The Last...

1. Mood:  I am exhausted!  I took almost two weeks off of work for Christmas and didn't come back until Tuesday.  Since we're closed New Year's Eve, and closing early today I technically only had to work 2 1/2 days.  However, no one told me that I would be doing physical labor during those 2 1/2 days!  I had to move offices... but first I had to convert the bursting-at-the-seams-storage-room-including-tearing-down-huge-book-shelves-because-they-block-the-windows into an office.  Did I mention that I had to make three trips to the office storage unit in order to clear out said new office/ex-storage room?!?  I guess next time I want a new office, I can expect to have to work for it.  

2. Best thing that happened to you in 2010?  I got completely out of debt!  Yep!  I paid off my car earlier this year, and finished paying off my final credit card last month!  Not even my Gap card has a balance on it!  When I started college, my parent's "made too much money {says the Government}," so I didn't qualify for financial aid for school until I was 23 years old.  So how did I pay for school?  I put it on credit cards!  Yes, I had almost $20,000 in credit card debt by the time I was 23, and that same year, I bought a car (I was driving my grandparents' & brother's before that).  This year I finished paying off almost $25,000 dollars of debt, and it feels SO GOOD! 

3. Worst thing?  Not graduating... still...  *sigh*

4. Your biggest beauty revelation of 2010? Bold lipstick...  It seems like nude lipstick is "the thing;" or very, very light pink lips, but not me!  I love bright pinks, and lately I've been loving deep berry colors, I've also recently been trying red lipstick... I'm still deciding how I feel about it, though.

5. Your biggest personal revelation? I can not change how other people behave, I can only change how I react to that behavior.

6. Something you’d like to cross off your bucket list in 2011?  I want to buy my first house! 

7. Plans for New Year’s Eve?  Seriously, I have none {how sad}!!!  I have spent New Year's Eve on the Strip numerous time, and this year I'm kind of over it, plus it's supposed to rain and snow, ick.  Because New Year's is not a big deal to me, I'll probably hang out at home and watch a movie.  If I'm feeling especially adventurous, I just might stay up until midnight.

8. Write yourself a New Year’s love note…  Dear Miss.Priss.Morgan- Don't be so hard on yourself.  You are beautiful just as your Heavenly Father made you.  Stop looking at pictures of yourself ten years ago, thinking, "Look how skinny/pretty/blond/etc. I was back then."  You are a woman now, your body is different, and when you have children your body will change again, and you will look back on photos of you today and think the same thing.  Be happy with who you are right now, because you are awesome {And your boobs and butt finally came in, hooray}!

9. …and now write a love note for anyone who’s reading this right now. Dear friend-  I wish you health and happiness in the new year!  Thank you for your friendship and support, and in your times of need remember that you stand tallest when your on your knees! 

10. Weekly goals:  Get organized!  I know this a total cliché but my bedroom is such a mess I can't even see the carpet!  I also need to get caught up at work.  Between taking almost two whole weeks off, and then doing physical labor this week, I've have more to do than time to do it!

This is the LAST Miss.Priss Beauty Poll of 2010!  I am kind of excited for this year to be over (good riddance!)  The last few years have been an extremely trying time for me, personally, but I just have this feeling that 2011 is going to be AMAZING! 

So, if YOU, yes, you reader, are in the mood to look back on 2010, copy and paste your answers in the comments, or on your own blog... Be sure to comment the link to me, I'd love to read your answers!

1. Mood:
2. Best thing that happened to you in 2010?
3. Worst thing?
4. Your biggest beauty revelation of 2010?
5. Your biggest personal revelation?
6. Something you’d like to cross off your bucket list in 2011?
7. Plans for New Year’s Eve?
8. Write yourself a New Year’s love note…
9. …and now write a love note for anyone who’s reading this right now.
10. Weekly goals:

Christmas Eve Questionnaire!

Your turn!  Fill this out and paste in the comments below, or on your blog!

1. Whats Your Favorite Holiday Movie?
2. Whats Your Favorite Christmas Color?
3. Do You Like To Stay in Your PJs Or Dress Up For Christmas?
4. If You Could Only Buy One Person a Present This Year Who Would It Be?
5. Do You Open Your Present Christmas Eve Or Christmas Morning?
6. Have You Ever Built a Ginger Bread House?
7. What Do You Like To Do On Your Christmas Break?
9. Favorite Christmas Smell?
10. Favorite Christmas Meal Or Treat?

