Geek in Heels - Page 151

May 27, 2010 • In Baby, Cute, Web

Iron Baby

I know this video has been everywhere today, but I couldn’t resist sharing…

Enjoy!

Being Chinese, J and his family are the ultimate tea snobs. My in-laws bring with them fancy, expensive tea whenever they come to visit and rarely does a day go by without their drinking at least a few glasses of an infusion. They even specify which types of tea to drink with different dishes, and even the best types of tea to drink at different times of the day!

Me? I can’t even tell the difference between green tea and black tea.

I have never seen J drink tea from teabags (“Tea connoisseurs NEVER use bags!”) but I like to think that he would appreciate the beauty of this packaging design as much as I…

Via Yanko Design.

Cake Envy

When J and I were planning our wedding, we were pleasantly surprised to find that our venue would provide a cake at no extra cost.

SCORE! We thought. One less thing to plan, one less vendor to deal with, and one less thing to worry about.

We chose our cake from an album of “typical” wedding cakes, chose the flavor and filling, and that was that.

photo by Danny Weiss

At the time, we thought that spending the extra money for a spectacular wedding cake was a waste of money. Cakes are to be eaten, not admired. We were sure that no one would even notice if we were to spend an extra $1,000 on a cake.

And you know what? I’m sure that 99% of our guests did NOT notice. Most of them did not get within 5 ft of the cake, and even if someone noticed the slightly uneven frosting, they certainly did not say anything.

However, I cannot help but experience a little cake envy whenever I see a sensational wedding cake. And with the growing popularity of over-the-top, unique, and/or whimsical wedding cakes (and with Carlo’s Bakery from the TLC show Cake Boss just down the street), it’s hard to avoid such images.

What kind of cake did/will you have at your wedding? Were you happy with it?

If I had the extra money, I probably would’ve invested in a nice groom’s cake for J — something geeky like video games, or somehow related to his favorite sports team. I’m sure he would’ve loved even a gruesome cake like this, designed after the game Left 4 Dead:

via Nerd Approved

At the end of the day, I force myself to remember that a cake does not make or break a wedding. And that if we had gotten a magnificent cake, we would have been reluctant to cut into such a work of art — even if it meant cutting into zombie parts.

It Must Be ‘Back to the Future’ Day [Great Scott!]

FIRST…

SCI FI Wire has re-produced five famous sci-fi movie quotes in my favorite data representation format: the infographic.

My favorite? “Roads? Where we’re going, we don’t need…roads.”

Hit up the link for more, including quotes from The Matrix and Ghost Busters.

SECOND…

I can’t think of anything better to say about this, so I’ll directly quote The Best Article Every Day:

The ‘Back To The Future’ Mind F*ck, 25 Years Later

That’s right, Back to the Future just blew your mind 25 years later. Anyone who says they’ve noticed this before is a liar.

Seriously…DID anyone notice this before?

You can’t help but feel bad for the people who thoughtfully included this detail, because I’m sure that more than 99% of the population completely missed it.

Yes, That Was Me Who Caused the Mass Backup in the Tunnel…

This morning started like any other. I woke up, took the dog for a walk, and quickly checked the mirror for eye crusties and hair peaks before running out the door to drive J to work.

(Yes, I know I don’t have to drive him to work. But I like to, especially in the past few months as he’s been working super-long hours and I’d like to squeeze in as much time together as possible.)

15-minute delay in the tunnel? Check. A-hole NYC drivers who challenge my driving dexterity with every move? Check. Pedestrians who ignore all traffic laws to make driving in NYC even more difficult? Check.

In other words, nothing unusual.

I kissed my husband goodbye as he rushed inside to make his morning meeting. I began my drive back home, and as I entered the Lincoln Tunnel I breathed my usual sigh of relief — because once I enter the tunnel the drive back is usually a breeze.

The key word here is ‘usually.’

About midway through the 1.4 mile trek, ALL the lights in my dashboard lit up.

“What the…”

Then I noticed that the car was slowing down. I pressed down on the gas pedal with no results. Luckily, the brakes still worked…

I stopped the car and turned on my hazards. I shut off the engine.

Honk! HOOOONNNKKKKK!!!!

“Hold your horses,” I muttered under my breath as I restarted the engine. No problems there. But wait…all the lights in the dashboard continued to stay lit, and the car STILL refused to move.

Crap.

I continued this song and dance for the next 5 minutes or so, as I frantically tried calling 311 (no one answered, btw), then J. He said that he would look up a number to call, and advised me to call our insurance company for roadside assistance.

Shut off engine, turn on again. Press the gas pedal. Nothing.

“Thank you for reaching Geico. If you would like to file a claim, press one…”

Shut off engine, turn on again. Press the gas pedal. Nothing.

The phone suddenly turned silent. I was dismayed to find that I had lost signal. Frick! Signal in the tunnel, underwater, is flaky at best.

HONK! HONK! HOOONNNNNKKKKKKKK!!!!!

I was about to lose my mind.

Then, just as I was about to pull a Marge Simpson and just GIVE UP, to say “To hell with all of you!” and have a nervous breakdown right in the middle of traffic…

…I saw distinct flashing blue and red lights behind me.

THANK GOD.

I waited patiently for the officer to make his approach. He sure was taking his jolly time. Then I noticed —

He wasn’t drawing any closer to me. He was drawing the traffic behind us further away.

Then it dawned on me.

DOES HE THINK I’M A TERRORIST??!!!

I let out a frustrated sob and tried the accelerator once again.

The car started forward. THE CAR WAS MOVING!!!

I cautiously continued to accelerate. The cop noticed, and began to follow (from a safe distance, of course).

He shouted over the loudspeaker, “Continue moving forward until we’re out of the tunnel. Bear right.”

I did as I was told.

Luckily, the officer was very understanding and sympathetic of my situation. He pointed me to the closest gas station and wished me luck.

The car is currently at the mechanic, getting a full diagnostic. I am praying and hoping with all my might that the repair costs will not be astronomical — we have already spent over $1,000 in the past month in unforseen, emergency expenses and the baby fund has taken the blunt of that hit.

What a morning…

Makeup Magic

A guy friend once told me that he would never date a girl until he has seen her sans makeup first.

“You never know what you’ll wake up next to in the morning,” he said. “And trust me — club, bar, and lounge lighting is cunningly deceptive!”

I personally don’t think my girlfriends and I look that different without makeup. Do we look better? Sure. But we still look like us…just a more polished version of ourselves.

So just based on this small sample, I dismissed my guy friend as being overly paranoid.

Now, I am not so sure.

Take a look at these photos from a Taiwanese television show. One side of these girls’ face is makeup-free, while the other is completely done:

The YouTube video of the entire show can be seen here.

I don’t know about you, but those are some freaky transformations! I can’t believe this was all done with makeup alone (well, contact lenses too) — the eyes, in particular, look completely different!

One part of me is a bit disgusted at the drastic changes that these girls believe they need in order to look attractive. However…

…the other part wants to learn how to do this!

I am reminded of my own transformation three years ago, when I had my wedding hair & makeup trial with the amazing Maureen & Claudia Pedala:

Yes, the amazing power of makeup.

I remember being so stunned after seeing these ‘before’ and ‘after’ pictures that I considered taking a makeup lesson from Maureen…but alas, she charges $200!

Via Absolutely Fobulous.

19, 20, and 21 Weeks

I’ve been majorly slacking on my weekly pregnancy updates. I have no excuse other than the fact that I got lazy. Sorry!

Remember that nasty case of round ligament pains? Well, they certainly contributed to a major belly growth spurt — just look at the difference between weeks 18 and 19!

…but then again, my gorging on tons of yummy food while we were on our babymoon may have had a lot to do with that growth.

After our second trip to the ER, the pregnancy has (thankfully) been free of complications. Sure, we discovered that that I have an anterior placenta and that the baby is in breech position, but we don’t need to worry about those conditions until I am much further along.

And with the major physical developments finished, there isn’t much on the developmental front either. The baby can now hear, has eyebrows and eyelids, and is swallowing regularly with the recent budding of taste buds.

One fun fact I learned yesterday is that the taste of the amniotic fluid changes depending on what I eat. And because research has shown that babies who were exposed to certain tastes in utero (via the amniotic fluid) were more eager to eat foods with that same taste after birth, my diet now becomes even more influential to the baby’s likes and dislikes. What horrible news for J — he’s always complaining that I’m a picky eater!

At our 19-week anatomy scan, we discovered that the baby is measuring at around the 50th percentile for overall growth, and she was estimated to weigh 9 ounces. So I’m going to take the following average measurements to heart…

19 Weeks (6 inches crown to rump, 8½ ounces):

20 Weeks (10 inches head to toe — starting week 20 they measure head to toe, not crown to rump — and 10 ounces):

21 Weeks (10½ inches long, ¾ of a pound):

And here’s a belly shot I took today at 21 weeks. I completely forgot to take one last week, so you can see quite a difference in the two weeks since I took the last:

My mother commented the other day that while my belly is certainly growing, the rest of my body seems to be shrinking. Hooray! And the scale doesn’t lie — I’m still a pound or two under my heaviest at 16 weeks.

One last, exciting news: I had reported that starting last Friday, I was able to feel the baby move from the outside. Now, those movements are more regular and even developing a pattern (she seems more apt to bounce around when I am lying flat on my back, and at nighttime…she’s already a night owl!). I’m still fascinated by this new development! It feels so weird yet so magical to be able to feel your baby moving inside of you. And frankly, I’m loving it.

P.S. — J can now feel her too. Every night as we settle into bed, he’ll put his hand on my belly and as soon as she starts kicking, he’ll whisper, “Baby girl, go to sleep so that mommy can get some rest.”

Happy Towel Day! (Don’t Forget Your Towel!)

Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy fans rejoice — today, May 25, is Towel Day!

See how the world is celebrating by visiting the Towel Day Flickr Group, or by checking YouTube.

Is anyone else a huge Hitchhiker fan? I have loved the books since I was little, and I can honestly say that the 2005 movie adaptation is one of the few movies that is just as good as the book.

Via BoingBoing.

Ultrasound Pictures on Facebook: Creepy and Inappropriate?

It has recently come to my attention that many people think using an ultrasound picture as your Facebook profile picture is creepy.

“I cringe whenever I see one. I don’t want to see a picture of your uterus or your fetus. TMI!”

A random Facebook profile using an ultrasound picture as the profile picture.
All personal information is blurred.

“I agree — it’s completely tacky and inappropriate. Does anyone really care aside from the parents?”

“Pregnancy and sonograms are PERSONAL. They should be kept private. The same goes for belly pictures and positive pregnancy tests!”

After reading these comments, I was glad that I deactivated my Facebook account, because I am sure that I would be offending a lot people on my “Friends” list with my pregnancy updates.

Long-time readers know my stance on what should/shouldn’t be shared online: while I do agree that some things are better kept private, I don’t think it’s right to judge anyone for choosing to share. Of course there are those who choose to share more than most on social networking sites…but if you feel uncomfortable with the level of that person’s sharing, just block them, and/or control your own privacy settings.

But that’s just me.

What do you think? Should ultrasound pictures be kept private? Do you feel uncomfortable when friends share details of their pregnancies on Facebook?