Day: April 28, 2019

April 28, 2019 at 12:19PM by CWC What is Beltane? The ancient Gaelic holiday is all about the rise of the feminine—and its astrological cross-currents this year could have you, ahem, on *edge*. (Especially since we’re already living through an epic mad-as-hell era.) Never fear, astrologer Jennifer Racioppi is here with her best guidance on how to make this all work for you, for a cosmically kickass week.  On May 1, we celebrate Beltane. Beltane, a Gaelic holiday, honors the transition from a time of seasonal feminine when there are limited foods available to harvest, into a cycle of tremendous fertility and growth. Beltane invites play, freedom, fun, and festivity. The transition from barren land into one of fervent growth symbolically represents the rise of the feminine. Astrologically speaking though, as we step into May we do so with Mercury, which rules communication, in a challenging position, asking you to look at the shadow of growth too. This year’s cross-quarter holiday of Beltane invites you to release pent-up feminine anger. Primal screams are not only allowed, often they are downright justified. Mercury in Aries makes an abrupt and challenging square to the retrograde planet’s Saturn and Pluto, further highlighting the need to examine how you are showing up for yourself (and others) so you can release that which isn’t working. Mercury conjoins Eris, a dwarf planet of discord, suggesting that in addition to fun, the cross-quarter holiday of Beltane also invites you to release pent-up feminine anger, too. With so

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April 28, 2019 at 08:00AM by CWC Lots of uninvited things can spring up on your face at any given time. In my personal facial real estate, I’ve had whiteheads, cystic acne, hormonal breakouts, a lady mustache, hyperpigmentation spots, and a stray chin hair or two (#blessup). The good thing is that I can identify these intruders so I can then quash them before they take over my face. Well, all of them except for one: blackheads. I consider blackheads to be the most confounding skin situation, mainly because I’m not sure what the heck they are. Since whiteheads are a type of breakout, are blackheads acne too? Do you treat them like acne or stick with those nose strips to pull everything off your face? Where do they come from? Clearly I have a lot of questions about these elusive suckers, and I’m sure I’m not the only one. So, I asked a dermatologist to help—excuse the pun— clear things up: “Basically, blackheads are a precursor of acne,” Shirley Chi, MD, a board-certified dermatologist in California, tells me. “It means that the pores are clogged and that debris is blocking the opening to the surface of the skin, which is a set-up for bacteria such as P. Acnes to grow.” Since they’re the step right before getting acne, Dr. Dennis Gross, a New York dermatologist and founder of Dennis Gross Skincare, says they do classify as a form of it. “Blackheads are the first step in the chain of events

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April 28, 2019 at 06:00AM by CWC Salad tossing. Rimming. Ass eating. Kissing the (chocolate) starfish. Almond joying. Booty jobbing. Motorbutting. The very fact that there are so many nicknames for anilingus—which, at its most basic, involves some M-to-B action—points to a cultural curiosity around oral anal sex. Carrie Bradshaw declared in an episode of Sex and the City, “The ass is now on the menu.” And since then, other pop-culture faves, like Girls, Broad City, and Nicki Minaj’s “Anaconda” video, have made sure that no matter the season, a tossed salad can always be (ahem) ordered. According to Evan Goldstein, MD, CEO and founder of Bespoke Surgical, a sexual-wellness company specializing in anal-related health, sex acts involving the booty (and anilingus in particular) is becoming increasingly common. “I’m noticing that the younger demographic is much more open to sexual exploration of this part of the body,” he says. As one Reddit user puts it, “eating ass and avocado—it’s the millennial diet.” While there isn’t super-recent data to back up that observation, one 2008 study of 1,400 heterosexual men found that within 30 days, 24 percent had performed anilingus on their female partners, and 15 percent had received it. And, TBH, these numbers are surprisingly low considering the volume of memes (we see you, Barstool) and pop-culture references surrounding the practice. So while ass eating may be pretty mainstream in certain facets of media, IRL, people seem to be a bit more hesitant. My friends, for instance, have questions about how

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April 28, 2019 at 04:00AM by CWC As Elle Woods once wisely said, “Exercise gives you endorphins, endorphins make you happy, and happy people just don’t shoot their husbands.” Less dramatic translation? Working out is great for relieving stress. Whether you’re going for a walk around the block or doing 50 burpees in a row at the hands of an intense bootcamp instructor, movement of any kind really does help you to chill out and boost your mood. A 2013 study called the beneficial effects of exercise to be “indisputable,” which I can confirm to be true. Certain types of physical activity help to raise your serotonin levels, which, in turn, boosts your mood. So, see? Exercise really does make you happy. Yet, as those of us living as part of the burnout generation know too well, not all types of stress are created equal. There’s the general stress you feel on a daily basis when you’re being run down at work, there’s frustration, which can make you want to throw a punch or two, and then, of course, there’s that “nervous energy” you feel ahead of a big event that makes you sweat through your shirt. No matter what kind of stress you’re experiencing, exercise can help—and to maximize your time, I’ve rounded up the best workouts for every type of stress. For ongoing stress: Assisted stretching If your life has got you in a constant stress cycle (work! chores! relationships! adulting!), relieving some of the tension in your

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