me when i get to yap !!!!!! wjkhwjdhwkdk okay anyways!!!! so!! ive been into barbie for as long as i can remember. i had super strict parents though (and we were poor) so i never really was allowed to have toys- but what i could have was movies. so as special treats, we would go to the video store downtown and i would get to pick out a movie or two and over time i ended up amassing a collection of those old animated barbie movies. they were everything to me- i could recite barbie princess and the pauper from memory, i was that crazy about it. and one of my favourite parts of the movies were the kens! they held such a special place in my heart and i never really grew out of thinking they were cute (shoutout aidan). fast forward to whenever when they announce the live action barbie movie: i am positively thrilled! like everyday was just happy-anxiety jitters. and then the iconic denim ken pic drops and its like i was hit with a freight train. i adore pretty much every ken, so this was no exception. at the time, my favourite movie was the live action scooby doo, so people comparing gosling's ken to freddie prinze jr's fred was biggggg for me. i avoided all the trailers and whatnot for the movie so i could go into it completely blind.

the day is july twentieth. i buy back-to-back oppenheimer + barbie tickets. oppenheimer was forgettable who cares. i was already crazy about the barbie movie and i hadnt even seen it yet. but the secondddddd he came on screen, and the narrator states that "ken only has a good day when barbie looks at him"-- i was gone. that was it. like ken and barbie's origin story it was literallyyyy love at first sight. i saw the movie like once a week after that- i was hooked. i understandddd that focusing on a man in a movie about feminism and women is like,,, wrong or whatever but it was so much more than that! regardless of his gender, he was treated like a second-class citizen which sucked bc he has so much love and energy and passion to give!! something i can completeky relate to! he was (and still is) barbie's biggest fan! her number one supporter + hypeman! but no one was there for him, yknow? no one wakes up and tries to match outfits with ken; no one only has a great day if ken's around- and ig i just wanted to be that person ♥

on my third or fourth watch of the barbie movie, earlier in the day i went out and bought a ken doll. not that groundbreaking for anyone but it meant the world to me!! i was old enough that no one could tell me "no" and that was pretty big! it was the beach ken, and i remember taking him out of the box and getting to pose and play with him and just being completely elated lol. (the novelty still hasnt worn off a year and a bit later!) i took him with me to see the movie and i think that was our first "real date" whwlkdhglwk. around october i bleached my hair blonde to match with him and ended up being barbie for halloween!! ofc, ken came with me to school and trick-or-treating and people seemed to really like him!! it made me super happy that he was garnering such positive attention- i love when he's loved!! later that year, i had a barbie themed birthday (i took him to birthday breakfast with me and rewatched barbie teehee!!) and the icing-on-the-cake was, quite literally, ken. (*insert joke abt eating him here*) lmaoooo but yeah!! i got to spend my birthday with him which is probably the best gift i couldve asked for ♥

at some point i was feeling bored and lonely so i decided to make him some clothes! i cut up one of my old tshirts and pair of my jeans to make him a shirt and pants (hashtag literally giving him the clothes off my back lmao) and some accessories. it felt really nice- he wasnt just a cookie cutter out-of-the-box run of the mill ken. he was mine!! i started taking him places- getting groceries or takeout. then on walks or doctors appointments. now i take him with me pretty much everywhere! sometimes i get a weird look or two, but most people think its pretty funny and take it in good stride! i like showing him the world- he gets to experience the real world and i get to spend time with my favourite guy!!!

sooooo yeah!! kenjamie lore :thumbsup: we're happily dating/engaged/married/together!! ♥

lengthy word vomit ramble coming soon......!