Honor Ralph

In the past 5 days I've cried soft cries, uncontrollable chest and belly cries, tear-less cries, tear filled snot nosed cries. I have gotten to the point where I am not constantly crying but I am most vulnerable to my thoughts when I am driving alone or when I lay in bed at night. I am still fearful that I won't see my Ralph again. I ask for signs from him and I've actually felt his presence which has brought me a some comfort. Friday afternoon when I drove my usual route home from work which I had for years, I was crying and saying out loud "I miss you Ralph" I looked to my left and saw a waving flag that said "HAPPY" with a paw print on it, there was a dog groomers that for all these years I had never noticed. Why did I notice the words "happy" with a paw print at this very moment? I felt like he was speaking to me, telling me he wanted me to be happy. To every dog lover to has reached out to me I appreciate your words. Nothing takes the pain away but it does mean something that you cared to send me thoughts. Here is to the journey in healing after losing my soulmate best furry friend. To anyone who ever saw us in person, you would see how deep our love ran and that we had a connection unlike any other. Love has no boundary between species and I believe he truly was a great love of my life which I never knew was possible. I say "a" love because I have many loves of my life all unique and all great to me. Before Ralph I did not even know dogs were so intelligent and capable of reading us and loving us back as much as we love them.

My mother looked at me with great concern last night said "honor Ralph by loving yourself as much as you loved him" because he would want that for you. I think I will try to write down as many memories of Ralph as I can but I will move it to the blog I had started dedicated to him which I never really got started. His passing has inspired me to recollect all the amazing and even challenging times. Now that I am older and also now that I have 2 children I am extremely busy taking care of them but my memory is not as strong. So I want to preserve what I can in writing. Head on over to the blog he is loved for future posts.

It was my mother who suggested I get a pet when living alone in San Diego. My friend Kevin and I decided to drive around to animals shelters on a Sunday afternoon. We took his gold/bronze Infinity and I believe our first stop was Escondido Humane Society. I did not see any dogs that I wanted to meet and in fact the person we spoke with kind of snickers at me that I would not find a small dog at a shelter. I was not feeling too hopeful when we left but we then headed to Helen Woodward Animal Shelter in Rancho Santa Fe. We signed in and walked through. I was only casually looking as I was not sure I was ready for the commitment of a pet. We did a round of the area where the dogs are kept. I had my eye one 2 dogs, Angie and Spirit. I did a meet and greet with Angie first who was a really friendly lovable pup. I think met Ralph was seemed aloof and more interested in escaping the room. Kevin was saying Angie was much more friendly but there was just something about Ralph that pulled me. Being a very indecisive person I kept thinking about how my house was my prepared for a dog nor had I any knowledge of caring for a dog plus I had not even studied for the final that I had the next day. I asked if I could place a hold on Ralph and they said they don't take holds. I took the leap of faith and filled out the paperwork. The person working in the office had to make an international phone call to my parents because they own the house to see if they are allowing a dog on their property. Thankfully because of the time difference my mother was just waking up in Hong Kong and was there to answer their phone call. She said of course and Spirit was officially mine on paper. After filling out the paperwork I went around their shop and bought him a bed, a collar and some food. Someone then brought that shy little pup out to me and to my surprise he jumped into my arms! Everyone in the office said that he knew he was coming home with me. He seemed so curious on the ride home in the backseat looking out the window. 

In Loving Memory of Ralph with me from November 23 2003 to August 7 2018

Foreword - I lost my dear sweet Ralph who was a long hair chihuahua and companion of 15 years. I feel an extreme void in my soul. I have not been able to rest since it happened on August 7th 2018 at 4:30 PM. My body is completely exhausted but every time I fall asleep I wake up with my heart racing and my chest and head pounding with any kind of thoughts of Ralph. Disbelief that he is gone. Did he know how much I loved him? Will I really see him again in heaven? Did I spend enough time with him (now that I have children)? Did I let him be in pain too long because I wanted more time with him? I have found a wonderful group on facebook called "The Rainbow Bridge Pet Loss and Grief Support" group and I highly recommend joining if you need to let out your sorrow to other people who are going through the same thing.

