((little fat notebook))

Prospurly November 2016 review

laelene Post in reviews, subscriptions，Tags: bath soaks, boxes, cards, cleansers, food, oils, pictures, products, prospurly, reviews, snacks, subscriptions, teas

29 January 2017

Where does the time go?? I feel like there is so much to do and not enough time to do it all. We’re already about to start our fourth week of classes, which feels so far into the program (yet also so far from the end of the semester). If I want to get caught up with these reviews, I’m going to have to post more frequently!

Prospurly is just under $45 per box (with code for 10% off your subscription – use my referral links from this post) and comes with artisan foods, bath & body items, home products, and other sustainably crafted items. Boxes are sent monthly with no option to skip. They offer a referral program that earns you free boxes.

Prospurly greeting cards – These are nice little thank you cards that can be used when gifting something to someone. Since they didn’t come in envelopes, I’d tape/tie them to a present and use them that way, rather than on their per se (unless it’s a small thank you meant for a professor or something like that). I appreciate that they are printed on recycled card stock.

St. Fiacre’s Farm Coastal Cranberry Spice tea – Now this smells like a great tea, but I need to be careful with the cranberry because it is quite strong. I have liked pairing this with a plain green/black/oolong tea so there’s a stronger base, otherwise it can be quite tart. I wish the spice part came out heavier in the flavor – it smells great but doesn’t contribute to taste as much.

Oak Street Soap White Tea & Ginger bubble bar – Oh my, .how I love the smell of this! It’s so very refreshing and clean-smelling. I kind of like it as an air freshener. My apartment bathtub just isn’t that conducive to bubble baths, so I haven’t used it yet and will probably wait until I have my nice big tub back home.

Foxes & Ferns Rosey facial cleanser – I definitely expected this to be a toner and was surprised that you wipe it on your face with a cotton pad like one, but then you’re supposed to rinse your face. It was very cooling and felt good on my skin. It’s a great way to cleanse the skin right before bed, as I’ve just done.

Nature’s Skin Nutrition Winter Chest Rub – As expected, this chest rub has a menthol scent that helps clear the airways. I haven’t gotten sick since my Utah trip, so I haven’t needed it yet, but I’ll keep it handy whenever I need to open my stuffy nose. Although, am I supposed to use to prevent a cold too?

Neelu Kaur Amrit Nectar of the Divine oil – This is such a unique scent that I can’t place. It’s more on the earthy side but I don’t know how to describe it. I like rolling on oils like this to help me relax before sleep. It has a nice metal roller ball that is cold upon application and adds a little zing to the experience.

This was a nice box that I’ve made good use of! I really enjoyed the variety of scents. What do you think of this month’s box?

[This post contains affiliate links. Signing up through them helps support my subscription and I’d be ever so grateful. 🙂 All opinions are my own and I received no compensation for this review. I just purchased this box and wanted to share what I got!]

Second semester

laelene Post in mba，Tags: business schools, education, mba, students

19 January 2017

I had hoped that with the new semester, I might be able to post more frequently, but it looks like I may have underestimated the demands on my time and energy. Things certainly are more manageable, but we need to start planning Admit Weekend and I have a class that doesn’t start until the second half of the semester, so I have a feeling March is going to be a crazy month.

So far the first two weeks have been really nice. At the tail end of winter break, I attended Tech Trek up in the Bay Area, where we visited a bunch of companies (more on that in another post). Then we kicked off classes last week (has it only been that recent?!! I feel like it’s been a month) and I started taking a bunch of fitness classes at the gym since they’re free for the first two weeks, giving us an opportunity to preview them before committing.

This past weekend we had a trip out to Mammoth, which was timed perfectly with the crazy snow they’ve been getting. They’ve received massive amounts of snowfall and have the most snow anywhere in the country at the moment (somewhere around 15-20 feet). It didn’t snow while we were there, offering my classmates excellent skiing and snowboarding options. Meanwhile, I stayed at the cabin and enjoyed my book the first day and did some homework and had a group meeting the second day. I will try to get a post up about that as well, so you can see the massive mounds of snow and the giant icicle formations.

