Even the simplest things are dangerous. They sit and whisper to you in quiet voices, trying to seduce you with their simplicity. They try to seduce you away from the mundanity of everyday.
Crayons call to you to grab them and scrawl across what's near, be it paper, a magazine, or a whitewashed wall. Take them and scribble, scrawl. No dignified handwriting, no careful sketching, just pure raw emotion, pure splashes of color.
The fruit stand on the corner you walk by to work tries to tempt you with its fresh sweetness. The fruit always looks so much more alive than in the stores, in these stalls, and you know you're on a diet and are allowed exactly X portions from Y foodgroup, and you've planned out your fruit for the day, the ripe, soft peaches promise fragrent juice down your chin and a pleasant tickle on your tongue all afternoon long. You know you're not supposed to. But by then, can you resist
The music, playing softly in the restaurant does its best to make you want to dance to it, give up pride and propriety and just let go. It knows you probably won't tango on the patio, but if it croons just enough to you, maybe you just might.
The bubblebath sitting in the back of your cabinet talks to you, softly striving to seduce you in the luxury of TIME. It whispers what if you just take a moment for yourself, take some time and draw a steaming hot peaceful bath you'll emerge renewed and beautiful in the glow--if you just give in and take the time. But you've got to make that sacrifice.
Kittens look more harmless than nearly anything, sweet small balls of fur pleading at you with green and golden eyes. They want to tempt you into letting them in your lap, pet them, talk sweetly to them. As you're lulled into furry warmth, needlesharp claws kneed into your legs just to remind you they're in control. Again the next moment all fluff and sweetness.
The roses on your desk, so rich and red and full dare you to smell them. They promise their fragrance and blessing if you come near enough to partake. But that delight comes with something other--if you smell, if you lose yourself in the perfume, as you smell you must remember. You must remember and admit, if even to yourself, that you're not as awful as you think you are, as you want to believe. While you smell, you must remember someone loves you enough to bring those roses and it dishonors that love to loathe yourself at the same time you bask in such a wonderful gift.
Even velvet, sleek and smooth, is dangerous. How can a fabric be dangerous? Oh, but believe me, it's cunning and wily. It makes you forget, like its counterpart the flowers. As you touch the fabric--and you can't escape its allure once you're so close--you get lost in it. Not smooth like silk nor soft like angora but somewhere between, something lush and plush and wonderful. Once you touch it, you've lost. It will seduce you into seducing yourself. When you wear it or hold it, when you wrap in or around it, you forget who you are and become someone worthy of wearing velvet. You become beautiful and glamorous and proper and sensual all at once. You become feline, you become fantasy, model or moviestar. Anyone at all but "just you".
7.6.13
Capitalism urges you to define yourself through your purchases
"Capitalism is simply man's natural state of freedom."
I think I've quoted it correctly. Now, if anyone can throw their mind back to a time before capitalism transformed the face of the earth.
Maybe that was before the agrarian revolution that forcibly expelled pesants from the land--the commons--upon which they had subsisted for generations without the need for money, and the entire society built with the bricks of buy, sell,profit and capital. Before enclosures, created by the British Parliament, captured as it was by interests inimical to the peasants.
And today? IF YOU DON'T BUY, YOU DIE. Its as simple as that.
And who can think outside this box? Advertising has long been the most effective thought police the world has even known. Not only is there so little else to think about, we hardly have the apparatus to think about it with.
Capitalist institutions are so big, so total, that old bug-a-boo, hated in certain governments of Right and Left, that there is no hope for individuals in the face of these behemoths.
Only the much dispised unions, and government regulation, these 'limiting governmental and social mechanisms,' that are our only hope.
In Canada, there have been various experiments with public ownership, public sector, crown corporations, and public agencies because we have believed, unlike many, if not most, Americans, that the welfare of individuals is not best handled exclusively by the private sector.
I think I've quoted it correctly. Now, if anyone can throw their mind back to a time before capitalism transformed the face of the earth.
Maybe that was before the agrarian revolution that forcibly expelled pesants from the land--the commons--upon which they had subsisted for generations without the need for money, and the entire society built with the bricks of buy, sell,profit and capital. Before enclosures, created by the British Parliament, captured as it was by interests inimical to the peasants.
And today? IF YOU DON'T BUY, YOU DIE. Its as simple as that.
And who can think outside this box? Advertising has long been the most effective thought police the world has even known. Not only is there so little else to think about, we hardly have the apparatus to think about it with.
Capitalist institutions are so big, so total, that old bug-a-boo, hated in certain governments of Right and Left, that there is no hope for individuals in the face of these behemoths.
Only the much dispised unions, and government regulation, these 'limiting governmental and social mechanisms,' that are our only hope.