This blog is now about helping me heal. My mother suggested that I write down memories and thoughts about Ralph so that I will never forget. Wish me luck on my journey to healing! I feel at this very moment that I'll never feel normal again but a tiny voice inside gives me hope that I will some day be okay.

Here is the facebook post I wrote soon after saying good bye to him. It is honest and raw but also censored because I knew there was no way that people who have never loved a dog would understand my pain. So here was my simple reflection on the life we lived together (but inside my head is a much longer version that I will attempt to capture for myself) Along with this post I included the very first photo I took of him, a photo that captured his and my connection we had pure love and understanding like nothing I've ever experience and finally a photo that captured his essence and spirit when he was at his prime.

My sweetest little young master Ralph. I remember meeting you as Spirit at Helen Woodward Animal Center. You were skeptical and not making eye contact but when I came back after signing adoption papers you immediately jumped into my arms. That first night I brought you back home back in November 2003 we looked at each other and didn’t know what to do next. I never had a pup before and you never had a person before so there our adventure began. Thank you for the 15 years you’ve blessed my life. There are just too many things to list that I’ll miss about you. You were the best dog a girl could ask for and I will always have a place in my heart where you live. See you again some day but for now you’ll be at rainbow bridge

Survivor S29: Episode 2 thoughts

The highlight of my reality TV week has been watching Mona or shall I call her Janell Parrish on her week 3 West Side Story Dancing With The Stars routine. Mona

Onto Survivor, this season has started out with a bang!

Was it just me or did we all want to shield our eyes and cringe when we saw the guys doing push ups and puffing their chests? And why on earth Jon Misch thinks it was smart that he confess to the world it may have been him who lost the flint? Some of these guys are so lucky their tribe has not lost immunity yet.

Val acting like she had two idols was moronic. Please girl, you are not fooling anyone. Besides if she really still had two idols and dumb enough not to play one during the first round of votes, one would logically vote her off to at least push out the person with possibly two idols.

EM Haul from 2015

Sale Alert and Customer Service Note: Too Faced

Today I am writing you to report a sale alert and also to give you an account of my Customer Service experience with Too Faced Cosmetics.

Sale Alert:

Let's start with the exciting part: right now when you use the code TFSORRY you get 40% off most of the Too Faced Cosmetics website (I tried the Peanut Butter and Jelly palette and their Better Than Sex Waterproof Mascara and many other regular priced items that worked) including the sale item page (I picked up 2 sale eye shadow palettes, la creme lipsticks, melted metal lip and bullet proof eyeliner and received these for a stead of additional 40% off the 50% price) I'm not sure when this code will expire but I credit Nouveau Cheap for alerting me of the sale. I quickly went on the their site and made a hasty purchase. I'm very happy with the items I picked out and I feel like I got my items for a steal. This leads me into their Customer Service.

Customer Service:

I have been hearing many rumors lately with their Sweet Peach line launch in late December 2016 that their customer service has been atrocious with lost orders and being non responsive. I also suspect the sale with code "TFSORRY" is to make up for that snafu. Since I placed an order and heard from watching the YouTube Drama Channels John Kuckian and Karina Kaboom about the recent bad customer service I have was worried myself about what I might experience.

I will get to experience their customer service because in my excitement I made error when typing in the form for my email address I typed in an email address that did not belong to myself. So when I placed the order I realized just as it was too late that I had made the mistake. So first thing I did was pick up the phone and call their customer service number at 855-866-3223. I got a busy signal and assumed they would be swamped with inquiries from other customers and previous purchases. I saw a note "Due to incredibly high customer service email and call volumes, there will be an extended delay in response time. Please allow a minimum 24 hour turn around on all email and longer than normal wait times on hold when phoning in." and also when placing my order I saw that orders will be delayed for at least 7-10 days due to inventory being taken at the warehouse at this time. I have a really obsessive personality so I picked up the phone and dialed a few more times with the same result. 

