Who this DVD is for:
-a student of belly dance who wants to get more strength and tone in her abs, make her belly dance movements stronger, or wants a great abdominal workout, or
-a follower of the bellydance aerobic fitness trend who wants an intense workout, or
-someone who owns both of Neon’s instructional DVD’s and is comfortable with the moves taught there, or
-someone with previous dance experience who is good with “monkey see, monkey do” style learning

Who this DVD is not for (yet):
-if you want a video to LEARN belly dance
-if you are new to belly dance and don’t yet have a grasp of the basic movements.
-if you don’t want to get a great abs workout. (No kidding around here!)

Before beginning this workout it’s important to keep in mind what it is — a workout. Although you will practice bellydance, as all of the sections are completely comprised of bellydance moves, don’t expect to buy this DVD and have it be your one-stop shopping for instruction and workout. They haven’t made anything like that yet. The pacing required for instruction is way too slow to get your heart rate up for a cardiovascular or fat burning workout. Stopping to explain the movements would disrupt the flow of the workout and would keep it from being nearly as good. In order to work the abdominals, one must drill them without taking breaks for explanation. Neon is an excellent Bellydance instructor but the purpose of this DVD to get your abs in shape, not to learn how to dance. There is absolutely no bellydance instruction on “Belly Dance for Body Shaping: Abs.” This workout was designed for someone who already knows bellydance and wants to be lead through a great workout; it’s difficulty would be considered at the Intermediate level. The movements are all done quickly in succession leaving no time for instruction. Although instruction is beyond the scope of this video, Neon does give pointers as to what muscles to be contracting for the different movements — more like good reminders than instruction.

Andy Troy, a certified strength and conditioning specialist, pops in throughout the workout with helpful, real-time tips for getting the safest and most conformable workout. This is important so you don’t strain your knees or lower back.

Two sphere shaped diagrams representing the ribcage and the pelvis are always on the left side of the screen to show how each movement relates to the muscle groups in the area. Although they will help you understand what move you are doing at any given time, they will by no means help explain. A basic knowledge and competency with belly dance are required here. You don’t have to be the star attraction at the local Mediterranean restaurant here, you just need to have a basic working knowledge of belly dance.

A progress bar counts the number of moves you have done so far and shows you how many left till the next change. This is helpful for both cueing and motivational purposes.

If you already know what you’re doing, bellydance wise, this is as good of a practice session as it is a workout — excellent overall.

Where this DVD really excels is in the teaching. Amar Gamal of Bellydance Superstars’ fame and her Bellyqueen partner Kaeshi Chai, a member of The Desert Roses, are excellent teachers for dancers so young. Moves are all shown full body and if needed, from multiple angles. Instructions are voiceover style and lots of pointers abound on what muscles to relax, what body parts to isolate, and sometimes even when to breathe. All dance descriptions go much further than “just lift your hip and drop it.” They have one of the best descriptions of the Camel, an undulation move, that is difficult to teach women whose learning style doesn’t fall along the lines of `monkey-see, monkey-do.’ The clear and concise description of this move as well as several others, a backward moving horizontal figure 8, for example, are clear enough that even an absolute beginner to all forms of dance could eventually get with some practice. If you’ve had trouble with other DVDs in the past not being clear enough for you to `get’ the moves, this is the one for you.

The section on “How to Improvise” in the Improvisation section is absolutely priceless for both the newbee and the intermediate dancer. This is a topic rarely covered by instructors in any form of dance. You’ll learn how to listen to the music and then choose which moves will appropriately fit the song. The knowledge you’ll gain here is transferrable to all forms of dance. In “Partner Combinations” Amar and Kaeshi teach you how to dance with a partner in much more dynamic and interesting ways than the basic routine they provide in the instruction. “Guided Improvisation” also gives you the chance to practice.

