I got my eyeballs zapped in January. It was like a party in my brain and all the rainbow colour pixels were invited. The procedure was quick and painless, and each step was clearly explained by Dr. Beckingsale and the friendly staff at Laser Sight. I highly recommend this clinic if you're in Brisbane.
I've never wondered why DJs have silly pun names. Then Han Cholo jewellery landed at work and in the fleeting moment I thought about it, I came the conclusion that the effort to find out why probably wasn't worth the result. So, suffice to say I still don't know why DJs have pun names but I've decided that DJs should leave the punning to editors and people who are good at dad jokes. Han Cholo jewellery is awesome despite the name. Even Hans Solo would approve some of the designs like the All Seeing Eye UFO Pendant Chain I bought.
For someone so into shiny things I am not that into bling. Mostly because I get it caught everywhere and always end up ripping out bits of hair or breaking the chains and never get around to replacing them. But I could not resist this gorgeous UFO meets third eye meets galaxy necklace from Men In Black 1 chain. So far I've only accidentally punched myself in the chest with it when it swung against my desk and rebounded hard right between the boobs. Ow. Jade 0: Han Cholo 1.
Okay, I cave. Carmex is the mother of all Lip Balms. Even though I love my Maybelline Baby Lips for the added colour to my 'pale ghost face' as mother liked to call it, I use Carmex all day every day now that Oratane has killed my will to produce natural oil.
I've only tried the click sticks so far because I don't like greasing my fingers with pot lip balms but it is amazing and I recommend the whole range. It's a no frills lip balm with pure moisturising and not overly scented or coloured like my fave teeny-bopping lip balms.
As Dad likes to say, "YOU DO!"
I've had 5 people in the past fortnight want to switch up their phones but scared to lose their contacts. How can this happen in this day and age? By that I mean the Google age. I've had my contacts synced to Gmail/Google Apps since I made the switch from dumbphones to smartphones. I like to plan ahead so I can slut around between handsets and networks without a care.
You can of course sync to Yahoo and Hotmail emails but if you do, we can't be friends. Gmail - get with the program. To sync your contacts to gmail head to your iPhone settings and set up a new Mail, Contacts, Calendars Account. Add a new Microsoft Exchange account and fill in your details using the server m.google.com and use SSL.
Then on the next screen switch on sync contacts if it hasn't automatically done that. I sync my calendars using exchange too but prefer the Gmail App instead of using the iPhone Mail app because Gmail App has better search function and can archive/label and do all the other functions I love in Gmail.
Once your contacts are synced you are FREE to do whatever you like because unlike Apple, Google gets along with everyone in the tech world so you can hop between phones and operating systems without fear of ever losing your contacts again!
Here are the detailed instructions on how to synch your life to Google by Google. It's a step by step guide I used a couple of years ago when I married an iPhone. Love.
Then on the next screen switch on sync contacts if it hasn't automatically done that. I sync my calendars using exchange too but prefer the Gmail App instead of using the iPhone Mail app because Gmail App has better search function and can archive/label and do all the other functions I love in Gmail.
Once your contacts are synced you are FREE to do whatever you like because unlike Apple, Google gets along with everyone in the tech world so you can hop between phones and operating systems without fear of ever losing your contacts again!
Here are the detailed instructions on how to synch your life to Google by Google. It's a step by step guide I used a couple of years ago when I married an iPhone. Love.
I can't be without my hand sanitiser… is not something I ever thought I'd say. Who knew the girl who had dirt throwing fights, ate off the floor and rarely bathed as a kid would grow up to list hand sanitiser as an essential?
It all started last year when I worked in a big office with hundreds of other people for the first time. I finally had a real-life reason to say, 'We're not in Kansas anymore, Toto.' Nobody heard me but one of the office guys noticed my face and asked if I was okay. No, I wasn't. I was distressed at working in a massive Matrix-like office and was praying in my head that a detached voice on a mobile phone would tell me to climb out the window and escape. But, no, I was now one of the worker ants.
Commuting on a train with hundreds of other humans then being shoved in office with hundreds more made me instantly ill. I'd come from working in large spaces with few people to large spaces with too many people. Little Sissy Pham who's learned the ways of modern office life made me get hand sanitiser - she prefers Purell hand sanitiser because it absorbs better but I got Dettol because it was in a rack by the check-out in Big W. Public transport, shared toilets, elevator buttons, ATM buttons, escalators arms... if you touch it too, sanitise! Sanitise! At least, until your immune system toughens up a bit. I'm back to a larger space with fewer people so I don't need to sanitise 100 times a day but I still carry a bottle with me, just in case. It came in handy the other week when my pal needed to do a stealth bush-wee.
