Any joke that comes at the expense of the safety and dignity of a woman somehow doesn’t inspire me to embrace fits of laughter.

The Barstool Blackout tour is a country-wide series of raves provided to the colleges that amass the most votes. These parties encourage students to get blackout drunk and attend wearing as little clothing as possible. The founder, David Portnoy, who calls himself El Presidente, posted the following in reaction to the backlash against the tour, “Just to make friends with the feminists I’d like to reiterate that we don’t condone rape of any kind at our Blackout Parties in mid-January. However if [a] chick passes out, that’s a grey area though.’’

Portnoy was addressing the Knockout Barstool movement that is emerging on college campuses to challenge Barstool Sports and bring attention to the misogyny of the site itself and the parties it hosts. Members of the Knockout Barstool group were personally attacked on the Barstool website with largely homophobic and ignorant commentary.

A group of 200 students rallied on the night of the Blackout and marched from campus to the House of Blues, where the event was held. I have never felt more empowered than walking through the streets of Boston, chanting “Get up, get down, the feminists are in this town!” with a crowd of passionate advocates. The protest succeeded in bringing greater awareness around issues of rape culture, and similar protests are in the works at other colleges on the tour’s route.

So what’s the takeaway? If we continue to ignore rape and how our culture perpetuates rape, we are implicit in its pervasiveness. Start conversations. Talk about how our culture silences victims, questions their honesty, and why. Most importantly, if you are uncomfortable talking about rape, talk about why you’re uncomfortable and become an ally. If you’re outraged, get engaged.

I surrender to all that ever was, is, and will be… I surrender to the Now.

I’ve worried about the world coming completely, utterly, undone before my children have had a chance to grow up, indeed before I’ve had a chance to “grow up!” As a result, I’ve spent an exorbitant amount of precious time obsessing over things that I haven’t any control, and about decisions I’ve made in the past wondering if only… I’ve thought, when the kids are all in school, when we make more money, when I lose 10lbs…

I moved through my days “Multitasking,” yet never going forward.

“I give up!” I’d often say to myself as I fought against the current of my life.

My contemporary exclamation? “I surrender!”

I make necessary adjustments while going with the current of life so I can more effectively deal with what is instead of fighting against what if , and I hope.

I didn’t understand the past is just that, past. I can’t un-happen any of it, that when it was happening it was in the present moment. I didn’t understand that the future, when it occurs, it will occur in the present moment…

I consciously choose to be here in this very instant, instead of focusing my energy in the past or future. Even as I type this I have to resist the urge to make a phone call, check my messages, or pick a hang nail. By practicing this I have little time for regrets because I’m actively engaged physically and mentally in the now.

Eckart Tolle has a book about this titled The Power of Now.

As a busy mother, wife and citizen of the world it’s imperative I learn the art of Surrendering. I don’t mean giving up on life, but giving IN to it. Learning to not push back, but to go with the flow.
For all you overachievers, doing this means relinquishing your little red cape that you don every morning, tucked nicely into your Ann Taylor trousers.

Surrendering requires no superhuman abilities, only the willingness to just ‘Be.’ I challenge you to consider what you’re doing right now worthy of your undivided attention, to step back, surrendering yourself to the wonder of life in all its beautiful (and sometimes mundane) imperfection.

Beverly:

I like the part of SWSG when we do peaks and valleys because then I get to tell people about my happiest times and when I was mad at that time.  So SWSG can help me.  They will tell me what to do to make me happier.  I learned ways to control anger by telling a teacher to help you instead of picking fights.  This way nobody will get hurt and you will feel better about yourself!

Andrea:

What I like about SWSG was the field trip and when we do peaks and valleys.  What I liked about the field trip was going to Harvard University because I enjoyed the snacks and my favorite part was the Indian dance because I think the culture of India is a culture with a lot of different things I don’t have in my culture.  Also I enjoyed reading stories with SWSG because they help me solve my problems in a better way.

I mean, it is hard not to think about these last things when the media is constantly telling us that the day is all about love and couples, but obviously this is just a marketing strategy that can make us feel a bit blue on this day. But let’s think outside the box for a moment.

