Dry Shampoo? Really??

A few weeks ago, after listening to my complaints about an arduous hair care routine , a co-worker suggested dry shampooing as an alternative.

To which I replied: A what now?

(Said co-worker is now an ex. We got a memo one day simply saying xxx is no longer employed here... Mysterious!)

In light of not having anything exciting to do for valentines day, I decided to venture into the Sephora store at Pacific Centre to hunt down this supposed miracle of a product.

What i ended up with is the Cake Satin Sugar Dry Shampoo powder  (chose this over an aerosol spray...go green!)

- $ 18 later the verdict is that...I love it!

Never mind that some people say it's glorified talcum powder, this stuff smells nice! And if there is the remote chance of it saving me an extra 30 minutes of sleep every other morning, it is $18 well spent!

What I still find funny is that something like this actually exists.

Random project on the go: Crocheting

Ted Talk: Record One Second of Your Life Everday

Love, love, love Ted Talks. Came across this cool video the other day.

In the past two years...

Cliche as it might sound, I suppose the new year is a time for contemplation and reflection. It has been 2 years since my last post. A quick update then.

• Blogger has added tons of new features
• Finally graduated from yet another school, a total of which I do not care to tally
• Spent some time in India
• Moved into the hippiest part of town

Surprisingly, much remains unchanged. So here I am again, back home. Convincing myself, with much effort, that security and stability are important. A conflicted state of being aptly captured by ' The Shortest Way Home.' 

Although a good read, the ending was nothing short of a massive truck coming down the freeway. I'm not sure why authors of great imagination would sell themselves short by ending an otherwise great story with a fairytale like non-bang.

Let's take a moment and think about it. The reader who picks up a book obviously feels some sort of a connection with the struggles of the protagonist. How disappointed is it for the reader to be sitting there after having read the book, where the character has resolved all of his struggles, and the reader is left stewing in the same struggle - except unresolved. You would think that an 'all is well with the world' ending  serves to lift up the spirit, but in this case, stew I did.  Nothing has changed for me, the reader, in the 3-4 days it took to read the book.

Okay, fine. It took 2 weeks to finish reading the book. I do have a full-time job, you know. Perhaps let's add another bullet to the list above.

• Turned into a skeptic 

Prayer for a friend

Dear readers,

Today I am sending out a prayer for a friend. She had an argument with her sleazy landlord (whom I also rented from before)and he decided to kick her out. She got a 2 week notice. All weekend she frantically looked for a place to move to but was unsuccessful. While I cannot understand why she would want to live there still, she decided she would tuck her tail between her legs and go apologize to him. With a cake. Literally.

How humiliating it must have been for her. We both hate his guts.

On the second thought, she did say that she doesn't have any family here to help her and she's financially stretched at the moment. I hope I would never have to go through that situation in my life. Said friend also had broken up with the guy she was dating just last week. So yes, I believe a prayer for strength is in order.

Yours sincerely,

Ana

Deep Seated Discontent

I was watching a video on youtube earlier today about the different types of work one could get. It ranged from mind numbing jobs at a place like starbucks to high flying ones like being a surgeon. While I do not have a high flying job, I can identify especially with the part of having the job that is so stressful and demands all your attention that it becomes your life. Your work defines who you are. ANd I can honestly say that it is making me miserable. I feel bloody miserable. My life is in a constant state of stress and even time off isn't relaxing. Could it be that I hate my field of work?

Riddle Me This

Correct me if I'm wrong because apparently I've completely misunderstood the purpose of life. lol, seriously.

Friend: You don't want to be 50 and still be doing the same thing. Because you will come back with nothing except a lot of life experiences.

Me: Umm, isn't that the whole point of life?

So, really. The point of life isn't to live it to the fullest? What she said really baffled me. It honestly did. Because if that is not why I've been given a chance to live on this earth then I've got nothing.

FML as a counsellor

Dear reader(s),

Some days I really wish my career path was something different. Today is one of those days. While I spend all my working hours listening to others talk about their problems in life, the last thing I want to do is listen to family and friends in the event that I do have moments off.

Although I had spent all weekend in isolation, it felt good. Not seeing people means not having to work. Such is what my life has come to at the moment. Breathe, everything in life is transitory. There has to be lighter moments to life but I do not remember what they feel like.

On my day off from work today, I headed to the library to do some studying. I was joined by a friend who had had a really rough day dealing with her boss. While I really care about my friend, and wanted to be there for her (which I did)...I would be lying if I said our conversation did not take a toll on me. It felt like work.

The thing about this line of work is that it never ends. And you do not ever leave work at work. When human connections are involved, one does not stop to put caring aside.

With love,

Ana

Looking deep for a reason

It's Friday night and I'm sitting at home, on my bed, completely pooped. This week has been a little rough. Between practicum, work and school it doesn't feel like I had any down time at all.

Last night it all amounted to a lump in my throat. Why am I pushing myself so hard again? What is my purpose for putting myself through a hellish 3 years? I can see a destination but yet I cannot see or feel my own feet that are walking the path.

On the train today I was listening to a talk about patience. The analogy that seems to fit my life right now is the one with the donkey and the carrot. The donkey works hard, pulls a heavy load on it's back as it keeps going, trying to get the carrot dangling in front of it. No matter how fast the donkey goes, how hard the donkey pushes itself, the carrot is just a few inches ahead of him. He can see it but he cannot have it. I am this donkey.

What is my purpose for pursuing this path anyways? My carrot seems ever so elusive. Patience is the point of the story. If I were to stop chasing the carrot, it might go move further away for awhile. Further away than it has ever seemed, but it will always come back. And if I just wait, it will fall right into my mouth.

Why am I doing this again? For a good career, for a better life? For validation? What is my REAL reason? Sometimes after a rough week, even the destination seems unclear and shrouded by a thick fog.