Record-Setting Heat and Body Canvases

I did not get nearly enough sleep last night, and it showed.  I was baby-sitting the Toddler earlier because S had to pick Girl Child up from the relative's house, and the only thing that kept me from falling asleep was writing my last post on paper and sheer force of will.  I was going to go take a nap/sleep until tomorrow after the Toddler woke up from his nap, but by that point, I'd gained a second wind.

I haven't gone outside during the day in about three days or so - it's been too hot.  Today's official high was 109, which was record-shattering.  Seriously, that record is smithereens, shreds, nuked.

I'm never going outside again.  Oh my god.

Today, S and I became human canvases for each other - lots of doodling.  I also had her draw the sign of the Deathly Hallows on my back in about the spot I'm planning on getting it tattooed, and she reproduced the Chinese symbols for Serenity (the Firefly) on my right inner arm, so I can get an idea of how exactly I want them when I get those tattooed on me.  The rest is just a jumble of insanity.  Also, I can't draw an ankh to save my life.  S wrote "Trololololo" on my foot, for instance.  She has it on her arm.  There are leaves, misshapen lips, aliens, insults, derpy faces, and just all sorts of stuff.  My left arm is covered in Harry Potter scars.  S got a lot less of the "artistic" outpouring because I mostly drew on myself, but I wrote "Accio Brain!" on her leg and some stuff backwards and upside down.

At the moment, I'm watching Prisoner of Azkaban, but once I finish this post, I'm going to bed.

This is what S drew on my arm.

... And these are the original symbols.

 *squee*

No 'Poo Update

I thought it might be time to write a full update on the no 'poo experiment.

Just to recap, I washed my hair for the last time with Pantene Pro-V for fine hair last Thursday (July 28th), and conditioned with the matching conditioner. That afternoon, I had gotten so sweaty from being out of the house that I took a second shower, but I only rinsed my hair with lukewarm water. (It was too hot to use anything warmer, and I actually really like cool showers in the warmer months.) On Friday, I also showered, once again only rinsing my hair with water.

So, S, being the research maven she is, did some more research on it after we started talking about it, picking up a few more tips than what I had gleaned. Of course, I actually stumbled upon the no 'poo movement completely accidentally - I was searching Google for various food items I could try rinsing my hair with in an effort to get some control over it, and found Crunchy Betty's blog.

Anyway, thanks to our combined efforts, it was determined that the baking soda mixture should ideally be made fresh each time, but you can make a lot of the apple cider vinegar mixture all at once and just store it in whatever container you use when you put it on your hair. We use a spray bottle. The recipes we've been using are:

1 TBSP baking soda
1 cup warm water
Mix well until the baking soda is dissolved. Pour into the bottle you use to put it on your head.

And:

2 TBSP apple cider vinegar
1-2 cups water (I think S used 2 cups when she made it on Friday)
Mix well, pour into whatever you use to get it on your hair.

Anyway, I tried this for the first time on Saturday (July 30th). I only used about three ounces on my hair and I didn't rub it in the way you're supposed to, as you're supposed to vigorously massage with your fingers in a circular motion - this stuff also is only supposed to be rubbed into your scalp, not the rest of your hair. I'm pretty sure I didn't get it all rinsed out, and I definitely didn't use enough either, because my hair was still kind of greasy when it was dry. And I really didn't use enough apple cider vinegar, because it was still pretty dry and greasy, at the same time. It was great for the first few hours, though; it looked really nice, and it kind of gets this flippy thing at the ends that it doesn't do when I use regular shampoo. I will say, it felt absolutely awful while I was in the shower, it was horrible and felt like sticky snakes were attached to my head when I first put the baking soda stuff in it. Yuck! But it was really easy to brush - normally my hair is in knots constantly, but I had no problems getting a brush through it, even though it still constantly tangled. I think that's just the curse of fine hair, though. I actually had some changes immediately after the first wash, even though what I've been reading says you may not see anything real until a few weeks in, after you're past the greaseball stage (which I frankly may not go through at all on the level other people do - I already wasn't washing my hair daily), so that was really, really exciting. It had a lot less frizz and more body than it usually does - most of the body that my hair has when using shampoo is it trying to be a frizzy afro, or what I call the "Hermione Phenomenon" - which is when my hair starts to need its own zip code from being so bushy and frizzy. It hasn't done that to me at all since I started this, which is very exciting, because it has always done that to me once it reaches shoulder length, which it finally has done.

