Sparks are flying!

Sphere: Related Content I've taken quite a hiatus from blogging and I can't say that it's all been for good reason. I can however, say that I have recently been getting acquainted with a new job and more importantly I have been getting in shape. (For real this time.) I've been using a site called SparkPeople that is absolutely fantastic. It's got tools for tracking your weight loss, calories, creating nutritional reports and best of all it's got loads of community support.

So far, I've lost 4 pounds so I'm pretty stoked about that. The downside?

Drinking eight 80z or more glasses of water a day + whatever other beverages makes one have to urinate like a 4 year old.

Alright I'll stop complaining and enjoy my pants fitting better while you visit and see if you like SparkPeople!

Curly vs. Straight: Who wins in the Work Place?

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This week I wore my hair straight up until Wednesday when I washed it out and left it curly.

I woke up Thursday morning with a gigantic curly "Afro" and had to fight the clock to pull it back into a bun for work.

At work, I met a ton of women with curly hair and felt like a traitor. I tried to let my curly girl hair fly on Friday but I wound up just pulling it back into a more controlled bun with more hair gel and less fly aways than on Thursday.

I plan to straighten it again tomorrow before I hit work on Monday because I just don't know what to do with it! I know there is nothing wrong with curly hair but until I find an acceptable professional curly "do", I'll be making love to my Tourmaline Flat Iron and Blow dryer for about an hour.

I read somewhere that people make the assumption that curly heads are wild and unruly and less professional than their sleeker less frizzy straight haired counterparts. Any opinions?

Anyone have any professional curly girl hairstyles for me? I've got a head full of tight, chin length and shorter, corkscrew curls that drink conditioner like it's Long Island Iced Tea.

I've read Loraine Massey's book "Curly Girl" already but I think someone needs to put out a book called "Curly Girl at work: How not to look like you stuck your finger in an electrical socket at your 9am meeting." HELP!

I finally got a job...Help me decorate my cubicle!

Sphere: Related Content So I know I haven't posted a blog in a while, but I finally got the job I've been pining for since April. I started this past Monday after a rigorous interview process (I had three in person, one phone interview, a background check and a drug screen) and tons of waiting around biting my nails.



I'll be working in client services making the most amount of money I've ever made in my entire life with more promised to come after I finally graduate college which they will pay for. Needless to say I am jumping for absolute joy.



I'll call the company "ABC." ABC has an awesome way of treating their "associates." I won't bore you with mundane details but I just want to say I can access the Internet (except social networking sites which includes blogger ...boo!) at any time at my desk. I should also mention that my cubicle is sick.



It's huge and I'm thinking about totally decking it out. Kinda like "pimp my cubicle" style. Here are some decorated cubicles and office supplies I love:

I haven't read Kelley Moore's "Cube Chic" yet but the cover is enough to at least make me want to buy a small bamboo plant for my desk. You can buy it here at Amazon.com.

This is another look from Moore's book called "CEO Cube." It's my absolute favorite and I will be modeling my cubicle after it. My space will definitely stick out once I cover the grey walls in fabric. No one in my row does anything but put up pictures except for the guy who has a fish tank at his desk.

I was also thinking of using my over head space as a pseudo bookshelf. All in all my framed awards and sharp black and white photos coupled with an overall professional vibe will make me shine in the workplace.

Since I hate working with numbers and a large portion of my new job involves that, this Heart calculator by The Spoon Sisters, would make my day just a little bit sweeter.
These "I Love the Office" stickers rock! My favorite is "I Love Overtime," since I will be working lots of it to save up for the incredibly expensive wedding I am basically bankrolling.

-Stickers also by The Spoon Sisters - Check em out here

Last but not least, I want this rear view computer mirror. I gotta see what's behind me. Surprises at work can be tricky.

-Go here for eyes in the back of your head - brought to you by The Spoon Sisters

Good surprise: the power generator failed during the blackout so you get to go home. Yea!

Bad surprise: Your boss is standing behind you while you are instant messaging a co-worker about how you want to shoot your brains out because you are hung over and drank way too many Patron shots last night. Boo!

Do any of you have cool cubicle/office ideas? Let me know!

