How do you see yourself?

So I've been thinking about self-image issues a lot lately. I had a group of girls over at my apartment last weekend and we were talking about body image in the media, and how on blogs and message boards fat girls are saying skinny girls look like emaciated skeletons and skinny girls are saying fat girls are disgusting and lazy. Likewise, when i was a teenager this boy I liked called me a tree trunk. Weird insult, but amazing how the embarrassment has stuck with me. Obviously there should be no ideal body type, and everyone's body should be celebrated. But how do we get young girls to understand this? Is it perfunctory to feel bad about yourself growing up because you're different, whether it's too tall, too short, too dark, too chubby or whatever it is? Is there a way to instill self esteem in girls, or do they have to get there, as I did, through a long, difficult, self-doubting process? I certainly don't have the answer, but a couple things that have been boosting my self-esteem lately: bright red lipstick, and these Jeffrey Campbell shoes, which I am hoping to buy eventually (Shoutout: barefoottess.com!). Hey, it's the little things that count.

Tall reading...

Has anyone read "The Tall Book" by Arianne Cohen? I was just checking out her Web site. The book claims to answer the age old questions, "Why do tall people succeed professionally, financially and intellectually? Why are tall men the most successful dating and mating group on earth, while tall women have low birth rates? And who the hell is behind those airplane seats?" I wonder if there's actual research on these things or if she used anecdotal evidence. Either way, I'd like to talk to whoever's responsible for the airplane seats.