New working space

So I know if you’ve read lately or followed my Twitter/Facebook you know that I’ve been working quite diligently to switch up the rooms while cleaning the carpets ‘n’ such. Well it’s finally done, the switching that is.. I still have plenty of carpet to SteamVac! I didn’t finish the room until about 3a.m.ish and still have a few things lingering in the now guest room (which was my old office). And I have a little bit of paint to clean up in the guest room since tape ripped chips of it off.

Started out around 3p.m. yesterday afternoon, and it took several hours just to clear all the stuff out of the room. Then I had to vacuum thoroughly (so that the SteamVac isn’t vacuuming but cleaning the carpet) and steam the carpets. Ended up taking a break and snuggling up with the hubster while the carpets dried. After that he helped me get the heavy desk top up the stairs and was off to his gaming session. About three hours into the rebuild I had to stop and do my homework (or it would have been late and therefore not counted towards Saturday).

Eight hours later, here I am! My body is of course exhausted (still neck deep in the PMDD pool) and I know I’m going to be extra sore tomorrow. But my brain is happy and awake. I’m really enjoying my new workspace! There are two desks: one we got from base during decom and one I ordered a long time ago from Walmart. Next to that is my big green file cabinet (that thing is a bitch to move!) and my other little filing drawer + my bookcase (which is no longer overflowing, thank god). I also have my piano here in the room and in that empty space behind my desk my elliptical will be put. << So I can get off my fat ass and exercise more often. I figure if it’s close by I’ll have no excuse not to get up and run for a bit.

I mentioned on Twitter/Facebook (I use tweetdeck so it goes to both heh) that the level was my best friend tonight and if you look at the pics you’ll know why. I had A LOT of stuff to hang up. And I have a tendency to hang things crocked even when I have a level lol. You’ll also notice a big fat white space above the black boxes on the wall. I have to find my cross candle holders. They are in the mountain of boxes behind my piano (see photos) and I don’t feel like burying myself just yet. And yes, those are letters written on my keys… when I was teaching Nathan to play the piano he wrote them on there with a white board marker lol Couldn’t remember what keys were what!

I feel like I have plenty of space to move around in, even though the room is kind of cramped (to be honest). But it is bigger than the other room and has a better configuration (the guest room has juts in the wall that are in awkward spots). And guess what! I can see all my artwork from my desk! That’s a big deal. I like being able to see it all without having to move. I didn’t buy it to not look at and enjoy it! (like some people)

Empty half of the room

Cluttered half

Inside the workspace

 

Artwork!

Empty Space

The piano!

 

This is probably the longest post I’ve written in quite some time huh? Well I guess it’s because I have something to write about. Anyhow, I think I’ll do a bit of work (I have a lot due today) and see how long it takes before I need to pass out, ha!

Pretty tissue paper is the first thing you see!

Bubble wraps! I gave some to Joshua. He was very happy.

The inside is so pretty. The font and sizing is great.

Woot. Isn’t it lovely? Yes, yes it is! I’m so excited about having a nice planner. You don’t understand, it’s one of the  things I am very OCD about. Now, obviously I don’t have any babies to keep track of but I do have classes and chores to keep track of so that is what is going in the “kids” slots. Alright, now for the technicalities.

Construction: Very good. Firm but pliable, if that makes sense. All pages are crisp and of good weight. Fonts and colors are beautiful.

Color Choices: I got pink, cause I love pink, but the other colors are quite appealing. It comes in green, purple, blue, brown, and orange. The color is as vibrant as shown on the website. (for once)

Usefulness: All pages are beautifully laid out, affording you plenty of space to put all of your scheduling info. In addition there are pages for health/fitness, vacation planning, parties, entertainment resources, gift recording, movies, books, restaurants, wines, music, fashion, and future planning. There is also a place in the back for notes. There is also some useful information in the front for how to use, websites, toll free numbers, holidays, and a full calendar year quick look. The planner comes with two ribbon bookmarks (attached of course) too! So you can mark your current week and something else of note (I bookmark the notes section).

The calendar goes from August 2009 (in this case) to December 2010. Kind of awkward but it works.

And awesomely enough, in the back there is a booklet for numbers/addresses, health info, etc. that you can take in and out freely.

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Needless to say I am extremely happy with this buy. I absolutely love it and cannot wait to make good use of it!

You have no idea how excited I am. A friend? Like.. in the fleshy world? Not just the internet? Holy tolito! What a concept right? lol

I use the basic three-step system: the renewing cleanser, revitalizing toner, and repairing lotion. I used to also use their sunscreen and refining mask. I now own their makeup as well. I have the concealer, compact foundation, and sheer finish loose powder. I have absolutely no complaints about any of their products! I can honestly say that, for me, their products have worked wonders. My skin used to break out any time I got stressed (which is a lot) and it is naturally on the oily side. Since using their products I have very little breakouts and the overall condition of my skin has improved tenfold.

