Would you like a beer to go with your ideological purity?

If Spa is in the business of promoting health, is the philosophy of epicureanism the right way to go about dealing with alcoholic beverages? The opposite extreme is teetotalism and for many in the spa world, this is the vision of health that is preferred. But not all spas are on the same wavelength. Take for instance this spa in Maui who now boasts a beer soak bath, complete with oats, hops and barley in addition to actual beer products to enhance the aroma. As someone who loves a good soak the idea is more appealing than the reality I envision as the therapist who would have to clean out the hydrotherapy tub!

And here is another spas version of the epicurean philosophy designed to attract men to the spa. Calling the mens event Beer and a Buzz, buckets of beer free to sample were offered to male clients while services such as eyebrow waxing, hair cuts and trims were offered alongside the beer. It sounds as if this idea was being tried in a rural community and while it may get people in the door, and in some respects contribute to the awareness amongst men of the working classes that not all spas are for prostitutes and sissies, where should spas draw the line when it comes to potentially addictive substances like alcohol?

Epicurus believed that pleasure is the greatest good. But the way to attain pleasure was to live modestly and to gain knowledge of the workings of the world and the limits of one’s desires. This led one to attain a state of tranquility (ataraxia) and freedom from fear, as well as absence of bodily pain (aponia). The combination of these two states is supposed to constitute happiness in its highest form. Although Epicureanism is a form of hedonism, insofar as it declares pleasure as the sole intrinsic good, its conception of absence of pain as the greatest pleasure and its advocacy of a simple life make it different from “hedonism” as it is commonly understood. Additionally, epicureanism is a very materialist philosophy and many underlying spa philosophies that some treatments are predicated on may find this emphasis on the material to be burdensome, if not a subversive Marxist influence from a Hegelian standpoint, which in fact is the pot calling the kettle black but the distinction is a relevant one. But there is again the emphasis on moderation in the Epicurean view.

Numerous idioms and slang terms imply abstinence from alcohol. A common American term is “on the (water) wagon” as well as the terms “dry” and “sober”. “Straight edge” is a newer idiom for abstaining from alcohol and other intoxicants, referring to a sub-culture derived from hardcore punk that promotes abstinence from alcohol, drugs and cigarettes. Also SHARPS or skinheads against racial prejudice fall into this category I believe. “Temperance” was a more popular term in the 19th century and early 20th century when temperance unions throughout the US battled consumption of alcoholic beverages but more contemporary usage has expanded this definition to include abstinence from all recreational intoxicants legal and illegal. Hence, the connection between abstinence, spas and health.

My own background is in hospitality so the philosophy of Epicurus is known to me and one I have practiced as a massage therapist in resort and convention spas. When dealing with tourists, who often only visit a resort spa once a year or less, spa is removed from it’s foundation in health and elevated to a level of hedonism that often involves a glass or two of an intoxicant. Fortunately, I have never had to turn down a guest for massage because they were inebriated. But I don’t doubt that some therapists have had to wade into these waters! But as a smoker, I have encountered one person who really went overboard in telling me off because of it. I remain surprised that they did not let a curse word slip so vehement was their position.

In my experience, the number of spas that are strictly devoted to the teetotaler point of view are actually not as prevalent as those who practice an epicurean view but wellness vacations are becoming more common in the new age of tourism. Diversity of this kind is something desirable in my opinion and I hope that spa goers see it the same way and feel free to make a choice about what kind of spa to visit at different times. Spas diversity is one of its strongest elements and one of it’s greatest strengths. Lets try and keep it that way.

I landed an Internship!

I am tickled pink to report that I have gotten an internship with the Shoals area Chamber of Commerce. You can view the website here. It is full of great information about the area complete with maps and historical information about the Shoals, in addition to social media options and a searchable job bank. My readers may recall that in the fall of 2011 my social media class did a social media audit for the chamber and I think this helped me secure the position.Anyway I am thrilled since the whole point of me choosing not to graduate this summer was so that I could do an internship and to be honest I had given up hope of finding one.

