Edibles ~ August 4, 2009

Edibles
August 4, 2009

The farmers market was full today with plenty of buyers enjoying the sun, the goods, and it seemed most everyone had smiles to share. Many vendors lined both sides of the stalls as we all walked down the center aisle trying to find what we most wanted and who had the best produce for the best price. Most farmers there are locals from the outlying areas of Grand Rapids, Michigan, who take the short drive in to sell their just picked gold at very low prices. It is one of my favorite things to do in the city because I can look at an oversized zucchini and nearly taste the options for stuffing it, Italian style or Lebanese style being my two favorites. A peek at a pile of pickling cucumbers and the whiff of fresh dill blossoms makes my mouth water at the options of making our own pickles to enjoy all winter long. Roma tomatoes make me crave the taste of a great homemade marinara. Corn on the cob and a poblano pepper makes me think that I can blend some butter with chopped poblano until it’s smooth and has the most beautiful pistachio green color, then brush it on the corn while it finishes cooking on the grill. Heaven.

Yesterday I had decided that I would pack the kids and my 13 year old nephew into the car to meet the people who grow the food they will eat. They would learn more about picking good produce, instead of settling for what the local store will pass off as acceptable, when really, it’s not. They’d see carrots with tops and dirt on them. They would learn what a green onion really is and that the bottom doesn’t have to just be white, but can be a gorgeous purple red because it would have grown up to be a red onion instead. They would see the hundreds of choices of things to eat and help choose them for meals. And, because of all of them love food as much as I do, they would love the experience. All of this and more really did happen today.

My nephew was the one who noted how little the six huge bags we filled cost in the end. Twenty-five dollars wouldn’t have gone that far in the grocery store. He marveled at it. To him that meant more money for other things, plus more food to eat. That was a win-win situation if he’d ever heard one! He was right.

The kids and I met some really interesting people and this might be just as important as the lessons on picking produce and getting it locally grown whenever possible. They needed to know that there are faces behind the food they eat, someone who babied the seedlings and plants, just as the kids also do in the garden they planted this year. It’s important to understand who the people are and how thankful we should be that they do this work that so few people seem to find acceptable, and fewer still know how to do. Without them, there would be nothing. Food doesn’t magically appear in the back of a grocery store or on the shelves. Faces are behind it. The fresher the images of the faces who grow the food are to us, the fresher the food. I wanted them to really understand that concept.

One who stood out most was an older man who reminded me a great deal of my Italian grandmother’s brother, Uncle Oscar. He also loved food, cooking and growing things. He taught me a lot as a child about growing things and about food in general. So I was drawn to his booth for reasons that he couldn’t have known. He just felt familiar somehow.

I looked over his booth and found a lot of good things to eat, in fact, my two most exciting purchases of the day were from him---a gigantic zucchini just waiting to be stuffed, baked and savored; and he also had a very rare find: squash blossoms. These are so hard to find that I have not even had a stuffed and sautéed squash blossom since Uncle Oscar grew them, picked them, and made them for me one day for lunch when I was a kid. (Italians always want to feed you, which is a lovely thing. And when you are willing to try anything, they get very, very excited.) I bought a batch to make some stuffed squash blossoms myself and let the kids all enjoy some of a bygone heritage food that they’d never find in a store.

I shared my story of squash blossoms, my great Uncle and my excitement over finding those and the stuffing zucchini. He was genuinely thrilled. “You can’t please everybody so it’s good to know I got it right this time, “ he said with a huge grin and a little clap of his hands. He engaged the kids in some friendly conversation for quite a while, asking names and energetically pumping his fists at one part of his story which made the boys, and himself, laugh. He was a delight, and I am sure his food will be too.

Magic Shoes

Dorothy's ruby red slippers in the Wizard of Oz were the first shoes I ever thought of as having a source of some magical power. As a kid, I'd watch that movie and wish I had a pair of shoes that could transform me, make me brave even when I was scared, and take me to new, unimagined places. I never really found shoes in reality that could do any of that, until this past Labor Day weekend.

We did some shopping for the start of school. The boys were easy, choosing pretty much exactly as I'd have expected for their own personal styles. But my daughter, our oldest child, surprised us and left me standing in a stunned admiration.

