From the desk of Miss Know-All: Origin of the term 'daylight robbery' - Sangeeta Rana

(Published on 25 April 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

I need no introduction. Every family has one. Every office has one. Even a circle of friends has one. I am Miss Know-All. And I say it with great élan, as our breed of people are, a lot more smart, savvy, intelligent, intellectual, bright, sharp, able and gifted than you all, the rest that comprise the crowd.

Our reputation precedes us. Because we – well if you insist I spell it out – just know it all. It’s always a pleasure to share the wealth of knowledge that we have. And before you call it harping, sweeties – it’s called ‘enlightening the ignorant!’ From irregular bowel movements to quivering jowl movements, we have an answer for everything.

You may have often heard the term ‘daylight robbery’. It’s a term relevant to a lot of things these days. Have you ever wondered what the origins of this phrase must be? No silly. I wasn’t expecting an answer to that question. Just sit back and absorb. It’s interesting and I have to take you back to the 1500’s to Scotland.

It’s rumoured that the city council was close to bankruptcy and needed a way to generate funds. The only way to evaluate the wealth of a family was by taxing them as per the number of windows their house had. As it was the rich who had large street facing houses with numerous windows and the poor who had small windowless homes. Things haven’t changed much since then, have they?

This gave birth to the ‘Window Tax’. This tax was straightforward to assess and easy to collect as the subject of taxation was easy to see and difficult to hide. People of course came up with ways to avoid the tax especially after 1825 when houses with less than eight windows were exempt from paying the tax. Some people blocked up their windows and were as a result robbed off their daylight. Apparently that is how the common phrase – ‘daylight robbery’ came to be – and has it’s origins with the Window Tax.

Don’t rob your brain off daylight sweethearts – open the windows of your mind and let knowledge flow in. I’ll be around to inform and educate. Just soak in the sunshine.

Miss Know-All
wow@dailymirror.wnl.lk

.

Know your lipstick lady... I now know mine!

(Published on 18 April 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

Almost every woman around the world involuntarily applies lipstick before leaving home. Lipstick in some shape or form has been around for a long time and has always been a part of dressing up and is a cosmetic ‘must have’. Women began to apply lipstick ages ago. But how many of us actually stop to think what we are applying on our lips? Why are some lipsticks so expensive while others so very cheap? Is it just the brand or something to do with the contents? Do some lipsticks contain harmful chemicals?

The flurry of questions that stormed my brain – made it difficult for me to just pick up a lipstick and apply it. I needed answers.

First a bit of history

Coloured clay or berry juice served as the very first lipstick. However, why primitive women applied lipstick is debatable. While some thought it was to attract men others conjectured it was to scare them away! Rock carvings discovered prove that women of primeval times actually did apply lipstick. A mixture of natural pigments and animal fats was the progenitor of contemporary lipstick in Ancient Egypt. Red lead, ferrous oxide was used to colour that lipstick which smelt of rust. To make the odour better, fragrant essences were added.

There is record of women applying juice of acrid plants, like the wild iris, to add colour to their lips. Such juices caused blood flow to the lips and they remained a blood red for a long period of time. Natural pigments were also widely applied. Lips coloured with henna remained bright for several days. Japanese women applied intensive makeup with faces that often looked like masks. Their makeup comprised of a thick layer of foundation and dark lipstick. It is known that the basic components of that lipstick were tar and beeswax. The beeswax made lipstick structural and thick. Even today beeswax is still one of the basic components of lipstick.

Women from Oceania coloured their lips with lipstick containing a dye obtained from under the mollusc shell. It made lipstick bright red and had unique moisturising substances. In Latin America women coloured lips with carmine, another dye of animal origin. Insects known as cochineal were dried out and then ground to get brick red powder. Cheaper options were beetroot or carrot juice. Some women even applied pounded orange clay. Women in Europe applied cinnabar as lipstick. That was vermilion which is dangerous for health.

It was only in 1915 that lipstick took the form we know today, a retractable stick. We now have a wide range of lipsticks in the market. All of them are improved versions of components used earlier in olden times.

The lipstick of today – the base

The chemical composition of lipstick varies greatly from brand to brand. Lipstick contains a variety of waxes, oils, pigments, and emollients. A high ratio of the lipstick is usually a solid waxy material mixed with non-volatile oil. This enables it to spread easily but remain stiff in the tube.

