homework?

I had an assignment to make a "Top Ten" list. I really liked it, so here it goes:

Top Ten Ways to Lead a Happier Life

Living in today’s society is not the easiest task; being happy in today’s society is not much easier. With all that occurs in life, it is hard for people to grasp what it means to be happy. Some people spend all their life trying to become a billionaire, but in the end, are still unable to find happiness. This is a complied list of thoughts and mindsets that will help one lead a happier life.

1. Let go of materialistic thoughts - This concept is a lot easier to have a grasp on than most would think. Not only does this save you quite a few bucks, it gives you time to focus on what money cannot buy: family, friends, and time. Rather than spending your time and money on the next generation iPad, spend it on a nice evening out with your family. Remind yourself this the next time you are itching to replace your perfectly functioning TV with that new sixty-two inch flat screen.
2. Find an outlet - Whether you are a student, working, or even retired, everyone needs a break sometimes. This does not mean that you have to be interested in painting or something of that sort. An outlet can be a diary or even a daily walk in the park; it just needs to be an activity where you can just be worry free. However, remember that there is a difference between enjoying the latest movie and rotting in front of the TV.
3. Watch your diet and exercise - Being on a diet simply means to eat. The media has skewered the meaning of this word, so do not think that you need to live off of salads for the rest of your life. Frankly, that would not make most people happy anyway. Moreover, eating a healthy diet and exercising regularly will help you live a happier life. In time, taking care of your body will give you more energy and a little more spring in your step. Contrary to what people choose to believe, eating fast food regularly can bring your mood down. So try to keep a healthy body; it is one of the few things all the money in the world cannot buy.
4. Don’t stress the small things - The small details don’t always matter, so don’t freak out if something did not play out EXACTLY as planed. This is not to say that small details never matter, just remember to look at the big picture from time to time. 
5. Ask yourself: Will this matter five years from now? - Really ask yourself this when you are stressed. Remember this the next time you decide to spend four hours complaining about what your co-worker did or did not do. Chances are, it will not matter to you in five years and you should not be wasting your time and energy on such negative thoughts.
6. Accept what you cannot change - As humans, not every situation in our life is within our power to change, so learn to accept it. If you can do something about it, do it. If you cannot do something about it, don’t worry; everything always has a way of working itself out in the end.
7. Surround yourself with positive people - Whether we like it or not, the people around us shape who we are. So if there are people who bring you down, find people who will encourage and support you. It is not easy to get rid of these people from your life, but if you were an apple, would you really want a rotten one next to you?
8. Look on the bright side - This is not to say that you should become an optimist, but you should. If you are constantly focusing on the negative, there is no time for you to enjoy all that life has to offer. Even if you are going through dark times, know that they end.
9. Do not beat yourself up - If you do something wrong, suffer the consequences, complain about it, learn from it, then forgive yourself. There is no use in punishing yourself forever. Time waits for no one, so move on.
10. Forget about other people - If you are only trying to do things for the sake of others, don’t. You have to realize that before you can help others, you have to help yourself. It’s okay to be a little selfish sometimes, just don’t over do it.

- Jinny

time to make a change.

So the other day I told myself "okay!This time I'm really going to lose weight" Then I realized I said the exact same thing last year. I immediately felt like a failure. Now, I feel like I need to really be more proactive. I was testing out this under-eye gel for three weeks and somehow, that made me feel like I can commit. I mean I committed so much time to my skin care routine so why can't I commit to working out? There is no use in complaining so I will actually do something about it. I am going to begin recording my efforts in this blog. However, exercising is only the beginning. I am going to change my hair, skin, and body- the healthy way.

BODY/HEALTH
Let's face it. No matter how much I tell myself that being a twig is not the best approach, I would rather be a twig. I am tired of constantly trying to conceal my err. curves. Now, don't get me wrong- I am not trying to be a twig. I am just going to slim down until I feel comfortable with my own body. I do not need to be a size 00 in jeans to be happy, but I am unhappy with how my weight makes me look so much shorter! I have a medium sized frame but I only stand about five feet tall. Having extra baggage when that short is not too flattering. So this is what I am going to do about it: run/walk for 30 minutes a day, four days a week, for four weeks. Starting small is the key, because then I won't feel like giving up. After those four weeks are up, I will decide how I want to adjust or add to my workout. I know that just working out will not be enough so I am also going to try to eat healthier. Now this does not mean I swear off McDonalds and sugar, it just means I am going to eat smaller portions of unhealthy food. That also does not mean I will max out on healthy food- that will make one larger still- it just means I am going to make wiser choices and really try to monitor the amount of food and what foods I eat..which leads me to my next two points.

