Geek in Heels - Page 78

Aug 26, 2011 • In Beauty, Blogging, Giveaways, Personal

$50 Sephora Gift Card Giveaway!

Update: This giveaway has now come to a close. Congratulations to Irene, who entered via the Facebook giveaway page! Please be on the lookout for an email from me soon!

A few months ago, the famed Urban Decay Naked Palette — which had been getting regularly sold out everywhere since its release last year — came back in stock at Sephora online and I immediately snatched one up.

And you know what? It is just as good as all the online reviews say…and more! In fact, I would go as far as to say that for the everyday woman, this is the only eye shadow palette you will need!

I even convinced my SIL to get one herself, and she loves it just as much as I do, if not more. 🙂

Why the long background story? Because you see, I had originally planned on giving away the Urban Decay Naked Palette as this month’s giveaway…

…only to realize that due to its popularity, many of my readers may already have it!

So I decided to use the money toward a gift card from the mecca of beauty stores: Sephora!

That’s right — I am giving away a $50 Sephora gift card!

Running low on your favorite product? Been itching to try the latest and greatest? Need to purchase a gift for a friend?

Well, you may just get lucky and win!

Now, for the rules…

Each reader is eligible for up to three entries via the following methods (each method will grant a separate entry):

Leave a comment to this post about how you would spend the Sephora gift card.
If you haven’t done so already, go to the Geek in Heels Facebook Page and “Like” the page. Then click on the Sephora Gift Card Giveaway link (located right under the profile picture, or just use this link) to enter the sweepstakes.
If you haven’t done so already, follow @geekinheels on Twitter and tweet exactly the following: I just entered for a chance to win a $50 Sephora gift card via @geekinheels at http://bit.ly/rigo5Z and you can too!

Please do not leave extra comments here if you enter via Facebook or Twitter.

You can increase your chances of winning by using all three methods of entry. There is only one entry allowed per person, per method — for a total possible number of three entries — and any additional entries will be promptly deleted. (Yes, I have ways of checking this. And yes, this will only cause me to get annoyed at you.)

For the complete list of rules, go to this link.

The giveaway begins as soon as this entry is published — August 26, 2011 @ 12:00pm EDT — and will run until September 1, 2011 @ 11:59pm EDT. The winner will be announced here on September 2 and will also be notified by email (so please use a valid email when entering so that I can contact you if you win!) or via a Twititer DM.

Good luck, and thanks for reading! (I love giveaways, don’t you? :-D)

The Golden Ratio of Apple

I have no idea if the designer(s) of Apple’s famed logo had this in mind when at the drawing board, but considering Apple’s attention to detail, I wouldn’t be surprised if this was meticulously planned out. 🙂

Via I Love Charts.

They Will Not Take No for an Answer

Remember how earlier this year, we canceled cable in addition to our land line?

Since then, our cable company has been trying its darndest to win back our subscriptions.

When we first moved into our home, we had signed up for their Triple Play package, which included cable, internet, and phone for about $100/month for the first year.

After the first year was up, our bill went up to about $160/month, which we had continued to pay faithfully until we canceled cable and phone.

Now, we are paying about $50/month for just the high-speed internet.

The first few months after we had canceled cable and phone, we regularly received notices that they would reinstate the $100/month promotional price for a year.

Four months ago, that price went down to $90/month for a year.

Three months ago: $80/month for a year.

Two months ago: $70/month for a year.

Last month: $70/month for two years.

And this month?

A snapshot of the flyer we received in the mail…after Claire got to it

In case you can’t make out what it says (you probably can’t, as it was taken with my crappy phone camera): $70/month for two years, plus a free DVR rental for a year, plus a free iPod Touch!

😯

Now, I have no idea if the iPod Touch is an older model, but seeing as the lowest-end iPod Touch currently retails for $229, I’m pretty tempted.

Nevermind the fact that we would only be paying $20 more (or $30 after taxes) a month for two additional services.

And as much as I love our cable-free life, there are some shows whose networks have not caught up to the 21st century and do not air full episodes online. Yes, I am sorely missing my guilty pleasure, aka the only reality show I enjoy: Keeping Up with the Kardashians.

What do you think? Should we go for it?

Should we wait until next month and see what else they would offer? 😛

P.S. — Stay tuned for a giveaway tomorrow!

If Web Browsers Were Celebrities [Infographic]

I used to be a huge fan of Firefox, but made the switch to Chrome two years ago and have not looked back. 🙂

I continue to use Firefox and Safari for certain secret agent web missions, and am consistently reminded over and over again why Chrome is a better fit for me (faster, lightweight, and handles my bazillions of open tabs better) — but I certainly understand how others may prefer Firefox, Opera, or Safari over Chrome.

What I don’t understand is the large number of internet surfers who are still using IE7, nevermind IE6! (I have had hundreds of visitors browsing this blog with IE6 in the last month alone.)

The below infographic is pretty funny and accurate, if I must say so myself. I can see how some people may get a bit offended at the death references, but hey, it’s all in good humor, right?

Which web browser is your favorite? Do you agree with this infographic?

Via Bit Rebels.

When I Am Granted an Evening Out Among Adults…

…blogging takes a back seat.

For today, I met up with this lovely lady…

To attend a fancy bloggers’ reception hosted by this tech company…

Wherein we learned about a bunch of new products and ways to share media, met some cool people, grubbed on yummy catered food, and enjoyed an open bar (but only Sprite for this preggo).

More on what I learned later — I promise!

Then I grabbed some take-out Korean fried chicken to bring home to the hubs, only to discover while waiting for my order that there had been an earth-shattering (well, at least to us geeks) announcement made in the few hours I was away from home…

We’ll miss you, Steve, you patron saint of perfectionists.

To All the West Coasters Making Fun of Our Reaction to the Earthquake…

Via Reddit.

As Luck Would Have It… [Oh Cruel Fate]

Today was the day I had been eagerly awaiting for months. Because you see, today is the day that I am eligible for a cell phone upgrade!

No more restarting the phone twice a day just to get it to function! No more 30-second lags! And no more cell phone camera that takes blank pictures!

But as luck would have it…

The phone that I want — the Motorola Droid 3 (because I need a physical keyboard) — is on backorder everywhere. 😥

However, the day is not without good news. Because by sheer chance, my current cell phone camera has magically decided to start working again! The focus is a bit off, but it no longer takes blank pictures!

So here are three pictures of Claire I took in celebration:

Didn’t you guys miss seeing recent pictures of her on this blog? 😉

And don’t you love the headband? J and I have been getting sick of everyone mistaking her for a boy — yes, this happens even when she is dressed head to toe in pink, frilly outfits — that we went ahead and purchased a bunch of headbands. Not only does Claire Bear seem to love them (she actually leans her head forward whenever we show her one), she never gets mistaken for a boy when she wears them.

But back to the subject…

This month has been a hellish one for this geek, being without a computer and then having my cell phone crap out on me. As the Droid 3 is supposed to come back in stock in 8-10 days, and because I had been planning on ordering a replacement laptop next week anyway, I might just end up getting a brand new computer and a new phone within just days of each other.

(Just writing that sentence made me feel a bit guilty, like I’m a spoiled, bratty girl. But I figure that since my laptop is almost 3 years old and my cell phone is 2 years old — and because both of them are broken — we can justify the expense. Besides, we are half-considering these my “push presents” from J. :-P)

One more week to go. I can do it!

P.S. — A couple of hours ago I experienced my very first earthquake! (It is the biggest quake to hit the East Coast since 1897 — a 5.9 in VA — and the second biggest of all time after a 7.3 that hit South Carolina in 1886.) Although at the time, I thought it was just BebeDeux causing a ruckus in my belly again. Figures!

How did everyone else react to the earthquake? And did you catch my Tweet about the “DC Earthquake Devastation”? 😀

Why Toilet Paper Should Hang OVER the Roll [A Compelling Argument]

I have discussed my stance on this issue before, and even shared with you an infographic on the Science of Toilet Paper Orientation.

Today, I bring you the most persuasive argument I have seen so far on why “Over is Right, Under is Wrong.”

Does anyone still maintain that toilet paper should hang under the roll? (And don’t tell me it’s to deter your baby or pet from unrolling the entire spool, because if your baby or pet is smart enough, they will get to it, no matter what. 😛 )

Via GraphJam.

Before I Knew About Sex…

Lately I have been wondering how I will tackle the inevitable question that all parents get asked by their young children:

Where do babies come from?

My parents will be the first to admit that I was an unusual child. Always preferring books over other children, and never having to be reminded to go study, do my homework, practice the piano, etc, I am told that I hardly ever asked my parents or other adults questions about the curiosities of life. Rather, I chose to seek out the answers myself (usually in a book).

And when I could not discover the answer myself…

I went ahead and devised my own theories.

So before being instructed on the birds and the bees by fellow classmates during a traumatizing recess period in the third grade, I believed that pregnancy was a disease that only women can catch.

How did one “catch” this disease?

By eating infected watermelon seeds!

As such, I was very careful about never, ever swallowing watermelon seeds. 🙂

(image source)

I know that as parents, it is J and my job to instruct our children about sex, and that having a healthy and open conversation with them about it will be better for them in the long run.

(That being said, if J has his way our daughters will remain pure and virginal forever, never having to find out a thing about sex or boys. 😉 )

I want to be honest with my kids and not give them a B.S. response when they ask me difficult questions. At the same time, I do know that some truths are inappropriate for young children, i.e., telling them anything more graphic than “When a mommy and a daddy love each other very much…” may be traumatizing.

Luckily, we still have at least a few more years until we need to devise a plan of action.

Before you knew about sex, where did you think (or were told) babies came from?

What do you believe is the best way to tell a young child about sex and the origin of babies?

Paper Dolls from Your Favorite Television Shows

Illustrator Kyle Hilton has been creating a new paper doll based on his favorite TV characters each week. Among the television shows are the likes of Parks and Recreation, Breaking Bad, and one of my all-time favs, Arrested Development!

Be sure to click on over to kylehilton.com to see the paper dolls from his other favorite shows. I know that I’ll be checking often, as The Office and It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia are in works!

Via Visual News.