100 Things About Me

Thanks, Scribe, for tagging me.

Considering what this blog has become lately, I'll try to stick to the topic of beauty for this meme -- especially since there WILL be a Face of the Day post coming up soon. (Say it with me: OMG she's going to post more pictures of herself! Aiieeee!)

100. Everything I know about taking care of myself I learned from my Mom.

99. First of all, she has good skin.

98. She's been using the Clinique 3-step program every day for as long as I can remember, and I swear she still looks 10 years younger.

97. She also hates the sun, and doesn't go outdoors until just before sunset to do her gardening.

96. Because she hated the sun so much, she never sent me outside without sunblock.

95. She thinks it's because I have to keep my skin "white," which is what most Filipino women in the Philippines do when they don't want a tan.

94. I say it's insurance so that my skin doesn't look like her handbags when I get to be her age.

93. My sister and my brother had bad acne when they were teenagers.

92. I know this because I used to steal their Oxy pads and pretend to wash my face with them.

91. Those things sting like a @##@#%#$!!!!!

90. Not to mention they nearly destroyed my 10 year old face.

89. You'd think I'd learn my lesson, but nooooooo... just ask Scribe what happened when I used her face wash by mistake.

88. Anyway, for some strange reason I never got bad acne - I only get tiny zits here and there, but never a whole greasy pizza face.

87. I should talk about greasy pizza - I lived next to a Pizza Hut in Indonesia.

86. I ate there every day.

85. There's also a Pizza Hut next to my current apartment, but I don't order from them.

84. My sister is now a convert to mineral makeup.

83. She's the one who told me about this deal at Everyday Minerals.

82. I still haven't ordered from them, but should.

81. I don't have any particular loyalty to any particular brand.

80. Especially since I went broke during grad school, and didn't find the time or money to buy good makeup outside the clearance bin at Longs.

79. That explains why some of my makeup has been discontinued. :(

78. That said, I am now a convert to mineral foundation.

77. Also, you'll have to pry my Stila and MAC eyeshadows from my cold, dead hands.

76. I've only done the Back to MAC recycling program once - that's how much of a MAC addict I was back in college.

75. I'd love to do it again.

74. In fact, I can't wait to have a job again so I can start buying nice makeup.

73. Speaking of the job search, it's confusing for me to explain to certain people why I'm not teaching any more.

72. For some reason, just saying "I got burned out trying to teach Special Ed for six weeks" doesn't cut it.

71. Ditto for "I've decided to go into research anyway because I'm more of a writer."

70. I believe these are the same people who gave me those strange looks when I told them that I was going to spend my summer vacation in Cleveland... because, really, who in their right minds would leave Hawaii in the summer to go to freaking Ohio?

69. Apparently it just dawned on me that, after all these years, those people still don't know me that well.

68. Also, these might as well be the same people who will probably pat me on the head and give me pitying looks when they realize that I'm writing this blog.

67. More's the pity.

66. Sorry, I sounded kind of bitter there.

65. Then again, "bitter" was my default setting between the ages of 17 and 28.

67. I like to think that I'm a lot calmer than that now.

66. My mom also told me that unnecessary stress and drama always shows up on my face.

65. Which is why she got me to learn how to meditate.

64. It definitely has done wonders in my life... not to mention my face.

63. I also like to think I'm in the best shape of my life.

62. Again, thanks to the example I got from my Mom, who exercises three times a week.

61. Thank God I don't have my Mom's exercise routine, though - I get bored watching her do low-impact aerobics, and she's worried that I'm going to throw my back out from doing yoga and Pilates.

60. I also don't have my Mom's diet, either, which consists of lots of dark bitter greens that have been boiled down to keep her blood sugar steady.

59. She and my Dad still don't approve of me eating pork.

58. What can I say - I love me some bacon and pork chops.

57. Not always together.

56. Another thing I learned from both parents: Take good care of your clothes and shoes now, so you won't have to worry about what you want to wear later.

55. Which is why, on the night before any big event, I'm always careful to lay out what I'm going to wear beforehand, so the only thing I have to worry about in the morning is hair and makeup.

