I love the new thread name!!!

I washed hair last night, with Rosemary Lavender Aloe shampoo and Cucumber Lime Yoghurt soap. Today, it's consequently clean and poofy- lots of aloe vera gel needed! I hope I'll survive until Saturday and will be able to go back to my normal washing schedule.

I started this day with a dentist appointment as I had chipped a tooth in weekend. That meant scarf bunning as it's the best style if one needs to lie back for any reason. I'm still wearing that same bun-  scarf buns are just amazing that way.

Split ends are back- not in great numbers, but I've S&D'd twice in three days now. Maybe it's because of dry winter weather...which brings me back to thinking that I might be wise to wear scarf buns a bit more often than I have recently done. I've oiled more generously than I normally do. Maybe that will help a little too.

Hair: starting to get dirty and therefore less poofy, which is good. I'm wearing a rope braid with crocheted scrunchie. A lovely style, but it becomes loose quite fast and has to be redone every few hours. I'm hoping that this problem will solve itself when my hair grows. A long rope braid secured with a pretty scrunchie would be just gorgeous... *dreams*

I've been watching Babylon 5 from DVD for this whole week- since we 2nd season episodes arrived here. I'm drooling at Ivanova's hairstyles. Her hair is easily iii thickness, but it's about same length as my hair so it's still quite educating. In an episode I watched yesterday she wore a very interesting style, it looked like a French twist, but with a "tail" that hung down. Must experiment with that. Another Ivanova style I should learn is lace braid, but so far that seems fairly impossible because 1) I have too little hair 2) much of my hair in front is halo anyway and I can't braid that 3) it requires practice, and lately I've been too lazy to practice anything. But, it's still a great style and I'm not going to forget that.
 
I feel I've made such great progress since my hair has reached Ivanova length. I remember all too well when it was short and the high point of my day was making Centauri do's in shower.

edit: for those of you who have missed Babylon 5: an example of Centauri hairstyle can be found here: http://www.midwinter.com/b5/Pictures/Characters/londo2.jpg

While shopping new gorgeous SpiralStix, I realized that I haven't really done much to prepare to styling difficulties awaiting me in near future, when my hair reaches over 25 in. Technically speaking, I know plenty of styles that work just fine at any length: braids, ponytails and of course down with twists style. But I want updos, preferably something that can be secured with hairsticks. Discovering that SpiralStix still work when any other hairsticks won't, was great (especially since BB suggested that they can be mixed and matched with regular stix). Neverthless, I want something that works even in case my hair decides to become a real PITA and spits out even Spirals.

Of course, practicing updos in advance has its difficulties- the Figure 8 for example just isn't possible at all before my hair is 65 cm long. But, today it occurred to me that Chinese bun might work. So, that's what I did today.

My problem with Chinese buns besides lacking length has always been the slipperiness of my hair. So, anyway, today I did the Chinese bun with Mamacat hairstick - they are just perfect for this job- but instead of Amish pins I secured it with bobby pins and added two Amish pins just for additional support. Now, hours later, the bun is still perfect! Very promising!

Otherwise, my hair is doing today wonderfully. Snowy's Deep Moisture treatment really made the difference this time. I suppose it means that I should make them more often for a while.

My Tenderheaded order arrived!

The silk sleep cap is...well, very silky. And big. As it looks like a shower cap on pictures at their website, I kinda assumed that it would also be about same size as a shower cap. But it's quite a lot bigger, hanging a bit like a snood, and could easily accommodate huge hair. In spite size and silkiness it sits quite firmly. I'll test it tonight.

I also received a bunch of their fabulous silk ribbons in luscious colors: Laura's Garden, Peach Blush, Jewel Turquoise and Ada's Rainbow. The colors are a bit more intense than on the pictures at website, brilliant and beautiful. I tried a Dutch braid with Ada's Rainbow, a ribbon in intense rainbow colors. The ribbon looked a bit too colorful, but when braided it was just perfect. Different colors "peeking" out of the braid created a fascinating look.

And now comes something completely different:

Galadriel's Short (and biased!) Introduction to Finnish Presidential Elections 2006

Today, if T's physiotherapy won't take too long, we're going to vote in Presidential elections.

This year, the Election is quite an event. There are 7 candidates, which is quite normal, and three of them are considered as "main" candidates in media (president who is a social democrat, prime minister from Center party and Coalition party's -biggest right wing party- candidate), which is also quite normal. There is one "independent" candidate who doesn't represent any party, which is a bit unusual though not unheard of, and candidates of smaller parties (Greens, Swedish party and Christian Democrats) are arguing as usual that they're seriously in game. But, this is where normality stops!

First, the most exciting question that everyone's asking is not, who is going to win the elections, but rather, will president Halonen be elected right on the first round of the election, or will there be a second round. Halonen's popularity is quite unprecedented in Finnish political history after early 80's (when both election system and world situation were very different from today). But, she HAS done great job. I've usually voted for Green party in all elections, but this time, I didn't consider Green candidate even for a moment. I, along almost everyone else likes the president a lot!
        According to opinion polls, she'd currently get about 50% of all votes- with error margin it means that no one really knows whether or not we'll get a second round (in which case the polls predict a landslide victory for her- neither of the other two main candidates seems to have much hope even gathering the voters from their own party to support them). It'll be exciting to see how it will turn out.

Secondly, this is probably also among the most comical presidential elections in world history: not only voters like the President, but American tv-comedian Conan O'Brien has also announced his support for Tarja after having discovered that he looks like her. The interesting thing is, that it may even have a little significance: Late Night is a SubTV show, and SubTV is a channel watched mostly by younger people, many of whom think that all sorts of elections are among the most boring events ever invented. Conan's support campaign has brought some color to the scene, and it might mean that some people who don't normally vote, reconsidering. OTOH, as his affection to President is clearly uninvited, I don't think that anyone can turn agains Tarja because of him. Veeery interesting. Though president seems also to be both awared- and pleased- of the support she's getting from this unexpected direction and her commercials have been shown right before Late Night...ROFL...

The official voting day is on 15th. It'll be interesting.

Sleep Cap

It works! It was very comfortable to wear, and it stayed quite well through all my tossing and turning (though tonight, I'll try to make it even more secure with little clips). I wore my hair in a simple low ponytail, but in the morning there wasn't any tangles. Woohoo! And no lumps under my head, no braid getting caught...I like this thing!  It has only one downside: T says I look like a cooker when I'm wearing it. So I may have a challenge in fitting romantic moods and sleep cap together. 

Hair: Today's washing day, but my hair feels still relatively clean. If only I hadn't to go to Department tomorrow (I prefer not to look like that philosopher who decided to live in a barrell), this would be perfect time to try just a rinse with herbal tea or something. As it is, I'll probably go with just a light wash.
        
I think I've finally discovered ponytail-type styles. I've always thought that ponytails look best with BS-waist length hair, and now that my hair is slowly nearing BS, I've also started to wear them. I still wear the simple low pony only at home, but segmented pony (at the moment, I need 1 elastics in the base+ 2 for making segments) is nice enough to wear anywhere. I've also started to wear quite often the "herring pony"  : start as if making a herringbone braid, but tie off at neck and leave the end loose. Decorate with a nice ribbon- this style is perfect for showing off nice ribbons.
 
