“Looks aren’t everything. Believe me, I’m a model.” Cameron Russell talks on ted.com

If you have a spare 9 minutes and 40 seconds after reading this, I’d love for you to watch a amazing, thought-provoking clip from ted.com

How big a role does beauty play in your day to day life? Do you take that extra 5 minutes to put make up on before skipping a healthy breakfast, so you can run to the bus, to try and shift a kilogram or two off your thighs, that would look so much better in that particular pair of jeans? ~Hold on let me take a breath after that one.~

Cameron Russell has been a model for 10 years, and in 10 seconds she changed the perception of her audience by putting on a longer skirt and a jumper over her short, designer, skin tight dress. She also ditched the 8 inch heels and came down to a more reasonable level. She went from a ‘supermodel’ to a ‘regular woman’ within moments, creating a more approachable, and arguably, more believable persona just by the way she looked.

It takes a genetic lottery, a few centuries of unfair biased opinions of what is considered ‘beautiful’ and a team of experts to make the constructed, glamorous, glossy pictures and runway shows we see in our day to day lives. Those ones that we aspire to emulate, even though it is considered unobtainable to a large percentage of the population.

So if you are not rail thin, if you have darker skin, or are around 5 foot tall, if you’re teeth aren’t gleaming and perfect … on the whole, honestly according to those same glossy magazines, society should look elsewhere to find a person of value?

How vain, how rude and how superficial.
But aren’t we all feeding this monster every day? So aren’t we all to blame?

I challenge you to make a conscious choice to not judge someone by the way they look, or even judging yourself by your appearance. For just one day, look a little deeper and don’t take things at face value.

As Cameron points out, ‘Being fearless means being honest.’ Do you honestly want to be defined by the society who believes the unfair statement, that “Beauty is Everything”? Or do you want to be the catalyst for not allowing this statement to define you?

I’ll get off my soap box now. Good job Cameron!

Welcome to Life with Lisa!

With Valentines Day just around the corner, what better than to make a  Life with Lisa dedicated to one of my favourite holiday? The holiday of LOVE!

And just because you’re not dating anyone, or living the single life, doesn’t mean you can’t celebrate like everyone else. You don’t need a husband, wife, boyfriend or girlfriend; you have brothers, sisters, aunts, moms, dads, and even grandpas that you could do something special for!

So here are a few small gift ideas for HIM!

#1. Chocolate!

Just like girls, a lot of guys enjoy chocolate treats! From chocolate covered strawberries and chocolate truffles to chocolate mousse.

#2. A Watch.

Only if he wears watches! If you plan on going with this gift route, I recommend spending a little more money, and getting a better quality watch, than something cheaper. Also don’t go crazy with the colours, or size! If he usually wears darker colours, get a black, blue or white watch, that will match his clothes. If he likes brighter colours, get something more colourful!

#3. Bake/Cook Him Something.

Bake him something, that he already likes, or maybe something that has one of his favourite flavours, like chocolate, or vanilla!

#4. Buy Him A Car Wash Gift Set!

These are sold in any stores that sell car supplies. I’ve seen sets that varying in sizes and prizes, so you can accommodate to your wallet and his car washing needs.

If you guys have any other suggestions, comment down below!

Welcome to Life with Lisa!

With Valentines Day just around the corner, what better than to make a few Life with Lisa dedicated to one of my favourite holiday? The holiday of LOVE!

And just because you’re not dating anyone, or living the single life, doesn’t mean you can’t celebrate like everyone else. You don’t need a husband, wife, boyfriend or girlfriend; you have brothers, sisters, aunts, moms, dads, and even grandpas that you could do something special for!

So here are a few small gift ideas for HER!

#1. Yes, it is her best friend; jewellery.

A few different types of jewellery could include a necklace, earrings, a or even a best friends bracelet, but before buying any one of these, make sure she actually wears them! If you don’t see her wearing earrings don’t buy any for her. Maybe she doesn’t even have her ears pierced. Also make sure the jewellery fits her style, don’t buy a chunky necklace, when she only wears small and dainty ones.

#2. Flowers!

Maybe ask her beforehand which flowers are her favourite, if you don’t know. My best recommendation would be roses, or any flowers that smell really good. Again, a precaution before purchasing, is make sure that she isn’t allergic to the type of flower you’re buying her.

#3. Chocolate! Strawberries!

Most girls love chocolate, or chocolate covered strawberries! But if she doesn’t pick up her favourite candy or snack instead!

#4. Take her out.

If you don’t really know what she likes, just take her out to do something fun. A movie, dinner, coffee, or just shopping! Do what SHE likes to do!

If you guys have any other suggestions, comment down below!