Those of us who have been dancing for a while will probably be a bit disappointed at the length of the DVD. 115 minutes sounds long but consists of a 37 minute technique section with only 25 minutes devoted to instruction, 5 minutes of guided stretching and loosening (which happens to be excellent), 3 minutes devoted to practicing the “BQ Boogie” — a dance routine best described as a cute, belly flavored version of the electric slide, and a 3 minute cool down stretch (again this one is excellent.) Other than 10 minutes devoted to learning to improvise, the rest of the DVD is bonus material. However, the included 12 track CD is alone worth the purchase price of the DVD. Twelve groovy belly tunes by Mission to Mars (Vin Scialla) and Turbo Tabla — the classically trained Karim Nagi, provide the Arabic House soundtrack. Some fun and excellent stuff is found here — some of it exclusive to this DVD. In the Special Features section, each girl has a solo bellydance performance in traditional costume. “Call of The Drum with Mal Stein” is a Drum Solo Performance By Amar Gamal, and “Dunyavi Gypsy Passion” is a solo performance by Kaeshi Chai in a Folk or “Gypsy” style. There are two video montages — “Bellyqueen Around The World” is of Bellyqueen performances and “Bellydance Superstars” is the Bellydance Superstars promo montage you’ve probably seen before if you own any other Bellydance Superstars DVD. The rest is interviews with the dancers and musicians from this DVD. All of this is available in English or Espanol on the same disc. The Spanish translation is accessible from the Main Menu and includes Instruction, Menus, and Bonus Material.

*Foundation moves taught on disc:
Shoulder Circles, Vogue Arms, Shoulder Thrust, Shoulder Shimmies, Chest Lift and Drop, V-Pop (Chest Lift and Drops in a “V” Shape), V-Strut (V-Pops while walking forward and backward), Hip Twist, Inward Figure 8, Hip Shimmies, Contraction and Release, Omi (Small Hip Circle), Medium Hip Circle, Chest Circle, Undulation -Upper Torso (Chest), Undulation - Lower Torso (Pelvis), Undulation - Whole Body, Hip Lock, Hip Lift and Drop, Walk to Side, 3-Point Turn
*Transition Steps:
Hip March, Step Touch
*Partner Combinations:
Mirroring, Synchronized Call and Answer, Opposites, See-Saw, Back and Forth
*Improvisation Section (Freestyle)
Lean how to: Listen to the Music, Dance to the Beat, Dance to the Melody, Dance to the Accents, Dance to a combination of the Beat, Melody, and Accents, Add variety by changing the movements: Circles, Undulations, Shimmies, Change Levels

Bonus Bellyqueen Music CD Track Listing:
1. Turbo Tabla Two - Turbo Tabla
2. Full Circle - Mission on Mars
3. Where Do We Begin (Hikaya) - Said Mrad
4. Queen Saidi On Mars - Mission on Mars
5. Mofongito Maksoum (Qanun Remix) - Mission on Mars
6. Telegraphin Telleri - Turbo Tabla
7. Shall We Shimmy - Mission on Mars
8. Azziza - Turbo Tabla
9. Exhale (Chiftetelli) - Mission on Mars
10. Turbo Zaar - Turbo Tabla
11. Mofongo Maksoum - Mission on Mars
12. Shall We Shimmy (Qanun Remix) - Mission on Mars

Yoga mats come in three basic thicknesses. A 1/8″ thick mat is of average thickness. Mats that are half as thick (1/16″) are good for travel or placing under a thicker mat to provide more traction. The thick mats (3/16″) are about 50% thicker than average and are designed for those who need or want extra cushion. Nearly all of them are two feet wide, 24″ is the standard width, and 68″ long. If a mat is longer or wider than average it is usally specified.

A good yoga mat will increase in stickiness with use. (So do most mats.) They start out mildly sticky and increase in stickiness the more they are used. If you find yours decreasing in stickiness each time you pull it out, this is the typical sign that a light coating of dust or too much body sweat has accumulated on your mat and it needs a light hand washing with very diluted soap and water. After washing, dry your mat unrolled, inside, and away from sunlight. (Hanging over the shower bar works nicely.) Your mat probably came with specific instructions for care and use.

