The Conair Barrel Brush

Slowly but surely, I am collecting all the items that normal girls have.  I am proud to say that I now have both a flat iron and a hair dryer.  I have some gunk to put in my hair, as well.  After talking to other ladies*, I've found out that barrel brushes are a pretty standard member of the lady's arsenal.  Not one to be unprepared, I bought a Conair barrel brush not too long ago.  It's been a fun journey.

Previously, my only experience with any barrel brush** was one that I got in a hair care set when I was in middle school.  It was one of those sets that comes with three different types of combs and two different brushes.  The set was teal, very pretty.  That little barrel brush was quite dangerous, however.  I managed to wrap my hair around it, but I didn't tell anyone.  Instead, I just slowly extricated myself from the brush.  After that, the brush and I were mortal enemies.  I wouldn't even keep it in my room.  I knew it was evil.

Fast forward to October of last year.  I had gone to a few salons recently, and my favorite, Salon Edge in North Myrtle Beach, clued me in to how useful the barrel brush could be.  The awesome stylist was kind enough to explain what she was doing and why.  I find that knowing the use of all these weird hair tools is quite nice.  It also makes me want to go buy stuff.

Let's return to the present day.  Have you gone shopping for a hair brush lately?  The choices are endless.  Seriously, most stores have entire aisles dedicated to hair tools.  I was in the local Target, which only gives half an aisle over to hair brushes.  That, of course, still meant there were multiple versions of the barrel brush.

First, I knew I needed a larger circumference brush.  This ruled out the small ones, maybe half total.  Next, I knew I wanted one that looked fancy.***  That disqualified a few more, leaving me with maybe a quarter to consider.

I narrowed it down to three that I liked.  The first brush was actually kind of simple.  It had a wooden handle, with a mixture of bristle types.  While it was simple, it seemed well crafted and pleasing to the eye.  The second one was a quick drying brush and not fully round.  It had little towel like tentacles that were designed to help dry hair.  The third brush had retractable bristles.  If you were to get your hair stuck, you could push a button on top to pull the bristles into the barrel itself, hence freeing your hair.

While I was tempted to go with the quick release brush, I decided that I wasn't going to be silly and get my hair stuck.  I would not live in fear!!  I put that one back.  My concern with the second brush, the one with the terry type bristles amongst the regular bristles, was that it would get kind of nasty.  It too went back to the shelf. This left me with the simple yet nice option, the first brush.  I picked it up and rushed off to the register before I could change my mind.

Now, I didn't actually try using my new brush for a couple of weeks.  I had to build up the courage, and anyone who could have watched as I tried it out the first few times wouldn't have gotten a good laugh out of it.  I still can't make my hair look perfectly flipped out at the ends and such, but I am learning how to use the brush.  It does help my hair to come out straighter as I blow dry it.  The bristles are also forgiving, meaning that I haven't torn any of my hair out when using the brush.

While I still don't know if I'm using the brush in the manner that a salon professional would, I am happy that it is improving my opinion of my hair.  I don't blow dry very often, sometimes as little as once a week.  I do think it looks better than when I didn't utilize a brush at all when blow drying.  It's all about the baby steps.  Someday, I'm going to look like an adult!****

*I use that term loosely.  My friends are much too interesting to be ladies.

**For any who are unfamiliar, a barrel brush is a round brush.  It looks like a tube with bristles the whole way around.

***I'm allowed to be superficial every once in a while.

****Don't hold your breath.

To 3D or Not to 3D - A Cinemablend Feature

I used to love Cinemablend.com.  I still respect the website, but it doesn't appeal to me as much anymore.  I rarely visit the site anymore.  However, if I'm trying to decide whether or not to spring for 3D, I wander over that way for the "To 3D or Not to 3D" articles.

I've always been pretty open to the fact that 3D is just a gimmick.  I'm sure there are some filmmakers who feel it really can add something to their art, but a great deal of 3D is done to make money.  That's a nice fee to tack onto already expensive tickets.  That being said, there are films that are neat in 3D.  Luckily, someone over at Cinemablend takes the time to figure out which films those are.

Before going to see the new GI Joe movie last night, I wanted to see what Cinemablend had to say.  They break their review down into multiple categories, so you can get a good feel for the 3D quality.  They discuss factors such as the darkness*, the effects that come out of the screen towards you, and the nausea factor.  They do a pretty thorough job of letting you know when it is worth the extra money for a 3D experience.

It would be worth your time to check out the "To 3D or not to 3D" feature on Cinemablend.  I may not always agree with their film reviews, but they haven't steered me wrong yet on 3D.  My hats off to them.

