Mountain Rose Herbs Recipe Contest

Cold cream has been around for thousands of years. All credit goes to Galen, the man who envisioned oil and water mixed together. It was a genius idea. Today, we have shamefully replaced the natural ingredients the people of the past just saw as part of everyday life with mineral oil and fragrance to keep costs down. I'll tell you what keep costs down: doing-it-yourself. What makes it even better is you know what you're using and you can be sure through whichever supplier you buy from, you will be guaranteed excellent quality and know where exactly your ingredients come from. That is the feeling I have with Mountain Rose Herbs. I trust them to deliver truly organic west coast love to my east coast love.

Here is my recipe for Sweet Orange Rose Cold Cream. The secret to this recipe is horsetail extract. Horsetail (Equisetum Arvense) is also known as Shavegrass. It is the only plant with the highest silica content. Silica is also known as cell food. It keeps your skin looking younger! Sweet orange is an anti-depressant, as well as rose. The combination of the two makes you feel like you're on a Caribbean getaway with roses in your hair. I'm from the Dominican Republic and the sweet orange essential oil Mountain Rose Herbs supplies comes from there. Now, they're really spreading the west coast love! So now, let me introduce to you my wonderful recipe that may satisfy your inner light.

Sweet Orange Rose Cold Cream

2 tablespoons beeswax, pastille or grated
1/4 cup rosewater
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 teaspoon borax powder
1 teaspoon sweet orange essential oil
1/4 teaspoon horsetail extract

Combine beeswax and olive oil and place in a heatproof glass or ceramic container and place it in a pan of boiling water. Allow beeswax to melt and stir. Dissolve borax in rosewater and heat it in a pan or microwave. Do not let it boil. Once the olive oil and beeswax have combined, combine it with the hot rosewater/borax with a stick blender or hand mixer. Add sweet orange essential oil and stir. Then, add the horsetail extract and stir for the last time. Pour into a cute and clean glass or plastic container. The cold cream should be thick, but it will get thicker once it cools.

To use: Wet face. Scoop some cold cream and massage into the skin. This is a great opportunity to massage your face! Rinse well, then wipe with a tissue to remove excess. You will be left with glowing, moisturized, and healthy skin!

I really hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I did. Remember, never allow anything to come across with nature, because nature will always find you.

Peace, kisses, and amor.

My Gold Medal Prized Art Short Essay (lolz moment)

Okay, I wasn't serious when I said I was going to hang it up on my fridge. It's inside a drawer in the living room where I put all my school notes, exams, and quizzes. My art professor really did read it out loud and awarded me the "gold medal", although it was only a verbal medal. Here it is by request from my favorite cousin Gino and to others who want to read it. It is about a statue made by Antonio Canova called Cupid and Psyche.

Cupid and Psyche was love-at-first sight when I ventured through the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The position of Psyche’s arms reaching to Cupid is pure grace. It shows the femininity of women. When I saw it, it made me feel loved because Cupid is holding Psyche. I felt a feeling that it is only with love that you may forgive someone. It felt as if no matter what happens that Cupid was there for Psyche. Psyche looked like in a troubled state, but now is feeling rescued. I really liked the way the artist positions their bodies; Psyche laying down with her upper portion raised and Cupid on top in a bending down position. Usually it is women that gain control over men. Men have a supernatural feeling of always being indestructible. But, when he lays his heart on a woman, he becomes weak. In this model, it is the woman, mainly Psyche, reaching out to the man, Cupid. She wants his help and his kind heart is there for her. The artist sent me a message saying that both male and female may lay down their armor of superiority and rescue each other of any troubles. It surpasses feminism and macho. Antonio Canova has taught me a lesson on the equality of love.

Loves and kisses and lots of sweet pleasures...

Ignorant Asks and Says People Throw About the Bronx

It is sometimes intimidating when someone asks me if I live in the city. Like, what does that determine? That I have an education and well-off? Go to Pelham Parkway and Throggs Neck, sucker. Sometimes, I lie and say I live in Westchester; that really shuts them up. But, when I say I live in the Bronx, it's like you just opened a packet of instant oatmeal, I'm a criminal. I'm stupid, hopeless, and will forever live the stereotype. Here are the top asks and says people tell me out of transparent ignorance.

1. Q: Are there trees in the Bronx?
A: Yes, idiot, there are. I see them through my window, as well as Pelham Bay Park, the largest park in New York City. Sorry, Central Park doesn't cut it; it's dirty in my opinion. We also have the Bronx Zoo, which is also the largest zoo in New York City and the New York Botanical Garden, where there are trees, flowers, and preserved wildlife, not a toxic dumpsite disguised with a pretty name.