When you first unroll your mat you will find one end to be a bit curled. Simply alternate the direction you roll your mat (top outside once, then bottom outside next) or the end you start from (curled end once, flat end next time) and you’ll find it straightening out more or less over time.

I recommend buying your own yoga mat even if your yoga studio or gym provides them for you. I’ve worked in many studios and gyms over the years. Sometimes management has mats cleaned often, sometimes not. If you bring your own mat you always know where it’s been. Plus, owning your own mat may encourage you to begin valuable practice at home.

For my students who have trouble with their knees in some of the poses requiring the body weight to rest on a knee, I recommend temporarily folding over one end of the mat to get double cushion under the knee while still leaving one layer under the rest of the body. This saves you having to haul more than one mat out each time you practice which can be discouraging especially to the beginner.

What is Foundation Primer?
Just as an artist woudn’t think of painting on an un-primed canvas, Laura Mercier’s Foundation Primer fills in the little lines and pores, evening the skin tone and texture for a more flawless finish to makeup. Foundation glides on the skin more easily and stays looking fresh longer by creating a silky barrier between skin and foundation. Ideal for all skin types, oilier skins will notice their foundation staying color true throughout the day [the darkening occurs when oils secreted by the skin mix with the makeup and give it a darker look] and are happy this oil-free and pigment-free Primer won’t add an extra layer to makeup. Drier skins will enjoy the benefit Foundation Primer has in sealing in the moisturizer so it won’t evaporate during the day keeping the face soft and radiant as well as preventing talc from drawing much needed oil from the skin. Foundation Primer also helps prevent skin from absorbing talc and pigment from your foundation — a boon to blemish-prone skin. Did I mention it extends makeup wear? I find I can apply my foundation with Foundation Primer underneath, teach my morning aerobics classes, and my makeup still looks fresh enough to work the rest of the day as a makeup artist under the intense scrutiny all my clients consciously or unconsciously give. Makeup even stays put in hot, humid weather! This product is an absolute must for all my brides.

How is Laura’s Foundation Primer more than just a primer?
Laura’s primer contains “unique light-reflecting ingredients” which create a “soft-focus appearance.” This soft focus causes fine lines and imperfections to smooth over as well as gives skin a soft, luminous, and healthy looking glow. Not just for under foundation, in fact Laura considers Foundation Primer a must for non-foundation wearers. The same soft focus appearance makes bare skin look beautiful and naturally flawless. Top with a little Loose Setting Powder and you have a smooth and luminous, beautiful and natural, barefaced look.

This Primer also has added skin care benefits to improve the skin’s appearance. Potent antioxidants Vitamins A, C, and E help protect skin from the harmful and dramatically aging effects of the environment.* Foundation Primer also contains botanicals such as lavender, orange, jasmine, rose, geranium, grape, kiwi and aloe extracts to soothe and refresh the skin. With all these great benefits, it’s no wonder Laura Mercier’s Foundation Primer is the best seller on the market — used even by loyal followers of other makeup lines. *[Foundation Primer does not contain sunscreen, however all of Laura’s daytime moisturizers have broad spectrum (UVA and UVB) protection in the form of titanium dioxide.]

It’s simple and easy to use:
Apply a liberal amount on clean skin, after moisturizer. With fingertips, massage all over face, including eyelids, lips and throat (those with sensitive eyes may wish to avoid the eye area). A large pea-sized amount, think garbanzo bean or chick pea, is all you need. If you find you require more, it may be an indication that your skin is dehydrated and you may need to up your moisturizer.

Laura Mercier’s #1 Top makeup Tip (from her web site):
“Place Foundation Primer in the refrigerator, the coolness is extra refreshing and helps reduce puffiness.” (This tip is especially pampering in the summertime.) “Take a few minutes to gently massage into the skin; a light massage is stimulating and healthy for the skin.”

Laura Mercier’s heavenly and lightweight Secret Brightening Powder makes your under eye area look bright and naturally radiant. If you suffer from chronic dark under eye circles like I do you’ll love how this powder weightlessly increases the coverage of under eye cover products while adding soft focus lightening and brightening. It helps concealer to dramatically reduce the appearance of dark under eye circles as it sets concealer to keep it in place all day!

