diet-gasp!

1:15 PM

Leaving for Puerto Rico in 4 days!! I am so excited. Have been working out at the gym for the past few months, and for the first time in my life, I'm starting to diet. I have always been skinny, but have never been fit. Meaning, though I can fit into a size 24 jean, there are times where I will have to suck in my stomach to make them fit. 

I've been going to the gym about 5 times a week, and running just about 4-5 miles each time. At the suggestion of the boyfriend three weeks ago, after complaining to him for months about how I've been working out and not seeing any results, I've cut out rice and noodles for my diet. Being Asian, that's like 99% of my carb intake. My lunches and dinners now consist of fish, tofu and lots of greens. My dad makes the best watercress salads. For breakfast, I have a slice of wheat bread with peanut butter and jelly.

And the pounds have been dropping like water. I don't know why it took me so long to finally compromise on my diet. I thought it would be such a pain and I don't believe in building walls against temptation, but I haven't missed rice or noodles at all. On the weekends I will indulge on some rahmen or pho, but for the rest of the week I stick to my diet.

My girlfriend introduced me to Zico coconut water recently. It's delicious and helps me recover quickly from my work outs. I also find that when I drink before a workout, I tend to have more endurance while running or doing cardio kick boxing.

This is what keeps me going. Feeling sore and seeing results. Hopefully, I can wear my bikini on Friday and not feel like my gut is hanging out.


friday

3:12 PM
my brain is here right now.

ps. this is the rooftop of the lovers apartment in New York


thoughs; brand name schools

2:36 PM
been wasting away in this job for about 2 years now that i never loved to begin with but started out as an escape from the corporate world until i could figure out what I wanted to do. i think now is a good time as ever to finally start pursuing my dreams. no?

so i was doing research of potential employers and reading their company profiles. everyone came from oxford, stanford, yale, harvard, princeton or got their mba at insead.  it's quite intimidating, all these exec from all these brand name schools.

which begs the question, does the school breed the successful career person, or does the successful career person breed themselves, despite where they were schooled? my research-lite may suggest the former, for i haven't seen many executives who garnered for themselves a successful career originating from a no-name school.

does the average person have a fair chance at upper tier corporate success or do they need a big name to back them up? or is this sort of ambition an exclusive trait of alumni's of brand name schools? does the glass ceiling start at name of your alma mater?

There are a lot of factor that contribute's to an individual's success; family name, financial influence, collegiate affiliation, network, net worth, etc. But can a nobody become a somebody in this corporate world? Wouldn't that be the American Dream.

____

back to writing that cover letter.

bad writers

4:26 PM
bad writing is such a turn off. didactic writing is even worse. and a lot of the crap out there is horrible. the stuff in the best sellers list. most of it is crap. it's too bad that the average person isn't well-read enough to know the difference between good and bad writing.

but a discerning taste cannot be taught. it has to be acquired through reading and observation. one way to go about this is to read classics. like hemingway, or wilde, or dickenson. go into the classics section, learn about prose, learn about the magic of words that when juxtaposed just right can make you cry.

and if you don't know what i am talking about, it's because you haven't let yourself experienced it.

so go read. and let there be better writers in the world.

FOR SALE: David Yurman Blue Topaz Petite Albion Ring - Size 3.5

3:24 PM
To continue with this spring cleaning of mines, I am selling my blue topaz David Yurman ring. I still have the original receipts and ring bag that it comes in. The ring was originally at a size 5, but I had it resized to 3.5, which is pretty tiny.




Sterling silver blue topaz and pave diamond ring. 0.20 total carat weight. 7mm.

Retails for $590, I am selling for $299.

Paypal only.
Email me at seasonal.lust@gmail.com if serious.


anti kindle

11:45 PM

I purchase used books because I am anti-kindle and pro-recycle.
I welcome anyone who wants to send me a (used) copy of their favorite book.

jeux de fille

2:08 PM
the weekend was sensational. i will tell you all about it in pictures.









On Sale: LaROK Fringe Jersey Dress

4:07 PM


Worn once. Literally. Size XS. $50.

email me if serious. paypal only.
seasonal.lust@gmail.com

thank you!





