Rambling out of boredom...

I've been too busy lately and nursing some injuries. Instead of whining about my mauled ankle, I just took a break.

I'm stuck in a Southern city for work and during "Snowmageddon 2010" I learned that they have NO clue how to treat a sidewalk or shovel. Walking to work a few weeks ago, I slipped and sprained my ankle, which has kept me from wandering about too much, so I've been reading a lot.

I'm almost done w/ Sense & Sensibility & Sea Monsters. I've been taking it to work with me in hopes of finishing it before Dawn of the Dreadfuls comes out at the beginning of March. Quirk Classics was giving copies to bloggers, asking to have the reviews posted the first week of March. I don't have much time to devote to reading, so I held off. I did score a copy of Queen Victoria Zombie Hunter for $3. It's not done by Quirk, so I'll have to see how it is. I love what Quirk is doing with the public domain classics. I could never get through these books before and now I can put them down. Zombies & Sea Monsters make it so much better!

Yesterday, I decided to hobble out and check out the Pet Expo here. It was in a large exibition space in a part of town that isn't so hot. It's not bad, but the building is run down and normally hosts gun shows and MMA tournaments. The place was packed! I got to play with puppies, got a free cookie & got a cupcake necklace.

After the Pet Expo, I checked out one of the antique "malls" down the street. It was in an old strip center in a former grocery store. I was warned it was so-so and they weren't kidding. Most of the vendors charged WAY too much. "Oh, but this is an antique!" The same stuff at a flea market would be more accurately labeled as "junk." I found a cute hat, but it had a pretty big hole, that I could have repaired or covered, but for $70, it wasn't worth it. I left empty handed and went home.

Snow & make up...

Snow is still coming down here. At last measurement, it was 10 inches.

I got the pin curls to work! It looked scary when I first took them down and brushed it out. I tried taming it, but it was crazy. After putting a hat on so I could run to my car, it was a little better.

I decided to play with the new make-up I picked up at Walgreens & CVS. They're having massive clearance sales. CVS has some hair accessories for 90% off. I got a dark pink, leopard headband for 60 cents. For years I've only used MAC. Do to finances, I decided to try some of the less expensive brands again:

Maybelline eye duo - Irish Mist 60
- not as smooth as what I'm used to. Looks & feels chalky to me. Staying power is OK

Cover Girl Outlast - Ever Red-dy 507
- I like the color, but it doesn't last very long. When I wear MAC's long wear lip color, I can wipe my mouth and it doesn't come off. This comes off if I have a sip of water and dab my mouth with a napkin. I'll be replacing it on my next visit to MAC with their red that is similar.

Max Factor Lipfinity #140 Charming

- I got it b/c it was a lighter, rosier color than the berry or red shades I have. Staying power is good, but it feels awful on. The color looks different on than in the tube. A bit lighter. Maybe it's just my skin tone (or lack there of).

Black & White Bleaching Cream w/ Hydroquinone

- I've only been using this for a week, but I have noticed that my "splotches" have faded. It's inexpensive and a little seems to go a long way. If I use too much, I do notice that my skin doesn't feel soft, almost like there is a film on it. It's not bad though. Once you moisturize, it will feel fine.

Ambi Fade cream

- I was using this before the Black & White. It wasn't bad at all and did fade the splotches a little, but it seemed to give up after a few weeks. It seemed to soak into the skin a little better.

Snow & pin curls...

I'm in Virginia for work reasons and it's actually snowing. This city is shut down. From what I've been told, it will shut down for 1" to 3," so this must seem like the Apocalypse. It was supposed to start last night, but didn't start until after 4AM.

It's funny to see how they act down here. This is a pretty heavy storm, so I'll give them that. In PA, we do the mad rush to the store, but not the gas station. We also don't call out of work for a storm that won't hit until the next day. I had to get gas yesterday and it was insane. I drove past a grocery store and it wasn't just busy...you would have thought they were giving away free food.

Needless to say, the friend that was going to take me to the local antique stores cancelled. From what I'm seeing, they wouldn't be open anyway.

I've seen a few cars drive by and none of them had cleaned the snow off. This is a pet peeve of mine. I don't know if people just don't know why to do it or they think it's pretty, but I hate driving behind these people especially when it breaks loose and slams into my car. It's dangerous. It's not that hard people. Clean off your cars.

Since everything is closed here, I'm playing w/ my hair. My hair is straight...so straight that it will not hold a curl. I've tried pin curls before and it doesn't happen. I was reading some posts in a forum I lurk in and am trying one of their recommendations. I put it up last night and haven't taken it down yet. All but one twisty-curl I set last night stayed put. I have one in the back that escaped, so it looks like a twirly rat tail.

Back to watching Operation Petticoat. :)