Tokyo Milk

While exploring downtown, I discovered an awesome little hole-in-the-wall boutique that sells Tokyo Milk brand. I'd never heard of it before but the packaging really attracted me -- I love pretty, gothic things! This is the Dark line, or Femme Fatale Parfums, that comes in scents (left to right) with names like: Everything & Nothing, Arsenic, Excess, Crushed, La Vie La Mort, Bittersweet, and Tainted Love. I love them already! La Vie La Mort was my favorite scent and at $36 for 2 oz., it's definitely in my budget.
This is the Roller Parfum de Cigarro and it comes in six scents: Truth, Wisdom, Yesterday, Tomorrow, Destiny, and Chance. The roller parfum is stored in the glass tube and is only $24 for 5.5 fluid oz. The Roller Parfum de Cigarro is most likely going to be my choice just for the fact that the cost is lower and comes with more scent. Hopefully one of them smells good on me because I'm such a sucker for gorgeous packaging. So pretty!
These are the Lip Elixirs in: Salted Caramel, Absinthe (it really smells like it!), Coco Noir, Cherry Bourbon, La Vie En Rose (smells kinda like Smith's Rosebud Salve, which happens to be my all time favorite), Smoked Salt, Clove Cigarette (soooo yummy), and Dead Sexy. These are only $7 for .70 oz. I would probably buy Absinthe and Clove Cigarette, perfect for the Autumn weather. Musky scents on lips sound kinda sexy in my book.

So! As I'm trying to cut back on spending, I'm going to use up an almost-empty solid perfume stick and at least one lip thingie. This is something I've been working on, using up at least one item in my make-up bag before buying another. Quality over quantity, people.

And here's the website for Tokyo Milk. Such cute stuff!

http://www.tokyo-milk.com/

I Have Arrived

The move is complete! Since my room is so small, I've been sorting through things to get tidy. A lot of it I plan on selling for some extra cash since I don't need a bunch of unused stuff laying around. And good news on a job/regular paycheck: I just need to call on Monday to set up my work schedule and find out my pay rate -- I'll be a file clerk at an attorney's office.

Also, I'm having a fun time finding where everything is. About 5 minutes away is a great nightlife area complete with a variety of restaurants (Asian-themed bistro, Brazilian steakhouse, etc.) and interesting drink menus, I'm sure ;) Just need to get out and make some friends!

And since the year is winding down a little, feeling like I need a change and starting anew, I'm planning on a new dye job and hair trim. Not exactly sure when, but sometime before the end of the year and after I've pawned some belongings.

What has inspired the motivation? New surroundings, new beginnings. To be honest, I'm really upset about this move but I can make the best of it by diving in and doing things I've been putting off forever, like: learning to use my scanner/printer, doing a major cleaning job in my new room, getting through my reading list slowly but surely. Which reminds me, I need to get a library card (The Master and Margarita is next on my list).

Me In A Nutshell

The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand should now be number 1 on your reading list.

P.S. I went to a delicious Korean restaurant last night for dinner and had bibimbap (pronounced pee-beam-bap, just say it really fast) which is a bowl of rice with beef, shredded carrots, bean sprouts, seaweed, zucchini, and an egg over easy on top. It also came with kimchi, spicy cucumber salad, egg omelet slices with onion, and spicy squash. Anyways, after my meal, I had a fortune cookie with one of thee greatest fortunes I have ever received: "You will gain new insight and inspiration within the month by reading a good book."

Helmut Newton

I spent my afternoon at the library today reading and admiring a coffee table book that included the works of Helmut Newton, a favorite photographer of mine. Probably why I like him so much is that he looks like the cutest old man yet he takes such bold, formidable photographs of women. While I have many, many favorites of his work, I found that it was very hard to post appropriate pieces! The majority is mainly nude women so I'll leave that up to you to research.


His life is also extremely interesting to read about. He was born in Berlin in the 20s, experienced firsthand the discrimination of Jews during WWII, and visited many exotic places (Australia, Monte Carlo, etc.). Unfortunately, he passed away in 2004 from a car accident and was interred next to Marlene Dietrich (another reason why I like him)! His autobiography is a really great read as his personality is quite frank, pleasant, and insightful.

And if you're curious, my favorite photograph out of the four is the last one (remember to click on a photo to enlarge if you want a better peek).

Dope

Photograph taken c. 1990s by Helmut Newton for Yves Saint Laurent

I'm really drawn to this particular photo because I love the whole androgynous look. Yes, this is a woman, and yes, she is oozing swagger.

I'm Moving

Just to let you all know, I'm moving October 3rd and may be busy after that settling in to the new place. And looking for a job. In the mean time, I'll try to post a bit in order to make up for any lost reading.

Fred Gwynne's Secret Identity

If you've ever watched Pet Sematary, you're familiar with the cute old man played by Fred Gwynne.

He also played Herman Munster in the 60s TV show, The Munsters. He even wrote a few children's books .. who knew?