Dreaming of Morocco

4:05 PM











spring

3:51 PM
Got a bit of Spring sent to my office last week. =)


the spectacle

3:49 PM

Juara Rice Face Wash Magic

12:58 PM
I've converted and found my default face wash. As you recall, I received this Juara Rice Facial Cleanser as part of my Beauty Cache sample from SkinCareRx. (Win your very own here!) Let me make it clear that I am not doing this by request of sponsors, but of my own will. I want to share this amazing product with you because the results have been amazing! I recently bought a full size of this product because I was so impressed with the sample that I received.

If you've used waterproof mascara, eyeliner and the likes, you know how hard it is to remove. Most face washes that do not remove waterproof make-up but only leave you with a nasty smeared residue after makes you feel like it's pretty ineffective, no? You'd think you need some heavy duty cleaning agent to get rid of this stuff! I thought that too but I was hesitant about using anything with heavy cleansing chemicals as they would be harsh on most skin types, including mines. So when this 100% vegetarian product arrived in my mailbox, I tried it with some skepticism, because most product that boasts being natural and such are usually weaker than their chemically enhanced counterparts.

But its not weak at all. It removed all my make up with minimal scrubbing needed. Not only that, but last night  in the middle of washing my face with this stuff, I had to open my eyes to get a hair out of my face, and was amazed to say there was no irritation! Nothing. No stinging, no red eye, no tears. I can't even say the same for my shampoos. You know those 'no-tear' baby shampoos? I've tried them, and they don't work!

Now you know why this product is a winner. It's strong and effective, yet oh so gentle on your skin and eyes. I can't help but love and rave about something that actually works!


Stefani Chung

12:40 PM




It was such a pleasure meeting this girl. Not only is she talented, but I think she's as beautiful person, if not more, as the images she creates. Everything is a form of self-expression and you can only create in the world what you already have inside of you. So if you look at Stefani's images, you see softness and light; grace and love.

Check out pictures from the shoot here.


Make Up GIVEAWAY~

1:35 PM



Dearest Readers, 

I've teamed up the SkinCareRx to give you a chance to get your hands on your very own Beauty Cache, on my new Fashion Fix Blog!

Step into Spring with a sleek bag filled with deluxe sample sized products from the top brands in skin care and beauty. The Beauty Caché allows you try a wide selection of customer favorites, as well as new technologies and the latest beauty must-haves.

To enter, all you have to do is:

1) Leave us a comment by Friday, May 14th, on the linked entry. Comments left on this current entry will be disregarded.
2)
 Tell us what kind of topics you'd like to read about on the Fashion Fix blog!
3) Your name and email address so we can contact you if you've won.

We will randomly select a winner and announce their name on Monday, May 17th!
*contestants must be US resident to enter, and at least 18 years of age.




the truth about words

4:48 PM
I had an intense conversation with a friend the other day about the nature of our our current friendships. And she said something that really struck me:

People change and words don't mean anything.

It's true. They can say whatever they want, they can write they love you as many times as they want but if you don't see it in tangible forms, than they're just empty words. 

I am starting to notice those who will only do things for others when they have something personal to gain from it. Otherwise, they would never go out of their way 'just because' for a friend.

So the ones that take the time to keep in touch, to call, to meet up, and keep you in their lives, rather than just push empty words at you, keep them around. Those are the real ones.

So the ones that matter. Make sure they know. Life's too short.
1:16 PM

Happiest Friday.
xoxo
SL



everyone's a slut in new york

3:21 PM
I was browsing through a friend's facebook pictures just now. A fresh New York transplant, his album was full of him posing next to a different chick in just about every picture. And having spoken to him a few times about his new fast paced life, he relayed that he was having a blast dating up there. One night stands abound, and he went through girls like [oh i don't know, insert some witty metaphoric here]. But the fact is this kid wasn't that attractive. Back in our hometown, he didn't pull any girls. He was lucky if one of them would go on a date with him and not call him just a friend. So how do you explain this deluge of girls in his life now? Did New York make him savvier, more confident, less of a doormat?