2. Say: I'm going to 86th Street. That's all the way in Uptown Manhattan.
A: No freaking duh. I totally know where 86th Street is, and 42nd Street, and Park Avenue, and Rector Street, and Maiden Lane, and all those streets your overrated island has. Even if you live in the "outer" boroughs, you have to know how to get through Manhattan. If you don't, you need to get out more. At least I get passed 96th Street.

3. Q: Have you seen anyone getting stabbed?
A: No, I've never seen anyone getting stabbed.

4. Q: Have you seen anyone getting raped?
A: No, I've never seen anyone getting raped.

5. Q: Have you ever been mugged?
A: No, I've never been mugged.

6. Q: Have you seen anyone getting killed?
A: Gosh, what is up with these violent questions? No, imbecile, I've never seen a violent action except for fist fighting in the Bronx! No one's robbed my purse, raped me, nor done anything to hurt me.

7. Say: Our local from New York said if we stay past 7:00pm, we would get robbed because we are white.
A: Are you freaking kidding me? What kind of people live in 187th Street and Arthur Avenue? Italians. What about Pelham Bay Park? Albanians, Greeks, and Jewish. Yes, there are still Jewish people here! Throggs Neck, Country Club, Silver Beach, Riverdale, and Pelham Bay Park have what the majority would call the "white" race. You will be fine, geez.

8. Q: Have you seen anyone getting arrested?
A: Yes, I have, and I've also seen it in Manhattan. You can't escape crime.

9. Say: There are more homeless people in the Bronx than Manhattan.
A: Wrong! Go to Union Square, SoHo, and anywhere in the downtown Manhattan area. There are many homeless people asking for food and money. In the Bronx? Not so much. We have shelters and city funded housing called the projects. You won't believe the difference.

And, the most ignorant question of all time...

10. Q: Is the Bronx dangerous?
A: It's not 1977 anymore. It's 2010. Get over it and come here.

Please come and take a visit. Edgar Allen Poe's house is here, as well as what was once the largest movie theatre in the world, along the lines of the street with the most wondrous buildings you'll ever see. This is the beautiful Bronx!

Marijuana is a Christian

Why should marijuana be legalized? Because God says so!


“Take the finest spices: of liquid myrrh 500 shekles, and of sweet-smelling cinnamon half as much, that is 250, and 250 of aromatic cane,”- Exodus 30:23

“Nard and saffron, calamus and cinnamon, with all trees of frankincense, myrrh and aloes, with all chief spices-”- Song of Solomon 4:14

“You have not bought me sweet cane with money, or satisfied me with the fat of your sacrifices. But you have burdened me with your sins; you have wearied me with your iniquites.”- Isaiah 43:24

“What use to me is frankincense that comes from Sheba, or sweet cane from a distant land? Your burnt offerings are not acceptable, nor your sacrifices pleasing to me.”- Jeremiah 6:20

“And casks of wine from Uzal they exchanged for your wares; wrought iron, cassia, and calamus were bartered for your merchandise.”- Ezekiel 27:19


The Hebrew term “kaneh bosom” translates to “aromatic cane” and “sweet cane”, which gives the translation to the Greek word “cannabis”.

“Calamus” gets mistranslated many times because of translations. The term “kaneh” was then said “cannabbos”, which was taken to mean that it is an unidentifiable plant.


The holy anointing oil used in Exodus 30 had about 30 pounds of marijuana! Does the Bible talk about smoking it? It seems like it is mostly used for sacrificing. Even the three powerful prophets, Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel reference marijuana. Christians should stop hiding the secrets of marijuana and pray to make it legal! If we all read and believe the same Bible, then there is nothing to hide.

I Heard Petroleum Baths Are Beneficial

We humans have allowed ourselves to depend on petroleum. It's everywhere, literally. We rub the stuff on our skin, we eat it, we breathe it. Yes, we breathe it! The petroleum distillates we breathe when we walk through a gas station. The lotion we rub on our skin after taking a shower. It's full of petrolatum (Vaseline), PEG, and mineral oil. the BHT and TBHQ the General Mills implanted into our food for "freshness". Yes, America, we have a significant petroleum dependence.

And from there led to the amazing chemical industry. You see, we are very very far from nature. Go tell anyone that by drinking clay, it will get rid of toxins in your body. That's right; they won't believe you. Doctors have administered petrochemicals into our bodies for over a hundred years. This new mindset of medicine is far from what the term "medicine" should define. Doctors are poisoning us every day with this "medicine". It has come to a point that we no longer value what God created and leave behind by what was once known as fact, now a myth, to the twenty-first century's humanistic eye.

