Randomness: Fountain Drinks of the Future…Now!


Dig if you will these pictures of one of the coolest contraptions I have seen in a long time. We made a stop at a Jack In The Box near the San Juan Capistrano area a few weeks ago and saw this nifty new machine. After I paid for my food, the cashier gave me a cup and pointed me in the direction of where he said the fountain drinks were located.  I stood there in front of the thing for about a minute before looking up, and saw the instructional sign (pictured below).

What’s incredibly cool about this machine is that once you press your drink selection, you are then given even more selections, such as different flavors. For instance if you choose Sprite, the next screen after pushing the Sprite icon would have different flavors of Sprite, including raspberry and others.

My mom and I thought that we were the only ones that marveled at the machine upon first approach. But we watched another set of customers do the exact same thing we did: stand and stare at the thing until they realized that they needed to know how to work the thing, which forced them to look up and find the instructions. The cashier stated that they are the only Jack In The Box with this new fangled machine. We hope it comes to a Box near us soon!

I *Heart* Discounts & Happy Fashion Week!

This week, my email is just busting with deals and discounts, just in time for Valentine’s Day and Fashion Week.  As you know, it doesn’t take much convicing to get me to shop, and these deals give me even more reasons to do more than just browse.  Enjoy!

(Click the images and the links to get to the appropriate sites.)

 Any Second Now readers can use code SECOND50 at checkout to enjoy a 50% off discount on everything at High Gloss Fashion (the code is good until 11:59 pm CST on Feb 13, 2011)!

 

 A new online vintage store called Dan-T-Chan Vintage is offering first time visitors a 10% off discount with the code promo2.  If you love vintage like I do, this is worth checking out!

 

Neiman Marcus’ Last Call always has great deals, and you can take advantage of 20% off regular priced handbags and shoes today (started yesterday).

These sites are offering FREE SHIPPING for their orders either at a certain dollar amount or for a limited time:

Juicy Couture

Cusp

Macy’s

 1-800-FLOWERS.COM (Free shipping with code VKD25 at checkout from Feb 11-13, 2011)

Finally, keep up with everything Fashion Week at the Mercedez-Benz Fashion Week website by clicking here.  For those of you lucky enough to be there in NYC, have fun, be safe and warm!

Photographic Pictures: Fish Outta H2O

This fantastic picture was taken by my friend Andrea, whose blog, Fish Outta H2O Photography, is in my blogroll in the “I Know You” section.  She is a talented writer and photographer.  If you like what you see here and on her blog, she also has this image and many others available in her Cafe Press store.  I purchased the yoga mat as a gift for a friend, and I’ll be getting the calendar and journal in the near future.  Show this talented artist some love by paying her blog and store a visit!

Shop Fish Outta H2O

Ode To Joy


Here is another purchase from Fashion Rocks: The “Love Will Tear Us Apart” Joy Division skirt. I used two different looks for this pictorial. One look I felt was softer and more feminine with the scarf, knitted hat and cardigan.


With the next look, I really wanted to use Ian Curtis’ iconic silhouette. To me, this look is marked by the trench coat and dark military-type clothing. I didn’t have a long olive colored trench, so I just used this 80’s inspired jacket. In both outfits, I’m wearing the “Make Your Mark” heels (first posted about here). I love them so much! They are as comfortable as they are cute, for such a great price.


I wrote a post about Joy Division last year (seen here), and I have been semi-obsessed with their music and the story of Ian Curtis for about two years now. Idil Vice has a few other pieces of Joy Division clothing in her collection, and as much as I love the group, I want to indulge in maybe one more dress.


Outfit 1: Burton’s hat; Nordstrom cardigan; Cotton On scarf

Outfit 2: Jezebel jacket

Both outfits: Blu Heaven striped shirt; Idil Vice skirt; Fior Di Melo crossbody bag (purchased in Italy); Qupid Luxe shoes; Burberry sunglasses; H&M studded bracelet; Forever 21 & Juicy Couture rings; Charm bracelet from my niece; Tiffany necklace

Photos by Deon Chen

Weekend in Pictures: The Superbowl


Unless you care nothing about sports and/or football, you had to have known and felt in the air that this was Superbowl weekend. When the teams were finalized as the Pittsburgh Steelers against the Green Bay Packers, we all knew this would be a great game. Although I’m a die-hard San Diego Chargers fan, I bought myself a new Steelers t-shirt just so that my husband could feel the support of his family for this weekends game. Although we have our favorite teams, we make sure to support each other when the moment calls for it. For instance, Deon wore only Chargers gear when we watched them play against the New Orleans Saints in London back in 2009.


I debated on whether or not to post this because I wanted to be sure that the Steelers won.  Since they didn’t, I don’t think my husband would want to include any pictures from our little get together this weekend.  Instead, I included a few pictures of his Steelers fandom.  The first two are from our trip to Pittsburgh three years ago (when I was nearly 7 months pregnant with Dominic).  The last picture is from the 2009 season, which was Dominic’s first official football season.  Believe it or not, Deon and Dominic were both born on years that the Steelers won a Superbowl.  Coincidence?  Although my husband’s weekend wasn’t all too great because of the Steelers loss, I hope you all had a great weekend!

Randomness: Nutella Day, February 5th

The first time I ever had Nutella was when I was visiting my aunt in Toronto.  She was putting it on her toast during breakfast.  I was quite confused about the thick chocolate spread instead of the regular butter or jelly.  Although I liked it, I never really got into it here in the States, just when it was available at the odd continental breakfast, plane ride or hotel room.

When I was pregnant with my son a couple of years ago, it seemed to be one of the few things I wanted to eat.  At one point,  I went through three jars in a month.  I especially loved it on bread or fruit.  I even created a little snack of my own what was a variation on something I had before:  Granny Smith apple slices, cream cheese and peanut butter on white bread.  My version was the apple slices, cream cheese, and Nutella on Hawaiian sweet bread.  It’s better than you could even imagine.

If you love the chocolate and hazelnut goodness that is Nutella like I do, tomorrow is the day for you!  I discovered recently that February 5th is Nutella Day.  Celebrate with recipes, sharing it on the web if you have a blog or social networking account, or just spread it on something good and enjoy.

Wanted: Retro Revival

I’m starting to really like this seventies/retro trend, and I think my latest finds on Mod Cloth reflect that vibe. I love the tie front blouses, pan collars, sheer sleeves and thick heels. Maybe it’s because I was born in 1970 and grew up wearing some of these things that I adore that decade so much. Whatever the case may be, I’m going to enjoy this fashion trip back in time.

(Please note: I just bought the “Make Your Mark” heels. I’m excited to see how they look on!)

(Update: I received the shoes in the mail after I wrote this post, and they are fantastic on. Pictorial to come!)

(Another update: I also got those Matiko heels, but from Urban Outfitters. LOVE THEM!)

Wanted by sighgee featuring a long sleeve romper

Nevermind the Bollocks, Here’s Fashion Rocks!


I am happy to finally have my first pictorial with one of my purchases from Fashion Rocks: The “Nevermind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols” skirt. At first, I was pretty intimidated by the bright yellow of the fabric, but I decided to embrace it and really make it stand out by wearing mostly black, including my boots. I also had my husband help me take these pictures in Downtown San Diego with his Sony camera to give these pictures the desired effect.


The dress and the skirts that I purchased are amazing! In addition to the skirt pictured here, I bought a Joy Division skirt and a Depeche Mode dress. They are all made of a heavy t-shirt material and the large print itself is so clear. I can’t believe I’ve never worn my favorite artists in this way, and now I think I’m hooked. As much as I wear and love my concert shirts, these are definitely going to get heavy rotation in my wardrobe.


Outfit: Trilogy jacket; Idil Vice Fashion Rocks skirt; Old Navy top; Jessica Simpson suede boots; Depeche Mode dog tags; Burberry Sunglasses; Forever 21 and Juicy Couture rings

A New Month, Another Discount: High Gloss Fashion

I received an email regarding a new site called HighGlossFashion.com. It’s a brand new online clothing, shoe and accessory boutique that offers trendy and high quality items at great prices. They offer many well-known designers such as BB Dakota (one of my personal favorites), Gentle Fawn, Plastic Island, Motel Rocks as well as up and coming designers with prices ranging from $5 to $150. They will be getting many more items in over the next few weeks as the resort and spring collections arrive. To celebrate their grand opening, they are offering a coupon code for 20% Off All Items. Enter GRAND20 at checkout to take advantage of the discount. The coupon code expires on February 6, 2011 at 11:59 pm CST. Plus, they have $5 flat rate shipping. Happy shopping!

Weekend in Pictures: Milestones


Not only was this weekend my husband’s birthday, but it was also the 90th birthday and 68th wedding anniversary of another great-aunt and uncle on my father’s side, Crescencio and Paula Ancheta. We celebrated this very special occasion with a big party given by my extended family in Palmdale. This is such a milestone not only because of the age of the birthday celebrants, but the years of marriage they shared together.


Because of my father, we are very close to many of our relatives, even if they are 3rd and 4th cousins. We practically grew up together because my parents made sure to make the visits to Palmdale almost as regular as visits to cousins who were just 30 minutes away.

Now that we are spread out all over, we don’t get to see each other as often as we used to. For example, when I used to work up in the San Francisco area over 10 years ago, I used to see my cousins Derek and Sharon on a weekly basis. Now, we keep touch through Facebook when we can. But it’s always great to see them in person like we did this weekend. This is where we have the opportunity to see each others kids who we only usually only see through pictures.


I’m happy to keep the tradition of attending these large events, and the smaller ones as well because I want my son to continue to experience the closeness of family as I did growing up. So much of this bond I have with my cousins, aunts, uncles and even my immediate family as well as family in other cities and countries all over the world is because of my father. I want Dominic to know and understand the importance of family. Hope you all had a great weekend!

Dominic’s outfit: Gap for Kids shirt; H&M tie; Old Navy pants; Converse One Star shoes