Why I Decided to Stop Hating Taylor Swift

Maybe it's because I'm reading more women written books and blogs, but lately I've been on this strange crusade to defend Taylor Swift. Which is strange because I used to be one of those people who blindly hated her, but here I am.

Last night a friend wrote a status about not liking her and I threatened to write a letter on why I stopped hating her, to which he responded: "I may need a copy of this letter." So of course, I wrote it and I'll share it with you.

Dearest Houston, Remember, you asked for this. In today's world it's easy to write people off quickly or to dismiss them as silly, especially in pop culture. I myself am guilty of this. To this day I've still not been able to look deep inside myself enough to find the good of Katy Perry. However, through out time and years of internal struggle, I have finally made peace with the fact that I

freaking love Taylor Swift. Taylor doesn't get it right always, and yeah she often makes it hard to defend her when she gasp in "shock" at winning award after award, but if we have learned anything from Meryl Streep it is that the feigned shock is a crowd favorite. Sure her dance moves aren't the best, but hell yeah to the girl who dances her ass off and has fun, instead of sulking or pretending that she hates dancing. Too many girls don't dance, because they're so afraid of judgement, so shake it off! I am a product of Meg Ryan movies. Meg taught me that cardigans and manners can be sexy in their own way. Taylor carries that torch. In a world where pop stars have to fake stays in mental hospitals for evaluations, be arrested for DUI's or rely too heavily on their sex appeal, Swift has remained relevant by sporting classic dresses and pearls, doing random good deeds for her fans and rocking the hell out of some red lipstick. And while she doesn't throw her sexuality in our faces, she also doesn't shy away from it. Her songs often have themes of sexuality laced in them, and I love it. Girls should be taught that it's ok to be sexual beings, without being slut-shamed, but also that you don't have to parade yourself around like you're a prize at the fair. Be sexy, feel sexy, but do it on your own terms. And last but not least; she writes, plays and sings her own stuff. Of course it's not incredibly complex, but Jesus it's catchy which is what pop music is all about. However, I'll throw in on a personal note I think her lyrics are pretty amazing. I'm really not sure what happened in my brain to make me quit hating her, because for years I absolutely despised her, but now when I work with young girls to talk about strong women influences Taylor is one of my favorites to hear. Love (Your Nerdy Friend), WIlla

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