Simple Beauty...

     Am I obsessed with perfect skin and beauty you ask?  Duh!

     Of all the products available and everything I have personally tried.  I really have to give props to one of my favorite products.  One that often gets left out and is usually considered unimportant.  I'm talking about toner.  Yes it is so simple and so basic.  But I am telling you it is a must for beautiful healthy skin.  

     Many of the problems people have with their skin are caused simply by lack of balance in the skins pH.  Well, this is the main benefit of toner!  Exciting, I know!

     Let me tell you why I love toner so much.

• Shrinks pores- Yay!
• Balances the skins pH- this should normally be between five and six.  Cleansing the skin causes it to become more alkaline and then it begins to work overtime to restore the balance.  In other words it produces more oil.  Yuck!  No one wants that.
• Adds layers of protection by closing off gaps in pore cells.  This reduces the penetration of impurities and all the environmental pollutants and creepy crawlies.  It even protects against chlorine and minerals in the water.
• Moisturizing- toner is a humectant, so it helps bind moisture to the skin.  Definitely recommend this for dehydrated skin.
• Refreshes skin- lifts oil and dirt to revitalize skin quickly.
• Prevents ingrown hairs- it contains dissolving agents which prevent the build up of dead skin and trapped bacteria.

     Wow...all that just from toner!  And you thought it was a pointless step.  Here are my favorites.

Skincueticals Revitalizing toner.  Very nice but you have to go to a spa to find.

Thayers Witch Hazel, my favorite and can be found out most health food stores like Whole Foods.  I personally love the rose water one but there are a few other options.

     Most toners will do however aim for one without alcohol if you can.  It makes it less balancing and can even be drying to the skin.  It is easy to use.  Apply with cotton or hands all over face and neck after cleansing or exercise.  Pretty simple.  

     Well, hope you have a beautiful (skin) day.  :)

Table Mountain High

  
      According to what ratings imply, in order to climb Table Mountain and its Gauntlet of Cliffs, it requires, honed skill, sound-decision making capabilities, good judgement and should not be taken lightly.  After personally summiting this great beast I would have to agree but also add a few things.  Like, be prepared, bring more then just twelve ounces of water, perhaps some food and lots of sunscreen!  If your naturally afraid of heights, easily have panic attacks and don't enjoy extremely dangerous situations.  This might not be the hike for you!
    
     Table Mountain is located in the Coronado National forest in the Pusch Ridge wilderness.  It's around 57,000 acres and rises about 8,800 feet at its highest point.  It contains a variety of plant life.  Saguaros and Pale Verde.  Douglas Fir and Quaking Aspen.  The south side is covered by something the locals call "shindaggers" or Agave.  My favorite!
    
     So on a beautiful Sunday morning in mid April I drove to Catalina State park to the base of Table Mountain where I met my cousin for what I thought would be a nice little trail hike.  Maybe lasting a few hours and making it home for a family garden BBQ.  I noticed out of all the people invited to the hike only one other person showed up.  My cousin informed me they had all backed out.  That is strange, I wondered.  He had forgotten to send me the email of where we would be going.  Well, it looked like this!

     It began as a reasonably tough trail hike.  We figured we would follow it as far as it goes and then see how it looked.  See how what looked, I wondered to myself.  But it was a so gorgeous, sunny and breezy out that I really didn't think about what was next.  We discovered trail markers almost every two to five feet.  Someone had really taken there time to make these.  We had been hiking about an hour and a half and were feeling it for sure.  Even considered going back at this point but continued on.  Trail markers became more and more infrequent.  The distance back seeming too far at this point.  By now I am starting to wonder what the plan was.
  

      My cousin informed me at this point that he wanted to make it over the top.  Standing on the ridge looking at the thousand foot high cliffs I am thinking, this is impossible, he has lost his mind.  Now I don't know if it was the adrenaline, sense of adventure or just looking back thinking, it is too late now but we decided to go for it.  For the next two and half hours or so we bushwhacked our way up cliffs, over canyons, through caves, getting stabbed, scraped and bruised.  A few moments thinking "We might have to get rescued," Wow, this is dangerous," and definitely "Oh god, we might die."  But somehow we made it across the ridge and saw what looked like a way we might be able to reach the top.  And it looked like it might be the only way if it was even possible.  


     So we crawled, climbed, shimmied, jumped and prayed.  We made it up scaling rock faces, falling moss, over and under trees and through a whole lot of cactus.  And just before the top at the steepest part of the cliff my cousin somehow, i guess with no other choice, dead lifted me up the last ledge.  Success.  From going in blindly, with no equipment or preparation, just hope and my cousins great navigation skills, we had done it!   This was one of the craziest things I had done in a while.

  
      The view of the entire city and the thought of achieving such an insane task made it worth it.  At this point anyway!  We still had a good three and half hour trek down the south side to get home.  And I am not going to lie it was almost worse!  I would have gladly gone back up the front then down the backside.
  
      For miles it was what I would call the valley of the shindaggers.  Not to mention the cat claw and every other type of sharp senoran desert plant you can think of.  But we pushed through.  After a while you just started to say screw it, i am going through the cactus.  So shindagger surfing, with bleeding sun burnt skin and dehydration we kept going with the hope we could find the trail.  And then at last, we see a trail marker.  What a sweet, sweet site.  Not as sweet as seeing the actual trail or actually getting to the trail but a site for sore (literally sore) eyes.
    
     Was it worth it?  Sure.  Once I finally ate, used the bathroom, got some wine and my skinned stopped burning in the jacuzzi, I would have to say, yes!  Unforgettable and epic.  Would I do it again? Maybe with a rope, food, water, shin guards, a hat, a first aid kit and a plan!  But even then I think it will remain as a one of those once in a lifetime things.  :)