Tonight I wrapped up my last class of the week and many of my classmates are off to Park City for the Sundance Film Festival. I’ll be attempting to get ahead of the mounds of reading that my classes seem to require. In true Core fashion (aka insanely fast and front-loaded), we have a midterm on Monday. Already. It’s for global economics and I’m amazed at how I can read something and then basically forget the entire contents by the time I get to class.

I’m also taking two human capital courses – Designing High Performance Organizations & Human Capital Performance and Motivation. They’re both night classes, but I find them so engaging and interesting that they haven’t felt long. I think I also do better on energy later in the day. My fourth class is Getting the Organization Ready for Big Data, which seemed interesting and useful, but I’m not feeling great about it and I’m considering switching to something else. The professor is brand new (just got his PhD in 2015), the class has never been taught, and he speaks in a rather quiet monotone voice with low energy. He’s nice enough but the class isn’t very exciting.

The class that kicks in in two months is my LEAD class – Leadership Education and Development. We have a cohort of LEAD Fellows from my class who will be taking this and also another class in the fall. LEAD is designed to give us hands-on opportunities to develop our leadership styles, with a community project, off-sites, the class, and a speaker series. I can’t wait to see how the program goes! We’re the first class to have this full-fledged program and I feel very lucky to be part of it.

So that’s a synopsis of how this spring semester is going so far. Sometime next month, global econ gives away to global strategy. Then we start to focus on the countries that we will be traveling to and do projects specific to companies we’ll be visiting. I’m on the Shanghai Taipei trip and I’m so excited!! Also, I’ve scheduled an awesome trip to Israel for spring break, which my classmates planned for us. This is going to be an exciting four months.

Prospurly October 2016 review

laelene Post in reviews, subscriptions，Tags: boxes, candles, food, jams, jewelry, lotions, mists, necklaces, reviews, skincare, sprays, subscriptions

09 January 2017

My goal is to get caught up with these reviews by spring… I’m thinking this semester will offer me more time! So far it’s been nice, but I’ve only done one day of classes, so we’ll see how it pans out.

Momoko Therapeutics Orange Spice aromatherapy mist – Ahh, the sweet spicy scent of orange and cloves comes through strong with this one. It’s a great room spray when I want to feel like the holidays are here. It makes me think of those basket arrangements with the dried plants, which often have a similar smell. What a great way to freshen a room in a natural way!

Loverin Crafts Pumpkin Souffle natural soy candle – Whoa, this candle packs a punch! It has a very rich pumpkin scent that would certainly warm a room. I like that it’s a soy candle for a clean burn and that they will take the tins back for a discount on your next candle! After all, I can only reuse so many of these tins…

Chakra Love Sacral Chakra Aventurine necklace – This is a very earthy type of jewelry that generally isn’t my style, so I’ll either hang it up as decoration or find someone who will appreciate it more. I guess it’s supposed to bring self-gratification and enhance emotions, sensuality, and movement.

smashed! Boozy Jams Pear Whiskey + Garam Masala spread – I know the whiskey part of this will not appeal to me, so I hope one of my roommates will like using this jam. It’s such a different style that I’m curious what it will smell and taste like.

Ruby Rain Organics Nourishing Lotion Bar – Since this is sealed, I don’t want to open it until I’m ready to use it. It has a scent using lavender, frankincense, and myrrh, which should be quite interesting. I think this will be great to keep in the car when I need a little lotion and don’t want a mess.

This definitely felt like a fall box, though I wish they’d included more items. Why does jewelry always seem to be worth so much? I’m glad they don’t come often, because I much prefer skincare, home goods, and the like. What do you think of this month’s box?

Feline road trip

laelene Post in photo blog，Tags: animals, cats, pets, pictures, travel

04 January 2017

Happy New Year! One of the last things we did as a family last year was take a road trip with the cats. This was the first time we took both cats in the car and it was quite an adventure.

At the hotel, Smokey quickly found a place to hide in the blanket. She never goes in there!

Soon the cats discovered the top of the curtain.

Smokey’s sweaty little paws left some marks on the dash.

Missy somehow thought the litter box would be a good bed.

