SYTYCD does Bollywood dance

I was pleasantly surprised to see a bollywood dance on So you think you can dance. I thought it was cool and funny. In case if you missed yesterday's episode, here's the video.

Zoooooooooooo

I happened to go to the zoo last weekend, I really love going to Zoos ever since I was child. I've had a wonderful time every time I visited a zoo and this was no different. Here are some pictures that I took using my new camera (Shall review it sometime soon).

Keeping Busy: Part II

This is in conjunction with my previous post "Keeping yourself busy". I came across this article today that talks about the how stay at home women can work from home and make a handsome amount of money.
If you need ideas on "How to make money at home" this article might be of help.

Choosing the right sunscreen

If you had watched the news today you would have seen them reporting about how effective sunscreen creams and lotions are.
Here's the ABC News' version of this story.
As you can see most of the commercial products have performed very poorly in the study done by the EWG. Well, don't lose heart yet, they did recommend some 140 products in the market that could serve as effective sunscreen. Here's the EWG's webpage that describes what to look for in a sunscreen and how to use it.
The bottom line is that you need to use a sunscreen that has zinc or titanium dioxide. Therefore remember to look at the ingredients to see if the sunscreen really has something that counts.
Do exercise caution especially during summer time, remember that you need to use atleast 1 oz of sunscreen to cover your body. If you have small children try to keep them away from the sun as much as you can. If you would like to take your children outdoors then remember to apply a lot of sunscreen on them as well.

Nature's Plus Spirutein Chocolate Shake review

I have been consuming Nature's Plus Spirutein Chocolate Shake for a couple of years now. It's a great product without doubt and you could see for yourself that all the reviews on the web suggest the same.

I never like eating cereals for breakfast, I'll always start feeling hungry in about an hour and would have to run to the vending machine or drink something. Not only was it not filling enough, but it was also not giving me enough nutrients that my body required. My doctor had always recommended me to have a high protein diet. Once when this topic of breakfast came up, a colleague of mine recommended me to Kashi's protein shake that she was using as her breakfast.

So, I did my own research on finding a good protein shake that would fit my needs and I settled for Nature's plus' Spriutein. Not only does this supply enough protein, it supplies all the other vitamins and minerals that our body requires, which kinda makes it a one big solution for all my problems.

I should admit that I don't feel hungry for a solid 3-4 hours after consuming this protein shake irrespective of whether I have it with Milk or Orange juice,in addition to that this satisfies the golden rule of starting your day with a high protein breakfast to promote healthy metabolism. It's also low on calories.

I should also mention that this product is not one of those muscle building protein shakes, this is for everyday use for normal people with a normal amount of activity. Most people choose to have it either for breakfast or before/after their workout.

The protein powder comes in a variety of flavors, I've tried the vanilla,chocolate and cappucino flavors. I loved the vanilla and chocolate flavors. Cappucino wasn't great but was still very much edible. One important thing to note is that these powders don't have the chalky smell that other protein powders have.

Now talking about the ease of use, I feel this powder mixes well with the liquids more than any other protein powders I've tried. I've tried making my protein shakes using both Hand shakers and Blenders. The powders blend well in both cases (Blender is a little better, in terms of cleaning). It usually takes me about 2 mins to make the shake and drink it, that's a lot less time compared to eating cereals in the morning. You can also use your imagination and add berries and other stuff to the shake if you'd like.

Stores like GNC and Vitamin Shoppe sell this product. I usually buy it from "The Vitamin Shoppe's" website. That's usually the lowest price I could find and they have the free super saver shipping which is about $2.99 compared to the $5 shipping from other vendors.

Overall, I've been very happy to drink this shake every morning :)

Barack Obama's church search - Stephen Colbert Show

I watched this video yesterday on the Stephen Colbert's show, I really really loved it. So, I decided to post it on my blog. If you are Hindu and can have a laugh...you should watch this...

Coldplay on the Jon Stewart's Tonight Show

Oh! boy...why did I choose to watch Jon Stewart's tonight show especially when I was almost ready to go fall asleep?? I used to like Coldplay initially but then I realized that they were a bunch of Radiohead wannabes, and it was so apparent that I stopped listening to Coldplay.
They played their new single (I didn't bother to know what the title was) on the show, and it wasn't annoying as I was able to continue doing my office work through it. Since their music isn't really harsh, most people won't mind listening to coldplay. But, my only problem is that they really didn't have anything new.
Even though the song picked up tempo, it still wasn't anything innovative.
I'm kinda saddened by the fact that this is the no.1 selling record everywhere :(
ah! as I'm watching they are playing another song...both of them sound so mainstream!!!
If you are a real rock-music junkie, you would really know what I'm talking about...

Mande Lular Sensuous Body souffle review

I've been using Mande Lular Sensuous Body souffle for about 6-8 months now. I've been a fan of this product since the first day I started using it.

I've been searching for a good moisturizer for years, none of them really worked for me on a consistent basis. I've tried almost every other moisturizer out in the market to a point that someone that visited my apartment thought that I was spending a lot on cosmetics but the reality was that I bought these moisturizers and they didn't work for me and I really couldn't return them.

Once I was shopping at Target and noticed this Sanctuary Spa's Mande Lular Sensuous Body Souffle. I kinda smelt it a little bit and read the description and noticed that the tub that I was looking at was the only one left so I decided to take it

Needless to say that this stuff smells exceptionally good. The Souffle as such is a little thick but I have no problems with it. In just two applications, my skin became super smooth and soft and it definitely made the skin look more brighter. The best part of this Souffle is that I can use this on my face as well and see the same kind of results. In fact I used this Soffule everyday for a few days and then stopped using it for a week, just so to see how my skin did and my skin didn't dry out for a considerable number of days.

I usually apply this Souffle before I go to bed. I don't use the Souffle every day instead I use it once every 2-3 days. But, I do religiously use it everyday on my face and many people have complimented me for my skin (I've always had good skin, but this product has made people notice it more). I should also note that the mositurizer works so well that skin doesn't dry out after taking a shower or washing my face.

This is my second Mande Lular tub in the past 6 months as very little Souffle goes a really long way. Unlike the really small boxes of body butters, this box is generously sized and only little Souffle is needed to get adequate moisturizing.

I paid about $15 for this but I honestly feel that this was very much worth the price by all means. I had spent a whole lot on other mass produced moisturizers like Nivea, Suave, St. Ives, Neutrogena!!! None of them stand a chance against Mande Lular.

I've seen it for myself that this Souffle works well on normal and dry-skinned people and I'm not sure about how it works on oily skin. But the bottom line is if you think other spa mositurizers and high end moisturizers are too expensive, Mande Lular might be worth trying. I'm so happy with this souffle that I never bought another moisturizer to even try it out :).

Origins Modern Friction and Modern Fusion review!!

Sometime back I realized that my skin is no longer smooth and soft, and I ended up searching for a product that'll even out my skin tone and make it softer.
I've always used my same body wash on my face as well or I've used Olay facial cleanser, both of which weren't enough to do any good to my face! So, I decided to go searching for some facial product that would do some good to my face.
Basically I have pretty good skin for the most part so I didn't really need something that was very intensive. All I needed was something that would make my skin more clear and nice :). Some of my friends use the 100% organic products but I ruled them out because I couldn't justify spending $60 for a beauty product, besides that I didn't really like it when I tried the sample.
So now having said all that I've tried many of the mass products but none of them really worked consistently. I went to the Westfield Valley Fair Mall that's near Santana Row and I wanted to just see the different beauty boutiques that are there and finally pick something.
Once I was in the mall, I got real curious about the Origins brand, the lady there talked me into buying this Modern Friction buffing paste for the face and the Modern Fusion serum. I tried this stuff on the back of my palm in their boutique and I should agree that I've never seen a better scrub.
I got charged about $75 for both of these and I really wasn't sure if it was all worth it, nevertheless I decided to try the product and if it really doesn't work then I could always return it.
Now that I've been using this product for more than a month, my skin shows very clear improvement. It's quite amazing as to how such really small quantity of the serum and buffing paste work so well.
About the buffing paste, it's not as coarse as the other scrubs in the market and very little quantity stretches all the way and I really like the fact that it lathers with water. I also like the way I'm able to massage this all over my face. The scrub has very clean rice and lemon fragrance which is quite refreshing and nice. I could clearly feel the skin to be soft every time I use the scrub and the result is immediate. I was advised to use the scrub about 2-3 times a week, but since my skin is really sensitive I only use it twice a week sometimes less. I could clearly say that my skin has improved with every use.
Now, to the Modern Fusion serum, I was told to apply this serum after cleansing my face. This serum is supposed to be worn under the moisturizer. Just a couple of drops of the serum helps cover my entire face and it gives a uniform matte finish to the skin and it seems to keep the face clear and nice pretty much through the day. I don't use separate make up or face-powder, it's pretty much the serum and moisturizer and the results are quite amazing. This serum also smells of rice and lemon and is very pleasant and its not as strong smelling as some of the other serums and moisturizers.
I can clearly see that my face has become more brighter and the skin tone has gotten better. I really love these two products. Despite the seemingly high price, I'm fairly certain the buffing paste would last me another 3-4 months and the serum might last atleat another 2 months. So, that makes the cost come down to roughly about $10/month, which is worth it for the kind of results I've seen using these products.
If you are really searching for skincare products that show results, Origins might be really good place to start.

Flowers

I decided to take pictures of the flowers on account of celebrating my birthday last week. It was a great delight for the eyes to see such colorful flowers. Every single one looked so pretty and so different from the others :).

I am posting some of the pictures in the blog...