I start the internship on Monday, which is also my Dad’s birthday so it seems like good mojo to me. I even was allowed to pick my own schedule. I chose not to do the internship for course credit since it is unpaid but the experience is what I think will make it valuable. I really think I will learn a lot and I am excited. Most of my work history for the past thirteen years has been taken up with spa work and this will be a wonderful opportunity to broaden my horizons. In addition to working with small business I will also be working with larger companies that have more in common with the corporate structure of Marriott International that I grew accustomed too in the first few years of my massage career. So this is going to be great in no uncertain terms!

Wish me luck!

Oncology and Esthetics

I just found this wonderful article about a new certification for licensed estheticians dealing with oncology. Wow! This is REAL esthetics in the very best of the Spa tradition and I am duly impressed. I have copy and pasted the original article here and while her venue leaves something to be desired to my mind, I think it’s only a matter of time before this becomes the next thing in true Spa living and Spa care. Enjoy!

When Kerry Kourie was in eighth grade, her mother was diagnosed with skin cancer and she became obsessed about sunblock. Her mother fought the cancer and survived, but Kourie’s concern for taking care of her skin, and others, stayed with her.

“I became a psycho about following people around with SPF after that,” she said.

Chemotherapy, radiation and cancer medications save peoples’ lives, but take a toll on their bodies. Today, Kourie, who is a Garrison resident, knows cancer treatment affects people psychologically and physically and wants to do her part to help ease the pain.

She aims to address one side effect of these life saving treatments by offering unique oncology spa treatments at her new business Skinchanted in Peekskill.

“With chemo, the skin will change, can get itchy, get red and swell,” Koury said. “I am here to alleviate any discomfort that I can and to give people hope and comfort,” Kourie said.

The 26-year-old business owner is now one of the only 250 certified oncology estheticians in the country. She specializes in using massage techniques and products for people undergoing cancer therapies or for people who have previously been treated for cancer.

Kourie, who trained under Morag Currin and pioneered the only Oncology Esthetics certification for licensed estheticians, is also trained to screen for cancerous skin lesions, Lymphatic Drainage Massage, and reflexology.

“Oncology training basically just teaches estheticians what not to do,” said Kourie, who is working to become affiliated with the Hudson Valley Hospital Cancer Center and other oncology centers in the area.

With Lymphoma patients a regular treatment could cause damage, can be dangerous and uncomfortable, she said. But, a trained oncology esthetician like Kourie knows how to work with skin that has experienced dramatic changes.

Kourie first got into the estehetics field when she got her first public relations job with Estee Lauder, right out of college.

While she enjoyed beauty and health, she grew tired of public relations and decided to redirect her career path by attending the New York School of Esthetics in Tarrytown. Following graduation she worked for a medical spa specializing in laser treatments and then Angelface Spa in Yorktown.

After some time at Angelface Spa, Kourie felt she was ready to start out on her own.

“This was the time do to this,” she said. “When I am still living at home, don’t have kids and am not married.”

Kourie chose Peekskill because she finds it to be “super funky.” She was attracted by the vintage charm, but updated and modern interior of the old masonry building, in which Skinchanted is now located on Brown Street.

Kourie also has a licensed massage therapist that works at Skinchanted twice a week. Skinchanted also offers henna tattooing for eyebrows, reflexology, Brazilian and facial waxing, paraben free tanning and MAC make up application.

The airy space, painted light purple, contains two rooms, one for waxing and another for massages. Kourie wanted to be sure she could separate the two treatments so there was never a rush to ready one room for a different kind of treatment. She also does not book appointments back to back to avoid rushing a client, she said.

Flirty, flowery and unique jewelry is displayed and for sale in the front room. All the jewelry is home-made by various artists and jewelers she finds on Etsy.com, an art/craft website, and is under $50.

Skinchanted treatments are priced competitively, and range from about $75 to $150.

Skinchanted is located at 1016 Brown Street, Suite 303, Peekskill. You can call at 914-930-1421 or visit www.skinchantedspa.com.

Original Article is found here: http://peekskill.patch.com/articles/skinchanted-new-spa-pampers-oncology-patients

Birthers and journalists: Missing the forrest because the trees are in the way

It’s a style issue.

