I think the most beautiful thing in the world is tenderness. It exudes caring, compassion, thoughtfulness, warmth, sensitivity, and love. It could be a mother’s touch, a lover’s gaze, a friend’s affection, or even a stranger’s consideration. Often it’s the simplest gestures that speak volumes, from a stroke of the cheek to a careful brushing back of stray hair to a compliment whispered in your ear. Tenderness creates intimacy and a deeper connection that touches my heart. When I was a kid I always looked forward to getting sick because I never would and when I finally did, my mom would take care of me – tuck me in, touch my forehead gently, sit next to me and watch me sleep. It was one of the most amazing feelings, to know I was so loved and cared for. This picture is one of my absolute favorites of my best friend and I because of the strong connection we have and the lovely intimate moment we shared. It doesn’t look the most tender, but it brings out that sort of strong emotion for me. Isn’t it great?
365great Day 221: tenderness
The quiet of the night
My favorite time of day for myself is in the middle of the night. As the world around me sleeps, I can get lost in my thoughts. It’s very peaceful and I love escaping into my own little world, where I play out a variety of scenarios to work out my thoughts. My mind is always racing a mile a minute and it’s hard to gather myself when there’s so much going around me. But at night, I can shut out all that and concentrate on what’s going on in my head. There’s something about being pensive that feeds my soul.
I tend to over-analyze and over-think. I can’t help it! I see the pros and cons and all the little details in between. Sometimes it drives me crazy, so I need time to process it all quietly. I totally did this when I was waiting to hear back about my job. How long should it be before I hear back? Was this a good sign? Was that? Should I keep waiting? Should I apply elsewhere? My head was spinning in circles by the time I got my offer letter and I was so thrilled I grinned uncontrollably. Actually, I’m still struggling to not think too hard about everything I do. Nowadays I wonder if I’m getting to work early enough, if I’m working fast enough, if I’m taking too many breaks, if I’m leaving too early… and at night is when I can reign in those swirling thoughts, calm myself down, and reason that I’m doing ok.
You see why I need time to process? I’m trying not to get overwhelmed by the stimuli of the world, even as my thoughts about them nearly suffocate me. It’s a tough life. 😛
365great Day 220: progression of life
Looking back on my life, each stage has had its own importance and shaped me in a different way. From the early years of being raised by extended family in China to my childhood move to the US… from my youth in quiet, peaceful towns to my adulthood in cities… from staying close to home for college (but then studying abroad) to my recent cross-country move… the continual progression of life is pushing me to all sorts of experiences. I’ve enjoyed all of these opportunities and I look forward to everything that growing older will bring. I think it’s a beautiful thing to see how much changes and how much growth there is over the years. I went from a super shy kid to a far more social teen. I went from being Chinese to Chinese-American. I went from being a student to being a worker. I’ve identified as a nomad, a traveler, a foreigner, a swimmer, a runner, a sprinter, a Navy cadet, an Air Force cadet, a loner, a social butterfly, a pledge, an active, a volunteer, an intern, an employee, a manager, an instructor, a counselor, a tomboy, a girl, a woman, a lady, and the list goes on… and with each, I’ve learned more about myself and evolved into who I am today. I’m happy with where I am today yet I also look forward to a great future.
Conscious Box October review
Got my last free Conscious Box this week, which rounds out the two 3-month subscriptions I won. I’ve gotten a ton of products to try over the course of the past six months, most of which I still need to get around to. It’s been fun getting Conscious Box but I won’t be subscribing. I’ve got a backlog of stuff to try!
Conscious Box is just under $20 per box (or as discounted as just over $203 for an entire year, with options in between) and comes with many samples from about a dozen brands. Choose from their Classic, Vegan, or Gluten-free box. Boxes are sent monthly with no option to skip. They offer a referral link program.
