Confessions of a Bookworm

Bzz! Schick Hydro Silk for Women!

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsay Pasch) — Fri, 08 Mar 2013 15:37:00 +0000

As a BzzAgent, I was recently invited to participate in a BzzCampaign to try the new Schick Hydro Silk for Women Razor, and was curious to try something new. I've been a user of the Schick Quattro for Women for years, but was willing to check it out. Needless to say, I'll be going back to my Quattro. There are two reasons I say this:

First, the "Water-Activated Moisturizing Serum for Smooth, Silky Skin"- this serum does feel nice and smooth on your legs, however it only lasts a couple of uses. Since it's water activated, it depletes rather quickly when you put the razor under some water to rinse it out. You then just have a standard razor, albeit rather bulky.

And second, the "Oval Cartridge with Five Curve Sensing Blades for Close Shave"- They claim "designed specifically for the curves of a woman's body, the Schick Hydro Silk Razor features five independent curve sensing blades to follow your natural shape. The blades also feature skin guards that smooth skin to achieve a close shave while preventing skin irritation." In all the years I've used a Quattro, I've never gotten cut by my razor. In the month I've used the Hydro Silk, I've been cut three times. THREE!!! I don't know if it's the angle of the blades or what, but I keep nicking myself.

I really feel that there are better options out there if you're looking for a new razor!

Bzz! Glade Expressions Oil Diffuser!

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsay Pasch) — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 02:57:00 +0000

I was sent some coupons to get one of these to review from BzzAgent, and was eager to try out the new Glade Expressions Oil Diffuser. For starters, I was seriously frustrated trying to find these things anywhere... I searched every WalMart, Food Lion, and any other store I could think of to try and find these. I ended up finding a few at a WalMart across town, but the only smell available was the Pineapple Mangosteen scent.

The diffuser kit with its various parts

The diffuser on my bedroom dresser!

I'm not opposed to fruity smells, but I definitely don't like this one. It's almost sickly sweet. The only bright side was that the smell only truly lasted a few days. Perhaps I've just gotten used to it, but it's right next to my bedroom door and I originally could smell it every time I walked into my bedroom. Now I can't smell it at all and it's only been up for about a week! For something offering 30 days of fragrance, I'm underwhelmed by the result!

On the bright side, I really like the look of the diffuser. Although I don't like the Pineapple Mango scent, I like the appearance of the diffuser it came with the most out of the scents on the market. It's a sort of bamboo look, with a leafy/flowery design. It's really pretty! I'll definitely get a different smell to try in it next time though (if I can find something different). The diffuser is really easy to use- you just snap the little paper piece into place and the oil diffuses into it. Supposedly the container is spill-free, but I'm not willing to test that theory!

All in all, I don't feel like this thing is all that great. It offers nothing new and innovative to the gazillion air fresheners on the market, it's nigh impossible to find, and the tiny selection of scent options aren't that appealing.

Bzz! Dr. Scholl's Massaging Gel Inserts!

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsay Pasch) — Wed, 11 Jul 2012 00:50:00 +0000

I had the awesome opportunity to give Dr. Scholl's Massaging Gel Inserts a try through a BzzAgent BzzCampaign! I can't tell you how well-timed the campaign was! My sneakers get a lot of use, and their insoles had been pounded completely flat!

The BzzKit! Info, some insoles, and some coupons for friends and family!

Dr. Scholl's says their insoles provide energizing support for tired, achy feet. I don't know about "energizing", but my feet certainly hurt less than they did on my old flat insoles. The Dual Wave Design, comprised of blue gel cushions that provide shock absorption and purple gel that provides support, makes for a very comfortable insole!

Dr. Scholl's provides insoles for men sizes 8-13 and women sizes 6-10, so there is an option for just about everyone! If you go to Wal-Mart, they even have one of those awesome machines that you stand on and it analyzes your feet to determine the best insoles for you! There are many different types:

Work Insoles for work boots/shoes and people who are on their feet a great deal.
Sport Replacement Insoles for active feet, providing arch support and reduced stress on joints.
Extra Support Insoles have arch support for big & tall men and large shoes, and keep feet cool.

My grimy shoes with the insoles

I put the insoles into my shoes and gave them a spin. The only real disadvantage I could find was that this BzzCampaign landed just as summer weather arrived- it's flip flop season now!

All in all, I like the insoles. It was a bit of an adjustment, having support under my feet again. I initially felt like I had something under my heel (ok, technically I did have something under my heel) but once my feet got used to it, I liked the support. I think the use of the term "massaging" is a stretch- my feet felt cushioned but not massaged. My greatest wish is that there was more support for the metatarsal heads. I've got a fallen transverse arch, and need something with a bit more support in that arch. Unfortunately, most shoe inserts only include arch supports, with a flat base across the transverse arch.

For a relatively low-cost, comfortable shoe insert, I'm pleased with the Dr. Scholl's Massaging Gel Inserts. For someone who is on their feet a great deal, it's a great option! I've read complaints from other reviewers that these didn't provide adequate comfort for their various ailments (Morton's Neuroma, recovering metatarsal fracture, etc) and I think they missed the point- these are shoe inserts you buy at the local grocery store for a bit of added comfort, not costly therapeutic orthotics for medical conditions. If you're looking to fix a medical problem, talk to your podiatrist. If you just want some cushion in your shoes, try these!