But in addition to their products having Proactiv in my daily routine has encouraged me to actually take care of my skin. What I mean by this is simple. Before I started using Proactiv I didn’t wash my face more than twice a day (once in the morning, usually in the shower, and once at night before bed). But when I started using I washed my face twice a day with the Proactiv and an additional once or twice throughout the day using the toner and lotion afterwards (leaving out the renewing cleanser and washing with just gentle soap). I’ve also become more conscious about touching my face a lot and having my hair away from my face when its dirty.

So, lets review the products in groups.

The three-step system

If you’re looking for something effective and better yet easy, then this is one for you. You wash your face with the renewing cleanser first. The cleanser has a very light smell from the ingredients but is perfectly tolerable (I don’t even notice now) and has a grainy texture in order to scrub the dead skin off. You rinse with warm water and pat dry. Now, the instructions say to use a “dime size” amount but honestly I’ve never felt like that covers my whole face so I use a bit more. It all depends on you and your preference really.

Next is the revitalizing toner. You can use a cotton ball or pad to apply it evenly over your whole face. If there are any abrasions or cuts in your skin, you’re going to feel it – just a warning. I’m not sure if it is noticed by others, but my skin is a lot tighter after using the toner and definitely more vibrant. You have to allow this step to air dry, so it will take a minute or two.

Last is the repairing lotion. It literally only takes the recommended “pea size” drop to cover all your skin, and I sometimes end up using even less. There is no extra smell to it, just that plain lotion scent and it goes on very smooth and absorbs quickly.

All in all, it will take you less than five minutes in the morning and night to use this system. And if you have problem areas elsewhere it will work on any skin, though Proactiv now makes a body wash I believe. I used the normal system cleanser on my back and it was clear of any acne within two months (something my older siblings had to battle with for years I got rid of in two months. sweet). And if you become a member of the club you can customize your system. Because I use more of the cleanser I get one basic system the first order and then switch it to the triple cleanser system afterwards. The lotion and toner last me a very long time whereas the cleanser goes bye-bye really quick (I don’t just use it for my face after all).

The Extras

So on top of the basic system there is a mask and a sunscreen that I have tried. When I used to spend a lot of time out in the summer I used the sunscreen pretty religiously and as a result never had anything happen to my skin. It has the same consistency as the repairing lotion and once again no real smell.

The mask however is very, very smelly. That may be a bad thing to others but to me I don’t really care. It smells like sulfur because it is an ingredient and there’s really no getting around it. However, it is a fantastic mask. It comes in a very small bottle but that will last you somewhere between 5-10 uses. The cream is very thick and it takes very little to coat your entire face. Wait fifteen minutes for it to do it’s business and then rinse off with warm water. My skin is immediately softer and brighter after using the mask.

The Makeup

You may or may not know but I am not a makeup wearer. Me wearing makeup is about as rare as me saying OMG I want to wash dishes!! lol I usually only wear makeup if I am going to the Opera or some other equally fancy occasion where I am in a gown not normal clothing. I don’t even wear makeup to work. I don’t have to wear makeup. Honestly my skin is pretty beautiful and I just don’t need product caked on it.

BUT I enjoy Proactiv’s makeup. It gives very even coverage, matches my skin tone pretty darn well (hard to come by), and best of all – it’s medicated. That’s right. The Proactiv makeup has Proactiv in it! So putting on makeup isn’t hurting my skin, it’s helping and that is why I bought it. I believe the makeup comes in three or four different shades (I use tan/medium) and as I mentioned before there are three pieces: concealer, compact, and loose powder. I have had this set of makeup for about.. a year and it hasn’t degraded, at all.

So there you go. I love my Proactiv and if you are looking to use it, I recommend you try it out!

I am what you could call a “Mac Girl”. I own a Mac Pro with 30″ HD Apple Cinema display, a 17″ Macbook Pro, and two iPods – an 80GB one and I think a 4GB iPod nano from way back when. I have yet to own an Apple I don’t like and that is why I’m a faithful Apple buyer. And I’ve had my fair share of PCs, from a crappy Packard Bell onward. So let’s start with the smallest eh?

Apple iPod Nano

My iPod Nano is a first generation (crazy to believe that for me,but whatever). I’ve had this baby since 2005 and let me tell  you, it’s been abused. Not only has it gone through the normal dropping, throwing, bouncing around, etc, it has also survived going through the washer and dryer. Yeah. It went through the WASH. It seemed to have died for a while so I put it away and didn’t bother with it. I ended up buying my next iPod thinking this baby was dead. But six months later I pulled it out of the box I’d stashed it in and voila, it worked! (It just needed to completely dry out is all)

The space was enough at the time and I still prefer to use the nano for working out because the full sized iPod is just too big for me to carry comfortably on any body part other than my hip/thigh and I don’t want to get another carrier. The nano is great for having just a couple different playlists and switching them out when you get bored with the selection that is on it.

