"To forgive is the highest, most beautiful form of love. In return, you will receive untold peace and happiness."

- Dr. Robert Muller (Under-Secretary-General of United Nations)

The rise and fall of mr. gingerbread man!

My gingerbread man turned out kind of ugly...another childhood dream crossed out :P But it was definitely made with care :) I envy dessert decorators now.

Anyway, I went through a minor dilemma after I finished my masterpiece. I wasn't sure where I should begin eating Mr. GBM as I would feel disrespectful eating any portion. It's the same dilemma I go through when I eat gummy bears or any other food items with actual "bodies". In the end, I followed my mother's advice. And started off with the arms... leaving the smiley face for last.

This sounds soooo wrong. -__-

Bowling away your worries :)

Jukebox: Phontaine - Feels Like Home (Yellowsoul)

1. The evening began with a pickle! 2. A personal alarm 3. What's a bowling adventure without some action shots? 3. Naturally... four asian players require six bowing balls. 5. Hmm.. which one to choose? 6. M gets ready to hit... A STRIKE! 7. This is the magic 8 ball: Celebrity 300. (...forced to lend his arm for the added dramatic picture-effect hahaha) 8. GAME OVER let's see the results 9. Kobe almost wins this bowling game. Perhaps he should change his career path? 10. Exhaustion takes over after two very fun and fulfilling games. 11. The shoes looked ancient. Ergo, my ingenious "paper-towel wrap around feet-as-pseudo-socks" method may haved saved me from contracting an unidentifyable foot fungi.

Either my hands are too shaky or I need to get a camera with better image stabilization. Canon S95... PLEASEEEE lower your priceeee!!! =P

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Would you be surprised if you found this in your Christmas Stocking? :D

All About Eyes

I wasn't blessed with clear skin at all (Stress + Junk food = EASY BREAKOUTS) however luckily, being  young, asian and monolidded, I THINK my eyes have been able to withstand the scorching California sun for a while without crinkling at the corners... at least for now ::knock on wood:: 

This doesn't mean that I can escape from the wraths of eye maintenance however... if I don't get enough sleep for a few days.. I will easily form dark circles.  Therefore, this will be an entry.. "all about eyes"  Paradoxically, eyes are "windows to your soul" despite the fact that they age easily since since the skin around it is delicate. By no means am I an expert... but I think I'll just share some tips on what I do to maintain my eyes ... or specifically speaking, the skin around it. 

Wrinkle avoidance.

1. I avoid waterproof eyemakeup if I do wear eyemakeup... harder to take off in my opinion.
2. I avoid eyeliner... partially because it doesn't show up anyway with my eyeshape and partially because I feel that shadow is easier to wash off.. aka.. less tugging.
3. lame pencil eyeliners can be a pain to apply.. invest in a good smooth liner. Urban Decay. 24/7 (B) is an alltime favorite amongst my friends. I recently discovered  that Tarte emphasEYES (A)  is also pretty good as well.  Both have an extremely smooth formula.. and fairly water resistant, without being too difficult to move.  The downside of Tarte emphasyes is that it is a clicky twist.. so don't twist out too much or else you will end up wasting product.My best friend uses mac fluid line. Application with a angled brush is always better in terms of less tugging.  If it's drying up... DUMP IT. Although I preach, I don't necessarily practice.  Ergo...in my case... one pencil can last several years... costworthy! but yeah i know gross. :)
4. totally un-related to eyes... but many people tend to wrinkle their brows/forehead when putting on makeup. Try to train yourself not to do so.
5. Use a cleansing OIL to remove makeup. The oil is much smoother for removal, so you don't constantly stretch your eyes when tugging. I tend to stay away from cold creams because you have to tissue it off... more tugging. (More Recommendations below)
6. I try to avoid falsies because I haven't mastered taking them off without stretch. My close friends can do that well..which I envy.
7. use eyecream (?)
8. Sunglasses can be another "SPF" barrier for the skin around your eyes. In my opinion, the bigger the better :D
9. I gently pat in my eye creams if I use them instead of rubbing it in. So its like a mini massage and also prevents from tugging.

Eyemakeup remover.

I use the cheap Almay Moisturizing Eye Makeup Remover (A) which leaves an oily film even after rising.. so I finish it off with another cleanser. I wouldn't recommend it.. but it does its job. Dermalogica Soothing Eye Make Up Remover (B) is something I've tried that is amazinggg. It's on the expensive side though, but I got it in my eyes before... and it didn't hurt :D (Not thatI purposely try.) I currently use a Japanese facewash called Perfect Whip (C) for facial makeup removal. The Perfect Line (which is part of Shiseido) is amazing. All you need is a small drip/ goop, lather and it foams up for your whole face. I really want to try the Perfect Oil (D) from that line sometime... I think it will be a great remover. The only thing is that the Perfect Line dries my skin a lot after usage. I guess it also guarantees maximum makeup removal.

Eyecreams.

These are the two I use "interchangeably" in a fairly inconsistent- basis.   Honestly speaking, I'd say I use them maybe 1-2 times every 5 nights... Nevertheless I figure it's fine to start my habit slow but early... so I wouldn't start worrying when I hit middle age :P

1. 100% Pure Caffeine Eye Cream, Organic Coffee Bean:
Ingredients:

• Green and White Tea (Organic), Black Currant (Ribes Nigrum) Fruit Oil, Green Coffee (Organic), Vitamin E (A Tocopherol), Vitamin C (Ascorbyl Palmitate), Chamomilla and Lavender Wax, Pure Vanilla Absolute, Extracts of, Rosemary (Organic), Oregano (Organic), Thyme (Thymus Vulgaris) (Organic), Grapefruit Seed (Organic), Goldenseal (Organic)

What It claims: (taken from website)

• "Anti-inflammatory, caffeine rich green tea and coffee de-puffs and reduces swelling while increasing circulation to alleviate and brighten dark circles. Concentrated with potent anti-aging vitamins, antioxidants, and nourishing blackcurrant oil. For anyone looking to reduce the appearance of dark circles and puffiness."

What I think:

• This one had pretty good reviews on MUA.  I'd say the perks are the deliciously coffee scent and the 100% organic ingredients.  I don't exactly know if this is due to the organic consistancies, but I noticed the cream is EXTREMELY hard to spread around the eyes... can't really do it without minimal tugging.... which isn't the best thing you want. They say the caffeine is supposed to help with dark circles... I didn't really see any drastic effect... it's not too expensive, smells good.. and slightly moisturizes.  I bought one for my mother and grandma. I think they just use it because it smells good. Hrmm... I'd say it's not THAT useful.  3/5

2. The Body Shop Aloe Very Eye Defense.
Ingredients:

• Aloe Barbadensis Gel, Water, Cyclomethicone, Glyceryl Stearate Citrate, Pentylene Glycol, Hydroxypropyl Starch Phosphate, Cetearyl Alcohol, Alpha-Glucan Oligosaccharide, Betaine, Sesamum Indicum (Sesame) Seed Oil, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Panthenol, Glycerin, Myristamidopropyl PG-Dimonium Chloride Phosphate, Allantoin, Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil, p-Anisic Acid, Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate, Bisabolol, Sodium Hydroxide, Polygonum Fagopyrum (Buckwheat) Seed Extract, Tocopherol, Avena Sativa (Oat) Bran Extract.

What it claims to do: (taken from website)

• "Community Trade aloe vera hydrates and calms sensitive skin, while Community Trade sesame oil helps to restore skin’s moisture barrier. Prebiotics from sugar beet helps to strengthen the skin’s natural defense system. Bisabolol from the new caledonian bush and oak extract soothe, calm and protect skin, while buckwheat wax helps to reduce puffiness."

What I think:

• I'm such a "The Body Shop" freak now. and this one was actually a gift. I really like the consistency better then the Coffee Bean eyecream.. and it is definitely more moisturizing. As far as drastic effects... didn't really see any. But maybe in the future? 4/5

Dark Circles:
1. try to sleep enough
2. water water water (for dark circles)

Depuffing:
My best friend uses a teabag method for depuffing. After a long night of watching Walk to Remember, The Notebook, Dear John... this is a must.  I spy on her :P and I noticed she takes two sparingly "used" teabags... puts them in a clean ziplock, refrigerates them, then puts them over each eye like a compress after squeezing out the excess water. Be very careful not to get tea in the eyes though.  It seems to be very useful

Health of the Eye itself.
1. NEVER SLEEP WITH CONTACTS. even during naps. I think my eyes have endured a fair amount of strain over the past decade
2. Apply rewetting eyedrops to your hearts content but try to avoid the "Redness Relief" if possible. Basically, the redness relief can shrink the blood vessels in your eyes temporarily.. but if you do it too often, I've read that your eyes get use to it.. and the "redness relief" aspect looses  its functionality.... so bascially the blood vessels wont shrink anymore.

Eye-nergy
There's two pressure points at ur temples, near your eyes.. if i'm ever tired, I press and massage the area... it hurts like heck but wakes me up.

And with that said, I'll leave yall a random pic of dark circles versus no dark-circles. LOL. I really don't know if this was a helpful entry at all... but hopefully it gave some insight.  I think I'll do one on circle lenses next. lalalalala~~ Just bought a new batch recently :)

Empty pockets but no one would care

Jukebox: Throwin' Shapes- Minus the Bear

Don't you just love the days when you can leave the house without anything...

No Cellphone, No Wallet, No ID... nothing but the clothes you were in.

simply because your parents have everything taken care of.

wow, those were the days

It just occurred to me that it hasn't been like that for close to a decade

Time does fly!

I re-lived the past a few days ago with self-built gingerbread.. *cough* graham crackers *cough*  houses. Nevertheless.. it was a delectable and nostalgic trip back to my youth. NOM.  A little army of gummy bears barricading the entrance ever so tentatively. They were the most delicious.. I had to eat them first.

M's loveeelyy twenty one... plus two =)

The birthday celebration of one of the most gorgeous, sweet, smart and funniest girl I have EVER met!

Naturally, the day began with everyone avoiding my lovely candid photography :P 

Including the beautiful birthday girl! (sniff)

l(m)ss at Larchmont!  elegance =) corkage fee for self brought champagne was a whopping 15!

beautiful wine / champagne glasses

Dinner buddiesss =) heheh teresa's so pretty and cutee!!

with I took more group pictures

waiting out in the frigid rain... body heat and blanket help warmed us up =P

PRETTYY JENNYYY!

guess my dinner!

me with some more of the gorgeous girlys=)

GMT <3

(my hair is so much shorter now in comparison lololl -.-)

Such a fun day night and day... now 

sorry f th lack of typing, my cmputer can't recgnz th top letters oof my keyboard nlss  press it SUPER hard! I dnt knwo what is wrong with my laptop! its s scay!!

Gryffindor *cough* holiday nails

My favorite song of the moment:

Jukebox: Late Night Alumni- Light Reading



So in tune with the song title above *pun :P*, this entry will be a light reading as well... about my festive nails! I haven't "played" around with nailpolish for wayyy too long. Had an inspiration this morning to do a Christmas-y theme.. but after looking at my result.... I think I'll have to go with "Gryffindor". I don't own the right shade of dark green polish.... nor am I ever planning on buying it. Yes red and gold <3 (Harry potter wise... NOT SCHOOL wise) ;)

My left hand is basically a mirror image of my right hand.. with inverted colors.  Snappy?  Funny story, the door bell rang right after I finished, lo and behold my TARTE packaged had arrived! It was a task itself trying to open the door pick up the package without messing up the nailpolish design and looking like a dainty idiot :)

No more kids meals... for a while

Although this already made a debut on my facebook, I decided to reserve a  righteous spot on my blog as well, commemorating the completion day of my sister and my McDonald Kid's meal Sanrio watch collection quest.

Why my fingers smell like orange chicken sauce.

Jukebox: Medina- You and I


“GINA HELP HELP...” I jolt up in bed. 630AM the sky was still a sluggish gray, my mind in disarray, scramble of thoughts, brain still lingering in my dreams, resisting reality.  The bed beckons me... "lie back down" no.. "focus focus"... "why am I up so early". oh, mother's holiday potluck. holiday party food. Food. FOOD.

"I can't finish this in 20 min, gina come help me"

Next thing I knew, the icy kitchen floor was draining away heat from my bare feet.  In a hopeless battle against the dissipating body heat, my fingers ran lame attempts at energy generation as I ferociously ripped the prepackaged bags.

Delicate magical pouches of sauce, ready to be emancipated and cast their spells.  Beguiling bits of peanuts and ginger danced amidst the goopy fluid.  "I WAS HOMEMADE" it screams,  hahha homemade my @$$!

"thank goodness we got the ready-to-eat chinese salad set." mom says as she rushes to the rice cooker "one less thing to worry about"

costco still amazes me after all these years. (L <3 V  E)

before me, a clear bowl as deep as my bathroom sink, wide enough to be my winter sled, glistening water droplets already joining in on the sport, sliding down the concave surface into the empty abyss
The emptiness invites food.

Wish granted! In goes 3 pounds of Dole Iceberg lettuce like a garbage dump

Did you know there is taste and texture scale on the bag? a two for taste and texture a "crunchy bold" five. That always reminds me of the cheeto bag, where the scale meets "dangerously cheesy",  I remember pondering over the scale when I was younger. Did any of you wonder too?

I digress.

in go the almonds. in go the crunchy wontons. MIX MIX MIX. Chicken. MIX MIX MIX MIX CHEX MIX!

the oven timer dings precisely as I finish my organic masterpiece.

I peek in the aluminum tray… befuddled by the pallid color of the chicken. my index finger meets the surface. COLD.

“MOM THE ORANGE CHICKEN IS NOT COOKED.”

a 10 second jumble as feet storm in.

"what do you mean it’s not... omg... the conventional oven wasn't plugged"
sure enough, the lone plug smirks at me.  black and silver "You Were Careless", it laughs

8 min left.

I turn on the stove and start the stirfry instead.

the sound of oil snapping comforts me despite the impending deadline. I was working the stove like a skilled panda express worker. Yayuhh!

soon, everything is ready. cellophane and aluminum glistening their sanitary aura.

I load everything carefully in the trunk, and mom speeds off to work.

Undulating waves of success wash over me! Yay! I did well this morning... and it's still only 700! Time to do my own schtuff.... I thinkk?

As I round the corner to go to my room, I pass by the kitchen...

...and the merciless battlefield of unwashed pans, open sauces, and unused foods glares right back at me.

sigh.... i guess not yet.

Happy Holidays :)

* i apologize for the usage of a crude word meaning butt... 

"Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work."

- Thomas Edison

On a side note...if anyone wants to exchange blog links, LET ME KNOW! :D

Do what mom says!

My mother insists I wear this Davy Crockett Cap when I study. She says my head will be warmer.
As you see, I do not completely agree.

The story of my day....today... lol.

Chapter 1:  Buy one fail, get one fail free! 


Dad: Gina... Gina.. Gina ...
Me: .... huh?!
Dad: A.D.D!!! you have Attention....
        Attention DISFOCUS...
Me: HAHAHAHAA

... clearly knowledge of basic behavioral problems are not required for chemical engineering PhD's...

five minutes later... I tell Jen what happened...

Jen: What? I don't get it...
Me: WHAT? YOU TOO?!!
         it's supposed to be Attention Deficient Disorder
         duh...
Jen: OH... u mean "Deficit"
Me:  oh yaaa.. oops

*cries over my bs in psychobiology*

Chapter 2: Oven roasted turkey $20, cranberry sauce $8, a heartwarming thanksgiving greeting.....   priceless $.10


I am currently crossing my fingers that I will recieve the perfect amount of thanksgiving texts that they don't surpass my 200 text per month mark.

I'm on 199/200 and it recycles in approximately three hours and forty six minutes.
:O

Chapter 3:  the vegetable that sounds like a karatechop... shall be karate-chopped out of my LYYYYFE.  (hrmm.. this one needs a witty-er title...)


College has taught me to stand up for my own beliefs.  This is applicable in many situations... including advocating for the satisfaction of my tastebuds. 


So today I have decided  that I will not eat anymore daikon unless it is a life or death situation.

(or unless I miraculously like it again .... *cough* VERY unlikely *cough*)

Why?

I'm usually not a picky food eater and I'm actually very willing to try anything new. HOWEVER one "thing" that I can NEVER stand is daikon.

This nasty bugger:

changed my mind about adding in image.. just click this link ;)

I dislike the texture, the bland taste, the consistancy, the smell, the shape, the EVERYTHING!

Unfortunately, it also happens to be one of my mom's favorite vegetables.

But after unwillingly pushing past my natural gag reflex and forcing myself to eat this for over fifteen years, I pretty much have had enough.

So today after trying to swallow the vegetable for the nth-teen time... I came to a sudden realization.

We only have one life....so why waste it by eatting foods we don't like unless it is absolutely necessary!?

So that's what I've decided....

DAIKON NONO!


with that said... I proceeded to drop the rest of my daikon pieces into my sisters bowl when she was not looking.

problem solved :)

I Clearly have a problem of being succinct when writing.

It's one thing to wake up at 5 am, and it's another thing to wake up at five am and eat potato chips.... on your bed

These events began my Thanksgiving 2010.

You know there's that saying in regards to flashbulb memory where you remember specific events that are significant in your lives?   I surmise that  for me, each Thanksgiving holiday seems to correspond to a flashbulb event as well. Sophomore year, I remember sitting in front of the turkey with a bowl of mashed potatoes to my right and my physics book to my left... I couldn't take it anymore and went back to school afterwards because my professor had strategically placed a midterm the Monday after our long holiday....  "more time to study!" .... Pfftt!! more like "more time to procrastinate!"

I know there are always jokes about people saying "HAPPY THANKSGIVING" to others in Australia, Canada etc.. it's like "PSYCHE... THEY HAVE NO THANKSGIVING! Did they have the history of the pilgram and the indians... err...I mean... native... americans? nooooo"  Honestly, all history aside... does it really matter?  I say any country can and should have a Thanksgiving holiday.

 It dawned on me THIS Thanksgiving how this holiday is actually really meaningful.

Seriously, how many nations have a national holiday designated just towards Giving Thanks.  It's definitely something that needs to happen more in our society. Appreciation for the things we have.  Heck, I need to work on it myself.

I am soo thankful for my loving family and their everlasting support of any decisions I make (even though.. they still try to influence me, but whatever ), I am thankful for me being who I am... out of the billions of sperm and egg combo... I turned out the way I am with my lame sense of humor and naturallly frizzy hair (no, but seirously frizzy hair= volume! there.. turned a negative into a positive :D ) , I'm grateful for health, safety, diagonal parking spaces, and last but not least, my friends and best friends... always there when I need them.

am I missing anything?

One more thing... and I'm also grateful that I'm an asian (:P) living in the US.  Out of all the possibilities of me being born an ethnicity in the same country.... I was one of the lucky percentages born outside. This gives me  the best of two worlds.. an ecclectic cultural background.  Now I'm not saying that I don't like Asia because that is COMPLETELY not what I'm going for. What I mean is basically I'm happy for being one ethnicity but being born in another country.... does that make sense? I feel like I'm digging myself a hole.


To wrap up my Thanksgiving day post, I'd say after this realization Thanksgiving is now officially my new favorite holiday..... after my birthday. A holiday which encompasses Tryptophan-Loaded food (mmm sleeeeep), amazing shopping deals, and a meaningful life-message is really (excuse my lack of better words)....neat!

I think it's about time to close this bag of potato chip as it has done it's deed of being a muse to my blog ramblings.  I didn't think it was the best thing I could do to my body at 5 AM either.

