It's Aloha Friday! v. I

When I lived in Hawai'i, I really enjoyed Fridays. Instead of dressing casually, people all over the Islands put on their best Aloha shirts and muu-muus, beautiful flower leis, and hair flowers (left side for married, right side for singles), and we celebrated the island culture.
And of course, in every store and mall, you'll hear the fun-loving rendition of "It's Aloha Friday - No Work Till Monday...." Fun and festive!

Inspired once again by Zandria and her Random Friday posts, lifecandy will also have its own "It's Aloha Friday!" posts of random interesting, bizarre, noteworthy, etc. things I've come across throughout the week. This will only happen from time to time, depending on how interesting my life is on a given week. :)

Okay... Here we go...

Jami of Bionic Beauty will be on Blog Talk Radio TODAY at 2pm! To catch it, visit the Loose Lips NY radio site at: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/looselipsny. And to call in, dial (646) 716-8862.

Some really great friends of ours, Rob (who was one of Roomie's groomsmen) and the lovely Val, have left for Oahu for some R&R and sightseeing. Yes, I'm envious... I wish I could've gone too... They didn't even offer to stash me in their luggage! What friends!!! :) Seriously, they're fabulous, and I hope they have a great time. They've promised to bring back a bag of poi powder for us... so, yay! Can't wait to see the pictures. :)

The stray cat we found in December - who we named "Neo", but according to the tattoo on his ear, is actually "Mustachio" - will have to find a new home in a couple of weeks. He is seriously skittish and twitchy, and has scratched our frightened children more times than I can count. He was the answer to our prayers when we had the mouse in our kitchen, but when it comes down to "Who goes? The cat or the kids?", well, my kids don't shed as much. We made posters and put them up this week...

Roomie and I took the kids to an Ethiopian restaurant for dinner a few days ago. They just ate the injera (bread used to scoop up the meat and veggie stews), but they liked it!

I've called Goodwill for another pick-up. They're coming to get our boxes of stuff on Tuesday... Woo Hoo!!!

Is it Ever OK to Eat Lipstick?

Photo: Experiment in Lipstick

No, I don't think it's ever OK to eat lipstick.

I don't open my purse while running errands and think "I only have time for a bite of my Aveda". It's been a long time since I bought lip product for its scent and/or taste... although cherry-flavoured lip balm still makes me smile.

But I know I still end up eating it... while eating my tasty poached eggs, drinking my cups of green tea, smooching with Roomie...

In fact, the average woman eats over 6 pounds of lipstick in her lifetime (that's over 500 tubes!)... so maybe we should be buying lipstick based on its edibility.

In Cindy Mortimer's article in the November 2007 Issue of Alive Magazine, many ingredients in drugstore lipsticks are known to cause irritation and UV sensitivity, are known pollutants, and are known to be carcinogenic. Yum..

For truly yummy lipstick, reach for the natural stuff containing Vitamin E as a preservative, ingredients like cinnamon or shea butter as antiseptics, and emollients such as cocoa butter or beeswax.

Is your lipstick harmful or healthy? Find out at:
http://www.ewg.org/skindeep/

Roomie just suggested that the next post should be "Is it Ever OK to Eat Glue?" Good grief...

Meme Addict Strikes Again!

Hi-ho! Kari posted this meme on her blog (nice redesign, Kari!) and has encouraged her readers to take it and run with it... so, since I'm a meme-addict, and as this week's 52WoC assignment is to link to Kari, here's mine... Feel free to take it and run too.

1. At what age do you wish to marry?
I want to marry at 25... oops, too late - I married at 30... gotta fix that time machine!

2. What color do you like most?
burgundy...

3. Where is the place that you want to go the most?
Any place where I can wear next to nothing and scream "I'm not getting dressed unless I get arrested!!!" Hopefully, the next words won't be "Oh, hello, officer."
Somewhere warm like the Mediterranean...

4. Which part of you do you hate the most?
My painfully-dry winter skin... it always gets really dry and sore during the winter, so I have to slather on the body lotion... I'm an island girl - I need humidity!

5. When you encounter a sad moment, what would you do?
I weep copious tears...

6. What are you afraid to lose the most?
My family...

7. If you win $1 million, what would you do?
Travel to warm naked place, invest in our retirement and kids' education funds, pay off debts to mortgage and loan sharks... just kidding about the loan sharks...

8. What’s your wish for the year ahead?
More good health, good fortune, and happy-happy stuff with Roomie and kids...
Less debt and boiling bum pustules... just kidding about the bum pustules...

9. How did you celebrate the New Year?
At home in my pyjamas watching Futurama surrounded by my family.

10. Till now, what is the moment that you regret the most?
Not being more adventurous, enjoying life more, and saving more money when I was single.

11. Which type of person do you hate the most?
Control-freaks have a special place in my personal version of hell... and I used to be one of those people!

12. What is your ambition?
To be a more effective blogger, to make a living from blogging... and to be able to do 25 push-ups.

13. If you had one wish what would you wish for?
For my kids to have long and happy lives...

14. Name one of your body parts your hubby or boyfriend tells you he adores:
Hubby thinks I've got a nice butt... despite the pustules... ;)

15. What is the best gift you can give someone this year?
My time... it's a very rare and precious commodity...

16. List two of your Top Ten New Year’s Resolutions.
To get down to 24%bodyfat...
To learn to play poker...

17. What do you need to do this year in order for you to be happier in life?
Win a million dollars so I can finally get those loan sharks off the boiling pustules on my bum... sorry, just kidding...
I'd like to be organized so that I can get things done according to priority... I like life to be a well-oiled machine on autopilot. :)

18. What are the Top 2 things that you are most thankful for the year 2007 that made you even more happier for 2008?
Starting my blog, and Roomie's lovely job because now we can have summers together as a family...

19. What was the best lesson you learned in 2007 (be specific)?
I have to have some projects, hobbies and enjoyment outside of my family... some stuff to call my own... to preserve my own identity beyond that of just 'Mom'. Doing so has made me a more effective mother... I think so, anyway. :)

20. In this very moment, are you doing what you thought you’d be doing at this stage in your life?
No, thank heavens! Being in WAHM Heaven is infinitely better than being in Computer Engineering Hell!

Peace out! (omg, how old am I?... 16?! pffft!)

52 Weeks of Blog Community

One of the things I love about blogging is the social and community building aspects. It's much more personal so reaching out to other bloggers is so easy... a very one-to-one thing.

A really groovy blogger I've come to enjoy reading has recently started a project to promote this community-building. Shai has started the 52 Weeks of Blog Community. Each week for a full year, she'll be giving us tasks that encourage us to reach out to other bloggers. Cool, eh?

If you have a blog and want to join, just follow the links above to Shai's blog.

January 2008 - My Makeup Case

Photo: Me

Okay, so I've made some changes to my makeup case based on the companies I found that do/don't test on animals, as well as other cool new makeup stuff I've stumbled on, or read about.
Because I like trying new things, I'll be doing an update post like this every once in a while.
Here's the latest...

Moisturizer: Avon Solutions Hydra-Radiance
Foundation/Concealer: Aveda Tinted Moisture - Sweet Tea
Brow Gel: Rimmel Brow Gel
Mascara: Avon Astonishing Lengths Waterproof - Black
Eyeliner: Aveda - Cacao
Eye Shadow: Aveda Uruku - Tagua (comes in a tube)
Lipliner: Aveda Uruku - Morena (I often use this as an overall colour)
Lip Colour: Aveda Lip Tint SPF15 - Coco Plum (If I'm using this, I don't use the Morena.)
Lip Balm: Aveda Lipsaver SPF15
Hair Styling: Aveda Confixor
Shampoo: PM Tea Tree
Conditioner: PM Tea Tree
Scent: Fruits & Passions Jasmin Body Milk

Tools:
lash curler
MAC retractable lip brush
makeup pencil sharpener
tweezers
hairbrush
blush brush
cuticle stone
nail clippers

Car Conversation with Roomie...

Roomie stops the car at an intersection. "... so, should I go down Academy Road? Yeah, I should go down Academy Road."

"Are you talking to me or to yourself again?" I ask.

"I'm talking to 'Virtual You'."

"Do you do a lot of things with 'Virtual Me'?"

Roomie grins. "Yeah, 'Virtual You' is dirty..."

Cute Fuzzy Animal Testing...

I was reading Jami's blog the other day, and I was really happy to see that her newest entry that day had a link to Caringconsumer.com's Companies That Do/That Don't Test on Animals.

This came at a good time as I was planning to do a makeup case audit again, and my mascara was due to be pitched again.

I was so surprised to still see so many big names on the Do Test list, but I'm also very happy to see so many more names on the Don't Test list. At any rate, I'm just glad to know which to support and which to boycott.

Question for my readers: Is testing on animals a factor in your cosmetics/grooming product purchases?

The Big 8 of 2008

Photo: happy new year 2008 #3

I love the start of a new year. It's a time of re-birth and new beginnings... a time when the sins of the old year are put behind us, and we can start fresh. It's like the Vegas slogan. What happens in 2007, stays in 2007.

This year, I've asked my Neo-Citrin-addled brain (yeah, I'm still sick) what I'd like to accomplish before the end of 2008. What are my goals?

Now I hesitate to call these 'resolutions'. Traditional resolutions make me think of those well-intentioned life changes that I likely drop by Ground Hog's Day or get me whining like my 3yo when she's been told to clean up after a tea party with the cat.

No, these are goals. And they have to be SMART - Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time-bound. Furthermore, these are personal goals... just for me... a part of my campaign to focus on myself a little more.

So, here they are... my Big 8 for 2008:

1) Get down to 24% bodyfat
And I plan to do this via CRON, yoga, tabata and hula.

2) Learn to play poker
I can't believe I'm 38 and I still don't know how to play poker. Maybe Roomie will teach me if I promise him a game of strip poker...

3) Learn to sing properly
I will actually take singing lessons this year... so I can sing for longer than 15 minutes, and not have people leaving the room when I do...

4) Hit -4.00 in each eye
I've been remiss in my eye exercises. I was improving for a time, then I got lazy.

5) Do 25 REAL pushups
This is going to be the toughest thing on my list... I just know it!

6) Finish work on Livingroom & Diningroom
Getting the clutter out, rearranging existing furniture, and setting up new stuff. This shouldn't take too long, but I'm giving myself the whole year to do it. Someday, I'll get the whole house done, but for now, one room at a time...

7) Make $100 more per month online
I have a few websites other than this one, so if I put in the work, I may actually be able to pay for domain hosting! :)

8) Create a book of recipes for family meals
Healthy, much-loved everyday dishes, so I can plan weekly meals and make grocery lists easily and quickly. I've been wanting to do this for ages.