Interview time!

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsay Pasch) — Fri, 15 Jun 2012 14:44:00 +0000

Approximately a year ago, I was preparing for my applicant interview for the Eastern Virginia Medical School PA Program. It was my second attempt- my interview the year before was a complete fiasco. I was a spaz. I could barely articulate a thought because my people skills were so bad. I spent a year forcing myself out of my shell and even went so far as to travel solo to Europe.

My second attempt was significantly better- I walked away from my interview thinking, "If I don't get in, I'll be amazed." A year later, I'm a member of the EVMS PA Class of 2014, and spend my days smashing as much medical info into my brain as I can possibly retain. I'm totally stoked, because in a few weeks, new interviewees will be here! When I did my interview, the PA students were in charge of guiding the interviewees around the campus and answering questions.

This time, I'll get to walk around with a bunch of nervous wanna-be PAs and answer their questions! I'm so stoked!!! In case there are any prospective EVMS PA Program students out there preparing for their interview in a few weeks, I wish you the best of luck!!!

Glow by Amy Kathleen Ryan

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsay Pasch) — Wed, 13 Jun 2012 00:57:00 +0000

Earth has become uninhabitable, and in a last ditch effort to save the human species, the people of Earth constructed two spaceships. The New Horizon left first, and the following year the Empyrean launched. Each ship carried men, women, and children across space on a voyage that would take 40 years to complete.

Everything seemed to be going as planned on the Empyrean. The only unforeseen consequence of long-term deep space travel was that all of the women were rendered infertile. Fortunately, the scientists on board were able to fix the issue and a new generation of humans was growing happy and healthy. Why then had the Empyrean caught up to the New Horizon? The New Horizon should have been light-years ahead of the Empyrean. And why wasn’t the captain of the Empyrean explaining anything to his crew?

Waverly’s Utopian life is about to be disrupted in ways she never imagined possible. Being the oldest of the girls, she must overcome her fear and anger to help save those dearest to her.

One of the things I particularly liked about the book is that the characters are not outright good or evil- the reader is forced to consider the situation and determine which character they believe is right/wrong/good/evil. Is the ruthless but efficient leader the best to have in a time of strife? Or is the leader that brainwashes his followers whilst inspiring them into action a better option? Situations are rarely black and white in real life, and the author does a great job of showing the indecision, conflict, and struggle that comes with trying to do the right thing but not necessarily knowing the best way to do it.

For the most part, I enjoyed the themes in the book. I’m not usually a fan of books that involve a lot of religion, but the author added an interesting spin to it. If you’re a devout Christian, you may not like the spin much- essentially the religious leaders have warped the Christian message to fit their agendas, which at times seems cruel and fanatical. That said, readers have to bear in mind this is a dystopian future, and sometimes those fanatical leaders try to use religion to justify their actions (Hitler, anyone?).

The book is well written and although the reader is often switching narratives between characters and locations, I didn’t find it difficult to follow the events taking place. Unlike other authors who rely on fluffy adjectives and repetition to fill out their writing (*coughcough*Meyer*coughcough*), Ryan manages to maintain good narrative flow while keeping the story fairly straight to the point. The characters that were important to the storyline were well developed and the settings were thoroughly described so the reader can visualize the environments.

All in all, this was an interesting, creative, and exciting read! If you’re into dystopian tales and a touch of sci-fi, check out Glow! It’s definitely still your typical teen read (why do authors think all teens want to read about love triangles?), but it has some interesting twists from the norm. As dystopian fiction slowly replaces paranormal romance as the genre-du-jour, I think Amy Kathleen Ryan has the potential to make a name for herself. I look forward to reading the sequel to Glow!

*I received a copy of this book from Amazon Vine in exchange for an honest review.

Guess what today is?!

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsay Pasch) — Fri, 01 Jun 2012 16:04:00 +0000

Today is Morgan Freeman's birthday! And Marilyn Monroe! Oh, and mine!

Today I'm

Hooray! 25!!!! It's the first birthday I've had on a Friday in FOREVER. My plans? A couple of friends are coming over and we're going to walk to the Mexican restaurant around the corner for noms and drinks. Afterwards, we're going to watch North & South and obsess over Richard Armitage with my Armitage Army Twitter friends. Tonight is the kickoff of a weekend-long North & South Tweetfest! Join us!!!

Totally stole this from RecycledVinyl's Tumblr :)

Bzz! Garnier Fructis Sleek & Shine!

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsay Pasch) — Tue, 29 May 2012 22:21:00 +0000

I'm back with another BzzCampaign to share with you! For those of you that are unfamiliar with BzzAgent, agents such as myself are sent campaign based on our interests and we are then asked to write reviews about our experiences. This time around, I received a bottle of Garnier Fructis Sleek & Shine for Frizzy, Dry and Unmanageable Hair shampoo and conditioner! I've spent the past few weeks trying it out, and now I'm ready to share my experience with you!The BzzKit came with both a 13 fl oz bottle of the shampoo and conditioner, as well as an info sheet!

The BzzKit!