This was the lightest of all the boxes and I realized after seeing everything that there was no drink this time, which explains the weight difference. I just ate lunch so I’m too full to try the snacks, but I’m really interested in the Organicasaurus Cheddar Cheese baked organic corn snacks. I mean, they’re dino-shaped. What else do you need? The mini breadsticks from Crum Creek look really flavorful, but kind of on the dry side. I’d imagine they’re sort of like eating pretzel sticks. I’m saving the gnufoods Fiber Love Cinnamon Raisin bar for an afternoon pick-me-up at work one day.
My supplements collection has grown a ton and I’ve still yet to break a single one in. :-/ I’m just not in the habit of it, but I’ll try to get around to it. The Eat Green Tea pouch is really interesting since I’ve never eaten tea before. It is a plant, so why not, right? But it just seems kind of weird. I have at least one other pack sitting around waiting to be consumed. Same goes for the Allimax allicin capsules. Those are supposed to be good for a variety things ranging from colds and flus to fungus and wounds. With a ton of people getting sick around me, I’m definitely going to try these. Popping one now! Then there’s the FruitsMax chewable supplements that will give me my daily fruits serving without having to chow down on so much fruit. I hardly ever eat enough fruit, so this will be useful.
Most of the rest were skincare items, which I have a TON of. I don’t think I’ll need to go shopping for them for many years, if ever again. All of these were new to me, so that’s good! I like exploring new brands. There’s the Acure gotu kola stem cell + chlorella growth factor day cream with its super-fancy sounding ingredients that I look forward to trying. There’s the lotus moon vitamin B hydrating gel facial moisturizer that seems really rich and maybe more like a serum. There’s the honest shampoo + body wash that I’ve heard about and have wanted to try. I’m definitely not used to one product for my hair and body. Then there’s the Seventh Generation natural skin serum and body lotion, which I wish were larger samples. Both look great and I’ll be adding them to my stash to try soon. Finally, there’s the Goddess Garden Organics Tangerine Lavender daily lotion with SPF 15 that sounds fabulous – I love tangerine and lavender.
And for the miscellaneous stuff: a Bottle Bright effervescent tablet for cleaning water bottles that I’ve also gotten before and haven’t tried yet. I don’t really use water bottles these days and the mugs I drink out of are pretty easy to clean. The LifeTree concentrated dish soap in Citrus Fresh will be perfect to try with the next batch of dishes. Who wouldn’t want something gentle and biodegradable to be going on their dishes to clean them? Finally, there’s a BioBag for you dog owners out there, which is perfect for your walks. As for me, I’ll just use it to put food scraps to compost one day. Good stuff!
And that’s it! I really need to start grouping all this stuff into boxes so I can start using them more effectively. Right now they’re scattered everywhere so I don’t always remember what I need to use. What’d you think of this box?
365great Day 219: fresh meal kits
I think the only way to get me to cook are these amazing meal kit delivery services that send fresh ingredients pre-portioned, with recipe cards to help guide your cooking journey. I’ve tried HelloFresh and Blue Apron so far, both of which have provided delicious meal options. I’m getting a lot more confident in the kitchen and I’ve expanded my skill set beyond throwing things in a pan and pouring on soy sauce. This is actually also the first time I’ve cooked with meat, other than a few dumpling-making sessions. I always thought chicken took longer to cook! So I’m learning a lot, gaining a very useful skill, and having a ton of fun along the way. If only I knew what to do with all the ice packs I’m acquiring from these deliveries… well, regardless of that, these subscriptions are great!
Plumbing problems
Ew.
When I finally decided to roll out of bed today, I went to go take a bath. Around the time the tub was halfway full, I noticed that the water was turning a yellowish brown. I called Panda over to inspect what was going on and he thought it might be my bath salts… yeah, no. I quickly got out of there as Panda tested the sink water and found the hot water was what was giving us problems. We called up the apartment management people and they’re sending someone but I feel so icky now. Few things are worse than getting ready to wash clean only to have to wait out the day unable to. I’m going to be on edge until they get this resolved.