11) What are you doing for the holidays this year?
12) What's your favorite holiday drink?
13) Candy cane or Gingerbread men?
14) What's your favorite holiday/Christmas song?
15) What's the weirdest gift you've ever received?
16) Have you ever made a snowman?
17) What is at the top of your list this Christmas?
18) What is most important to you about the holidays?

Gingerbread house

The other day, I was at Michaels picking up a little something to wrap for someone's Christmas present...  While waiting in line, I spotted a Gingerbread House Kit!  Believe it or not in my 25+2 years on this planet, I have never made a Gingerbread House... unless I count the "milk-carton-graham-cracker" houses I made in the 2nd grade... which I won't.  Anyway, BF and I decided to make it last night.

Yummy frosting!

We began by mixing the icing, and what a mess that was!  The directions said, add five tablespoons of water and mix until "toothpaste consistancy."  We did that, but we noticed the icing set SO FAST!  It was getting hard and after a while we weren't able to work with it.  We had to keep adding water and re-mixing just to get the house put together.  Since we had to wait for the "structure" to set overnight, we decided to trash the icing and buy the "easy-to-use-grocery-store-stuff" today.

Horray!  It stands on its own!

I went to the store and grabbed some more candy, and we decorated our little house!  My grandma kept saying, "What a mess, I bet you won't want to do it again next year," or "I'll bet you wish you hadn't gotten started."  Quite the contrary, we were having a blast! 

After about two full hours we had to stop, and clear the table for dinner.  I'm so pleased with how our first Gingerbread house turned out, and I can't wait to eat it!

Oh Holy Night

Last weekend, I went with my family to see The Live Nativity.  Here in Las Vegas, the Live Nativity has been put on by the Las Vegas stake since 1990, except for last year, when we didn't have one.  This year, our stake took over the awesome task of the production.  Headed up by one of my best friend's parents, many people put in countless hours of work too see this Nativity come to fruition.

It was wonderful!  It was just what I needed to help me kick off the Christmas celebrations.  It's so easy to get wrapped up {no pun intended} in the hustle and bustle of buying gifts, decorations, attending parties, etc., that the true meaning of Christmas is often forgotten.

There are a few things I would like to point out:

1.  The costumes were incredible!  There was none of that "throw-on-a-bath-robe-and-a-bed-sheet-and-call-it-a-shepherd" business.  All of the costumes were sewn by volunteers {my grandma prides herself on hemming the sleeves of the Angels' costumes}, and were made of the most beautiful fabrics and crocheted pieces.

2.  The woman they cast as Mary was breath-taking.  The couldn't have chosen a better person for the part.

It was such a great experience, that I had to go a second time with BF.  He needs a little church in him!

I thought the Shepherd's reaction to seeing my oh-so-cute friend Natalie was priceless:

Seriously, they practically fell to the floor upon seeing her beauty!

And we ran into Grandma & Grandpa.

I have never before thought, until I saw this picture, that I looked like anyone in my family, but Grams & I have the same nose!

Misfit Toys

This year I really had a hard time deciding what to get my family for Christmas.  The items on my brothers' Christmas lists included things like "a house,"  "medical insurance," and "a trip to New York;"  all of which were just slightly out of my budget.

I think the most expensive item on my list this year is a pair of black skinny jeans...

I finished all of my Christmas shopping last week, and I just have to say, I'm really EXCITED about the things I got for my family; hopefully they will feel the same.
Only 4 days to go!

MissPriss Beauty Poll | December 20, 2010

1. Mood: A little tired.  I watched a scary movie last night, by myself, and now I remember why I don't EVER watch movies dealing with aliens or Satan/Possession/Demons.  I didn't sleep a wink, and yet I'm in a great mood!  Not only am I done Christmas shopping, but now the fun of wrapping begins!  I realize that I should have a total "Case of the Mondays," especially since I'm anxiously awaiting a visit from Santa, but today is my Friday, so I'm looking forward to a week off of work to have fun and relax!

2. What’s your favorite winter comfort food?  Bread bowls, or soup bowls, or soup in bread bowls, or whatever they're called.  I love buying those giant rolls, scooping out the insides, filling them with soup and eating every.last.bite.  There's no better TLC than soup, and carbs in the cold winter!

3. One small thing that always makes you happy?  The way BF's nieces greet me when we go over.  They can't.get.enough hugs and kisses.. it's a tough job, but I'm just the one to do it.  They are also overcome by an unknown medical phenomena where their legs stop working and they need me to carry them everywhere, even when just sitting down.  Strange, I had the same problem when I was young whenever my Grandpa was around...

