MIT Senior Ball 2007 - Survival Guide

Grooming

How to treat a Pimple (from Worst Case Scenario Survival Handbook)

Apply a warm compress: Soak a hand towel in hot water, then hold it against the pimple for a minute or more. This will open up your pores.
Apply a topical medication: use any over-the-counter benzoyl peroxide product.
Do not touch: Leave the pimple alone for as long as possible.
Reassess the situation: Immediately before your date, determine if the pimple has come to a head. If so, proceed to step 5.
Pop the pimple: Place your fingers on either side of the pimple and gently pull away from the pimple to open up the pore. Do not push inward (do not squeeze). The pimple will expel its content if it is ready to, but no hram will be done if it is not.
Apply a cover-up: Dab the now-empty pimple gently with a tissue to remove any remaining liquid. Apply any cosmetic with a green tint, which will conceal a pimple or the red mark left from a popped pimple.

How to Treat a Shaving Wound (from Worst Case Scenario Survival Handbook)

Rinse the cut with clean, cold water
Apply alum salts or talcum powder: Alum, a mineral sometimes sold as styptic powder or a styptic pencil, stops blood flow. Hold the alum in place for 10 to 20 seconds, depending on the severity of the wound. While effective, this technique can be painful, since it is literally applying "salt to the wound". The quickly dried cut may also form a noticeable scab. Alternatively apply a liberal coating of talcum powder to the cut. Although slightly messier than alum, talcum is considerable less painful and will conceal the nicks and cuts. If not neither are available, proceed to step 3.
Apply toilet paper: tear off a tiny pie of toilet paper or tissue, and press it onto the cut for at least 15 seconds until it adheres by itself.
Wait for a few minutes.
Moisten the paper, and the carefully pull it from the cut. If it is not moistened, the paper may reopen the cut when you peel it off.

How to Treat a Major Shaving Wound (from Worst Case Scenario Survival Handbook)

Apply firm pressure directly over the wound: Place your fingertips at the point where the bleeding seems to be most severe.
If the bleeding stops, continue the pressure for an additional ten minutes. Remain still until the bleeding subsides for sure. Then go to an emergency room.
If your bleeding does not stop, do not panic. Pinch and hold the bleeding area. Use your dominant thumb and index finger to pinch the skin where the blood flow is coming from. This will most likely close the vessel even if you cannot see it and will stop the serious bleeding.
If the bleeding continues despite the above steps, carefully ease off the finger pressure while using a piece of cloth or tissue to wipe blood away from the wound. This should make it easier to see the end of the cut vessel or to pinpoint its location even if it is deep under the skin. When you see it, try pinching it again.
Apply pressure directly above and below the bleeding site: If the bleeding is still profuse, maintain finger pressure over the wound while pushing immediately above and below the bleeding site. This will seal the areas where blood vessels enter the wound.
Go to an emergency room.

If the blood flows in a steady stream, you hit a vein and can block the blood flow by applying pressure above the wound.
if the blood is spurting, you have lacerated an artery and can block the blood flow by applying hard pressure below the wound.
There are four jugular veins. The external jugulars (on the right and left sides of the neck) are vulnerable because they lie right under the surface of the skin. The internal jugulars lie close to the center of the neck front, but are about an inch under the skin in a protective sheath. If you accidentally cut your neck shaving and notice a great deal of bleeding, you've probably cut the external jugular.

How to Give Yourself a Manicure

Remove old nail polish thoroughly.
Soak hands in warm water for 10 or 15 minutes. Dry hands.
File nails in one direction only. Avoid using a seesaw motion.
Push back cuticles. Use a cuticle moisturizer if they do not push back easily after soaking.
Massage your hands. Use a moisturizing lotion. Use an exfoliating lotion if your skin is dry and/or roughened.
Apply a base coat. Allow it to dry.
Apply polish. Clean any stray marks with a cotton swab dipped in polish remover.
Add a second coat for deeper color.
Finish the manicure with a top coat of clear polish.

How to properly apply cologne (from ehow.com)

First of all, don't settle for aftershave. Sure, it may have some scent to it, but it does not last long, nor is it strong.
Hit the right spots: The throat is a major spot to spray some of that cologne - body heat is closest to the surface and most likely to intensify the scent of the cologne.
Spray with care, being careful not to exceed three sprays of cologne.
Spray enough so that people know you're there, not so much that people know you're coming.
Reapply after long periods of time. If you applied cologne in the morning, reapply in mid-afternoon.

Tips: A person's sense of smell is not as acute in the morning as it is later in the day - so when applying in the morning, splash carefully. The stronger the cologne, the less you apply. If you spray your clothes, do so sparingly.

~ Provided by the Class of 2005 Senior Ball Committee ~