*I attack the darkness.

Blistex Medicated Lip Balm

My favorite lip balm used to be the little blue Blistex pot.  It was super strong and really effective.  Since I don't live in the ice and snow* anymore, I don't need such a strong lip balm.  Now, I use the Blistex Medicated lip balm stick.

I don't know I stumbled upon it, but I have three of them sitting on my computer stand right now.**  They're inexpensive, which makes them even more attractive.  When I forgot one when I went on vacation in October, I found that the gift shop at my Disney hotel actually sold them.  I was excited and decided that I wanted the lip balm Disney sold.

I suppose I should actually tell you about the lip balm itself.  It's cheap and effective.  It's no fuss and no mess.  It works for gents, as well as ladies.***  It's good, solid lip balm.  Try it.

*From the midnight sun and the hot springs blow!

**I wonder if anyone ever actually finishes lip balm.  I've never finished one.

***I had four of them on my desk until Mark claimed one for his own.  He usually uses things like Bert's Bees, but he decided to slum it with me.

Sam's Club Photos

I remember how expensive it used to be to buy your photos.  Before digital, you had to buy the expensive film.  Then, you had to pay to have it developed, which was also expensive.  Of course, not all of your pictures were worth developing, but you had to take the good with the bad.  You didn't know until after the fact what you had.  Now, it's all digital, and that has opened up a world of awesome.  I actually chose pictures from my computer and had them developed at Sam's Club in ten minutes.  Welcome to the future!

I'm working on a project and needed to print out some pictures.  Mark let me know that I can sign up on the Sam's Club website to order prints.  You set up an account, upload your pictures, then decide what to order.  You can do some basic editing on the site, and you can choose what size you need, up to an 8x10.

Since they make you create an account, Sam's rewards you with 25 free 4x6 prints.  How awesome is that? I opted not to use my free prints today.  I had ordered a variety of sizes, from wallet up to 8x10.  After completing my order, they sent me an email asking me to pick up my photos at the nearest club any time after an hour and a half.

By the time I drove to the club, about ten minutes later, the pictures had already printed out.  For the dozen or so pictures I got, it was under $4.  So, here in the future, I can pick which pictures I want, choose the appropriate size, and pick them up ten minutes later....all for a few bucks.  What is not to love??

If you need to order pictures  I know there are a lot of different websites you can use.  I haven't tried any of the others yet, but I know the Sam's site works really well.  It's easy to use and the service is speedy.  This is just another of the many things that Sam's Club excels at.

The Glamorise Sports Bra

There is nothing fun about bras.  They annoying and no fun to shop for.  You don't get to show them off to everyone.*  Depending on the size you need, they may only come in boring colors anyway.**  After some research and shopping, I found a really nice sports bra made by Glamorise.***

I have no idea what the most important aspect is for a sports bra.  At first, I was going to say fit.  Then, I thought maybe support was most important.  It's probably a combination of the two, with one supporting the other.  My Glamorise sports bra fits well and provides ample support.  I haven't given myself a black eye yet, so I know it's doing its job.

While most sports bras have no hooks and are just put on over your head, this particular sports bra actually has hooks in the back...a lot of hooks.  Once you have it all done up, you know its not coming off.****  You can increase or decrease the band size quite a bit too.  To add additional support, there is an added panel in the front.  Once you have everything arranged, you can choose how high to set the panel.  There are different heights at which to attach it.

This is most definitely the most technologically advanced sports bra I have ever owned.  Most importantly, it keeps the girls where they're supposed to be.  It's very comfortable, which is saying a lot for a sports bra.  Most of the ones I have owned in the past pull on my neck and/or shoulders a lot.  This one doesn't do that. I would suggest this particular sports bra to any well endowed ladies.

*Well, I hope you're not.  I guess you can, but it's going to ruin your reputation!

**That's the boat I'm usually stuck in.  Most of mine are black or red.  I guess I should just be happy they're not nude.

***There will be no pictures in this review.  You're welcome.

****Should you be inspired to have sexy time after your workout, this bra will delay that.

My Food Journal: A Tale of Triumph, Junior Mints, and a Little Bit of Shame

It seems that everyone has an opinion on how to lose weight, how to be healthy.  For every study telling you to focus on a low carb diet, there is another study telling you that you should cut out meat.  No matter what you're doing, someone else has a better idea, and they're happy to tell you all about it.  I'm going to share a tool with you that I used to scoff at.  I'm not saying this will do you any good; it just happens to be helping me.

Food!

