Will I be called a traitor to feminism if I say that Lena Dunham’s green hair is the worst? Actually, looking at her hair over the course of the past two months, I kind of think the green hair is much better than the platinum blonde. Blonde didn’t suit her at all. The green is bad, but slightly better. Anyway, these are photos of Lena promoting her book in London this week. She did a BBC interview, a book signing and other promotional appearances. Anyway, there was something about jet-lag and getting up early in London that made Lena want to vom.
Lena Dunham used to vomit if she had to get up before 7am. The 28-year-old star is best known for writing hit HBO show Girls, which she also appears in. Now she’s a megastar, she has to spend a lot of time travelling to promote her work – which means a great deal of early starts.
“I felt toddler-ish – like an angry toddler,” she laughed to BBC Radio 1 about her mood that morning. “I don’t do well in the morning, but my job often requires me to wake up very early. It used to be that every time I woke up before 7am, I vomited. But I’m better now.”
Lena is currently in London, UK, to promote her new book Not That Kind of Girl. While over in the British capital she has been indulging her love of crumpets – a bread snack, eaten toasted and usually slathered in butter.
“I have a theory that butter is very healthy for you and one of the reasons so many people in Hollywood get divorces is because they’re not allowing themselves [butter],” she laughed of her fondness for the calorific spread.
During her stay, Lena has also been bought some gay interest and women’s interest books by her family and friends, who have been busy browsing London’s stores.
The star spoke a little about the process of writing her novel.
“I wrote a few essays and decided it could be a book and then it was just forcing myself do it in my off hours; it took about two years to write,” she said. “Even though there’s some serious stuff, I hoped it would be a joyful experience. Every time I make myself laugh writing, someone else says, ‘I don’t like that part.’ Nothing I laugh at successfully makes it into anything. I have a good base of people who will be like: ‘You can’t do that.'”
I’ve always been a morning person, even since I was a kid. I mean, I can stay up late and sleep in (sometimes), but I’ve found that I function best as an early-to-bed, early-to-rise type, and I don’t really understand people who are THIS dysfunctional in the morning. I can see still being sleepy or needing some caffeine, but I don’t get “If I wake up early, I want to vomit.” As for butter… I’ve been using margarine for so long, I sometimes forget what real butter tastes like.
Photos courtesy of WENN, Fame/Flynet.
Early bird here, too. It’s my nature. And butter IS good for you!!! Eat fat, people! It’s not the enemy!
Is this the angsty version of “every time a bell rings an angel gets her wings …?”
Yes Lena, you are the hipster George Bailey.
Amen. I really don’t think anyone, even her fans, actually care that she’s such a special snowflake that she becomes a toddler in the morning because it’s just so hard being an actual functioning adult. Sigh.
I think I’m coming to the conclusion there might be a bit of Lena Dunham in me. I used to find getting up early very very difficult, and feel sick for a good 3 hours or so. That might have something to do with the fact that it takes me a good 1-4 hours to get to sleep. I’ve been trying to sort my sleeping patterns out for years, but now I’m freelance I don’t have to. It’s not good.
I also eat fats – butter, or cocoanut oil. I’m all about the good fats.
Where people go wrong is when they eat fat *and* lots of empty carbs. Get your carbs from highly nutritious sources, veggies, fruit. Up your protein intake. Then don’t be shy about fat.
Margarine is very, very unhealthy. Filled with additives and transfats. And it tastes terrible. Don’t be fooled! I used to protest margarine back in college when everyone was switching over to it. I would bring my own butter to the dining hall. I was right! I was right!
Edit: If you absolutely MUST cut out butter, drizzle olive oil on your bread. Just please stay away from margarine. It is poison.
Yea, I just wrote smth similar a few posts down. I very much agree with equal passion. I would rather go without any oil than eat margarine.
A nutritionist friend of mine once said, “Butter makes life worth living.” And I fully agree with that statement and endorse it every chance I get.
There’s quite a bit of evidence coming to light that saturated fat, far from being the enemy, is actually vital to good health and is required in many key areas. You want a real enemy to fight? Sugar.
Yes, I hate the excess sugar in everything as much as I hate margarine. Since I have weaned off sugar apart from fruit or my homemade pies, I cannot eat any deserts or processed food, as I find them obnoxiously sweet. Its incredible how addicted we are to sugar and once you clean it out of your system how little one needs or wants it.
The key is what one’s nature is. I absolutely believe her because I can’t eat first thing in the morning either.
