The One with the Zits

Just a quick note before I head out of town, then have my family visit me. Yay. I'm pretty excited. My mom is coming here JUST TO SHOP AT TRADER JOE'S. Over three hours in the car. To shop at TJ's. And, oh yeah, to see me...right?

Let's talk about skin for a moment, shall we? I feel as though I am not privy to the knowledge that most women have - like how to put on makeup or taking care of your skin. I have three sisters who are all MUCH more into that than I am. Only just know am I learning to find good products. And I tend to get really excited when I find something that works really, really well. (like OMG! Tweezerman tweezers! great!!) Spending a little more on a product if it works REALLYWELL is worth it. Because then you won't waste money guessing.

My sister, T, is just a year younger than me but a world different. I have no idea how she knows SO MUCH about make up, hair, and skin - but that girl wrote an assignment about how to put on makeup in middle school. And - I distinctly remember this because I thought it was so odd - she included little known tips like, "If you blend white eyeliner into the length of your nose, it will appear thinner." I am not kidding you. I mean, maybe this is common knowledge...but c'mon! That's just a little too much for me. I'm happy if I put the eyeliner and mascara in the right place. Then I cover up my blemishes and call it a day.

When it comes to my skin - I was spoiled by inheriting my dad's skin. My mom has never had PERFECT skin, whereas my dad was the poster child for clear, pale skin in high school. (And apparently, HUGE tinted eyeglasses. And ridiculously skinny appendages.)

In high school, my skin was flawless. No make up, no face washing, just. perfect. Since then, I tend to get a few blemishes every now and then, but I have NO IDEA how to take care of my skin. I mean, I'm used to people being jealous of the fact that I can not wash my face ever and have clear skin.

Now, I'm like a skinny person in a fat body. (Or. A pimple person stuck in a clear body. Um, that analogy sounds awkward no matter how you put it.) I can't accept that fact that I'm now bound by having to take CARE of my skin. Sunscreen!? Floppy hat?! (Okay, that's NEVER HAPPENING unless you show me a really cute floppy hat.) Face wash?! And then comes the "what the heck do you with a zit ahhh" part.

(Side note: I fear I'm sounding too dramatic. I have two blemishes on my face. I'm not like a teenager, just a 20-something with penchant for not taking care of her skin. No more rambling. I promise.)

Well, instead of having someone teach me - I made it up. I used to use toothpaste (not gel) and put a dot on the blemish. It worked really well.

But then I got the eco-guilt and thought "ah! chemicals! ah! plastic!" and decided to try something else. I figured, baking soda is used for tooth paste - and when you get a bee sting - maybe that'll work. I put a pinch of baking soda in my hand and mixed it with a drop or two of water. And smeared it on the problem (one of those pesky under-the-skin pimples. so painful.)

And?

It totally works! It dried it a bit so it wasn't so big, wasn't so painful and was gone quickly. Plus? It's super cheap, there is little packaging, and it's not damaging to the environment. How can you lose?

sooo not as good as baking soda.