If Valentine’s Day is all about love… (I can hear in my head The Beatles singing “All You Need is Love”), why not make this day about loving me?! I’m going to spend some quality time with me and give myself a little retreat at home. I’ll start by cooking Me a nice dinner, maybe an old family recipe or trying something new, inviting myself to a nice dessert afterwards and ending the night with a good movie like Persepolis or Little Miss Sunshine. And remember, let’s not make it a love-related movie!

We need to remember that before anything else in life, we need to learn to love ourselves, because if we do, everything else we set our minds to will be done with real passion! So whether you have someone with whom to share this day or not, don’t worry too much about it and enjoy yourself.

NOTE: The picture is from the book Great Gals, Inspired Ideas for Living a Kick-Ass Life by Summer Pierre.

Check back soon for more videos and tell us – why are you excited for Jump into Spring 2012?

If the previous statement more or less describes your general state of regralgia (a carefully struck balance of regret and nostalgia…still working out the kinks on that one),  brace yourself.  The time has come for your utopian reveries to be actualized.

Behold.  Colton James Boettcher’s “ceeJbee Productions” brings us the high school of our dreams in the form of an “It Get’s Better” music video set to the tune of Lady Gaga’s “Hair.”

Let’s reference our checklist, shall we?

•          A poptastic message of self-acceptance (from Lady G, no less)? Check.
•          Aggressively defiant choreography? Check.
•          Prom scene a la Taylor Swifts “You Belong With Me” (the cute, queer version)? Check.
•          Bullied teen prevails over bully (and gets a boyfriend, to boot!)? Check.
•          Classmates of bullied teen figure out that acceptance beats ignorance in that roshambo of a schoolyard game, “Acceptance, Ignorance, Videos of Babies Laughing” (videos of babies laughing trumps everything, of course). Check.

Can you imagine what it’d be like if high school could be like this for kids today?  Well, not necessarily all the table-dancing (that is a liability lawsuit waiting to happen), but the creation of an environment where messages of inclusion from peers is the norm, and ignorance is so out of style it doesn’t even get invited to the party.  What a world that would be.

Alas, instead we have adults like Tennessee senator Stacey Campfield, sponsor of the “Don’t Say Gay” bill which would make it illegal for educators to talk about any form of sexuality other than heterosexuality with students grades K-8 (so, what if you have gay parents?  Well, I guess that’s ok, as long as you don’t talk about it).  I have to admit, I gave a little cheer and a fist pump when I heard about Sen. Campfield being kicked out of a Knoxville restaurant in response to his anti-gay proposition.   ”I hope that Stacy (sic) Campfield now knows what it feels like to be unfairly discriminated against,” said restaurant owner Martha Boggs (source: Huffington Post).

I hope so too, Martha, because if there’s one thing I know, it’s that our kids sure don’t deserve to know what that kind of ignorant prejudice feels like.  They deserve Lady Gaga flash mobs in the cafeteria, wonderfully inclusive proms, and youtube videos of babies laughing (because who doesn’t need one of those once in a while?).

The workshop was led by Program Manager, Kenyora Johnson and allowed the Executive Boards from the different colleges to converse with each other. It is always interesting to find out what fundraisers they are having, field trips they are hosting and learning about different chapters. But what made this workshop particularly special was taking the “D.O.P.E test.” The D.O.P.E test is a personality test based on how you perceive yourself. At the top of the D.O.P.E test, columns are labeled 1 through 4, and there are 40 rows. In each row, there are four adjectives, and you must pick the word that describes you the best. At the end of the test, you tally how many adjectives you picked in each column. Each column’s number corresponds with a letter: “D,” which stands for Dove; “O” for Owl, “P” for Peacock; or “E” for Eagle. After the group took the D.O.P.E test, Kenyora revealed what each bird breed meant in relation to personality type:

• Dove: Peaceful and friendly
• Owl: Wise and logical
• Peacock: Showy and optimistic
• Eagle: Bold and decisive

While I am, apparently, a peacock, there were also plenty of doves, owls, and peacocks in the room – and yet we all work well together. The test reaffirmed how lucky we are to have such diverse Executive Boards that can come together and create a cohesive group of women. We are lucky to have people from all walks of life and backgrounds in our chapters. Having so many different personalities and opinions in our chapters makes us, well, Strong.