Watching Katherine, a month ago, suddenly go from having long hair that was easy to hide behind to a new angled cut very short in back sloping to a point at her chin was beautiful. But that was nothing compared to witnessing her go from a random fashion style that consisted primarily of wrinkled fitted tee shirts and jeans, painfully trying to just blend in at all costs, to choosing almost all grey and black outfit combinations with stylish black capri length leggings. It was charming. I asked if she was going "goth" and she answered "Well, Goth people don't like the sun...and I do. So no." I nodded as if I was up on all the details in the Goth Handbook.

Soon it was time for her to pick out her new shoes. She wanted, very specifically, black canvas high-topped Converse tennis shoes with white toes and laces.

"Really?" I asked, with perhaps too much shocked glee in my voice for her comfort.

"Yes," she answered nervously as she bit her thumbnail and let her hair slide in front of her left eye.

We found them in Target and she carefully tried on her new shoes. All angles and attributes were studied by her for almost 30 minutes. Was the heel ok? The toe? How tight should she tie them? She may have decided upon a strong style but her cautious sensibilities were still showing. It made it all the more adorable. Her dad and I were grinning above her head as we shot each other looks that asked "Can you believe this?"

Katherine has always, and I mean from birth, been shy and nervous. Nothing made her feel safe--not light, dark, sound, quiet, touches, being alone, or even food could comfort her as a baby. I have never seen anything like it. If she wasn't born of my own womb, I would have sworn she was a crack baby. The doctors concluded that she has an anxiety disorder, which is just to say she is overly nervous about....well, everything. So, to watch her blossom suddenly into this artsy, semi-gothy, fifth grader was not just a mom being tickled by witnessing her daughter's latest style being carefully designed. No. I knew the immense stretch and great amount of bravery this was requiring from her. We live in a very conservative, logo-centric, suburban area. People here blend in. Katherine was choosing, of her own will, to stand out. No other girl in her school will be wearing those shoes. Fifth grade is an especially cut throat place where any deviation from the standard can be socially poisonous. This was huge! I have never been so proud.

Later that night she came to me, long after she was to be in bed, just to hug me and say quietly, "Thanks Mom...for letting me get those shoes. I really love them." She bit her fingernail again, with a grin. Katherine was truly glowing. Bravery lit her spirit.

Magical Shoes

Dorothy's ruby red slippers in the Wizard of Oz were the first shoes I ever thought of as having a source of some magical power. As a kid, I'd watch that movie and wish I had a pair of shoes that could transform me, make me brave even when I was scared, and take me to new, unimagined places. I never really found shoes in reality that could do any of that, until this past Labor Day weekend.

We did some shopping for the start of school. The boys were easy, choosing pretty much exactly as I'd have expected for their own personal styles. But my daughter, our oldest child, surprised us and left me standing in a stunned admiration.

Watching Katherine, a month ago, suddenly go from having long hair that was easy to hide behind to a new angled cut very short in back sloping to a point at her chin was beautiful. But that was nothing compared to witnessing her go from a random fashion style that consisted primarily of wrinkled fitted tee shirts and jeans, painfully trying to just blend in at all costs, to choosing almost all grey and black outfit combinations with stylish black capri length leggings. It was charming. I asked if she was going "goth" and she answered "Well, Goth people don't like the sun...and I do. So no." I nodded as if I was up on all the details in the Goth Handbook.

Soon it was time for her to pick out her new shoes. She wanted, very specifically, black canvas high-topped Converse tennis shoes with white toes and laces.

"Really?" I asked, with perhaps too much shocked glee in my voice for her comfort.

"Yes," she answered nervously as she bit her thumbnail and let her hair slide in front of her left eye.

We found them in Target and she carefully tried on her new shoes. All angles and attributes were studied by her for almost 30 minutes. Was the heel ok? The toe? How tight should she tie them? She may have decided upon a strong style but her cautious sensibilites were still showing. It made it all the more adorable. Her dad and I were grinning above her head as we shot each other looks that asked "Can you believe this?"

Katherine has always, and I mean from birth, been shy and nervous. Nothing made her feel safe--not light, dark, sound, quiet, touches, being alone, or even food could comfort her as a baby. I have never seen anything like it. If she wasn't born of my own womb, I would have sworn she was a crack baby. The doctors concluded that she has an anxiety disorder, which is just to say she is overly nervous about....well, everything. So, to watch her blossom suddenly into this artsy, semi-gothy, fifth grader was not just a mom being tickled by witnessing her daughter's latest style being carefully designed. No. I knew the immense stretch and great amout of bravery this was requiring from her. We live in a very conservative, logo-centric, suburban area. People here blend in. Katherine was choosing, of her own will, to stand out. No other girl in her school will be wearing those shoes. Fifth grade is an especially cut throat place where any deviation from the standard can be socially poisonous. This was huge! I have never been so proud.

