Brothers and Sisters II

So a few days ago one of my little students comes in - little guy's 6 years old.  And when he comes in the door the first thing I see are four HUGE stitches over his right eyebrow, like Frankenstein big stitches.  And there's a huge gash underneath.

So I say, "What happened?!" And he says, "Emma (the little sister) threw an iPad at me."  His little sister is 3, and much more rowdy, rambunctious, and temperamental than he is.

I said, "iPod or iPad?!"  And the mom says, "iPad."

Apparently it was a big mess, blood gushing out of his forehead, him screaming and crying, sis screaming and crying because she thought she killed him, whole family rushes to emergency room.

So I asked, "Were you mad at her?" And he says all calmly, "yes, I was so mad.  I really wanted to kill her but my mommy wouldn't let me."

LOL.  But then I guess he felt bad for saying something so strong, so he quickly follows it up with, "But it was an accident, she wasn't trying to hit me.  She just wanted to see if i could catch it."

To which I replied, "You guys need to buy a frisbee!"

OPI: San Tan-tonio

One word:  LOVE.

This is easily my favorite nail look yet for this summer!  It's simple, it's neutral (I've been hooked on neutrals lately), it's polished yet subtle, it's perfectly hot and summery!  I love love love it! Can NOT say enough good things about this manicure.

Here's three different lightings for comparison:

 artificial light, no flash

 artificial light, with flash

natural light

"Recipe"

Two coats OPI San Tan-tonio

One coat Sally Hansen Instant Dry 30 second top coat (reviewed here)

That's all folks! Though O.P.I. is definitely a pricier brand, this color is worth every penny, in my opinion.  I already know for sure this will be the one bottle I bring with me on my trip!

Seafood + Jazz

My camera is still barely hanging onto its last breath, so these are actually pics courtesy of my beloved blackberry.  I managed to snap only one full outfit pic before my camera passed out for the day, but alas it was out--of-focus.  Go figure.  Praying praying PRAYING it will last through upcoming China/HK trip...  I have absolutely no money right now to buy a new one!

These are a few new things I discovered last week:

SCOMA'S Seafood Restaurant at Pier 37

Overall Grade:  A-

Came here for lunch one day - if you're going to hit it up, take my suggestion and look at a map closely!!  Scoma's is tucked away behind the main strip of shops and restaurants, which actually makes the location kind of nice.  More locals and less tourists, because most tourists don't bother venturing into the deserted beyond.  And it appears that if you're smart enough to figure out how to actually get your car there also, there's a few spaces available in a small private lot.  

Another area in which we did not do our research well was pricing.  This place is steep, even for lunch.  Oops.  We ended up going with the prix fix menu which for 24.95 gives you an appetizer (chowder or salad), a choice of 5 different entrees at a slightly smaller portion, and dessert of the day.  Best deal on the menu for sure and therefore an easy choice. The clam chowder was good, although I still like the one at Sam's better.  (Actually to be honest, I like almost everything about Sam's better.) 

Service was okay, not bad, not stellar.  Seafood was fresh, but I'm not die hard enough about seafood to want to come back and shell out another 30bucks for any entree.  (The "fisherman's pasta" sounded really good, but at a whopping $34, I decided it wasn't worth my grad school student budget to find out exactly how good.)

Verdict:  If you're in the area and have some serious moolah to shell out, no harm in checking it out.  If not, you'll definitely live.  For me, it's just simply not in my budget at this particular moment in life.

Le Colonial - Upstairs bar and lounge/Live music venue

Overall Grade: A+

Let me make this very clear, I did NOT eat here!!  This review applies only to the lounge area of the restaurant (upstairs).  We only came after dinner to check out the live music/dancing - which I thought was AMAZING.  (Then again, being a classical musician and a seriously old soul, I'm probably very biased, so take this with a grain of salt.  In fact, amongst my party, I think I am the one who by far enjoyed it the most.)

The live band and singer sounded like Frank Sinatra's old buddies (although for the record the singer was probably only in his 40's).  The atmosphere and ambiance was amazing - you are instantly transported to a swanky war-time bar in probably a nicer area of town, a place that the soldiers and local girls would perhaps mingle in the evenings.  (Although the bf did say that it brought terrible war-time atrocities to his mind and he did not enjoy those thoughts.)  I ordered a drink the Gigi, which was pricey, but delightful strong yet smooth and delicious.

The best part of this place is actually the customers that come.  Couples in their 40's-70's dress to the nines (literally, think dress code for The Royal Wedding) then bust out their dance chops that have been continually brewing for the last few decades.  I could have sat there and watched them dance all night!  Made me wish my grandfather was still alive.  He was a competitive ballroom dancer and for my whole life I've wished that he could have been around long enough to teach me something.

I was so sad to leave!  

Verdict:  Everything about this place is cute, the building, the decor, the music, the little flowers in the drinks, service is friendly...if you're done with eating and want some classy entertainment for a few hours, and you're someone like me who loves Hemingway, old movies, and "Shall We Dance", be sure to check it out!

