Friday, December 22, 2006

Why You Should Tan Responsibly



Picture found here

Wednesday, December 13, 2006

Looking at Heaven.... pretty cool art

Something I would buy ... but not put outside .... even though you can use it for that.... it's pretty cool... but again, I would be afraid to ruin in : )


'The Heavens' Cast-Stone Garden Plaque
- $ 69.99
Inspired by the love of Mediterrean gardens and classical European imagery, "The Heavens" is an original sculptural work individually reproduced by the artist in cast stone. A patina finish adds a rich luster and "aged" look to the plaque and emphasizes the depth of the relief. Individually cast, sealed and finished in California; ready to hang.

Thursday, November 30, 2006

How the Suntan Became Fashionable ...


It’s only in recent times that a permanent suntan has become the symbol of radiant health, jet-set wealth, and fresh-faced beauty. For centuries the suntan was decidedly downmarket - the mark of a manual labourer, toiling in the fields for a pittance.

In Elizabethan England, courtesans would go to ridiculous lengths to preserve their ashen pallor – painting their faces with heavy white make-up made from a deadly cocktail of carbonate hydroxide and lead oxide.

In fact, well into the 20th century, the most uncool thing you could possibly do was expose your flesh to the sun. Until a certain French fashion icon went for the burn.

Coco Chanel starts the style

While cruising aboard an aristocrat’s yacht in 1920, Coco Chanel developed a suntan. The floodgates opened.

By the 1940s, women's magazines encouraged sun tanning and pin-up girls like Betty Grable and Rita Hayworth were pictured in bathing suits, showing off their tanned bodies.

In the 1970s, things had become extreme. Thanks to cheap package holidays to Mediterranean destinations, an entire generation had baked their bodies in the sun. Unfortunately, they were also oblivious to skin cancer which could come back to haunt them 10-30 years later. (article found here)

Thursday, August 24, 2006

Intriguing . . . The Saddest Thing I own . . .

I find this both sad and intriguing at the same time. Beautiful, Beautiful Ring. I hope he doesn't discard it. I am of the mindset that time does change one's perspective. You never forget the person, the love the memories, but time does have a way of sometimes dulling the emotions or changing your perspective. And not to sound callous or anything, but again . . . what a cool cool ring : )



Engagement Ring · May 4, 06:32 by Daniel Talsky


I was going to marry her, and I was very serious about it. I went to one of the best Jewelry design places in all of the city, and asked them about making a ring that was a fish, because she was my little fish.


I ended up just bringing her in and having her do sketches to help design the ring. We designed it together and picked out a stone together. She loved wearing it and it was a symbol of our love.


When we broke up, two months away from our planned wedding date, of course she gave it back to me. I spent almost two thousand dollars on it, but there’s not much about the materials themselves that are worth that much. The cabuchon sapphire, the small chips, and the little diamond from a ring of my grandmother’s, plus the metal, wouldn’t amount to much. The real value is in the custom time that we and the craftsmen put into carving it and forging it.


Now I still have it and have no idea what to do with it? Sell it for a couple of hundred dollars at most and let it go to some stranger? Give it to her in ten years as a symbol of our enduring friendship? (we are still very close friends) Throw it into the sea? Who knows. Until then it will sit in my closet…easily the saddest object I own.

Monday, August 21, 2006

Suntan Addiction?

This is my civic duty. I saw this and it's only right that I print it. I personally, can't help it. Love the idea of a golden tan. Not that it makes it right. But I guess I am old school. I'm not against sun blocking lotions, not against, tanning booths or even the spray tans. I just like it. At any rate - here is the warning article and it is a good article.

Warning over suntan 'addiction'

The study asked 145 beach-goers Scientists at the University of Texas have found that some people might be addicted to getting a suntan. The research, published in the Archives of Dermatology, suggested up to 53% of beach-goers could be dependent on getting a tan. Cancer experts said it provided "an interesting insight into why people continue to binge-sunbathe". However, an addiction scientist said it was more likely to be an "extreme behaviour", rather than an addiction.

'Aware of risks'

The scientists at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston used recognised criteria for assessing whether patients have drug or alcohol dependency.

They asked 145 beach-goers about their sun-seeking habits, using questions such as "do you try to cut down on the time you spend in the sun but still find yourself sun-tanning?" It does provide some interesting insight into why people continue to binge sunbathe, despite knowing the risk

Dr Kat Arney, Cancer Research UK

Using a questionnaire based on an internationally recognised check for assessing alcohol dependency, 26% of those interviewed were classified as "ultraviolet light (UVL) tanning dependent".

But when questions from the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders were adapted for the sunbathers, 53% were classed as dependent.