Smokey moved around a lot and eventually settled on my bag.

Missy was cold, so I wrapped her up in a towel and she slept.

Almost home!

They got so excited when we got in the garage. Freedom!

Revisiting work

laelene Post in general blog，Tags: vacation, winter break, work

27 December 2016

This week and last, I went back to my old work place to say hi to come of my colleagues and grab dinner or drinks. It was so strange showing up and not being able to get in without someone letting me in, then hopping around from conversation to conversation while I was there, with no desk or seat that was mine.

It was great to see everyone I ran into and get caught up on some of the changes that had occurred. I was at once surprised at how little had changed yet how much had. It was so strange – the past six months I’ve been in an insane bubble away from much of the world and since I’d undergone intense changes, I sort of thought more would have happened at the company too. At the same time, some of the things that did transpire during that period were changes that could have meant major changes for what my role was.

How often and how frequently do you go back to visit your previous workplaces? I’ve found that I initially return every 6 months or so and it seems to taper off after 2 years, since by then many of the people I knew best move on and there becomes a weaker tie back to the company. I do have some good friendships that came of each place and I maintain loose ties with those friends as our paths find ways to crisscross in the future. In fact, one of my old colleagues who had left will now be moving to NorCal, not far from where I’ll be interning over the summer!

Funny how life works sometimes.

I hope that over the course of my career, I can maintain strong relationships with the people I worked with and maybe we can even work together again in another capacity. It’s always so nice to see them again and be able to get the group back together for some conversation. I don’t know when I can visit again, but I do hope it’s a few more times before life moves on and we disperse to more places.

Winter break

laelene Post in mba，Tags: family, holidays, home, school, student life, vacation, winter break

20 December 2016

Ah, inertia. Ever since Thanksgiving break, I’ve seen a noticeable decline in motivation in all my classmates. We sort of just didn’t want to get back into things after our first real break.

Now that we finally got through the rest of classes, finished up finals, and are on winter break, all I want to do is lounge around. I don’t want to check emails or read books as I thought I might have done. I don’t like watching TV, but for boredom’s sake I’d turn something on just to have it going in the background.

This is reminding me of the spring break I had once where I was one of the only people on campus and I basically watched a dance competition show nonstop. I completely messed up my sleep schedule that time, staying up until 7 or 8 am and sleeping through until 6 pm. At least this time I’m keeping somewhat normal hours, though I’ve lost all sense of what day it is.

I’ve only got two more weeks at home before leaving and I want to maximize my time doing nothing and hanging out with the cats. So that’s the plan.

My new iPhone 7 Plus

laelene Post in reviews，Tags: apple, iphone 7 plus, pictures, reviews, technology

08 December 2016

This was the first time I can remember not ordering my new iPhone as soon as it came out. I was far too busy with school to pay much attention to it, plus I knew that I wanted to leave AT&T but I wasn’t sure for which carrier. A few weeks into it being released, I went to Sprint and T-Mobile stores to try to understand their options for plans and purchasing a phone. I still wasn’t decided at that point and I just wanted an unlocked phone, but those weren’t being sold yet so I went back to waiting.

Upon receiving the internship offer from my top choice of companies (more on that another time), I decided to check the Apple Store online to see what was available. At that point, unlocked phones were available, so I treated myself to one… to be delivered a month later, between Nov. 22-30. -___-;

And so the wait began… until finally, I received my phone on the 22nd! I watched the updates as it shipped from China, made its way through Korea to Alaska, and took a break for the weekend. I thought it’d come straight down to California after that, but I shouldn’t have been surprised when it appeared in Louisville. Then it came over to California and eventually made its way onto a truck for delivery. It was so fresh from the factory when I got it that it still had a chemical smell. I immediately kept the box open to air it out so I could use the phone soon.

Somewhere along the way, I decided to purchase storage space on iCloud. I had not backed up my phone in months and I don’t want to risk losing anything. Plus, as the phone storage got larger, it started to become cumbersome for my computer to keep backups. So I opted for the 200 GB plan to ensure plenty of space for all my stuff. I then tried to back up my phone to iCloud so I could restore the backup for my new device, but it kept failing.

