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Showing posts from 2014

IBX Nail Strengthening System Demo & Review for Professionals

As a 22+ year beauty industry professional specializing in nails, I am as thrilled as beauty school graduation day whenever a promising new nail product enters the market. With the invention of gel nail polish circa 2011, the nail industry changed overnight. It was the single greatest thing to happen for manicurists since the mid-1980s brought us safe (ethyl methacrylate) acrylic liquid! I often wondered what it must have been like for those techs learning and troubleshooting with acrylic nails for the first time. Like being dropped in the middle of a jungle and whacking your way through to civilization with a machete, or in our case a 100-grit nail file, now I know. The last 3 1/2 years of trying to get it right with gel manicures has been a challenge. With manufacturers changing their training instructions and every different gel polish company having different products and procedures, it has been at times a frustrating yet rewarding challenge. I am eternally grateful for the patienc

Life Changes: Why I Dislike Music Festivals & Arena Rock Concerts

It is no secret to anyone how much I love some kinds of music. Music makes everything in my life except sleeping that much more enjoyable. I am therefore always drawn to places that have live music as I appreciate being surrounded by such kinds of talent. However, one thing I never really talk about...and it may come as a huge surprise to many people who know me... is how much I dread attending large arena-style rock concerts. I'm convinced there's a vile place in hell for outdoor concert festivals as well. Of course, there are the traffic jams both in and out, plus the parking nightmares. (hello Woodstock!) Then there is the never ending challenge of being able to see the stage due to the people around and in front me who are either tall or moving around too much. It takes some social adeptness to be able to assess the obnoxiousness level of those around you at general admission shows and I've gotten pretty good at it, but inevitably some asshole always elbows his way in.

The Original Hipster: Always There First

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It all began in Kindergarten. I thought the song "Shake Your Booty" by KC & the Sunshine Band was really  funny. I decided to be sassy and start singing it in front of my class at the end of a school day, figuring all the other kids knew the song and would think I was funny. Only one kid knew it and he sang it with me and we giggled and giggled and made everybody laugh. I remember walking away wondering why nobody else had ever heard that song before. From that point on, I obsessed over the radio, rolling the dial up and down slowly and listening to every station. My likes and dislikes formed naturally, uninfluenced by anyone else. Then in 5th grade I discovered a couple kids that were just as bananas over Styx's "Too Much Time On My Hands" and AC/DC's "Dirty Deeds" as I was. How exciting to actually talk to my peers about something I liked and have them "get it!" That's when I started to receive confirmation and validation that

The Twins Are 18!

Eighteen years ago I was suffering. I've never experienced such unbearable pain, no painkiller pills could relieve the misery. I couldn't eat and was hallucinating. I did this to myself. I chose to have breast augmentation surgery. In 1996, I was very young and naive and didn't know much about anything. What I did know was that I weighed 120 lbs, my chest measured 32" and my hips 38" which made shopping for any clothing a depressing, frustrating hassle. Nothing fit right, very few things were flattering and I spent lots money at alteration shops. It was time to make a change. I wanted to feel good about the way I looked. I went to a flashy doctor at a big facility in a big city, seemed like the smart choice. It was a Friday and there would be no staff on duty over the weekend. I stayed the night in a hotel. They did the surgery without drainage tubes, since no one would be there during the weekend to remove them. I didn't even know use of drainage tubes was c