When we watch the fabric softener commercials, oh the glory of watching that flawless lady run outside into the fresh open fields and holding that warm blanket. She smells it's lovely fragrance of pure and natural scent. She smells petroleum, ladies. Sorry, it's true. How? Well, there is absolutely nothing natural about those fabric softeners! The chemical companies display free flowing nature commercials about their products to get the idealism that it is natural in some way. When we smell that tube of sunscreen, doesn't that remind us of going to the beach? Beach is natural. Sunscreen, uh, no. It's got the same idea. Yes, we are zillions of miles away from nature.

The lotion advertises that it has aloe and oatmeal as its components to make your skin super soft. Why doesn't it claim that it's the mineral oil? Johnson and Johnson baby oil advertises that it makes your skin super soft. It never tells you why. Petrochemicals are constantly being rubbed into our bodies like it's a ritual. Propylene glycol is anti-freeze. Hello, do you want anti-freeze in your body? It's also in your toothpaste. Don't believe me? Check. Toluene is in nail polish, or I should say, once in American nail polish. Now that the American market finally realized that toluene is toxic, I wondered where they sent all the toxic nail polishes. Well, on my visit to Dominican Republic, in the beauty section at La Sirena, the Dominican Wal-Mart, every single nail polish had toluene and dibutyl phthalate, which is another highly toxic petrochemical that causes birth defects in baby boys. Did you know 95% of perfumes, including designer perfumes, contain petrochemicals? Please do more research on the toxicity of personal care at www.cosmeticsdatabase.com.

Wood varnishes, shoe polish, ink, chewing gum, corn, pantyhose, shampoo, yarn, and so many other products contain petroleum. A while ago, I wondered where plastic came from. I've been told they were synthetic, artificial, and nature can't reproduce it. So, where in the world does this item come from? I read an article about sugar fibers and its use to make plastic. It mentioned that our convential plastic was made of petroleum. I was like, "What? Yuck! How?" From there it planted a seed of knowledge. It slowly grew as I learned what petroleum makes. That now we have depended so much on this "wonder", it will slowly curve to the curiosity of what would happen if there were no more oil.

The funny thing is that people don't want to believe me when I say that petroleum makes everything. We are slowly running out of oil. The damage has been done. If mineral oil shrink wraps our skin, then it's the petrochemicals floating around in the air shrink wrapping it, thus causing global warming. The artificial coloring in our desserts, the color in hair dye, the styrofoam that comes in our package, should lead the American public to ask, "If it's synthetic, where does it come from?" It's common sense. Here is a website that covers partially what petroleum makes: http://www.ranken-energy.com/Products%20from%20Petroleum.htm

Will America ever decide to switch from styrofoam, to sugar based equivilants? Will American women realize they have been poisoning their bodies for many years? Will the government finally stop using petroleum and start looking into the mythological nature derivatives? To be honest, I hope that this will be a lesson. When the Earth runs out of petroleum, it may be the cause of World War III.

My Name is Not Natalia

Natalia is my twin sister. She is older than me by one minute. No, she was not born first because we wrestled and she won, like what ignorant people say. She had an emergency and almost died. So, that's why I'm second.

Something has been bothering me as to why my family does this. For some reason, they always call me Natalia, ALWAYS!!!! Okay, so why am I whining? Because I am an individual, not one person, like what ignorant people say.

Then, you would say, "So stop whining. They're your family and they're trying to be funny."

I would say, "Oh man, you do not want to be in my shoes."

Even when sister isn't around, they call me Natalia. Like, I was on a recent trip to Dominican Republic and my uncle accompanied us. The man could NEVER pronounce my name and said Tatonia. He even called me Natalia. Oh my fuzzles, I was so annoyed. She was not even with us. We were thousands of miles away in an another country and he dares to call me Natalia.

My aunt forever calls me Natalia, no matter how much I say back that I'm Tatiana. Example:

Aunt: "Natalia, can you help me with this?"

Tatiana: "My name is Tatiana."

Aunt: "Oh, I'm sorry, Natalia, Natalia; ay, I always say your name wrong." (transalted from Spanish)

Even my eighty-something year old grandmother still calls me Natalia. Last night, she asked my mom if I were her. A reason why I chose to go on my separate ways in high school was so that people would see me as an individual. And, it worked. I felt like one person.

My mom thinks I'm exaggerating when I complain about this. She says family members do call her by her sisters. Yes, true, but my problem happens ALL THE FREAKIN' TIME! My sister doesn't care to see her relatives. She's always with her friends no matter the occasion. For Christmas, she didn't visit relatives because her friends were with theirs. So, she didn't go out. Natalia is always absent. TATIANA is always there. Then, they say that TATIANA doesn't care about the family because she's never there. Do you know how much TATIANA is there for her family??