Unlike other powders which can accentuate the look of dryness and lines in the eye area, Laura Mercier’s specially formulated under eye powder gives a soft focus to fine lines and minimizes imperfections. The powder is ground to the micronised level so it won’t settle in the fine lines to emphasize like other powders can so easily do.

Usage Instructions:
Keep in mind a little of this product goes a very long way. Pat powder lightly on the area of application without dragging or tugging across skin. Laura recommends using her Camouflage Powder Brush which I agree makes any powder applied in the eye area look softer and less heavy while guarenteeing a soft and even application. It helps you get just the right amount applied. Secret Brightening Powder is great under the eye where allergies, stress, and lack of sleep show up quickly. Ideally this is used to set Laura’s Secret Brightener (a lightening brush wand highlighter), Secret Concealer (Laura’s fantastic under eye concealer), and/or Secret Camouflage (Laura’s famous and award winning camouflage coverup.)

Remember, if you get enough of anything packed on in one spot it will show up so only use a little bit. I recommend tapping the above mentioned brush into the fine film of powder on the inside of the lid. [With the lid in place, tip the jar upside down and then right side up again. When you remove the lid you’ll notice a fine film of powder there.] Rarely do I need more than this. Even though the container is smaller than the average face powder, it has lasted me a very long time even with constant use. I also use it to set creme shadows and eye shadow bases with the end result being a very `clean’ eye look that resists creases. The silky texture also makes applying powder eye shadow a dream! As a makeup artist I’ve used this powder all around the eyes of women of a broad range of skin tones (from pale Irish to deep African American) and different ages (from teen to great grandma) all having varying degrees of lines, bags, and dark circles and still got the same fabulous results every time. Secret Brightening Powder is also appropriate for all skin types. It’s rare that one product works well on everyone.

Finer Points:
-Micronized Pigments provide a soft weightless texture that won’t settle into lines . . . really.
-Silicone Polymers provide an out of this world, slippy, silky feel.
-White Transparent Pigment offers an invisible lightening effect on the skin without the look of ashiness. The formulation is so sheer that it works on any and all skin tones. Instantly opens up your eyes.

If you only want a hit of color and a natural, lightweight amount of coverage, this is the foundation for you. This tint can be worn alone but it’s best over your existing moisturizer, especially if you have even a tiny bit of dryness (you don’t want your skin to be drinking in makeup, do you?) This moisturizing formula will hydrate, soften, and impart a very healthy looking glow to the skin. Tinted Moisturizer is a great choice for women who want to look natural but still have a few things to cover because the look and feel are sheer and lightweight but it provides light to medium coverage. SPF 20 is a nice addition to help protect the skin from both UVB rays as well as some UVA rays.* On the scale of Laura Mercier’s foundations, Tinted Moisturizer provides the lightest coverage. Yet despite being so lightweight in look and feel, Tinted Moisturizer is extremely long wearing, stays color true all day long (a boon to oily skins) and wears evenly.

More than just a makeup product, Laura’s Tinted Moisturizer has a special “antioxidant vitamin complex that acts as a free radical scavenger to protect skin from even the most aggressive effects of the environment.* ” Who hoo! Bonus!

Notes on shade choices:
Being that it is difficult to render color accurately on a computer for the purpose of color swatches, the following notes should help you select the appropriate shade of Tinted Moisturizer. If you already use one of Laura’s foundations and know the color name, I made note of the approximate color of Tint you would likely use.
-VERY FAIR skin tones or those who use Laura’s Foundation in colors Porcelain Ivory or Blush Ivory would use Tinted Moisturizer - PORCELAIN
-FAIR TO LIGHT skin tones or those who use Laura’s foundation in the color Warm Ivory would use Tinted Moisturizer - NUDE
-LIGHT TO MEDIUM skin tones or those who use Laura’s Foundation in colors Sunny Beige or Vanilla Beige would use Tinted Moisturizer - SAND
-MEDIUM skin with PINK TONES or those who use Laura’s Foundation in colors Shell Beige or Vanilla Beige would use Tinted Moisturizer - FAWN (note-this is not super pink)
-MEDIUM skin tones or those who use Laura’s Foundation in colors Golden Beige or Honey Beige would use Tinted Moisturizer - ALMOND
-MEDIUM to DARK skin tones or those who use Laura’s Foundation in colors Suntan Beige or Sunset Beige would use Tinted Moisturizer - TAN
-DARKER skin tones or those who use Laura’s Foundation in colors Toffee Bronze or Deep Bronze would use Tinted Moisturizer - WALNUT

