Tuesday, November 19, 2013

Remove "5 Reasons to Date a Girl with an Eating Disorder" - Make a Difference, not a Joke


Sign the Petition!

Please, do me a favor and do not google search "5 Reasons to Date a Girl with an Eating Disorder". Don't give the author the satisfaction of another hit on their post. It is disgusting. I'm usually down for a satirical post, but tone is a difficult thing to infer when reading text on the internet. Writers can pass off lies as the truth, and opinion as law.

A Delta Phi Epsilon sister wrote the following letter in response, along with a petition to remove the article. Please read this editorial and share the petition link below.

To Whom It May Concern:
I’m not entirely sure your intentions in writing and electronically publishing the article titled “5 Reasons to Date a Girl with an Eating Disorder”, but I am requesting you delete it immediately. Up to 24 million people of all ages and genders suffer from an eating disorder today. Whether or not the article is serious, whether or not it’s a satirical commentary on how unattractive eating disorders are, there are real girls out there that look at themselves in the mirror everyday and hate themselves. Have you ever seen a girl stick her fingers down her throat because she feels like she ate too much at dinner? I have. Have you ever seen a girl with cuts on her wrist because she doesn’t understand why she’s still living? I have. Have you ever met a girl who stopped eating for a weekend because she thinks no one will ever find her beautiful if she’s not skinny? I have.
While you may think your article is witty, maybe humorous, and that your article only reaches a certain audience, you are most certainly wrong. It’s people like you and your publication that defame real journalists that actually have things of importance to share with the world, rather than articles like the one I am referring to above or “24 Signs She’s a Slut”, “20 Things Women Do That Should Be Shamed, Not Celebrated”, just to name a few. These articles are not fun, they are not of any kind of public importance, but merely sad attempts for you to gain some sort of sick and twisted following composed entirely on male bigotry.
As a member of an organization that works to promote positive body image for women, I want to tell you that statements like, "while they may have a “distorted body image” on the inside, that usually means staying trim and fit on the outside," are not remotely humorous because there are girls out there that will believe every word of this article. They’ll continue to believe that it is okay to keep purging and starving themselves because there are idiots like you in the world that glamourize eating disorders.
Please remove this article, its mere publication is a disgusting reminder to sane people that idiots like you exist in the world, the idiots that will perpetuate the popularity of eating disorders, which is something that I strive to help stop.
Sincerely,
An Emotional Eater
Sign the Petition!

Remember you are beautiful. Love, and be well.

Sunday, November 17, 2013

Sorority Crafting Sundays: Sorority Mug


This craft is courtesy of the kitchen at the Phi Lambda Chapter Lodge at Emory University. Thank you for letting me use your oven.


1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. 

2. DRAW! Create any design you want! For my craft, I was creating mugs to celebrate my Alumnae Association chartering, so I drew the state of GA in purple. 


3. Let the Sharpie outline dry for 1 minute so it doesn't smudge. 


4. Add your favorite details. I recommend using your sorority colors, but... duh, of course I would recommend that. 


5. Once the oven is preheated, stick those mugs in the oven for 35-40 minutes. This should make the Sharpie designs set in to the ceramic. 


6. When the time is up, let your mug cool, sip, and enjoy!









Saturday, November 16, 2013

Engage U Kennesaw Edition

An incredible perk of being a Delta Phi Epsilon sister is opportunity for continued growth as a leader within our organization. Our International Headquarter hosts regional conferences each semester open to all sisters to attend to sharpen their leadership skills. Engage U was dreamed up after several years of hosting DLC (District Leadership Conference) biannually. DLC would be held over a weekend, limiting the number of sisters able to attend because it was an expensive commitment. Engage U was born, meant to engage the members throughout the year in a way that is innovative, enlightening, and cost effective. 


Fall 2013, International Headquarters selected Kennesaw State University to host Engage U. I was super excited when the announcement happened, as it is my alma mater and hometown. I couldn't wait to host my friends from IHQ in my home state! 


At this conference, women from the Georgia chapters and some women from Illinois and Texas joined together to learn from alumnae leading a myriad of presentations throughout the day. I joined my Phi Lambda Chapter President for several of the morning sessions. We learned about the Chapter Assessment Program, Values Based Recruitment, and Risk Management. It was wonderful to be there with my President as she was exposed to new ideas with which to lead the chapter towards great things. 

After lunch, I had the honor of leading a Chapter Advisory Board session. We discussed everything from what is required of a Chapter Advisor or Advisory Board Member, to how to place women in these positions. We spent the majority of the time fielding questions as a group from the collegiate women and other advisors in attendance. Of the women in the room, the level of support from advisors ran the gambit. One chapter has two Chapter Advisors, neither of which was able to be as active as the chapter feels they need. An advisor from another chapter is serving remotely from across the country. Several challenges were presented in both cases, and I found it really interesting how the group worked to field the questions and concerns of the women in the room. That's something that is so incredible about being in a sisterhood as strong as ours. We may have never met each other before Engage U, but when faced with questions and challenges we dropped the questions of our own and came up with collective solutions. Pretty powerful stuff in only a 40 minutes session. 


To close our day, I lead a keynote discussion about the importance of the Senior to Alumna transition. My key take aways from this discussion were that seniors are really the hardest audience in your chapter. They are set in their ways, don't like change, and can easily become disenchanted with the entire experience. The women who stick it out to senior year need to be rewarded for the legacy they are leaving behind. Engage these women throughout the year, and have their final sorority experiences be topnotch. If they leave the collegiate chapter with good memories they will be more likely to return to help with Recruitment, Homecoming, Greek Week, volunteer for your international organization, or even make monetary contributions to your chapter or foundations.

Here are some ideas for engaging your senior members throughout the year:
  • Senior Celebratory Chapter Meeting - Give the seniors special seats in chapter, decorate "We Love Our Seniors" signs, and generally just love on 'em!
  • Senior/Alumnae Mixer - Get your chapter alumnae together with your seniors to talk about their opportunities to stay involved in the sorority beyond graduation.
  • "Senior of the Week" - Highlight a senior every week on social media, and give them a small gift at chapter. 
  • Senior Retreat - Plan a weekend retreat for seniors only so they can have one last HOO-RAH!
  • Cap Decorating Party - Bring on the glitter-glue! Provide the supplies for seniors to decorate their graduation caps. 
  • Resume/Cover Letter workshop - Talk to your career services office on your campus about hosting a workshop for graduating members where they go over their resumes. 



Sorority Mug Supplies

If you are like me, you want everything your own to remind you of the sorority. When I heat up my hot chocolate, I want my marshmallows to float in a cup of DPhiE love. Okay, I recognize I may be a rare breed of woman, but what's wrong with that?

This weekend, we will make Sorority Mugs. These are a great (and inexpensive) Christmas/Hanukkah/Kwanzaa/Birthday/President's Day present, and easier than painting a canvas. 


Here's what you'll need:
  • Ceramic mug (bought mine at the Dollar Store)
  • Sharpies
  • Oven
  • OVEN MIT! 
Happy crafting!

Tuesday, November 12, 2013

All the Pieces Fit

Don't you love a good puzzle? I know I do. Okay, I haven't put one together since middle school, when we were putting together a picture of the world made up of thousands of tiny pictures, but still it's exciting. When you find that middle piece that looks like every other piece, only every other piece was just slightly off, that final piece is the holy grail.

That's how I feel right now at this moment. The chapter I advise for has an Advisory Board of four super qualified, out-spoken, die hard DPhiE's. This seems really awesome, until all of four of us are responding to your emails, giving you very similar advice, and asking you to be accountable to all of us at the same time.

Luckily, for this chapter and the advisors' own sanity, we are blessed with the leadership of our International Headquarters. These incredibly brilliant and talented women have developed a system for Chapter Advisory Boards that divide and support each officer in the Leadership Team. We are moving towards a CAB model, assigning two LT members to one advisor. We haven't discussed the transition with the entire LT, but we did float the idea to a few of them on Sunday and they couldn't have been more on board for a fair and equal division of our time and efforts.

The past few days, my fellow advisors have already been taking on responsibilities they will have starting next semester, and really proving to me that this transition is for the best.

All of the pieces are starting to fit. I can't wait to see the wonderful things this group will accomplish.

Sunday, November 3, 2013

Sorority Crafting Sundays: Sorority Snuggly Heating Pad

Grab a box of tissues, your greatest cold remedy, and your sewing machine and let's get started.

     1. Measure the length and width of your heating pad by laying your bag of rice on top of the fabric and cutting around the excess. 


     2. Layer your cut piece of fabric over your second piece and cut it down to match the size. 


     3. Stack your two pieces of fabric with the right sides facing each other. 

     4. Using your sewing machine, sew 3 of the 4 sides shut. 


     5. Flip the pocket right side out. 


     6. Measure the entire bag of rice. I didn't have a full bag of rice, personally, so I made due with what I had in my pantry. Divide the rice into three equal measurements. 


     7. Measure your pocket and divide it into 3 equal pieces. Mark these sections. 


     8. Pour in 1/3 of your rice and sew the first third of your pocket closed. 


     9. Pour in the 2nd 1/3 of rice into the pocket and pin it closed. Sew along the pin line, being careful not to spill any rice into your machine. I totally did and now I'm very nervous what will happen next time I use it. 


     10. Pour your final third of rice in the final third of your pocket. Pin the fabric closed on the edge of the opening, and sew shut. 














Saturday, November 2, 2013

Sorority Snuggly Heating Pad Supplies


Sorority Snuggly Heating Pad
I have spent the past week sniffling, sneezing, coughing, and complaining. My Fall Cold is upon me, and I have felt so gross all week. With very little free time, I had to soldier through the week with a smile on my face at work, then crash on my couch every night. When this weekend hit I thought to myself, "I just want a nice warm blanket and a good night sleep."

You know what helps me sleep? A heating pad on my neck. It makes just about everything feel better. So, I set off to make one in my favorite sorority colors: purple and gold.

Let's make one together and all treat ourselves to a mini spa. Melt away the discomfort, and do it in style with the Sorority Snuggly Heating Pad.

What you'll need:

  • Two pieces of contrasting fabrics in the size you wish your pad to be. 
  • Sewing machine
  • Bag of uncooked rice
  • Straight pins
  • Thread
  • Scissors
  • Measuring tape
Cozy up and get crafty!