superfluously moist

using real, handmade soap is quite a different experience from washing with a manufactured body bar.

now, i don't claim to be an evangelist for either camp, but lately i've been using the natural soaps spiced with things like lemongrass, or ginger. it actually leaves you with a "soapy" smell. the sweet frangrance of all natural substances disappears somewhere in the thin film of suds.

when you use real soap, get the bar really wet. it takes several circular motions on the stomach or chest, although not limited to these areas of the body, to get past the bar's inclination to stick to you. it's best if you get a good lather in a broad area not hit directly by a stream of water and then use your washcloth or body sponge (i use both) to dilute the foamy goodness to other parts of your body.

it also works quite well simply running the frothy bar over all areas of your skin you wish to be cleaned. however, with natural soap bars, be very cautious of the washing of one's feet. real soap does not wash off with a simple dousing under flowing water. this is the "filmy feeling" that the major synthetic soap conglomerates use to scare you away. you must use your hand or washcloth(body sponge) to assist in the rinsing.

i have a tendency to wash one foot, then place it on the shower floor and immediately lift the other foot for it's cleaning. (i almost always wash my left foot first)
with the real soap, you must get into the habit of keeping your weight on the non-soapy foot whilst moving your soapy pediment back and forth on the porcelain (or fiberglass in these more modern times) to remove the remains of the sweet cleansing goodness.

lest you slip.

insert comment here:

some things seem so far gone from one year ago.

others feel too close.

to say that minc "isn't like dallas" would be an understatement. kevin had been taken there last time he was in town and everything i heard about it made me want to go.

just once.

and my visit probably could not have been better timed. i went with kevin and jefe first to a birthday party for one of the locals at xpo. old familiar faces greeted me and i was happy to see some. but xpo wasn't my vibe last night. i was in the mood to people watch.

minc is a place that people go "to check themselves being checked out" as kevin said. immediately upon crossing the club's threshold my face lit up with amusement seeing at least five guys wearing silk shirts and translucent pastel j-lo glasses. the place was packed with twenty-something and thirty-nothing image tramps vying for the top dog spot of most angered soul. a familiar face behind the bar served up our drinks and we wandered to the back patio.

we stood and talked with evan, katie, and molly who had come from the hostile environs of deep ellum as dark skinned uber models and unkempt manhattan mtv socialites mingled in one of two bathroom lines.

what amased me most about minc was how much these people dominated my attention. it wasn't until we were leaving, standing outside of the front door, that i noticed how many "normal" people there actually were in that bar.

i won't take you to minc, but i will suggest that you go. just once.

feel the vibe.