The wax gives lipstick its shape and ease of application. Among the waxes are beeswax, a substance obtained from bee honeycombs that consists of esters of monohydric alcohols and straight-chain acids. Other waxes include carnauba wax, obtained from the wax palm trees, and candelilla wax, which in turn is obtained from the plant Euphorbia antisyphilitica. The plant is immersed in boiling water containing sulphuric acid and the wax that rises to the surface is then skimmed off. A recently patented composition uses a solid silicone material with polyethylene solidifier, and silicone oil.

The oils and fats used in lipstick include olive oil, mineral oil, castor oil, cocoa butter, and lanolin. Majority of the lipstick brands contain substantial amounts of castor oil. It forms a tough, shiny film when it dries after application. In recent years, ingredients such as moisturisers, vitamin E, aloe vera, collagen, amino acids, and sunscreen have been added to lipstick. The extra components keep lips soft, moist, and protected from the sun and dryness. Ingredients added insure that the lipstick has the proper texture and melting point. Esters of fatty acids are sometimes added to give the lipstick 'stickiness'.

The lipstick of today – the colour

A lipstick gets its colour from a variety of added pigments. The dyes have to be insoluble in water, so the colour will last. Soluble dyes are first converted to insoluble particles by treatment with metal oxides. Eosin is a commonly used red dye.

Among other pigments used are bromo acid and insoluble dyes known as lakes. Pink shades are made by mixing titanium dioxide with various shades of red. Manufacturing lipstick is similar to making crayons. The process involves heating, mixing and stirring. Oils and lanolin are added for specific formula requirements. The hot liquid is poured into cold metal moulds where it solidifies and is then chilled. The formed lipstick is put through a flame for a split second to create a smooth and glossy finish.

Today we have a wide range of lipsticks. The customer has an array of products to choose from: frosted, mattes, sheers, stains, and long-lasting colour.

eFrosted lipsticks include an agent, often a bismuth compound that adds lustre to the colour. Bismuth ox chloride, which is synthetic pearl, imparts a frost or shine. Bismuth sub carbonate is used as a skin protective. Most bismuth compounds used in cosmetics are not toxic when ingested, but they may cause allergic reactions when applied to the skin.

eMatte lipsticks are heavy in wax and pigment but lighter in emollients. They have more texture than shine.

eCrèmes are a balance of shine and texture.

eGlosses have a high shine but are low in colour.

eSheers and stains contain a lot of oil and a medium amount of wax with a spot of colour.

eShimmers have extra glimmer, which comes from mica or silica particles.

eLong-lasting colour lipsticks contain silicone oil, which sticks down the colour to your lips.

eLip gloss usually comes in jars and contains different proportions of the same ingredients as lipstick but usually has less wax and more oil to make the lips shinier.

The flood of information had me stumped. Until today, I had never thought of reading the label on a lipstick or asking the assistant at the store for details. I am a convert now. I am not going to just walk into a store and pick a lipstick at random because I like the colour. I'm going to read every lipstick label before I purchase it.

Know your lipstick lady. I now know mine!

`

This Avurudu... - Sangeeta Rana

(Published on 11 April 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

A New Year heralds in the promise of a new beginning and the assurance of a future filled with hope and optimism. One looks back at the year gone by with contemplation and the year ahead with a new found zeal and enthusiasm. A New Year resolution is a promise you make to yourself. We thought of a novel idea to help the working woman of today to keep abreast with the goals she sets for herself in this fast paced age.

Here is a year planner to make the year ahead more meaningful. 52 weeks in the year ahead and 52 goals you could work towards. If you can accomplish even half of those listed below by the end of the year – you truly are a woman of substance and have reason enough to celebrate the next Avurudu with aplomb.

#Week 1: There is nothing more invigorating than starting the New Year on a healthy note. Start on the right foot. Go to the family doctor and get a thorough medical and dental check up done.

#Week 2: Pen in time for the elders in the family. There is no better way to teach children family values – than spending quality time with grandparents.

#Week 3: Quit smoking now. And if you are already a non-smoker help a friend to give up the habit.

#Week 4: Locate and get in touch with an old friend whom you have lost touch with. It is a joyous feeling and one that brings a flood of happy memories.

#Week 5: Donate old newspapers to an NGO or charity that recycles them. Though small it is your contribution towards preserving the environment and making a difference.

#Week 6: Read a book. With the invasion of television into our lives one has almost forgotten how it feels to read a book in bed.

#Week 7: ‘De-clutter’ your kitchen. Throw out things you have not used for over a year. These include old sauces and squashes that have lived way beyond their shelf life.