A political style issue.

This was the ultimate message of a recent Vanity Fair article titled the Birth of Birtherism. How quaint but how late in the day and how inept this message is for describing the ability of the Birther movement to continue to exist and flourish.

Actually I agree on a superficial level of sociology but I also find that the Vanity Fair article failed to go the distance in describing how and why this issue of political style as they describe it, is bound up with culture and narrative. By failing to recognize the issue as a literary one, the authors and those of their ilk who define it only as a political style issue fail to grasp the whys behind the longevity of the movement.

Narratives are like the life’s blood of any movement. Stories are told and retold down thru the years and flesh out meaning and history for those who imbibe them. Take for instance the story of the Melungeon (meh-LUN’-jun) from the Applicians who are mixed race with African ancestry but developed the story over the centuries that they were Portueguse to hide the fact. One ancestor of this group was so convinced of his Portugeuse ancestry that he had his DNA tested three times before he accepted that the family narrative was false.

Birtherism also trafficks in narratives and in the idea of naturalism as a right given by a divine creator that for the purposes of this article in keeping with my own views is more deist, than Christian. Do I digress or not in saying so? If you didn’t ask yourself that question you should. Now I have digressed.

If you need a reminder of just how close these ideas actually are to the mainstream, have a look at this article from Bloomberg media about a related but not at first glance topic: The UN Law of the Sea Treaty. To quote from the article:

Secretary of State Hillary Clintontook on conservative forces that twice have blocked ratification of the United Nations Law of the Sea treaty, calling it crucial to U.S. economic and strategic interests in the Pacific and elsewhere.

The top American diplomat said some of the arguments against the treaty “cannot even be taken with a straight face.” These, she said, include claims that the U.S. would have to pay a “UN tax,” that it would give the UN power over the U.S. Navy and that it would erode U.S. sovereignty.

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton; Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta; and Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin E. Dempsey testify at a hearing of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Law of the Sea, on Capitol Hill in Washington, on May 23, 2012.

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton; Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta; and Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin E. Dempsey testify at a hearing of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Law of the Sea, on Capitol Hill in Washington, on May 23, 2012. Photographer: Cliff Owen/AP Photo

“Honestly, I don’t know where these people make these things up,” Clinton told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee yesterday. She chided critics who object to the U.S. joining any UN treaty saying, “Of course, that means the black helicopters are on their way,” a reference to conspiracy theories about a world government.

Republican critics of the treaty bristled. “I hope you weren’t scoffing at us,” Idaho Senator Jim Risch told Clinton.“There’s some good stuff in here, but if we give up one scintilla of sovereignty that this country has fought for, bled for, have given up our treasure and the best that America has, I can’t vote for it,” Risch said.

The Law of the Sea treaty sets out rules for the commercial use and environmental management of the world’s marine resources and sets boundaries for different countries laying claim to assets under the sea floor, including oil, gas and the rare earth minerals used to make mobile phones and flat-screen TVs.

After Clinton said opposition to the treaty was “based in ideology and mythology, not in facts, evidence, or the consequences of our continuing failure to accede to the treaty,” Senator Mike Lee objected.

“My concerns are rooted in something more than mythology, rooted in something more than an editorial page,” the Utah Republican said.

DeMint cited articles and subsections of the treaty as they questioned the impact it would have on U.S. sovereignty and on control of the Navy.

Clinton dismissed those questions by saying, “None of us would be sitting here if there were even a chance that you could make the most absurd argument that could possibly lead to that conclusion.”

The above sentance structure leaves alot to be desired and I would have hoped for a better retort from the Secretary of State. But I think Hillary has her own reasons for getting tongue tied as she learned a few things the hard way in her former presidential run.

Senator James Inhofe, an Oklahoma Republican, questioned the requirement that the U.S. pay royalties to the International Seabed Authority, which allocates mining concessions in areas of the seabed beyond any nation’s control.