Apple iPod

This iPod is a sixth generation 80GB beast that holds all of my music and videos, which I have quite a lot of. It is my best friend while traveling because I have all my stand-up comedy and movies on it and it has a pretty good battery life. The display on this iPod is more than enough for me and the bulk is actually a plus for me when I’m listening to it while sleeping. It doesn’t get so easily lost in the sheets heh. I’ve also given this iPod its fair share of beatings because I no longer keep it in a case (I have a plastic, hard case around here somewhere for it. Makes it look all pink instead of silver). I would have liked this iPod better if it were white like my nano and not silver. I’m not a fan of that for the iPod.

Apple Macbook Pro (17″)

Okay… so yeah. This is a previous gen for me, I wish I had the newest one simply for it being lighter. That is my only day-to-day complaint on this computer: the weight. When I used to carry it all day from class to class to work it was a pain to lug around. However, the weight is worth the power and ability to pretty much run anything and everything I want.

I run bootcamp on the machine to use Windows XP. I have yet to have a single problem running any program or game on this monster. The airport wireless in my house isn’t all too great (mostly due to my plaster walls) but out on other wifi it performs great.  I run all of Adobe/macromedia on the computer, various different games, and without speakers (just using the built in) it’s fantastic for watching movies and tv shows.

Battery life is great, however I have had a battery come apart after several years of use (I guess.. 3 almost 4 years?), which was very annoying but I was lucky enough to find a genuine battery for $55 online with a charge guarantee (which I just got less than a month ago and is working perfectly). The power cord for the laptop is a piece of crap really. The first one I had melted at the connection point (where it plugs into the computer) and the wires came apart under the melted plastic. And now the one I have (after replacing the last one, obviously) decided to try and come apart at the adapter. Annoying but was fixable with electrical tape. But I will say it’s nice that the power cord is convertible. You can either have the regular Type B plug (3 prong) or put on the piece to have it a Type A plug (2 prong).

Now… hmm.. No problems, at all, with the display. It’s perfect. Same today as it was when I opened the box.

Keyboard. Oh keyboard… lol Like all my electronics, it’s taken a beating haha I spilt a whole cup-o-noodles into it *facepalm* Yeah I’m retarded. BUT! To my surprise it wasn’t like 1000 dollars to fix. With labor and all it was $250 to replace the keyboard and cleanup everything else.

The SuperDrive. It does not like scratched discs.. at all. To the point where I keep getting discs stuck in it, which is a pain in the butt because the drive does not have an auto-release button so you have to do all these stupid tricks to try and get the disc to come out.

Apple Mac Pro

AKA  THE BEAST! lol This is what I call him (yes, it is a HIM not a HER). I have not had a single, not ONE, problem with this computer. Nothing hardware OR software related. Nor have I had to do a single upgrade (other than going from Tiger to Leopard, which was optional) to it. I haven’t had a single piece of software nor add-on hardware that this baby can’t handle either.

But here’s the catch. I paid eight thousand dollars for the beast. That’s right. Eight grand. Two thousand just for the monitor. But then again, calculate in the fact that four years later, I’ve not had to do a single thing to it and that I don’t anticipate having to do a single thing to it’s hardware for years to come. The only thing I do have planned to do to it is add another 30″ monitor. (The beast is capable of running another 30″ and a 24″ without so much as blinking. I’ve tried it out )

So other than some bugs with the Macbook Pro, I have very little to complain about with my Apple products. And I have to say I’m very, very happy with them all. Even at their seemingly outrageous prices (which are slowly coming down).

And.. I want to add an iPhone to this list. And honestly now that I don’t really use my laptop out and about I’m still wondering if I’d be happier with a Macbook Air.. who knows!

So today I decided because I really enjoy this pen to go ahead and find them online and got lucky at Jet Pens, which has a pretty extensive collection of fountain-tip items and accessories (along with other stuff). For about $20 I got blue, black, green, and purple ink wells (36 in total) as well as another Plumix (which I will be gifting to Nathan, since he enjoys the pen as well).

I’m thrilled! Seriously. I love this pen. It’s beautiful for being made of plastic, for one. It has a very nice shape to it, like an old fountain-tip. The nib on it is durable and lets the ink flow freely. The only thing I would do, if I were Pilot, is come out with another step up with interchangeable nibs. I’d even pay say.. $20 for a box set of that pen.

If you like fountain-tip pens I suggest this one. You don’t need to have beautiful handwriting or any calligraphy skill to make this pen perform for you. It’s a great buy