Click Ad to Tp or for LM

Thursday, September 25, 2008

Beauty is in the Eye of the Culture


Second Life gives us the opportunity to be super skinny with perfect hair and buns of steel, yet the avatars we guide around the grid are merely representations of what we perceive to be beautiful. Impressione's World Beauty Event on Saturday September 27th, an event running concurrent with Milan's Fashion Week, seeks to draw attention to cultural differences in what is seen as beautiful. The fashion show, starting at 12:00 PM SLT, will feature both male and female models in every shape and skin color to demonstrate cultural approaches to attractiveness.

The event was created to raise funds for NEDA, the National Eating Disorders Association. While eating disorders seem to be a more pressing concern for female's and inV tends to have a strong male readership, the fact remains that males are impacted by eating disorders as well. Whether a male is suffering from an eating disorder himself or has a friend or loved one facing the issue, NEDA can be a valuable resource.

And, as we represent ourselves with perfect avs, we can find ourselves feeling sub-par in RL. Genna Gray, who approached me with this event, said, "I do want to make a point of saying that what is beautiful comes in many forms, and it's just important to remember that in Second Life, where you can be anyone or anything, that you should feel comfortable about who you are in either world. It's about appreciating diversity and self acceptance and providing information on healthy lifestyles for the mind and body."

This is an essential event for both men and women of all shapes and ethnicities. In a world where it is so easy to blend in and have that perfect body we've always wanted in reality, real importance comes from having a strong self-esteem and value system. Take care of yourself.

World Beauty Event (Location Closed until Friday at 12:00 AM)
NEDA Website (For information on eating disorders)
NEDA Direct Donations

16 comments:

Ammon Pera said...

...Eat Eat Eat. I hear this all the time in my rl. Funny thing it's usually coming for someone overweight. My gramps use to tell me watch and learn from people. If you want to be thin watch what a thin person eats. if you want to be rich watch what a rich person does. Anyway back to thin. I eat to live not live to eat. I am sure my opinion would be different if i was overweight but I'm not so only talking for myself.

Anonymous said...

It's always the fat asses tell the thin people to eat. It's just jealousy they are stuck home on a Friday night or someone needs to be drunk to even look at them.

Anonymous said...

I feel guilty my avatar doesn't look like me. And people keep saying I look sexy. Well I am in my own cute way! But not like my supermodel Olympic gold medal winner avatar. No six pack down there... it's mostly a one pack... ho hum :P

DeMerick Creeley said...

After losing enough weight in RL to freak my doctor out, I have a small taste of what eating disorders are like. Mine was medicine induced, but not fun. Especially when you face the judgment of others who think you are doing it for vanity or using drugs. As Ammon says, eating to live and not living to eat is great advice, and this event promotes how many cultures focus on healthy living (good foods, exercise and strong self-esteem) in order to have a quality RL and SL.

Ammon Pera said...

...lol Dem when you said freak I thought you saw psycho lol. Wether you are thin or fluffy main thing is have fun. I think I do mine for vanity but hey it's my body my decision. When My face becomes larger than my waist or I wear a size 0 I will know I hit my goal. Until then cigs, coffee, dexatrim and an ocasional laxative. Hollywood here we come Dem.

LMAO No I am just lucky to be thin.

DeMerick Creeley said...

[9:53] You: If you... get skinny enough, you'll look like a lollipop..
[9:53] You: Nice BIG head and stick body...
[9:53] You: That's the goal ish'nt it?!

(From the Brenda Dickson gestures...thanks xSaraho Mornington...we'll have more on her later)

Anonymous said...

You guys anorexia is a serious disease which ruins lives.

Anonymous said...

I rushed in and I am just shocked at the comments towards this serious disorder. You kids live in a society to push being thin to the verge of death and you think it's a joke. Gay culture is in fact growing at alarming rates and is called manarexia.

DeMerick Creeley said...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TnhiqOsx05c

As someone who was bulimic in college, I agree that it is a serious disease, which is the reason for the event. Eating the wrong foods also leads to serious diseases which claim lives and is currently threatening my brother's life. If more of us promote healthy living "eat to live, don't live to eat (or not eat)" it can help those who suffer from the disease. Hollywood wants us size 0, don't they? The Brenda Dickson parodies indirectly fight the notions of beauty we've been been trained by society to accept.

But as someone who has been through hell, I know that humor can make life bearable. Whether it's losing a parent, dealing with the hell of bipolar or learning to adjust to horrific medical side-effects, I've found that laughing makes living through the horrendous parts of life easier. As my mother was dying and the family was in turmoil, she turned to me and laughed and said, "Look what I get to get away from." I suppose my philosophy on humor through the dark times comes from her. If we don't laugh, sometimes our only option is to cry, and a life spent crying isn't much of a life.

Ammon Pera said...

Jesus, this isn't stopping me from trying to be 2 pounds. My goal is to be all teeth and cheekbones.

WE ARE KIDDING. People can be so sensative.

Anonymous said...

My mom use to tell my brother and I "eat all you food" well she morbidly obese. I sit now and think about it that perhaps it wasn't the best advice a mother could give her children.

DeMerick Creeley said...

I lived through the "you aren't leaving the table until your plate is clean" philosophy too. I think it was a way of ensuring kids got proper nutrition, but my daughter never hears that. She is strongly encouraged to try new things, though, and I was pleased to hear that she tried some seaweed at school (she wasn't impressed).

Anonymous said...

Peeps I heard seaweed is a natural laxative. She is on her to having a eating disorder. Sue the school system. I remember the meat in the sloppy joes at school gave everyone constipation. I guess in all fairness I would rather have the runs. Runs are shitzzzzzzz.

Ammon Pera said...

...Oh god. We know what the runs are but thanks for the explanation.

giggles

DeMerick Creeley said...

Don't get Ammon started on poop humor...omg

Ammon Pera said...

...hahahaha