Superbowl XLV and Glee: Which half-time show did you like better?

Quinn and Finn…again?!

Well let’s face it, Finn is super delicious, but I thought Quinn and Sam were happy together? Okay, wait a minute, let’s back it up for a moment.

The Superbowl – what did you think? Did your team win? I thought it was a good game, but I guess since I wasn’t totally invested in either team, it didn’t matter to me as much. I slightly favored the Steelers, but sorry to say – any team I choose, usually loses (sorry – I’m bad luck that way). I think I just chose the Steelers because I knew who their quarterback was. I had no idea who the Packers QB was and I kept asking throughout most of the game. Anyways, I was more interested in the half-time show. I do enjoy the Black Eyed Peas – I don’t know why everyone is all hating on their half-time show. It wasn’t awful and at least it wasn’t old school singers from the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s. I mean really. I didn’t understand the whole Slash thing, but whatevs. Usher wasn’t bad, he did do the splits which explains his low crotch “white pants, white pants, who’s wearing white pants?” pants. For the most part, I was happy they did their new song, because I enjoy the “Dirty bits” part (and the running man!) Also, I liked the whole glow in the dark outfits thing. As for the singers before the actual game: Lea Michelle singing America the Beautiful wasn’t bad either. She belted it out and it was good. I’m always concerned that someone is going to forget the words. And…apparently someone did. I just finished saying “My worst fear if I was singing in front of a humongous crowd of over 100,000 people and millions of television viewers would be to forget the lyrics of the National Anthem” and lo and behold, Christina Aguilera did just that. Oh well, it had to happen right? And I’m sure someone in Vegas won big money on that one! As for the Superbowl Commercials – I was slightly grossed out by a couple of them: That guy sucking on that other guy’s finger in the Doritos commercial and the Joan Rivers in the GoDaddy.com one. (I still don’t know what Go Daddy is – I don’t really care to find out either). I missed the Justin Bieber one (boo) and I would just see parts of other commercials, so I can’t say there’s anything that totally wowed me. Anyways…enough football talk. Truthfully the only reason I watched the game (other than Superbowl party food!) was because I wanted to make sure I didn’t miss the Glee episode following the game.

Well, Glee got right back into it with a full on Katy Perry-esque “California Gurls” rendition by the Cheerios complete with blue wigs and fire shooting out of cheerleader megaphone bras. It may have wowed us, but Sue Sylvester wasn’t having any of it. Even having the Cheerios slap each other with chicken cutlets didn’t put a smile on her face. She decided the only thing that could possibly get her excited again was having poor Brittany shoot out of a cannon. Brittany, to her credit, didn’t want to sign her life away (or at least until One Tree Hill got cancelled). Meanwhile, the in-fighting between the football guys and the Glee football guys was getting worse. How upsetting was it to see the slushie assault on Artie?! Coach Bieste and Mr. Schu decided they were going to fix it “Philippine Prison Style” by having the Football guys join the Gleeks during the half-time show performing a mash-up of Thriller and Heads will Roll. Scary Football bully guy was resistant (along with the others) but after some encouragement by Mr. Schu, he found that he didn’t mind it. In fact, dare we say, he even enjoyed it! So much so, he suggested a warm-up number with just the football guys! Everything was peachy keen, with everyone working together until…the mulleted Hockey guys gave them a taste of their own “slushie” medicine. After this the football guys decided they wanted no part of the whole football halftime show, even if it meant they couldn’t play in the championship game.

As a brief interlude (as well as a chance to show us Kurt, since by this time we all must have been saying “What? Where’s Kurt?!”) the Dalton Warblers gave us their rendition of “Bills, Bills, Bills”.  It was okay – I mean, the first time we saw the Warblers do their “Teenage Dream” thing, we were all “Wow!” but everytime they are on, doesn’t it seem like they keep doing the same thing? I’m over it. I want more Kurt. How about another duet with Blaine, instead of the whole acapella thing? (On a side note, did anyone else tear up when Chris Colfer, who plays darling Kurt, won at the Golden Globes? I must say, I loved his speech. It was a perfect mix of surprise, modesty and poise. Love him!)

