While it\u2019s nearly impossible to imagine that the interminable crust of ice and snow encasing Midland will ever thaw out, radio and news hosts continue to chirp optimistically that spring is \u201cright around the corner\u201d because the spring equinox is a mere \u00a0days away on March 20. And though Mother Nature has obviously decided to completely disregard this milestone, spring is nevertheless about to officially begin; with it will undoubtedly come the influx of spring-cleaning. Obviously, much of this enthusiasm will be centered on peoples\u2019 homes and yards. But I think this drive to oust the old and make room for the new can be focused into many more areas of our lives that need a little bit of a cleanup.\u00a0 Here are my top five things to clean out of your life this spring:<\/p>\n
1. Processed foods.\u00a0 According to marketplace.org, processed foods make up over 70 percent of the average American\u2019s diet.\u00a0 It\u2019s no secret that our nation has earned a reputation for overloading on sugars, unhealthy fats and salt, which are all staples in most packaged foods.\u00a0 However, one thing that many of us don\u2019t think about is just how many unnatural chemicals and preservatives are pumped into our favorite cereals and snack bars.\u00a0 Subway recently caused a stir with the revelation that their bread included an ingredient known as azodicarbonamide (ADA), a compound used to make plastic and rubber products like yoga mats.\u00a0 According to nydailynews.com, further investigation has revealed that ADA has been found in nearly 500 grocery store items including many other bread brands. Our bodies were not made to consume manmade yoga mats. Do yourself a favor and opt for foods that were grown or raised in nature, not ones that were mass-produced in a laboratory.<\/p>\n
2. Technology.\u00a0 Yes, I know that every single one of you reading this is going to think I\u2019m being unrealistic and pretentious with this one.\u00a0 But hear me out.\u00a0 The Washington Post reported that teens spend an average of 7.5 hours a day \u201cconsuming media\u201d – that\u2019s longer than most of us spend doing literally any one other thing!\u00a0 Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, all are useful and famously entertaining in and of themselves, but the point of sites like these is to share your life with others.\u00a0 I\u2019m sorry, but if you\u2019re spending 7.5 hours everyday in front of a screen, you can\u2019t have that much life to talk about. #unpopularopinion.\u00a0 This spring, power down for at least a few hours everyday.\u00a0 Actually do stuff instead of talking about doing stuff.\u00a0 Live your life.<\/p>\n
3. Unrealistic expectations.\u00a0 Maybe it\u2019s because I\u2019m currently living in the pressure-cooker that is junior year, but this is one that\u2019s been grating on me recently.\u00a0 Since when do we all have to be genius-artsy-witty-gorgeous-funny Varsity athletes who save the world one day at a time?\u00a0 As clich\u00e9d as it is, nobody\u2019s perfect.\u00a0 And want to know a secret?\u00a0 That person you\u2019re so jealous of and are constantly comparing yourself to has no idea what they\u2019re doing either.\u00a0 We\u2019re all living our own version of this mess we call life, and no one has their act totally together.\u00a0 So ditch the never-ending, self-deprecating thoughts this spring.\u00a0 All they\u2019re ever going to do is turn you into a jealous, nervous wreck, constantly second-guessing yourself.\u00a0 You do you, because like my momma always says, the best way to guarantee being miserable is to try to live someone else\u2019s life.<\/p>\n
4. Language.\u00a0 This ought to be self-explanatory.\u00a0 Dropping a four-letter every other word in your sentence just makes you look like you\u2019re desperate for attention in whatever way you can get it.\u00a0 There are so many beautiful words out there for you to use, so why waste your breath on the meaningless nasty ones?\u00a0 Go look up riparian, efflorescence, and petrichor \u2013 all are spring-related words that will be infinitely more pleasant to taste as they roll off your tongue.<\/p>\n
5. Self-presentation.\u00a0 I think our generation as a whole has experienced a disappointing decline in this area.\u00a0 You don\u2019t have to spend an hour in front of the mirror every morning to be able to leave the house, but for goodness\u2019 sake, please have enough respect for yourself to put in more effort than throwing on a pair of pajama pants and running your fingers over your head.\u00a0 Everyday is a chance to put your best foot forward and make a mark on the world, and spending some time \u201cgetting ready\u201d reminds you that yes, what you do and who you are is important, and other people take notice of those things.\u00a0 Walk with your shoulders back and your head high, and make it a point to smile at people.\u00a0 Carry yourself like you matter, because you do.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
While it\u2019s nearly impossible to imagine that the interminable crust of ice and snow encasing Midland will ever thaw out, radio and news hosts continue to chirp optimistically that spring is \u201cright around the corner\u201d because the spring equinox is a mere \u00a0days away on March 20. And though Mother Nature has obviously decided to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":158,"featured_media":7080,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30],"tags":[109,665,666,927],"class_list":["post-7058","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blogs","tag-blog","tag-rachel","tag-reardon","tag-spring"],"yoast_head":"\n