Month: April 2015

My choices regarding my dress and how I “customize” myself, I would describe as circumstantial. When I am at work, I am required to dress in nicer clothes that cover myself more than what I would typically choose to wear. I choose to wear makeup and maintain high hygienic standards because I want to embody a professional appearance. When I am not at work, I would describe my style as casual, although I have been known to wear all varieties of clothing. I have never reflected on what I wear like this before, but some days I will dress simply, and other days I will feel like wearing something more elaborate. Regarding body adornment, besides a navel piercing, and two ear piercings, I have no other types of adornment (tattoos, other piercings, etc.).

My personal beliefs surrounding my appearances are not extremely correlated, although I do have a personal belief/value that in order to be taken as seriously and professionally as possible, having multiple facial piercings or easily exposed tattoos can be a detriment in the business world when trying to get a job. I chose to get my navel pierced because I think it looks good and was a purely personal decision. Going off of that though, I do believe I liked that particular piercing so much because of my personal value that it can easily be hidden, but I still am able to express myself. To answer the question “Why do you make the choices you do?” I would respond by saying it is a combination of personal expression, but yet still thinking realistically about my future and how my choices of expression may affect me later down the road. I make choices with myself in mind, but also the consideration of my family and other loved ones. When deciding to get my navel pierced, I did consider my grandmother, who is extremely traditional and does not understand the reasoning behind why I wanted it. But, I knew that no harm or damage would be done to her, it was just a minor conflict of personal expression differences.

I have absolutely nothing against tattoos whatsoever, but I do have a value or belief that when you choose to ink yourself, it should be something of meaning. I do not carry negative feelings or judgments towards people who recreationally tattoo themselves, but for myself I would never get a tattoo without serious consideration and consulting. Piercings can be taken out; tattoos are forever (for the most part).

My personal choices have changed drastically over the years. When I was in 6^th grade, I chose to get my nose pierced. I picked the biggest and shiniest stud available, and flaunted my new piercing to all of my peers. Reflecting back, the reasoning behind the choice I made was clearly based off of wanting to impress or “outdo” my friends, not because I truly wanted to express myself. I also did not consider my family’s opinion or the professional aspect when making this decision, which is now very high on my list.

My family’s core beliefs and values have definitely effected my own expression of body adornment and dress. They never emphasized a particular way of how I should dress, with the exception of pajamas never being worn outside of the house. They raised us to never critique or look down on the way a person dresses, so I think I have a very accepting and understanding view of people’s self expression because my family never commented on people with body adornment or made them seem like they made a terrible choice. With that being said, they also never fully supported my siblings or I when we wanted piercings, and would strongly convince us to seriously consider many factors before getting a tattoo. My mom has three tattoos, and they are all meaningful and symbolic of aspects of her life. She had demonstrated through example the reasons why I should choose to value and not be sporadic if I ever had the desire, but also that I would not be looked down upon would I ever choose to express myself in that way.

Amongst my peers, it is difficult to pinpoint core beliefs or values they hold. I have a vast spectrum of values that my friends hold, some being extremely religious and holding core values based off religion, and others holding family and friends above all else. My peers also express themselves through dress and body adornment in a variety of ways. Some of my friends that have lost loved ones have tattoos representing their memory, and hold that above all else. My best friend lost her uncle while he was overseas in Afghanistan, and she got a quote on her 18^th birthday of something that perfectly embodied him; this tattoo makes her feel connected to him at all times. Other friends on impulse chose to get tattooed, and now even a few (at just age 20) already regret their choice of tattoo.

Tattoos and body adornment can be used for self-expression in a powerful way, but I always go back to the thought that there are so many other ways of self-expression rather than how one dresses and tattoos or pierces themselves, and people should never forget that. Judgments and assumptions only go so far, but actually knowing the person and understanding why they dress or pierce themselves the way they do will completely change how you view them.

I chose to sit in a park near my apartment, on a nice sunny day, to do my people watching. The first person I watched was an older man (probably in his 60’s) running along the amazon bark trails. He wasn’t wearing a shirt, and had one full arm sleeve of tattoos. As far as this particular man’s values and beliefs, one value would definitely be health. You could tell he was a runner, and shirtless due to the heat, so I did not think must of his outfit, I was simply impressed a man of his age could run so fast! His tatoos make me assume that he is a “free spirit”, or not traditional as far as how he chooses to express himself. The tattoos looked aged, and back when he was young, tattoos were much more forbidden then they are now. The assumptions I made based on race and cultural background was that he was predominantly white, and he did not seem to express himself in an outwardly way of his background. The tattoos he wore from what I could tell, one represented something with lightening bolts, and the other figure I could make out was some sort of greek mythology looking characters.