Meanwhile, Sue had convinced Brittany that the “baby cannons” were going to go hungry if she didn't get shot from the cannon. Sue also arranged for the national cheerleading competition to coincide with the big game, which meant, Quinn, Santana and Brittany were also going to be missing from the half-time show! Finn tried to convince Quinn to quit the Cheerios, which lead to a shoulder shoving match with Sam. (Quinn thought it was kinda hot. LOL)

Anyways…back to the big game. Or lack of it, since it looked like the football team was going to have to forfeit due to the fact half of them weren't going to be playing. Enter our Glee girls (minus the 3 Cheerios) who decided they were going to go on the field as “players” just so there would be a full team. They weren’t actually going to play, and at first it seemed like a good idea…but it wasn't winning them the game. So at one point Tina got up and started running with the ball! Unfortunately she got tackled and knocked out! She luckily woke up and asked “Did we win?” to the relief of Mike Chang and everyone else. Finally "Leader" Finn decided enough was enough - he convinced the 3 Cheerios to forget about the cheerleading competition (and stand up to a speechless Sue!) and join the Glee club on the field as fellow zombies for the half-time show. He also dispatched Puck to convince the football guys to do the same (minus Karofsky). The team (in full out Zombie gear) finally reunited took to the field for the Thriller that was the half-time show. Even Karofsky was so taken in by the excitement of the crowd that he decided to join in! Of course after this, the team was unstoppable (pretty much creeping the other team out by chanting “Brains, Brains, BRAINS!”) and went on to win the Championship!

But just when you thought singing and dancing was enough to make everyone happy, reality once again set in when Finn asked Karofsky to apologize to Kurt, he angrily refused and once again, scary football bully guy returned. Quinn however, was impressed with Finn’s leadership and perserverance. Which led to a kiss between Quinn and Finn...

Is this a new beginning for Quinn and Finn? What’s going to happen with Sam? What will Rachel do when she finds out? Will Karofsky ever stop being a jerk? Will we ever see Kurt again!? I guess we'll have to tune in to this Tuesday's episode to find out...See you then!

Shopping Heaven in Paradise

So yeah, 9 days in Hawaii, 750.00 limit. It was totally doable.

We just didn’t take account the proximity to the mall. It was too easy to just “take a quick jaunt to the mall”!

It had all the big players: Louis, Chanel, Gucci, Fendi, Dior, Burberry, Hermes, Miu Miu, Jimmy and Tory. They had Neiman and Nordstrom and Macy’s (oh my!). They had Coach, Banana Republic, J. Crew, Metropark, Express, Lulu, Gap, Bebe, Forever, Aldo, Nine West and Lacoste and so many more. Whatever store you could think of, they pretty much had.

We were in total shopping heaven. It was overwhelming.

We decided to spread it out and took our time. We thought “We can’t spend all our money in one day!!!” (though it seriously would’ve been easy to.) So the first day we took it slow…

My first stop: Jimmy Choo – I got some fab, fab, FAB flats (for 50% off no less!) The guy who sold them to me was really nice and it was a perfect first place to shop in Hawaii. A good omen of things to come…

 I had already decided beforehand that I wasn’t going to make any “big ticket item” purchases so it was going well for me. I didn’t really have a set wish list either, so there were really no “missions” that I was on. If I found something I liked, I’d buy it.

However, I found too many things I liked!

By the end of the trip, in addition to my J. Choos I got:

2 Tory Burch sweaters, a pair of Calvin Klein jeans, a pair of cool green (“artichoke”) Uggs, Marc Jacob aviators, 2 tops, a pair of harem capris, a skirt and dress from Forever, a scarf, teal leather gloves and a coin purse from Coach, and a Hello Kitty beach towel.

As for the big ticket item I wasn’t supposed to get…

There was a redunk sale at Burberry and Hello?! I got a bag for 50% off! Obvi, I HAD to get it! (But that was my b’day present, so I’m going to say it doesn’t really count).

And even though I wasn't able to completely stay within my limits it was still, all in all, definitely a successful trip to Hawaii.

Oh, and we went to the beach TWICE this time, so there.

This is the life...the totally fab life!

Hi Fab Lifers! I know, I know, it's been awhile...however,  I did think about you all as I lay on the beach in sunny Hawaii...Yes I said, Hawaii. That's how I roll in my totally fab life. haha!

Ah, Hawaii, it's amazing to think that on Friday I was wearing a tank top and flip flops and today I'm back to Uggs and mitts. What the deuce?! I kept saying to my husband "I can't believe that it can be hot and sunny in one part of the world and snowing in another." Craziness.

Last time I went to Hawaii 10 years ago I got a lot of flack about only going to the beach once (I was at the mall every other day for that week). Don't get me wrong, I also went to Pearl Harbor and attended a Luau...but that was about it. I figured the pool every morning was good enough for "water" and the walk to the mall was good for "sun". Plus the mall was pretty much an outdoor mall so that also counted as "sun". We also walked the Waikiki strip from time to time and it was fine by me. We had rice and pineapple at McDonalds too - so in my mind I had a successful Hawaiian trip. I didn't understand why everyone was on my case about not doing anything but shopping!

 Anyways this time I decided to be different. It was gonna be a real holiday - relaxing by the pool or the beach and maybe perhaps going to the mall only once or twice. My mom was insistent that Hawaii was too expensive for us to be shopping all the time. I told her that she couldn't seriously ask me to NOT go shopping while we were there but my sister and I figured that since we were going to be gone for 9 days that we could at least just spend our exemption limit of $750.00. That seemed reasonable.

