Painted Toes

Which are the prettier toes?



or...



When Todd spied my painted toenails when I went to LA last weekend, he immediately queried:

"Why are your toenails painted!?"

Upon further scrutiny, he then declared his judgment:

"It doesn't look nice!"

This from the boy who, a day earlier, was clamoring to have his own nails painted!!

(originally posted at:  http://www.myspace.com/hellykwee/blog/409241892)

Clothing woes

I hate shopping for clothing sometimes. It's not so bad when I'm looking for standard fare like shirts, shorts and skirts. Shoes aren't generally a problem, though my wide feet precludes some selections. Pants can be interesting, because my legs are pretty long. But nowadays having "tall" length in pants isn't uncommon, so sticking with Bongo or Gloria Vanderbilt usually suffices.

In other words, when it comes to casual, everyday wear, I'm pretty much covered (no pun intended, as you shall see).

The trouble comes when I try to go for something a little fancier-- either a fancy top to go with a skirt, or an outright dress. Something I can wear to semi-formal events. Granted, such events only come about once a year or so, but it's nice to be prepared. These days, such tops and dresses seem to be solely designed for women with cleavage. They are either low cut (i.e. too low for me) or they are designed to be worn without bras. Neither option, of course, is feasible for someone like me.

Just once I'd like to be able to pore over the dress rack of our local department store and quickly be able to find something I can actually wear. On the rare times I find something that suits my body type, it's inevitably the wrong size. I think I had to go through hundreds, maybe even a thousand dresses before I finally found the quintessential "little black dress" that actually fits me! Lovely odds-- 1 in a 1000? That's a lot of perusing.

Oh, and don't get me started on swimsuits. Those are even harder to come by-- again, everything out there is designed for women with at least moderate chest sizes. We're going on a campout for 4th of July weekend, and I still have not found a decent one-piece. Looks like I may have to resort to wearing my bikini (which I can't comfortably swim in) with a T-shirt on top of it.

I say-- down with all the cleavage-showing clothing! Or at least... balance it out a little with stuff that better suits those of us less well-endowed! :-P

How about you? What clothing woe do you have to deal with?


(originally posted at:  http://www.myspace.com/hellykwee/blog/408463471)

Economic Stimulus

After reading Wayne blog about getting his check sometime ago, I started wondering when (even if) we were going to ours. Today the notice came to expect a check this coming week. The following conversation ensued:

Allan: What shall we do with it?

Helly: Put it towards the deposit on our new apartment (the check we'll get covers about 2/3 of a month's rent at the new place)!

Allan: But that's not going to help the economy!

Indeed. How many other people are going to use that money to pay down debt or save it or use it for purposes other than its intended use: purchases leading to economic stimulation?

(originally posted at: http://www.myspace.com/hellykwee/blog/408074085)

How many times...

... can Allan repeat the same mistake?

Well, let's see... earlier today, he ran a quick errand: get some cash from our joint checking account so he could pay a holding deposit on a new apartment we plan to move into soon. The items needed? His debit card and an ATM machine. Any ATM machine, in fact. Simple, no?

Off he drove. Stopped at the first one. Inserted card. Punched in PIN. And was promptly greeted with "Card ineligible for this service" or something like that. Hmm... odd. A little different from the usual "Card not valid" or "Invalid PIN" messages you tend to get at ATM machines. But hey, ATM machines act oddly sometimes, so he shrugged it off and trooped off in search of another machine. Repeat the above steps. Receive the same error message.

Scratching his head, he went to yet ANOTHER machine and again got the same results. Thoroughly fed up, he finally pulled out his debit card for his own private account and finally managed to get some cash that way. Off he went on his errand.

When he returned, he briefly explained that our ATM card wasn't working. That's strange, I thought. Just a couple weeks ago I managed to use my card just fine to withdraw cash. I figured maybe he just had an expired card, as that's happened before. I pulled out my card to compare expiration dates. And Allan obligingly pulled out his.... credit card! That's right, the *credit* card issued to us by the same bank with which we keep our joint checking and savings accounts! And last time I checked, those particular cards weren't eligible for cash ATM withdrawals (a good thing, of course!)

Lesson learned? A credit card is not the same thing as a debit card. They don't even look the same! One is plain green the other is blue with silver trim. Funnier still? That Allan managed to run around and hit nearly every ATM machine near our house before giving up... and still didn't realize his error till he got back!

Time to pull out that special helmet of his from storage...

Triple digit dollars...

... for a tank of gas? Not unheard of these days.

I have come to realize that the Chevron station down the street from where I live posts THE most expensive gas prices in all of Santa Barbara. And I realized that I love snapping pictures of it everytime I pass by and the prices have gone up another outrageous notch.

Here I was shaking my head in amazement when gas was approaching-- gasp! $4 a gallon in May 2007:



A year later, May 2008:



And just a few short weeks later, here is the sign today. June 2008:



What I love most is the dyslexia (or is it mere impatience? Disgust?) of whoever changes the numbers. In the May 2007 pic, the "3" in the bottom price (super unleaded) is upside down. And in the above pic, the "1" in the bottom price is backward.

I guess, when you're paying through the nose at the pump, you might as well have a small chuckle while you're at it, eh? When your gas bill for filling up your tank approaches the triple digits, you know it's time to start looking for alternatives...