At that point, Senator John Kerry, the Massachusetts Democrat who chairs the Senate panel, jumped in to say that U.S. business supports ratification because it cannot establish claims to seabed mines beyond the 200-mile territorial limit if the U.S. isn’t part of the convention. No bilateral treaty can cover these areas of the seabed, Kerry said.

“You’re here protecting companies from paying a royalty that they want to pay,” Kerry told Inhofe. “They’d rather have 93 percent of something” than get nothing.

Joining the 160 countries that already are party to the 30-year-old treaty would give the U.S. a seat at the table as decisions are made about how the Law of the Sea is interpreted, Panetta said. It would secure global access for military and commercial ships, aircraft and undersea fiber-optic cables.

Panetta dismissed claims that the treaty would limit the ability of U.S. spy agencies to collect intelligence, saying“nothing could be further from the truth.”

This is not nothing that is going on and both narratives may in fact have a relation via natural law theory ,which I want to point out is a defunct body of law in the USA. However defunct natural law may be, does not and has not changed the way culture interpreted and has continued to intrepret natural law narratives that are embedded in almost every corner of the culture from floor to ceiling. It’s not just or only a matter of political narratives it is a literary issue and in my opinion when people forget this fact, they blame the media rather than confront their own biases. The narratives stir things up because they are embedded in how we define ourselves, our families, our State(s) and our country. Note I didn’t say Nation or Nation State and that I capitalized State(s). (If you already know why I give you two thumbs up!)

As for the Bloomberg article, I harbor suspicions involving the Bush era creation of military tribunals and the application of the UCMJ, that shut out the democratic base while perverting the meaning of liberalism, as to why some of the senators are attempting to stand against the treaty and I while I for one find Secretary Clintons comments offensive, she has my support and sympathy in dealing with obstructionists who would do well to keep a low profile in my opinion and their tongues guarded. A blue dog is the best dog where social change is concerned and these narratives have a disturbing tendency that inclines them towards polarization and I for one question the Secretary’s understanding of the issue if she feels she needs to resort to name calling rather than remembering just what party she is a member of. The Secretary for what it is worth started out as a Republican before good ole Bill came along and I think she is out of her depth if she can’t remember where her husband comes from if not herself.

Now back to the media’s role in this insanity. We go to the media for clear cut answers on the issues of the day. We don’t always get them, but we hope for the best, which is why print media is still registering a heart beat despite the onslaught of the web. The cultural issue in this narrative traffic jam is ultimately a issue with Literary Romanticism. Given how perverted the meaning of liberalism has become over the past ten years, coupled with the tea party ascent on the right, I see little use in casting blame on any party in particular. For me, Literary Romanticism is part of the problem and the solution and my own view on this is not without it’s flaws. To start with, it’s rather like homeopathic prescriptions for what ails you: impotent placebo with a dash of knowledge thrown in for good measure. Rather than ignore this fact, journalists would do well in my opinion to explore the genre and reacquaint themselves with it’s esoteric aspects. And there are plenty to choose from.

As long as civiliation refuses to deal with fringe movements in a literary fashion and find the courage to shape culture with every breath, with every verbal exchange, with every written word, there will be people bitching about the media as the source of the problem till the cows come home. Already there are articles decrying the blurred lines between foreign and domestic audiences as if this somehow explains something relevant beyond Balkanization of the masses. What people are really trying to say is that they no longer understand where the American narrative is coming from and that they feel their culture is built on shifting sands, so they cry out in despair and frustration. Journalism should be a remedy if properly employed and written from the start. It is possible to find good journalism and to be informed. No matter what people say you have only to use your brain and think about what you read. The same should apply to Birtherism. It’s a narrative that feeds on and is feeding a cultural group that believes in a nation state. Not a nation. Not a State. Nor a country. All this makes me think I should have gone into sociology but then I would not have a job after graduation.

