So here are some tips about maintaining nice nails for those low maintenance folks like me.

1. Keep it short.  The trend now is in between square and oval (more oval though). 
2. Use a nail file to round off the edges. (I keep one handy in my purse).
3. Don’t shake your nail polish, it will only create bubbles which dry it out faster.  Instead, roll it between your palms.
4. Use nail polish remover to remove oils on the nails before applying anything - this will ensure extra longevity to your color.
5. Use a base coat - always.  It acts as protection and some formulas help nourish the nails.
6. To sustain the color, paint 3-4 thin layers (rather than 1-2 thick layers) to minimize peeling. 
7. Use a top coat (or the base coat again).  You can paint beyond the nail surfaces and around the nails to seal in the edges.
8. To maintain the color, repaint a top coat every 2 days.
9. For mothers who have lots to do, painting your nails is the last thing you do before you go to bed to maximize your drying time.  Brush your teeth, wash your face, change and go wee wee.  Then paint your nails (giving about 2-3 minutes between coats) and just go to sleep with your hands out.  Hopefully, nothing too serious will indent your color and you’ll wake up to a fully dried and fantastic looking manicure.  According to professionals, nails take a full hour to dry completely (unaided).
10. If stretched for time, use just at top coat.  It’s still classy.
11. Don’t keep chipped or ruined nails around.  Remove it with nail polish remover.  Colorless, clean and consistent nails look way better and more professional than a poorly kept manicure.
12. Be smart when going rough on nails.  Use gloves for dishes or gardening.  Use a thin towel to open cans, jars or flip tops (these will certainly kill your tips).

I’ve opted for doing an at home manicure for a few reasons.  After my kids are down, I do have some spare time - and I’ve been contemplating about getting some color on my plain jane nails.  Secondly, yes gel nails can last up to a month, but then I’d have to deal with the month growth, which might get annoying.  Plus, there is a risk at salons (especially the cleanliness of other people’s tools) and I’d have to find the time to go out during my work hours to get it done.  So I’ll see how my at-home manicure fares and if it’s too much trouble, I’ll just stick to clear.

It’s kind of nice though, seeing my fingers with colors.  To be fair, there is a bit of peer pressure at work here because most of the professional women at my office have their nails done and I’m feeling left out.  It definitely has to do with the industry I’m in - but like I said, if doing my nails and maintaining it is becoming too much of a pain the ass, I’ll just go back to being plain jane.

A picture of my completed manicure below.  I know, I didn’t push or cut my cuticles.  I didn’t soak or cream my hand before hand.  I didn’t even clean up some of the out-of-the-line color (just at teeny bit).  But it’s a low maintenance approach that’s still OK looking.  I think I could have picked a better color, but it didn’t occur to me until I woke up the morning after.  Next time.

An article about Bianca in The Whig - “Vibrant woman loved to help people”

A very close cousin of mine just passed away a few days ago.  It was and still is a shock and tragedy because she was killed in a car accident half way around the world in Australia.  The thing is that you normally read about stuff like this in the paper or on the news and it’s with people whom you don’t know, but this is hitting home (minus the close to). 

I remember when we will were little, we would sleep over at her house or vice versa and we’d play Princess with blankets or just laugh at nothing or run around her back yard with the swing set and freak out at the spiders in her mom’s green house.  She had the most infectious laugh that I think we’d call her giggle queen.  Her nick name was Bonkers and most of her Tong cousins would call her that.  I remember still doing CASA with her during our stint together at University of Waterloo because I’d given up on CSA after hanging out with too many FOBs and wanting to go back to my CBC roots. 

Bianca was always a smart cookie.  She was gifted and bright and independent as hell.  She wasn’t afraid to express her opinions and she was an amazing piano player.  She had a warm heart, big smile and was experimental with almost everything!  She was a free spirit who loved to laugh and often made others laugh as well.  I will miss her sorely.  Very sorely.  So this post is for her.  In memory of her.  She is now coming home to Toronto/Kingston where  she will have her final resting place.  