In Canada, there have been various experiments with public ownership, public sector, crown corporations, and public agencies because we have believed, unlike many, if not most, Americans, that the welfare of individuals is not best handled exclusively by the private sector.
Vegan Pecan Toffee!
I recently re-discovered how much fun baking can be, and in the run-up to Beltane this year I used my group as willing guinea pigs to experiment with a few things, mostly toffee. Because it turns out that you can actually make toffee at home.
Ingredients
200g of sugar
Cup of non-dairy margarine (also about 200g. Vitalite seems to work really well.)
2 tbsp (30ml) of water
3 tbsps of Golden Syrup (for flavour, optional)
1 tsp of vanilla flavouring (for flavour, optional)
Small quantity (about 30g) of pecans or other nuts.
Method
Put the margarine and water (and syrup, if you want it) into a large pot, and stir occasionally over a low heat until the margarine melts.
While waiting for the margarine mixture to melt, find a wide shallow baking tray and grease it with some of the margarine. Now is also a good time to crush up the nuts.
Once the margarine is all melted, stir in the sugar and increase the heat under the pot. Keep stirring to make sure things don't stick to the bottom of the pan.
Next, we need to heat the mixture to a specific temperature. The consistency of the toffee is related most closely to how hot you get it: cooler maximum temperatures give you softer, chewier toffee; higher temperatures give harder toffee.
Increase the heat under the pan and keep stirring until it starts boiling. Because the sugar solution is quite viscous, the bubbles formed by the evaporating water will be quite long-lived, so the mixture will bubble up quite high. That's why having a big pan is a good idea!
Once the mixture is boiling, it's probably a good idea to reduce the heat a little. So long as you keep the heat high enough to keep the mixture boiling, the temperature will continue to increase (as the water evaporates, the boiling point of the mixture increases, due to SCIENCE!).
Keep stirring the mixture, but slowly and carefully: the mixture will be hotter than boiling water, and it'll stick to you if it splashes!
A sugar thermometer is very handy for this. I've found I get the best results aiming for about 130 degrees C, but there's an alternative way of measuring the temperature indirectly by dropping a spoon of the toffee into cold water and watching what happens: this cools it quickly to more or less room temperature, so you can check if it's what you want. Once you've done it a few times you can also recognise it by smell!
Once it's reached the right temperature, take it off the heat to make sure it doesn't get any hotter.
Add the pecans and the vanilla flavouring into the mixture and stir. Adding in the vanilla flavouring should make the mixture boil again briefly as the water in the flavouring evaporates, since the mixture will still be hotter than the boiling point of the water!
Before the mixture cools too much, pour it into the baking tray! If you've taken too long to add flavourings and the mixture has cooled too much, you might find that the mixture crystallises into a hard tablet-like substance. If this happens, you can return it to the pan, with a little tiny bit of water, heat it until it melts and boils, and then pour it again.
Let it cool in the fridge. When thoroughly cooled (an hour or so) pop it out of the tray and break it up. If it's a bit squishy, you can use a knife to cut it. A pizza cutter is actually ideal for this. If it's hard, you can hit it to break it into sections, or minimise the amount of crumbs you create by using a sharp heavy knife (or, ideally, a cleaver!) and using nice hard chops to cut it up.
Melt margarine, water and syrup on a low heat
Stir in sugar
Heat on a high heat to 130 degrees C
Take off the heat and add nuts
Pour into a baking tray before it cools too much
Keep stirring the mixture, but slowly and carefully: the mixture will be hotter than boiling water, and it'll stick to you if it splashes!
A sugar thermometer is very handy for this. I've found I get the best results aiming for about 130 degrees C, but there's an alternative way of measuring the temperature indirectly by dropping a spoon of the toffee into cold water and watching what happens: this cools it quickly to more or less room temperature, so you can check if it's what you want. Once you've done it a few times you can also recognise it by smell!
Once it's reached the right temperature, take it off the heat to make sure it doesn't get any hotter.
Add the pecans and the vanilla flavouring into the mixture and stir. Adding in the vanilla flavouring should make the mixture boil again briefly as the water in the flavouring evaporates, since the mixture will still be hotter than the boiling point of the water!
Before the mixture cools too much, pour it into the baking tray! If you've taken too long to add flavourings and the mixture has cooled too much, you might find that the mixture crystallises into a hard tablet-like substance. If this happens, you can return it to the pan, with a little tiny bit of water, heat it until it melts and boils, and then pour it again.
Let it cool in the fridge. When thoroughly cooled (an hour or so) pop it out of the tray and break it up. If it's a bit squishy, you can use a knife to cut it. A pizza cutter is actually ideal for this. If it's hard, you can hit it to break it into sections, or minimise the amount of crumbs you create by using a sharp heavy knife (or, ideally, a cleaver!) and using nice hard chops to cut it up.
