Stand there in no one's shadow. You are the star, the afterglow.
Okay, mighty f-list. I've had the idea for this post in my head for a while, but as I feel like my posts have been a little on the boring side lately, and also because this upcoming week promises to be a monotonous one for me, I've decided to bust it out now. And I'm taking a chance with putting this out there, so be your awesome selves and don't let me down. MMMK.
I don't even know where the idea for this came from, but over the past...well, I don't even know how long, really, I guess I've begun to realize how much I love talking about inspiration. Not necessarily just the people that inspire me, but the people that inspire everyone I come into contact with. And one of the things I love about Livejournalers is the fact that a good majority of the people on here really seem to get it. They not only get why I look up to the people I do, but the reasons why I do so. The reasons that are hard to put into words. And maybe this doesn't apply to everyone, but I know that the large majority of people on my friends list seem to have a few select people who have a place over all others in their eyes.
For me, it's probably fairly obvious after having been my friend for even a short period of time who the women are that mean the most to me. It's always been pretty interesting to me who I've been drawn to and why. Throughout my teen years, I guess you could say that I've mostly gravitated towards the 'bubbly blondes': my first real 'idol' was Kristin Chenoweth, and then came Felicity Huffman, and most recently, there was the one and only Bette Midler. And along the way there have been countless others, of course -- Idina, and Michelle, and Tina, and Meryl, and Sally, and goodness, I feel bad even beginning to make a list because I know I'd be leaving out so many others -- but those three have been the ones who have meant the absolute most to me. To me, one of the most brilliant feelings in the world is that of discovering a new 'obsession', I suppose one would call it; how you just want to learn everything about them and watch every movie they've ever been in and get your hands on every piece of music they've ever recorded, etcetera, etcetera. Does anyone else get that? I've had multiple conversations with several different people over the years about these kinds of feelings: on one hand, I wish everyone in the world was able to feel them, because they are marvelous, but at the same time...it's nice to know that these feelings can be something special and unique and all your own, even if you've got other people (online or in real life) to share them with.
And this is turning rambly, so I now digress. If you'd like to discuss anything I just mentioned, or even anything related in any way, I'm all for discussing it. But onto what will probably be the crux of this post:
So, friends, tell me: who is it that inspires you?
If you want, tell me why they're such an inspiration to you. I know it's often hard to articulate in words what exactly it is about a person you love, especially an idol, but if you'd like to elaborate then I'd be absolutely delighted to read what I have to say. Or you can tell me what made you 'fall' for them in the first place, if that's more relevant. Or don't tell me at all, and just say it with images.
And don't stop there. This is an entry to post the pictures that mean the most to you of the people that mean the most to you. The quotes of theirs that you want to plaster all over everything you come into contact with, and even the little quirks that nobody but you seems to notice but still mean the world to you all the same. Young or old, living or dead, woman or man, celebrity or not. Nothing is off-limits. I want to hear about the people that inspire you; the people that have shaped you into who you are today; the people you couldn't imagine living life your without.
I'm obviously fully aware that for a good number of you, I could probably pinpoint who it is you'll choose with little hesitation. But this is the post to tell me why you love them and what they mean to you -- and for you to read about who those people are for others, as I, for one, think it'll completely interesting to see what everyone has to say.
I'll more than likely add my thoughts into a comment of my own in the days to come. But I'm going to leave this public, so if, for whatever reason, you would like to share this with your f-lists (And I would absolutely love it if you could!) and have them come on over here and post their inspirations, by all means, please do. I want this post to be bursting at the seams with pictures, quotes, love, and everything else in-between. If you want to leave more than one comment, go for it. And if you leave a comment at all, I thank you in advance for putting up with me and my strange ideas.
On your marks? Get set. GO.
