A Year in McQueen

The title says it all. The Alexander McQueen Facebook page posted a collection of Alexander McQueen magazine covers from 2011. From those, I selected 12 covers, marking a year in McQueen.

Thank you for reading my blog!  I hope you all have a wonderful New Year's Eve!!!

and...

May the new year be filled with happiness, love, and peace.

xoxo,

N

Magic in Makeup

As someone who loves fashion as I do, it is a given that I also love makeup. I was probably 4 or 5 when I discovered eyeshadow and nail polish. Of course, I wasn't allowed to put them on, but I told myself that when I am "old enough," whatever that age may be, I will totally put those gorgeous eyeshadows on and do my nails. And I did.

Sephora by O.P.I

Some people may argue that makeup is a mask that a person puts on to hide behind. Isn't that such a negative way of seeing things? Makeup, when applied correctly, makes people look beautiful. What is so wrong about being beautiful and loving yourself? I'm not saying that everyone should look like Angelina or Giselle (that's just impossible). It's about loving yourself for who you are. Personally, I believe in always looking my best because that is how I want myself to be. Putting on makeup is just something I do to look gorgeous.

From Left: Courreges, YSL, Courreges, Urban Decay

So this means that I don't think I'm gorgeous without makeup? Not exactly. It's not like I'm changing my face after I put on a makeup. I like myself without makeup, but the truth is, no one looks super fabulous without makeup. If you are the rare kind who do look amazing without the help of makeup, congratulations, you got good genes. Most people are born with features that needs some tweaking with to look great. Me? I'm all about tweaking; I got uneven eyes and eyebrows that just won't go with my face. Don't get me started on my nose. There are features that I would rather change, but this is just how I look. Instead of hating myself for it, I figured out a way to love myself.

Urban Decay

Uneven eyes? Use optic illusion in a form of colored eyeliner that matches with the eyeshadow. By drawing the right eyeliner significantly thicker than my left, my eye sizes are evened out. I would never use black eyeliner on my top eyelid; that actually makes your eyes look smaller. I only use brown eyeliners on the bottom eyelid. WTF-shaped eyebrows? Time to put those tweezers and eyebrow pencils to good use. You know what the totally tweakable eyebrow means? Depending on what kind of eyebrow shapes are IN, I can totally tweak mine without much effort. So in other words, my eyebrows are always in style. As for my too-low of a nose to the point where I can't wear some sunglasses and safety glasses (they just. freakin. fall. off.), I can get hit by a ball right in my face and not break my nose. It's not like I plan on getting hit in my face, but with my level of clumsiness, it is expected. Apparently the only time I'm not clumsy is when I'm skating or dancing. Anyway...with the number of times I got hit in the face playing volleyball (it happens...), basketball (hurts the most), football (can't catch the damned ball), dodgeball (epic-fail at dodging), I'm pretty sure I would have broken my nose had it been higher. But it's not! Awesome, right?

Bottom: Rimmel, Rest: Sephora

Beauty comes in different style, and if putting makeup on is not your style, that's fine. Just make sure that you love yourself for who you are. It's easier said than done, but don't give into the peer pressure or some set idea of how you're supposed to look. I'm all about makeup, not because I gave into peer pressure or read one too many fashion magazines (although I do that anyway) and want to look like a model. I just love it and that's all there is to it. Proof that I'm so not into the mainstream style? I'm addicted to dramatic eyes to the point where I was rocking the super winged eyeliners for good 3 years, Cleopatra-style. But doing it in black got boring after a few months, so I switched it up and used colors. I'm not talking about usual violet or pink here. I'm talking bright blue, emerald green, and bright orange. I got rid of bright orange, only because I finished it and I can't find another one in the right shade. I still use bright blue and emerald green eyeliners, then went metallic and added gold and silver to the collection.

Makeup is all about having fun and loving yourself. That's the magic in makeup.

xoxo
N

My September Issue

When I first started this blog, I had no idea what I wanted to write about. So I wrote about sports, movies, and random things that I have a very strong opinion, like my attempt at getting rid of bullying from this face of the Earth. Okay, fine, I may not be able to get rid of it, but I can write about it in hopes that I am inspiring someone, somewhere. As I wrote several posts, I have found my own "topic" to focus on, and it should come as no surprise to those who know me in person: Fashion.

Yes, I'm one of those rare kind who is a big time space nerd that religiously reads Vogue. I mean really, Vogue is my bible. Sadly, I have absolutely no fashion freak friends in real life. I feel like there is some unspoken rule that if you are "serious" about your job, and if that said job is unrelated to fashion industry, you should not be a fashion freak out of fear that you may come across as "vain."

