Thoughts of the day: Being Gone

     It's almost been 8 months since I left the US for an adventure in order to gain some personal growth... Let me tell you, it hasn't been easy. Technically speaking, I've gone back home to the country that I spent 20 years of my life... yet it doesn't feel truly like home anymore. I find it odd sometimes that though I look like and speak like everyone else, I don't feel like I truly fit in anymore. 

      In the years that I've lived in the US, I've grown. I've adapted to the culture, the way of life. I came when I was in my early 20's, when my ideologies and beliefs where at a crucial point of development. Living in the US truly influenced who I am today and the choices that I make each day. There are things I have a hard time comprehending here in the country that I was born and raised, I tried to change and fight my way into making thing go the way I've been used to in the country I've spent my adulthood in... which led to anger, stress, and lots of breakouts! 

      Nowadays, I try to not stress myself out. I realized that I shouldn't try to change things that has been a part of a culture longer than my lifetime, not to say that I should be totally complacent about everything... It's just that I should pick and choose my battles... As a result, my life here right now is less complicated and I'm not stressed out. 

      I only have 2 months left and I can go back to my life. I can blog more regularly. I've not had anytime at all to do so and I miss it so much, blogging about makeup has been a way for me to relax and one the ways that I have fun! 

A Bit of Shopping: ULTA, Target, Sephora, and CCS (Collective Haul)

     It has been a crazy busy month of May for me, hence the lack of post. Work has been a bit stressful combined with the stress of preparing for my trip and just daily life, I've just been too caught up to blog. In a week I'll be flying out and most of my beauty stuff has been shipped out together with my other things ahead of time so I wouldn't have to deal with overweight suitcases, I'm honestly bad at packing! 

    Since most of the stuff I bought earlier has been shipped out already, what's left in terms of my beauty arsenal are the ones I just use regularly and most of my makeup brushes. It's so odd to see my makeup area a bit bare. Like I said most of my things are already gone and the ones I have left here were running low so I went ahead and bought some stuff through out the month as I needed it.

   

Origins Starting Over Age Erasing Moisturizer with Mimosa

      I first saw this moisturizer while watching a Youtube video, I thought why not try it since I was changing up my skin routine. I really didn't see any difference and I thought that it was just another overpriced face moisturizer. According to the Origins website, 

 (Sephora; 1.7 oz. for $47.50)

    "94% saw a significant reduction in the appearance of lines and wrinkles. This moisturizer with Mimosa, Argan leaf and Green algae helps to rebuild collagen, repair visible lines and improve skin texture and tone. Skin looks and feels measurably younger from day one."

A Bit of Shopping: Sephora (VIB sale edition)

     Last April 11 was the preview day for Sephora's VIB sale, so of course I went to check it out! Sephora rarely does any sales so I do get excited when they announce that they're having one, granted its usually either 15% or 20% which is not a lot. For the high end brands that they carry though (which never really goes on sale at the department store) I'm just glad to have a little help on the savings department, every dollar counts after all.

     I know that I've been posting shopping entries this week almost consecutively but to my defense, I don't normally shop like this. It's just that the sales have been going on at different stores and I'm preparing for my trip this summer, so I'm buying mostly backups of products I generally use on a daily basis. These products might be unavailable, difficult to find (especially my skin tone shade), or more expensive if I were to buy them where I'm going. So that's that. 

Thoughts of the day: Leaving

     In 41 days, I'm going to be leaving the US. For a year, I'm leaving the comforts of my home, my friends, my job, my car, and my sweet husband. The thought is scary, it's sad, it's disheartening really. I'm so used to so many things here and I feel like I've taken for granted some of those comforts and conveniences that I have or use in my daily life, granted it's not like I'm going in the wilderness and living with nothing. Of course not. It's just I'm leaving my home. The uncertainty of things and the length of time I'm gonna be spending away from my husband makes me feel sad. 

    I've already started packing, I'm sending my stuff first since it takes a months time before it arrives to it's destination. I'm trying not to pack everything in terms of my beauty and skincare essentials but my train case is full to the brim! As for my personal items, I'm also not trying to pack everything. I'm mostly packing heat and humidity friendly clothes, some shoes, sandals, and even a pair of rain boots since there's only two types of season there (summer and typhoon season!). Any other things I might need, I'll probably just buy there as I need it.

    Well I guess it shouldn't be too bad. Technology nowadays is so amazing! We have FaceTime, iChat, Skype, email, and texting. My dearest husband will come visit me in between the length of time I'm away. Most of all, I'm going to be busy. You see the reason for my long term trip is to fulfill my goal of going back and getting some more higher education. Yes, I'm going back to school. For so many reasons I'm choosing to go to school overseas and not here, it's just more convenient and financially easier for us. So at my age, I'm leaving and going back to being a student. Wish me luck!

Origins Modern Friction Nature's Gentle Dermabrasion

    I love, love, love this product! I've used several brands of facial scrub before, mostly drugstore brands like Clean and Clear, Neutrogena, and St. Ives for years. It was not till early this year that I got a travel sized version of Modern Friction that I honestly fell in love and finally bit the bullet, I bought the full size version. Before I begin to declare my love for this wonderful facial scrub, let's check out what Origins has to say about their product.

(Sephora; 4.2 oz for $38.50)

    "Sand-blasting skin with coarse, chemical crystals? How painfully passé. Here's age-smoothing exfoliation without irritation. Skin-refining Rice Starch, cushioned in cream, shows real affinity for rapidly removing sluggish cells, uneven patches and signs of skin damage and discolorations. Lemon Oil kick starts the process of illumination. Another age-sweeping action: skin-menacing molecules are mopped up. All while Aloe keeps skin calm and comfy. There's no ouch, extra steps or other complications. No redness or flaking follows. The before-and-afters are amazing. Signs of fine lines and size of pores appear to shrink in size. Skin looks perfectly polished, smooth and luminous. And the perk-me-up aromas of Bergamot and Peppermint help you look on the bright side.
Origins tested Modern Friction™ on a panel of 54 women. After just one try, of those who had undergone clinical micro-dermabrasion, 94% said they would now consider using Modern Friction™ instead."

Thoughts of the day: Car Troubles

     Today was a good day. I had fun with the kids at work, the actual work part wasn't as tedious as it can sometimes get... then I decided to get a bubble tea before I started my tutoring session with a student. 

     After buying my tea and I was happily drinking it as I got into my car, I put my car key in the ignition and nothing happened. Okay maybe something happened. My car made this weird noise every time I tried turning the engine on. All I could think of was "F*#%! What am I gonna do?!". I'm stuck and I didn't know a single thing about cars except how to drive it.

     So I called Triple A, I called the parent of the kid I was supposed to tutor to cancel and explain. "Crap, my schedule's all messed up now... and I have to pee." I thought to myself. Hahaha... The stupid bubble tea that I drank was taking it's toll  and I couldn't leave my car in case the Triple A guy came to jump start my engine. After an hour, he still wasn't there. Luckily a nice person parked beside me offered to watch out for the Triple A guy while I went to run and find a bathroom (thank god for starbucks!). Don't judge me, it's called desperation. 

     Lesson learned, I need to get to know my car more. When the Triple A guy finally came, it only took less than 10 minutes to make my car start again and I was a happy camper again (granted I was a little irked that he took forever!). I just wanna say, there are still kind souls out there willing to help you out in desperate times. Thank you kind sir, I hope you had a great day! 

    Hopefully my car will start tomorrow morning so I can go to work, else I'm screwed.