Ihopethisdoesn'tcrashandburn. Eta: THANK YOU ALL FOR BEING THE MOST WONDERFUL HUMAN BEINGS WHO EVER LIVED. To those that have replied, I'm working on replying to all of your comments little by little, but I just have so much I want to say and not enough time to say it in. I truly do want to respond to every single one of you, and I promise you I will, whether it's today, tomorrow, or a week from now. Because I appreciate everything you guys have offered up, and I am so glad this grew into what I hoped it would be and more. I cannot tell you how much of a smile this has brought to my face. ♥ ♥
Eta number 2: I finally found the time to add my thoughts to this. I don't know how many of you will see this since it's about a week and a half later, but they're here, nonetheless, mostly just for the purposes of my own reflection. Just Bette for now.
View Raw Image" id="TB_Image" />
Okay, so, there's this woman named Bette Midler. I don’t even know how to accurately describe how large of an infatuation I have with this woman. Because it truly still baffles me to this day.
I still remember how it all started. One night last summer, I was sitting on the couch when my dad barged in and took control of the remote, putting on a re-run of Bette on Oprah. And I was basically just irked over the fact that he was subjecting me to watch it in the first place, but at the same time, I felt something about this quirky little blond woman on my tv screen. I watched her giggle and make cute faces, and gawk over her daughter, and sing a song about salads, and prance around the stage with her gaggle of feather-clad dancers - and from that day on, I was hooked. I bought all her CDs, I rented all her movies, and I came to love and respect her more than I ever thought possible. It was bigger than any other ‘obsession’ of mine that I’d had before, because simply put, by that point in my life, I just…knew how to obsess over something, as peculiar as that sounds. I knew how to give myself over to her and let myself become such a huge fan, and I just...did it. I honestly think I said it best back when I was first starting to fall for her: “She's the kind of quirky and extroverted that I always wished I could be, but never was. She's the kind of brash that hardly ever comes off annoying or in-your-face. She's the kind of bubbly that's so beyond lovely and contagious that it makes me want to ram my head into a wall from the absolute insanity of it all.” Throughout the course of her career, she’s just done so much and been so many different things: an actress, a singer, a performer, a wife, a mother. And she has talent. An odd-girl-out from Hawaii who made her way to New York so she could do what she was most determined to do: become a legend. More than likely part of the reason this ultimately happened is because she’s notoriously famous for being brash and bawdy, and she’s completely unabashed when it comes to speaking her mind. I am fascinated with the way she rose to such fame early in her career - she cut records in little apartments and became biffs with Barry Manilow, eventually blew up into this madly popular Broadway star, had her own tv specials, got nominated for an Oscar, and took the entire world by storm from that point on. And she has so much passion all that she does in life. So much. She constantly talks about how much her career truly means to her and how she could never give it up, and in her personal life, she’s stated that becoming a mother was the best thing she could ever possibly do. She’s had her own production company and starred in dozens of movies, dipping into every possible form of media, started an organization that’s cleaned up thousands of acres of city parkland, toured the world a million and one times over and won numerous Grammys and Emmys, along with a Tony, and now, at age 63, she’s strutting her stuff in Vegas better than almost anyone else who’s ever graced a stage before. The thing I love the most about her, though, is probably the stark contrast between her on-stage personalities and her off-stage self. Obviously she’s far more over-the-top in real life than your average celebrity (though I feel like she has become a bit more subdued over the course of her career, which is certainly to be expected), but put this girl on a stage and she’ll start to slip into characters no one has ever seen before, belt her guts out, fire off dirty jokes left and right - and I feel like that’s how it’s always been with me, as well: I’m typically one of the most reserved people you could ever come across, but thrust me into the spotlight and I’m anything you want me to be.
And there are so many odd little quirks of hers that I love to bits that I could list, but I would be here for days and days. Like how her eyes get all squinty when she smiles, how her laugh is probably the most infectious laugh of anyone I’ve ever heard, how I think about her and motivate myself to be the be as brazen as I can when I have to give a performance of any kind. ♥
"You know, I like people to make me laugh. It’s the only way to survive. The whole thing, after all, is one big joke. So, whatever anyone wants to think about me is fine. That’s what I’m here for, that’s my role. I can be an object of love, hate, it doesn’t matter. As long as I like myself."