I object.

Legendary Anna Wintour could not have explained this any better in the documentary, The September Issue:

I think what I often see is that people are frightened about fashion. Because it scares them or make them feel insecure, they just put it down. On the whole, people that may say the mean things about our world, I think that's usually because they feel, in some ways, excluded or...not a part of the "cool group." So as a result, they just mock it. Just because you like to put on a beautiful Carolina Herrera dress or a pair of J Brand blue jeans instead of something basic from K-Mart, it doesn't mean that you're a dumb person. There is something about fashion that can make people really nervous. 

So. True. I know I'm making a generalized statement here, but some people think that in order to be taken "seriously," they have to look like, excuse my honesty, crap. Sure, if you show up at your work wearing a Dolce&Gabbana evening gown, you probably won't be taken seriously, unless your job requires you to put on that said dress. But then again, that's called common sense.

So why does fashion make some people nervous? Is it because fashion freaks secretly trash talk all those non-fashionable people behind your back? Before you go cry in the corner and throw one of your Forever 21's at us, let me explain.

First of all, most fashionistas are not born with this amazing sense of fashion. We have made some seriously ill-advised fashion choices in the past. At the very least, I know I did on more than one occasions. However, instead of being absolutely clueless about what looks good on me and what doesn't, I invested a significant time and effort in learning everything about fashion styling. I have gone through numbers of fashion magazines and studied each styling in the photo spread or one of those ad spreads. Also, whenever I go shopping, I try on more clothes than I would buy, so I would know what works for me and what doesn't. Unless you are a model, chances are that there are some looks that you just can't pull off no matter how much you love. For me, I look downright ridiculous in anything that has frills or anything that's in the soft color family, even though I like those super girly looks. What can I say, pink frilly dress and I were never meant to be.

So when one of the fashionistas make some "bitchy" comment about some outfit, we actually know what we're talking about. Honestly, we mean well and we just want you to look the best version of yourself. Some people who are "sort of" into fashion take that as a serious offense but we just shrug it off. Sure, inner beauty is what matters the most, I absolutely agree. You can wear the most amazing Alexander McQueen gown with a pair of Jimmy Choo stilettos, but if you forget your brain, well, what a waste of a lovely outfit. Now, imagine you're meeting someone for the first time. Do you want to make a positive impression and build up from there, or make a negative impression and work your way up to turn that negative number to positive? and no, you can't just pull off more negativity in hopes that negative times negative becomes positive. That doesn't work in real life. So really, what's "vain" and "dumb" about knowing what would make you the best version of yourself? I would say that is one intelligent move.

In case you are wondering, yes, I have given some styling tips to my friends. Let's just say that after following my styling advices, they started getting compliments on how they look, and they have never gotten that before. Yup, I pretty much rock. :D

With that, I'm closing my own September Issue.

xoxo,
N

Makeup is for Myself, Leave the World for Someone Else

Sorry for the lack of posts these days; the past couple of weeks in my real life has just been insanely crazy. Actually, it still is, but I really need some breather.

I was reading through the April issue of Cosmo, and I totally loved the article by Olivia Wilde. I'm probably a bit biased because I like her, but after reading the article, I decided that I like her even more because I can totally relate. Olivia wrote about how this 75-year-old lady commented on the literal deadliness of the 3-inch Sergio Rossi ankle booties she was wearing on that particular day. She then reflected on why women would wear such painful shoes (simple: because they are so. damn. pretty.) and concluded that:

"I was wearing them for me. They were my confidence trigger as I left the house and headed out into the world, and if that's what it takes to remind myself to put the sass back in my strut and be the best version of me, then so be it."

As a self-proclaimed fashionista myself, you have no idea how often I get commented on my beauty routines, especially since I'm sort of in a field where I'm not really expected to look like I just came back from a Vogue photo shoot. Fine, I exaggerated by about 100 times there, but you get the idea. I would wear heels and occasionally fall down (thank you, sidewalk craters) and freak the crap out my friends. After my friend commented on how zombie-ish I look, I started wearing makeup to exams, where the only thing I will be facing is a freakin paper or computer screen.

Call it vanity, but I really don't care if I fell flat on my face wearing a pair of beautiful heels, and I don't care that I just put on a full makeup for a piece of paper. I would feel much worse if I fell flat on my face wearing a blah shoes, of if I saw myself in the mirror after the said exam and I look like crap. Why? Because I know that the person staring back from the mirror is not the best version of myself. I feel like often, us women get it into our head that we dress up for someone else. I have to disagree with that. I make my best effort to look awesome, because that's the best version of me. I dress up for myself.

