The New York Times highlights a small study done at the University of Texas, which appears to show that fructose is converted into body fat much more quickly than other sugars.

( Science under here )

ladystarblade and turple_purtle may be the only two who really pay attention to them, but I love to create fun tags for my entries on LJ. So, after my earlier post, ladystarblade went through and picked out her favorites for the LJ TAGS HALL OF FAME.

Those inducted are (in no particular order):

• don't make me blog about this
  
• the 80s is the best decade ever!
  
• damn you chelsea clinton
  
• can my boss jump off a very high cliff
  
• this is why i'm broke
  
• guys on leashes
  
• holy crap never again!
  
• gee lucifer it must be cold down there
  
• who needs working left fingers?
  
• how about a nice cup of weirdness?
  
• wankiness at its best
  
• clinton = the dark side
  
• is this hell or is it just hot in here?
  
• yay for being bohemian
  
• my brain will explode in 5...4...3...2..
  
• i will fucking kill your robotic voice
  
• stupid ass bloomington i hate you
  
• no deep fried goodness here
  
• my apartment is a damn bug catcher
  
• i had too much to think last night
  
• omg...you're a complete ass!
  
• psycho-hose beast
  
• we're mad and lovin' it
  
• when bungee cords attack
  
• fried foods are so bad but so good.
  
• warning: lack of sleep = doom!
  

I hope to create more in the future. And to those of you who do read my tags...thank you! :)

Hi! I promise I've checked the memories in this community (as well as a few others) before posting this question. For the past several months I have been sticking to a pescetarian diet. It's going well and I haven't noticed any significant negative changes. I'm often tired, but I tend to think that's because I don't have a regular work schedule, thus I don't stick to a regular sleep schedule. My only concern (which was a concern while I was still consuming meat) is that I'm the taking daily vitamins/supplements the my body needs. I'm currently taking a daily multivitamin, 2000 mcg of biotin, a calcium supplement, and 1000 mg flaxseed oil pill. I guess my only thought was that perhaps I should be taking more biotin for my hair/nails and a different type of pill that contains more types of omega acids. Other than that, are there any suggestions? Also, is it okay to take vitamins at night instead of the morning? I can't really see a reason why not, but perhaps there is.

Thanks!!

I'm having a bad day with allergic reactions and IBS flares and all manner of not-fun. Aside from keeping up with the water loss to prevent dehydration, I've also popped a dose of probiotics. Are there any big nutrients or foods I should look to to try and immediately replace nutrients?

Is borax considered a safe "natural" item to use around the house or not? Since it is mentioned so much I thought that it was (for cleaning, pest control, etc) but in randomly looking it up I'm finding articles saying that it really isn't all that safe... can cause infertility problems, damages to unborn babies, it is toxic to people, pets and plants,

I know that nothing is good if it is overused, but most of what I am finding is saying borax causes problems even in small amounts (inhaled, on clothes, on skin, etc.) If this is true, why is it recommended so much as a great alternative?

Wank.

Wank. Wank. Wank.

And then after 8½ hours of sleep later...I'm more resigned, less angry, and thinking a lot clearer.

Was I upset that I didn't win tickets to see the last Police show at Madison Square Garden in NYC? Oh, hell yeah. A lot of the tears and anger and frustration came from being on 3½ hours of sleep. It's now more disappointment than anything. Getting there would have been hard. Affording being there would have been hard. I'd love to meet up with my Nutters and share in this bit of history...but honestly...I'm resigned to it. I'll be there in spirit. I didn't have tickets prior to this...so, you know...it's not like anything's changed.

I do want to give a BIG shout-out though to Puffs Plus tissues and Cover Girl Multiplying Waterproof mascara. I had two BIG meetings yesterday and after my cry-fest of fandom wank...no racoon eyes and clear sinuses without irritated skin. These are highly recommended.

Last night I went to bed at 9:00 p.m. It was still light outside, but I was exhausted. I was out like a light and woke up with my alarm at 5:30 a.m. I'm not used to getting that much sleep, but I needed it.

The sleep deprivation, aside from my crankiness and taking things way too hard, was for a good cause because I had run off to Indianapolis on Wednesday night to see THE FOO FIGHTERS!!!

The show was good. I enjoyed it. I wouldn't rank it in my Top 5 Concerts of all time. However, I enjoyed seeing them in concert. I think a lot of why this concert didn't excite me was for the following reasons:

1. Cheap seats. I said it in an old blog last year and I'm going to say it again. After getting used to being so close in concert, sitting in the rafters definitely takes away from the experience. When it was all I knew...hell, great. When the last few shows I've been at have had me 10 rows back or closer...well...yeah, that's a hell of a change. Meh.

