Posts Tagged ‘pictures’

On My Mind – the debut!

laelene Posted in on my mind，Tags: , , , , , , ,
28 March 2013
7

(Linking up with Jennifer of Ramblings of a Suburban Mom for Thursday Thoughts)

Ok, so I’ve really been enjoying the updates from Jen at Ramblings of a Suburban Mom and I particularly like how she shares her thoughts and what’s going on in her life – most of which we readers/followers can certainly relate to! I often have a ton of random thoughts that I like to share as well, so I’m adapting a version of her “Monday Morning Ramblings” + “Tuesday Troubles” + “So What Wednesdays” + “What I’m Loving Wednesdays” + “Thursday Thoughts” + “Friday iPhone Dump” + “Saturday Smiles.”

I’m going to roll them all into one post every now and then, highlighting what’s been going on and what’s on my mind. And so, I’m dubbing it “On My Mind,” though it will likely include any snippet from my life that I want to share! Call it a “mind dump” if you will. 😛 I’ll try to make it all easy-to-digest bullet points and include some pictures/videos to help illustrate some of the points. So here we go!

firehouse sub sandwich with pickle slice~As I was going through the TSA checkpoint earlier this week, the guy manning the x-ray machine asked who brought the sub sandwich. I had a brief second of “oh no they’re going to confiscate it!” before bracing myself and cheerfully saying, “It’s mine!” He then asked, “Oh and you got a pickle with it too?” He seemed pleased when I was surprised that he could tell there was a pickle slice on the side. Random, but it made me smile.

~When I boarded the plane, I saw a guy mounting his GoPro on the window so he could capture our flight. I can see him doing some sort of time lapse with that footage. I wonder what the end result looks like!

~Why do I always get the wing seats?? I hate having the wings obstructing my view of everything below, but those seem to be the only window seats open whenever I book a flight. I need to travel more and rack up mileage so I can get in front of the wing!

~There were 4 boxes waiting for me when I arrived home and 3 of them were things I had gotten for free! Pretty exciting. Two of those were from winning giveaways and the other was from writing 100+ reviews on Gogobot.

naturopathica holistic health skin care regimen kit for normal to oil skin

Box 1: Naturopathica Skin Care Regimen Kit

naturopathica oat facial polish, rosemary oil-reducing moisturizer, aloe cleansing gel, and plant stem cell serum

Inside the box: Oat Facial Polish, Rosemary Oil-Reducing Moisturizer, Aloe Cleansing Gel, & Plant Stem Cell Serum.

gogobot box of swag with (headphones, bottle opener keychain, t-shirt, and fancy toiletry bag

Box 2: Gogobot swag (headphones, bottle opener keychain, t-shirt, & fancy toiletry bag).

ko denmark jasmine neroli rose body wash

Box 3 had the body wash I’d won from Nuts 4 Stuff!

~That 4th box was a Blissmo box I’d ordered and I attempted to do an unboxing video today. Verdict: I’m not good at it & it’s not worth the effort! I’ll still to pictures for now.

~I was invited to my first survey to qualify for a VoxBox from Influenster! I was sad when I first joined because my score was a lowly 30 and didn’t budge after I completed a bunch of activities. Turns out it just takes their system time to register the new activity and my score jumped to 89! Hopefully I qualify for this mystery box… I’d love to review something like that.

~I’ve been entering a lot of sweepstakes & giveaways and I noticed something funny in many of the Official Rules – if the contest is open to Canadian residents, they require a competency test involving some basic arithmetic… why in the world?!

(click to enlarge) sweepstakes official rules requiring canadians to pass arithmetic test

365great Day 13: notebooks

laelene Posted in 365great，Tags: , , , ,
27 March 2013
1

Learn more about 365great here.

365great challenge day 13: notebooksI seriously don’t know what I’d do without them. I mean, I even named my blog after one! I love small notebooks in particular, with super cute designs that make me smile. But, for the sake of practicality I tend to use the single-color Mead ones, since they have plenty of sheets and each is perforated so I can tear them out when I’m done. Recently, I found an excellent one that gave me both aesthetic joy and functionality! I love the cute little owls and I love that it’s a fatty notebook with tons of pages that I can tear out as needed.

I always carry these types of notebooks around with me, to help capture all the ideas and inspiration I come across daily. For me, they’re an indispensable part of my life, helping me keep track of all that goes on between these ears. Plus, they are so satisfying to use because I love the feeling of putting pen to paper. Whether it’s jotting down bullet points of things I want to remember or sketching out my brainstorms of how something should be designed, it’s a medium that allows me to do whatever I need. I can even fold it into shapes if I want! Such versatility and usefulness is what makes notebooks great.

