Notes from our reading this weekend and today…
Richard Gere turned 60 today. Something about that just doesn’t sound quite right, but it’s a brilliant excuse to screen An Officer and a Gentleman, or maybe Pretty Woman.
Love, love, love the New York Times T Magazine‘s piece on Kristin Scott Thomas. I’ve had a crush on her since Four Weddings and A Funeral. And I think she’s a great pick for the fall fashion issue too.
While you’re there, check out this article about the imminent death of Facebook (well – hmm). Best quote in the comments: “Facebook: home of American ennui and cute baby pics.” For the record, I don’t agree – after all it’s also home to our fan page.
Here’s also some of the last-minute advice for university students from around the nest, for you to share.
And finally I have to send you over to More contributing editor Karen Von Haun’s column on originality (at the Globe). How are you one of a kind?
[ETA: Can you believe I'd typed "Richard Gere turns 40" in the intro to this piece? Now there's a Freudian typo... 60, however, it is!]
As web editor I’m clearly on the computer – a lot. Sometimes I dream that I’m reading something online or typing.
So maybe that’s why the idea of owning a local tea shop appeals to me at times as a pipe dream – less time online, more time making watercress sandwiches.
Well, it seems I’m just trendy in this fantasy (where, by the way, my shop is fantasically successful and suppliers are always on time and so on and so forth) of doing something that involves more hand-type work. I think some of this is just a “grass is greener” phenomenon – there’s a member of my extended family who managed to make the leap to white collar work as his midlife reinvention. But I also think there’s something soothing about turning off all the electronic ephemera and making something practical and solid.
It may also be giving one’s self permission to single-task. A new study shows multitaskers may be the worst performers.
What’s your dream work?
I’m always looking for insider tips and tricks to pass onto readers and I recently came across a good one. Last month I met Charles Baker Strahan, a celebrity hairstylist in town to launch Herbal Essences new Tousle Me Softly line, which works to give hair a relaxed, lived-in look. (Think beachy and free-flowing, not camping in the wilderness without soap.)
Charles mentioned a common problem women have after blow-drying their hair: those little fly-away hairs that stick up from the top of your head.
They’re fussy little guys to deal with, because you inevitably end up overloading them with product in the taming process, making hair look greasy. The trick is in the application process. Charles whipped out a kabuki brush (commonly used for face powder or bronzer), gave it a bit of a mist with the Spray Gel (hair spray would also work) and used the brush to gently sweep product onto the hair.
“Less is more,” he explained. “It’s not about cementing your hair in place.” As visions of Robert Palmer helmet-head video-girls danced through my mind, I quickly committed this tip to memory.
Give it a try and let me know how it works for you.
Out of all the things parents sending their kids off to university for the first time worry about, the Globe and Mail adds lack of sleep. Money quote?
“Throughout the year, Ms.Werden got a lot less sleep than she had at home.”It’s not even loud partying and music,” she says. “Just, people are up and about and active.”
Her marks dropped by 10 per cent in first term and slipped again in second term. She went from an 85 per cent average in high school to grades in the high 60s or low 70s.”
I can relate – and not just because I remember my dorm days, but sleep and perimenopause and my kid’s nightmares are not mixing well these days! Have you talked to your university-bound kids about sleep? And do you think they’d actually listen?
It’s always nice to have one’s taste confirmed by others. For the longest time I’ve had Gwen Cooper’s “Night of the Hunter” bookmarked, but I was just a bit unsure about sharing a tale that is, in the end, about a cat. I think it’s a great story, but I’m partial to pets so my opinion is suspect.
But today Cooper’s book about the same, amazing, blind cat, Homer’s Odyssey comes out in stores, so here’s both my excuse and my justification to share it today.
It’s also an excuse for you to share your tales of amazing pets in the comments!
I just received some email from a reader who was trying to track down Going Solo, the book by Brenda Bradstreet that’s a guide for kids newly out on their own at university. So I wanted to share that you can order it from her website, or find out which stores are carrying it locally, at: http://www.goingsoloonline.com/
Here are some links around the ‘net that have caught my eye today:
Quick, which amazing stories am I missing?
At the launch event for Vichy LiftActiv Retinol HA Total Wrinkle Care (which hit shelves in May), a group of us were asked for our definition of beauty.
While others gave answers like “facial symmetry”, “large eyes”, or “clear skin”, I chirped, “Maturity! Confidence! Knowledge of Self!”
Yup, I’ve had a big gulp of the More kool-aid and I love it. Now onto to the cream.
After following a group of women for 20 years with the aim of studying different types of wrinkles, Vichy determined that there are three wrinkle groups: embryonic (like the ones on your neck or wrists), reversible (those that crop up when you’re tired or your skin is dehydrated) and permanent (noticeable, deep grooves).
This product focuses on making all three types of wrinkles appear less noticeable by using a combination of retinol with adenosine (which helps to boost retinol’s performance).This is my top pick for women in their (very) early forties looking to start with a gentle retinol product. It’s packaged properly (air-tight and light-protected) to keep the active ingredients in tact, it’s got an SPF of 18 (retinol makes you more sun-sensitive) and the cream has a lovely, rich – but not greasy – texture.
For more intense results, or if you’re 45+, ask your dermatologist for a prescription strength retinol cream. Hunker down to wait out the irritation that inevitably comes before the results do. After 6 to 8 weeks you’ll see a worthwhile difference.
Sometimes I find a blog post that makes me wish I’d written it, and today’s is actually also a review I wish I’d written. (By the way, make me wish I’d written yours: Write your review for More.ca!)
It’s of Julie & Julia, from Tenured Radical. “Although Julia’s brave insouciance in the face of all obstacles stands in contrast to Julie’s insecurity and tendency to crumble temporarily in the face of disappointment, that contrast makes it possible to tell a second story about what a third, or third-and-a half, wave feminist might learn from a woman whose choice of career was framed by her husband’s demanding diplomatic career.”
Two quick links for you today:
Texting may rewire kids’ brains. I actually think Google has rewired mine (unless I can blame perimenopause); some days it seems like I have to Google my own last name before I remember it.
Do you think in 140 characters? Laura Snyder on Twitter addiction, over at Salon.
Speaking of Twitter, in our most recent haute flash newsletter, Linda said “Am I the only Luddite magazine editor around who’s not tweeting these days? Am I the only one who thinks that Twitter is mostly twaddle?”
Well, from the responses we received I’d say many of you are really into Twitter. Twitter has helped readers with computer problems; kept us all up to date on situations in Iran and (closer to home) local strikes, and has been a useful marketing tool for many entrepreneurs out there. There was also a real appreciation for some of the witty Twitters from other women out there. So if you’re following someone fabulous on Twitter, let us know about it either in the comments or, of course, tweet us @more_ca!