The second person I observed was a young boy, who I am guessing attends Spencer’s Butte Middle School, who was playing in the park with some other boys his age. He looked sporty, wearing simple shorts and shirt, but I could tell based on watching him that he was an extremely energetic, fit person. One thing that I noticed was he seemed to have a very competitive side to him, as I observed him throwing a soccer ball at one of his friends when one of their rules was broken. This led me to believing that his emotional condition may lean on the side of aggressive behavior. He had no peculiar body adornment from what I could tell, but his personality leads me to think that he may partake in a rebellious phase as he ages.

The third and final person I observed was a couple (so I guess two people), who were leisurely walking, I am guessing just getting outside enjoying the sunshine. As far as their dress and body adornment, they both had a sort of casual, hippy vibe for clothing. They wore loose, colorful  fabrics, and the lady had long dreadlocks. I believe that the man had a nose piercing, and she had multiple ear and facial piercings. This couple’s values and beliefs were demonstrated through their body adornment and dress because they dressed in a way that made people notice them (if that makes sense). The man had a backpack with multiple Obama and “Republican’s suck” pins on it, so I definitely think they are democrat.

As far as what these assumptions say about my values and beliefs, I guess they make me solidify what I hold valuable. I think health is huge (the older man reminded me of that). I also think maintaining a certain level of professionalism regarding piercings and tattoos is important, so I guess it reminded me that I do not see myself getting multiple face piercings or a full sleeve anytime in the near future. I think everything is appropriate in moderation, and even though my values and beliefs may vary from those I observed, I was creating assumptions based off their look, and I could easily be completely off about the type of people that they are.

“From Palate to Plate: Can Food Be Art?” by Jacquelyn Strycker, is a series of examples and explanations of different types of art as food, and how society is adapting to this shift from food being simply a necessity to being something that means so much more. Strycker begins by referring to the long tradition of food as an artistic medium, using examples such as the “European sugar sculpture, porcelain and table layouts from the 16^th through 19^th centuries. Dining was not just about earing food, but also about its elaborate display” (paragraph 3). Strycker writes “but food as a medium is not the same as declaring that a meal is art”. To back up her case that a meal is art, Strycker uses herself as an example, writing “I often spend between one and two hours making dinner each night. I used to feel guilty about this – worries that my time would be better spent in my studio drawing or printing or otherwise artmaking – but then I came to see that making food – combining textures, flavors, scents and colors – is also creative” (paragraph 2). She justifies art as food in a convincing and compelling way, but bringing up art exhibits such as when she describes the Fallen Fruit Collective, a form of “participatory art” where members bring fruit and collaborate together to make varied assortments of jams. These are all examples of ways history and the present day incorporate food in a way that is more then just eating it for nourishment and survival, it is about observing and creating it in an artistic fashion.

The video “Slow Food Presentation”, not only displayed an enticing story of describing the elements of creating a meal, it described it in a way that involved tools, passion, and time (all elements of creating art). After reading Stryckers article, the connection became clear between food as art from a cultural aspect. Strycker uses the example of multiple countries embassies, such as Peru with their famous national drink, Pisco, involving gastronomy as a large aspect of their cultural affairs agenda, adding it alongside cinema, music and visual arts. These are all compelling and convincing arguments for the sake of food as art.

Telfers text, “Food as Art”, gives her reasoning in a more factual and neutral tone. Strycker uses mainly modern examples, and other describes why they should be seen as art, whereas Telfers raises constant questions and contradictions when exploring for herself and readers the issues and uncertainty or food being art. Telfer uses definitions frequently such as the definition of art (“a artifact primarily intended for aesthetic consideration” (p. 12). Telfers also divulges into the topic of whether cookery is rather a craft than an art (art relying on creativity, craft relying on a pattern). After explaining these concepts, she then continues on to contradict herself by saying that both overlap, and the whole idea goes back to square one. One term Telfer uses that describes her style of writing and personal feeling is interpretation. Food (just as art) can be interpreted in so many forms. Telfer uses an example of metal pipes laying on top of one another in an art exhibit; some view that as junk and worthlessness, others see it as a ingenious masterpiece. This can be said the same for food. Telfer ends the text writing “So although food may be an art form, we should not always treat it as such” (p. 26).