It’s quite normal to fall between two shades due to the infinite variety of skin tones and tan variations throughout the year. If this is the case for you, Laura recommends mixing those two shades together to get the perfect, custom match. Many of her clients do this. You’ll only use about half the amount of each shade when you mix (therefore each tube lasts you twice as long) so over the space of a year you don’t end up spending any more money on foundation than you would if you only purchased one color. Plus you get the bonus of precision matched color. Also, most of us tend to darken a bit in the summer and lighten up a bit in the winter at which point you’ll have just the right shade at your fingertips. Another trick I like with Laura’s Tinted Moisturizer is mixing a little of it with my oil-free foundation to get a slightly more natural looking finish or to slightly lighten or darken the color here as well.

Easy to Use:
Apply after skincare/moisturizer, using a downward motion with fingertips or a sponge. The downward blending motion helps to keep the foundation from getting under the very tiny, and nearly microscopic hairs we all grow on our faces. A sponge will help you apply the product more evenly than using your fingers. Laura makes a fantastic and machine washable version.

Tinted Moisturizer can be worn with or without Laura’s famous, award winning, and best selling Foundation Primer underneath. An application of Foundation Primer first will naturally extend the wear of Tinted Moisturizer especially for oilier skins or all skins in warmer/humid months. If you prefer a soft/slightly moist finish, set the Tint with a small amount of Translucent Loose Powder by lightly tapping with the side of the Powder Brush. For a more matte finish, set Tinted Moisturizer with Translucent Loose Powder or Pressed Setting Powder (which provides more coverage than loose) using the Laura’s wonderful and machine washable Powder Puff.

*While being SPF 20 (refers to UVB only), the active ingredients Laura uses in her Tinted Moisturizers do provide a small amount of UVA protection yet are not completely broad spectrum. All of Laura’s daytime Moisturizers provide SPF 15 in the form of titanium dioxide which is fully UVB and UVA protective. As a professional, freelance makeup artist, this is my preferred route. UVA/UVB sunscreen in a foundation makes it much thicker and can give the color a slightly `off `or `whitish cast. UVA/UVB sunscreen also reflects light and this shows up in pictures as `ghost face’ — a horror for brides when they get their pictures back. Having sunscreen in your moisturizer won’t have this same effect because you top it with foundation or powder which keeps the reflection at bay.

It seems everyone wants to plump their lips now a days and new products are constantly entering the marketplace to help do the job. If you don’t want to go through painful and expensive collagen injections, how effective are the myriad of topical products on the shelves and how do they work?

The way lip plumpers work is the cinnamon oils and sometimes ginger contained in the ingredients are common irritants to the skin. This irritation is amplified when placed on one of the thinnest skinned, and most sensitive areas of your body — your lips. The resulting stinging sensation is your lip letting you know there is an irritant on your lips. Your body’s natural response to this irritant is to send extra blood to the area of irritation to try to protect it from harm. The extra blood flow in the lip area, due to the irritation, is what makes your lips appear ‘fuller.’ Most lip plumpers on the market today work to ‘plump’ your lips through this process of irritation.

This whole wonderful process of irritation –> ‘blood flow increase’ is a an event you’re already familiar with and usally try to avoid — inflamation. The Marketing term is “lip plumping.” The medical term is “inflammation.” Po-tAy-toe, po-ta’-tO; tO-mAy-toe, tO-mah-toe — you be the judge.

