Cruelty Free.

My new housemate said to me the night before last “Oh, I don’t really pay attention to things like that. I can’t be bothered…” - sadly, she was talking about Animal Testing. 

When I began to list the numbers of animals that are killed and grossly mistreated for the cosmetics industry alone, she said “But I don’t care about mice or rats - kill them.”

How do I explain to her, without coming across preachy, that she is completely and utterly, without a shadow of a doubt, wrong?
I will be completely honest and say that not all of the cosmetics and things in my life are considered animal friendly, but I buy responsibly and ethically where I can and if I know of an animal friendly alternative to something I currently use I will most definitely give that option a try first. 

Working at Lush, one of the things that I hear the most is “Do you really fight animal testing?’/ “Are all your products really animal friendly?” The Queen of Sarcasm inside me is dying to give them the most direct stare and say “No, we don’t. We just thought it would be a good thing to print on the side of our bags and throw into the marketing mix…” purely for the reaction. 

It’s so easy to do a little research and figure out who does what in the world of animal testing now, it seems lazy and arrogant not to do so. Seeing as I’m sure not everyone is as in the loop as they should be, here’s a couple of websites to get you going. All you have to do is click the links below, it’s not that tricky;
The Vegetarian Site.

The Cruelty Free Kitty.
Superdrug: Cruelty Free Cosmetics

Any item or product that sports this leaping bunny logo is approved as Cruelty-Free which is what you’re looking for whilst browsing the aisles at your local supermarkets.
Whilst most brands who are Cruelty-Free are fairly outspoken about it (Lush for example), the brands who aren’t are  a little more shady about it. The Body Shop for example, have always been outwardly cruelty-free and proud, but then they were bought by L’Oreal who are anything but cruelty free, so what does that mean for The Body Shop’s animal friendly ethics? 

It’s sad that animal testing, especially in the cosmetics world, is swept under the carpet so often. I would have much more respect for a company if they openly said “Yes, we do currently test on animals, but we are collaborating with X and channelling £Y into finding ways to make the entirety of our brand cruelty free.” If companies like Lush, Illamasqua, Aesop and Barry M can go about their day to day business without torturing and killing/maiming animals why can’t everyone? Here’s looking at you; MAC Cosmetics, Sephora, Benefit, Clinique, YSL, Dior… the list goes on. 

Through my own research, it would seem that quite a lot of cruelty-free cosmetics are a lot cheaper than drugstore, let alone high-end, make up brands. Why spend £20 on a lipstick that’s been tested on rabbits and has God knows what thrown into the ingredients, when you can spend a lot less and make a more moral, ethical choice with your cosmetics?

If you’re like me and you believe that you’re animal friendly wherever you can be, you’ll be glad to hear that my housemate, after visiting me at work (Lush Southampton) declared “I think I’ll use up all the stuff I have at home, and then just buy this stuff next time…” So whether I managed to change her mind on the policies regarding animal testing, or whether she just fell in love with Lush like so many have, I’m not complaining. 

If you’re still not convinced that you should be on the look out for that little leaping bunny (not only are you an asshole) but here’s some information for you to mull over next time you’re pursuing your local beauty counter… 

I’m not asking you to be perfect, because god knows I’m not, but I am asking you to be considerate.

Without My Permission...

I saw Taylor Swift play at Hyde Park on Saturday just gone; her only England show in her tour for her 1989 album. Sadly, this post is not about how amazing the concert was, or how much fun I had.

After the concert, my friends and I walked along Oxford Street to get back on a tube at Bond Street; the start of our journey to our respective homes. It was busy, there were lots of people around (shocker, it’s London after all) and we were all focussed on sticking together and not losing anyone in the crowds. 

One of the four of us, who is absolutely Darling and was pretty damn drunk at the time was lagging behind, so we stopped every now and again to let her catch up. It was in one of our paused moments, that I felt a hand run up the back of my leg, hook a finger under the brim of my shorts and give me a harsh tug. 

