This is Halloween!

What made me happy today? This is Halloween!
Happy Halloween or God Samhain, depending on what you celebrate! I'll be spending the evening watching 'the nightmare before Christmas', a bunch of Vincent Price movies and some other scary ones on my couch with my BF.
Stay safe everyone, have a great day, and enjoy your long weekend if you're having one!

Rainicorn!

What made me happy today? Rainicorn!
Michelle Phan's new video is out, she's doing a lady rainicorn look this time. I think it looks really great, maybe I'll try it one day. Sounds like it's adventure time! ;-)
It's a very happy, innocent look, do you think I could pull it off?

Underrated things

What made me happy today? Underrated things!
I stumbled across this Buzzfeed post today, it's about 29 underrated things about being in your late twenties. So relatable!
I confess, I'm scared of that approaching '3' but things like this make me feel a lot better about it :-)

Storms that pass in the night

What made me happy today? Storms that pass in the night.
It's been storming here since yesterday evening. I love storms! The way the clouds are so many different shades of grey, whipping past at high speeds, the colourfull leaves flying by and how the trees bend in the wind.
Of course, storms can do a lot of damage. So far, we've been pretty lucky here, apart from a few trees and some traffic signs, not much else was damaged.
Except for my circadian rhythm. The clock was turned back an hour yesterday, and that's messing with my internal clock. Add the noisy storm to that, and I decided to put in earplugs, in order to be able to sleep. And sleep I did. I even slept through my alarm because it only went off once. Good thing I always wake up early, and that I work flex-time :-)
So storms are pretty, and my internal clock woke me up pretty much on time! Plus, I had a super-productive day at work. I guess I escaped this week's case of the Mondays ;-)

Gedo Senki

What made me happy today? Gedo Senki!
This morning, I watched Gedo Senki (it's Japanese, literally it means Ged's war chronicles), also known as Tales from Earthsea. It's a 2006 fantasy anime, produced by studio Ghibli. So far I've not disliked anything I've seen from studio Ghibli.
And Gedo Senki is no exception. It's another visually stunning piece of work, along with a gripping story line and some great character development. However, Gedo Senki does not have the fluffiness of some of the other studio Ghibli movies (like Kiki's flying delivery service, or Laputa: castle in the sky). This movie gave me goosebumps on more than one occasion, and even had me gripping my BFs hand at one point. Plus, this movie has dragons! Yay, dragons!
The movie is based on the Earthsea series, by Ursula K. Le Guin. I've yet to read these books, but the movie is just based on them and I've been reliably informed there are some major differences between the two.
As for the plot, I'm not going to give much away. There's dragons, wizards, murder and a plot to destroy the 'Balance'. So pick up a copy of this movie, along with some popcorn and enjoy!

Hergé

What made me happy today? Hergé!
Hergé is the creator of the Tintin comics. And as it turns out, there's a museum dedicated to him in Louvain-la-Neuve. So the BF and I decided to go and check it out today.
It's a great museum, if you like Tintin you really have to go there! The entry fee includes the audio guide. And the set-up of the museum is very logical. It takes you through Hergé's life. We spent about 4 hours there.
After that, we grabbed a burger at a place called Zanzibar. Very nice food, amd great service. We also stopped by the local manga / bookshop, called Slumberland.
After that, we took a walk through the city, as the weather is so lovely! So We had a great day so far. I hope your Saturday is as great as mine!

Fast-food Friday

What made me happy today? Fast-food Friday!
We've started a new tradition at work. In my new team, we'll be having fast-food for lunch,  one Friday per month :-)
Today, we ordered Chinese. It was really yummie. Plus, it's fun to have lunch with my coworkers. We tried to limit the work talk, I think we managed pretty well !
I'm looking forward to repeating this!
Have a great Friday!

All the pretty colours!

What made me happy today? All the pretty colours!
It's fall, and the leaves are changing colour. As I was driving home, it was rather sunny, and I noticed some very lovely landscapes too :-)
All those pretty colours are one of the reasons I love fall so much.

These are the days

What made me happy today? These are the days.
Today was a great day. The weather was nice, traffic cooperated, and work went really well. The people at the site today are so nice, friendly and helpful!
After work I decided to quickly stop by my sister, so I saw my goddaughter and niece again :-) They're doing so well, and growing so fast! I couldn't believe how much Roha changed! Roha spent some time just sleeping on my chest. She was crying, so I got to take her out of her crib, and she went back to sleep on my chest :-) My goddaughter is learning new words and things so fast as well. It's amazing to see :-)
After that, I went for dinner with a friend I hadn't seen for quite some time. The food was great, and we had a splendid time catching up!
I should have more days like this!

