C: Is for continuing care of self.

I wrote about Townhouse Spa back in March. Last night I was at 39 West 56th between 5th and 6th again. Could paradise await me? The answer was yes in the hands of Angel. I already considered this place heaven for its use of Eastern philosophy healing and serene environment. Last night I was beyond tired and in a lot of pain. Angel in ten minuets went right in and loosened up my aching joints and ligaments and re-aliened my energy. The last time I hadn't had a chance to experience their massage therapists. I was so grateful I was now, that for once I was silent. Angel asked if it was ok? The answer Angel, is yes I was in bliss and your touch allowed me to become a human again alive with vitality. I recommend this girl highly because I had four other events I had to attend. On the first floor as you walked in you were greeted by a Tavalon elixir meant to detoxify while energizing your system. To learn more about this soothing tea
log onto www.tavalon.com. Waiters with trays of coconut rice and roasted tomato, Salmon pate and other delectable treats from Sererna Bass Inc circled, while drinks of a green tea liquor called Zen did just that relaxed and mellowed. I did repeat my facial experience with Christina with a aqua-collagen gel by Dr. CI: Labo. This moisturizes your skin while leaving it looking younger, toned and glowing. I have got complements on my skin later that night which was amazing because my skin was so dry prior to Christina's treatment. This is the perfect getaway or gathering place for the coming Christmas Party season. It not only makes a great gift for employee's but also your friends and more importunately yourself. A little pampering makes for a blissful soul. On the bottom floor was Adam, Zuckerman. He was the co-host of this lavish happening. I'm not going to write about him now because he deserves his own column. So look for more about Adam next week.
Still the most interesting portion is the state of the art “Spa Oceana” or “Peace in a Pod”: This space age all-in-one treatment includes a 53-gallon personal hydrobath with over 20 massage jets operating simultaneously with Vichy water. A charka digital LED lighting system will put your soul in alignment while offering a combination of radiant heat and steam finishing with a cooling mist, which can be infused with vitamins, natural essential oils and herbal aromas. This was the one thing I haven’t tried and I am so looking forward to cocooning myself and that is a F.A.C.T.

A: Is for art and politics

Thursday the personal odyssey of Juan Downey's anthropological research will open at the Nohra Haime Gallery located at 41 East 57th Street. Juan Downey is a pioneer video artist. This Chilean died in 1993 but his video work is an eclectic voyage into political discourse, the history of art, ideas, personal discovery and self-reflection. Downey's extensive body of work that included installations, drawings, and paintings lives on. Being the creator of more than 40 works this compelling series of anecdotes tracks his search for an indigenous cultural identity. Downey looks through the viewfinder of his camera and turns to see his Yanomami guides pointing their weapons at him, acknowledging - seriously or playfully? - his camera as a weapon. In his documentation of the tribe's use of natural psychedelic drugs for healing. In pursuit of the last primitive tribe of the Americas, 'The Abandoned Shabono' focuses on the Amazon Rain Forest. The shabono is the circular communal dwelling built by the Yanomami Indians. The exhibition JUAN DOWNEY: MEDITATION DRAWINGS will be on view through December 1.
Yesterday at Gagosian's Gallery an exhibit opened of a collage by more than fifty artists. Many created works specifically for this occasion. Fit to Print exposes the artist's compulsion to react to the media who delivers information on a daily basis. Illuminating the vast extent to which contemporary international artists share an interest in the media while working within the traditional definition of collage. Picasso and Braque were embraced by the Dada movement as a mode of political critique. Disposable pop culture, global politics, the artists in this exhibition acknowledge the legacy of past by utilizing mass media and incorporating it directly into their work. Picasso's ability to unite formal and political concerns on the eve of World War I resonates in today's moment of global turmoil, and is acknowledged at the onset of the exhibition by the inclusion of a single, rare Picasso, Bottle and Glass, autumn-winter 1912. As one of the first examples of collage ever made, Picasso's simple yet radical gesture of incorporating primary physical objects continues to inspire. Collage also embraces the heightened presence the tabloids have inspired. This is a reflection of a society captivated by the media.

Art is influenced by the turmoil around us. By absorbing it's message we gain an insight into our own lives and that is a F.A.C.T.

F: Face done simply

Ask any NY girl her favorite place in NY and you will most likely hear Sephora. Last week from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. at 184 Fifth Ave the website beauty.com offered free touch-ups, hand massages and makeup application. The best part? Everyone got a scoop from the beauty trough - a collection of favorites from Cargo, Vincent Longo, Nars and Fresh. Beauty.com is one of the fastest growing e-commerce sites. The convenience allows customers to pick-up high end and everyday essentials in a single purchase. A subsidiary of drugstore.com this innovative site brings the traditional makeup counter experience home. Individually designed plans recommend products from more than 200 prestigious brands available. Personalized hair and skin care analysis begin with a brief online questionnaire. The consumer receives a choice of up to four recommended products for each step in their individual use. Ranging in price points allows each visitor to get the products they need. When you choose products using the diagnostic tools, you can print out your complete beauty regimens with instructions about how and when to use the products for maximum skin and hair care benefits.

