Suspend-It

I went to the mall last July 29 to accompany my friend who’s been hunting for the best weight loss product. She heard from a colleague that there’s this store that sells the specific type she’s looking for at a much cheaper price.

When we got to the store, the line was pretty long. She got embarrassed about the inevitable long wait I would have to go through so she let me off the hook, told me to go window shop and just meet at the food court after an hour.

I ended up wandering to the amazing Japan Home Center which sells really cool, practical things you can think of for your house at a very cheap price! What I really adored was the quick-drying coif from Hikari (it looks something similar to the image on the right). You see, ever since I grew my hair long, I have been having trouble coifing it with a towel and balancing the weight of the towel on my head after taking a bath.

I immediately purchased the pink hair towel and tried it out as soon as I got home. The quick-drying coif is so efficient and lightweight! It was more than I had expected. Now I no longer need to bring two bulky towels when travelling as well. I just need one small towel for my body and the quick-drying coif for my hair. ^_^ I’ll definitely buy two more when I return to that store.

My department will be having a Paid Time Off (PTO) orientation with the HR manager on August 4 to clarify the new policies and its implementation. This is a great avenue for us to bring up our other concerns like the term life insurance rates with our HMO, enrolling dependents with our Medicard, and salary loan.

Since the HR manager is very busy, I decided to ask my team to email me all their questions for me to consolidate and forward to the HR to make sure that all our concerns are addressed. I hope the meeting goes well, especially for the salary loan part. I’m a bit low on cash until October.

Cellphones nowadays include so many features that the phone function itself seem to be just a bonus. A typical mid end phone for instance has a built in camera, a web browser, a media player, and sometimes even a TV tuner. But for most phones, address books, calendars and reminders have only basic capabilities. This is why most people, especially businessmen, prefer PDAs apart from a phone. This is because PDA features are more advanced in terms of organizing schedules and contact information. It also synchronizes well with PC’s and it has great technical support on software unlike cellphones. I personally have a PDA and am still satisfied with its performance. I have been using it for years now yet I still cannot find a cellphone to match its features.

I went to my college friend Ayla’s baby’s Christening last July 19 in Alaska. It was the second time I’ve met her entire family. The last time was on her 18th birthday when we were still in college.

Although Ayla has been telling me that her dad has kidney problems and is now bloated due to it, I was still quite surprised at how frail he looked when I saw him. Nevertheless, during the Christening, he did his utmost to be his usual charming self and entertained us stupendously.

Then I received an sms from Ayla yesterday afternoon, “Please pray for my dad. He passed away awhile ago…”

I found out that her dad could actually have extended his life longer had he agreed to the usual dialysis treatment. But being practical and knowing the end result, not to mention the cost of such treatment, Ayla’s dad decided to just endure his sickness and rely on pills. It’s so ironic that while the rest of the world are searching for the best weight loss pill, there was Ayla’s dad whose lifeline depended on a pill.

Anyhow, I did some research to avoid having to lose someone because of kidney problems and found these tips on eHow.com on How to Prevent Kidney Failure.

• Control your blood pressure at all costs. Chronic high blood pressure is one of the most common causes of acute kidney failure in adult men and women.

• Ask your doctor about taking garlic supplements. These supplements can help reduce blood pressure quickly, but at the same time they will inhibit the blood’s ability to form clots, so they should only be taken under medical supervision.

• Quit smoking. Cigarette smoke causes a variety of health problems that can increase your chance of kidney failure. If you stop smoking, it will also lower your blood pressure, which is important for preventing kidney failure.

• Stop drinking alcohol. You can reduce the strain on your kidneys by cutting all alcoholic drinks out of your lifestyle. These drinks require that your kidneys work very hard and not drinking them can help prevent kidney problems.

• Drink plenty of water. Even though your kidneys may be damaged, they should still be able to process water. Try to drink at least eight glasses each day.
  See your doctor and have regular blood and urine tests done. These tests will notice any developing issues before you start to notice symptoms.

Do take note that watching your diet is a central theme and that having regular check ups are vital in this. I hope this helps.

To Ayla, again, my deepest condolences.

Sometimes, when you’re so used to working very hard, your body tends to miss the pressure and the overtime work. Since I got the week off, I had nothing to do but sleep at home. It’s only just day 2 of my vacation but I’m already bored. Then, a great idea struck me as I was browsing the web – a facial mask!

I got this recipe from the net. It is made of natural ingredients so I tried it out. I mixed a few teaspoons of oatmeal with milk, and honey then microwaved the batter. While letting it cool down, I blended a tomato and cucumber then put it in the fridge. I took a shower and got ready for my facial mask.

I used the oatmeal as a facial mask and the cucumber – tomato blend as my eye wrinkle cream. The hot facial mask with the cold eye cream certainly felt really good. My sister even tried it out with me and also liked it. After an hour in my face, I washed it off and saw my face glowing. Try it out!

Have you heard of the term “chronic fatigue syndrome”? I have read about this disorder in books and it is one of the mysterious illnesses that usually affect adults. Symptoms include general weakness, laziness, and exhaustion after doing even minimal physical activity. Up to now, there are no standard clinical tests to verify if you have this fatigue syndrome. Moreover, because it shares the same symptoms as the common flu, diabetes, and dehydration, doctors may prescribe medicines that might be inappropriate.

I have been concerned about this “chronic fatigue syndrome” because I feel I have all of its symptoms. Sometimes I’m too tired to work or to even get out of bed. I also often feel fatigued, even though I just had a complete 10 hours of sleep.

I asked my physician about this and told me not to worry. The cause of my fatigue is just stress and lack of exercise – which is true because for the past few weeks I have been doing plenty of overtime to meet the deadlines at the office. Anyhow, I was advised to give myself a break and relax for a while. My boss agreed and said that I deserve the time off. So now I’m just in the garden, looking at the stars, sitting on the outdoor furniture and just sipping coffee. Now this is what I call, relaxation.

I’m not really that vain, but I value the importance of taking care of oneself especially one’s skin at an early age. This is because a lot of people are unaware that there’s a certain point in life when, if you do not start moisturizing and applying the proper treatment, you will experience an irreversible skin damage for the rest of your life. Oh, that “certain point” by the way is when you hit the early 20’s. 0;)

Sure, there are treatments for those skin damages. But then again, it won’t be the same as it should have been. Not to mention the fact that some are even painful treatments. Also, why endure the pain and wait for those costly treatments when you can prevent skin damage now at a cheaper cost?

A simple daily face and neck moisturizer, an anti wrinkle eye cream, and a full body lotion, all with sun protection, are what you need to ensure and maintain a perfectly healthy and flawless skin. That’s it. Oh, and make sure to apply those religiously of course. Otherwise, what’s the point of buying them?

I’m one of those people who adore scenic places, especially those with fountains, ponds, and water fall effect. Whenever I encounter one of those, I wonder how much it costs to maintain those installations, what’s involved, etc.

Then just yesterday I saw people installing some sort of unusual machinery in what would soon become a pond in front of our mall. Curious, I approached the one who seems to be in charge and inquired about the thingamabob that they are setting up. It turns out to be one of the latest pond aerators in the country.

My curiosity now more piqued, I asked what those machines really do for ponds, and how it actually helps maintain it. He enthusiastically explained that, “Proper pond aeration is a critical component of maintaining a healthy and clean pond or lake. This is because the oxygenation and water circulation benefits of a pond aerator allow for faster decomposition of waste, reduction of algae growth, necessary oxygen and gas transfer, cleaner water, and stimulation of beneficial pond bacteria.”

Amazing, isn’t it?

A friend of mine was aching to find a quality foot spa to get rid of the thick skin on her heels. I advised her to visit a dermatologist instead because cracks are already forming in her heel. The derma diagnosed her with tyloma which is commonly known as callus.

A callus is a thickened area of the skin which is caused by regular pressure or friction. Women usually get this because of wearing ill-fitting shoes. Callus is a result of the skin’s defense to protect itself from getting torn by friction. Corns or heloma is related to callus. It forms a thick circular layer of hard skin in the middle of a callus area, hence the name “corn”.

Regular foot spa can remove the thick skin but calluses will keep on forming until the main cause is taken cared of. I suggested changing her ill fitting shoes to comfortable ones. I suggested Naot shoes – my preferred brand. Not only are these shoes comfortable, they are also trendy and classy. I never had thick heels since I changed to these shoes.

Pardon me for blogging about this, but I really cannot help but brag about it. Last week, the coffee maker in the office broke down, as well as the coffee bendo machine in the hallway. My officemates including me obviously complained about this and pressured the management to get a new one. To our surprise, the company ordered three new Capresso coffee machines!!! These were delivered today in the office and everyone was so excited to try them. The Capresso machines one of the best coffee makers you can find. They make real cappuccino and espresso in an instant, which is good tasting unlike the cheap bendo. What’s more, these machines are the one’s you’ll find in Starbucks and Seattle’s Best coffee shops. Oh I love the office!