I can’t say anything but amazing things about her because she was one of the good people.  We often saw eye to eye on many things and because of Bianca, me and my sisters enjoyed many parts of our childhood - either just playing good cops and bad cops (and her brother, being the only boy would be the bad cop) or tweezing eyebrows as we got older.  There were also many times of Wonderland adventures together because we all joined a family season’s pass (same last name, so no one checked) and we just went there everyday in the summer.   

For me, there is healing in sharing.  And I share this with you so that you know how great she was.

Bianca, you have made us all proud in every way.  You were an amazing person who achieved much and lived even more.  Love you babes - forever.

Bianca Tong, 1981 - 2010.

Photo:  Courtesy of cousin Connie

Lately, I’ve been sleeping REALLY well.  It’s probably the best sleep I’ve had since being pregnant with baby #1 back in September of 2006.  Yes,  that’s almost 4 years of unmanageable, poor sleep.  Can you believe it?  Although I don’t sleep in anymore (nothing past 7:00 AM), my nights are still crash sleep and I feel pretty rested afterward.  So how did I do it?  Read on my sleepy friend, read on!

The sleeping place is what it is.  A place to sleep.

I don’t have computers, television or anything distracting in my sleeping chambers.  Although I will read in bed or play with my iPhone, these little moments to myself actually help me turn off my brain and prepare for sleep.  I don’t make my room a multi-tasking zone where I can work, play, eat and dream.

Physical comfort comes first.

My dad used to work for a first-class mattress company so we always got the best sleeping goods.  I still apply this rule to my home and bed.  Rotate mattresses if needed and buy a new one at least once every 10 years (less if your kids use it as a jumping platform).  I also don’t settle for foam mattresses and do buy a mattress with a firmer feel - definitely better for your back and posture.  Plus, I don’t cheap out on the blankets and pillows.  You’re sleeping in this thing for 8 hours a day, which is a quarter of your life, so invest in it.  Yah, can you argue that most people don’t sleep 8 hours a day, but I do (at least).  As well, if I’m freezing in my blankets, I have trouble sleeping - so my new best friend isn’t my husband, it’s a hot water bottle!!

Prioritize your sleep.  #1!!

When I tell people I sleep at 9:00 PM, most people laugh at me.  That’s because as ludicrous as it sounds, HKers are probably still at work at 9:00 PM.  Well, that’s where my prioritizing steps in.  I don’t work crazy hours, nor will I ever.  You might say I’m lucky to have a choice in this, but I see it as both opportunity and personality.  When I was an avid WOW (World of Warcraft addict), I chose gaming over sleeping - but now sleeping is way more important than gaming.  You just have to prioritize that sleep is more important than surfing, gaming, reading, or playing and implement.  Mind over matter.

Dark and quiet.

Some people sleep like the dead.  Not me.  Since having babies, I’m a light sleeper (you have to be to do night feedings).  My rooms are PITCH BLACK and if you can’t get true quiet (typical HK apartments), have something that creates some white noise to filter out the noise pollution (Air Conditioners and Dehumidifiers and Air Purifiers will suffice).  You’d be surprised how light and noise can kill your sleep cycles.

Sleep train your kids.

I didn’t do this with my first kid, but did it with my second and it has been magical.  I will put her in her crib, give her her stuffed companion, her 5 pacifiers and tell her to go to sleep and she does!  I know it sounds great, that’s because it is, but I didn’t get there easily.  Sleep training takes patience, commitment and consistency - and a bit of a steel heart.  By sleep training your kids, they know how to fall asleep on their own.  This also means that if they wake in the middle of the night, they can fall back asleep without your aid.  Read on How I Got My Baby To Sleep Independently.

Build a routine for your body.

I think my body is so routine that it knows when to shut down - ie: 9:00 PM is nearing and I feel the neuron velocity of my brain slow down.  The one thing I never do is nap.  That will certainly kill my routine.  Some people can nap regularly, and it’s great if it’s a routine thing - but napping might also be a sign that you’re not getting enough sleep.  Again, there’s no right or wrong for a routine, but it’s nice to have one.

Find underlying medical issues.

Some people don’t sleep well because of REAL physical issues - sleep apnea being the most common.  Must husband has it, my dad’s got it and so does probably half of the human population.  It’s merely a question of how severe.  When you’re lacking oxygen in your body, it’ll kill your awareness and definitely make you sleepy.  This is why my husband is ALWAYS tired.  I’m now in the process of convincing him to buy a machine to help his breathing at night and yes, you’re wearing a mask, but what’s more important - how you look when you sleep (just get used to the device) or the quality of your sleep?  Gee,  I wonder.  If you want to know the truth, do a sleep test.  In Ontario, it’s free if you’ve got OHIP.  In HK, might cost you around $10K HKD but most insurance companies cover it.

Let go mentally.

Easier said than done, but necessary.  If you’ve got problems running through your head and that little voice talking to you while you’re trying to sleep, that just defeats the purpose of true rest.  For me, I’ve discovered how to fall asleep in 10 minutes (maybe less but it seems pretty fast).  I think it got to a point where I was so tired (physically) of being a mom, there was no room for thought.  Plus, I’m able to manage my problems efficiently and quickly so it’s not hanging around at night.  I also don’t bring work home (physically or mentally).  Put the phones on silent - even better, turn off the ringers and leave your cell where you can’t hear it.  I know, what about emergencies?  Hmm.. well, maybe put the phone on a low ring and they can call 10 times if it’s an emergency.

No Crowding.

I sleep alone - physically.  And no, it’s not sad.  Ever since we built the custom bunk for Vanessa, she’s sleeping alone and so am I.  If I sleep with my husband, he snores so loud that it wakes me between sleep cycles, so I kick him or tell him to rotate, which in turn, wakes him between sleep cycles.  If I sleep with Vanessa, she kicks me, which also wakes me.  Now, no one kicks me.  It’s fabulous!  Come on, you can find snuggle time with your kids and husband at ANY TIME of the day.  Like I said before, sleeping is sleeping - I have one single focus to achieve that goal.  While co-sleeping is great (I loved it before), great sleeping is better.  To compensate for my co-sleeping loss, if/when the little one wakes, I’ll gather both kids and try to snooze for another 30 minutes.  It ends up becoming a hug fest.

Poor Victoria. She really wants to go swimming with her older sister, but because she’s still too young, she has to watch on the sidelines. Swim class is completely different from free play.  While Vanessa is now on her  3rd series of swimming classes that she’s doing at Stanford Swim School.  She’s much improved to the point where she can:

• submerge for around 3+ seconds
• dive to retrieve rings or toys on the pool bottom
• swim forward with a flutter board and kick

It’s amazing how fast they learn and once they overcome the fears of water in their eyes and face, the learning is limitless.  To me, swimming isn’t a hobby - it’s a survival skill.  I don’t have expectations of them becoming Olympiads or even lifeguards, but at least they can be strong enough to save themselves if the opportunity arises.  Of course, helping others along the way is an added bonus, but one step at a time.

Below is a photo I took from Tray’s blog - Vanessa, Natalie and Ethan are all in the same swim class.  They warm-up together and play together at the end, but they have 2 teachers that take the older kids to do more advanced stuff and the younger ones just learn the float, kick, blow bubbles, and dip their faces into the water.

So I’m Canadian, why am I giving red pockets?

I sometimes use the double standard that I’m a Canadian who just happens to look Chinese, but I think it did get to a point where me living in HK and having kids have changed how people view me as a Canadian.  Most colleagues are locals and so they don’t really buy that bullshit.  Plus, my husband’s extended family expect it, and so does your security staff where you live, the waitresses and servers you know at the restaurants you frequent and then some of your unmarried friends who try to scrape a buck or two off you.  Plus, with nieces and newphews a plenty, it’s a nice tradition for them to carry since they teach it at school.  This year, I spent 1 hour stuffing pockets.  It’s a tedious thing.

When do you stop giving red pockets?

I’ve heard 7, 10 and 14 days from the first day of Chinese New Year’s from various sources.  Maybe it depends on how much disposable income you have.

What denominations do you give?

The denomination isn’t a reflection of your generosity,  it certainly isn’t mine!  I suppose you give what you feel is within your means.  I’ve heard that during the recessions, people were giving far less (ie: SARs) and it should be more symbolic than a means to make money.  I certainly don’t want my kids expecting me to shovel out lots of $$ just for their red pockets.  You know they make “gold” coins out of chocolate right?

Who gives red pockets?  Who receives?

The tradition goes that married people give red pockets.  Sometimes you’ll give/get 2, that means you know the couple - but if you know only 1 person, techically you get one.  Bosses also give red pockets to all their direct reports or staff - that’s just Chinese tradition.  Parents will definitely give to their children and unmarried relatives or younger generation.  I’m still a bit skeptical and gray about how you deal with unmarried “older” people - like people who are my age.  Normally, my husband does give to his friends who aren’t married, but I tend to think there is a line you draw, especially as we get older.  But then, I sit on the fence because it’s merely symbolic and well, Chinese New Year’s is supposed to be a time of giving.

What else goes down during Chinese New Year’s?

You also eat various things like seeds, lotus cake, year cake (aka “nian go” or something like that).  You also tape up pre-printed or scripted traditional sayings that bring luck or health or fortune.    You also visit family and have dinners and lunches through the wazoo… it never ends.  You eat yourself silly and then try to gorge everyone still silly at the same time.   It’s a family and friend time and basically a good time in general.  Some of the weird and wacky traditions I’ve heard from different people:

• Can’t wash your hair the 1st day of Chinese New Year’s (else you’ll wash away all your good luck)
• Can’t sweep your floor either (else you’ll sweep out all the good luck)
• Can’t buy new shoes after Chinese New Year’s (or else you’ll be sighing ["hai hai" in Cantonese] for the rest of the year)
• Shouldn’t visit people’s houses with empty hands (aka bananas, just your fingers)
• When people visit your house, you should have treats and snacks available for them (seeds and stuff)

Anyways, Happy Chinese New Year’s to everyone.  Hope you’re enjoying the holidays like I am - just love spending down time with the kiddies and my family.  Definitely need more of this.

My mother-in-law bought this $5 HKD orange for me from the wet mart.   It’s bigger than a fuji apple (which wasn’t small) and smelled really sweet.  It actually tasted AMAZING - so I wanted to share this find with you.  Not sure where the orange hails from (China no doubt), but it’s not everyday you come across something like this.

1. Do you notice the little black dots on the filler around your tub or sink?  Well that’s mold if you can’t quite scrub it off.  We’ve tried scrubbing with 100% bleach without success, but my helper has a new technique that works.  You soak toilet paper with 100% bleach and line the tub or sink for 1-2 days and it just kills whatever bacterial presence is there.  Great technique at an economical approach.
2. Open your windows to let in both air and light.  As mold prefers damp and dark conditions, it’s best to have air circulating (even though relative humidity outside might be higher than inside) and natural sunlight where possible.  The art of convection (here’s where my Chem Eng degree helps) will hopefully withdraw some of the moisture off the surfaces of your home (walls, furniture, whatever).
3. Don’t let things suffocate.  By this, I mean:  Open your shower curtains to let them dry, don’t keep things enclosed in boxes all the time or if you do - open them from time to time to circulate the air, open your drawers from time to time and keep them opened.
4. Use a dehumidifier strategically.  I will once a week, especially if it’s particularly moist have the dehumidifier on rotation throughout the rooms for 1 night, swinging open as many closets and drawers as possible.  Some air conditioning units will be modeled with a dehumidifier as well and I don’t use hesitate to use them often.  The cost in electricity is far less than the replacement cost of clothing.
5. Take the clothes out to the dry cleaners every so often.  The dry cleaners tend to use HOT water and HOT dryers - by which eliminating both moisture and hopefully kill everything.  Obviously don’t apply this to clothing that can’t withstand heat.
6. Inspect regularly.  I’m a nit-picky freak when it comes to mold, because the spores they give off are harmful to your lungs, so I inspect the walls and clothing pretty often.   Don’t wait until it becomes blatantly obvious, act on the smallest presence of mold.
7. Bleach the walls regularly.  And when I mean bleach, it isn’t in parts, it 100%.  Do this on a day when no ones home or you plan to be out and then air the whole room out after you’ve bleached it all.  This activity both kills whatever is in existance and prevents growth for some time.

UGH, so yes, it’s so much work, but the toss up is that I don’t the problems of having a house - though I’m sure having a house comes with other problems.  You’d be surprised where you can find mold in Hong Kong, it just sneaks up on you and comes uninvited.  GROSS.

You can find the application here: http://www.appsafari.com/fun/7123/fisheye/

So here is a list of my 8 work basics.  And yes, most of it is black.

1. The Little Black Dress. In the winter, I pair with a turtle-neck or a sweater or tights and boots.  In the summer I pair it with sandels.  It’s basic, it’s great, it can be formal or informal.  I have various versions of the little black dress and each one fabulous!
2. Standard Black Pumps. Great for skirts, pants, capris - whatever.   I have about 3 pairs with varying heel heights to match with my mood and pant length.  I personally like the thin-heeled pumps as they are classic and make your legs look great with the right skirt.  Keep them simple and classic and they can last you a life time! 
3. Standard Black Flats.  Ballet flats or simple flats.  Great for work or casual and for those times that you’re standing all day, walking farther or simply giving your knees a break from heels.  To be truthful, I can’t wear heels 5 days a week and so usually 2 out of 5 days I’ll flatten it and give myself a break. 
4. Standard Black Suit.  Basic, that’s all I have to say.  I don’t go extravagant with the style.  It’s basic, it’s simple and it’s re-wearable.  Needless to say, I’ve still got pants from 5 years ago that I’m wearing and a suit that I purchased 4 years ago that’s still in fabulous condition and fits like a charm.  I don’t wear full suits often now, maybe that’s why it can keep so well.
5. Standard Black Turtleneck.  For winter, it’s definitely a basic.  So basic, I have 3 of them so I can wear it as often as I like while the other is in the wash.  I wear them under suit jackets, sweaters, dresses, cardigans - whatever.  And I’ve got them in various materials and thicknesses.  You don’t need a whole lot, just enough to keep smelling clean.
6. Standard Black Sweater.  I’ve discovered that a great sweater can go a long way.  Especially if you’re going into unchartered territory with temperature control.   In the winter, you wear it.  In the summer, it goes in my bag.  Especially in HK, where outside is 30+ and inside is 10 degrees!
7. Standard Black Capris.  Another diverse pant style and paired with heels can make you look fabulous.  I have 2 different types:  skinny capris and straight-legged - both suitable for work depending on how I want to dress.  Can’t live without em.
8. Standard Black Wrap.   I’d say this is probably the one critical one - it’s diverse like a sweater but it can also go formal.  I always keep one at home and one at work and at work, it goes on my clothing whenever I get cold in meetings.  Some are small enough to keep in your bags and if you’re creative or brave enough, you can wrap your head as well.

Yes, I know I’m too much into black.  It’s not to say I don’t buy other colours, but black is always priority.  My husband always laughs that I have too many black clothing and I love black too much - but I’m practical and black is definitely a way to go.  Plus, looking at my closet, I’d say I’ve got a great collection of black clothing that’s lasted me many years - even though the fashions have changed.  Nothing beats black and nothing beats basic.

Read the article here:  Lead Found in Women’s Handbags