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Why Do We Care About Paris Hilton?

I am continually amazed by the level of celebrity worship we engage in here in the U.S. I don't pay that much attention to what happens with Paris Hilton, or any other celebrities for that matter, but in the past month you would have almost had to be completely shut off from the media not to know that Ms. Hilton was having a little problem in her life called "going to jail." Last night I briefly turned on the tube and found myself watching her triumphant release as she and her escape vehicle were swarmed by photographers and paparazzi.

Why do we have such a cultural obsession with celebrities? And why are we even more intrigued when something bad happens to them? For example: Why was Anna Nicole Smith's tragic death more important in the media's eyes than her life, and why did people pay any attention? And even if you don't try to follow any information on celebrities in the media, you are still confronted with the magazine headlines at the checkout in the grocery store. I may be close to completely Hollywood illiterate, so I'm not sure why Lindsay Lohan is a celebrity - but from looking at magazine covers while standing in the grocery line, I know that she has alcohol and eating disorder problems. I think it is strange that I actually know that.

Some experts suggest that the root of this mass obsession with celebrities is programmed into our DNA. Stuart Fischoff, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus of Media Psychology at the California State University at Los Angeles, states that "What's in our DNA, as a social animal, is the interest in looking at alpha males and females; the ones who are important in the pack," and that we are set up to "follow the leader." (See A New Age of Celebrity Worship, CBS News 3/3/06.) But who would classify most of these celebrities, especially the ones who seem to garner the most attention, as leaders? What in the world are they leaders of?

Another psychologist cited in the same article, Abby Aronowitz, Ph.D., states that the media is at least partially to blame for creating people who are extreme celebrity worshipers. "The whole Hollywood spin machine works together to create images that are impossible for any of us to live up to. They purposefully set us up to admire and even covet something we can never have. ... There are fortunes being made by turning fans into victims, and all it starts by creating that frenzy known as celebrity worship."

To me, both the DNA and the blame-the-media explanations reek of victim mentality thinking. We can't help it, it's in our DNA. Or, the media made us do it. Sure, we may be genetically programmed to follow the pack leader, but I again ask - why would our culture deem a celebrity to be a leader? And as for the media, that seems to be a chicken-and-the-egg question. Which came first, the media's coverage of celebrities or our societal quest for more information about the famous?

I think a much better explanation for our fascination with the lives of celebrities comes from a more spiritual psychological approach. Many people have a deep, unconscious, unfulfilled need in their lives - a need to feel better about themselves, a need somehow to feel superior - and celebrities help them answer that need.

Eckhart Tolle points to this idea in his book A New Earth when he states, "The absurd overvaluation of fame is just one of the many manifestations of egoic madness in our world."

People's unconscious egos thrive on feeling superior. How does celebrity worship allow you to feel superior?

* When celebrities and their public relations machines are at their best, celebrities look better than the rest of us, they sound better than the rest of us, and we believe they live much more glamorous and fulfilled lives than the rest of us. Just by knowing about them, we can try to imitate them and feel like we are superior humans too. For example: when I watched Ms. Hilton leave jail last night, I learned that now that she is free from her cell, she will be working very hard on launching her new perfume. Maybe if I buy her perfume, I can smell like Paris Hilton, and I will be a much better person than the rest of you poor slobs out there. My ego is thrilled with the possibility!

* When we closely follow the celebrities, then we can feel superior by having more information than our friends and neighbors. Our ego feels satisfied and superior when we have more knowledge about something than the next guy - even if that knowledge is virtually useless.

* We can also inflate our egos by picking celebrities apart. I am again always curious about the uproar over the Hollywood award ceremonies like the Oscars. Why do people spend hours watching celebrities parade into their seats, receive little statues, and then make uninspired thank-you speeches? Could it be because our egos get satisfaction out of knowing how the celebrities looked and out of criticizing the clothing choices we don't like, along with knowing who got the award (information)? Can you catch a hint of my own ego feeling superior when I suggest that they make uninspired thank-you speeches? I mean really, I could do a better job than they do!

