Saturday, June 04, 2005
Empowering Clothes
The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants just came out last Wednesday about a group of four young women friends who each can magically fit into a single pair of pants despite their differing body types. The movie chronicles their adventures in said pants.
The author writes:
"I've always liked the idea that clothing can hold emotions and memories or connections to other people, so it wasn't a stretch to imagine a pair of jeans could be a physical repository for a living friendship."
- Ann Brashares
So, 'fess up: Is there a single piece of clothing that makes you ready to take on the world? Or an article that conjures up fond memories?
The author writes:
"I've always liked the idea that clothing can hold emotions and memories or connections to other people, so it wasn't a stretch to imagine a pair of jeans could be a physical repository for a living friendship."
- Ann Brashares
So, 'fess up: Is there a single piece of clothing that makes you ready to take on the world? Or an article that conjures up fond memories?
Thursday, June 02, 2005
Hot, Hairy, and Horny
Just now in my inbox, I received an email from a mom's club friend asking if anyone has had any success with products such as Nair, Neet, or any other non-shaving type of hair removal (I guess laser?) because she says that it is now too hot out to shave all the time. So now I pose the question to the internet audience -- What types of hair removal have been most successful for you?
While looking around for an English version of the Neet website (why isn't one readily available? And why is it that googling "Neet" results in many non-hair-care-removal websites, yet the Google Ads are all about hair removal?), I came across a wealth of information. One question that I have had, but have been reluctant to actually ask anyone regards the "bikini area." I honestly don't know what "most people" do to be adequately groomed. For example, when younger, I took it all off, later to read that is usually not what people do. Is it safe to use chemicals "down there" or must one shave very, very carefully? I think most people probably have someone wax it professionally, but I am not comfortable enough to have a stranger do this. At any rate, I just found the Pubic Shave website which claims to have tips about hair removal for all areas. (I am a little nervous about the sex toy ads and so forth because I am not looking for porn, but it looks like there is some actual advice.) And then a skin care product website includes a Guide to Hair Removal that I might look at.
When I went through adolescence, my mom told me to wait as long as possible before shaving my legs. She said that once I started, I could never stop. (Presumably because when the hair is shaved off, the tip is blunt cut and is therefore rougher to the touch than a hair that hasn't been cut.) The whole "darker and thicker" myth still was in abundance. Thankfully, I still have blonde leg hair. For one of my birthdays or Christmases, she gave me an electric razor only for me to tell her I had been shaving for awhile. However, I had only been shaving from the knee down (most people do the whole leg, right?). And nobody ever told me to shave the "bikini area!" Yes, I knew to shave my armpits, but that was because it was pretty obvious who had and hadn't. Nonetheless, my first "down there" experience was when I was at a pool party and realized that my suit was cut high enough to necessitate some grooming. So I quickly excused myself and improvised. The resulting rash wasn't pretty!
While looking around for an English version of the Neet website (why isn't one readily available? And why is it that googling "Neet" results in many non-hair-care-removal websites, yet the Google Ads are all about hair removal?), I came across a wealth of information. One question that I have had, but have been reluctant to actually ask anyone regards the "bikini area." I honestly don't know what "most people" do to be adequately groomed. For example, when younger, I took it all off, later to read that is usually not what people do. Is it safe to use chemicals "down there" or must one shave very, very carefully? I think most people probably have someone wax it professionally, but I am not comfortable enough to have a stranger do this. At any rate, I just found the Pubic Shave website which claims to have tips about hair removal for all areas. (I am a little nervous about the sex toy ads and so forth because I am not looking for porn, but it looks like there is some actual advice.) And then a skin care product website includes a Guide to Hair Removal that I might look at.
When I went through adolescence, my mom told me to wait as long as possible before shaving my legs. She said that once I started, I could never stop. (Presumably because when the hair is shaved off, the tip is blunt cut and is therefore rougher to the touch than a hair that hasn't been cut.) The whole "darker and thicker" myth still was in abundance. Thankfully, I still have blonde leg hair. For one of my birthdays or Christmases, she gave me an electric razor only for me to tell her I had been shaving for awhile. However, I had only been shaving from the knee down (most people do the whole leg, right?). And nobody ever told me to shave the "bikini area!" Yes, I knew to shave my armpits, but that was because it was pretty obvious who had and hadn't. Nonetheless, my first "down there" experience was when I was at a pool party and realized that my suit was cut high enough to necessitate some grooming. So I quickly excused myself and improvised. The resulting rash wasn't pretty!
Female Bloggers Unite!
For anyone who will be near Santa Clara, CA at the end of July, the BlogHer 2005 Conference will be held July 30 at the TechMart Meeting Center. This is a great opportunity for seasoned bloggers as well as newbies to join together for networking and ideas, but most importantly, to encourage the female bloggers! Male attendees are certainly welcome, but "cultivating the female blogging community" is part of the goal for this gathering.
I am particularly excited because some of my favorite bloggers will be in attendance, so I hope to actually meet them in person, groupie that I am!
Registration can be found HERE, and an overview can be found at www.blogher.org.
Hope to see you there!
(Oh, and for those of you who aren't convinced, the
TechMart Meeting Center is next door to Paramount's Great America Theme Park, so you can ride roller coasters when you aren't attending conference sessions.)
I am particularly excited because some of my favorite bloggers will be in attendance, so I hope to actually meet them in person, groupie that I am!
Registration can be found HERE, and an overview can be found at www.blogher.org.
Hope to see you there!
(Oh, and for those of you who aren't convinced, the
TechMart Meeting Center is next door to Paramount's Great America Theme Park, so you can ride roller coasters when you aren't attending conference sessions.)
Spotlight on Health Care
WOMEN'S HEALTH, I:
In today's Dear Abby, a reader explains that the Food and Drug Administration's Office of Women's Health and the Federal Citizen Information Center have teamed up to create a free Women's Health Information Kit, which covers a multitude of different health-related concerns.
There are three ways to obtain the kit:
1) Order online at http://www.pueblo.gsa.gov
2) Send your name and address to Women's Health Information Kit, Pueblo, CO 81009
3) Call toll-free 1-888-878-3256 weekdays 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. (EST) and ask for the Women's Health Information Kit.
WOMEN'S HEALTH, II:
Avon's Walk for Breast Cancer is coming up in my area. I must admit that when I set out to post information about this, I was erroneously under the impression that all the "walks" would take place in July, not just the one in my location. So, unfortunately, there are several geographic locations for which the walk just passed. However, this gives you a whole year of preparation for the 2006 walk! But for those of you near Denver, San Francisco, L.A., or New York, consider either walking, or sponsoring a friend.
In today's Dear Abby, a reader explains that the Food and Drug Administration's Office of Women's Health and the Federal Citizen Information Center have teamed up to create a free Women's Health Information Kit, which covers a multitude of different health-related concerns.
There are three ways to obtain the kit:
1) Order online at http://www.pueblo.gsa.gov
2) Send your name and address to Women's Health Information Kit, Pueblo, CO 81009
3) Call toll-free 1-888-878-3256 weekdays 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. (EST) and ask for the Women's Health Information Kit.
WOMEN'S HEALTH, II:
Avon's Walk for Breast Cancer is coming up in my area. I must admit that when I set out to post information about this, I was erroneously under the impression that all the "walks" would take place in July, not just the one in my location. So, unfortunately, there are several geographic locations for which the walk just passed. However, this gives you a whole year of preparation for the 2006 walk! But for those of you near Denver, San Francisco, L.A., or New York, consider either walking, or sponsoring a friend.
