This month I have spring fever. I assume it is due to the mild winter we are having in Bellingham and my desire to feel the sun. My clients are fitting me into their schedules before taking off to Maui or Mexico. When dreaming of taking a sunny vacation, I think about the dramatic lifestyle changes I have made in regards to sun exposure and tanning beds.

When packing for a trip to Costa Rica I consider what hat will look the least silly on me and how long I can get away with wearing a long sleeved shirt in 104 degree weather. Before going on a walk with my greyhound Freya to Blvd. Park, I look at the top I am wearing in the mirror to make sure my decollete(chest) is covered. Every night before I go to bed I apply my pigment gel and follow up with a peel every month. Most importantly, I apply sunscreen rain or shine every single day. I can remember a time in my early twenties that white was not attractive. I, as well as other women like me, spent time in the sun and in tanning beds with the hope of bronzed skin. Now in my thirties, I treat clients who are my age and older for past sun exposure and skin cancer.

When I think of my rituals for going on a walk or planning a vacation, I am proud to say that I take care and protect my skin. It is my job as an Aesthetician to set a good example. I must practice what I preach. In doing so, I also want to look and feel healthy. I embrace my white legs and pale skin as a sign of hard work. My days of going to tanning beds before a vacation are over. If I feel pasty, I visit my Aesthetican friend Pam Keller who gives me a beautiful bronze glow. Pam spray tans at Envy Salon and Spa in Mt. Vernon, Washington. It's affordable and looks fab.

To end this note, I would like to provide a link in regards to tanning beds. As of 2009, they now join cigarettes as a top cancer threat. View this link below compliments of the New York Times.

http://www.turkishweekly.net/media/663404/sunbeds-join-cigarettes-arsenic-as-top-cancer-threat-reuters.html