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is the season to reflect on what is most important in our lives, what has changed us, and that which has forced us (good, bad or otherwise) to grow. There’s really too much for me to list in an article, and not bore you all to a tryptophan-coma, so here is my tippy-top “I’m Thankful” list…

For scenery such as this... and experiencing it with the most important people (and dogs) in my life.

My dream Bionic-land: Mountains, trees, trails, wildlife and cabins.

My Willie Woo. I’m glad he’s never stopped woo’ing (or blogging) and has stubbornly refused to grow out of his puppy-hood!

My Wilfred Orvill Oliveira (aka Woo) - Three years old, and yet stuck at six months!

Woo’s new best friend and my second favorite dog in the world, Sylvia McFroggus. Thanks for the girl time, chica!

Nothing perks you up more than dog hugs and bunny ears!

My sister (y’all know her as Joycey Couture), my parents, my grandmom and the rest of my family unit.

An impromptu performance with Elvis (notice I'm not singing).

To all my online, blogging, and twitter friends: Kelly Gould (blogger extraordinaire and fellow Klutz Klub member), Robyn B. (from Purely Cosmetics and another Klutz Klub gal), “fried madness“ Mo, Tashi, Erin (the famed Cheap Chick), Stacy W., Robyn (in snakeless Hawaii), Paula (muy excellente blogger), the mysterious and incognito WidelyRed, Kimberley and Darrell (from YBF Skincare), Stacey (from Lexli), and Micheal (from Jeune D’Age Organics). Thanks for sticking with me through thick, thin, endless emails, twitter rants, and all the other drivel. You’ve picked me up more times than you realize.

Last and certainly not least- I am thankful for the person who made this the best year of my life. Even snake bites and my beloved computer dieing (RIP Phoenix – you’ll rise again!), could not alter my happiness. Everything changed last November and I’ve been floating beyond cloud nine since. Thank you for coffee, books, movies, geeking out, dropped walls, and having my back.

With tomorrow being laden with cooking, family, friends, and hopefully a bit of relaxation; take some time today to think back on the year. What, and who, makes you say a big “Thank You”?

Have a Bionic Thanksgiving!

As my regular readers know, every Friday at Bionic Beauty features the Powerful Beauty article series. There have been contributors from across the globe and from a variety of professions (models, artists, book authors, and makeup artists – to name a few).

I’d really love to open this feature up to my readers and anyone else who wishes to participate! Simply send me a two to four paragraphs telling me “How you achieve or define Powerful Beauty”.

You can use my Contact Form to submit your article. If you’d like me to link to your own blog or website, please include that as well. You can also send me a photograph of yourself, but that is completely optional.

One of the great things about this Powerful Beauty feature is that it is bringing women together under a common topic. These articles discuss feelings, physical attributes, tips and ideas that are important and common to us all. And each person’s view is so individual! I am honored to have such strong and confident women among my friends and readers!

By the way, there’s no cut-off for your entry… just type it up and send it along as your schedule allows and I’ll work your article into the queue.

Stay Bionic,

If you tend to notice details, you might have seen some tiny changes on the Bionic Beauty website lately. I’ve added these new features in hopes of making things a bit easier for you – my readers.

The two main changes include the addition of a teeny MSK button and a Facebook Like button. These items will appear at the bottom of every article on the Bionic Beauty blog; located just below the “Share the love…” social media buttons.

What are the functions of these nifty little gadgets, you ask?

• The MSK button - Click this icon and you’ll be zipped over to the Moleskine website. The MSK application will automagically set up any Bionic Beauty article to print into your Moleskine journal. You can pick layout and design options such as pocket or large (regular) size, font variety, pictures to include, etc. Very handy if you want to make your own “beauty reference” book!
• The Facebook Like button - Use this button to help spread the word to your Facebook pals which articles you enjoyed. Selfishly, it helps me because I depend on you all to help Bionic Beauty grow. So I’d really appreciate you “liking” any of the articles you enjoyed reading.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on these new options! And if you have other suggestions for Bionic Beauty, please drop me a line in the comments below or use the Contact Form for a private discussion.

Stay Bionic!

Joycey Couture wanted to share her “thanks” for three years of Powerful Beauty with the Bionic Beauty blog…

A side note from Bionic Beauty: On a personal note, I’d like to take this opportunity to thank Joyce for her entertaining and informing articles over the past three years. She selflessly dedicated her precious time and energy… which really helped take the load off my shoulders. Thank you Joyce! ~Jami

As many of you know, I had my Danger-Magnet gene kick in just after the Fourth of July. So this Friday, I’m sharing a different kind of Powerful Beauty article to explain my spotty absences over the past month.