Almost three weeks ago, I started keeping a food journal.  Every morning, I weigh myself, and it goes in the book.  Everything I eat gets recorded.  The calorie and fat content are also calculated and noted.  If I make it to the gym that day, my time and distance gets written down.*  If we have a "Treat Day", that gets marked down.**

Does this actually help?  For me, yeah.  I get embarrassed when I see what I have eaten some days.  When I take the time to figure out calories, I am sometimes shamed.***  It's not a bad shaming though, as I'm the only one who knows.  It just encourages me to think about what I'm eating.

Because I like pretty colors, I have all of my meals color coded.  Additionally, my workout gets color coded to match the nearest meal.  If I go to the gym in the morning, it gets noted in the same color as breakfast.  It lets me see at a glance what I've been achieving.  I also have a specific color for snacks, so I can see when I get a bit weak.

Keeping a food journal is a lot of work, but it's keeping me on my toes about what I consume.  Some days are better than others, but all in all, I"m eating less than I used to.  When I have a snack, like Junior Mints, I don't eat a box.  I eat half of a serving.  I don't lie in my food book, and that's helping me to make bigger, more important changes.****

*I'm only using the treadmill right now.  Someday, I hope to branch out, but you have to start somewhere.

**Treat yo self!

***Those bacon cheeseburgers were amazing though.  Mmmm....

****For example, the two of us haven't gone out to eat alone in over two weeks.  Trust me, this is a huge accomplishment.

The Nike Outlet Store

Some people over-pack for vacation.  Some times, I'm one of those people.  Other times, I know how to minimize.  What I do not compromise on is shoes when we visit Disney.  Mark and I have found that the best way to avoid sore feet and blisters is to change shoes once a day.  We each take three pairs - sneakers*, Vibrams, and athletic sandals.  This also gives us alternatives if a pair gets wet.  Sadly, our current sneakers are getting a bit worn and dingy.  It was time for a trip to the Nike Outlet Store!

It was a bit later than I would have liked when we arrived, with less than an hour until closing.  You would think that would make the employees less than friendly, but you would be wrong.  They were quite friendly and helpful.  There was no feeling of being rushed.

We started out in the men's shoes.**  Perhaps the most daunting thing about the Outlet store is the number of options.  There are sooooo many shoes.  We wandered around, with Mark trying on the occasional pair.***  We tried to be good customers and put items back where we found them, especially since it was getting close to closing.

Shoes as far as the eye can see....

When Mark finally found a pair of shoes he liked, we wandered over to the lady's section.  Now, we get made fun of for this periodically  but we tend to match.  We usually wear the same colors.  Of course, this meant that I was primarily looking for shoes that were the same style as Mark's choice.  I will settle for same colors when necessary.  I was unable to find the same style in women's, so I started just focusing on colors and styles I liked.

More shoes!

I have a problem when I buy shoes.  It's incredibly difficult for me to find shoes that fit.  Nike shoes tend to be cut small.  Where I normally wear size 10.5, I can go up to an 11 in Nike brand shoes.  I do appreciate that quite a few styles had my normal size.  There was a shoe on clearance that I really liked that was not available in size 11, which is what I actually needed.

They provide little socks for you to try on the shoes.

They're not those little nylon hose things!

No expense is spared!

While trying on various shoes, I mentioned to Mark how it would rub at my heel.  I've had that problem for quite some time, but I never thought much of it.  An incredibly nice and helpful employee heard me and explained that it is because I have narrow heels.  It was really great to hear a reason behind that annoyance.  She even suggested specific shoes that fit a narrow heel better, as she has the same problem.  She wins the award for awesome employee!

Employee of the Year!

I finally found a pair I liked.  Due to the color, Mark was prompted to switch his choice to the shoes he really liked but hesitated to buy due to price.  He had been on his phone looking for better deals on these more expensive shoes, the ones that just so happened to match mine.  He found them for six dollars less online.  Once you factor in shipping, it's really not that much of a difference.  We learned that the prices at the Outlet aren't really all that much more than what you can get the shoes for elsewhere.

I always figured the Nike Outlet would be really over-priced and stocked by snooty people.****  I'm happy to have discovered that I was 100% wrong.  Our purchases weren't cheap, but they were totally worth it.  Mark wore his shoes to the gym the other day to break them in; when we were done, he informed me that they were good to go.  They were that good right off the bat.  If you need sneakers, the Nike Outlet is a great place to start.

*I was told that up north we usually say sneakers, so I made sure to use that rather than tennis shoes.