4. Three beauty products that changed your life?

1.  Nars Sheer Matte Foundation, seriously this stuff is A.M.A.Z.I.N.G.  I have oily skin, so most foundations melt off my face within three hours, even with a primer, and setting spray.  This foundation is sheer, so it looks like my skin but better.  Whenever I wear it BF says, "see how much prettier you are without all that crap on your face." Muah ha ha! I fooled him!

2.  Benefit Eye Bright Pencil.  I've tried everything for my under-eye circles.  EVERYTHING.  No concealer on it's own will do.  However I've finally found my perfect combination:  Bobbi Brown corrector in Light Peach, TheBalm Time Balm concealer, Benefit's Eye Bright Pencil, all topped with Benefit's Powderflage.  I know that's a lot, but it works... and trust me, without the EyeBright, it's just sort of OK.

3.  Birth control pills.  A few years ago I considered getting married, so I started taking them.  I've always had HORRIBLE oily, acne prone skin, it really was awful, and nothing seemed to keep my acne away.  Even the effects of three rounds of Accutane didn't last long.  Almost a month after I started taking birth control pills, my skin was beautiful!  I still get breakouts every now and again, but they are my little miracle pill.

5. Khaki cargo pants: fashionable or faux pas?  I don't wear khaki-regular-pants, or cargo pants for that matter, so I'm gonna say "not for me."

6. Favorite lip balm?  Lately I love Softlips, my lips are so soft and not flaky like they get with Burt's bees.

7. How do you sign off on your emails? I don't sign off on my personal e-mails, because everyone knows knows my screen name, so they know they're from me, but I do have a signature that says "Everything I say is fascinating."  At work, my signature is my name, and my company info.

8. Your purse: messy or organized?  So messy right now, and so heavy! I honestly don't know what's in there, but I'd say it weighs close to 20 lbs. I have made it a task to clean it out tonight.

9. Today’s outfit? Today, since my office is observing "casual dress" all week, I decided to take FULL advantage.  I'm wearing jeans, a grey tank top and a lime green Abercrombie hoodie with black chucks.  My hair is in a ponytail and it only took me fifteen minutes to get ready this morning. 

10. Weekly goals: Enjoy the spirit of Christmas!

Merry Christmas! 

I hope everyone is finished or close to finished with their shopping and able to just enjoy themselves this week!  I've got a lot planned.  I've got a last minute Holiday Photo Session tomorrow, which I'm SO excited about, Wednesday and Thursday I'm going snowboarding, and then... SANTA {I know him!}!  Have a great week!

PS.  Kendra, I can't read your blog!  I've been trying to congratulate you on your bun-in-the-oven for weeks, but every time I open your blog page I get the following message:

...and then the Internet closes!  I'm not sure, but I think there's something amiss with the template coding...  Anyway, Congratulations!  I'm so excited for you both!!!

Your Turn

Copy this and fill it out in the Comments Section or on your own blog post.

1. Mood:
2. What’s your favorite winter comfort food?
3. One small thing that always makes you happy?
4. Three beauty products that changed your life?
5. Khaki cargo pants: fashionable or faux pas?
6. Favorite lip balm?
7. How do you sign off on your emails?
8. Your purse: messy or organized?
9. Today’s outfit?
10. Weekly goals:

 

Dear Co-Worker

Dear Anonymous Co-Worker,

I appreciate your effort to be all generous and giving during this holiday season, but was this really necessary?  Don't get me wrong, I L.O.V.E. shortbread cookies covered in visible sugar sprinkles as much as the next guy, but this stuff is LOADED with butter.  I personally do not have the mental capability to limit myself to just one, or five for that matter.  So, I am trying to avoid them, so as not to gain "holiday weight" or... get the runs.

And now, instead on focusing on my ever-growing-work's-to-do-list, I am now overwhelmed by the thought of miniature shortbread cookies.  Oh, and while I'm at it, I want to bring up my disdain for the tub of pick-your-flavor-popcorn.  I don't even like popcorn, and yet, I managed to wolf down the entire 1/3 side of Caramel goodness...

Do me a favor and cancel the Warehouse Super Store Membership, OK?  Thanks

Yours truly,

The GRINCH

Diva of Geneva

I just wanted to share my current FAVORITE nail polish.  I have worn OPI's Diva of Geneva (from their Swiss collection from Fall 2010) almost every week since I bought it!  It is simply GLORIOUS!  It sort of reminds me of a nail polish version of.... Radiant Jewels, except more purple... 

