Make-Up Round Up

Ladies…do you own enough old make-up to fill a landfill? I never want to throw away my old eye shadows, lipsticks, and powders in the off change they 1) come back in style 2) magically become flattering 3) don’t make me break out in hives.

Recently, during a spring cleaning phase, I decided to organize my toiletry pantry. I pulled together all the old make-up I had stored away for years and years. I had enough to beautify a small country. Unfortunately, there was a reason each project had ended up filed away. It was useless.

After slapping my own wrists for being so wasteful, I decided it was time to pitch it. Ideally, it would be reused, as, after reducing, it is the most important of the 4R’s. Luckily, I was able to give away a small portion to people I knew, but I still had a truckload of products that were too old for human application.

What to do? After searching online for how to recycle toiletries, I discovered that the company Origins will take used make-up containers (eye shadow containers, lipstick tubes, compacts, etc.). Since Origins preferred the containers to be clean, I began emptying out my eye shadows and powder trays. I must say, the lipsticks were a nightmare to clean out. After using almost an entire roll of paper towels on one lipstick, I felt it would be more ecological to just give the tube to them with the lipstick still inside.

Origins was thrilled with all my empty containers. They actually gave me a huge tub of lotion, they were so excited. It felt great to clean out my pantry and not dump everything into the garbage where hundreds of years from now they will still be discovered intact.

Although I was happy with the outcome of the situation, I did learn a good lesson: don’t buy navy eye shadow in the first place.

Here are two good links on recycling make-up and toiletries:
Origins Recycling Program: http://www.origins.com/about/index.tmpl?page=recfaq
Ideas for how to recycle toiletries: http://www.recyclethis.co.uk/search/?cx=partner-pub-8628783556283904%3A3g3qh3-7knu&cof=FORID%3A9&ie=ISO-8859-1&q=tolietries&siteurl=www.recyclethis.co.uk%2Fabout#913
(Of special note is how one person reused the ball from deodorants to make earrings.)

Baby Green Jeans

Once my daughter was born, I found the thrill of the resale shop. Who knew reusing could be so much fun? My favorite place to go is Once Upon a Child.

When I first went, I was only interested in buying clothing. I was pleasantly surprised to find all the various name brands there for less than the retail stores. However, what was also important to me was that these gently worn—or never worn—clothes weren’t ending up in a dumpster. Baby clothes get worn for only a couple months before they’re outgrown, which can be quite a waste. I know there are items in my child’s closet that never even got worn due to being out of season or got lost in the shuffle. It’s good to know someone else can get use out of them.

Next, I discovered that Once Upon a Child had a super toy selection. Most of the toys are plastic, which I was able to easily clean up. I found the coolest toys there—most were ones I hadn’t even seen at the regular stores. Again, thinking of buying new items that use all those resources and energy…and how the old ones would sit for hundreds of years in a landfill just turned my stomach. Why would I do that if I could get the same ones at a resale shop? And for less money? No contest for me.

My last discovery was that they also sold large toys (scooters, walkers, etc.) and baby furniture. Besides the fact they cost less than new items and help the environment, THEY’RE ALREADY ASSEMBLED. Enough said.

So, if you have a little one or know someone that does, consider buying from a resale shop. Save the green by being green!

The Birth of a Character

A while back I mentioned what it took to switch a male character to female (David to Dana). As I ended that entry, I said how, before I could rewrite the scenes, I needed to know who Dana was.
There are many exercises for developing a character. Typical ones include answering such questions as:
What movies does your character watch?
What’s your character’s favorite color?
What could be found in your character’s backpack or purse?
What does his/her bedroom look like?
What bands/types of music does your character listen to?
Does your character have any hobbies?

