Category: City

May 15, 2019 at 03:00PM by CWC When Apple rolled out its tepidly anticipated reaction feature for iMessage back in 2016, it made more of a ripple than a full-blown wave in the realm of digital communication. iPhone users were marginally enthused about the fireworks and invisible ink features for a mere iOS 10 seconds (ha, get it?) before returning to their normally scheduled appsturbation. Flash forward three years, however, and the tides, they are a-changing. The mini-innovations have gained traction, and not just in the form of HBD wishes that turn into confetti: Now, if sexting is the dirty talk of virtual connection, reactions are officially the body language for how to flirt over text. For context regarding WTF I’m talking about (you mean you aren’t employing the “!” reaction as a form of foreplay yet?), I shall offer up a sexample. Let’s say someone you’ve been hooking up with texts that they’d like to try, say, pegging. You could shoot back a flirty, cheeky message written in all in letters, or an eggplant emoji,  or (or!) you could go with a subtle, yet evocative thumbs-up reaction. I know it may not seem groundbreaking at first blush, but when you consider it’s pretty much the digital equivalent of someone angling their feet toward you in real life (a surefire body-language sign that someone’s flirting), it seems like the start of a smartphone-era episode of Sex and the City. Zhana Vrangalova, PhD, sexpert for luxury sex-toy brand LELO, draws a

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May 14, 2019 at 11:07AM by CWC It took me 27 years to be in what I would consider a long-term relationship. Although I met my boyfriend—who is, by the way, 31 and also had not previously been in a “serious” relationship—when I was 25, we weren’t really, truly committed until recently. My lack of success on the stable-relationship front wasn’t for lack of effort. I dated pretty prolifically throughout my twenties—I even wrote a whole book about the ins and outs of modern dating, which turned into a tome about the all-too-common phobia of commitment in the contemporary landscape. I dated many mehs, some maybes, and a few suitors with real potential, but between career shifts, moves, general immaturity, and a lack of mutual sustained interest, none of the flings blossomed into a long-term situation. And for years, I wondered how much of it was my fault. Was something wrong with me? Was I not choosing correctly? Or was everyone else and their commitment issues the problem? The only thing I knew for sure was that I was confused. I constantly heard from friends and loved ones that I’m smart, attractive, and fun to be around, and that I should have zero problems securing a lasting relationship. But of course, those well-intentioned affirmations meant to gas me up only made me feel worse about my lack of success in the love sphere. What made me feel better was learning I wasn’t alone: While writing my book, I spoke with

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May 08, 2019 at 10:04AM by CWC When a stubborn blackhead is staring you in the face, and that pore strip you used has exhausted its efforts, don’t panic and try your best to mute the voice in your head telling you to pick at it. Thankfully, there is another way to get it out. First things first, assess the situation. Are we dealing with an actual blackhead here, or is it a sebaceous filament? “Sebum is usually a white-ish color, and when it gets exposed to oxygen for a period of time, it oxidizes and turns dark,” says New York City dermatologist Dendy Engelman, MD. In other words, they’re very clearly black in comparison to the sebum you’ll notice occupying the rest of your pores. Once you’ve identified the source, clean the area with your favorite face wash, arm yourself with a comedone extractor—we like the double-ended version from Sephora ($17)—and use either a warm compress or steam to help the blackhead surface. “Heat softens up the contents and dilates the pore opening, so applying a warm compress makes it easier to extract the blackhead,” explains Dr. Engelman. “Use alcohol to cleanse the tip of the comedone extractor, then gently apply pressure to the area.” Don’t drag or scrape the tool over your face, and remember the less-is-more mantra in terms of applying overall pressure. You certainly never want to do is bruise or damage the skin, which is highly possible if you’re pressing too hard and manipulating one

