Holiday Glitter Madness for Eyes, Lips and Nails...

Photo from Glitter Bug Cosmetics. Check them out!

...or if you are me, you probably find excuses to do it year round. My love for glitz and glam started in my childhood and in high school you'd often find me carrying a black patent leather tote sprinkled in a rainbow of glitter colors. Inside, you would find a furry leopard print date book and a pink feather pen with an iridescent glitter print (among other Lisa-ish things). I remember showing up at my aunts house one day with all of my accessories, getting a raised eyebrow, followed by a warm smile with the statement, "You are SO Latina". Boy did I feel proud. I totally owned my love for glitz, glam, feathers, being Latina and, well, pink. Years later, I can confidently say, not much has changed!

This months Latina Magazine features a beautiful make-up spread titled "Glitter Goddess", with an array of sparkly styles that I am no stranger to! With Latina Mag, I'm either learning muy mucho or relating; in this case it's the latter. Starting back in July, I have taken photos of my glitter nails, eyes and lips to share on a blog post and coming across this article put a smile on my face. The "I did that" smile on my face. Though I can't credit Latina Magazine for the glitter inspiration I can credit my favorite magazine for finally writing this post (they always have my back!). 


Check out my pics and read more inside!

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Happy Thanksgiving! Coexistance And Living In The Now On My Mind

That's Me Above :p

Happy Thanksgiving! I wish you all a blessed holiday! I've spent some time on a holiday message on the Nifty Thrifty Stylist Closet today, so please visit me there and read my post Happy Thanksgiving! What I Would Have Worn If I Were A Pilgrim. Yes, there is a picture of what I would have worn, but there is a deeper message of simply one of the things that I am grateful for and hope and intend  to always be grateful for!

Much Love,

Lisa xo

And as a cute little end note, let peace and love be our religion, regardless of race, culture, religion, sexual orientation...you get my drift. May be controversial to some, but hey, here we have a depiction of an interracial lesbian couple at a time period where that definitely would have been taboo; more than that even. We've come a long way. Let's pray, hope and continue to choose the path of coexisting in peace and respect, at least within our own personal lives.

Yum Shaker Recipe Share: Chocolate Pumpkin Pie

Chocolate Drizzled Pumpkin Pie by Chocolate Covered Katie

It's that time of year when pumpkin pie gets its "15 Minutes" of fame through out the fall season. It starts to grace tables and counter tops across the country from the start of pumpkin picking season and struts its stuff around at Autumn festivities showing all the other desserts who's the boss. Yet somehow, it can't fool me! I'm a chocolate lover, married to that cocoa bean...ok, I'm a sometimes mistress to créme brulee, shhh-sometimes it's based with chocolate anyway, pfft! Though, when I saw this post from Chocolate Covered Katie in my inbox this morning, a taste bud (or two or three or more) poked at my finger tips and I clicked the button that opened the e-mail to this CHOCOLATE gluten-free pumpkin pie that I would SO harass my mom and sisters to bake (they love to bake, I love to cook, that's just how it works in this family); but I don't need to. It's an easy shmeezy hassle free No-Bake Chocolate Pumpkin Pie! Is this Katie girl a genius? She must have taken a class in Dessert Making Wizardry at Hogwarts because her recipes always manage  to make me want to try something I normally wouldn't! I will be making this no later than tomorrow, yippee!

Chocolate Covered Katie is a blog that is primarily dedicated to healthy desserts or in the least, much healthier versions of our favorite treats...and I don't need to tell you what her favorite flavor is (please, I really hope I don't need to tell you!). All of Katie's recipes support a vegan lifestyle, that are a treat to vegans and non-vegans alike, and are created with love by Katie. Her posts are charming, fun and informative, so make sure you stop by and check her out! She was referred to me by my dear friend at Fun.Fit.Chic, who is my go to source for fitness inspiration and news and just all around cuteness and fun stuff. I get introduced to such fabulous and informative things on that site, so check that out too!

For Chocolate Covered Katie's No-Bake Chocolate Pumpkin Pie recipe, just click on the pic below, get your shopping list in order, throw on an apron and some holiday music (my dad's been since Halloween) and enjoy yourself some homemade goodness! 

Thank you for reading!

Besos, Beijos, Filakia, MUAH!

Love,

Lisa xo

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Where My Words Are Hanging Out Today and Heloz Art & Photography Promo For Facebook Fans

Artist and Photographer Hector Lopez

Good day my buddies ole' pals! Just wanted to let you all know that today I'm at (well, my writing is at) Circle of Art Movement with an interview on body paint artist,  photographer, painter, artist (like, drawing homies), actor and dancer Hector Lopez (the pneumonia just made my mind run out of breath typing all of that, phew!). If you don't remember (I'm just saying that to say that, of course you do!), let me refresh your memory; he's the talent responsible for this:

If you missed the Kim Kardashian Inspired Body Paint article, just click on the pic!

