PERFUME: QUELQUES FLEURS REMEMBERED (c) By Polly Guerin

Quelques Fleurs, the renowned French perfume, that began with just a basket of flowers; I remember it well! As my chic aunt Victorine passed through a room I knew that she had been there as the scent of Quelques Fleurs left its indelible imprint on the aroma that lingered long after she had departed for an excursion to town. It was her signature perfume and later it became mine as well.

LEGENDARY PERFUME Quelques Fleurs, L’Original was created by the House of Houbigant, founded in Paris, France in 1775 by the renowned French perfumer, Jean-Francois Houbigant of Grasse. It is one of the most renowned classics of all time; the perfume that changed all flower fragrances forever. As the name implies Quelques Fleurs (Some Flowers) was the first true multi-floral bouquet, which established a completely new fragrance classification. Up to that time, floral fragrances had been mostly single flowers or were blended with herbs and other essences.

THE ESSENCE OF PERFECTION Quelques Fleurs is a fresh, floral aromatic perfume that is imbued with the subtle yet soft scent that is forever young at heart. It is fashioned from the highest quality and costliest natural aromatic and absolute oils and is still made in Grasse, where it was created in 1912. The “nose” behind this fragrance was Robert Bienaime. Top notes include orange blossom, green notes tarragon, bergamot, lemon and citruses; middle notes include carnation, tuberose, orchid, lilac, jasmine, lily-of-valley, rose, violet and iris and base notes include amber, must, honey and vanilla. The Genealogy of Perfumes cites Quelques Fleurs as a landmark innovation that established a totally new fragrance classification and influenced other compositions for years afterward, including many of today’s important fragrances.

THE HOUSE OF HOUBIGANT The House of Houbigant was the perfumer to the royal courts of Europe and found favor with royalty and nobility including Napoleon and Josephine Bonaparte, Emperor and Empress of France, Queen Victoria of England and Czar Alexander III of Russia. Not so lucky was a Marie Antoinette, Queen of France and wife of King Louis XVI. Houbigant legend has it that when Marie Antoinette was fleeing to Varennes to escape the French revolutionaries she was recognized as royalty because of her Houbigant perfume, which only royalty could afford.

QUELQUE FLEURS ROYALE Houbigant Paris, 1908 is based upon a formula originally created in 1829 for Princess Adelaide D’Orleans, Queen Mother of France. It begins with buoyant, contemporary citric and fruit notes, followed by a rich, warm floral heart accented with acacia honey, lingering with a sensual base of wood, amber and musk. Quelques Fleurs Royale is made in Grasse, where Jean-Francois created his first perfumes in 1775.

HOUBIGANT HISTORY Jean-Francois Houbigant of Grasse (1752-1807), originally sold gloves, perfumes and bridal bouquets. The original shop, called “A la Corbeille de Fleurs”, was in the rue du Faubourg Saint-Honore. In 1882, the House launched Fougere Royale, a new fragrance family. It was the first “fougere” (or fern-like) perfume ever created, establishing a completely new fragrance family, which still remains today the most popular family in men’s fragrances. The formula completely revolutionized the world of perfumes and established modern perfumery as it exists today.

QUELQUES FLEURS!!! There is nothing as exquisite as a classic that endures. Houbigant perfumes are sold at most upscale department stores.

ENERGETIC BLISS with SHARON BYKERK-LONERGAN By Polly Guerin

In a world filled with the cacophony of city life, the stress of work or personal health concerns it is comforting to know that women seeking the resurgence of harmony in their lifestyle need go no further but turn to Sharon’s Energetic Bliss. Her mission statement says it all. “My belief in the healing arts is deeply profound, providing an Energetic “whole” – istic approach. I pledge to keep the power of gentle professional touch alive by providing an important service to women that can truly improve their quality of life by being the conduit, for their own self-healing.” Sharon is a woman determined to succeed in holistic healing with a subtle approach that underscores the philosophy of Energetic Bliss.

HOLISTIC HEALING Sharon has dedicated her life to the well being of others. She is a woman whose hands have a distinct therapeutic touch that is gentle, yet goes deep into sensitizing where a client’s energy centers need the most attention and revitalization. With soft persuasive hands, Sharon‘s gentle professional touch serves as a conduit that also helps women to heal themselves and clear toxins whether emotional, chemical or both. Her services are tuned into the needs of the individual and her uncanny ability to immediately attune to a client’s concerns makes her a truly sensitive practitioner.