I spun around on my heel and my eyes found the man in the crowd. He was walking away and not looking at me. “Hello!?” I shouted out, daring him to turn around and say something. His friend turned around and pointed back to me, telling his friend I was looking at him, as if he couldn’t tell. The man didn’t turn around, he simply ignored his friend and continued to swagger away. 

I felt the heat rise up my neck as I felt my friends staring at me. I’d previously been engaged in light hearted banter and then suddenly, to them, I was shouting after a man in the street for seemingly no reason. Suddenly, I was embarrassed. 

I was embarrassed because a man I didn’t know had touched me,  without my permission and I didn’t like it. 

Why should I be embarrassed? 

“Did he bump into, did he bump your shoulder?” One friend, asked. 

I watched the man walk away, in complete shock. 

“People make me so angry.” I said, turning on my heel and starting to walk away again. 

“Did he touch you?”

“No, yes. It’s fine.” I said, hurrying my friends along

“No. Lex, did he touch you?” My friend repeated her question, I could see she was angry but I told her it didn’t matter. I took her hand, which I didn’t let go of until we got on the tube. 

It did matter. It wasn’t fine. 

It wasn’t a huge gesture, but it was a thing none the less. 

My friends made light of the situation, joking entirely of course, that I must have been asking for it because I had been drinking or because I was wearing shorts.
Not that I need to explain myself, but I went to a concert in Hyde Park and I’m an adult, so yes, I had been drinking.
It is the height of summer, and I’m in one of the busiest cities in the world, so of course I’m wearing shorts. 

Does this mean that people can touch you without your permission, in any way?
Absolutely not. 

I was walking home from work last week, and just in case you’re not reading this from the UK, it’s hella warm right now. I was wearing a summer dress; it’s black, strappy and the hem is just above my knee. 

I was coming home from work, and I currently work with the public, so I’m sure you can imagine my dress was not inappropriate in any way. It was a hot, humid summers evening and I’d been working all day. 

As I’m walking through Bedford Place, which is the row of shops and bars nearest my house, a skinny, bedraggled man who couldn’t have been any less than forty years old cleared his throat and shouted across the street at me “You’ve got banging legs, darlin’.” 

Some people may have considered that a compliment, I did not. 

I felt embarrassed. 

He made me feel like I was doing something wrong and like I had a reason to be embarrassed. 

Characters on TV or in Movies are so often portrayed as ‘the bitch’ when they say things like ‘Don’t call me darling…’ - but, don’t call me darling. Darling is reserved for those who care about me, and for those who I care about. Man in Bedford Place and Man in Oxford Street; I do not care about you. 

I’m not sure what the point of this post was, aside to voice my frustrations, but maybe it’s to question what these men think they’re going to get out of these situations? Do they expect me to go weak at the knees and beg them to take me home with them? 

Part of me wishes that I gave the man on Oxford Street more of a piece of my mind but admittedly there was a part of me that was intimidated which now I look back on with hindsight and the utmost frustration.
Who is he to embarrass, frustrate and intimidate me? 

I’m sure there are a million girls out there who get catcalled in the street every day (and more) but I’m done with it. I was never into it. It was never hot. We’re all done with it. 

Obviously, before we all board the hate train, I understand that this is not all men. 

There is no realistic solution to this problem and therefore no conclusion to this post.

20 Things I'll Miss About Winchester.

There are a million and one things that I will miss about Winchester. I’m not even relocating far away - I’m just heading to Southampton which is the next city over. Winchester couldn’t be more different though, and it’ll be those differences that I notice when I wake up to a train going past rather than the bells of the cathedral. 

So, in my last week of being a fully fledged Winchesterite, I’m doing lots of reminiscing and waxing lyrical about the city I’ve spent the last four years of my life in. Here’s a short selection of the long ol’ list things that I will miss about Winchester; 

1. Winchester in the Summer.
   Winchester in the summer is so ridiculously picturesque, it’s almost annoying. Cathedrals and beautiful architecture book end every street and the people are so unique, it’s hard not to be inspired and intrigued by the people that flock into town for things like The Hat Fair.
   