Melt margarine, water and syrup on a low heat
Stir in sugar
Heat on a high heat to 130 degrees C
Take off the heat and add nuts
Pour into a baking tray before it cools too much
2.5.13
Quickly, intellectually bludgeon your faith
As I have promised before (Welcome to the Involuntary Agnostics Association), I will not pointlessly argue the existence of any deity. However, this evening while I sipped my tea and read my book in my favorite cafe, two young men sat near me and debated semantic religious crap over a table piled high with bibles, bible study guides, bible study guide study guides, bible study guide study guide outlines, cheat sheets and who knows what else.
"...well define sin!", one challenged heatedly. Define sin?
The bible tells you all the sins in length. Read Deuteronomy. Its like an instruction manual for the conceptually retarded.
"Don't touch your pee-pee"
"Don't touch his pee-pee"
"Don't fuck goats, bats, armadillos, cows, pidgeons, camels, ducks, (etc)..."
Or, for the more advanced jr. theologian, there is always the ten commandments. They pretty much sum it all up for you in ten basic "guideline" rules.
Then, the sandle wearing hippy showed up. He had a rather interesting idea: "Love your neightbor as yourself, love God above all else."
The god part I am unable to give endorsement for but will you kill your neighbor if you are busy loving him? Its the golden rule people, must I get my ruler out? "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."
or the wiccans... "Do as ye will, lest ye hurt none."
Most religions have a similar universal guideline. In my humble yet usually misguided, misspelled and often offensive opinion; if you attend "Church" once a week and are obviously taking some sort of class, this should all be quite apparent.
If you cannot already tell, I was once a victim of Catholic schooling and by far the most annoying part is the unrelenting mental thrashing they perpetuate upon themselves and their children as they hurl themselves headlong against the archaic walls of the Bible with the expressed purpose of comming up with the exact same conclusion they have for the past 2000 years.
I am again, a firm beliver in admitting we know nothing and trying to handle that fact as gracefully as possible, but if you are going to insist upon being a devout christian please do me a favor and stop embarrassing yourself in the intellectual arena.
You choose faith, and so I now submit to you that by the time you have chosen to follow in faith, you know all that you need to know. You have heard the entire bible in church sermon or read it yourself and it hardly offers much insight that cannot be inferred by the perceptual. Nothing new has been added, and when it has the church will be sure to notify you and where they fail the media shall surely succeed.
"So did Jesus think (blah)?"
"What do they really mean by (blah)?"
I have a question for you jr. theologian...
When will they cure aids? Can you help? What about Cancer, hunger, beaten wives and children? That slob hopped up on a few too many glasses of the blood of christ about to get into his car and plow into a mini-van...
Like golf courses are a waste of land, semantic disection of faith is time lost, money lost and brain power wasted. Do you need the intellectual reassurance provided by mind numbing facts and figgures to insure your faith? I think thats sad. I don't belive in God and I think the redundant frame by frame reduction of the simple faith of a child into something like a 10 cassett PBS documentary on the Kennedy assasination is as far from the proposed goals of the basic christian doctrine as you can possibly get.
Stop being so fucking high and mighty, get out of your class rooms, your churches and towers and go HELP someone. You want to make it to heaven; the collection plate ain't gonna cover it compadre.
If you want the key to getting into heaven (because we all know thats the only reason anyone is good; won't get into heaven if you don't behave), I can tell you.
Be nice...
and stop being such a self serving prick. Remmeber? 2000 years ago the "son of man" told you all this, and now you are being reminded by an Agnostic who can't spell. You don't need a fucking rule book or divine interpretation, you need swarms of locusts and a nice long walk in the shoes of Job. argh... *breath*
If I tried to say I was not Ignorant and lazy, I would then be a liar too. ;)
I suppose I did not clarify enough during my little rant and was misinterpreted on a few points, but in the interest of not being pitch-forked I won't defend myself against any of the other accusations.
Its not that I don't think you should be intellegent and use your mind but for the most part, Christians I have met do not partake in the teachings of Jesus, the golden rule. They know the dictionary definition of sin, but do they do anything that warrents calling themselves christian? I am not going to sit here and talk bad about christians as one lump of people, what I am disappointed in is the fact that you can sit here and waste time teaching a person how to be nice. But WHY? They don't teach sociology in religion class.
If you sin, you go to hell.
If you are naughty, Santa will put coal in your stalking.
What the hell is the spiritual value of that crap? Be nice to save your own hide. A favorite teaching of mine to be sure. Teaching a person how to look inside themselves for their own spirituality would be of a much greater value. I have been to Catholic school, and you can call me a moron all you would like. Did I pay attention? Yes. I got A's in religion. Frankly, it makes me sad because I didn't LEARN anything of value. It was like a bad history class. They don't teach you how to look inside yourself, or even touch on more advanced reasoning for being a good person. That is what I am getting at. Religious history is static, does one need to learn it over and over to be a good person?
