Blackberry Playbook

It has been decided. I will be purchasing the Blackberry Playbook today after work. I have been contemplating about it for several months and the reason I have not purchased it yet is due to a lot of people's opinions - so I thought what the hell, why don't I just buy it and form my own opinion? Especially since the new OS 2 has been released, I have been hearing nothing but good things about this device.

I will update you on my viewpoint after playing with this device for a countless amount of hours tonight. I am actually super excited!



Planking

Several months ago, co-workers and I were oddly on the topic of planking and how hilarious it is. On our planking excursion this website was discovered through sh*ts and giggles...

Planking is when an individual is laying down face forward, with stiffened arms by their sides and stiffened legs. It is formally known as the "lying down game" where the individual must plank in a relatively peculiar area and someone else will take a picture of them and post it on the net.

Check out the best 65 planking pictures from around the world. I have also selected a few of my favorites and have posted the pictures below. Check them out if you are in need of a good laugh...

Happy Planking!
Also, apparently planking is old news, the new wild thing is "owling". What can I say? Us humans are so unique, special and possibly bored?

A new twist on an old cliche...

For all those men who say, why buy a cow when you can get milk for free. Here's an update for you: Nowadays 80% of women are against marriage, WHY? Because women realize it's not worth buying an entire pig just to get a little sausage.

If Women Controlled the World

I received this email from a girlfriend and thought I would share... 

IF WOMEN CONTROLLED THE WORLD...

Twirly, Curly magic wand!

For those of you who do not know... I absolutely suck at curling my own hair. I have spent a lot of money purchasing a salon ceramic curling iron which I am unable to fully utilize and pretty much just hibernates 365 days a year. Also, I do own a ceramic flat iron and am still unable to curl with it. For the odd times I do attempt to curl my hair, I thereafter load on the hairspray with high hopes that the curls will maybe hold for an hour; but with my extremely long locks of hair the weight just does not let the curls sustain.

As a supporter of Kim Kardashian's website ShoeDazzle in where I purchase at least a pair of shoes a month which, in turn has got out of control - there was a Dazzle Deal that had caught my eye. I unfortunately missed out on the deal because for one, it sold out and secondly the dazzle deal had ended. Then a couple of months later it was back, the Proliss curling wand. For $39.95 + applicable shipping, I am now a proud owner of this fantastic curling device. An actual curling iron cost me more than 3 times that price and I am sure it does wonders however, I am unable to make wonders with it.

Now if I can curl my hair with this product - take my word, ANYONE can. It even comes with a pair of heat-resistant gloves which will protect your hands as you curl your hair. Over time when you become more accustomed to using this curling wand, you will no longer need to use the gloves. I also find that when I use the gloves it tends to make my hair frizzy. I dont even have to use any hairspray or as a matter of fact any product to hold the curls. I was even able to curl my hair after 2 days of flat ironing my hair dead straight. All you do is wrap a small chunk around, hold it for 10 seconds, unravel and VOILA!!

 This was the outcome I got from trying this curling iron for the very first time.

Specs: 
Proliss twister tourmaline ceramic professional curling iron.
25-13 mm barrel (1").
Heats up to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.

Here are some amateur pictures of the curls I created with this spectacular wand:

Click here to purchase via ShoeDazzle.

Authentic Vietnamese Soup - Pho

My all time favorite authentic Vietnamese dish that I eat AT LEAST once a week. I have been eating pho for about 5 years now and it is just the perfect portion size and always hits the spot. There are so many different locations out there I am sure you have one within at least 5-7kms. The pronunciation for pho is actually "fa" which I was informed by my Chinese friends. The best part is when I walk into a restaurant during peek hours and the entire room is filled with Asians - they pretty much look at me like "whose this brown girl, is she lost?" LOL! Furthermore, the only reason I know how to use chopsticks is thanks to the practice I got while eating pho. My two favorite pho restaurants are, Pho Dau Bo & Pho Mi 99.

I always order the same thing "Rare Beef Rice Noodle Soup" & "Cold Pork Rolls". However, I find that Pho Mi 99 has more lean beef with absolutely no fat and they also grill the pork in the cold rolls which adds that extra flavor that keeps me coming back. 

It is also very cost efficient, for a small size bowl of pho it usually costs around $5-$6 and is very filling. I cant forget about the Sriracha sauce and Hoison sauce that I mix together and eat with my rice noodles.