I randomly dialed again about 1 hour later and to my shock I got a prompt with music saying I was in line. So I patiently waited for about 25 minutes while I multi-tasked and worked on other items. A woman answered the line about 25 minutes into the hold and I told her my problem. I provided her with the confirmation number I got from the last screen and she told me she was able to update my email address. I asked if she could re-send a copy of the purchase confirmation to me since I never received one but she told me she did not have access. But she told me that I should get future shipping confirmations to the updated email address. So far I am satisfied with my experience. As with my Aliexpress shipping experience I will update with the conclusion of how the rest of my order goes to completion. If I receive my shipping confirmation and when my order arrives. 

My First Experience with Yanwen Economic Air Mail

I thought I would write a post about my experience with Yanwen Economic Air Mail. I am new to Aliexpress but one thing I've learned is that for shipping to the US it is best to go with orders that say shipping via epackets because once they arrive in the US I can track those packages on the USPS app or website. I just started using Aliexpress at the end of August 2016 and have made 16 purchases.

Here is the breakdown of the shipping method
13 epackets
2 Aliexpress Standard Shipping
1 Yanwen Economic Air Mail

So far I have received 8 of the packages all of which were epackets with an average of 15 days from order to doorstep. I am a tad skeptical of the packages shipped via Aliexpress Standard Shipping and Yanwen since the tracking information doesn't seem to update much and the lag time is getting up there. Take for example the screen shot below, that product was ordered 8/25/2016. It seems to be stuck at a status of "Outbound clearance completed successfully and loaded to airline" since 8/30/2016. Maybe I am just more accustomed to seeing the tracking provided by USPS and regular updates and being too hopeful for the other 2 methods. I hope all will go well with this order and I will update you.

Personally going forward even when a seller has better than average great reviews, I will less likely use them since I am a micro manager when it comes to knowing where my purchases are in shipping status. I am hopeful that these methods are legit and that I just am far too impatient. Please note that I fully accept that I am overly critical when it comes to waiting for goods and that I have not yet opened a dispute with the sellers as they are still within their promised delivery time of 20- 38 days. I have been spoiled and accustomed to the sellers that got their products to me in 14 days.

UPDATE: I received my product from this seller that was shipped this method in 19 days from order to doorstep.

Wet N Wild and KIKO Milano Haul

Hello Gymbugs,

I finally had time to sit down and film a Haul! It has been since March of this year that I last updated. I have missed creating content for YouTube so much. I hope I will be able to get back into it this year. 

Too Faced Sale Update

So I couldn't resist checking out what the Too Faced sale had to offer. I clicked the email link again and this time I only had to wait 4 minutes. I took screenshots of the sale for those who did not want to wait but I was not impressed with the deals. I've seen better prices on their one website. Also you will notice there are a handful of sold out products. What do you think?

Too Faced Can't Resist A Juicy Sale Up to 70% Off

I received an email from Too Faced regarding this sale and decided to click, it says there are 18,492 people in line in front of me and 25 minutes left to wait. Excuse me? I feel like it has been 20 minutes and for fun I left the window open, there are now 6,922 people in front of me and 21 minutes left. Excuse me? Is this Ticketmaster? I am not waiting in a virtual line for discounted makeup. Everyone knows you can find discounted Too Faced at Nordstrom Rack and HSN frequently. I just thought this was funny and wanted to share my thoughts.

Drugstore.com and Beauty.com Closing Shop

Hello Gymbugs & Makeup Lovers,

It's been a while since I've posted on my blog or my youtube channel gymba24. I have a little toddler at home and a full time job which occupy most of my time. I hope to one day be back at my blogging.


I am a frequent shopper of Drugstore.com and Beauty.com, more so to Drugstore.com. Both sites were able to lure me into making purchases by having the sample bags gifts with purchases (If you have seen my hauls on youtube you know... they got me A LOT!)

A few weeks ago I started receiving notices that Drugstore.com and Beauty.com dollars need to be used by September because they are ending the program.



Personally I did not find that program to be the most beneficial. I noticed the months we were eligible to use our dollars most of the sales were not good so I would usually let them expire.  However, I do have online store credit and plan to use it before September just in case I can't redeem the money later!

I am sad to see Drugstore.com go because it was fun getting their gift with purchases on green and natural products, their Mommy and Baby section and their health and beauty. I will most definitely miss those bundles. However, most of the time I made unnecessary purchases so my wallet is probably going to be happier that they will not be another tempting source to spend money.