Later that night she came to me, long after she was to be in bed, just to hug me and say quietly, "Thanks Mom...for letting me get those shoes. I really love them." She bit her fingernail again, with a grin. Katherine was truly glowing. Bravery lit her spirit.

A Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing or Not? Who can say?

Normally, you won't find me writing much about politics. Even this blog is less about politics and more about people and groups falling into the old habits of providing severely unbalanced information during election times.

This is a source of endless frustration to me because everywhere I look I am finding examples of this behavior. Moments after I received the email and video below, my husband received a call from people working for Newt Gingrich regarding oil barrels in Colorado and gas prices. It was the same unbalanced information smearing that has created a haze over people in our country.

I suppose there is something in human nature that wants to divide things into two categories: "good vs evil". But this is not a comic book hero made into a Hollywood movie. This is real life and it's not so easy as good versus evil. This unbalanced propaganda is damaging the real purpose behind each cause so it ends up backfiring. If the political parties and lobby groups wonder why we, as a nation, have been growing more and more disillusioned they need to look no further than their own desks.

What follows is my email reply and request to an email I received from a wildlife interest group, which no doubt has a generally good heart at the center of the cause. The initial email from them follows my reply.
***************************************


Thank you for the video, but could you also please put together something that explains what Governor Palin's thought process or reasoning was for introducing the aerial hunting program?

I am a registered Independent voter and the reason I am such is so that I do not fall prey to one party's issue or the other. We should not make important decisions without balanced information. I fear this is coming off as strongly unbalanced currently, and if you could provide some of Governor Palin's reasonings, then perhaps the main focus of the effort you've worked so hard to put forward ---to protect wildlife--- will not appear to be simple and typical party politics. This is important due to the huge and growing amount of people who now consider themselves Independents largely because of being so disturbed by the overshadowing of party politics on the real needs of this country, environment, and the world. These are, just like myself, often younger people who are also supporters of your group and other groups like it.

This wildlife issue seems important enough that I am feeling the need to write to you and ask you to please protect your efforts before people just tune you out like they do with so many issues that are presented in this way.
Thank you so much.

Sincerely,
Lisa (i sent them my name but removed it here for posting)


----- Original Message ----From: "Rodger Schlickeisen, Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund" To: Sent: Wednesday, September 3, 2008 4:24:22 PMSubject: Video: Sarah Palin's Shameful Record on Wolves

Dear Lisa,
Tonight Alaska Governor Sarah Palin will accept the Republican nomination for Vice President, a position that would put her second in line to be President of the United States. But before she accepts, I need your help to let America know where she stands on the brutal and needless aerial hunting of wolves and bears.
Watch our new video on Palin's awful record and share it with everyone you know who cares abut wildlife.

Warning: This video is extremely disturbing. It contains graphic images of aerial hunting of wolves -- a brutal and needless practice that Governor Palin has fought hard to promote and expand.
Despite strong scientific, ethical and public opposition to aerial hunting, Governor Palin has…
Proposed paying a $150 bounty for the left foreleg of each dead wolf.
Approved a $400,000 state-funded propaganda campaign to promote aerial hunting.
Introduced legislation to make it even easier to use aircraft to hunt wolves and bears.
If you care about wildlife, please watch this video right now -- and then share it with every friend, neighbor, conservationist and wildlife lover you know.
Tonight, all eyes will be on Governor Sarah Palin. Let's make sure the whole nation knows about her awful record on aerial hunting and protecting wildlife.
Respectfully,

Rodger SchlickeisenPresidentDefenders of Wildlife Action Fund..TABLE>
P.S. Please also share our video on blogs, social networks and elsewhere. I've pasted the link to the video below to help you spread the word:
http://actionfund.defenders.org/palinvideo


© Copyright 2008, Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund
This message was sent to asilartist@yahoo.com.Please do not respond to this message. Click here to update your information or unsubscribe.
Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund provides a powerful voice in Washington to Americans who value our conservation heritage. Through grassroots lobbying, issue advocacy and political campaigns, the Action Fund champions those laws and lawmakers that protect wildlife and wild places while working against those that do them harm.
Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund can be contacted at: 1130 17th Street, NWWashington, DC 20036

Paid for by Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund at http://www.defendersactionfund.org/ and not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee...