P.S.  If you're going to swing by, DRESS UP.  I was unfortunately told there was no dress code so I showed up in ripped jeans and converses and was too mortified to leave my seat at all.  So, dress up...unless you won't care at all that the rest of the crowd looks like they just had dinner at the white house and you look like you just came from an Offspring concert.

Brothers and Sisters

Today a younger brother/older sister family came for piano lessons.  The brother went first, and then the sister.  When she was done with her lessons she walked back over to get her things and exclaimed, "Why are you playing with my iPod?!?!" To which her brother replied with a huge grin, "I figured out your password!!"

Haha! Their mom and I burst into laughter.  The joys of having siblings that I never got to enjoy growing up ;)

Glitter Nails

Spent a wonderful three days at the 2011 "Let God's Kingdom Come" Convention.  The program was encouraging and motivating, but physically I am wiped out! I was much obliged to not step out of the house at all today, and spent the morning cooking, cleaning, doing the laundry, and tying up random odds and ends.  Will have a nice afternoon/evening of teaching ahead of me.

As promised, the nail review from last week.  I finally figured out what was wrong with my pictures...it appears that my camera (which recently developed some weird spots/black spots on the screen) has lost all its auto-focus capabilities as well.  Hmm...hopefully it'll last through my China trip, if not I'm going to have to start setting aside money to purchase a new camera :(

I used four polishes for this look:

From left to right:

Chanel 557 Morning Rose

O.P.I. & Katy Perry Teenage Dream

Wet & Wild Craze 237 Glitz

Sally Hansen Dries Instantly 30 Second Top Coat

That's also the order I put them on.  Here's your "recipe":

(adapt as you wish with primers, preps and base coats)

Apply 1 layer of Chanel Morning Rose

Starting from halfway up, apply one coat OPI Teenage Dream

Closer to the tip, apply a second coat OPI

At very tip (where you would put a french white tip), apply 1 layer Wet&Wild

Finish off with two coats clear top coat

 (with flash)

(without flash)

Again, apologize for poor quality photos, my camera sadly seems to truly be on its last breath...

I love this look because it's light enough to not be overwhelming on hot summer days, but yet still bright and glittery enough to be a great accessory for night-outs, and fun/more formal activities.  

I LOVE LOVE LOVE this Chanel 557, when I bought it I was told it was a 2011 Summer collection limited edition item, and though I never ever spend this much on a bottle of nail polish (just seems way to extravagant to me), I splurged on this one and it was well worth it.  This polish looks good alone or as a base coat, one coat or three coats.  Depending on the lighting and number of coats, it can look more coral or more pink. It brightens up your skin and makes your hands look beautiful.  I've seen it on a few different skin tones and seems to flatter all.  Love it!

I had actually given up on being able to find this OPI and Katy Perry limited edition polish, but surprisingly found it at a random little beauty supply store in downtown San Mateo one day when I wasn't even looking for it, months after the line had sold out in ULTAs and had ceased to be restocked.  Not only that, it was a few dollars cheaper than most other retailers too! One of my favorite glitter/top coats.  By itself it's not overwhelming at all, carries the perfect amount of sheer color, and has the perfect combination of fine and medium glitters.  Sometimes I like to just put one coat over a coat of nude polish.

The wet&wild Craze collection of glitter polishes has to be one of my favorites, and I think it's much better quality than a lot of polishes that are much pricier as well.  The carries a nice, full-bodied color with just one coat, which is something I find annoying in most other glitters - it's almost always too sheer in one coat with glitter sparsely spread.  Not this one! It's packed with glitter-ful color, but still not too overwhelming.  One of my favorite drug-store finds of all time.

A word on the Sally Hanson top coat - it really does dry in 30 seconds.  A time-saver that I really appreciate!  I also love that it's super shiny, so I often use just one coat of it to brighten up other polishes that aren't as shiny as I want it to be.

Overall note on glitter nail designs:  One of the things that I simultaneously love and hate about glitter polishes is that the glitter is almost impossible to remove without scraping/possibly damaging your nail.  While this is definitely a disadvantage when you want to remove it, it's also a huge advantage if you're looking for a design that will last a LONG time.  (ie great for long vacations)  I tend to put this on when I know I will be away/too busy to take care of my nails for a long time (hey even though they're usually bare for piano I still try to make them presentable!), and I try to let it grow out to the point where after I remove it, I will just clip off most of the damaged tip areas anyway.

You'll probably get tired of seeing it long before this nail design ever chips away!

Easy Deviled Eggs

I had to run out of the house today with very little time for lunch, so I made some super quick and easy Deviled Eggs with just ingredients we had in the fridge.  

Ingredients:

Eggs

Mayo

Horseradish

Freshly ground black pepper

Cayenne pepper

Directions:

Put eggs in water and bring water to a boil, turn off water, take out eggs and put in cold water to let them cool the rest of the way.  I skipped this step so my eggs didn't come out perfectly pretty :(  

Cut in half, scoop out egg yolks and throw in a bowl.  Mix in ingredients to taste, except for Cayenne pepper.  When thoroughly mixed, scoop back inside egg whites!

Sprinkle some Cayenne pepper on top for extra taste and presentation. 

(Hey who says your food can't look nice even when you're making them for yourself?!)

That's just how I did it today, left out tons of steps and ingredients for fancier/yummier/prettier eggs, but they still tasted pretty darn good for a hot summer day if you ask me!

Here's a link to an article I bookmarked for myself, with tips for good deviled eggs, one of my favorite summer food staples :)

Nail polish review coming tonight!

The Fourth at The Fair

Yesterday I went with my mom, lil bro and favorite auntie to our local fair and had a blast!! I practically grew up at the fairs - when I was a kid my parents would take me to the State fair (huge!) every single summer and I always enjoyed the face painting, hand print wall, farm animals, and carousel very much.  Also a part of even my earliest memory, is standing next to my mom in the exhibition booth waiting patiently (sometimes) while she watched demo after demo of home accessories/tools.  (To be fair, some of our best and most useful products were purchased at the fair at prices way below retail!) 

Though this local county fair was MUCH smaller than the state ones I went to as a child, it was still a lot of fun.  In fact, it may have even been a better, more manageable size, as we had time to get through *almost* the entire fair grounds, including all exhibition halls, and yes, most all of the home accessory demos :)

Going with a just-turned-14 year old boy is quite an intense experience though...I went on more rides in one day than I have in my whole lifetime combined probably, and my body is paying for it badly now.  I'm getting too old for this stuff!

I won this little guy by punching 4 out of 7 balloons at the dart throw booth.  Impressive right?  I was impressed too...that is until I found out I was actually playing at the children's dart throw booth.

I wore a tank from H&M, shorts and bracelet from American Eagle Outfitters, sunglasses from Armani Exchange, double tongue Chucks in hot pink and purple, and the only thing worth noting is of course my World Champion San Francisco Giants military cap!!

Nice view from the ferris wheel at sunset.  I actually don't know why I'm throwing up Asian gang signs...it's just this force that wells up inside of me that I'm no match against...

Summer Movies

It's been teetering right around a hundred degrees, so for the last couple of days I've been working on slowly re-watching one of my favorite "Summer Movies" - The Fast and The Furious.  What goes with hundred degree heat better than fast cars, sweaty drivers, and some ladies who have perfectly mastered the art of being tough-yet-still-sexy?

Ahh...the tuna sandwich that started it all :)

Movie Review: Transformers 3

Transformers: Dark of the Moon

Overall grade: A

Now, this might be a totally biased review because anyone who knows me knows I am a HUGE transformers fan!!  I cannot even explain the mysticism behind me being thoroughly entertained by nearly three hours of battling robots.  Every time OP or BB transforms I actually feel my heart skip a beat...it almost makes me fall in love.  Yes, with a robot-car.  A car-bot.  Otherwise, this third installment totally delivers everything the first two did, so if you sat through two, go ahead and watch three, you won't be disappointed.  LeBouf is still too good for Whitwicky, and I would totally stick a uniform-clad-Duhamel in every single movie if that were possible. 

Con: SERIOUSLY large amount of plot-holes...you kind of have to try to not think too much while watching this movie. But that's okay! Just let your mind me happily distracted by the awesome transformations and gigantic robot battles!

Pro: Rosie Huntington-Whitley.  Yes, even though her role of completely useless hot-girlfriend-doll does absolutely nothing for the movie and is totally unnecessary...I still think she was great! Besides, every action movie needs (at least) one hot babe to keep things interesting right? (Think, Fast&Furious franchise) Plus, she's got that sweet/innocent/naive *pout* down PACT, probably helps to have all that Victoria's Secret Angels experience under your belt.  Megan Fox's smoulder always looked a little bit on the vicious side, in my humble opinion...

P.S. For you Grey's Anatomy fans out there, McDreamy has a surprisingly large role in this film!

Verdict: If you haven't watched it already, what's wrong with you?! GO NOW!!!

Recipe: Pasta with Arugula

Got this recipe from a friend of mine and tried it out for dinner tonight - I wanted to make pasta, but since it was so hot, I also wanted something a little lighter and not quite so heavy.  This was perfect!  

**Note--although this can be eaten hot or cold, I personally think it's even better after it's cooled!

Also, it is quite filling, so don't underestimate the simplicity!**

My friend adapted it from a recipe by Giada de Laurentiis, and though I haven't seen the original, hers is delish!

Ingredients

• 1 (1-pound) New York strip steak or chicken breasts
• 1 teaspoon herbs de Provence
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus 3 tablespoons
• 1 pound penne pasta
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more for steak and pasta water
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more for steak
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves
• 2 cups chopped arugula

Directions

Season the steak with salt and freshly ground black pepper, herbs de Provence, and minced garlic. In a skillet, heat 3 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat. Cook steak about 7 minutes per side. Remove the meat from pan and let it rest for 5 minutes. Thinly slice the steak. Set aside.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain pasta, reserving 1/4 cup of pasta water.

In a small bowl, whisk together the balsamic vinegar, Dijon mustard, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, fresh herbs, and 3/4 cup olive oil. In a large bowl toss the pasta with half of the salad dressing and the reserved pasta water. Add the arugula and steak, more dressing, and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper, as needed. Toss, pack for the picnic, or serve.