Social Networking (Required Blog)

| at 3.4.12

Here are the links to the two articles I chose:
Innovative Educator: Banned
Innovative Educator: Social Networking in Education

Since, I chose these two articles, it is obvious my opinion on the subject of social networking in society. It, like anything else we use daily, has its pros and cons but does it mean we should treat it like its something wrong? It is a success for a reason: people enjoy it.

Facebook is the biggest social networking site today and it seems absurd if someone doesn't have a Facebook. In today's society, the most impoverished will have a mobile phone and/or access to internet so it has no doubt affected the way we view importance.

Facebook has caused everyone know everything about anyone now. It use to be strange for a customer to tell me that something I posted on Facebook was funny--then I changed my privacy settings. Facebook has also increased our selfishness. Narcissistic tendencies (as well as face-to-face anti-social behavior) have bloomed in part of this. How many pictures of just you do you have? I have 20 albums on Facebook and inside those 20 albums are 1725 photos (including Cover Pages, etc.). Of those 1725 photos, 325 of them have me tagged in them. that's 18% of my photos that are of me. The average Facebook user has 85% of their photos of themselves. If that isn't narcissism then I do not know what is.

But there are also positives to social networking. Social Networking has great advantages as well. It isn't going anytime soon and almost everyone has one so why not utilize something that we use everyday? There are more liberal schools that are more lenient with their parental controls and it helps students use it for assignments. The first article has a YOUTUBE video about how their school experienced a higher parental control and most  of them couldn't even bring up their projects because of the programs they used. Imagine doing research but are only allowed to use only one page of the required book. That is what they felt when their computer usage was restricted.

This brings a good point to how we sometimes hinder the learning process by attempting to keep the "bad" parts out.

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Layering Mosturizers

| at 27.3.12


Above the shoulders
Layering skin care products is very popular in Asia. There was a poll taken women in Asia use about an average of 9 products are used on the skin daily! So skin care is taken very, very seriously. I use about 5-6 different products every night (including my chap stick).

Here, is what I use and in what order. Remember, this is just what I use; you create your own régime that suits you and your skin type.




L’Oreal Paris Eye Defense. I am a contact wearer; every time I put in or take out my contacts I have to pull on my lids. This constant tugging and pulling on my eyes at least twice a day will cause premature wrinkles. Though I am still young and my skin “snaps back” into place, I know that the longer I do so and the older I get the less elasticity my skin will have. Remember the old saying, “Don’t make that face or it will stay that way.” Well, it holds some truth. Think of your skin as a rubber band. The more it is tugged and pulled the less it will pull back into its original form and inevitable will wear out. I use this in the AM and the PM to help moisturize and sooth my skin around my eyes. Use your ring finger to apply along the area of the eye socket. Your ring finger shares a tendon with your middle finger so it is your weakest finger and will be least likely to cause any more damage than you have to.

 
Dr. Lewinn by Kinerase: Lift & Resculpt Serum. I use this second and I use very little (because it is expensive and a little will go a long way.) –only about two or three drops from the dropper at the tips of my fingers. I pat it onto my face and neck area. It is highly concentrated and since it is a serum, it will absorb into the skin faster than a regular moisturizer so there is no need to rub it into the skin. Lightly, patting the skin will also “excite” your skin and cause the blood to flow. I use this only in the PM.
 
L’Oreal Paris Age Perfect Serum. This is an anti-wrinkle serum that I use only along the wrinkle prone areas of the face—across the forehead, where crow’s feet are, and where the laugh lines develop. You actually feel a slight tingle sensation after using this product. I use this one because I am in the 20s and do not need a heavy anti-wrinkle cream or serum. When you are in your 30s try a medium strength anti-wrinkle cream like the L’Oreal Paris Age Perfect Serum for Maturing Skin. When you are in your 40s on up, try a heavier duty cream or re-cushioning serum like L’Oreal Paris Age Perfect Rehydration; it rehydrates and lifts as well as evens out skin if age spots are apparent.

