olay natural white

guys, share ko lang...

i am getting too many happy compliments on my face after olay natural white. i only added it to this month's grocery shopping to try, but irish and maricel already noticed it after one day.

it was when maricel took a photo of me and irish first week of september and she said my cheeks were sparkling while she was trying to focus the camera on us.

remember this?

so i want to share the product to my cheek's success (corny):

my new facial wash, non drying, not bubbling either.

but leaves my face squeaky clean.  although i wash my face first with belo whitening soap...  they said double cleansing your skin is a must-do every night, after the day's pollution.

and my moisturizer.  you can see the effect after using.  no lie.  or maybe it's like a tinted moisturizer although instead of giving tint to your face, it whitens.

i stopped using toner coz i've read that it dries up your skin and not using a toner doesn't make much difference (i know, im gullible, right?)  and it was too bad coz i just stocked up on my loreal pre minimizing toner a while ago...

in fairness, my toner was non-allergenic and you can really see on your cotton pads the dirt that normal washes cannot remove, but ive grown lazy using it at the moment.

neutrogena's deep clean is my weekly scrub, and fair and lovely was my previous moisturizer (i was loyal for three years, san ka pa!).





anyways, of course to each her own. this, in my opinion is the so far my best moisturizer. it kind of put a flawless mask on your face and you can see your face's nice finish immediately. the facial wash doesn't have too much bubble, but you'll feel and see the difference on your face after using it, i noticed smaller pores and luminiscent finish.

try them.  you might like the improvement.  as they say, 'change is good'.

and i love them both!

because real men don't sparkle

go team jacob.


i hate the word twihard. but i guess, seeing that i'm one of the swooning, ive been bitten by the bug, er, vampire, whatever.

but as much as i love to swoon over edward especially in midnight sun, upon watching the new moon trailer i cannot believe that i'll go over to jacob. he has more expressive eyes, and yes, he is more, um, toned...

im over to team jacob now.

so there, i wasted two hours of today searching for photos, images, and wallpapers of jacob black. i didn't even visited edward cullen's photo gallery. then i put them in a collage and uploaded it in friendster. i would have also changed my ym image if i just didn't love my own pix.

so...





i cannot wait until november.

damn book. i can't put it down!

breaking dawn. currently at page 290/702.


it had never had me gripping a book like this. i honestly didn't want to get out of bed. good thing it's ramadhan and we get off at 2, otherwise ill go crazy in the office waiting to go home and continue reading.

i.am.such.a.dork.


and an idiot. i don't need another fixation! pretty soon i'll never be able to sleep until i have the dvd's, cd's, images, poster, whatever it is i can find....

so much for hating sharie, the twi-hard in the other room.

but when i listened to rob pattinson's never think, i just melted... you know that helpless feeling when you hear a song and you kind of see yourself on a car, driving on a cold night and just listening to that music? dammit, it's making me homesick.

it's just too melancholic. i would probably cry to sleep later.

balance

today i realized that as much as i want to concentrate on one artwork i have to try and switch between three just to keep my boss happy and to get him off my back as much as possible.

it was irritating for him to assume that if i was concentrating on only one artwork then it means im not working hard enough.

the truth is, as a graphic artist, i have to. otherwise the momentum of the design will be gone.

but after six years i started to realize that he will not wake up to the fact that im only human. he thinks of me as a superhero. or maybe more of a magician. and how couldn't he?

i can't blame him for that. not only am i the graphic artist, im also their secretary. their HR. their personal family secretary - and they have 7 members of the family (and growing by the minute). sometimes i get calls at 11pm from his daughter in newcastle UK. or his son in texas. my expertise in the internet seems very helpful to them. plus the fact that im the only one who can put reminders on my phone.

so as i was saying, i started to switch three artworks every 45 minutes - a brochure for their new construction material showroom; a brochure for their (also new) chocolate shop; and 5 requests from a computer shop client.

would you believe it worked? not only did i have three updates for him, i was also able to answer smartly about the progress of our projects. i wish i'd done it sooner, but i know im too stubborn for that.