# Week 8: Spend quality time with the family. Switch off the television and play a game of monopoly or scrabble.

#Week 9: Save money. If you already are in the habit – there is no harm in pushing yourself that last stretch to save a little more for a well deserved family vacation.

#Week 10: Revisit work habits both at work and at home to increase efficiency and productivity. The key word here is time management.

#Week 11: Keep a count on calorie intake. Revisit daily diet but do be flexible to accommodate that occasional splurge.

#Week 12: Prepare mother-in-law’s or mum’s favourite dish and take it across to her place. You don’t have to wait until Mother’s Day or her birthday to make her feel special.

#Week 13: Go for an eye check up. Opt for glasses especially if you work long hours in front of the computer.

#Week 14: Visit your old school, your alma mater, and meet up with teachers who have helped you grow and develop into the person you are today.

#Week 15: Give away old and worn out shoes to a home that could pass it down to the needy.

#Week 16: Learn a new skill – whether driving, swimming, computer or tap dancing. Step out of line and do what you have most wanted to do or have been putting off for another day.

#Week 17: Drive out of the city. There is nothing more beautiful and pristine than the country side. Soak in the sunshine and the beauty that is God’s bounty.

# Week 18: Take time off to visit the spa or salon for some pampering. Relaxation works wonders on the well being of the mind, body and soul.

#Week 19: Partly pay off a loan taken – and feel the spirit soar. All the hard work finally seems to be worth while and paying off. (literally!)

#Week 20: Contemplate. Reflect on your strengths and weaknesses and identify ways to become a better wife, mother, daughter, employer and colleague.

#Week 21: Work on an exercise regimen that best suits your schedule. Leave no room for excuses. Get fit today and motivate others in the family as well.

#Week 22: Teach an old uncle or a senior citizen in your locality how to email. The excitement as well as gratitude they express on receiving an email from a loved one now based abroad will outweigh anything you have experienced in a while.

#Week 23: Drink less alcohol. Moderation is the key word. If you are a teetotaller drink an extra glass of fresh fruit juice to celebrate your good habit.

#Week 24: Visit a monument or building of national significance. It is essential for the family to appreciate the history of their motherland.

#Week 25: Sort out your medicine cabinet. Throw out medicines that have outlived their expiry dates. Other medicines which are no longer in use can be donated to an old people’s home.

#Week 26: Inculcate the habit of reading the newspaper in children. Discuss current news at the dinner table. It is a good way to keep abreast with current affairs and besides it also encourages healthy dialogue between family members.

#Week 27: Clear out your garage or store. You will be shocked at the amount of useless things one gathers. The rule is if you haven’t used it in a year – you never will.

#Week 28: Attend yoga and meditation classes. It is a good way to revitalise, refocus and rejuvenate ones being.

#Week 29: Get money-wise. Take out time to learn the tricks of safe investment and insurance. Ask a friend or colleague to share their expertise.

#Week 30: Help a stranger. For once listen to your heart and trust a person you have never met before. It helps to restore one’s faith in mankind.

#Week 31: By now it’s way past the middle of the year. It’s time to check whether your weight has been kept under check. Revisit your diet plan and exercise regimen to drop those last few stubborn kilos.

#Week 32: Take out time for your grandmother or an aging aunt. Take her a potted plant. Still better would be a moisturiser jar. You can never fail to please with that one.

#Week 33: A ‘say no to junk food and aerated cold drinks’ week. Not too popular with the family but a good way to keep healthy and fit.

#Week 34: When was the last time you witnessed a performance by Sri Lankan dancers? Keep in touch with your roots. Attend a traditional dance recital.

#Week 35: Say no to plastic bags. Carry a basket when you go shopping next. And if you do end up with some plastic packets at home – recycle them. Give them to your vegetable vendor.

#Week 36: Spread awareness. Whether it is about AIDS, bird flu, dengue or just malaria. You don’t need to go far. Start with your domestic help and staff.

#Week 37: Streamline your wardrobe. Give away clothes you have not worn in a while or have kept - hoping to lose the last couple of inches. Alter, dry-clean, darn and mend. There is no room for faded and worn out stuff. You need a great amount of will power for this one.

#Week 38: Plant a tree or simply get some potted plants. Nurturing plants and seeing them respond to your care is therapeutic.

#Week 39: Adopt a cause close to your heart. Participating in a sponsored walk or awareness drive requires nothing but the commitment of your time.

#Week 40: Organise a picnic or a party for your children and their friends. What better way to get to know their circle of friends. It also gives you an insight into the peer pressure they may be experiencing.

#Week 41: Go in for a mammography test especially if you are above 35 years of age. Know your body… and help yourself to remain fit and healthy for the sake of your family.

#Week 42: Go for an early morning or evening walk with your father. Talk to him and find out if retirement is treating him fine. The time spent together will do wonders to the father- daughter relationship.

#Week 43: Take out time for a family portrait taken by a professional at a studio. Pencil this down as a regular annual event. The pictures hold beautiful memories and are the best way to capture those precious moments.

#Week 44: Call up a friend going through a rough time – whether a divorce or a bad phase at work. All they need is a shoulder to cry on – and all that you need to offer is your time.

#Week 45: Donate old story books and toys to an orphanage. Inculcate the feeling of compassion for the needy and the less fortunate amongst your children.

#Week 46: Adopt a stray animal or feed the birds. Love and care for pets is a gratifying and rewarding experience.

#Week 47: Bake a cake together with the whole family. It is a fun exercise that develops bonhomie and special bonding.

#Week 48: Raise the self esteem of a colleague, employee or even a family member. Kind words and deeds are remembered for long and besides they help you to carve out a little nook in the hearts of others.

#Week 49: Make a difference to your community, locality or society. Stop being complacent and voice your concerns. Give your time to better the future of your children.

#Week 50: This is really a personal choice that needs fortitude and gumption. Pledge to donate your organs and your eyes. What a beautiful way to be remembered.

#Week 51: Attend an event put up by children with special needs. Encourage and cheer them on with your presence.

#Week 52: Review priorities and get ready for another year filled with challenges and triumphs.


This Avurudu, pledge to make a difference - not just in your life - but in the lives of those around you. May the coming year hold more promises and challenges that take you to new heights and enable you to test your potential to their limits.

Avurudu greetings to the readers of W@W.

:

The playing of the Rabana, a tradition to herald in the new year - Sinhala Avurudda

The Art of Desk Management - Sangeeta Rana

(Published on 4 April 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

The desk they say speaks volumes and reveals all about the person who works on it. Imagine walking into an office…. and observing different work stations without their owners being around. Let us conduct what we could call an Executive Desk Health Check up! In general the specimens you will observe will fall into five main categories:

1) The ‘anorexic’ desk
2) The ‘malnutritioned’ desk
3) The ‘obese’ desk
4) The ‘healthy’ desk
5) The ‘constipated’ but clinically perfect desk

Usually a rare commodity, the ‘anorexic’ desk is a stark desk that is usually used by consultants and temporary staff who walk into the office once in a blue moon. Not used very often the desk is in one dull corner craving for action and attention. The telephone instrument usually has a layer of dust and the cord is often yanked out by frustrated neighbours who have had to often answer the phone calls to Mr Nobody.

The ‘malnutritioned’ desk belongs to the sapiens of this world who have really not much to do and their contribution to the bottom-line of the company is questionable. An odd pen stand, lies orphaned with a few occupants - couple of which do not work at all and have not seen the light of day. The telephone cord is twisted into a tight mangle divulging the hours spent on the line. The back of the chair leans backwards to a comfortable angle. Numerous post-its are stuck on the computer as reminders – some dating back to the last financial year. The only file that grabs attention is the leave folder. This desk spells disaster. The message going out is that if there is need for retrenchment the management don’t really need to look too far.

An ‘obese’ desk can be recognised from a mile. Splitting at the seams the drawers often don’t shut properly and chances are that some files are dumped under the desk on the floor. The user could shamelessly encroach on the neighbour’s space. The pile of files on both sides is almost supporting the computer as if to hold it up straight – and the evasive mouse has to be hunted down every time it is needed. In the midst lie an oily empty snack carton and a half eaten sweet distributed by a colleague on the birth of her daughter, who by now has already started kindergarten. One little hint for colleagues here. If you are looking for your staplers, punching machines, and even reading glasses – this is where you should start your search. The users of these desks often have days when they think it would be easier to quit their job and start over elsewhere than it would be to make sense out of the piles and stacks!

The ‘healthy desk’ is buzzing. Lots happening here. A diary and a file marked ‘for urgent attention’ lies at the centre. The family picture on the side clearly states priorities.
The money plant balances the ‘chis’ and sends the right vibrations. The board is neat and importantly all that’s pinned up is straight. The telephone lies at an easy reach with the name and number of the user clearly marked on it. A team photograph demonstrates the bonhomie that exists. Display of the last successful campaign is not to blow one’s trumpet but rather for the sake of motivation.

