Editions of Me

Can. you. believe. this. girl!

Towards the beginning of the semester, I asked my sophomores, "Are you being intolerant and bigoted if you say that you hate racists/bigots/homophobes?" Overwhelmingly, they responded with "Yes - all hatred is bad. People should be allowed to believe what they want to believe, even if it's bad." What few of them know (because only a few of them actually asked me) is that I wholeheartedly disagree. And my reasoning is that if you hate someone based on their skin color or sexuality or religious beliefs, it is entirely likely that you are seeking to limit their rights and privileges and to basically treat them as lesser than you, and in some cases, to even destroy them. If I hate someone because they are racist, I'm not saying that they don't deserve the same rights and chance at happiness in life - I am really only asking that they don't take that away from someone else. I don't want to oppress THEM - I want them to open up their minds and stop

I want to know what sustains you from the inside when all else falls away. - Oriah Mountain Dreamer, "The Invitation"  This week I asked my freshmen to reflect: "When everything seems bleak and hopeless, what keeps you going?" And so I ask myself the same question. Things aren't bleak and hopeless, but I feel like I've been in a rut lately. I have not been feeling great about work - I'm either stressed out, or tired, or just in general feeling like a failure. I don't feel desirable and attractive. I feel like I am no longer a person who does cool and interesting things and who keeps stretching her limits and learning as I live. In general, I just feel... blah . Ordinary. Mundane. Unremarkable. I would not go as far as to say that I feel like no one cares about my existence, because I know that's not true. But I would say that I feel like my existence is not making as big a dent in the universe (in a positive way) as I would like. But it&

One: When I was in 8th grade, a bunch of kids who hated me started calling me a dyke and a lesbo every time they had a chance to. (This isn't my only instance of bullying, but it was the first time they used those words.) This was in 1997, and we were a tiny little private K-8 school, and my 8th grade class of 25 kids was mostly Asian and Indian. I am willing to bet that they didn't actually know what being lesbian or being gay actually meant - they just knew that it was an insult, so that's what they called me. Looking back, I probably didn't know any better than they did what being lesbian or being gay actually meant either. But in response to them calling me those words, I would often yell back, "What are you, some kind of homophobe???" And it would shut them up for a while. (Either they didn't know what the word meant, or they could tell that I'd just called them something worse than what they called me.) Being bullied and teased taught me

Not to make fun of the people I know who don't knit, but... Just sayin'. As the title of the comic says, "You are free to learn how to do anything anytime." :) It's funny, the mental blocks we put up. "I wish I could knit. Knitting is hard." Me: "Like anything else, it takes learning and practice. It was three months before I got the hang of it." "I wish I could knit. I don't have time." Me: "Ever sit around waiting at a doctor's appointment? Ever sit around at a coffee shop waiting for someone to show up? Ever watch tv or movies? You have time to knit." "I wish I could knit. The two sticks thing confuses me." Me: "If you learned how to actually do it, you'd know what to do with both of them. They both have a purpose." Questions I always get: - Was that hard to make? - Not really, in the sense that you're just wrapping string around a stick. It took me a long time because I

I'm giving it to them tomorrow. For my dearest friend Lisa, who is pregnant right now. This is the Basic Baby Slippers pattern from the Baby Knits Kit - you know, when knitting was starting its new wave of popularity a few years ago, companies were selling boxes with pattern cards and they also came needles and enough yarn for one of their projects? Well, this was the project. Only, they TOTALLY give you the wrong needles - they said size 4 on the pattern card, and the ones in the kit have GOT to be 8's. I can only assume that this is acrylic yarn. Anyway, I made some modifications - instead of the icord/elastic cuff in the pattern (there isn't even a picture of it online, so I can't show you), I crocheted a foldover cuff with eyelets for stringing the ribbon through. I hope she likes it! She didn't know I was making these for her, so it'll be a surprise tomorrow morning.

This is the same look as the one I just posted, only instead of using Fishnet as the crease color, I used Peace (a bright teal) instead! On my face: UD's Urban Defense tinted moisturizer, MAC's Mineralize Skinfinish Natural, and UD's Afterglow blush in Quickie; on my lips: UD's lipstick in Requiem Ransom on the lid up to the crease Peace in the crease (ahaha that rhymed) Ruthless as a highlight I used Lola's Fineline pencil in black (a VERY tiny thin eyeliner) to line my upper lid, and UD's Flipside pencil to line my lower lid. Topped off with Fresh's Supernova mascara. Funny how blue instead of pink changes everything!

Finally, after a YEAR of slaving away, it's finished! I started this sweater when I was pregnant, and look! We both can fit in it still!

In response to ads like this one , this one , and the latest one to appear in the new issue of Runner's World magazine: THE MARATHON. ONCE A TEST OF WILL, NOW A TEST OF PATIENCE. The marathon used to be an elite athletic contest. These days, it’s an all day affair where some people mosey across the finish line seven hours after they started. Now don’t get us wrong. we don’t want to take anything away from these “finishers”. But we are fairly certain that Pheidippides wanted people to beat more than the sunset. In our humble opinion, the marathon is a race that was meant to be, well, raced. Because when you race the marathon-when you truly give it everything you have and then some- you honor the spirit of the marathon. And that is exactly what it will take to keep running the most venerable race alive and well. So the next time you’re toeing the line, respect the marathon. Run like an animal.  Dear Pearl Izumi, I'm not sure who told you that alienating the largest part of

Test driving it today. Blotted the heck out of it to make it stain-like. Kept the eyes light. In keeping with the NARS lips, I'm also wearing my NARS Multiple in (what else?) Orgasm.

Sylvi approaching the finish line!

It's my first Mother's Day today. Hooray! And as a big believer in giving myself the royal treatment on my special day, I present to you The Royal Deluxe, a gorgeous, purpley look (because purple is the color of royalty, dontcha know?) using Urban Decay's Deluxe Eyeshadows. So, here are the products I used: The UD Deluxe palette, two single Deluxe shadows (Frigid and Ruthless), and three 24/7 eye pencils (Zero, Ransom, and Gunmetal). After priming my lids, I used a small eyeshadow brush to apply Ransom (an sort of iridescent indigo) from the palette to my crease (the actual one on my eyelid, as opposed to the area just under my browbone. Since I'm Asian, I have two different "creases" whereas different ethnicities just have one). It goes on pretty sheer, so depending on how intense you want it to look, you might want to layer more. (I layered more =P) Using a crease brush, I applied Fishnet (fuschia) from the palette and blended it into my browbo

I honestly haven't given much thought to what it's been like to be a mother. When I hear the word "mom," I think of those ladies in the commercials, mopping up spilled fruit punch with a smile because their paper towels are so absorbent, or shaking their heads at their silly children running off the plate of pizza rolls without a thank you. That's not me. In all honesty, I don't know if I can tell what it's like to be a mother because I don't think of myself that way. I don't think of what I'm doing as being a mother. I just do my thing, and Jolie does hers. At this point, it's pretty straightforward. I change Jolie's diapers because I don't want poo and pee coming out all over the place. I feed her because I don't want her to die. I hug her and kiss her and play with her because... well, who wouldn't want to? She's beautiful and cute as buttons! I provide the input, she provides output, which is that, namely, she'

I was actually lucky enough to find TWO reds that I could wear every day, but this was the one I chose to buy first. (Because I am SO going back to get the other one later on.) Introducing... NARS Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in Cruella ... "If she doesn't scare you, no evil thing will!" NARS Velvet Matte Lip Pencils are GIANT FATTY lip pencils. They're not like an average lip liner. But they are a great cross between a lipstick and a lip liner. They are a total matte finish (which is actually pretty drying on my lips, so I put on UD's Lip Primer underneath, to give it some moisture). They glide on like lipstick, but have the application control and staying power of lip liner. (If I try to put on lipstick without liner first, and without a brush, my lips look all sloppy.) It maybe needs some gloss? (I probably won't put gloss over it) And then, good to go! Bright? Yes. Eye-catching? Definitely. I'm starting to realize that, no matter what shade, weari

I found my perfect everyday red tonight! I took some photos. However, the lighting really didn't do it justice. To hold you over until then, here's a photo of me wearing the Gash Triumvirate - Gash liner (filled in), and then Gash lipstick, topped with Gash Ultraglide lipgloss. Vampy! (And then edited for fun on Picnik.)

I love a good deal as much as anyone, and when Hautelook.com had an Urban Decay sale recently with up to 75% off, I had to jump in. I bought two Ultraglide lipglosses for $4.25 each, and their Big Buddha Brush for only $9. The two lipglosses I got were O and Gash, both gorgeous reds. And I already have the Ultraglide in Heat, so I thought... let's do a comparison of reds! I tried on all three and snapped photos. The glosses, with very subtle differences between them  So, here's a swatch sample on the back of my hand: L to R: O, Gash, and Heat And as sort of a "context," here's me, without any lipgloss on. (No makeup at all , actually, except for eyeliner. Please excuse me.) I'm showing you this because 1) lipgloss can be sheer, and 2) the lighting where I took the photos isn't great. But this should show you the difference between me glossed and me non-glossed. Because if you saw me in person, my lips actually have a little color naturally:

So, I'm working on a video to commemorate Jolie's first year of life. It's going to take me a while - there's SO much I want to include, but you know, not everyone is interested in ten straight minutes of photos that look very nearly the same :) So I'll have to pick and choose. Here's a teaser. It's the intro and the newborn era. Notice how in the composite, there are some photos missing :) I'll go back and fill those in later.

Yesterday was Jolie's 9 month birthday, so she has officially been out of my womb longer than she was in it! Today was her 9-month checkup with her pediatrician, and I have to say that I'm SO proud of her. She measured in at 28.25 inches, which puts her in the 75th percentile for body length for babies her age (and we're not even looking at an adjusted-for-preemies scale!). We could tell that she had grown, but I didn't realize just how much - at her 6-month checkup, she was 24.8 inches, so she's grown almost four inches in the last three months! So amazing! And she's right on target for all her other measurements and her eating and all that, so I couldn't be more proud of my little girl. On the date of her birth, she was 16.75 inches, and now she's 28.25 - she's pretty grown an entire foot! The little "birthday" girl :) In not too long, it will be her REAL birthday, oh my gosh. Atop her throne

Run 5:00, Walk 1:00 40:16.92 2.96mi See the preciseness of that time and distance? It's because I am now the proud and doting owner of a Garmin Forerunner 205 GPS watch! And here, check this out: Average pace: 13:37mi Average speed: 4.4mph Max speed: 6.8mph It's enough to make any stat monkey DROOL. And it syncs with Daily Mile! I just press a button and there it is! So, the run was fabulous! I decided to run with the 13:00-13:30 group, because I've been doing my run intervals at a 13:00 pace on the treadmill. I've done all this crazy math to figure out how fast I have to run in order to make my average pace be fast enough so that I can finish the marathon on time (because you have to factor in the walk breaks). According to my math, I'd have to run a 12:30 pace. I'm starting slow right now, and hoping to get faster as I get more conditioned. So, I thought that's what our coach meant - we would be running at a 13:00-13:30 pace. But apparentl

“Me thinks that the moment my legs begin to move, my thoughts begin to flow.” - Henry David Thoreau “Bid me run, and I will strive with things impossible.” - William Shakespeare, Julius Caesar “If you run, you are a runner. It doesn’t matter how fast or how far. It doesn’t matter if today is your first day or if you’ve been running for twenty years. There is no test to pass, no license to earn, no membership card to get. You just run.” - John Bingham “The miracle isn’t that I finished. The miracle is that I had the courage to start.” - John Bingham “Running won’t kill you….you’ll pass out first.” (uncredited) “Running is a big question mark that’s there each and every day. It asks you, ‘Are you going to be a wimp or are you going to be strong today?’ ” - Peter Maher “The world is run by those who show up.” (uncredited) “If you quit running, nobody cares, but you’ll always know.” (uncredited) “You may run slow, but you are running faster than someone on the co