Combination

Polyvore

Hm you know I write all these posts on random topics but I just end up not publishing them in case the content might offend or be hurtful to someone... then I try to cut it down but then it becomes a "what's the point?" post. I guess that's why I just blog about such superficial things a lot -- it's fun for me and it's easy! I think I'm pretty careful to watch what I say about 90% of the time... but then I realize that those who don't care as much and actually state their opinions -- they sure are interesting and attract a wider range of people, but they are also prone to anti's. It's very rare to have it all.

So picture-less... hmm I'll start using my digi starting tomorrow!

Anyway, I bought the limited edition 2008 Juicy Couture snowflake earrings off Revolve Clothing online for 30% off the regular price... so it was $39USD which converted to $49.23CDN. When I received it, I thought it was pretty cute but I didn't love it and it sort of didn't suit me so I luckily sold it on Craigslist for $50. I'm meeting the girl tomorrow. I think she's getting a pretty good deal considering they're $65CDN @ Blue Ruby and sold out across the city!

Today was quite stressful b/c I realized 3 hours before my bank closes that I needed to pay my damage deposit (required to apply for dorm) for Korea Uni by TODAY! Like, they needed to receive the money today or else I don't get a dorm! Eeeeek so I wired the money (which took foreverrrrr... slow not-so-bright bankers omg) but they won't receive it by Wed (at least 2 business days)... I'm crossing my fingers that KU will still accept it even though it's late and I will get a dorm. I sent them an e-mail explaining... At this point, I'm not picky who I'm gonna dorm with... I just want to live in the dorm! Never again.. I've written down all my due dates!

Certain things always seem to happen when I least expect it... maybe I should just stop expecting... then life will always be full of surprises! How nice!

Slushy snow today... are you kidding? In spite of the weather, I've compiled my Spring/Summer wardrobe lusts!

An everyday bag around this size (Andrea Brueckner!!)
Chloe Paraty
The waist belt-version of this Miu Miu patent leather cuff
More shorts! These shorts are soooo cute! I'm looking for some satin-y types... and of course I love them cuffed.
These Tory Burch Emmy sandals from last year I need to replace my dying old gold ones... her styles aren't very nice this season...
Picture from Ebay
Sunglasses
I don't expect to fit in a lot of the bottoms in Korea (they cater towards curve-less bottoms and goodness knows I have some hip and butt!!) and shoes (largest normal size is a size 8... i'm half a size larger than that!) so I think I'm going to have to bring all I have and purchase here... we'll see. Don't think shirts/dresses will be a problem and hopefully skirts shouldn't be... 'cause they have cute skirts!

Untitled

I just had a flashback to when I was 5 or 6 years old... somewhere around that age. I remember sitting on that purple-y couch in my TV room, sitting between my mom and dad while they were watching TV, practicing how to tie a bow with a long neon shoelace (it must have been either yellow or pink) on my Minnie Mouse slipper... over and over again. I got the hang of it pretty darn quickly! My unconventional way...

Chao Mei

Today, I got some downtown street artist to draw me:
It was so weird holding that pose... so many people watched... I felt like a zoo animal.

hehe just kidding -- if you looked closely, you can see that there's some girl's legs where I'm supposed to be sitting. It's from this site called PhotoFunia where you can choose a setting and then upload any picture. Tada!!

Look! I'm on the cover of Vogue!! LOL... I'll be lucky if I sell one copy...

Gee Gee Gee Gee Baby Baby Baby

Right now I'm sitting on my livingroom couch, cross-legged, the Christmas tree lights being my only source of light aside from my laptop, snuggled up in a new luxurious plush throw from Restoration Hardware (I cannot express how much I love that store! That and Liberty are my absolute favourite interior furnishing + decor stores! I saw this one large glass coffee table at Liberty the other week... it was perfection but stood at a ridiculous $3,800 or something like $289/month... anyway) that I couldn't resist NOT buying and I'm so glad I did. It's the softest thing! AND it's in silver sage which, I've decided, is gonna be the "colour" in my room. So silver sage and cream, basically (with touches of gold and silver) and some dark brown to heavy the room, if you know what I mean. I couldn't decide between silver sage and eucalyptus (basically a darker silver sage) but I realized it's a bit easier finding a darker shade than that shade of silver sage. I'm going for that luxury hotel room look.