2. Acoustics. The concert was held at Conseco Field House in Indianapolis. This is an indoor sports arena. It's very narrow and goes up very high. From where we were seated, we were above the big speakers and sound system so everything was very muffled and I had a hard time understanding anything that was being spoken. I could hear the music...for the most part...but anything that Dave Grohl said on stage...I didn't get. I caught hair extensions at one point...but I didn't get the rest of the joke.

3. The people. For some reason, NO ONE in my section stood up at all. This is weird for me at a rock show. I'm so used to rocking out and jumping up and down and dancing. Everyone remained seated. It took away from some of the energy of the show.

4. Merchandise lines of doom! You know...it's great that shows offer the whole credit card option now. But, honestly...it's quicker if you just pay with cash. I think we spent a good 40 minutes in line waiting to get a t-shirt and a bag of stickers. *sigh*

5. The first few songs. The Foos came out rocking, naturally...but they didn't engage the audience right away. It was just rapid-fire songs. And from up in the cheap seats...they honestly all sounded the same.

Now...not all was bad. There were a lot of shining moments in the night as well. These include:

1. Supergrass (the opening band) performing Next to You as one of their songs. These guys weren't all that great, as in they brought nothing new to their sound, but this made me pay attention. Gratuitous Police Cover! WOOT!

2. The second half of the show! When the Foos came down the catwalk and played the acoustic part of their show...wow. It was far superiour!! I absolutely loved it.

3. There goes my hero! I've always had a soft spot for their song My Hero. They played it during their acoustic half and the crowd sang along and took over at one part. It was...simply amazing! And rather on key too. Amazingly enough for an audience sing-along.

4. Smash! Dave Grohl smashed an acoustic guitar. I've been to a lot of rock shows. This was the first where ANYONE smashed a guitar. And it was totally rockstar and kicked ass!

5. Barrier jumper! Security was kept on their toes by a man who jumped the barrier after most of the band, except for Dave, walked the catwalk back to the stage. This guy jumped the barrier and security was on him and leading him down the walk of shame, past the stage, and out of the venue. Dave looked a little confused/concerned at first...but you know...no rockstar can be too careful. Look what happend to Dimebag Darrell.

6. Tawn call. As is tradition, I called after_lastnight during a song. I chose Learn to Fly and it was a rocking good time. We sent a few texts back and forth too after the guitar smash. WOOT!

7. The company. I was up in the cheap seats with ladystarblade, but down in an awesome section was Julia (IndyGirl) and her friend Dana. And we met up for dinner before the show and then briefly afterwards and chatted about the concert. Good times! I love my peeps!

So...a good night's sleep...after a dinner out to just vent and release frustrations on fried food and a delicious lava cookie later, I'm a little better.

And that, my friends...is only a good thing.

For every piece to fall in place
Forever gone without a trace
Your horizon takes it's shape
No turning back, don't turn that page...

I've got some kind of baby ointment on a pair of slacks and I'm trying to wash it out, with no luck. I've tried detergent and apple cider vinegar, but the stain is still there.

Does anyone know of an effective stain remover? Thanks for any help given!

Or as safe as can be...

The lack of sleep combined with several crappy things turned me into a raving bitch yesterday...I pretty much hunkered down at my desk, clapped on my earphones, and ignored the rest of the world. The shrieking work monkeys were in full force and a couple (non-work) related things happened that actually hurt me far more than they should've (period + sleeplessness = oversensitivity), so I hated everyone and everything yesterday.

But nine-and-a-half hours of sleep later, I'm better. And it's Friday, even better. Hopefully most of the drama is behind me...and I'm just going to walk away from most of it...and refocus myself on the good stuff...and maybe get some more work done because damn, I may've been pissed, but I was productive yesterday.

Okay. I'm rambling, so I'll shush now...happy Friday, everyone!

Quote of the Day -- "Biscuits. I have biscuits." -- me to lost_judi this morning

Hey everyone -

Over the past few days, some individual mods have received community questions and comments sent to them via the LJ message system. I wanted to take this chance to remind you all of our official email address - naturallivin at gmail.com, as posted on the userinfo page. All eight of us have access to this email and we all check it regularly. You're more likely to get a quick response from this email, and it helps us keep a record of any problems or questions that come up.


Thanks!

I know many people recommend using acidophilus vaginally to treat yeast infections and whatnot. I have some probiotics capsules that have acidophilus in addition to a bunch of other bacteria and I was wondering if it is okay to use these vaginally as well. the product i have is jarro-dophilus http://www.jarrow.com/product/228/Jarro_Dophilus_EPS

thank you.

