Smart Girls

Smart Girls. As in, the antidote to Mean Girls (and more of Earth’s problems).

Amy Poehler and friends Meredith Walker and Amy Miles have created a website and social network to celebrate the individuality and intelligence of girls of all ages. The site features episodes that each highlight a specific girl’s story. These segments focus on young girls and their interests, thoughts and achievements. The video above gives a good overview of the site’s mission and inspiration.

The participation of Amy, Meredith and Amy in each segment reinforces that women of all ages should support the education and development of their fellow girls. In addition, the site emphasizes that girls and women alike should value and cultivate their relationships with each other. The site encourages girls that individuality, intelligence and motivation are cool and fun. The member profiles (mostly adult women) further inspire the camaraderie of females united to support young women.

I encourage you to create a profile and invite other Smart Girls you know – it may seem silly, but watch some of their episodes and you’ll want to be a part of this community, too. Celebrating and supporting the individuality and advancement of young women is something to dance party about!

Here’s a sneak peek at Season 2, the first episode of which is already up!

If you’re on twitter, follow Amy, Meredith and Amy at @smrtgrls.

Wear your smarty pants proudly!

Tags: Amy Poehler, comedy, feminisim, Smart Girls

Hors de Prix

“It’s better to be drunk in the afternoon than in the evening. It’s intoxicating. It feels like having a secret.”

I watched Hors de Prix (“Priceless”) last night for the third time. It’s not a particularly brilliant film, and were it in English or with two different lead actors, I’d probably hate it – but it’s Audrey Tatou! Sure, she plays a shameless gold digger, but she’s so little and cute! How can you resist that face? I want to be her throughout the entire movie, despite her “profession.” As I described to a friend last night, she really is supernaturally gorgeous in this film, it’s unnerving and fantastic at the same time.

"I wake up looking like this."

Her suitor, Gad Elmaleh, is so lovably dorky that your heart breaks and eventually soars for him as the story develops. The basic premise: gold-digging young lady mistakes bartender for a wealthy target; hi-jinks ensue.

Here’s the trailer in French without subtitles, just because the American trailer (with English voice-over narration) is so horrendous:

If you’re not looking for something too cerebral, this movie is just so much fun – it’s a perfect lighthearted escape for your inner francophile. I should also mention that I absolutely love the music in this film. Both the score and songs enhanced the mood perfectly – if anyone finds a download for the soundtrack, let me know!

Here are some of my other favorite quotes from Audrey Tatou’s character, Irene:

“I don’t really like caviar. I force myself to eat it and with time I’ll start to like it. I’m sure when you like it it tastes great.”

“He’s been divorced four times and pays four ex-wives’ alimony. He doesn’t have much left. Believe me, I can do better.”

Follow the jump for Netflix and Youtube links to watch it, plus some B-roll of French people being silly…

Tags: Audrey Tatou, film, French, Gad Elmaleh, Hors de Prix, Netflix, Priceless

The Dr. Knows

As I celebrated and recovered from graduation, I came across a quote that really struck me as appropriate for this moment. I soon discovered that the quote I found so inspiring was from the children’s book “Oh! The Places You’ll Go!” by Dr. Seuss. Naturally, the words that motivated me most while forging into adulthood were originally intended for children.

Rediscovering this poem also made me think about how unpopular this brand of motivation is today. The trend of overly confident kids who have been told they can, will and deserve to achieve anything they desire can be pretty disturbing to witness. It seems like the collective fear of low self-esteem has resulted in an over-correction that is hardly beneficial to a child’s development. Kids are increasingly insulated from the realities of: failures; not always being the best; and achievement rather than entitlement.

Re-reading this wonderful Dr. Seuss piece made me wish more children could hear this message: namely, that you will fall down, it is okay, and you can succeed despite failures.

I dare you to read this and not want to pump your fist and be actively you, fighting through the ups and downs. I hope you find these words as hopeful, honest and inspirational as I did!

Oh! The Places You’ll Go!
by the incomparable Dr. Seuss
(from http://www.teamhope.com/seuss.htm)

Congratulations!
Today is your day.
You’re off to Great Places!
You’re off and away!

You have brains in your head.
You have feet in your shoes.
You can steer yourself any direction you choose.
You’re on your own. And you know what you know. And
YOU are the guy who’ll decide where to go.

You’ll look up and down streets. Look’em over with care.
About some you will say, “I don’t choose to go there.”
With your head full of brains and your shoes full of feet,
you’re too smart to go down a not-so-good street.

And you may not find any you’ll want to go down. In that
case, of course, you’ll head straight out of town. It’s
opener there in the wide open air.

Out there things can happen and frequently do to people
as brainy and footsy as you.

And when things start to happen, don’t worry. Don’t stew.
Just go right along. You’ll start happening too.

Oh! The Places You’ll Go!

You’ll be on your way up!
You’ll be seeing great sights!
You’ll join the high fliers who soar to high heights.

You won’t lag behind, because you’ll have the speed.
You’ll pass the whole gang and you’ll soon take the lead.
Wherever you fly, you’ll be best of the best. Wherever
you go, you will top all the rest.

Except when you don’t.
Because, sometimes, you won’t.

I’m sorry to say so but, sadly, it’s true that Bang-ups and
Hang-ups can happen to you.

continues after the jump…

INC

It’s over! What a semester. Thanks to my sicknasty dancers whose sweat and attitude made this come together in just a few months. And of course, a huge thank you to Max Tannone whose genius created Jaydiohead.

Tags: dance, fall, jaydiohead, music