Women's March

I am so honored and proud to be part of the Women's March last weekend. The day before, I watched Trump's Inauguration and then stood amongst thousands of people in front of the Capitol the following day, showing each other that we are not alone.

I'm With Her

Michelle Obama made a wonderful speech for Hillary Clinton last night. She spoke eloquently about raising her daughters during this important time and uniting for change. This passage perfectly sums up how far we've come:

I wake up every morning in a house that was built by slaves. And I watch my daughters, two beautiful, intelligent, black young women, playing with their dogs on the White House lawn. And because of Hillary Clinton, my daughters and all our sons and daughters now take for granted that a woman can be president of the United States.

With all the crazy noise going on this year, it's hard to hear the quiet change that's happening underneath us. Tonight marks the first time a woman is nominated for President. Finally, after months of terrible news, it seems that the people are feeling a bit of hope that something is going to be done and it's going to be done through optimism and love. Change is already happening.

Register to Vote on November 8

Ali Wong

Netflix's new special, Ali Wong: Baby Cobra, is fierce and edgy. It's great to see a pregnant, Asian, female comedian, doing stand-up, and it's even cooler that her jokes wasn't all about her belly until much later in the show. That's because she's much more than that. Her content range from "trapping" the perfect man, Asian women and longevity, going to the bathroom at work, sex with homeless guys, to "leaning in".

Marc Maron praised her comedy in his podcast and even admired her for being so different. She's from San Francisco, Chinese-Vietnamese-American, and is a writer for ABC's Fresh Off the Boat. Her career is vivid, just like her.

Dear Lisa

A post on Dear Linette blog featured a letter Lisa Ling wrote to her younger self. I found the letter really honest and sweet how her thoughts completely shifted from when she was a teenager.

Read below...

62 million girls

In school, I learned to be myself and how to be a leader. #62MillionGirls don't have that chance. -@Beyonce

A photo posted by First Lady Michelle Obama (@michelleobama) on Sep 30, 2015 at 4:13pm PDT

I've been very blessed to have had so many access to education growing up. I was fortunate to start my learning young, when I went to a cool preschool in a building that was constructed in the 1850's, where it instilled the basic principles of creativity. I then transferred to several schools as I progressed, and it broadened my scope of diversity and understanding of other kids and their different backgrounds. For a few years during elementary, I also was enrolled in a private school, where it taught me to question my beliefs and introduced me to the concept of spirituality. One grade-level at a time, it wasn't long before I propelled myself into high-school; and I always knew that this was the time that mattered. From what I understood, by observing the other students around me, there was not much that separated us from each other, except for our motivation. Although I wasn't the top student, I knew that I wasn't handicapped from the rewards that were offered either. If all you had to do was try your best, then why not?

Michelle Obama launched a campaign that advocates just that: take advantage of the education around you. We are so lucky, in the United States, to have so much access to school. Even if it's not perfect, or it's difficult, it's so important to stay in it and try your best. There's nothing you can't do with education and it's impossible to learn enough.

"But this is just four or five little years of your life ... don't sweat the small stuff. What is important right now is who you're going to be and how you're developing that part of yourself. So, go to school. Focus on your homework. Don't worry about what your friends are saying that much -- because half these people you're not going to know when you're sixty. It doesn't matter what they say or think right now."

- Michelle Obama

While to us, school may be feel standard and it's so easy to take it for granted. There are so many children in the world who do not even have a chance to learn. Whether it be due to cultural beliefs or societal norms, girls, especially, are deprived at the chance to learn. Education is one of the most valuable resource kids need to consume constantly. As they invest in themselves, they will become the strong leaders who will notice the gaps in our world and have knowledge to enrich their community. But first, they need to have the same opportunity as me.

In school, I learned how to develop a world perspective. #62milliongirls don't have that chance. #letgirlslearn

A photo posted by Jenn Hinh (@jennhinh) on Sep 30, 2015 at 5:18pm PDT

To learn more and make an impact, visit Let Girls Learn. You can also join the campaign by instagraming or tweeting a photo of yourself (as mine above) and share what you learned in school. #62milliongirls and join the yearbook: http://62milliongirls.com/

Orange is the New Black

I know I'm very late in the game, but I just finished Orange is the New Black (in true binge-watching form on Netflix). I grew to love a lot of the characters and especially love how each episode presented the flashback-narrative of the character's life before incarceration. Even with all of the raw humor, there's true insight into the human behavior and the flawed system that tries to keep them in place.

"We're all in here because we took a wrong turn going to church." -- Poussey

Tig

A couple of weeks ago, Netflix released an original documentary about the comedian, Tig Notaro. Her comedy show at the Largo, despite filming being prohibited, was instantly made viral when she came on stage and decided to be real about her situation: "Hello... Good evening.... I have cancer... How are you?"

At the time of that show, she had just been diagnosed with bilateral breast cancer. That news followed a series of tragedies that Tig experienced shortly before; her mother passed away and she recently went through a break-up. Despite it all, what kept her going was getting on stage and resuming her stand-up routine. She didn't expect that that push for humor in the face of all of this would bring her a different perspective and opportunities to start a new life.



Perhaps, her sweetest outlook is how she came to understand that everything in life is part of a larger plan.