And I'm responsible for the makeup (just had to throw that in there because I wanted to feel as cool as Hector for just a second). Please check out my interview with him here-->Hi, I'm Hector, Click Me!<--click that! Thanks :)

Also, in case you haven't heard, or aren't a fan of his Facebook Page yet (shame on you), Hector is running a special promotion for his Facebook Fans ONLY! So get on over there and "like" his page already my people!

Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoy my interview on Hector! Comments would be LOVED and deeply appreciated at the end of the interview post :)

Besos, Beijos, Filakia, MUAH!

Lisa xo

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P.S. I know I promised to share my experience with prolactinoma with you all today, and my love for Derek Santiago Art, but there is a possibility that I will not have laptop/computer access for at least today, maybe more depending on my current health status. Thank you for reading guys and I look forward to being back sooner than later :) xo

I went to the ER and the verdict is...

Woe is Me

Hey all!

So, by now some of you already know that I have been at home sick for some time now. I don’t have health insurance and it seemed like I just had a common cold, so I didn’t go to the doctor’s. While I felt as if I were getting better (my voice came back much to the chagrin of others), I was still having sleepless nights and coughing up phlegm in a shade of green that doesn’t compliment my skin tone (tmi?). I consulted my dear friend Google, who’s a big fat “know it all”, and was informed that the shade of phlegm bestowed upon my tissues meant I had an infection. So, the next morning I hauled my bootie over to the emergency room hoping that I’d have a simple diagnosis of say, I don’t know, bronchitis, get given some antibiotics and be told that I’m clear to get my broke a$$ back to work the following day.

I had a great time at the ER I’ll admit, I didn’t want to leave. Aside from the constant coughing that had the 5 year old behind the curtain in the "room" next to me being more concerned about me dying as opposed to her mother’s car accident (so sweet,“Hey, are you okay in there Miss?”), I’d say I was all smiles, bursting with stars and sugarplums, and confident that I’d have medication and clearance to go back to normal living by the next day. I even thought I’d be better by 7:15 that evening to take a dance class I prepaid for (you know, because the magic cough medicine that I imagined they would give me would be that effective!). Well, the doctor’s attending me pissed in my cheerios when they came in with the news. They were so sweet, funny and smiley faced. So much, that when they told me I had pneumonia I laughed and said “Really, so even with that phlegm and coughing there’s nothing wrong with…wait, what?” So that’s why I felt like I ran a marathon each time I went down stairs to get something to eat and stock up on bedside fluids? 

Then the nurse came in, bearer of worse news. Discharge paper in hands, she says something about me (remember, broke and no health insurance) needing to go to a doctor in 5 days for a follow up and then I ask her: 

Me: “So, when can I go back to work?”

The nurse gives me a blank stare. 

Me: “Tomorrow? Day after? It takes like 24 hours for antibiotics to kick in, right?” 

Insert 5 seconds of silence that painstakingly feels like 5 minutes. 

Nurse: “Girl...you got pneumonia what do you mean when can you go back to work? People die from this, you got an infection in your lungs, you need to stay in bed for like 10 days.”

First of all, whoooooa mama. Second of all, 10 days?!?! I don’t get paid when I don’t go to work! I can’t stay in bed, who’s going to feed me?! Will I ever get better? 10 days?! Yes, 10 days. Maybe a little less, but still, what am I going to do, like, financially?

So, when can I go back to work again? Photo compliments of Zazzle.com

The stress over this little very big detail which looms over my head definitely isn’t conducive to the recovery process, so I need to try and let it go for now, but I can’t help but wonder why, at one of the few times in my life that I don’t have sick days or health insurance, would this happen? I’ve already made a few moves such as post a few easy things on Ebay and call my local Avon Representative to inquire about becoming a salesperson too. I mean, it's about all I can do for now to try and make money from bed and I’m even somewhat limited on the Ebay thing since I can’t walk around too much before I start having a cough attack.

I also need to find a way to keep productive and since I don’t have a TV in my room I’ve been wasting away online and I’m kind of bored of it. So, I thought, now is a better time than ever to focus on sharing with you all the issues I’ve had with my health and what I have learned about my conditions and ailments. I promised to do so in the past, but I get more excited about writing about the exciting people and food in my life. Since I am sick  and not at my best,  now is the time to write a little less about the totally awesome people and artists and food in my life since I most likely will not be writing at my best while my mind is all on my health. However, before I got really sick, I pulled together a photo album of some of my favorite works by one of my absolute favorite artists, Derek Santiago, and only haven’t posted because I promised to take a picture of an awesome book I bought from him to post on FB. Oh, yeah, and I have to write something too! The pics of me and the book will have to come later, but I can’t wait any longer to share my love of Derek Santiago’s work with you all! There will be plenty of time in the future for me to get all dolled up and look cute posing with Derek’s artwork, which will house the words I pen for my long lost love of writing poetry. Perhaps, I can do it for a Circle of Art Movement photo shoot and article.