Aquatic Access: Bringing the heart of Spa to the disabled and the elderly

In America, we are accustomed to seeing access ramps to buildings and other structures for the disabled and the wheelchair bound elderly but for many years, the waters of the Spa have been off limits to them. This is changing thanks to a new move by the ADA to require special lift access to spas and pools by March 15th of 2012. A company named Aquatic Access has designed a lift before the deadline that will provide this new found freedom for the disabled but it seems that the deadline has now been pushed back to January 2013 for preexisting pools and spas. According to reports, too many facilities were confused by the new requirements and had no idea how to provide access to spas and pools for the disabled. This only goes to show just how divorced mainstream business is from the heart of Spa and Spa philosophy.

Water is essential in any Spa. I could write forever about ancient thermal pools and how the Romans had spa resorts for taking the waters before the empire crumbled but I think my readers get the point. Water matters and bringing water based therapies to the disabled and the elderly is a valuable service that deserves recognition. I for one find this kind of upgrade to existing spa services extraordinary but I admit I am disappointed to learn that people were confused by the new requirements. From my point of view, what is there to be confused about? Apparently, estimates have placed the number of pools that need to be brought into compliance at around 100,000, and a backlog of orders at lift-manufacturing facilities are a primary reason for the deadline extensions. To quote verbatim from Aqua Magazine’s article on the subject:

An example of the confusion among pool operators, the DOJ said, was the incorrect belief that operators “would have to close pools due to an inability to provide access, even though the regulations allow pool owners and operators to use non-fixed lifts or no lifts at all in circumstances where the provision of access is not readily achievable.”

“Readily achievable,” according to the DOJ, is a term that means “easily accomplishable and able to be carried out without much difficulty or expense.” A number of factors are used in determining whether the installation of access equipment is “readily achievable” and therefore mandated by law. The pool’s ability to pay for it is just one such factor.

For a full and almost willfully obscure list of other factors, readers may visit www.ofr.gov/OFRUpload/OFRData/2012-12365_PI.pdf.

Another point of confusion, the DOJ said, was the widely held belief that any pool providing a portable lift would achieve compliance. It does not. Fixed and built-in lifts or access means are required by ADA (assuming these are “readily achievable”).

In general, the ADA mandate states that for public pools less than 300 linear feet in size, one means of access is required, which must be either an ADA-compliant lift or a sloped entry. Pools with greater than 300 linear feet of pool wall must also have a second means of access — either another lift or ramp, or a transfer wall, a transfer system or pool stairs.

Given Spas relationship to water as part of a health based philosophy, this delay shows just how much PR work remains to be done across and throughout the culture at large when it comes to grounding the heart of Spa philosophy in the public mind. This innovation is long overdue and I hope that by informing my readers of this important legislation that I am doing my part to ensure and promote the inherent value of what Spas have to offer our society.

Build the Enterprise

No, this is not a post on small business but it is a post on Building the Enterprise, as in the Star Ship Enterprise. A engineer has come up with blueprints, a workable model and even financing options for the US government should it decide to act on this plan. He also has a website that you can find here, but be warned, it takes a little while to load. All his notes including those on the four nuclear reactors that would be required to run the vessel are on the site and available to be viewed. Pretty cool huh?

But wait, I have another interesting gem for you this evening. Stanford has come out with a interactive map of the Roman world that features a map of how commerce and trade was conducted in the empire to help scholars understand the costs of doing business during Rome’s heyday. You can key in what goods you have to trade or sell and where you want to sell them and you will be provided with a number of options for moving your cargo to it’s destination.  ORBIS reconstructs the time spent and financial expense associated with pre-modern travel brilliantly. By simulating movement along the principal routes of the Roman road network, the main navigable rivers and hundreds of sea routes, the interactive route map recreates the infrastructure of the entire pre-modern Roman world in a way that has never been done before.See, I did work in some small business after all.

Friends of the Library

Libraries are about as close to other worlds as some of us ever get. Being transported to another time and place, with all its attendant curiosities is traditionally the stuff of science fiction but thru the auspices of the library we do it all the time. That is why I want to do a short shout out for the Florence Lauderdale Public Library and specifically, their used bookstore Friends of the Library.

