Tuesday, June 14, 2011

Summer reading list

I've been rereading books that I already own and love. It started when I reread the entire Harry Potter series in anticipation of the last movie. (Except book 6. I can't find book 6. If I lent it to any of you, please give it back. It's driving me crazy.) I also watched all of the movies again because I'm a geek that way and I have the time.

After I finished the HP series, I began reading all of Neil Gaiman's books again. He's my favorite author, and the 10th anniversary edition of American Gods (my favorite book) is coming out on June 21. I finished Anansi Boys and Neverwhere, and started Good Omens last night.

Other books on my to be reread list:
Smoke and Mirrors
Fragile Things
Stardust
Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell
A Suitable Boy
World War Z
Sacred Games
Fight Club
Haunted
Stiff
and whatever else I dig up in the boxes that currently house my book collection.

Anyone have book suggestions?

Monday, June 13, 2011

All about eyes

Hi friends! Today I want to talk about eye makeup. I have bought, tried, and discarded TONS of mascaras and eyeliners. Here are my favorites.

Mascara
I currently have three go-to mascaras. One for everyday use, one for special occasions, and one just because I love it.

My everyday mascara is Maybelline Full 'N Soft. I've used this since high school and it's never failed me. I don't like my lashes to be hard and spider leg-like, and this lives up to its name, giving me lots of volume while leaving my lashes soft.

My special occasion mascara is Maybelline Falsies Volum'Express Mascara. It gives me major length and thickness, but I only use it when I really need to add drama because it tends to flake off. It lasts FOREVER, so make sure you remove it thoroughly before going to bed or you will get serious raccoon eyes. It also lasted through tears at a friend's wedding. Bonus points!

My splurge mascara is Urban Decay Big Fatty. It works just like the Full 'N Soft, but it goes on much faster and smoother because of its huge brush. I've tried it in a few colors, but the basic black is the best.

Eyeliner
I've searched and searched for eyeliner that won't smudge under my eyes. After years of testing, I've found a few that work for me.

My current eyeliner is Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-On eye pencil in black. Application is smooth and it lasts all day. I use this on my upper lash line.

For drama, I use Smashbox Jet Set Eyeliner. This eyeliner comes in a pot and is applied with a brush. (I use the MAC ultra thin angled eyeliner brush.) I like how versatile this eyeliner is. It goes on much easier than liquid liners, but you can get the same effect. I used to use MAC Fluidline Eye Liner Gel and loved it, but I like the feel of the Smashbox better. I've also tried the Maybelline Eye Studio Gel eyeliner, which is half the price of the Smashbox eyeliner and comes with its own brush, but it doesn't go on as smooth.

For my lower water line, I use Hashmi Kajal, which I don't recommend for everyone. This is the eyeliner that I don't leave the house without. I usually buy it through eBay or Amazon, since I can't find it in Edison. It's a bit tricky to apply, but it puts color on both the upper and lower inner eyelid once you get the hang of it. It is smudgy, and gives you the smokey eye look with very little effort. I was going to make a how-to video for this, but there isn't enough light in my house. Sorry.

Sunday, June 12, 2011

Adventures in dating presents: Angry Guy

I had promised to tell my tales of dating gone wrong. I guess it's time.

My first tale deals with a gentleman we'll call "Angry Guy." Angry Guy messaged me on the dating site. After a bit of back and forth, he asked me if I wanted to get something to eat after work. He hadn't raised any red flags, so I agreed and we met up in Princeton at Triumph Brewery.

Dinner was fine. Conversation was good. I was charming. He was funny. It was all good. After the check was paid (by him), he asked if I wanted to go for a walk. Still, no red flags had been raised, so I said "sure!"

We walked across Nassau Street to the benches set out in front of Princeton University's library and sat. Again, conversation flowed easily. But then a lady in an SUV attempted to park in a street spot in front of us. She was having some difficulty, as the spot was pretty small. And the entire mood changed.

Angry Guy began berating her for being a "stupid chick driver, this is why I hate everyone who drives SUVs, people need to learn how to drive," and on and on. The language was a bit more colorful. I paraphrased.

Not knowing how to respond to this, I sort of laughed, hoping he was joking. He wasn't. After the SUV gave up, he began yelling (YELLING) at some college kids riding their bikes on the sidewalk in front of us. Apparently they were "smelly hippies" who should "learn how to share the sidewalk with other humans" They weren't really bothering us. And we were sitting pretty far from where they were riding. And also, he was directly yelling at these kids, who pedaled off, horrified.

And me? Suddenly I needed to get home, cause there was an emergency. ("Hi Charlotte it's Carrie, something bad happened." "SOMETHING BAD HAPPENED!?!?!?" One of my favorite episodes EVER.)

I got a message from him the next day. He asked how I was doing, and would I like to go out another time? I said no, thank you. He replied with a tirade on how this is the reason I'm still single! That girls shouldn't go out with a guy just once and then be a b*tch and never call again and he didn't want to go out with me again cause I wasn't good enough for him anyway! !!!

So yeah. Dating was fun only for my work bffs, Anne and Cecilia, who would hear my stories the next day and laugh merrily because they were happily married/engaged. (Love you girls. :) )

They were also integral to my screening process. If I was unsure about a guy, I would forward the profile and pics to them for approval/denial.

Saturday, June 11, 2011

Knowledge Junkie

Hey everyone! Sorry I missed a few days. Two things caused the delay in posts:

  1. I had one of my life killer headaches. (It's still not completely gone.)
  2. The new issue of Mental Floss was delivered.
When the new Mental Floss arrives, all other activities must halt until I've read it from cover to cover, at least twice. It's random knowledge at its finest. I feel as though my internal random information generator has been restocked.

I started reading Mental Floss when I worked at Barnes & Noble. I was a music seller (aka music snob), and could name a song from a customer's bad singing in just seconds. Looking back, that was the best job I've had so far. It's where I was happiest. My coworkers were smart and quirky. I still talk to many of them, and it's been almost 10 years since I worked there. Maybe it's the headache talking, but I miss that place.

Thursday, June 9, 2011

Web site addiction

I realize that my last few posts have been super girly, and to my male readers: I apologize. I'll make it up to you.

I spent most of my day today reading articles on the web site Cracked. I am fully and completely addicted to this site. I end up clicking every article in every article, ending up with insane amounts of open tabs. As I write this, I have 17 tabs open of just Cracked articles. I actually avoid going on the site because I know if I do, I'll end up wasting my entire day on it. It's a serious problem.

I have the same problem with The Hairpin. But not as severe. With The Hairpin, I subscribed through Google Reader and am able to weed out the articles I want to read. I had to stop myself from adding Cracked to my Reader or I would never stop reading.