Pretzel Pretzel

Dear Pretzel, 
I miss you. I wish I could go back to yoga.  I wish I didn't have to pay off all my bills.  If I didn't I would go back to you and I would be a good student.  I would even go to Sheila's classes even though I like you and Brandy the best.  Someday I will come back to you don't forget about me.


Love GMA

Christmas....Christmas

Coolest thing I've gotten myself for Christmas less than $20 at BBBeyond

This little icicle beauty is sweet since it holds all my long necklaces, a feature which I have found lacking in many other jewelry holders.
I also like that I can put other miscellaneous tidbits in the plate at the bottom if needed.

This is what I am wishing for this year since I hate wearing my sunglasses when I cut onions.

Andelope

This weekend my stupid brother finally eloped/got married.  If it wasn't under 20 degrees outside in Tahoe I probably would have cried the whole time.  Look at how cold we all are below:

Not sure why but this is my favorite picture.  It makes me think..."Merry Christmas from the Ma Brothers"  I love my silly brothers

Papa Ma

Reasons why I love my Dad:

1. He peels potatoes for me since he knows my hands get allergic to them
2. He chops onions for me super fast
3. He asks me why I don't want to use bacon grease for mashed potatoes, mac and cheese, or in stuffing after he fries bacon for me since I get scared of the oil splattering on me
4. When he finds out I'm coming home he asks me what he should make for dinner
5. He takes my car to get a tune up when it's due
6. He can cook an awesome meal in under 10 minutes and has no qualms bragging about it
7. He reads just as fast if not faster than me
8. He laughs at dumb shit with me
9. He always says sorry when he has been mean to me
10. He makes me chicken soup when I am sick

This is what someone said about him this weekend:

T: Did you know if a Cantonese person makes you soup, you better eat it, because it means they LOVE YOU.

Me: What....

T:  It takes a lot of love and effort to make soup, it took your dad 2 days to make that soup!

Me: Ok....

Earlier that day with my dad in the kitchen:

Dad:  Do you see this melon?

Me: Yes I see it

Dad: Look how big the melon is!

Me: Yes it's very big

Dad:  That big melon is GOING IN THE SOUP can you believe it?

Me:  Yes dad....I believe it.

New Moon

FINALLY, the day has come where I get to watch New Moon.  I have been waiting so long that it feels like forever....almost as long as it felt when Edward left Bella.....I am just glad I was able to enjoy it wholeheartedly with my coworkers who are all equally obsessed with Twilight, True Blood, and the like.  Now we all just want to kill ourselves since Eclipse is coming out so far away from now!!!!!  However, it just means we will be able to have another emo Twilight party where we watch Twilight and New Moon back to back while eating things that they eat in the movie (only humans and werewolves not vampires ....they don't eat real food)  I can go to sleep now knowing that I have fulfilled my duty as a girl to watch this movie and cry and be obsessed with things that don't exist....or do they?  Good night.

Fold Pro

Sometimes I have these sudden cleaning spurts where I just want to clean and tidy everything up in our place.  Mind you, this doesn't happen very often maybe once every other week....I know I am a dirty girl I'm lucky Ryan helps clean up after me.
Anyway, in my flurry of putting away clothes, washing dishes, scrubbing the shower, starting a new load of laundry, taking stuff out of the dryer...and lo and behold the dreaded fitted sheet.
How I used to hate the fitted sheet.  If you don't fold it right it just comes out all lumpy and then messes up the neatness of your linen closet, not like I have one, but still it can be very irritating.
A while back I looked up "how to fold a fitted sheet," on google (this is how I solve most of my life problems and questions by google) and came up with this nifty little video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YHTyH2nuFAw  
So I tested it out, but I had to run back and forth from my laptop since I kept forgetting how to do the hands part....it's tricky!  After I accomplished folding my fitted sheet into a neat little square this is how I felt:

I wish I felt like this every day =)

Love Sephora

I finally spend enough to be a Very Important Beauty Insider at Sephora!  I really wanted to get the T3 evertwirl curling iron in pink but they didn't have it in store AND they were sold out online so I figure it wasn't meant to be.
Check out my new goodies and the free stuff they gave me:

Love Love Love Cosmedicine's Matte Bronzer I tried it as a sample and it just makes my skin and face look DAMN good. I think it also helps to reduce the oil in my face which is tres bien!  Also had to refill my diorshow mascara and lorac base

The next picture is a special request for a special friend that I miss and love (that's right it's that sweet hanging gift wrap organizer I bought from my co-worker's son's school fundraiser....it's for the children!)