The Florence Lauderdale public library doesn’t have funding problems for the most part thanks to the great service of the community in donating books, magazines, DVD, VHS, records, and other library related materials to keep the library funded and running. While some communities struggle in keeping such services fully operational, the Florence public libraries used bookstore raised almost $60,000 dollars last year. Friends of the Library is completely staffed by volunteers who are usually senior citizens. I go there at least once every two weeks to prowl and see what gems have been put out.

When I moved to Florence in 2004, I had a two or three books a month buying habit, to the usual over all tune of anywhere from 35 to 65 dollars. Friends of the Library helped me save money by offering used books at bargain prices. Once I lost my job in 2007, I was even more grateful that I had found their store. I had already begun building a small library of my own for personal use and now, almost ten years later, I truly have accumulated the a well-rounded base for my home library project.  And I have found a handful of true literary gems in my opinion. I still moan about the loss of Lives of the Twelve Caesars in hardback by Suetonius however and while this is not the only volume I should have bought on the spot when I saw it, it’s the one I regret not buying the most.

As the books are all donated, it also says a great deal about the community in which I live on several levels. One, people donate. Period. And in voluminous quantities. The bookstore has to throw away numerous volumes that are molded or otherwise unsellable and if the books have been in the store for a certain length of time and haven’t sold, they are disposed of as well. Secondly, the selection of books available also is a microcosm of the community mentality and mindset. There is a small but thriving Science Fiction area, a collectibles shelf, history and business, women’s issues, arts and crafts and many more. Certain classics of literature cycle thru on a regular basis and I picked up my first copies of both the Federalist and Anti Federalist papers here, along with my first copy of Alexis de Tocqueville’s Democracy in America. From women’s issues I found Soranus’s (ancient roman) book On Gynaecology. I have bought so many books on History and the social sciences, fashion and travel that my closets are overflowing with my golden horde of reading material. Even the space beneath my bed is crammed with books!

Personally, friends of the library is a classic example to me of something positive about Southern culture and it’s emphasis on community and faith that too often is derided as the GOP’s brand of Christian socialism. While I am sure library operations like this one exist in blue states as well and to people living there must surely seem to be an example of liberal bounty and plenitude, I see Friends of the Library as a community service, run and provided for by the people, that deserves to be praised.

If you are a book lover and looking for a way to trim your budget, I highly recommend looking into your local library system and finding out if they have a similar store where you live.

Prophecy and Surfing

I read an article recently that suggested that one in ten Americans believe the world will end in their lifetime. Of course, this came from a UK tabloid so it’s already got two strikes against it – one it’s not coming from the States and two it’s a tabloid paper, but I have to wonder about who in the world reads tabloids besides my grandmother?

Nana read the tabloids but mainly those about Hollywood. She also was a fan of Coast to Coast AM radio and listened to Art Bell every night. But that was Nana. I really miss her a lot. Not long ago I was at the Salvation Army and found two things that really made me think of her. A brand new box of Estee Lauder pore shrinking fluid and OPI’s Grand Canyon Sunset which is very close to the color she wore for years on her nails. But back to the supposed end of the world.

I also picked up a book by Elaine Pagels called Revelations: vision, prophecy, and politics in the book of revelations. Now Pagels is a scholar of dubious report because of her subject matter, rather than the veracity of her work which is impeccable. That said, I thought it would be an interesting book to read given that I think apocalyptic visions have more to do with paradigm shifting in the Kunian sense than they do with any valid prediction of the future. I think of it like surfing actually. Like this great clip from the surfing movie In God’s Hands – the first quote ends by saying “How far are you willing to go? What sacrifice are you willing to make? How good do you really want to be?” But the second metaphor is an apt one and one that I am devoted too in many respects. This movie has influenced me on a deep level.

And this clip which gives the first quote in its entirety but in Spanish.

