Went to a hookah bar last night. The pictures above were taken there and, for those of you who don't know, the tall glass things are hookahs. You smoke flavored...uh...smoke? It's not tobacco based (Mom, don't worry) and is perfectly legal. You may also see (beside the hookahs) what they call a "rum bucket" which is, of course, a clear plastic bucket of rum with a whole bunch of straws. I went out with three coworkers, but by the time the camera came out, there were only two left (Michael, the Chinese-Canadian and Gavin, the Canadian-Canadian). The other people in the pictures I don't know.
When talking to Unkyung the other day, she told me that my birthmother was an orphan. She had to look the English word up in the dictionary, so I am not sure if that's the word she intended, but that is the word the dictionary gave her: orphan. Apparently my birthmother's mother died when she was a baby and, for some reason, my birthmother was sent away. Then her father remarried, but his wife did not like her. It was all a little fuzzy because Unkyung's English has yet to progress to such a detailed level. She did say that that was one reason giving me up for adoption was so difficult. She said my birthmother cried, "How can I?! How can I do this?!" Obviously Unkyung wasn't recounting a memory but relaying what her mother told her.
I had no idea about this part of my birthmother's life. Unkyung seemed surprised that I didn't know. She said, "She never tell you?" (I was thinking, uh, she doesn't speak English, honey. If she didn't tell you to tell me, then no....she didn't tell me.) Unkyung also felt it important to reiterate that the adoption was necessary because I was going to die (heart problem) and they had no money. This is something I have known and come to grips with, but I think they believe I still either don't fully understand or hold some ill will. I definitely don't. Besides, I'm too busy trying to figure out the NEW things they're doing that I don't understand.
On a totally unrelated note....I have officially been here one month. One way I can measure this is by the calendar. Another is by my fingernail growth. When I first got her, Unsun manicured my nails, which are now ridiculously long (the polish starts halfway down my nail now). The third way I can measure my time here is by my grossly hairy eyebrows. Time for a wax (if I can find somewhere to do it).
Just FYI:
ReplyDeleteJULY 5, 2007 On the Pipe
Smoking hookah not as safe as originally thought
There wasn’t anything unusual about Rose Bashaj and Loretta Dailey’s first hookah session last Tuesday night. Except, perhaps, for the person who recommended the place.“The doctor we work for referred us here,” says Dailey, a medical assistant, after inhaling smoke from a silver and green hookah pipe at HKAN Hookah Bar and Grill on the South Side. “She said it’s safe and all natural.”
A recent study by the World Health Organization (WHO) casts doubt on those claims, saying hookah is not a harmless alternative to cigarettes. According to the WHO study, which was released in late May, preliminary research reveals some serious misconceptions about the dangers of hookah smoking.
According to the report, hookah smokers “may … inhale as much smoke during one session as a cigarette smoker would inhale consuming 100 or more cigarettes.”While smoking from a hookah pipe, smoke is filtered through water before it is inhaled, but the WHO denies this cleanses the smoke. The study says it still “contains high levels of toxic compounds, including carbon monoxide, heavy metals and cancer-causing chemicals.”
Hookah smoking — also known as waterpipe smoking — originated in India, where the practice dates back at least four centuries. Within the past three years, it has become a popular trend in the Pittsburgh area. HKAN and Sphinx Café in Oakland attract both smokers and non-smokers with their flavored tobacco and bong-like contraptions.
“I like it,” says Dailey, 31, with smoke wafting from her lips. “It’s a natural high without the drugs.”
Even so, health professionals say smokers may underestimate the health risks. “There is no evidence that smoking hookah is safer than cigarettes,” says Guillermo Cole, public information officer for the Allegheny County Health Department. “Anyone who thinks it’s safer is certainly not basing that on any valid science. These misconceptions are becoming more widespread as [hookah] becomes increasingly popular in the U.S.”
The report also says that nicotine from the smoke can cause addiction.
Local hookah-bar owners and employees acknowledge that any type of smoking can be dangerous, but they say hookah smoking isn’t as hazardous as other kinds of tobacco smoking.
“Smoking is smoking,” says Sphinx Café co-owner Amera Andrawes.“But hookah is natural tobacco. Cigarette tobacco has scary things in it to get you addicted. With hookah, you don’t get all that junk.”
HKAN waitress Stephanie Woods, 22, likes to distinguish regular tobacco from what is smoked through a hookah pipe. It’s called shisha — a combination of tobacco, molasses, honey and fruit pulp. “All-natural ingredients,” according to Woods.“There is no tar or extra additives,” she says, smoking a cigarette at the bar. “The only negative ingredient is nicotine, but it’s only a small amount.
“If you’re going to sit by yourself and smoke the whole thing to your head, that’s not good,” she adds. “But that never happens.”
Comparing cigarette smoking to hookah smoking is unfair for another reason, she contends: “You can’t carry a hookah around and pull it out of your pocket like a cigarette.”
Even after the WHO study, health professionals acknowledge the jury is still out.
“There’s more research that needs to be done,” Cole says. “We can’t close the book on it.”
Interesting content.
ReplyDeleteJust wanted to share some information that may help busy professionals caught up with work and who have less time to maintain their nails. You can try out gel nails which are now becoming a hot favorite as they are natural looking even without nail tips and the best way for nail enhancement. Also, if you are allergic to those strong smelling chemicals which you can experience with acrylic nails, then you should use gel nails as these are odorless.
However, when you are planning on gel nail application, make sure you approach a nail salon or a nail artist who is well versed with gel nails and is properly trained and mastered in gel applications. This will save you from problems that can arise with improper gel nail applications.
Good information.
ReplyDeleteI came across many queries in several forums where people have been asking for advice on the best glue that can be used on nails and that is not only strong but also safe on nails. This was the same question I had sometime back when I used to apply nail gel myself. Initially the glue I got would never hold on the way it used to when done in the salon. I then came across the nail glue being sold on gel-nails which lasts very long and is pretty easy to apply. It provides a strong bonding for my nails and also does a great job in repairing the nail tips.
Most important of all is that this is strong glue I was actually looking out for and this is used by nail salons and nail artists for professional applications. It is available at a cheap price at gel-nails and I remember seeing it at a discount of 74% which is great. Maybe this can help if you also face problems relating to poor glue quality as I did earlier.