* Lastly, we can feel superior when we watch celebrities fall from grace. With all they have - all their opportunities, all their wealth, and all their beauty - many celebrities just can't seem to get their lives together. And our egos love to watch them fall apart because our lives then seem that much better, that much more in control.

In a society where we seem to be increasingly disconnected from our true inner spirit and increasingly impressed by achievements in the outer world, the rise of celebrity worship makes complete sense. Until people start living more consciously and actually questioning why they feel a need to idolize celebrity images, the media will continue to help us satisfy our egos by giving us all the good, the bad, and the ugly that it can find for the rich and famous. And we will continue to suck it up like the spiritually-dry sponges we have become.

Judy Braley is an author, an attorney, and a parent of two. Her personal development blog with free articles and information on inspiration for your life can be found at GrowFromWithin.com. Copyright 2007 Wherett Inc. This article may be freely distributed if this resource box stays attached.

posted by perfumeallpkif @ 7:03 PM 0 comments

Gourmet Gift Baskets

How do you give someone a meaningful birthday gift when in all honestly you don't really know zilch about them?

Weird? Not really, this often happens when you work in a corporation. It would be normal to mingle and be friendly with one or two people, but it's impossible to know by heart the faces and likes of more than a dozen employees that share the same office space as you do.

Office parties bring out the worst and odd gift ideas in people. More often than not, trite and cliched gift ideas are thrown out to the celebrant, and just because you are in an office doesn't mean that you should be gifting them office supplies. How many pens, corporate mugs and t-shirts can you receive at an office related party?

The best and most subtle way to avoid this kind of trap is a gourmet gift basket. Packed, packaged and filled with little trinkets of joy, it's a great way to show that you truly mean to remember the celebrant's special occasion.

A gourmet gift basket is perfect for these occasions, as you would not really disappoint the recipient. It is very unlikely that anyone would refuse an assortment of biscuits, chocolates and fruits as it's easily consumable and doesn't follow any trends. Even if it's miles away from the interest and the likes of the recipient, a gourmet gift basket filled with healthy food choices is more or less a need in their system. What's a better gift idea than giving something that would be beneficial for their health? You can be sure that your gift basket will be consumed and deeply appreciated by your officemate or, even your boss.

Gourmet gift baskets can also be a great gift idea for prospective clients. Instead of brandishing them with buckets of corporate related merchandises, a gourmet gift basket would mostly likely make them feel that you have only sincere hopes for your future relationship, and that you mean well for them.

Flowers To Go is a premiere flower retailer in and around the Washington area. Their services include creating gifts for special occasions, providing decor for events, providing business gifts, wedding bouquet arrangements, providing designs and plants funeral and sympathy, and making lasting memories.

posted by perfumeallpkif @ 7:02 PM 0 comments

Designer Handbags Reach Record High Average $2,000 Fall 2005

Shopping in Beverly Hills last week I strolled Wilshire Boulevard popping in and out of fancy stores sizing up all the new designer handbags. There are a number of new looks for Fall 2005, and prices have a new look, too. Did you know designer handbags have become the staple in most wardrobes? It doesn't take a genius to buy a pair of jeans and a T-shirt, but to purchase the correct designer handbag to pull it all together has become quite an art.

In conversations with many handbag salespeople, it was obvious the upcoming season will offer a variety of wild colors, exotic leathers, and metallic finished leathers. They will appear in shoulder styles, clutches, slings and large totes. Most designer bags remain consistent in size and function. The variations from season to season come to color, hardware, texture and price.

Prices are a difficult topic for handbag lovers to discuss, it became the purpose of the Beverly Hills shopping trip. Which designers will rise to the top? Which handbags will have the highest price tags? These thoughts offered astonishing observations wondering through the high-end boutiques and department stores.

Doing a bit of mental gymnastics with a few designer handbag price tags, it became obvious a calculator was needed! Prices are competing with Los Angeles mortgage payments! One designer bag, constructed of scratch resistant, pebble grain calf leather, had a hefty $3500.00 price tag. Durability to last a life time is a major characteristic of a quality handbag, but let's get real here, women change handbags as often as they change their nail polish. Paying hefty prices for a designer handbag a few times each month is fashionable, but not healthy or wise.

