| How to Organize a White Elephant Gift Exchange Posted: 27 Nov 2016 04:00 PM PST A white elephant gift exchange is a lighthearted way to have fun with your work colleagues, or at family gatherings. "White elephants" are traditionally presents that are undesireable but one cannot turn down: extremely tacky, nearly useless, silly or weird. In white elephant gift exchanges the goal is really to have fun. Most is to give everyone a chance to rid themselves of these tacky gifts—and invariably gain a new one! White elephant gift exchanges can be run different ways. Some set rules that the item must be previously owned, which means that you are re-gifting an unwanted item or trinket. Others purchase a new, (generally inexpensive), item just for the party. The goal is to choose wacky, funny or entertaining gifts. Some encourage a mix of wacky gifts, and sensible if generic ones--after all, one person's trash is another person's treasure! EditBasic Gameplay - Set the rules for your group. Is this a re-gift party or are folks supposed to buy something new? How much can they spend? Make sure everyone understands the rules like whether they have to buy new things or not, and up to how much can they spend on the gift. You don't want one person to get a brand new video game console and another person to get a used pen protector.
- Find that perfect white elephant gift. Get it gift wrapped or wrap the gift yourself, and bring it to the party stealthily. And feel free to have some fun with this.
- Feel free to do a really silly wrapping job. Use plain brown paper, or even just stick it in a plain mailing envelope.
- Do something silly. Feel free to wrap it with a different holidy theme than expected.
- If you enjoy wrapping, feel free to do an excellent job. Go overboard, do every elaborate flourish.
- Some great "White Elephant Gift" Ideas. If you're having trouble coming up with a gift that is both off-the-wall and appropriate, consider these gift ideas:
- Hideous jewelry
- Perfume or lotion with an unpleasant scent.
- Cheap, ugly statues or other decorative knick-knacks.
- An obnoxious T-shirt, sweater, tie, or bow-tie.
- Workout videos, particularly those with Richard Simmons.
- A framed picture of your boss, (perhaps autographed) but only if the boss has a good sense of humor.
- Be secretive about your gift. The idea is for people to not know who the gift is coming from. Once you get to work, place the gift into a gift box along with all the other gifts.
- Write out consecutive numbers on small pieces of paper. Make numbers for however many people are participating in the gift exchange. For example, if there are 15 people participating, write out the numbers 1 through 15 on small pieces of paper, fold them once or twice, and throw them into a small bowl or bag.
- Have everyone draw a number. The number will signify the order in which they choose a gift.
- Begin with the person who draws #1. The first person chooses any wrapped gift in the gift box and opens it. Their turn ends. The first player will be given the option to exchange gifts with another player at the very end.
- Have the next person choose whether they want to steal a previously-opened gift or choose an unopened gift from the gift box.
- A person who has his/her gift stolen from them gets to either steal a gift from someone else or choose a replacement gift from the gift box.
- You cannot immediately steal back the gift that was stolen from you. You must wait at least one round before stealing back a gift that was once in your possession.
- A gift cannot be stolen more than once a turn.
- Repeat in order of number. The person with the next-highest number either chooses a gift from the gift box or steals a gift from someone else. People who have gifts stolen can choose a gift out of the gift box or steal items that have not yet been stolen that round.
EditVariations - Agree on and implement as many variations to the game as desired. There are lots of variation to the white elephant gift exchange. Look through a couple and decide which ones you want to implement before the game begins.
 - Mark gifts as gender-appropriate, where possible. Label a gift male-appropriate, female-appropriate, or unisex.
- Cards containing instructions can be wrapped up to look like presents and placed into the gift box. The instructions contain rules such as "Recipient of this card chooses two presents, opens them both, and places one back into the gift box," or "Recipient of this card chooses a gift and cannot have their gift stolen." If you choose to work with these cards, be mindful of two things:
- People who make cards with instructions have to bring both a card and a gift. There won't be enough gifts to go around if people who write cards fail to bring gifts.
- Cards with instructions are tougher to implement if you choose to open the gifts at the very end. Obviously, it's impossible to "open two gifts and choose one" if you don't open the presents until the end.
