What Johnny Depp Can Teach Us about Perfection #atozchallenge

“We’re all damaged in our own way. Nobody’s perfect. I think we’re all somewhat screwy; every single one of us.” – Johnny Depp

The legend of Johnny Depp (a mysterious, boundless, hot, untouchable hero who men love just as much, if not more than women) is one of a mythological figure that even the actor himself doesn’t live up to. He smokes, drinks and threatens to bite the noses off of any paparazzi who snap photos of his children.

These characteristics illustrate how Depp is simply a man; a talented man indeed, but, a man nonetheless. Those of us who adore him have kept the legend alive by putting him up on a pedestal of perfection but there are two things we can learn from the man that perfected the art of being strange.

Lesson #1 - Perfection lies in the Versatility of a Thing

This Oscar nominated actor’s rise from the horror film “A Nightmare on Elm Street” to upcoming western “The Lone Ranger” and a long-standing role as Captain Jack Sparrow in the “Pirates of the Caribbean” franchise can be attributed to his adaptable nature. If you compare the average person’s quest for perfection to Depp’s performance in each of his roles, however, flexibility is rarely among anyone’s top priorities.

As precious as time is, it’s troubling how much of it we waste trying to be perfect in every way. People seek a perfect appearance, perfect relationships, perfect mates, perfect jobs, etc. while trying to be perfect cooks, perfect hosts to house guests, perfect athletes – the list goes on.

If Johnny Depp teaches us anything, it is that a little lot of versatility can take you very far on the path to being the best in whatever role you choose to play. Want to be a perfect mountain climber, runner, writing professional, employee of the month or whatever has you putting in those extra inches of time and effort?

Consider being flexible in how you reach that desired level of perfection. Doing so will likely get you closer to your goal – you’ll just have to realize that a perfect toned body doesn’t have to look like an exact replica of the Olympic swimmers or gymnasts to be deemed a success.

You also don’t need to have your name in the Guinness Book of World Records for being the slimmest, most muscular or healthiest person alive to be the perfect YOU – whatever that looks like throughout your exterior and interior selves. The same goes for professional goals and personal interests.

Lesson #2 – All you have to do is be perfect at one Thing

The Guardian says Johnny Depp is not the best actor in the world, yet, possesses a “kooky freakery” that cannot be matched by anyone else. Despite Depp being what many people would describe as a weird individual, he is able to channel that into his work, resulting in large box office returns and critical acclaim. That goes to show that one need not be perfect in every sense of the word to excel in life.

In fact, as Johnny Depp would have it, you might be better off staying in your lane and making it work to your advantage instead of worrying about the areas where you fall short. If you are a great cook, then who cares if you can’t draw or paint worth a damn?! If you won the genetic lottery and are drop-dead gorgeous, then why are you stressing about the length or color or texture of your hair?! First, be glad that you have hair and food on the table to work with in the first place.

Perfect the things that you are best at and let those qualities shine through. The rest can probably be obtained or developed later as you go through life – or not. Either way, at least you can rest with the confidence of knowing that you are perfect the best great at something – whatever that something is.

Just as the definition of beauty varies depending on whom you ask, perfection is not something that we can put an exact finger on since it looks different from one person to another. Unfortunately, many of us forget that as we try to live up to certain standards that are skewed in the interests of public opinion and then measured against our own inner critics. It is a recipe for disaster in a never-winning battle.

Think these lesson are full of crap? Well, embracing quirks worked for Johnny Depp – and who is going to argue with a man who lives in three different countries and sits among the highest paid actors in Hollywood?! I’m not dismissing the importance of you striving to make yourself better, especially when it comes to getting out of your comfort zone every now and then. On the contrary, I am suggesting that the fastest route to perfection may be finding your thing, embracing it and working the hell out of it until you’re a master at it – and even then, there will continue to be more work to do.

If YOU could perfect one thing about yourself, what would it be?

Do YOU think perfection exists? If so, how does one obtain it? If not, then why are people trying to obtain it?