Soooo, back on topic, now more than ever I realize how precious our health is, priceless actually. Our health is our wealth so take care of yourself! Pause. Ok, so I have prolactinoma. Prolactinowhat? Yup, prolactinoma. I’m not going to tell you all about it now, it will be the topic of conversation in tomorrow’s post so you’re not reading an essay today, but I’ll leave you with this: I at times easily overlook it. We should never overlook not one single detail of our health, no matter how mundane it seems, it can be linked to or contribute to greater issues with something else. When I checked into the hospital and they asked me if I had any health conditions I immediately said “no” and then followed by and “Oh yeah, I’m not sure if this is relevant but I have prolactinoma.” Prolactiwhat? Yeah, that’s usually the response I get. Anyway, I hope the information I type up while I’m home with pneumonia is of some interest to you and helpful for some and that I am able to be interesting enough to keep you engaged long enough to learn something new based on my experiences.

Well, for today, that’s all folks! Hope to see you here tomorrow!

Besos, Beijos, Filkia, MUAH!

Love,

Lisa xo

Got Time Management? Let's Start With Keeping Sane

Close to a month ago I put myself in the dunce cap, which I am still in by the way if anyone cares to know, because I was doing so horribly at balancing all the gajillion things I need to do. Well, one of my readers read my rant and has offered up some tips to share with me and the rest of you fab people who pay me some mind (thanks my love doves). I'm so excited, because I'm still a certified "Hot Mess" and could use all the help I can get (preferably a personal assistant, but that's not an option right now). I'm thrilled to introduce you to my first guest blogger EVER, Katia Suero, and her excellent article "Juggling Life".

Juggling Life
by Katia Suero

While scarfing down my lunch (this time, a very healthy salad and a not so healthy creamy chicken chowder), I pulled out my handy dandy notebook and jotted down all of the things I had “pending” for the weekend- YES! For the W.E.E.K.E.N.D! You may say, “but the weekend?” Long gone are the days when the weekends were used to relax, to watch movies, spend time with friends, SLEEP, get your nails did…and so on. The weekends have become (to most of us) the “catch up” series of our lives, where we try to fit in everything we couldn’t do during the week.  We squeeze in the laundry, the food shopping, the cleaning, the tedious bill payments, the rushed hour with our DVR’s, the time when we do our text catching up with mom or dad…yes TEXTING…we can no longer afford to call and hold a conversation as time is too scarce; it escapes from our hands and before we realize it Sunday night is before us and it is time to do it all over again.

I sat back and thought about my dear friend’s blog post about her journey back to wellness. I remembered how much those words resonated with me as I thought of the many challenges, I, she and the rest of us face when making an effort to live healthy lives; to eat the “right” things, to exercise, to simply live well. I can tell she struggles just as much as I do to maintain a balanced life style and if for me it means jotting down my pending businesses during my lunch hour on a Friday afternoon while to her it meant getting up every time after an injury and making sure she squeezed in the time to get moving and to remind herself how important it was to make the time for those fruit smoothies and 1 hour DVD’s.

It is an evident factor that in today’s society, we live in a constant rush to accomplish as much as we can in the shortest amount of time. If you, as I did, sit down and take one moment to think, you will realize your heart beats as if speeding in a race…a race against time. We want to make it all happen for ourselves and for others. We want to feel accomplished. We want to show our kids and spouse’s that YES WE CAN…but how much could we truly make happen in a day’s span that would truly make us feel good at the end of the day? Why, instead of feeling this huge sense of accomplishment, do I feel completely exhausted and without the energy to be able to think by the time my head hits the pillow? We are completely overly exerting ourselves and all we do about it is keep going just like the energizer bunny.  It’s like a vicious cycle we keep feeding and we keep hoping it will blossom into something someday soon. In the meantime, we down the java on the way to work, we carry around our daily planners, berries, nooks, and droids…we power up with energy drinks and we pretend to be unbeatable at the face of delayed LIRRS, PATHS and subway, grab a snickers bar on the way to the afternoon meeting, we try some green tea for sake of health, we overdose on vitamin C and Zinc at the sign of a sneeze…all we can do, to simply keep moving.

I am no expert.  I am another New Yorker trying to make it through the noise of the city that never sleeps. One that has often become one of its zombies. I try to remind myself to stop and breath. I use my writing as my time of meditation, as MY time to slow down and take a moment to look around me as life rapidly flashes before my eyes like lightening.

 I have gathered a few tips that I feel have helped me on some days, not ALWAYS, and want to share with the rest of you hardworking people trying to simply make it before the Friday night crash.


They are as follows:

• Take a moment to BREATH. Truly it works

• Disconnect your brain. As non-ethical as this sounds in the work place, it works wonders for me to think about that date on Saturday night or that take out I have waiting for me in the fridge while the CFO talks about revenue expectations (hehehe)

• If possible, disconnect from the net. We think of it as a tool always, but the web can very much be a source of tension and stress. Step away from the laptop. Practice this by 5 minute increments daily, you will see, it’s not as difficult as it seems.

• Give yourself something to look forward to. A yummy treat at the end of the day, a ½ hour with your favorite reality TV show, a Pinkaberry moment…anything that makes you smile!

These are simple enough, and you may say, “How can they help me balance my day?” BUT: The idea is that you have a moment to recharge, a moment to seize and re-program yourself, and an opportunity to prioritize… and for the sake of keeping your sanity, enjoy some of what the day can bring!