I have never been able to eat first thing in the morning. I’m simply not hungry, even when I work out at 6:30 a.m. But there have been some studies out recently that breakfast isn’t as important as it was once thought: http://www.alternet.org/food/everything-you-learned-about-breakfast-wrong
But make it the good butter… Cheap butter tends to be not very tasty at least where I live.
Alternatively, splurge on good coconut butter. You can even spread it on bread or crackers. It’s very digestible, actually leaves the stomach faster than other fats and is broken down more easily. It’s used for hospital feeding concoctions, I assume for that reason.
The green hair is slightly better. It’s those shoes that are traitorous.
YIKES! Not to mention her friends and writing style…
You have a problem with gold pilgrim shoes? What wrong with you?
I’ve been trying not to comment so much about appearances, even for people I tend to disagree with, but I have to say this – that green hair color does nothing for the look of her teeth.
It makes her yellow teeth look brown. Ick.
I used to have green hair about 15 years ago. But I made sure to choose a darker hue. Maybe it’s her dark roots. Definitely doesn’t suit her.
Yes, I was thinking that the dress isn’t so bad, but the shoes killed the outfit.
The lime hair reminds me of one of my best high school friends. She was blonde, and an elite swimmer training for the Olympics at the time. As she was constantly in the pool, her hair always had that lime tinge to it, due to the chlorine…
I don’t know much at all about this woman, except what I’ve read on here, but she seems just a teeny bit odd to me.
Yikes!
I’m a “if I have to get up I set an alarm and do it and that’s it but I won’t wake before 10 on the weekends” type person , no grumpiness, no coffee ( in fact I hate any warm drinks), no nothing… but I know so many people that throw a live shitfit in the ams about being woken up or even talked to… OOF!
Also the Green hair is barely working because the ROOTS are dark… she really should stick to darker hair cause that blonde thing is just not… good
I happen to be both a night owl and early bird- a crazy combo. If I try to go to bed early, my bedtimes will naturally just get later and later, and o work best going to bed at 3 or 4. I was a barista too though who loves the early shift- 530am. There are times i would sleep 15 hours a week. I function fine until after the 5th short night, then I start to need a good long marathon sleep, then I’m back to 2 hour nights. In pregnant now and need 9 hours a night and it feels straight bizarre to me, and I have no time to do anything! Sleeping wastes so much time! How do people get anything done?
I wish I had your powers.
That is crazy! I wish I could function without a ton of sleep.
I need 7-8 hours, but on the weekends, if I don’t set an alarm, I think I could really sleep for almost the whole day. Last week I fell asleep on the couch at 10:30 at night, and eventually went to bed. When my bf woke me up the next day is was 12:30pm!
Also…I have actually puked from waking up too early. I had an early flight, and my tummy wasn’t really “awake” yet, but I forced a granola bar on it anyway. Right after take off on my flight, I had to use the bag on the plane. I was so embarrassed. I had tears running down my cheeks when I had to call the attendant and let her know that I used by bag. Thankfully, it was a really empty flight so there was no one next to me or in front of me to witness my shame, lol!
That’s very unhealthy. Your body needs consistent sleep, even if you don’t feel like you do.
This interview is just boring.
At least there was butter.
…but it was vomited.
Yeah, it’s the interview
Hey Lena, ever think anything you DON’T say?
I’m an early riser as well. But that was due to having kids and then it sorta stuck. I found this incredible Irish butter, now it’s all I’ll use. It’s awesome.
Irish butter is the best.
That happened to me too. I’d drink my coffee, have a shower, throw up my coffee, and run out the door.
I think it was stress/acid reflux more than early mornings though.
Is it weird to be glad other folks do this to?
I can deal if I gotta, but yeah – stress over the upcoming trek would cause a massive headache, I’d throw back a can of soda, toss my cookies, drink another can or a coffee, stand still for a 90 second count, if it stayed down (even reluctantly) I’m out the door. But I’m a dedicated night owl by choice, can even manage about 2 1/2 days up and working pretty fully functional before having to crash out for a chunk of time. Morning? Not unless I gotta – and thankfully most of my gigs mean I can pick the hours I have to think straight!
I hate mornings but not to the point of vomiting. I’m an night owl have always been that way but I can struggle during the day and love a good nana nap.
I absolutely hate mornings too! Its a lot more common than ppl think. Since I was a little child, I have always bern a night owl. There are only few things in life I hate more than waking up really early.
As for butter, I get it when ppl skip it (I love it personally, its the best thing for cooking) so I dont want to be an ass but I cant believe ppl are still using margerine after all the horrific research resurfaced.