After many tries and nearly giving up, I finally went home where the internet speeds were a lot faster and completed the backup only to find that it was somehow incompatible with my new phone! At that point, it seemed like a sign to start my phone anew. So I downloaded only the key apps that I use and now my phone feels kind of empty. I’m using about half the space I was before, even with all my photos transferred over. I have nearly 100 GB to work with!!

With that, here are some pics of my brand new phone…

I got the 7 Plus for the dual camera, for that extra zoom capability!

So far I’m loving the much larger screen, though one-handed use is nearly impossible. That’s ok since I’m not a thumbs user. The home button that’s not a real button was weird when I first felt it in the store, but after having some sensitivity issues with my last phone, this actually feels great and is working well. I’ve tried my hand at 3D touch, but for the most part don’t remember to use it or some of the fancier response options that allow me to not have to jump between apps.

I’m enjoying some of the simpler updates, like how the screen turns on when I raise the phone, so I can check the time and recent notifications quickly. I also like being able to activate Siri without being plugged in and I hear that she recognizes my voice versus someone else who may try to use my phone.

Overall it’s less buggy than my phone was running before, which might partly be due to the newness and partly due to the fact that I didn’t restore it from that phone and carry over any legacy stuff. The battery life also works great, which I was having some trouble with on the last phone. It is rather slow to charge up though.

All in all, I’m always happy with a new phone and since getting it, we went out and got ourselves new phone plans too. I’m now on T-Mobile, which has decent service and is just as bad in the same areas as AT&T was (namely, parts of my apartment and the courtyard between buildings at school). I’m starting to consider whether I’ll move to an annual update with my phone at some point… 2 years is starting to feel long.

Prospurly September 2016 review

laelene Post in reviews, subscriptions，Tags: aromatherapy, bath soaks, boxes, cards, lip balms, lip scrubs, pictures, products, recipes, reviews, shea butters, skincare, subscriptions, sugars

04 December 2016

So much for getting caught up, eh? I can’t even believe it’s been this long and I have all these boxes to review. Let’s get to it then!

Prospurly recipe cards – These are simple little cards with room for ingredients on the front and directions on the back. I never had the habit of making recipe cards, but I might take some of my all-time favorite family dishes and write them down (though Chinese people don’t exactly use measurements when cooking — at least not my mom!).

Triple XXX newspaper and Vanilla Sugar – Lol, the newspaper is so weird that I don’t get it. It’s talking all about beavers and their oppression. While I know it’s being cheeky, I don’t see the connection with vanilla… anyway, I’ve never seen vanilla sugar before but I think it’s quite cool. What a great way to add extra flavor and sweetener without going crazy on the sugar. I think a little bit of this will add a good amount of fragrance. I don’t quite know what to use it for since I rarely use sugar. I guess next time I bake!

Native Nectar Stress Relief Therapeutic Oil – This is definitely a soothing scent. I think the ylang ylang combined with lemon really gives it a unique earthy yet slightly tart aroma. I like applying it to my wrists and inhaling.

LB Love Organics LipLove Orange Cream lip balm – I like having these types of light lip balms around for when I want to prevent chapped lips but not add any color. This one has been in my bag for school so I can apply it throughout the day. It’s very mild and hardly smells.

LB Love Organics vanilla mint lip scrub – This smells just like a peppermint patty! Delicious. It’s gently cooling on the lips and a great little ritual to treat my lips. Afterwards, I don’t even need lip balm since the oils from this can act in lieu of one.

Body Brewed Whipped Shea Butter in Sweet Orange + Clary Sage – What a nice thick whipped butter with a special scent. It’s also light on the fragrance so it’s not overpowering. This little tub is perfect for bringing on a trip when I need to be able to lotion my body and don’t want to bring a large bottle of lotion.

Native Nectar Sleepy Time Salt Soak – I’ve only bathed once since starting school and I don’t really have the opportunity to, but I hope to more when I go back to VA for the holidays. I have a growing pile of bath products to use, so I might not get to this one for a little while but it looks super cool!

I’m happy with everything that came in this box and I look forward to trying each of the items. What do you think of this month’s box?