People are like waves and so are ideas. The second quote goes on to say that a wave keeps travelling “wherever it needs to go until it meets a reef or a continent, something that causes them to peak and break and roll.”  Surfing ideas safely is a matter of knowledge and of timing as well. As for an example of what I mean look at the Howard Camping nonsense. Entire families sold their belongings and used up their life savings because they believed that the end of the world was coming. And the man made yet more predictions when it turned out he was wrong! He can’t return to those families that lost time – (but with his years of being a preacher who raised money he might be able to return someones life savings) and lost time is a hallmark of alien abduction theory. Abductees claim that regression therapy is necessary to recall that missing time. Most of them never get that missing time back. It’s not a matter of esoterica in that sense either. But the phenomena of prophecy and predictions is just as real as a 40 foot killer wave. It can also destroy you, cause you to lose your life, to lose time, to lose everything in the pursuit of something ephemeral you can’t hold onto.

It’s also like economics. Predicting when the next wave of recession or inflation will hit, trying to beat the wave to it’s next destination to make your money before the opportunity itself is wiped out by the crash of nature and history.

I like this metaphor so much that I picked up a little statuette in black metal of a surfer in a yoga pose holding a surf board. I still have it and I adore it. When I have graduated and get to move on from here I will make an altar again and put it back where it belongs in my pantheon of ideas.

Well I hope you enjoyed this little glimpse into my psyche today. I am retaking a historical writing class this summer because my pride wont let me move forward with the grade I got a few years ago from turning papers in late. But I hope having to retake the class will only make me better at something that means so much to me, something I am passionate about. Something ephemeral that has fascinated humans for thousands of years – the past.

Related articles

• Interview: Elaine Pagels on Revelation (readingacts.wordpress.com)
• Saint Malachy’s so-called Prophecy of the Popes (fauxcapitalist.com)
• The Last Trumpet (3quarksdaily.com)
• Books of The Times: ‘Revelations,’ by Elaine Pagels (nytimes.com)
• Revelation — Sightings (bobcornwall.com)

Finding Privacy on the Web: How to surf anonymously

Have you ever tried to shop for someone special online only to worry that they will sit down at the computer and find your browsing history? Do you have small children who don’t need to see where their christmas presents are coming from? If so I have a short tutorial for you that will allow you to surf the web in privacy. If you need to make certain your browsing history goes unnoticed for any reason follow these steps to a safer nights sleep. Here are the top browsers in use and just follow the directions for yours.

• Chrome – Click on the wrench in the far upper right of your  screen, then “New Incognito Window.”
• Firefox – Click on “Tools” then “Start Private  Browsing.”
• Internet Explorer –Click on the tools cog in the far upper  right of your screen, then “Safety” and “InPrivate Browsing.”
• Safari – Click on the settings cog in the upper right  corner of your screen, then “Private Browsing.”

While this wont keep hackers, the government or anyone else from tracking your IP address, these tips can do wonders for the secret shopper who needs to keep gifts a secret.  But if your in the market for something more high tech and also anonymous, try one of these platforms.

A Web proxy is a way to hide your IP address from sites you visit, making browsing a safer experience. Unless you try a proxy that has been set by hackers to steal your information. So try and stick with the more well known proxy servers like HideMyAss.com or Anonymouse.org

Try Tor

For a step up in anonymity protection, you can use Tor. Tor is a free  open network  originally developed to protect government communications. Recommended by the  privacy advocacy organization the Electronic  Frontier Foundation (EFF), the Tor  browser works with Firefox and lets  you turn it on or off depending on when you  need anonymity.

Tor  works by routing your traffic through a series of servers, operated by   volunteers around the world, before sending it to your destination. This makes  it very effective at hiding your IP address.

However, it  has limitations. First, because of the number of servers your  data  passes through, Tor can be quite slow. And while data is encrypted  between  the servers, it is unencrypted when it leaves the last (exit)  server and is  passed to the website you’re visiting. So anyone operating an exit server can  see IDs, passwords and any other data you  send unless you have a secure  connection with the website you’re visiting (look for the “https” in the URL).

Another option is a VPN. For the most secure connection, a Virtual Private  Network (VPN) is the way to  go. It creates an encrypted connection for  all traffic (including VoIP and movie  streaming) between your PC and  the VPN server for privacy, and protects your IP  address from being  transmitted to the sites you visit for anonymity. VPNs will  also  protect your information while on public networks in hotels and coffee   shops. And unlike free services like Tor, VPNs charge a fee that allows  them to  provide much higher bandwidth. Witopia and Strong VPN have packages starting at  $55 per year

VPNs still share some of the same drawbacks as other services. If your VPN   keeps traffic logs, those logs could still be turned over to others  based on a  court order, showing what sites you visited and when. And  the data you send to  external sites won’t be encrypted unless you’re  using a secure connection (look  for the “https” in the URL).