The shampoo and conditioner contain Argan oil from Morocco, which will keep your hair sleek and smooth for up to three days, even in 97% humidity. They say it will work best on dry, frizzy, and unmanageable hair to make is 10x smoother. It treats hair to the core, still rinsing clean. Other products in the line include Intensely Smooth Leave-In Conditioning Cream, Anti-Frizz Serum, and Frizz Defeat Deep Conditioning Treatment.

I can't say my experience with this product was stellar- I'll begin with a few of the obvious traits of the product... Both the shampoo and the conditioner smell really good. The scent is fruity and fresh, which is great when you need a pick-up in the shower in the early morning! The consistency of the shampoo is a little watery for my taste- I tend to accidentally squeeze out more than I mean to, which feels wasteful. The conditioner is a heavy sort of cream, thicker than conditioners I've used in the past. It seems to rinse clean though, so I don't mind it.

^ The hotness ^

As far as how my hair is afterwards, I can't say I've noticed a significant difference from before, when I was using Head & Shoulders. My hair is as curly, dry and frizzy as it comes, and I live in an area where it's constantly very humid. If it's not raining, it feels like someone threw a hot wet blanket on you as you walk out the door. For this reason, I was excited to try this product. Problem is, I've also got very oily hair, so pushing it to the three day mark to test out the shampoo was a bit of a trial. In the end, I concluded that I can't go three days without washing my hair. It just looks too gross. In the picture on the left, that photo was taken on day two. You can see a bit of frizz, mostly as you look towards the bottom. Most of the hair on top of my head is fairly well controlled by the excessive amounts of oil my skin feels the need to secrete. That's hot, right??

Since the three day claim was shot, I was left to hope for results with taming my out of control hair. In the end, I experiences little progress on that front. In fact, my mom was walking behind me the other day cracking jokes about how frizzy my hair was. Mind you, I'm not the sort of girl who busts out a straightener each day (in fact, I have no idea where my straightener is), so I can't account for how well the hair remains under control after having been straightened. I usually just resort to throwing my hair into a ponytail or a braid because it's driving me crazy. I will say my hair seems well moisturized, although that alone isn't really enough to sell me on a shampoo.

As of right now I'd give this shampoo a 3/5 stars, however I intend to further this experiment a bit... Part of my problem is that I'm in severe need of a haircut. No matter how much a shampoo claims to be able to repair busted hair, there's only so much that can be done. My ends are in serious need of a trim. It's possible I'll like the results of using this shampoo better once I don't have a mess of dry and split ends. So keep an eye out, as I'll update this post in a couple of weeks with a post-haircut opinion!

If you're interested in checking out Garnier's new line, you can find them on Facebook, where you can get product updates and enter in giveaways!

Also, I've got some e-coupons for anyone who is interested in trying the latest Garnier! Click here to check them out and print them!

My Bucket List!

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsay Pasch) — Sat, 26 May 2012 18:42:00 +0000

I've made a Tumblr! It's my bucket list, so I've sort of made main categories and whenever I think of something I want to do before I die, I'll put it on there! These are a few of my favorites (some are from other sites, the one's with the "VaBookworm" in the bottom corner are obviously mine)!

Reestablishment Pt III - Vacation

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsay Pasch) — Fri, 18 May 2012 20:00:00 +0000

As I said on Monday, we are given 3 breaks in our academic year- one week in April, one in August, and two at Christmas. I'd been planning my April break for some time- I wanted to go back to London! I'd missed some things on my last trip, so I wanted to go back and see them. It just so happened that my mom's 50th birthday was the Sunday at the end of that week, and she's always been a bit of an Anglophile like myself, so I made the plan with my dad to take my mom to England for her 50th! My Grandma (mom's mom) also came along, which was awesome because she's never been overseas either!

The trip was incredibly whirlwind- we landed on Saturday and left on Thursday. We stayed in the St. Simeon Hotel in Kensington, which was awesome! Our room was a quad, and the hotel served a full English breakfast every morning. The neighborhood was great too- I never felt unsafe walking back to the hotel at night!

Saturday was a day of rest (I didn't want any of the old fogies dropping on me from jet lag). We visited some family friends and the old folks napped.

Mom, myself, Grandma, and Dad at our friends' house

Sunday and Monday were tour days- we saw the big sights in London, and I got to play tour guide. I also got to go see the Crown Jewels, which I missed last time. We also happened to be in town for the London Marathon, and we got to go into the Globe Theatre because it was open free to the public! I had a lot of fun showing my family around!

Silhouette of Powerless Structures, Fig. 101 by Elmgreen and Dragset

The National Gallery in Trafalgar Square

Tuesday we did a day trip! We opted for a Bath, Stonehenge and The Cotswolds tour through a company called International Friends, which I highly recommend! Our tour group was only about 15 people, and we rode in a large comfortable van. Our tour guide Tony deviated from our route a few minutes to stop off and show us the Avebury Stones, the largest stone circle in Europe.

We then stopped in Lacock, a beautiful medieval village in the Cotswolds. I was super stoked because I got to see some locations used for filming in some of my favorite films, such as the road used as Meryton in Pride and Prejudice ♥!

I want to live here. This house = mine in the future.

The house used as Harry Potter's parents' house in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone!

The house where Dumbledore and Harry found Slughorn in Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince!