**You would think I would be the one that would take forever picking out shoes; you would be wrong.

***In one shoe, he had to try them on three times.  Apparently, he doesn't know what size he wears.  Go figure.

****I feel pretty much all outlet stores are staffed by snooty people.  I have no basis for this belief.

Dredd

While watching Dredd, all I could think about was how much I regretted not seeing it in 3D at the theater.  I had heard good things about it, but we just didn't catch it in the theaters.  Granted, Dredd isn't the best movie, but it was a whole lot of fun.

For those of you unfamiliar, Dredd is a Judge.  In the future, Judges act as police, judge, and executioner.*  With properties that have a lot to work from, you often get origin stories.  Now, I don't know much about Judge Dredd to know if there is the potential for an origin story, but I like that we just get thrown into his world.  There is a brief voice over to establish the rules and then we're off, into the story.  It's effective and wastes little time.

With the opening title screen, you know this film was made with 3D in mind.  There are various shots throughout that would have been stunning, maybe amazing in 3D.**  The effects are petty good.  There are lots of explosions.  When you couple that with the slow motion scenes, it's fun.  It may not be revolutionary, but I do appreciate their explanation for the use.

If you're squeamish, you might want to steer clear.  The film isn't gore saturated, but it does hearken back a bit to the 80's action movie so far as the blood and bodies go.  It's probably on par with something like Predator.

They did manage to land some solid actors, even if they're not headliners.  Cersei took a break from sleeping with her brother to get uglied up for this film.***  Karl Urban, who Mark referred to as Jude Law**** multiple times, plays Judge Dredd.  You know, Karl Urban is a whole lot of fun.  He was also in Doom, which I love.  I know it's a bad movie, but it's the right kind of bad.

Dredd is an awesome movie.  Maybe it isn't a great movie, but it is a ton of fun.  I like the vibe, and I like explosions.  I got exactly what I wanted.  I just wish I had seen it in the theater for that 3D experience.*****

*Apparently, the future sucks.  

**If done properly, of course.

***I'm talking about Lena Headey, for those of you that don't watch Game of Thrones.  Also, if you don't watch Game of Thrones, we are no longer friends.

****This, of course, led us into a discussion regarding which of them currently has the more promising career.  I went with Karl Urban on this one; he does get to be in the new Star Trek movies.

*****3D is a gimmick, but with the right type of movie, it can be a great gimmick.

Comedy Central Closed Captioning

In my life, I don't have cause to turn on closed captioning very often.  Growing up, my dad would sometimes turn it on when he would get up for work, opting to keep the volume off so anyone sleeping wasn't bothered.  The only other time I really see closed captioning is at the gym.*  If you're on the treadmill or other cardio type machines, they often have TVs attached .  Some machines let you plug your headphones right into the TV; others do not give you that option.  The treadmills at my current gym are the latter type.  This means subtitles.

After flipping through channels, I ended up on Comedy Central.  The Colbert Show was on.  While I haven't  really watched it before, I've heard good things.  Unfortunately, I wasn't able to get much of the content because I was so distracted by the subtitles.  I wish I could remember the specific mess ups, but they were so bad that my brain has blocked them.

I thought maybe it was an isolated incident, but when the Daily Show started up, the terribly done subtitles continued.  It got to the point that I just couldn't watch it anymore.  I was spending more time trying to figure out what words they were trying to type than absorbing their content.

If you have to read closed captioning, I'm sorry, but if you try to use closed captioning when watching Comedy Central, I feel bad for you.  It's just pathetic.  I started wondering if it was a joke they were playing, but I really don't think it was.  How unfortunate.

*I haven't been going very often, but I'm working on it.

Zombies, Run!

I don't have a lot of apps on my phone.  Mark will download random games and such onto my phone, but there are not a lot of apps that I use on a regular basis.  I'm happy to report that I have recently found another neat and useful app though.  I would like to tell you all about Zombies, Run!

Zombies, Run! is a running app.  The basic story is that there are zombies.  If you want to survive, you have to run.  It's pretty basic.  You get some story with each mission you do, meeting new characters and the like.  There will be some dialogue followed by musical segments, which consist of tunes found on your device.  You can set your missions to be any where from thirty minutes to an hour.  If you exceed the mission length, the app switches to radio mode, which is more of your music with bits of information from the radio jockey.

There are various settings for the Zombies, Run! app.  If you're on a treadmill, you can set it to measure your steps.  If you run outside, it can use the GPS.  You can also set up the playlist that it pulls music from.  It doesn't seem to pick those songs randomly though, which means I always hear the same songs in the same order.  This might be something I can tweak, but I haven't messed with it to find out yet.