so speaking of balance, instead of continuing the fourth twilight saga (im still in the bella part), breaking dawn, i decided to check on friendster and my blog. it's hard for me, coz when i start to read it's difficult to stop. i will not sleep, i will delay eating, and i will procrastinate for as long as possible.

and also since i have been asking out loud after finishing the third book "When will Bella finally be a stupid Vampire???"

and every chapter in the fourth delays the answer.


i also watched the movie this afternoon to help me visualize the most exciting part of the fourth book (you know what it is).

robert pattinson is so perfect for that role. it makes me like the visualization of edward cullen more. although i get distracted by kristen's washed out face. jasper is cute too. and 'dr. fang' carlisle would'nt be left behind.

i love the books.




what can i say? im officially cullenized.

photography workshop

the banner on the wall said:

Advanced Digital Photography


okay, i didn't really intend to apply for that.

at first i thought it would be a good idea for francis to join, but since he doesn't want to, i might as well try.

i wanted to take good pictures as long as i remember, i was really annoyed if my targets were photographed without a blurred background (like it was supposed to be focused on them but it ended up having everything clear), or knowing how to use the light correctly, you know, stuff like that.

but i wasn't planning on joining a workshop.

but i thought, this is perfect timing. since jared isn't here yet, i have the time to attend. and of course when i get him back, then im more knowledgable and ill be able to take good photos of him, the kind that you would be proud to hang on your wall, life-sized or even bigger.

so i was excited this morning, even though i slept at 2 reading eclipse.

here are my favorite shots:

(remember though, that i didn't use any automatic feature in bambi's 400d. i really worked hard to get the correct mix of lighting and new settings like aperture, ISO and shutter speed. you will see in my friendster album that most of the time i failed :p )

im sleepy. ill write more about it tomorrow night.

photo time!

when irish and i went to equinox for a client meeting, we accidentally found out about a photo seminar that ryan was having for 20 dinars only - for four consecutive fridays from 8 am to 1 pm! what a catch!

i begged for francis to join, mainly because he's wasting his digital rebel canon 400d in our closet, and party because i want him to take better pictures of me ^_~

but he wouldn't. i know he will not allow me to go without him, but i really want to go. i have always wanted to learn how to take a good picture.

and if, by chance, i have to go home, then being a good digital artist that i am, ill just open a studio and make money manipulating them for hormonal teenagers back home. (oh who wouldn't love a good photo for friendster or facebook?!?)

plus i get to do their makeup ^_^ !!!


anyways, yesterday was such a bad day because our management decided to drop the BD5 voucher that dory worked hard for. and they were such in a bad mood that everything you do was wrong just so they can to blame someone.

i really was so tired that i slept til 8pm when i got home at 2. i think my boundary for this month has been reached ^_^ !

so this morning we glammed ourselves for the reason that even if today will be another bad day, at least we three are pretty!

take a look at these ^_^







but it ended up a good day that i actually talked my boss into buying more memory for my macbook hihi!


ps
my nails are dolphin-inspired this week. i hate it.


so i changed it to this;


and im happy with it..

missing the clouds

i hated clouds before.

every saturday afternoon when i was in highschool i would peek at the sky and hope that i can see blue, but in manila where more than half the year is raining, it would really take a lot of hoping.


but then i grew fond of them after once, in biology, i was seated near the door. biology was one of my favorites, because my teacher was very good at the subject. but i lost track at what she was saying when i saw a couple of clouds in the horizon.

of course, if you just look once, and if you see them everyday you wouldn't take interest at them. but that afternoon i was fascinated at the way they move. they moved very slowly. the cloud above looked like it was pouring small white cotton candies onto the cloud below.  piece by small piece they fell.  it was very mesmerizing. i looked at it for a very long time.

and there i began my fascination to the charming clouds. haven't you noticed that part of our mood is influenced by the weather? mine is partially influenced by clouds.


that is why i am missing them now.

in bahrain's perpetual summer, i rarely see a cloud.


when i was in college i used to lie down in our rooftop all afternoon, watching them pass by. one by one, dragging each other along. sometimes merging together as they floated.

i love cirrus best. they just stay at the highest point, blending the whiteness with the blue sky. it is a good day if i see cirrus.