A Sunday to Remember

Noah, Lisa, Brian Vander Ark, Scott, Mason and Katherine after the show. (And I thought I was short compared to Scott!)

We had the best time this past Sunday! The weather was perfect after a very stormy night. The company was delightful and the music was awesome! We discovered some months ago that singer/songwriter Brian Vander Ark (lead of The Verve Pipe) was doing a second summer of his "Lawnchairs and Living Rooms" tour featuring his solo work as well as any requests from The Verve Pipe albums. After a short discussion, Scott and I decided that it was just too good of an opportunity to let pass. So we contacted his manager, and luckily secured one of the slots for the tour. After the date was selected we set up a time and then I created the playlist of requests, to which Brian graciously played as well as adding an on-the-fly rendition of "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" that was fabulous.

We invited neighbors and friends as well as the school staff as well. The principal, Doug, of the elementary school that my kids attend is fantastic, not only knowing every child's name but truly knowing them besides. You'll hear him during the day saying things to a kid as he walks to his bus like "Hey Mark! How was your t-ball game?" And he honestly wants to know the answer. The kids love the guy and we have always found every answer we needed and every measure of help requested, so we all feel lucky to have him. Of course, he was invited to the event, and he and his wife attended.

When Doug arrived Brian was tuning his guitar and didn't see him right away. Of course I didn't think anything of it. Moments later I am busy getting hummus out of the refrigerator and I hear them excitedly "HEY MAN! OH WOW! It's been forever!" and happy hugs follow. It turns out, the school principal is related to Brian Vander Ark. They are cousins and played together a lot as kids. We're thinking this will only help Doug's street cred with the kids.

Anyway, the concert was really wonderful. Brian laughingly called me out as "a bit of a rebel" based on my set list. Hahaha! Those who know me know that there may be a wee bit of truth in that. We were lamenting the dreams of living in cities or edgier places full of creative inspirations and support. Then you have kids and you just don't want some guy asking your 3 year old for that gumball quarter, or dealing with the myriad of other priorities parenthood requires you to readjust. So, as parents we both ended up in 'the burbs'. GASP. He has a great song referring to it: Lily White Way, and if you haven't heard it, take a listen through his website http://www.brianvanderark.com/ . It received huge applause as well as hearty laughter throughout the song.

To any who live in West Michigan (Kzoo Mom of 2...listen carefully), he's doing a show with the full band, and his singer/songwriter wife, Lux Land, on January 24, 2009, at the Rockford Fine Arts Center. My kids are already saying "So, we're going, right?!"

Brian, Noah and Scott admiring kids singing post show. Yay! I love huggy people!

A Beautiful Visit

I've been away from the computer for awhile as I enjoyed hosting guests for a few weeks as well as taking a week away from home without computer or mobile technology of any kind (y bes, including using the cell phone).

Our friends were here from the Netherlands with their two little children. It was a great visit and we enjoyed all of it. Even after they have gone back home (no easy task since they were caught in a 3 hour delay in Chicago which caused them to missed their connection to Amsterdam from Zurich---another 4 hours waiting there) our kids are still speaking dutch. Sometimes it is on purpose, and sometimes it slips out before they have even noticed. Their kids were doing the same, especially their 3 year old son. It has been great to hear and see.

So what do you do with people who regularly travel the world who are now coming to see "America", but really plan to stay in Michigan the whole time? I warned that Michigan wasn't going to be like seeing America exactly. They were seeing, instead, Michigan. That was fine for them. But as hostess I was a little concerned at first. Looking into your own backyard and thinking about what to do was a challenge but a good experience too. I overlook a lot, I realized.

Michigan is full of beautiful freshwater beaches, for example. Especially along the west side of Michigan where we live. Oval Beach in Saugutuck is listed on Conde Nast's list of the top 25 most beautiful shorelines in the world. It was gorgeous. Our friends shunned the sunblock, favoring nothing or tanning oil. I teased Marlies that I was going to just rub some garlic on her and toss on some rosemary while she was at it. On the other hand, I rubbed on 50 spf liberally and I still freckled and my belly even burned. Johan was stunned and said "Doesn't the 50 mean you can be in the sun 50 times longer?" "Yes," I said, "and still I burned". Katherine thinks the next vacation should be in a cave. HA!