Health: Health graph is diving again. I had a dentist appointment this morning. The X-rays she had taken at last visit were there, and she had discovered no less than 9 (nine!!!) "new" holes.  "New" is really relative: when I was in student health care that provided me dentist services in nominal cost (5€ or so), they never took expensive X-rays. Not once. So, now my dentist found 6 year's worth of hidden karies. Woe is me, I have dentist appointments scheduled for February too. And it's expensive- my poor budged likes this just as little as I do. I'm so mad to Student healthcare right now- why couldn't they ask me to go to a private dentist and have the X-ray taken there even once during my studying years if they didn't do that at Student dental care? 
   Smaller worry is, that yesterday I managed to rip my nail badly, it bled an amazing amount and my finger is still so sore that many regular chores are painful to do (and I'm not even thinking of cleaning fish tank- as it is contaminated by fish tuberculosis, I can't expose any wounds to the water).
    Good things for last: I've still managed to eat healthily. I've decided that I'm going to weigh myself only at the end of January. My problem has usually been that I want to lose weight quickly, which ends up in me being in so strict a diet that I can't stay on it for long. Maybe, if I weigh myself less often, I can see a bit slower progress more easily and can keep up with this diet for longer. (And, if it doesn't work and I haven't lost any weight with my current plan, I can always make adjustments for February's plans. ) 

I'm still working to find the solution to that little problem .

Last night, I secured the sleeping cap with two snap clips and left my hair completely loose. The clips made the cap stay very securely. And, in the morning there was a surprise!
    I washed my hair yesterday with Lavender Spice shampoo bar, and when I went to bed it was still just a little damp. When I took the cap off at the morning, it turned out that I had most gorgeous, slightly wavy ends. I'm not exaggerating one bit when I say that my hair looked just like out of a fashion magazine or a movie (and I'm not thinking of Paris Hilton now!). What can you do in such a situation but leave it down just as it is ?! I made a side part and tamed wispies with tiny amount of aloe vera gel and that was it! Now it has straightened a bit, but not too much. So, today's first day in my longhair history when I'm wearing a "bed head" and enjoying it!

   Shopped my first RapunzelStix. I've been looking for nice pairs of RapunzelStix for quite a long time as I imagine that they are ideal for Chinese Buns, Figure 8's and any other styles that require a bit longer sticks. And now ALL the pairs available were so gorgeus that I could have bought them. I had very difficult time choosing just two... And now, my hairtoy budget for this month is completely spent. But well spent.

I also received my supplemental pad order from LisaJaney. I got a couple of extra long pads for night, and a couple of light pads- my periods can be quite moody and so I prefer to have quite wide a pad selection. In this shipment, was the cutest pad ever- a pink one with little planes! How can one not smile when taking that one to use, even when feeling utterly crappy and sore?

Today, Liina had her annual vet appointment. According to the vet, she is "wonderfully healthy" for an 8 and ½ year old rabbit. She had only minor dental and digestive problems, both easily taken care of. I'm so happy for her, and hope that it means that she will stay with us for a few more years still (maximum life expectancy for rabbits is 12 years, but they start developing fatal health problems from around age of 5, so Liina's excellent health is already quite exceptional).

So far, I'm very satisfied with my sleep cap. If you order from Tenderheaded, be sure to choose the silk sleep cap. They offer also satin sleep caps that are much cheaper, but I've heard many people to complain that they are too small and tight.

And thanks for the warning! I didn't know that a nail could change its shape! I've worn a fabric plaster on my fingertip for the day, but have tried to let some air in it when I'm not doing much with my hands. It's already feeling better though, and seems to have started healing well. 

I am with you, aging is a good thing.  I am ordering my skin care products from Avalon organics. Sakina mentioned them to me one time when I was on the lookout for natural beauty care. I am very pleased with the results.

If there's one really nice thing about my appearance (while my hair is still "in process"), it's my skin. Even strangers compliment me about it, always asking what products I'm using. Truth? Whatever cleanser, some cream whenever I remember and a diet high in chocolate and Pepsi Max . Seriously, I've become pretty convinced that good skin just like good facial bones is more a matter of genes than anything else. Creams only affect to the topmost layer. Diet may have some influence- but I'm certainly not a living proof of that. And, in any case, in another 30 years most of its radiance will be gone. So, my only goal is to keep my skin somewhat moisturized.
   I'll check if I find Avalon Organics products from internet. That's not a brand I've ever heard of so I probably can't obtain it locally.

But, back to hair, since I'm more fond of things "in process". Today's been a pretty rough day- certain events have reminded me and T once again of the fact that our relationship is still in crisis, though there has been some progress. To cheer myself up (and to hide dirty hair) I made a French braid and tied it with a turquoise ribbon, and a while ago, after I had done today's chores I quickly washed it and applied a generous dose of Snowy's Deep Moisture Treatment. At this time of year, it can't hurt, and I need some pampering.

Sleep cap works wonderfully. I've decided that the most comfortable way to wear it is to put my hair in a low ponytail with elastics, then put the cap on and secure it with two snap clips. My hair is now completely tangle- and dustfree in the morning. Good buy!

Health: I couldn't resist weighing myself this morning. A nice surprise: since beginning of the month, I've lost 2 kilos. Though my meal plan is more lenient than what I'm used to in diet time, it seems to be working. I thought that half a kilo per week rate would be good, so I'm not setting any goal for rest of the month- I'll just continue to eat what the list in the fridge door says and will be happy whether or not I lose more weight. 

Thanks for encourgement! 

Election Day

http://entertainment.tv.yahoo.com/entnews/ap/20060114/113729322000.html

Yahoo News has noticed the entertainment our presidential elections this year provides. LOL. I and T have already voted, and now we're just waiting for the evening when counting the votes will start. Right now, according to polls, Halonen has over 50% support- but on the other hand, amount of voters who were unsure yesterday was still exceptionally high. Everyone is excited to see, whether Halonen will be voted for second term on first round, or whether we'll have to go to vote on second round. So, for people interested in politics like me (blame my brainwashing in Uni  ), it's going to be an exciting evening. I and T have prepared finger foods and will stay awake until the result of election is clear. 

Hair: The effects of Snowy's Deep Moisture treatment were much less dramatic, but my hair is feeling great. Only problem is, that it's super slippery- even elastics start sliding after a while. After trying three other styles, I've finally ended up with my old remedy- cinnabun with SpiralStix (Spring Daisy).

T tried yesterday washing his hair with CV bars for the first time. He's quite happy with the result, and I think his hair is softer than with his regular stuff (Body Shop's Of a Man body wash/shampoo for men). 

Thanks for the tip.

Mamacat has returned to Ebay!  Unfortunately, her absence from there has created a big hairtoy deprivation among longhairs: at the moment, there's a pair that costs $47 and two others she has aren't coming far behind. I guess I'll wait a good while before bidding- however wonderful her hairsticks are, I just can't bring myself to pay nearly $50 on something that cost me well under $20 just a few months ago. Though the Agatewood pair is drop-dead gorgeous...

Hair: Hair is still very slippery, but also very beautiful. When I looked in the mirror this morning, I suddenly realized that now it's exactly the length of which I dreamed when I first started to grow. I suppose I've reached a goal of a kind, though my idea of good length has changed during this journey. Neverthless, there's no denying that this length looks good on me and is also good for many updo styles. If I one day discover that there's such a thing as "too long for me", I might cut back to this length, but I doubt that I'll ever want to go shorter than this. 
    As I had to visit my mentor in Helsinki today, I just went with foolproof cinnabun (that shows first signs of lumpiness...the Stage is nearing!) with hairsticks (Dragonfly Dreams). I'd gone with a French twist, but temperature has dropped again to readings that say "must wear the bonnet!".

Work: I presented my doctor's thesis disposition to my mentor today. He liked it a lot, in fact, so I don't have to work with it any more. Hooray! Now I can concentrate just in the hard task of finding a grant to start my investigations on. I'm really happy about my disposition getting such a good feedback- the idea of creating a whole new philosophical theory as Doctor's thesis still sounds crazy to my ears. But, my Master's thesis wasn't much less crazy, so maybe I'm just that way.

Presidential Elections: To my disappointment, Halonen got "only" 46.3% of votes, and there will be a second round of elections, now just two candidates. Her challenger is one of most annoying politicians of this country- a right wing candidate who represents faithfully nearly every idea I'm against. On the first round he was 18% behind Halonen, but other right wing and center parties have regrouped behind him pretty fast. I'm preparing to vote and to buy more cheese for another exciting evening...

It's cold! Temperature has dropped to -15 C (5 F )+ windy, and forecast says that it will drop well below -20 (-4 F) during the end of the week. I'll freeze! Ironically, the positive thing is, that we finally had a chance to clean our freeze comfortably as we could just put the foods from there to balcony- the temperature outside was the same  . I'm glad I had scheduled everything that required going to Helsinki (that's by the sea and twice as windy as where I live) to beginning of this week. Besides walking to grocery store, I don't have to stick my nose outside. All I need to do is to sit here and prepare the documents I need to attach my grant applications. Small comforts count!

Bonnet works still relatively well. I wore it yesterday, and it still seemed to keep back of my head warm. With a hood, I was able to cover also my forehead (it was so windy) and was comfortable. I guess I can now finally declare, that bonnet works through Finnish winter, though as I thought, on coldest few days a bit extra is necessary. 

Hair:Yesterday was hair washing day. This time I washed my hair with Honey Beer & Egg SB. I reasoned that in this weather, it needs some extra nourishment.
In general, I'm very happy with the condition of my hair right now. It's in GREAT shape. It looks healthy and happy. Of course, it has been that way for a long time, but I think that sometimes it's good to say it aloud and enjoy it. After all, so many people feel most of the time that they need to "do something" about their hair. I believe that happiness usually requires ability to rejoice of little everyday joys, and today, having a great hair is one of them. I've decorated my bun today with Seafoam Bloom hairsticks- somehow crisp, glittery seafoam green suits the mood of a cold winter day perfectly.

Health: Winter Fast is still going well. My skin is very dry- I've had to resort to my shea body butter. Neverthless, when I was shaving yesterday (first time for weeks), I managed to scratch myself- my skin is in such a shape that I probably better forget shaving for a while again. However, it's much better than last winter. It's not itching, and the shaving scratch is the only one I have. Sounds strange, but plain hot water feels more drying than CV soaps, so I'm washing myself extra thoroughly with soap these days.

The weather is supposed to get milder by tomorrow- I'm waiting for that. Meanwhile, I did yesterday Winter Hair Food treatment with my regular wash. My hair ended up having one oily spot, so I'll have to wash it again later today, but for most part, it just looks strong and happy. Not overconditioned at all in spite of weekly deep treatments. Which probably tells something about winters around here...

I did a split end check yesterday, and found just two baby splits. The progress I've made in split end front is just unbelievable. In the beginning of my hair journey I wouldn't ever have believed that it would be possible to have so few splits. 

As I have that oily spot in the usual place, choosing style was easy- cinnabun with hairsticks (Silver Sphere Spiralstix).

Today I was in Helsinki, which meant, among other things, some shopping. I bought myself new claw clips- I found some that were both hair friendly and cheap, and also some new make up products. I don't wear much make up (on home days, I usually have nothing), and so I discovered a couple of days ago that many of my products had gone bad.
   I also bought my Winter Exchange present, and plan to send it this week. It was surprisingly difficult to put together- there weren't much nice red things around. Apparently, red is not fashionable...

Hair: Weather has warmed a little (relatively speaking, of course) and I have been able to go out wearing only earmuffs. Which has meant some variety with hairstyle. For dentist appt I wore just a plain French braid, and for rest of the day I changed it to a claw clip. Can you tell I'm excited about being able to wear claw clips again?

Health: Today was dentist appointment, and next is scheduled for Thursday morning. I'm still mad at student healthcare...

Winter Exchange gift sent!  As I said earlier, I had to took a rather liberal interpretation of the color "red", but I hope the recipient will like it anyway. 

Otherwise, I haven't been very productive today. I started the day with longest (an hour!) and most painful dentist appointment so far, and opening my mouth still hurts. Ow. But, I'm glad that it's history and my mouth is in a little healthier condition, no matter how it feels.

   Hair is happy. Besides oiling, I haven't done much with it, just put it up and out of my way.

  I realized that I've worn claw clips every day lately- not necessarily for the whole day, but at part of it. After having year long break from them, they feel new and interesting. Log rolls secured with them last quite well, at least when I'm at home. I think I have felt this nice last time when I discovered that my hair has grown long enough for a cinnabun. While I'm always interested in new styles, it's rare to find a good everyday style.
 
Today my hair is very nice, shiny and silky. I think that the sleep cap might have something to do with that- my hair feels really nice in the morning. I vary between wearing it in a low pony or loose with sleep cap, but both result in a tangle-free lovely hair. It's amazing how big a difference the cap has made! T has also now gotten used to the cap and said that it doesn't bother him any longer. All problems solved!
   
Presidential Election: ...is now over. Halonen will continue in the office- I was worried in vain. The competition got tougher than I had expected, but the result is what counts. While president has limited powers in day to day-politics, she has stronger influence in foreign politics. We'll stay nonaligned and still have a president who speaks about global (and local) fairness and importance of sharing our welfare with less fortunate. I'm content. [/politics]

How lucky you are to have so many long hair models around you!  I'm sure this will help you with your own long hair goals.

Poor braindead me- I totally forgot that it's 1st day of the month and time to do monthly update.  According to my new strategy, I won't measure my hair officially. But, here's the rest.

Washing: Chagrin Valley Shampoo bars/soap, ACV rinse. Nothing new here, no need for anything new either.

Care&Styling: Rose water, Aloe Vera gel, homemade deep treatments like Snowy's Deep Moisture Treatment and my very own Winter Hair Food, XZ Deep Conditioner, jojoba oil, Three Butter Lotion. I suppose that my lovely sleep cap should be mentioned here.

Toys: Hairsticks worked in the beginning of the month, but right now only long or spiraled hairsticks can hold a style alone. Rediscovered claw clips.

Styles: Doing some of my staple styles like cinnabuns and French twists became suddenly difficult (almost impossible, really) during January. I did quite a lot experimenting with new styles and toys. I have worn my hair up with claw clips quite a lot, and have liked also segmented ponytails. Also hairstick knots with long hairsticks are promising, but I haven't worn them in public yet.

Back with a nice log roll secured with a pretty shimmering cream-colored claw clip. Hair is behaving better today. I'll enjoy it for as long as I can: T is going to meet his friend tomorrow evening so we decided to warm the sauna today. So, tomorrow I'm going to have a clean hair day again. Luckily I don't have to go anywhere. I'm thinking of doing a Winter Hair Food treatment before sauna. The weather is becoming colder once again. On the other hand, I have some VO 5 hot oil lying in the bathroom, begging to be used. I'll decide later...

I arranged my combing table. Not only have I bought new hairtoys since I last arranged it, but I also noticed that since I've entered to a new stage on my hair journey, I had many toys on the table that I can't expect to use much in near future, plus some toys that just aren't practical in the middle of the winter.
   The change in my basket selection was quite big: all my big claws and prettiest scrunchies are now arranged neatly in there. But, many toys that have been in the basket about since I started to use the basket system had to go into the cupboard. Making the changes improved my mood though: my basket is now full of hairtoys I can use without difficulty, and most of the difficult ones are out of sight (excluding of course Ficcares and my hairstick collection- I'm still trying to find ways to use them). Depending of my success in that during February, I might end up rearranging them too. But we'll see about that. For now though, I'm content.