 

It is also a very healthy meal choice with calories ranging between 400-600 depending on what you get, garnishing + sauces used. The only downside I find, is that it is very high in sodium and dehydrates the hell out of me. I probably consume 4 glasses of water thereafter in desperate attempts to restore hydration.

And if I'm feeling bad... sometimes I get an Avocado milkshake or a Taro Milk Tea with Tapioca bubble tea as a treat after my meal. :)

Pho date anyone?

Old Geezer

Is it normal to be tired and consumed with a yawn a minute at 10pm? My yawn tonight is so intense, I thought I almost cracked my jaw opening my mouth so wide. I swear, I'm only 25 years old however, I find that with age sleep becomes more crucial. If I don't get at least a minimum of 7 hrs of sleep per night, I am totally dysfunctional. It is also hard for me because I have totally discontinued in-taking caffeine so its not like I can just go and drinking a coffee or shot an espresso.

I remember those days back in the teens where I was able to party, get totally wasted, sleep at 5am and still be able to wake up at 7am for work. Hung over as ever, but still able and present. Now, if I want a wild night out, I have to extensively plan in advance to ensure I will be able to sleep in until 2pm the next day and that I have no where to be or nothing to do that requires me to be coherent.

I would also rather be at home, kicked back on my bed or couch watching TV as opposed to raging at a club. I am a social butterfly and love to go out and mingle but when I do, it is now practiced in full effect - maybe once a month.

 I am an old geezer!!!!!!

I love CUPCAKES!

Recently, well maybe a year ago, I have developed a new found love for CUPCAKES!!! Yum! I am salivating just blogging about them. They are the perfect size and with exactly the right amount of icing it hits the spot. Oh ya, did I forget to mention that I only love them in Vanilla flavor?

My all time favorite cupcake baker is GRACE!!! If you haven't tried her cupcakes yet... you don't know what you are missing.

Here are some cupcakes that Grace made - she only bakes for special occasions and uses the box mix but boy do they turn out super delish!! I wish she would bake them all the time.. :)



X-MAS



MY BDAY - because she loves me.. <3



Halloween

Valentines Day

10 deadly fashion & beauty items that could kill you

I received this email from Refinery29 and found this article very interesting...

I would highly recommend that you sign up for their daily does of awesome - they send you some pretty interesting and knowledgable fashion/beauty emails worth reading!

10 Things that you are wearing that could kill you

By Connie Wang, Megan McIntyre

1. Silk Scarves

In one of the most infamous death-by-clothing-item stories, 50-year-old ex-dancer Isadora Duncan's silk scarf became entangled in the open spokes of the car she was in, throwing her to the pavement and killing her instantly. The scarf in question was a hand-painted Roman Chatov silk scarf that her friend Mary Desti (who also witnessed the accident) had given to her. So, kiddos, remember — two and ten, buckle up, and keep your hands, feet, and scarves inside the vehicle at all times.

2. Platform Shoes

The phrase might not be "The higher the heel, the closer to God," but it may as well be. Super-high platforms, stilettos, and wedges may give you a boost, height-wise, but anyone who's worn them knows that one misstep, and you can end up with a twisted ankle — or worse. Allegedly, a 25-year-old teacher in Japan died after falling from a 5-inch platform sandal and fracturing her skull, and another Japanese woman died in a car crash when her stiletto-clad foot couldn't get to the brake in time. Yikes.

3. Skinny Jeans

Skinny jeans might be the everyday pant for most women, but wearing too-tight pants every day might lead to meralgia parenthetic (MP), a form of itchy, burning, tingling nerve damage on the pelvis and upper thigh. According to Consumer News, skinny jeans are also responsible for bladder infections, yeast infections, dermatitis, blood clots, and a condition called lipotraphia semicircular, when your skin develops depressions due to constant and uneven pressure.

4. Oversized Purses

We're working ladies with lots to lug around, but upgrading in bag size to accommodate all our daly knickknacks is probably a bad idea. Said family physical practitioner Dr. Jane Sadler to Reuters, "I see so many women with neck pains and headaches and what I usually do is look for their purse and pick it up […] and they're usually anywhere from seven to ten pounds." Extended use of a large, heavy bag may lead to irreversible back, neck, and shoulder problems.