On Sunday, I ended up rinsing with warm water again because it felt like poop and I felt like poop, too.

Last night, I used six ounces of the baking soda (that's all that fits into the bottles, not the full eight that you make with a cup of water), and scrubbed my head much more thoroughly than before, and I noticed it didn't do the "sticky snakes" thing this time. I also used more apple cider vinegar after I very thoroughly rinsed out the baking soda. The whole bathroom made my eyes water when I was done, the smell was STRONG. After rinsing, my hair didn't smell like anything at all, though, which was nice. After this time, my hair was noticeably shinier - in fact, I've never had hair this shiny in my life. It also appears longer because it's no longer trying to be like Hermione, and at the same time, it had a lot of body and was just generally absolutely beautiful. I have never been more happy with my hair. I'm still having small problems with frizz in the curly parts by my temples, but I no longer have Einstein-like tufts sticking straight off my head (my hair is truly ridiculous with shampoo), and what frizz I have completely disappears after brushing it a lot.

Right now, my hair is soft, shiny, and I'm completely in love with it. It's starting to get a little bit greasy, so I'm not going to rinse it tomorrow and rinse it on Wednesday instead, and then wash it again on Friday, unless it's just completely unbearable. I am so thrilled with this and don't plan on ever using shampoo again, and it hasn't even been a week yet! I cannot wait to see what my hair will look like in a month!

Today Was Obnoxious

I didn't end up posting yesterday partly because I had nothing to say, but also because I ended up getting sick toward the end of the evening. At that point, I decided it would be better to just forget it and not write anything.

I'm feeling better today, no ill effects, but today was obnoxious nonetheless. Why? Because the Toddler decided the best way he could spend his time today was to be as obnoxious as possible. I love the kid, but jeez. There was banging, doorknob removal, hitting, kicking, and general destruction, part of which caused about five extra loads of laundry. Woo. (I figure S would be a bit displeased to discover that I wrote explicitly about how there came to be so much extra laundry or what exactly he did today, so I'm not explaining it. Ha.)

After all that, he also didn't bother to nap. Because obviously, that's the last thing he could ever possibly want to do. He's been driving us crazy all day, and without a break. At least he's really cute.

Today, Girl Child was supposed to go visit her great-grandmother four hours away, and some relatives that were on the way down were going to pick her up and take her. Unfortunately, the driver ended up feeling very sick and they all got stranded in the middle of nowhere at a gas station an hour into the trip, and then Girl Child started to feel sick again (she's been sick lately), so she wanted S to come pick her up, but S couldn't, so Girl Child is spending the night at the relative's house and being picked up in the morning. Poor kid, what bad luck.

Today just hasn't been good for anybody in this house, not even the dogs - when the relatives came to pick Girl Child up, Shadow went outside just fine, but Sunshine wouldn't, and tried to escape again, so I ended up carrying her away from the door, all 80 pounds of her, before I could get Girl Child to get me a leash so I could have a more reliable method of restraining the idiot. Apparently Sunshine has forgotten that the reason she's been so scared for the last 6 weeks is because she got hit by a damn car. It is very hard to restrain a dog like that, especially one that is as muscular and energetic as Sunshine.

On the subject of No 'Poo, I think I'm going to end up changing my washing schedule for whenever the hell I feel like it. Because while I think OCD, I am not OCD in my actions. So I'm washing my hair tonight instead of tomorrow because I did it wrong on Saturday.