THE SERVICES Sharon practices in disciplines including Reiki, Aromatherapy Massage, Hot Stone Massage, Polarity Therapy and Onnetsu Far Infrared Therapy. The wall in her salon attests to the fact that Sharon has honed her skills and authenticated her diverse practice. The serene salon has a skyline view with windows opening to the sunlight. A warm bed-like massage table, on which a client reclines, in a fully clothed session, provides a soothing experience that calms and restores disharmony in the energy fields of the body. You can almost feel the tension and the burden of everyday concerns melt away.

POLARITY THERAPY I can attest to the Polarity Therapy treatment as I was fortunate recently to experience it. Sharon’s feather like touch scanned my body reaching blocked currents in the body’s energy field, and at one place in particular, she touched a spot that dramatically resonated to her touch with a gentle but almost electrifying reaction. I assessed this to mean that there may be severe blocking of energy in that area as well in other places. After the session I felt light and euphoric. I now realize that the power of gentle professional touch can truly improve the quality of life by clearing and balancing Chakra/energy centers, relieve pain, activate the body’s natural ability to heal itself, relieve stress and release toxins or impurities, to name a few.

ENERGETIC BLISS, Natural Health Care for Women, focuses on your total well-being in treatments that soothe your senses, restore your body and replenish your spirit. Energetic Bliss is located at 121 Newark Ave., Suite 402, Downtown Jersey City, NJ 07302. Tel. 971.239.8479 or sharon@energetic bliss.com By appointment only. Visit her Web Site at www.energeticbliss.com

GET UP!!! SITTING KILLS (c) By Polly Guerin

The computer is like a magnet once you sit down and start working most individuals with long hours of task work never get up. What’s more according to the American Cancer Society “the more people log in a chair, the greater their risk of early death.” WHEW!!! Even if you exercise regularly you are still at risk. Stationary ways of spending hours at a time in a chair has proven to be the worst thing you could do to endanger your well-being. Quite frankly, I declare, it is frightening to admit but your chair is sure to kill you.

DANGEROUS SIDE AFFECTS The excesses of sitting in a chair all day can really turn your body into an ugly mess; sitting inflates your spare tire, lowers levels of beneficial HDI, and raises levels of inflammation and blood fats. Researchers at Mayo Clinic confirmed that sitting for extended hours, without taking a few “get up” and walk around breaks, could face the onslaught of illness including heart disease, high cholesterol, diabetes and thrombosis. Back problems are another result of excessive sitting; nerve damage and other problems including neck pain. Dr. Scott Keller, Caycean Chiropractor at  Edgar Cayce's A.R.E. New York Center confirmed, "Long periods of inactivity, particularly sitting, cause pressure on the inter-vertebral discs, which then result in predispositioning the body to injury and degeneration of the discs." He also explains that many of his patients complain of severe muscle spasms in their shoulders and lower backs and that are attributed to long periods of inactivity.

GETTING OFF YOUR DUFF Well, as I am writing this article I just took my own advice and got out of my chair; did a few head rolls and stretch exercises . I also have my printer placed away from my desk thereby requiring me to get out of my chair to retrieve a print out. Don’t text your colleague in the next office; get out of your chair and pay them a visit or go to the office kitchen and take a mini break with a glass of iced or hot tea. Standing, especially when talking on the telephone, can give you another life-saving break up from the chair. Set a reminder to get out of your chair at regular intervals. Trainer Sean Hyson suggests NakedAlarmClock.com, which lets you schedule a recurring prompt on your pc. Airline travelers taking long flights are also cautioned to get up and walk around in order to avoid leg thrombosis.


Remember active bodies mean active brains so don’t let your brain get sluggish and your body bloat. SAVING YOUR LIFE is as SIMPLE as GETTING OUT OF YOUR CHAIR AND MOVING AT REGULAR INTERVALS! BELIEVE ME IT’S WORTH THE EFFORT, SO GET OFF YOUR DUFF NOW!!! Edgar Cayce's A.R.E. New York Center, the American Association for Research and Enlightenment of New York Inc. is located at 241 West 30th Street, 2nd floor (btw.7th 7 8th Ave.) New York, N.Y. 10001. Tel: 212-691-7690.    edgarcaycenyc.org

SMILING MAY SAVE YOUR LIFE (c) By Polly Guerin

“Smile Though Your Heart is Aching, Light Up Your Face with Gladness” As the refrain laments, frequent smiling may even lengthen your life. Yes, smiling can be good for your health, but it has to come naturally or with practice become a daily ritual. Why? Because a smile brings certain benefits; with each and every broad smile you give to each day's encounter your stress zone calms down. What’s more, in social situations smiling is one of the easiest ways to win over new acquaintances who will perceive your personality as one who is friendly and open to conversation. When it comes to greeting and meeting business associates a polite smile, even in the board room, can give you the upper hand and open up the discussion. A full smile uses the muscles around the mouth and eyes and that is good news because the more you engage in a full smile and happier you will be for it.