When comparing the main arguments for art as food between the two authors, Strycker approaches the topic with enthusiasm, passion, and simplicity. Telfer uses questions, extensive explanations and artistic terms to allow readers to interpret the text how they decide. Telfer leaves the ultimate decision of food as art to the observer.

Strycker ends her article with “When a creative, sensory form also has the capacity to express philosophies, inspire multiple interpretations, conjure narratives and/or allude to complex meanings, it is art, whether the medium is pain or piano or polenta”. This sentence combines everything that this unit has covered into a nutshell. Both Telfer, Strycker, and the slow food presentation video all accumulated and formed new ideas and views on food as art. While Telfer gives in depth analysis, Strycker relies on examples and modern world stories of how food has evolved beyond necessity. The alternative viewpoints described by both writers accumulate into a greater understanding of food as art, and ways to view food in a new light with a critical eye.

Strycker, J. (2013, January 7). From Palate to Palette: Can Food be Art? Createquity [On-Line Article] Retrieved April 24, 2015, from http://createquity.com/2013/01/from-palate-to-palette-can-food-be-art/

I think there is very convincing cases for both sides as to if food can be viewed as art. When I watched the video on fast food, you see an assembly line strategy, where food is being produced in a non-organic, systematic way that in no way resembles any type of art, this at first made me think art and food had little correlation. Then, after watching the slow food video, I became fascinated by how descriptive each step in preparing the meal was, my favorite being “she paints each crepe with pesto sauce made from the delicate tiny leafed basil that grows only here, and from olive oil extracted from olives the mother and son tend and bring to the local press” (2:15-2:28). It is similar to the details people describe when commenting on a painting or similar type of artwork.

After reading the text by Telfer, I saw a new perspective. I do view food as aesthetically pleasing, although I thought it was humorous when she writes “we can distinguish the person who “enjoys his food” but does not notice what he eats”(p. 14), because that it exactly my thought; not everyone is observant or appreciate of the ingredients collected and combined to make a great meal, some people just shove anything and everything they can in their mouths, enjoying it all the same.

Regarding if food is a “work of art”, I do believe in circumstances where care and passion is put into the food, yes it is a work of art. Of course, if you go to an upscale restaurant and ask the chef whether he considers his $60 entrée a “work of art”, he would scoff that you would even ask. But then there are food carts and other family style restaurants, where presentation is not the number one priority, but the taste is absolutely incredible. Telfer constantly refers back to a work of art being “a thing intended or used wholly or largely for aesthetic consideration” (p. 15). By this definition, food would not be considered a work of art (with the main priority being taste). Overall, I believe food can express emotion (excitement, disgust, etc.), and I see a chef being comparable to an artist, so in that sense I would have to overall agree that food is a work of art, just depends who you are asking, and in what type of scenario. The theory that I think best represents my views on food and art is Expressive theory, because it is an expression coming from a artist (in foods case, a chef), and each chef has their own vision and unique touch that makes a plate of food artistic or aesthetically pleasing, just as a artist going about creating their form of art.

The TED talk with speaker Denis Dutton covers his ideas on the complexity of beauty; how we understand it, and why we all call something beautiful. He mentions in the first minute how it is such a difficult concept to understand, because of the vast variety of beauty, “from a babies face to a central California landscape” these are all things people see as beautiful (0:50).

Dutton uses Charles Darwin’s theories to divulge his concept of how our ancient ancestors are the ones who instilled our powerful reaction to art, music, and any type of image or entertainment. He does not believe that “beauty lies in the eye of the beholder”, but rather that we find beauty in something done well, and this is found not from a cultural background, but it is found amongst all humans of all cultures, meaning that this concept of finding beauty in something done well will stay “as long as the human race exists” (16:40). He argues that both artistic and natural beauty are not cultural – and uses the example of not cave paintings from 32,000 years ago being the first forms of art, but the hand axes that have no evidence of wear or use, and were once considered a practical appliance but are considered a showpiece, or what we would consider art (10:40-12:00).

I have never thought about what my definition of beauty is, but after Dutton states it as “something done well”, I began listing in my head things that I find beauty in. I would have to agree that something done well is probably the simplest but truest reason why a person considers something beautiful. This concept is universal, and includes people of all backgrounds. What a person sees as well done varies, but not the reasons why they consider it beautiful.

