Brazilian Blow-Outs

Nicole Richie's naturally shiny straight hair's secret was featured in the latest edition of Marie Claire Indonesia. It made my heart thumped as it tricked me into thinking that this latest fashion woo is already available in Indonesia! But it's not!! It's just an article, it doesn't say whether the service is available in any hair salons.. *sniffs*

What is a Brazilian blow-out you say? It's a new invention by the Gods of hairstyles, it's like hair-smoothing only way better, with Keratin as active in ingredients, the cream is supposedly locked into each hair to make it naturally smooth and shiny and straight, as if you were born with that kind of hair! A Godsend for each and everyone of us who has frizzy dry damaged hair. And it doesn't create super-straight with sticky ends like if you get a hair re-bonding or hair smoothing. It looks very natural.. (watched it on Indovision's Style Networks)

Supposedly it costs about USD 400 per treatment in the U.S. (only lasts 4-6 weeks compared to 4-6 months for hair smoothing) and it's not yet available anywhere else. But cocoperez.com published an article called "Brazilian blow-outs on a budget", meaning hair products companies are trying to come out with similar treatment products, only on a much smaller budget. Let's just cross our fingers...

It's Time for a Change

For weeks I've been trying to lose the World Cup weight and obviously did not succeed, otherwise I wouldn't have written this entry ha ha..

I'm that kind of person. When I'm highly motivated I would run/jog at least 3x a week, and eat less, when I'm so-so motivated, I wouldn't excercise a lot and just hope to lose weight by not snacking so much.

But I've decided to pick up on working-out, I don't have to be constantly on the treadmill machine which is Oh-sO-Boring! , I'll maybe try the couch-potato work-out like suggested in prevention.com, and treadmill jogs when I feel like it.

I've always hated going on the scale after a week of working out because I always gain weight! Now I have to remind myself it's the muscle building up and that's a good thing. Because after looking at the scale I usually get depressed and stop working-out alltogether. Or better yet, maybe I shouldn't get on the scale at all... But that can also be dangerous at times..

Anywhoooooo work-out, diet, work-out, diet! Yeah!
Sent from AguMa's BB

gmarket.com.sg

New addiction *sniffs*

My shopaholic nature came crawling out, after my sister who lives in Singapore introduces me to this website that sells A LOT of things that I would want to buy, in a discounted price! (of a price that's already cheaper than if I buy them in Jakarta)

Good thing the website is in Singapore, so I can only buy things when I know my sister is coming home for vacation. And she is, next month, and so I'm going to order 5 kind of benefit cosmetics, and skin 79 BB Cream. Did I mention CHEAP?

They sell the BB Cream at around SGD 9.90 only, in Indonesia - if available - it would be at least 2x more expensive, sometimes 3x.

As for benefit cosmetics, nope it's not yet available in Indo, but the ones in gmarket are already cheaper than in its original country the US. Incredible!

I don't know how they do it, but kudos the seller! I love you guys muaachhh

Oh Crap

I'm really really really really reaaalllyyyy forgetting my Japanese..

1. About 2 weeks ago my dad had some japanese customers visiting, and he brought me along as usually, for his own vain need. He kept pushing me, tell this story to them in japanese, say this and that to them in Japanese, and not that I didn't want to, but I went blank didn't know how to even start the sentence..

2. Last week I met an old friend of my sister who used to live in Japan, but she hasn't been in Japan for more years than me, and she spoke to me in a high-speed japanese, and my brain just froze.

3. I came across old emails between me and my former-employer Mrs Aoyama in Frankfurt, and our professor Woldering, I read them and I had to copy-paste a lot of kanji into the dictionary, and was amazed I could even wrote such emails to them that time..

Oh My God.

Band of Brothers : my heroes

As some people must have noticed, I have this little thing (called fascination) about the World War II. I've watched a lot of movies surrounding the WWII era, most of them the European theatre, and loved them and touched by them. The Pianist, the Black Book (dutch), the Schindler's List, Saving Private Ryan, the Inglorious Basterds, they're among my favorites and beat most other war movies in Vietnam, or the middle east. It's just so much emotion in WWII movies.

