Spontaneous Saturday: My Blogger Nightmare

I just had the worst dream ever that was related to blogging. My dreams are really kooky and do not make sense, so bear with me. 

Dream start: 

I dreamed I was going to some type of beauty blogger convention. The convention had a ton of different seminars and such, and I wanted to go to a few. The problem was they were run by all of my current friends and past friends and for some reason they all HATED me. I kept asking them " What did I do wrong?". and they all just ignored me and blew me off. I had no idea why they hated me? 

Then it turns out that one of my closest blogger friends was hosting one of the seminars, and she invited me. I went into this room, and it wasn't like a typical meeting space. The space was huge it was around the size of an Wal-Mart but empty. The room didn't have rows of chairs like a normal meeting space, instead  the entire room was outlined with giant booth. There were probably like 500+ people there. 

The first thing I did was spot my friend who invited me, and she was really rude to me. She pretended she didn't know me, and laughed in my face. The seminar thing started, and we all were supposed to introduce ourselves and talk about our blogs. When it was my turn, maybe 20 people were seated listening, and all the other 400 or so people were fooling around, talking,  and some girls were fighting. As I started talking about my blog everyone was being so loud that 20 people listening couldn't hear me. I kept screaming at people to be quiet, but they all just laughed at me or booed me. My friend who invited me booed me. I was furious! When I was done speaking I wanted to try to find my friend and give her a piece of my mind, but I couldn't find her. When I asked around looking for her everyone just looked at me in laughed or told me to get away from them. Then I woke up... 

Dream end:

I really do believe emotions and actions and dreams do reveal a lot about feelings we are dealing with in the waking life. When I looked up the rejection in regards to dreams it said something along the lines of me lacking self worth. It also suggested that I might be lacking assertiveness and being overly accommodating to people. 

The latter line struck a cord with me on why I probably had this dream. I've been dealing with for the past month a swapping situation where I believe I have been swaplifted. Unlike, other people who just ignore you after awhile this person is stringing me along with excuses and admittedly has lied to me. They have also done something passive aggressive too. In turn, I have probably been overly accommodating  sympathetic, and allowed them to run the show. I have not been assertive and called them out because I've seen them be passive aggressive before. I am truly scared they will backlash on me and ruin my reputation. I have all the proof that would prove my side of the story correct, and I'm still scared. That being said, I don't want to get into more details of this swap situation. I have posted my full experience on one of those swap groups on Facebook. I'm not out to publicly humiliate someone on my blog, despite the fact they have screwed me over. 

I'm sure this is why I had this dream. I take so much pride in my honesty with my readers, and it would absolutely crush me if someone tried to slander me. The idea like my dream of everyone hating me, blowing me of, and ignoring me as person and as a blogger would be devastating to me. It's just my worst fears realized in dream form. 

Yikes! 

Spontaneous Saturday: Epcot Food & Wine Festival (Insanely Pic Heavy)

Epcot has the Food & Wine Festival every fall usually for around 6 weeks. Epcot is basically divided into two sections. There is Future World and World Showcase. World Showcase is set up in 11 pavilions each representing a different country.

This is neat on it's own, but at the Food & Wine Festival they add around 20 more additional regions and countries with their own food/wine stands.   Each country has around 2-3 small dishes you can enjoy and 2-3 drinks. The food comes on small plates and they range from $3.25-$7.50, which I think is pretty reasonable.

My boyfriend, and I decided to really soak up this venture this year. We have season passes to Disney, and we live around 20 minutes away so we took full advantage. We visited the Food & Wine festival 5 times over the 6 week course this year! We got to try a lot of food. We typically avoid the alcohol there. One, because we only stay for 2 hours or so and drive home. Two, the alcohol costs just as much and often more than the food. We'd rather eat than drink!

Here are the pics and descriptions of what we ate this year. I'm leaving a review out because there are SO many pictures. Be mindful we're not complete gluttons, this was over 5 separate visits! :P Oh! I can't vouch for the authenticity of the foods from the region either.