Then we headed on to Bath where we went through the Roman Baths and then we grabbed some lunch. I didn't eat because I wasn't feeling well, but mom, dad, and Grandma all grabbed a Cornish Pasty to try. We then went into an awesome Alice in Wonderland-themed tea shop and had a cream tea! This was the first time I'd ever had clotted cream, which I've wanted to try for ages, so I was thrilled!

I think this is what I miss the most...

On the way back to London, we stopped at Stonehenge. It's not the most thrilling place to visit, but it's definitely interesting!

My parents and I (Grandma was taking a break in the van) at Stonehenge!

Wednesday we hopped on the train and went to check out Windsor Castle! It was a fun day, although it was pouring the entire time. Fortunately we seemed to keep hitting the breaks in the rain whenever we went outside!

We left on Thursday morning, and I was bummed to go. I was, however, glad to go because I had unfortunately been sick the WHOLE trip. The night before we left for London, I started feeling sick, and it hit me full blast by Tuesday. I spent a lot of time chatting with the local pharmacists, trying to find something to alleviate my symptoms so I could enjoy the trip. I was especially bummed because I was supposed to be meeting a friend while in London but I had to bail on him. Sometimes I seriously hate my immune system! I didn't end up getting better for a couple of weeks. I have no idea what was wrong, and the doctor's office said everything came back negative. Whatevs...

Overall, the trip was incredibly fun, and I'm glad I was able to see the things I'd missed and share it with my family! If you're interested, you can see all of my photos from my trip here and here! I also miss the cream tea terribly... When I fix a cuppa, it's not nearly as good, and I miss clotted cream! Unfortunately I'm back at school now, but I'm already toying with when I could go back. Next time I want to see more of the UK, but I'm not sure when I'll be able to go. Maybe next April!

Reestablishment Pt II - Health

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsay Pasch) — Thu, 17 May 2012 23:15:00 +0000

Along with being buried in school, I've been working hard on getting back into shape. Between my asthma and various other medical issues, I've been making excuses for far too long. EVMS offers a deal where you can get a YMCA membership (which is normally like $60/mo) for $20/mo. The Anytime Fitness by my house had just shut down, so I was in the market for a new gym, and this one happened to be $15 less than I had been paying!

So I joined the Y, and started hitting the gym. My primary goal is to lose weight... Working the desk job didn't do a whole lot for my fitness levels and I'm not happy with my current level of health. I have no idea how people allow themselves to become obese... I'm a few pounds overweight and I'm going mad! My starting weight when I joined the Y was 175 (I'm 5'6") and I couldn't run a mile. When I was in high school, I weighed 130lbs and thought I was overweight. I'd give my right arm to be back to that!

Early in the first semester, one of my classmates managed to talk me into participating in a race. We signed up for the Tough Mudder in September. Are you familiar with this race? It's 12 miles of slogging through mud trenches, ice cold water obstacles, 12-foot walls to climb over, and more. There's even one obstacle where you run through a field of fire, and another where you run through a bunch of live wires carrying up to 10,000 volts of electricity! Insane? Yes. I have no idea what I was thinking. But I've paid my money, so I need to increase my fitness A LOT before the race!

As a more short-term goal, I decided to enter another race- the Color Me Rad 5k! I talked some friends and my brother into running it with me on May 6th. Who wouldn't want to run it though? It's an untimed 5k during which you get pegged with neon colored corn starch! I spent weeks training myself (as of March I couldn't run a mile) and my goal was to run the whole thing- which I did! I was super proud of myself and we all had a blast! My only regret was that one of the color stations was a liquid color station- they dissolved the purple powder into water. Unfortunately, it was like being sprayed with ink, and we couldn't see the colors as well after being hit with that :(

My team, The Primaries!

The post-race color melee where everyone gets a color pack to throw!

As of now, I'm 163 lbs. It's not great progress towards my goal (140 lbs), but I sort of dropped the ball. Between the week preceding finals and then finals, during which I was studying like a champ, and our week break, I essentially lost a month. I've also dropped the ball on eating better. I need to get back into that. But even having only lost 12lbs, people are saying it's noticeable. So I'll keep working hard!

Reestablishment Pt I - School

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsay Pasch) — Wed, 16 May 2012 20:17:00 +0000

Let me begin by apologizing for my ridiculously long unannounced leave of absence! Life unfortunately became overwhelming and I had to make some decisions as to what could stay and what needed to go. Blogging, and worse still, Netflix, were deemed unnecessary and therefore I abandoned them. So, let me try and catch you all up as best I can!

I want to start with the biggest change in my life- I'm now a full-time student! On Jan 3rd, I started my journey through the Eastern Virginia Medical School Physician Assistant Program. This is the primary reason I disappeared from the web for a while... PA school is FREAKING HARD!!! On the bright side, I learned a lot about myself last semester...

1) I, the student who at one time flipped out if I got anything below an A-, have become very zen regarding my academics (or flippant, depending on how you look at it)! All of our exams are on computers, and as wack as this excuse sounds, I do WAY better on paper exams. Due to a computer glitch, I had to take one of my exams on paper last semester and I got a 100% on it. The remainder of the semester, I was barely surviving. Literally. I even got called into my adviser's office because they were concerned I wouldn't pass pathophysiology (which if you fail, you are out of the program). In our program, you have to maintain a 70% overall. I think I passed Patho with a 72%. I used to cry over the tragedy of getting a B. Last semester, I cried from relief because I managed a B on a Patho exam. Seriously. I bawled the whole way home I was so happy.