This little piggie… (canine edition)

laelene Posted in photo blog，Tags: , , , , , , ,
27 March 2013
0
small black dog standing up in shopping cart at market

This tiny doggie went shopping.

white fluffy dog laying on floor at bookstore

This medium doggie guarded the bookstore.

giant black dog standing by outdoor table at restaurant

This giant doggie slobbered everywhere.

brown dog napping on floor at conference booth

This little doggie took a break.

big black dog resting head on person's lap

And this big doggie stayed home!

365great Day 12: Coursera

laelene Posted in 365great，Tags: , , , , , ,
26 March 2013
1

Learn more about 365great here.

365great challenge day 12: courseraI only found out about Coursera a few months ago and I eagerly signed up for every class that caught my interest (nearly all of them related to business and/or psychology). This site offers an excellent selection of online courses from quality professors at prestigious universities around the world – all for free! There’s no limit to how many students can take the course, since professors use automated grading and peer grading to help with the assessment and aren’t limited by their own (ok maybe more like their TAs’) time. Talk about opening up higher education to the masses and making it easily accessible!

In January, I started my very first class, diligently listening to lectures, taking quizzes, completing projects, doing peer grading, and otherwise taking the class like a good student. As it was wrapping up, two other classes started up and I discovered a third I was interested in. Suddenly, I was overwhelmed with everything I had taken on and couldn’t keep up with the workload.

Luckily, that’s what’s great about Coursera (and other platforms for massive open online courses – MOOCs): you take the class at your own commitment level. Each of my professors in these classes has reiterated that it’s totally fine to just audit the class, throw yourself into all the assignments, or something in between. It’s your choice how involved you want to be and how much you want to take from each course. In the end, more effort means you get a certification that you completed the course and extra effort means you can get certification of completion with honors.

So, I’ve stepped back and evaluated what I can manage for each class and will focus my efforts accordingly. It’s such a wonderful way to enrich yourself just because you’re interested in certain topics. Ultimately, you’ll grow as an individual and it might help you with your professional skills as well. Plus, there’s plenty of opportunity to interact with thousands of students around the world to learn from them. Coursera is what you make of it and it opens up quality educational opportunities to thousands. There are so many things that make it great!

365great Day 11: snow

laelene Posted in 365great，Tags: , , , , ,
25 March 2013
1

Learn more about 365great here.

365great challenge day 11: snowYet again, as we were hoping for signs of spring, nature decided to take its own course and lightly blanket us with snow this morning. And even though many people are complaining and griping about this endless chill, I think there’s always a beauty to snow. There’s something truly wonderful about those light, fluffy flakes floating down and slowly layering until all you see is a landscape of white. In just an hour or two, your world can turn from tones of brown and green to bright, bright white! I love looking out the window to suddenly find my neighborhood transformed. It’s magical.

I wish that more people took a moment to sit in awe of the beauty in front of them, even as they have to get up in the cold and trudge off to work after digging their cars out of the drifts. I think all children do as they trot off to school! Everyone should retain that sense of wonder and wide-eyed enthusiasm. Snow is such a cool phenomenon and it makes an excellent & versatile playtoy. So while the plants have shown the first signs of spring and everyone is tired of the cold, don’t let it diminish the experience of snow. The way that it can alter our landscape and be so much fun to play in is what makes snow great to me!

365great Day 10: aromatherapy

laelene Posted in 365great，Tags: , , , , , ,
24 March 2013
3

Learn more about 365great here.

365great challenge day 10: aromatherapySmells are a powerful way to evoke emotions and memories. Lately, I’ve found myself using this sense a lot more, what with burning candles and spraying mists to enhance my mood or try to induce a different one. Even just the act of lighting the candle or spraying the mist has allowed me to intentionally set what I wanted to do and how I wanted to feel. Whether you want to relax with a calming scent, energize with a revitalizing scent, arouse with a warm scent, drift off to sleep with a soothing scent, or even feel more empowered with a vibrant scent, you can find something for just about every emotion-enhancing need.

Some of the products I’ve explored are the energy shifting sprays by hellomellow, the aromatherapy candle by Bath & Body Works, the eye pillow by Herbal Animals, and the energy mists by Lotus Wei. Through spraying my pillow and my face, lighting up a candle, and covering my eyes with the herbal pillow, these products have helped me reach better moods whenever I’ve felt frazzled or down. I’ve especially enjoyed these mini rituals that allow me to take care of myself .