What a way to start the weekend. My Bruins better beat Stanford tonight or I’m gonna be majorly bummed.
365great Day 218: battery packs
The battery life of the iPhone 5 can leave a heavy user with much to be desired. It certainly doesn’t last the whole day if you’re using it regularly to take photos/videos and go online like I do. When I got my first battery pack this summer, I was pretty happy. Now I could extend my phone’s usage by at least another one and a half times! Then my mom came back one day and handed me a box asking if I wanted it. Inside was the pretty blue one you see here. It was something the company gave everyone as a gift and she has no use for it. I couldn’t resist taking it too – I mean, it’s really pretty and has a nice curved shape that feels good, but more importantly it’ll actually charge my phone twice over. The more juice I can get out of these things the better. Now I never have to worry about my phone dying from a long day. That peace of mind is totally great.
The “Sk8er Girl” inside
I’m not your average “skater girl,” whatever you think that may be. At the least I can guarantee that when people picture a skater, they’d never come up with me. I don’t resemble Avril Lavigne, I don’t wear skater shoes, and I skate just fine in flip flops and a dress. To me, skating is a really fun way of getting around and improving your balance. I don’t do it to try fancy tricks and I can’t say that I know much about the subculture. All I know is that there’s a certain pleasure in having a board under your feet. It looks and feels really cool too.
My favorite is when I’m breezing along, picking up some speed from a slight decline in my path, but nothing too crazy. I can go down steep hills if I foot-brake along the way, but that does a number on my thighs. When you’re cruising, it’s the best feeling in the world. There’s a gentle breeze as you roll on by enjoying the scenery along the way. I once did spent a Saturday afternoon going from Malibu to Venice and back (about 6 miles each way I think). It was amazing – beautiful weather, easy boarding, and great company. I even got to practice balancing on one foot and streamlining closer to the ground.
While I did manage to get pretty good (well, better than people probably expected), I never handled hills too well. I’m not brave enough to do what it takes to carve down a hill effectively. The one time I tried going down a hill with a friend, he held my hand to steady me, but we both ended up flying from our boards and “Supermanning” down the road on our hips. That scar finally faded after a good four or five years. I may never do the more crazy stuff with my board, but I can certainly hold my own when it comes to the basics. I have a Loaded Board that I absolutely love, partly because you can bounce up and down on it and it will not break. That sort of flexibility offers better maneuverability, though it does present a challenge every time you kick off and might veer more than usual. Still, it’s totally worth it and I wish I had more of a chance to use it these days.
I made sure to take advantage of the opportunity to ride around when I was doing Orientation at UCLA. In fact, I was awarded the Avril Lavigne award:
That’s me, just the skater girl cruising around campus with my fabulous board.
365great Day 217: Grooveshark
I’ve had a few songs stuck in my head lately and sometimes I just want to listen to them without having to own them, wait for them to come on the radio, or pull up a video. That’s exactly what Grooveshark is perfect for! You can create your own playlists with whatever songs you want and play them as many times as you want. You get ultimate control over what you listen to and you don’t even need to pay a thing or sign up. It really can’t get much easier than that. I don’t know how they do it, but I sure am glad to be able to use them. What a great service!
Like ships passing in the night
It’s been a long week. Panda started his night shifts Sunday night and I’d head off to work before he got home. Then, when it came time for me to go home, he was already on his way back to his next shift. We’ve been even worse than ships passing in the night, missing each other by so much that there was no seeing and just a few text messages in the precious two or three hours we were both awake and he wasn’t working. By Wednesday morning, I was thrilled to find he was heading back early – I actually got to see him and catch up for about 15 minutes! It made me later for work than usual, but that was totally worth it. The nights have been lonely this week and I’m glad to have company again. Of course, it also means I’m more distracted, so I’ll keep it brief tonight. Off to write my 365great of the day!
