What a 'big man' he is!

You may well be surprised to see a football related blog entry here.  Believe me, I'm as surprised as you are!  However, when something incenses you so entirely you know it's time to write, write, write!  Two words, John Terry.

If you haven't just seen the appalling behaviour of the Chelsea and England captain during the Chelsea v. Barcelona match, you surely must have heard about him sleeping with his best friend's (and team-mate's) fiancée and racially abusing Anton Ferdinand.  Now, if you didn't see today's incident you will soon find out, courtesy of the media, that he deliberately and maliciously kneed in the back Alexis Sanchez of Barca whilst another player was making a pass their way (though this isn't how he put it, of course!).  He was out of sight of the referee, but it is rather stupid of a professional footballer to think that one of the referee's assistants won't spot such a blatant act of foul-play.

BUT this man can do no wrong!  "We're all human beings, and under a lot of pressure these players, we all make mistakes", said Chelsea manager Roberto Di matteo (and I'm typing this live by the way!), when asked if he was angry with Terry.  Jamie Redknapp and Glenn Hoddle seem to think that Terry has been "a big man" coming forward and admitting his mistake.  Well, I don't think that's exactly what he did, did he?  What he actually said was, "yeah I can see how it looks bad on the replay".  He made up some ridiculous nonsense about him 'protecting himself' and that what he did wasn't intentional.  In fact he hopes that all the people who know him and the fans would know he would never do anything to intentionally hurt someone.  

Well this man is either incredibly ignorant, or he's a liar.  Because I'd say sleeping with your best friend's fiancée is always likely to hurt somebody, and hurling racial abuse isn't exactly a picnic in the park for the recipient.  But all is well, because Terry is the captain, and the team love him, and he's apologised.  He's "a big man".  When are the footballing world going to realize that there are plenty of talented footballers out there who deserve to hold the captaincy?  Men who believe in fair-play, who support their team-mates and set an example.  Managers should not allow men like Terry, who repeatedly brings shame to their club, to hold such a prestigious role within the team - what example does it set?!  Paid millions to act like a 12 year old bully-boy; embarrassing!

Inspiring Olympians

I was so pleased today to pick up my copy of Zest magazine  and see the beautiful athlete Jessica Ennis on the front cover (yes I know this pic is from Marie Claire, she's everywhere!).  I find Zest's health chat inspiring enough but their inclusion of Jess pushed it to a whole new level.  This got me thinking...

I know the Olympics is supposedly going to do wonders for our economy, for our capital and for our country but how else could it benefit us everyday people?  My conclusion: inspiration.  What is an Olympian?  They are not just 'sports people': they push themselves to their limits, and then they do it some more.  They strive, everyday, to make themselves better.  They dedicate every aspect of their lives, their diets, their time, their bodies, to the achievement of their goal.

We might not be sports people, but can we not all learn something from our Olympic athletes?  I don't just mean from a physical perspective but I will stick with the theme to illustrate my point.  Very recently, due to various happenings, I have become increasingly aware of the potential frailty of the human condition.  It has served to remind me (and forgive the old cliché) that we should be grateful for what we have.  I am blessed with four fully functioning limbs, and a system of internal organs in fully working order, and I think I have a duty to look after that.  We actually have the potential to push our bodies to the limits that Olympians do!  Of course, we might choose to dedicate our lives to other things, but that doesn't mean that the same concepts can't exist in these other areas to reach our absolute potential.  Certainly the same thing can be applied to our minds, to our family lives, to our talents etc etc.  'Use it or lose it' suddenly springs to mind!

Another thing that occurred to me looking at Jess Ennis, is the role model she is in terms of society's obsession with the body beautiful!  What is the body beautiful?  Surely it is a body that has reached it's full potential in terms of health and ability: Jess Ennis's body!  Now I'm not advocating we all train to be a heptathlete, or spend a furious 2 hours a day on the treadmill and the Smith Machine, but I do hope the beautiful healthy bodies that will be photographed and splashed all over the media during the Olympics will serve as some inspiration, especially to the younger generation who are bombarded with images of very slim fashion models.  Perhaps the Olympians will help them to understand that there are many different body types, and that a healthy body, however it looks, is an enviable one.