2) I hate Vick's VapoRub. I used it to reduce the overwhelming odor of formaldehyde in the cadaver lab. That smell will forever be associated with that lab now. Gross.

3) I have a stomach of iron. You learn a lot about yourself in the cadaver lab... I won't over-share, but suffice it to say I had some incredible experiences! I opened a lumbar spinal column with a chisel and a mallet in order to look at the spinal cord/cauda equina. I watched my professor remove the top of the skull and dissect out the brain. I've seen the effects of smoking on the lungs and drinking on the liver. Most days, I was totally disgusted at what we were doing in the lab, and yet I was right in there with my lab group, dissecting away. A friend of mine observed that what we were doing was essentially what serial killers do. She said it really takes a certain kind of person to do what we were doing (so she groups medical practitioners with serial killers). I couldn't get Dexter out of my brain from then on whenever we were in the lab.

4) I will die alone. So much for ever finding a guy... I met a woman once who said her niece essentially disappeared for 2 years while she was in the EVMS PA program. I thought she was exaggerating. She wasn't. You go to school in the AM, you're on campus all day, and when you eventually get home in the evening, you hit the books. You get one week off in April, one week in August, and two at Christmas! Otherwise, holidays don't exist. I spent 10 hours on campus on a Saturday!!! At this rate, I won't have time to meet a guy until I graduate when I'm 26.

Even though last semester was incredibly hard, I pulled through and actually really enjoyed it! The cadaver lab was a unique, albeit gross, experience that not a lot of people get to have! I've made an amazing group of friends and really look forward to the rest of my time at EVMS (so long as I continue to pass my classes)!

That was by far the biggest reason I disappeared though... I hit a point where I decided that I needed to focus on my school. As much as I love blogging, I really didn't want to fail out after only one semester of grad school! I was really bummed about dropping my blog though, so I'm trying to get back into it. I've also decided to revamp it a bit, so as you can see there's a new layout! I'll be writing up some more posts this week to catch you up some more, but now you know how my academic life has been going :) More tomorrow!

On Hiatus

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsay Pasch) — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 14:00:00 +0000

Long story short, I'm having some time management issues at the moment... I'll be back! I just need a break! Please bear with me!

Bzz! Kroger's Private Selection Frozen Pizzas!

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsay Pasch) — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 03:55:00 +0000

My family and I had the opportunity to try Kroger's Private Selection Pizza as part of Kroger's latest BzzCampaign. I took my coupon to the store to pick out the Private Selection pizza of my choice, and bought the Fire Roasted Vegetable flavor. Admittedly, I was disappointed in the selection. It was either the Fire Roasted Vegetable pizza, or a Pepperoni and Garlic. Apparently they also offer BBQ Chicken and Margherita (my favorite kind of pizza!) but not at my store. Total bummer!

The Fire Roasted Vegetable Pizza is described as having "thin and flaky crust topped with delicate italian style tomato sauce, roasted zucchini, red and green peppers, garlic, yellow onion, mozzarella and garnished with basil." Personally I don't understand why everything that tries to be "artisan" needs to contain garlic (which I hate), but I was glad to find that this pizza didn't taste overwhelmingly like garlic as many do.

Overall, the pizza was really well received. My mom, who was a bit leery about a roasted vegetable pizza was surprised by how much she liked it. My dad mentioned how little sauce there was on the pizza, but I love pizza to be light on the sauce, so it didn't bother me. My brother and I both liked the extra crunch that the vegetables gave the pizza- I love a pizza with some consistency!

Aside from the lack of selection in the grocery store, my only complaint is in regards to the cook time. The pizza is supposed to cook at 425F for 8-9 minutes. Most frozen pizzas take about 15-20, so this seemed odd to me. As it turns out, I was right to find it odd, since the center of the pizza was still cold 9 minutes later. We ended up having to stick it back in for longer to get it to an edible temp! Otherwise, I really liked the pizza! They'll have to get some more flavor options before I run off to buy another, but for only $5, it won't set back my wallet much!

Bzz! Kroger's Private Selection Appetizers

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsay Pasch) — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 03:39:00 +0000

I recently blogged about a BzzCampaign for Kroger's Truly Awesome Chocolate Chip Cookies... I was also invited to participate in another BzzCampaign from Kroger to try their artisan-inspired frozen food line, Private Selection. As a BzzAgent, I was sent a set of coupons that allowed me to get one appetizer, one entree, and one dessert.

When I went to the store, I had a few appetizer options- Mediterranean Inspired Hors D'Oeuvres, Southwestern Style Chicken Trumpets, Mushroom Walnut Profiteroles, Petite Quiches, or Spanakopita. Selections vary by region, so you might be able to find some other options near you!

