In general I had a hard time making the regular sock bun work for my hair. So I came up with a technique I call “a bun with a gut“. This technique was created for short layered hair. My hair has grown very long since the creation of my sock bun with a gut. I wanted to test my creation on long hair to see if it would work just as well.
It worked like a charm! I didn’t need to be concerned with the length of hair. It just all rolled up nice and tight without any conscious work on my part. I loved the results, the bun turned out perfect without any help from hair products! This hairstyle is easy, fun, well put together and especially helpful when you are in a crunched for time. Once you’ve mastered this technique, it’ll literally take you about a minute to do. Check out my  original post  A bun with a gut: An alternative DIY sock bun for stubborn hair ( perfect bun every time ) for more details.
~Inspirations from Title: The Hippocratic Crush II, oncall36å°æ™‚II
Genre: Medical drama Character: Che Che (車車)
I’ve always loved the effortless clean look of the French braid but I could never get it right with my hair being super thick, straight, and very slippery. No matter how tight I pull my hair or how finely I braid it, my french braid always turn out poofy and loose at the top and would always fall out very quickly. I recently saw a Chinese drama, The Hippocratic Crush II, and a girl Che Che (車車) in the drama had a really cute french braid. I thought I’d try to replicate it. It turned out pretty nice and I wanted to share it with those who have similar issue with their hair. Not only did it stays in place but also slimed my face a great deal. This also works very well if you want your short bangs up and off your face.
I hope it will work for you and you will like it. For more tutorials in the future support by liking ^_^
~Inspirations from Title: The Hippocratic Crush II, oncall36å°æ™‚II – Ep 12
Genre: Medical drama
Translations: Google & Focuspositives.com
Do you believe there are more solutions than problems? I often focus on the problem and the difficulties that I need to face. This makes everything worse then it really is. I fell in love with 車車’s character, played by  (岑麗香, Eliza Sam), and her perspective from the start. She reminded me to focus on the solutions and encouraged me with the idea, solutions outnumber problems. When I think of this idea I have new hope in solving difficult and unavoidable situations in life. She lives her life slowly and enjoys every moment. She cares and sacrifices for others. She takes time to resolve her problems one by one. When she can’t find a solution she tries again another day. At the end of the story, she dies within a week with incurable cancer. She knew her own lifespan since she was fifteen. I asked myself, does it really take an incurable disease to make us wake up and live like her? She wanted people to remember her smile and goodness when she was gone. Could we truly imitate her attitude towards life? I hope I can learn from this character and live life to the fullest without any of the misfortunes she had to go through and if I have to go through her misfortune, I would have her courage and attitude.
Vocabulary:
(Vocabularies below are written in the Traditional Chinese. The drama characters are written in Simplified Chinese)
辦法總比困難多 There’s always more solutions compared to difficulties
辦法 bà nfǎ, means / method / way (of doing sth)
總 zǒng, always / to assemble / gather / total / overall / head / chief / general / in every case
比 bÇ, (particle used for comparison and “-er than”) / to compare / to contrast / to gesture (with hands) / ratio
困難 kùnnan, difficult / challenging / straitened circumstances / difficult situation
多 duÅ, many / much / often / a lot of / numerous / more / in excess / how (to what extent) / multi- / Taiwan pr. [duo2] when it means “how”
Learning Materials:
CLICK to study Chinese pinyin and character flashcards: Quotes & inspirations from January, 2014 Click here and rollover >> icon for strokes, audio, and more.
This set of Chinese vocabularies is a collection of inspirations from my January posts labeled under Inspired by. I will grow this list until the end of the month. Play around with the settings and have fun with these cards. Be inspired as you learn. Enjoy!
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My colds are hell on an infinite loop
Phase 1: Starts out with an innocent tickle at the throat, a few soft sneezes, and a slight chill down the spin. My internal alarm and stress level goes into full panic mode, “stop cold at all cost!” In no time, the whole shebang knocks me to the ground. Phase 2: Throat feels like the desert with red rivers in between. Nasal passages, what passage? Clear, yellow, green, red, thick to thin snot. You name it, I’ve got it. Phase 3: Headache, coughing, can’t breathe = no sleep = no rest = more sick = ear infection, nose infection, throat infection Phase 4: Go see the doctor = antibiotics = kill everything inside me = zombie Phase 5: After much suffering I get better but the coughing never fails to persist another 3-4 weeks or more. Longest holding record for being sick: One month, literally in bed, with a cold turned pneumonia. It started on my birthday…I hate being sick with a vengeance! I’ve had 2 pneumonia in my lifetime and many, many colds and flus in between. I’ve taken lots of antibiotics which basically fried my whole immune system. Skin allergies and all sorts of sensitivities started developing over the years. Last time I took Ibuprofen for hives, my whole face got swollen, so I really liked the following advice given by my nurse which were simple and non-medicine related.
3 critical tips from a Kaiser advice nurse
At the first sign of a cold start on this routine right away. Don’t wait until other symptoms develop. If you wait things will only get worse before it gets better. You can still use these advice if you are already sick. It will help reduce the symptoms and help speed the healing process.
1. Gargle with warm salt water every morning and every night, or more when needed
In addition to gargling I use a sinus rinse in the morning. I rinse with a warm saline solution to the reduce chances of a sinus infection. It also really helps me remove most of the nasty nose clogs. You can find Simply Saline in regular drug stores in the allergies section. I purchased my kit many years ago at a local CVS. I originally bought it for my mom’s allergies as an alternative to medications. You can read my detailed review here.
This rinse has a learning curve. For me it was worth the effort to master it.
2. Sip 1/2 cup of warm water every 1/2 – 1 hr throughout the day
3. Use a humidifier at night-time
The key purpose of this routine for me is preventing the cold or flu symptoms from getting worse. By keeping the airway passages (nasal and throat) sterile and clean, you will kill off the bacteria and breathe easier. Sipping lots of warm liquids and using the humidifier will keep the throat moist which will decrease the chances of having further irritations to the throat that will cause coughing. During my one month in bed with pneumonia, I was skeptical of the significance of these advice but I was willing to try anything to get better. To my surprise I got better. The irritation in my throat and nose got better and my cough eased. I am so glad I followed her advice and am thankful each time I get sick I now know what to do to cut the life span of my cold or flu in half. Nowadays, along with lots of rest, I probably only get less than half-way into Phase 1 on most of my colds.
My 2 cents : Preventions is key
Take vitamin c. I like to take 1-2 packs of emergen-C a day when I am feeling a little off. I like the Acai Berry Flavor. You can get them at Costco or any health food store. Flavors may vary in availability at different stores.
During the flu season, wash your hands often with soap and warm water.
When you feel sick maximize your sleep.
Keep your feet, neck, head, and torso warm.
Intake tons of warm water, by sipping. Drinking water this way helps your body absorbed it instead of flushing it out quickly. Absorption gives the water a chance to go through your system and detoxify it.
In addition to gargling I use a sinus rinse in the morning. I rinse with a warm saline solution to the reduce chances of a sinus infection. It also really helps me remove most of the nasty nose clogs. You can find Simply Saline in regular drug stores in the allergies section. I purchased my kit many years ago at a local CVS. I originally bought it for my mom’s allergies as an alternative to medications. You can read my detailed review here.