Gold medals all round I think!!!

A WHAT?!!!

I do hope that many who have engaged in any kind of media today feel the same as I do.  I'm finding the British media more and more tiresome.  In their desperate bid to sell sell sell they just talk absolute nonsense, exaggerate immensely, and it's getting embarrassing.  Today, the British public have been advised by the media there is a severe drought!!!  And not only that, it could continue until after Christmas!!!  Oh my word, WHAT is to be done, you ask?!!!  Well, actually, according to Sky News (and please note this information is nearing the end of an article that has made it sound like we've almost run out of the essential liquid of life), 'Officials stress that public water supplies are unlikely to be affected by the ongoing drought but are reiterating calls from consumers to combat the dry conditions by using scarce water wisely'.  So basically, what's the problem here? 

Apparently there's a hosepipe ban; what's the worst that can happen???  Your car stays a bit dusty, you need to use a watering can to water your prizewinning hydrangeas and that water fight you promised your kids at their summer sleepover is off.  Big deal.

A 'drought' is what they have in Africa.  A 'drought' is where it doesn't rain and there isn't enough water to sustain life.  Human beings die of thirst and starvation because there isn't enough water to drink or to sustain crops.  There isn't any money, there isn't any import, there isn't any aid.

So lets put this 'drought' into perspective shall we? 
 1) take a trip to Tesco and see how much bottled water is for sale.  Not just that; we have juice, pop, milk etc etc.  So none of us will die of thirst!
2) we import food from all over the world.  We have access to fruits no one knows how to eat!  We will not starve!
3) 'public water supplies are unlikely to be affected by the ongoing drought'.  So basically, you can use your dishwasher, washing machine, flush, have a bath or shower as often as you like, we won't run out!  Public advice will be what it's always been: have a shower instead of a bath (but who's policing this?!).  The UK will remain smelling sweet and Radox will undoubtedly stay in business!

To the British media: get real, your sensationalism is ridiculous!!!

'Hate the haterz'!!!

I love this phrase, Lily Cooper (formerly Allen) used it on Twitter last night and I frequently see it on facebook. 'Hate the haterz'.  I'm going to ignore the fact this phrase is a complete paradox because it goes off my point, which is this... I am a hater!

Frequently when I look in the mirror, I hate this bit or that bit.  I want a bit off here, a bit more on there.  I've been this way since I was a teenager, one of the first to develop scary boobs and notice stretch-marks on my then rather skinny thighs.  I thought because I had stretch-marks I must be fat.  No one told me that they just pop up during puberty and ironically it was probably more likely down to sports and the development of my muscles.  It's difficult to change the thinking patterns you develop during your teenage years.

This is why I was so thrilled to see the Dove Self Esteem Programme for girls and boys aged 11-14.  One statistic given in their literature: 'While only 19% of teenage girls are overweight, 67% think they 'need to lose weight' ' (Jan 2004, Bliss Magazine) (I have to say this statistic was most likely published in a teenage magazine brimming with images of skinny models and actresses - ironic!).  The programme aims to educate young people in building their self-esteem and body confidence, and teaches why these things are so important in life.  Kids answer questions like 'Who says who is beautiful?' and view the work that airbrushing does to the images of actresses like Kate Winslet.  There are free, downloadable workshops and activity guides for school-teachers to use in class, but also for parents to use at home.  http://www.dove.co.uk/dsep/support-tools/workshops.html

If I had a teenage daughter, I would absolutely be using these resources and encouraging her school to do the same.  I was always keen on Dove's 'Real Beauty' campaign but I think they have really pulled it out of the bag with this, working alongside 'beat', an eating disorder charity.  Whilst much of the media world tries to shrink everyone down with ridiculous syrup diets, some campaigns are positively fighting back.  The fact is, to be as fit and healthy (body and mind) as your situation allows, whatever body that comes with, is the most important thing, and this should be encouraged.  I love magazines like Zest and Women's Health who encourage us grown ups as well (so perhaps it's not too late for me either!)  So no more haterz please, it's positively unhealthy!!!