Wax On, Wax Off

Last weekend I was back home in Cali (I know what you're thinking because N said the same thing . . . again?!). So yes, AGAIN. Because my family is extremely tight-knit and God forbid we do anything without each other. So, I took the plane from what is slowly becoming my second residence SeaTac and jetted home late Friday night after work and a quick HH with N. Upon waking Saturday morning to sunshine and chirping birdies, I quickly dressed in order to run a few errands (ie: Coffee Bean! Coffee Bean! Coffee Bean!) prior to my counsin's graduation party (aka: Reason for the Quick Jaunt to Cali).

Don't ask me why, but I only go to one place to get my eyebrows waxed. And it's not because its super fancy and smells all pretty. No, it is a relatively generic Asian nail salon in the cul de sac of a Pavillions (aka: grocery store for those Non-Californians out there) strip mall. I've been going there since high school and they always do a good job (not too thin, nicely shaped, and minimal tweezing). I refuse to try anywhere else for fear of annihilation of my brows. Anyway, it never ceases to amaze me that while the woman above you is breathing all over your face and shining an incredibly bright light in your eyes, that she asks, "you want lip too?" while mid-wax. I mean, really woman. Not only are you implying that I have a mustache (EW!), but you're saying that any type of hair that may appear near my upper lip and is practically invisible is in need of waxing, therefore causing a cascade of issues- including: 1. If you were to wax my upper lip- the hair would inevitably grow back quicker and darker; 2. I would appear as though I had a bad allergic reaction on my face due to the redness my upper-lip region would incur as a result of the hot liquid and harsh removal process; 3. I would feel incredibly insecure (and we all know how unattractive that is); 4. I would have to maintain that upper-lip region more often than I care to; 5. I DON'T HAVE A MUSTACHE SO WHY WOULD MY UPPER-LIP NEED WAXING?!

Ugh- annoying. So my response to the woman was a curt, "No." And that was that. So now I am reading a book with the most obnoxious book cover I have ever seen (I can't take credit because it's from Mama Biggs) with my perfectly sculpted brows.

'Poor Little Bitch Girl' by Jackie Collins

P.S. I think I'm going to have to remove the cover of the book when I take it to Cd'A this weekend. We are staying with N's family at their lake cabin, and they might judge me for reading such trash. Plus, I hardly want to be the one to teach N's adorable little niece the word "bitch."

Running is the Devil . . . but so are those people who almost run you over

Ok- so if you know me, you're aware that I am a complete gym rat in the sense that I do not enjoy running. Nor do I enjoy running outside, and therefore prefer the amenities provided to me in an enclosed and air-conditioned space to those elements gracing the outside world. I mostly despise the fact that if I run outside, I don't have the option of pushing the big red STOP button to cease my workout . . . instead, I am forced to continue running until I get home (to where my couch and a glass of white wine is waiting). Well, the other day I broke my cardinal rule and didn't even go to the gym. Rather, I was one of those people who said, oh my gosh it is so beautiful out- I think I will be a true Northwesterner and go running outside! So I did. It was fine. Except that I wanted to stop after approximately five minutes and when I really thought I should stop, I found out that I had only been running for a mere 20 minutes. FAIL. Nevertheless, this story isn't so much about my running failure as it is about the failure of those driving vehicles while pedestrians are running.

I will happily admit that I am a rule-follower. I DO NOT jaywalk because I have no desire to die by crushing of an on-coming vehicle. Well, let's just say that even abiding by this rule, I do not feel safe walking or running in downtown Seattle. This is because people driving are so eager to turn right on a damn red light that they cease to look at the people who might appropriately be using the crosswalk. THUS, I am forced to give them the stinkeye everytime they try to run me over. This seriously happened like 5 times on my run. In one instance I actually banged on a man's SUV car door because he didn't even see me and would have run me over if I hadn't seen him. RUDE.

Anyway, I will no longer be running outside . . . EXCEPT when I am running around Greenlake where there are no cars and only cute puppies to stare at.

Mint Chocolate Chip Apartment

Remember my post about how I was going to re-decorate my apartment? Welp, the remodel is officially in full swing! My chocolate leather saddle seat barstools arrived two weekends ago and N helped me put them together while I cooked him some orange chicken (don't worry- I'm not that domestic. It was the pre-made frozen kind from Trader Joe's that we both love. The only requirement is sticking the damn pieces in the oven and heating up the sauce via microwave.) Anyway, the black and white photos look smashing on the walls and I just ordered that fantastic furniture item that I told you about on Etsy. Behold . . . the piece de resistance of my new living room . . .

It even has storage space!:

It should arrive in 4 weeks but maybe even sooner! I am going to use it as my TV stand. If you want your own (the artist does all types of cabinet work in different washes, stains, and sizes) go to usacreations. When I told N that I had finally splurged on this item, he said, "you're going to have a mint-chocolate-chip apartment!" due to the fact that there is an overwhelming theme of turquoise and brown going on in every room. N also thought that this was my dad's favorite type of ice cream, which I am still not so sure about. If he's right then I'll be muy impressed!