SKIN
Not only will my diet have an affect on my body weight, it will also change my skin! Drinking plenty of water and eating the right foods will help my skin. I will talk more about food later, I will first discuss my skin at the moment. I have extremely dry skin in the summer and winter. The skin on my body is very dry year round and the skin on my face is dry/oily. My t-zone gets oily while my cheeks are dry or normal (depending on the weather). My nose is a huge problem. It is always flaky with dead skin but gets oily. I also have large pores, which frankly just isn't flattering. Oh yeah, and I have stretch marks because I gained too much weight too fast in 2009 :(. So what am I going to do about it? Well... not cake on makeup, thats for sure. I am going to try to drink plenty of water again, to hydrate my skin. I am going to make sure I cleanse, tone, and moisturize my skin every night! In this process I will have the opportunity to test out many skin care products, because I have not yet found what will work best for me. This is a win-win situation because I love testing out new products. I think I will also review them on this blog. Also, my plan to exercise will definitely help bring about change. I don't sweat a lot or easily, so when I am working my butt off, I will be clearing out my pores. As for those stretch marks and cellulite.. well thats a toughy. I think I am going to try using a lotion for stretch marks more religiously. I think I will work on the cellulite later because it is not that visible right now. I know that eating more fruits and veggies over fatty and oily foods will definitely help a load. As for food.. I think I am going to make wiser choices and try to cut out a lot of sugar, processed foods, greasy, and salty foods. I don't think I will start wearing makeup on a daily basis anytime soon, but I really want to. I told myself to treat my skin better before this whole makeup phase begins. I hate that I love applying makeup. I just want to cake it on. The only problem is that I hate wearing it for more than two seconds.

HAIR
In 2005, 2008, and 2009 I got a perm. I always got my laters cut too short, so I permed my hair to prevent it from becoming a mane. worse.mistake.ever. Whatever though..we live and we learn. Okay, so I would get layers put into my hair, but they would always start way to high up. I always thought it was just how my hair was (I have a lot) so I thought a perm would do the trick. and it did! After my perm everything was great. Then I would get it cut and cry about it then get a perm again. I am just too smart for my own good right? So now I have learned how to control my hair a little better. I grew up and stopped letting those illegal asian ladies cut my hair. (They turned their home into a barber shop without proper licenses..not because they were illegal immigrants..I think LOL). I went to Hair Cuttery and had Saadia cut my hair. I love her to death. She fixed up fringe and stuff so that there was hair framing my face, she left a lot of length in my hair, and she started the layers much later in my hair. Now this was exactly what I asked for. I have a lot of hair so I have a lot of volume. That is why starting layers closer to the ends is better. Anyways, I finally figured out how I want my hair, but it was so damaged. Naturally, my hair is very hard and frankly, not too pretty. I was blessed with hair that I can wash and do whatever the crap I want with though. It is very low maintenance but still decent. Due to the damaging chemicals and me constantly blow drying it ( I wanted to make my hair lighter :x) my hair was pretty stiff and dry. After all that abuse, I have to heal my hair. Now the only way to get rid off all the bad hair, it needs to be cut off. The only way to really get a better head of hair is to grow healthy hair. Conditioning it and stuff might do something for normal hair, but seriously now- mine is beyond repair. Okay, so maybe I'm exaggerating a bit, but the hair that was permed is seriously damaged (my hair grows really slow). So eating healthy (hair = protein) and treating it properly is what I will be doing. I am not going to apply heat, unless absolutely necessary... or special occasions. Also, I will be on the look out for the perfect shampoo/conditioner combo for my hair.. so yay!! more product testing and reviews! Oh yeah, one of the reasons I want to heal up my hair and stuff is so that I can ombre it and destroy it with chemicals and stuff again. Being a girl is just so fun..

Maybe I should take pictures/ find a picture that will let me compare how I look to the way I look in the future. I will try to check back with this post in a year. I am going to constantly post back on this blog to track what I am doing and because I enjoy blogging. I would use tumblr instead, but this just feels like a legit blog... and I am not tempted to reblog pretty pictures every two seconds.

until next time,
Jenny

told you!

So the other day, my dad helped me hang up my guitar above my bookcase and this process caused it to leave some powdery stuff on top of the shelf. So i wiped it a little and got this really weird/cool outcome. It is currently still sitting on my shelf. Sorry it is such a bad photo! I just took a quick snap so that I could show what I meant on my previous post about being easily inspired.
Here it it: