Stocking Up on Makeup

Over the past few months, I've been working on upgrading my makeup collection and techniques. It started when I noticed more wrinkles, but slowed down when I realized that nice makeup seems to be pretty pricey! While I still have some Mary Kay and Clinique products, my latest acquisitions have been Bobbi Brown.While money is definitely a factor, I've also found that customer service is a big issue for me too. I look for a salesperson who's patient, knowledgeable, efficient, and responsive. I've seen a pretty wide range of these characteristics over the past few months.

What are your favorite skincare and makeup products? What do you look for in a skincare/makeup line?


Clipart from Clipartheaven.com

Outer Banks Daycation

George on the Beach at Kitty Hawk

George and I had a fun daycation at the Outer Banks of North Carolina last Saturday. George decided Flying Pirate Half Marathon, but wanted to pick up his race packet anyway, so we decided to make a day trip out of it!
not to run the

We started at the race expo, where we got chair massages which felt awesome! At the recommendation of one of the massage therapists, we went to lunch at the Black Pelican, which was a cute place with yummy food and a nice view. As luck would happen, there was public access to the beach, plus a bathhouse with bathrooms and outdoor showers, very close to the restaurant, so we did that next. The beach area was a little foggy at first, but cleared up before we left. It was so relaxing to hang out on the beach for a while and listen to the waves. All in all, a lovely day!

I've uploaded my photos onto Flickr, and they're available here.

Life After Graduate School

Spring Semester has started, and for the first time in three and a half years, I'm no longer a student! It still feels different, not thinking about assignments and homework, but it's a good feeling! I've started to think about other things, both professionally and personally, that I can develop.

One thing I did recently was buy a Yamaha alto recorder. I don't know how to play the recorder, but like to learn! Fortunately, decent recorders come fairly cheaply, and I got mine with a gift certificate. :-) The recorder is so portable, there's a recorder playing group in my area, to boot. I'm really wanting to plug back into my musical side. So stay tuned!

On the work end, one thing I'm doing is shadowing a colleague at the library's  Help Desk  once a week for a couple of hours. I enjoy working with KJ, who has a lot of energy and is eager to take advantage of teachable moments.

I'm also planning on attending three professional conferences this year, and am presenting at one of them. Busy, busy!