BARBIE REFLECTS (not) ON SUNSCREEN

Last Tuesday was the first stiflingly hot day of our Florida summer and all of the news channels, quite befittingly, were reporting on sunscreen. On that day, I ventured down to Miami's 125th antique strip, and in a sunny twist of fate, shop owner/designer Marc Corbin gifted me with David Parise's fab photo of Barbie and her playmates tanning rather irresponsibly on South Beach.

To celebrate Marc's lovely gesture and my new awesome photo, I shall share some random sunscreen info, garnered from NPR, that I scribbled down at red lights on my drive home from Miami.

1. There is no such thing as waterproof sunscreen. Instead, look for "water-resistant" sunscreen.

2. Sunscreen needs to be applied liberally and reapplied every two hours.

3. the vote's not in on the effectiveness of spray-on sunscreens vs. lotions - and there are unknowns as well about the potential hazard of inhalation from sprays

4. people of color are more naturally protected from harmful rays but they should still wear sunscreen.

5. 50 SPF is the max anyone needs.

And one last shot from Marc's store.

MARC CORBIN INC.
875 NE 125TH STR.
N. MIAMI, FL 33161
(305) 899-2509
marcorbin@earthlink.net