I strongly believe in that if you want to be loved, you must first love yourself. See, I am the one person who's known "me" the longest, so if I don't love myself, who would? It's only natural that I would want this amazing person called myself to look the very best at most times, right? I say most times because after all, wearing that killer shoes all the time can be rather tiring. It's all about positive thinking.

Whenever I fall down because my heel got caught in the sidewalk crater, I know I at least am the best dressed person to fall flat. I just brush off the dust, get up, and keep on walking (with a possible bruise). Whenever I'm so sleep deprived, I know I at least am the best looking sleep-deprived zombie out there. I'll just get that beauty sleep later. We all need some kind of confidence boost to kick off the positive mindset to get through the day, and looking the best version of myself always does the trick. Of course, I try not to forget accessorizing with this thing called "smile," which works on every outfit.

Although, I have to say that there are times when looking the best version of myself doesn't seem to cut it because life likes to throw tons of lemons at times. When all efforts to stay positive fails, I turn to my best friend, who somehow knows how to put me back on my feet.

xx-N

PS: I took the title of this post from the song called "Perfect Day" by Hoku. The song was used in one of the most positive happy movie ever made.

Interview for Seven Billion

Little back story: So my awesome wonderful friend from high school also blogs, and she asked if she could interview me for her blog post. Actually, her blog is one of the reason I decided to start my own, so of course I said yes. Here's the original link to the interview. I hope you guys enjoy!

xx-N

1. Where did you grow up?
Japan & United States. Yes, in World Cup Soccer, I do support both Team Japan and Team USA.  Did you know that both teams have the same team color? ...ok different shades of blue, but it's still blue!

2. Name a role model (can be male or female, famous or not....)
Coco Chanel. I love and respect how she lived. When women were still trapped in the notion of "get married and have kids; you don't need to work, leave that to your hubby" and corsets, she single-handedly tore down both of them. She started from a small hat boutique and went on to build the first designer label made for women, made by women. I love her because she never settled for something mediocre; instead, she always worked to achieve the best. Of course, she was the first designer to design black dresses, marine style, shoulder bags, and rhinestones (before, everyone wore real jewelry...gasp). She also taught me that it's rather a wonderful thing to never fit in through this quote:


"In order to be irreplacable, you must always be different" -Coco Chanel


3. What first drew you to science?
Hmm...I really can't remember :D It's something I was (and am) always interested in.

4. How (if) has your gender effected your academic choices (i.e. major)?
I really don't think my gender had anything to do with my choosing Aerospace Engineering. Once a space-nerd, always a space-nerd. :p

5. Do you think your gender plays a role in how people in your academic field view you?
Let's just say that if I'm getting some letter from someone I never met and all they got is my name, there's an 100% chance that the said letter has a salutation of "Mr." haha. No offense taken on my part, though. Pretty used to it. :)


Other than that, I'm never conscious of my gender in my field.  

6. Do you think women have certain advantages when it comes to science, or is research truly gender-neutral?
There were small incidents where I was more experienced with using certain equipments, such as metal file and heat gun, even though I had never used them before. The only reason is that metal file and heat guns are oversized and overpowered versions of nail file and blow dryer, respectively. I guess in general, men don't really need to use those two on a daily basis, so that could be an advantage. In a more broader perspective, I would like to think that scientific researches are gender-neutral. As much as I disagree with the notion of men having advantages over women in academia, I also disagree with the contrary, that women have advantages over men in academia. I really think everyone should be equally judged for their intellectual abilities. 

7. If you could do any kind of job you want, what would it be? Why?
I want to live at 221B Baker Street and solve all those cool cases with Sherlock Holmes. I love solving mysteries and Sherlock is the best. Being Indiana Jones' sidekick may be cool as well, but something tells me that the survival rate is kinda sorta low if you're just a sidekick. You know, with mummies and rocks and Nazis and other random bad guy of the day on our tail...


Hey, you said any job....right? :p


In real life, I'm studying and working to get one. ;)

Loser Like Me

...but not to worry. This post is not a whining, complaining, oh-my-god-my-life-sucks post. I assure you, it's quite the opposite.

As you probably realized, I'm a Gleek. First season was awesome. Second season started off a little weak, but I think it's definitely getting better with plot, music, and a touch of Gwyneth. It goes without saying that I absolutely loved the Regionals episode. There were so many gleek-tastically awesome things about it: Kurt & Blaine duo, Sister Mary-ex-exotic dancer most likely inspired by Sister Act and played by Loretta Devine aka Chief's wife from Grey's Anatomy (yeah, I watch one too many TV shows), New Directions' girls' costume that was so edgy'n'sweet, and of course the music.