(There are about a million sites with lists to help you think about your character. Here are two good ones: http://www.tarakharper.com/k_char2.htm and http://www.writingclasses.com/InformationPages/index.php/PageID/106 )

All these questions are helpful, but I didn’t even have a clue how to answer these questions because I still couldn’t picture my character. I decided to get inspiration from the Internet.
As my character was a female sled dog racer, I typed in “junior sled dog racer” into google images. Nothing helpful. Probably for protection purposes, there weren’t many photos with children’s faces. Okay, I thought, if I couldn’t find a young sled dog racer, what other topics could I try that would serve my character’s personality (which I didn’t know much about yet)?
I knew this girl was outdoorsy and into animals…4H? I punched it in. Bingo!
I found a terrific picture of three outdoorsy girls holding a pile of weeds. As I studied the picture, two of them were potentials for being Dana. They were very different from one another—a new dilemma. I decided to rewrite my boy scene from each of the two girls’ point of view based on the way they look. One of the girls looked very outgoing and carefree (based on the fact she had no bangs, tousled hair, and a huge (metal) smile on her face. The other girl seemed serious and shy, although she may have a confidence about her when doing something she loves (this girl was thin with long bangs, her hair pulled back in a ponytail, and a half-smile on her face).
After reading my two passages, I decided to go with the carefree girl—she would make for a more interesting character. What worked out well was that the serious girl would work as my main character, Ana. I now had a picture of my two characters together! Perfect!
So, with a picture of a couple of girls in a 4H garden group, I could continue writing my novel.

Help! I Have an Idea but No Paper!

Writers: Have you ever had the idea for the next bestseller when there was no paper or computer in site? If you’re like me, you told yourself, “This idea is so great, I definitely won’t forget it.” Of course, five minutes later, it’s gone.

I thought I’d offer some creative ideas for holding onto your thoughts for later use.

“Help! I’m Trapped on the Highway with a Great Idea in my Head!”: I have found keeping a hand-held tape recorder on the passenger seat can really come in handy. I actually completed a whole freelance assignment on my way to Indianapolis once using it. Tip: I always date my entries. This helps 1. When I transcribe them, I have some idea of when they’re from. 2. Because I use an old-fashioned audio tape that I rewind and reuse, there are old entries that will still play after the new ones. This can get confusing. By dating the entries, I can tell when the older ones begin. If you don’t want to invest in a tape recorder, you can also call your home or cell and leave a message with the idea. Of course, regardless of how you do it, always use safe driving practices. No idea is worth injuring yourself or others.

“Help! I’m Trapped in the Car with my Napping Baby and no Paper!”: This is my newest writing challenge. If my baby falls asleep in the car during designated nap time, I let her sleep until she wakes. This often means arriving at my destination but having to sit in the parking lot for forty-five minutes to an hour. After twiddling my thumbs a few times, I learned this was a great opportunity to get some writing done or even just brainstorm. Now I don’t leave home without a chapter of my manuscript to work on and/or blank paper. (I also pack a book I’m reading as research.)

“Help! I’m Trapped in a Meeting but my Mind is Feeling Creative!” I used to get my best ideas during meetings, conferences, seminars, and workshops. I used to jot them down in the margins of my meeting notes--never to be seen again. Now I try to keep a second piece of paper beneath my notes that I flip to to write my ideas/thoughts. It also looks like I’m taking wonderful notes on the speaker’s topic.

“Help! I’m Out and About and Have no Paper on Me!” This has happened to me while sitting in the bleachers of a basketball game. Women, rummage through your purse; men, try your wallet. There’s bound to be an old receipt, business card, or something similar. Otherwise, look around your location: are there any pamphlets or flyers? How about napkins? (Isn’t that what J.K. Rowling used to write Harry Potter?) You can even write on your hand if you’re desperate. If you have a smartphone, you can also call or email yourself.

“Help! I’m Trapped in the Shower with my Idea!” Sorry, no clue to help you with this one. Any suggestions?

“Help! I’m in Bed Already and too Lazy to Write Down my Idea!” Here’s where I usually try to convince myself I’ll just remember it in the morning. No way. Try keeping paper by your bedside. I have become quite good at writing in the dark. All you really need are some key words that will jog your memory later.

One last tip: If you’re with someone else in your unfortunate paperless situation, see if they’re willing to help you out. Sometimes my husband won’t remember what I told him, but will 1. remember that I told him to remember something or 2. remember one word, which is often sufficient.

If you have a handy tip, please share.