L’Oreal Paris Age Perfect Revitalift Night Cream. This night cream hydrates and smooths skin. I use it on my face and neck. I actually begin at my neck and rub in it with an upward motion until I reach my hairline along my forehead. This way there is not major downward tugging and it gets the job done. Another good reason I put this on last is because it helps “seal” in all the other good things I have done just prior.

Vaseline. I use Vaseline or any other petroleum-jelly based product as a moisture insulator for my lips to help seal in moisture and make my lips look and feel soft. You can use any other lip product but I use this because it’s flavorless and colorless and won’t break my skin out if it smudges onto the rest of my skin.

In the morning, I use a light sunblock for my face or a foundation with a built in SPF when I plan on wearing make-up. The key is prevention and I enjoy prevention on a budget. These products, I chose because they work for my skin as well as my wallet. All the products are below 20$USD at any Wal-mart or Pharmacy. The only one that was a bit pricey was the Kinerase lift & resculpt serum by Dr. Lewinn and it was almost 30$USD.

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Asian Beauty Concepts

| at 27.3.12

Asian women are known for being some of the most beautiful women in the world. Their beauty is not just genetics; it is their strict regime of skin care and maintenance of their beauty.

Western culture focusing on anti-aging products for the already aging person—decreasing signs of fine lines, wrinkles, age spots, etc. Western medicine focuses on the afflicted area (epidermis for anti-aging, AZO or similar products for UTIs). Chinese medicine pays attention to the entire body in reaction to the affliction—the internal organs, body toxins, our energy. Another thing that Chinese medicine advocates is prevention. Prevention is key to everything. Do not put off later when you can prevent now. Many people badger me for using anti-aging cream at 23 but my reply is, “You don’t put on sunscreen AFTER you get sunburned so why not take that approach with everything else?” This entry will give a few tips for healthy skin.

You are what you eat
Naturally, we don’t want to believe that we are the ones causing our skin problems. It’s easy to blame it on our “naturally oily face.” Our diet is usually the main cause of our skin problems. It’s nothing to be ashamed of because I think I can safely say that all of us have some bad eating habit and it would be hard for us to cut it out of our lives.

For example, Foods that are cooked in vegetable oil is a major culprit. Surprisingly, vegetable oil is one of the leading causes of hormonal inflammation than any other consumable product on earth. If you could find a way to avoid this oil, almost half of your chronic skin conditions would disappear in about a month. It’s hard to imagine cutting out vegetable oil completely; however, if you’re serious about getting healthier looking skin, at least be conscious of what you consume. It won’t magically clear up on its own. I know, personally, that using alternative cooking oils (like Olive Oil) can clear up skin without any extra effort.

Hot versus cold
In the west, women typically drink cold sodas, ice tea, lemonade, or ice water with their meals—especially in the American South; while this is refreshing, the only problem with drinking chilled or iced liquids with meals is that the cold drinks travel through your body while solidifying the fats from food. Going further, cold drinks make it harder for your body to digest and dissolve unwanted fats that are found in your food. (Your body has to warm up cold drinks closer to your body temperature so it uses more energy) Asian women, on the other hand, will drink warm liquids like warm water, tea or coffee with meals. Warm drinks help keep the fats in your foods fluid, which aids your body in digesting and dissolving fat as it passes through your system. Drinking warm liquids like white, black, green tea and oolong tea has also been said to reduce the risk of clogged arteries, and drinking a warm glass of water when you wake up will give your metabolism a boost. I prefer hot water with lemon if I am dining out. It is especially nice when the weather is cold and/or wet.

Below the neck
Your face isn't the only part of your body that can show aging signs; your hands and feet and especially your neck also need to be pampered on a regular basis. There is a well-known saying among Chinese women that a woman's hands are her second face, which makes it valid to use your anti-wrinkle skin serums on hands, elbows, knees and feet. Use a moisturizing body lotion on your entire body as well to ensure healthy-looking skin.