This is kind of late, but congratulations on losing 6.6 lbs!

Health: Brain-freezing cold continues. Today I had to go to Helsinki. At least I got plenty of walking (and a new hairtoy...  ). They say that calories burn better in cold...I certainly hope so!
  Cold weather has had another good side-effect: I've drank more tea than usually, and in honor of Winter Fast, most of that has been rooibos or green tea.

Hair: I managed to make a decent braided bun, pinned it with my MT Tigereye hairsticks and enjoyed how comfortable and secure it lasted through all day. It could look a bit better, but for the moment I've lowered my standards.  I've missed wearing all my nice hairsticks so much that even a little lopsided and lumpy braided bun is welcome way to display them.

I also decided to pass LHC's Ficcare order and spend the bulk of this month's hairtoy budget to Longlocks instead . I'll order new clips when my hair starts behaving better.

I've reached a hair milestone of a kind. T came to me telling that our shower drain seems to be clogged. As I'm the one responsible of drains, I promised to take a look. When I did, I found IT: a fist-sized glob of something greenish and tangly  . It looked like cousin to Great Cthulhu (see the link!), but closer inspection revealed that it consisted mainly of something that had once been long, blonde hair. My hair.

Here's the picture of DrainMonster/Cthulhu:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/d/d3/Cthulu.png

Now Little Cthulhu is in garbage bag and I've poured half a bottle of drain opener to the drain just to be sure.
Disgusting as it is, this little episode has improved my long hair self esteem in some weird way.  8)

Health: I started the day once again with dentist appointment. She told me, that I have only two visits left. Yay!
I'm very happy about my eating so far this week. T is taking me for birthday dinner (My birthday is on Valentine's Day) on Saturday to my favorite fine Italian restaurant. I'm not going to count calories when we get there, so I decided to do it beforehand. At least spiced Rooibos is calorie-free.
  I've been thinking about how to keep myself motivated in the long run. I decided that if I catch myself from slipping bad during the spring, I will order Weight Watchers material (as I really dislike the vibe I get from WW, the idea should scare me enough to give some extra motivation if need be...) and begin to follow WW diet. I don't think that it differs much from what I'm doing now, but the extra hassle that comes with WW might help if I won't otherwise seem to manage it. Of course, my biggest motivation is next health check in late May/early June. If I haven't managed to drop my blood pressure in one way or another, my doctor will scold me. As I look around, I can't yet see any signs of my life becoming easier and less stressing, maintaining my diet is the only reliable chance I've got.
   I've also thought on how to reward myself of reaching small goals. Haven't got any ideas yet though.

Hair: Mess. A greasy mess, to be exact. It's still in a French braid/bun combo I wore for dentist appointment, except that I have now a greasy halo. Not very attractive. But I don't need to be attractive when I do chores and spend a free day, so I'll just let it be until I jump to the shower and wash it. And so a new little Cthulhu will start to grow...

Yay! I received my Winter Exchange gift from Sakina. It really cheered me up! I received a nice comb that is unlike all my other combs: a tail comb with wide teeth. It looks sturdy and very useful. I also got a red feather boa that fits perfectly with my black evening dress. And then there's a very interesting looking foil cap. I'll test it right next time I do a deep treatment (tomorrow, I hope). Now I can just say that it looks way cooler than my ugly shower cap.
   
Hair: I'm having a very soft hair day! Hair feels nice and healthy. Static is still a minor annoyance. Just a minor because I spritz my hair with rose water when first signs of static appear. I guess it's just the dry winter air- the weather has remained cold for a while now and it's starting to show. I'm thinking of doing a Snowy's Deep Moisture treatment tomorrow.
No succeed whatsoever with bunning attempts this morning. I just have to keep trying neverthless. Log roll/claw clip works well, but I want to wear my hairsticks.

Health: Because I've been saving up calories for the dinner tomorrow, this has been the worst feeling dieting week so far. But, I have managed to eat just as I've planned, and have walked a bit more than I planned. So I'm happy with myself- it's just the constant hunger I don't like.   
I decided to reward myself for enduring a hard week and bought a Weight Watchers cookbook in hopes that it will give some new inspiration for my meal planning.

Woohoo! I'm finally wearing a bun with hairsticks. I put my hair to a ponytail, twisted the tail slightly, made a knot of it, tucked the remaining hair under the know, added hairnet and secured with hairsticks (Dragonfly Dreams). And there I have it! A perfect, secure bun with hairsticks. It didn't even take any more time to make than a cinnabun!

Congratulations, Galadriel!! It's always exciting when a new style works.

BB, yes, I use an elastic. I have never managed to do a bun of any kind without one. My hair is so slippery.

Thanks for support, juri and Beesan 16  . I'm really excited about this style- it's just what I was looking for. So pretty and so easy. I'm wearing it right now, with MT Asian Moon sticks. Once again, I'm able to wear all my beautiful hairsticks. I missed them!

Health: I can't believe that it's already week 7 of my diet. But it is! I've lost a bit over 4 kilos/9 lbs so far. I've thought that I've lost weight kinda slowly, but the numbers do add up! Last week I also picked two more healthy habits: drinking lots of water and increasing my exercise. This week, my goals are: 1)take three longish walks (just two left! )
                2)keep drinking water
                3)follow my eating plan, but eat a bit more than I did last week. That doesn't sound too difficult, though succeeding in 3) will require a bit calorie-counting as it's challenging to tweak the diet just a little. But I know I can do it.

Today I went to Helsinki to do some shopping. It feels like forever since I've been there. I bought some pretty yarns for crocheting scrunchies, and some satin scrunchies and an interesting wooden hairstick that looked good for making Chinese buns.
   I'm wearing a scarf bun today- a style that I've worn way too little lately. It isn't affected at all by the difficult stage my hair has entered, and it's also so good and protective for hair.

I found out that T has consumed almost all of Rosemary Lavender Aloe shampoo bar. He washes his hair every day, and his conversion to CV bars makes them shrink fast. Which is good, since I need so little shampoo, that consuming them in time started to seem difficult. But, I need to make shampoo bar and soap order soon. In beginning of March, I think, when new batch of the divine Chocolate Almond soap is ready to be shipped. This time, I also plan to try Ida's Java soaps. They are supposed to be (and I've heard that they are) especially good hand soaps.

Health: Good news! My weight loss goal this week was simply to maintain whatever weight I had before going to birthday dinner, but today the scale showed that I've lost a whopping 1½ pounds/almost 1 kg. Which brings me to total weight loss of 5 kilos/11.02 lbs!  It means also that I've earned my first "reward". Since there aren't any interesting movies in theatres right now, I decided that as my reward I want to go to Sea Life instead- an exhibition about tropical freshwater fishes has just opened there. So, we're going this weekend.
   I've managed to eat more than last week, and feel actually a lot better than I did before beginning this diet. I've started to really enjoy my new lifestyle- I get to eat surprisingly much, and as I have an opportunity to prepare almost all of my food at home, it's tasty too. I haven't started enjoying of extra exercise yet, but it's tolerable. I'm hoping that I will start liking it better (and in any case, when spring comes and snow begins to melt, I have to change my exercise).

Thanks for support, Angel Spun. I have a lot of weight to lose, but I take it one day at the time. I believe that the key to weight loss is to stay motivated and focused, and so I'm working to strenghten my motivation every day. The diet I'm on is wonderful, and I already feel that I have so much more energy than before.  I totally believe that you're right in saying that I'm going to feel better yet when I get closer to the goal.
   I love aquariums, both visiting public ones and taking care of my own little piece of underwater world in living room. It's so educating and interesting.

Today is another cold midwinter day. Hair feels a little blah- I guess it's combination of getting dirty and reaction to winter air. I'm wearing a knot bun with center part and Flower Power MT hairsticks. I remember this being my favorite pair last this time last winter.
I think I'll take my hair down soon and mist my hair with rose water. That could take care of the blah. And, if it doesn't, tomorrow is washing and deep treatment day anyway.

Hair is happy and clean. I'm today on one of my rare "minimalist" moods, and made a knot bun secured with just Amish pins. Result is simple, nice and secure.

Health: Took my longest walk this week & have once again lived perfectly according to the plan. I'm quite happy with my weight loss success this week- I've stayed motivated, focused and have managed to "behave well".

WOOHOO!

Finally!!! I checked from the mirror. Once, twice, thrice. And it's really true! My hair hangs well on my bra strap when pulled straight (since I keep my hair contained almost all the time, my hair is seldom as straight as it is naturally). I'm so excited! I've been between shoulders and BS for so long that it feels marvelous to finally BE THERE. This is the longest my hair has ever been, and this is also best looking it has never been. I don't think it's a coincidence... I'm so happy! We still have problems with digicam, but I've told T that it needs to be in working order soon when it's time to take my yearly comparison pictures.

And, just in time to put some sparkle to my newly arrived BSL length, a Longlocks shipment arrived.
Gilded Raven D'Or stick pair is my first black pair. Since I started collecting LL hairsticks, I've been hunting for a nice black pair. But, this pair was worth the wait. Vermeil beads are so pretty- and decorated with S-shapes, which is bonus since my real name begins with S .
  Then there is Rare Butterfly SE Gemstix pair that is just too beautiful to behold. I have probably named a ten or so pairs as "one of my most beautiful pairs" so far, but this pair truly deserves to be called that. I'm on cloud 9.

Other hair stuff: Hair is getting slightly dirty, meaning more manageable. Making a knot bun with hairsticks (Caramello) was so easy today.

Health: Week 8 of my diet has started well, and even my scale is cooperative once more, showing once again that I have reached the goal I set for February. My goal was to take three walks this week, and I've already taken two of them...if I have time, I'll probably do one "extra" walk. On eating front, all is well again. My motivation is still high- I know I can do this.

I hope waist length will come soon..very soon

Yay-rah for you!  Man, reaching BSL must be so exciting!  Congrats!   

Jewelry artist!  Fantastic!  I'm sure your designs will be beautiful.  Good luck.

My throat became suddenly a bit sore on Saturday, and I postponed washing until Sunday. Taking weekend easy was a smart move, I think, because now I'm healthy again. There has been a really nasty influenza around (in fact, so far I've been the only person who has escaped it with only mildest symptoms). On Sunday, it was just a quick wash, and instead of deep conditioning I just washed my length with Honey Butter soap.

The clips I've been using to secure my sleeping cap had caused sore spots to my scalp. So, I decided that it's time to take a break from using the cap, no matter how my hair loves it. For two nights now, I've been wearing a new style. I braid my hair in an English braid that I secure with an elastic, then fold the braid in two, and secure the folded hair with a hair hosiery so that it becomes a compact lump. It is really more comfortable than it sounds.  And T is happy. But, I'll keep wearing it only until I come up with a more scalp-friendly solution to secure my night cap.

T is having absolutely horrible stomach illness, and I'm tending him hoping (probably in vain) that it isn't contagious.

Yesterday was a washing day, I washed with Honey Beer& Egg shampoo and Honey Butter soap. No time and energy for anything more complicated.

Today I had a meeting about my research, and in an attempt to look presentable I made a low knot bun with just Amish hairpins. Minimalist look felt so strange, but not bad. Made with Amish pins and hair net, it also lasted very well.
   I've been watching season 4 of Babylon 5 from DVD, and feel like having found a real treasure chest of everyday hairstyles. My most recent promising discovery is double bun: a little cinnabun made from half the hair up to crown and another similar one made low to nape. It looks a bit unusual, but very nice at the same time. I tried it this morning, and liked it quite a lot. I just have to learn to secure it better. But it's a very promising style.

I've also been busy sniffing my BPAL imps.

Here are my first reviews:

Tzadikim Nistarim

Very powdery, floral scent touched with melancholy. First resembles vaguely of fluor paste dentists apply to teeth after cleaning them (yuck!), but luckily softens soon to a pleasant and balanced soft, flowery scent. Scent of a clean bedroom at night, windows opened to let a soft breeze from the garden to blow in. Lasts well.
Final verdict: Totally wearable, pleasant scent, but just a little indifferent so...3½ out of 5 pts.

R'Lyeh

This is great! Spicy, yet aquatic, with a hint of powdery softness. Fresh and warm at the same time, underneath just a tinge of something "not quite right". Beautiful and serene like a forgotten underwater city where dark green seaweeds grow form ruins of ancient towers sheltering small, brightly colored fish...but a city where geometry is strange. Lasts for a few hours.
Final verdict: Enigmatic, enchanting, fascinating and slightly strange. That is to say: perfect! Seems to smell slightly different at every sniff. 5/5 points because I keep sniffing my arms again and again. I'm definitely going to order a bigger bottle of this.

March Hare
Rich, sweet scent, fruits and flowers with a warm undertone, like vanilla sauce. Reminds me of summer.Final verdict: 4/5

Bliss

Smells like milk chocolate. I like it. Certainly not wearable for every occassion, but sometimes, I think, it's good to smell like that. 4/5 points.

Salomé

Oriental scent that unfortunately reminds me of cheap "bazaar" shops: incense sticks, old clothes, patchouli soap and cheap perfumes. Bellydancers and fat men with huge moustaches. Not totally awful, but not something I'd use to anything except to last rinsing water of my bras. Final verdict 2/5 pts.

Magdalene

Wonderful, wonderful scent of a huge bouquet of flowers and just a hint of fine soap and clean linens. Like a summer day in rose garden where noble ladies walk under old oaks and elms in gorgeous cream and pastel walking dresses carrying delicate parasols. A very fine, very expensive-feeling and feminine scent.
I love this. Doesn't last very long.
Final verdict 5/5 pts.

Eos
T loves this one, so I'll go ahead and give this 5 pts, though if you asked just me, I'd give it "only" 4. A nice, floral smell with some depth. Wearable and ok, but, like Tzadikim Nistarim, this one doesn't have whatever little thing it takes to make a scent spectacular (like R'Lyeh for example). But this certainly makes a good "everyday scent" for work and such. Lasts well.
Final Verdict: 5/5 pts.

Thanks, BB! I'm planning to write a novel one day, but so far I haven't had much time to develop the story.

However, in near future I will certainly write philosophy:

I RECEIVED A GRANT!

My very first grant application was successful, and it means that I can begin working with my Doctor's Thesis next month.

Hair: Nice and manageable. I'm wearing a knot bun again, this time with hairsticks (Caramello).

Health: T has still fever and pains, but is otherwise doing slightly better. I'm not having any symptoms (yet!), but am still eating carefully. I haven't noticed any weight loss yet for this week...but I'm not really expecting to have it, and will be totally happy to maintain.      

Last two imps I've tried haven't been as good as the ones I wrote previously. But, here are the reviews.

Magus
Smells like a room furnished with ancient bookshelves full of old papers and rotting leatherbound books, lit with smoking candles...and somewhere under the table there's an old coconut, once necessary but now just gathering dust and occassional fly. And dust, it's everywhere. Stone walls of the room remain cold and moist even in the summer here, two floors below ground level. Cold breezes coming from endless narrow hallways just manage to make the candles smoke even more, but fresh air is just as far as sunshine, almost unimaginable in this kingdom of bookworms. For the bookworms and brown beetles are the true rulers of this place, feasting forever on secrets long forgotten. That is, forgotten by everyone except one man...the Magus.
Final verdict: 2/5 pts. Certainly inspires imagination, but I don't want to smell like that! Would suit well in adding an air of mystery to a potato cellar.

Kyoto
This is the scent of teenage girls getting drunk for the first time. Spring evening in a park, flowers, cherry and licorice liquors -the only, horribly sweet drinks the girls have been able to get their hands on. Hint of powder, mascara and fruity pink lip gloss that must be applied every 10 minutes. Spring flowers are blooming, girls are giggling, the bottles of yucky liquors are slowly but oh so surely emptying. Soon, drunken confessions, tears and nausea will follow. Not to mention angry parents.
Final verdict: 1/5 pts. I don't really, really care to smell like a drunk teenager.

My hair has been behaving well since clarifying/SMT. Not dramatically better though -I think it means that my hair was doing pretty ok before treatment.

I've been wearing segmented pony as my sleep style for two nights now, and am quite satisfied with it. Somehow, it feels better than braiding.

Today, I tested Mennonite bun that I found from PrayerCoverings site. The bun on the site looks quite ugly, but I used bobby pins instead of small barrettes and a fine hair net instead of the super thick one the model uses. To my surprise, the result was very nice: the big bow clip was completely concealed by hair. The bun ended up being of a beautiful oval shape, fairly (but not totally) flat, and very well distributed. Promising!
I also tested Anais' bun, but didn't have success with it. Maybe my hair is still too short...

But, I had also some work-related stuff to do in Helsinki and had to look professional once again for that. I made a low knot bun with my darkest Blondiesturn fork. Bad, bad idea. I had to redo it twice before getting back home. The fork poked my neck all the time- I suppose it's just not the tool for low styles. Oh well, next time I'll wear LL sticks. Or some other style.

Health: Back with diet. Had to do some extra planning as I was in Helsinki at lunch time. I ended up eating a late breakfast (just before leaving), and had my main meal after I came home. I managed to stay within calorie limit and take my first walk of the week. A good start.

Started the day with a dentist appointment. Not fun, but it was last appointment.  Next year, I expect this to be a lot easier.

When I came home, I found a nice smelling envelope from my mailbox. Soaps from Ida!
I received: two oak soap decks, one bar of each: Rosemary Lavender Aloe shampoo, Rosemary Mint shampoo, Java Orange Mint hand soap, Java Spice hand soap, Chocolate Orange Twist soap and Chocolate Almond soap. Everything except Rosemary Lavender Aloe shampoo and Chocolate Almond soap are new acquintances to me. They all look and smell fabulous. I'm so happy to have a washing day today (though it'll be late evening until I'll be able to wash). I think I'll test Rosemary Mint shampoo right away...

My hair is quite dirty- it always seems to get dirty during the night between 3rd and 4rd day. ??? I'll have to change my hairstyle again before leaving to Helsinki (right now I'm wearing a braid that suffered much during dentist visit). I guess I'll do a French braid/bun combo and just hope that it will last. Gah, though I have cute winter clothes, at this point I'm starting to get really impatient. I want to go outside without wearing a bonnet/ear muffs/hood . Styling will be so much easier (and I'll have so much more variation) when weather warms just a bit. But, that's not really in sight right now- the weather forecast says that temperatures are staying low until the end of the week. I hope that next week will bring a change to that.

Then, more BPAL reviews. I have only one scent left.

Yew Trees
Old sauna in backyard: wet stone floor, a hint of smoke from hot woodstove. Wet rugs and wet old wood, plenty of bubbly plain soap and cool water, wet birch leaves of fresh bathing whisks, clean towels that have dried outside, and freshness of first breath of evening air when you step to a porch from burning hot sauna. When the scent dries, it becomes scent of a dry old sauna: smut, fresh air and sweetness of life itself. All in all, a nice scent...but a scent that is not at its best when taken away from its context. Final Verdict: 2/5. To be worn after sauna maybe?

Sea of Glass
Lily of the valley and sweet orange combined to create a fresh, yet juicy scent, like a glimpse to Plato's world of ideas. Bright and clear like sunshine on crystal, yet deep like blue sea. Scent of human thought at its best: bright and piercing, swift yet deep. A scent full of unexplored potential, laced with a touch of sorrow that inspite of all the light and love. It also has the same side effect that most really brilliant ideas: in spite of all its wonderful qualities, you can't really like it.
Final Verdict: 3/5 pts. I'd love to like this more

Sophia
A floral scent with a hint of musk to deepen it. Nice, ordinary, doesn't annoy anyone. This is the scent for people who want to be like everyone else. They probably imagine that they're expressing their femininity and sensuality while any man could tell them that all they really manage to express is that they smell just like every other lady in the block. A celebration for women who are concerned about looking age-appropriate and whose life is worse theater than 6th graders' school play. Goes well with dark cardigans and white blouses, pearl earrings and a soccer mom haircut.
Final verdict: 3/5 pts. Because, this is a totally nice scent.

Magus
Smells like a room furnished with ancient bookshelves full of old papers and rotting leatherbound books, lit with smoking candles...and somewhere under the table there's an old coconut, once necessary but now just gathering dust and occassional fly. And dust, it's everywhere. Stone walls of the room remain cold and moist even in the summer here, two floors below ground level. Cold breezes coming from endless narrow hallways just manage to make the candles smoke even more, but fresh air is just as far as sunshine, almost unimaginable in this kingdom of bookworms. For the bookworms and brown beetles are the true rulers of this place, feasting forever on secrets long forgotten. That is, forgotten by everyone except one man...the Magus.
Final verdict: 2/5 pts. Certainly inspires imagination, but I don't want to smell like that! Would suit well in adding an air of mystery to a potato cellar.

Kyoto
This is the scent of teenage girls getting drunk for the first time. Spring evening in a park, flowers, cherry and licorice liquors -the only, horribly sweet drinks the girls have been able to get their hands on. Hint of powder, mascara and fruity pink lip gloss that must be applied every 10 minutes. Spring flowers are blooming, girls are giggling, the bottles of yucky liquors are slowly but oh so surely emptying. Soon, confessions, tears and nausea will follow. Not to mention angry parents.
Final verdict: 1/5 pts. I don't really, really care to smell like a drunk teenager.

Veil
Mild but really nice. As the site says: quiet, calm, soft and enigmatic. To me this smells clean and peaceful, gentle, very balanced yet not boring. This scent would be perfect for meditation or church. Doesn't really smell "perfume-y", only slightly clean and sweet.
5/5 pts. Absolutely lovely scent.

Yet another new style discovery! I've not used any of my Ficcares since I became "French Twist disabled". Yesterday, however, I played with my hair a bit and discovered a way to insert a Ficcare into a knot bun so that it secures it very well. It's so comfy and stylish, and the best part of it is, that it works with even my medium Maximas. That's really great since it's months since I have last been able to wear my Mediums with French twists, and I was even thinking of putting them for sale. Glad I didn't do that! I'm wearing a "Ficcare bun" right now with my matte gold clip, and it's really pretty.
   Which reminds me...a while ago an LHC member had found some gorgeous Maximas-lookalike Fakkares. She ended up doing a group order of them, and of course I participated. Now, two beautiful pearlescent clips, a teal green and a purple are on their way home. Just in time to decorate my newly found bun style!

