Krissyfied X SM Accessories : Macklemore & Ryan Lewis World Tour

When it comes to music, my favorite genres are alternative, indie-rock, and pop-rock. I am not the biggest fan of hip hop and rap but I do enjoy listening to it every now and then. When Macklemore & Ryan Lewis entered the music scene, everyone including myself took notice. I guess you can't win four Grammy Awards and expect to scoot through life unnoticed heh. Ryan Lewis was also interviewed by DJs Mo Twister, Sam Oh, and Mikey Bustos on the Magic Morning Show about three weeks ago and it struck me how eloquent and humble he was that I found myself wanting to go to the Manila leg of their World Tour even though as I said, I am not a big hip hop/ rap fan. I love going to concerts but I've never been to a hip hop/ rap show so it might be a cool new experience.

Thanks to SM Accessories, I will get the chance to do just that! What an awesome advanced birthday gift! Thanks, guys! And because they are extra generous, one reader of krissyfied.com can also win a pair of Lower Box B tickets to the concert!

Check out the Rafflecopter widget below to join.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

This giveaway is open to everyone who will be able to claim the tickets from SM Accessories's office in case they win. The giveaway ends on March 14 and I will announce the winner on the same day. Are you as excited as I am? I hope you are! Big thanks to SM Accessories again!

Macklemore and Ryan Lewis are set to perform at the Mall of Asia Arena on March 16, 2014. Presented by Viber and VISA. Brought to you by Wize & Ope Watches. Official residence is Solaire Resort and Casino. Media partners include 2nd Avenue, ETC, JackTV, MYX, BusinessWorld, Philippine Daily Inquirer, BusinessMirror, Philippine Star, Monster RX 93.1, 105.9 Radio High, 99.5 PlayFM, PEP.ph, ClickTheCity, PhilippineConcerts.com, Wheninmanila, Circuit Magazine, Status Magazine, Pinoytuner, IndieJam.Org, Odyssey, SM Mall of Asia, SM North Edsa, and GrabTaxi. Tickets are available at all SM Tickets outlets, and online or call 470-222. Tickets prices are: Moshpit, P 5940; Patron, P 4770; VIP Standing, P 3180; Lower Box A, P 3500, Lower Box B, 2650. Another world-class production brought to you by Concertus Manila. For more information, call Concertus Manila at 403-8678.

Blessed are the children of the bookworm, for they shall inherit the books.

The weekend has done a lot of good and I feel a lot better since my last post. I just want to turn things around and begin the new month on a positive note, so why not do it by talking about things I love?

Fellow book lovers are most probably already familiar with this site but for those who are not, let me tell you that if you love books then you should open a Goodreads account.

Quick note: I am not affiliated with Goodreads in any way but I am the type of person who loves recommending things to people who might find them great or useful or helpful in any way.

Goodreads is the world's largest site for readers and book recommendations. Launched in 2007, their mission is "to help people find and share books they love." Through the site, you can see what your friends are reading, what they read, and what they would want to read. It's basically a social networking site for book lovers! Here's a link to my account - add me!

If you don't care about any of those stuff, you can still open an account just to have online shelves to keep track of books you have read, want to read, and are currently reading. Browsing books recommended to me according to the genre I have chosen as well as the books I've already added have resulted to a rapid increase of titles being added to my Want-to-read shelf, making shopping for books much easier. When I'm in a bookstore or when I'm going through ebooks, I just have to consult my Want-to-read shelf and base my choices there! I'm happy to say it hasn't failed me so far.

My favorite thing about Goodreads is the way it offers a fast and easy way to look up a title, see the synopsis and other details about the book (like date of publication, different book covers, et cetera), and read reviews to determine whether the book is worth reading or not.

This is the page of one of the books I'm currently reading: The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion

Each book's individual page also shows information about the author, trivia and quizzes, and quotes from the book. Excellent resource for when you write book reviews or when you want a kickass Facebook status or tweet, LOL.

Yes, I am doing my 40 Books for 2014 challenge through Goodreads.
So far I have read eight books. Not bad at all!

For those who are almost always on mobile, you can also install the Goodreads app on your phone. The books' pages only offer the shelving options, the synopsis, and reviews though.

The app also has a Barcode Scan feature that automatically brings you to the book's page when you scan the barcode . I think it's super cool LOL.

Scanning the barcode brought me to...

THIS.

