Must See: Food Inc.
I can say for certain that I have never been more moved by a single documentary than I have since watching Food Inc. Although personally I have always taken what I eat and the impact on the environment seriously, I don't think I really considered it on such a large scale. Since watching, I have made a commitment to eat responsibly. I am not going to eat beef unless it is organic/grass fed, nor chicken unless it is organic and treated humanely. It is safe to say several parts of this movie will make you sick, but that's the point. We have gotten so far removed from what we eat that we literally need to be shocked back to reality. I don't want to say much more, but please take the time to watch.
Re Re Re Re Re Re-Use it!
Time to get creative! We are all trying to save money right now which is actually good for our environment... the less we buy, the less we discard. At least in theory. So, here is a good tip for you.
Use glass containers like your maple syrup bottle, jam jar, wine or tinted beer bottles, sparkling water bottles, even spaghetti sauce jars as vases. I like to use the same type of flower in each arrangement with simple accents of leaves or baby's breath to keep it simple and elegant. Having various sizes and shapes for your vase adds a rustic element to contrast flower arrangements. If you are using a large based jar or bottle, try putting some small river stones at the bottom.
Glass containers like jam jars or spaghetti sauce containers can also be re-used as storage containers for your own homemade sauces, jams or even flour mixtures if they are cleaned and dried well.
To remove the labels from the glass jars, simply soak them in hot water for at least 30 minutes, then rub oil (vegetable or olive oil will work) on them and let it sit another 15 minutes. Peel off the label and the glue and scrub away any remaining residue with hot soapy water. Just be sure to use a greenie or something softer so you don't leave scratch marks on the glass.
"Mittens for Migraines"
Doris Raymond, MS, our Stress-Less author and biofeedback/neurofeedback/Reiki specialist gave me some fascinating migraine advice... amidst my 3-day migraine marathon I was so desperate to break! Apparently one of the key strategies to alleviate migraines at their onset is to warm your hands. Yup, thats right, even in the middle of the summer, put on a pair of mittens, close your eyes an imagine your hands as warm as could be. Even if you don't have a pair of mittens, you can train yourself to use imagery alone to raise the temperature of your hands. Doris gave me a hand thermometer (nothing to it, just a tiny thermometer with a thin metal measure behind it) and taught me how to hold it against my middle finger. We waited to see the temperature of my hand before the imagery exercise. it was about 92 (which I hear is pretty warm to start with). After imagining my hands tucked inside warm, fuzzy mittens while sitting at the beach on a sunny day, digging my hands in warm sand, feeling the heat of pulling a tray of cookies out of the oven or warming my hands by a fire... the temperature went up to 99 degrees! It was pretty crazy business! Just goes to show the power of the mind.
Doris also emphasized that when you are trying to get rid of your migraine when it first begins to do short relaxation techniques like a deep breath from your stomach and then stop, take a break and do it again. This is contradictory to what I have assumed that I need to get myself into a deep state of relaxation, but apparently the starting and stopping works best.
Sunscreen Not Sun Screening?!
According to the Environmental Working Group, 3 out of 5 brand-name sunscreens do not actually protect your skin from harmful sun rays. To make matters worse, most contain toxic chemicals that when absorbed into the skin can disrupt hormones (a chemical called oxybenzone). The EWG conducted a study of 1,592 sunscreens to rate their effectiveness... I don't know about you, but 1,592 sounds like a LOT of types of sunscreen, who knew?! I always knew sunscreens could cause allergic reactions because I always had bumps on my arms from common sunscreen brands, but I did not know they could be harmful and not even protective.
You can check out their top-rated sunscreens at:
http://www.ewg.org/cosmetics/report/sunscreen09/Beach-Sunscreens.
Here are a few of the top choices:
- Soleo Organics Sunscreen (chemical free SPF 30+)
- Badger Sunscreen (SPF 30)
- Purple Prarie Botanicals Sun Stuff (SPF 30)
- UV Natural Sunscreen (SPF 30+)
- Mexitan Sunscreen Lotion (SPF 50)
- Lavera Sunscreen Neutral (SPF 40)
- California Baby Sunscreen Lotion, no fragrance (SPF 30+)
Top rated Lip Balms with SPF
(http://www.ewg.org/cosmetics/report/sunscreen09/Lipbalms-SPF).
- Purple Prarie Botanicals Sunstick lip balm (SPF 30)
- Fallene Cotz LipCotz, Ultra High Sun Protection (SPF 45)
- Jane Iredale LipDrink (SPF 15)
What do these natural varieties of sunscreen provide that makes them chemical free? Zinc or Titanium Oxide. According to Wikipedia, zinc oxide is nearly insoluble in water making it a reliable option for sunscreen. In addition, zinc and titanium oxides actually block sun's rays instead of absorbing them like other sunscrens.
I don't know about you, but it looks like from now on, my sunscreen will be chemical free!
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