I love Get It Right, but I could relate more to Loser Like Me. The New Directions "wrote" this song as an anthem to how they are "losers" in high school but they are determined to succeed in life after high school (yes, there is one). The chorus part goes like this:

Just go ahead and hate on me and run your mouth,

So everyone can hear

Hit me with the worst you got and knock me down,

Baby I don't care

Keep it up and soon enough you'll figure out,

You wanna be, you wanna be,

A Loser Like Me!

Yeah, seriously, where was this song when I was in middle school and getting hit with the worst they got and knocked down? Let me tell ya, nerdy kid + thick glasses + mega-klutz + vertically challenged = bottom of the food chain in middle school. Since all that mattered was volleyball and basketball, everyone who couldn't play those two sports got the "uncool" label and well, I could play tennis and figure skate (I claim single axel as "being able to jump") and little bit of soccer, but who cares?

So I could rant and be bitter, but that's not my style. I learned a lot from this. For one, school life hell will end eventually, and this experience gave me a super thick skin. Also, I decided to do my best to not be judgmental. When faced with the sketchy situation, it definitely helps to go with the gut instinct. But in the non-sketchy situation, I think it helps to take time to get to know people. You know how Shrek said that ogres are like onions because they  have many layers? I think the same can be said for people who are not green, nor live in the...marsh? Where does Shrek live now?

Anyway, I know that when you're going through crappy time, have it be school or post-school, it seems like crappiness will never going to end. I also know, that however long and painful this crap-tacular time may be, it will end. Things will get better. You will come out much smarter and stronger. When life slushies you, why not turn them into sparkles? So to all the "losers" like me, here's our anthem.



xx-N

Gnomes, Fireworks, and Chocolates

At first, this was going to be a "Gnomeo and Juliet looks like a cute and funny movie!" post. Then I realized that this release date coincides with the Valentine's Day weekend. Figures... Time to add some more twists in chocolate flavor. ;)

First off, I hate romance novels and movies. (Thank you, readers who didn't angrily hit the close window button.) Reason why I love stories is because I like to be surprised, which is rather rare to begin with. Side effect of reading almost all Agatha Christie novels includes being able to crack most mystery cases. Anyway, I hate romance stories, because every romance stories have just three possible endings:

1. They all live happily ever after. I'd rather watch Disney; at least they have pretty pictures and amazing songs. 

2. They don't end up together because one of them kicked the bucket or they just decide not to. I seriously want 2 hours of my life back. Crap it's with that sinking ship! Make it 3...

3. They all die in the end. This is only entertaining when there are zombies/aliens/island involved.

However, something about that it's red and blue gnomes hating each other makes the movie seem rather entertaining. I wonder how it's going to end...Juliet-gnome drinks pesticide and Romeo-gnomeo throws himself into a lawn mower? Okay that's bit gross, so probably not ending like that.

You know how every pop culture-ly things go in to a massive pink cupid overload during Valentine's Day? It's great if you have that special someone, but does that mean all of the Valentine-less people out there can't celebrate? Well that sucks and I disagree, especially with all the chocolates out there. In the Valentine-themed Glee episode, Blaine (aka Kurt's crush, aka that dude who needs to go easy on hair gel) was gushing about how it's great to have one day in the year when you can just pour your hearts out to that special someone. Blaine, you need an excuse of a holiday to do that? I get that some people may need that excuse as a last kick in the arse, but really if you love someone, just say it. That is...to the best of your ability and in a not so over-the-top way (I did love that Gap scene though).

The cynical me loved the Glee episode, because underneath the "pentagon love triangle" and me wanting bitch-slap this particular character I finally warmed up to, there was a message that it's okay to not have a Valentine in a traditional definition. So with that, I'm calling this Valentine's Day to be the day where you celebrate with people you love. Whether it's two-way love, one-way love, friends love, family love...everyone should have a chance. I'm wishing everyone a happy (early) Valentine's Day with choc-full-of love, and good luck to all the Blaine's out there. :)

My best friend told me about this song just few days before it was covered by my favorite Glee actress, Lea Michele. I love Lea's cover and had to post it here. Enjoy! ...and thanks Youtube.



xx-N

PS: I made a poll to get an idea of which topic(s) my readers enjoy the most. So yes, feel free to vote once, twice, bazillion times (<-- I appreciate the enthusiasm, but you might want to channel your click-happiness some place else...). FYI, you can select multiple answers. Thanks :)

Peer Pressure Madness

After writing the "light" article on movies, I feel like writing something that's not entertainment-related. As someone who religiously follows current events, I have to say, last year was too bleak. So. Many. Conflicts. I'm not a full-fledged history buff (more like an ancient history buff), and even I know that the quickest way to recount a history of mankind is to just list battles and wars in chronological order. You would think that after thousands of years, things would have improved for good - or is that wishful thinking?