It is really hot here right now. It's so hot that the air conditioner can't keep up. I hate summer and I hate heat waves, and I wish this would just end already, because I am so ready for fall to get here, preferably in a nice cold rain with fallen leaves. I love that part of the year, when the leaves are falling and it rains and it's only about 60 degrees, maybe even 50, and it's denim jacket weather (which reminds me, I still need to replace the one I lost a few years ago), and it's all so beautiful and nostalgic. I really, really love October, especially when it's a wet October.

Sometimes I kind of wish I'd stayed in Washington, just for the weather, but then I remember that I had no friends and was completely miserable and I'm glad I came back. I wouldn't mind moving somewhere with similar weather, though. Seattle's weather is very similar to the UK in the winter - it's usually about 40 degrees and it doesn't usually snow, just rains.

Blah, blah, blah, lots of inconsequential nonsense. I'm not doing too well, I'm really overheated at the moment, so my brain isn't working correctly.

Today I finally moved about 100 gigs of my stuff from J's computer to mine.  Woo!  I have so many pictures.  Oh my god.

Anyway, tonight I think I'll put on a movie and ... stuff?



Links Round-Up!!


Apparently dolphins like to play frisbee with jellyfish.  And wear them as hats.  There are pictures.

"She was my wife!  She's still spitting out hairballs!"

Health insurers will soon have to cover birth control and other things without a copay thanks to a new Department of Health and Human Services policy in Washington.

Vocaloids are really cool.

Despite what I said about loving Washington's weather, the fact that the state has the highest rate of parents skipping vaccinations for their children makes me too uncomfortable to want to raise children there.

There is such a high instance of domestic violence in one county in Indiana that the women's shelters there are now having to enact waiting lists.

Deadbeat dads affected by the BP oil spill won't be seeing their disaster relief payments anytime soon.

Lots of Nonsense, Plus Links!!

Well, today hasn't been terribly exciting so far, just the usual stuff that happens around here - S and I made stupid faces at each other, the Toddler refused to nap until he fell asleep on me at 4:30, right before J and S were about to take him to see some family (of course), Girl Child is sick.. the usual, for the most part.  We're supposed to be having D&D tonight, so I may have exciting things to post tomorrow if W and A show up at a decent time for us to start game.  And if I get my ass off my computer and shower and nap.

Speaking of showering, today will be the day that I start the No 'Poo thing - I washed out some old travel bottles from when I went to England last year because the ones S bought aren't sufficient, and I will be mixing up my baking soda once I'm done writing this post and hopping in the shower, as you're supposed to mix it fresh.

I've been really slacking on the laundry and I kind of hate myself for it.  I think I may clean up the living room after my shower and vacuum, and then nap.  Actually, that's a stupid idea, I'll just get instantly sweaty and gross.  Okay.  I'll clean and vacuum, mix my baking soda, shower, let my hair dry, start a load of laundry, and nap.  There.  Hopefully I'll feel a little better when I wake up, as I've felt like poop all day.

I've got another link round-up from the course of the day - apparently I read enough news websites to qualify for a daily dose of links.  They'll be posted at the end.

Wow, there's just not a whole lot to say.  Today's just been a day.  The last few weeks have basically been the exact same, except I'm sucking with laundry the last couple weeks - I almost got completely finished and was all awesome and stuff, and then I just failed because I was so exhausted, and then it got so hot and I don't like to move at all when it's hot.  So I just suck and need to cut that shit out.

Anyway.  It's just me and Girl Child, and she's in her room.  It's really quiet.  And I have such strange taste in music.  I've been listening to Voltaire's Star Trek songs, and the CD Brent Spiner put out a few years ago today.  Combine that with all the other weird stuff I listen to, and you've got the ultimate dorky collection.  I have more music in that vein than anything else, probably.  I wonder when I started liking satirists so much?  (I've also got Garfunkel and Oates, Jonathan Coulton, Weird Al, and some other stuff I can't remember offhand right now - my playlist is currently over 2,500 songs strong, and the only thing I have in a truly high concentration is M's music - about 20% of my music library is him.)  And oh god, I just went from Zombies On Your Lawn to The Good Stuff by Kenny Chesney.  That is such a strange transition.