We (my family and I) decided on the petite quiches, primarily because there were nine in the box, and I wanted enough to share with the fam and get some opinions, but also because I'm a picky eater and they sounded yummiest! According to the box, "Private Selection Petite Quiche Collection is an array of appetizers individually handcrafted in the French tradition with unique and classic ingredient combinations in buttery shells." I seriously doubt someone is in a kitchen somewhere cranking out thousands of quiches a day to ship out to all of the Krogers, so I find the use of the word "handcrafted" to be a bit of a stretch, but that's not important... The box had three flavors:

Classic Quiche Lorraine- Velvety smooth custard with Gruyere cheese, cream and bacon in a buttery shell
Spinach Florentine Quiche- Spinach and heavy cream mixed with Gruyere cheese in a buttery shell
Mushroom Quiche- Finely chopped mushrooms and diced onions in a buttery shell.

The Classic Quiche Lorraine was my least favorite, but I dislike bacon cooked into my food. Everyone else enjoyed them, and in my dad's words, "Yep... Tastes like Quiche Lorraine!" So at least you know it tastes right (I wouldn't know, as I've never had it)! The Spinach Florentine Quiche was my mom and my favorite. We both love spinach though. Dad, on the other hand, was just "Eh..." about it. I alo enjoyed the Mushroom Quiche, however the first thing out of my brother's mouth was, "Their idea of 'finely chopped mushrooms' and mine differ significantly." Dad said, "It's good because it doesn't have an overly strong mushroom flavor." Mom, who doesn't like mushrooms in her food even liked them a little. For the most part, my older brother enjoyed all of them (although he's a 26 year old guy, so food is food to him).

Overall, everyone really liked the quiches! They had good texture and flavor, and the buttery shell was delicious! Everyone had their favorites, but we definitely liked all of them! The appetizer options only run $3-$7, so they're a great deal! I could definitely see us getting them again in the future when we entertain guests or something!

Bzz! Are you Smarterer?

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsay Pasch) — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 14:00:00 +0000

Have you heard of Smarterer? It’s a website full of tests on the most popular digital, social, and technical skills of the day. Think you know Microsoft Word? Or Tumblr? How about Facebook? Smarterer uses the crowd-source method of developing questions, meaning you can submit questions for others to answer. As you answer questions, you can improve your rank overall as well as earn badges.

BzzAgent asked me a while back to have a go with the website and weigh in... We were asked to play the BzzAgent Smarterer Quiz, which drills you on every possible bit of info related to BzzAgent. Some questions were fairly obvious, such as "What level comes after Busy Bee?" while others were incredibly hard such as, "Where did the BzzAgent company outing recently take place?" (How should I know that?!).

I suppose my biggest question about this site is, “What’s the point?”

Crowd-sourced tests are popular around the web- you can answer thousands of questions on GoodReads about books and see where you rank on your book knowledge, or even take silly tests around the net to determine which Disney princess you would be or which Hollywood hottie you’d be best matched with. The thing is, whereas comparing my book knowledge against others seems appealing (Goodreads), I can’t say I care too much about how well I know Twitter in comparison to my peers. Maybe it’s because I know I don’t know jack about it... I use social networks on a basic level, and have no desire to know more. Social networks are not the most important things in my life (gasp!).

I am also not a huge fan of crowd-sourced tests... Any Tom, Dick, or Harry can post a question and the answer they believe to be correct. Unfortunately, you end up with contributions from people who are far from being pros on the subject matter themselves. You can mark a question if you know it to be incorrect, but if someone submits a seriously obscure question like “In what year did blahblahblah establish the blahblah part of the blahblah website?” how would most people even know whether it was them or the question author who was wrong?

I suppose social networking enthusiasts and geeks would love to see how they compare. Maybe there is someone out there who truly cares about how well they know Microsoft Excel compared to their peers. For me, it was interesting to toy with, but I doubt I’ll jump onto that site when I’m bored or procrastinating.

Bzz! Maybelline Baby Lips & Lots of Lashes!

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsay Pasch) — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 14:00:00 +0000

As a BzzAgent, I often get to try awesome products, as well as share some with friends. On this occasion, I had the opportunity to participate in the Maybelline campaign and try their new Baby Lips Repairing Lip Balm with SPF 20 and Lots of Lashes mascara.

I was actually pleasantly surprised by the amount of stuff that arrived from BzzAgent for this campaign- A whole box full of lippy and mascara! Plenty to share with people as I bzzed about it! I received five sets, so I kept one for myself and shared the other four. And of course, I had first dibs on the flavor!

I liked the “Great Little Grabber” brush for the Lots of Lashes Mascara. It has a good shape that makes applying the mascara easy and quick. It's a washable mascara that they claim builds volume with each coat. It's also labelled as "contact lens safe". The mascara looked really good, although I wish it was waterproof. I had a good laugh the other day and ended up looking like I’d been punched in the eye!

The lippy is awesome! It's clinical strength, and according to the packaging, it'll make your lips 82% visibly less dry, 94% less rough, 77% more supple, and 77% better looking (based on a 4 week clinical study). It also protects from sunburn with the SPF 20! I kept the fruit punch flavor for myself. I love the flavor, although the baby pink color isn’t exactly the best shade for me... My cousin tried the cherry flavor and loved it! She said she loved the color because it was just enough color to look nice but not intense like lipstick. I really like the feel of it- it’s really smooth, so my lips feel silky soft!