54. Some people may think my straight hair is a blessing; I just wish it had more body.

53. I also still wish that the stress-induced bald spot where my center part used to be would just go away.

52. I haven't touched a bottle of hair dye since 2003.

51. I don't like it when my hair gets to dictate what I have to do with the rest of my life.

50. Replace "hair" with "monthly cycle" in the sentence above, and the same is true - especially when swimming and eating are concerned.

49. I was never an athlete growing up.

48. I tried to get my Dad to sign me up for Little League, but back then only boys got to play baseball.

47. By the time I got older, I got way too lazy for sports - even though my friends were complete jocks and I wanted to exercise with them.

46. Whenever I feel too lazy to exercise, mentally picturing the teenage versions of my jock friends doing warmups does the trick.

45. Especially that one girl in 6th grade who demonstrated how Polar Bear Swims got her in shape.

44. My mom doesn't like it when people use skin-whitening products.

43. In her opinion, people who get addicted to skin whiteners have "concrete face."

42. In order to understand the above sentence, imagine somebody with tan limbs and a face with the exact color and texture of half-set concrete.

41. Which is also why I think it's laughable how fashion magazines in the Philippines could talk about "embracing natural beauty" and using bronzer in fashion spreads while still running ads for skin whiteners.

40. And while I'm on the subject: When I was growing up, the beauty ideal was somebody "petite" with slim limbs, pale skin, and perfect hair.

39. Since I have straight hair and wear "petite" US Size 14 jeans, two out of three ain't bad.

38. I still feel the pressure to lose weight, but for the most part I'm happy about my body.

37. My legs are stronger than they look.

36. I eat more vegetables now.

35. I don't guilt-trip myself if I don't eat anything healthy.

34. Besides, I end up walking it all off anyway.

33. Though sometimes, I'm surprised when I end up skipping certain meals.

32. Best advice I got from my Mom: Learn to live alone.

31. So far it's been working great - I cook my own meals, dictate my own schedule, and I enjoy my time with my friends more.

30. Though sometimes I do wonder how cool it would be to live with another person.

29. The last time I had a roommate... didn't work out.

28. Since I've been single all my life, I also think about what it would be like to have "someone" to share my life with, if you know what I mean.

27. Then again, a bad relationship is always worse than having none at all.

26. I've had my fair share of questionable relationships.

25. At first I blamed myself for everything.

24. Then I stepped back, and realized that I've always been the total package.

23. Those guys just had no idea what to do with me.

22. Also -to borrow Mr. Scribe's favorite phrase - I think they may have been raised by wolves.

21. Although there are a couple of people in that history that I wouldn't mind dating... if I had met them now.

20. Naaah, still raised by wolves.

19. Cut and cut cleanly, I say.

18. When I do finally go out on another date, I sure do hope it would be with somebody who finds me so bewitchingly charming, witty, funny, and beautiful that he can't just help but express his adoration for me.

17. And, like, totally mean it - as opposed to just saying it so he could get into my pants.

16. Places where I may want to go anyway, date or no: the driving range, the batting cages, the ice-skating rink.

15. Where I don't want to go for a date: a crowded bar, a dance club, any place that's so trendy that it hurts my teeth.

14. I hate it when people try too hard to impress me.

13. Especially when I'm guilty of it myself.

12. I also miss having dinner parties.

11. I just realized how much of a loyal friend I could be.

10. Especially when it comes to people that I trust with my heart.

9. I don't like using the term "best friends forever" unless I really mean it.

8. Only a select few have that title in my life, and even that took a while, too.

7. I'm also proud of my family and my education.

6. Now that I really think about it... no, I don't regret anything.

5. My philosophy is this: Healthy relationships = healthy everything else.

4. I like to take care of my heart as much as possible, in every sense of the word.

3. For me, it's more interesting to learn more about what a person loves than what a person hates.

2. I don't think love gets easier as you get older - not in relationships, not in work, and maybe not in general.

1. But I know in my heart it's always worth the trouble. :)