As for Beauty.com I used to make purchases from them about 5 years ago but I find that their deals became less competitive to ulta.com (whom finds a way to take a lot of my money as I am now a platinum member)

L'Oreal Smooth Intense Ultimate Straight System

I received an amazing Vox Box from influenster with the following full size products from L'Oreal Paris: 

Smooth Intense Ultimate Straight Straightening Shampoo

Smooth Intense Ultimate Straight Boosting Pre-Conditioner

Smooth Intense Ultimate Straight Straight Conditioner

Smooth Intense Ultimate Straight Straight Perfecting Balm

I also received a travel size with the first 3 steps. 

In the beginning I was using all 4 of these products together in the order that the back of the Smooth Boosting condition lists (basically the same order I listed above). I also was blow drying my hair to almost complete dryness. I never really had to use a straight iron to achieve a more put together look than without using them. I think if you want a very professional finished look you might want to take out the straight iron or dry with a hair dryer and round brush to complete dryness (I just don't have that type of patience). 

Sight to the good stuff, my favorite product from this set was the Smooth Intense Ultimate Straight Straight Perfecting Balm. If you are curious about this line but don't want to fully commit to buying all, start off with this product. You need the smallest amount on damp hair to achieve a fairly tamed straight hair look.

Pros: 

• Pleasant scent. 
• Affordable, for an entire hair straightening system with a good amount of product. You can probably get all four products for less than $24.00 if you find a sale or use coupons. Quite a steal considering it is for a whole set. 
• The Straight Perfecting Balm is enough to tame my straight hair.
• Widely available for purchase.

Cons: 

• Packaging of the Straightening Conditioner, on this product only the cap is on the bottom and water  collects inside the cap. 
• If you're someone who does not want to go through 4 steps to achieve straight tamed hair this might be too much for you. However, I really if that is an issue for you, just go straight for the last step and get the Straight Perfecting Balm.

My take away is that this set is worth it for those who want an entire system taming your straight hair. But if you don't want to buy the entire set and you want good results buy the Smooth Intense Ultimate Straight Straight Perfecting Balm. 

Step 1:

Step 2:

Step 3:

Step 4:

And I wanted to share the travel kit that was included.

* I received these products complimentary for testing purposes from Influenster.

Neutrogena Hydra Boost Water Gel Review

The arrival of this Neutrogena Hydra Boost trial could not have come at a better time. I just finished using my DDF Ultra-Lite Oil Free Moisturizing Dew that I use for my nightly hydration routine. The DDF retails for $42.00 for a 1.7oz bottle. I like that the DDF is lightweight and scentless, however it leaves my skin a little tight and under hydrated and the price tag is a little on the pricey side.

I just finished using the DDF Ultra-Lite Oil Free..."

For the past week I've been using the Neutrogena Hydro Boost and I must say that I am quite impressed with it. I have sensitive dry combination skin. Normally when I test a new product I know within one use if my skin will be irritated by it. If it does not pass the 1 time use test it becomes a body moisturizer. Yes, many expensive face and eye creams have become body lotions as a result! I have dry combination skin; dry eyes with an oily t-zone. The weather is especially dry this time of year in San Diego and I really need some good hydration. Given my current skin status I have been using this product every evening before bed. I apply it last after removing my makeup, a face wash and application of toner and brightening serum. My initial impression of this product is that it does leave your skin incredibly hydrated and soft. It absorbs very well and does not just sit on top of your skin. I really like how my skin feels from using it. I was apprehensive about the strong fresh linen scent that it has at first. I was worried it would bother me as I consider myself to be sensitive to scent. But surprisingly I have grown to like the scent in the week I've been using it. I should mention that the scent does not even linger.

A full sized product is 1.7 oz is housed in a sleek blue plastic jar. The retail price for this product is $19.99 and I have seen it on sale quite a few times, granted it could be from the fact it is new. I think
this is completely worth it as I feel it performs like a high end skincare moisturizer.

In Summary, very hydrating without breakouts.  I score this product with an A- grade.

    

If you would like to see my unboxing and first impressions video.