The more cinnamon oil a lip plumper contains, the more irritated your lips will become and the fuller they will look. Because some products contain a relatively large amount of the cinnamon oil as an ingredient, they will make your lips look fuller in addition to causing above average irritation for this product category. Because of the irritation and subsequent blood flow increase, your lips will also look darker. There is a reason why everyone is talking about this stuff . . . it works the best when it irritates the most. Try it if you want something that will really work, just be forewarned.

While topical lip plumpers do work to make your lips look slightly fuller, don’t expect a miracle here, lip plumpers containing cinnamon oil are not for everyone. DO NOT put them on a dry or sensitive lip or the sensation will move from irritation to pure pain. God forbid you get this stuff in a cold sore, split lip, or any other open mouth wound or you will want to slice your lips off. You may not realize you have tiny, dry cracks in your lips until this stuff gets in there. Ouch! I find this especially irritating in the corners of the mouth.

If your new lip look generates some amorous advances and you find yourself kissed, you will transfer all this wonderful stuff, and all the irritating side effects, to your kissing partner. Whoops! Your gig is up! The illusion of sexy sensuality will all be shot as your kisser declares, “What’s that!? My lips are burning! I think I’m allergic to you!” Angelina Jolie you are not.

The ones that work, hurt the most. It’s up to you to decide if it’s worth it.

In the 1920s, the popular perfumes of the time were single flower scents like “Rose,” or “Jasmine” or “Lilly of the Valley.” The legendary designer Coco Chanel set out to create a perfume that would capture a woman’s personality in a way that a single flower scent never could and gave it a name, a package, and scent unlike anything experienced by the world. With a memory inducing aroma unlike any other before or since, Chanel No. 5 was one of the first scents to mix both raw natural scents with aldehydes or synthetic substitutes. This allows the perfumer to create scents never before experienced and not found in nature. Constructing No. 5 this way made the aroma unique and somewhat undefinable — both feminine and mysterious. It is a composite or abstract fragrance with no one single note stronger in the mix than the others. Because of this, Chanel No. 5 smells slightly different on each woman as her own unique personality is heightened as the fragrance makes its home. Even twins smell slightly different wearing No. 5.

The Chanel No. 5 packaging is instantly recognizable by its shape alone. Released in a time filled with ornate ornamental bottles, the No. 5 bottle was as revolutionary then as it remains timelessly modern today. The label and box are both simple and without color or ornamentation which only adds to its timeless appeal. This is a natural choice for the namesake perfume of the woman who made famous the essential “little black dress.”

Then there’s the name . . . sounding something closer to an ingredient in a chemistry set or a description in one of the popular catalogues of the time, Chanel gave her fragrance a name that eschewed all naming conventions. This played directly into her unique `launch strategy.’ Instead of the grand, multimillion dollar campaign blitzes of today, Chanel spritzed her perfume in the air of her boutiques and gave tiny bottles away as gifts to her best clients and friends. When they would ask what it was or where it came from, she would nonchalantly reply she’d “discovered it by chance at a little perfumers who’s name [she’d] forgotten” or that it was just “a little something she’d had made up as a gift.” When her clients asked for more to purchase she would innocently reply “But I don’t sell perfume, my dear!” Made popular by word-of-mouth and the exclusivity of the fact it could not be bought, soon clients began to demand that Chanel sell the fragrance. When demand reached the desired height, Chanel `granted” their wish. Of course, this was Chanel’s plan all along.

Chanel did everything her own way and created a unique bottle, packaging, name, and scent. In this way she made all other fragrances look old, dated, and even obsolete and set a standard so unique that no one since, even till today, can not emulate for fear of looking like a copy. She also is responsible for all those places, you know the ones, where we all dab our perfume. She famously told women to apply No. 5 anywhere they wanted to be kissed . . . .