A jewel toned, red-based purple polish with flecks of gold and magenta pearl, this diva is the perfect deep-berry/raspberry color I've been longing for.  I love that it is dark enough for winter, but rich enough so as not come off as "gloomy."

Of all the colors in the collection, this one stole the show and is most definately my favorite.  I can't stop looking at my hands... Seriously. I.CAN'T.STOP.

Christmas Cheer

Have I ever mentioned that BF tells me often how I am the meanest person in the world?  Well he does, almost daily.  I don't think I'm mean, but I admit sometimes I can be "short-tempered" or "impatient," these are the words I prefer to use.

Last night, it was proven that I am in fact the meanest person in the world.  Long story short we were in my car and someone else in their car was honking at me and calling me names that most TV stations have to bleep out.  Because there was a lot of traffic, I couldn't move my car, and they couldn't move their car.  Fairly quickly, the young-man-passenger and his grandmother-driver were both yelling obscenities at me. 

All of a sudden, BF got out of my car and walked over to their car.  I yelled, through the open passenger door, at him to, "Get back here!"  By the time I turned my head to look back out my driver's side window, I saw BF's hot chocolate cup bounce off the face of the young-man-passenger, giving him a chocolate facial!  I began screaming for BF to get in the car because, "I don't want to spend Christmas in jail!"  He turned around and was doing as I asked, when the young-man-passenger got out of his car, came up to my window, opened a to-go container filled with fish, french fries, ketchup, and some mystery sauce, and dumped it all over my lap through my still open window!  He then threw the Styrofoam container right in my face... Just as he ran back to his car, BF sat back down in his seat, closed the door, and as we looked at each other I began yelling at him for being an instigator.

I yelled for a good five minutes as the traffic began to move and we slowly drove away from the crime scene.  I finally calmed down long enough to ask BF why he would throw Hot Chocolate on someone.  Here's what happened.

BF got out of the car to go talk to the unruly grandma and her grandson because they couldn't hear him over the car honks and cuss words.  He walked up and asked them not to speak to me, a lady, in such a vulgar way, when there was nothing I could do about the traffic.  As he finished his question, the young-man-passenger threw a full-to-the-top Big Gulp at BF, drenching him.  BF was so angry, and did the only thing he knew to vent his anger without violence; the hot chocolate.  BF then turned to come back to the car to take off his drenched shirt, (and as most men would in this situation) challenging the guy to a fight the whole time.  When he turned his back, he heard me screaming, "Are you kidding me?  Grow up! I am an adult and I'm calling the police!"  It was then he ran back to the car to see why I was yelling/crying.  He said if he had known before we drove away that the young-man-passenger had involved me in the food fight, "he would have beat the crap out of him!"

Poor BF.  He was trying to be the White Knight I've always dreamed of, and protect me from jerks with foul mouths and Big Gulps, and instead of gratitude and a kiss, he got an icy-coke-shower and a lecture. 

It was still early, and we didn't want to go home, but he was soaking wet all down his front, and I stunk like garbage and vinegar and had ketchup all over my lap.  Let me tell you how fun it was traipsing around Old Navy to buy new shirts, the stares, the smell, we were quite the sight.  Yes, this was my Friday night.

PS I hope grinch-granny and her jerk grandson get coal in their stockings!

PostSecret

Today, this made my heart smile.

Mystere & Mr. T

Yesterday afternoon, BF called me at work and asked what my plans for the evening were.

"Well, hmm, let's see, I want to do my nails because they are starting to resemble talons, and I need to get those presents for the Angel Tree at work..."

He then insisted that my "plans" (if that's what you want to call them) were not important, and that he was taking me on a surprise date. "Sweet, no argument here!"

Crummy iPhone pictures

When I got home from work I pulled my hair back and put on some red lipstick.  I've been really wanting to try it and answer my personal question as to whether or not I can pull it off.  When BF came to pick me up, he told me that we were going to see Cirque du Soleil's Mystére!  I was excited to have something to do, but not entirely thrilled because I have seen the show before, and it wasn't the best experience.

Amazing!  We caught BF making a normal smiley face for a camera!

***

Let's take a stroll down Memory Lane...  Scene:  Prom, Senior Year of High School.