At the start of July, I took a trip down to Florida to spend some time with friends. With the nice weather and the potential of finding, and photographing a band of wild horses, we set out into a prairie reserve. Since I knew the hike was flat terrain (compared to the typical slick stones and smaller mountainous regions that I normally hike), I opted for sneakers over my heavy hiking boots.

Bionic Beauty’s Lesson #1: Always, always, always wear hiking boots… no matter how flat, or easy, the terrain. Hmmpfh.

My friend and I actually had just finished warning each other to keep an eye open for snakes since the edges of the grassy trail had slightly mushy shoulders from recent rains.

My friend ~ “Keep your eyes peeled for snakes!”
Me ~ “I ammmm… owwww!” (Yep, I found one.)

With a THUD and what felt like a cross between burning gasoline, nettles, and at least twenty wasp stings – I futterwackened vigorously, one-legged down the path. (Note: For those of y’all who haven’t seen the new “Alice in Wonderland” movie with Johnny Depp, a “Futterwacken” is a funny little dance he does- here’s a Futterwacken video. It’s hilarious. Truly!)

As I forced my brain to slow, I looked back at my friend only to discover what happened. A darn angry Cottonmouth snake had nom-nommed on my ankle. Three freakin’ times!!

BB’s Lesson #2: Some snakes (er hmm, Cottonmouths) are NOT more afraid of you than you are of them. This one came at me from across a rather wide trail. I never even stepped on or startled him. Grrrr.

So anyhow, back to Mr. Cottonmouth (who I named James after the baddie vamp who bites Bella in Twilight). The only thing my friend and I can figure is that Mrs. Cottonmouth must have kicked James to the dog house and he was pissed. Vengeful and angry, James decided to take his frustrations out on my ankle. Yes, I’ve read accounts on the internet saying Cottonmouths are not aggressive. That is BS! I’ve been an avid outdoor gal my whole life and have encountered Rattlers – leave them alone and you’re generally A-OK. This baddie who munched me was on a vendetta.

The first thing to remember after being snake-snacked is to stay calm. Do not panic! Keep your breathing slow, heartbeat down and get yourself to the nearest Hospital ER as quick as possible.  If you need directions to the ER, or an ambulance, call 911!! There really is no home remedy for a snake bite- no matter how Bionic you are.

Personally, we were in a pretty much unreachable area. So I slowly limped the 45 minutes back to the car. As we shuffled along, my friend kept me talking about my favorite TV show plot lines (Alias), characters I love (I found it best to channel Sydney Bristow during this episode of my life), and other distracting topics. After a reaching the car, my friend drove the quick five minutes to the Shands Hospital ER.

BB’s Shocker #1: I didn’t realize venomous snake bites were such a critical injury. I walked into the ER, had barely signed in when I was scooped into a wheelchair and raced back into a room. The nurse calling out “Call the CDC for anti-venom!!” That’s when it dawned on me that this might not be just a quick overnight stay in the ER.

To make a long story, shorter… I ended up spending four days in the Intensive Care Unit. I was treated with eight vials of anti-venom to get all the bad snake gunk out of my system; and was treated with all sorts of nasty antibiotics and painkillers that did nothing. Cottonmouth snakes (aka Water Moccasins) carry extra bacteria in their mouths due to the swampy, bacteria-laden environments that they live and dine in. Those extra bacteria can cause serious secondary infections at the bite site and throughout your entire body.

Of course, different snakes cause different problems. Non-venomous snakes can still cause secondary infections as I explained above. Venomous snakes such as Rattlers, Diamondbacks, Corals, Cottonmouths (these are the four venomous snakes indigenous to the USA) can be either hematoxic, neurotoxic or a combination of the two.

• Hematoxins – Blood borne toxins that may affect your blood, veins, muscles, organs; basically anything in your body containing, or supported, by blood. Hematoxins can cause permanent damage such as atrophy, muscle loss, prevention of blood clotting, or the very-dreaded Compartment Syndrome.
• Neurotoxins – Toxins that affect your central nervous system- such as your spinal cord, nerves, etc. In the most venomous snakes (located outside the USA), these toxins can cause paralysis.

BB’s Lesson #3: Upon talking to one of my doctors just last week, I learned that one adult male had died from a Cottonmouth bite in a central Florida hospital; and a mother whose son was bitten by a Coral snake, waited 24 hours to take him to the ER… he passed away. Remember… get yourself to the ER, asap!

I spent a week and a half on crutches, two weeks with no driving privileges, and am now completing my month of recovery time. And dag nab it, I never got pictures of those wild ponies, but I never did cry either.

Stay Bionic and snake-bite free please!
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Once bitten, twice shy. Check out these helpful snake bite websites…

• Shands Hospital has a VERY helpful and extensive section on snakebites.
• Mayo Clinic’s Snakebites: First aid article
• Videos of Cottonmouth snakes from Cottonmouthsnake.net

H

appy 4th of July, and Happy Anniversary to Bionic-Beauty.com!

