Yesterday morning I was awoken bright and early by my sister texting me to let me know they were opening gifts. I got on Skype and it turns out that they had already opened theirs, except for the ones I gave them. So it was more like they sat in front of a computer staring at me while I opened their gifts. I got some pretty awesome stuff though.
Every year, my mother insists on purchasing me either a new set of pajamas or a new pair of pajama pants. This year, it was the latter. I actually love them. They are very comfortable, and I should know since I took a glorious nap in them earlier today. She also bought me some fancy coffee because she knows that I rarely splurge and buy the good stuff for myself. I’m definitely looking forward to that, although I am trying to cut down on my caffeine consumption. I got a few other practical things, like new sheets and a comforter for our bed. But there were lots of fun things as well. I received season 5 of Boy Meets World. I’m slowly collecting all of the seasons before they bring it back (!!!). I also decided that it’s time to invest in all the seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, because I’ve been watching that show so much recently. (In this instance, “investing” means I asked for it for Christmas, and my mother got it for me.) Right now I only have the first 2 seasons (thanks Mom!), but that should keep me busy for a while.
New pajama pants!
And my two favorite Christmas gifts have to be my NARS Alhambra duo and my Sigma brush kit for eyes. This is actually my first Sigma brush set and I’m already in love with it. The brushes are dense but soft and work extremely well to distribute whatever product I’m using.
NARS is a funny word.
They’re beautiful colors, and they’re very pigmented.
I don’t think I’ve ever posted a picture of my brush storage. These are my new Sigma brushes along with some other brushes I already had.
I thought I would throw this in, just so you could see how I store my brushes, pencils, lipgloss, and lipsticks.
I spent most of the day with Daniel’s family. Daniel’s uncle Richard and cousin Paula visited and went with us, Daniel’s parents, and Daniel’s sister Nicole to see a matinee of Les Miserables. I really liked it. Daniel hated the cinematography, which was distracting at times, but I still enjoyed the film quite a bit. In continuing with the Jewish Christmas tradition, we went out for Chinese food right after the movie.
I hope everyone had a great Christmas and got to spend some quality time with their family. I know I had a great time with Daniel’s family, and I’m so happy that I got to participate in their traditions this year.
Hanukkah is over, so I can officially give my final Hanukkah haul. We left off at the glorious new iPad that I can’t stop using. (So many apps, so little time.) Since then, Jessica came home from Wake Forest in Winston-Salem, so we had to exchange gifts with her. She bought me and Daniel two video games: Halo 3: ODST and Arkham Asylum. Daniel has been loving the Arkham Asylum, which is great. She also bought me a gift card to Starbucks (yes, another one). Daniel bought me some crochet supplies, including a book with tons of patterns and different stitches, new hooks, and yarn. I’m already half finished with an infinity scarf. Pics to come when it’s all done.
Daniel also bought me the first 3 seasons of CSI: Miami. I admit that I absolutely love that show. I already had the 4th season because that was when I first started watching the show on tv. Now we are starting a CSI: Miami marathon and I could not be more happy. I’m easy to please, right?
For the last night, Daniel gave me Super Mario Galaxy for the Wii, which apparently got rave reviews and I’m so excited to play it. First, I need to finish a few other games I’ve started, including Hey Ice King, Why’d You Steal Our Garbage for the Nintendo 3DS and Super Paper Mario for the Wii.
Oh, and I made Daniel stuffed shells on Friday! It would have been a fantastic success had I not forgotten to put the spinach into the ricotta mixture. I was completely bummed about that, and still kind of embarrassed that I forgot something so crucial, but the dish wasn’t all boring. I did make a great red sauce with sausage mixed into it, and everything still tasted great. We will be eating those leftovers for quite some time.
I can’t believe it’s December already! This month has gone by so quickly, and now it’s almost 2013. I’m pretty excited for this coming month, but first, here are my favorites from November.