- The first player may be given the option to exchange gifts with another player at the very end. Because the first player doesn't have the option of stealing, they might be given it at the very end. This option works best when presents remain unopened until the very end; otherwise, the first player has a distinct advantage.
- Experiment with stealing. There are many different variations on stealing in a white elephant gift exchange. Play around with a couple different variants.
- An item that is stolen three times becomes frozen. After an item changes hands three times, it can no longer be stolen, and stays with the third person who stole it. Be sure to keep track of how many times an item is stolen on a notepad to avoid confusion.
- Alternately, a limit can be placed on the number of times a person is stolen from (instead of the number of times an item is stolen). If you set the limit at three, for example, an item can be stolen however many times, so long as it's stolen from someone who hasn't reached his or her limit of three.
- Place a limit on the number of steals per turn. If, for example, you limit the stealing to three gifts per turn, after the third gift is stolen, the player whose gift was just stolen must choose a gift from the gift box.
- If you are hosting a white elephant party, you may want to choose a particular theme such as "home décor you no longer use" or "unusual tools." If your group is used to white elephant parties, this will make a fun new challenge.
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| How to Have a Relaxing Spa Day at Home Posted: 27 Nov 2016 08:00 AM PST Having a spa day at home can be just as relaxing and beautifying as a day spent somewhere expensive. Pick a day when you won't have any interruptions, turn off your cell, and light some candles to set the scene. Then take a long, hot bath, give yourself a facial and complete the day with a mani/pedi. EditTaking a Restorative Bath - Draw a hot bath. Fill your tub with water at just the right temperature, whether you like it piping hot or just this side of warm. While the tub is filling, dim the lights and light some candles. Beyond that, you can help yourself relax even further by doing a few of your favorite things. For example,
- Pour yourself a glass of wine or make a cup of tea to enjoy while you soak. If you are a kid, you can pour yourself a glass of hot chocolate, apple juice,grape juice, fruit punch or just some water!
- Put on your favorite music.
- Light some incense.
- Set out a fluffy towel or bathrobe.
- Add bath salts, essential oils and other ingredients to the water. This is a great way to enhance your bath and give you the benefits of aromatherapy as well. You don't have to limit yourself to bath salts. Feel free to add bubble bath, bath oils, bath beads, bath bombs, and anything else that helps you relax.
- If you want, you could add milk and oatmeal to your bath, since these have a moisturizing effect and are great for dry skin.
- Or try adding almond oil, jojoba oil or even a spoonful of coconut oil. You'll come out of the bath with baby-soft skin.
- Try a skin mask. At a spa you might be offered a choice between a seaweed mask and a mud mask. The former isn't easy to do at home, but you can easily make yourself a "mud" mask using cosmetic clay. After it sits on your skin for a few minutes, you rinse it off. It leaves your skin feeling refreshed and smooth.
- Mix up ½ cup of cosmetic clay and of water to make a thick paste.
- Rub it over your arms, legs and torso.
- Allow it to dry while your bath is running.
- Rinse it off in the bath.
- Massage your sore muscles as you soak. With all the hard work you do between spa days, you might have a sore back, legs, arms or neck. Take time to knead your muscles with your fingers to loosen yourself up in the warm water.
- Exfoliate your skin. Use a loofah or a body scrub to completely exfoliate your arms, legs, and torso. Your skin will feel soft, smooth and healthy when you get out of the tub.
- Use gentle circular motions to slough off the dead skin.
- If you'd like, shave your legs and other body parts after you exfoliate.
- Dry your skin and apply a nourishing lotion. Use a towel to pat your skin dry, then seal in the moisture by applying a lotion or body cream to your arms, legs, and torso. After your body is covered in lotion, put on your bathrobe to give it time to absorb into your skin before you get dressed.
EditGiving Yourself a Facial - Gently exfoliate your face. Wet it with warm water and use a washcloth or a facial brush to scrub away the dead skin. Be sure to use a gentle circular motion instead of applying pressure, since your facial skin is sensitive and could stretch and wrinkle if you handle it roughly.
- Facial scrubs also work well. Buy one at the store or make your own by mixing up the following ingredients: olive oil, 1 tablespoon ground almonds or ground oatmeal, and 1 teaspoon water. Use it to scrub your face, then rinse it off with warm water.