Professor Richard Wagner, who led the study, said: "It's interesting that slightly modifying tools used to identify substance-related disorders, we can actually see an objective similarity between regular tanning and those disorders."

"Dermatologists often talk about people who are 'addicted to the sun' - people who know it's not good for them to be bronzed all the time, but don't seem to be able to stop tanning."

SUNSMART ADVICE
Stay in the shade 11am-3pm
Make sure you never burn
Always cover up with a T-shirt, wide brimmed hat & sunglasses
Remember to take extra care with children
Then use factor 15+ sunscreen
Source: Cancer Research UK

Cancer Research UK's SunSmart Campaign is the UK's national skin cancer prevention campaign, and estimates that skin cancer claims around 2000 lives per year in the UK, with 65,000 new cases being reported.

Previous studies have shown many people who regularly expose themselves to UV rays in order to get a tan know they are increasing their risk of developing skin cancer.

Chemical changes

Dr Kat Arney, cancer information officer at Cancer Research UK, said: "This is a small study but it does provide some interesting insight into why people continue to binge sunbathe, despite knowing the risks."

However Colin Drummond, professor of addiction psychiatry at St George's Hospital Medical School, London, said: "I have concerns about calling everything in the world an addiction."

"There's a tendency to translate extremes of behaviour into addictions."

Professor Drummond said addictions meant a particular chemical mechanism occurred in the brain which determined a person's behaviour.

Such a mechanism had not yet been established for sunbathing, so the habit could not be labelled an addiction.

He said people tanned because they wanted to conform socially, not because they were addicted to the feeling.


(This article was found here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/4153358.stm_)

Wednesday, August 09, 2006

Maryland Crab Cakes for this Beach Bum!


Gotta eat Crabs in Maryland ... actually we are famous for them. Here's a recipe for any sea worthy captain. You can make them from the recipe below:

Ingredients:

1 pound Maryland Crab meat
1 cup seasoned bread crumbs
1 large egg
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon dry mustard
Margarine, butter, or oil for frying
Remove all cartilage from crabmeat
In a bowl, mix bread crumbs, eggs, mayonnaise and seasonings.

Add crab meat and mix gently by thoroughly. If mixture is too dry, add a little more mayonnaise. Shape into 6 cakes. Cook cakes in a frying pan in just enough fat to prevent sticking until they are browned (about 5 minutes on each side). *Note: If desired, crab cakes may be deep fried at 350 degrees for 2 to 3 minutes or until browned.


EAT ALL YOUR LITTLE HEART DESIRES : )

Saturday, August 05, 2006

Always Be Prepared

Make sure you are headed in the right direction . . . and you don't have to be
a Boy Scout : )






COMPASS
NECKLACE


Surprise the adventurer in your life th this whimsical disc compass necklace from LeeAnn Herreid. The jewelry was originally designed for Herreid's mother, who is directionally challenged. A stylish compass, the necklace is sterling silver with a link chain and ball chain clasp. Handsome and practical jewelry, no matter where you are (or how lost you might be), the necklace can be an asset on any journey, physical or spiritual. Handmade in Rhode Island.

Thursday, August 03, 2006

ESTHER WILLIAMS . . . MILLION DOLLAR MERMAID

Esther Jane Williams (born August 8, 1921) was a United States competitive swimmer and movie star, famous for her musical films that featured elaborate performances with swimming
and diving.


Esther Williams


Enlarge

Esther Williams


Born in Inglewood, California, Williams was enthusiastic about swimming in her youth. She qualified to be in the United States swim team in the 1940 Olympics, but the games were canceled due to World War II. Williams instead went to Hollywood, where she quickly became a popular star of the 1940s and 1950s. Her brother, Stanton Williams, also had a brief acting career during the 1920s before his death while still a teenager.

Many of her films, such as Million Dollar Mermaid and Jupiter's Darling, contained elaborately staged swimming scenes, obtained not without physical cost to the performer. She broke her neck filming a 50 ft (15 m) dive off a tower during a climactic musical number for the 1952 release Million Dollar Mermaid which landed her in a body cast for six months. She subsequently recovered, though she still suffers headaches as a result of the accident. Her many hours spent submerged resulted in her rupturing her eardrums numerous times. In her autobiography, Williams details several other occasions in which she nearly drowned shooting
her oxygen-defying stunts, but she often used a stunt double.Her love life was a source of media interest. She has been married four times. From 1945 to 1958, she was married to singer/actor Ben Gage, with whom she had three children. In her autobiography, she portrays him as an alcoholic parasite who squandered her earnings. She was romantically linked with Jeff
Chandler
. Her third husband was actor Fernando Lamas.

Esther Williams retired from acting in the early 1960s and lives with her current husband, Edward Bell, in Beverly Hills. She lends her name to a line of women's swimwear.

(from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Esther_Williams)