Beefy Cosmetics

Beef, it's what for dinner. We have all heard this phrase coined by the national beef industry. For many of us, beef is what's for dinner on a regular basis. After all, what's better than a big juicy burger or perfectly cooked peppered encrusted steak (with a side of white cheddar mashers....). Can dinner get much better?

While you are probably thinking I am headed down a path to lecture you on the benefits of being vegan- that is far from my agenda. While Americans consume millions of pounds of meat per year, I am more concerned with what happens to the parts of the animal we don't consume. The dead carcasses of slaughterhouse animals and euthanized Humane Society rejects get sent away to a plant where they are boiled down. As the remains of the animals simmers like chicken noodle soup, a white fatty layer rises to the top where it's scraped off and added to the lovely smelling lotion you slather all over your body or the "all natural" shampoo you rely on for shiny and bouncy hair. SICK! Think your $80 Lancome or Estee Lauder creams are exempt from the cheap filler- think again. Even the Body Shop, advertising no animal testing, still uses animal fillers in their products.

Why is bad to cover your body with dead animal nastiness? Well, it's disgusting for starters. But aside from the obvious, many can actually do more harm than good. Collagen, for example, covers the skin in a layer of petroleum or another heavy oil that forms a water impenetrable barrier. This gives a temporary appearance of plumpness by slowing the release of moisture from the skin.It also puts a layer over your skin which does not allow it to breathe properly, causing breakouts, wrinkles, and irritation.

Go grab your products and look for the following: Stearamide, Stearamine, Stearates, Stearic Hydrazide, Stearone, Stearoxytrimethylsilane, Stearoyl Lactylic Acid, Stearyl Betaine or Stearyl Imidazoline, Sodium Tallowate, Tallow Acid, Tallow Amide, Tallow Amine, Talloweth-6, Tallow Glycerides or Tallow Imidazoline to name a few.


So how do you get around this? Look for labels that are free from animal testing and animal by-products: Aveda, Burt's Bee's, Annie's Organics, and Arbonne are just a few of the brands that don't believe road kill belongs in cosmetics.

So keep eating that steak- just stop wearing it!

Junk Food Addict

Junk Food Addict- Copied from the Healthy Bitch Daily

Is Krispy Kreme the New Cocaine?




When Lay’s potato chips bet ya that you couldn’t eat just one, they weren’t kidding.

Studies have shown that there is a strong similarity between a cocaine addiction and those overpowering cravings for junk food.

Yes, we’re talking about the heavy stuff. Nose candy. The White Lady. California cornflakes. Whatever absurd little nickname you have for it, it’s not far off from the built-in neurological response that makes us eat certain combinations of food - especially salt, fat and sugar - even when we feel full.

What’s the difference between drugs and cheesecake?

Maybe not that much, according to a study published in Nature Neuroscience. Researchers showed that junk food and drugs have some similar effects on the brain. For example, rats fed a constant diet of HoHos, bacon, cheesecake and frosting, sought out their junk food fix even when it meant enduring a painful shock. So much for Pavlov’s dog…Ouchie.

In addition, the pleasure centers in the rats’ brains became sluggish after they got used to the endless supply of crappy food. They needed bigger and bigger doses to get the same good feelings (just like a drug addict).

Irrational and obsessed

Let’s get technical for a second. Frequent junk food binges actually rewire brain circuitry. In fact, neurobiologist associate Professor Paul Kenny from the Scripps Research Institute in Florida, says overeating junk food can lead to a compulsive habit, one that is beyond your control. Another theory suggests that there could be something in the accumulated fat itself that alters the brain's reward threshold, setting up a "vicious cycle" of overeating yet not feeling satisfied.

No matter the reason why and how the brain reacts to junk food, the end result is addiction and weight gain. Not pretty for bitches who are trying to get skinny.

So do yourself a little favor and don’t even tempt yourself by bringing the Cheetos into the home…even if you claim it’s for someone else (big, fat liar). Pick up a bag of raw kale chips instead.

A New Adventure

It has been some time since I have posted to this site. What can I say- life changed, one adventure ended, and the new one was not interesting enough to write about..... or so I thought.

I have been working in healthcare on and off for some time now. While in Argentina, I did take Anatomy and Physiology and Microbiology and ran a marathon - which got me thinking..... at first a little bit...... and then quite a bit more. About what? Well, I began to think more about what I put into my body and how it was processed. I could see a huge difference in my running abilities when I ate lots of fruits and veggies (unfortunately, staying away from gelatto was quite difficult). And more recently, I have been thinking quite a bit about what goes on my body. I'm not talking cotton tee shirts and jeans here. I'm talkng about lotions, makeup, cleaning products, etc..... Afterall, the skin is the largest organ on the body and transports everything on it into it. Yet everday, most people slather, spray, paint,wipe and gloss their bodies with thousands of chemicals. Chemicals we trust to be safe. Afterall- the FDA has our backs and would never let harmful items onto the shelves of grocery stores....