Stay well, smiling, and healthy,

Katia

Katia Suero is a Bilingual Freelance Online Content Writer. Originally from the Dominican Republic, Katia arrived in NYC at the age of 11 and has grown to become an energetic, multifaceted, and motivated professional who considers freelance writing one of her biggest outlets in life. In addition to writing, Katia has spent her professional career working for communities in need of support and help through organizations like The Partnership at DrugFree.org, Tiny Stars, American Red Cross, and others. Among many of her passions, writing and traveling are on the top of her list.

She enjoys staying active by practicing yoga and exercising.  Her inspirations include her family and desire to become an active participant in her community every day. She is strongly involved in spreading knowledge regarding Women’s Issues and Rights and educating the public about Human Trafficking campaigns. She has also used some of her time in between jobs to travel to places like England, Italy, France and The Czech Republic where she taught English and Spanish to children at the elementary level.

Before gaining all of her experience in the world of non-profits, Katia acquired a Master’s Degree from Pace University focusing on Public Administration for Non-Profits and a Bachelor’s Degree on Language Culture and World Trade also from Pace University. 

I'm baaaaaack, missed me? I'm sure you didn't with all this interesting info! I just want to close this off by thanking you all for reading and I hope this inspires you to take the steps necessary to lead a balanced life. Don't be hard on yourself, remember, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson wasn't built overnight, so neither will be rebuilding our lives into such a masterpiece. That baby took nine months to bake in the oven boys and girls, so maybe, juuuust maybe, you can try and set yourself up on a monthly goal plan for the next nine months and see what you got in the end! And let's be original, start now, NOT January 2, 2012!

Now that you all are hopefully inspired and on a time management kick, you'll need to read Listen to Your Body, on Fun.Fit.Chic.

Besos, Beijos, Filakia, MUAH!

Lisa xo

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And last but not least, PLEASE support artists featured on Circle of Art Movement by following the  site, retweeting the articles and checking out some phenomenal talent! 

Cheers to Giveaways & Great Sales On Great Sites This Schizophrenic Winter!

Summer, Fall, Winter, whatever the weather may feel like to you, the calender is still running on it's own time and no matter which way you slice the pumpkin pie, time says: 'Tis the season to be giving (don't look at me, I didn't make up that rule, I say do it year round. Shooooot!). Great blogs such as Adventures of Modern Mom (in collaboration with the ever so talented Louise Cazley) & Kimberly Snyder, all year round bloggin' givers I should add, are kicking off the season by hosting giveaways on their fab blogs!

In addition to the great giveaways are great deals from independent designers and artisans. I LOVE handcrafted things and they make the most meaningful and one of a kind gifts! One of my favorite artisans, Olga Ayala, is giving 20% off in her Etsy Shop with the promo code: PROMO1313. Olga creates a plethora of Latin and African inspired functional art, jewelry, accessories, ornaments, home decor and other wearables. Check her out for some very unique Holiday gifts or jump start the winter season by treating you or your loved ones with one of her hand made neck warmers which are finished off with one of her fabulous polymer clay designs. Please scroll on down and clickety click on the pics to redirect yourself to where you want to go!

To win this gorgeous red infinity scarf made by Louise Cazley, author of Falling Into Place & Undies in a Bunch, please click on the image below to visit the fabulous and fun blog Adventures of Modern Mom to find out the simple steps to submit your entry! These two are a great duo, you'll be in for a treat with all the great stories they have to tell as well as some gorgeous winter outerwear made by talented hands!

Now that you've entered for a chance to win warmth in ultimate fabulosity by entering Adventures of Modern Mom blog's giveaway, your next step is to enter for a chance to win a Vitamin 5200 Blender from nutritionist Kimberly Snyder. Your scarf will keep you warm and while you're shielding yourself from the bitter cold within your four walls you can treat your body to the ultimate amount of nutrients by preparing yourself fresh juices and fruit smoothies with this "make it simpler" blender. And if you are not going to make them, then back off and leave the odds greater for those of us who will ;) Seriously. <--I mean that in the cutest way possible.

And last but certainly not least, you've had the opportunity to receive, now don't forget what's expected of us in America this time of year. It's giving time mi gente! What is this you speak of? Your credit cards are still maxed from last years holiday season? Boy do I hear ya!  That don't mean a thing to whoever made up these rules baby dolls, but I'll tell you this much, my dollar is going to the people; the indie talent get the dollar! Get your shopping on early with Olga Ayala's Hecho a Mano (made by hand) November discount. I know you'll be greedy and want to grab yourself something...go ahead, you're worth it! Check out the variety of handmade high quality items Olga has to offer and enjoy a 20% discount at the check out with promo code: PROMO1313 Click on the pic below and if you want some fab ideas on how to wear some of her things check out my article later this week on Nifty Thrifty Stylist Closet and 3 oldies, but goodies, in the archives of the "Arteseña" section of this here blog. 