Not mentioning any names, a lengthy conversation with a handbag specialist in a very well-known department store shed light on the day's mission. We strolled the designer handbag department with calculator in hand. Punching in numbers of our favorite high-end designer, we came up with a hefty five-figure total for 10 handbags. Then, with jaws dropped open, the average price was uncovered! As expected, little was left to shock and surprise. Based on a sampling of the designer handbag prices, the price for a brand new, high-end designer handbag this season averages an all-time high of $2000.00 USD.

Oh my! What a price we pay to pull it all together with that pair of denim jeans and T-shirt! We have become the hunters in search of the best designer handbag we can find. And, when we know it will coordinate with a pair of jeans and a T-shirt, then we know we've selected the best bag. We want to look good, and we want to feel good, too. It would be nice to know we can purchase a bag from a new designer and still make a mortgage payment this same month.

Here's a solution. For those of us who know style and don't want to compromise quality, find a designer handbag expert to coach and guide your investments. Lacking modesty, I'll volunteer recommendations on a variety of designer handbags available at a fraction of what you'd expect to pay in a retail store.

You can actually purchase several handbags for the average cost of one designer handbag if you shop wisely. If you are a true designer handbag addict, and you purchase a new handbag whenever you get the urge, then you need a reliable source. Shop carefully at sites specializing in designer handbags, and you'll find your favorite designers at as much as 50% less than the average cost on Rodeo Drive!

Copyright September, 2005 http://eFashionHouse.com

Check out all the authentic, new designer handbags today at http://www.eFashionHouse.com. You can purchase all three, a Marc Jacobs, a Fendi and a Prada bag for about $1000.00. Yes, three new, authentic, designer handbags for about half the price of one in a retail store. Shop eFashionHouse.com for your next designer handbag, two designer handbags, three designer handbags or more! You?ll be very glad you did, and so will your favorite jeans and T-shirt.

posted by perfumeallpkif @ 6:25 AM 0 comments

Perfumes or How to Wear a Scent That Suits You

Choosing a perfume is not that easy as one might think it is. You cannot simply choose a perfume that is being advertised or a perfume that your friend wears and wear it. It might not be the thing you need. A good perfume for you is the one that matches your personality and compliments your personal scent. Did you know that a perfume feels differently on different people? For instance, a perfume that feels nice on a person, might feel awful on another, as it mixes with the natural scent of each person giving a unique combination of scent, individual to each.

When it comes to choosing a perfume you have a great deal of aromas to contemplate: Floral, Oriental, Chypre, Green Marine, oriental and Fruit. These are combined and each perfume manufacturer adds some secret ingredients that make the perfume long lasting. The perfume has a concentration of alcohol that makes the scent last plus around 25% of essential oils. The perfumes also contain a fixative and the main ingredients which may be diverse plants: bay leaf, cardamom, eucalyptus, frankincense, geranium, iris, jasmine, lavender, lemon, lily, orange, patchouli, pine, raspberry, rose, sandalwood, vanilla, violet and ylang-ylang, bergamot, cedar wood, gardenia, magnolia and others. There are also animal scents used in the combination. These may be: male musk deer, ambergris, civet etc. However, when picking out a perfume these components should not be essential.

An important point is to feel the scent on your skin. Applying a bit of perfume on the back of your wrist and waiting for a few minutes will give you the first level of scent. If you like it, this is a good thing. Then, wait for half a day and see the mid level of scents, at the end of the day, you will be able to feel the core components of the perfume, so if you still like it, this means that you have found the right perfume for you. Don't buy the perfume without having worn it for one day beforehand.

Also, a good smelling perfume is not suitable for all occasions: you have to have at least two perfumes: one for casual use and one for evenings and special events. Casual perfumes for every day use are usually fresh perfumes, while evening perfumes contain floral scents and are heavier. And don't forget to check out the offer from the numerous perfume producers: Kenzo, Calvin Klein, Channel, Christian Lacroix, Guerlain, Lancome, Dior, Yves Saint Laurent, Estee Lauder, Cacharel and lots others.

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posted by perfumeallpkif @ 6:24 AM 0 comments