but every friday here when i let the a-c rest, i lie in bed near the open windows and wait for them. but still i see the cloudless blue. everyday. all year.

once in a while, try to look at the sky. watch the clouds move. you too will be hypnotized by those white floats... and maybe, your spirits will lift for a while.

i miss my philippine clouds.

jared learns to walk

this morning, friday, the only day-off that i have where i can usually sleep till noon, we woke up early at 8 to catch bambi's mother in ym. it was worth it.

jared was noisy by the time they called us, and he is fluently saying "ma-mah" now. my inlaws are so attached to him, and why wouldn't they? jared wakes them up with a kiss, and longs for their presence everytime they pass by. he is so malambing, that's why i know it would be so hard on them by the time we take jared back...

they said jared is already starting to tread 2-3 steps, and he will hate you if you try to assist him by his left, it should be his right hand. he wakes up at 5am, calls his grandmother mama and kisses her, then looks for his grandfather to start their early morning walks.

mama meling said it feels like a long time but when you think of it, he has only stayed there for 3 months. i totally agree with her. sadly, for me it feels like a year. at a time when he's developing and learning new things, i am not there.

it is so ironic to think that i have spent countless times training a baby to walk in sims 2 and 3. to the point where i have perfected it with more than 10 kids, and my own son is currently learning to walk without me. it hurts me so much, and i cry about it every single night.

i am always contemplating about what's more important. although i wanted a good future for us, i also wanted to be there for him. lmra, the agency that approves family visas here rejected our application again, saying that i shouldn't be working for a family visa to be approved. how unfair. i know a lot of families here with more than 4 kids.

i am desperate to find out what i really want. if i can't bring jared here, would i be willing to give up my stable job to go home? or should i stay for 2 years and save up first for the future? i really do not want to bring up my child without enough money. wouldn't it break your heart if you cant provide your kid with things that they need? that scares me the most. it's why im still here.

but come november, when my contract ends, for sure ill be standing on a crossroad once more.

God, please let me know which one to choose...

the bookworm crawling inside of me

i am so excited, bambi finally bought me the twilight book package!! i am such a dork :D

actually the first one i have read is new moon, which is the 2nd book, but since i saw the movie of the first book, i was familiar with the story. i just saw in in the living room and read it before we went for our vacation. unfortunately there wasn't enough time so i was left with 5 pages unread. now im going to start from the beginning...

unlike dan brown's books, of which bambi also bought me the 4-book package, i kind of like twilight the movie. maybe because i saw twilight the movie first. i have read the four books from dan brown and when the da vinci movie was released, i couldn't stand watching it because i hated the way the movie was going. maybe because i really liked the book and i was disappointed that the movie was slightly far from what i've read. i only watched 7 minutes of it.

that was not a problem with me with harry potter, with books from 1 to 7 still occasionally picked up when we miss reading about hogwarts. although the movies were a little different, those were still excellent movies. especially the 6th... which is the one with the nearest movie-to-book percentage.

along with these series i also had bob ong's books, although my sister borrowed it and brought all of it home. those were really good reads, my favorite is the first one (abnkkbsnplako?!?) i didn't read his last publication, though... (mac•art•hur). i felt that it was so dramatic and i was scared of breaking down...


anyways i was also perusing the bookstore for other books when i saw these coffee booklets and i was so touched by the contents, when i showed them to bambi and tried to read one passage, i was not able to finish it because i quickly walked away from him when i couldn't fight the tears anymore... (*emo mode daw ba sa bookshop?*)




some passages:

"if i have a monument in this world, it is my son." -maya angelou

"when nothing's gone right all day.. it only needs the rush of small feet pounding down the path, a leap, arms locked around about you, a grin, a pouring out of the day's news - and everything goes your way." -pam brown

"a son can be guaranteed to astound you all through his life - astound, bewilder, unnerve, flabbergast... you name it. he'll do it." -charlotte gray

"sons fling themselves. they bounce, bump, duck, dive, slide, paddle, fidget - and fall. then they pick themselves up and do it all again." -pam brown

"he makes me laugh and i feel through him that the world can be a wonderful place." -peter howarth

"... whatever sense of hurt or injustice a man may hold, he knows, in the depths of his soul, that his mother is waiting always for his return." -dame enid lyons


and the ones that made me cry:

"there are many things i would do for my friends - but there are limits. with my son there are no limits. i would give my money, my time, the proverbial right arm. and the wonder is that he never asks, he never pushes. and the nicest thing is that i know he feels just that way about me." -helen exley

"a son leaves home and there's a gap in one's life that will never completely close." -helen thomson

i really miss jared...

dahil ikaw

my husband and i got into a fight last night, and we went to sleep angry at each other. or i went to sleep, coz when i woke up he was still watching tv. anyways i saw a piece of paper on top of his laptop, with lyrics and music by him, for me...

here it goes:


Dahil Ikaw


Intro: G C G C D

G C Am D
Dati ang buhay ay walang saysay
Puno ng lumbay, dahil walang isang ikaw

Ligaw ako noon, di malaman ang gagawin
Pero nagbago mula nang masilayan
ang kagandahan ng iyong mundong
punong-puno ng kulay

Chorus
Dahil ikaw ang pumuno sa kulang
na hinahanap ko
Dahil ikaw ang syang nag ilaw sa
mundo kong kay dilim
Dahil ikaw ang naglagay ng kulay
sa mundo kong ginagalawan

Natuto akong umibig at magmahal ng dahil sayo
Binigyan ng saysay ang buhay na walang kulay
Ikaw ang dahilan kung bakit gusto kong mabuhay
Nang dahil may isang ikaw

Dahil ikaw ang pumuno sa kulang na hinahanap ko
Dahil ikaw ang syang nag-ilaw sa mundo kong kay dilim
Dahil ikaw ang naglagay ng kulay sa mundo kong ginagalawan
Dahil ikaw...



...sweetness...

i hate headaches X_X

my headache will be-

triggered by:
• hunger
• too much chocolate / sweets
• too much heat
• too much sleep

relieved by:
• sleeping. if not, then by
• strong coffee. if not, then by
• vomiting. if still not, then by
• biogesic + sleep

i wonder why bambi can still play in his laptop when he has a headache. coz when i have, i don't want to move, i just want to lie down and cover my eyes with a pillow and shut down the tv.

i should've know that eating late will trigger it, but since it was ramadan and i was in the chocolate shop i had no choice but to wait. but it was too late.

and it didn't go away until i vomited. every time i have to force myself otherwise it will not go away. unfortunately this time i didn't reach the toilet (*deadz*)...

i think it was also triggered by my contact lenses. everytime i change to a new one i get headaches too...


especially with these 600's. plus i have astigmatism on my right eye X-(

hello kitty didn't help.



my consolation? these cute contact lens cases!!! the pink one i use at home and the blue for my bag.


i don't know if you also have these tell-tale signs but my sister and me, we know when a headache is coming. i know the signs and the causes, and if i can, i try to avoid it before it's too late... otherwise im back to the bathroom again... X-(




well, today i was okay, so i experimented with my new polishes:



im so excited for my date with bambi tomorrow!

my hello kitty plate

i have fin'lly received the hello kitty nail stamping plates and new polishes yesterday from an ebay seller in hongkong, and though i wanted to go home straight to try it, i had to finish my part time job first, which got finished at 5.

so tired as i was, i slept when i got home and when i woke up at 9 only did i remember to change my nails for the 3rd time since thursday.

these were my nails yesterday before i changed it to hello kitty:


these were my nails last friday:


and these are my hello kitty nails, good thing my right pinkie isn't showing much, coz hello kitty's face looks awful there (i had to squeeze her fat face on my tiny nails so she looks unhappy on my pinkie)



and these polishes are special, coz you can either make a design on your nail using the brush or the pen:

dory is so excited to try these out, we're having a manicure afternoon in moss' house on thursday... i can't wait to try the other designs on the plate, especially the dolphin.

my next ebay buy will be the most awaited hello kitty long wallet, which is on my wishlist. i'll try to squeeze a hello kitty handbag (also on my wishlist) if i can, coz it's from the same seller and maybe ill have combined shipping discount! :)


today with my new nails:


"ah, the distraction that is nailpolish!"


anyways, i deleted punkymoods. the stupid image won't refresh...

introspects...

today was a milder version of the usual hot and humid august. usual jam-packed morning since we have to squeeze our work into six hours each day... sometimes only four hours for me if i have to go to my boss' new chocolate shop. stay there until 5 or 6. realization no. 1: distraction freezes depression

i tasted that piece of heaven called chocolate cheesecake jam again. this time being caught, hehe... i told her i was thinking of showing the middle part (where i bit) to show what's inside the chocolate when i make the brochures. no more arguments there, she thought i was officially working ^_^. realization no. 2: murphy's law is always in action


so these past few days i've been having nightmares that wakes me up in the middle of the night and squeeze myself into my husband's arms. but i usually forget them in the morning. realization no. 3: fear subsides when you are hugged

i also miss jared most these days. sometimes too emotional it's become oa. i don't want to have moss' aura of constant depression, as in everyday. comfort her today, tomorrow she's still the same. but sometimes i realize i've become like that to bambi, and he has given up the reassurances and the comforting. maybe moss is contagious...

i don't understand why she repeatedly goes back to the part of her that hurts. and i don't like if i will someday be like that. if she is contagious, then i better stay away, a little each day. realization no. 3: you could be influenced by depressed friends


look at my current mood. i found punkmoods again. how touching to have a drawing of how you are feeling on a certain day...

the chocolate wrapper

yesterday instead of going home at 2 because our ramadan timing is only from 8am to 2pm, i went home at 9.

i didn't wander off, not in this heat! bahrain is having it's worst summer yet, not because of the heat but mostly because of the humidity. imagine getting near to a big bonfire and you'll feel how we feel when we go outside.

thankfully 100% of the places here are air-conditioned, you'll only suffer when you go out.

anyways i got home late because for the first time in 6 years i have a part-time job. oh, wait, i had a part time job before, too, in a candy store. hmm, and now in a chocolate store? i might have a calling in the sweets business (*wink wink*)

my boss's wife is starting a chocolate shop and as part of the build-up team i also got to wrap the chocolates which are heavenly. and who loves chocolates more than me? omg, it's like going to chocoheaven. just going inside the chiller room which smells of chocolate to select which ones to wrap makes me smile..

and after designing them i couldn't help but giggle in delight because they're so cute!!! who would eat these after all the wrappings?



luc, the choco-wrapping master, was with me, and she is a pro! i love her designs!!!

the shop is supposed to open on the 1st of september but it's still empty:



the chocolates came from lebanon early this week, the accessories came from dubai and the furnitures will come from china. they are suppose to arrive tomorrow. so there's too much to do!

maybe that's why madam is stressed.

not me, i love designing, what more if there are chocolates in my hands!!! i tasted one and i sighed... i have never tasted a chocolate like that! that was the best ever. i think there are sweet jams and cheesecake and crunchy sweet things inside and they all melt in your mouth... such pure happiness...

that's why even if i went home at 9 i was still hyper... see the evidence: (i love my hair btw)



and i was still able to cook a mean adobo... which was already devoured when i remembered to take a picture.



a quick tip from my sister, she said when you add the vinegar - don't stir yet. just let it simmer for a little while and your adobo will be magically sweet!



fast forward to today, it was pretty much the same sched, escept that luc was not there. i was with nina, who howeebwee wraps chocolate... we decided to go home at 5 and i was able to catch bambi at home! his sched is from 7pm to 1:30 in the early morning, so basically he's free the whole day. imagine that...



addie: a cute house by a'ali... imagine jared playing in the yard. i missed him so much when i saw this!


oh, this is my face today. my eyes are sparkling in chocolate excitement!!!

thank you to my sponsors (hehe)

i love this pic! see how my cheeks shine?

i don't have special regimens, and i use only the affordable products on my face. always i avoid to be high-maintenance.


it was interesting coz when i was in highschool i had oily skin, but in mid-college when i went to dubai i must've left my oil glands at home coz my skin started to dry.

then my skin thought it would be funny to try all skin types coz when we transferred here in bahrain i started to have combination skin - oily on the t-zone and dry everywhere else.