It all started last year when I worked in a big office with hundreds of other people for the first time. I finally had a real-life reason to say, 'We're not in Kansas anymore, Toto.' Nobody heard me but one of the office guys noticed my face and asked if I was okay. No, I wasn't. I was distressed at working in a massive Matrix-like office and was praying in my head that a detached voice on a mobile phone would tell me to climb out the window and escape. But, no, I was now one of the worker ants.
Commuting on a train with hundreds of other humans then being shoved in office with hundreds more made me instantly ill. I'd come from working in large spaces with few people to large spaces with too many people. Little Sissy Pham who's learned the ways of modern office life made me get hand sanitiser - she prefers Purell hand sanitiser because it absorbs better but I got Dettol because it was in a rack by the check-out in Big W. Public transport, shared toilets, elevator buttons, ATM buttons, escalators arms... if you touch it too, sanitise! Sanitise! At least, until your immune system toughens up a bit. I'm back to a larger space with fewer people so I don't need to sanitise 100 times a day but I still carry a bottle with me, just in case. It came in handy the other week when my pal needed to do a stealth bush-wee.
I learned to touch type on a typewriter. It means I'm old but not as old as you're thinking. There were computers around but being a poor Phamly we didn't get a computer until Big Brother Pham turned 15 and got a job.
Big Brother bought our first think-box but Dad Pham bought my first typewriter. He found it at a garage sale because he was always buying things from garage sales whether we used them or not. Nobody asked for or needed a typewriter but that's never stopped him. His latest buy is an electric drill that he has no use for but still loves.
I was drawn to the typewriter. As soon as I saw it, I knew it was going to be mine. Little me used to write stories all the time and this was a shiny, new way to present my words. I didn't touch type at first because I didn't know there was such a thing. But one of my many IT cousins (why do I have so many cousins in IT?) saw me sitting at the typewriter with my two index and middle fingers and showed me how to be a lady. Okay, nobody ever showed me how to be a lady - Mum gave up before she started; I remember the exact moment her hopes died when I came home after a day well spent sliding down a dirt hill on my arse in a brand new polka dot skirt. Anyhoo, I picked up touch typing fast.
The only problem with learning on a typewriter is that to this day I still punch my keyboards with the vigour I needed to impress ink. Sometimes it sounds like I'm trying to murder my keyboard. This rad moo cow patterned keyboard cover softens the blow. It has put my touch typing to the test because while it looks super awesome, some of the keys are hard to read with red on black print. I had to memorise a couple of function buttons at the top but otherwise, I've still got it. Weehee!
I bought this from my good friend, eBay.
(pic by the mighty beard aka Todd O'Rourke)
Sometimes I do random stuff like make potato chip trees, become a vegetarian after talking with a mosquito, write a letter to a cat pretending to be a cat... the list goes on. But there is one thing that you can always rely on me to do and that is SHINY THINGS.
People at work have already figured out that anything bright, multi-colour, highly flammable or reflective that comes through our office will make my beady little Asian eyes light up. When the Supra x A-morir appeared, I fell in shoe-love but almost didn't get them just to spite the guys for predicting that I'd get them... but who was I kidding? These shoes are so me!
I mean, just look at the crazy cats at A-morir. I imagine if I had adoptive parents, these two would be them. They've applied double-sided sequin to the Supra WMNS Skytop so I can choose to flip 'em on the black for darker days or flip 'em back for more gold on brighter days. My fave part is the little peep hole at the back of the ankle.
You can get 'em from my work www.culturekings.com.au and before you weird purists get on my back for promoting work stuff, I bought these shoes because I love them and recommend them!
Lately I've found myself on the look out for Obnoxious Owl's Shooting From The Hip column for Acclaim Magazine every week. Her writing is smart, sassy and funny (everything my blog fails to be). The main thing that got me hooked was her posts on online dating around the time I started to seriously think about giving it a go.
I followed Obnoxious Owl's online daring (no typo) adventures hoping for a happy ending because I've let Disney screw up my sense of reality. If I have kids they're watching Les Miserables in their formative years so they expect shit to happen. Tammy (Obnoxious Owl) didn't have much luck but she did have some hilarious encounters.