So today we where finally able to go to Wal-Marts. I had read here before about acne treatments and such. I need to get rid of my acne not only to look and feel better for myself but I have a chance of getting better tips if I look even cuter. :D

Anyways I went and bought a few items that I read about. Milk Thistle (175mg), Lemon Juice, Witch Hazel, and some other antiseptic. My question now is how to use these items. Should I use them all in one day or is that too much for skin to handle? Should I do Witch Hazel morning and night and do the lemon juice once a week? I have no idea what to do.

Right now I think I'll do the milk thistle twice a day just to see if I can handle it. Then I'll go up higher if need be. I did want to get Epson salt to make a bath to soak in since I have really bad shoulder and back acne but our tub is not one you would want to sit it. Icky house mates make it nasty. Should these right now do a well enough job?

The last thing I'm trying is to drink lots of water. I can't do this during the day as I have a really weak bladder if even I don't drink anything but at night I know the bathroom is right there so I drink it all then. Will this still work ok?

So many questions. ^_^; Sorry.

What makes you cry? Is it your daughter stunning you in her latest cheerleader or theater performance or your son tackling the all-star quarterback on the field when he thought he wasn't strong enough to tackle anybody? Or could it be something simpler, like the snores coming from your lifelong partner and knowing you've found your soul mate?  Or perhaps, it's the sound of the rain as you remember your grandma pulling you into her downy soft bed on a cold spring night. Whatever it is, I know that I've wept this week from one of the many important relationships in my life.

When my critique partner told me she'd qualified for a scholarship to the world renowned Highlights Foundation in Chautauqua, in New York State, I couldn't have been more ecstatic. Donna Bratton Bowman is deserving of this rich honor. She's bared her soul in her work and it's about time someone stood up and noticed her unbelievable talent. Last week, she journeyed to New York to hob-nob with her mentors and soak in their wisdom and creative diversities.  During her week long discovery, Donna took time out of her busy schedule to remember me. Not only did she share notes with me, but she spoke to Eileen Spinelli about the journey I was on, and how I hoped to see my books in print one day. 

Upon Donna's return, she blessed me with a postcard signed by Ms. Spinelli. If you've seen my website or know me then you know I believe in the philosophy of "I think, I can." I wear a pendant around my neck with those very words and my website mimics the same sentiments. Guess what Eileen Spinelli wrote on my postcard? "For Carmen -- You can! Love Eileen Spinelli." For a moment, I couldn't move. All I could do was let the tears slide off my face as they pooled at my feet. Then I tried to find the words to thank my friend. But how do you find words to convey that? Try as I might, the only thing I could do was grip her tight and say, "thank you, thank you sooo much." 

Relationships - where would we be without them? If I'd become an overnight success, I might never have met Donna. I might never have been touched with this special person's soul, her editorial insight, her amazing friendship. This past week has reiterated that the goals we set in our life are not enough unless you have someone to share them with. Life and work is all about the relationships we encounter. The people who touch you, change you, believe in you, motivate you, and inspire you to be the person you strive to be. So my hat goes off to Donna Bratton Bowman; friend, soul mate, and critique partner. Let's keep enjoying this journey of life, together.  As Natalie Goldberg has said, enjoy Mondays with friends and play together often. 

Hello, to all my amazing friends!
 

I took my kitty with the swollen lip to the vet. Thank you for the advice. The Doc mentioned that my cat needs to have some teeth removed because of dental disease. I HAVE NEVER HEARD OF THIS!!! Really? Cats go to the dentist, and I have to pay $500 for my kitty to be put under so he can have his teeth cleaned and pulled. Is there anything else I can do? Thanks again!

My baking stone is my "natural" cookware, so I was hoping you guys could help me out.

We've been using a baking stone for a few years now. Unfortunately my roommate put soap on it today when she was washing it. I've been told that doing this will permanantly impregnante the stone with soap, and that it will leach soap from now till eternity--that this made the stone useless. Is there any way to get around this problem, like running water on it a long time? The stone had a couple of years of oil buildup, so it was pretty protected. I'm really hoping I don't have to toss this one.

Thanks everyone!

Edit: The soap was Dawn brand.

If I remember correctly, someone on this community was bemoaning the loss of Tom's of Main Peppermint toothpaste, which has been discontinued. I found a few boxes left at my local walmart, and was wondering if anyone was still looking for them. I'd be willing to buy and ship these if someone would pay me the cost of the product (four dollars and some change) plus shipping, (estimated two dollars.)

On the assumption that exercise is a natural way to good health, I bring you this question:

If you have an infection or similar illness that affects a localized area of your body but doesn't make you feel *sick*, is it better to carry on with normal exercise or to give your body a rest? Does raising your body temperature have either a good or bad effect on how your body fights infections, viruses, etc.?

(In my specific case, we're talking UTI and power-walking on a treadmill. Aside from the usual symptoms, I don't feel bad, but I can't decide if exercise is a good idea or not.)

I finished reading "Twilight" over my lunch break.

Eh.