Better yet, how about sitting in a church with 200 bored, rich, white, old people who spend the entire sermon thinking about what sort of doughnuts they are going to have at the reception. Can you possibly hope to explain that to me? You don't need to justify your faith to me, but if you could explain that part to me as a favor, all sarcasm aside, it would be a great insight to me since I have never been able to figure it out.
I mean, the two young men I was speaking of in the beginning went on later to disect some Psalm while one of them calmy tried to justify pre-marital sex. I belive in pre-marital sex, but really...
I just find it sad that spiritual education lacks the spiritual so very badly and compensates by making it cerebral
"...well define sin!", one challenged heatedly. Define sin?
The bible tells you all the sins in length. Read Deuteronomy. Its like an instruction manual for the conceptually retarded.
"Don't touch your pee-pee"
"Don't touch his pee-pee"
"Don't fuck goats, bats, armadillos, cows, pidgeons, camels, ducks, (etc)..."
Or, for the more advanced jr. theologian, there is always the ten commandments. They pretty much sum it all up for you in ten basic "guideline" rules.
Then, the sandle wearing hippy showed up. He had a rather interesting idea: "Love your neightbor as yourself, love God above all else."
The god part I am unable to give endorsement for but will you kill your neighbor if you are busy loving him? Its the golden rule people, must I get my ruler out? "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."
or the wiccans... "Do as ye will, lest ye hurt none."
Most religions have a similar universal guideline. In my humble yet usually misguided, misspelled and often offensive opinion; if you attend "Church" once a week and are obviously taking some sort of class, this should all be quite apparent.
If you cannot already tell, I was once a victim of Catholic schooling and by far the most annoying part is the unrelenting mental thrashing they perpetuate upon themselves and their children as they hurl themselves headlong against the archaic walls of the Bible with the expressed purpose of comming up with the exact same conclusion they have for the past 2000 years.
I am again, a firm beliver in admitting we know nothing and trying to handle that fact as gracefully as possible, but if you are going to insist upon being a devout christian please do me a favor and stop embarrassing yourself in the intellectual arena.
You choose faith, and so I now submit to you that by the time you have chosen to follow in faith, you know all that you need to know. You have heard the entire bible in church sermon or read it yourself and it hardly offers much insight that cannot be inferred by the perceptual. Nothing new has been added, and when it has the church will be sure to notify you and where they fail the media shall surely succeed.
"So did Jesus think (blah)?"
"What do they really mean by (blah)?"
I have a question for you jr. theologian...
When will they cure aids? Can you help? What about Cancer, hunger, beaten wives and children? That slob hopped up on a few too many glasses of the blood of christ about to get into his car and plow into a mini-van...
Like golf courses are a waste of land, semantic disection of faith is time lost, money lost and brain power wasted. Do you need the intellectual reassurance provided by mind numbing facts and figgures to insure your faith? I think thats sad. I don't belive in God and I think the redundant frame by frame reduction of the simple faith of a child into something like a 10 cassett PBS documentary on the Kennedy assasination is as far from the proposed goals of the basic christian doctrine as you can possibly get.
Stop being so fucking high and mighty, get out of your class rooms, your churches and towers and go HELP someone. You want to make it to heaven; the collection plate ain't gonna cover it compadre.
If you want the key to getting into heaven (because we all know thats the only reason anyone is good; won't get into heaven if you don't behave), I can tell you.
Be nice...
and stop being such a self serving prick. Remmeber? 2000 years ago the "son of man" told you all this, and now you are being reminded by an Agnostic who can't spell. You don't need a fucking rule book or divine interpretation, you need swarms of locusts and a nice long walk in the shoes of Job. argh... *breath*
If I tried to say I was not Ignorant and lazy, I would then be a liar too. ;)
I suppose I did not clarify enough during my little rant and was misinterpreted on a few points, but in the interest of not being pitch-forked I won't defend myself against any of the other accusations.
Its not that I don't think you should be intellegent and use your mind but for the most part, Christians I have met do not partake in the teachings of Jesus, the golden rule. They know the dictionary definition of sin, but do they do anything that warrents calling themselves christian? I am not going to sit here and talk bad about christians as one lump of people, what I am disappointed in is the fact that you can sit here and waste time teaching a person how to be nice. But WHY? They don't teach sociology in religion class.
If you sin, you go to hell.
If you are naughty, Santa will put coal in your stalking.
