Challenge Accepted, Enjoyed, and Embraced

I have a gross little secret.

(sotto voce) I love squeezing the gunk out of the pores in my nose.

I TOLD you it was gross.  But don't lie... you've done it before, too, right?

Here's the thing - I think I do it in hopes that there will be that one time when I squeeze... and nothing happens.  That moment when there ISN'T yucky stuff clogging my pores - the moment that I've won the battle with the forces allied together to make me hate my skin.

And then, it happened.  THAT MOMENT - it happened.  Just this week, I saw what I thought was the beginnings of a pimple (yes, I know they tell you not to squeeze them; who actually listens to that?).  It actually turned out to be some dry skin (which is an anomaly in and of itself, considering my life of oily-prone skin), but in that moment I squeezed, I saw that bit of dry skin... and nothing else.  No ickiness oozing out!

What the French toast??????

I'm going to thank the honey.  I've only been using it for a week, taking the Crunchy Betty Honey Challenge, but in that week - WOW.  That's really all I can say.  While I have been extremely happy with the results of using the oil cleansing method since earlier this spring, the honey makes my face.... glow, shine, sparkle (not in the weird Twilight way - in a more metaphorical way) - it looks FANTASTIC.  My pores seem smaller, my tone seems more even, the texture feels more even (and softer), and I'm loving what I see.

So just what are the benefits of using honey (raw, unpasteurized, and unfiltered) on my face instead of, say, Neutrogena®?  Here's what Crunchy Betty herself has to say about it (I can't do any better than this, so I'll go straight to the source):

1. It is antibacterial and antimicrobial. It will get off any lingering nastiness that’s thinking about setting up camp on your face and creating pimples.
2. It is slightly drying which means it helps soak up any pimples or oiliness.
3. It is also incredibly moisturizing. Seems like a double standard, doesn’t it? But it’s true. Honey sinks into your skin and moisturizes like you wouldn’t believe. (Remember Cleopatra and her honey baths to look young?)
4. It imparts all kinds of beneficial enzymes that work at scrubbing your face for you, as well as perform a little anti-aging action.
5. It’s great for acne, aging skin, normal skin, dry skin … honey loves EVERY SKIN TYPE.
6. It is healing and helps repair acneic sores and scars.
7. It’s 100%, absolutely, positively natural, great for your skin, and such a SIMPLE addition to your routine!

How awesome are all those points, right????
Another member of the challenge noted that honey is a humectant, which helps the moisturizing, and at the same time is able to repel the bad juju that usually takes up residence in the pores.
Oh, and did I mention that it smells great?  Those aforementioned seven excellent points aside, the best thing about the process is the wonderful smell - and taste, if it drips a little.  Although, um, I would not recommend inhaling that lovely sweet scent when you are rinsing the honey off (cough cough cough!).
The other best thing about this is that I can no longer imagine a better way to clean my face after a morning run.  While the weather in Arizona is always hot this time of year, it's been terribly humid, too, which makes for a very sweaty run.  When I get back from a basic two miles (in this weather, I won't risk taking Zooey any farther than that, even early in the morning), I'm literally dripping (don't be grossed out - sweat is beautiful and cleansing in its own right).  I can't even tell you how wonderful it feels to apply the honey, sit for a few minutes while the bounty of the bees works its magic, and rinse off in the shower - I know nothing but fresh and clean is left.  I kind of want to slather it all over myself after a run, but that might be taken the wrong way.
So what do you say - have you accepted the Honey Challenge?  I promise it will be the sweetest challenge you have ever accepted (insert rimshot here).