Australia

 Grilled Lamb Chop with Mint Pesto and Potato Crunchies

Belgium

Steamed Mussels in Hoegarrden Beer Broth with Baguette

Canada

"Le Cellier" Wild Mushroom Beef Filet Mignon with Truffle Butter Sauce

Chicken Chipotle Sausage with Sweet Corn Polenta and "Minus 8" Onion Jam

Caribbean

Jerk Spiced Chicken Drumstick with Mango Chutney

China

Mongolian Beef in a Steamed Bun

Florida Local

White Corn Arepa with Mangalista Pork Rillette and Zellwood Sweet Corn Salad

France

Coq au Vin sur Gratin de Mararoni (Red Wine Braised Chicken, Mushrooms, Pearl Onions and Macaroni Gratin)

Creme Brulee au Chocolat au Lait (Chocolate milk Creme Brulee topped with Caramelized Sugar)

Escargots Persillade en Brioche (Garlic and Parlsey Snails in Brioche)

Germany

Apple Strudel with Karamel and Vanilla Sauce

Schinken Nudel (Pasta Gratin with Ham and Cheese)

Roast Bratwurst in a Pretzel Roll

Hawaii

Kalua Pork Slide with Sweet and Sour Dole Pineapple Chutney and Spicy Mayonnaise

Hops & Barley- America

Lobster Claw Cuddler (not sure what's so cuddly about it lol) chilled with Herb Mayonnaise.

Maine Lobster Roll

Ireland

Warm Chocolate Lava Cake with Baileys Ganache

Lobster and Seafood Fisherman's Pie

Italy

Salsiccia e "Papacelli" Napoletani (Sweet Italian Sausage with Peppers and Onions)

Japan

Sukiyaki Beef Pan (Marinated thinly sliced Rib Eye with Sauteed Onions and Teriyaki Sauce served in a bun)

Spicy Hand Roll (Tuna and Salmon with Chili Pepper, Soy Sauce, and Sesame Oil topped with Kazan Volcano Sauce)

Mexico

Taco de Filete (Steak with Cascabel Pepper Sauce and Scallions, served on a flour Tortilla)

Taco de Camaron (Shrimp with Chipotle-lime Mayo, and Cabbage served on flour Tortilla)

Morocco

Kefta Pocket (Ground Seasoned Beef in Pita Pocket)

New Zealand

Lamb Meatball with Spicy Tomato Chutney

Seared Sea Scallop with Kumara-Red Curry Puree and Apple Radish Salad

Poland

Kielbasa and Potato Pierogie with Caramelized Onions

Scandinavia

Taste of Scandinavia (Cured Salmon, Herring, and Shrimp Salad)

Singapore

Seared Mahi Mahi with Jasmine Rice and "Singa" Sauce

South Korea

Lettuce Wrap with Roast Pork and Kimchi Slaw

and..that's a wrap! Believe it or not, this was not all they offered there. There was plenty more to try! If you're a foodie or just love food I really recommend visiting Epcot this time of year for the festival. It is a must do thing! We really enjoyed it this year!

Happy Saturday!

Spontaneous Saturday: Fall Faves Bottle Spam

We've made it to fall! I've been seeing some fall favorite polishes posts around, so I decided to take part...in bottle spam form!

 I know it's been awhile since I did a bottle spam. I couldn't narrow down my fall favorites to just a few, so bottle spam seemed the best bet. I wanted to go with colors you could easily purchase now, either you could walk into a store and get it or find it on an e-tailer or brand website without any hassle. These are colors that have either been my tried and true fall favorites or new fall colors I've been reaching for!

a-england Perceval, NOPI Sealed with a Kris, Zoya Bliar, and OPI German-icure

Zoya Gloria, Zoya Tiffany, China Glaze Life Preserver, and Orly Space Cadet

OPI Designer De Better, Sally Hansen Gilded Lily, OPI Warm & Fozzie, and Zoya Angelina

Zoya Evvie, Zoya Yara, a-england Dragon, and Cult Nails Living Water

Sinful Colors Rainstorm, Zoya Kotori, China Glaze First Mate, Sally Hansen Co-bolt Blue, and Cult Nails Time Traveler

a-england Princess Tears, Revlon Perplex (aka Naughty), Cult Nails Spontaneous, and Essie No More Film

China Glaze VII, Zoya Roxy, Milani Black Cherry, OPI Every Month is Oktoberfest, and Orly Fowl Play

Confetti Moonstruck, Zoya Kelly, Milani Silver Dazzle, and OPI Lucerne-tainly Look Marvelous

These are my picks! I know there maybe a few in here you maybe confused about. There are some in here that are even from spring collections! The reason I picked some of these is because they have a muted or subded quality that I think makes me appropriate for fall too :).

What are some of your fall favorite polishes?

Happy Saturday!

Spontaneous Saturday: My Cat Turned Me Into a Cat Person

I never thought I'd be a cat person. I grew up with dogs. Big dogs. German Shepherds. I had very few encounters with cats. Fast forward 15-20 years, and my boyfriend and I found ourselves wanting a pet. A dog was out of the question because we live in a small apartment with no yard. So, 3 years ago we ventured into the SPCA and found this pretty.