                      

*I received this product complimentary for testing from Influenster and I am not getting paid for my opinion.

#BehindTheGlow #Neutrogena #contest

ELF Cosmetics Get Ready With Me

Hello Friends! I decided to do a mostly ELF Cosmetics Face today.

ELF Products used:
Hydrating Under Eye Primer
Flawless Finish Foundation in Porcelain and Sand
High Definition Undereye Setting Powder
High Definition Powder in Clear and Shimmer
Contouring Blush & Bronzing Powder in Fiji
Pressed Mineral Eyeshadow in Wine Tour
Angled Blush Brush
Angled Contour Brush
Lip Definer & Shaper
Moisturizing Lipstick in Ravishing Rose
Matte Lip Color in Tea Rose
Eyelid Primer in Sheer and Golden
Smudge Pot in Gotta Glow

Other products used:
Tarte Clean Slate Primer
Wet N Wild Comfort Zone Palette
Bundle Monster Brushes Flat Top Kabuki B02, Powder/Blush Brush B03, Pencil Brush B14, Large Angled Contour B04 (All from the Bundle Monster Prima Donna Brush Set)

Comparison: Wet N Wild Color Icon Eyeliner in Taupe and Taupe of the Mornin'

Recently I went to Rite Aid when they were having 40% off the Wet N Wild brand. I went in with the goal of stocking up on the good ole workhorse of a brow pencil in 648 Taupe. I could not find it anywhere. But I did see a brand new display of Wet N Wild Kohl Eyeliner Pencils where I found a pencil with the name "taupe" in it so I decided to give it a try.

After not being able to find the old taupe pencil on this inital Rite Aid trip I have kept my eye out for it. Unfortunately, I have not found it an a single retailer since. In fact some Walgreens and CVS locations no longer have a spot for it so I suspect this old one has been discontinued.

Check out my video to see if they are dupe's for each other or not.

Urban Decay TEN 24/7 Glide On Pencil Swatch and Review

I picked up this set from Sephora during one of their end of the year sales. Unfortunately these did not work for me. I much prefer m Jordana 12 Hr Made to Last Liquid Eyeliner especially in the shade Jade Jewel. I returned this set shortly after filming this video because I found these liners not to work on my eyelid skin.
 

Bundle Monster Collapsible Air Drying Makeup Drying Brush Tower

I am excited to share with you an affordable and effective way to dry your makeup brushes after cleaning using the Bundle Monster Makeup Brush Drying Tower. 

I am someone who loves to clean my makeup brushes constantly. I am a germ-a-phobe and do not reuse brushes on my face or eye area without cleaning. However, lately I had noticed some of my brushes handles were starting to separate from their ferrule and more hair was shedding. So even though I tried to tilt my brushes so that water dries out downwards it was never really enough. The brush tower has been the perfect solution to my problem. I love this simple tool used to dry my brushes upside down. 

It comes in 3 pieces that are easy to connect together and also to disconnect and store away without taking up space. Take a peak at this video to see it in action. Also, I would like to add that I discovered since filming this video that you can pull the brushes out from the from and they will come out very easily.

Haul: Sephora VIB Sale 2014

Curious to see what I picked up in the Sephora VIB Sale this year? What did you get?

Almost all the items I flagged to buy were sold out by the time I went shop online and therefore a majority of these products were impulse buys. 

Products mentioned:

Candies Leopard Print Backpack from Kohl's

SEPHORA COLLECTION Colorful Dual Antibacterial Sharpener Colorful Dual Antibacterial Sharpener Purple

Detangling Brush Detangling Brush

Ribbon Hair Ties Ribbon Hair Ties Purple

Face & Eye Travel Tool Kit Face & Eye Travel Tool Kit 

The High Roller

Z Palette Z Palette Small - 3 14/16'' X 3 14/16 '' X 3/4''

Dior Diorshow Maximizer Lash Plumping Serum Diorshow Maximizer Lash Plumping Serum DiorShow Maximizer Lash Plumping Serum