   
2. Cathedral Grounds.
   Speaking of people flocking; the Cat Grounds seems to have some sort of magnetic force field which attracts anyone and everyone in a two mile radius, making them lay out on the grass and sun-worship. Families with small French Bulldogs called Gloria and a thousand foreign students, rocking their bright orange NCS T-shirts.
   
   
3. Locals.
   This sounds strange, but you do learn to recognise certain Winchester faces even though you may never interact with them. There’s the man who often sits outside either Costa or ASK Italian who set his feet on fire not too long ago. There’s the older gentleman who busks with his steel guitar, playing the most beautiful Ice Cream Truck melodies that fill the air of the high street. The blonde woman, that crosses my path every week day; no idea who she is, or what she does, but she’s always walking the opposite direction to me around 930 every morning and she always smiles.
   
   
4. Maya from Starbucks
   Beautiful Maya; she knows my coffee order and I sometimes get her free stuff from Lush. She’s always happy and smiling and only once have I ever seen her hungover and even then it was still somewhat endearing.
   
   
5. Jack from Costa
   There’s a guy who works at Costa who’s saving for an MA in Cognitive Neuroscience. How cool is that? He tried to talk to me once like I didn't know what ‘synesthesia’ meant or like I didn’t quite get what ‘cognitive’ meant, but aside from that he’s interesting and he’s always nice to me when making my Peach Ice Tea to go (with an extra pump of Peach Syrup).
   
   
6. Sainsburies on my doorstep
   Although this has become an expensive habit, the staff at Sainsburies regularly see me rushing across the round at 7:49pm to stock up on Monster, carbs and Italian meats before they close at 8pm. Will I ever learn to go before closing? Probably not. Do they still ID me? Never; which makes me feel hella old.
   
   
7. Sunday Markets
   Winchester is famous for it’s markets; there’s a huge billboard at Waterloo Station at Christmas advertising Winchester’s Nordicesque Christmas Market and the rest of the year, Winchester alternates between the weekly fresh fruit and food markets to the Sunday markets. Sunday Market’s alternate between Arts & Crafts markets where you can find amazing things, including none other than my person favourites Remnant Black and Noah’s Arts & Crafts, and Vintage & Antique Markets where I can always find something to convince myself I need.
   
   
8. My Bath Tub
   Working for Lush, it’s an occupational hazard that you may fall in love with your bath tub. I’m moving from my two bed in Winchester to a room in a Young professional house in Southampton where my house-full of things must go into one room and there are only two showers. No tub. I have made this decision because of purely financial reasons and unfortunately the bath became something I couldn’t keep. Friends with baths, I will be inviting myself to your house for bathing on a semi-regular basis, hope you’re all okay with this.
   
   
9. KKB Sundeck
   Although I only visited the deck a couple times, each time was wonderful. Good smoothies, always catches the last of the summer evening sunshine, and a great view of the uni and the trees beyond. You forget you in the centre of a city when you’re surrounded by so much green.
   
   
10. Wolvsey Castle Ruins
    Continuing on with the theme of green…
    Wolvsey Castle Ruins are the perfect place for a picnic especially when the Cat Grounds are full of freshers and small children who don’t understand that I just wanna soak up a little sun and talk with my friends. People seem to forget it’s there, which is quite nice when you remember, but also it’s another good spot for the last of the summer evening sunshine.
    
    
11. The Cathedral ‘Spot’
    Staying on the idea of finding your own spot in the sun, my friend Cassi introduced me to her Winchester Sun Spot recently; third bench in from the right behind the Cathedral (where the majority of the christmas market stall usually are erected) - it’s so warm there; it’s sheltered so you never get the chill of the breeze, and you’re in direct sunlight for the most of the day so it’s the perfect place to top up your tan with a book or grab a quick coffee and soak up your recommended daily allowance of vitamin D on your lunch break!
    