Website Perks: The product zoom magnifies color cosmetics to see shimmer, texture and shade up close. New navigation options make it easier to shop and search in brand specific stores, by category, price, ingredient or trend. (My favorite)Fragrance Finder allows customers to search and shop by scent. Categories include: floral, woody and fresh. Beauty Horoscopes offers a guide to products by astrological sign. Expert advice from industry insiders in "Videos" or click on "Latest Trends" to learn makeup application and hair styling from the pros.
Choose up to three free samples with any Beauty.com purchase.

Customers Perks: 100% guarantee or a refund, auto Delivery if requested, 5% back,free Shipping for qualifying orders, gifts with purchase from many favorite brands.

Move over Sephora beauty.com may just end our passion for you and that is a F.A.C.T.

S: is for the social consciousness of science

Its not every day you meet someone who's wearing a dopamine necklace, but then it's not every day you meet someone like Dr Lizzie Burns. She's a scientist, artist and maker of jewelery. Can you guess what this painting is? Its a new HIV Vaccine by artist Dr. Lizzie Burns. Inspired by the research team at the University of Oxford’s Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine. Scientists are testing a new kind of HIV vaccine based on DNA. Containing small sections of HIV genes designed to provoke a strong immune reaction as well as dead pox viruses to boost the immune response. The vaccine of DNA-bearing particles(gold/purple) are fired through the cell surface by compressed helium, along with inactivated pox viruses (purple balls), to boost the immune response. The white blood cell is given growth messages (pink) while the vaccinated cell is sentenced to death (black).

Lizzie wanted to show the similarities between men and women. In both cases the development of our reproductive systems is triggered by the release of a single hormone (GnRH) from the base of our brains which in turn release further hormones (FSH and LH). These hormones act on the gonads (pale green) to stimulate secretion of sex hormone: testosterone from men’s testes and estrogen from women’s ovaries. These superimposed outlines of the two models (Burns and her partner) show how sex hormones influence male and female characteristics. It makes learning science so much more interesting when you can relate it to an artist rendering that breaks it down to color.
This is a blood clot. Children are Lizzie's real target she is determined to cross the boundary between art and science. When she peered into the secret beauty of the cancerous cells a laboratory in Oxford, she decided to paint them."It's an irony that cancerous growth looks so fascinating under the microscope with the birth of each new cell."It is a F.A.C.T. that the things that can kill us can be scary but through this kind of inspiration we can be encouraged to learn the F.A.C.T.S. and improve the quality of life.

T: Is for Trivia from the Los Angles Times

I have been writing about my increasing concern over illegal immigrants in New York and the increasing of rights for them and the decreasing of rights for those of us who are becoming displaced. These F.A.C.T.S. are from the LA Times. I wonder what they are for NY city. It's time we opened our eyes.

1. 40% of all workers in L.A. County ( L.A. County has 10.2 million people) are working for cash and not paying taxes. This was because they are predominantly illegal immigrants, working without a green card.

2. 95% of warrants for murder in Los Angeles are for illegal aliens.

3. 75% of people on the most wanted list in Los Angeles are illegal aliens.

4. Over 2/3 of all births in Los Angeles County are to illegal alien Mexicans on Medi-Cal, whose births were paid for by taxpayers.

5. Nearly 25% of all inmates in California detention centers are Mexican nationals here illegally.

6. Over 300,000 illegal aliens in Los Angeles County are living in garages.

7. The FBI reports half of all gang members in Los Angeles are most likely illegal aliens from south of the border.

8. Nearly 60% of all occupants of HUD properties are illegal.

9. 21 radio stations in L.A. are Spanish speaking.

10. In L.A. County 5.1 million people speak English, 3.9 million speak Spanish. (There are 10.2 million people in L.A. County ).

Less than 2% of illegal aliens are picking our crops, but 29% are on welfare.

Over 70% of the United States ' annual population growth (and over 90% of California , Florida , nd New York ) results from immigration.

The cost of immigration to the American taxpayer in 1997 was, (after subtracting taxes immigrants pay), a NET $70 BILLION/year, [Professor Donald Huddle, Rice University ]. The lifetime fiscal impact (taxes paid minus services used) for the average adult Mexican immigrant is a NEGATIVE number.

29% of inmates in federal prisons are illegal aliens.

Did you know that immigrants from Mexico and other non-European countries can come to this country and get preferences in jobs, education, and government contracts. It's called affirmative action or racial privilege. The Emperor of Japan or the President of Mexico could migrate here and immediately be eligible for special rights unavailable for Americans of European descent.