Anyway, I'll be sure to take photos once the living room is complete :) It's rainy and gloomy here in Seattle, so I hope all my Californias are soaking up the sunshine for me!



Belated Pache Post

Although I was blessed with the opportunity to actually be with my father on his designated holiday this year, I thought it appropriate to give him a little shout-out here no matter how belated it may be. My father is one of those people whose smile stretches the entire span of his face from ear to ear and it rarely ever vanishes. He is the one I continually cried to over my math homework (from fourth grade through the present day) and the one who told me that someday I would fall in love and have what he and my mother have. He climbs mountains (literally and figuratively) to make the lives better of those he loves. He likes loves beer. He was my alarm clock from kindergarten until the day I moved away to Washington state for college . . and I still remember the feeling of sadness I felt when I first woke up to an obnoxious, electronic beeping noise at 17 years old. But above all these things, he is the happiest person I have ever known and one of the most inspiring. I am proud to be his daughter and thank God everyday for blessing me with such a supportive and loving figure in life. He's been called 'dad,' 'pache,' 'faja,' 'daddy,' and 'Tom,' however on this day, I would simply like to say Happy Father's Day to the greatest man I have ever known. I love you more than you know, daddy!

 "Everytime we try to prove that we can make it on our own,

our fathers go and do something to remind us that they are

irreplaceable."

- Ally O'Brien

Babes

Over Memorial Day weekend, some fellow Seattlites and a few Californians gathered in Oceanside, CA to partake in sun, sand, surf, and alcoholic merriment. It was a shock to the out-of-towners skin and most of the men in the group returned home to Seattle with sunburnt streaks all over their arms or, in one individual's case . . . a stark white tank-top tan paired with sunburnt arms and neck (see Exhibit A).



Exhibit A

Regardless of 1 noise complaint, 1 encounter with douchey cops on the beach, and 1 attempt by a waitress to keep our drinks from us at a Mexican fiesta, we all partied hard and through the entire weekend (see Exhibits B and C).

Exhibit B

Exhibit C

One joy of my family owning a condo in this lovely escape-from-reality seaside town is that both my sister and best friend since birth were able to join us on this whirlwind extravaganza. Toward the end of our trip- Bum, Britt, and I worked through some old, old memories and re-visited a photo we had stored in our brains (but not our phones). It was one in which we recalled being very young and more or less naked with the exception of some beach towels and very long, stringy mermaid-esque hair, while waving at the camera and sitting on a sandy beach. Ever the photographer, I suggested re-creating this photo (minus the whole naked thing, despite N's pleading) and we attempted to recall from memory the exact positioning/waving from the old photo. Here is what we came up with, see Exhibit D:

(Bum, Britt, Me)

Exhibit D

Days later, Britt would tell her mom, C, what we had tried to accomplish. C found the original photo and sent it via text to Britt who forwarded it along to me with a chuckle. Needless to say we were a teensy, weensy, bit off (and a bit more exposed than we had initially thought). See Exhibit E (aka: Epic Fail):

(Britt, Me, Bum)

Exhibit E

BAAAAHAHAHAHA! I seriously still laugh out loud a bit everytime I look at this photo, reasons being: I am like TOTALLY naked! Bum appears to be picking her nose, Britt looks like a little Indian child saying, "Howww," I look like I may or may not also be saying, "Howww" (with my awesome bangs?! Ew.), and Bum is the little Mexican baby who couldn't bother to wave at the camera. Below is a string of Facebook comments relating to our fail of a photo:

 Bum: "i know! well Britt is good but im just like this little mexican fat baby who is in a suggestive position... picture crasher for sure..."

Me: "HAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHA! omg- dying over here. i think you're picking your nose?!"

Britt: "haha ill have to get the picture so its not blurry, but we were a little off and L- you might just be picking your nose... haha"

Bum: "sweet... Britt is the winner.. one hand waving and the same towel."

Aw, I just love ancient BFF photos!

Martha Stewart Moment

OMG.

I am SO excited because I have decided to re-decorate my apartment after coming across the most glorious shabby-chic furniture item on Etsy yesterday . . . but I will not include it here because I don't want anyone to steal it before I purchase it ;) I have used my credit card too much recently so I am trying to cut back on buying all my new items at once. However, I can provide you with a sneak peek of things that are coming my way soon, such as two of these for my couch:



And one of these to display on my bed:

EEK! Aren't they gorg?! I am just so thrilled :) My bedding is a cream and light turquoise floral pattern from Anthro, accented by lovely deep chocolate Hotel brand sheets. It is the most comfortable bed EVER and most people tell me so.

Since my living room is the main focus of the makeover, I am getting a new little mantra for the wall. I am also converting all the photo frames in the living room to pure white with only black and white photos in them for a crisp, clean look. This should get to me by this weekend:

HURRAY! I love it all :) Except I think N will get annoyed with all the pillows. He thinks I have too many already and sees throw pillows as totally pointless (which is duh, not true). Anyway, he is a man so I don't expect him to get it anyway.

To get your own wonderful pillows that will piss your own boyfriend/fiance/husband off . . . go here: BedBuggs Boutique


Happy Monday!