The joys of childhood= the joys of reading

I saw some pictures today that took me back to some of my favorite childhood memories.

Illustration from The Very Hungry Caterpillar

Illustration from Chrysanthemum

Ilustration from Love you Forever

Just seeing these illustrations made me feel like I was running into old friends.

When I was a little girl my mother read to us almost every day. I think the first chapter book we read together was Fantastic Mr. Fox by Roald Dahl, quickly followed by The BFG. 

Once we could read on our own she would take us to the library to get our very own library card and participate in the summer reader's program. We could tally up how many hours we read and then exchange our tallies for little trinkets, like a bouncy ball or bracelet, in the library treasure box.

I will always be grateful to my mother for teaching us that reading is FUN! Her efforts to give us the world by helping us master reading remind me of this wonderful mother who knew what each child needed and was willing to confront dangerous obstacles to protect them:

Illustration from Heckedy Peg

Reading can be thrilling, soothing, exciting, scary, new, and familiar. It is whatever you are in the mood for when you walk into the library. It can take you to different worlds.

The entire universe of knowledge and imagination is only as far away as your own willingness to pick up a book.

I hope that in all of our pursuit of new, flashy, fast media devices, we won't forget the familiar rustle of book pages, or the feeling of dusty air wafting past when all nestled in and ready for a good story.

And let's not forget about this little guy.

Illustration from If You Give a Mouse a Cookie

Better Sleep Part 2

Well folks, the results are in!

Monday through Friday last week I turned off all screens at least 30 minutes before going to bed.(including plugging my phone in upside down so I wouldn't have to look at it again).
I slept like I had taken a NyQuil. I woke up less during the night. Usually I wake up two or three times but both Wednesday and Thursday night I slept through the entire night. I also do not remember laying in bed for very long before I was asleep.

That is pretty significant for me.

I would have done it Saturday and Sunday as well but we watched Hook on Saturday night (my first time!) and oh boy was I into it.

I fully endorse the National Sleep Foundation's suggestion to eliminate screens in order to maximize sleep. I did a little more reading on the subject and found that the reason screens affect us is that our circadian rhythm seems to be especially sensitive to light with short wavelengths, such as that from most computers and phones. This light delays the release of the hormone melatonin which regulates the sleep/wake cycle. It can take time for the body to settle down from a full day of screen-saturated alerting effects. So we really do need to plan in some winding down time before we expect to fall asleep.

Read more on sleepfoundation.org 

So my advice to everyone is to treat yourself like your own kid: make bedtime an event. Prepare for it, start early, make it something to look forward to. Put a good book within arm's reach so you can give your eyes a break from the blueish light of screens and let your sleepiness catch up with you.

If it doesn't work right off the bat give yourself a couple of weeks. Do it consistently so that your body gets into the new cycle.

I can't promise it will work for you, but it has definitely helped me significantly!

zzzzzzzzz

Over the summer I listened to a Freakonomics podcast called "The Economics of Sleep" which shared that the National Sleep Foundation (did you know we had one?) recommends that in order to maximize sleep we have to STOP looking at screens 30 minutes before bedtime.

I have had trouble falling asleep for several years now. My mind is too wound-up. The time between when my husband stops talking and when his breathing becomes deep and regular is about 30 seconds. Then I lay awake for about one more hour, just replaying the days' events or thinking about how tired I am. So when I heard this solution from the experts I thought all my problems were solved!

Then I realized "no screens" meant no movie, TV, computer or texting before bedtime. Well.

That's impossible. And I find that to be really sad! Often I am doing homework on my computer right up until I go to bed. When I don't have homework screens are so alluring--I just want to check my email, messages, instagram, or photo share one more time. I have realized that almost all of my regular activities revolve around me and a screen. Say hello to the one thing I will spend the majority of my life looking at:

Kind of makes me want to throw up.

Today I want that to change. I am tired, literally losing sleep, because of all of these screens. So tired that I am not even going to come up with a metaphor for how tired I am. So I am going to put the National Sleep Foundation to the test. For one week (I thought about doing two weeks but it made me squirmy), I am going to completely turn away from screens at least 30 minutes before bedtime.
That is means turning off my computer, checking that my alarm is set, satisfying my curiosity regarding messages, etc., plugging in my phone to charge and then reading or washing dishes or tidying for 30 minutes before laying my head down.

One week...

I can do that right?

I'll report my sleep next Monday. I'm looking for how long it takes me to fall asleep, whether I wake up less, and how rested I feel in the morning.

Do it with me!

Chick Flicks

Recently in my Media and the Family class we had a discussion on how women are sexualized in the media.

I was astounded by how much the attitudes that media has cultivated over the past 50 years have TOTALLY shaped my world and the way I think! For example when a woman speaks publicly I notice her appearance first--her age, body shape, hair style, whether she is wearing a lot of makeup, and even her outfit choice. All men look pretty much the same to me. I hardly give it a second thought.
Another example of this bias would be that when I am put in a group setting and we need someone to take charge, if there is a man available I naturally find that I vote for him. Apparently I think men are better leaders--more organized, more calm, better thinkers--even when my own marriage has shown me that this not necessarily always true. Women and men can be equally powerful and necessary to make a difference in the world.
The point that shocked me most about women in the media, which I can't believe I never really thought of before, is that there are far fewer movies with women protagonists than men. Those that do have women protagonists usually center around finding romance. I quickly scanned my brain for movies that would prove this wrong and had so much trouble finding any.
Women are portrayed as materialistic and catty:

They are no good unless there is a man in the picture:

Even when the movie appears to have themes of empowering and celebrating smart women, the plot still seems to resolve with the woman getting her man instead of just...being successful:

These Chick Flicks which always appeared so innocent and fun to me before have now become a blazing symbol of how the media is distorting our vision of what women can accomplish. The general underlying message is something along the lines of, "women are ridiculous, but they are beautiful. Even though they are kind of silly, their stupidity is cute if they also look great. If a woman happens to be incredibly talented, that doesn't do much good unless she is also incredibly beautiful."