I encourage you to take the D.O.P.E test yourself! Are you a Dove, Owl, Peacock, or Eagle?

Do we acknowledge how many forms empowerment may come in – whether it is a connection made through a mentor, a word of encouragement from a coworker, or…the moment of inner peace provided by a yoga instructor?

Enter Lee Anne (LA) Finfinger, yoga instructor extraordinaire.  She is (quite literally) a woman of action, as she has devoted her life to the practice of Vinyasa Flow Yoga.  Yet, in this installment of my “ Celebrating Women of Action” blog series, I want to highlight that as an instructor, LA empowers her students to take one step closer towards the ever-evasive balance of full lives, healthy lifestyles, and peaceful minds.

I have had the pleasure of taking many of her classes in Pittsburgh.  I have entered too many of them feeling tired, weary, distracted, downtrodden, angered at the state of the economy/the fact that there wasn’t a new episode of Modern Family on last night… and emerged a sweaty, reinvigorated, rejuvenated, inspired, goal-seeking, empowered woman.

Can some of this miracle makeover be chocked up to the endorphins?

The science-respecting part of me wants to say Yes, but the I’ve-tried-every-other-sport-under-the-sun-and-never-felt-this-way part of me says definitely No.  LA’s uncanny ability to make students laugh while they are twisted into outrageously contorted pretzel-y positions helps put everything in perspective in a way that a three-mile jog or a kickboxing class never could.

Her classes require control, self-discipline, and acknowledgment of discomfort without allowing it to overpower you.  She asks students to sink their knees a little deeper into a pose, causing a fiery muscle burn pretty much everywhere in the body.  She then asks them to see the symbolism between this act and the mental strain of a tough day at work, of running a household, etc.

The message is perseverance: “If you can handle this, taking two more deep breaths, you can handle anything.”  She empowers students to not let pressure (or lactic acid) knock them off of their track or distract them from their goals!

I want to offer my sincere gratitude to LA for the deep-conditioning treatment on my soul, and if any readers live in the Pittsburgh area and are interested in witnessing LA’s inspiration in action, check out her schedule at South Hills Power Yoga, Yoga Hive or on her personal website: www.lafinfinger.com.

To wrap things up and bring this back to SWSG, I asked LA if she sees a future in yoga for children. “I think that yoga can help you know who you are and any help that any of us can get with that at any age is invaluable.  The physical practice of yoga (the asanas) provides a tremendous benefit on its own.  Combine that with a quieter mind and a sense of appreciation and control, and you’ve got one unstoppable person!” Amen to that, and Namaste!

On that note, SWSG is extremely pleased to announce two new sponsors who have “jumped in” to support our work in Pittsburgh! First, SWSG is excited to welcome our second joint sponsor: Mascaro Construction Co. This is the second year that Mascaro Construction has supported Jump into Spring. This year, Mascaro joins Starkist Co as a joint-sponsor of both Jump into Spring and the Strong Awards, our end-of-year celebration of outstanding volunteers. Christy Uffelman, valued SWSG Pittsburgh Advisory Council member, is the Vice President of Employee and Organizational Development at Mascaro. Christy has done outstanding work piloting the Strong Leaders program in Pittsburgh this year.

SWSG is also pleased to announce Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield as a returning Jump into Spring sponsor in Pittsburgh! Highmark is a longtime supporter of Strong Women, Strong Girls.

Mascaro, Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield, and Starkist join Berner International Corporation (in Pittsburgh) and Natixis Global Asset Management (in Boston). With this support,  these companies are helping SWSG connect girls to mentors, raising their aspirations and self-esteem, inspiring them to create positive change in their communities, and helping them pursue a healthy lifestyle. For helping to create cycles of mutual empowerment for women and girls, SWSG thanks these outstanding sponsors! check back as we continue to highlight who is “jumping in” to support Jump into Spring.