- Give yourself a steam treatment. Fill a small pot with water and heat it on the stove until it begins to steam. Drape a towel over the back of your head and hold your head over the pot to allow the steam to caress your face. Hold it there for two to three minutes to get the full benefits of the steam.
- Be sure not to hold your face so close that it feels extremely hot. Your face should feel very warm, but not uncomfortably hot.
- Increase the pleasure of a facial steam by adding a few drops of essential oil to the pot. Lavender, tea tree oil and rose oil all have a relaxing effect.
- Do a face mask. Doing masks at home is a lot of fun, and they leave your face as soft as a baby's skin. Use a facial mask from the store or mix up a recipe using household ingredients. Apply it to your face for fifteen minutes, then wash it away. Here are a few popular mask options:
- For dry skin: Mix 1 teaspoon honey and 1 teaspoon olive oil and
- For regular skin: Mix 1 teaspoon honey and 1 smashed banana
- For oily skin: Mix 1 teaspoon honey and 1 teaspoon cosmetic clay
- Moisturize your face. Trap in the moisture from your facial treatments using a good cream on your face to end the process. You can use either a storebought cream or a little facial oil, like jojoba, argan, or almond oil. These oils balance your skin without causing acne.
- If your skin is very dry, use coconut oil. However, if you're prone to getting clogged pores, coconut oil might lead to pimples.
EditDoing a Mani and Pedi - Remove your old polish. Start with a clean slate by removing the old nail polish from your fingernails and toenails. Use acetone-free nail polish remover if possible, since acetone dries out your nails.
- Soak your fingers. Prepare a bowl of warm water and soak them for five minutes with your nails completely submerged. This will soften the nails and cuticles to make them easier to shape.
- Don't use oils or soaps in the bowl of warm water. It's better to use plain water so there won't be residue on your fingers when you paint them.
- Trim and file your nails. Use fingernail clippers or scissors to shape each of your nails into crescent shapes, rounding off the edges. Use a nail file to smooth rough spots and even out the shapes, so that all of your nails look professionally trimmed.
- Push back your cuticles. Take a cuticle pusher or orange stick and gently push back your cuticles so they're no longer visible on your nails. Be very gentle, and do not rip or trim the cuticles, since you need them in place to protect your fingers from infection.
- Apply your polish. A good manicure has at least three coats: a base coat, a color, and a topcoat. Some people like to apply more than one color coat to ensure maximum coverage. Let your nails dry completely between coats to prevent smudging.
- The best method for painting your nails neatly is to paint one stroke on either side, then fill in the middle.
- If you want to paint a design on your nails, do it after the color coat, then add the top coat last to seal it in.
- Soak and exfoliate your feet. Feet often get neglected in daily care, but this is your spa day, so take the time to do it right! Soak your feet in the tub or in a bowl filled with warm water. If your feet are dry or callused, use a pumice stone to remove the rough spots.
- Some tough calluses need extra help coming off. Try a callus shaver or another instrument designed to remove dry skin.
- Trim and polish your toenails. Shape your toenails with clippers, making sure to round off the edges to prevent ingrown toenails. Either go all out and do a three-coat pedicure, or simply apply a coat of clear polish to protect and enhance your toenails.
- Be careful when applying the facial mask; don't get it too close to your eyes.
- Read the warning labels on the body scrub. Some are not okay for children.
- Never use peppermint essential oils. It makes you very, very cold.
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| How to Get a Blood Test Posted: 27 Nov 2016 12:00 AM PST Doctors order blood tests for a variety of reasons. This is because there is almost no better indicator of overall health than the number of levels and other factors that can be measured through a blood test. Unfortunately, for many people taking a blood test is a very nerve racking and uncomfortable thing to do. Not only is someone sticking a needle into your veins and causing you pain, but they're extracting blood (sometimes in large quantities) from you before your eyes. Thankfully, having your blood taken is a relatively short event. It'll be over quickly, and afterwards you'll be able to rest assured knowing that your doctor will have important information about your health. EditGetting a Blood Work Order - Talk to your doctor. The best person to determine if your signs or symptoms demand a blood test is your doctor. If you need one, she will prescribe it and provide you with a blood work order.
