Photogenic vs Telegenic

I must confess..I'm not that photogenic in my opinion. I have taken a mini class with Kim of Exquisite Coaching and learned what was my best angle to not look like a 12 year old (hint hint..that's why I try to stay towards the center and have full on frontal photos). I say this to state that late last year and before my bout of influenza I participated in a tv commercial on a whim. I did it more so to say that I had done something and check it off my list. I also learned through my pageant career that I am not the focus of the commercial and merely a seller of a product. Below is a photo and video from the same shoot, you be the judge. Here is another promo I did last year for Miss Florida USA sponsorship package. I really had to mentally prepare for the fact that this was not about me and more so about the product. So all in all I think this post was more about remember that everything is not about you.

Random

Made the Daytona Times about my trip to Washington DC!!

Pageants and Politics

One of the many benefits of competing is that a pageant contestant must stay up with current events. More importantly they must know where they stand on certain issues. Now we all know that everyone does not agree on every issue and that is what makes America great. If everyone was the same it would be boring. So whether you are a liberal, conservative, or honestly don't care. As a pageant contestant you must be ready to answer the hard hitting questions. I myself am a political junkie and I proudly say so. I like to know what is going on in Washington so that unlike those who only get there information from television or family. I can put together my own opinion on the subject and be comfortable about it. I believe everyone should come to their own opinion and not let others decide for you. I was lucky and my parents never talked about their political affiliations while I was growing up and we do vary on what we believe. Had they chosen for me when I was younger my views would be different. Every pageant girls and those alike should remember this scene right here.

Many were upset about what she said. But I believe the biggest problem isn't that its more about how she said it. Yes she spoke her mind, but she went on the offend some of the members of the panel with her harsh criticisms. Unfortunately being a pageant queens comes with the responsibility as to know when you can and cannot speak your mind. One must always remember not everyone will agree but as long as you do your best to not offend anyone you should be able to pass the interview section with flying colors. One of my favorite pageant contestants and excellent interviewer Miss Arkansas 2011 Elise Neal

Elise was given a very controversial question during Miss America that year and handled it like a pro. The audience feel in love with her even if they did not agree with her stance on the issue. Between Elise and Carrie you can see the monumental difference in how each contestant answered her question. If you are a USA system contestant I believe you can learn a lot from the America system in terms of interview and on stage question. These girls go through a 10 minutes interview with the judges instead of a 2-4 minute interview in USA. This means that the contestant has to know what she is talking about and be committed to her stance on issues. So if your looking to compete in any system, the moral of this is to know thy issue and know it well. You never know what kind of question you will get.

Presidential Inauguration

So this past weekend I had the opportunity to travel to Washington DC for the inauguration of President Barack Obama. It was a great honor to be in the presence of so many people who wanted the president to fight for change. My mother and I were lucky enough (or should I say she was lucky enough) to get tickets to be closer. We did go the last time and got tickets but this time we we in front of the pool instead of behind it.

The crowd around us was very friendly. DC had this very welcoming vibe that weekend. We took the metro a couple of times and if someone left anything on the subway people would help out. One event that if you were in the green section would remember was the lone protestor in our section. He decided to climb a tree and protest abortion and Planned Parenthood. It was kinda pathetic, he was only in a crowd of people who probably had already made up their mind on the issue and tickets come in two so it seems no one would come with him. In terms of pro-choice and pro-life (a whole different conversation); just because someone is labeled a liberal, that doesn't mean they are automatically pro-choice. He stayed in the tree until after the ceremony. The police hooked a ladder to the tree to help him, which only caused him to climb higher. According to reports, SWAT removed him after the event (no witnesses lol). Also there should be a video of him somewhere on YouTube, everyone had there camera out filming, I did give a play by play to someone standing around out thanks to my binoculars.

After that getting around was crazy, so many people moving at the same time. There was a massive traffic jam with so many people getting on the metro. Reports say there were close to one million visitors in the capital. Last time there was almost two million but all that says it that people believe and want to witness history.

I had a lot of fun and was able to see the president with the help of binoculars. Was the trip worth it? Absolutely. Would I do it again? Depends on the candidate and the weather. xoxo Amina

The Big Move

So I'm behind with my blog so this will be 1 of 2 that I try to finish within the next couple of days. So in August I made one of the biggest decisions of my life so far and that was to move. Where did I move exactly...Texas..Now I know what some of you are thinking, "um this is a red state why would you go there?" Well for me it was simply leaving the state for a little bit. When someone starts to feel complacent there is only so much more that they can take. I told my parents, set a date (setting a date makes it real), and started the monumental process of getting my stuff together. Fast forwarded to the trip. It took two days total to drive and luckily I was not by myself; one of my good friends made the trip with me to A) keep me company and B) she had never been to Texas and wanted to come. It for sure brought us closer together and yet you could see our personalities clash as well. We made our pit stop in Gulf Port, MS and had dinner at a place called Salute. Funny part was Mississippi is know for seafood and yet both of us had chicken. Day two was finishing the drive from Mississippi to Texas which took us through one of the bigger cities in Louisiana. I definitively got to see more of the country on my two day trip than I did driving to North Carolina. Over the course of two days we went into a tunnel in Alabama and over massive bridges in Louisiana. When we finally got to Texas, they had in my friends opinion the best welcome center of them all. But to be far we got to Alabama's after they closed as well as Mississippi. We did make a point to stop at all of the welcome centers for they always have the best bathrooms, Louisiana had free coffee as well. Here are some photos from the drive. Enjoy xoxo Amina

It only took an hour to get through Alabama.

Only in Mississippi do they have a Pringles vending machine at the welcome center.

I thought this was the cutest idea for the state welcome sign!

Had the coffee wasn't the biggest fan, but I prefer Splenda not Sweet-n-Low. Also the staff was very friendly. They had Red Bull vending Machines.

Loved the sign, but the best one was this one below.

Everything is Bigger in Texas and faster, speed limit on the highway was 75 mph.

First meal in Texas and I had to get as I like to say 'Texican-Mexican'