Thank you for reading baby dolls and hope you have a supercalafradulistic start to what's starting off as a supercalafradulistically schizophrenic winter!

Besos, Beijos, Filakia, MUAH!

Lisa xo

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Yum Shaker Recipe Share: Cinnamon Spinach? Why thank you SER by Eduardo Life!

The one veggie I've NEVER denied, from my baby food days up to my salad and spanakopita days, is spinach. Thanks to you Popeye!

Cinnamon, check. Spinach, check. An appetite, permanent check (come on, this is me we are talking about here).

Yum Shaker is probably my favorite part of this blog, yet the least nurtured (just showing it some Kindergarten Crush Love). Today I am showering it with love by sharing a post by my dear friend Eduardo, author of the blog SER. It will take you two seconds to make this and, naturally, my Eduardito's posts would never be complete without educating us on the health benefits of cinnamon. I love how he's always so informative, interesting and oh so peaceful (if you are reading this, I miss you my love!). I so aim to live an Eduardo life (minus vegetarianism) and am totally a groupie. As a matter of fact, unknown to him, I'm his biggest groupie (from afar, since I live so far). After this post, I will be adding cinnamon into my diet much more often! Clickety click on the pic, read on and eat on! 

Thank you for reading!

Besos, Beijos, Filakia, MUAH!

Love,

Lisa xo

I've Put Myself In A Dunce Cap

Okay, so I've been M.I.A in my position as Social Media Whore. Shoot me. Um, on second thought, don't...take that literally... The truth is, I've just been swamped taking care of things that I have either neglected and/or absolutely need to get done. So I owe all that have been so supportive in keeping up with me here and reading my rants and stuff a big fat apology. Here is the big fat apology: APOLOGY. I have been naughty.

The truth is, I have an issue with balancing and not the body coordination kind. Well, that too, but that's not what this is about. I have an issue with balancing all the things I need to do! So I'm putting myself in the dunce cap and putting myself to work on other things and balancing this into it in the meanwhile. I love so much to write about what's on my mind, share fun info with my friends and tell everyone what is going on, buuuuuut, I'm going to have to do it like once a week :/ I suffer from wanting to socialize daily (bring out the violins).

On the up note, it's for good reason! Here's the deal. Before I started this personal blog, I began a plan to start a website, which will now be a blog, called Circle of Art Movement. I will tell you more about that later, but now it is starting to materialize and there are other people involved who are counting on me to release certain material within a reasonable amount of time. In brief, Circle of Art Movement (CAM Project) follows my work on photo shoots and incorporates field work of various artists of the material culture (jewelry designers, hat designers, clothing, etc.) The initial inspiration came from the desire to help aspiring designers by incorporating their work into photo shoots which would in turn provide them with professional photos of their work and expand the amount of portfolios they'd be in (mine, photographers, make-up artists, etc.). In turn, they'd be walking portfolios of all involved as well, hence, Circle of Art Movement. You will be seeing the first article no later than Monday of next week, if not sooner. On October 28th, you'll see how this idea inspired by material culture has already expanded itself into other realms of art pretty quickly and I'm happy about that! It's in the foundation stages, but I will be learning, perfecting and evolving as we go along. Please follow Circle of Art Movement on Facebook, Twitter and Blogspot to watch this baby grow with me!

The second is, well, I've been enlisted as a stylist for photo shoots the past few years, been asked for years to start a blog with my outfits so people can get ideas, plus have always longed to have a shop and be a personal shopper of sorts. Also, I've had the opportunity to work with an accomplished stylist who often calls me in for accessorizing and second opinion, therefore, I need to pay some mind to this (it's a sign!). So, slowly but surely I am doing it, but this has been the most challenging of all! I have so many ideas and not enough time to write them down! I have so much crap flying across what used to be a comfy bedroom that I can't even concentrate! I get outfits together and then have no one to take a picture of me (and shush up, if you saw my room, you know tri-podding it in here is not an option among other obstacles beyond my control). To top it off, I know as much about starting a website shop as Shrek the ogre knows about deodorant, so I don't get as much as I'd like done in the time available to me. However, somehow, someway, I will make it happen and have already played around some with  posts and products and  you can check that out on the Nifty Thrifty Stylist Closet's Facebook Fan Page and Nifty Thrifty Stylist Closet on Blogspot. Please join so you can be kept up to date with my progress, the things I will be selling, whatever and whoever I will be writing about in the (mostly non-famous) fashion world and of course, if you know anyone who may need a stylist/image consultant or a personal shopper, ya got my number ;)

And last, but not least, I have been desperately looking for work, spending up to 3 hours daily applying. My main interest is in being a live in house manager or housekeeper, because then I can do all the things I love to do. Cook, clean, organize, shop, take care of people...and you can make a very decent living doing this. BUT NO ONE WANTS TO HIRE ME! Lol. Finding work where I am located has been very difficult. Finding work that fulfills me in general, has been even more difficult. But a change needs to be made, I am very unhappy with my current situation, the work that I do, and the fact that the pay forces me to stay living with family and even with a second job...no bueno. My move two years ago may have not been for the best, I kind of made myself stuck between a rock and a wall...or hard place...or...how the hell does that expression go?!?! Either way, I need to get myself up and out and making better with my life STAT!