I think the one movie that I still feel is completely realistic in its portrayal of women, that celebrates what a woman can do with and without romantic love, that focuses on her success and growth despite her appearance, or in this case, her carrot-red hair is:
You got it folks.

And that is why this is still my all-time favorite. Though Anne does eventually decide she loves Gilbert, that is not the focus of the movie. It is about how one little girl can change the engrained prejudices of a society. It is about how she can measure up to extraordinary feats because of the faith and support of two kind adoptive parents. It is about learning to accept failures and start fresh because "tomorrow...has no mistakes in it."

Instagram

This week I got an Instagram.

I think maybe technically I have had an account for awhile but I've just never looked at it before.
Anyway, someone convinced me that it was a good way to connect with friends and show them I care about them by knowing what is going on in their lives.

My first question is: does anyone else find it a little bit creepy that we all feel this need to be watching each other all the time? I mean "following" used to be cause for suspicion.

Honestly though, I've been surprised by how I do feel like I am caring for my friends more now. I am deliberately sending the message, "Hey. I care about you. I care about what you care about. I want to know what you are excited about. I like what you are doing with yourself."
I appreciate that social media can help us watch out for each other.

However, I think that it opens up a lot of other possibilities for hurt as well--even accidental hurt.
There are a lot of people who base their sense of worth on their social media status. There are a lot of fun things going on on the Internet that I might not be invited to. There are a lot of friends getting together without me. I think Facebook, Instagram, and other personal broadcasting stations can all too easily taint the way we perceive ourselves, others, and the reality of our lives. We start to think in terms of likes and friends and forget about doing real things like visiting others, going on a walk together, or learning a new skill because we are so consumed with watching what others do.

So, like most media forms I think there are pros and cons to Instagram. For one thing I get to see adorable pictures of my niece across the country all the time. But who is sitting next to me right now that I am completely ignoring because I am looking at my screen?

Rab Ne Bana di Jodi

Back in December my family somehow ended up with this mysterious Bollywood movie that has turned out to be the beginning of a full-blown fetish. We hadn't really experienced much of Indian culture outside of the Bombay House on the Ave. (100% recommended), but now I think we all harbor secret dreams of waking up Indian someday.

Watch this clip and you will understand.


There is so much vibrant color that you can practically smell the incense. The music truly lifts you and you find yourself dancing--body and heart. And the plot is the most beautiful part! The title is revealed to mean "This couple is made by God" and the movie shows through an arranged marriage how love is about what we are willing to sacrifice for each other rather than compatibility or circumstance.

Since Christmas we have now seen three more Bollywood films. Though Rab Ne Bana di Jodi is still my favorite, I really appreciate finding new ones in order to immerse myself in another culture and learn from the wisdom of other people with different lifestyles than my own.

Okay. Because I am generous. One more:

K*A*R*O*A*K*E

According to Adam Lonsdale and Adrian North (2010)* one of the main gratifications of music is to encourage social interaction.

Well it is true!

On Valentine's Day, Ryan and I were planning on going to Red Lobster, but when we got out of the temple at 6pm and called, the wait was 1 hr 50 minutes (that's five-zero thank you very much angry waitress on the phone). So we did some quick thinking and decided to go to Se Llama Peru on Center Street instead because every time we pass that place it is hoppin' and besides I served my mission in Texas which pretty much makes me an expert on Peruvian food. (wink wink.)

So we went and wouldn't you know there was a Peruvian mission reunion happening right as we got there and a whole bunch of exuberant 21 year olds were congregating outside. But we pushed our way in and the waitress seated us right in the corner behind the KAROAKE speakers, because apparently KAROAKE is what happens at Se Llama Peru on the Saturday before Valentine's Day (and hopefully all Saturdays?)

There was a middle-aged man in a sportcoat with cufflinks and half of his hair left crooning away on the microphone in Spanish.

He walked from table to table singing and trying to get people to come up and perform, and it did not take long before all three of us were best friends. I didn't even mind when he handed me a microphone so I could comfortably sing "I Just Called to Say I Love You" from my chair. I don't know why no one has thought of this before. How else do you want to pass the uncomfortable hungry minutes waiting for your food? Usually I drink about a gallon of water with too much ice in it before I get my food, or at Mexican restaurants I go through a basket of chips and salsa. Not so at Se Llama Peru. I sang and sang and sang and didn't want to stop when my Aji de Gallina arrived.

Singing together encouraged social interaction so much that I hardly even minded the exceedingly large group of RMs that were quickly overtaking the restaurant. In fact, I wanted them to join us at the microphone and cheered when they did.

My husband served his mission in Taiwan and tells me that Karoake is a really big thing in Asian countries. Apparently it is normal to pay a bunch of money to go out with friends and sing together. After my Valentine's experience, I can add this to the long list of things we should learn from the Asians (right after how to make good stir-fry and live to 100): if you want to bond with someone, SING with them! And make it so socially acceptable that you can bond with perfect strangers within 5 minutes. I think the world would be more peaceful if there was more karoake going on.

And I mean it.

*Lonsdale, A. J., & North, A. C. (2011). Why do we listen to music? A uses and gratifications analysis. British Journal Of Psychology, 102(1), 108-134. doi:10.1348/000712610X506831