Oatmeal Powder, Imbolc...and more random thoughts!

(I'm drinking on sale sauvignon blanc and eating half off cashews while I type this so bear with me...)
(I dont really know what that means...and maybe it is really any of your business, anyway...)
So I just wrote a vaguish, barely followable intro blog, (am I the only one with the urge to type blogue instead of blog bc it seems...fancier?) so onto the straight dope!
 When I was 18 I found a book at the library written in the late 70s about natural beauty. Totally Natural Beauty. In fact the title of the book: Totally Natural Beauty (author: Nona Aguilar, who incidentally wrote a book on natural birth control. If you are into that...) and I recently purchased the volume, intent on making how to videos to spread the wealth of knowledge contained within. The videos havent happened yet. I took a semester of film classes and I'mdetermined to someday make those film classes worth the fifty dollar debit they incur monthly via loan payments...but I digress...The premise of the book: New York professional (by 70's gendered standards and biases) vacations in Switzerland and comes back protein packed, pretty, and chastising her American counterparts.
A core part of the remedial repoitoire for maintaining this totally natural beauty are two household names: oatmeal and vinegar. The oatmeal is to be ground into a fine ground and then applied and rubbed around face twice after thirty second lashing of scalding hot waters. The hot water opens the pores, the oatmeal powder exfoliates. Repeats. Then is followed by a nice lashing of a vinegar rise (I use 1/8 c vinegar to 2.5 c water rise) that restores the Ph balance and destroys the harmful bacteria that may creep in to the newly opened orifices.
Thats what I did tonight. With dumpster given oats. And generic brand vinegar. 
Though that is hardly all I did today! Last night was St. Brigit's Day/Imbolc. I had really no previous knowledge about the events, except for a rudimentary introduction during my undergrad days in the exclusive Wicca/Neopaganism class at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. An ADD internet search told me that it was a day of cleansing and renewal, and whether I searched or not, I could tell that. For one thing, this has been a FANTASTIC dumpster diving week. I have found clothes that fit and are cute (and don't...and aren't) including plaid pants I wore to my first day at new job, black jeans-rock and roll!-white pants with a fancy waist band, a cute hippie summer dress, kitty litter, unopened Meow Mix, an army sweater, a fancy army micronet towel, unpened chili spiced mango, a yellow tank top, a vermont themed t shirt, espadrilles, not disgusting khackis, comfy comfy black tights I cant stop wearing, Steve Chappelle show season 2 (now watched, now on half.com), another summer dress, an organizer...thingy...that you put in your closet and it has shelves...,mine has linens in it!, a teenage mutant ninja turtles umbrella Im giving to my friend Ted, and a cheesy romance novel thats probably going to go into my half price books box.
Thats a lotta sweet trash! And thats just the stuff I kept! I also have gotten rid of so much this week. The school I attend hosted an exchange this past weekend and I unloaded a bag of stuff I dont need and came home with leg warmers I cant stop wearing, curtains I'll be using someday, and a t shirt with a squirrel on it. I took two boxes of books to Market Fresh Books and got a mere $6.00 but more studio space, and both are better than heavy books Im not going to read EVER. I have four more boxes of stuff to take to a used book store. I listed quite a few items on half.com and make about 20 bux so far. I sold my massage table today and plan on buying a Thai massage mat with the money. (woohoo!) And I must have taken out four boxes of trash. Where from? Who knows! But its gone and thank God! So, really we are talking about 8 (conservative guesstimate)boxes/bags o stuff I dont want/need outta here, and better things or nothing (space! Aah!) taking its place.
Currently my apartment is the cleanest, overall, in ALL ways, that I have ever had a living space, and I am almost thirty years old. Cleaning and clearing invites in things that resonate more clearly with who you are at the moment into your life while getting rid of stagnation. Making the decision to get rid of things sends out a message to yourself that you are not needy/have a non grasping attitude, and are in a position to make choices. When I first moved here and started diving I took what I could get. Now I am more selective, and get rid of something immediately if it doesnt fit or I know I wont use it or do not know anyone else who needs such an item.
Having a clear space also helps you tackle your to do list, and the oatmeal powder routine has been something I've been meaning to take up again for about two months. I ground the powder in a blender my ex boyfriend's parents got me this past christmas, and found the oatmeal in the trash. I find a lot of oatmeal in the garbage. Its cheap and no one wants to use it. I dont eat it but Ill exfoliate with it :) I looked around for a container and put it in a candy box from Chinatown, I was never going to eat the candy anyway... “Strawberry Candy” ? Heh. Sure. A euphamism at best...out with the junk!
Food for today consisted of a protein shake, noodles from China town spiced with dumpster boullion, a grapefruit I purchased, and a dish I made from the rice vermicelli I cooked earlier, curry powder, calamari an ex roommate/boyfriend left when he did, coconut oil, some veggies, and cashews I bought on sale. I also drank a sauvignon blanc from World Market that was pretty indulgent, even at under five dollars a bottle :) But, ya know. I cut corners elsewhere :)
Like last night during the blizzard...
The school I go to offers practice sessions for 15 dollars which IS totally worth it and I am not so cheap to harm my prospects later on in life. But the blizzard! The blizzard! I live literally a block and a number from a fellow student, so we both traded practice sessions that left both of us feeling great=physically and confidence wise. Then my lovely friend insisted on feeding me moonshine and snacks (cheese, kiwi, pickles, beets, crackers...) and we had a super fun night adding godiva to pure disgusting alcohol, playing pac man, and gabbing. It was lovely, productive, and, well, free!
In the wake of so many new undertakings, I have really managed to tackle my to do list, and the snow day today really helped. Not having a significant other definitely has its perks! So I am now left without a to do list, and that will be my task tonight. I have a few more burning things to do: mostly sell my old video game systems. I have Atari 5200, Atari 2600, and a Nintendo 8 bit. Have to test out the games and list the items. Painting again will go back on the list. As will exercise. A month of Thai massage school will leave you pretty non enthusiastic for regimented exercise. I've just been coming home and dancing to relieve stress, but my body is pretty cravy for yoga and weight lifting again.
So tomorrow I'm setting the alarm and I'm moving before work. Moving is free and saves money in the future. Then its off to a short four hour shift where they will insist upon free food and drinks for me, which I will graciously partake in...