Kids say the darndest things

What made me happy today? Kids say the darndest things.
During lunch today, the conversation was about kids and the funny things they say. I just wanted to share a few of the gems I overheard with you all. It made me laugh so hard!

Kid: 'Mom, where was I before I was born?'
Mom: 'Well, you were an egg.'
Kid: 'Was I a fried egg?'
Mom: '*speechless*'
Kid: 'What was a doing as an egg?'
Mom: 'Well, you were waiting for a little seed.'
Kid: 'To eat?'

Kid: 'Mom, if I was an egg and my sister was too, how come I never saw her there?'

Kid: 'When are you a grown up?'
Mom: 'When you are married.'
Kid: 'So does that mean that auntie isn't grown up yet?'
Mom: 'Eh, no.'
Kid: 'But you said you're grown up when you're married. Auntie isn't married.'
Auntie: 'I'm not married, but I get to babysit you, so I'm a grown up too! You don't have to be married to be a grown up.'
Mom: 'Eh, yeah, that's true.'

Kids can say the funniest things, what's the best thing you've ever heard a kid say / said as a kid?

New skin!

What made me happy today? New skin!
Hoshi has new skin. Leopard geckos shed their skin when they grow out of it. And, oddly enough, you may not even know it has happened because they will eat their shed skin. No one knows for sure why they do that. Some people believe it's as a precaution against predators, others say it might be to get some nutrition out of it.
The colours of a leopard gecko's skin will become muted, and the skin will have a grey cast to it. Also, Hoshi started behaving a bit differently. She hid almost all day yesterday, and today she was very active. She kept scratching her head and body against the plants and log in her house. So I made sure to raise the humidity a bit, and I also put a humid hide (basically a small box with soaking wet paper towels in it) to help ease her discomfort. And it worked. She's shed all of her skin, and is much happier now :-)
I really like her, and I'm glad she seems to be doing well in her new home :-)

Football!

What made me happy today? Football!
Last night, there was a football game. As OHL was playing a home match against Waasland-Beveren, I went there with the Red Cross to help out with first aid, if needed.
It was fun! I was on the team at the sideline, so if a player went down and needed help, I'd have to go out and help get him off the field. Of course, there were other volunteers there. I'm in no way able to get one guy up all by myself. But I never had to go out on the field.
Which means I got to see the entire match from the sideline! We were sitting in between the trainers of both teams. It was so cool! I've seen a few live football games, but never this close up :-) We did have to duck a few times, as a ball came really close to us. And a few times I wish I could see the replay of a particular action, but it was a really fun night any way.
It was a great match too, OHL won 4-2. I'm definitely hoping I'll get to be on the sideline team again soon :-)

Lightning Bolt

What made me happy today? Lightning Bolt!
I finally got around to listening to the entire new Pearl Jam album, called Lightning Bolt! Two singles, 'mind your manners' and 'sirens' were released, prior to the complete album.
Lightning Bolt is somewhat reminiscent of the older Pearl Jam, but has some fresh new sounds. My personal favorite songs are 'sirens' 'infallible' and 'pendulum'. Reviews of this album are widely varied, some call this the best album by Pearl Jam so far, others call it mediocre or worse. I didn't look at the reviews before getting the album, so I could give it a listen with an open mind.
In my opinion it's a great album, although it doesn't have songs like 'Jeremy' or 'Alive' on it. 'Sirens' still tugs on my heart-strings every time I hear it. But I kind of miss the raw edge the older songs sometimes seemed to have.
Still, I love it! Eddie's voice is magnificent :-)

Hoodie

What made me happy today? Hoodie!
Ah, it's fall. The leaves are changing colour, there's more rain, the mornings are colder. Which means it's time to break out the hoodies again! I love hoodies! They're warm, comfortable, make me happy and are just awesome.
I usually change into one after I get home :-)

This is my favorite hoodie:

And hoodies are great in situations like this! I was eating a sandwich while on vacation in the Ardennes. BF managed to get a hold of my iPod and started annoying me with it. I used my hoodie to hide :-)

"Stop taking pictures of me!"

"No? Okay, well, then I'll hide!"

The road less traveled.