I was a night owl for my entire life. But I’m now in my late 30s and in recent years I find myself waking up around 6 a.m., even on weekends. It doesn’t feel weird to me. I’m not sure what caused this shift. I do miss staying up late.
” I don’t really understand people who are THIS dysfunctional in the morning. ”
I am one of these people. Anxiety disorders can cause this or anxiety in general, and it happens as SOON as I wake up, and it’s a battle to not throw up or gag or cough to stop the gagging. It’s worse the earlier I have to wake up. It may be a foreign idea to many of us — thankfully — but for me it is a reality and I effing hate it.
Thanks for sharing, because I am exactly the same and I didn’t think other people went through that too.
another here.
no one understands that i am physically ill in the morning, especially very early.
nauseous, headache, dizziness.
i do it, but don’t feel well till around 10 am.
it’s been this way my entire life.
and i’m at my best energy level around 7pm-midnight.
and i feel most relaxed.
has to be some sort of inborn body clock…
I used to have anxiety. I wonder how old you are because if you’re young (20s), it will probably go away as you get older. I used to get the “creepy feeling” when I’d wake up in the middle of the night. Felt like everything was closing in on me. I went to my doctor and when she asked me to describe it and I said fear, she asked what am I afrait of. My answer was “nothing in particular, and yet everything.” As soon as I said that, I think we both knew it was anxiety. Just knowing what it was and from then on recognizing it for what it was, helped alot. I think you’ll get over it. Once you get in you 30s you tend to stop caring what others think and you don’t sweat the small stuff any more. Hang in there.
Me too me toooooooooo
@JenniferJustice I’m mid-30’s and I still have difficulty with mornings… but like I said above, might be something to do with the insomnia? I don’t think it’s age-related, possibly more coping-mechanisms related? As in, if you manage to figure out good ways of coping you’re fine. I don’t care what people think – so I have no idea what I’m anxious about…
I used to throw up if I had to get up early too, but that was from an ulcer that I (later learned) I had. That was when I was a teenager, I’m fine now.
I do not have anxiety disorder but I am a mess in the morning plain and simple. On the opposite I am perfectly fine in the night.
Me too and thank you for sharing this. My anxiety is worst in the mornings and also from the moment I wake up, gagging, etc. Sometimes I’m mentally exhausted before I even leave the house. Unfortunately my job requires me to wake up around 5am, but I never seem to get used to it. Best wishes to you.
Her hair looks great here! I like the style much better. Also, definitely a morning person, I would always rather be awake early than up late. Nobody’s around at night!
I’m a nightowl and early mornings are just terrible. I often feel sick in the morning, though I can’t say I’ve ever vomitted because of it.
KAISER!!! STOP EATING MARGARINE!! It’s HORRIBLE for your body!!!
Seriously, there’s absolutely no reason to eat margarine instead of butter. I can may understand wanting to stay away from fats in general so not eating butter at all, but this substitution is in now way beneficial. Trans fats are directly linked to a higher risk of coronary diseases.
Seconded! Margarine is terrible for you! And terrible, period. I could never understand people who couldn’t taste the difference.
It doesn’t sound like she would be suited to motherhood. If she vomited on her kid every time it woke up before 7am, I’d say that qualifies as bad parenting.
I’d say that was fair play. Babies throw up on their parents all.the.dang.time and I say turnabout is only to be expected
Sigh. Those shoes should be burnt. Balenciagaaaaaaaaa! Tiresome twat.
She’s so obnoxious. How nice that you are such a delicate little daisy that you are able to sleep in or else you (gasp!) vomit upon waking! Good thing you never had to have a real job.
When I was working on my teaching certification I would leave the house at 5am, work, school, work again, home to do school work, bed, and start all over again. I was older than she is now. And I also have an anxiety disorder. I never would have gotten anywhere in life if I allowed myself to be as delicate as she claims to be.
could it be possible that she is actually finally running out of things to overshare about herself?
I know how she feels. Every time I read a Lena Dunham article, I vomit.
+1 – thanks JenniferJustice!
Lol. Especially if it’s too early in the morning.
Seriously. I literally gagged a few times while reading her book. Not kidding.
she’s sporting Prada shoes and purse
The green hair is the best look I’ve seen on her to date!
Switch to butter, seriously. Real butter made with olive oil, not canola oil. It’s the shit.
I’m naturally a night owl, but as I get older mornings are easier. Right now my job means I have to get up at 5 am. I always think I’m going to sleep in on the weekends, but 7 am is sleeping in for me.
Got nothing to say about this person, though. I’ve literally never seen anything she’s done, and I’m not sure why she’s famous.