*A to Z Challenge Alert as of Saturday, April 20th, 2013: I'm not feeling well this evening and thus, the posts for Letters Q and R will be posted tomorrow on Sunday, April 21st, as a double feature.

What Joanna Cassidy Can Teach Us about Juggling #atozchallenge

Let’s get something clear first – I’m no professional juggler. I’m also willing to bet that you aren’t a juggling phenomenon who tosses multiple balls around at once, while catching each of them, either.

Arlee Bird, founder of the Blogging from A to Z Challenge, is the only person I know so far who has the skills and history of touring acts to literally juggle it all. So, why do the rest of us keep pretending we’re some type of paid performance artist who can toss -- and catch -- everything that falls into our hands?

You may not be handling balls or clubs per se, like Arlee Bird, but you’re still trying to juggle the variables that make up your daily routine. I do it too. We all do it. Everywhere I turn, there’s somebody tossing around things, readjusting schedules, overlapping tasks – ahhh, the sweet smell of the multi-tasking life where everything is a blur and he or she is just trying to get through the day. We’re juggling PTA meetings, play dates, traffic tickets, gym memberships, part-time jobs, Facebook status updates, Twitter streams, active sex lives, thriving careers, social calendars, home repairs, grocery lists, and mid-term exams and so on.

The juggling act that we try to pull off reminds me of a teenager named Sue Ellen in the comedy “Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead” (one of my favorite childhood movies) starring Christina Applegate and Joanna Cassidy. In this movie, Sue Ellen lands a high-level corporate job after falsifying her resume to pass as an adult. She finds ways to cover the living expenses for herself and four younger siblings while their mom is away on vacation. This girl soon realizes how the demands of adulthood are not always as fun as they may seem when she finds herself spread thin between work and family life.

All the while, she also tries to keep up the facade of being “on top of it” all but faces a lot of trouble down the line.

At the same time, she’s maintaining a romantic relationship with a former co-worker and playing pseudo-mommy to her siblings – complete with enforcing rules and trying to carve out quality time for the needs of each one.

The instructions that Sue Ellen’s boss, Rose Lindsey – played by actress Joanna Cassidy, gave her for doing her job well at their company, is the exact way that we should approach juggling:

“Don’t feel overwhelmed, just do one thing at a time.”

As easy as Cassidy’s line sounds, you’d think that we would’ve adopted this way of living, already. The fast paced world we operate in, however, isn’t exactly conducive to a one-thing-at-a-time philosophy. To many people, that’s not the way to get things done, but rather, a way to get left behind. It’s a funny thing about juggling – if you have more balls than you can handle at once, you’re bound to drop some. Now, how’s that for a halfway approach to getting things done! Rose Lindsey a.k.a Joanna Cassidy is on to something with how she told Sue Ellen to handle this new executive assistant position in “Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s dead.” I think that something is not only doing one thing at once but also the importance of prioritizing.

If you believe in living each day like it’s the last one you’ll ever have, let’s make these days count by doing the things that are most important to you. The other stuff can get done whenever they get done.

Maybe there will be time for it later, maybe it won’t, but I’ll tell you one thing -- most people who are terminally ill or already on their deathbed probably don’t make statements like “I’m so glad that I just finished that load of laundry this morning,” “I’m at peace because my hurried trip to the carwash was time well spent after running that red light a few roads back” or “I can rest now that I’ve made it to my lunchtime nail salon appointment.”

Granted, this is not a classic movie quote of epic proportions that goes down in history as the greatest line ever spoken in a scene. My hope is that you’ll take it for what it’s worth – a simple and effective approach to juggling all of the balls that life hands us as well as the balls that we willingly pick up, as if we already don’t have a full load to toss.

What are YOU juggling right now?

Do YOU prioritize your activities or are YOU just going through the motions, trying to keep your head above water?

What Meryl Streep Can Teach Us about BEAUTY #atozchallenge

Skyyjohn in episode #27 of his Vlog on the "Skyyjohn2" channel.*Language Alert: This post contains some explicit language. If you are among the faint at heart or sensitive to certain words, consider this advance notice.

