Finding harmful ingredients in cosmetic products

You can find the ingredients on cosmetic products (shampoos, soap, sunscreen) and search for carcinogenic (known or suspected) or harmful ingredients on https://www.safecosmeticsact.org/search.

It's run by the California Department of Public Health, which gives public access to their database. By law (passed in 2005), manufacturers that sell cosmetic products in the state must report the ingredients. Yay, California!

The user experience is not great, but at least the information is public. Hopefully, someone with more talent for designing web and mobile apps would create a better way to get these data.

Recipe: Grilled Steak Salad

Ingredients

• Steak (pick your favorite, skirt, flat iron, or NY)
• Finely chopped onions
• Finely cubed cucumber
• Apple cider vinegar
• Canola oil
• Egg
• Citrus
• Mustard
• Sugar
• Salt 
• Pepper

Instructions

1. Lightly grill a steak (keep it medium rare), then slice into strips. 
2. Add chopped onions and cucumber.
3. Mix with apple cider vinegar, canola oil, egg, citrus, mustard, sugar, salt and pepper. To taste. 
4. Put the mix on a lettuce leaf.

Eat it as a salad, rice topping, or sandwich filling. 

Recipe: Making Fujian Lumpia (Fresh Spring Rolls)

Lumpia is a spring roll in the southeastern province of Fujian, China (潤餅 or rùnbǐng). Chinese migrants to other parts of southeast Asia brought the dish with them and variants of lumpia exists in the adopted countries, like Indonesia, Philippines, and Vietnam.

This recipe is a traditional Fujian version. It's fairly complex and takes hours of prep time, followed by a couple of hours of cooking. And then the diners have to assemble many of the ingredients at the table.

It's generally a communal affair, where family members prepare the ingredients together and dine together.

Picture from Baby Rambutan

Lumpia Serving Size : 2 Large Woks

Main ingredients 

Mix

White preserved tofu (tokwa) - 5 packs
Carrots - 5.5 lbs
Cabbage -2 medium heads
Snow peas (ho-lin taw) -2 packs
Green beans - 4 lbs
Mushrooms - 2 packs
Ground pork -2 lbs
Shrimps - 2 lbs
Chinese leek (sng-a)

Wrap

Lumpia/spring roll wrap - 60 pcs
Romaine Lettuce (sng chai) - 2 packs. This keeps the mix intact and from dissolving the spring roll wrap

Condiments

Eggs - 16 eggs
Garlic - 4 heads (at least)
Mung bean sprouts - 2 packs
Cilantro/Coriander - 2 packs
Peanut drink powder - 2 boxes
Fried Fujian sea weed (ho-ti)
Hoisin sauce
Tiny flat fish (optional)

Cooking instructions

Before anything

Wash cilantro and Romaine lettuce first so it will be dry by eating time.

Prep work

Tofu - julienne
Carrots -cut fine
Mushrooms - cut fine
Green Beans - medium fine
Garlic - fine
Cabbage - medium fine
Snow Peas - medium fine
Shrimp - medium fine

Cooking

1. Put little oil in the wok. Add a little garlic.
2. Stir fry in medium heat each ingredients in its own pan (you can reuse the pan). Start with the meat, then add the veggies, from the ones that take the longest to cook to the shortest. 
3. Start mixing the ingredients in one big wok. 
4. Stir everything under medium to low heat every 10-15 minutes, for about an hour or two.  

Tips

• When stir frying ground pork, add oyster sauce to taste.
• Simmer the lumpia in low heat until soft.
• Add some water or chicken broth (about 2 –3 cans) little by little, when things look dry. Do not add too much.
• When serving, squish on the side to release liquid before putting in serving dish.

Preparing condiments

Fried seaweed (hoti)

1. Add a little oil in pan
2. Stir fry in very low heat (1-2 level).
3. When the color has changed and it's crunchy, turn off heat and stir some sugar bit by bit.

Eggs

1. Scramble the eggs.
2. Pour enough in pan for a thin omelet. 
3. When done, roll up the omelet and cut into strips. 

Garlic and mung bean sprouts

• Put in food processor to get fine pieces and add a little hot water. 
• Blanch mung bean sprouts in boiling water for just a few seconds. You want it still crispy. 