Adobe Analytics Challenge 2016

laelene Post in mba，Tags: adobe analytics, analytics challenge, animals, arches national park, bunny, case competition, finalists, free stuff, headquarters, lehi, mba, moab, mountains, nature, offices, outdoors, pictures, prizes, swag, utah

21 November 2016

This weekend, I participated in the 15th Adobe Analytics Challenge. My team, DataInsights, was one of six finalists chosen to be flown out to Lehi, Utah (Adobe’s headquarters) and it was quite a ride! USC Marshall had two teams going and we all decided to extend our stay to enjoy Utah after the competition.

adobe analytics challenge XV homepage with six finalist teams

Check it out, we’re on the homepage!

This was my first case competition, so I have nothing to compare it to, but I must say that it would be hard to top. I mean, $50,000 worth of cash prizes, free trips to Utah, a fancy meal, all that swag, and a chance to check out Adobe’s headquarters? It was fabulous and I’m glad I was part of it. I hope to come back next year to support more Marshall teams that make it to the finals!!

view of snow covering salt lake city from airplane landing

I passed out during the plane ride and woke up to find snow covering the town.

view outside plane window when landing at salt lake city airport

Funny enough, as we got close to the airport, the snow was gone.

first glimpse at beautiful snowy mountains in utah

On our way to the hotel, we marveled at the mountains.

They got us suites, which was perfect for meeting in.

In the afternoon, we rested and cleaned up before dinner.

A shuttle bus drove us up to the Foundry Grill at Sundance.

meat and cheese appetizer at foundry grill sundance

When we arrived, Adobe staff and some appetizers awaited.

mac and cheese appetizer at foundry grill sundance

As we settled in, we chowed down on the appetizers before ordering.

The menu for the night!

It seems most people got the squash soup.

I opted for the salad.

Filet mignon was probably very popular too.

I wanted carrots, so I got the chicken.

One of the desserts was bread pudding.

The other option was chocolate cake with cherry flavors.

The decor in the place was very rustic.

The next day, we got to Adobe around 8 am.

The moon was still up!

adobe headquarters entrance with event signs

In the entrance, they had signs for the event.

Their open cafeteria area is so spacious and bright.

As we got breakfast, they set up the stage, complete with mics and down screens.

free swag for finalists at adobe analytics challenge

What a wonderful surprise to find at our seats!! I love the swag.

prizes for audience attendees of adobe analytics challenge

The audience got to win all sorts of cool things!

This is where we paced doing last-minute practicing for our lines.

Looking out the hallway, there was still an awesome view.

teams of finalists in the holding area practicing

We were the second to last team to go, so most of these folks went before us.

adobe analytics challenge finalists on screen

After all the presentations, the judges had time to deliberate and then we got ready for the announcement.

view from stage of adobe analytics challenge

All teams got on stage for the prize announcements and this was our view. My team came in 4th.

gorgeous view of mountains from adobe headquarters

After the event, we got to have lunch at the cafe and check out this amazing view.

Following lunch was a tour of random things like the indoor fire pit!

They’ve got a music room and signed guitars from artists who have played there.

interactive art in stairwell at adobe headquarters

As you go up the stairs, you can grab a ball that you can drop down a tube at the top.

funky top chair in adobe headquarters game room

In the game room, you’ll find these fun spin top chairs! You can fall backwards to roll completely around.

adobe headquarters nunchuck chair and gong

Ah, the nunchuck chair… you should ask about that story if you visit.

pretending to sit in nunchuck chair at adobe headquarters

I didn’t want to sit on it but I wanted to pretend!

The nunchucks had some cool dragon designs on them.

adobe headquarters spray paint art on wall

They commissioned a famous graffiti artist to do this. There’s a timelapse of it somewhere…

Before heading out, a final pose with Adobe!

That night, we drove down to Moab and immediately had dinner. This was funny way of holding a pot.

One of the guys made us steak, asparagus, shrimp, and zucchini!

I love that the men took over the kitchen as the women hung out at the dining table. Thanks guys!