It means I wouldn't have to manually add everything in my Read book because the Barcode Scan will do it for me! Am I the only one who finds it awesome? One of these days, I will be able to update my Goodreads account with all the books I have ever read and it will be ah-ma-zing.

If you've reached this point and you're still reading this, I figure you're a kindred spirit so I'd just go ahead and give you a heads up on this event by Ayala Museum. 

The Printed Word: Revelations of the Book
A lecture and exhibition with book historian Dr. May Jurilla
A lecture on the history of books, printing, and publishing in the Philippines as revealed by the treasures and curiosities by the Rare Books collection of the Filipinas Heritage Library

Again, I am not affiliated with Ayala Museum nor the Filipinas Heritage Library but I do believe in spreading the word out and if you are reading this post then there's a chance you might find it interesting. I've already reserved a slot and if you want to do the same, you can visit this page for more information.

I'm ending this post with a few throwback photos I found while going through my old Facebook albums.

Tagaytay, February 2011

Laguna, September 2011

Tagaytay, March 2012

Tali, February 2013

Except for the last photo, everything was taken candidly on my unguarded moments. It just proves that even on out-of-town trips, my bag won't be complete without a book. That's why I'm so glad I have a Kindle now as it has made carrying lots of titles much easier and my bag a lot lighter 

This coming week is going to be crazy-busy but it's okay. I'm ready. Have a great March, everyone!

When I get sad, I feel really sad.

Kristel Ann Cruz and the Series of Disappointing Events

"We all need a box to escape to sometimes."No one else could have said it better
via

I am stressed, tired, and tired of being stressed. I am exhausted.

This hasn't been a good day. Nay, this hasn't been a good month.

...But the thing about bad days, they make you look forward to days when everything works exactly how they're supposed to. Well, maybe not exactly how they're supposed to, but at least be in such a way that they don't suck. Because to be honest, almost everything sucks right now. I don't like posting sad thoughts here, but yeah, whatever. I am sad and I am allowing myself to be sad so that I can get over it faster.

I've always maintained that one of my "gifts" is that I am not left wanting for friends. Thanks for this, Rica.

No matter how the world is making me feel bad right now, I know my natural optimistic disposition will take over. I'm just counting on this weekend to make myself feel better.

This book, too.
The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion

I can't wait to practice yoga again.

Hope your February's better than mine was!

Divergent? More like Disappointment.

Veronica Roth's Divergent trilogy popped up several times when I was looking for a new series to immerse myself in so I figured I'd add it to my never ending and infinitely growing to-read list. Because the movie adaptation of the first book in the trilogy will be shown on March 21 already, I bumped it up on the list and started reading last Saturday.

Before anything else, please understand that it was difficult for me to write this review. I love stories no matter what form they were told. It breaks my heart, but I have to be honest.

I finished it in just two days, and wow, what a letdown it was.

via

In the post-apocalyptic dystopian universe of Divergent, the people are divided into factions based on the virtue they uphold most: the peaceful belong to Amity, the selfless belong to Abnegation, the brave belong to Dauntless, the intelligent belong to Erudite, and the honest belong to Candor. When they reach the age of 16, they would have to take an aptitude test to determine where they belong, and decide whether to remain with their families or follow the results of the test and transfer to a different faction where they would have to train and be tested as initiates before they can be full-fledged members. Due to some inexplicable twist of fate, Beatrice (who later changes her name to Tris) proves suitable for Erudite, Abnegation, and Dauntless. Apparently it is very rare to have inconclusive results like that, so Tris must hide the fact that she is a divergent lest she is branded a rebel and becomes a target.

Setting aside the fact that this is dystopian literature and fiction almost always calls for suspension of disbelief, I can't get over the premise that humans can have such a one-sided existence - I guess I'm just too fascinated with the human mind's complexity  to believe that you can tie them up with just one virtue for lfe.

But yes, okay, since it's a dystopian world, I'll let it pass. I just wish it could've been fleshed out better since when you think about it, it's an interesting premise. I couldn't help but think the act of dividing people into different factions is kinda like a more hardcore way of sorting Hogwarts students into different houses through the Sorting Hat, though.

Also, does anyone else feel like someone is urgently whispering the word three times back to you whenever the word 'divergent' is mentioned? Divergent...Divergent...Divergent.