- If your doctor orders blood work, make sure you have it done as soon as possible.
- If you're afraid or anxious about the blood work itself or the potential results of the blood test, talk to your doctor. She can reassure you — the best way to treat what is causing you heath issues is to identify the problem. The results of your blood test can help you begin proper treatment.
- Make sure to listen to and talk to your doctor about any special instructions and things you may need to do before the blood is taken.
- Discuss blood work with a nutritionist. You might need your blood work ordered for non-medical purposes. One of these purposes is to ascertain if your diet and nutrition is what it should be to support your overall health. In this instance, consult a nutritionist and see if he wants to order blood work to determine your vitamin and mineral levels and to find out if you have any deficiencies that should be addressed. You might consult a nutritionist in the case of:[1]
- Pregnancy
- The advice of a medical professional
- You have diabetes, absorption abnormalities, and/or food sensitivities/allergies
- If you are a vegetarian, vegan, or subscribe to any other non-traditional diet
- Talk about potential blood work with a sports medicine doctor. If you're an athlete, suffer from certain muscular problems, or have suffered some sort of muscular injury, your sports medicine doctor might also order blood work. Blood work can tell your sports medicine doctor a lot of information about muscular health and potential problems like arthritis and similar afflictions. Ultimately, your sports medicine doctor will be the best person to decide if you need blood work related to skeletal and muscular health.[2]
- Consult with your naturopathic specialist about blood work. Naturopathic specialists or doctors combine natural remedies and medical science to treat an array of afflictions. Depending on the reason you are consulting a naturopathic specialist, he or she might order blood work to help them determine how to treat you. Naturopathic doctors might order blood work in order to help them determine:[3]
- Gluten intolerance
- The treatment of headaches
- Hormonal imbalance
- An array of other problems
- Have your blood tested without a medical professional. Today, many labs are increasingly allowing individuals to have their blood drawn and tested without an order or prescription from a medical professional. If you for some reason want to have your blood tested, you may be able to find a lab that will test your blood without any blood work order. For more information, contact local blood testing labs in your area. Just because you have this option, however, does not mean you should do it; getting your blood tested without the help of a medical professional is not recommended. Consider the following:
- If you order your own blood work, you won't have the ability to have a doctor interpret it for you and then prescribe a treatment, if needed. Many tests need to be interpreted by a medical professional.
- Information on the internet is not always credible. You may want to get your blood drawn and use information you found online to interpret the results but, this is not a reliable way to read test results.
- Even if you read the test results correctly, you may be unable to get the treatment necessary without a doctor to write a prescription.
- Some labs only offer a handful of blood tests without a doctor-prescribed blood work order.
- This service might not be available in your area.[4]
EditHaving Your Blood Drawn - Prepare for your blood test. Depending on the type of blood work your doctor or other medical professional has ordered, there are a number of things you need to do to prepare for the test. This is necessary to make sure that the diagnostics performed on your blood provide accurate data. Some preparations could include:
- Not eating or drinking for up to 12 hours.
- Discontinue use of certain medications.
- Other preparations as ordered by your doctor.[5]
- Take your prescription to a hospital or lab. After your doctor has evaluated whether you need blood work or not, take your prescription to a hospital or lab. You'll likely wind up at a specific lab that specializes in collecting blood work and other specimens from people. The lab will either run the blood there or send it off to a central location for testing. [6]
- Provide the phlebotomists with information. When you are called in at the lab or hospital, a phlebotomist (a person trained to extract blood from patients) will sit you down and may ask you questions. Cooperate with the phlebotomist. She is not there to cause you trouble or to harass you. The phlebotomist is just doing her job. Questions she might ask you could be for a variety of reasons, including:[7]
- To verify your identity
- To find out if you have allergies to latex
- To calm you down or relax you
- Relax your arm. When the phlebotomist goes to take your blood, you need to relax your arm. Try to stay relaxed, otherwise the phlebotomist will have a tougher time finding your vein and taking your blood. Staying rigid and not relaxing could cause unneeded pain to yourself and exacerbate an already uncomfortable situation.
- Do not clench your muscles.
- Your palm should be facing up.