Her latest column is on Love versus Infatuation. After reading it I felt vindicated. Some of my pals don't believe that I've never been in love - so much so they had me doubting myself too. But Obnoxious Owl nailed the difference between love and infatuation, and I have not been anywhere near love!
Sage words from a wise owl. I highly recommend reading her Shooting From The Hip columns on Acclaim and her Take My Advice posts on her blog. You'll learn a thing or two about life and writing.
Why are you still reading this? Away with you!
Nothing says "take me seriously" like a kiddy sized yellow lego brick backpack. This was a birthday gift from The Phamly because I needed a bag for work. Clearly, they respect my profession even though they don't actually know what I do. To be fair, I don't think anyone knows what I do. Today I was introduced as "Jade...she does a lot." Well, this do-a-lotter goes to work in sneakers, shiny street wear and most days with unbrushed hair so The Phamly got me a work bag to match.
The Lego backpack has one main compartment that can fit a stack of about 10 x A4 notepads and is a rectangular lego brick shape. The six lego connectors on the front are individually zipped pockets. I keep USBs, hair ties & pins, lens cleaners, girl things, mixed nuts and lip balm in mine. There's a nifty drink bottle holder on the left. This backpack goes with my Lego Stationery Kit. Yep, people take me very seriously around the office.
One of the longest relationships I've had in my life is with my mobile phone number. It was my first and still my only. I recently broke up with Telstra after a $69/month two year contract, which I bought just before I moved home and D'oh! You don't need to call your Phamly much when you live with them. There's this thing called Phamly dinner where people talk to each other FACE-TO-FACE.
ALDI Mobile is a dream. I like my technology to be efficient, logical and straight to the point - no showy crap please, I just need it functional then I'll encase it in something ridiculous to amuse myself. To understand what I mean without trying ALDI Mobile out for yourself, go to an ALDI supermarket and look at the way they've cut running costs and passed the savings onto you. Utterly efficient and reliable. That's the ALDI Mobile experience.
I walked into an ALDI store, bought a SIM Starter pack, went home, activated my SIM and put in a request to port my old number from Telstra online. 48 hours later (would have been faster if it wasn't a weekend) my phone number was active with ALDI. Every step was clearly explained online and I also received precise confirmation emails.
I've contacted ALDI Mobile support twice. Once through the e-support ticket system on my account log-in area and heard back within 12 hours. The other time I called at about 6.30pm and got straight through to a rep. Both politely told me the problem was with Telstra and they were right.
The ALDI Mobile website and phone app are simple and easy to use. The first time I recharged my credit with a $35 unlimited bolt-on, Little Sissy Pham was driving and I needed 3G for Google Maps. ALDI doesn't provide 4G but my handset is only 3G capable so this wasn't a deal breaker for me. I used the ALDI mobile app while we were on a motorway out in the sticks and the credit applied straight away, no issues. Unless you count how bad I am at giving directions.
ALDI Mobile uses the Telstra network and I haven't noticed a difference yet being with ALDI. Except that it's half the price and I'm not locked into a contract. I highly recommend ALDI to stingy commitment-phobes like myself!
This is the welcome pack my dermatologist put together for me. I threw in the three supermarket lip balms, he didn't suggest those brands but Maybelline Baby Lips is seriously the best softening lip balm I've ever used that has staying power (sorry vaseline, most points for softness, zilch for staying power under Oratane strain) and I have a few Nivea lip balms still lying around... I'll need about 50 more Baby Lips before my course of meds ends. No exaggeration - the doc wants me on Oratane at varying levels over the next three years. Ouch. Guess it's good I had such a bad experience with alcohol lately, I won't miss drinking for a while. I forgot to throw a jar of vaseline in the pic - vaseline was my saving grace applied before bed and first thing when I woke up last time round.
On a scale of 1 to 10 for horrible if 1 is drinking unflavoured cough syrup and 10 is chemo, I'd say Oratane is round about a 2.5. But I've yet to undergo surgery, break most bones or any other severe medical issues personally, so Oratane is the most unpleasant and painful body memory I have. I'm told the spinal tap I had when I was two had me screaming hysterics but I don't really remember that.