anyways, my daily regimen 101. (with matching reviews in fairness)

to start with, i wash my face in the morning only after i take the shower. they said the stuff you use on your hair reacts with your sensitive face and more or less it might be the cause of your skin problem. i just use normal soap, although using clean and clear, belo or skinwhite soaps shows better results.

my secret weapon - bare escentuals skin rev-er upper. it preps my face for mineral foundation, and helps it last longer.  although it smells weird, it really makes a difference using this first before foundation.



then my daily face routine is to buff bare escentuals mineral foundation, then my mineral veil and finally - clear radiance.



the fine mineral powder foundation hides the discolorations and pigmentations, while the mineral veil gives a "soft focus camera lens effect" (no lie, this is the one i can't not do coz it gives my face a soft finish), and the clear radiance gives me that glow on my cheeks.

i started using these since i saw their video, and i never bought another foundation again.  i really do not want heavy makeup, and this is perfect for me.  it's so light, you wouldn't even feel like you're wearing foundation.  and it's really pure, the tagline says 'you can even sleep with these on your face'.  plus it lives up to its name with regards to effectiveness.  and easy to apply, which is the number 1 reason why i use it since i usually wake up 30 minutes before our office starts.  who wouldn't want to use this?

unfortunately they are available only from US, so i buy on ebay to stock up way before i run out.


if i want a dewy look ill use the body shop's illuminating vitamin e cream on my cheeks. it's tested and proven, and it was so convincingly beautiful that ariane actually started using this when i finally told here why my cheeks are glowing, after months of her asking me.



and at night-time if i want sparkles ill probably dust my fez with penshoppe's face it face glitter. it doesn't have big glitters, just small fine ones perfect for your face.



and for my most healthy-looking blush! ive been using it for 6 years now. it's also a good lip stain but it fades fast. it's just perfect as a blush. ariane became an avid fan, too. i've been getting the most compliments saying i have natural healthy-looking cheeks because of this baby:



in the afternoons when i come back to the office and i want a darker blush i use bourjois' rose amber blush. it helps contour my face to eliminate chubby cheeks! ariane asked me about this blush too but it didn't work for her coz we have different skintones.



for mascaras i either choose avon black waterproof mascara if i want dark eyelashes, or the body shop's brown mascara to accent my brown eyes, or borjouis deep black mascara if i want lengths. i got this for free and i wasn't expecting much from it but it is awesome because it makes my eyelashes look longer and it looks so natural!  the body shop makes my lashes thick, while avon makes them long.




for face brushes i never use anything else with mineral foundation except for this facebrush from bare escentuals called flawless face brush. i love it coz it's so soft, it makes the mineral powder feels like silk on my face! the next one is an angled blush brush, good for contouring your cheeks. the two ones are from hongkong and im not using them except if my facebrush falls on the floor on one clumsy morning.



i wash these with jared's shampoo by the way:





then the lips. these are my favorites: the battered one is the body shop's born with it strawberry lipbalm for a more healthy looking slightly-red lips. ariane tipped me that. i use it everyday and it's always in me bag, then penshoppe's fruity pout lip jelly if i want mega awesome glossy lips, and my everyday balm, chapstick, which never fails me. i always stock up on this when im in manila.



for lipsticks, well, i don't really use lipsticks coz i hate their smell. plus i hate their quick disappearances when i needed them the most. i use nivea 10-hour extreme resist lipstick, which comes in a creamy tube.  so far, the longest it stayed on my lips was 5 hours.  i don't use the attached gloss though, coz it looks so oa for normal days...



this is a staple in my bag: a mini-mineral veil and the body shop's retractable brush. for oily t-zones.




then at night if i feel grubby ill wash with my sister's neutrogena, otherwise just my favorite whitening soap again. then loreal's pore tightening toner. if i have remaining makeup on ill wipe it with a makeup cleanser (my sister left me with givenchy clean-it-all), and i moisturize. always i moisturize.





in all fairness, i know every girl has their own, be it quick or time-consuming, as long as you're comfortable with it.

these are all basic, and i know i will add more come salary time. i will gladly update as soon as i have a new pretty discovery!