What the hell is the spiritual value of that crap? Be nice to save your own hide. A favorite teaching of mine to be sure. Teaching a person how to look inside themselves for their own spirituality would be of a much greater value. I have been to Catholic school, and you can call me a moron all you would like. Did I pay attention? Yes. I got A's in religion. Frankly, it makes me sad because I didn't LEARN anything of value. It was like a bad history class. They don't teach you how to look inside yourself, or even touch on more advanced reasoning for being a good person. That is what I am getting at. Religious history is static, does one need to learn it over and over to be a good person?
Better yet, how about sitting in a church with 200 bored, rich, white, old people who spend the entire sermon thinking about what sort of doughnuts they are going to have at the reception. Can you possibly hope to explain that to me? You don't need to justify your faith to me, but if you could explain that part to me as a favor, all sarcasm aside, it would be a great insight to me since I have never been able to figure it out.
I mean, the two young men I was speaking of in the beginning went on later to disect some Psalm while one of them calmy tried to justify pre-marital sex. I belive in pre-marital sex, but really...
I just find it sad that spiritual education lacks the spiritual so very badly and compensates by making it cerebral
Your radical ideas about religion, society and individualism have already occurred to others
That may well be, but when you are sixteen years old, and beginning to question everything your parents and teachers have ever told you, revelations such as these are a big damn thing in your eyes. Right now you won't care if some dead philosopher has already come to these conclusions, all that matters is that you're thinking for yourself.
When you grow up a bit more, it is very likely that you'll want to (or at least attempt to) read some of the writings from these philosophers, but statements such as these are really irrelevant.
I remember the first time I met someone who was *gasp shock horror* - an Unbeliever such as myself. I know the feeling of 'wow, someone's already thought of this before', but it doesnt mean that your views or 'radical ideas' are any less valid.
Who cares if these ideas of religion as a mechanism of social control have already occured to others? At least you're thinking them.
When you grow up a bit more, it is very likely that you'll want to (or at least attempt to) read some of the writings from these philosophers, but statements such as these are really irrelevant.
I remember the first time I met someone who was *gasp shock horror* - an Unbeliever such as myself. I know the feeling of 'wow, someone's already thought of this before', but it doesnt mean that your views or 'radical ideas' are any less valid.
Who cares if these ideas of religion as a mechanism of social control have already occured to others? At least you're thinking them.
5.4.13
Olay Fresh Effects
After seeing an ad for the new Olay Fresh Effects line of products I was very curious and eager to try these. This line seemed to be perfect for my oily skin! To be honest, I was reeled in by the pretty blue and green packaging…that does happen on occasion 
. I really wanted to try the BB Cream but could not find the products at any of the nearby drugstores. I surprisingly received the Va-Va-Vivid! Powered Contour Cleansing System in my Influenster sweetheart voxbox, and was thrilled!.
. I really wanted to try the BB Cream but could not find the products at any of the nearby drugstores. I surprisingly received the Va-Va-Vivid! Powered Contour Cleansing System in my Influenster sweetheart voxbox, and was thrilled!.
This little set included a battery-powered cleansing tool and a small (o.68 fl oz) Shine, Shine, Go Away Shine Minimizing Cleanser. You can see how small both of these items are here. I travel with these, since I love my Clarisonic:
The brush and bristles are all soft rubber and when you turn it on it vibrates for deep clean action. I have to say the shape of the brush is pretty genius! It definitely is great for getting into the curves of your nose, etc.
The cleanser is a pearly/silver cream-type, medium consistency and does not produce much of a lather. It has a really nice fresh scent. The instructions say to add the cleanser to the brush but when I did that the cleanser just sunk down into the bristles and disappeared, making cleansing next to impossible. What worked better for me was putting the cleanser on my face, massaging it in a bit, then using the cleansing tool for about 1 minute on the face. I concentrated the most on my T-zone to help eliminate clogged pores.
The cleanser does make my skin feel a bit tight afterwards which I don’t love. I feel it does keep my face as clean as any decent cleanser and I experienced no breakouts. It claims to be a “deep clean that has all the purifying power of a mask, but lathers and rinses like a daily cleanser”. However, I did not see anything outstanding about this cleanser as far as a deep clean. My main gripe is that it seemed like I had to use quite a bit of product to work up a little lather. I do love the shape of the brush and think that alone is truly unique! The small size of this little power cleansing brush makes it awesome for traveling. I would not re-purchase the cleanser since it did not do anything outstanding for my skin.
I received these products complimentary from Influenster.com to share with you guys. Thanks, Influenster!
Have you tried anything from the new Olay Fresh Effects line yet?
4.4.13
SugarBee Beauty Review
Let me start by saying that Caroline of SugarBee Beauty kicks some serious face. Not only are we kindred spirits in some of the same hurdles in life, but she has a nose keen for some amazing scents.