It took me a long time to decide whether I liked it or not because I tried to like it. I really did. For something that has so many fans going gaga over, I expected I would enjoy it a little bit more. (Well, Fifty Shades of Grey also has a lot of following and look what happened there; I stopped reading after two pages.) But then, I figured if I had to think that hard, then the odds aren't good. Don't get me wrong, I was entertained by all the action. There were a lot of jumping off and on trains, violence and intimidation, senseless deaths, physical fighting, climbing up and zip lining down high buildings, and senseless deaths, among others. But somehow it felt a little...hollow, like the story's not really moving at all. Did I mention senseless deaths? I waited I waited I waited, nothing. (There were a lot of words being repeated three times as well, probably for emphasis. I didn't not like it, though. I actually like that writing style, but only when it doesn't feel forced nor pretentious.) I kept on looking at the bottom part of my Kindle that tells what percentage of the book I was in, and I distinctly remember that I was already 83% in when something of real consequence started to happen. Basically, the first book in the Divergent series felt like a reeeally long exposition. Kudos to Veronica Roth for painting an expansive picture of post-apocalyptic Chicago, though.

I loved and even highlighted a few quotes, mostly about bravery.

Becoming fearless isn't the point. That's impossible. It's learning how to control your fear, and how to be free from it.

I was meaning to read Insurgent the next morning, and after that, Allegiant. But after coning across several reviews of the two books, I decided not to. I don't feel *that* affected because I didn't get too attached with any of the characters anyway, since they felt like robots to me. I just decided that life is short and I shouldn't waste it on not-so-good books. Not liking the first book in the trilogy was my first clue.

Maybe I'm just dystopia'd out.

via

Of course I'm still going to watch the movie (even if I'm not a fan of the casting). I think Maggie Q and Theo James are perfect.

Did you read Divergent too and liked it? Please don't hate me because of this review. (^_^)

The buzz about The Body Shop's Honeymania Collection

Have I ever told you I like honey? No? Well then I'm telling you now. My aunt's sister-in-law lives in Palawan and she regularly sends us bottles of honey. It's an excellent natural home remedy for respiratory problems and I like taking one teaspoon every night. Excellent for home-made body scrubs, too!

Now I am a bit late in posting this, but... I am buzzing with great news for all my friends who have a sweet tooth: The Body Shop has released a new line too delicious to resist: Honeymania™!

The Body Shop's rich Honeymania™ collection contains products with luxurious textures enriched with wild-harvested Community Fair Trade honey from Ethiopia, leaving skin feeling soft and smooth for up to 24 hours. They say this is perfect for customers with normal to dry skin.

I'm sure you already know how honey smells like. The Body Shop's Honeymania™ collection smells exactly like that, tinged with floral notes; it's a perfect mix of sweet and flowery, but not cloying at all. I actually imagine Cleopatra and other Egyptian queens of old smelling like this when they bathed in honey. I got four pieces from the line: the lip balm shower gel, body butter, and soap.

HONEYMANIA™ LIP BALM

P250

Contains Community Fair Trade beeswax from Cameroon

Deeply moisturizes lips

HONEYMANIA™ SHOWER GEL

P395

Contains moisturizing organically harvested Community Fair Trade honey from Ethiopia

Cleanses skin without drying

HONEYMANIA™ BODY BUTTER

P695

Moisturization that lasts for 24 hours

Contains moisturising Community Fair Trade shea from Ghana, cocoa butter from Ghana, sesame oil from Nicaragua, Brazil nut oil from Peru, and beeswax from Cameroon

HONEYMANIA™ SOAP

P195

Contains moisturizing organically harvested Community Fair Trade honey from Ethiopia

Makes skin feel silky soft

I haven't tried using the soap yet because it has such a unique shape and I don't want it to melt yet LOL. Also, my bathroom is already filled with too many bath products as it is. Still, I couldn't resist the lure of having my own Cleopatra moment with the shower gel, body butter, and lip balm.

I have three other variants of The Body Shop's body butter but I think this one is my favorite. The Honeymania™ shower gel-and-body butter combo is now my go-to scent when it looks like it's going to be a gloomy day - one sniff and I immediately feel better. Perfect for pampering but not sticky like real honey. ;) I don't even put perfume on when I use these two in the morning because the scent stays all day. I still smell like honey when I get home, I love it!

The Body Shop also offers a bubble bath melt and EDT from the Honeymania™ range. I think I'd like to try that EDT as well... Now you guys, don't just take my word for it. Visit a TBS branch near you so you can smell these babies for yourself. Have a great week ahead!

Disclosure: These products were sent to me by The Body Shop team but I was not compensated nor required to write this post. Kindly click here for my complete Disclosure Policy.