(originally posted at: http://www.myspace.com/hellykwee/blog/406576152)

On Friendships

At long last I finally saw Sex and the City. We went on Friday night, after work. Had a quick dinner and caught the 6:30 showing, which was still fairly full! As mentioned earlier, I had always enjoyed the TV show, even though I don't consider myself a die-hard fanatic. I expected to enjoy the movie but nothing more. Like Jenna, however, I found myself enjoying it a LOT more than I anticipated! I can definitely see how some people would go back to the theaters and watch it again!

I thought the most interesting part of the movie was the way some of the characters developed a bit from their usual personalities in the TV show (again, this is coming from someone who's watched maybe only 1/4 of all the episodes). Like Charlotte getting feisty in defending her jilted friend. And Miranda revealing that underneath that cynical, hard-nosed persona she does have a soft heart after all. And Samantha-- doing her best to keep from straying!

That, then, got me thinking about the brief commentary between me and Jenna on the previous entries, about how the show's characters as a whole pretty much encompass the entire spectrum of personalities. The average person would find it hard to identify with just ONE character, but it's easy for us to find elements of ourselves amongst 2 or 3 of the women. For me, it's Carrie's cautious optimism. Miranda's drive. Charlotte's innocent outlook (shut up) on life, and her fashion style.

The other day, while watching "Friends" on TV, the ensuing discussion about who our favorite character was got me thinking about WHY we had our individual favorites-- and I think it mostly has to do with how much we can relate to the character. How much of ourselves (that we don't hate) we see in him/her. And the same thing happens: there is more than one. Invariably, I'll say: "My favorite is X. But I also like Y. And then there's Z!" and before you know it I've rattled off more than half the cast. I love Chandler's style of humor and down-to-earthness (is that a word??). I am Monica's twin when it comes to obsessing over order and cleanliness. I can relate to Phoebe's bluntness and Ross's geekish tendencies. A single favorite is hard to name because I can relate to different parts of so many.

And... I guess it's that way in real life, too. Your friends are hardly your clones. You have a few things in common, but some things different as well. Ultimately, the differences are a good thing-- it'd get pretty boring hanging out with a bunch of your "twins", wouldn't it? I think about that in terms of those of you who are reading this blog right now. At first, our one thing in common was the thing that we had in common with hundreds, thousands of other people-- Grab.com or UCSB. Gradually we came to discover more. Similar interests/hobbies. Tastes in music and movies. Circumstances. Goals. Philosophies.

Then the differences also became apparent. I don't like cats. Some of you own them. I hate hiking, camping and anything outdoorsy. Some of you live for it. I favor country music. Precious few of you do. I'm too weary for the heavy-drinking scene. Some of you could still drink me under the table. We have different outlooks on lifestyles, family, work, and money. And despite the differences, we get along as well as the women of "Sex and the City" and the sextet of "Friends". Our similarities bring us together, our differences keep the friendships interesting. That really brings out the positive meaning of "diversity", doesn't it?

Just as an afterthought... we could have our very own sitcom/soap opera just based on our lives together! The stories we could tell! What should we call our show? ;-)

(originally posted at:  http://www.myspace.com/hellykwee/blog/404486978)

Sex and the City

On Friday, the much-anticipated "Sex and the City" movie premiered. I had intended to see it on opening night, but tickets ran out FAST. I guess it's just as well, since it probably would've meant an overcrowded theater, which I'm not partial to. I am by no means an ardent follower of the former HBO series, but I do enjoy catching re-runs every now and then, when they air on the CW channel or on TBS.

Allan and I made plans to see it on Saturday, but we had too much to do, between extra work, cleaning the apartment, and running all sorts of errands, so we made plans to catch it on Sunday afternoon. I even treated myself to some new nail polish while shopping on Saturday, so that, in true Carrie Bradshaw fashion, I could paint my toenails and step out in my high-heeled sandals.

Unfortunately, we slept in later than planned this morning, and had to catch the later Sunday service, which led to a chain of events that ended in us skipping the movie today. After church, we met up with some other members (one of my former labmates at school, his fiancee, and their friends) and having lunch together. We were really enjoying the conversation and camaraderie, so by the time we finished our meal, it was too late to catch the next showing. So we opted for some shopping instead. Ties for Allan and a dress for me (for his upcoming 20-year reunion this summer). To my utter joy and surprise, I managed to find a gorgeous black dress that would be perfect for any occasion-- formal or casual! It is rare for me to find actual dresses that fit me, but I lucked out today :-)

I had hoped to blog this after I watched the movie, but I figured I had enough to ramble about for now ;-) So I leave you with one little blogthings quiz (been ages since I posted one)-- very apt! And I like my results-- of the 4 vixens, I think Kristin Davis is the prettiest, and her character is definitely the sweetest!

You Are Most Like Charlotte!

You are the ultimate romantic idealist
You've been hurt before, but that hasn't caused you to give up on love.
If anything, your resolve to fall in love is stronger than ever.
And it's this feminine optimism that men find most appealing about you.


Romantic prediction: That guy you are seeing (or crushing on)?

Could be very serious - if you play your cards right!

Which Sex and the City Vixen Are You?

 (originally posted at: http://www.myspace.com/hellykwee/blog/401755494)