I'm preparing for a life of discomfort and a little pain...oh, and hairiness because waxing is out. The worst of the discomfort, from memory is the dry, peeling lips that I lathered with lip balm every 15 minutes or so. But there's also the dry eyeballs (especially for us contact lens wearers), dry scalp, dry face, dry neck, dry body, dry arms, dry elbows, dry knees, dry ankles... you get the picture. All your skin feels tight yet flimsy and ready to break. The first time, I only had aching bones and muscles and a bit of nausea for the first two weeks on the meds while my body adjusted (here's hoping it's the same again). I didn't have any hair loss or severe mood swings or get depressed or anything like that.
I think it's unfair to suggest Oratane is linked with depression and suicidal thoughts. You're probably not in a happy place when you seek specialist help for a skin disease like cystic acne, you're feeling desperate to get rid of painful and highly visible red and pussy pimples. I bailed on coffee with a guy a few weeks ago because I didn't want my unappealing skin to be his first impression of me. Seems a bit silly to be posting my acne on the Internet now but I guess the difference is I won't see you staring or any looks of disgust. Having to look at my own face in the mirror is enough.
If you have severe acne and you're struggling to treat it with commercially available products, I say it's worth spending the moneys if you have it to see a dermatologist for Oratane. The sooner the better. I lucked out with a cancellation and a rad boss who let me pop out at short notice so I bypassed the 2 month wait for my appointment. For first timers, it'll take 1-2 visits to get started plus meds so depending on the doctor's fees, how many acne skincare products you already have and any additional meds like antibiotics they prescribe, you'll need at least a few hundred. My first time on Oratane was about $550 to kickstart then ongoing check ups and meds, this time because I'd been on the meds before and didn't need the tests or a second appointment to get started, it cost me about $300 to kit up. I assume you have acne if you're reading this. Good luck! I'll be posting updates on my skin's progress as I go.
I've always had a drinking problem in that I am too focused on my work to get up and get a glass of water. Even when there's a little part of my brain telling me I'm dying of thirst, I just tell it to stop being overdramatic and keep on working. Little Sissy Pham had to 'water' me when I first got into Diablo III for this very reason. Sometimes I would go a full day on one sip of water and only realise my bad when I stopped working and got hit with a dehydration headache. Yeah, those exist.
But at work, I don't have Little Sissy Pham bringing me regular glasses of water and cups of tea. I've had to step up my water game and I did so in shiny Sigg style. I got this Heritage Sigg 1L drink bottle in Vintage Gold from bodegadeluxe.com - look how pretty the colour is! There is a matte black version that I really wanted too but I lived up to my Shiny Jade mug and went the shiny gold bottle. Also, part of my brain didn't want a drink bottle that matched the boys' cars at work. There's enough matte black already in my world view. I got the whole kit - Sigg bottle cleaning brush and cleaning tablets because cleanliness is next to something that's not dirty, which is important when it's your drinking water. My Sigg gold bottle makes me huppy.
Have you ever tried to kiss yourself on the lips? ...Oh, okay - me either then. But that's where my brain went when I finally got around to Maybelline's Baby Lips in colour range.
As you won't remember from my Nivea Fruity Shine lip balm post, I've been hanging for the Maybelline Baby Lips colour range to drop in Australia. Too bad for me, I'm a stockpiler and had stocked up on Nivea Fruity Shine on sale and am only just starting to run out of juice now.
And I'm so happy to make the switch! Maybelline Baby Lips in colour is just as good as regular clear Baby Lips - you know how sometimes when they change the formula to add fluff details (like glitter or colour) it can affect the moisture? Well, super glad to say that Maybelline Baby Lips Colours are 110% moisturising. I'm sorry Nivea Fruity Shine, you were fun to kiss but now I've got a new favourite!
The Nivea Fruity Shine range has glitter and colour added that affect the smooth moist feel compared to their regular range of lip balm. Somehow Maybelline Baby Lips has managed to keep the moisture at a maximum and - by god - the staying power is even better than the first clear tube of Baby Lips I had.
Interwebs, say hello to my new favourite tinted lip balm - Maybelline Baby Lips in Berry Crush! I still prefer the US range - their packaging is way cooler and colours way bolder and I've read your lips absorbs the moisture whereas the Aussie one I'm currently using sits on top of my lips like a gloss. Oh well, when you live this far away from the rest of the globe, I guess you gotta appreciate what you can get. Or I guess I could just order it in from the States. Lord knows I can't seem to stop giving the Internet money to send me stuff in the mail.
