leafing through

1. Get to work no later than 8ish, not 8 thirty-ish.  Specifically, quit piddling around so much in the mornings.
2. Get a haircut.  Maybe bangs this time?
3. Go to bed earlier than 1AM.  This will fix all my life’s woes.
4. Read a book.  A book.  Uno.  Try.
5. Clean out closet. Get rid of junky clothes.
6. Clean out files.  Shred the old cell phone bills from five years ago!
7. Frequent Sephora.com a little less.
8. Eat lunch at the prescribed lunch eating hour between 11AM and 1PM, not 9:00-geez-what-is-wrong-with-me-AM!?
9. Buy clothes I’ll wear.   Not the clothes that I think I’ll wear because it’s cute and look, it’s on sale too!
10. Attend some form of arts performance.
11. Take a vacation somewhere!  Anywhere!
12. Try a new-to-me fancy restaurant in the local metropolitan area.
13. Finish reading those case studies for next weekend’s class.
14. Finish school.
15. Beat Fire Emblem.

In 2008 I finally:

• Spent 4th of July in DC and saw the most spectacular displays of fireworks all around the city.
• Slurped down a raw, uncooked, living just 5 minutes ago, oyster. Yummy… in a not-really kinda way. More weird. I’ll have to come back to it later. Maybe.
• Had s’mores. Yes, I know.
• Attended a comedy show.  I laughed so hard I nearly fell off my seat!
• Ran three miles straight, on a treadmill. And survived!! Wish I could do it now though.
• Figured out my alcohol limit when I’m out in public. Two. An Irish coffee. An appletini. And the sangria tipped me over the edge! I should stick to beer.
• Joined Facebook! Resistance was futile. I assimilated.
And I’ll have to do these next year:
• Take a vacation!!  Like right now, I wish I was in some place warm. Some country in Africa maybe. Oh, or maybe India.
• Finish school!  As much as I gripe about it, I know I’ll miss school when I’m done.  Guess I’ll have to pick up another (hopefully less expensive) hobby.

The food fest started with a lunch of bi bim bap and kalbi. Mmm… I love this bi bim bap.

For Christmas Eve dinner, my family came over. There were 15 of us total and we had enough food for more like 40 people. What can I say, my mom has a hard time estimating portions. She’s a feeder. So it was a gluttonous affair.

I spent the evening eating until I was ill, then I’d wait an hour or so until I didn’t feel sick, then I’d go and eat something else. And, I STILL didn’t get to try every dish. Yeah, there was that much food.

After, we played Taboo, cards, and the Wii.  Speaking of, I got a Wii for Xmas!!!  (Thank you sis/b.i.l.!) Yup, I’m now the proud owner of a Wii and I already have Wii-arm from playing Cooking Mama.  Anyway, the old people left at around 3:30 AM and the young’uns stayed until 6 AM.  I ended up waking up at 1:30 PM today, eating and downing 7-8 cups of coffee then falling back asleep for another 3 hours or so.  Caffeine doesn’t even faze me anymore.  Woke up for dinner and now the cousin’s are back for round 2 of Tetris and bubble tea.  We don’t just marathon-eat, we marathon-play. I love this crazy family.

Happy Winter Solstice Day! Technically it was yesterday but I was too busy getting my Sims to fall in love and get their first kisses to blog. Even though it seems like we’re just into our first day of winter and there are thirteen more weeks to go, it’s also the shortest day of the year so I feel like I’ve made it. I will survive this winter yet again because the days will gradually brighten. And maybe the temperatures will get colder, but at least we’ll have some sunlight!

We had our office holiday potluck party yesterday. I ate so much I impressed my coworkers with my, um, healthy appetite. Hey, what can I say, I don’t get mac ‘n cheese, sugar cookies, brownies, chocolate bark, apple pie, chocolate cake, and red velvet cupcakes on a regular basis. Pretty much after the party (3PM), no one went back to the office. Not sure how effective any of us were going to be passed out at our desks anyway. So Ann and I went to the mall. Huge sales going on everywhere as I anticipated. And (I’m so proud of myself) I preemptively left my purse in my office, knowing that I’d go nuts on all these pre-holiday sales.  After the mall, I went to a salon for Ann’s wedding hair and make up trial. When I first agreed to go, I really had no idea what it involved and thought it was just a chance to learn how to do make up. And it was, but it was a lot more involved and a lot less glamorous. Three hours later, I was HUNGRY and (hate to admit it) a little tired/bored of the whole dolling up process. I think the hungry part made me impatient for it to be done. The make up artist’s train case and tool belt was unbelievable though. She used a lot of Bobbi Brown and MAC and Smashbox’s Photo Finish Primer.

Her opinions on some beauty products:

• Inexpensive drugstore cosmetics: Cover Girl has some nice things.  Their mascaras are pretty good.
• Blush: She uses MAC.  When asked about Nars’ blush, she said it wasn’t her favorite because it didn’t seem to last as long throughout the day as MAC.
• Moisturizer: She loves DDF Ultra-Lite Oil-Free Moisturizing Dew as well as Laura Mercier’s tinted moisturizer.
• The “look”: More important than color, you should understand the texture of the skin. Do you want a dewey, matte, or in between look? Dewey can come off shiny, too matte can make you look old. In the end you just have to play with the products.
• Foundation primer: Always use it.  Smashbox.
• Eye primer: You should use an eye primer but it doesn’t have to be a specific eye primer.  For example, the MAC Shadestick can double as a primer and eyeshadow base color.
• Mascara: Those newfangled battery operated vibrating wands are not worth your while.  They’re gimmicky and annoying to use.  She likes Diorshow and MAC.

I think after this makeup overload, I’m done with this obsession. Three hours did the trick.

I saw this on a Flickr photo of a stack of pancakes (of all things).

Life is too short to wake up in
the morning with regrets,
so love the people who
treat you right,
forget about the ones
who don’t,
and believe that everything
happens for a reason.
If you get a chance, take it.
If it changes your life, let it.

This past weekend, I tried to prepare for a finance exam. Tried. I have difficulty studying for a topic I can’t quite grasp. Then I went bowling because bowling is simpler than finance. But every time I go bowling, without fail, my thumbnail tears off. My technique is off somewhere during the release. Luckily, it’s never gone past the quick but still, it’s a pain and cuts my game short. It’s not just the bowling ball though, my nails just get brittle in the wintertime. I mean, last week, I chipped a nail opening a drawer. Ann recommended these vitamins called GNC Women’s Hair, Skin & Nails Formula. I just got them today and I’ll update you if I notice anything mind blowing.

Just as Winter is getting to it’s darkest and coldest and unbearablest, these little buggers start popping up.

And as depressed as I’m feeling nowadays what with my thinning bank account and widening waistline, it’s nice to see some color. Pink especially!

Without even trying to holiday shop, I’ve inadvertently purchased things as I am suckered into one marketing ploy after another! These stores are totally cramping my bah-humbuggy style! Linen’s ‘n Things going out of business. Gift certificates from Sephora. Bed Bath & Beyond mailing coupons every week. How can any sane person turn down one deal after another!? I can’t do it. And yet at every downturn of the economy and stocks, a better deal comes up. Oh the humanity!

It can be an eyeliner or eyebrow filler.