Wee Bits of Me

It's Wednesday and after my heavy post about lost friendships, I think it's to sit back, relax, pour yourself a tall glass of {H20 in my case but choose whatever tickles your fancy} and learn a little wee bit about me. I don't know how Leigh comes up with these awesome questions every single Wednesdays but I love just tagging along! If you feel like playing too, please link up with Ashley and leave me a comment for me to come check you out :)

{one} what is your happiest childhood memory?I used to grab strawberry ice cream with my birth father every single Friday; it was our moment together and I used to be the happiest little girl.
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{two} what is your middle name?I don't have one officially but my mother loves to call me Idmane.
{three} what’s the habit you’re most proud of breaking?Biting my nails although I kinda succumbed to my nails AGAIN two nights ago. But I will break that habit even if it takes years.

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{four} what do you order when you order chinese food?I had chinese on my mind tonight actually {Leigh are you reading my mind?} so instead of ordering orange chicken, I decided to make my own using this recipe.

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{five} what’s the best bargain you’ve ever found at a garage sale or thrift store?I found this antiqued chandelier-type earrings with blue beads for 1 euros. The woman who sold it to me told me that her mother wore those earrings to her wedding . It has such a wonderful story behind it and call me clichéd, but I'd like to believe that it would bring good luck to a new bride. So to all the new brides-to-be, do you need something old and something blue?
{six} what’s the best costume you’ve ever worn?HANDS DOWN, My Scary Spice costume. I was about 12 or 13, and I wore these huge platform shoes, had aluminum cones in my hair with my curly unruly waves and had lots of black eye-liner. I was channeling Scary Spice in the "Spice up Your Life" video. I would go up to people's houses and scream like she did.

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{seven} who’s your favorite game show host?I may be just a little biased but it would have to be Christophe Dechavanne. He is a french game show host and is one of the funniest guys I've ever seen on TV. He hosts the french version of the Wheel of Fortune and Family Feud.

{eight} what’s your favorite breakfast food?Vanilla Cinammon French Toast; no doubt about that.

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{nine} what’s your least favorite word?Racism. I despise that word.

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{ten} describe something that happened to you for which you have no explanation.I woke up on a staircase after a friend's party wearing a set of undergarments over my clothes. And before you ask, no I was not hungover. I STILL don't know how it happened :S

xx

When I have nothing left to say

There was something comforting about you; yeah, YOU. Are you surprised I'm mentionning you right now? I bet you are. With the way we left things, I guess it does come quite as a shock.

Well, you used to be one of the rarest people I could turn to just to chit chat about life and my anxieties; one of the few persons who could make me laugh without even trying; one of the few people I could sorta let myself just be without wondering if they would think I was a nutjob.

Look where we both are now. An ocean lies between us and we both live our lives separetely. What happened to us? Why did we fall apart? I wouldn't even know where to begin really; even if I tried.

All I know is that I miss my friend. And I shouldn't. Because YOU SHOULD BE around. You should still be the person I'd talk to just to have a talk. You should still be the person who makes me laugh and makes me forget about my fears for a moment. You should still be the person who understood me and my point of views and who never judged me for it.

You should still be MY FRIEND, period. And I should be yours. I am usually the type of person who doesn't say out loud what she feels for a person but I realised that life is too freaking SHORT! Today, we could both be on this earth but tomorrow, I don't know if either of us will still be around. And life is too short not to tell the people who really matter to us that we love them despite everything.

So if this ever reaches you, just know that I miss you. A LOT! No matter what happened, I still care about you. No matter what happens, I still care. If you ever need me, then you KNOW where to reach me.

xx

Fashion, put it all on me!

Today is the first official day of fall and with fall comes the changing leaves, the cool crisp air, the pumpkin spice latte {which I've never personally tried but I hear it's really good} and of course, the fashion. Personnally, I'm not a super trend follower; I am what you call a "comfort-over-fashion" kind-of girl. Jeans and cardigans are usually my staples and you can always see me wearing a pair of flats.

For the past 2 years, it hasn't been really cold here in France so I could pull off most of my summer looks way into the fall season. But this year, it's getting really chilly really fast and I find myself longing more and more for a lot of nude tones, romantic-edgy looks, and lots of Chanel nail polishes. I've created a few looks that I would love to have this fall season.

I was inspired by the Chanel "Musings of a Muse" nail polish and I created this look. You can't go wrong with a pair of skinny jeans and my motto is if it's tight at the bottom, make it loose at the top so hence the flowy sweater that is fall-inspired. To give me a little bit of height since I am super short, I would pair it up with these wedges with the shearling detail. The sweater, necklace, skinny jeans, ankle wedges, messenger bag and cute hat are all from H&M. With this look, I would go for a subtle make-up look. A tinted moisturizer to even out my skin, a black-lined winger eyeliner using E.L.F Waterproof Eyeliner and peachy coral lips using M.A.C Florabundance.

I have been longing for the longest time for this Chanel "Innatendu" nude nail polish and it inspired this romantic-edgy look that I would definitely rock at work. First there is this gorgeous nude baby doll dress from TopShop but you can't go all nude because it would be too matchy- matchy so to toughen it up a little, I added some black shoes and black leggings with studded detailing, both from Asos. The coat has subtle golden detailing that is gorgeous from H&M and the bow belt from Asos and the little flower headband from TopShop make it all bohemian-chic. And to tie the whole look together, a wide camel messenger bag from TopShop that can carry lots of stuff yet looks quite elegant. And how cute is that "Bonjour" ring from Asos? For the makeup, I would go for the smallest hint of color with Too Faced Brightnening Blush in Papa don't peach and go for nude eye with lots of black mascara only on the top lashes. My favorite mascara of the moment is YSL Luxurious Mascara in Noir Radical.

