarre image of an outlined hand with red and orange crayon as the representation of a turkey, which in turn represents Thanksgiving. We can only recognize this image, which looks nothing like a turkey and could represent many other things beside Thanksgiving, because we are within a system that taught us to make the hand turkey as children for Thanksgiving. In making the hand turkey repeatedly every year in grade school (our labor), we self-identify (those who celebrate Thanksgiving) through our work within an economic, political, and social structure (America), thus reinforcing the system (we know that hand turkeys mean Thanksgiving).

So, happy Thanksgiving from Snaps!