Intern Lauren needs us! - part 2 (a/k/a 10 great things about YOU!)

(cont'd from previous post)

 

image by nicolepete23 on flickr

I don't know how I'll feel when the actual time comes, but in this moment, I am not afraid of turning 30. :) There's a real sense of coming into my own. I wouldn't wanna go back to the insecure version of myself from before. 29 brought anxiety but then a real comfort in my own skin that I didn't have when I was younger. If you're younger than I am, enjoy it, and try to start realizing NOW that you're amazing...if you're older than I am, enjoy it and revel in the fact that you're way smarter than I am. ;) There's much good stuff to be experienced in every age! Those who are older than I am, you are equally amazing, if not more so than the younguns (no offense, younguns). I was going on the basis that after 30, you should already be aware of the important fact that amazing and beautiful is what you are. If you weren't, I just told you, so now you know. :) 

My mom always told me no one else is nearly as worried about how you look as YOU are. They are all too busy thinking about themselves and how THEY look!

There's a line from a song I came across a long time ago that I printed out and taped to my bathroom mirror. The song is "Beautiful" by Joydrop. 

I am not beautiful like you. I am beautiful like me.

A friend of mine left me this GREAT comment...she so aptly worded her feelings on being 30 - 32. If you're younger, try not to repeat how we were! :) Now's your chance to start seeing yourself differently! 

I have never been more comfortable with who I am and what I stand for. I loved every minute of turning 30 and will love every minute of turning 32 day after tomorrow. As you grow as a woman you learn what sexy is and morph from a gangly duckling (with the hottest body you will probably ever have) into a more subtle and put together version of yourself you will soon realize that the 30 something version is unrivaled by your twenty-something counter-part. Sure there are a few more gray hairs and a few more wrinkles around your eyes, but I would trade those any day for the sheer confidence I feel in almost everything I do now that I have a little more life under my belt. While my breasts are closer to that belt than they were when I was 25, I have the utmost security that I know how to use and be comfortable with what I have now. When I was 25 you would not have caught me naked with the lights on to save my life, but now is a different story. If I had the body I had then and knew what I know now...WOW! So love yourselves and embrace what it is about you that makes you special. I will give you a hint, it isn't your cup size, your hair color or the brand of jeans you wear. 

In the last part of Q100's interview with their intern, Lauren (you can go back and read our part 1 entry about it here), they ask her to list 5 great things about herself. Without even pausing, she says, "Oh, no, I can't." Then they say how about 3, and then 2, and she still has a really hard time coming up with anything. That absolutely BREAKS MY HEART. 

So KameraWhore and I will take the lead by posting lists for ourselves, and we hope readers, and intern Lauren, will take their turns as well. :)

Jenarcissist: INSIDE

1) I'm very loyal. I've had the same two best friends almost my entire life. I'm even fiercely loyal to my favorite singers, especially if they have taken the time to write back to me. I'm also very loyal to various causes that I hold near and dear to my heart, which leads to my next one.

2) I'm compassionate. This compassion is extended to people and animals and all creatures. I've done lots of animal rescue on my own, and I'm always trying to think of ways to make people, especially girls, feel better about themselves. I carry an intense burden for people who are hurting, even if I don't always know what to do to help. I also consider myself a bit of a personal advocate for transgendered people, even though I'm not transgender myself, because I believe very passionately that this is something people should educate themselves on and pass along a broader societal understanding and just let people be who they are.

3) I am exceptionally strong. This is a whole other topic, but my mom passed away a few years ago when I was young, and I am determined to live a joyful, fulfilled life even amongst the pain. I loved her so much that I thought losing her would destroy me, but my inner resolve wouldn't allow it. I purposely focus on what's good in life more than what's bad.

4) I'm talented at several things. I don't know if I've mastered any of them, but I sure have fun trying, and I've finally gotten to the point where I realize that is the most important part! I don't have to be perfect to know I'm good at a wide range of creative things.

5) I have overcome tons and tons of fears and anxieties! I won't expound on it right now, or you'd be here all day. Every day, I'm a work in progress, but I'm leaps and bounds from where I used to be!