I grew up in a fairly suburban area. We have mass transit, we have a dense population, but not as dense compared to New York. Probably a midget compared to the amount of people you can stack on top of one another in a 100 square foot radius that is a New York apartment. It's small enough that everyone knows everyone in my social sphere and a little ways beyond. The plus side is you always run into someone you know and you know all the faces you will run into. The downside(size) is you end up sharing (and sometimes fighting over) the same love interests. And after a few years, the social circle starts to resemble Melrose Place, where everyone has slept with everyone else. It all gets a little incestuous. But that is the result of living in a smaller population. The rat-race isn't as prevalent, thus friends tend to get married and settle down much earlier than their counterpart in the Big Apple. It's not for a lack of ambition but a disparity in priorities. Those who usually seek out life in the city or still live there tend to have other goals than starting a family ripe out of college.

One major trait about small towns that I like is there is a clear hierarchy of hotness, whether verbally acknowledge or not, it is pretty well known who the 'hot girl/guy(s)' is in the area, since everyone knows everyone, the dating pool is small to begin with. You get to know pretty quickly who these people are once you hit the dating scene. The hot girl/guy gains notoriety pretty quickly, especially if she/he goes out weekly. Theres only a handful of clubs in my area (Washington, DC) where people will flood to on any given weekend, that its not hard to find yourself in live cesspool of your own dating history, all in one room.

Then we move to New York, and the population is ridiculously vast. So much so that to meet a random stranger twice would be near impossible, let alone meeting the same cab driver twice in your life time. Take out the familiar comfort of a tight-knit social circle, of everyone knowing everyone's story, of having friends that you've grown up with since grade school. This pretty much makes it impossible to establish a hierarchy. The playing field, simply due to the fact of sheer population, is leveled out. It's like shooting fish in a barrel. You will eventually hit one, sooner than later, and no matter where you are on the superficial standard scale. Obviously, there will still be girls and boys who will turn your head, but unlike in a small town, there will be more of them. Hundreds more. That at least a few of them, equipped with low self-esteem or a less superficial standard, will go for someone much lower on the hotness scale.  Basically, your chances of dating greatly increases. It's not even a question of chance anymore. It is a guarantee.

You can date a model in New York. And this is by no means an exaggeration. It may not be a big time model, but there are a hell of a lot of models in New York. And they all need love too, especially in this lonely, isolated city of so many lost souls.

And the anonymity is one major pro of a big city. You can pretty much have x-amounts of one-night stands until you can't walk anymore, and no one would know. The freedom that comes from living such a large city is scary. So many jump right in, head first. I find this very disturbing.

Having come from a small town; I find it hard to meet those in the Big Apple who still have hold some resemblance of standards--who are aware of how easy it is to be easy, still refrain and keep their ideals close to their heart and are not tempted to take a bite.

In New York, sluts are everywhere. Standards is considered a rare species.

image

still good people out there

7:40 PM
Remember how I lost 1 of my 2 cameras my first night at Coachella? I had left it in the grass around the food area that night and mindlessly walked away from it. After checking the lost and found all three days of the festival, and with no avail, I left Coachella feeling a bit bitter. That bastard that has my camera better get his karma's worth.


Weeks past. And then Coachella posted up a visual database of their unclaimed lost and found items online. I searched and my camera was no where to be found. Until I read the description at the top of the page. They had posted messages of people who found things at the festival but failed to turn it in to L&F. There was only one message.

It was from a man named Russ Daggatt:

-------- Original Message ---------------------------------------------
Subject: FOUND camera
From: "Russ Daggatt" 
Date: Tue, April 27, 2010 10:42 am
To: 

On Friday night at Coachella, I found a Canon PowerShot SD 1200 IS camera among some trash on the ground.  I will return it to the owner if he/she can correctly identify his/her:

sex
ethnicity
university
home state
location of distinguishing tattoo

The pictures on the camera make these things reasonably clear.  I would be glad to get it back to its owner.

-------------------------

The last item about "distinguishing tattoo" sparked my hopes. I contacted Russ immediately with my answers, and it turned out he did have my camera. Russ was at Coachella with his wife and had stumbled upon my camera.   A week later, my camera was back in my hands and my pictures (more valuable than the camera) from our first night at Coachella were saved.



So thank you humanity, and thank you Russ Daggatt for restoring my faith in mankind.




look for less; Ronny Kobo floral print dress

7:18 PM
The original:
Ronny Kobo dress $176 at shopbop


The steal:
Ruched Rose dress $80 at Nasty Gal