Health: This weekend is going to be a busy one, so I weighed in early. It turned out, that I have already lost one pound/ ½ kilos, which puts me to total weight loss of 6 kg:s /13.23 pounds. I was so happy that I went ahead and rewarded myself with a pretty pair of earrings (besides hairsticks, I almost never buy myself jewelry).
   Today has been a good day so far. I have taken a walk (extra!!!), and have stuck to my eating and water drinking plan. I'm ready to declare week 10 as a week of wonderful success.

Thanks for your kind words, Angel Spun. 

Since T went out this evening, we decided to have sauna day yesterday. I also decided that it's time to have a trim. So, now my hair is clean and I have neat, thick hemline. I suppose that it's impossible for me to grow my hair super quickly...but then, I really like having thick-looking ends, at least at this point of my journey.
Today was another busy day, and I didn't have much time to think about my hair. I just put it up to a Ficcare bun. After dinner, I have done some experimenting with hair down styles though. Though it's still exceptionally cold, the amount of light is increasing fast and I know that spring is just around the corner...and this spring my hair is finally long enough so I can enjoy wearing it down, at least sometimes. 

Health: Weekend is here, and it shows  ! Today, we had a delicious homemade dinner: cheesy baked chicken breast, rice, feta salad and American apple pie with vanilla ice cream for dessert. It's late, and I'm still full...but content. It's much easier to diet if one can have some homemade apple pie every now and then (not to mention that making that pie from scratch without resorting to "work reducing" appliances certainly burns a few calories)  .
Eating like I have today may keep me from losing weight very fast. Doesn't bother me at all, because I'm all too familiar with trying to lose weight fast and "get it done". I always used to be miserable after a month on a diet, and only once made it to 8 weeks. After quitting, I always changed my diet right back to my old habits I had missed so much, and the weight I had worked so hard to shed was back before the year had passed. I think I've finally learned a lesson from that!
     I've come to the conclusion, that I failed (partly) because I pressed myself way too hard and made too big changes, all at once, expecting that I would adjust to them...for as long as I could make it before giving everything up. I had too little patience and couldn't rejoice of having a week of maintain or even a loss of one pound. After all, my goal was to lose 2 pounds a week, and anything less proved that I was a big fat failure. I became miserable and decided that since I couldn't keep starving myself, I was doomed to fail.
    Now, on days like today, I feel a bit shocked of the things I have written into my meal plan. Of the things I allow myself (when the Plan says so) even though I'm trying to lose weight . But, then I remember that I write goodies into my plan because I'm trying to lose. It has happened to me for a few times now, that I've suddenly got a craving of something "extra good", like hamburgers or pear cake. Then I've gone to my computer and written that thing to next month's meal plan -and the craving has always passed. I haven't denied myself anything. I have essentially just told myself that I can have it- when it will fit into my meal plan. If I hadn't done that, I would have done just what I did before: gone to the fridge and binged. Instead of that, I'm finally in control. (Can you say "10 weeks with Just One Binge"?      )
   And the best part is, that I still lose weight. Not at top speed, but at a steady speed that I can keep going. Already, small weekly losses (or even a maintain or two) have grown into a whopping 6 kg:s/over 13 pounds. In retrospect, it doesn't matter much whether I've lost one or two pound on a particular week- even now I can't recall how much I lost on say, 3rd week of January. All that really matters is what I do *now*, and that at this point I can look back and say that I certainly have lost a whole family of pounds sometime during past weeks, and am still motivated and able to keep going. A failure couldn't say that.

I'm sitting here comfortably, hair drying in Aquis towel turban. Today has been a busy day for me...well, this whole week is like that and after a period of more peaceful life I'm trying to adjust. I wore my hair in a French braid/bun combo style, which is very comfortable and pretty. When I came home it didn't look terribly dirty, but I washed it anyway with Lavender Spice -just because I need to look professional tomorrow. Lots of looking professional for me lately. I'm trying to enjoy it (though I suspect that once this week is over I'm going to enjoy of returning to less professional look again).

Fakkares arrived, but ended up being short-lived. I opened the package, took the clips, and managed to drop them. Both broke.  And I didn't even get to try them. One more reason to remember my old rule: avoid buying cheap toys just because they look nice.

Health: Because I'm in Helsinki every day this week, I have needed to adjust my diet schedule and plan things even more carefully. I have written down to my organizer exercise times (two walks already done, yay!) and meal times. It has really helped, and I have been able to follow the Plan perfectly so far.

Quote:

Awwww        That stinks! 
That means you get to buy replacements, though!   

Weeks' work is done, and I'm officially exhausted. But, I was very productive for a chance. Incredibly productive, in fact.

Hair: Today's hair: third day hair definitely on dirty side since the morning- too bad since the washing time is tomorrow evening. Tomorrow's going to be a French braid day, I can just tell that... But, dirty means also manageable for me, and my hair stayed well in a Ficcare bun all day.
    The weather today was sunny, and (very, very relatively speaking) on the warm side, and so I chose not to wear any headgear. It felt wonderful to go outside bareheaded (though my ears felt a bit cold as the temperature still was around freezing point). Spring is really late this year...

Health: I feel I've behaved like a saint. I knew this week would be difficult to manage since I couldn't follow my normal daily routine even for one day. But, it seems that it only managed to make me extra determined to succeed, and to my surprise, that's just what happened.

Hi Galadriel!  I'm so impressed with your exercise regimen. I have such a hard time keeping to a plan!  I keep having to start over again.  Good luck with it!

Oooo - a gym membership!  That should help you define your exercise routine.  Good luck and I hope you reach all your goals with minimal pain. 

I'll pop in a few suggestions from my body building and running days.  Either eat a banana or sweet potato for the potasium.  This helps with any lactic acid in your muscles from working out.  Always cool down and stretch afterwards,too your body will thank you.

Health: Today I went back to the gym, in spite of arms still hurting. So I concentrated mainly on pedaling exercise bike and doing a very thorough stretching. When I trained Tae Kwon Do I learned this very effective stretching that I've loved doing ever since.
I spent nearly 50 minutes exercising this time, and in the end wasn't nearly as exhausted as on Monday. A lesson to learn there, obviously.
   My mood & motivation have also improved. First, I checked from energy consumption calculator how much ½ hour of gym burns calories, and discovered that it consumes a LOT more than a whole hour of brisk walking. I didn't know the difference would be THAT big. So, even ½ hour at gym is great work of me and definitely an improvement.
    Another positive thing happened when I visited my Department. Now, it is located on a building on top of a rather steep hill, and it's on 2nd and 3rd floor (three longish flights of stairs). I've always been out of breath when I've reached the Department. But, this time, I was nearly on top of the hill when I realized that I wasn't even breathing harder. So, after all, I have become fitter (is that a word?) during past weeks. So I'm all happy again.

Hair: Dirty. I did a French braid for the gym, and changing the style for later day just doesn't seem like a good idea. To pamper my poor muscles, I'll warm the sauna in the evening...I bought some aloe vera gel yesterday and am thinking of doing SMT.
     Oh, and I have to tell that I had a lunch with my mother again. She told me again how well long hair suits me, and admired my hairsticks (Gilded Denim pair). She said, that she is seriously thinking of growing her hair long too so she could wear gorgeous hairsticks in it like I do. 

Blah. It's cold and snowing again. I'm starting to think that spring has been cancelled and new Ice Age is coming.