There was a boy I went to school with named "Mr. T." (name changed for anonymity)  When I first met him, I was at our Homecoming Football game my freshman year.  One of my girlfriends, who didn't go to the same school, saw him and thought he was cute.  Another girlfriend of mine went up to "Mr. T" and, pointing towards my friend said, "Do you see my friend over there?  She thinks you're cute."  He took one look at my friend (who was a really pretty girl) and said, "Eww, No."

From that moment on, I knew that not only was he cute, but he was kind-of-a-snot, and if he didn't think my friend was cute, I had NO chance.  So I continued all four years of school, without ever talking to "Mr. T," even though he was friends with my brothers.

Then, one night after Primadonna practice (our Varsity dance team was called the Primadonnas... awesome!), I came home to find a message on my teen-line-answering-machine (back before everyone had a cell phone). "Uhh, hey Morgan.  This is "Mr. T".  I had a question for you, so call me back.  Thanks."  So, I called and he asked me to prom, over the phone.  I thought it was a joke at first, but then I realized, this is High School, it's totally normal to ask a perfect stranger to prom...

Anyway, it wasn't a joke, and we did end up going to Prom together- and it was a little disappointing.  Because this is not the topic of this post, I will quickly recap.  "Mr. T" had gone hiking that morning and decided not to shower before the dance, so when he came to pick me up, he kind of stunk, he needed a hair cut, and he wore bright orange flip flops...  I know it sounds like I'm a total brat, but this was just the beginning.  Dinner at Rum Jungle was great, but I noticed afterwards, on the way to the dance, he was acting a little funny.  It wasn't until we were taking pictures that I noticed, he couldn't stand up without leaning on me.  Naive little me thought he was just tired from the morning's hike, until one of the chaperon teachers asked him what drug he was on, and he assured her, "it's OK, I have a subscription."  After being used as a crutch throughout the dance, we headed out to go see Mystére.  "Mr. T" passed out at the beginning of the show, and was so "high-on-life" by the end of it, that my brother had to drive me home.  Senior Prom= Epic Fail.

***

Almost 10 years later I still think that story is hillarious, so you see, it's not that I wasn't THRILLED to be seeing the Cirque show again, it's just that I still had some bad memories from the first experience.  I.AM.SO.GLAD we went!  BF got us AMAZING seats, and the show was much better than I ever remember it being.  We "Oooo'd" and "Aahh'd" the entire time, and smiles and "did-you-see-how-crazy-that-was" looks were exchanged frequently.

We had such a great time, and it was so nice to shake up the Date Night routine a little bit!

Blue Christmas

Nobody ought to be alone on Christmas...

Which is strange, because doesn't the break-up rate increase by like 60% or something just before Christmas?  I remember in high school everyone got dumped just after Thanksgiving so that their former-other-halves didn't have to buy them a present.  It's cruel, but hey, it is an amazingly-shameless-money-saving-trick.

I'm not sure how quickly the word has spread, but today I read over at Glamour.com that Ryan Reynolds & wifey-poo Scarlet Johansen have called it quits after just 2 years of marriage!  Apparently, the long distance thing was too much for her to handle.  Seriously?  If I were married to Ryan he could move to Mars, and I'd deal with it, as long as he sent me some space rocks every-so-often.

In other couples-call-it-quits news, and not that I necessarily care, but I know a lot of other ladies will be interested to know that Zac Effron has also split from GF since 2005, Vanessa Hudgens.  Apparently, he broke it off by phone and was sure to mention that, "there is no third party involved."

I think we all know the real truth.  These people are tired of buying ridiculously expensive Christmas gifts for each other.

This sad turn of events leaves their women singing, "I'll have a blue Christmas without you," and leaves this woman saying, "Ladies, let the battles begin!"

Dyno-mite!

OK.  Now go back and read the title of this post in the ways of Jimmy J.J. Walker from Good Times.

Lately there has been a bunch of hullaballoo about the new X-Ray scanners popping up in airports all over the world.  These new scanners would make anyone who wasted their money on a pair of novelty x-ray specs green with envy. 

This morning while I was enjoying my potato bagel with whipped cream cheese, and Cranberry Pomegranete Green Tea, I heard something shocking on my radio morning show.  Women with their "monthly gift" are experiencing troubles going through these scanners!  Apparently, a tampon on the scanner can not be distinguished between what it is and a stick of dynomite!  The airport security guards are supposed to "use discression" and take these women aside for "further inspection."  Translation: escort them to the restroom to remove said tampon before being scanned again!