I don't even know where the idea for this came from, but over the past...well, I don't even know how long, really, I guess I've begun to realize how much I love talking about inspiration. Not necessarily just the people that inspire me, but the people that inspire everyone I come into contact with. And one of the things I love about Livejournalers is the fact that a good majority of the people on here really seem to get it. They not only get why I look up to the people I do, but the reasons why I do so. The reasons that are hard to put into words. And maybe this doesn't apply to everyone, but I know that the large majority of people on my friends list seem to have a few select people who have a place over all others in their eyes.
For me, it's probably fairly obvious after having been my friend for even a short period of time who the women are that mean the most to me. It's always been pretty interesting to me who I've been drawn to and why. Throughout my teen years, I guess you could say that I've mostly gravitated towards the 'bubbly blondes': my first real 'idol' was Kristin Chenoweth, and then came Felicity Huffman, and most recently, there was the one and only Bette Midler. And along the way there have been countless others, of course -- Idina, and Michelle, and Tina, and Meryl, and Sally, and goodness, I feel bad even beginning to make a list because I know I'd be leaving out so many others -- but those three have been the ones who have meant the absolute most to me. To me, one of the most brilliant feelings in the world is that of discovering a new 'obsession', I suppose one would call it; how you just want to learn everything about them and watch every movie they've ever been in and get your hands on every piece of music they've ever recorded, etcetera, etcetera. Does anyone else get that? I've had multiple conversations with several different people over the years about these kinds of feelings: on one hand, I wish everyone in the world was able to feel them, because they are marvelous, but at the same time...it's nice to know that these feelings can be something special and unique and all your own, even if you've got other people (online or in real life) to share them with.
And this is turning rambly, so I now digress. If you'd like to discuss anything I just mentioned, or even anything related in any way, I'm all for discussing it. But onto what will probably be the crux of this post:
So, friends, tell me: who is it that inspires you?
If you want, tell me why they're such an inspiration to you. I know it's often hard to articulate in words what exactly it is about a person you love, especially an idol, but if you'd like to elaborate then I'd be absolutely delighted to read what I have to say. Or you can tell me what made you 'fall' for them in the first place, if that's more relevant. Or don't tell me at all, and just say it with images.
And don't stop there. This is an entry to post the pictures that mean the most to you of the people that mean the most to you. The quotes of theirs that you want to plaster all over everything you come into contact with, and even the little quirks that nobody but you seems to notice but still mean the world to you all the same. Young or old, living or dead, woman or man, celebrity or not. Nothing is off-limits. I want to hear about the people that inspire you; the people that have shaped you into who you are today; the people you couldn't imagine living life your without.
I'm obviously fully aware that for a good number of you, I could probably pinpoint who it is you'll choose with little hesitation. But this is the post to tell me why you love them and what they mean to you -- and for you to read about who those people are for others, as I, for one, think it'll completely interesting to see what everyone has to say.
I'll more than likely add my thoughts into a comment of my own in the days to come. But I'm going to leave this public, so if, for whatever reason, you would like to share this with your f-lists (And I would absolutely love it if you could!) and have them come on over here and post their inspirations, by all means, please do. I want this post to be bursting at the seams with pictures, quotes, love, and everything else in-between. If you want to leave more than one comment, go for it. And if you leave a comment at all, I thank you in advance for putting up with me and my strange ideas.
On your marks? Get set. GO.