IT’S HARD TO SMILE FEELING BLUE yet, with practice you can conjure up a smile and feel the clouds of sadness or melancholia soften and disappear. However, you have to evoke a genuine full smile to get full benefits. The face like any other part of the body is made up of bones, blood vessels, connective tissue, fat, nerves and voluntary muscles (twenty-six). If the muscles of the body can be brought back to tone, so can the muscles of the face and by the same means: smiling and exercise. Of course, positive thinking is another factor that can be reflected in your face. One expert claims that blowing up balloons and making faces can tone the face. For starters, try on a full smile, commonly referred to as a Duchenne smile, after the 19th century French neurologist who first described it, which activates major muscles around the eyes and mouth.

WHO WROTE THE LYRICS? Most people are surprised to learn that the music to this favorite was written by the legendary silent film star Charlie Chaplin, whose “Little Tramp” character is one of the all time enduring images of the silent film era. DA Jack Hayford, editor of the popular music reference website, Events-in-Music said, “Chaplin wrote the theme music for his silent film, Modern Times, released in 1936. But the song did not become known as “Smile” until lyrics were added by John Turner and Geoffrey Parsons in 1954. It took off and reached the #10 spot on the Billboard charts the same year when it was recorded by Nat King Cole. “Smile” has been recorded and released countless times, including Tony Bennett/Barbra Streisand collaboration on Bennett’s 2006 Duets album.”

SO LIGHTEN UP YOUR FACE WITH GLADNESS. REMEMBER PEOPLE WHO SMILE MORE NOT ONLY UPLIFT THEIR LIFE WITH GREATER HAPPINESS THEIR SMILE TENDS TO HAVE A REAL POSITIVE IMPACT ON OTHER PEOPLE.

SMILE FACTOR: Happiness (c) by Polly Guerin

People don’t seem to smile enough these days. I can just feel the tension building up and it’s only 8 a.m., and everyone is rushing to work and their faces are devoid of the inner light of smiling as they pursue a new day. Yet, when you smile, it lightens your mood, helps you to buffer an awkward situation, and invites you to make new friends. Most of all smiling improves your happiness and attracts more positive vibes into your life. Smiling also crosses all borders and when you are in another country people generally respond to tourists who smile. It sends a message that you are friendly and non-threatening.

THE POSITIVE VIBE When you smile your body and mind are sending positive vibes to you that everything is okay, life is great, and it help you to alleviate feeling down and depressed. So even when you’re alone practice smiling more and continue during the day to spread happiness vibes to everyone you meet. I’ve heard people say, “Isn’t she a nice person,” all because you brightened their day with your generosity, the gift of a smile, which at the same time it makes you feel great too.

A CHEERY SMILE Makes you appear younger because your whole face lights up, your eyes glow, your cheeks get a natural uplift and your whole countenance is one of youthful vigor. Don’t ever force it, a fake smile doesn’t work. Just think of pleasant things, conjure up a recent happy celebration, a present that amazed you, a compliment that gave you reason to feel appreciated; and smile.

A MOMENT OF KINDNESS There are many opportunities to be spontaneous and engage in an unexpected moment of kindness that garners smiles for everyone. If your basket is full at the checkout counter, let the person behind you with one item go before you, when you purchase a newspaper from the old guy on the corner let him keep the change, send an encouraging note card to a needy friend and watch smiles beam at the other end.

WEAR CLOTHES THAT SMILE Black may be sophisticated, but when I see an entire wardrobe in the gloomy shade I think funeral. Instead choose colors that represent the color of happiness. Blue is a heavenly color and has a calming effect, while red glares and may insight anger. Warm colors like yellow and orange are friendlier choices and should be incorporated into your wardrobe as a signal that you are friendly and that your smile is genuine.

SMILING MAY NOT MAKE MAJOR ISSUES GO AWAY; IT JUST HELPS TO EASE THE PAIN. SMILING HAS HEALTH BENEFITS, TOO AND CAN MAKE YOU FEEL MUCH BETTER EMOTIONALLY BECAUSE IT RELEASES ENDORPHINS, BRAIN CHEMICALS THAT HELP TO INCREASE HOUR FEELING OF CONTENTMENT. SO, AS THEY SAY “SMILE THOUGH YOUR HEART IS BREAKING,” remember those feeling are only temporary. DON’T LET THEM BE SETBACKS, INSTEAD SMILE YOUR WAY THROUGH EVERY DAY’S CHALLENGES.