Perhaps the neatest feature is the actual zombie chases.  You have the option to turn them on or off.  I like them on because they force you to sprint, hence getting your heart rate up a bit.  My only complaint about the zombie chases are that there aren't more of them.  When the app plays songs, you'll hear a computerized voice telling you what you've found.*  That same voice will warn you if zombies get too close.  There will be an accompanying beep that gets more frequent the closer the zombies get to you.  You can be overtaken by the zombies, which is creepy.**  If you get away, that voice tells you that you evaded them.

I don't get into most workout aids.  I don't care for exercise tapes.  I don't work out with others, aside from Mark.  I haven't tried out classes yet.  What I do like is this app.  Zombies, Run! gives you a bit of story, some music beats, and some scary ass zombie chases.  What more could you want?

*I found a sports bra one time!

**Their moaning gets very loud and scary.  I don't like it.

Chi Chi's Sweet Corn Cake Mix

I miss Chi Chi's.  They had some awesome food.*  That was the first place I had a chimichanga, tortilla soup, and sweet corn cake.  Since then, I have found few places that make those items as well as Chi Chi's did.**  I am pleased to report that you can get a mix to make the sweet corn cake in the comfort of your own home.

While shopping in Target, I found the mix.  At first, I was shocked.  Then...I was super excited.  I remembered really liking the sweet corn cake.  After checking out the needed ingredients, I bought it and headed home.  I was already planning on making tacos, so it worked out well.

Mark was kind enough to cook dinner, so he prepped the sweet corn cake.  The ingredients were pretty standard, with cream corn being the only item you may not have on hand.  You mix butter, the cream corn, the mix, and water then put it in a loaf pan which then goes in the oven.  The hardest part was waiting forty five minutes for it to be done baking.

Once it is cooked, you eat it with a spoon or fork.  It's too wet to eat like bread, but it stays together well.  It's delicious too!  I have no idea how well it keeps, as we ate pretty much all of it.

If you're looking for something to add to your taco night, pick up the Chi Chi's sweet corn cake mix.  It's easy to make and really tasty.  I'm starting to wish we had some left...

*You know...aside from the food poisoning.

**Don Pablo's made amazing tortilla soup, but they've also gone the way of the dodo bird.

The Season Ten Top Chef Finale

When you get right down to it, Top Chef is just a game show.  The contestants compete in challenges to win prizes and stay in the game.  It's much more elaborate than something like Plinko*, but when you boil it down to the basic components, you've got a game show.**  Top Chef is great because it feels like more than a game show.  It feels fancier, and I like seeing the creative dishes.  With their most recent finale, Top Chef slipped a bit.  It felt a little less upscale and a little more like a cheap game show of yore.

Top Chef focuses on a group of cooks who are competing to be named Top Chef.  The challenges are designed to challenge the chefs by limiting time, ingredients, and the like.  There is a panel of judges that decide the outcome.  The basic premise is that of a game show.

The series sets itself above its ancestors with the chosen aesthetic and high production values.  The contestants are also required to have a higher skill level than participants on a run of the mill game show.  While they still have the overly-produced moments of anticipation/worry, I suppose there are certain tropes they must adhere to.

The most recent season finale was set up a bit differently.  The chefs prepared their meals in front of a live audience.  The judging was done by round at the same time.  Cooking five courses in front of a live audience probably seemed exciting to the show makers, but it fell a little flat.

The set felt a lot like the set from Millionaire.  Already, the episode felt a little dated.  The lights they used during the tasting at the Judges' Table and during judging were tacky and didn't fit the feel of the show as a whole.

Usually, the chefs will bring out their creations to the judges then leave while the judges actually eat and discuss.  This is a pretty standard part of the show.  In the finale, the chefs stool there as the judges ate and discussed.  Decisions were then immediately made regarding who won the round.  They used the lighting and music to create drama.

In this show, that is unnecessary.  If you've been following the season, you already have a decision about who should win.  You may or may not have strong feelings about it; that's really something that can change from person to person, the level of involvement.  The drama is created by watching two chefs that you like face off.  Creating a false sense of drama is insulting, even if it is the television norm.***

I like watching Top Chef.  Even though I did not care for the format of this latest finale, I will keep watching the show.  It is available on demand, and that is what I'm looking for on a lazy Saturday.  As long as it stays available, I'll keep watching.  That being said, that particular finale was a misstep.  They're capable of more, and the focus on telling everyone that it was filmed before a live audience just made it feel more dated.

*I know someone that was on that show.  It's valid and counts!

**Ha!  Cooking terminology!

***I'm not saying it is wrong to do that; I'm just saying that it feels cheap when the show does not execute it to that level on a regular basis.