I got a sweet bedroom all to myself.

fancy shower with lights and steam room function

The master bathroom had this insane shower with tons of showerheads, color-changing lighting, and a steam room function. Not to mention a sauna next to it and a hot tub outside. We used them all!!

The next morning, we saw our surroundings for the first time.

selfie with the truck from the movie cars

First order of business was lunch at a local cafe. Look what we found!

The outdoor seating area included this pond.

As we were leaving, the birds came to have some fun with the food.

Then it was off to Arches National Park!

beautiful red rocks in arches national park

Our first stop provided wonderful views.

Check out the snowy mountains in the background!

red rock formations at arches national park

Sometimes I feels like we’re in Arizona and other times the snow on the mountains feels like Colorado.

standing with arms outstretched with delicate arch in the background

When we find Delicate Arch, I put on my fancy dress.

standing with arms overhead with delicate arch in the background

Who did it best? Me?

standing with arms outstretched overhead with delicate arch in the background

Or him? 😉

jumping with delicate arch in background

I had to do a jumping shot too. Always.

making a manmade arch as person runs underneath

This human arch was great for running under.

planking across boulders to create manmade arch

Try planking it!

Every pit stop had something to look at.

Look at the glow from the canyon on its back as it eagerly awaited food.

What an amazing place!

arches national park rocks against blue sky

The sun was setting as we reached our final destination – Devils Garden.

walking on trails at arches national park

It was quite chilly without the sunlight.

doing bridge pose with arch in background

With a change of wardrobe, I decided to imitate the arch for this one!

I was instructed to twirl, so I did as best I could with no shoes on.

twirling with skirt poufing out and arch in background

It was a lot of fun as I got dizzy.

back view of dress at arches national park

My photographers were getting into their own and starting to instruct me on what to do for this final one.

tips of snowy mountains peeking between red rocks

Wow, check out the mountains behind the red rocks.

brown bunny eating grass at arches national park

Just before exiting, we saw this adorable bunny.

It even posed for us for a bit before hopping off.

That night, the ladies enjoyed the hot tub and came in to find dinner ready.

eagle decoration carved in stone tile of bathroom

I just loved this random detail in the hall bath.

Our last day, I woke up ill and pretty much slept most of the day away. I caught a picture of Adobe as we passed by on the way to the airport.

free swag for adobe analytics challenge finalists

And finally, here’s a look at what came in the bag! I looove the custom branded S’Well bottle and wall charger.

Shock and awe

laelene Post in general blog，Tags: election 2016, emotions, thoughts

10 November 2016

24 hours ago, I went to bed stunned. I really did believe that America would vote Hillary Clinton into office. Perhaps I was too naive.

It’s been a rollercoaster of thoughts and emotions in the ensuing hours. I’m pretty sure I went through all the stages of grief and then started all over again today. For a period, I also blocked out the memory and managed to forget. I’m still grappling with how exactly I feel and what I think. It’s pretty insane.

I know it’s not the end of the world, or even the country. But I do truly feel that we could be headed down a dark path. Based on what happened in the campaign, there’s a lot to worry about. Luckily the government has power spread out and things don’t generally move very fast. I’m hoping the more extreme ideas never come to fruition and I know we’ll be looking out for ways we can help ensure that’s the case.

At this point, I think it’s important to remain hopeful and to be strong with those who value humanity without labels that separate. There has been so much division and disagreement in the discourse. I can empathize that certain Americans have been unhappy. I do not pretend to understand their plight, but I would certainly be upset if I felt marginalized and ignored.

However, I wish that this election wasn’t the way for the disenfranchised to lash out. Will they really get what they want out of it? I’m doubtful… only time will tell. I personally could not ignore the consistent bullying and belittling. That is not the temperament and character of a president. I cannot respect a man like that.

I’ve seen a lot of people shocked, disappointed, upset, appalled, disgusted, and in disbelief. I am many of those things too, but at the same time, I have hope that the next couple of years will pan out in a more positive way than we expect in our fearful state. I know many will be working to secure a better future than we might foresee right now. I believe that’s what we’ll need.

For now, I’m taking a moment to mourn. There will be some tough roads ahead.

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