What made me happy today? The road less traveled.
I had to be in Brussels for work today. As I know traffic to Brussels tends to get very busy in the mornings, I got up bright and early. Good thing I did, because there had been a rather large accident near Jette with more than 2 hours of delay. So I told my GPS to try and avoid all that mess.
The good thing is that I have a rather smart GPS (sometimes). It decided to make me drive through Brussels. I really don't like driving in Brussels. It's very busy, and it seems like there's a set of slightly different traffic rules in operation there.
But on the other hand, I'm glad I drove that way. It's the road less traveled, but it's nice to see places you haven't been that often. Plus, it's great driving practice (even though I already have my license).

The one with ...

What made me happy today? The one with ...
I'm currently re-watching Friends. It's one of my guilty pleasures. I love to unwind with a few episodes after work!
The best part is how the episodes' names often start as 'the one with', and almost all start with 'the one'. The notable exceptions to this are: 'the pilot', which is the first episode; and 'the last one', which is the last episode. This was done because the title of the episode would not be shown during the opening sequence, and thus would remain unknown to the public. So the writers came up with the whole 'the one' concept as they felt this would be the way the audience would describe the episodes. Like: 'Did you see that episode of Friends last night?' 'Which one?' 'The one with/where ...'
Plus, the show had a great set of guest stars, like Brad Pitt, Christina Applegate and Tom Selleck. And the main cast was perfect. They all became friends in real life :-)
So grab a cup of coffee, and join them in Central Perk!

What if?

What made me happy today? What if?
It's Tuesday, and that means there's a new 'what if? xkcd'! I've mentioned xkcd before, it's one of my favorite webcomics.
In 'what if?' xkcd answers a reader's science-related question. Spoiler alert: they often end in catastrophy.
Looking for some extra laughs while reading this webcomic? Hover your mouse over the images, you'll get a little bit of extra text.
Enjoy reading!

Check in!

What made me happy today? Check in!
I'm working in Roeselare today and tomorrow. As this means a very long drive both ways (2 hours to get there, and at least 3 hours to get back), my manager approved an overnight stay in a hotel. That means I don't have to get up at the ungodly hour of 4:45 tomorrow morning!
And I get a yummy hotel breakfast tomorrow. Or so I hope.
Plus, it's kind of awesome that I can do this. It really helps to reduce my stress levels. Now I don't have to spend three or more hours behind the wheel to get home, frustrated at how people here can't drive when it rains. And I don't have to get up that early tomorrow, as the hotel is a 5 minute drive from where I'll be working :-)
So yay for awesome companies that let you stay at a hotel! Now I'm going to check out what I'm missing out on by not having cable-TV at home ;-)

Bin-Bin!

What made me happy today? Bin-Bin!
Yesterday, my BF and I had plans to go see some friends. But as one of them was sick, we decided to post-pone our visit. Instead, we went to Leuven. As always, we ended up buying some books :-) On the way back home, we stopped to look at some paintings, had an ice-cream and stopped by the local Thai shop.
I love that store. They're always very friendly and helpful. And they have the greatest stuff! Most of you know that I love cooking and I love food. So I stop by the Thai shop regularly, because they have great ingredients that aren't expensive! Years ago, I discovered something called Bin-Bin rice crackers. They're savory, delicious and come in several flavors. My personal favorites are the regular ones (savory/sweet), the seaweed ones (salty/savory) and the snow ones (sweet). But the last few times I want there, they didn't have them. Which was sad, because these are one of my favorite food items ever, because they're just so different from what I'm used to regarding rice crackers.
I was delighted to see they had them again yesterday, and immediately grabbed a bag of each of my favorites. Yummie :-)
What's your favorite exotic treat?

From left to right: regular, seaweed and snow Bin-Bin :-)

Ryght

What made me happy today? Ryght!
No, I didn't misspell 'right'. Ryght is a brand of portable speakers and headphones. I'd been looking for a portable speaker for some time now. My sleepphones are great, but they do tend to mess up my hair. Plus, I love to listen to music when I'm in the shower. In the summer, I can just leave the door open and listen to music that way. But in the winter I can't do that.
And that's where Ryght fits in with the y-storm. Weighing in at a little over 170 grams, this little speaker does pack a punch! It's easy to take with you, the y-storm is 60 x 60 x 50 mm tall (or small). You can connect any device that has either a 3.5 mm audio jack or a Bluetooth connection (distance: about 10 meters) to it. It has a rechargeable battery, good for 6-8 hours of listening pleasure. You can charge it by attaching the included USB cable to your pc or laptop.
The y-storm is very simple to use. You charge it, you switch it on, you connect your device through Bluetooth or the included audio cable and you're good to go! The sound is very crisp and clear. And the y-storm delivers on the volume as well, turned up to the max it's loud!
The y-storm has only one disadvantage: both the website and the included manual are in French. Not an issue for me, because I speak French. But if you don't you might want to keep a translating website at hand.
Other than that, I love it! I can now listen to music everywhere in my house :-)