We arrived in Hawaii all ready to go to Pearl Harbour, the Dole Plantation, a Luau and of course relax on the beach and at the pool. There was only one tiny, miniscule little detail that might hamper my (and my sister's) resolve to not shop all the time...our hotel was attached by a walkway to the mall.

We were staying at the Ala Moana Hotel which was attached to the Ala Moana Shopping Center...the biggest mall in Hawaii. Oops! How did that happen? hehe...

We arrived in the evening and were picked up from the airport by my mom's relatives. As we drove my second (or was it third?) cousin explained that the weather previous to our arrival hadn't been that good and as such the beach wasn't going to be a great place to go as it had what they called "brown water" due to the rains and landslides. She thought that our next day would be a perfect day to check out the mall as it wasn't going to be perfect beach weather for us right away. We were slightly disappointed, but figured, at least we could get the mall out of the way and then spend the rest of the time relaxing at the beach.

The next day, as we woke up we saw that it wasn't sunny. It wasn't cloudy but we figured it wasn't a day to hang by the pool. Therefore, a perfect day to check out the mall...By the time we were ready, the sun was shining, the sky was blue, but we had already decided we were going to check out the mall. You know, get it over with. As we walked across the parking lot from our hotel to the mall (literally steps away) I thought to myself "$750.00 is a lot - I'm so going to be able to stay in that limit."

And I did...until our 3rd day.

To be continued...

Love Story 2011

The first time we met was in November. Ah Sweet November, that time right before the holidays, when hope and excitement is in the air. I thought it would be just a regular November day. How was I to know this day would change my life.

It was love at first sight. I don't know if I'd ever felt this strongly about anything else before. There was an instant connection and I couldn't take my eyes away from the beauty before me. I imagined our life together, going from party to party, everyone admiring what a gorgeous pair we made. From that moment on,  I knew instantly that my life would never be complete until we were together. That first day, I stayed as long as I could, trying to figure out a way for us to be together. Unfortunately, at that time, there was just no way. Regretfully, I said goodbye, but whispered a promise that we would one day be together. As I walked away I turned and looked back. Someone else was walking towards my love! I was seething with anger and jealousy, but it quickly turned to despair. It would serve me right - I was the one who left. How could I expect someone else to resist what I myself wasn't able to? How could I expect that someone else wouldn't imagine themselves going from party to party with this perfection on their arm? I couldn't. It was my own fault.

In the days that followed, my thoughts were consumed with planning our life together. But every day, the hope that we could be together diminished little by little.  I tried to visit as much as I could, but as the holidays drew closer, the thought that someone else would be enjoying what I should have been, was overwhelming. I stopped visiting. The hurt was too much for me to bear. 

As Christmas came and went, I lost hope of us seeing each other again.  I had resigned myself to an incomplete life - as that is what it would be, if we weren't together. Life went along and soon, I began to forget.

Last Friday I went back to where we met. I was thinking that there was no way we would see each other again. It was after the holidays after all. But then I turned the corner and there it was. Waiting for me.

My Black Ostrich Feather Clutch from Club. And it was on sale. AAAAAaahhhhhhh!!!

I couldn't believe my luck. There was only one left and it was an extra 30% off.

Yay! Happy Birthday to me!!!

"START the car!!!"

Do you ever go to a store and look at your bill as you leave and notice you were either undercharged on an item or not charged at all? Do you go back and ask the sales person to correct it? I’m sure most people don’t. (Unless of course you get overcharged, then you’re back in there immediately asking the salesperson to give you your $0.57 cents back. Haha.)

Anyways, there’s this Ikea commercial where this lady checks her receipt after walking out of the store. She begins to walk faster and yells at her husband to “Start the Car!!!” thinking she got away with a steal because what she paid was so low.

Well, one day I got an email coupon for an extra 40% off of regular priced items at one of the stores I usually frequent…So of course I had to go and check it out. The coupon was a one-time only use, but you could buy anything that was regular priced, so I waited for my husband in case there was something he wanted to buy as well. I ended up choosing a top and he picked out a belt. When I got to the till, the girl rang up our purchase, but the belt was apparently on promotion for 30% off…so my husband mentioned that it was regular price (ie. It did not have a sale tag on it), so wouldn’t we be able to get the 40% off of it instead? The girl rolled her eyes, copped an attitude and said, “NO. It’s already on promotion for 30% off.” So my husband said “Oh. Well then I don’t want it then.” (He figured since it did not have a sale tag, it was therefore eligible for the 40% off, then because they didn’t give it to him he decided he wouldn’t take the belt “on principle”) However, the girl (w/another roll of her eyes) stated “It’s only 2.00 more” with a “I can’t believe you don’t want this now, you’re so cheap!” tone. Well I said to my husband irritatedly (at her not him), “Let’s just get it already”. So the girl sighed loudly again, rang it up and pronounced my total to be 37.00. My husband, had already left and was waiting in the mall. I walked up to him with a strange look and said “Let’s go” He looked at me and understood immediately – START THE CAR!!

