A Little Dash of Color

(Photo courtesy of Soapnet.)

This week I visited the hairstylist to freshen up my hairdo before the new semester with a cut and color. This time I decided to go dark. Really dark. Like, on a scale that starts with 1 being the darkest, we combined a 2 and 3. I can pull off the dark look, but it’s obviously not a natural color for me. It’s just a fun color and it’s one of the few fun colors I can do.

I’ve often thought it would be cool to throw a funky color into my hair. That’s not to say that I would completely color my hair blue, even for a short period of time, because that’s not something I’d do. Can you imagine trying to coordinate outfits, make-up and jewelry to a specific color every day? But I have thought that it would be fun to throw in streaks of color like a dark blue or green. (Although, now that I think about it a little more, there could still be coordination issues with streaks of color.) The only problem is that my workplace won’t allow it.

So, I’ve thought about the day when I can do something fun with my hair. You know, the day when all my dreams come true and I’m a bestselling author and no one cares what color my hair is. Yeah, when that day comes, what would I do with my hair? Of course, me being me, I convinced myself that if that day comes, it will probably be years from now and I’ll be too old to pull off streaks of funky colors.

Which brings me to the woman pictured above. Lauren Koslow, who plays Kate Dimera on Days of our Lives is (according to Wikipedia) in her 50’s and look at her hair! Do you see that beautiful blue streak? So, maybe there isn’t a too old. Maybe there’s a time when you start to do it differently than you would have done it before; instead of streaks of color you add a streak of color. And, to be perfectly honest, I like the one streak better; it’s a little dash of color!

So what about you? If you were to do something different with your hair, what woudl you do?

Oat and Yogurt Facial Mask

It's September and I am now counting down the days until the start of the semester--six days (including today) to be exact. It's a strange time of year, this last week before a semester starts. Throughout this week I try to soak up as much free time as possible while making last minute preparations for the semester.

Part of soaking up free time includes the last few days of spending time with friends without the thought of homework I'm not doing hanging over my head. My friend Sarah came over again to watch the second season of Sanctuary (which is breaking my heart!) and to continue making our way through the only season of Moonlight.

Lately we've been doing "girly" things while watching our shows. We started with painting our finger and toenails and did our make-up during the next get-together. When we talked about not being completely happy with our pores I came up with a new idea: a pore reducing homemade facial mask.

So I searched this lovely thing called an internet and found a recipe for a homemade oat and yogurt facial mask.

Oat and Yogurt Facial Mask

You will need:
2 tablespoons oats or oatmeal (not the quick-cook kind)
2 tablespoons yogurt

This mask is so easy to make that I don't even need to write this out into steps. All you have to do is grind the oats and mix them with yogurt. Refrigerate the mask for a few hours before applying.

I don't think I ground the oats enough and if I had it might not have been quite so messy but let me tell you, it was an experience to apply this mask! We removed our make-up and applied the mask. It was falling over the place but eventually we were able to pack it onto our faces. Since we were watching TV I lost track of time, but we probably had the mask on for about twenty minutes before we took it off. And that was another experience!

Sarah noticed that overtime the yogurt hardens into it's own mask beneath the layer of oats. It was pretty cool. We could feel the effects of the mask immediately upon removing it. While we didn't notice a huge change in our pores, but the mask softens the skin. Like Sarah said, it makes your skin baby soft!

Here are some making-of photos and Sarah with the mask.

Sushi Time!

I had the day off and a nice break from work gave me time to sit down, put on Buffy and make some sushi. When I eat sushi it's usually a California roll. If I eat the "riskier" rolls I'm usually grabbing a piece off the plate of one of my co-workers, usually at their insistence. So, of course, that's what I made!

A special thank you goes to my coworker Laura, who provided me with a bowl of sticky rice for my sushi-making endeavor! The first time I made sushi I was at Laura's house with most of our coworkers and I started making some after watching her. Since I don't follow any set instructions I linked a recipe for California rolls above.

I didn't include avocado in the sushi I made today as the avocados at the store weren't ripe enough. To help fill out the sushi I put in two strips of cucumber instead of one. If you like a bit of spiciness you can include a line of sriracha sauce by itself, or sriracha mixed with mayo. I've made it both ways and it's delicious! Below are some making-of photos:

I heart my friends.