Her name is Chara, and when we adopted her she was estimated to be around 4 years old. We renamed her to Chara. My boyfriend is into astronomy, and named her after the star Chara. The star is actually in the constellation Canes Venatici (hunting dogs). Funny, she's named after star in a constellation of dogs! The name Chara means joy in Greek.

Sadly, she was at the SPCA because her previous owner had passed away. Needless to say, her adjustment to a new home along with mourning the loss of her previous home was difficult. It took her close to year to until we really started to see her personality come through and for her to become comfortable in her environment. Next month we will have had her for 3 years, and she's doing great! 

Though, I had pets in the past they were never really MY pets. They always gravitated to my parents. Chara is clearly my cat. Shh, don't tell my boyfriend. She always wants to be near me. She is the sweetest and the mellowest cat. She is just happy with cuddles, pets, food, and sleep. I love her beyond belief. I've definitely become a cat person through her. Though, she is sweet and mellow you can tell she is sassy. She gives you this funny looks when she's annoyed. Cats are so expressive. She has a look for everything, and she is clearly the boss around here. 

Now, I really appreciate cats. I would love to have more. I think 3 would be a good number, but that's just not in the cards right now financially and space wise. That being said, our neighbors have 2 indoor/outdoor cats that like to visit our porch. They are kind of like my cats too! 

This is Kiefer

and this is Kiwi

I love them too, and sometimes I secretly wish my neighbors will be like "Do you want our cats"? I wouldn't even need to think about it! Haha, it's good though this way. I don't have to worry about taking care of them or their expenses, and just get to enjoy them as visitors! 

I also love this Kitty Cam on Ustream. It's a 24/7 cam of the Friends of Felines Rescue Center in Defiance, Ohio. I think I watch almost everyday for a little bit in the background. At night they set up a little kitty playground for the kitties, and it's fun to watch them play and run around! This rescue center does a lot of amazing things for homeless kitties. They have kittens, adults, and many cats with special needs. 

Video streaming by Ustream

Wow, I had no idea I'd write so much about cats. It's clear I've been converted into a cat person! I love dogs too, don't worry it did not flip flop. I do think I prefer cats though. I think our personalities are similar! 

What type of pet(s) do you have? Tell me about them in the comments! 

Spontaneous Saturday: Netflix Has Cost Me Sleep

There are times I spend so much time looking for something to watch on Netflix that I could of watched an entire movie by time I've browsed through almost every section. It's hard for me to really choose something to watch, sometimes I literally close my eyes and just pick something. That's what I did with this show...

and now it's costing me sleep because I am obsessed and completely hooked. I'll be watching this into the wee hours of the morning or any free moment I have. I can't stop! I'm up to season 2 episode 15 now in a little over 2 weeks. Yeah, that's a lot of TV. 

I've seen previews for this show and blew it off. Sure, it's over-dramatic, obviously very fictionalized, cliche, and meant for teenage girls, but I love it! 

Soon, I'll be left with this problem...

This will be disappointing, I really love watching episodes one after the other on Netflix. All the cliffhangers get picked up in minutes rather than a whole week...exactly first world problem. I'll live though!

Anyone else like this show? NO SPOILERS! What other shows can you recommend that are similar to this? 

Spontaneous Saturday: Pretty Little Bottles Guest Post

Hello! Today, I have a post from one of my friends Alyssa. She's a blogger here in Central Florida, and we've become great friends! Her blog is Pretty Little Bottles. She has an awesome blog with great nail art and tutorials! 

Hey Everyone!

 

Steph asked me a few days ago if I'd like to do a guest post for her and, of course, I jumped at the opportunity! I decided to come up with some simple, yet awesome, nail art to show you guys!

 

Around the same time that Steph asked me about the post, I had just recieved my Ninja Polish purchase which included the coveted Floam! I instantly felt inspired and decided that my mani would have to somehow include Floam!

 

Here's what I came up with:

 

 

Polishes used:

China Glaze Splish Splash (blue)

China Glaze I'm With the Lifeguard (green)

China Glaze Sun-Kissed (yellow)

Nail Venturous Floam

 

How I achieved this look:

 

Thumb & Ring finger: I first applied one coat of I'm With the Lifeguard and then two coats of Floam

 

Index Finger: To avoid having to paint lots of coats, I did one coat of a plain white creme first and then did two coats of Splish Splash

 

Pinky: One coat of plain white creme and then two coats of Sun-Kissed

 

Middle Finger: In order to achieve the chevron look, I used striping tape to tape off the sections of the nail in the design I wanted. I started at the cuticle of the nail and painted the green on my entire nail, minus the part that was taped off (just one coat) and peeled the tape off before it dried. I continued going down the nail with each color! It was so simple and the striping tape gave me nice, clean lines!