For more information visit the Electronic Frontier Foundation here for a little primer on internet and privacy self defense.

And one more tidbit before I go. Here is a link to find out who has been googling you and your information.

References:

Article sourced from http://www.gadgetbox.msnbc.msn.com/technology/gadgetbox/how-browse-web-anonymously-739821

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• CyberGhost VPN (glossarist.typepad.com)

The History of the Bed

Behold! The bed of the future. Look at its sleek design and ask yourself, what would make the sleeping experience more comfortable than it already is? An air mattress perhaps or a water-bed? Or do you prefer memory foam or an egg crate on top of a mattress? The futuristic design of the bed above has me asking these sorts of questions and wondering about the history of the bed and the mattress. According to Wikipedia’s entry for mattress the first mattresses were made of animal skins piled as high as possible. It seems that even ancient men and women preferred to sleep well away from things that go crawling around in the dark.

The poor of ancient Egypt slept on palm fronds also piled as high as possible while their social betters slept on wooden frames above the ground as early as 3000 BC. Their distant neighbors the Persians slept on goat skins filled with water around the same time. I could find no note of whether or not the goat skin water-bed were for the privileged or for the masses however but it was not for lack of trying!

The Greeks slept on what we now call charpoys.

Charpoy is a term that originated in the Indian subcontinent where charpoys are still used by the some of the masses both aesthetically and functionally. Charpoys make gret coffee tables and chairs as well. But we must arrive in Rome to find beds stuffed with grasses and other natural substances. The wealthy of Rome in the twilight of the republic had bags of cloth stuffed with feathers but the average roman bed was stuffed with straw, reeds or wool if they were fortunate enough to be able to afford wool that would not by necessity need to be woven into cloth. Also, it seems Romans had an obsession with height that included stairs leading to the bed, so it may very well be that some romans slept in beds that looked similar to this monstrosity but in all likelihood it would simply have been an elevated platform.

 Wikipedia also states that in the Carolingian period, beds were higher at the head than at the foot so that the body was held in a sloping position and this continued until the 13th century in France. Luxury had increased in the Western world by this time and bedsteads were made of wood decorated, inlaid, carved and painted with ornamentation. They also used folding beds, which served as couches by day and had cushions covered with silk laid upon leather for the wealthy.After this, researchers begin to find records of highly prized feather beds being passed down thru families as bequests and by the fifteenth century we have the fully formed hanging draperies surrounding beds that are still seen in Europe’s old castles. The hey day of these kinds of beds eventually came in the 17th century with the sumptuous beds of Louis the XVI the Sun King. But for the masses of most of the world, a cloth bag stuffed with wool was as good as it got but it might be laid upon a four-poster bed for the middle classes from the 17th thru the 19th century.

I am going to presume that in the 21st century my readers all know what a modern bed looks like. They come outfitted with a box spring to lay the mattress on and a frame for the box spring to sit on, elevating the bed about two to three feet off the floor. Unless of course your sleeping on one of the futuristic beds like the one pictured at the beginning of this article. But all this history makes me wonder why there have been no major revolutions in the history of the bed. I find it fascinating that people still sleep on charpoys thousands of years after Alexander the Great, and I also find it interesting that the water-bed was not a modern invention.

I’ve had all kinds of beds. I have had a water-bed, a canopy bed, a sleigh bed, a futon, a futon mattress without the frame, a ‘normal bed’ with headboard, and I’ve had curtains surrounding my bed suspended from the ceiling. I still love the curtain concept and will most likely do that again in my future. All you need are curtain rods and some curtain sheers if you like that look. I don’t think I would go for heavier drapes though. Too medieval for me. But what about you? How do you sleep and what kind of bed is your favorite?