Happy 1st Birthday, HangryHippo!!!

DOUBLE WOOT!

YYYYYYYAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

HANGRY HIPPO HAS TURNED ONE YEAR OLD!!!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY, HANGRYHIPPO!!

I really can’t believe it’s been one year of gloriousness on this site. It’s too much for me to bear! My baby is growing up so fast!

I’d like to take this moment to recount some of my favorite memories. Bear with me please, it’s my birthday and I’ll demand the spotlight if I want to!

Hangry’s Favorite Memories in Year 1 of the Blogosphere:

-Not being able to figure out how in the heck you even start a blog in the first place and demanding dear friends and family members who are far more competent in the ways of the internets to assist me. THANK Y’ALL SO MUCH!!

-Learning about individuals and movements that are promoting healthy bodies and body image, from Lissa Rankin and her fabulous Ted Talk to Charlotte of the Great Fitness Experiment, from SkinnyEmmie (who I will feature a fabu interview with in a near future post) to J.J. Rodale…there are so many incredible people working to make this world a healthier, happier place where we can all learn to take care of ourselves, be proud of who we are, and strive to make health a right, not a privilege. Thank you all and I look forward to discovering even more inspiration in the future!

-Honoring IDOLS such as Richard Simmons and Billy Blanks, who shaped my childhood in extremely meaningful ways and I can now pay back for all the saintly work they do in this world (and the wonderful leotards they’ve introduced us to!) Keepin’ it classy! Partyin’ off the pounds!

-Being able to feature favorite crazy lady Tyra Banks regularly in my “Not New News, But Still Unbelievable” posts about everything from Fatsploitation to the celebrity fat suit! Keep it crazy, Ty-ty! Never change!

-Using satire and humor to shed (har, har) light on how completely absurd the diet industry machine and media in this country is concerning weight and body image and how it is up to each of us to decide how we want to see and treat our bodies and minds. From the Floss Diet (which created more of a controversy than I was expecting) to Tumblr and Eating Disorders, from disgraced Beauty Queens to chubby pets, the world is full of awful and/or pathetic examples of or ways to make us feel bad about ourselves and we must keep fighting the good fight against it! Don’t ever give up!

My dear friend Stevie Wonder (I wish!) who is not a Hangry Hippocrite wanted to wish me a HAPPY BIRTHDAY and I heartily accept!!! Thanks Stevie!!

And thank you all for sticking with me throughout this year (top commenters Sexy Curmudgeon, Fedora, Norma, streetflash, JenMarie, and Joe especially!!) and supporting me during this sometimes tumultuous, often absurd, but truly fabulous year and I look forward to many more! Much luv and hangriness.

(Image courtesy of KDFblog)