 

I hope you all have enjoyed the nail art that I've done for you guys today! Thanks for reading! And, again, thanks Steph for asking me to do a post for your wonderful blog! :)

Thank you Alyssa for doing such a great guest post for me!

Happy Saturday!

Spontaneous Saturday: Portobello Road

This song is in my head...now it will be in yours!


Bedknobs and Broomsticks is a good movie too! I swear I'll get this song in my head at least once a month. It's so catchy, and it's fun to sing in a British accent.

 That is all...

 Happy Saturday!

Spontaneous Saturdays: Face Issues

I may know a thing or two about nail polish, but when it comes to other things beauty I am pretty lost. I actually find makeup very intimidating. I have skin concerns that I find embarrassing, and I need help in finding products to help me.

I have issue with facial redness. This becomes really apparent in summer when it's hot. It also is a problem when I'm nervous or anxious. The problem I'm noticing is when I do outings with beauty bloggers here, my face gets REALLY red. I know a lot of it is because I do get anxious in social situations, but I really can't control it all. A lot of the time I don't really feel nervous emotionally, but I have the physical effects of anxiety if that makes sense. It looks horrible in pictures, and when I look in the mirror I'm absolutely horrified. Majority of the time I may have bit of pink to my complexion, but nothing like this. It is embarrassing.

I think I may have rosacea, but I really don't have the money to go see a dermatologist for something that really isn't serious. I don't know what to do about it. I don't know if something in my skincare routine or makeup routine will help cover up the redness or help ease it up a bit?  


I'm currently using Bare Minerals Matte Foundation. I've used it since 2005, but I don't think I'm getting great coverage from it. I would be interested in trying a new foundation. My major skin concerns are redness, oiliness, and I have sensitive skin. Any suggestions out there? I'd prefer something under $40.


As far as skincare goes I have this Claudia Stevens Redness Relief cream I use. I've been using since April, and I haven't noticed any difference. Any suggestions on a skincare product that helps with redness? I'm at desperate point here, so I may consider something pricier. I'm not willing to spend over $60 though. If this helps these are some other skincare products I use. I don't use all of these at once, but I use a variation of these... Philosophy Purity Cleanser, Philosophy Microdelivery Exfoliating Wash, Garnier Moisture Refreshing Gel Cream, and Biore Night Boosting Serum. 


Any advice or suggestions would be appreciated! Thanks guys! 


Happy Saturday

Spontaneous Saturday: I'm An Introvert.

--Novel ahead!--

Source

I think one my biggest revelations in the past 2 years is that I'm an introvert. I know I've always been an introvert, but there are various occasions in my life where I made to feel shameful for being one. There were also times in my life I tried so hard to be an extrovert that I had no idea who the hell I was anymore. This is the first time in my life I'm starting feel comfortable being introverted, and I'm recognizing there isn't anything wrong with it.

Sadly, I think we live in world where introversion is often associated as being a negative trait. I was shy and quiet growing up at school. I had many teachers that wrote notes on my report card about how shy I was, and how I needed to work on making more friends and being more outgoing. I really resent a lot of this now, because if these teachers had only got to know me as an individual they really could of seen my potential and helped me grow as person. These teachers instead passed judgement on me and forcefully pushed me into extroversion. I am so thankful for some of the wonderful teachers I did have who identified my quiet nature as someone who is an profound thinker, and encouraged me to explore my mind, creativity, and thoughts more. I do think that the negative outweighed the positive growing up, and since I got more negative messages than positive ones, I eventually just assumed that my introversion was bad. This lead to me want to try to be an extrovert, which was an epic fail. 

 The busy and exciting outside world of an extrovert is what an introvert has on the inside.  There are probably countless things running through my head at any given moment. It's hard to express to people what is going on in my inner world, and that can be frustrating. I live very internally, I'm sure people I encounter notice this about me. I really take everything in. I make observations. I like to get a feel for people and my surroundings. I'm sure this translates as being shy, but it's more that I'm just processing my environment.