What does one consider as “well done”? For me I think of it as an object or experience that someone put extensive effort and passion into, and something that is nice to look at or hear (whether that be symmetrical, clean, neat, pleasing voice/looks, etc.), that is up to each individual to decide.

Top 5 Values:

1) Family

2) Integrity

3) Friendship

4) Enjoyment

5) Health

Reflecting on the past 24 hours, I think that these five values were definitely top priorities and values that I represented and base my life around. My family is always first, as I would/will drop anything for them, and same goes for friends. The beliefs that I think I inherited from my family would be all of them, because I see both my parents and grandparents putting these same values first in their own lives. Enjoyment is in my top five because my dad drilled into me that working hard and being successful is important, but if you can’t enjoy your success, then what is the point in having it at all if you aren’t having any type of enjoyment along the way?

Besides friends and family which are always a number one priority in my life, I think enjoyment, health and integrity are all things that I can improve on. Eliminating stress and other negative aspects of my life will increase my overall enjoyment, and health! Goals I have for myself that I have not yet fully pursued would definitely be to travel the world. I have gone more places than the average person, but there is an unending list of places I dream and hope to go to someday. Another goal is to someday work in the sports business industry, whether that be for the NBA, NFL or a  race company like the Nike Women’s Half Marathon. I wouldn’t say there are things standing in the way of achieving these goals, more like I need to keep pursuing them, and working hard, and never giving up and settling for something less.

The final paragraph, “Personal values matter a great deal. Without them, we cannot live at all, they are just as essential as air, food and water” (19) is a great summary of what I conclude of this reading. Personal values are such a critical part of being a human, without them we would be cookie cutter and with no unique opinions of beliefs. This article certainly created questions and self reflection on how I have become the person I am with the values that I hold.

The section titled “The Most Basic Ways We Come to “Know” Something”, are categories that I have never considered before, but I definitely agree with. In my life, after contemplating which categories I use most and why, I believe that I use all of them (sense, logic, emotion, intuition) fairly evenly. My values based around religion, for example; I concluded that I used both sense experience and emotion in defining my faith. Sense, because my family has told me countless stories of their faith and how it has changed their lives, as well as hearing sermons and talking with other people of faith throughout my church community. Emotion, because when I attend church or are involved in religious activities, I feel enlightened and connected in a way that just feels right. Regarding the two major synthetic mental modes, I fall into the authority category when regarding religion.

These categories certainly all play a significant role into how I have developed and chosen my personal values. When the reading began questioning if there were other modes of developing values, I began brainstorming of other possible categories, but anything I came up with fell into one of the broader categories that was already listed.

“Not only is the very desire to be objective a “value judgement” or bias, so is the desire to define, categorize, compare, and contrast the different ways that we choose values” (17). This quote ties up the chapter in a nutshell for me. How people feel about values, whether they disagree with one another or feel they base their value off the wrong internal mental mode is pretty irrelevant in my opinion. I can’t imagine a world where everyone’s values are based off the same reasoning (logic, sense, emotion, etc.). This reading certainly exposes and peels away all the layers choosing and developing values, and I agree that this reading can “spark a more meaningful dialogue between opposing viewpoints” (19).

I chose the blog mindbodygreen because reading about health, fitness, and lifestyle is always something I have been interested in.

The particular blog post I decided to reflect on is titled “10 Secrets Of Highly Satisfied People”. I choose this post because often times I think many people (emphasis on myself) get cause up in everything we need to be doing or improving on in life, without taking time to appreciate and soak up all the successes and accomplishments that have also occurred. The first sentence of the post “Our attitudes, our experiences and our emotions are choices we make” was a great way to start the post, and I continuously referenced back to that line throughout the rest of the text. You decide how your attitude or experience for the day will be, and unforeseen circumstances may occur that can make or break a mood, but a person’s attitude is a choice, and you can choose to be upset over something that happens, or make the best of it.

Our of the 10 Secrets, I would say the one that I think I personally will try to improve on the most would be #10 “They give themselves permission to be happy”. Sometimes it seems as though there is a stigma that people shouldn’t be happy or proud of accomplishments, that they should diminish what they have done and use a “no big deal” type of mentality.

I enjoyed the blog overall, and thought it had some useful, simple posts that make you reflect on a person’s lifestyles and habits, and hopefully pushes people out of their comfort zone.