In her annoyance and haste, the girl rang up my top AND the belt as 40% off. However, the belt had already come up as 30% off. So in essence, we got the belt for 70% off.

Suckah!!! That’s what you get for being annoyed with your customers.

But it's the Principle!!!

Do you ever say that? Usually these words are spoken during an argument where you are not necessarily going to win or gain anything for choosing your position except for the fact that you believe that your position is correct and your arguing about it is justified.

Take for example the other day…

I was out shopping (what else is new?) and I bought a couple of things from this store. I’m always slightly shocked when the sales girl tells me what my total is (“What?! I spent that much!”) and I am one of those people that as soon as I get my bill, studies it to make sure I wasn’t over charged in any way. I pull out the calculator on my cell (the ease of pulling up the calculator on my cell phone is one of the major criteria I look at when choosing a cell – what can I say? My family is full of accountants, well, except for me. I’m a left brain thinker…or is it the right brain? Well whatever side of the brain is the creative side instead of the analytical side) and begin calculating the taxes to ensure I was charged correctly. This day was no different. As I walked out of the store I had a nagging feeling that what I was charged just wasn’t correct! I had bought a gift card so I wanted to make sure I wasn’t charged the tax on the gift card. As I calculated my total, I saw that my nagging feeling was correct. I couldn’t figure out why it wasn’t adding up though! Until I saw the taxes…the girl had somehow charged me 8.5% tax instead of 7%! I called my dad (who is a retired accountant and constantly pulls out the calculator to tell me exactly how much savings I should have.) as he would know if tax had suddenly been upped to 8.5%. He said “No! We would have heard that on the news leading up to January 1st! Go and get your money back!!” (Incidentally, he is also constantly glued to CNN, so he knows ALL current events. Even stuff that hasn't happened yet. Yeah, THAT current.) Unfortunately, since I was getting picked up and was already late to meet my husband, I decided I would give the store a call later to let them know what happened.

So, later that evening I called to inform them of their mistake, thinking that there must have been tons of other people they were overcharging. I was somewhat surprised that the salesperson who answered had no clue what to do in this situation (I imagined crowds of angry people holding up their bills shouting "Too much tax! Too much tax!"). Anyways he took down my information and told me their manager would be informed the next day.

The next day I decided to go back to the store to see what their solution would be. I went up to the counter to tell the girl what happened. She took my bill, scanned it and said “Honestly, it’s only a difference of like 50 or 60 cents” and gave me a look that said “Really? You came back here for THAT?” which incensed me so I answered back, matter of factly, “Yes, I know that, but I’m more concerned about the fact that I’m not the only one who might have been overcharged.” So she called her supervisor, who didn’t completely understand what happened. The salesgirl explained “We charged her 8.5% tax and it only should have been 7% tax”. The supervisor looked at my bill and said “Wow, that’s weird. Would they have changed the tax to 8.5% for like a week or something?”

Um…seriously?!

Inwardly I said to her “Are you crazy? How are you even a supervisor?!”

Outwardly I said “Um. No. Probably not. Plus I bought something else yesterday and the taxes were still 7% . Didn’t anyone else get charged this 8.5% tax?!”

The “supervisor” said “No. You were the only one.”

Hmm….YEAH RIGHT.

Anyways, after much calculation and confusion, I ended up getting my $0.57 cents back! (plus some samples!)

PS. I refuse to believe that I was the only one this happened to. I do believe, however, I’m the only cheapskate that decided to go back for her $0.57 cents under the guise of “being concerned that it happened to other people”. Heh heh. Principles.

Feathers and other things...

Hi friends - sorry, I know it's like the middle of January and I've been neglecting my posting again...I've started a bunch of posts but sadly have not had time to finish them (plus my laptop at home is so slow I can't do anything on it. I have to erase a bunch of pictures before I can even get on the internet because I have no space on my hard drive. I'm pretty sure I have a virus or 2 (or 100 as the case may be)).  

However to make up for it, I'm putting up a few posts, as a pre-Birthday Weekend Extravaganza present for you guys. You're welcome.

Before I go on...

I don’t know when I would ever wear these, but can I just say “WOWZA”. What is it with me and feathers?!  LOVE. They are just so "Black Swan" - don't you agree?



Ann Demeulemeester Feather Trim Gloves

They're on sale for $442.00 (from $885.00) Aaahhhh!!!