*thanks body for being able to  metabolize the multitude of junkfoods I eat*

Tag: My Perfect Imperfections

Jukebox: Breathe- Telepopmusik

There's a video tag going around in the youtube beauty community called "My Perfect Imperfections" and it's basically about listing three things you like and three things you dislike about yourself.  I thought it was quite interesting.. seeing all these gorgeous beauty gurus, all who seemed extremely "perfect" talk about their imperfections one by one. We all have our quirks and loves.... so honestly, sometimes by just sharing them, we realize how everyone is both insecure and confident in one way or another.  In the end, it all comes down to accepting your flaws both inside and out.  By mentally understanding that flaws are a part of  who you are and what makes yourself unique... you learn to love yourself more.

And with that said, since I haven't had a lot of time to fill up this blog, I figure why not do a text version of the tag?   I added an extra category down about the parts where we are iffy about also like.. or have grown to like. 

My Imperfections

1. My Skin. I AM SO ACNE PRONE ITS SCARY. I can't really attribute it to genetics because everyone in my family has clear skin... but I break out so easily from stress, food, hormones, everything..... that it really is a constant irk. And honestly, I'm not the type of person to be quiet about my tribulations with breaking out either... My poor friends, they all hear my yodeling about it.  anyway, it's super annoying still with hyper pigmentation and the shebang. For one... as a person who doesn't put too much though about what I eat,  working-out, or hair maintenance, I AM extremely (excuse the word) anal about what I put on my skin (despite the mediocre outcome).... And I honestly feel that if I hadn't been so tentative with my skin... I would have been left with even worse scars.  Good thing this year my face has calmed down... but ya. I often ffeel like it is a hopeless cause...

2. My eyesight is so bad ... I wish I could wake up one day without glasses and be able to see.. either that or at least be able to read a book without glasses without needed to place it 2 inches away from my eyes.

3. Sometimes I feel like my nose is so close to my mouth that I look like Bert from sesame street. hahhaha!!

Those imperfections that you learn to love.... but still sometimes dislike :P

1. I use to think my lips were extremely fat... but I think I got use to it or something. They don't bother me anymore. LOL

2. I like how I don't really need to pluck my eyebrows because they are already naturally straight... but they are sort of short.

3. I like the shape of my nose... however, I always thought it was on the bigger side.... thanks dad -___-

What I Do Like About Myself.

1. My general structure

2. My face shape

3. I like my eyes, the shape and that my eyes are pretty big for a mono-lidder.

Wow.. how demoralizing... my entry came out unexpectedly as in inverted pyramid -___-  haha goes to show I still have a lot to work on in terms of accepting myself for who I am. But I guess this is a step towards doing so.

Alrighty... this wasn't actually the beauty entry I was planning on writing.. but it was shorter and hopefully will suffice for a bit. I shall begin tackling my apps again. Le sigh..

A fine frenzy - Almost lover

Jukebox! Classic accompaniment for lyrical jazz piece .... I lovveee! My sister choreographed a dance to this music. Man I miss dancing.

*edit* beauty entry coming up soon. It's taking forever because I have so much things to finish these next two weeks, so I'm writing the entry piece by piece. Nevertheless...I'm excited :D

Tiff's Pink and Black Birthday

Jukebox: Nicky Lee-Gei wo bao bao


I totally forgot this song until heard it again in m's car in the wee hours of the morning after Tiff's bash. man, brings back memories of sophomore year. Saturday was Tiff's 21+1 birthday.. featuring Kbbq, Laser tagging, and of course... Boba. All I can say is meat and guns are a potent combination. Definite poison to any morose feelings. Guaranteed to bring lasting good mood. Enough chatter. Let the pictures do the talking.

Meat was deelishh

Cheers for the Birthday Girl

Alex ordered two cool beer thingies (I really have no idea what it's called)

Beautiful girls !! (i dont know why its blurry :( )

Finally get to see Christina :)

This process took a while hahaha

Carnage on first half of the table

delicious devoured carnage on the second half 

Smiles for the birthday girl :)

<3

EAP Entourage :)

Pink and Black

Mod-ish KBBQ place I've been to!

Girls and the Guns (Laser)

DON'T SHOOT MEH!

let's end the night with some posing :)