It may sound a bit odd for me to “wish my own blog a Happy Birthday”, but I think of July as the month when I, and some of my most favorite cosmetics brands, get to turn the tables and give back to you!

I could get a bit mushy here remembering when Bionic Beauty first started- back when the only readers were my sister and me; and now there are over 1,100 of you. (sniffle, sniffle!)

In any case, it’s high time I let you know about the big events surrounding Bionic’s “Three Years of Powerful Beauty” celebration…

Articles by special guest authors, “Twitter parties”, the oh-so-popular second annual Charity Auctions (coming in August), videos, random giveaways, and weekly giveaways are some of upcoming goodies!

• Purely Cosmetics mineral makeup, Jeune D’Age Organics skin care, Cactus & Ivy spa and body products will all be giving Bionic Beauty readers the chance to win some of their most popular products!
• Starting *now*, YBF Skincare is holding a month-long series of giveaways!! To enter, simply tweet the phrase:

#HappyBionicBirthday to @BionicBeauty’s web site of 3 years @YBFSkincare is celebrating Jami w/$720 of giveaways! http://bit.ly/9FomHD

• For the full details of YBF’s giveaways, including their very humorous bio of me, giveaway schedule, prizes, and other fun facts, visit YBF Celebrates Bionic’s Birthday!
• Be sure to follow @BionicBeauty (me) and @YBFSkincare on Twitter since there might (hint, hint) be some spur-of-the-moment super surprises!
• Not a Twitter-type? Don’t worry, you’ll get your chance to win lots of YBF goodies too!

So get cracking, and stay tuned for all the spectacular festivities! And most importantly, thank you all for being better readers than I imagined possible!

Stay Bionic,

Hibiscus flower = Rare and delicate beauty

You may have noticed a theme running through the graphics on Bionic Beauty is the hibiscus flower.

While it’s not my absolute favorite flower (I like Orchids and Magnolias a teensy bit more), when I initially started the graphic design work for Bionic Beauty- the hibiscus popped right into my head.

Little did I know how perfect the hibiscus was until just a few days ago. Contributing author Joycey Couture pointed out the meaning of the hibiscus… “Rare and delicate beauty”.

That meaning melds with the Powerful Beauty motto; and even further, how I think of my readers. I’ve often told my friends, family, and even strangers that I have the best readers on the web. That is a rare beauty! So, consider this article my thanks to all of you. I appreciate every email and comment you send me!

I’ve been a little slow getting started today, but while I write up a beauty article for you all, I wanted to share this entertaining news…

Total Beauty named me as one of the Top Twelve Beauty Tweeters! Also named was Michelle of All Lacquered Up (if you’re a nail polish nut like me, you definitely need to subscribe to her blog!).

You’re probably asking “why am is Jami so squealy and eek-tastic” over this mention? Well, mainly it’s because of the mini-profile they wrote for me. Total Beauty pegged me to a T. You’ve just gotta read it, especially if you know me and my love of gadgets, embracing my total geekiness, mixed with the joy that beauty products bring me!

Eeeek!

And lest you think me selfish, be sure to check out all Twelve of the Top Beauty Tweeters!

I’m very excited to announce that Bionic Beauty was chosen to be in a book!! When I found out, there was quite a bit of happy dancing and bouncing in my house. And yes, I squealed a bit… like I said, I was excited. It couldn’t be helped, I just bubbled over.

“Fabulous: All About 50+ Top Beauty Bloggers of 2010″ by Nicki Zevola features profiles and interviews of the top beauty bloggers of 2010, plus helpful information on how to start your own blog, attract readers, and how blogs have become a reliable source of product reviews. There’s way too much in this book for me to blather on about, but it truly is a fun read! Plus it was great getting a behind-the-scenes look at my friends and fellow writers.

My copy arrived - Bionic Beauty is on page 106!!

Fabulous: All About 50+ Top Beauty Bloggers of 2010 (Volume 1) is available on Amazon for $14.95. I ordered my copy last week and it just came in!

Lately this new “social” website has popped up called FormSpring. Basically you register and then users can ask you whatever questions they desire. Typically I’m all for some new fangled social-networking tool… and I’ve mulled over joining in case any Bionic Beauty readers want to ask me a question. But then y’all have to join/register too. And it’s just another site/spot/login to keep track off.

And that’s when I realized, we’ve actually already got our own spot to do Q and A’s. Right here. We do it in the comments sections, over Twitter, and by email all the time.

So…this week’s Bionic Asks is “Do you have a question for me?”.

If so, ask away.
There’s no deadline, just come back to this article whenever a question springs to mind. They don’t have to be beauty related, we can talk pets, movies, books, whatever strikes your fancy.