Corporate America has signed on to the idea that minorities and third world immigrants should get special, privileged status. Some examples are Exxon, Texaco, Merrill Lynch, Boeing, Paine Weber, Starbucks and many more.

Did you know .. that Mexico regularly intercedes on the side of the defense in criminal cases involving Mexican nationals?

Did you know .. that Mexico has NEVER extradited a Mexican national accused of murder in the U.S . in spite of agreements to do so? According to the L.A. Times, Orange County , California is home to 275 gangs with 17,000 members, 98% of which are Mexican and Asian.

According to a New York Times article dated May 19, 1994, 20 years after the great influx of legal immigrants from Southeast Asia , 30% are still on welfare compared to 8% of households nationwide.

A Wall Street Journal editorial dated December 5, 1994 quotes law enforcement officials as stating that Asian mobsters are the "greatest criminal challenge the country faces." Not bad for a group that is still under 5% of the population.

I remember hearing about the immigrants that came through Ellis Island They wanted to learn English. They wanted to breathe free. They wanted to become Americans. Now, far too many immigrants come here with demands. They demand to be taught in their own language. They demand special privileges ... affirmative action. They demand ethnic studies that glorify their culture.

It is a F.A.C.T. that America is based on being free and was meant to be open, but when does it end? Where do we go when America speaks another language we don't know? Where do we go when our health care system is only for the rich and the illegal? Where do we go when we are no longer welcome and are hated in our own country? We need to know these answers and that is a F.A.C.T.

C: Is about caring for yourself and others

Fall is finally here, which means dry skin, brittle hair and my biggest problem, chapped lips. We have lots of places to go, people to see, family events to attend to and parties galore. This column is dedicated to places and treatments I recommend.

Elizabeth Grae is a celebrity make-up artist. Her specialty is a total make-over and eyebrow shaping. They say the eyes are the mirror to the soul and with Elizabeth's expertise you will gain the confidence to gaze unabashed. Elizabeth lives in Greenwich Connecticut but does home and office visits. To book an appointment call 917 359-4472

Need to get your body in shape with your own personal yoga teacher or nutritionist? The best person I know is Jennifer. Not only has Jen brought herself to optimum health she can do the same for you. Jen also does corporation wellness programs so if you are looking for the perfect pick me up for your office contact Jen at 917 669-6702

For discounts at top NYC Spa's log onto www.spa-nyc.com and check out the specials.
Right now they are having 50% off treatments that will make your body purr.

Beauty comes from within. Here is a way to become beautiful from the inside. curcioprojects is pleased to continue its support of non-profit organizations improving the lives of children. On Nov 8 join Anne Curry, Vanessa Williams, Soledad O'Brian and Hoda Kotb for Hearts of Gold at The Puck Building. A Fashion show with silent and live auctions with two donated photographs by friend and famed photographer, Patrick McMullan. For info and tickets call: 206-1461

Nov 14 100 Women in Hedge Funds for iMentor takes place at Cipriani on 42 Street for cocktails, dinner and auction. www.100womeninhedgefunds.org, www.imentor.org.

If we don't take care of ourselves we can not give to others and that is a F.A.C.T.

A: is for art that releses us.

On Thursday Gagosian Chelsea located at 555 West 24th Street from 6 to 8 pm presents The Remix Paintings of German artist Georg Baselitz. Baselitz confronted the visceral realities of history and the human and cultural tragedies of a world in turmoil. "What I could never escape was Germany, and being German." says Georg. The Remix paintings are radical transubstantiation's, part-caricature, part ghost. The spontaneity with which they are executed gives rise to things in the past, present, and future. Remix also has to do with a mature artist's meditations on time, presence, failure and possibility. This is the first time that this work will be shown in the U.S. You can see it till December 22.

Ever since I met Johniene Papandreas I have been a fan of her work. Johniene transformed a design career in New York theatre into a business designing Corporate Theatre and Events before returning to fine art. Her large-scale paintings were recently featured in the Los Angeles Times announcing the prestigious 2007 ASID Greystone Mansion Design Showcase. I am fascinated with subtext. Reading between the lines and tuning into the unspoken. My portraits are of imagined, damaged, passionate, and hidden selves. Expressions captured in a moment, thoughts private, unobserved, before the retreat, before the walls go back up. Guided by past Masters who were passionate in their revelation of the human condition, Johniene seeks out the souls that populate their paintings. The complex expressions, hidden agendas, and faces stripped of artifice, laid bare by ecstasy. Lifting them out of their place and time she take them as models. I listen carefully and translate. Your eyes meet theirs. Something seems familiar, you connect, and across the centuries spirits speak.

I have always longed to have an apartment large enough that just one of her pieces could dominate the room. For me they are like dream catchers or Dorian's mirror and we could all use someplace to hide the recesses of our souls and that is a F.A.C.T.