 I'm never going to be someone who is going to have a huge social circle. I can never walk into a social situation and be the life of the party. Honestly, I find social functions draining. I do much better one on one with people. I'm not much for small talk or random chitter chatter. It's painfully difficult for me.  I like to make connections with people. I like to relate, share, and really get to know people. This means I have a smaller circle of friends, and it probably takes me awhile to gain new friends. I've really pushed myself into more social situations more recently. I'm not doing it so I can be more outgoing, but so I can expose myself to more people, and hopefully gain more close-knit friendships. 

I also recognize I am hard to get to know. I do not let people in very easy, and the people I do let in...consider yourself very lucky! What's funny about that is that I do not even feel the slightest bit of discomfort being open on my blog. When it comes to real life situations though, I am very much a closed book. I think this is part introversion, and part my personality and insecurities. I really am a complex person. I have so many levels and layers, and I don't want everyone to have access to them. I definitely need my space and quiet time too or I start to not feel like myself. I have to get in touch with me to function authentically if that makes sense.

Authenticity in myself and in others is probably a #1 priority for me. I'm very intuitive about this as well. I can spot a phony person really quickly. I'm sure these things attribute to the "hard to get know" factor about me. I want to be 100% honest about myself and I expect the same from others. In ways this is a good trait, and has helped me steer clear of toxic people.  It's also not a great trait either,as I need to work on being more accepting of my own flaws and others flaws. Trusting others is very challenging.

A lot of these things I'm describing, I used to hate about myself. I used to be so hard on myself for not being more outgoing, for needing to have my personal space, and for being so introspective. I never realized how much these traits benefit me. I realize a lot of these aspects of my personality are assets. I've made more friendships and I've made stronger ones. I decided to pursue my dream to be a teacher rather than follow a path I felt I should of been doing. I've become more confident sharing this part of myself with others.  The most important thing is I'm starting to comfortable with myself, and who I am. That is the most rewarding. It's certainly not the end, it's a long journey ahead..but being the quiet and thoughtful one isn't bad!

Are you an introvert or and extrovert? Care to share any of your feelings on this subject?

Happy Saturday!

P.S. I don't have anything against extroverts!

Spontaneous Saturday: Don't Blow up my Nail Polish!

Nail polish dreams? Have you had them?

I think these dreams are a certain sign you're a nail polish addict. I've had my share of nail polish dreams. It's no surprise to my close friends and family that I have some of the most bizarre dreams ever. My dreams never make sense. They're never sequential. My dreams are truly ridiculous.

I remember my first nail polish dream. It was a good one. In my dream, I was at Dollar Tree, and they had this whole aisle of nail polish. All of the nail polish there were HTF bottles and they were all a $1. I got shopping cart and stocked up on all the polishes, only to wake up a few seconds later. Not cool. That should of been real.

--begin dream--

Last night, I had nail polish dream or rather a nightmare. The dream started off making absolutely no sense and was not related to nail polish whatsoever. I was going to some Barbra Streisand concert. I have no idea why. I'm not really a Barbra Streisand fan, though I do catch myself singing the tunes from Funny Girl and Yentl in the shower. Anyways, my dream shifted into me being in the ocean with all these people doing some Survivor like race in a lifeboat to retrieve items. I started freaking out because I had not put on sunscreen. I get burned pretty bad in the sun, and I know how miserable it is to get sunburned. I was complaining about that, so all the people I was with started yelling at me because I was worried about petty stuff.

Hello! Sunburns are can be dangerous! LOL. Then the dream shifted again. I was no longer in the middle of the ocean, but I was back at home with all these Survivor teammates laughing at me because of my nail polish collection. This one girl started tell me I could not tell the difference from a  red shimmer and  red glitter. That b****! 

This infuriated me. I started pulling out all my drawers of polishes and showing her examples of red shimmers and red glitters. I clearly remember showing her OPI Red Dazzle. This girl just kept antagonizing me, and she threatened to steal my polish. I then put one of my Helmer drawers down full of polish, and I heard her say I'm going to blow up all her nail polish. I saw her light a match. I screamed "Don't blow up my nail polish!". Then at that moment I woke up all amped up and startled! Phew! Just a dream!

-end dream-

It's so silly. I never have really thought about how attached I am to my polish collection, but I'd be pretty bent out of shape if it was blown up! I also think from my dream I do have some insecurities about my nail polish love. I don't mind telling my family and friends about my polish/blogging, but new people I'm introduced to I shy away from telling them about my blog. I still certainly worry about being judged or made fun of (Ooo, this just gave me a good idea for a "Talk it Out Tuesday" topic). I'll leave it at that before I started talking about a topic more suited for Tuesday posts! 

Have you ever had nail polish related dream? What was it about?