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What I'm writing in YEAR OF THE DOG

I just finished writing Year of the Dog ! It had a massive plot hole that I had to fix which turned out to be more work than I expected. Here’s a snippet: “Hey, Auntie Nell.” He wrapped his arms around her, bussing her on the cheek and breathing in pikake flowers and shortbread cookies. And suddenly he was nine years old again, and her solid presence had made his chaotic world stable once more. “What are you doing here?” He usually took her to dinner on Wednesday nights, but today was Tuesday. The edges of her smile faltered a little before brightening right back up again. “What, I can’t visit my nephew?” She angled around him to enter his home. “Is this your new house? Looks lovely.” Which was a blatant lie, because the fixer-upper was barely livable, much less acceptable to a neat-freak like his aunt. She also left four matching pink and purple floral suitcases on the stoop behind her. Only then did Ashwin notice the cab driver standing slightly to the side of the walkway. “Can ...
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Lavender hand lotion

Captain's Log, Stardate 11.05.2009

I have to tell you, I LOVE Etsy.com!

Etsy is dedicated to providing a marketplace for people who like to make handmade products and people who appreciate them (and buy them). It has everything from handmade gifts (like my mom’s Bucilla Christmas stockings and ornaments and tree skirts and wall hangings and … well, just click here to see what she has!) to soaps and lotions and jewelry and knitted items and hand-painted yarn and ...

I could surf that website for DAYS.

Anyway, lately I’ve been concerned about the lead content in my lotions, especially since I’m using them more now that it’s turned colder and drier here in California. I have to use lotion on my hands everytime after I wash them.

So I went onto Etsy and searched for organic hand lotions, and bought this lavender lotion from Lue Cosmetics.

What was really nice is that the owner, Jane, sent me a direct message via Etsy right after I made the purchase to ask if I’d received it yet and how I liked it, and to say that if I had any questions, just to ask her. It was probably a form letter, but I appreciated the extra few seconds it took her to make the effort to email me.

So I emailed back and said how much I liked the lotion and asked if she has any heavier, more moisturizing lotions coming out soon, and she replied that she has a body butter coming out in a couple weeks. Wasn’t that nice of her?

Anyway, so aside from the stellar customer service, I love this lotion! It has a really fresh lavender scent that’s strong at first but dies quickly, so it’s not overpowering. It’s just the right viscousness to use every time I wash my hands.

Also, it’s all organic and the ingredient list is full of all natural things! I mean, I can actually pronounce most of this stuff and/or I know what it is!

Ingredient List: Aloe barbadensis (Organic Aloe) Juice, Lavendula angustifolia (Organic Lavender) Distillate, Cocos nucifera (Organic Coconut) Oil, Kosher Vegetable Glycerin, Emulsifying Wax NF, Palm Stearic Acid, Simmondsia chinensis (Organic Jojoba) Oil, Hamamelis virginiana (Witch Hazel), Tocopherol (Vitamin E), Phenoxyethanol, Lavandula officinalis (Organic Lavender) Essential Oil, Xanthan Gum (Polysaccharide Gum), Salix nigra (Organic Black Willowbark) Extract, Mannan, Azadirachta indica (Organic Neem) Oil, Rosmarinus officinalis (Organic Rosemary) Oleoresin, Tetrasodium EDTA, Citric Acid

I feel really good using this lotion several times a day without worrying about lead or toxic things or pseudo hormones in the ingredients.

Can I say again, I love Etsy!

Also, I got soap from Two Rivers Soap a few months back. I haven’t actually gotten around to trying it yet (I’m still working through some older soap bars I have), but I love how the Two Rivers Soaps are all handmade, they’ve got all natural ingredients, and most of them are made with fair trade shea butter. Can’t get better than that! Plus her soap scents/flavors are just yummy! (She also has a Facebook page.)
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Reihaisha said…
Love Etsy, been surfing for about 1.5 years now. I've gotten japanese stamps for things at work so folks can't break my code about my paperwork. I will be getting some of my Christmas gifts from there.
The best thing about the site is that it has sparked the crafter to come to the surface agaon.
Thu Nov 05, 03:22:00 AM 2009
Camy Tang said…
I think that's true for a lot of people! I love that!
Camy
Thu Nov 05, 08:52:00 AM 2009
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