Productivity

For some reason, my company has Veteran's day off even though a majority of people I know do not have this holiday.  I had, what I would consider, an extremely productive day.

• A long overdue haircut at W Salon and catchup session with Isabelle and Elaine
• Lunch with Mama and Papa who just came back from Hong Kong
• Trip to Ikea to finally get our "Guest Room" set up
• Half building a chair then getting Ryan to finish it for me =)
• Building a lamp
• Cleaning the bathrooms
• Organizing my gift wrap stuff with my new "hanging" gift wrap organizer
• Finding a place in the closet to put Ryan's skateboard
• Using my Groupon to finally eat Goat Hill Pizza with my brother and Fiance
• OH and I forgot the most important thing of all.  Pearl tea at Ten Ren 

Days like these I wish I was unemployed so I could get things done at home, but then again, I wouldn't have money to do any of the above items without a paycheck.

Oh dollar dollar I wish you wouldn't rule my life....

Shopping VIP

To show you how much of a shopping problem I have I received, in one week, VIP pass for Sephora, Bloomingdales, Gap/BR, and Urban Minx.

You're Invited... You're one of our best customers, so we want to offer you 30% off during our Friends & Family event. Plus, you can invite others and designate a non-profit to receive 5% of the amount you and your Friends & Family spend. Click here to pick your non-profit and invite your Friends & Family to save 30% In-store Barcode (For multiple uses) This offer is also good at Gap Outlet and Banana Republic Factory Store! I'm not supposed to be shopping any more even though I probably will this month....it's the holiday's I have to get started right?

Daily Plate and Daily Eats

Today I felt super bloated and gassy.  I really wanted to get a hot chocolate since it was cool out in the morning and I accompanied my co-worker to Soup Company only to discover they had POTATO LEEK SOUP.

I used to eat potato leek soup almost every day in London so not only did I have my milky hot chocolate but I also had this semi-creamy soup.  I felt cranky from being gassy and fat since I was bloated.

I've used Daily Plate before to look up calories for random things but then I noticed today that you can track what you eat in a day sort of as a food diary.  I figure, I'm challenging myself to budget wisely, why shouldn't I do the same with what I eat.....coincidentally 50% of my AMEX bill this month was spent on food =(  So eating less will help me save money too.

I also think their interface is pretty easy to use other than when you have meals you created that don't fall under any of the already created categories.  I guess I will have to figure how to use it more.  Try it out:

Fashion and Budgeting

So I suck at budgeting and stuff like that.  My plan so that I don't overspend on clothing items is to limit myself to purchasing only One clothing item and One accessory.

This month I was particularly tempted by ASOS's free shipping e-mail to get some cute little somethings if you're also persuaded to shop the offer is over at midnight.

clothing accessory for the month, I really like suede even though I know I will probably spill something on it I thought it looked better than just the plain black leather quilted version.

clothing accessory for the month, I really like suede even though I know I will probably spill something on it I thought it looked better than just the plain black leather quilted version. 

I think this might be a bad idea to do this budgeting thing during November since Black Friday is coming.  I may count that as a special circumstance for additional purchases =)

Rain or Shine?

I can't figure out if it's going to keep raining or not so I am currently in a boot crazed mindset.  This is very difficult for me as I am supposed to be on a budget (volume purchase not dollar amount) where I can only buy 1 clothing item and 1 accessory in a month.  
So far it has been a trying experience for me as I receive multiple e-mails everyday about sales, new trends, and the like.
Can't decide yet if my next purchase for the rainy season should be a pair of hunter wellies....they're actually a lot cuter than they appear.

I also can't decide on the color if I should get the original in black, navy, chocolate, or something else.
They are really practical rain boots since it always rains in London most savvy londoners own at least one pair for wear either for the garden, hunting, city wear, or all three.  Being on a budget sucks.