So there you have it my peeps, some of the reasons why I'm putting my bootay in the dunce cap and in the corner. I'm working my toosh off until I get my crap in order and have myself in a healthier place in life.

Thank you so much to those of you who have been reading and don't forget me while I am writing less!!!

Besos, Beijos, Filakia, MUAH!

Love,

Lisa xo

Something good comes out of everything, just have a little faith, life will eventually connect the dots.

This past Thursday I had the most supercalafradulistically wonderful day that I have had in the longest time! After almost a month of applying for jobs (probably hundreds which took almost all of my free time) I finally got an interview. One of the reasons I haven't been able to take a job in the city is because it will be a long while before I will have saved enough to actually move close to the city to work. My commute from here is no joke and will without a doubt interfere with job performance and therefore advancement. However, this job would require me to live on the premises as I would need to manage a lot of the work in the house and assist in multiple businesses, so I didn't feel like I was trekking out for the interview for nothing. Similar to the dating mentality, 400 applicants, around 25 interviews and only one job available, I know my chances are slim but it was the best.interview. ever...EVER!!! The interview conversation was very inspiring and my potential employer seems like one of the most genuine, diverse, interesting and down to earth people I have ever met on a professional level. Even better, the type of work I'd be doing is all in areas of business I enjoy; domestic, art, antiques and cars. Yes, I love cars, I love driving, so those who know me, shut the jaw I know I don't know much about them but I'll learn if I get the job and am blessed with the opportunity to get educated on it while on the job!

Anyway, although I didn't have that "I got this!!!" type of feeling when I left, I felt great and extremely happy. It was an inspiring interview conversation and was one step towards the right direction. Well, I took those steps back to the subway skipping. On the return trip to Astoria I was smiling, enjoying all of the people around me and even laughing all by my daaaamn self...which had absolutely nothing to with the cocktail I sucked up at the end of the interview. I swear on a wad of chewed up gum. Yes, I even got a drink at the interview, SHUT UP!! 

To make this day even luckier, not one, but TWO of my acquaintances were available to grab a bite with me before my long drive home. I'll skip all the major introductions since I don't have pretty pictures to entertain, but my two victims of the evening were the lovely Cindy, cousin of a long time friend of mine, and the other lovely was Delyana. It was the first time I had seen Delyana since we met almost two years ago in December of 2009 at the grand opening of Staykova Boutique. We picked up as if we had seen each other regularly for the past two years, just the same as the night we met. As if we've known each other forever. Without a doubt, we agreed, we are soul sisters.

Spending time with Delyana and Cindy was so much fun and so refreshing. The conversation was great, we laughed a ton and for the first time in awhile I felt like myself; these ladies are just AMAZING company and we had a great connection. Often times, well most all of the time and only since moving back to Long Island, I feel more reserved and somewhat introverted. I hold  back a lot of myself. I know it's partially because I mainly meet people in a "professional" atmosphere and partially because I just can't relate to this lifestyle, and then there is just a whole bunch of other things. I'm not going to get into psychoanalyzing myself now, but simply, I'm uncomfortable here. Yes, I am myself, but I am not all of myself. I miss the rest of me...

Throughout the laughter and jokes, we sprinkled in some major philosophical and spiritual topics that led to how we got to where we are today, where we'd like to see ourselves and what kind of people we want to be around. Naturally, because this is soooooo Lisa, we got into the topic of how everything does happen for a reason. I truly believe that it does and that, as the popular Spanish proverb among many Cubans go, no hay mal que por bien no venga...there is nothing bad that happens in which something good does not come out of it. It just sucks Shweddy Balls that sometimes it takes a long time to figure out why, but we have to have faith that life will "connect the dots", or the analogy I normally use, that the pieces of the puzzle will eventually come together ...and you must try that ice cream by Ben and Jerry's if you haven't already, it's a life changing experience (Shweddy Balls meaning. What did you think I was talking about when I said that? Sucios!). Just pray that you are never asked to take a breathalyzer test after you eat it.

So back to "connecting the dots", everything happening for a reason, having faith and the blah blah blah talk. When that was mentioned, Delyana did the whole "Oh my God!" hands to head, big bright smile thing that we girls do when a coinky dink occurs. Her quote went something like this: "You have to watch the video I posted of Steve Jobs making a speech at a graduation years ago, just watch it, it will change your life and be the best 1o minutes spent." Well, it was 15 minutes, but yes, it was definitely a speech more than worth the time and that we should all hear. And if you haven't already, wouldn't ya know it it's conveniently located at the end of this post?! And honestly, the reason for the post.

So amidst the laughter, Cindy coincidentally knowing every person I brought up that night (yes, we too did that "Oh my Gawd!" thing we girls do too), and the yummy cocktails and food at Fatty's Cafe in Astoria, I am SO happy that our conversation turned to more serious and somewhat spiritual topics. Without a doubt, the interview and time spent with Cindy and Delyana enhanced and changed the course of my week; it was refreshing, inspiring, fun and it brought me back to me and a much needed reminder that I'm still here. It's just that life is a little bit different now and for a purpose that is much needed for a better future. Steve Jobs will clarify all that I'm talking about pretty much in the video below in one of the most inspiring stories I've ever heard.