And finally, the ‘constipated, clinically perfect’ desk! Few and far between the users of these desks are obsessed perfectionists. The stationery is all lined up in a neat row height wise. The files have identical labels that are all marked in the same font. The objective and goals of the company are printed and pinned on the board. The contents of the in tray are numbered and the ones in the out tray are signed and bear a bold tick. The calendar looks like a piece of art with holidays marked in red, weekly meetings in green, deadlines in blue and bosses birthdays in pink!

If you look around an office many of the desks are overwhelming disasters. With perseverance, a hopeless mess can become a model of efficiency. Most people's problems are a result of poor space planning, poor time management and poor work habits. For a large number of people, the desk is where they spend most of their waking hours. However, more than often they do not give their desks a second thought as it just becomes an extension of their own being. Proper desk management could improve efficiency and production levels. It is as important as a surgeon having everything he requires readily available to him at an operation table.

Space Planning

Getting organised means more than just cleaning up your desk! Whether you spend one hour or eight at your desk every day, careful thought should go into how you use it. Make it functional. Know your work habits. If you like to spread out material as you work, provide yourself with enough space.

Space planning leads on to organising your desk area to best suit your kind of work. You must be able to find what you're looking for quickly. "A place for everything and everything in its place" is an important principle to follow. Clutter in the workplace is always detrimental. A cluttered work environment also projects an unfavourable image. When the desktop becomes a storage place rather than a workspace, it's time to reorganise.

Getting an appropriate desk to suit the demands of your work is crucial. Your personal work habits as well as your business activities will determine what style is appropriate for you. If you refer to books or publications regularly in your business, a work area with shelves would be suitable. If you use a computer consider an L-shaped desk so as to also have a large workspace. Shelves and wall boards are a great way to display personal items while keeping your work area clean and functional.


Time Management

Conscientiously improve on management of time. One of the simplest ways to make better use of your time is to rethink how long tasks will actually take, and schedule accordingly. Don’t plan meetings back to back. Designate time for regular paper work. Make it a habit to check your voice mail at a given time daily. Allocate an hour every Friday to file papers. There is nothing more energising than seeing a spotless desk on a Monday morning. Always allow for unexpected circumstances such as extended meetings, demanding clients or simply the boss having a bad day.


Establishing Better Work Habits

• When it comes to desk organisation, stacks of paper are the single biggest problem. Prioritise your work. Keep separate folders for things that need urgent attention and for others that can wait. Mark out deadlines.

• Paper is the largest contributor to clutter in an office environment. Many people accumulate paper clutter due to a fear of throwing away something important, or a concern that it may be needed later. The result is that they end up keeping everything and not being able to decide which things have value and which don’t. The reality is that most of the paper saved is never needed again, and if it is, the chances are that it can be obtained from another source. The key is to not let paper and piles keep multiplying. Process each paper as it comes in, and get it off your desk. Designate time once a week to clear, sort, file and trash.

• If you have taken files out of an archive or storage for reference, gather them up when the work is completed and take the time to put them back where they belong.

• Use your planner. It is invaluable for recording ideas in the working, conceptualising and developing stages. Instead of jotting down notes on scraps of paper and never knowing where to find them, you'll have one place to look when you want to refer back.

• Don’t clear out the junk piles in a hurry in preparation for a visit from an important client or the top brass. For the next couple of weeks, you will pay a great price because you won’t be able to find much of the stuff you need and that won’t help efficiency levels anyway…. and those you aimed at impressing will be far from it.
  
  Remember, there is no golden rule. No expert can advise you on what is best as you are the only person who can judge what is best suited to your work style. What works wonderfully for one person may not work for a person with a contrasting personality. It is important that we appreciate colleagues who need an opposite set of conditions to thrive. Your desk doesn't have to be either sparse or cluttered. With a little creativity, you can add interesting things and aesthetics to your desk. Some interesting visual tools and a few items can transform an ugly mess into an interesting collage of work-in-motion. If you can find most things in 3-5 minutes or less, your system is working. And when you find yourself lost in your own clutter, you'll know it's time to stop and revisit your strategy.
  
  Getting organised is a process rather than an event. Don't expect miracles… work at it and you could soon pass the Executive Desk Health Check up with flying colours!

=