"God never gives you more than you can handle. Never. Never. When you've had it, God goes, alright, that's it. 

I just keep picturing God going, you know what? I think she can take a little more. And the angels are standing back, going, God, what are you doing? You are out of your mind.

And God was like, no, no, no. I really think she can handle this."

- Tig Notaro

Likability

Here's a cool piece of advice from writer Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie:

So what I want to say to young girls is forget about likability. If you start thinking about being likable you are not going to tell your story honestly, because you are going to be so concerned with not offending, and that’s going to ruin your story, so forget about likability. And also the world is such a wonderful, diverse, and multifaceted place that there’s somebody who’s going to like you; you don’t need to twist yourself into shapes.

via: NYmag

Sheryl Sandberg's Facebook letter

Yesterday, Sheryl Sandberg wrote a beautiful post on Facebook about the loss of her husband and her period of grief. Her honesty is relatable to anybody who has been through mourning. As much as you appreciate and loved the time you had, you just want Option A, even though it's time to move to another plan. How very real it is to want something that had made you so happy that it breaks your heart. She reminds us that it's so important to live with presence and acknowledgment of others.

Read the entire post below:

my daughter - lena headey

Lena Headey (Cersei Lannister in Game of Thrones) wrote a beautiful blog post on Plan USA, a non-profit for the betterment and equality of girl's future around the globe. She writes about her hope for her new baby:

I am having a baby girl in six weeks. You have all been so lovely in your messages to me, and I thank you for that. 

My daughter will have freedom of choice. She will be free to dance, to sing, to be educated in the fields that spark her passion, to marry if she wants, to marry WHO she wants, to remain single, or to fall in love with another woman. She'll be able to wear what she wants, put on lipstick, and read books that spark debate and expand her mind.

She will be loved, protected, respected, and celebrated.  

All these things that should be, and will be, basic human rights, are a promise to my daughter. My humble request is that you give what you can and maybe - just maybe - we can bring about the change we all wish to see.

Human equality is one of my greatest passions the more I learn about the world. The conditions in which a child grows up, lives, and learns create the foundation for a healthy future. In order to get an education, she needs to go to school, without the fear of attack or failure. In order for her to be happy, she should be able to love whoever she wants, without feeling that she is wrong. When we build a community where children do not have to worry about these basic human essentials, they will have more freedom to discover and exercise their own passions.

I believe that the world is missing out on many girls' full potential.

Read Plan USA's article and donate here. Or make a difference for the child in your community, in any small way you can.

Terry Gross on living by herself

Last week Marc Maron did an outstanding interview with Fresh Air's Terry Gross. One of her lines that strike out to me was when she talked about leaving home when she was a teenager in the late 60's:

"You know what I need? You know what I really, really need? I need to live alone. I need to find out who I am - outside of a group, outside of a marriage. I was too young to be committed... and I need to know myself... And I think that a lot of women go through this. Coming of age, when I came of age, when I started college in 1968... it was kind of understood that you grow up, you get married, you have children, and even if you have a job, that's the trajectory. And like I said before, I knew I wanted a different life, and I knew at some point that to have that life I need to know who I was. And without picking up on what other people wanted of me, or asked of me, or projected on me, or any of that, and that required having some room totally by myself, which I never had in my life."  - Terry Gross 

Listen to the interview here.

Carey Mulligan in NYC

Carey Mulligan as a New Yorker is one of the cutest things you'll see today. Watch as she tries everything from Uber to street performers to SoulCycle...

Rashida Jones on friends

"In my 20's, I wanted to be around smart people; in my teens I wanted to be around cool people. And in my 30's, I'm all about heart - I love people who are authentic."

- Rashida Jones via the Man Repeller and NARS interview

// misty copeland

I've been obsessed with Misty Copeland today after learning about her story on NPR. She grew up without a background in ballet, unlike most girls who got their training at a young age. But despite everything against her - age, family, money, race - she worked hard to get accepted into the American Ballet Theater four years after she started ballet.

What I love about her is how humble she is, yet her passion for the art of ballet is so strong, she's telling her story so young, minority girls could be inspired to reach for ballet too.

Oprah on Career and Life

Oprah gave an inspiring talk recently at Stanford on finding success in career and life. No matter who you are, we can all take something from this so we can find our own purpose in life and live to our full potential.

"Align your personality with your purpose, and no one can touch you."

Video from Stanford Graduate School of Business

{ time to thrive - ellen page }

"Loving other people begins with loving ourselves and accepting ourselves."

{ streep & clinton }

Here's to strong independent women.

{ mindy kaling }

“My relationship with my mom is really the single most profound relationship that I’ve ever had in my life,” she tells me. “By the way, it seems like I’m … I’m just blowing my nose. It’s not because I’m sad.” She has allergies and a cold, she promises. But her voice breaks when she starts talking about how she sat down with a pen and paper and asked her mother to give her all the advice she could possibly give her before she died, and Kaling realized she’d never be able to ask her mother for advice again. “I said to her, ‘Mom, I’m going to be so lonely without you.’” She’s crying now but keeps going. “And she just said, ‘You have to be your own best friend. If you always remember that, you will always have someone there with you.’”

- Mindy Kaling from Vulture Article