The idea of teaching English in Korea has been lingering in my mind since first year. To me, teaching, in general, is not something I see myself doing because I think it's something you should have interest and should sort of have an expertise in... and I never seem to learn something so well to be that good in it... well, I'm sure I can teach Grade 2 math but I have no interest in that whatsoever. However, English is different - it's something that's natural to me - something I've grown up with. Compared to non-English speakers, I am an expert! Ever since I heard first hand of an SFU student (she's Chinese + has a bit of an accent) teaching English (for $50USD cash/hour) last Spring during her exchange in Korea, my interest in teaching English sparked yet again (though it is illegal...). Yesterday, I found this girl's blog on Soompi that was about her thoughts and experiences of teaching English in Korea. Her Soompi alias is Ginger and she's got a BA in English Lit, is 23, and is full Korean but adopted when she was 3 months old by 2 Italian laywers from West Virginia. She's an engaging blogger and honestly tells all - the pros and the cons of teaching. I think this post titled "My Official Teaching English in Korea Information Post" is helpful and excellent for those curious about what it takes and what is involved.
Anyway, I think teaching English there while I'm studying would sure bring my experience to a whole other level, but I don't think I'll actually take time out of my day to search for a job... though getting paid good money to babysit a kid just so that he/she will be exposed to English at a young age sounds really fun to me! Talk, play, love!

Uuuuummmm first day back at my other non-Posh job today =) Well, it was actually =( getting there -- took me 1.5 hours when it usually takes me 45 minutes MAX. But my coworkers, 2 older women (40+) are funny and real lovely to work with.

I want to try so many Dine Out restaurants this year.. there's so many to choose from! But they're all in the $38 category and I don't have the money to try... indulge...

My title is from SNSD's new song, Gee. My goodness it's such a catchy song! Their MV is annoyingly cute but I love it. I can't differentiate their voices though.. they all have the same high-pitched voice!

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My brother and I are going to do charcoal masks together now. I stocked up on some at Daiso the other day (finallyyyyyy - always seems to be sold out!). Here's to good skin! [Clink]

New Found Love

I decided to skip the stress of making resolutions before the new year because if I were to improve myself, I'd be more likely to follow through when I was inspired rather than making resolutions 'cause it was the time to do so.

SO I've thought of a few so far:
1. I resolve to think carefully over every purchase. Just because it's on sale doesn't mean I have to buy something. Just because it's trendy and would go great with my wardrobe for this season, doesn't mean I have to buy it. I want to make sure that clothing purchases are investments, not money tossed away. I find that about half the time, I buy things just because I want it at that moment (like my ankle boots -- after looking over my scary Visa statement, I've decided to return them). I use new purchases for about a week and then they're forgotten about.. and I realize as much as I want something at that moment, give me 3 weeks and I wouldn't want it anymore.
2. Take better care of my hair. I don't know if it's because it's Winter or if it's because of the products I've been using, but everyday seems to be a bad hair day that needs a LOT of fixing before I leave the house. I found Shiseido Tsubaki conditioner @ Aberdeen today for $12! I know I can get this in Korea for half that but my hair cannot be condition-less until then. It's the re-fill version (a package, not the container) - that's why it's cheaper. I hope it's as good as ppl say it is. I also have a $15 off any purchase coupon @ Kiehl's valid anytime in January so I'm planning on getting their Olive Fruit Oil Deeply Repairative Hair Pak. Tons of great reviews for that product on Makeupalley.
3. Start caring about shoes. My shoe collection is a bit disappointing. I have more black heels than anything else. Vancouver has got to be one of the worst shopping cities for nice shoes. It's so easy to buy cheap, poor quality shoes. Gotta think investments...