“Because I love women, I wanted them to be comfortable in my clothes, to be able to drive a car. I wanted to create dresses that emphasized their femininity, that follow the shape of their body. When she is well-dressed, a woman is almost more naked than when she is undressed. I want to give her an artificial perfume, I mean artificial like a dress, in other words, created. I am a craftsman of couture. I don’t want roses or lilly of the valley, I want a perfume that is a composition.” — Mademoiselle Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel

Chanel No. 5’s mix of notes is so diverse and because no one single note is dominant, the fragrance smells simultaneously floral, fruity, warm and velvety, and just a little something undefinable. Although the perfume consists of more than just these plus large quantities of those mysterious aldehydes, here are the notes Chanel No. 5 is most famous for: Ylang-Ylang from the Comoros, Neroli (Seville Orange Blossom) from Grasse, exclusive Aldehydes, Grasse Jasmine, May Rose, Sandal from Mysore, Vetiver from Reunion, and Bourbon Vanilla. A “Eau de Toilette,” French for “toilet water” or “water of toiletries” is a watered down version of the pure fragrance. An Eau de Parfum is typically diluted with water to enable spritzing while an Eau de Toilette has been watered down and diluted with both water and alcohol to make the fragrance more economical for purchase. The high alcohol content is why all Eau de Toilettes have a strong alcohol like scent when sniffed directly from the bottle. One must try them on the skin to discern their true nature. Expect after spritzing to give the alcohol in an Eau de Toilette time to evaporate off the skin before the complex richness of the scent can be best discerned.

People who take the time to vote are usually concerned citizens –> concerned citizens who participate in the political process usually work for a living –> most people who work have 9-to-5-ish type jobs –> 9-5ers would need to go vote early before work or vote after they get off –> some 9-5ers with politically-minded employers would be given 1/2 day off’s to go vote = vote at time > 9-5ers arrive at work but < time 1/2 day off-ers would arrive at polls. I left my house at 9:30 am.

After a brisk walk 5 short blocks, (Leonardo DiCaprio would be so proud I didn’t take my car!) I arrived at the Baptist church that serves as my polling location. The whole process from start to finish took a whole 15 minutes! I wore my “Boys are Smelly” T-shirt printed with a wide-eyed, pale-faced cartoon boy surrounded by ’smell’ lines and underscored with the words “boys are smelly” because I thought the juxtaposition would be humorous with the same person wearing a “boys are smelly” T-shirt and an “I Voted!” sticker. I also wore the new jeans I bought myself as an early birthday present and a pair of flip flops . . . .

I stood in a very short and quickly moving line behind a woman slightly younger than myself - wearing flip-flops, and in front of a man slightly older then me - not wearing flip flops. The poll worker who checked my name on the rolls had three gold-tone, jeweled rings on each finger of each hand including her thumb and four rings on her index fingers! So stylish! The right hand had a ‘red jewel’ theme and the left hand had a ‘diamond type jewel’ theme. She got a big kick out of my “Boys are Smelly” T-shirt and even read it out loud for her own amusement. Reading it in the form of a question, (Boys are smelly?) she gave a hearty laugh. “Mmmmm, child.” It was electronic voting this year so I was given instructions for using the computer.

When I finished voting, I picked up the aforementioned sticker and was on my way. Outside I passed three women wearing comfortable shoes who also gave my “boys are smelly” T-shirt admiring looks and walked home with the feeling that participating in the political process today was a small part of a very important idea.

Registering was easy back then, though with the campaigns to promote the new “easy” ways to vote we have now, “Motor Voter,” for example, you’d think it used to be difficult. The summer of my 18th birthday I simply drove up to the local library and requested a form. The librarian had me present my driver’s license and then take an oath of some sort, I don’t remember what, it’s been a while. Come to think of it, it wasn’t so easy. At first she handed my license back to me and told me I wasn’t old enough to register; I had to be 18 and I was only 17 at the time. When I told her that I would turn 18 the day before the election she told me that I would have to register on my birthday, then. Knowing this to not be the case, my dad had prepped me in advance, I had her check the form. The eligibility section said something to the effect that one could register if one would turn 18 within 6 months. I was three months away from that date because I was hoping to register early enough to receive my voter registration card in the mail - which I carried in my wallet for some time after. After realizing her error, I was registered. Being that 18 year olds usually don’t come out in force to vote I’ll forgive her in this case.