Eating instructions

This is everyone's favorite part!

1. Get a dry plate. Keep it dry. 
2. Lay the spring roll wrap flat.
3. Lay the lettuce on the wrap
4. Put the mix in the lettuce. Don't be greedy or your lumpia will be too fat to roll up. 
5. Add condiments of your choice: mung bean sprouts, peanuts, garlic, fried seaweed, cilantro, peanut and egg. Take care to not make the roll too fat.
6. Roll up the wrap and add a dab of hoisin sauce to seal the wrap. 
7. Eat it.

Faking your way to power

Most of us have heard of the "effects of embodiment," that is, the theory that holds that we can fake our way to an emotion. You know, how smiling—even when you feel like throttling another person—makes you feel, well, happier. Somehow, the way you arrange the muscles in your face releases the right neurochemicals. (In at least one study, the subjects were not even smiling, they were just biting a pencil!)

So, interestingly enough, researchers in Columbia and Harvard decided to study the effects of power posturing, you know, the body language of that obnoxious fratboy of a bossman character in your work place. It's the body language that takes up a lot of space: the obnoxious coach in Glee establishes her authority over everyone by planting both hands on the table and looming forwards; various pictures of presidents show them with their feet on the table and elbows behind their heads (that's not Obama relaxing, that's him establishing power over his staff); countless bouncers with their hands on their hips, elbows pointing out to their sides, and legs rooted in a power base. Yeah, you know those postures. (If you are reading this blog, you must be that nerd on the receiving end of the power postures.)

So what did they find out? Same deal as the smile study. People assuming power postures felt more in power. AND testosterone levels of subjects—regardless of gender—went up while cortisol levels (the stress-related hormone) went down within moments of assuming the power postures. Incidentally, people in power have lower level of cortisol (probably because they're busy raising everyone else's).

On the flip side of the coin, taking submissive postures, which entails making yourself seem smaller (slouching, slumping shoulders, looking vulnerable, hugging self and crossing ankles), resulted in lower testosterone and higher cortisol levels.  

So the lesson is, act like a bully. You'll feel good about it later. It's also a great way to build up your confidence right before a tough meeting, an interview, or your next mime performance before a large audience.   

Holiday tipping

Not sure how much to tip people whose services you enjoy? The rule of thumb is to tip the value of a service.

• Personal trainers get a session's worth in cash or gift. 
• House cleaners get the cost of one service, though most people tip $35. 
• Lawn people get $20-$50 each. 
• Building staff get $25 to $50, with most people tipping $25.
• Hairdressers get the value of a service, with most folks tipping $20.
• Teachers get gifts with a value of around $20-$30 
• Newspaper carriers typically get around $10-$30, with most folks tipping at $15
• Mail carriers may not accept gift above $20 in value or get cash or cash equivalents, such as gift cards
• Dog walkers get a week's pay. 
• Babysitters of hellions should definitely get tips. A night's service. 

Source: USA Today and Consumer Reports.

Worst time to go to the hospital

If you live in the US, the worst time to go to the hospital for treatment and surgery is July, especially the first week. That's when hospitals get new residents and experienced ones get promoted. Lots of confusion around this time. As a result, medical errors go up.

Try to stay healthy until September at least ;).

Fashion tips for fat or short people

So, if you are rotund or short, your goal is to project a more elongated figure. Here are a few general principles:

• Don't break lines, like contrasting belt in the middle of your torso or distressed jeans with patches and holes (those things break up the straight line and shortens you).
• Wear clothes that are not tight but skims the body. Don't wear baggy clothes.
• Don't wear clothes that are square in shape (think muumuus).
• Accentuate your assets (for example a V-cut to highlight your neckline or gentle horizontal lines or creases right under the bust to balance a big butt). 
• Create a sense of proportion. Don't wear baggy tops with tight pants like leggings.
• Wear dark (black or deep blue) straight-cut pants. Don't wear pants that have patterns or designs that will break up the lines.  
• Don't wear pastel colors. Wear dark pants and rich (for example, deep red) tops.