"Made in" Voyage

For those of you who know me, you will be happy to find that today's post is one of my familiar unbridled rants. For those of you who do not, brace yourselves. I'm well known for climbing onto the soap box, building my house there, and now that I'm a parent, joining taking over the local PTA (because the bitch who currently runs it screwed up last year's bake sale something godawful).

Today's rant is brought to you by the made in China label affixed to virtually every product we buy nowadays. I subscribe to an email feed from the CSPC (Consumer Product Safety Commission) which alerts consumers to recalled children's products. If you are a parent, you need to be on this list. https://www.cpsc.gov/cpsclist.aspx I receive at least one notice weekly of a recalled children's product and I'd say 90% of the products mentioned are manufactured in China. We've all heard the news, but it's worse than most of us realize. The latest points to the use of Cadmium which has been used in place of the dreaded lead, but is just as toxic. Kudos to Wal-mart for it's voluntary mass recall of these products.

I'm no expert, but double-u-t-f?! What gives? After hearing this news I promptly weeded out half of my son's toy bin into a newly fashioned "recall bin." This bin is full of toys and other gear manufactured in China and is now at the top of the danger (big skull and cross-bones) list ahead of the clorox bottle and the cat litter tray. Okay, maybe that's a bit extreme and as a marketer, I'm willing to concede a margin of media spin in these stories (I've never wanted to buy Made in the USA more no matter how untrendy it is). But on the other hand, I've come to an incredibly important conclusion as a new parent: No one but NO ONE can protect your child the way that you as his parent can because frankly no one else gives a damn about him. Certainly not China and realistically certainly not insert just about any toy/baby gear manufacturer here. Being a parent is about more than just having all the right gear and the right advice. It's a whole new level of instinct and yeah I'm saying it, distrust. It's about thinking twice and reading the fine print, and then asking a gazillion questions and having some jackass at the toy depot look at you like you're mad. And that's okay. While he's on his ciggy break out back laughing about the crazy bitch asking if the stuffed giraffe is BPA free, I'll be skulking over to the diaper aisle to gingerly pry open the box and read the label affixed to the unmentionable area of my child's would-be new cuddly friend to find it's DAMNIT - Made in China.

Breaking up is hard to do

It is with mixed emotions that I share with you all the end of a significant relationship in my life. The decision weighed heavily on my mind for quite some time and despite continued efforts to make it work, I have decided to move on.

The relationship started out as most do, some years ago, with all it's new-ness and anticipation of things to come. I'd been burned before and was naturally trepidatious. But in my quest to find the one, I kept an open mind. I turned to friends, magazines and even the internet for guidance. I needed something that would suit my playful side as well as my career; something I could feel confident in, but nothing too serious; something natural and low-maintenance. Things seemed good for a while. I felt good about myself after seeing him and had a bounce in my step for days after. My mother even loved him. But sadly, over time the communication between us began to break down.

One mistake led inevitably to another until it seemed we saw things completely differently. I started not to recognize myself, and others noticed as well, though most were too polite to say. I tried to communicate my dissatisfaction and it helped, but only briefly. At my wits end, I began seeing others secretly. It was sporadic at first, and not just one. But now I've started to see someone more regularly. I feel renewed and beautiful again. They're miles apart, so I haven't had to bother much with hiding it. And as I've spent more and more time away in the last couple of months, I didn't worry he would notice anything different about me. But now that I am getting what I need without him, I feel it's time to make the break. This is where I could use some guidance...How do you "break up" with your hairstylist?