Caroline concocts bath and beauty products, all by hand. Her soaps are done bar by bar, which is time consuming but the effort is well worth it. I've never seen her produce an ugly bar yet! She's recently started making bath bombs, melts and massage bars, which i've become an absolute sucker for. Her products make you feel pampered, princessy and relaxed. They were awesome for a long day of nannying. Actually, come to think of it..
My nanny kids HATED bathing. I'm talking like, 4-5 days without a bath. When I busted out Carolines Bath melts, The eldest spent at least an hour in the tub, and the middle child chose a bath bomb, which she adored. So, awesome products for adults and snarky children who hate bathing.
What I love most about Caroline and Sugarbee is that she's a small company, and does this for her love of quality products at decent prices, and she puts so much friggin love into every product. Everything is hand labeled, and packaged with love. She puts a ton of time and effort into her products, and could most definitely charge more.
She has an amazing knack for making dupes, especially LUSH ones! I fell in love with her Honey I washed the kids, Sex bomb, Trichomania and Jungle scents, and have yet to try many, many more.
She won't dupe anything unless its dead on, which is awesome. She's also pretty darn good at duping Tokyo Milk, which I'm also a sucker for.
Now, I'm going to share some Sugarbee Porn and I suggest you go visit Caroline, because you won't regret it!
Caroline concocts bath and beauty products, all by hand. Her soaps are done bar by bar, which is time consuming but the effort is well worth it. I've never seen her produce an ugly bar yet! She's recently started making bath bombs, melts and massage bars, which i've become an absolute sucker for. Her products make you feel pampered, princessy and relaxed. They were awesome for a long day of nannying. Actually, come to think of it..
My nanny kids HATED bathing. I'm talking like, 4-5 days without a bath. When I busted out Carolines Bath melts, The eldest spent at least an hour in the tub, and the middle child chose a bath bomb, which she adored. So, awesome products for adults and snarky children who hate bathing.
What I love most about Caroline and Sugarbee is that she's a small company, and does this for her love of quality products at decent prices, and she puts so much friggin love into every product. Everything is hand labeled, and packaged with love. She puts a ton of time and effort into her products, and could most definitely charge more.
She has an amazing knack for making dupes, especially LUSH ones! I fell in love with her Honey I washed the kids, Sex bomb, Trichomania and Jungle scents, and have yet to try many, many more.
She won't dupe anything unless its dead on, which is awesome. She's also pretty darn good at duping Tokyo Milk, which I'm also a sucker for.
Now, I'm going to share some Sugarbee Porn and I suggest you go visit Caroline, because you won't regret it!
Seriously awesome hand labelled perfume sticks, packed with tons of fragrance!
Just a peek at the 300 some odd soaps Caroline makes individually, packed full of love. Aren't the star and ghoul ones awesome?
Smal vials of Caroline's perfume, this stuff lasts forever and is very concentrated.
Last but not least, her bath bombs rock my socks off. They leave you silky soft, and make bathtime more fun!
The more we support Caroline, the bigger she can grow, therefore creating lots of awesome products for us to look for in the future. She has serious talent, and will be a ferocious rival to some of the larger companies eventually. Check her out at Sugar Bee Beauty
Cute Rockabilly Dresses for spring!
Since spring is here, I've been anxiously awaiting the warmer non rainy days to bust out my retro dresses and heels. Of course, I've been shopping for new ones too. These are some pieces i've either recently picked up or plan on picking up. :)
..I also have a confession. I've been shaving my legs with my husband's razor, because the blades fall at a better angle.
The Hellbunny Alaska dress was one of the first I bought, because I couldnt resist a nice halter dress to match a hot pink petticoat to put underneath. These run a little small, so i'd buy a size up. hand wash only, the design is killer!
The Sourpuss Dropout Dress has been a favorite of mine lately, because its easy to pair with some cute heels or oxfords and is comfortable to nanny, garden, bake, and play around in.
Every girl needs a Polka dot dress. Since my closet is full of blacks, greys and whites, I decided on this pretty pink Sourpuss sweetheart number because I had an awesome pink skull and crossbone fur lined cardi and umbrella to match it on rainy days.
Last but not least, I plan on ordering these two next. I'm a huge fan of nautical rockabilly dresses, and classic prints such as gingham, cherries, stripes etc.
The HellBunny Horizon dress is going to be awesome for rainy days, or days where I dont feel like wearing much color. Plus, it'll match a lot of my tattoos.
The
is a must have for many different looks. Whether it's vintage, mod chic, rockabilly, or just plain lolita cutesy, I've decided I MUST have it.
What are you digging for spring? Lately, we've had tons of rain and it's been jeans, pencil skirts, hoodies and cardigans. Now that the sun is out, it's time for pretty dresses!