Dirty Face Wash Macys

2 things that bug me right now:


1) I did a review a while back about products that I use and like on facebook and "someone" commented that they didn't like my choice of facewash Neutrogena fresh foaming cleanser because it didn't really "foam"
So that set me off on a search for a "foaming" facewash leading me to Clean and Clears supposed makeup removing foaming cleanser.

I think that is a very misleading claim the only thing it has going for it is the fact that it actually "foams" BUT it doesn't really remove makeup.


Ryan laughs at me in the shower and calls me black face grace and raccoon eyes because it never takes my makeup off.  It sometimes takes 2-3 tries before all my mascara comes off since I use waterproof and by then my face is raw, dry, and feels too tight to be on my face.


2) Macys.  I am boycotting Macys they make me so angry.  I'll try to make a long story short.  They brought back a remake of my favorite boot in the whole world Bandolino Castalina

I was SOOOO ecstatic AND the one day I actually watch TV I see Macys commercial for their shoe sale and one thing leads to another the shoes are on sale with additional discounts.....so I buy 2 pairs and wait in an extreme state of anticipation for the day they will arrive.


I should realize something is fishy when my UPS tracking number says that the boots have shipped but never give any detail about where they are.


Then I get an e-mail from Macys 2 weeks later telling me they are returning my boots for me even though I never asked them to.  Which leads to my aggravated e-mail back and forth to them below:

Dear Grace Ma,

Thank you for your recent e-mail regarding order #Gm1017091237b.

Thank you for your comments regarding macys.com. On behalf of macys.com
Customer Service, please accept my most sincere and deepest apologies
for the recent shopping experience . Please be assured that the
experience that you have described is not indicative of the outstanding
level of service we strive to provide our loyal customers. We appreciate
that you have brought this matter to our attention, and will forward
your comments and concerns to the appropriate personnel. Customer
feedback and criticism, such as yours, is an invaluable tool in helping
us better meet our customers? expectations.

If you have any further questions, please e-mail us at
customerservice@macys.com or call us at 1-800-289-6229. Our office hours
are Monday through Friday 9:00 AM to 9:00 PM, Saturday 9:00 AM to 7:00
PM and Sunday 11:00 AM to 7:00 PM.

Sincerely,

Rashiida Cardwell
Internet Customer Service

http://www.macys.com


©2006 macys.com is a registered trademark. All rights reserved.
macys.com Inc.

 Original Message Follows: ------------------------

My e-mail to them on their customer service contact:
Now I am really disappointed with Macys. Not only did you return my
boots without me ever getting them but THEN the pair that I really
wanted were out of stock until December. This is just ridiculous. The
customer service rep was nice enough to send me the other pair express
but there was no compensation or discount given for me having to
purchase the other pair of boots from a different online retailer. I
have unsubscribed from Macys e-mails and promotions and I dont plan to
shop at Macys after I receive my boots. You will be sure that I will
communicate share this truly frustrating experience with others.

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Grace Ma  to Macy's

show details 10:24 PM (59 minutes ago)

Yes, your e-mail basically tells me you have nothing to offer in terms of compensation for the fault of Macys seems to be very indicative of the type of customer service Macys provides.  Which is why I choose not to shop at Macys anymore and which I also think is why many people have left Macys for Nordstroms, Saks, and the like.

Good nite. BOO ON MACYS

Twilight and Music Videos

Halloween is really marketing to twiihards 


Example 1: DuWop Twilight Venom Lip Stain

I totally want this right now!!!!  It's so hard for me not to buy twilight memorabilia for halloween since I'm going to be a vampire.  I wish I was part of the Cullen clan but it just is not going to happen.  I will just have to live on being a mediocre human and satisfy my vampire needs by buying other twilight vampire shit.

On a side note:

I did a video shoot today for my work's 2010 compliance and ethics video and it's so interesting to see how they break everything down.  Some of the shots are supposed to be based inside in an office setting but they brought all the office scenes outside instead (desk, copy machine, computer, etc.)

I don't know maybe they edit out the background of the yard that we were doing the shoot in later.  It was also really weird to have somebody touch up my hair, oil blot me, make me wear lipgloss, and etc.

Overall, it was a pretty fun experience but you pretty much sit around for long periods of time until it's your turn to shoot.  I can't believe it takes this much effort (3 days) to shoot a 3 minute video.  CRAZY!

Debra Laws- Very Special