Tuesday, January 26, 2010

do soulmates exist?

I've always been introverted & quiet with poeple I'm not close to. I always wonder if people who don't know me well will label me as 'the awkward girl'. Because I find myself pretty awkward too. I was borned & raised this way. I didn't have to do much talking or be independent as my Mom was really protective of me & my brother. I'm grateful that she only wants what's best for her children & I'm definitely not blaming her or anything. It's just that the way I was brought up moulded my personality to be become what it is today. I don't consider myself anti-social since I DO talk to people at work and personal friends. If I have a choice and choose not to talk to anyone, it's just that I can't be bothered. I'm not the kind of person who is friendly and outgoing and extroverted. No, definitely not. If I behave that way, it's either that I've been drinking one too many, or I'm just not being me.

I don't have many friends who I can be myself with. I have a boyfriend of two years & counting who I can talk about anything within the solar system with. I have a close friend of nine years who is studying in Canada and we interact by email since our time zones are almost opposite so we can't skype. Plus, we're both busy with our individual lives. I have friends from secondary school who I rarely talk to. They do invite me to birthday parties & gatherings occasionally but I remember feeling left out in their conversations the last time. I know they make the effort to create a common topic for me but I can see that they're trying hard and it's not that they are genuinely interested in the topic. Like it's just for my sake. We sort of drifted apart because firstly, I'm the quiet sort so I don't initiate conversations or talk much, secondly, all of them studied in polytechnics while I studied hospitality at a private school, resulting in further lacking of common things to talk about.

I feel like I only have one friend, besides my boyfriend. The worst part is, she's so far away. :( I miss her, I really do. I'm always open to making new friends, though I'm quiet and introverted. I believe everyone needs friends. Genuine ones, definitely. Not hypocritical, good-weather friends. I have always been thinking to myself if I could find a new friend, or friends, who like me for who I really am & we have things in common. Such as, being introverted to unfamiliar people but actually open to making new friends, can be geeky but wild & open-minded at different times, likes going to bookstores, cooking, travelling, movies, stuff that I enjoy and him/her as well.

I have my boyfriend who's super duper nice to me and likes me for ME. Let me talk a bit about him. He's four years older than I am and was born and raised in Malaysia. He's Chinese like me & works as a sous chef at an alfresco restaurant/bar(great chill-out place!) near the beach. We met more than 2 years ago at the hotel where I was doing my internship at. I've met his family in Malaysia before and he, mine. We hang out whenever he has day offs. I work office hours on weekdays only so my schedule is fixed and I get weekends off. As for him, his schedule changes every week so we try as much as we can to meet up. Sometimes, weekends but more often, dinners on weekdays after I finish work. He's my boyfriend & best friend but soulmate? I'm not sure, yet.

It would be nice if we tried living together. It would be a huge step in our relationship because we will have the chance to take care of each other and get to know each other better. But, my parents are pretty conservative so I don't want to enrage them and my boyfriend's okay with that. He's really the best! So, I can't let him slip away. Haha!

In Singapore, couples usually get married before living together. That's the way it has been since decades ago and it still is. It's perfectly normal to stay with parents before marriage even if the child is thirty years old or more. Unless, he or she wants to move out on his or her own. I know girl friends in their twenties who are living with their boyfriends. When they moved out of their own homes, ALL of them got into fights with the parents because moving out and living with your other half before marriage is not socially acceptable yet.

I'm pretty happy with where I am at the moment and I should really take a shower + head to bed now. Good night.

Saturday, January 23, 2010

I hate my job

The only great thing about working presently is getting to know new people and the money. besides these, i hate my job! there is no enjoyment of life, perhaps except for the rare dinners with friends; fast-food takeouts in the office. Pfft. i don't care about them, i just don't want to turn into them. and my job is different from theirs, with the fixed hours which usually do not apply anyway. i don't even have time in the morning to make myself a simple, delectable breakfast to start off my day on a good note unless i wake before dawn. that's my crisis now!

my dream jobs are working at home, probably as a translator. or at a cosy bookstore cafe style so customers can enjoy say, coffee, tea, a fresh book, conversations with friends.. i want to wake up in the bright morning with ample time to wash up and make some breakfast, have it with a cup of tea. that's one of my simple ways of enjoying life. not so much about materialism.. but the simple, easily achieved things which most of us take for granted. waking up in the morning, able to travel around, buy a book or two occasionally, listen to music, eat delicious food. be content to be able to enjoy life's simple pleasures.

Wednesday, January 20, 2010

you don't know me, at all

I feel like I don't get along with people easily. I can't fit into cliques of any kind, be it bimbos, geeks, emo peeps, punks, bitchy type, artsy, ah bengs ah lians, sporty people. I'll probably be able to last a few conversations before I start to feel that I can't really be myself nor totally enjoy hanging out with them. So, it gets kinda lonely when I'm at home & feeling rather 'emo' at the same time. Ugh! Does anyone feel the same way I do?? I believe there are people like me who can't really fit into any groups. And with that, we form a group possibly called the Loners. That's pretty awesome because as I'm blogging I figured out I belong to a 'clique' called the Loners. So basically members of the group don't know each other but we are united by heart. Hahaha! What the heck am I blabbering about anyway..