5. Flip-Flops

Without much in the way of support, protection, grip, or secureness, flip flops might be the most dangerous piece of footwear around. According to The Wall Street Journal, researchers at Auburn University found that flip-flops led to "foot fatigue, sore calf muscles and an altered gait, which could cause long-term ankle and hip problems." Moreover, slipping in them, being stepped on while wearing them, and tripping in them are common flip-flop flubs — more reasons to ditch this shoe altogether!

6. Cheap Jewelry

There's a reason all that fantastic costume jewelry from your favorite high-street shops is so cheap. According to The Ecology Center, more than half of the jewelry found at stores like Claire's, Forever21, Hot Topic, and Wal-Mart contained high levels of hazardous chemicals over the limit of what's safe, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission. The next time you're thinking of picking up a strand of fake pearls, a fake diamond ring, or a fake silver bracelet, know that you're also buying real cadmium, real lead, and real chromium.

7. Wedding Rings

If you have a ring that you never, ever take off (for most, that piece is a wedding ring), well...you might want to consider removing the sucker every once in a while. Oftentimes, as fingers change sizes due to weight gain, rings become stuck, and can cause a nasty variety of accidental injuries ranging from bruising and circulatory damage to — in some gruesome cases — the accidental loss of a finger.

Says surgeon Monica Wood, MD, from Northwest Hand & Orthopedics, "I remember one patient—a charming senior who did no heavy work. She got up on a step to put something on a shelf.  The step tipped and she reached to catch herself on the shelf. She very nearly lost her finger. Her ring caught on the shelf and ripped through the tissue, lodging itself in one of her joints."

  

8. Keratin Straightening

The Brazilian blowout seemed like a dream come true for girls with persistent frizz — an in-salon treatment that gave you semi-permanent results of smooth, shiny strands — but that dream quickly became a nightmare with the news that many of these treatments contained unsafe levels of formaldehyde. Long-term exposure to formaldehyde has been linked to cancer, not to mention side effects of eye and nervous system disorders, respiratory tract problems, chest pain, vomiting, and rashes.

This treatment is particularly dangerous for salon technicians and people who undergo frequent straightening treatments because they are constantly exposed to the chemicals. "The Cosmetic Ingredient Review (CIR) Expert Panel recently completed a comprehensive review and found that the safety of methylene glycol and formaldehyde in hair straightening products depends on a number of factors, including the concentration of formaldehyde and methylene glycol, the amount of product applied, the temperature used during the application process, and the ventilation provided at the point of use," says Jay Ansell, PhD,  vice president for cosmetics programs at the Personal Care Products Council. "The Panel concluded that under present practices of use and concentration, formaldehyde and methylene glycol are unsafe in hair straightening products. Consumers should go to a licensed professional salon and ensure that adequate safety measures and ventilation are present." If your salon says that they use a formaldehyde-free straightener, make sure they have the proof to back that up.

9. Expired Beauty Products

All beauty products use some type of preservative, be it natural or chemical, to keep the ingredients fresh and free of bacteria. Problem is, those preservatives will expire, meaning that your face cream could be swimming with germs, post-expiration date.

"Preservation systems are designed to assure that products are adequately preserved from point of purchase and through normal and customary use preventing bacteria from developing." says Ansell. "However, misusing them has the potential to allow bacteria or fungi to grow. Products, particularly eye area products, like mascaras should not be shared, never remoistened with saliva, or applied in the car or on the bus."

In addition, pay attention to the expiration dates of your products. Most beauty products will have something called a PAO (period after opening) symbol, which looks like a little jar with a number in it. That number tells you how many months that product is safe to use after you first open it. After that time period, the preservatives are no longer guaranteed, so your products aren't protected and could cause some pretty serious infections.

So, how do you know if your product is still good? "The simplest advice is: "If the product looks bad or smells bad, discard it," says Ansell.

10. Colored Contacts

While wearing the latest crazy shades on your eyes (ooh, violet) can look rad, it can also be really dangerous if you don't go to an optometrist first. Since contacts lay directly on your eyes, they need to be fitted correctly, especially if you plan to be wearing them for a long time. They also need to be cleaned properly — the last thing you want to deal with is bacteria in your eyes. Using contacts that haven't been properly fitted and cared for can lead to infections and, in extreme cases, vision loss, so check in with your eye doctor first, before you decide to invest in new lenses.