..I also have a confession. I've been shaving my legs with my husband's razor, because the blades fall at a better angle.
The Hellbunny Alaska dress was one of the first I bought, because I couldnt resist a nice halter dress to match a hot pink petticoat to put underneath. These run a little small, so i'd buy a size up. hand wash only, the design is killer!
The Sourpuss Dropout Dress has been a favorite of mine lately, because its easy to pair with some cute heels or oxfords and is comfortable to nanny, garden, bake, and play around in.
Every girl needs a Polka dot dress. Since my closet is full of blacks, greys and whites, I decided on this pretty pink Sourpuss sweetheart number because I had an awesome pink skull and crossbone fur lined cardi and umbrella to match it on rainy days.
Last but not least, I plan on ordering these two next. I'm a huge fan of nautical rockabilly dresses, and classic prints such as gingham, cherries, stripes etc. The HellBunny Horizon dress is going to be awesome for rainy days, or days where I dont feel like wearing much color. Plus, it'll match a lot of my tattoos.
The
is a must have for many different looks. Whether it's vintage, mod chic, rockabilly, or just plain lolita cutesy, I've decided I MUST have it.
What are you digging for spring? Lately, we've had tons of rain and it's been jeans, pencil skirts, hoodies and cardigans. Now that the sun is out, it's time for pretty dresses!
Amish Mafia
Yeah right. These guys are about as Amish as I am.
The Amish Mafia is another one of those so called reality tv shows being crammed down the throats of the viewing public by the Discovery Channel. Anybody who thinks that this is indeed real ought to have his or her head examined. Let's start with the premise.
Remember back in 2006 when five Amish girls were killed and five more were seriously injured by a lone gunman as they attended school? Apparently this incident sparked a cry within the Amish community that they were in need of protection from the outside world and since they didn't want anything to do with local law enforcement they decided to look within. Thus, the Amish Mafia was born.
Set in the farmlands of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania the Amish Mafia tells the story of how its members try and protect the community from outside sources and at times, even from themselves. Here's a brief look at the Dutch version of La Cosa Nostra and their not so secret society.
The don of the Amish Mafia goes by the name "Lebanon Levi" (real name Levi King Stoltzfus). If you got a problem, you go talk to Levi. Nothing gets done without his approval. How he got to be the head of the family is uncertain but his (as well as the other members of the cast) "Amishness" must be called into question. The dude drives a late model car, uses a cell phone as well as many other modern day conveniences that any true Amish person would be shunned for. I think he even has a Facebook account.
Next in the chain of command is Alvin (real name Alvin Stoltzfus Lance). He's Levi's go to guy when it comes to seeking advice. Sorta like an Amish consigliere. If you wanna talk to Levi, you gotta go through Alvin first.
Next is some guy named Jolin. Jolin freely admits to not being Amish but claims to be a Mennonite. This purportedly allows him to do some rather nasty stuff that other members of the Amish Mafia cannot due to their religious beliefs. I guess he's the brawn behind the brains of the outfit. The Amish enforcer?
Then there's John (real name John Freeman Schmucker). He's the latest recruit to join the Amish Mafia and his role seems to be evolving as the series moves on. I think he wants to eventually oust Levi as head of the family.
Last but not least you have the "Amish hottie" or, depending on how you look at it, the "Amish cockteaser". Her name is Esther (real name Esther Freeman Schmucker or as user JD points out "cockSchmucker") and is John's sister. Apparently she's Levi's love interest and she leads him on and flirts with him on more than one occasion. She usually does this when her brother fucks up and to get him back in Levi's good graces.
Wait, I forgot one or two others who make cameo appearances now and then.
Of course you have to have a black dude every once in awhile to round out the cast. Enter one Alan Beiler (the Schwarz Amish if you will). Apparently he relocated from that hotbed of Amish activity known as Brooklyn, New York when he was young and was taken in by the community. He's sort of a renegade and once was in cahoots with Levi but has turned against him after spending some time behind bars.
To make things more interesting you have to have an outsider and some kind of turf war. That outsider is one Merlin Miller. He's from another Amish community located in Wilmot, Ohio and wants to take over Levi's territory. His main henchman is a dwarf sized companion (maybe Mennonite?) who does all his dirty work.
I won't go into each episode individually but suffice to say they're pretty farfetched. The Amish, especially the younger ones, are depicted as a pretty partying people. They drink like fish, smoke weed (called "green corn" by the locals), have mixed martial arts fights, visit prostitutes, hold souped up buggy races and if memory serves I think I caught a scene of Esther riding a mechanical bull. It almost makes me want to convert and I'm a pretty partying girl as it is.
They're also pretty violent. They think nothing of smashing up other peoples buggies or blowing holes in other pieces of property using a shotgun.