Massaging moisturizer into your hands and feet daily can have positive effects on your entire body since they have the most important acupoints on the body. Moisturizers made with chamomile and peppermint is most commonly used to soothe hands and feet. (Peppermint is great in the morning because the smell of mint perks you up.) Getting your feet rubbed not only feels amazing, but according to Chinese medicine, it can increase blood flow to help in lymphatic drainage, speedy healing to all areas of the body, and detoxifying.
I, personally, try to take three or four nights a week to take time out of my busy schedule to do this to my entire body. I did this for my grandmother when she broke her leg and she felt improvement. It felt good and it helped with blood flow since she couldn’t move around as much.

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A sketchy, at best, bio about this blogger

| at 22.3.12

(photo) My mother and me 1989
In 1985, my mother emigrated with my 公公 (Gong-Gong) from Taiwan to the United States. Three years later, going to a base party in Austin, she met my father and, there, my story begins.

One of the first in my mother’s family to be born in the U.S., I burst onto the scene in 1989. I spent my early years in the suburbs of Houston, where I indulged in drooling, Cheetos and visiting our beach house in Galveston; I later moved to Hot Springs, with my grandparents, where I attended and graduated from Bismarck High. I have a passion for music and an addiction to reading.

My passion for music spawned from my dependency as a young child; I couldn’t sleep alone and eventually my grandmother convinced me that the radio was like someone being there. So trading one dependency for another, I would sleep soundly listening to classic rock, 90s pop, country western and—my favorite—Ranchera. The music must have touched my soul because I have always enjoyed listening and dissecting music. Junior high spawned my appreciation for heavy metal and old school punk; Senior high, I developed my taste for indie rock, blue-eyed soul and alternative. During my enrollment at UALR, if I wasn’t in class, I was listening to hip-hop and techno. I no longer sleep to music (I have this fear of losing my hearing too early), but I do enjoy the low hum of light traffic or the light snoring of my boyfriend when a alcohol pulls him into that comfortable deep sleep.

My addiction to reading is probably due to the fact that I’d much rather fantasize about someone else’s story than my own. I am a huge fan of young adult fantasy. My most recent reads have been Seth Grahame-Smith’s Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter and a collaborative piece by Robert Kirkman (Creator of Graphic Novel and AMC series The Walking Dead) and Jay Bonansinga, The Walking Dead: Rise of the Governor. 

(Drastic topic change/transition) I am studying Business/Technology Education at Henderson State. My transition from UALR to HSU was surprisingly smooth since many of my remaining high school friends are attending.
As you can see, they are of the masculine type. I had always found it difficult to remain friends with other girls my entire life. I was always treated different; I wasn’t like the girls at Bismarck so I didn’t bother trying to be friends with them to avoid any divergences. I found that girls, in general, will be kind to you face-to-face and will act like they would be your best friend by agreeing with everything but are actually just using the casual conversation as Intel to use at a later time. I think every girl has experienced this at one point in their lives and girls fight a very different way than boys. Boys will get mad and roll around in the dirt and use their fists to dispute their issues. Girls will get mad and smile and act as if nothing has happened to later plot your emotional/social demise. Boys fight and it’s over while girls dig their claws in and scar your psyche for life (Why do you think they call it a cat fight?). I am not alone and I am not prejudice of my own kind but I know how the general young female populous works and, at the time, I didn’t want any part of it. I may have bore the scarlet letter or been labeled the “L-word” but I enjoyed high school in the company of my boys much more than I cared about those nasty rumors (because that’s all they were). Riddle me this Batman, why live your life within the walls of what other people say?

Enough about me and my thoughts, we are here to know about my topic and theme. I will be posting about Health and Beauty. I think that beauty is strongly linked to health for both males and females. Bookmark my blog if you find what I have to say interesting in the least. 

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