Mutya Buena - B Boy Baby - Ft Amy Winehouse

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In February, Mutya Buena was dropped by her record label due to poor sales and charting positions from her last two singles, including this track.

I love this track. This track was originally supposed to be for Amy Winehouse which explains why you hear her singing the chorus. Amy changed her mind for some reason and they offered the track to Mutya Buena (Mutya= Pear or Muse in her native Tagalog Buena=Good). The producer asked to leave Amy's vocals in for the finished product and I'm happy they did. Check it out.

Virginia Sin Ain't Whistling Dixie

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Tired of greasy plates that buckle every time you try to load your BBQ onto 'em?

Try a sturdier kind, and I'm not talking about Dixie or Hefty either.

Virginia Sin of Passionately Curious was too, so she took matters into her own hands and created dishwasher - safe plates from recycled paper pulp and porcelain.

Cons: You can throw these out and avoid doing the dishes but that would be stupid and costly. They are way too awesome to toss away.

Pros: They are too awesome to throw away! Plus they are totally Eco-friendly as they are "upcycled" or created from discards and scraps that normally would have been junked; can be used over and over.

Clearly, the pros outweigh the cons. Plus it will be fun confusing your guests who will be doing double takes at your "china."

Go green in quirky, minimalist style!

From $35; passionatelycurious.net

Year of The Rat

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Marc Jacob's "mouse flats" inspired this set which I created in honor of 2008 which is the Year of the Rat (Can I just say Year of the cute and totally harmless and disease-free little baby mouse?).

Here's what Wikipedia had to say about the Year of the Rat:

The Rat (鼠) was welcomed in ancient times as a protector and bringer of material prosperity. It is an animal associated with aggression, wealth, charm, and order, yet also associated with death, war, the occult, pestilence, and atrocities.

In the Chinese Zodiac, the Year of the Rat is associated with the earthly branch symbol 子. In some parts of the world, a year associated with this animal 鼠 is referred to as Year of the Mouse because the word may be translated to "rat", "mouse", or more broadly, "rodent".

(From: Wikipedia )

Now make like Mickey,Mighty, Fievel and Danger / Danger and get that cheese.

Adult Swim Has Officially Made Love to my Eardrums

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So I love Adult Swim. Maybe it's the genius, joke filled "bumps" they air during commercial breaks. Maybe I'm just a cartoon loving geek.

Adult Swim has always had an awesome program line up featuring shows like Aqua Teen Hunger Force, Bleach, Voltron, Space Ghost Coast to Coast, and my favorite, Robot Chicken.

They once renamed the network "crappy 1980's live action TV show network" and proceeded to air eight episodes of Saved by the Bell over the course of two weeks in response to a post on adultswim.com.

Now that's funny. Not only is it funny, but it's great marketing. Every time I've watched since, I find myself thinking "gotta check out that website."

After spending most of today repeatedly checking my inbox to see if I got an email from a company I'll call "ABC," confirming my future employment with them, I decided that I needed to chill the hell out and check out the site before I chewed my freaking nails off.

The site is a pure sensory overload, but I decided to start in the games section. After playing "5minutes to kill (yourself)" till I finally did, I decided to check out the music section.

Simply captioned "Put these in your earholes," the section consists of diverse compilations of music ranging from hip hop, trip hop to indie rock. What's the best thing you ask?

It's all compiled on ready to play track listings that you can listen to and embed on your blog or Myspace page.

The cover art is sick and the players match the compilations making for some refreshing eye-candy as well.

On top of that, everything is awesome and everything is underground.

Adult Swim teamed up with the Ghostly International record label to create my personal fave, Ghostly Swim, described by the label as

"A genre-busting 19-song collection...[which] explores the Avant-Pop style that the Ann Arbor/New York City label has been been championing for the past 9 years. Ghostly Swim features artists like Matthew Dear, Dabrye, Tycho and Aeroc and features new signings like UK cult band The Chap and NYC producer Michna... School Of Seven Bells, and Detroit’s Deastro, Milosh (Plug Research), FLYamSAM (Warp’s Flying Lotus and SAMIYAM), and Dark Party (Mush). Along with the new music, BoyCatBird (Ghostly’s mascots) make their animated debut in the awesome “City Suckers” video by Daniel Garcia/Superfi."

Click to check it out here.