Koh Gen Do Cleansing Spa Water Cleansing Spa Water 3.38 oz

Makeup I am wearing: (Eyes Lips Face Cosmetics) ELF Moisturizing lipstick in Velvet Red, ELF Moisturizing Foundation Stick in Nude, ELF Contouring Blush & Bronzing Powder in Fiji, ELF Pressed Mineral Blush in Cabo Cabana

Wet N Wild Color Icon lipliner in 717 Berry Red

Revlon Nearly Naked Pressed Powder in Light

Revlon ColorStay Pressed Powder in Medium

MAC Eyeshadow in Arena

Coastal Scents Hot Pot Eyeshadow in Raisin Berry

Wet N Wild Creme Eyeliner in Cocoa Riche (brows)

Jordana 12 HR Made to Last eyeliner in Jade Jewel

Heavy Rotation Eyeliner

Anastatia of Beverly Hills Lash Genius

Maybelline the Rocket Mascara in Waterproof

samples

DERMAdoctor DD Cream 15-Benefits-In-1 Dermatologically Defining BB Cream Broad Spectrum SPF 30

Dr. Jart+ PORE MEDIC Pore Minish Primer

ALTERNA Caviar Repair Lengthening Hair & Scalp Elixir

shown at the end 

Sephora Holiday Tote Bag

Murad Rapid Results Set Rapid Results Set

Lancôme HYPNÔSE DRAMA WATERPROOF HYPNÔSE DRAMA WATERPROOF Excessive Black

Fresh Sugar Lip Legends Sugar Lip Legends

stila Stay All Day® Waterproof Liquid Eye Liner Stay All Day® Waterproof Liquid Eye Liner Black

Fresh Skincare Idols Skincare

stila Smudge Stick Waterproof Eye Liner Smudge Stick Waterproof Eye Liner Stingray

Fresh Sugar Ruby Romance Sugar Ruby Romance

Sephora Loves: Your Shopping List

Deal Alert: CVS Semi Annual Clearance 50%-75%

Once again it is time for the semi-annual CVS clearance on drugstore makeup. It officially starts on November 14th 2014 but I heard some CVS locations were starting theirs early. Indeed a few were. I checked out 4 in the San Diego area and 2 has not started yet and the other 2 had. I here is my haul if you want to see what i got.

Lots of 50% off to 75% off I saw Physcian's Formula, Covergirl, Revlon, NYC Color, Wet N Wild, NYX, Rimmel, Neutrogena, Milani, Sally Hansen just to name a few. Note that many CVS's do not mark these things as clearance but if you use the scanner you can verify they are before purchasing.

The wonderful Blog I reference in the video is from Nouveau Cheap.

*One interesting note and this has never happened to me before for the CVS Semi-Annual clearance before but the CVS closest to my house has nothing on clearance! I triple checked on three different trips and days to the one on Scripps Poway in San Diego. Rest assured fellow Scripps Ranch and San Diego people the rest of the CVS' I visited clearanced now (November 21. 2014)

Equitance Brightening Serum

Hello Beauties!

If any of you know me, I am all about finding the best brightening serums for the most part. I swear by them to lighten up old acne scars and fade sun spots. So I was really excited when I received the Equitance Brightening & Spot Corrector Serum from influenster complimentary for testing purposes. Finally a product right up my alley!

The card that came with this product it reads:

"Clinically proven to reduce the appearance of dark discolorations"
"Patented technology that delivers clinically proven brightening ingredient to the skin"
"83% of women reported diminished appearance of dark spots"
"*Based on clinical study after 4 months. Study conducted and evaluated by a dermatologist"

A 30g size of this product retails for $125. You are supposed to apply 2-3 drops on your face in the morning and evenings. For a brightening serum this price is about mid-range.

I've been using this for about 2 weeks now after my toner and before my moisturizer. I do not own the whole line of products shown in their brochure and website to use in conjunction with each other. I have not used the product long enough to know if it is making a difference. However, I would really really love to win a whole set and test the whole line out. I feel like I would be the perfect candidate!

If any of you would like try products from Equitance I have a promo code that expires November 20th 2014. With code INFL15 you will receive 15% off their brightening & spot correcting serum and a trial starter kit worth $37. They also have free shipping with any order. http://www.equitance-us.com/

Wet N Wild The Style Award Goes To Limited Edition Displays