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May 03, 2019 at 04:00PM by CWC You know how your mom always said, “Breakfast is the most important meal of the day?” Well, she was on to something. According to this new study in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, skipping breakfast could be bad for your ticker. The results found that of the nearly 7,000 people it surveyed over a period of roughly 20 years, those who didn’t eat breakfast had an increased risk of mortality from cardiovascular disease. The first thing that came to our minds when reading this story: What does this mean if you adhere to an intermittent fasting-style eating plan? After all, many plans limit a person’s food intake during certain times of the day or on certain days of the week, depending on the particular plan—which can often translate into skipping a morning meal. Looking at the study with this question in mind, there’s one problem—it didn’t examine any people who were on an intermittent fasting diet. “The study says for the general population following a standard US type of diet, that those who skipped breakfast had an increased risk of dying from heart disease later in life. As this study did not examine any sort of intermittent fasters, it is tough to make a comparison between the two groups,” says Toby Amidor, MS, RD, an award-winning nutrition expert and Wall Street Journal best selling cookbook author of The Healthy Meal Prep Cookbook. Another thing: Although the study found an association

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May 01, 2019 at 05:00AM by CWC I got my first period at the underripe age of 10. I looked down into my sparkly, frog-print underwear from Limited Too one night, and there she was. I immediately started sobbing. By that point, I had already spent hours of my life poring over Judy Blume’s The Care and Keeping of You in anticipation of this exact moment, but even so, when push came to flow, I was confused, horrified, and embarrassed. Holy hell, was I embarrassed. Even though I was the only girl I knew who had been wearing deodorant and a training bra for two-plus years, I still figured I was years (light-years, even!) away from having to deal with cramps and mood swings and panty liners. After all, the average age for getting a first period is 12-and-a-half…guess I was advanced. Ugh. Aside from my mom, I didn’t tell a soul. I didn’t want to divert my friends’ attention from blissfully decorating their Lisa Frank Trapper Keepers and learning the since-forgotten art of cursive. I didn’t want anyone to know my mom had to teach me how to use tampons during spring break so I could take my cool new tankini for a spin in the water without the scene looking like an outtake from Jaws. I wanted total anonymity because I felt like a freak. For years. Even when the rest of my friends eventually got their periods, I never got totally comfortable with the notion of my

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April 28, 2019 at 10:00AM by CWC When I was younger, eating baked pears for dessert felt fancier than any fruit pie or cookie. And when the holidays rolled around and someone sent a box of Comice pears wrapped in gold foil? Talk about luxury. Aside from special occasions, pears are just as worthy of your diet as apples, a fellow pome fruit. Comparisons often fly and while one grocery mainstay (cough, apples) tends to overshadow the other, the high-fiber, heart-healthy pear can stand on its own both in taste and nutritional value. Here are some benefits of pears that will have you saying “A pear a day keeps the doctor away” at first bite. What are the biggest pear benefits? Bosc, Bartlett, Red Anjou, oh my! Does it matter which kind you go for? Generally, the nutrients will be similar from pear to pear, but antioxidants are a bit different. Shapiro says you’ll get various antioxidants if you eat a red pear versus a green one, so don’t be afraid to mix it up. And no matter what kind of pear you go for, they all have the following health benefits: 1. Pears are a great source of fiber. Newsflash: Most of us are dropping the ball when it comes to consuming enough fiber, and we can use a fruit that will help us (and our insides) along. One medium pear (about the size of your fist), contains about six grams of fiber, or nearly a quarter of the

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April 26, 2019 at 04:35AM by CWC [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_1kaR5SjcEo] To say we don’t engage in real talk about money often enough would be the understatement of the century. In the most recent episode of Well +Good’s YouTube series The Avocado Show, Ladies Get Paid founder Claire Wasserman highlights the fact that Latina women make 55 cents on the dollar and less than 22 percent of women make it past middle management. Despite recent efforts, the chasmic wage gap persists. But Wasserman hopes to teach women how to make more money. In order to change the number stamped on your paycheck, Wasserman says, it’s essential to known your own worth. Market research is a good place to start. “You gotta do as much research as possible and the key is, talk to people! Talk to white men—they make the most money,” says Wasserman. Ladies Get Paid serves as a resource for salary comparisons, but you can also consult Glassdoor and LinkedIn, or join women’s whisper networks. Wasserman advocates for transforming your mistakes into teachable moments (“It’s all about what you can learn.”), dancing to your go-to power anthem and doing jumping jacks before stepping into a meeting. Remember that even the worst days will eventually end, she says. “Define success in your own terms,” says Wasserman. “Take time with it. Really dig into your values, and make sure it’s not your mom’s voice, it’s not society, right!? What are your values? Can you make sure you’re living aligned with those values? It’s hard

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