Ava Duvernay Barbie Doll

CHARITY: Project for Awesome

 Every year the Vlogbrothers take over youtube for a weekend of charity. They raise money through crowdfunding, then split the funds amongst the highest voted charities (VOTE HERE). Through Tues Dec 15, you can still donate to the indiegogo campaign. P4A is one of my favorite things on youtube. It’s a lovely reminder of how strong and diverse the community is. It also uses the platform and our voices for good. As of writing this, over $1.4million has been raised. Above is one of my favorite charity videos this year, however there are tons and tons more to see. 

OTHER: Ava Duvernay Barbie Doll

Image courtesy of financialjuneteenth.com

Growing up my parents always tried to buy toys diversely and show me media with a diverse cast. I didn’t realize how important that is until I was older. Mattel made an Ava Duvernay Barbie doll that immediately sold out. Ava Duvernay is a film director that broke down many barriers. She was the first black female director to have a film nominated for best picture at the Oscars. Her most well known film to date is Selma, the historical drama about Martin Luther King Jr. She was the first director I ever knew of that looked like me. #RepresentationMatters

READ: Broke Vs Poor

I’ve been thinking about money and capitalism quite a bit. I read an interesting long form essay by Katie Klabusich. She described being poor as being stuck on a merry-go-round. I don’t consider myself poor however I relate to the feeling of instability. The nature of my work is that I jump from gig to gig and the fear is that the gigs will stop. So far that hasn’t happened but I’m always aware that it could. Katie also gave an interview at The Billfold discussing being broke versus being poor.

WATCHED: Being “The Pretty Girl” Isn’t Always So Pretty In Hollywood: Caitlin Stasey

“As a woman and as a white woman, I can turn on the television, I can see my physical self represented. I can see many many women like me but the forms I find them in are so often contrived, they’re so sexualised. Some of the greatest female heroines have been born in the hearts and minds of men. That’s my difficulty, is watching old white men write for young women or write for any marginalized individual because they just have no fucking idea what they’re talking about.”

OTHER: f.lux

Along with florescent lights backlit screens really strain my eyes. I found f.lux, which allows you to change the color temperature of your computer screen.