2010: WHAT I LEARNED

Snow fun~, originally uploaded by HannaDonato.

I just took a moment to crack open my window and invite some of the snow in as an after Christmas guest. Up on the east coast, mother nature has given us a white blanket to clean the slate a-new to mark the end of the year.

Gazing out at the snow as it tumbles from roof to roof aimlessly, the last breath of 2010 whispers to the beat of the blizzard. This entry was supposed to be a list of New Year's resolutions, Girls in the Hall style. Instead, it turned into what I have learned this past year. 2010--you broke my heart, gave me the idea to start this blog and connect with girls around the country, shocked me with both the humanity and cruelty around the world, helped me fall in love again, and showed me that I am capable of so much more than I ever thought possible. Life threw lesson after lesson at me in the high school of life, and I am a better person for it. I am sure that a lot of you have had the same experiences. What I scribbled down along the way:

It's ok to get mad.... I have spent so much of my life bottling up my feelings in an attempt to be ever cheery. I realized that I can indeed be a good person and get upset sometimes, and it's a-ok. So often girls are taught to not get upset, and it is time we break that pattern.

Be brave..... The high road is hard sometimes. Climbing it often means courage and more work. Being kind to everyone at school, popular or not, takes strength. In order to reverse the bullying epidemic, it takes all of us--one by one--to take a stand. You could change someone's life by a hello or smile in the hallway each day.

Make time to play....... With all of the things on a girl's to do list, "time to just have fun" usually doesn't rate all that high. With exams, college applications, dealing with family, stressing about friends/boys/you name it, we all need to take a little time to breathe.

Volunteer.... It is so easy to get swept up in to the huge soap opera that is social hour at school. Think about all of the time you spend sending texts or calling your friends with gossip. What if you all took some of that time and bettered the planet? Find something that you like--tutoring, spending time playing board games at a senior center, taking care of stray pets, etc.--and you will discover that the person who gets the most out of giving your time is YOU.

Unabashedly Us.... I am a girl of paradoxes. I love to lip gloss and sneakers. I can't throw a football to save my life, but love to watch the game. I can be the life of the party, but sometimes get so shy I want to blend into the wallpaper. Each day I learn more things about myself, and have learned to embrace all of my quirks. After all, without them we would all be the same.

Don't rush.... In our attempts to make it to the next stage of life and all of the energy that we put into the possibilities of the future, don't let the present get swept away like the snow.

Bring on 2011!

GIVING BACK

the whole world in her hands., originally uploaded by Liz. :).

How are you spending your winter break? With the holidays upon us, Girls in the Hall wants to highlight some volunteering ideas where you can really make an impact and show the world what this season really stands for. Take a break from the mall or baking Christmas cookies to give a gift to the world. Here are our favorite ideas:


1) Donate. Donate Donate.
Reach out to your local shelters and food pantries to see what they need--canned goods and warm weather clothing are often in great need . Start a drive around your neighborhood and give free services like babysitting, car washing or lawn care to those who donate.



2) Give a toy.
Thousands of kids need help to get gifts for Christmas that so many of us take for granted. Check out Toys for Tots to see what what you can get, or hit up bookstores like Barnes and Noble to give the gift of reading.


3) Take some time.
Contact a local nursing home or shelter and see about spending some time there. Play a game, organize a dance or just sit and talk. You will learn a ton and have a powerful time that puts perspective on the season.


4) Fundraise.
Bake cookies or do crafts and sell them to go towards your favorite Holiday charity. Our favorites are Holiday care packages from Service men and woman over seas. Click here to check out their site.

5) Love to cook?
Whip up your favorite Holiday recipe and send it on over to a food shelter or hunger organization. Call 'em first to make sure they take homemade items.


6) Get fit and contribute.
Look on your community calendar to see what walks and races are coming up in your area and raise money for a good cause while walkin' off the pumpkin pie calories.


7) Love animals?
Buy and ask around for dog/cat supplies and drop them off at your local animal shelter.


Check your online city government website for other ideas to give back this season! Also, make sure to keep on volunteering year round--the world doesn't just need help on the holidays!

DANCES 101

prom., originally uploaded by Renee Rorer..

