My Review of Lush Solid Shampoo

I have always been known, not only to myself, but also to my group of friends, for having awesome hair. It’s long and shiny and manageable. I can wear it either curly or straight. Its really the only thing I have going for me. And I embrace it by keeping it long, clean (for the most part), and wearing it down as often as possible.

I recently saw a picture of myself, where my hair was straightened and worn down, and it looked frizzy and terrible. It wasn’t shiny and it was completely lackluster. It looked thin and dry. This troubled me. I sporadically suffer form itchy scalp and have started using a shampoo that called itself “organic”. Upon reading the ingredients, I discovered a plethora of chemicals in it, and couldn’t pronounce the majority of the contents. There were natural additives, but I was still washing my hair and scalp with the chemicals that I was trying to avoid. The bottle said “no laureth sulfate” which I thought was great, since I have suffered rashes and irritation many times due to this foaming agent. Unfortunately, there were other chemicals in it that worked the same way, so my hair problems hadn’t ceased.

I was at a loss; I had used an all natural shampoo in the past but wasn’t fully satisfied with the results or the fragrance. It was pricy and didn’t quite fix my scalp issues. I also felt like I was using more to get it to foam. I started looking for natural products on the internet. I decided to pursue the Lush products. I read everything on the internet about all their products and deicide to give the solid shampoo and conditioner a try. I thought I was strange and wasn’t sure that it would foam or smell good or work. So I read user reviews. They were all good. The solid shampoos and Jungle Conditioner are cheaper than the Lush liquid variety, and since this is only a trial, I figured it would be safer to err on the side of cheap! I dismissed the users that wrote the positive reviews as hippies, but vowed to make my way to the Lush store on the next sunny day. (The rain is no good for my hairstyle.)

After sniffing many of the urinal-puck shaped shampoos, I decided on Seanik. Not only is it blue (I like blue) and fresh smelling, the internet said that it was good for providing shiny manageable hair. I absolutely love love love it! My hair is back to what it once was. My scalp feels clean and moisturized, my hair smells great and it feels soft and thick. I have received dozens of compliments! My hair has gone from greasy, lifeless, and frizzy to shiny and manageable, as promised! This is all in conjunction with the Jungle Conditioner, which is the only solid one that they sell.

I highly recommend Lush Solid Shampoo and Conditioner. I rarely have this many good things to say about a product, but this stuff is amazing. The price is right, it’s easy to use, and there are no plastic bottles! I look forward to trying more of their products, but I have vowed to run out of everything before I buy more!

Grouponing!

I have recently succumbed to pressure from friends to sign up for Groupon.  I hesitated at first. I am known for finding good deals, but have never used coupons before. I was wary of presenting a coupon at a dining establishment, and I was unsure that the savings would be worth the effort.

The 1^st Groupon I purchased was for Charmed Modern Thai. The cost was $15, but was worth $30 at the establishment. I coerced two coworkers into giving me $5 each and purchased it on my visa. The purchasing process was seamless, and when I checked my statement, there were no excess fees or taxes, just a straight $15 to Groupon. We ventured out for lunch on a cold rainy comfort-food type of day, and arrived at the restaurant which we didn’t even know existed. Our lunches were excellent, including Tom Yum soup and fried wonton for an appetizer, and we left feeling content, satisfied and in full agreement that the Groupon was $15 well spent.

I am new to this, so have only purchased one other Groupon. This is for Patrick's Hawaiian Cafe in Portland. Unfortunately, I was unable to use the Groupon on that specific day, as it was Mother’s day, and the not-so-fine print on the Groupon clearly stated that it was not usable on Mother’s Day. I was momentarily disappointed, but the remembered that I wasn’t overly concerned about the deal. The point of Groupon (the restaurant ones at least) , is to inspire me to try new places! My companion (who lives near the restaurant) had not tried Patrick’s Hawaiian Café either, and since we both love hawaiian food, I figured it was worth a shot! The food was awesome, the service was friendly, and the prices were reasonable even when paid at full. I will definitely go back, not only to get the $20 worth of food for $10, but also to try a couple different things on the menu that I was having trouble deciding between (mmm Pineapple Chicken…)

So far, my experience with Groupon has been great. I quickly got over the stigma around presenting a coupon for food. The restaurant owners welcome them, as they sign up for Groupon and offer these good deals to drive traffic into their establishments. Groupon users are also known to tip well, as we are usually getting at least 50% off of our meals, and of course, that practice is always welcomed. Service is usually excellent, as they see a Groupon customer as an opportunity to acquire repeat business. I have added the site to my daily morning internet routine, and the biggest effort on my part in all of this is to exercise will power! It is so easy to purchase things that I really don’t need or wouldn’t usually purchase because of the good deals! That reminds me, it’s time to check today’s deals!

The Value in Taking Things Slow.

I am surrounded by friends, acquaintances and colleagues that experience different relationship dynamics in all areas: friends, lovers, family, co-workers, etc. Some of the people around me are happily married and having children, some are less happy but in relationships, some have important family ties, while others have no family at all. I am surrounded by people who are confused, have broken hearts, or are celebrating a new love. I adhere to my commitment to stay mum about my friends personal lives and I am not comfortable writing about my own life adventures, (This isn’t Sex and The City, and I am not Carrie Bradshaw).  This is primarily just a generalization of my opinion on the things that I see and hear. Having acute observation skills and constantly being inspired by my observations leads me to write about an important component of all relationships that is often forgotten: The value in taking things slowly.

I strongly believe that patience is useful in all relationships. If people would slow down when communicating they would have more time to listen, understand and respond. These fundamentals are important in all conversations, but they are especially important in conversations with those that one holds dear such as family, friends, and romantic partners. If people would slow down when making new friends, they would allow themselves time to get to know their new friends, and they would be able to know  both  which part of their life this new friendship will enrich as well as how this friendship can possibly hinder them. I would like to focus today on the effects that haste can have on romantic relationships, as I think these are the types of relationships that are most often rushed, and that they can be most affected when patience is neglected.

One of the tools that is literally at our fingertips to assist us in our search for love is the internet! Once can decide that they’re ready to settle down and click away. Many are in a hurry to find the one, as they feel lonely, are on the rebound, or need to keep up to their biological clock. Whether they are just looking for sex, simple companionship or the real deal doesn’t change the one common ground: the need to get the show on the road as soon as possible. I found this out when I had a profile up on a dating site. I put up a picture that didn’t show my face, included a very short write-up that was kind of a joke and included no information about who I really am. I got tons of messages! I would check the inbox periodically, click on the senders profile and usually delete the message after seeing their picture. This was an immediate problem for me; I do not adhere to a personal criteria when it comes to what I want in a man. I felt shallow rejecting these guys, but I did so anyways, and I assume that is what most people do on these sites.  I replied to a couple of the messages, and the men on the other end always wanted to meet right away. I hesitated because my time is valuable and I am not going to relinquish an evening of my hobbies and relaxation to spend time with someone I don’t know. Safety wasn’t my concern; I just felt that it was not a very efficient way to spend my precious time. My profile did say that I was looking for talk/e-mail, and I found it a tad audacious that people would ignore what it is I actually wanted. This didn’t last very long; I realized that I wasn’t lonely or looking for anything at all. I was basically just doing it because everyone else was, and pretending I was normal and not completely reclusive. If I was to spend time with someone it would be because I was genuinely interested in them, and not because I was trying to see if I could be genuinely interested in them. I never met anyone from the site and instead took the time to ponder the value in taking things slowly.

I am constantly observing people rushing into things. They are surprised when they discover a character trait in the person they are romantically involved with that they find unacceptable. Since they are so invested in the relationship, they attempt to force themselves to accept this, or they try to change this trait in the other person. Unfortunately, one person cannot change another. It is within our human brains to accept things about other people. In order to know if you can accept someone and all their faults, you need time to get to know them and all their faults, and remember that everyone will have faults. Hell, I even annoy myself sometimes! You need to make sure that you aren’t being used for a rebound, that this person doesn’t have a hang up on the past, and that this person’s hygiene and neatness is acceptable. People spend their whole lives bickering about impractical things, becoming angry and saying hurtful things to each other, being unsure if what they are doing in life is what they want to. They could have just taken the time in the first place, learned about their partner’s deficiencies, and accepted or rejected them. At the beginning of a relationship, once the initial endorphins wear off, it is much easier to let someone go than later on once you have infused your entire lives together.

I am afraid that I am offending many of my readers, as most people I encounter tend to rush into things. I hope that people can take this entry as advice instead of criticism, because that is my intention. I do not think that online dating is harmful or detrimental, it just isn’t for me.  I have spent many years of my life in less than perfect situations, and have learned a lot from my experiences as well as the experiences of the individuals around me. I have learned that love isn’t the most important thing in life that nobody is perfect no matter how badly you want them to be. I have learned that happiness cannot be given to you by another person; it is within yourself to find and share. Everything I have been through and everything I have taken from others has taught me that life’s to short to not take things slowly.

Here's a stupid comic I found:

Cheers! Have a great weekend everyone!