I couldn't believe it.  How embarrassing that must be... but I guess a large sign warning, "Please remove your tampon, " would make more flight-ready patrons more uncomfortable.  Well, I guess the old addage is true, "Kill one, save a thousdand."

Miss Priss Beauty Poll December 11, 2010

1. Mood:  It's the weekend!  I couldn't be happier!  For some reason, between studying for finals, taking my finals and anxiously awaiting my work's Christmas party, I didn't get much sleep this week.  I'm still a little tired today because I had an early-bird dentist appointment, and then had to go in and work overtime! {Overtime on a Saturday?!?  Wah wah wah} It was good though, I got a lot done.

2. What was your best vacation ever?  Not necessarily my "best" but my favorite vacation was a fifteen day trip to Southern California with my family a few years ago.  Evan was still on his mission, so he missed out, but the rest of us had a great time!  California isn't super exciting, but we did a lot of fun things like Disneyland, Sea World, the San Diego Zoo, California Adventure, Sea World, and then spent the rest of our days at beach.  It was the last "Family Vacation" we had before my parents got divorced, so I will always cherish those memories.

3. Are you a chocoholic?That's an understatement.  I didn't realize how bad it was until the other day.  I was complaining to BF that I've gained almost eleven pounds since this summer, he pointed out that my eating an entire pan of brownies every week isn't helping. Ha ha

4. Do you have a nickname?  Why yes, yes I doMorg (Brothers) , Missy (Mom),  Missy-Mo (Mom), Morg-anza (Dad), Morg-a-lorg (Aunt), Miss Morgan (a lot of random people), Princess (BF's Dad dubbed me this because I'm kinda bossy... Grr)

5. Coffee or tea?  I used to be a coffee addict... but I gave it up about three months ago when my once-pearly-white-teeth were starting to resemble those Billy Bob teeth on sale at the Dollar Store.  Now I start every morning with apple juice or chocolate milk.

6. Do you do sequins?  Nope.  Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against sequence, I just don't own anything with sequence.  About a month ago I bought a black sequence mini skirt from Forever21 (apparently they are super in style).  I originally purchased the small, but it didn't even fully cover my butt cheeks... So I returned it for the Medium... and returned that one for the Large, and then quit.  Seriously, if a size Large, in anything, doesn't fit me, I'm clearly shopping at the wrong store.

7. Your favorite hat?  I have a ba-jillion hats.  I absolutely love wearing them.  The one I wear most often is my black Nike baseball cap; but my favorite is my brown flower cap!

8. Have you ever lied about your age?  Yes, great story on that to follow shortly!

9. What would you do with one free hour?  There are so many things I would do!  Can't I have a few free hours?  I would like to spend some extra time reading my scriptures, applying self tanner to my currently-pasty-white-British-skin, and giving myself a weekly mani/pedi.  Oh and I would study more, of course.

10. Weekly goals: I plan on taking it easy the rest of the weekend, and maybe finishing up my Christmas shopping next week.

 

Your Turn

Copy this and fill it out in the Comments Section or on your own blog post.

1. Mood:
2. What was your best vacation ever?
3. Are you a chocoholic?
4. Do you have a nickname?
5. Coffee or tea?
6. Do you do sequins?
7. Your favorite hat?
8. Have you ever lied about your age?
9. What would you do with one free hour?
10. Weekly goals:


Hello all!  I hope everyone had a fantastic week! I spent the first week of December (December already?!? Geez!) finishing up a bunch of photography orders, and catching up on my Glee/Gossip Girl/Netflicks. 

Holy cow! Finals and this semester are over!!!  Where did the time go?  Last week, I survived on only about 2 hours of sleep each night, so when I got home from my work party yesterday afternoon, I took a nap... and didn't wake up until this morning! 

I have a lot to do this weekend, namely cleaning my room.  I bought about 50 hangers, because I haven't had enough for about 2 months, and I'm over trying to find anything to wear in a big pile-o-junk.  I just got done with Saturday-overtime, and now should I clean, study, or watch Eclipse (I just bought the new DVD!)??

Attitude

Just FYI, this is a personal post... I don't often publish these kind, because I don't like "talking" about it, dealing with feelings, and I especially I don't like feeling vulnerable, but I thought I'd post anyway

Interesting fact:  Today, the average 18-30 year old woman experiences levels of stress/anxiety that, if experienced in the 1950's, would have landed them in a mental institution!