Last month, a fellow Girl in the Hall shot us an email about a hot topic: Dances. There are some of us who day dream about them during English class, hoping the crushes who fill our heads and notebooks will ask us. Some of us dread the thought of spending the night dressed up at the gym and would much rather stay home with a movie. Others of us have had our fill. With so many girl-ask-guy dances coming up this winter, we thought we would take a stab at answering all things D-A-N-C-E.

1) What do you do if you get asked?
Well, that depends on who asks. Just remember, regardless, the guy doing the asking is indeed sticking his neck on out by posing that question into the ether. You gotta respect a dude who can put everything on the line by asking. Our advice is, follow your gut and don't be afraid of a little surprise. That guy you have never talked to who asks you to that dance may just end up being your high school sweetheart, a good friend, or, at the very least, a fun memory down the road. If you really, really, really don't wanna go with the guy who asks, remember to let him down easy and treat him with kindness. Be open to the unexpected, ladies. That being said, if you find this guy off putting in a safety kinda way, always FOLLOW YOUR GUT!

2) What to do if you don't get asked?
First off, it is a-ok. Second, have you thought about doin' the asking? My senior year, I asked the cute guy in drama class to a dance and we ended up dating. He hadn't thought about asking me and I went for it. The worst that can happen is they say no and you move on over to the next option. This is 2010, after all. Personally, some of the best dances I ever attended were with a group of my closest friends. We didn't have the pressure of awkward convos with our dates and just danced our faces off and laughed.

3) Girls Choice Dances: What to do?
There are so many answers for this that you have to look at what you want out of the night. Do you want to go for it and ask your crush? Go with a guy friend you know you will have a blast with dancing it up? Be part of a group of girls that forgo the dates? Only you know the answer to this. Do want you want!

4) How should a girl with senioritis cope with the dance question?
Our short answer: High school only comes along once in a lifetime (unless you are Billy Madison, of course). The thought of another prom, Sadie Hawkins or homecoming may make your eyes roll, but one day you make look back and wonder where the dancing days have gone. You don't have to spend all of your allowance on a way pricey dress and stress over asking your crush---instead, swap dresses with friends or scour thrift stores and all go stag. Then, the pressure of the event goes away and it is all about being with your friends for that precious moment in time called being a girl. Enjoy it.

Got any other dance questions? Drop us an email! girlsinthehallblog@gmail.com

TEEN INK

TeenInk, originally uploaded by Starting Artists.

Are you an aspiring photographer? Poet? Lobbyist? Novelist? At Girls in the Hall, we are big on exploring opportunities that showcase and reward creativity. Therefore, one of our favorite new websites is Teen Ink, which is solely comprised of writing and art by and for teens. Click here to check out their website with a list of exciting contests, aimed to a myriad of talent categories. You can even win super cool prizes, like cash or have your photo featured on the cover of an issue! Let us know if you enter.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

Young women sitting at green grass and kepping pumpkin., originally uploaded by Massonforstock. 

Kurt: What are you going as for Halloween?
Brittany: I'm going as a peanut allergy.
-GLEE, ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW EPISODE

Ah Halloween. The chill is in the air, people are carving pumpkins like nobody's business and costumes are being created from the fabrics of imagination.

We love Halloween, and not just for the candy corn. We think of it as a childhood friend we can still cling to, remembering all that elementary school excitement of thoughtfully picking out exactly the right disguise, wearing your costume to school, proudly showing it off door-to-door, and then dumping all of the candy out in a heap on the kitchen floor. That solitary chance to be someone else or something else for a night--just one night--holds the mystique that lasts a year.

A lot of teens enter a great debate in prep for this glorious holiday--no, we aren't referring to Charlie Brown's search for The Great Pumpkin--but the question of trick-or-treating. How old is too old? When does it become not cool? In my opinion, any way to get free candy and dress up at the same time is a win-win, regardless of what grade you are in, but maybe that's just us. If we find the Great Pumpkin along the way, we'll be sure to give Charlie a call too...

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

For the Love of Red, originally uploaded by bheuer.

The imagination imitates. It is the critical spirit that creates.
-Oscar Wilde

A cacophony of noises fill the brisk air of fall, exclamation marks of possibility to my ears. The breeze has started to clip, the urgency of another year is breathing its last season before the holidays will transform into the next.