Jenarcissist: OUTSIDE

1) I like my eyes. I've never met anyone else who has my eye color. I think it looks like cats' eyes. I also like my eyelashes, though you wouldn't know it by the incessant odyssey I'm on to extend, extend, extend!

2) I like my lips. As you'll realize if you read "Narcissa," I was made fun of for my big ole lips all the time in middle school. But I learned eventually that I quite like them. :)

3) I like my hair. It might not always stay the same color, but I like the way it falls.

4) I like how my middle fingers curve outward instead of being straight. I get that from my dad.

5) I kinda like my height. I'm not tall; I'm actually fairly short by "normal" standards. But I kinda like it "down here."

Kam?? :)

Alright, alright...I finally have some time to really get to work, so what better task than to write about my awesomeness. Just kidding...this isn't going to be easy for me. Aside from my cattiness with Jenarcissist, I really am a very shy and fairly self-conscious gal. This is getting better as I age, however. I'm beginning to not give a damn what others think about me. Though when I pass a random hottie, I would of course rather turn his head in my direction rather than the opposite :). Okay, I'm rambling; I suppose I should begin my assignment... 

What's fabulous about the inner KameraWhore? 

1) I'm a positive thinker. It's a way of life for me, and I hope to always stay this way. If something sucky happens, then it must be for a reason. If there's two hours of traffic or a missed plane, well, then I must be blessed enough to have averted a car accident or, worse yet, a plane crash! Lucky me!
2) I'm nice. Why be mean to others? How is that going to change my life for the better? If I want to vent and be ugly about something or someone, then I save it for those who are closest to me. They'll listen and help me process my feelings without my having to deal out any negative energy into the universe. It has enough already. Yep.
3) I'm funny. I think. I can make Jenarcissist laugh, right, hottie? I'm no comedian, and VainShane may not agree to this particular attribute of mine, but you don't know me yet, so I'm a real hoot.
4) I'm a lady. I had the most vulgar father, God rest his soul, but he (and my sweet momma) taught me to be a well-mannered lady...at least in public, that is. I can't say the same for my private life. *wink, wink*
5) I have a strong work ethic. I started working when I was 12. My family never had money, and I knew if I ever wanted a car, I'd have to buy it myself. A handsome '89 Dodge Shadow entered my life on my 16th birthday, paid for using my own cash. I've never had anything handed to me, and that's okay. I'm a better person because of it.

Now onto the outer me... 

1) My arms are my favorite part of me. They're my mom's, and I love that they look just like hers! 
2) My hands. They are small and petite and they can create art, which is my favorite thing about me...oh, I left that out above; I suppose that belongs under inner awesomeness? But back to my hands. My fingertips are hideous. I bite my nails down to the quick, and nobody can understand how it doesn't cause me pain. But they look exactly like my dad's fingertips. He passed away when I was 23, and looking at them reminds me of him. So, oh, well that they're ugly; I love them!
3) My ribs, ha ha. I have a pretty small rib cage, and I like them. Not much more to say there.
4) My eyes. They're pretty big and dark green. They also have some "bags" under them which have actually improved with age. I'll just tell ya right now, I was a funny looking kid. Some photographer thought it would be a good idea to airbrush them out of my senior portraits; apparently, he didn't like them. He made me look like a completely different and plasticky person, and I didn't appreciate it. I'm okay with my imperfections, and I don't really care if others aren't.
5) My nose. It's straight, not extremely long, and it turns up just a bit at the tip. Genetics worked in my favor, because it could have had a lot more "personality," if you know what I mean! :) 

Now we would like for anyone reading this to list out (in a comment) 5 things you love about your inside and 5 things you love about your outside! 

Take it seriously. You can post anonymously if you want (though as a closet narcissist, you'll probably want people to know who you are! haha). Use this chance to really stop and think about what makes you awesome. If you have trouble, you can ask a friend for input. A close friend of mine did this for me (Jenarcissist) once...she listed out 10 things she was proud of me for, and it's something I will save forever!! And, trust me, there ARE 10 great things each girl and woman can list about herself!!! :) And...GO!!