Freckles!!!!

So I have lots and lots and lots of freckles.... all over my face, arms and neck, shoulders and chest.... and I love them!!!
Ive had them ever since I can remember, all year round, and I have always gotten lots of complements on them.  People always tell me they wish they had freckles too. I have to say, I am very fortunate =)
When I was little, my mom read me a book called "Freckle Juice" by Judy Blume, about a little boy who wanted freckles so badly that he drank "freckle juice", a disgusting concoction told to him to create freckles by a little girl tricking him. After that didn't work, he even went so far as to draw dots on his face with a marker.

So, in spite of all of this, why when I go online searching freckles, all I  find is "how to remove freckles"- with special makeup, bleaching agents, and overnight facial cleanses. One website, ironically called http://nofreckles.com/ begins by saying this: "Looking for easy, natural ways to remove your freckles and get back your smooth, flawless skin? Here is a helpful guide to help you find the best freckle removal ways to fade out freckles.  Freckles are a common skin problem in many people. Even though freckles are not harmful or dangerous to your health, they take away your full skin beauty."


Another website begins by saying "Freckles are small brownish spots on human skin. Excessive and uneven pigmentation due to sun damage is the common cause of freckles. Some people find freckles to be attractive but most people with freckles that I know, want to get rid of it". The author then proceeds to list the serious, chemical, surgical and harmful ways to remove these "blemishes": 

Bleaching agents and creams are the most common treatment used to get rid of freckles. However, bleaching agents may burn the skin around the freckles and may even cause scarring.

Retinol is also used to lighten freckles. They are actually effective if treatment is continued for a long time. There is risk however that the skin around the freckles may lighten, thus giving emphasis on the brown spots.

Laser treatment such as resurfacing may also be used to lighten the discoloration.

Chemical peel and deep peeling are also done as treatment for freckles but recovery time may be significant.

Modern way to get rid of freckles involve freezing with liquid nitrogen 

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/333109

Personally, Im appalled by the conformity of todays beauty standards, demanding flawless tan skin along with the rest of requirements. I absolutely love my freckles and wish I even had more. I think, and I know a lot of people do, that freckles are absolutely gorgeous and adorable! 

I think the real problem is that everyone who doesn't have freckles is jealous, and  they want to even the playing field by making us want to get rid of our freckles. 

Ugly spots or beauty spots? you decide. 

             

oh just the typical sidewalk chalk--- no photo editing!

be kind to unkind people, they need it the most

Prayer Flags

Despite the fact that I am 100% catholic, I love everything about Buddhism. My history teacher told me that Buddhism can be seen as a Philosophy and a religion, so I consider it a philosophy. I love the calmness and peacefulness embodied by buddhists, and wish that i could be more like them, as i often am the first one to spazz out. In my room, I have tibetan Prayer Flags strung on my walls. The meaning behind the prayer flags are that when the wind (in my case my fan) blows the flags, it spreads blessings, good will, happiness, compassion, long life and prosperity. The flags come in five different colors, the blue representing the sky, white=air/wind, yellow=water, green=earth, and red=fire. By looking at the flags, you are "reminded to prayer for the welfare of people and the motivation to be kind, compassionate and joyful throughout the day". I think they are so pretty and mean such nice things that I just had to share them with everyone, and they are one of the reasons why Tibet or Nepal is where I would love to visit more than anywhere else.

Dean Potter

INTERNET

The average teenager spends over 7 hours a day on some sort of technology- mostly computer I think. There are about 6 billion people in the world right now. 
Now take out 2 Billion for people who don’t have internet or are too old or young or even sick to have the internet. Now, lets say that these 4 billion people use (on average) the internet for 2.5 hours a day. This is underestimating. 
Now, lets say, hypothetically that every time we go on the internet for one hour, we pay one penny. Just one. That’s it. One tiny, little, insignificant penny. But that diminutive penny is a tiny drop in a huge bucket. Estimating by my numbers, if 4 billion people spent 2.5 hours on the internet each day, and paid 1 penny for each hour, in just one year, these pennies would add up to $36,500,000,000. Thirty six trillion, five hundred billion dollars. And this is underestimating the number to give plenty of room for leeway. 
I know internet will always be free, and I think that is great, but imagine if we could charge for internet, and give all the money to our third world countries.. just imagine. 

I wrote this when I was 15:

From my short and nonextensive, unwise life, Id like to think The keys to a happy life are as follows:

To life freely and passionately. To know and accept true beauty. To embrace power. To have a relationship with god and nature. To know who you are and what you want. To appreciate youth before it is gone. To be balanced and worldly, to know sex. To love and respect yourself. To realize that all bad things will pass, things will go and come, but that family and a few friends are forever. To laugh often and smile always. To be ardent about every aspect of life. To be exuberant and optimistic, and to realize that no one ever hurt their eyes looking on the bright side of life. To do something that you know sets you apart and gives you pride. To have hope in the world. To love someone. To be thankful. To be inspired. To resist materialism, and live simply many places all over the world. to go into the world wanting to do well, but more importantly,

wanting to do good.

speak up.

We need new inventions that reveal peoples true intentions, a portable pride protector, an affordable lie detector. We need new glasses to see past these cynical masses; opening your eyes to be optimistic, peace is not unrealistic.

Id like to think the world is like a bag of chips, all shiny and pretty... and then you open it and have unlimited happiness. 

inspire

In a world where anyone can do anything, Its what you want to do that sets you apart.

because food is delicious

But at the same time, go with the flow.

ONLY
        DEAD
                   FISH
                         GO
                              WITH
                                      THE
                                               FLOW

Their Eyes Were Watching God

As much as I try, I cant seem to enjoy reading too much.
Just like I wish I was a good singer, I wish I was taller, and I wish I had a Great Dane named Teacup and a toy poodle named Goliath, I wish i could enjoy reading. It just doesn't work for me though. After two minutes of reading, Im pretty much bored. However, every statement has its exceptions,  just like this.
This past year we had to read Their Eyes were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston, a book about Janie, a young lady who is married three separate times and experiences love and the social system and all sorts of stuff. The plot, I have to say, well, I just don't really care about. Its the writing, the way she uses her words and twists them so beautifully that is just incredible.

p.90
"When God had made The Man, he made him out of stuff that sung all the time and glittered all over. Then, after that some angels got jealous and chopped him into millions of pieces, but he still glittered and hummed. So they beat him down to nothing but sparks but each little spark had a shine and a song. So they covered each one over with mud. And the lonesomeness in the sparks made them hunt for one another, but the mud is deaf and dumb. Like all the other tumbling mud-balls, Janie had tried to show her shine. "

Everything you have done was made comfortable for you at someone else's expense. Get uncomfortable.

Feel free to wear Sunscreen

One of my friends recently returned from india where she helped to build schools with a service trip, She brought home with her henna'd hands, key chains of hand painted elephants, a hookah, lots of photos, and a newfound spiritual appreciation.
We were hanging out and laughing watching hilarious videos by edbassmaster on youtube, when she said she had to show me a particular and very different video called: Feel Free to Wear Sunscreen.

She told me that after watching the video with the rest of her program, they just couldn't help but to sit in  science. Inevitably, I did the same, afraid if i spoke i would ruin the quiet filled with thought and enlightenment, trying to absorb all the advice.
Something about this video, this  simple, free-spirited youtube video just clicked.