Then, I started to map out levels of conflicts, and it came out like this:

War > Battle > Huge Riot > Small Riot > All Sorts of Random Fight > Bullying > Peer Pressure

In my mental map, it boiled down to peer pressure, and having lived through teenager hell, I can totally write about that bit.

Often, people cave into peer pressure because they are just "going with the flow" and "everyone's doing it." It's very tough to stand up for what you believe is just regardless of your age, but I would say it's most tough when you're just a teenager and classroom relationship is your life. I do admit that there was a time when I caved into peer pressure and said something I did not mean at all. I'm not proud of it. I sincerely hope I didn't hurt someone in the process, and if I did, I'm deeply sorry. People say that you have to be in the situation to really understand how it feels. As someone who has been on the resisting end and caving end of the peer pressure, I can say with conviction that I will never again be on the caving end.

After I was on the caving end of the peer pressure, I thought back to the times when I stood up for my friends, even if it meant that I got bullied instead. Being a teenager has its benefits in that you tend to act more on instincts. Sometimes, it's better to act on instincts and doing what is right, rather than making a quick pros and cons list in your head. Here's why...

I think I was in the early teens when this happened. I transferred to a new middle school, and had few friends. Keep in mind that being on the chubby end, complete with Harry Potter glasses and a thick book didn't place me with the "cool" clique. Not that I really cared much about being with the "cool" clique - I didn't even know such thing existed till I got out of high school. So at first, the bullies in the class left me alone because I had my nose stuck in my book too often to really care about the bullies in the first place.

Then one day, the bullies did something that pissed me off greatly. They decided to pick on this kid who was very quiet and nice (not the kind that would fight back), and went ahead and just threw his stationery in a trash can. I didn't know this bullied kid well, but I felt that it was so wrong to do that to anyone, so I confronted one of the bully, gave the bully a good lecture that you don't do that crap to people, and told the bully to apologize. I suppose it worked in a sense that the bully stopped picking on that kid. What I didn't know (nor made the connection back then) was that the bully decided to pick on me instead. And that was the beginning of 5 years of bullying that pretty much went on until middle school graduation.

Did I hate the fact that I got constantly bullied and not a single one of my so-called friends back then stood up for me? Absolutely. Will I stand up for that kid again? Again, absolutely. It's the right thing to do. How did I deal with the bullies? I gave them a silent treatment and never spoke with them ever again. I think it worked in a sense that as the years went by, the bullying frequency decreased. I don't believe in fighting back violence with violence. Maybe this is why every single time I take the "Which Hogwards house will you be in?" quiz, I get Gryffindor. Can I get my owl letter from Hogwarts already?

In all seriousness, I think if everyone decided to do the right thing, then we wouldn't have any conflicts in the world. I know that one person rarely makes a difference on a world-wide scale, but I'd like to hope that I'm making some difference in the lives of people I care about. It doesn't have to be "save the kid from a bully" everyday. You can give someone a hug, a compliment, anything to show them that you care and that they are not alone. Doing the right thing isn't always easy, but I believe that some good will come out of it. Hopefully, those good deeds will take on an exponential curve....ok now that's a wishful thinking. But I can still believe in the good in people, right?

xx-N

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas...

About 55 years ago, Santa Claus was feeling a bit mischievous. After all, Christmas time was fast approaching and he wanted to play a little heartwarming prank to remind the people living outside of the North Pole that miracles do happen once in a while. So Santa Googoled "awesome Christmas prank," and came up with a wonderful plan.

North Pole Santa found out that Colorado Springs-based Sears Roebuck & Co. was posting an advertisement for kids, where they can call the certain number and talk to Colorado Springs Santa. North Pole Santa picked up his Santaberry and texted Colorado Springs Santa about his plan. The Santas worked together to put some charms here and there so the phone number printed on the ad would be "accidentally" misprinted. As much as the Santas loved to talk to the kids, they wanted to create something special that would last for years and years, bringing smiles to not just kids from Colorado Springs but to both kids and grown-ups from all over the world. The misprinted phone number ended up being connected to the operations hotline for the Continental Air Defense Command's Commander-in-Chief. As the calls from kids started to pour in, Colonel Harry Shoup, who was the Director of Operations at that time, had his staff check the radar for Santa's location and promptly updated all the kids on Santa's whereabouts. The Santas were fist bumping, for their prank seemed to have worked.