There are loads of yummy flavor options! Quenched (clear & flavorless), Peppermint (clear), Cherry Me (red), Grape Vine (purplish), Pink Punch (bubblegum pink), and Peach Kiss (a nude-ish color).

I handed out samples of the lippy and mascara to family and friends and overall they’ve been well received. One positive comment I received on the mascara was “It separated my lashes and there was no clumping.” On the flipside, “Not much volume, but it was nice for a casual look.”

So if you’re looking for a nice, casual daytime look, I’d recommend Maybelline Baby Lips Repairing Lip Balm with SPF 20 and Lots of Lashes mascara! The lippy will provide just a hint of color whilst protecting your lips and making them feel silky soft, and the mascara will give some color to your lashes! If you’re hitting the club, look elsewhere, but if you need a subtle look for everyday wear, these are for you! Plus, they’re perfect stocking stuffers!!!

Bzz! Kroger's The Truly Awesome Homestyle Chocolate Chip Cookie

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsay Pasch) — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 19:16:00 +0000

Have you tried Kroger’s The Truly Awesome Homestyle Chocolate Chip Cookies? As a BzzAgent, I was sent a box of them to try and review! Unlike most store-bought cookies, they are made with real butter, are twice the size of typical store-bought chocolate chip cookies, and artificial color and preservative free!

I liked the taste of the cookies. They did seem to have that certain taste that only home cooked cookies seem to have. Perhaps it’s the use of real butter? I’m not sure. I don’t have the distinguished palate to tell you what exactly it is that I taste, but there’s that certain flavor... I know you know the one! It’s that hint of something that you never find in a Chips Ahoy or Pepperidge Farm cookie.

The consistency was typical of store-bought cookies... It is a crunchy cookie, not a soft one. In fact, it’s downright crumbly. I opened my first package of cookies to find a tray full of cookie dust. I prefer a softer cookie, which to me is more reminiscent of a home baked cookie, so I found the consistency a bit disappointing. According to the box, you can microwave them for a few seconds so they’re a bit softer and warm like just baked.

Compared to other cookies, these seem to be fairly level in terms of nutrition. For two Chunky Chips Ahoy (a single serving), it's 40 more calories. Same total fat, although the Kroger cookies have 15mg more sodium in a serving. The Kroger cookies have 8 less grams of carbohydrates, and one gram less sugar, but also a gram less protein, no calcium, and less iron. So it's a fairly even trade-off, since one of the Kroger cookies is a close size equivalent to two Chunky Chips Ahoy.

This product grates on one of my biggest pet peeves- poor grammar. What were they thinking, calling their cookies THE Truly Awesome Homestyle Chocolate Chip Cookies? Why must there be a ‘the’ in front??? I refuse to say, “I enjoyed Kroger’s The Truly Awesome cookies.” It sounds much better to say, “I enjoyed Kroger’s Truly Awesome cookies.” That is a total fail on the part of the individuals who came up with the name.

Overall, the cookies were not amazing enough for me to be willing to drop the coin on a pack of them on a regular day. That said, I’m using one of the coupons I was sent to buy a pack to take to Grandma’s for Christmas. We’re all sugar junkies in my family, so I think they’ll go over well!

Pssst!

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsay Pasch) — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 14:48:00 +0000

Wanna know a secret? I'm moving!

Blogging has pretty much fallen to the backburner at the moment, and I apologize for that... Life is just a bit too overwhelming at the moment! Between work at the bank, work at the schools, and preparing for the craft show, I'm slammed. And to top it off, I'm getting ready to start PA school (48 days!!!!!!) and I've decided to move out of my parents' house.

It was time. I need my space to study and stuff without being constantly interrupted. I was looking into getting an apartment, but my brother offered up the front bedroom of his house at an unbeatable price- and I'm over there all the time anyway, so why not? He had been talking for months about converting it into his office, but he never did... and frankly, I think he's just so lonely in that house that he's depserate enough to take me on as a lodger :)

So Monday through Friday I'm working my two jobs as well as spending my evenings prepping for the craft show, and on the weekends I'm prepping walls, painting, tearing out carpet, reflooring, etc etc (the room has been seriously neglected up to this point). Things will cool down once the craft show is done and I've moved, but in the meantime, please bear with me!

The Holstee Manifesto

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsay Pasch) — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 17:50:00 +0000

Sometimes when I'm feeling aimless or stressed, I read this. I want a giant print of this for my room...

Occupy Protests: Weighing In

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsay Pasch) — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 12:35:00 +0000

I'm a poor excuse for someone who considers themselves part of the 99%... I fully support the Occupy Movement, and if I could, I'd take a trip up to Wall Street and join the protests... Unfortunately some of us 99% do have jobs and can't afford to get away from them... There is an Occupy Norfolk protest, but I think there are only about 10 people out there... perhaps this weekend I'll go sit with them :)

I saw the article shown above on the Huffington Post this morning, and it really ticks me off! The 1% is squelching the 99%'s voice... It really is disgusting! My brother thinks the whole Occupy thing is just a bunch of socialist crap, but I totally support it. Mind you, I'm 24 with a bachelor's degree, I work 2 jobs, 60 hours per week, and barely make $20k per year. He is 26, owns his own house, works one job, 40 hrs per week, and makes $85k per year. He's still part of the 99% though...

Seriously though, why are our educators (the people training our future!!!) making $35k/yr while a jock runs around a field once a week for $10mil per game? You're telling me they really NEED all of that?? These are three of my favorite infographics:

Disgusting, right? A president at a local Uni recently added some "pork" to a local bill that was providing money to the school in exchange for some land so the city could build a transport system around the outskirts of the campus... Apparently the president "over budgeted' and used the extra cash to add a pool and some nice landscaping to the President's house... Mind you, there was an uproar and he was booted out when everyone found out what he'd done. Regardless, these are the greedy people we have in charge right now.

It's time for change.

FIFA 12

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsay Pasch) — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 14:38:00 +0000

I have been on a mad sprint to make products for an upcoming craft show at one of the schools I work at... I won't have nearly enough made in time. Fortunately, I've decided to make a catalogue and hopefully I can get some custom orders!

On the bright side, soccer season is officially over. Speaking of soccer, have any of you played FIFA 12? I got it for my XBox... it's ADDICTIVE!!! I made my own player. He's a super hot ginger. I'll have to share a pic :) They let you customize a person just like the Sims, so I spent over an hour just customizing my guy. He plays for DC United. I need to figure out how to demand more money. He makes $10k per week, but he's work $5.5mil. How unfair is that?

Sitting at my middle school soccer games, watching the never-ending suckiness that is the ball handling skill of and 11 year old, I couldn't help but keep thinking about FIFA and how my guy can rock the ball :D My only complaint about the game is that I can't sub my guy. He injured his knee at the start of a game, and I spent the whole game limping around, unable to run, and my manager wouldn't sub me! And we were up 10-0!

Worse even, the "knee injury" he'd suffered was a hyperextended knee. That's a mechanisim of injury, not an injury. It can cause torn ACLs, muscle strains, etc. I was very peeved. Did they think people working in sports medicine wouldn't play it? What an annoying oversight!

Nevertheless, it's an awesome game! I haven't been able to play much yet, but I will hopefully have some free time this weekend!

Life goes on...

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsay Pasch) — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 12:38:00 +0000

You wanna know what bothers me the most about this job at the bank? I don't exist... I'll send out an email instructing someone to do something or to send me something, and they call the other HR Specialist, who is sitting 20 feet away from me, to ask questions/complain or whatever! Apparently I put in a typo on one file that I sent in to someone... so she called V and asked her to relay to me that I need to be more careful! Why not just tell me, instead of make me look like a moron??

And what ever happened to active listening? I especially love when I send an email out to an employee, signed "Lindsay" and they come back, "Hey Linda,". I love knowing that they paid so little attention to my two sentence email that they didn't even read through to the end where my name was written!

Today is what? Hmmm... Oct 24... I have a soccer game tonight. I'll be glad when the season ends. Two more weeks! And only a month and a half until I finish up at the bank!!!! I'm so stoked about school! I finished up all my health requirements. It sucked because they required two TB tests. I know it's totally irrational, since I know it's a shot and I watch them inject it, but TB tests freak me out because they look like a spider bite. I had to cover them with a bandaid because I'd feel a touch of panic every time I looked at my arm. Mental, right?

I really have no exciting updates for all of you... How much do I suck lately? I've just been working like mad, trying to save up my money and get ready for school. Hopefully once the season winds down, I'll have more free time... Unfortunately since I'm covering 4 games per week at the moment, I pretty much get home in time to shower and go to bed and then repeat the following day. It's exhausting!

Eagle Eyes

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsay Pasch) — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 02:45:00 +0000

I came across this image with my Stumble button and it made me laugh because I feel like this every time I put on a new pair of glasses. I thought some of you might find it funny as well :D

Craftiness :)

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsay Pasch) — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 16:46:00 +0000

I've been a seriously remiss blogger lately... My sincerist apologies for that! Unfortunately the two jobs are just wearing me out, and by the time I get home in the evenings/mqake it to the weekend, all I want to do is veg.

Fortunately, there are only a few weeks left in the fall season, and then I'll be on a more normal schedule, as right now I'm covering 4 games per week. Madness, right? It's exhausting! Fortunately the broken bones have stopped, although I ended up with 6 (3 arms and 3 legs) within the first two weeks of the season.

So, what have I been up to? Not much... I've been working on various small projects, and I think I might actually be participating in a craft show in December! I'm going to sell my bracelets/painted jars and such.

My Etsy shop has actually been doing really well! I'm honestly a bit surprised... But I'm constantly coming up with new things to make and have a lot of fun keeping my hands busy and taking my mind off life for a bit whenever I'm making something.

I promise I'll get back on the ball with the blogging! For now though, I have to get back to work :(

Two Book Box Winners!!!

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsay Pasch) — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 14:16:00 +0000

Because I've been painfully remiss, I'm drawing TWO Book Box winners pooled from the July through Sept entries (there were only 5, so it's not like pooling the entries is killing chances)! Each will get to select 2 books from the box!

The winners are...

ArtsyBookishGal and RB's Wildly Original UN!!!

Congrats! You have 48 hours to contact me (email is to the right) with your book selection (up to 2 books) and your mailing address! Otherwise the books remain in the box until the next drawing!