Wurstkuche delight

laelene Posted in photo blog，Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
24 March 2013
0

Here’s a place that I enjoy going to whenever I get a chance. I love their sausages and their sauerkraut!

bratwurst with sauerkraut at wurstkuche

I looove burying my sausages in sauerkraut.

vegetarian italian sausage with sauerkraut at wurstkuche

Don’t be fooled, this is a different sausage but same topping.

duck & bacon sausage with onions and sweet peppers at wurstkuche

Panda opted for a more exotic flavor.

cone of belgian fries at wurstkuche

The Belgian fries make a nice complement to the sausages.

wurstkuche meal consisting of four sausages and belgian fries

A typical meal involves about two sausages per person and some fries.

365great Day 9: touchscreen gloves

laelene Posted in 365great，Tags: , , , , , ,
23 March 2013
1

Learn more about 365great here.

Or more accurately, touchscreen compatible gloves. These are awesome because you can keep them on when you need to use your smartphone or tablet. There’s a ton of variety in the style of gloves that come with these special fingertips, from knit ones to more weatherproof ones. Whether you prefer funky ones like mine or more professional ones, these can be a freezing-finger-saver!

365great challenge day 9: touchscreen glovesTouchscreen-capable gloves often use a special type of conductive thread to imitate to conductivity of our skin. It’s a simple and elegant solution that is excellent for anyone who has to be out in chilly weather. I love that it helps solve an uncomfortable (and sometimes painful) situation. What a practical and fun way to solve a pretty common problem! That’s why they’re great.

365great Day 8: cats

laelene Posted in 365great，Tags: , , ,
22 March 2013
2

Learn more about 365great here.

365great challenge day 8: cats

Totally endearing.

I am a huge fan of animals in general, but cats have a special place in my heart. Ever since I was a little girl, I’d wanted a cat. I liked that they don’t require the incessant attention that most dogs do, that they were generally a certain size (just cuddly enough yet not too heavy to carry around), and that they don’t smell (to me, anyway). Once my parents finally gave in and we adopted cats, I learned of how extraordinary their personalities are. I had a lot of fun playing with my cats, even the ones that were a bit more stand-offish. Sometimes it was enough just to watch them. If you’ve ever seen them speed around a corner, jump over fences, or any other number of athletic and acrobatic acts, perhaps you understand the majestic way they tend to do things.

I think cats are often misunderstood by all those “other” animals-lovers out there who claim they don’t like cats. Just give these creatures a chance and even the infuriatingly senile manage to find a way into your heart. I’ve had cats that were so loving that I always had emotional support and I’ve had cats that were sometimes borderline neurotic (and sometimes full-fledged crazy). Still, each one is brilliantly unique and their strong personalities make for some great times and stories. I think their quirks are just what make them awesome; taking the time to discover what makes them tick allows for some very deep bonds to form. Plus, they’re (usually) such graceful creatures with an air about them that is awe-inspiring. No wonder they were worshipped in many cultures. An animal that can command respect like that is pretty great.

365great Day 7: Girl Scout Cookies

laelene Posted in 365great，Tags: , , , , , , , , ,
21 March 2013
1

Learn more about 365great here.

365great challenge day 7: girl scout cookiesYou’re probably munching on some right now, aren’t you? These cookies are not only delicious and an anticipated annual treat, they help teach girls some basic business skills. It takes a certain amount of planning, strategizing, and selling skills to successfully sell these cookies, even if they already have a fan following. It’s a great way to get young girls to start thinking about the types of skills they’ll need to do well in the workforce and at home. It’s often a benefit that is overlooked, but the teamwork, goal-setting, budgeting, time management, overcoming fear, gaining confidence, and acquisition of other skills are great for any situation.

Then of course, there are the cookies themselves. I don’t know what they put in these things to make them so delicious and addicting, but paired with the cute scouts eagerly trying to sell you a box, how can you say no? I always end up getting at least a box or two, if not a dozen (or two). After all, they’re only available once a year, so if you want them to last, you’re going to need to stock up. My personal favorites are Samoas, but this year I opted to try something new in the Thank You Berry Munch flavor – very tasty too! I do miss the All Abouts, which they discontinued awhile back. I guess you could always dip Trefoils in chocolate to get the same effect. Between the delicious cookies and the lifelong skills they’re teaching girls, don’t you think Girl Scout Cookies are pretty great too?

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