I'm envious of her black Tommy Hilfiger cape!!
More cape-ness from LuluForget LV, I'm all about miu miu now.
Miu Miu has revived my love for handbags!!!
I'm in love with this bag! It's really not as square -- this is what it looks like when it's stuffed. How come I can't find the model anywhere online...Where are my black stockings?! Ever since I put them through the wash a month ago, they've disappeared!

Kisses From Everyone

Coastal Scents haul! I was very impressed with the quality of the last couple of brushes I bought (the badger blush and the badger angled contour brush for less than $7 each.. and they pick up colour like no tomorrow!) so I decided to finish my collection of necessary brushes.

9 things for under $40USD!
6 brushes (less than $4 each)

Angled eyeliner, 3 eyeshadow brushes, eyelash separator, and a foundation brush.

+ 3 potted gel liners in true black and 24K (they were having a sale - buy 2 get 1 free, $7 each and apparently even better than MAC Fluidline that retails for $18, though I must say MAC has more gorgeous-er shades and colours).

13 rich in color Gel Liners have arrived, these apply with ease using an angle liner brush. We were sure to pass out samples to several of our testers who have used these for 2 months. Application is easy, has the ability to design and be creative, lasts all day without smudging or creasing and are highly pigmented.

Pursebuzz's swatches look nicely pigmented. The black looks very black and the gold has a nice metallic-ness to it. I wanted a purple but their deep plum looks too watery for me and Grape Vine is too light metallic.. not very me. It's too bad Turquoise is a matte.

Don't expect to be disappointed in this order considering all the great reviews from their site.

www.coastalscents.com

Booked my flight today via AirCanada non-stop! I'm leaving Feb 21 and coming back July 11th. How sweet, my Grandpa wants to take me to the airport to see me off =)
Gah though... homesickness might kill me. I wonder what's worse - homesickness or the feeling from a breakup? The latter is definitely longer-lasting, I hear.... just gotta get over the first few days. Doesn't seem like many people have felt homesickness before. I'm strange in that about once every 2 years, I'll feel so homesick even though I'm in my own bathroom in my own house and I'm not going anywhere that I'll even start crying. Good thing is that orientation is the day after I arrive so I'll be pretty busy I hope... and not jet-lagged!

3 things I'm most anxious/scared about:
1. Homesickness
2. Getting transferable credit for my courses
3. Language barrier -- gotta practice/learn some everyday!

I have a headache.. the one that just pounds once in a while on the top right side of my head, gotta sleep...

Commencement

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

No time to update now so I'll leave you with DBSK's new MV - Bolero
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And Junsu + Taeyang's (from Big Bang) piano battle (Dec 29, 2008) in SUPER HQ (if you click on the link and choose "watch in HD" [I'm addicted to HD!])!
The stage looked amazing. I wish I was there!
They sing 2 English songs - I'm pretty impressed by Taeyang's English.
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Lopsided Oreo

My mom bought 2 webcams today! They're Microsoft LifeCam VX-3000 and I say they work well!

My brother's Daiso owl named "Chris".
When my mom is frustrated with my brother, she takes it out on this "Chris". It gets squished like this:
It looks pretty loved.
Owl-phone Owl-lo?? ahhahaahaha! I'm so clever
Anyway, yesterday I went out for Kfood w/ part of the group + Nad and Jess @ Dae Bak Bon Ga on Robson and then we sang K in the back =) I like that K place -- they have a pretty good selection of songs, it's pretty inexpensive, and 95% of the subtitles are in proper English!

Today I got my hair trimmed 1 inch and dyed at Chura. Not much of a difference in cut except my bangs are a bit shorter. Kenji cut and dyed my hair -- he's cute! He introduced himself and then asked me what I wanted done -- I told him just a 1 inch trim and a dye to some sort of brown.. I asked him if he thinks I should go lighter or darker and he said lighter... and after that he never asked me any questions or confirmed anything related to my hair with me which was kinda "whoaa" but I trusted him... he dressed well. There was this very cute dog there!! Bobo. So tang wha too! Makes me want it. It just sat in its owner's lap while she was getting a bunch of treatments done to her hair. Anyway, they rinsed my hair and then he just started cutting it and was done quite quickly and then he blow dried it. Throughout the whole process, he handled my hair so gently at one point I thought it was because he was inexperienced and new.... lol.. 'cause in the past, the other hairdressers did things so quickly and expert-like in my opinion... like pulling my hair out at different angles to achieve different types of layers... and then Min pulled up the dye-tray and they both started dying my hair and I had no idea what shade they were dying it! In the past, they would show me the colour book and would suggest shades. I asked him and then he said a dark brown (but he said light brown before?) -- oh well. The dying process took hardly any time either because I was dying it darker... then they shampooed and conditioned and he took a loooong time blowing it out nicely and put a couple of products in my hair that smelled good. I don't think the dye gradiant is as obvious anymore since the top grew out, but you can tell that my ends are a bit darker than my roots. Did I mention he was cute? ;) Always smiling.

My dad gave both my mom and I Foot Duvets from Restoration Hardware for Christmas. I love them!!! They're so cozy and they keep my feet perfectly warm. They're on sale now for half price! $10USD per pair! Go pick them up - I'm going tomorrow before work. This is a cute set - a bear, a super soft throw, pillow cover, and 2 sets of foot duvets. There's different colours too like silver sage, dark gray, red (the one I have), chocolate, tan, caramel, and ivory.
I bought ankle boots today! Finallyyyy -- except they're from H&M and not real leather but at $60, they're not too expensive either for such a trendy thing. I've been looking for black booties with the gold zipper for so long and all those shoe stores (B2, Browns, Town Shoes, Holts, The Bay) don't carry decently nice ones for under a grand! So taadaaa

Haha This is just funny -- an improvized song by Justin Timberlake, Wayne Brady, and Brian McKnight.

4 More

I've compiled a mini wishlist for me to get myself (hopefully before I leave):

1. Flip Video MinoHD Camcorder [$229USD]

www.theflip.com

World's smallest and most compact high-def camcorder! 60 minutes of video, 4GB built-in memory, USB connected, super slim and sleek, features digital zoom, and the Flip-out USB arm plugs directly into your computer.
Tons of designs! Here's my favourites from the site:
The best part is that you can design your own by uploading your own photo! I love these things. Free shipping within the US too!
If you only like the classic black, you can buy it off Amazon for $209.

2. Hot Tools 1.5" Curling Iron
3. Deep Steep products (love!!)
4. Longchamp Le Pliage in Red/Raspberry/Yellow/Navy
So light, compact, can fit everything but the kitchen sink, and portable!

Trying really hard not to buy anymore clothes or makeup....... 1.5 more months... I can do it!

1 States trip... Gilly Hicks... Deep Steep... Nordstrom... that's all I need!

Happy Holidays

Location: same spot as my Fall picture -- this street is so pretty all year round!
Credit: M

I finally have a bit of time to post! The past few days have been super busy.

On the 23rd, M planned a day just for me! We first went sledding at Burrardview park and went down this man-made snow ramp omg that was so much funn!! Then we changed into our PJs and robes and attempted to play Christmas songs, ate a full Greek dinner complete with homemade sangria (!), ate a super yummy chocolate brownie cheesecake that M made, talked (of course), and made stove-top smores (Yea we roasted marshmallows on the element) =D kumao!

On the 24th I had to work. A lot of large group reservations canceled but the customers were great.

On Christmas day (Merry Christmas btw!), my parents woke my brother and I up to open gifts which is a first! haha In the past, I get up first, lounge around, my dad wakes up and starts on breakfast, and then I have to drag my mom out of bed and my brother wakes up soon after that. My mom got a telescopic back scratcher from Restoration Hardware... which she's very happy with -- a step up from a toilet seat! ahha... a running Xmas joke. My extended family Xmas plans were canceled the night before due to snow but at 2PM, my Gpa called and wanted to get together so everyone made it for dinner at King's Fort in Richmond (Chinese food but not really a fan of the food though service was good). Before dinner, my family visited my mom's maternal mom's brother in the hospital -- he only has a predicted 24 hours to live (colon cancer/liver cancer) except, well, it's been over 24 hours now and he's still awake and comfortable. It was the first time I met him and my mom hasn't seen him in over 24 years (my mom's maternal mom passed away when she was 16). After dinner, my family visited my dad's side at my Uncle George's (in Richmond) where we ate dessert and swapped gifts. Chelsea (my cousin -- she's in Gr 8) is so tall now! She's my height! Corey was soo heartbreakingly cute as usual though not as talkative. I got to meet my cousin Kevin's new gf really quickly before we had to leave to go back to my mom's side at my Auntie Sandy's house for more dessert and gift-opening. Chaotic, I tell you! I'm so glad I got to see both sides this year. You don't know how good it is until it's gone... so having family dinner canceled this year made me realize how incomplete the whole Christmas season would be + how much I'd miss it. It still wasn't the same though b/c we ate out for the first time, but at least we were all together.

Some of my favourite pictures of the night:

Triton-baby's scrunchie face.
Kyle-baby
Kyle-baby trying to hide from me
Erin and Emerald play so well together
Emerald was trying to scare Tri and Goo.
Girl cousins -- Kristin, Em, Erin, and Shannon
Triton's favourite Xmas gift -- a custom-made lion's head!

Not the best one, but it's the nicest one my mom took -- all the cousins + g'rents.

This morning I woke up at 6:30, only having had 4 hours of sleep, and met Artemis to go Boxing Day shopping downtown. We spent most of our time at Aritzia and Zara. I got a black cardigan and a black seamless sporty-ish racerback tank for myself from Aritzia. The sales weren't fantastic but at least the crowds weren't bad at all downtown. The bus couldn't make it up the Renfrew hill on the way home so I had to walk the rest of the way w/out a hat or umbrella... I cannot wait for Spring! I want to buy sandals and wear my shorts!! I think I'm just grouchy 'cause I need my haircut...

Don't hold onto your past. There's a reason that it's not coming back.

If you get a chance, take it. If it changes your life, let it.

Finally uploaded pictures from my cell:

Posh's Xmas decor - before opening for dinner

I found a stash of my maternal Gma's fur coats. Since it's politically incorrect to wear them, I don't think I'll ever wear them outside, but they are warm and this particular one is cute and lux so I sel-ca'd w/ it. My arms aren't long enough to get a full length shot, but it's sort of like a cropped coat with bell sleeves.


Laptop is being v.v. annoying... it keeps crashing/freezing on me! Must clear space and finish making CDs for my dad...
And gah I'm so tired and have a sore throat... missing out on Steven's party!
Whaat it's supposed to be 7 degrees tomorrow?

Giving Chances... & Double Chances

Haven't been bringing my digi around... I should though - so I'm relying on other ppl's pics.. and since I've been hanging around my Posh coworkers a lot recently having just worked 4 days in a row, I thought it'd be most approps:
@ Boss -- don't know why Frank looks that way.. that doesn't even look like him.

We're getting bundled up to face the snow... self timer with Wellsie who just wouldn't smile.. guys.. where's Scott?

I've come to the conclusion that some guys just don't photograph well.
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I cannot express HOW much I hate it when people don't bother befriending someone or even giving them a chance to show them what they're all about because of how they look. Don't they know that a lot of the time, the person knows how they compare and are already self-conscious about themselves? Don't they know that some of these people need to be persuaded to even get out in public?! What is so hard about giving people a chance to tell their story? Why do you mock them when you don't even know their name? I am shocked, I am in awe, and I am truly disgusted.

On another note, I guess we sort of gravitate towards befriending or acquainting ourselves with certain people because a lot of the time, you will find a group of friends all to be on the same level of attractiveness. The good-looking people flock together as well as the not-as-goodlooking ones. It's just interesting to observe.
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OOo apparently there's going to be a piano battle between TaeYeon from SNSD and Junsu! And there's also a dance off between JYP and Rain! Rain, before he became an independent artist, used to be under the JYP management. Much anticipated!!

NEW SONG!
Lee Hom - Heartbeat

This guy will forever remind me of Taiwan... love love
lol one of my coworkers said he used to work out at the same gym as him back in Taiwan.

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