Abandonment & a sandwich..

David left for Philly on his first official business trip for Green Room Music Source on Friday. I was dreading him leaving me all month and was not a happy camper when he told me I was not allowed to go through check in with him. Normally I’d be glued to his side until it was time for boarding….but, security doesn’t like that. David informed me that I was a big girl and could leave him at the light rail station.

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Seriously, I’m NOT a morning person…so the fact that I was up and moving (and operating a motor vehicle ) was totally blowing my mind. It was 7:30  on a Saturday, and I was going to be productive. It was like,”o.m.g.   I get to get an Americano and pretend I’m normally up this early! I’m a grown up now!” Well, I don’t think the rest of society was fooled – my cat sure wasn’t fooled – but,  just because you are wearing cute heels and trouser denim slacks doesn’t mean you actually look put together and good. I still had on the previous nights smeary make up and total bed head…I guess you can only pull off Hobo-Chiche if you are 19 and wearing Uggs. I suppose my creepy giggles about shopping in the morning didn’t help either. Ace Hardware was my first stop and, buying 3lbs of lye and plastic boxes just made me look like a freaking armature terrorist.

My big box of supplies didn’t come in Friday…neither did my safety glasses…I was so bummed. I decided to rack up my credit card bill in the name of productivity and purchase everything I needed at various stores around town…and it only took me like…I don’t know, FOUR HOURS!!!  what a waist of time.

most beautiful Menards in the world...how high brow!

When David is away I like to indulge myself. I like to run around in ridiculous get ups made out of David’s old clothes, dance to my favorite music for exercise (Michael Jackson’s #1’s & The Pixies – Doolittle), & eat the weird foods that totally freak David out.

This little guy is called ‘white on white’. Its a super yummy combination of potato bread, cold extra-firm tofu, Swiss cheese, & miracle whip…heavenly. then I helped myself to a little soup and some Malta Goya! Malta Goya? Yeah…its this little weird Mexican drink that my local grocers has decided to add to there shelves….its basically beer for kids. Yep, a sweet sweet sweet malt beverage that is non-alcoholic….I don’t recommend it. I pretty much ate cheese the rest of the weekend…and chips & cold spaghetti sauce…nutritional.

And, then I made soap:

Lets see what’s on the racks! (for sale in 4-6 weeks!)

Cocoa butter & Rosemary Mint

Lemon & Soy milk

Cinnamon & flax seed

&

Unscented Laundry Bar

I worked for about 8 hours making soap. It seems like i would have a whole lot more than only 3 batches of soap in 8 hours but it is actually rather time consuming…i also managed to fit 7 movies in this weekend too; that might have something to do with it…maybe.

Anyways, i just got word that David has landed…I’m sure you will be able to read all about his adventures and how he met Andrew Zimmern right here…(David’s BLog).

Balls flavored coffee & Happy flavored soap!

I was up WAY too late last night…whew! Holy Cow.

(remember to read older entries….i stayed up way too late writing those too…don’t let it go to waste!)

I needed coffee this morning so badly that i just set my bag down and walked over to the pot. I didn’t even turn the store lights on or take off my coat…i needed it that bad. The tragedy that ensued was so sad…the coffee tasted like Balls.  That’s right, balls…and, not Steven Baldwin’s “Schwetty Balls.” What a disappointment….* sigh*

I made this instead.

Survey says:                NOT BAD!

"Hey! that's for the company..."

This is the product of the late night:

Citrus Herbal & Aloe Soap

Orange & Cocoa Butter Bar + Citrus Herbal & Aloe Bar

I didn’t get my new supply shipment yet so i’m back to developing new soaps and making the Orange & Cocoa Butter…Ginger & Vanilla Bean is going to have to wait a little longer. I still can’t believe it sold out!

Anyways…my house smells amazing.

the good, the bad, & the ugly – why i turned into a crazy lunatic who thought she could make soap.

Chemistry has never been a strong subject of mine, frankly I avoided it like the plague…senior year in high school I skipped any sciences that were not required and replaced them with art classes!

So now why the hell do i find myself covered in powders, mixing in beakers, & creating weird concoctions i store all over the house and in the fridge???

It wasn’t until I was suffering from a mired of illnesses in my mid-twenties that I decided to take another look into chemistry. I was diagnosed with Psoriatic Arthritis and another auto-immune disease; all of these illnesses that seemed to be separate all came together under one roof.  All of these symptoms – migraines, chronic fatigue, joint stiffness, arthritis, tendonitis, psoriasis, endometriosis,  asthma, heartburn, and skin pain – were holding me back so much.

It was suggested to me that I try a gluten-free diet, that I try “eating for your blood type”, and keeping a food diary. I did all this and nothing seemed to make a difference at all. Then I took a step back….why in the world would any of this help me? Maybe before I remove gluten or tasty-ness I should be removing chemicals! The hunt was on! What is in my food, what is in my house, and what is in my beauty products??  Lots and lots of awful stuff, that’s what.

The evil doers:

-Formaldehyde – bad for respiratory system, weakens the immune system

-Artificial colors like Blue 1 and Green 3 are carcinogenic

-Dibutyl phthalate – cancerous, found in nail polish’s like OPI

-DEA, MEA and TEA – found in shampoos, links between liver and kidney cancers

-Propylene glycol – found in deodorants & hair gel, causes brain, liver and kidney damage

-Sodium Laurel Sulfate (SLS) – found in shampoos, toothpaste, hand soap, carcinogen that penetrates deep into skin

– Flame retardants –  household furniture, textiles and electronic equipment, may cause neurological problems and disrupt thyroid function

– Pesticides – foods & bug sprays – Linked to neurological damage, asthma and other respiratory diseases, birth defects, cancer, and even suppression of the immune system

I was ingesting these chemicals everyday, I won’t even go into how bat SLS is for you here…we are saving that for a post all it own!

So, I started eating organic…the extra cost was hard to bear at first but, it pales in comparison to the medications that I was taking. I’m not saying I’m cured of anything…i’m still paying for meds and heavens knows that I’m still very miserable at certain times but, I’m certainly having fewer headaches and I feel better all over knowing that I’m reducing my chances of cancer and other illnesses.

The good:

So how does this all go back to chemistry?

I started making Soap. Why did i start making soap and turn my kitchen into a chemistry lab?

Well, a homemade soap contains NO SLS what so ever.  THE simplest way to create soap is by using only fats and lye. Now, lye (sodium hydroxide) is VERY caustic but once it meets the fat the two soaponify – turn into soap. The is NO lye left in a bar of soap once finished. You could eat that stuff if you wanted…granted it would taste horrible and make you feel very ill, but it is made out of all natural materials. Aside from eating an organic diet this was another way I could remove chemicals from my daily life. Then, I figured out how to make better and more nourishing soaps and soaps with character and purpose. I learned how to make laundry detergent, facial masks, toilet bowl cleaners, shampoo bars…the list goes on! THIS was my new calling! It is so much simpler than I thought it would ever be. NO longer was I afraid of chemistry! I actually loved chemistry…i always had but never knew it!

Desperate times drove me to a new career path and i could not be happier!

I’m going to be posting new post often and will be touching on some of the really dangerous stuff we should be avoiding, i will also be delving into another subject – Multiple Chemical Sensitivity – and, will be talking about my products as well.

-Priscilla