A conversation with my friend at her birthday celebration:

Her: I'm 26.
Me: Wait, you're 26? What year were you born?
Her: 1985.
Me: You're 25.
Her: No, I'm 26.
Me: You were born in 1985. It's 2010. You're 25.
Her: *thinks* Oh! I'm 25!
Me: You're a quarter of a century year old!
Her: Gee, thanks!
Me: I just gave you an extra year!

The Back-Up Plan

As is usual right before a semester begins I have been reading lots of books and watching lots of movies and television. It's my time to load up on the fun stuff before months of burying my head in schoolbooks.

Last night I watched The Back-Up Plan, expecting your average romantic comedy. Now, don't get me wrong. I enjoy rom-com's, especially when an actor or actress I like has a starring role. I enjoy the type of comedy found in these movies. But I don't expect anything different when I pop one into my DVD player.

I was watching this one for that man whose face is, unfortunately, half-covered by J Lo's hand in the above picture, Alex O'Loughlin. As surprised as I was to find Alex O in a romantic comedy, I soon discovered why as the movie progressed. This rom-com is actually different. Instead of hating each other, the two characters show an interest in each other from the start. The problems arise when Stan (Alex O'Loughlin) learns that Zoe (Jennifer Lopez) is pregnant after being inseminated the day they met. What follows is a funny, awkward and heart-filled story.

If you're looking for a light-hearted comedy that is slightly different than the rest, this is a movie for you. But really, whether you're into romantic comedies or not, this one should definitely be on your to-watch list for the reason of Alex O'Loughlin alone. Once again, he was fantastic.

Who's excited to see him in the new Hawaii Five-0 this season? I know I sure am!

Sanctuary (S1)

A few days ago I finished season one of the Syfy show Sanctuary starring Amanda Tapping, Robin Dunne, and Emilie Ullerup. And I have a confession to make: as the credits began to roll after the season finale I had the urge to throw something at my TV. I'm turning into my sci-fi loving friend Sarah. (I guess I shouldn't be too surprised, she is the one who introduced me to the series.) What a cliffhanger!

The first season of Sanctuary was definitely a starter season. It was setting the stage for what could become a wonderful show. Some things weren't quite there and Sarah and I both agreed that if it hadn't premiered on a cable station it might not have made it. (We compared this to Moonlight, which we're also watching right now, a show that had much potential but would probably have fared much better on a cable station that may have given it the time it needed to reach that potential.) But it had plenty of great moments. Some of my favorite episodes include 1x06 "Nubbins," in which the Sanctuary becomes home to cute little creatures that ignite passions and 1x09 "Requiem," which finds Helen and Will trapped in a submarine. Another shining moment in the season (for me, at least) was 1x05 "Kush," an episode that was different from the rest but had a deliciously creepy storyline.

The first season is short, only 13 episodes, but it's a wonderful introduction to the series. This is a series that can satisfy both sci-fi lovers and those who are new to the genre. If you're looking for a fun, action-filled, funny TV show, definitely take a look at Sanctuary.

Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief

Lately, I have been reading and watching books, movies and TV shows of the fantasy, supernatural and sci-fi genres. This is partly because my friend and I have been watching the first seasons of Moonlight and Sanctuary. But, like my friend Sarah says, "I'm a normal person. Why would I want to watch shows about normal people?"

Outside of watching Moonlight and Sanctuary I have started rereading the Harry Potter series. I also began the Percy Jackson & The Olympian series.

I read the first book, The Lightning Thief and last night, I watched the movie adaptation of the book. It was interesting to read the book and watch the movie so close together because the differences between the two were made that much more apparent. And differences there were! I have to say that I greatly enjoyed the movie--probably more than the book--because it was, I felt, more exciting. However, if one goes into the film looking for a good representation of the book, they will be disappointed, as it was quite different. It's one of the movies that, when you watch it, you need to separate it from the book. They took the idea and some of the great plot points and changed the story, made it their own.

I have to say that I really enjoyed the cast! Kevin McKidd as Poseidon, Uma Thurman as Medusa, Pierce Brosnan as Chiron. There were some surprises, though. I imagined Percy's mom much differently. I had envisioned someone who looked more like Michelle Pfeiffer or Nicole Kidman. Percy, Annabeth and Luke looked different than expected as well.

Overall, it was a fun book to read though I thought the movie was a little more exciting. I'm looking forward to moving on the series and hoping for more Percy Jackson movies to come.