And now.. onward to... LINKS!!

Link Round-Up

This is one of the most terrifyingly mesmerizing music videos I've ever seen.  Oh. My. God.  I.. just.. what I don't even..

This is just asinine.  I hate commercials, and this is a big part of why.  It's so disturbing!

Here are some reasons why filesharing is good for music.

It's seriously time to allow change to happen, and if you don't understand computers, you should definitely step aside and not make laws about them.

I found this New York Times article about atheism being on the rise (written in 2009, but still fairly relevant) to be pretty interesting.

Michele Bachmann, who I hold in about as high regard as I do Sarah Palin, won't answer questions about the small business she and her husband own that she's always going on about.  Please don't let her be President, America.  That would really suck.

I officially love this lady.  Seriously, what a person!

I need to research this issue a bit more, but I'm not sure how I feel about e-tickets - it feels a little bit too Big Brother for me.  Do they zap the car and get the information, or is it just an electronic machine that they create the tickets on when they pull someone over?  Or maybe I'm just an idiot, because obviously they're still going to pull you over, so it must just be an electronic method instead of the paper method.  Duh, me.

I already do not like praying mantises (manti?), but this video is hilarious.  I love how the announcer is just dying with laughter at the end.  It definitely does not increase my love for the things, though.  Bleah!

Anyway, time to go do things!

My Very First Link Round-Up!

This is like a milestone!  Or a day when I should get an award!  I'm starting the foray into semi-mainstream blogging.  I think.  Maybe.  Anyway.

I'm finding more and more that I have a lot of links I want to share with people, and I generally don't post them on social networks because I expect most people not to be terribly interested in what I post on Facebook.

Here, though, it's a bit different. This is my blog, so if you're here reading this, you've either got an interest in me personally or find me interesting (*dies laughing*), or you reached me while using Google to find something else (which has happened a few times now).

I digress. I'm going to start posting links, possibly daily, possibly a few times a week or once a week. I don't know. I'll start writing some form of title on them once I have some idea of how often it is going to occur.

Also, after this one, there will not be nearly as much pointless explanation before the good stuff.

Link Round-Up

Alec Baldwin wrote a piece for the Huffington Post about the national debt and all the problems with the debt ceiling and the defecit that I found interesting and accurate. I think I agree with him.

A really dumb man from New Jersey didn't bother to turn off the water for his automatic sprinkler system when winter came, and then was astonished to find that he would have to pay the water bill after the pipe froze and burst.

The school board of a small town near Springfield, Missouri has unanimously voted to ban Kurt Vonnegut's Slaughterhouse Five from the shelves of the schools because it is "biblically contrary". The complaint that brought the issue before the board came from a man whose children are homeschooled. Goddammit.

This article from Mother Jones started the abortion rights rant I was writing, which morphed into the sex education rant in my last post.

GraphJam very accurately portrays what household objects look like to a toddler.

The Bloggess made me want a giant metal chicken sculpture.  Which I already posted about, but I forgot, so here's a link to the specific post.

And more No 'Poo articles, all of which are at least a year old:
NPR
MSNBC
A woman's personal experience with going No 'Poo.

So far, most of the articles I've found that talk about it negatively are people who haven't done their research and are horrified by how their hair will feel if they don't shampoo daily, not realizing that it eventually balances out and turns out fine for most people, from everything I've read so far.

I don't really have anything else of import to add except that I actually cooked for once last night and it turned out fabulously.  I'll post a real post about it tomorrow, since I'm making it again when I feel less like a murdered migrane.  For now, it's time to start getting ready for bed.