Hot chicks can’t act, according to popular YouTuber SkyyJohn, who names Meryl Streep as an example – suggesting “nobody wants to bang her, but look at how good of an actress she is!” -- In one of his vlog episodes.

I won’t argue in support of SkyyJohn’s claim or against it, for I’m not interested in banging Meryl Streep – I’d take Eric Dane a.k.a McSteamy, thank you very much. However, there are valuable lessons we can all learn from this actress, regarding how we measure ourselves on the beauty scale.

Lesson #1 - People tend to look their Best when they are Comfortable in their own Skin.

Streep, who didn’t have any confidence in her beauty when she was young, believed that character acting was where her strengths lie. She even once apologized to an Italian movie producer for “disappointing” him by not being a conventional beauty. The producer insulted Streep – calling her an ugly pig when she auditioned for a role in the 1976 “King Kong” remake.

Yet today in her 60s, this Oscar-winning actress has not resorted to plastic surgery or cosmetic procedures to try and extend the “sell-by” date of her career. Streep views these desperate measures as an interruption in communication between you and the people you are interacting with. “It’s like wearing a veil – it’s not a good thing,” she says. “You have to embrace getting older,” declares Streep after evolving from an actress who didn’t think she was pretty enough while growing up, to one that is now free of the constraints of beauty standards or glass ceilings.

Lesson #2 - Real Beauty Doesn’t Always Fade…it Evolves.

If the comments on a YouTube clip of Meryl Streep’s 2010 Golden Globe interview are any indication, she is more attractive these days than ever before. Comments on that video range from naming Streep an American cultural icon to calling her a goddess, who is so gorgeous, some viewers who normally think of her talent, grace and humility say they forgot how beautiful she is. The general consensus is that Streep looks good for her age – probably because she is comfortable with where she is now and not trying to look like 20-30-something actresses.

If there is one thing to learn from the responses she gets as a 60-something year-old actress, it is that youth doesn’t automatically equal beauty and your appeal is not entirely summed up by your age. I agree with this concept based on the fact that I think actresses Helen Mirren and Judi Dench are some of the hottest and/or most attractive women over 60.

Lesson #3 - The Most Beneficial Beauty Regimens are found in Healthy Lifestyle Choices, not in a Bottle, Tube or Jar.

Although we cannot beat aging or gravity, our lifestyle habits can either slow it down or speed it up – the latter of which is found in basic shade. “I don’t like to be hot, so I don’t have the sun beating down on me,” says Streep. Many of us buy all of these creams, gels, elixirs, powders, etc. to maintain some type of youthful glow and combat wrinkles when the simplest way to do it is by not baking ourselves under the sunlight.

The funny thing about Meryl Streep’s beauty regimen is its absolutely free and when she does indulge in skin and body products, those things also come without a charge. “At the Oscars, they give you this free stuff and whatever is in that pack, I smear it on for a year,” she says.

Streep’s simple method of preserving her looks were made possible by her talents: Being a great actress gave her access to beauty products that she now doesn’t have to pay for – not because she endorses them – but because she uses the contents of her Oscar swag bag in moderation across a span of 365 days.

Lesson #4 - Tomorrow is not guaranteed, no matter how you look.

Streep got tired of spending so much of her life worrying about if she was appealing enough that she can’t even remember the last time it was among her concerns. “As there begins to be less time ahead of you, you want to be exactly who you are, without making it easier for everyone else – I have so many friends who are sick or gone, and I’m here – I’m very fucking grateful to be alive,” she says.

Meryl Streep has over 35 Oscar and Golden Globe nominations combined – more than any other actor in history. This woman is such a powerhouse of talent that comedic actresses Tina Fey and Amy Poehler joked about her doing well at having the Flu, during their 2013 Golden Globes opening monologue (at 5:17 in the video).

The seemingly never-ending amount of respect that Meryl Streep receives could be attributed to her focusing her energies on the gifts and talents she clearly possesses, making the most of her days on this earth – regardless of who wants to bed her or not.

How do conventional beauty standards affect YOUR quality of life?