You'd think that the Discovery Channel would peddle this stuff as fiction and in a small sense they do. There's a disclaimer that states many of the scenes that are depicted in each episode are "reenactments" of actual events.
I'd ask an actual Amish person of their opinion of the show but they aren't talking. It's my personal feeling that they're being exploited and characterized in a way that would make them ashamed. True to their roots, I'm betting they're living by the old Amish saying which states :
"You can preach a better sermon with your life than with your lip."
The folks at the Discovery Channel who pimped this as real should take heed of that advice.
For more on how distasteful and exploitive this show really is, I highly recommend this article over at Salon.
Source(s)
http://dsc.discovery.com/tv-shows/amish-mafia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amish_Mafia
The Amish Mafia is another one of those so called reality tv shows being crammed down the throats of the viewing public by the Discovery Channel. Anybody who thinks that this is indeed real ought to have his or her head examined. Let's start with the premise.
Remember back in 2006 when five Amish girls were killed and five more were seriously injured by a lone gunman as they attended school? Apparently this incident sparked a cry within the Amish community that they were in need of protection from the outside world and since they didn't want anything to do with local law enforcement they decided to look within. Thus, the Amish Mafia was born.
Set in the farmlands of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania the Amish Mafia tells the story of how its members try and protect the community from outside sources and at times, even from themselves. Here's a brief look at the Dutch version of La Cosa Nostra and their not so secret society.
The don of the Amish Mafia goes by the name "Lebanon Levi" (real name Levi King Stoltzfus). If you got a problem, you go talk to Levi. Nothing gets done without his approval. How he got to be the head of the family is uncertain but his (as well as the other members of the cast) "Amishness" must be called into question. The dude drives a late model car, uses a cell phone as well as many other modern day conveniences that any true Amish person would be shunned for. I think he even has a Facebook account.
Next in the chain of command is Alvin (real name Alvin Stoltzfus Lance). He's Levi's go to guy when it comes to seeking advice. Sorta like an Amish consigliere. If you wanna talk to Levi, you gotta go through Alvin first.
Next is some guy named Jolin. Jolin freely admits to not being Amish but claims to be a Mennonite. This purportedly allows him to do some rather nasty stuff that other members of the Amish Mafia cannot due to their religious beliefs. I guess he's the brawn behind the brains of the outfit. The Amish enforcer?
Then there's John (real name John Freeman Schmucker). He's the latest recruit to join the Amish Mafia and his role seems to be evolving as the series moves on. I think he wants to eventually oust Levi as head of the family.
Last but not least you have the "Amish hottie" or, depending on how you look at it, the "Amish cockteaser". Her name is Esther (real name Esther Freeman Schmucker or as user JD points out "cockSchmucker") and is John's sister. Apparently she's Levi's love interest and she leads him on and flirts with him on more than one occasion. She usually does this when her brother fucks up and to get him back in Levi's good graces.
Wait, I forgot one or two others who make cameo appearances now and then.
Of course you have to have a black dude every once in awhile to round out the cast. Enter one Alan Beiler (the Schwarz Amish if you will). Apparently he relocated from that hotbed of Amish activity known as Brooklyn, New York when he was young and was taken in by the community. He's sort of a renegade and once was in cahoots with Levi but has turned against him after spending some time behind bars.
To make things more interesting you have to have an outsider and some kind of turf war. That outsider is one Merlin Miller. He's from another Amish community located in Wilmot, Ohio and wants to take over Levi's territory. His main henchman is a dwarf sized companion (maybe Mennonite?) who does all his dirty work.
I won't go into each episode individually but suffice to say they're pretty farfetched. The Amish, especially the younger ones, are depicted as a pretty partying people. They drink like fish, smoke weed (called "green corn" by the locals), have mixed martial arts fights, visit prostitutes, hold souped up buggy races and if memory serves I think I caught a scene of Esther riding a mechanical bull. It almost makes me want to convert and I'm a pretty partying girl as it is.
They're also pretty violent. They think nothing of smashing up other peoples buggies or blowing holes in other pieces of property using a shotgun.
You'd think that the Discovery Channel would peddle this stuff as fiction and in a small sense they do. There's a disclaimer that states many of the scenes that are depicted in each episode are "reenactments" of actual events.
I'd ask an actual Amish person of their opinion of the show but they aren't talking. It's my personal feeling that they're being exploited and characterized in a way that would make them ashamed. True to their roots, I'm betting they're living by the old Amish saying which states :
"You can preach a better sermon with your life than with your lip."
The folks at the Discovery Channel who pimped this as real should take heed of that advice.
For more on how distasteful and exploitive this show really is, I highly recommend this article over at Salon.
Source(s)
http://dsc.discovery.com/tv-shows/amish-mafia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amish_Mafia
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