It sucked me under last week. Today. Feels like forever right now. The rising tide of bad news and disappointment and just straight hardcore defeat. I started questioning this blog. I started questioning the fight. (Is there a fight? I didn't even know it WAS a fight. I don't like fighting. Please stop.) It started when I realized a company I love dearly uses a preservative that's relatively questionable. Then, I found a list of MANY different companies that I formerly loved dearly and ... Continue Reading
Archives for January 2011
Natural Lip Balms You’ll Love – Plus a 3-Set Salus Lip Balm Giveaway!
New plan. After spending 4 hours yesterday writing about my favorite companies, I realized I had a novel - not a blog post. So I'm going to break this all up into separate posts over the next few weeks, so you're not overwhelmed and I don't go batdoody crazy. Interestingly, the company that sparked the most outrage yesterday was Clorox-owned Burt's Bees. Lip balms seem to be a hot topic. Good news, everybody! I have lots of favorite lip balms that don't include the words Burt or ... Continue Reading
Forget Brand Loyalty. Let’s Talk About Brand Transparency.
I won a Dr Pepper T-shirt. When I was 6. For some reason, the memory converges with the old soda commercial* where the man is crawling through the desert and finds a vending machine. In my mind, my family and I were out in the middle of a desert when we came upon a Dr Pepper vending machine. It was more likely outside a Dillons. But the Dr Pepper machine said, "Win a free T-shirt in a soda can!" I wanted that T-shirt. I wanted that T-shirt like I wanted to be Olivia ... Continue Reading
Oh, Her Heart Burns! What Can Heal It?
She sinks onto the sofa, forlorn. Inside, a fire burns - an ache so deep, no man can touch it. No music can heal it. Clutching her stomach, she turns this way and that, her raven hair tossing like leaves in the wild wind. She has so many regrets. So many things she'd do over if the universe would just offer her another chance. A rewind button. A thousand backspaces. She coats the room with a sweeping, curious glance, looking for the culprit and the cure. One long delicate finger ... Continue Reading
Ask Crunchy Betty: Homemade Sunblock and Skin Protection
You have questions. In fact, I have an entire folder full of emailed questions from you. I receive several a week. Sometimes several a day. It scares me. You scare me. (Not really. You're very likable. Affable even. I love you.) Anyway, after the one I received today, a lightning bolt of DUH hit me. Why am I not blogging these things? Why am I not answering them publicly? For the record, for the last few weeks, I haven't even answered them privately, I've been so overwhelmed. ... Continue Reading
Don’t Be a Pinched-Face Lady: Kick Your Bias to the Curb
"Aspen?" a lady in a United uniform called. "Who's going to Aspen?" About 20 people raised their hands, including a lady with a pinched face and a ginormous fox stole. She must not have gotten the PETA memo. The group gathered around the harried-looking employee. "We're arranging a bus to take you to Aspen. In this weather, it will be about a 5-hour drive. But we'll get you there." Pinched-face lady huffed and slid back into her place in the long flight customer service ... Continue Reading