It's no doubt that I am a very easy going person.  I would not, under any circumstance, describe myself as "serious" or "uptight."  However, for the past few years (since my parents split up), I have noticed that I often feel stressed out, angry, or anxious... panicky even.  Dealing with parent's divorce is tough, even as an adult, and I don't think people really understand that.  Many think it should be hard on small children, but certainly not on a twenty-something.  Well, it has been, it is.  I was lucky to have a two parent household growing up, we had a lot of family time and developed holiday traditions; but now what happens at my wedding?  What happens on holidays?  How do we work those out?  Who goes where, and with whom?

Like anyone "dealing with divorce," I hoped my parent's divorce would be smooth and amicable... It turned out to be quite the opposite, and after two years, I am not able to  focus on my own "grief," because I'm constantly affected by everyone else's negative thoughts and feelings.

Recently, I decided I had had enough of the negativity.  I was becoming so anxious that my hair literally hurt, I couldn't sleep, and I swear I had a mini-break down.  While flipping through Glamour Magazine, I read that anxiety and stress causes pre-mature aging and heart attacks in young women, I knew something had to be done.  I decided that since I couldn't change the situation, the only thing I could do was change my attitude.

"Life isn’t about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself."

George Bernard Shaw

Over the past year or so I have really tried to weed out any negativity in my life.  I try really really hard not to gossip with friends and co-workers, I try to always see the glass as half-full (BF was recently laid off and loved when I told him that the good part was that he had more time to do homework!), I purposely smile all.of.the.time.and I've been making "kindness" a focus of the things-I-need part of my prayers. 

So far, I have noticed a difference.  I am happier, I do not constantly feel overwhelmed or anxious, and I feel like I am better able to be sympathetic about situations that arise without feeling so angry.  My skin even looks better.  I am going to keep smiling and having a positive attitude.  I may not be able to change the bad things in the world, but I can change how I respond to them.

High Ho

High Ho, it's off to work I go...

*Side note*  This reminds me of a story.  When we were little and my dad had just finished Pharmacy School, we only had one car... I'm sorry, excuse me... We had only one pimp minivan.  My mom would have to drag us out of bed at 9:30 every night, pajama clad, and put us in said pimp minivan to pick up my dad from work.  To ward off the sleepy-meltdowns we would sing:

Hi ho, hi ho

It's off to work we go

To see our Dad or he'll be sad

Hi ho, hi ho

Moving on

In the past I've always been able to blog when I should be doing something else.  "Hmmm study for my Biochemistry mid-term or write a blog post about my new favorite lipgloss."  That's when the magic happens.  My right brain says to my left brain, "You know what Lefty, your side already got the handedness, the least you can let me do is be creative!"  And so, I would blog.

The last time I wrote, I was struggling with a decision between taking an amazing- but full-time job or hurrying-up-and-finally-finishing-school-because-I've-now-surpassed-Tommy-Boy-and-this-is-getting-ridiculous.  It turns out I was able to do both, kind of.  I decided to take the job, and go to school, but instead of taking 13 credits, I dropped down to 9.  I wasn't happy, but I am an adult, and adults make sacrifices.

PS.  After about a week, my new hair color has faded quite a bit and started to really grow on me.  However, last night, I was really really really missing my blond.  Luckily, after the fading, there are a ton of blondie-pieces poking through!

Anyway, I started this job, and I L.O.V.E. it.  It's very different from anything I've done before, and I'm busy ALL.OF.THE.TIME.  From the time I get to work at 7:30am until I leave, I'm BUSY.  In fact, our office has been SO busy, that since I started working in August, there have only been 5 days where I didn't work overtime (and by overtime, I mean until 7-8 pm.  I've even worked a Saturday. Eww!)  It's good to be busy, but I'm ALWAYS tired.  After putting in a 10-12 hour work day, I still have to go home and study for a few hours before bed.  My only saving grace is that BF went back to school this semester to try for a 2nd degree, so instead of bugging me for more quality time, he's busy studying too.

So there it is, my other reason for Class 1 Blog Neglect.  After work and study, I throw on my sweatpants, and again the age old battle between right and left brain wages on.  Only lately, Logical Lefty wins out, and my free time is spent with my TiVo, catching up on Gossip Girl and Vampire Diaries, and an occasional DIY mani/pedi.

24/7

"Nothing lasts forever," or so the old saying goes.