- Let the phlebotomist draw your blood. After you relax your arm, the phlebotomist will then draw your blood. Ultimately, this is the moment you've been waiting for. The actual blood being drawn won't take too long, so relax.
- The phlebotomist will locate a vein from which to take blood, then clean the area with an alcohol swab.
- The phlebotomist will create and tie a tourniquet on the arm to help blood collect.
- The phlebotomist will position the needle at a 15 degree angle and stick it into your skin.
- You'll feel a slight stinging, but nothing significant.
- The blood being drawn will take from 30 seconds to a couple of minutes, depending on how much blood and how many samples (tubes) the phlebotomist needs to take.[8]
- Avoid making yourself anxious. As the phlebotomist is drawing your blood, try to avoid doing things that might cause you anxiety, and push negative thoughts aside. If the sight of blood makes you feel faint, don't look at the blood being drawn out of your arm. If you're fascinated by it, feel free to look. Just remember, this is a normal and necessary procedure that needs to be done to determine your health. The blood drawing procedure itself won't hurt you.[9]
- Close your eyes and hum if that helps.
- Think about something else if you get anxious.
- Joke with the phlebotomist or talk about anything but the fact that blood is being drawn out of your arm.
EditKnowing Why You Should Get a Blood Test - Get a blood test for routine monitoring. It is recommended that most people have blood work run every year or two to monitor their blood levels and other vitals. As a result, blood work is often ordered as a part of routine annual physical exams. Ultimately, blood work is one of the only ways to determine if a person's health is stable or failing. Some important levels that bloodwork monitor include:
- Blood sugar levels. Blood sugar levels can indicate the onset of diabetes or other metabolic disorders and diseases.
- Cholesterol levels. Cholesterol levels are indicative of cardiovascular system health.
- Red and white blood cell levels. These are indicative of your overall immune system's health.[10]
- Have a blood test if you have an unidentifiable illness or pain. Often times doctors will order blood work if you have been ill and they have been unable to identify the cause of your illness or if you have been experiencing pain and the source cannot be identified. In this case, blood work will help your doctor figure out what is causing your sickness or pain and then prescribe the appropriate medication or treatment to treat you. [11]
- Run your bloodwork if you've been exposed to dangerous contagions. One reason why you might need blood work is if you've somehow been exposed to a viral or bacterial contagion. In this event, your doctor will order blood work in order to determine if you've contracted an illness and what type of illness you have contracted. Some examples of contagions that a doctor might order blood work for include:
- Hepatitis
- Mononucleosis
- Bacterial infections — A blood test might be able to help your doctor determine what bacteria is causing your sickness.
- Other rare viral infections
- Check your blood for other potentially life-threatening ailments. Sometimes people exhibit signs or symptoms of life-threatening diseases or other ailments. One of the only ways to determine if you've contracted one of these diseases is to have blood work done. Such ailments include:[12]
- Cancer
- Diabetes
- Thyroid disease
- Kidney disease
- Liver disease
- Pancreatic malfunction
- Gall bladder dysfunction
- Submit to a blood test for drugs or other controlled substances. Sometimes doctors or employers will have blood work ordered in order to determine if employees have taken illicit drugs or other controlled substances in the recent past (though a urine-based DNA gas analysis test is usually more accurate and commonly used). In the case that an employer orders a test, he will refer the employee to a doctor who will order the blood work. Blood tests can detect many types of controlled substances, including:[13]
- Amphetamines
- PCP
- Marijuana
- Cocaine
- Opiates
- Test your blood for various non-life threatening reasons. Doctors will order blood work for a variety of non-life threatening reasons. Ultimately, there are a large variety of reasons a doctor will want to order blood work. As the best indicator of overall health and genetic makeup, blood tests are invaluable for such monitoring. Some reasons include:
- Testing for pregnancy
- Testing for vitamin or mineral deficiencies
- Genetic testing
- Thyroid level testing
- Amino acid level testing
- Any time the skin is pierced allows for risk of infection, as our skin is the first layer of defense against infections. Piercing the skin breaks the barrier. Keeping the site clean and and dry will help avoid infection. Signs of infection can be redness, swelling, pus/drainage from the insertion site, fever and general weakness and/or fatigue.
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