Ihopethisdoesn'tcrashandburn. Eta: THANK YOU ALL FOR BEING THE MOST WONDERFUL HUMAN BEINGS WHO EVER LIVED. To those that have replied, I'm working on replying to all of your comments little by little, but I just have so much I want to say and not enough time to say it in. I truly do want to respond to every single one of you, and I promise you I will, whether it's today, tomorrow, or a week from now. Because I appreciate everything you guys have offered up, and I am so glad this grew into what I hoped it would be and more. I cannot tell you how much of a smile this has brought to my face. ♥ ♥
Eta number 2: I finally found the time to add my thoughts to this. I don't know how many of you will see this since it's about a week and a half later, but they're here, nonetheless, mostly just for the purposes of my own reflection. Just Bette for now.
View Raw Image" id="TB_Image" />
Okay, so, there's this woman named Bette Midler. I don’t even know how to accurately describe how large of an infatuation I have with this woman. Because it truly still baffles me to this day.
I still remember how it all started. One night last summer, I was sitting on the couch when my dad barged in and took control of the remote, putting on a re-run of Bette on Oprah. And I was basically just irked over the fact that he was subjecting me to watch it in the first place, but at the same time, I felt something about this quirky little blond woman on my tv screen. I watched her giggle and make cute faces, and gawk over her daughter, and sing a song about salads, and prance around the stage with her gaggle of feather-clad dancers - and from that day on, I was hooked. I bought all her CDs, I rented all her movies, and I came to love and respect her more than I ever thought possible. It was bigger than any other ‘obsession’ of mine that I’d had before, because simply put, by that point in my life, I just…knew how to obsess over something, as peculiar as that sounds. I knew how to give myself over to her and let myself become such a huge fan, and I just...did it. I honestly think I said it best back when I was first starting to fall for her: “She's the kind of quirky and extroverted that I always wished I could be, but never was. She's the kind of brash that hardly ever comes off annoying or in-your-face. She's the kind of bubbly that's so beyond lovely and contagious that it makes me want to ram my head into a wall from the absolute insanity of it all.” Throughout the course of her career, she’s just done so much and been so many different things: an actress, a singer, a performer, a wife, a mother. And she has talent. An odd-girl-out from Hawaii who made her way to New York so she could do what she was most determined to do: become a legend. More than likely part of the reason this ultimately happened is because she’s notoriously famous for being brash and bawdy, and she’s completely unabashed when it comes to speaking her mind. I am fascinated with the way she rose to such fame early in her career - she cut records in little apartments and became biffs with Barry Manilow, eventually blew up into this madly popular Broadway star, had her own tv specials, got nominated for an Oscar, and took the entire world by storm from that point on. And she has so much passion all that she does in life. So much. She constantly talks about how much her career truly means to her and how she could never give it up, and in her personal life, she’s stated that becoming a mother was the best thing she could ever possibly do. She’s had her own production company and starred in dozens of movies, dipping into every possible form of media, started an organization that’s cleaned up thousands of acres of city parkland, toured the world a million and one times over and won numerous Grammys and Emmys, along with a Tony, and now, at age 63, she’s strutting her stuff in Vegas better than almost anyone else who’s ever graced a stage before. The thing I love the most about her, though, is probably the stark contrast between her on-stage personalities and her off-stage self. Obviously she’s far more over-the-top in real life than your average celebrity (though I feel like she has become a bit more subdued over the course of her career, which is certainly to be expected), but put this girl on a stage and she’ll start to slip into characters no one has ever seen before, belt her guts out, fire off dirty jokes left and right - and I feel like that’s how it’s always been with me, as well: I’m typically one of the most reserved people you could ever come across, but thrust me into the spotlight and I’m anything you want me to be.
And there are so many odd little quirks of hers that I love to bits that I could list, but I would be here for days and days. Like how her eyes get all squinty when she smiles, how her laugh is probably the most infectious laugh of anyone I’ve ever heard, how I think about her and motivate myself to be the be as brazen as I can when I have to give a performance of any kind. ♥
"You know, I like people to make me laugh. It’s the only way to survive. The whole thing, after all, is one big joke. So, whatever anyone wants to think about me is fine. That’s what I’m here for, that’s my role. I can be an object of love, hate, it doesn’t matter. As long as I like myself."