  Yesterday I tried to order a pair of hairsticks, but they were already sold to someone else. That's the second time I've been beaten- given the size of my collection (now when did THAT happen?) and the speed Rapunzel's creations sell, that's not too bad. And. I should think that 3 new pairs on the way are enough . But, sometimes it's just impossible to resist the temptation!
   Hair is still soft and feels very nice. I wore a segmented ponytail to the gym, and after that switched to a knot bun with Capri Moonlight pair that matches nicely with jeans.
    I'm thinking a bit whether or not I should wash my hair when I take my after work out shower. So far, I haven't done that. Washing my hair (or even just the scalp) would mean that I'd have to deal with clean hair almost every day, and I'd much prefer not having to do that. But, I'll to see how my hair and scalp continue to behave.

Health: This is a very good day: I'm not hurting anywhere at the moment. I've been super active this week: besides gym*3, I have taken a long walk, and have done walking more than usually on all the other days. And it shows! I've lost this week 1 kg/2.2 lbs, making my total loss 8 kgs/17.64 lbs. This is the first time I lose this much on successive weeks. It's just 2 kgs/4.4 lbs until I pass 10% loss mark.

EDIT: typos ´n such

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I know just what you mean.  During my biking season, it is a tough decision on whether to wash every day or not.  I have found that just rinsing my head helps me feel a lot cleaner, but not as harsh on the hair.  I know another biker gal who does a vinegar rinse after biking to help remove the sweat and freshen the head and hair.

Glad you are getting over the soreness, now you just have to keep up the good work!

Today I "officially" received my grant (my first special occassion since graduating!). I ended up wearing a knot bun with my Blondiesturn birdseye maple forks. I also got a couple of good updo sightings- a rare treat!

Health: I felt a bit tired so didn't go to gym as planned- I'll do that tomorrow instead. I got plenty of walking in Helsinki though. In spite of cocktail party, I managed to stay within my calorie limit.

What a wonderful accomplishment that you will soon need to replace your wardrobe.  Congratulations.  Your perseverance is inspiring.

Health: I came to the conclusion that though I can under favorable circumstances beat PMS chocolate craving, and also beat my old habit of eating something good when T is away, I can't beat them both at the same time (yet, anyway). So, I spent last night indulging in Fazer's purple chocolate and cheese puffs and reading an entire novel. It really made me feel better.
    This morning, I found commies moving in, my stomach felt queasy and back hurt- all in all, I felt like crap. But, the principle "no quilt & move on" applies just to moments like that and so I ate my banana, drank some water and headed to the gym. As this day's exercise was extra, I didn't do any "real" workout, just spent a bit over 30 minutes pedaling exercise bike (have I mentioned that our gym has WONDERFUL recumbent exercise bikes that are so much more comfortable than regular ones?) and spent a few moments stretching. It made me feel SO much better, and I feel renewed and happy. I'm strong and confident on my ability to stay on Plan for a long time still.
     I really have to keep in mind how great a bit of exercise made me feel- usually when commies have come, I've been resting as much as possible and felt miserable. Next month, I'll hopefully remember that there is another option that will make me feel much better. Live and learn!

Hair: Clean and nice. For a chance, I braided it for the gym. When I came home, I did a Chinese bun with one of my Mamacat sticks.
    Weather is strange. It snowed heavily yesterday, and today it's raining a little. The result is gray, wet, mushy and miserable. I'm wondering how it will affect my hair that seems to react so strongly to changing of seasons. I suppose that doing a deep treatment on Saturday wouldn't hurt.

   I had to do a google search on recumbent bikes- I remember seeing such only once. However, I found out that there is a shop in Helsinki selling them. Interesting! I guess that I'll start my biking hobby with an ordinary citybike, but if I ever develop an interest for longer trips on bike, recumbent sounds like quite attractive a choice (looks cool too  8) ).

Today I went to arrange my new working room at the Department. I don't know how much time I'm going to spend in there- at the moment I'm thinking two or three days a week. I like working from home way too much to give it up entirely.
   Anyway, maybe because I haven't had a need to hang around at Dept lately, I also haven't worn my "thinking clothes" much. I found out that my favorite white tunic has magically grown during the time I haven't worn it. I could really use a size smaller one. 8) One never knows about fashion, I just hope that I can find something similar enough in smaller size when I go shopping. But, at least my hair was very soft and behaving well, and looked just like it's supposed to look in a nice knot bun decorated with pretty hairsticks (Violet Pinks pair).
   
I feel I haven't received *anything* nice in mail in a long while (I don't count those unlucky Fakkares as something nice). Hopefully the newest additions to my hairstick collection will arrive soon so I'll have something new to play with  . I'm also still waiting my new kitchen headgear to arrive- they warned me of prolonged shipping times because of some troubles, so I'm going to be patient with them though.

Health: Gym in the morning plus lots of walking when I went to Helsinki. I ate a healthy lunch at student restaurant- probably the only place in Helsinki downtown where one can obtain decent healthy meals in reasonable price. They even have healthy desserts in small enough portion sizes!
    I have been so active this week I can't believe it. But next week is going to be busy- I can barely fit in 3 exercise times for weekdays (as always, I prefer to not to have any "compulsory" exercise left to do on weekends). In spite of Wednesday's binge, I consider this week successful.

My kitchen coverings arrived today  . Before anyone starts to wonder: the ones I ordered are not associated with any specific church as far as I know (not that it would matter much since 1) I'm not going to wear them outside my kitchen and 2) no Christians cover around here). So, I hope that they are in every way suitable for secular use.

I had ordered: two Daisy coverings (pleated style), one black and one white and two short veils also one black and one white. I couldn't decide, whether I'd prefer something that resembles a scarf or cap style, so I decided to order both. I also received a black cloth snood as a gift because processing my order had taken time. 

None of my coverings have seen action yet, but of course I had to try them all right away  . I was quite positively surprised by how they felt. Compared to those hateful scarves I've been wearing, they are all lightweight and fit well. No knots in the nape, no need to secure them tightly. So comfortable! They also cover my hair well- even the tricky "inbetweenies" in the front (I suspect that those hairs are the ones that most easily find their way to my cookings). In principle, they stay in place without pins or clips, but I guess it's wise to wear them secured with clips or straight pins. I use the latter- just one pin is quite enough.
Right now I think that I like the cap style better. But, more about that when I've tested everything properly. But I'd already say that these are a huge improvement to my old kitchen scarves.

 Me,too.

Those LL sticks are beautiful - I can imagine how much fun it was opening them up!  Enjoy! 

Playing with my new accessories continues...

Today I had to visit Department again. I found my chinese style suit- it was a little tight last time I tried, but now it fit perfectly. I made a Chinese bun to go with it, using my new Spring Rain swingstix as the hairstick. The result was just incredible! Growing my hair long enough for updos is surely one of the nicest things I've done to myself, and so is collecting new accessories to adorn my locks.
   
   As my meal plan looked way better than what Unicafe had to offer, I headed back home early enough to shop groceries and to cook my own lunch. A time to test my new cooking gear! I tried the Daisy cap. I secured it as instructed on prayercoverings website: a snap clip to the middle, under the brim of the cap and a straight pin in front of the clip. The cap was already well fitting, and this little trick made it completely secure. Conclusion: These caps are great for cooking- much more comfortable than bandanas. I wasn't sure how I would like a cap that covers ears along with everything else, but this concern was totally unjustified. The fabric is so lightweight and the cap sits on the head so lightly that it doesn't bother me at all. The knot and tightness that I dealt with when I wore bandanas were much worse.

Health: Went to the gym this morning and had a good exercise dose. I have also eaten according to the plan and drank my water...but generally, I feel still a little blah. It might be the weather- getting snow every day when spring should be coming fast is depressing. I decided to set doing something that boosts my motivation every day to my next week's goal.