About Me and the Blog!

Hi! My name is Laura and am the only writer on Shaped By My Life.

I am 30 years old; born in the Bronx, grew up in downstate NY, currently living in Ithaca.

There are so many blogs out there now, there is also a lot of advice on picking subjects, how to write to create a wider readership, and so on.  Honestly, I was really against the blogging world for some time, but began warming up to it and realized I had had contempt prior to investigation, and finally started my own!

I have many interests and passions and didn't want to feel pigeon-holed.  If I only focused on food, would I feel I could write a post regarding something big in politics?  Or if I only wrote about politics would I feel comfortable posting about fashion?  I didn't want these questions to get in the way, so I decided I wouldn't worry about that and let things organically unfold as they would.  That being said, my personal beliefs, morals, values, politics, and personal struggles come through in a variety of ways, and I write about the world, both internal and external, small and large.  It's obvious I felt this way when you read my first blog post: Welcome Wagon.

I am a feminist, writing through this lens, I explore the community of body-positive/body acceptance, art/literature/writing/photography/fashion/music and anything else that is a commentary on the woman's body.  I also write about both the struggles I have and the movement toward coming to peace with my relationship with food and my body, and also recipes. 

I am a beginner gardener and nail polish enthusiast.  Lover of shoes, books, tattoos, chocolate, yoga, thunderstorms, baking, taking pictures, bicycles, poetry, swimming, tea, solitude,  perfume, make-up, the smell of gasoline, lavender, dogs, playing cards (texas hold 'em poker & rummy) though I'd like to learn hearts & spades, wood burning stoves, long drives through the country in the Spring when things are in bloom or in early Autumn when the colors are alarming, hand-written letters, mix tapes (ok cds, but there is such nostalgia saying mix tapes), sustainability, the local farmer's market, interior design, babies, jewelry, and learning.

Some other random stuff:
I swam on a swim team for four years.

I used to be a tomboy when I was little. I became frustrated when I could no longer play baseball and had to switch to softball.  I also became very uncomfortable in my body being one of the only girls with hips and breasts at an early again and wore men's clothing for years.  Now I embrace my femininity and my current obsession with dresses and skirts, knowing just because I enjoy certain obvious gendered tendencies doesn't mean I adhere to the notion that it is dichotomous or innate, or that one is more valuable than the other.

I have never broken a bone, only a fractured left forearm.

I played the violin for 8 years.

If you have any questions feel free to ask!