Three years later, Continental Air Defense Command turned into North American Aerospace Defense Command, or more commonly knows as NORAD. Ever since, NORAD tracks Santa on Christmas Eve, updating everyone in the world where Santa is. As for Santa, he also got a little surprise Christmas present of his own as a result of his prank. He finally had a super-high-tech-sleigh-GPS installed. Of course, Santa can tell where the kids are without the GPS, but having one speeds up the process. This can't hurt, seeing that Santa has a lot to do in one night: eating cookies, drinking milk, delivering presents and happiness.

~Fin~

If you are looking for the fact-based version of this story, check this one out, especially on Christmas Eve... :)

Merry Christmas!!!

xx-N

Brains vs. Fashion...!?

I figured after doing a bunch of best-of-lists, it's about time I actually wrote something. My "serious" posts have been about fighting stereotypes and negative thoughts associated with it. The notion of fashion vs. intelligence is definitely a blog-worthy topic to tackle, as I'm certain there are many, many stereotypes that comes with it.

"Fashionistas are not smart"
I bet this is one of the most-believed stereotypes. Also very untrue. Fashion is a form of art, and to produce an art piece, yes, you would need this vital organ called brain to work. A great work of art and regular day-to-day styling do not pop up from thin air. Fashion is something you work with everyday when you decide your outfit. Some people have a rather misguided concept that if you are brainy-smart, you can get away with a very unfortunate wardrobe choice. I'm sorry to burst the bubble, but this is not the case. On to the next topic...

"Looks does not matter, especially if you got the smarts"
Okay, before you turn green and go Hulk on me, you should know that I actually hope that this was true, as people should be judged by the inner beauty. Unfortunately, we don't live in the Disney world where your furniture will put up an amazing dinner show just because you are hungry. Since the first bits of yourself that gets registered to a stranger are highly visual, it's understandable that the said stranger would probably have some idea of who you are through your looks. You got the smarts, so why not work that to your advantage? But don't go sulk in the corner because you don't look like a supermodel. You do realize that a fashion model's job is to make the clothes look pretty, right? So, if you are a model, great job pulling off all sorts of outfits! As for the non-models, your job is to best project your inner beauty to your outer beauty, which really isn't that hard if you got the basics covered.

Know what works on you, and what don't.
The highway to fashion disaster is wearing something that doesn't suit you. This unfortunately seems to be happening on a regular basis for many people. Know that what you like does not always equal what works on you. The easiest way to figure this out is just trying on clothes at your favorite boutique/store, and see if you can pull it off. It's free to try on clothes, you see. If you don't trust your judgement, recruit your fashion-obsessed buddy (there is always one around you) to come shopping with you to be your personal Tim Gunn-Anna Wintour hybrid. Trust me, a true fashionista would jump at an opportunity to be a stylist and trash talk hideous outfit without hurting your feelings.

The trick here is to tell apart a true fashionista from a textbook fashionista. A textbook fashionista never ventures outside of a fashion norm (thus, textbook), will stick to the safe zone, and consider everything outside of the safe zone as a "faux-pas." I suppose you won't go wrong with this kind of fashionista; however, you won't get any original, unique styling ideas from them, either. On the other hand, a true fashionista is not afraid to invent new looks that are original, or incorporate looks that are straight off of runway. I would say a true fashionista signature style would be ones that are stylish, yet original, and can easily pass as one of the photo spreads from a fashion magazine.

At least do regular maintenance. 
Above statement can be shorted into two words: look clean. Truth is, most people can't tell if you got a $100 or $10 shirt on, but everyone can tell if your shirt has your lunch on it or looks like you slept on it. Proper clothes maintenance is all it takes, and by that I mean putting your laundry machine, ironing board, shower, and razor to good use. After all, it defeats the purpose if your clothes look clean and you don't... ;)

xx-N

Somebody to Love

In my previous article, I wrote about how it's quite okay to be different and to be yourself, and that if you're not liking the said "different" person around you, leave that person alone instead of resorting to bullying. I was being somewhat vague, in not stating that I was writing in response to the string of anti-gay hate crimes. Well, Vanity Fair posted this article online. Reading about this very sad incident happening in the city that is supposed to be very liberal, and also in the city that I love - it just breaks my heart.