Phonebloks

What made me happy today? Phonebloks!
Phonebloks is a concept for a new type of phone. Instead of throwing out the whole phone when something gets slow or stops working, phonebloks is made up out of changeable components. That way, you can change the component that is slow, or broken. It'll allow you to create the phone you want.
I really love this idea! And I hope this is something that really happens. But in order to do that, they need your support. Take a look at the phonebloks website, and join the thunderclap before 29 October 2013.
I'd love to have a phone that I can make the way I want it. A phone that I don't have to get repaired or toss out when it breaks. What do you think?

It's over 9000!

What made me happy today? It's over 9000!
What is over 9000? No, it has nothing to do with DragonBall Z. It has everything to do with my car! I just noticed that I already drove over 9000 km since I got this car. Which kind of baffled me. Until I started thinking about how much time I actually spend in my car.
On an average day, I'm in my car a little under 2 hours. But on some days it can be as much as 7 hours. No wonder I've driven so much in about 7 months.
And it makes me happy to know I've driving this much, without any accidents!
Now I just hope I didn't jinx it...

Insomnia

What made me happy today? Insomnia!
That will need some explaining. I'm not happy about having bouts of insomnia. But I am happy that I finally seem to have found something that works for me. And the best part is that I can totally relate to this post! Major frustrations, I'll say!
I know people who zonk out the minute their head hits the pillow. There is no way to describe how envious I am of that! The only time I ever zonked out minutes after putting my head down, was when I had to get general anesthesia to have all four of my wisdom teeth extracted. But I've found a few things that will help me fall asleep faster on most occasions. Like my sleepphones, breathing exercises, relaxation exercises and the right temperature in the bedroom.
What helped me most was throwing out my alarm clock! I would find myself obsessively staring at it, calculating how long I had left before I had to get back up. Which of course led to me obsessing over how little sleep I'd be getting, and how tired I'd be the next day. So I put my alarm clock away. Now, I put my smartphone on my nightstand, so I still have an alarm to wake me up. But I can't constantly see wat time it is. And oddly enough, that helped!
Sleep tight tonight!

Heart-warming lolz

What made me happy today? Heart-warming lolz!
I came across a few thing that I really wanted to share with you all today!
First up is this list with heart-warming stories from the worst places on Earth. If you need some faith in humanity restored, or just love to read this kind of stuff, make sure you read it all the way through. But you might want to keep a tissue at hand.
Second, I have a great science win for you!
Third on this list is a cross-over between some of my favorite movies!
At fourth place, we have a video about some strange stuff in a coffee house. If you are drinking coffee (or anything else), you may want to put it down for a bit.
And last, but most certainly not least is this: the 2013 Nobel prize for physics goes to Francois Englert and Peter W. Higgs for their research into the Higgs boson particle. Francois Englebert is a Belgian scientist! He and Peter Higgs really deserved to win this. But the fact that he's from the same country as me, makes it just that little bit more special :-)
Have a great evening!

The ultimate trio

What made me happy today? The ultimate trio.
I can hear you wondering 'what is the ultimate trio,'. Well, wonder no longer :-) The ultimate trio is BodyTonique classic, repair & replenish and miracle.
I've been using BodyTonique classic for a while now. But due to a birthday promotion, my next order of BodyTonique included samplers of repair & replenish and miracle.
When I finally got them, I tried them out the same evening. I love them both! Repair & replenish came in a nice small bottle with a spray top. Miracle was delivered in a cute little jar. Liz (the creator of BodyTonique) had included a very sweet, hand-written thank you card!
They both have a very nice scent, which is a bonus. If you remember, I don't really like the scent of BodyTonique classic so I always add a few drops of essential lavender oil to it. But what they do for your skin is amazing. My skin has never ever been this soft! It's happy, toned, firm. Any blemishes I get (yay, hormonal acne) disappear much faster and don't leave marks. My pores have gotten smaller too :-) These products were given their names for a good reason, it seems!
Fair warning though: you want to keep repair & replenish and miracle away from your eyes because it stings if it gets in them. And I will say that I personally don't use the repair & replenish in the morning as it's oily and leaves my face too greasy. I have naturally oily skin, so your experiences may be different.
But these products are amazing! I really recommend them! I've said it before, but these are the first skin care products I've been able to use for such a long time without any adverse reactions. So if you want the best skin of your life, go order the ultimate trio!