We visited Charlevoix and took a 2 hour boat ride to the remote Beaver Island where we had no tv or phones in our rooms at the resort. The island is mostly trees and one main street along the shore. The place is full of artists and naturalists as well as writers and anyone wanting to get away from a busy pace. It is great for that. We stayed a few nights enjoying the calm, some sights, shopping and great food and drink. We met a watercolor artist painting along one of our walks by the water. He was thrilled to learn our friends were from the Netherlands as he was from England himself. He lives in Chicago now and he and his wife were happy to escape for a while. The place isn't posh but it grows on you much in a way like some New England towns do. The locals expect your own independence while they share the island with you, but they're more than happy to help in anyway you need if you ask. There were no spas or pampering spots. The most polished space we saw was a restaurant at our hotel called Nina's where we enjoyed a fabulous dinner in the middle of Lake Michigan watching the sun set.

After a few days and nights there, we headed to Mackinac Island staying on Main Street and enjoying most of the sights to see on the island. We had a great time with perfect weather. The contrast between Beaver Island's quiet beauty and Mackinac Island's smiling fudge induced frenzy was a lot of fun. The kids and adults all enjoyed playing at the fort, watching fudge being made and maybe most of all just quiet walks with ice cream cones later in the nights when it quieted down on the Island and the lights of the Mackinaw Bridge were in full view. The sound of the waves lapping the shore as we licked our ice cream and talked quietly was perfect.

We did a lot of other things locally and even a short stay in Chicago. But much of our time was spent playing with the kids and enjoying the things I take for granted too often. Sometimes you don't have to go anywhere to make new discoveries or to remember the discoveries you forgot.

These are a Few of My Favorite Things...

"You are a Jewel"

~A favorite Kenyan compliment

Rediscovering old (meaning precious like a gem stone, not aged...whew! Did I make it out of that one ok?) friends is such fun. A friend of mine since, well, at least 8th grade has always had a way of being about to make me laugh when I was sad or grumpy; listened better than almost anyone, and managed to look classy and cool even when she's falling flat on her face or making fun of herself. I am so thrilled to discover that nothing has changed! I have started reproducing my blogs on a blogspot page to keep in better touch. And, I've found that it's a tad easier to post things here in the first place. She was always great at subltly pointing out a new way of doing things (ok, sometimes not so subltly either) and her advice was always excellent. I've been enjoying her blogs under the name "Just My Type" (check link on my sidebar) and wondering what I've done for the past many years without her laughter.


My family is enjoying "meeting" her also. My husband quickly noted how similiarly we write and how our senses of humor are so much alike. My daughter thinks she is just amazingly fun and cool. And she loves learning how it was T who taught me how to shave my legs and other girly stuff like that. She's entering that stage soon, so she relates that friendship bonds like this are indeed important, especially once boys start getting involved. My youngest son seems to like her and her daughter's blonde good looks....which is no surprise as he was always shamelessly hitting on only the blonde waitresses in restaurants starting at age 9 months or so. My middle son smiles when I read things and show him posts because he sees me happy and laughing and anyone who makes his mom do that is tops in his book.

Each day I try to sneak a little time to read some of her old posts so that I can catch up on her world. I feel like no time has gone by and that's simultaneously amazing and not a surprise. There was one thing that I can always say was true about each of us: we were always ourselves. And if someone else didn't like that, oh well! We're still always ourselves and that is something we can each be proud of in this world. Teaching our kids to be like that too, by example, is probably one of the best gifts we can give them.



Today I came across a blog that's a funny list of things she "can't live without". Now, of course we all CAN live without these things, but damn it, we don't want to! :-) She stipulated that this is a list of "THINGS" so no loved ones or anything like virtues or things like "freedom" will show up on the list. As she said "So let me keep this petty and materialistic, because it's more fun that way." HA! Ok.. Onward we go!

• 
  
  My special set up of three pillows: 2 memory foam side sleeper Beautyrest; 1 buckwheat hull---arranged in a very specific order than can be deciphered even in the dark. This is not to be messed with. My darling husband has been awoken in the night to the low growl of "you have one of my pillows".
  
• My "Combo" for headaches: Two Excederin plus 2 Pseudofed (off-brand ok..but not that new fake pseudofed because it just doesn't work). Take at onset of a bad headache, especially if you're prone to migraines like me--or sinus headaches that wipe you out. This works so well that my Mom, my cousins and my Aunt use this Combo along with friends they tell. My neurologist and D.O. both have written the "Combo" down because it logically makes sense to them that it would work so well, and it's probably safer than a lot of other medicines. So, now I share with you. I do not leave home without components to create the Combo. I do realize that I might be making a mini-meth lab in my body but hell, it gets rid of headaches! Migraine sufferers would do just about anything to get relief.