Everytime I visit Natalia's Facebook, I see all the seventeen comments people post when she writes how she ate bad sushi and vommited. I cannot believe all the people that pay attention to what she writes. I honestly don't want to be jealous, but this girl says she has low self-esteem. I do agree when someone ignorantly says the reason why she's chunkier than me is because she eats more than me. But, no one replied when I write that I returned from Dominican Republic. Very few people reply to my posts. Maybe one or two and maybe someone will like it. But, that's it. I feel stupid for allowing Facebook to my my life, but it is an internet life that connects people from their homes and when in person, it gives absolute truth. No one really calls to ask if they want to hang around with me. I am making one good friend, which I'm happy for, but it's in a developing process. But for now, I'm not Tatiana. I'm the frame for Natalia so others criticize Tatiana.

How To Make Butter

Step One: Go to the supermarket and buy butter. Wait, but then we might accidentally pick up the dreaded margarine or the tub of "spread" because it looks like butter and it might somehow convince us that it tastes like butter. Margarine and "spread" is NOT real butter, no matter how much you want to argue with me. They're made by hydrogenating polyunsaturated vegetable oils, such as soybean and corn.

You see, polyunsaturated oils are unstable oils and remain liquid at room temperature. If you take a look at coconut oil, it is a solid at room temperature because it is a saturated oil. And yet, in the processed food industry, I ask myself why I see labels featuring hydrogenated coconut oil. Why?! It is already stable at room temperature! It doesn't need any further processing! Yes, I'm looking at you Mentos!

Hydrogenation is when creepy scientists take a genetically Monsanto modified soy or corn or cottonseed oils and add more hydrogen to make it stable, which means solid at room temperature. When you go to the health food store, you will see pure flax seed oil in the fridge? Why? Because it is a polyunsaturated oil and it is not stable even at room temperature! The corn and soy oils are poisonous to eat straight from the supermarket because they're in broad light all day. The solution by the crazy scientists is to hydrogenate the oil to make it stable and won't get rancid easily. But, by doing so, it increases the rate of, let's say, diabetes. Doctors totally want to ignore this, no matter how tough the truth is. Oh yeah, it'll also make you obese just by listening to your doctor.

Talk to your doctor about why you're so fat and can't lose weight. Yes, go ahead, ask. They will never help you! I don't trust doctors anymore, honestly. They're a bunch of quacks who love petroleum.

What is the solution to all this menace? Please, don't rip your precious hair off your head. Make your own butter. Yes, it is possible to make. The entire human race has survived with full fat unpasturized milk, and for some reason, no one has died from heart attacks. Butter is good because it is a natural process nature recognizes; not hydrogenation, which is made by a bunch of scentists doing their sciency things. Since when did scientists determine what we should eat? Just like how they're adding TBHQ and BHT in our foods. Yuck! Sick petroleum. You might as well drink the thing. Go ask a scientist how petroleum tastes like.

Now, here is the beautiful recipe that I myself do. Your best bet is to go to the supermarket and get the ingredients. I get mine raw, unpasturized, and unhomogenized. So far, I didn't have an e. coli poisoning, I didn't suffer major diarrhea, and I didn't vomit. Real milk tastes creamy and sweet. It's delicious! And so is real butter. You can salt it yourself or add garlic. You can do so many! And, you know what is in the butter. No worries of added ingredients that are being kept a secret by the mean food corporations. Let's make butter!

One cup of heavy cream. The heavier, the better.
Salt, optional. Celtic sea salt is best.
Wooden spoon
Large mixing bowl

Step One: Pour heavy cream into bowl.

Step Two: Beat the heavy cream with the spoon. It may take a while. If impatient, use an electric mixer. Warning: It may be very loud and will make your father angry for waking him up while sleeping.

Step Three: Beat, until the mixture separates liquid from solid. At this point, using a wooden spoon is best because the liquid won't splatter everywhere and you get more liquid out.

Step Four: You know when the third step is complete is when the solid naturally forms itself into a ball. It kind of gives you the message that it doesn't owe anything anymore. Ha, ha, ha... By using the sides of the bowl, squish the butter with the wooden spoon until it no longer squirts liquid. Do Not ignore this because the butter will go rancid easily if there is still liquid remaining in.

Step Five: Collect the liquid into the bowl. Congratulations, you have made buttermilk. See, you can make two in one! Now, you can use it to make buttermilk pancakes. Yum!

Step Six: Store the butter into a clean container. Add salt if you would like by adding a dash and mixing it in with a spoon.

Yay! You made butter! It's ultra fresh and tastes way better than supermarket. You will feel one step closer to the earth. Butter is good for you! Of course, don't overdo it, and you will have a beautiful toast to eat. Have fun and make sure to stay away from evil hydrogenated oils!