I'm not trying to change people's opinion; everyone's entitled to their own belief system. I'm making my voice (somewhat) heard in hopes that people may see things from different perspective. If what I'm writing makes you want to stop reading, there's no one stopping you from doing that.

So really, what's up with the hate? Just because some people prefer to have a relationship with people of the same sex doesn't make them any less human than people who prefer to have a relationship with people of the opposite sex. For that reason, I personally don't like to label people based on their sexual orientation. Here's a question for straight people: Do you go out announcing that you're straight? I bet the answer's no. I mean, I never came out as straight. So why is it that there's an unspoken expectation for gay people to make an announcement, and when they do, it's a huge deal? The notion of dating is personal enough, so let's not make an event out of it. And FYI: posting other people's sex tapes online is so last decade, Heidi Klum would Auf Weidersehen you off of runway in a split second.

Speaking of runway, it is a very well known fact that gay men have amazingly great taste in fashion. So really, if a person is to be anti-gay without being super hypocritical, that said person should swear off all designer clothes for the rest of his/her life. How is it that a person can love the designers' work, but fail to respect them as a human? Don't you think that's very contradicting? If I'm going to have a favorite designer - Alexander McQueen - I'm going to love his work, and respect him as a talented designer. He deserves that much. Going along with that logic, there is a song played and sung at every major sports event, written and sung by a gay man I absolutely love. We Are the Champions, written by Freddie Mercury, performed by Queen. Again, isn't it going to be very contradictory to be anti-gay and yet love Freddie Mercury and Queen, when some of the well-known Queen songs - Bohemian Rhapsody, Somebody to Love to name a few - were written by Freddie Mercury, and are about being gay, being rejected from society, and dying from AIDS? Food for thought.

Homophobia, along with hammer pants, are better off left in the 20th century. If we have enough common sense to not wear that hideous pants, I'm pretty sure we can turn the unconditional hate to unconditional love.

xx-N

Paper or Plastic?

As it turns out, I'm keeping the designer bag and baseball to later posts. Mainly because I came up with something else I want to write about, but besides, designer bag can wait and baseball just became way too depressing. For me, that is.

So I'm a bit of a techie-nerd - I non-obsessively follow the gadget news and such. Then as I was reading the second book of Millennium Trilogy, I couldn't help but wonder: Will paper books disappear one day? My straight answer is: I freaking hope not! 

I do agree that e-books can be very lightweight compared to paper books. Also it comes with adjustable fonts, and I think some e-books or e-magazines come with embedded video clips these days. I'd say that would make one great picture book for sure. However, there can be a case where you won't be able to read your book, because the said book ran out of battery, or worse, the book can "forget" what it was about. Note to self: backup your book collection... 

On the other hand, with paper books, you won't have to worry about batteries or memories. Also, try walking around carrying a 5-lb textbook, topped with "I'm so sleep deprived" stare and chances are,  sketchy people will think twice before messing with you. It's like carrying around a pepper spray, except it'll also make you smarter. Awesome, right? But in all seriousness, I think we all spend too much time staring at a computer screen that we all need a break from it. In fact, I am staring at one as I write this. Sure, books and magazines with embedded video clips are wonderful; however, nothing can beat imagination. Maybe you can get the same image with e-books, but I don't think I can - it's just not the same without being able to physically turn the pages. There's one reason I love to read, and that's because I can go anywhere - even to places that doesn't exist in this world. I think it's great to see what other people pictured what Middle Earth and Alagaesia to be like, but it's also great to have your own version of what Robert Langdon and Lisbeth Salander would look like and talk like. 

With that, I think I'm remaining non-techie for this one and choosing paper over plastic. ;)

xx-N

When you're alone and life is making you lonely...

You can always go Downtown. As sung by Petula Clark.

But really, what do you do when you feel like you're in need of a time out and you need to forget all your troubles and forget all your cares? I'd love to go to that said Downtown in the song, because it sounds like a magical place where you can get your smile back on. The only place I can think of is Disneyland, but that's not someplace you can go everyday. Well, for most people, anyway.

I haven't figured out a magic cure, but I know one thing for sure. My friends somehow always make me feel better and give me that push I need to be positive and to get back in the game. As is the case for everyone, I've had friends come and go in my life. It does suck when you lose touch with a friend. A lot. However, the saying, "with ever door that closes, there's always a new one that opens" is quite true. One thing I learned over time is that, thanks to this thing called Internet, it's very possible to be in touch with my friends without living in the same city. It's also possible to get back in touch with a friend and have a total blast catching up and get back on a "we talk often" basis. With instant messaging, facebooking, and tweeting, I don't think it's the physical distance that matters; these days, it's the emotional distance that does matter.