Thank you for reading and much love to my wonderful friends and Steve Jobs and his family, may he rest in peace as his legacy lives on.

Besos, Beijos, Filakia, MUAH!

Love,

Lisa xo
Twitter: Fab_Chitating
                CAM_Project

Got Curls?

 I suffer the bane of schizophrenic  hair. When I was little, I had straight hair that fell into ringlets. When I hit the double digits I started to randomly have days when my hair would air dry in massive ringlets;  sometimes pretty ones, while other times a frizzy mess, especially in the summer! This was new to me, but I really loved it on the good days. My mom always had super thick and wavy hair, in a boy cut, so she was never able to aid me in proper care of the bad hair curly hair days, and I wasn’t always so lucky to have a good hair curly hair day. Then it was recommended that I get a perm so my hair would just stay curly all of the time. Yeah, that was a great idea because it resulted in permanently frizzy and puffy hair that neither I nor anyone around me could help me with.  At that point, all I wanted was the silky hair from my single digit years back and would cry daily. My cousin, who had even curlier curls, was of absolute no help either. She just cried every day too.  The internet wasn’t part of our world in those days either (shush) and all we had were Teen and Sassy magazines. Remember those? Then, it was a matter of convincing our parents to purchase whatever products were recommended, and in turn, they would bring home the dollar store version.  After that failed, you’d then turn to your grandmother who would start to do all sorts of olive oil, egg yolk and avocado treatments that seemed to make no difference in your hair, when all you wanted was a can of Vavoom mousse and call it a day! Can anyone else relate to this?

 

I still have on and off issues with my hair, but by now, between dry hair and oily scalp, I’ve given up on it and normally just straighten it as much as I can to avoid what became my young adult air dry hair sensation; hat head. My hair is now thinner (partially due to lack of proper care and partially due to having prolactinoma…a topic I will eventually touch on this blog) dries straight a couple inches down from the scalp, turns into waves, then ends in curls for the last 5 inches. Sounds "creative" for lack of a better word, but it’s a hot messy mess I’ll tell you. Every once in a while it will dry all in curls, but I don’t know what makes my hair like that and a body wave to correct the situation was unsuccessful. Basically, my hair just may have a life-long identity crisis. But it’s the year 2012 and I have no more excuses, I need to start learning how to take care of my hair and make the most of those luscious curls when they pay me a visit, as well as make the most of the days that call for straightening, while maintaining healthy hair.

Beautiful author of DailyCurlz

These days, we have this little amazing tool called the internet, and this even more amazing thing called Social Media, which allows us to connect, interact and share with people all over the world. I recently came across a blog called DailyCurlz.  Actually, DailyCurlz came across me. The author of the DailyCurlz blog is in the main picture of my recent blarticle on Vakano Clothing. When she commented on my blog post, naturally, I clicked on her blog to see what she wrote about. I’m a curious little feline when it comes to treasure hunting. DailyCurlz offers advice, information, tutorials and tips in both English and Spanish for us curly haired babes! Among the many blarticles in the DailyCurlz archive, you can read about prepping you hair for the coming cold weather here ->HOLA,CLICK ME<-, as well as find tips for preventing static when wearing hats. DailyCurlz also created their own oil mix for the hair. DailyCurlz Oil Mix provides your hair and scalp with a variety  of oils, in which some (oils) contain vitamins that aid in creating healthier, longer, shinier and dandruff free hair. Click on the name to get in on the game; the link will provide you with full details on the mix and have you an expert on the product knowledge in no time! As soon as I can grab a hold of my own bottle I will let you know how it works for me! In the meanwhile, check out DailyCurlz on Blogspot and Facebook and enjoy this video of the author creating flawless curls by way of braids and some pics of my own hair.

Click here for the video on Flawless Curls By Way of Braids ~Sorry, for some reason Blogger isn't allowing me to embed videos (bad, bad, BAD Blogger!)

My own "DailyCurlz", when taken care of correctly. Images from my fashion and stylist blog post "La Bruja Buena". Click on the image below to be directed to the post.

Does anyone know what is preventing the two brats below from aligning properly?<--Serious question

Thank you for reading and I hope that you and yours are enjoying Fabulucious curls!

Besos, Beijos, Filakia, MUAH!

Love,

Lisa xo

Twitter: Fab_Chitating

Beats Antique Concert Snippet Video!

Ok, well, now that I've gotten you to open up the link I am going to bombard you with the pictures of my entire day out in Park Slope Brooklyn in April. My phone just informed me that its memory is full, therefore I need to document all the "goodies" on it, so here we all have it on a blog post. It also was the eve of my birthday, which wasn't the cause of celebration, but it just sounds like a good reason for you to have to go through all the pics to get to the Beats Antique video conveniently located at the bottom of the page. I also cried a lot that week because my "boyfriend" <--whatever and I broke up that week, so one eye is more crooked than the other. Just letting you know. So here it is...