Went shopping yesterday after work and bought a few pieces of clothing for going out, a few bottles of nail polish. Yay! Not completely content but good enough for now. After I get my pay I'll go shopping for Chinese New Year. Don't wanna let history repeat itself like what happened last year. Shopping for CNY clothing too last minute and ended up buying something I didn't really like very much. In the end, I only wore it once. What a waste of $$!!! :(

Saturday, January 16, 2010

Reviews

I bought some Paul & Joe skincare and makeup products about a month ago. The creamy facial cleanser, moisture lotion N, moisture cream, deep cleansing milk, and whitening serum. The first three products worked pretty well for my skin. The makeup products I bought were the eye concealer, pressed powder in 04 and nail polish in 05.

The deep cleansing milk is rich in texture but doesn't leave my skin feeling clean. I needed to wash my face for a longer time than when I used other makeup cleansers, such as previously - Laneige's Refreshing Cleansing Oil which helps to 'melt' makeup thoroughly and washes off easily. The whitening serum was a waste of money as it dried my skin. My cheeks, nose and lip area became flaky and skin was literally peeling off after a few days of usage.

The facial cleanser is not bad, can remove makeup thoroughly. The moisture lotion N is okay but I don't like the stickiness it left. The moisture cream is the best out of all the P&J skincare stuff I bought. I apply it every morning and night. It keeps my skin moisturised throughout the day as I work in an air-conditioned environment. And, when I wake up in the morning, my skin still feels moisturized. I like the light orange scent that can be found in all P&J skincare products. It's a natural scent as no artificial fragrances are added in. After I finish using them, the only product I will consider buying again will be the moisture cream.

The concealer is not bad but not the best I've tried. It conceals well but dries the skin it is in contact with. And since I work in an airconditioned office, it's definitely a con for me. The best I've tried is Yves Saint Laurent's touche eclat. I'm definitely going to buy it again! The pressed powder is average. I like the compact case very much cos it's so pretty and elegant. The nail polish colour is a light, dusty pink. The results are shiny nails but it takes a rather long time to dry completely. The surface may seem dry but if you accidentally scratch it after a few hours after application, you will notice that the underneath has not dried completely. So, you have to be careful with your nails the next few hours which is pretty inconvenient. Once again, the packaging is pretty.

Next, Laneige's Strawberry Peeling Pack and Eye & Lip Makeup Remover(waterproof). The peeling pack is not a peeling mask, instead it's an exfoliating scrub. I've only tried it once, didn't notice much difference. So, I'll review it at a later time after I use it more often. The latter works well, removing my waterproof eyeliner and mascara without a trace. Another good remover I've used before is Maybelline's. It works well for waterproof makeup as well. Simple's remover is not good as it tinges my eyes and doesn't remove waterproof makeup effectively.

Some masks I've recently tried are DHC's and ZA's eye masks, Silk Whitia pearl whitening and moisturizing masks, as well as Dr Wu's microinject whitening mask.

The ZA masks are actually pretty good for reducing dark eye circles. After only one use, I could see a difference in my undereyes. The DHC one has moisturizing effects, even better if you wore it overnight, as suggested in the instructions. It's not bad, does show the effect it promises. The only con for me is that I didn't feel comfortable having something stick under my eye the entire night so, I peeled the masks off in the middle of the night.

I read some good reviews on Silk Whitia masks on the internet so I decided to try them. I bought them at SaSa and they were on offer, so I bought 15 of them as they were packaged in fives. I ended up with 5 pearl finest powder whitening masks, 5 pearl finest powder moisturizing masks, and 5 mineral cation whitening masks. I've tried the first 2 types. The pearl whitening one doesn't show very obvious results. The moisturizing mask is good, works effectively.

Lastly, Dr Wu's whitening masks. Rather expensive. For 3 pcs per box, I can't remember exactly how much but it was between S$50-S$70. Does lighten the skin and you will be able to tell that the masks are of better quality than regular masks. When you open, there are three layers, two which protects the middle layer that is the mask. The mask is a super thin transparent layer that goes on your face like it is another layer of your skin. This way, the contact between your face and the mask is close and the essence can be absorbed well. That's what I like about it. Probably need to use it more regularly to see better results.

Talking about Dr Wu's products, I've been using the intensive repairing eye cream with botolift because I have fine lnes in the inner corners of my eyes. It's not working well for me as I've been using it for more than a month religiously and I don't see any improvements. I bought the eye cream for S$70. It comes in a small tube which is good for hygiene purposes. I think I need to get another eye cream for moisturizing since this one isn't moisturizing at all for my undereyes.

That's all of now. Thanks for reading! :)