Anyhow, above all those movies, my absolute favorite is definitely the HBO mini series "Band of Brothers", which follows a company of paratroopers, the story of each of the main soldier is just so intense and personal that everybody just has to fall in love with it. It's rated 9.4 in imdb.com I think.

It's a bit late to be obsessed by this, since the mini-series already came out since 2002, and I have to admit I watched this after Pacific came out. Pacific was good, but after watching BoB, it doesn't even come close.

So obsessed I am, I started reading a thick biography of the BoB's E company commander, Major Dick Winters -portrayed by brit actor Damien Lewis, the funny detective from TV series Life -, who is probably the most awesome leader whose story I have ever read. Then I finished reading Sgt. Don Malarkey's -played by Scott Grimes, very well imo- biography as well, so heartbreaking it made my eyes teary a couple of time, how he lost his bestfriend ever in the war and how he came to terms with that. And now I have another Dick Winters' bio, in a different perspective ready to be 'jumped'.

And now I'm starting to panic because when I'm done with this book, I don't have anything else in terms of BoB. It's not easy to find these kinds of book in Indo, I had to order them from Amazon when a friend of mine was going to the US and asked her to bring them home for me. And after this what do I do? Good thing I found the original Band of Brothers by Stephen Ambrose on the kinokuniya bookweb Singapore, I'm gonna make sure my sister pick that up for me.

Now with some time to kill, bf and I started watching a new HBO miniseries "Generation Kill", also true stories following the marines in Kuwait and around. Watching this one, all that come to my head is, what a boring war, not worth fighting, not bloody, what a big joke with the marines catfighting racially with each other, about them being pissed cuz little kids called them Army instead of Marines (duh not many civillians know the difference), about how they pampered questions to their ranking Lieutenant asking if it's true that J.Lo's dead. WHO THE FUCK cares?? How NOT band of brothers they are, even though they're on the same platoon! And what would Winters or Malarkey think if they see this series. Seriously. What a joke, what a disappointment. (I think I'd rather go to sleep soon)

I think I set my level too high, it's gonna be hard to like other war movies from now on. I don't think anything can top BoB (sigh).
Sent from AguMa's BB

Down the memory lane..

Should I feel sad and jealous after I friended a long time friend on Facebook and see that she's now living in Berlin, bartending. What a crazy happy life she seems to have, and not bored and stuck back home in Indo doing boring job from 9 to 5?

I should right? Because I like adventures, I like living abroad, I like having the freedom to do anything. But I shouldn't either, because the last time I remember, I was also bored outta my life in Germany. I mean life was good and fun, but all those, don't mean a thing when I didn't have any purpose. I was just simply living a free life, and I was bored. Having fun, but bored inside. Gettit? (I don't)

Like always, I just ramble and ramble, analyzing too much, I don't know what I want. The idea of settling down is not so bad when I rethink about it..
Sent from AguMa's BB

A plan for Saturday

I'm still up because I just cannot fall asleep, trying to make a good plan for this Saturday. What is it you ask? My birthday. Not that I was always excited about my own birthday like some people, I'm actually very not excited, because it's just a reminder that I'm well near the big 3!

But anyway, it just so happens on a Saturday, so I've no excuse not to throw out a party. Well unlike in western countries, the birthday girl actually has to treat her friends for dinner drinks whatever boo hoo! But it's ok, this year I've received my advanced gift from my dad to cover those expenses hurrah!

I'm considering 2 restaurants: A has better food, B has better atmosphere. Which to choose?

Also, this would be a farewell to a good boy - friend, not bf mind you, as he will be leaving the country the next day, so I want something more special.

As for the after party, I'm planning to treat myself to a sexy dancer show. Hope my good bf can arrange that for me :-)
Sent from AguMa's BB