As you won't remember from my Nivea Fruity Shine lip balm post, I've been hanging for the Maybelline Baby Lips colour range to drop in Australia. Too bad for me, I'm a stockpiler and had stocked up on Nivea Fruity Shine on sale and am only just starting to run out of juice now.
And I'm so happy to make the switch! Maybelline Baby Lips in colour is just as good as regular clear Baby Lips - you know how sometimes when they change the formula to add fluff details (like glitter or colour) it can affect the moisture? Well, super glad to say that Maybelline Baby Lips Colours are 110% moisturising. I'm sorry Nivea Fruity Shine, you were fun to kiss but now I've got a new favourite!
The Nivea Fruity Shine range has glitter and colour added that affect the smooth moist feel compared to their regular range of lip balm. Somehow Maybelline Baby Lips has managed to keep the moisture at a maximum and - by god - the staying power is even better than the first clear tube of Baby Lips I had.
Interwebs, say hello to my new favourite tinted lip balm - Maybelline Baby Lips in Berry Crush! I still prefer the US range - their packaging is way cooler and colours way bolder and I've read your lips absorbs the moisture whereas the Aussie one I'm currently using sits on top of my lips like a gloss. Oh well, when you live this far away from the rest of the globe, I guess you gotta appreciate what you can get. Or I guess I could just order it in from the States. Lord knows I can't seem to stop giving the Internet money to send me stuff in the mail.
Gone are my days of awkwardly 'cleaning' my glasses on my dresses, tops and on one occasion, my cat because she was dryer than everything else in reaching distance. By 'cleaning' I mean swishing bits of fluff and grime around on the lens. Clearwipe Lens Cleaners have changed my life! By 'changed my life' I mean I can actually see stuff and you need to see stuff all the time when you drive and write and read and eat. Well, I guess you don't need to see to eat but I do like looking at food.
Hello poser me. I'm sorry, I couldn't help myself. I am slowly but surely on my way to not being called a fatty boombah by science. I'm actually out of the overweight range after dropping 3kg in three weeks - yay! But that's just on the very edge of the healthy weight range for some one my height so I want to keep going because if I settled for just okay my life would be super dull and I'd probably be the first person to literally (meaning literally, not the new shitty 'used for emphasis' literal meaning - will you dictionary people stop adding bullshit words and definitions already please?!?!) die from boredom.
I had my doubts about the River Island Pink Cosmic Tube Dress because I am a 10/12 up-top with the hips of a 12/14 and tubes by definition don't have hips. I bought it anyway because I love it too much and, true, it's too snug at my hips but I'm going to allow myself this one discrepancy in my otherwise too picky wardrobe.
Forget YOLO. We should be YLAYLing. You live and you learn. I've learned a lot this year already. Too much to smush into this blog post so I'll tell you one thing.
On my birthday, I learned that when I'm overexcited I start to talk in a low, breathy demonic voice. A bit like Christopher Nolan's batman if he were from the fiery pits of the deepest Hell. I can't remember exactly what I said when I opened my present but I do remember how I said it. The sounds my throat made scared the children and Little Sissy Pham had to reign me in before I gave them nightmares. Far right is me pissing myself after seeing Middling Niece's stunned face. YLAYL!
Hey, if you got this Lego Art Carousel for your birthday you'd be ecstatic too. It has four segments for textas, pencils, crayons and erasers. Or for me: Pens, pencils, mini-sharpies and lip balm/mints because I'm so grown up and my stationery is so mature.
The Lego head featured in the middle is actually a pencil sharpener (and OMG - you MUST know how much I LOVE sharpening pencils by now) with a happy face on one side and an angry face on the other side which perfectly expresses the only two emotions I feel in life. The carousel, in case you haven't guessed, spins like a carousel because it is a carousel. Everything about this Lego pen holder makes me happy. YLAYL!
On my birthday, I learned that when I'm overexcited I start to talk in a low, breathy demonic voice. A bit like Christopher Nolan's batman if he were from the fiery pits of the deepest Hell. I can't remember exactly what I said when I opened my present but I do remember how I said it. The sounds my throat made scared the children and Little Sissy Pham had to reign me in before I gave them nightmares. Far right is me pissing myself after seeing Middling Niece's stunned face. YLAYL!
Hey, if you got this Lego Art Carousel for your birthday you'd be ecstatic too. It has four segments for textas, pencils, crayons and erasers. Or for me: Pens, pencils, mini-sharpies and lip balm/mints because I'm so grown up and my stationery is so mature.
The Lego head featured in the middle is actually a pencil sharpener (and OMG - you MUST know how much I LOVE sharpening pencils by now) with a happy face on one side and an angry face on the other side which perfectly expresses the only two emotions I feel in life. The carousel, in case you haven't guessed, spins like a carousel because it is a carousel. Everything about this Lego pen holder makes me happy. YLAYL!
I've had acne since puberty hit me in the face and the hips, though it forgot my chest which will always be prepubescent. Instead, I grew lumps and bumps allover my face - forehead, temples, cheeks, jawline and neck. Puberty, you did it wrong!
I've been on and off Proactiv for years trying to treat my acne. I'm told that acne doesn't become immune to the stuff but whatever goes on with my skin, after 1-2 years on Proactiv my suppressed acne finds a way to break out. After the first time it stopped working I went on a string of doctor prescribed topical meds before they sent me to a dermatologist for hardcore oratane pills. It cleared my skin after 6 months on the meds and stayed clear for 3 months once I was taken off but then the acne came back again. So I went back on Proactiv again and it worked again.
The next time it stopped working I tried the pharmacy stocked Benzac AC 5% benozyl peroxide but that gave me a massive rash so I let my skin break out for a few months before going back on Proactiv but it hasn't been as effective because the gap was too short. When I heard about Skin Clarity I had high hopes for a system that didn't use peroxide (the main anti-acne stuff in Proactiv) so I could move between the two but I should have read up on what Skin Clarity used instead.
After two weeks on Skin Clarity I had to stop. I expected a breakout while my skin adjusted to a new skincare regime but within the first week my skin was the worst it'd been in 5 years. I decided to stop using step 3, the repair cream that contains caster oil. This did stop my pimples from growing at warp speed but because I was only using step 1, the foaming cleanser, and step 2, clarifying gel, my skin dried out terribly. The pimples I did have from step 3 started to fade but new ones were developing because my skin was irritated from being too dry (my regular day moisturiser wasn't cutting it without the oily help of step 3).
Why am I calling this post Proactiv Vs. Skin Clarity? Because Skin Clarity are a newcomer who've marketed themselves as a three step program that's benozyl peroxide free using packaging similar to Proactiv. I can only assume they're targeting the Proactiv audience.
For me, Proactiv wins hands down. Skin Clarity proved really bad with my oily skin but if you want to give it a go, the starter kit is only $29.95.
I'm not taking my own advice for now. I'm not using Proactiv at the moment. I've decided it's time to go back to a dermatologist for help. Over the counter stuff isn't working anymore.
My name is Jade Pham and I am a shopaholic. To be fair, I was shopahol free for 2 of the 6 weeks I was unemployed at the start of this year. Didn't spend a dime over New Years and then I started to apply for jobs. I assumed I'd get one soonish because I've always been quick to find work when I want it. It's a boyfriend, acne remedy, the will to finish all 100 paragon levels in Diablo 3, fun-creative places to party in Brisbane, fun-creative people to party with in Brisbane and my stereo remote that I suck at finding.
After my first job application and interview I treated myself to a pair of Karen Walker Super Duper Critter Sunnies. To be fair, I did whip up a work folio to present at the interview and would have made a second presentation of ideas I had for the company / my future role but I had one day's notice and a Pham birthday (Phamly Phirst!) to organise. I reckon I deserved a treat.
Now I've been bleeding money ever since. The good part is I have a heap of things to blog about! The bad part is I bought this gorgeous Love Dress in floral print to wear to a wedding... AND I DON'T HAVE A WEDDING TO ATTEND. What is wrong with me? I mean, it's good to be prepared for life and stuff but none of my friends or relatives are even engaged. This romantic, drapey Love Dress is the first time I've realised that I am a shopaholic, I can't live without shopahol.
Here's hoping first-world consumer society lasts for as long as my lifetime so I'll never have to suffer the distress of withdrawal. I imagine it'd be worse than that time I quit food (meaning gluten, dairy, nuts, some fruit and veg, sugar, salt and red meat) to show support for Little Sissy Pham and her crackpot, hippy skin 'doctor's' attempts at curing her psoriasis. You know how much I love my food. So much so, Eldest Niece once said about heaps of leftovers, "If only Aunty Ngoc were here, none of this food would be wasted because she'd have eaten it all."
Which is why the ASOS.com model looks less bloated in these product pics: