Some things in life are an illusion...

I saw 'Water for Elephants' at the weekend and the idea that life is an illusion is quite right. When you think about it, how many times have things not been what they seem? Obviously this isn't always the case but more often than not things on the surface differ from actuality - be it better or worse.

I think of myself for example and I wear make up which is my little safety blanket. However, that in itself is an illusion. I mean my foundation is actually called 'Skin Illusion'! Need I say more? Woman in general have heels, clothes , push up bras and even sunglasses that can make you look like a completely different person. However, you then go one step further with surgery. I think if someone does not like something then fair enough, each to their own.

You look at life and realise it's everywhere!! Adverts, jobs, people etc etc. I flicked through my latest copy of Cosmo and it was full of adverts with illusions:

As you can see on the adverts above, tricks have been used to make the people in them look a certain way. I can guarantee that a razor will not make your legs look as glossy and perfectly shadowed like above. It's a fact of life that no one can be perfect and most people get this, however there are still some who actually believe what they see is real. 

In my job, I can see a perfectly happy little child and once you find out more you realise that actually they aren't happy, they are just good at hiding it. I am pretty sure everyone at some point has, for example, pretended to be fine about something when really they aren't. Places of work look great and then you get there and realise that it's not what it was sold to be. Truth is, these days anyone can be anything they want. Anyone can be fooled easily these days and with a little razzle dazzle. How do we tell if things are real? Time, things soon are seen for what they are whether that be exactly what you expected or something completely different. You just never know...

Do you want the truth or something beautiful?

Well...any thoughts? It's something we deal with day in day out. We ask questions to which we expect answers. Sometimes we like those answers, sometimes we don't and other times we just don't care. I was listening to a brilliant artist today called Paloma Faith and this song is one of my favourites:

It made me think hard about whether I do want the truth? I'll hold my hand up and say that there have been many a times I have asked questions and not got the answer I wanted. Sometimes I just think, "Oh well..." and others I realised I think, "Aw man...why did they have to tell the truth."

As many of you out there will agree with, sometimes 'something beautiful' is exactly what you need to hear. My life recently has been a bit all over the place and I sometimes think I would rather 1. Not know certain things or 2. Have had things spun into something which didn't upset me.

In school I tell kids not to lie and to always tell the truth but surely there are times when you are allowed, if not encouraged to lie:

-Does my bum look big in this?

-Have I put on weight?

-Do you like my new haircut?

-I love this dress...what do you think?

I could go on and on but you get the idea. Above are just a few questions where peoples feelings may affect answers. I know that some people will say you should never lie. However, I think if you're sensible and you're able to spin 'something beautiful' which doesn't put the person at a disadvantage or withhold important information but instead will make someone happy/smile then I say maybe a little dressing up of answers to questions is needed once in a while.

At my lowest point, when asking questions which may have came with tough answers, people have talked it up a little and that resulted in me feeling better about myself and the situation itself. For this I am grateful, my friends saw that I was at a low point and instead of living by 'tell the truth' they managed the situation and were able to make me feel better. After all that is what we want - to feel good and happy. If you can do that without problem then do it. If people are like me they will be thankful for it!

I mean lets not forget about one of the biggest 'beautiful' answers to a question: " Yes, Santa lives in the North Pole and will get your letter!! Keep an eye out as I am sure he'll write back!"

Before I go, just need to say a 'Bon Voyage' to Miss Faux Fur who is off for a mini break in Paris. Have fun!

How about you: Ever beautified something which you feel helped someone?

Werewolves are real...

Before you think I have gone completely mad. The title of this blog did not come from my mouth!! I was working with a group of kids in my class and we were making notes on foxes which led to a discussion on wolves. This is when one came out with, “Werewolves are real..they live in America and Africa and come out at night.” As you can imagine, I had to work very hard not to laugh as, as you can imagine it’s not something you expect someone to believe- even if they are 8.

Full moon on the rise.....stay indoors!!!

I asked if he knew what a werewolf was and he replied that it was a wolf which came out on a full moon. I then had to explain what a werewolf is – a person who turns into a wolf- and his eyes widened. Oh no...Had I said the wrong thing? I then had to carry on and explain myths and fiction etc etc. The kid seemed quite happy after the group chat as others were also explaining the whole not real werewolf situation. After the chat he was still mumbling quite happily to himself, “ WOW! Werewolves are cool!”

To be honest I can see where some of these problems come from. There are so many different shows, stories and films etc these days which can and do influence kids. I think that this is where the lines of reality and make believe blur. How many times have you watched something and thought... ‘This may be crazy but what if, just what if this IS real?’ Now I’m not saying everyone believes this, it’s generally a curse of people like me who have an overactive imagination.

When I studied Media during my comprehensive days I watched ‘The Truman Show’. If you haven’t seen it, it is basically about a man who lives in a big brother life without knowing. All people in his life are actors, his world is a fake reality and everything is 'perfect'. He has no idea that his illusion of truth is actually the complete opposite. Even the sun is controlled. This film always has and always will freak me out. It gets me thinking- “What if my life is scripted and fake?” I catch myself panicking if I see the same two days in a row at the same place (which happened this week).

In some ways I think a lot of our lives are not as real as we think and we blur the lines constantly ourselves on a daily basis. An example of this is a conversation I had with Miss Twin about the fact that women wear heels to be taller, push up bras to enhance and make up to cover flaws and change our look. This is not exactly the huge blur of reality that poor Truman faced but I wonder if we all need some kind of lie to keep us happy and get us through our daily life?

When watching True Blood tonight, Jason Stackhouse came out with something to the effect of: 

‘Telling lies doesn’t mess a life up, if you really wanna fuck someone’s life up tell them the truth.”

Maybe this is right? Who knows... I think I can live with a few little reality blurs every now and again but please, if I am in a Truman Show... and you are watching ... tell me via the medium of blogging!

Image from: http://www.sxc.hu/photo/627739