It's a nice fantasy to think the FDA has our backs. I am learning quite the opposite. And as I embark on this new adventure of health and wellness, I warn you that the stories might lack the same humor of Argentine tales, but they are stories that need to be told to the ones I hold most dear- friends and family. I hope you will join me as I explore this new territory and spread the world to all those you care about as well.

Hold on tight though- this wild ride is going to blow your socks off. To begin within the next few days.....

What's your sign?

The U.S. has many laws- some might argue too many. We can sue a person if we slip on their side walk, or if we burn ourselves with their coffee. In fact, we could probably sue someone for just about any reason imaginable. However, I have realized that these laws have come about for a reason- and have been contorted and taken advantage of. However, they offer some protection- protection that does not exist in the organized chaos of Argentina.

While I could point to many things that exemplify this in Argentina, today I was reminded of a particular law that we have in the US to prevent discrimination. Greg and I went to a Spanish school to see if we could trade some Spanish lessons for English lessons. We spoke to the owner of the school for about an hour. At the end, she asked us to email our resumes to her. As we parted ways, she told us to remember to put our birthday- year, day and month- on the resume. She said that people fromt he US never do this, but that it is a must for her.

In the States it is illegal to ask a person to do this or even to ask their age in an interview. It is a law that is meant to protect job applicants from age discrimination. I explained this to the woman at the school- and she promptly replied " But how else can I know what sign you are and if I want to hire you? I know that certain signs make better employees and teachers than others, so I need to make sure that you would be an appropriate fit." I had to bite my cheeks to keep from laughing- but I went home with a new appreciation of the laws in the US- laws that I usually consider to be a bit too much most of the time.

Eanie Meanie Miney Moe

I am not sure a person can realize how difficult it can be to move to another country when you don't speak the language. After several months, Greg and I have found our way around, but there never seems to be a lack of surprises lurking around the corner.

Without speaking the language, your survival skills in a new culture draw on the familiar. In a strange place, you seek out any comforts of home you can find. This is especially true when shopping. Packaging is different, labels are foreign, and you never quite know what you are buying. If you see a label you know, like Dove or Heinz, you snatch it up- as it provides a taste of home and takes the often "not so fun" surprise element out of your purchase. I used this technique when buying laundry detergent as well. I have always used liquid detergent for as long as I can remember- and always have been a loyal supporter of Cheer. So, I chose the bottle that looked most like Cheer. It was blue, great label, smelled nice, and just seemed like it would preserve my clothing in the same way Cheer does. I asked a woman in the store if it was a good product- and she nodded her head- reaffirming what I already had decided was an excellent choice. I soon became a loyal supporter.

So, for the past 8.5 mo, I have been using the same detergent to wash my clothes. Today, the woman Greg and I live with was helping us with laundry (the machines here are quite a bit different than in the US- each needing its own set of special operating instructions). She looked at my laundry detergent and asked me if I had some soap to put in the wash. Confused, I pointed to my excellent pick of laundry detergent. She starts laughing and sprinkles in a powder detergent and shuts the lid. She picked up my bottle of detergent and points to the bottom of the bottle, clearly written in Spanish, advertising a wonderful laundry softener- not soap. And all this time I had been attributing my dingy clothing to the machines. I probably would have never known either...

Be Careful What You Ask For

Greg and I lived in winter for over a year. We had forgotten what is was like to walk around without a coat and and hat- or to wear shorts, dresses (I speak for myself on that one), flip flops, etc.... I can now no longer remember what it is like to be cold.

Webster defines "hot" as "having or giving off heat; having a high temperature". I think I can do better. Real heat- hot summer days- are intense. A shower using only the "cold" knob feels hot, you want to strip down to nothing, it's too hot to eat or cook, and you feel as though there is not enough water in the world to quench your thirst. Your clothes cling to you, and as you stand after sitting for a few mintues, it looks as though you have peed your pants. h This is the definition from Sheila's Dictionary. It has been around 95-104 here- and even at 3 AM it only gets down to 85... if you're lucky.

And it has taught me a few things. When I first arrived in Argentina, there were signs everywhere advertising "ambiente climatizado"- or a good climate- meaning air conditioning. This is a very special- more important than the WIFI sticker at the moment. Lesson 1- we take a/c for granted in the US. Our house does not have AC- and almost no one does.... and if you do it is not central a/c- it is a small wall unit. Fans feel like heaters blowing on you. Lesson 2: while I did not think this was important and actually thought it was funny initially, I now look for the "ambiente climatizado" before giving a place my business.

In case I forgot to mention it earlier, Greg and I are living in Mendoza. It is beautiful, full of tree lined streets, home of all Argentine wines, and it is also a desert. Lesson 3: If you can't stand the heat, get out of the desert. We have entered into more of a summer than we bargained for ...... and now I can't wait for snow!