"Why Does Nail Polish Turn Your Nails Yellow?" by Stephanie Crawford

     I am the type of person that is obsessed with nail polish. I do my nails every 4-5 days, a different design every time. These vary from galaxy designs, vintage roses, daisies, tribal, gradient, tiny tuxedos, saran wrap tie dye, water marbling, and about a million other designs. I own 209 bottles of nail polish, two detail pens, five and a half bottles of acetone, and four detail brushes. Altogether, this takes up an entire two shelves in my room. My desk is bleached and stained from spilled polish and acetone, and so are my pajamas and some of my clothes. I love doing my nails. However, one of the reasons I always have them covered is that underneath, they are a nasty yellow color. The acetone and polish have stained my nails, and for the longest time I didn't know why.
     I recently read the article "Why Does Nail Polish Turn Your Nails Yellow?" by Stephanie Crawford (http://health.howstuffworks.com/skin-care/nail-care/health/nails-turn-yellow.htm). The article summarizes briefly why one's nails might be yellowed by polish. The answer is that nails need oxygen to stay healthy, and being covered 24/7 by polish deprives them from this.
      It is primarily caused, however, from the pigment staining from the polish. Deep reds are known to stain the most. Some of the chemicals used for pigmenting are titanium dioxide and iron oxides, two chemicals often used in making wall paints. A tip for keeping your nails healthy is using a base coat of clear polish before painting.
      I have concluded that if I want normal nails again, I should either reduce painting my nails, or start painting a base coat, which I have not been doing.

Perfect Match By Jodi Picoult

     Yesterday, I finished Perfect Match by Jodi Picoult. I really loved this book, though it was scary, sad, and disturbing. I definitely felt resistance like we talked about in class while reading it. Perfect Match is about a young prosecutor, Nina, who fights against molesters and Pedophiles. When her young son is raped by a priest, however, she goes insane and shoots the defendant. This tears apart her family.
     I have noticed a pattern in Picoult's books, of which I have read three and a half in the past three weeks. Most follow a young person, a murder or crime, a connection with the law, and how their choices ruin their relationships. This book is a perfect example.
     I am not a mother, and do not plan to be one any time soon. However, I do know what it feels like to love someone so much that you would do just about anything for them. Nina feels this way with her son Nathaniel, portrayed as an adorable, five year old, innocent little boy, used and violated by his own priest. Picoult uses the tactic of describing the rape scene between Father Gwynne and Nathaniel to invoke disturbance and terror within the reader. I felt like I wanted to reach into the pages of the book and shoot the priest myself.
    I do not know If I would go as far as actually murdering the preist myself, however. Murder is a very risky and wrong thing to do, especially considering the law system that exists today. Nina could have been killed, all for protecting her son from being scared when he stood on the podium. Although I like Nina, I think she made a bad choice.

The Pact by Jodi Picoult

     I am currently reading The Pact by Jodi Picoult. Frankly, I find it one of the most terrifying pieces of literature I have ever read. It is about a boyfriend and girlfriend, Chris and Emily, who have known each other for forever. One night, their parents get a call from the police saying that Emily is dead, killed by a bullet to the head, and Chris found passed out next to her. When he wakes up, he tells police that he and Emily had a suicide pact, that they were each going to kill themselves in order to stay young together forever, but Chris got scared, couldn't finish the job, and fainted. The book follows Chris as he is convicted of Homicide, and you, as the reader are not sure if he committed the crime or not.
     The social action question I am answering today is "How does the text make you think about justice in the world?" There is not a lot of evidence to say that Chris killed Emily, yet they lock Chris, 18, in jail for nine months. They aren't sure if he killed anyone, yet they are forcing a young, possibly innocent person to stay in a jail full of proven rapists, pedophiles, murderers, and other criminals. Chris seems to live for Emily, to love her endlessly. He never shows any mental evidence of wanting to hurt or kill her. It was also proven that Emily was suicidal.                                
     However, it is hard to know what exactly to think about Chris. When Emily was six, she was raped by the custodian at Seven-Eleven. She never told anyone, not her parents, friends, or Chris. When she and Chris were older and dating, Chris kept touching Emily and trying to have sex with her, even when  Emily screamed at Chris to stop. So, even though we know that Chris loved his girlfriend more than anything, we are angry at him, because he, in a way, raped her.
     Justice has not yet been served permanently in the book yet, as I am only halfway through it, and it is hard to tell whether it is just or not for Chris being in jail, as we do not know if he killed Emily or not at this point in the book.