• Diet cola: I know this stuff is probably going to kill me. It's my major vice. I've got to cut back. Oddly, I never even drank diet cola until I wanted to lose weight after my 3rd child was born. I'd never been on a diet and I used Weight Watchers points system (no meetings, just home) and a regular cola was a lot of points out of my day. So it all started with the diet. Arrrggg...




• Red Wines: I am not snobby with my reds really, because I've learned that fantastic wine can come in variety of prices, depending on locale and grape type. Give me Cabs and Merlots, even Pinot Noirs, but also other things like Shiraz and some blends. My favorite to bring to a gathering is "Menage A Trois" just for the label shock factor. :D It's a blend of three grapes...really! And, it's pretty good. My favorite wine is Silver Oaks cabernet. With its price, it's definitely a special occassion wine. And also I love Chateau Musar, a Lebanese wine which can only be picked during the calmer political times but is simply amazing. The ancient temple of Bacchas is located in Lebanon for a very good reason!




• Dark Chocolate: Always was and always will be my first love. (Yes T, even above Matt Dillon--- now, Matt Dillon slathered in dark chocolate....hmmmmm....there is a thought!)




• Air Conditioning: I HATE being too hot. I mean I really hate it. I do not cool down. Something is wrong with my heating and cooling system. I just don't sweat like I should. Oh that SOUNDS great, but it's not. I just keep getting hotter and hotter and hotter...my skin turns redder (starting with face) and then I get woozy. I have had heat exhaustion/heat stroke more times than probably anyone you know. So, Air Conditioners and me...we're close.




• Cat Walk brand Curls Rock Curl Booster: I have the weirdest hair. It's bi-polar, I swear. It's somewhere in between straight and curly. It can never decide what it truly wants to be. Perhaps it's just non-committal. However, I want a committment. Pick a lane. I don't even much care which lane. As I get older I notice I am doing what my dad's mother's hair reportedly did: it's getting redder (from a brown with dark auburn highlights to light auburn). That is fine. It fits my complexion. And, just to be fair, my hair seems to be doing what my mom's mother's hair did as she aged: got curlier. That thrills me because it's getting close to picking a lane. This Curls Rock stuff is great! It's Incredible! It even says so on the label --in english and in french "C'est Incroyable!" And for once, packaging doesn't lie. I can shower at night, which works better with schedules, and just air dry with a few squirts of this. Then spritz a little more on after brushing in the morning and VOLIA! I have nice organized curls that stay that way all day! I don't even need hairspray unless it's excessively humid. At $14 a bottle (that lasts me about 3 weeks) it better be good.



• DHC Olive Oil skin care products: This stuff is fabulous! The whole company started based on it's Olive Oil skin care line. It's based out of Japan, but the olive oil is grown and extracted in Spain then processed again for purity and such in a lab in Japan. I think they direct it through California to the US. Ladies around the world have been using olive oil forever as a beauty aid. Here is why it works: People get pimples and an overproduction of oil because of cleaning our faces so much that our skin panics at the dryness and goes haywire. It produces much more oil than necessary then, causing all kinds of problems. One of the solutions is to wash with a gentler material, and follow up with something that matches our skin oil as best as possible. Guess what? One of those happens to be olive oil! (Try it on dry ends of hair too for shine! Wowza! What a difference one drop makes!) So, my serious addiction is as follows:

1. Deep Cleansing Oil: you wash and look up to see your skin looking immediately healthier!


2. Olive Virgin Oil: one drop in palm of hand; rub palms together; pat on face gently.


3. White Sunscreen SPF 25: I never go out without it. And it's a great lotion besides.


4. Velvet Skincoat: wear under any makeup and it not only gives a silky smooth texture to work on, but pefects skin, and holds make up on longer! You can even put it on lightly under eye shadow to keep that on longer. I tend to wear it instead of any foundation or powder because it gives a matte finish. A little goes a long way, as with all their products (which is good because they are pricey).

***If anyone wants a catalogue, I can put your name and address in. They come with free samples in the catalogues too. :-D

• Vintage silky slips: My final "A few of my Favorite Things" item. I am addicted to collecting and wearing these to bed. There just isn't anything more comfortable. Hubby has nary a complaint either.

***Thanks for the fun Just My Type !