I cannot comprehend using margarine instead of butter. It’s disgusting to me.
I may not be able to understand why she feels the need to vomit, but I understand it from my own perspective. I work really hard while going to school and often have to stay up late to get my work done. I’m anal about maintaining that 4.0. One semester left! Getting up early after not sleeping well makes me ill. I’ve been the nauseous type my whole life. I’m always cold, always tired, and mostly nauseous throughout the day. Some people are just really touchy and I’m sad to be one of those medicine cabinet full of Dramamine people.
I think the green is better than the platinum blond. I think she would look best with dark brown hair.
I hate mornings. Have ever since I can remember. I’m usually not grumpy about it unless it’s the weekend. Do NOT wake me up before 10AM on a Sunday.
And yes! Butter is great. Boo on margarine.
I don’t think the green hair is that bad. But that haircut is the worst. It would look horrible in any color including her natural hair color. Girl needs to get a new hair stylist or a hair stylist.
LOL – all the writers on this site are SUCH wet towels
I wake up most mornings wanting to be sick. An excess of acid in my tummy caused by anxiety. She just has a case of the overshares.
So she has stylist?
I wouldn’t have known.
🙁
Having kids forced me to become a morning person. But it still takes me about four hours to feel like I’ve woken up properly. I wish I could get some tips from morning TV and radio people about how they manage to sound so energetic and upbeat after getting up at 4am. I’ve tried cold showers, going to the gym before work and I’ve done caffeine to death. All to no avail. Going to the gym was the worst. I can’t stand sweating and exerting myself while I’m still feeling sleepy. Ugh.
I’ve been on a B12, iron, and D regime (was very deficient in all; taking supplements as well as focusing my diet/lifestyle on these) and two years later I suddenly can wake up and actually FEEL my brain coming online within minutes… this is a first for me as I’ve always had your problem with it taking forever to wake up. I also just turned 33. No kids. My workouts are not strenuous thanks to exercise-induced asthma. I suppose the only other change I’ve made in the last 5 years, other than growing older, is switching almost completely to natural foods that I can afford, from a previous reliance on processed, packaged foods that often comes with living in a very impoverished area. Anyway, I’m utterly shocked at my new morning-person-ness. So if you haven’t already, try looking into your vitamin and hormone levels to see if there’s something that could be more balanced.
Thanks. I’ll look into it.
I’ve always been chipper in the mornings, my best friend is a total wreck and her husband is like me, when we all go on vacation she practically tries to kill us every morning because we’re chatty and up running around. We really can’t talk to her until she finishes two cups of coffee, lol.
I have been a plus-size woman for more than half of my life. If I can’t find something nice from Roaman’s or the Woman Within catalogs…there is always Walmart. I wish I could send Lena Dunham these catalogs…because I think she needs some styling help. And maybe she should grow her hair out below her shoulders…she would look better. I think I could help her pick out more flattering styles.
Whilst I don’t vomit, I know where she’s coming from. Anytime I wake up really early in the morning (5am-ish), I feel sick to my stomach. It’s really weird. I used to think it was from lack of sleep, but I’ve noticed that even if I only get 4 hours, if I wake up at 8am or later, I’m fine.
I’ve never been a morning person ever. Now I’m a mum I don’t have a choice. I can’t go to sleep early in the night unless I’m sick.
There’s definitely some kind of circadian rhythm thing that affects some of us atcsoecific times of day. Sleeping past the time avoids the problem.. I’ve had the same experience of vomiting at about the same time she did, whether I was already awake for hours or not. Generally during September (one of my lovely pollen seasons, grass pollen gives way to weed pollen). I always figured it was from too much mucus in my stomach combined with a lovely hyperactive gag reflex. I would feel fine after vomiting. A friend with the same allergy had the same experience. It was definitely a morning thing, after about 7am or so it wouldn’t happen. It didn’t happen every day for me, just a few times during that particular season (weed pollen high). It hasn’t happened at all this season, but my respiratory tract is in great shape (probably due to diligent use of anti-inflammatory supplements for another problem) and so I’m not collecting mucus in my stomach as usual. If she has any kind of year-round allergy, that might becwhat was happening to her. Or maybe there are other reasons involving a similar rhythm – regardless, I would first assume it’s physical and not to her pretending to be a special snowflake.
Of course, we both might just be cats trying to hack up hair balls on an empty stomach…
When I get up before like 6am it throws off my whole digestive system and I get severely nauseous, ruins my whole day. So I get what she’s saying here. No need to jump on her just because you are different.