*disclaimer: this is my personal opinion. I am in no way hired/paid/compensated by BodyTonique, or anyone else to provide my opinion*

Meet Hoshi!

What made me happy today? Meet Hoshi!
Today, I want to introduce Hoshi to you. Hoshi is my leopard gecko and it's love at first sight :-)
I had been thinking of getting a pet for a long time. But as I have severe allergies most 'regular' pets weren't an option for me. So I ended up looking at reptiles as pets. After a lot of research it turned out that a leopard gecko is precisely what I was looking for.
Yesterday, I went to a store nearby that specializes in reptiles and amphibians. After explaining what I was looking for, the store owner agreed with me on the leopard gecko. And he had one in the store. But before deciding to take one home, I first wanted to meet it. It was love at first sight! He took her (at least, we think it's a her, she's still quite young and it's hard to tell) out of her terrarium and held her near me. She immediately came over and started exploring my arm and hand :-) So I got her a nice, fully decorated place to live.
Hoshi's still a bit shy at the moment, but that's to be expected as she's still adapting to her surroundings. I called her Hoshi, referring to Hoshi Sato. That's a character on Star Trek: Enterprise :-) I always loved the name Hoshi, as it means 'star' in Japanese.
Time for some pictures!

Into darkness

What made me happy today? Into darkness.
Yesterday evening, I finally got around to watching Star Trek: into darkness. And I have to say: what a movie!
It's an emotional roller coaster. Yes, I cried (uhm, du-uh). I absolutely love the way Simon Pegg portrays Scotty! Karl Urban as Bones is an amazing casting choice too, he even manages to deliver the 'Damn it man! I'm a doctor, not an *insert what Bones is not here*' line.
But the award for best character in the movie goes to Benedict Cumberbatch. He plays the bad guy and he just nails it. Best casting decision ever! And he just has the voice to make you pay attention, without having to raise it. A bit like Alan Rickman.
The one negative thing I have to say about the movie is this: the lens-flares. I know that J.J. Abrams says it's a 'stylistic decision' but I find them annoying. He might as well have called this movie Star Trek: into the lens-flare.
but if you haven't seen it, I really suggest that you do! You might want to wear sunglasses ;-) Enjoy :-)

To boldly go...

What made me happy today? To boldly go...
Where no man has gone before.
A friend gave me a gift-card for a culture and entertainment store. I decided to stop by that store after work today, in the hopes of getting 'Darth Vader and son'. But they didn't have it :-( So, slightly disappointed, I decided to take a look around the store. That's when I saw it.
Star Trek: into darkness. Which I didn't manage to see in the theater. As I loved the previous movie, I decided to pick up a copy. Now all that's left to do is grab some popcorn and I'll be off to have a Star Trek marathon.
Yes, with tea. Earl Grey. Hot. ;-)

Epic grandfather

What made me happy today? Epic grandfather!
It's all over the news, and on Facebook. This epic grandfather wrote a letter to his daughter who kicked out her gay son. You can read the letter here.
This is just another story about how most people really don't care about the gender of the person you love. It's heart-warming to see this :-)

Webcomic Wednesday 3

What made me happy today? Webcomic Wednesday 3!
Today, I have another webcomic for you. Dominic Deegan's Michael Terracciano has teamed up with Garth Graham to create the wonderful Star Power webcomic. Michael writes the dialogues, and Garth draws the whole thing.
Why do I love this comic so much? Well, it takes place in space. That means aliens! I love space, and aliens! And pretty views :-) The main character is an awesome female scientist, called Danica. There's lot's of witty conversations between the characters, and some puns. Of course there are puns, Michael is in charge of the dialogue. And if you're familiar with Dominic Deegan, you should know that puns are to be expected from him ;-)
Star Power is still relatively new, the third chapter just got started. And it looks like it's going to be an exiting one! So head on over and have a look! Star Power updated on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
I hope you like it!

Must-see make-up tutorial

What made me happy today? Finding a must-see make-up tutorial!
This tutorial is a real must-see. It teaches you the perfect look to go out and defeat the patriarchy with! Who says feminists can't look cute? ;-)
For those of you who didn't figure it out yet, this video is meant as a tongue-in-cheek parody, attempting to poke some holes in the stereotypes society seems to have regarding feminists.
Enjoy :-)