    
12. Fruit Market Lady
    I want to say her name is Jane, something like that; Jane, or Kate…something short and simple which coincidentally is a lot like her. She’s just a woman, no more than 5’5 who works on the fruit and veg stall in Winchester, but boy does she have some pipes on her. She’s got that “Two punnet’sa raspberries for a pand!” down perfectly - the Winchester high street soundtrack would be lost without her shouts peppering the street.
    
    
13. Yasmin from the Co Op
    Yasmin doesn’t even know my name and that is absolutely fine. Every day after work, I’d get off the train at Winchester station and head into the Co Op. She was always there; hair and make up always impeccable, but in an effortless way. We bonded over sarcastic eye rolls at crazy customers and we wallowed in misery about how the days seemed neverending.
    
    
14. Winchester Coffee Lifestyle
    I know this must sound strange, but because Winchester is so small and because there are so many coffee shops, it’s very easy to fall into what I call Winchester Coffee Lifestyle. Meeting friends for coffee becomes a regular, if not daily, occurrence because everyone is so busy but they’re more than happy to stop for 1/2 an hour for a coffee.
    
    
15. The White Company
    I’ll miss The White Company store in Winchester because I worked for TWC in London and the stores, the scents and the high thread count sheets remind me of a really good time in my life. Except the time that a bottle of Wild Thyme Room Spray ended me in A&E but that’s another story.
    
    
16. Bar Girl/Bar Owners
    I worked in four bars in my time in Winchester, which was again a really good time in my life. Whilst I wasn’t a massive fan of the hours, the people I met and the silliness that took place made up for that. Winchester has many many bars and pubs, but most of them are owned by the same people; Jane owns The Mucky Duck, The Corner House, The Green Man and I’m sure something else, at the time Colin owned The Exchange, Alfie’s, The William Walker and then of course, David has The Black Bottle, The Black Rat, The Black Boy and now The Black Hole. When you work in hospitality in Winchester, it is very likely that at some point you will end up working for one of the aforementioned. They all come with their own pro’s and con’s but bar work’ll bring you an interesting lifestyle you can’t quite decide if you like or not.
    
    
17. Knowing every third person on the street
    Having worked in hospitality in Winchester, your world becomes smaller.
    Having lived in the city centre, your world becomes even smaller.
    You begin to realise that you recognise faces of almost everyone around you, if not you know them personally. This is good on one hand, because you’re never too far from a friendly face, unfortunately on the other hand, this also means you're never too far from a not-so friendly face. I like knowing people and saying Hi in the street, but I’m not a fan of the Wessex Whisperers spreading my  business around.
    
    
18. University
    Winchester University has been my centre of education for the past four years, so it’s no wonder that I’m going to miss it. The buildings themselves all hold sensitive and scandalous memories  (that belong not just to me, but also my many house/course mates) it’ll be interesting to see how I feel about it in a few years. Not to mention of course the lecturers; crying on Vanessa, a near-miss car crash with an unnamed American Studies lecturer and of course two unforgettable weeks in Vegas as part of the American Studies course.
    
    
19. Prison, Hospital, Law Courts, Melbury Lodge
    I don’t know whether it’s because Winchester used to be the capital of England, or whether it’s because it’s not too far from London, or even simply just because it’s a well established city but Winchester is well equipped for everything. If you need inspiration for your Creative Writing degree, it’s all right there waiting on your doorstep. I’ll miss that about Winchester, but I’m sure I’ll find new inspiration.
    
    
20. The friends that have become family.
    Of course, this is going to sound a little soppy, but it’s true. I met some life long friends in Winchester, some I speak to everyday and some I don’t speak to for weeks but when I do, we pick up right where we left off. My Aunt always used to say to me ‘It’s the friends you meet at University that you keep for life, not those you meet at College…’ - and she couldn’t have been more right. People who I thought were my best friends in College, I haven’t heard from in years. The girls and guys I met in my years in Winchester will always be with me, even if geographically they couldn’t be further away.