TV Shows
This month Daniel and I have been watching a lot of a Bob’s Burgers. I’ve talked about this show before. We just think it’s hilarious. It’s about a guy named Bob who owns a burger restaurant with his family. His wife Linda reminds me so much of my mother, but Linda is much more funny. His 3 kids, Tina, Gene, and Louise, help to run the restaurant. Gene reminds me a lot of Daniel, and Louise is very similar to Nicole, but more evil. If you want to know more about it, check out my previous Bob’s Burgers blog post, which I’ve linked above.
We’ve also caught up on New Girl. I actually started watching this show when it premiered, then made Daniel watch it, and now I think he’s more addicted than I am. We love Schmidt. I don’t care much for Zooey Deschanel, but the male characters are absolutely worth it for me.
Books
This month, I finished Habibi, a graphic novel by Craig Thompson. All of his work is just incredibly heart-wrenching, and Habibi is no exception. If you’ve never read anything by Craig Thompson, then I would recommend starting with Goodbye, Chunky Rice. It’s not as daunting (length-wise) as Habibi or the semi-autobiographical Blankets, but the story-telling is amazing, and the art is stunning. All of his lines are so fluid, and it looks beautiful. The word “Habibi” means “my beloved” in Arabic. The book is set in the Middle East, and it’s about two people who are doing the best they can to survive under the circumstances. They are trying to live “off the grid” as much as possible, since they essentially ran away together as children and became fugitives. Eventually, they are separated for many years, but their feelings for each never fade. Instead, their feelings grow stronger, and eventually they find each other again and begin their long overdue romantic relationship. Since Daniel hasn’t read it yet, I’ll leave my brief synopsis there, and he can read it and explain to me all of the Islamic symbolism in it, since he’s the Religion major in this relationship. It’s a wonderful, exciting, tear-inducing book that should definitely not be overlooked simply because it’s a “graphic novel”.
Movies
Since Daniel and I saw Skyfall earlier this month (on our date night), we’ve been on a huge James Bond kick, and because we have all of the 007 movies, we’ve been trying to watch them sequentially, starting with Dr. No. At this point we’ve only watched the first three, but now that I’m back from Unadilla I’m sure we will be resuming our Bond movie marathon.
Nail Polish
This month I really only wore two colors. The first was a Sephora by OPI color. Now, a lot of people have had problems with these polishes being streaky and difficult to apply. I do find that the formula is a bit thick, but once the polish dried there were no streaks on my nails, and it looked great. I’ve been wearing “Three Way Mirror”.
The second color was a nail polish from Avon that I’m sure I must have stolen from either my mother or my sister. I believe it’s called “Mosaic Plum”. It’s a gorgeous deep purple color with gold micro-glitter. However, I wouldn’t really recommend Avon polishes. I currently have two, and I have the same complaint about both of them. They chip pretty quickly, even with my amazing Revlon ColorStay Base Coat and Top Coat. Also, at least with this purple color, it didn’t come off with nail polish remover very easily at all, and when it did finally come off, it wanted to take the top layer of my nail with it. That’s not a good look for anybody. So, while I adore the color and would love to wear it again, I really don’t want to go through the slow and messy process of removal again.
Pretty colors. You can really see the gold flecks in the purple polish.
Makeup
For this month, I feel like I have more makeup favorites that I usually do. I’ve recently discovered Maybelline’s Instant Age Rewind Eraser for Dark Circles. I’ve heard a lot of positive chatter about this, and it has not disappointed. It doesn’t have to be used only for the under-the-eye area; it definitely can also be used as an all-over concealer. It works like magic.
I’ve had Mac’s Cranberry eyeshadow for almost a year now, but I’ve hardly worn it because it typically made me look like I had a black eye. I think this is a common problem with eyeshadows that are a deep berry or purple color. I finally figured out how to wear it so that it doesn’t look like a bruise, and I’m absolutely in love with it. Plus it’s very festive to wear an eyeshadow called “Cranberry” to Thanksgiving. Cranberry looks great on the outer half of the lid and outer “v”, with Wet ‘n Wild’s “Nutty” placed on the inner half of the lid and Urban Decay’s Buck (a light brown matte shadow) in the crease. And you only need a tiny bit of the Cranberry shade, because it’s very pigmented, and will quickly start to look like a bruise if you really build it up. I’ve also been using my Wet ‘n Wild Comfort Zone pallet a lot this month. You can do so many looks with this pallet, the shades are great quality, and for $4.99, you cannot beat the price.
Mac’s Cranberry Eyeshadow
Wet ‘n Wild’s Nutty, which is a dupe for Mac’s Satin Taupe (so I’ve heard). I hit pan on this quite a while ago. This is my go-to everyday shadow.
Urban Decay’s Buck Eyeshadow
The Wet ‘n Wild Comfort Zone Pallet
For lipstick, I’ve recently purchased L’Oreal’s “Blushing Berry”. I definitely needed a good berry color for this season, and this one is beautiful. I’ve also been wearing Maybelline’s “Born With It” lipstick, usually layered with their lipgloss of the same name, for a very light pink, shimmery lip. For a more neutral look, I’ve re-discovered one of my favorite lipsticks, Maybelline’s “Nearly There”, which I have heard is a dupe for Mac’s Viva Glam V lipstick. And “Nearly There” looks great when paired with Mac’s Viva Glam V lipglass.
Blushing Berry, Born With It, and Nearly There
Top: Mac’s Viva Glam V lipglass, bottom: Maybelline’s Born With It lipgloss.
….and swatches! Left to right: L’Oreal’s Blushing Berry, Maybelline’s Born With It lipstick, Maybelline’s Nearly There, Maybelline’s Born With It lipgloss, and Mac’s Viva Glam V
Random Things
Since this is my first fall/winter in Durham, I’ve been loving the weather. And for the next week, it’s supposed to be in the 60s and 70s. It is December, right? I can honestly say that I don’t plan to spend another winter in Upstate New York, if I can help it.
I’ve been really, horribly addicted to watching beauty gurus on Youtube this month. It was bad before, but this month has been really bad. Currently, my two favorite Youtubers are Amarixe and Missglamorazzi. Allison (Amarixe) gives great, honest reviews, interesting makeup tutorials, and always uses a mix of drugstore and high end products. I’m all about that. I also have a link to her blog in my Blogroll, to the right. Ingrid (Missglamorazzi) is just adorable and I love her “Get Ready With Me” videos. She seems like such a sweetheart, and if I’m in a bad mood or if I’ve had a rough day, I try to watch one of her videos and it kind of cheers me up a little bit.
Depending on what day you ask, I actually really enjoy holiday shopping. Sure, it sucks fighting with some grandma over the last cinnamon scented candle that you want to buy for your sister-in-law (I just made that up, that’s never really happened to me), but it is an awesome feeling when you find the perfect gift for a certain person. It’s a good feeling when they open it and you just know that they like it. My nephew Gavin was so excited about his Dinosaur Lego set that now he wants the rest of the sets that go with it. And even though Lily didn’t like it at first, eventually she wanted me to read the book to her over and over again, and loved the cute little necklace that came with it.
Well, I just realized I haven’t done one of these since June. Oops. So, if you didn’t read that one (which you can here), I will use this post as an opportunity to discuss all of my favorite things that I’ve seen/used/experienced this month.
TV Shows
While Daniel and I have been watching this show consistently since the fourth season began a few months ago, Adventure Time really stepped up their game in October. The story-telling has been fantastic. Yes, it is an animated TV series, and yes, it’s on Cartoon Network. It’s definitely geared to a more adult audience though. They deal with some pretty dark concepts. The whole premise of the show is that modern civilization as we know it has ended (after the Mushroom War), and all of the magic has returned to the world. As far as we know, the protagonist Finn is the only human left on earth (although, there must be others, because where else did he come from). He is accompanied by his best friend Jake, who is a dog that can talk and stretch his limbs or morph his body into various shapes.
My favorite character is the Ice King. When we were first introduced to the Ice King in the first season, he came off as just a silly villain. He wasn’t really malicious, he just wanted to kidnap and marry a princess. Since the first season, we’ve actually found out that the Ice King is a completely tragic character. Before the destruction of the world, he used to be a regular guy, studying to be an antiquarian. At some point in the past, he obtained his crown which gives him all of his powers. Unfortunately, the crown actually caused him to go mad, and he has no memory of himself before he became this wizard, but we do know that whatever he did while wearing his crown actually scared away his fiancée, whom he would often call “princess”. So now, he spends all of his time trying to figure out how to find a princess that will marry him, but I don’t think he even understands why he does it.
This season just wrapped up last week with a huge cliffhanger, so I’m really looking forward to season 5.
The other show that I’m obsessed with right now is, of course, Revenge. I already know that it’s only going to get more and more convoluted, and they probably won’t resolve much, but I’m hooked. The second season just started airing at the very end of September, and I very faithfully watched the first season last year and earlier this year. Even if it’s just a poorly acted soap opera, I’m addicted.
Daniel and I have also been watching the X-Files. Right now, we’re in the middle of the third season. All of the seasons are available free through Amazon Prime. X-Files is a very cool show because I love crime shows like CSI, but I also like sci-fi series like The Twilight Zone, and this combines the best of both. Also, Mulder and Scully remind me a lot of the two main characters from the show Bones. I enjoy the show Bones, but I prefer X-Files if for no other reason than the acting is better. On somewhat of a side note, X-Files is the scariest show I’ve ever seen on TV. For me, personally, American Horror Story has got nothing on X-Files. I’ve seen some of the freakiest, nastiest stuff in that show, things that I never thought they’d be allowed to show on prime time TV. So, really, it’s kind of perfect for this time of year.
Music
October means Halloween and that means you have to listen to good Halloween music. Now, I just made a post about my Top 10 Favorite Halloween Songs, but there have been a few artists that I’ve been listening to consistently this month. The first is The Misfits, naturally. They are great any time during the year, but especially around Halloween. The second is AFI. I’ve really been listening to some of their earlier albums, which sound a bit more classically punk than their more recent releases. I was browsing on Wikipedia one day when I found out that Davey Havok was actually asked to be the lead singer of The Misfits back in 2006. I like to imagine how this would have changed my life for the better, but I try not to think about it too much because it would have been so awesome that my brain might have exploded. AFI does a number of Misfits covers and I personally am very impressed with them. They include “Halloween” and “Last Caress”.
Books
This month I’ve been re-reading The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky. I really wanted to read again it before I saw the movie. The book is such a classic in many ways. I think the way that it was written in the form of letters by an anonymous person to another anonymous person was such a brilliant way to portray this “Charlie” character that I know teenagers look at and say “This could be me writing these letters”. You become so well-acquainted with the characters, but you never learn who they really are, or where they are from, so it could be anyone, and that’s one of the things that makes it so appealing.
Movies
On Monday night, Daniel and I watched X-Men: First Class for the first time. You might be wondering how we’ve managed to go this long without seeing it. Well, Daniel was very wary after the fiascoes that were the third X-Men movie and Wolverine: Origins. This was much, much better than those. In terms of the story, it was more on par with the first X-Men movie that revolved around Magneto’s master plan of turning the whole world into mutants. Or something like that. Honestly, it was a good movie, and we both loved the fact that it was a period film revolving around the Cuban Missile Crisis. I also appreciated the way they explained Charles Xavier’s injury. Overall, I was pleased with it, and now that we own it (it was $10 at Target), I will definitely watch it again.
Although I haven’t watched it yet this year, I am very much looking forward to my annual viewing of Hocus Pocus. It’s a movie I’ve watched every year since I was a little kid, and it’s definitely one of my favorite Halloween movies, even if it isn’t scary.
Nail Polish
For most of this month, I’ve been wearing Butter London’s “The Full Monty”, which is a beautiful glittery gold nail polish.
The Full Monty
I thought it would be great for fall, since gold is such a perfect fall color, but it would also be absolutely stunning during the summer in the sun.
Currently I’m wearing a color by L’Oreal called “The Muse’s Attitude”. I believe it is limited edition from their Project Runway 2012 collection. It is a beautiful teal/green duochrome polish. I think it will be great for Halloween.
The Muse’s Attitude
Makeup
In keeping with the gold and bronze colors of fall, I’ve been doing a lot of looks using the Naked Palette, and Mac Amber Lights and Bronze. One of my favorite looks that I experimented with this month used UD’s Half Baked in the inner 3rd of the eyelid, Mac’s Amber Lights in the middle 3rd of the eyelid, and Mac’s Bronze or UD’s Smog (depending on how dark I wanted the look to be) on the outer 3rd of the eye and in the crease. (Sorry I have no pictures of this look. If you really want to see it, write a comment and I will find time to post a pic.)
Half Baked
Amber Lights (left) and Bronze (right)
When I felt like doing something simple and quick, I just took Urban Decay’s Toasted and threw it on all over the lid and it looked awesome.
I’ve been using a couple of different lipsticks this month as well. I recently purchased Maybelline’s “Make Me Pink” and I’ve been wearing it pretty often lately. Also, because I’ve been doing more bold eye looks this month, I’ve rediscovered an old favorite: L’Oreal’s “Fairest Nude”, which is the perfect nude lipstick for my skin tone. Finally, because fall is a great time to break out deeper reds and berry colors, I’ve been wearing Maybelline’s “Let Me Pink”, which is a deep, rich berry color. I actually purchased this color years ago, and I have been unable to find it again. I would love to re-purchase it because mine has dried out a little bit, so it’s become more difficult to apply. However, the color still looks amazing.
Lipsticks!
Let Me Pink (left), Fairest Nude (center), Make Me Pink (right). The lighting is poor and does not do them justice.
Random Things
Daniel and I carved pumpkins this weekend! This is one of my favorite traditions of all time. Daniel and I both carved characters from Adventure Time.
This is my pumpkin. It’s Lumpy Space Princess.
The one on the left is Daniel’s pumpkin. It’s Finn.
So I’m taking inspiration for this post from some of the people to which I subscribe on Youtube. Let’s discuss some of my favorite things for this month.
TV Shows
This month I started watching Roswell. For those who don’t know, Roswell was a show that aired on the WB (now the CW) from 1999 until 2001, at which point it apparently moved to the UPN for the last season, according to Wikipedia. The show is about three teenagers who happen to be aliens and, of course, landed in Roswell, New Mexico where the popped out of pods as 6-year-old kids. Theyare now 16- or 17-year-olds going to high school and trying to keep their secret from the government. Most of the episodes revolve around the normal teenage angsty things common in WB/CW shows, but they also focus on the three kids trying to discover where they came from, so that one day they may be able to go back to their home. They have no idea why they landed here, but they also know they were not the first aliens to pop out of the pods; there is at least one other roaming around that they have not identified yet. For me, the show is purely nostalgic, since I watched it from the beginning when it premiered.
Music
Daniel and I purchased a copy of The Essential Hall & Oates 2 disc extravaganza earlier this month. It has all of their major hits, and a few other gems that I didn’t even know existed. We love our Hall & Oates. All month we’ve been listening to them in the car, in the apartment, and at work. Also, if you’ve never watch their video for “I Can’t Go For That (No Can Do)”, then…well, you just have to watch it:
It’s the most ’80s thing I’ve ever seen.
It’s just good pop music from the late ’70s through the mid ’80s. I don’t really know what else to say about it. Some of my co-workers were recently hating on them, but I just love them so much. They even do an amazing Righteous Brothers cover.
I personally have also been listening to a ton of Alkaline Trio this month. I’ve especially been appreciating their 2001 album From Here to Infirmary, but my library includes their self-titled album, Goddamnit, Maybe I’ll Catch Fire, the BYO Split Series they did with One Man Army, and Good Mourning (the first album I’d obtained by Alkaline Trio).
This month I also randomly started listening to my Rock Against Bush Vol. 1 album again, which I haven’t listen to in full since probably 2006. It’s the best compilation album I’ve ever heard. I think I started listening to it again because it contained Alkaline Trio’s “Warbrain”. I often enjoyed it in the car, loudly, with the windows down. This was an album that I estimate I listened to on repeat for 3 or 4 months straight when I first picked it up.