I haven't written in a while because life has gotten away. Well, that's partially true. Most of it is (confession) I haven't known what to say. I have something to share, but no idea how to say it or really what it is. I've been alone pondering my thoughts, dreams and crushing devastations.

Everything once was easy. As the kid running around my neighborhood, usually as the ringleader of shenanigans, I could tell anyone what I felt like sharing--my parents, teachers, friends. Then, I started to grow up. Sometimes I would just want to tell my parents I loved them, and we would get into fights. Curfews, boys, grades, anything really, would set us off on a downward spiral of yelling against each other. I went from the elementary school safety of raising my hand in class, or just being proud of knowing the answer, to being careful to not be pegged as a nerd. My friends and I would fight over stupid stuff, and then write notes or text instead of talking it out. Then I would cry. I pretended they were angry tears, but mostly it was because I was sad; sad that the glimmer of ability I had to communicate was suddenly buried deep inside of me.

After dabbling in many outlets (all of which taught me something about myself and what to share with the world), I have gotten my voice back.

As I walked around today, my ipod plugged in, thinking about the bittersweet beauty of fall, I realized it was time to write again. It was time to get back to being a Girl in the Hall. The new chill in the air woke me up after these few weeks of being away. I realized we are all at our best when we are creating. Whether it's being in the school play, debate team, running cross country, cheering at a Friday night football game, art class or scribbling in a notebook, we are all at our best when we are creating. Over the years, I have found that I see things in words, and when I think of it that way, conveying my thoughts to the world becomes a ton easier. It's nice to be back.

We wanna know... How do you create? If you haven't found what gets the spirit of your imagination going, enjoy the journey.

UNABASHEDLY ME

suffer = love ?, originally uploaded by -Misconception photography [--☮--].

We are strong girls. We are smart girls. We are crafty girls. All of us Girls in the Hall are a combo of readers, writers, leaders and dreamers. Then, boys come in to the equation, often mixing everything up inside the hallway of our minds.

Troy and Gabriella... Darcy and Lizzy B.... Zach and Kelly... Edward and Bella... Hermione and Ronald... Romeo and Juliet (Ok, not them, that ended badly)... We want to fall in love a la a Taylor Swift song with our crush. We spend way more time than we like to admit pondering all of the options and thinking about wearing his letter jacket, high school ring, you know, whatever is the norm in your neck o' the woods.

The truth is that lust/like/love isn't a pretty storyline in the sitcom of your life. It is complicated. Case in point: You can't talk to the camera via giant old school cellphone like Zach on SAVED BY THE BELL or randomly break into karaoke song to confess your undying love as shown by Troy and Gabriella in HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL. There are no TWILIGHT Edwards roaming the earth who can turn you into a vampire to seal the pact of eternal love.

Through the years, I have dated my best friend, a guy on the football team, and that endearing nerd in the front row of biology class. All of them have taught me so much about myself. Even though I am (often called) outspoken and cheerfully outgoing, I discovered that when it came to boys and dates, I would chameleon myself to get boys to like me. The normally grounded girl that I am hovered on a mental gray line of being myself and being the girl I thought the boy (insert names here) wanted. Shockingly, it wasn't working out so well. The real me wanted out.

Then, the light bulb moment happened. I could appreciate a boy's interests without losing myself in the process of falling for them. It is indeed possible to support someone's love of STAR WARS or golf without adding those to my list of Facebook interests. Moreover, I learned that I need to be unabashedly me. I will fight and debate until pigs fly about causes I love (which is code for stubborn as can be). I hate bad grammar. I love both show tunes and football games (and often forget to use my indoor voice when singing along off key or cheering for my team). I am most comfortable wearing both lip stick and a tshirt. No matter how hard I try, I will never master AP physics (but will always be able to write an amazing AP English essay) or be able to run the fastest mile in gym class (but am always down to cheer for my friends while they get the best times). Quite simply and for good or bad, these things are me. I am juxtaposition of complexities, and that's a-ok.

Don't get me wrong, I am still looking and wishing for my Troy/Darcy/Zach/Edward/Ron (pick your fave). I just know that when he does show up, I can be swept off of my feet without losing "me" in the process and that just feels right, kinda like the beginning of my own "...love story."