Mid-August will bring us the second in the Percy Jackson franchise: Sea of Monsters. Based on Rick Riorden’s book, this time around Percy and his friends search for the famed Golden Fleece in order to save Camp Half-Blood’s magical borders from its foes. With most of the same cast as the first movie, I think we’ll see a good, fun film about this modern-day demi-god.

The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones will also be released in August. Based on Cassandra Clare’s uber-best-selling novel (and the first of six in this series), will tell the story of Clary Fray, a seemingly normal New York teenager, who learns of her secret bloodline – and the war that’s been going on under her very nose for years. Starring Lily Collins as Clary, Jamie Campbell Bower as Jace, and an epic supporting cast including Aidan Turner (think Mitchell the vampire in Being Human and Kili in The Hobbit, *swoon*) as werewolf Luke. Described as an ‘epic adventure fantasy’, we can expect to see lots of demons, angels and, of course, Shadow Hunters.

I don’t think I’m alone in thinking late November is way too long to wait for the second Hunger Games movie: Catching Fire. I loved the first movie, and felt it was as true to the book as it could be, so I’m hoping the filmmakers do just as good a job of the second film. Katniss Everdeen – again played by Jennifer Lawrence – must again fight to save the people she loves – this time in the Quarter Quell. Expect more violence, more heartbreak and more political badness.

Finally, to round the year off: The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, with the current release date being December 13th. If you’ve saw ‘An Unexpected Journey’ recently, I’m sure you’ll agree that this is another movie that can’t come too soon. A typical example of a bit of creative license being taken by the movie makers as compared to the book (hey, I thought it worked) – the two remaining Hobbit movies are bound to be box-office winners as well as visual feasts.

So what about you? Which movies are you hanging out to see on the big screen? Which ones won’t you bother at all with, and which ones will you wait for on DVD? Are you worried that turning your favourite books into movies will leave a permanent scar on how you feel about the story, or are you like me, expecting to see small changes that will hopefully enhance your memories of the time spent between pages?

Well, it looks as though 2013 is shaping up to be a huge year for those of us who enjoy going to the movies – especially those of us who like to see a much loved novel turned into something special for the silver screen.

There’s always that nervous anticipation: Will the filmmakers get it right? Will the heroine maintain her gutsy, confident and assured demeanour? Will the hero sound like he does in my head? Will he look like he does in my head? How much will they change? Will there be crucial scenes left out, while new ones are popped in to help with the move from page to screen?

There will always be changes – there has to be. No 400 page novel can be filmed word-for-word and then squished into two hours. But that’s (usually!) okay with me. As long as I can keep the book close to my heart, I like to look at movies as an extension of a favourite story.

So, to kick this year off, the first book-to-movie on my list (yeah, sadly there’s only room for a handful here, so we’re gonna miss a few hundred) is Beautiful Creatures. Based on the Supernatural Romance novel by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl, release date is set for February 13 th in Australia, and the 14th elsewhere. The blurb goes something like this: ‘A young man and his mysterious new love interest uncover dark secrets about their families and the small Southern town where they live.’

Oz the Great and Powerful is due to hit the screens in early March. Based on L. Frank Baum’s 1900 novel ‘Wonderful Wizard of Oz’, this one is set before the 1939 film starring Judy Garland. But don’t think Oz is just for the little kids. There’s some fabulously dark themes running through these books. Some big names are associated with Oz the Great and Powerful, including director Sam Raimi (think: the early 2000’s Spiderman trilogy, The Evil Dead, The Gift…) and main cast members Mila Kunis, Michelle Williams and Rachel Weisz.

Another March release is the remake of Carrie, a remake of the 1976 horror classic based on the Stephen King novel of the same name. I’m guessing this one will be for an older teen/adult audience – if you know anything about Carrie’s story, you’ll know that there’s blood. Lots of it. And a Carrie remake – well, I’m not too sure about this one. It’s scary stuff – not just the blood and gore bit – but the whole ‘let’s remake a classic’ thing. Hmmm.

To round March off is The Host. Based on the novel by Stephenie Meyer (yes, she of the Twilight saga), The Host tells the story of an Earth that has been invaded by alien beings called ‘Souls’. Basically, Souls are parasites who take over human bodies. But Melanie Stryder isn’t so keen to let her invader – Wanderer – have her body to itself. I think this movie could go either way, (I’m hoping it’s awesome) especially since in the novel, much of the story happens between Melanie and Wanderer inside their shared mind.

So what about you? Which movies are you hanging out to see on the big screen? Which ones won’t you bother at all with, and which ones will you wait for on DVD? Are you worried that turning your favourite books into movies will leave a permanent scar on how you feel about the story, or are you like me, expecting to see small changes that will hopefully enhance your memories of the time spent between pages?