All in all, my besties are my Downtown, and I wouldn't have it any other way. Happy Friday!

xx-N

Inspi(RED)

FYI: The following opinion is entirely my own. Just making that clear. :)

If you guessed what the topic is from the title, you are awesome! If not, you will be awesome once you read this. Trust me.

Ever since my 5th grade teacher introduced me to the idea of buying UNICEF Christmas Cards, where the proceedings go to UNICEF and eventually to help out the kids who are not as fortunate as us, I have been interested in charity. I'm not one of those Hollywood celebs who can just donate billions, so I've been looking for something that feels "right" for me, and then I learned about Product RED. Wikipedia always summarizes the best so here's the quick snippet:

"Product Red, styled as (PRODUCT)RED, is a brand licensed to partner companies such as American Express, Apple Inc., Starbucks,Converse, Motorola, Gap, Emporio Armani, Hallmark, Microsoft, and Dell. It is an initiative begun by U2 frontman Bono and Bobby Shriver ofDATA to raise money for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria." (Full Article)

I can see how this campaign can get some heat, for one can argue that it's using life threatening disease as a way to make people buy the respective companies' products. I do agree that that is one way to look at it. But also, it is true that the percentage of the money you spend on your shirt, iPod, and Caramel Macchiato goes to the fund that is then used to provide medications for people in need. If you're buying those things anyway, isn't it better to choose the (RED) products? At least that's how I feel about it. Especially with this economy, not everyone can take a huge step to save the world, but I think we can make small baby steps to save one person, one day at a time. Everyone's entitled to their own belief, so I'm not saying that you should buy the (RED) products from now on. However, this campaign is something I support, so I would like to share and let you know that it's out there, in case you didn't know about it until now. Knowing is always better than not knowing. :)

Beside, the iPod in red is pretty cool and fabulous regardless of the whole charity campaign deal, don't you think?

Writing this made me want that Caramel Macchiato. Well, I shall go have that cup of coffee. :)

xx - N

Friendship

Before I dive into my next post, I just would like to thank you all for taking your time to visit my blog.  As you can tell, I just started and had no idea whether I would get hits at all.  Turns out I did - thank you!

So in the previous post, I wrote about how I'm not going to win "the most awesome person in keeping in touch with friends" award.  Yes...I need to work on that.  Writing about that made me think about my friends, and I realized there are many different kinds of friends and all of them are special to me.  Just because some are not my BFFs and I don't spill every single details of my life doesn't mean that I care less. In fact, I seriously don't think friendship should get ranked or categorized - this is not middle school, or Fantasy Baseball/Football/(insert your sports obsession here).

Just this afternoon, I saw this twitter feed that had a caption from a Bob Dylan song.  That caption means nothing special except for just three of my friends.  While working on a project, the particular line became the running inside joke. Two years later, I swear all of us still get that joke and have a little laugh over it.  I don't know about them, but seeing that twitter feed, I sure did get that warm and fuzzy feeling in the heart of mine.  Well, actually my brain processed that, but it just looks so nice on paper if I used "heart" rather than "that wisecrackin' brain of mine."

I'm wrapping this up by sending one huge shout out to ALL of my friends - you rock, you're awesome, and thank you for playing a part in my life!!!

Have a cup keg...or two...or hundreds...of friendship love!  Happy weekend!

xx - N

Happiness

So here I am, pondering over what to write for my first post.

With mere minutes, I did come up with at least 5 things to write about.  You know, movies...music...current events...sports...Gaga...  But that's all for later posts.

Then the perfect idea came to my mind.

In general, I try to do my best at doing small nice things to my friends once in a while.  Of course, I'm no Mother Teresa, and I'm way far from claiming that I'm good at it.  Yes, I do forget birthdays (and I'd be worse if my little black book called FB didn't tell me), and I'm probably not too good at the keeping in touch game over emails.  Let's be honest here, with the social networking deal spreading this wide, it's almost impossible to "like" every posts or reply-tweet on every feed you get.  But you can do small good things at least once a day.  Preferably offline.  "But why?" you may ask.  "Does it really make a difference if I compliment her new haircut? or his tie that actually matches his shirt for once?"  Yes, it does matter.  It makes people smile.  That person may have been having one crappy day, and needed that one reason to smile.

Wouldn't you love to give someone a small cup of happiness?

Happy Friday!

xx - N