Now days, that disheartening quote seems to ring true. For example, Eva Longoria and Tony Parker had just celebrated their third wedding anniversary when she filed for divorce. Everyone in Hollywood seemed to say, "Three years, wow! That was a pretty good run."

Despite the end of many relationships, us makeup junkies have reason to rejoice! Urban Decay just celebrated its 15th Anniversary!!! To commemorate this momentous occasion, UD is releasing a 15th Anniversary Collection of their 24/7 Glide On Eye Pencils.

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Unlike Jackpot, and other previously released pencil packs from Urban Decay, the 15th Anniversary set includes 15 FULL SIZED eyeliners, with six all new limited edition shades (and a sharpener is included)! Sold individually, each UD eyeliner has a hefty price tag of $17.00, and the sharpener is $9.00. The retail value of this kit is $264.00, but the folks over at Urban Decay are giving it to us for just $92.00! That's 65% off, and we all know how much I love a deal!

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The set will be available to all in January 2011 on the Urban Decay Website and where ever Urban Decay products are sold. However, because I am an exclusive customer (actually, I found out about this because I receive UD's promotional e-mails), I was able to purchase my pencils during their "sneak-peak-two-hour-limited-release" on Cyber Monday! Jealous? I thought so.

The colors included in this collection are as follows:

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• Stray Dog:  Mushroom-brown, taupe color.  (N)*
• Corrupt:  Dark, chocolate-brown with warm amber undertones.  I am looking most forward to this shade, I love dark brown eyeliners!  (N)
• Bourbon:  Medium-dark, warmed-up brown.  (P)**
• Midnight Cowboy:  Shimmering champagne-peach with subtle metallic sheen. I just know I am going to love this color to add a pop of brightness on the inner corners of my eyes.  (N)
• Baked:  Frosted copper-bronze. (P)

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• Stash:  Antique gold with a slight metallic sheen.  (P)
• Mildew:  Forest green with subtle gold shimmer.  I have had this pencil for years, and I just love it! (P)
• Perversion:  Rich, deep, dark black with a matte finish.  Hopefully Urban Decay adds this pencil to the permenant line because, it is one of the only dark, true black pencils I've found with all-day-wear and very similar to MAC's Feline Eye Kohl. (N)
• Electric:  Bright, neon cyan-blue with hints of violet and soft-blue micro-shimmer. (P)
• Binge:  Navy blue with a hint of violet and soft-blue micro-shimmer. (P) 

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• Ransom:  Fuchsia-tinged violet with soft sheen. (P)
• Asphyxia:  Sheer fuchsia with fuchsia-violet shimmer and sheen.  (N)
• Rockstar:  Rich eggplant with slight metallic sheen. (P)
• Zero:  Black.  Normally I love this pencil, but I think Perversion just passed it up on my list of go-to-black-eyeliner pencils. (P)
• Uzi:  Gunmetal silver with teal-green and silver micro-shimmer. (N)

I absolutely love the 24/7 Glide On pencils. I have really sensitive eyes - remember all those bouts of pink eye I've experienced this past year? Not actually pink eye, but irritation caused by make up products... sad face - but I don't experience any ocular issues with these babies. They glide on ultra smooth, have amazing color payoff, and unlike most Hollywood marriages, they last FOREVER, without smudging or running.

Normally-neutral-faced girls beware! The bold colors found here are not for the faint of heart. I would highly recommend this collection to any and all Urban Decay lovers, girls looking to have a little fun with their makeup, or maybe someone who wants to branch out and experiment with a little bit color.

24/7 from L to R: Stray Dog, Corrupt, Bourbon, Midnight Cowboy, Baked {Image Credit}

24/7 from L to R: Stray Dog, Corrupt, Bourbon, Midnight Cowboy, Baked {Image Credit}

24/7 from L to R: Stash, Mildew, Perversion, Electric, Binge {Image Credit}

24/7 from L to R: Stash, Mildew, Perversion, Electric, Binge {Image Credit}

24/7 from L to R: Ransom, Asphyxia, Rockstar, Zero, Uzi {Image Credit}

24/7 from L to R: Ransom, Asphyxia, Rockstar, Zero, Uzi {Image Credit}

24/7 from L to R: Stray Dog, Corrupt, Bourbon, Midnight Cowboy, Baked, Stash, Mildew, Perversion, Electric, Binge, Ransom, Asphyxia, Rockstar, Zero, Uzi {Image Credit}

* (N) - New/limited edition shade
**(P) - Permenant Shade