I always have such great fun when I visit my friend Maria. There's also something about Park Slope that just makes life seem so much more laid back, chill, creative. That's why I wore this during the day:

What, what? I'm walking around Park Slope on the eve of my birthday in a beret. Or whatever this style hat is really called. I'm sooooo "cool"! Park Slope cool that is ;p

This pic is even cooler. Why you ask? Because of the "Made in Park Slope" Artwork  in the background made by the one and only Maria Liebana. Pimple, long face, eff''ed up eyes: compliments of some dum guy.

Then I got to eat lunch on a cool table in an apartment in Park Slope, like this:

Because we're cool like that.

Park Slope couldn't fix my crooked eye, or the fact that I got a cluster of glitter on the crooked eye and couldn't get it off, but just because I was in Park Slope --> crooked eyes and failed attempts at enchanted fairy eyes were just plain COOL. Though I must lament, you'd think the Birthday Gods would have joined forces with the Gods of Broken Heart Side Effects and at least put the glitter chunk on the opposing eye to even it out a bit. Sheesh.

And now ladies and gentlemen, photos of yours truly and some dance friends at the Beats Antique Concert at Brooklyn Bowl on April 23rd, 2012-April 24, 2012 <--My damn uncelebrated birthday. I spoke briefly about this outing in my blarticle on Glorified Fanny Packs and now I'm finally posting what I have available of the full experience!

Glow in the Dark Hula Hoopers. Not sure how I feel about them since that time the Hula Hoop club decided to share space with me and my crew during a Central Park picnic. :p

Glitter clumps and chocolanutty goodness like the Nutella Bourbon Milkshake=Typical Moi.

Maria Liebana and Rebecca Jablonsky&^@*^#*^*$...um,  let's just refer to her as Rebecca J.

Two of the most awesomely artsy fartsy people I know. Multi-media, performance artist, East Coast Tribal Belly Dancing, Pearl Mica Art Extraordinaire (Maria), bloggesses, super duper I can't keep up with smart...you know what I'm thinking. It must be because they live in Park Slope.

Rebecca is also the author of the Arts and Science Lab blog. It's a brilliant, well written and interesting blog, so just go check it out. You won't be disappointed; she writes in Park Slope.

 We saw Amy Raks, Alura, Sahazha (I may have butchered her dance name), Matt & Rebecca T.! I just met Rebecca that night (both Rebecca's actually) but I've known the rest of the crew for years and it was so great to see the familiar faces of people who are dear to me!

Red eye reducing this was not an option since for some reason the new editing system that was put on my laptop by the laptop guy told me it's just not going to do this. I was too lazy to upload it to snapfish to fix it there or anywhere else for that matter.

Eskimo was the opening act for Beats Antique. We really enjoyed his act, he's very expressive and his passion for what he does really shows in his performance. I got a short snippet of him in the video where you can see what I mean towards the end of his snippet. It was a bit difficult to video tape while paying attention to the show, but I tried my best to capture the best moments, and missed a lot. I blame it on the drugged up girl in the blue wig and 3 inch fake lashes who kept purposely bumping into us. She made my life difficult. Especially difficult for a first time smart  phone user (me).

There's not much to say here, except that she's a stunning beauty my Sammy.

I still don't have any idea what these two were talking about, something about opportunities to work with really cool people, hellooo-Park Slope, and then -->insert some blanks here<---and the environment. I should have focused better, I am kinda sorta unemployed after all. On a serious note, they were cool, so we should just all google the event and see if anyone else wrote about them and whoever they are.

Here it is my peeps, BEATS ANTIQUE! I know that my fabulous photo taking skills are making you feel all kinds of excited inside. Eh hem.

I really love that the drummer has GLITTER drums that match my crooked eye enchanted fairy dust make-up look! *GIRLY SHRIEK KICKING FEETSIES BACK AND FORTH NOW!*

Zoe Jakes in one of her many looks. She's so amazingly theatrical, versatile and diverse in dance. I love watching her perform. You will catch her rocking out on the drums in my snippets and doing a Sheila E-esque style performance at the very end. Yeah, like I said, my  life when in Park Slope is quite cool.

Bye Bye Beats Antique, we wrapped up the night by doing a late night Astoria run and grabbing some Pan de Bono at "La Casa de Pan". Open 24 hours. Astoria is so cool too. :p

And now that you've entertained me by checking out my photo journey, or at least to have pretended to, I now present to you some great Beats Antique concert snippets and iPhone photos. 

For your convenience, I have made sure to take some portions of the video on a side view. This has absolutely nothing to do with my being clueless or thinking that the iPhone has infinite powers and absolutely everything to do with me wanting to make sure you get your daily neck stretches in. I will be accepting "thank you's" and charming little notes of appreciation in the comment box below. You're welcome. My apologies to Eskimo for spelling his name wrong in the video.

Thank you for reading chamacos!

Besos, Beijos, Filakis, MUAH!


Love,


Lisa xo