The Language Barrier
I don't know if I'm using British or American English anymore. I want to type in American for my American readers (and because I'm an American) but I feel compelled to write in British because that's how it's done here and because I intend on being here for at least the next five years. I feel like I'm in a crack. You're opinion?
To stink or not to stink?
I have had an allergy to deodorant since 11th grade but the worst reaction by far was a couple weeks ago when I finally realized that was what was causing the nasty rash on the under side of my arms. Surprisingly, this time it wasn't in my pits which is why I didn't think deodorant at first. Luckily for me, I just kept forgetting to put any on and then I started noticing that I itched less. That's when I decided to try no deodorant for a while and see what happened... Well, after two weeks, the rash is almost gone which has pretty much confirmed things for me (though I still do itch a little). Funny thing about all of this is that the deodorant I reacted to is hypo-allergenic which leads me to believe that things have only gotten worse (this was definitely my worst reaction yet). I prefer to just go without deodorant as I usually don't need it but that's impossible in Australia--it's just too hot! What does a girl do?
"Public Servants"
I am beyond frustrated tonight because the police chief in Soap Lake refuses to release my background check to my mother despite my signed letter requesting him to do so in addition to a copy of my passport for identification. He says my signed letter needs to be notarized. That is just plain unreasonable. Not even the FBI wanted a notarized request!! In fact, I got the letter from the Ephrata PD (just 5 miles away from Soap Lake) by sending them an email! This is just pointless... And the worst part is that I can't call them; no one ever picks up. He told my mom that I would have to call from a phone that registers an Australian number on their caller ID in order for them to pick up. I doubt this guy fro Nowhere, WA has ever received an international call in his life. No number is going to show up. Just like Skype, the number will come up unknown or unavailable. This is driving me nuts. This is the last piece to our application and he is stubbornly and ignorantly standing in the way. I wish I could send him a howler.
Not a Yellow Bus
I've been thinking about this for a while now and have decided that I want to make a third blog (because two isn't enough) solely about adventures while on the bus. We don't have a car so I've been taking the bus a lot lately, and I find that something interesting happens nearly every time I get on a bus. Plus, I really want to have at least one good, reputable, non-personal blog and I think this could be the one. So, I'm looking for contributors. If you have a good bus story, email me or leave a comment on this post and I'll get back to you.
Inspector Morse
Yesterday we had an inspection of our apartment by the owner and the agent who handles the property. Fortunately, the owner already knew about the crack in the granite counter tops so we wouldn't be accountable for that. Um-fortunately, the agent's only advice about the dishwasher was to call the company and follow their directions over the phone to fix it. Um, no. I'm inclined to never use the cockroach nest ever again. But then, just as we turned the lights off last night, a breaker blew. Know what was tripping it? The dishwasher. I doubt we'll be able to fix that problem over the phone...
You scared the be-jesus out of me!
Thank you everyone who said nice things about my "For the Record" blog. I didn't allow commenting because I was fearful that I would get a negative response and I don't really feel like my religious views are open for comment or debate, but I was pleasantly surprised by the number of you who agreed and wished me well. Thank you for your love. And as an addendum, I would like to say that the blog was not aimed at anyone in particular--least of all the sweet ladies who's comments I referred to in the first paragraph. I had been wanting to say those things for a very long time and I just finally reached the point where I could go no further without making a statement, not because of what they said but because I couldn't make even a short response without saying everything--I felt like a flood was coming out of me. Does that make sense?
7 comments:
Language Barrier: I think it would be fun for you to post a distinctly British post, but I'm of the opinion that it is good to maintain your root language. No matter where Tim and I go, no matter what local language my kids learn to speak, I will expect my kids to learn and use educated English. Both for identity reasons and functioning in this modern world reasons. *shrug*
Stinky: Baking soda works pretty well. However, it WILL get on your clothes and depending on how much you sweat you will need to apply it a few times a day.
Yellow Bus: Interesting idea.
Be-Jesus: Yes, you make sense. :)
This might be a dumb question, but have you ever tried Tom's Natural products? They have a deodorant, but I'm not sure how well it works or if you'd still be allergic to it or if you could even get it over in Australia.
No, I haven't! But I'm sure they would work--I've heard great things about Tom's. I dropped into a health food store the other day and found some all natural stuff so I'm giving it a try now. So far so good! :)
I'm glad you've found something that doesn't make you itch!
I use Tom's deoderant and toothpaste just to avoid all the harsh chemicals. Certainly stay away from anti-perspirants because they contain aluminum which has been linked with breast cancer. I've found that using the "natural" deoderants I had to give it about a month to really start doing the job. I get the sense that before I started using them my body was trying to compensate for all the antiperspirant and it took about a month for those compensations to wear off. Tom's still doesn't cut it against top of the line antiperspirants; I still have to apply it twice a day, but that's worth it to me to avoid all the weird chemicals. So don't despair if it takes a while for your body to get used to the new stuff.
I hear you on the chemicals! Even though I've been of deodorant for a few days, I'm still itching a bit. I think I may need to start taking some benedryl in order to give my body a little help and stop over-reacting. But the fact that I'm still itching has made me wonder about other products with chemicals and unnatural fragrances.
Since talking with the naturopath at the store, I've decided to stop using shampoo brands like Pantene Pro-V and start using more natural things (along with natural soaps too). I've had problems with my hair thinning for the last few years and it just hit me that maybe it has to do with my hair products... I also quite coloring my hair because it just doesn't seem right to do that to your head. Way too many toxic chemicals...
We also talked about brands like LUSH that claim to be all natural. She's under the impression that anything that smells like cotton candy has to have chemicals in it! :) I think some of their shampoos and conditioners are pretty good though but as soon as mine run out I'm switching to Burts Bees. :)
Oh, I forgot what I was going to respond with!!
She also said that aluminum is what stops the sweating in antiperspirants. I kind of doubt that I'll stop sweating all together with the stuff I'm using now but at least I won't stink. That's the important part!
How do you like Tom's toothpaste?
Ooh, I love the Burt's Bees shampoo and conditioner. Actually, I like anything Burt's Bees.
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