Books
Daniel and I FINALLY finished The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet’s Nest by Stieg Larsson. We started the first book in the series in January, so it was good to finally be finished 6 months later. They were interesting, but neither one of us loved Salander’s character very much. I think we both agreed that Blomqvist was much more interesting and literally had sex with 80-90% of the female characters in the books. The guy was a badass. It’s no wonder that they cast Daniel Craig in the movie, the same actor who played James Bond in two films.
Nail Polish
This month I’ve been wearing 2 colors that I absolutely love:
OPI’s “Just Spotted The Lizard”. It’s a gorgeous green/gold duochrome polish.
“Just Spotted the Lizard” is from OPI’s The Amazing Spider-Man Collection, which is obviously to gear up for the movie premiering on Tuesday of this week. This was the only polish from this limited edition collection that I bought, and apparently it’s a dupe for Chanel’s “Peridot” (or so I’ve heard from other people on the ‘net). I didn’t think I’d actually be able to get my hands on it, since I decided I wanted it 2 weeks after the collection debuted. The Ulta at South Point only had 2 bottles left, which I had to ask for since there were none left up front. I got extremely lucky. If you want a limited edition color, you should probably pick it up as soon as it comes out. FYI.
Wet ‘n Wild’s “Dreamy Poppy”. I don’t have great lighting to work with.
“Dreamy Poppy” is a Wet ‘n Wild color that I’ve had for years, but rarely used until this month. It’s neon pink, and neons are pretty popular polish colors this summer. For me, it’s a good toenail color. While Wet ‘n Wild is cheap, this polish chipped incredibly fast and required 3 coats for it to be opaque. These are certainly some of the reasons I don’t use it very often. But I do love the color.
Makeup
I’ve been using the Urban Decay Rollergirl palette for almost all of June. Particularly, I’ve been using the color “Suspect”, which I usually just smear on my lids, add a little eyeliner and mascara, and go. Typically, I put more effort into my makeup, but for the majority of this month I’ve been getting to work at 6am or earlier. It’s really hard to do makeup when you can’t even open your eyes all the way because it’s so early. I am not a morning person. Under the circumstances I was pleased with the outcome, until I actually looked in a mirror at work 3 hours later and realized that a blind person probably could have done it better. For those of you wondering, I believe “Suspect” is also part of their Naked 2 palette, which I do not own. For more detailed information about the Rollergirl palette as well as a review, click here. (Temptalia.com also happens to be run by a woman named Christine. We are definitely not the same person.)
I’ve also been loving the NYX Slide On Eye Pencil eyeliners, except I cannot get my hands on the black pencil. Ulta is constantly sold out. I’ve heard a lot of people say they are dupes for the Urban Decay 24/7 eyeliner pencils, but to me they seem even softer and possibly more pigmented. (I haven’t tried to sharpen my NYX pencils yet. It’s a good thing they are only $8 because I’m sure I’m going to lose half of the pencil in the process.) You can find a great description and swatches here. Right now, I only own 2 colors, but I hope to add to my collection soon.
Finally, for lipstick, I’ve been wearing Maybelline’s “Coral Crush”. I don’t think this one was limited edition, but I’m not positive. I bought it back in March and just started wearing it really often now that summer is here. It’s a perfect coral-pink for me. My only complaint is that it goes on a little sheer. I actually bought their “Coral Carnation” at the same time, but it’s quite a bit more orange than “Coral Crush”. Also, I think “Coral Carnation” was limited edition, but I might have those two backwards.
Due to the lighting, I think the “Coral Crush” label actually looks a bit more orange, but that is false.
Swatches. “Coral Crush” is on the left, “Coral Carnation” is on the right.
Random Things
Daniel’s mom recently (accidentally) purchased a one-year membership to Amazon Prime. Daniel and I have been taking advantage of it by utilizing the free streaming of numerous movies and TV shows available, including Roswell. We also ordered season 1 of Bob’s Burgers and Super Paper Mario for the Wii (both of which I will probably discuss this month) and used the free 2-day shipping that comes with the membership. If you are a frequent Amazon customer, it might be something you want to look into.
The New Adventures of Old Christine 