This look was inspired by Chanel "Black Satin" Nail polish; and for a night out the town, a really cute dress is a MUST! You could go for a little LBD but there is something about this Miss Selfridges Flapper Dress that is quite retro and effortlessly chic. Pair it with an oversize TopShop blazer. In order to add a little bit of fantasy to the look, why not go for a black feather clutch? Simple earrings and nude platform heels that make your legs look that extra mile longer is TRULY the cherry on top. For the makeup, I'd go for a smoky eye and nude lips.

Those are my favorite looks for this fall season! What are yours?

xx

Dear Blog Intruder

Dear "Blog" Intruder,

You might not be climbing up our windows, snatching our people up and trying to rape them, but let me tell you what you ARE doing. You are googling blogs and snatching up their content and you even have the audacity to claim other people's work as your own. And I'm not talking about an idea for a post that you didn't link back to its rightful owner; I am talking full-pledge plagiarizing EVERY SINGLE WORD. Eveything about your blog from the "about me" section to the full posts you claim to have written are NOT YOURS. And this has been going on for months. MONTHS!!! How do you look yourself in the mirror everyday?

You have stolen someone's post about dealing with grief; someone's divorce; someone's heartbreak; you pretend you have 3 kids but judging YOUR character, I bet they are stolen kids too. You call yourself "SUPER MOM" and how everyday, "you receive countless emails about how inspiring of a mother you are". HELL NO! YOU KNOW WHO IS A SUPER MOM? Brittany is a super mom; a mom who is hands-on with her awesome little boy. A great woman who teaches him right from wrong; that's who we should call Super Mom! And all those moms from whom not only you stole their words and their feelings; you stole nothing short of their souls.

"I try to be a mom who raises good godly children, children with manners, children who are well rounded, children who are clean and don't throw their banana peel on the floor and tell me to pick it up... " is what you said in your UNCUT page which you have stolen BTW; but let's just pretend for a quick second you have so-eloquently thought up these sentences. How will you raise GOOD GODLY CHILDREN when you're nothing but a deceiving person who steals? Does it amuse you? Is this some type of game for you because for the women who have felt every single thing you claim to have felt, it is not. I don't know what to feel; I am not YET one of your victims but if I put myself in their shoes for just a second, I would know how much I'd hate it for someone to steal my thoughts and my feelings. To you, they may just look words weaved together to make an interesting story but for the people who really blog, we put our hearts and souls in what we write and for you to just carelessly take it away from us is not cool.

I truly hope Blogger takes down your blog all together and I will make sure to spread the word as much as I can because people like you shouldn't even be allowed to do this.

Sincerely,

A blogger you're not going to steal from.

P.S: Please get a life! Thank you!

*****************************************************

Okay for all my readers, this person's blog is Mommy Outnumbered; please check her posts to see if she copied any of your content. And if she did, in the comments section, you will find the link to "how to file a complaint" against this person. We should keep telling everyone we know on Blogger because shit like this shouldn't be allowed. Please spread the word and let's stop this person from ruining our words and our lives.

Girls just wanna have fun!!

"There are worse things in life than having fun"

So we all have bad days, right? I don't mean the bad days where you missed your bus to go to work; I mean the awful, dreadful, lousy days where your alarm doesn't ring so you sleep in, your hair won't stay in place, you have ABSOLUTELY nothing to wear when you have 4 full closets that would make some wannabe-fashionista cry herself to bed at night, some jerk spilled his coffee on your new computer, your boss has called you into his office and he never does that, your best friend cannot make your lunch date because she's out dating the latest scum of the earth and it's not even noon yet; yep, I'm talking about one of those days. What if I told you that there are a few things that would kick any crappy-day's butt all the way to Timbuktu? Here's my list of things that make up for any lousy day.

- Do something for someone else out of the goodness of your heart; seeing that YOU made someone's day will instantaneously lift your spirits.

- Throw yourself in a creative project; something that you're most passionnate about that will take any negative feelings and fuel them into something positive. This blog started because I got in a fight with my friend. See?

- Sing. Loudly. Badly. Off-key.

- Indulge in all your guilty pleasures while eating the world's best chocolate/ice cream/ other sweets. For me it's watching old episodes of the Hills with a bowl of Ben and Jerry's.

- Write a list of things you love at that moment on a sticky pad and stick it to a place where you go often in your home. Everytime you pass that specific spot, you'll remember that even things do not go your way, there are things to be happy about. Update that list at least weekly.

- Listen to old-school Motown Classics and dance your worries away. My ultimate Motown playlist is :

-Dancing in the street- Martha and the Vandellas
-Sugar Pie Honey Bunch- Four Tops
-Signed, sealed, delivered- Stevie Wonder
-Do you love me? - The Contours
-Ain't nothing like the real thing- Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell
-Super Freak- Rick James
-Upside down(inside out)- Diana Ross
-Baby love- Supremes
-My girl- Temptations
-You can't hurry love- Supremes
-I've heard it through the grapevine- Marvin Gaye
-Ain't no mountain high enough- Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell
- I want you back- Jackson 5
-ABC/ Rocking Robin/ Blame it on the boogie- Jackson 5
-She's a bad mama jama- Carl Carlton.

- Look through an old album of photos, preferably with a friend. If it's an old friend, you can reminisce about things you did together and weird fashion senses and if it's a new friend, tell them about your old life and how cheeky/crazy you and your friends were. Positive memories help you deal with lousy moments a little easier.

- Grab a friend, dress up as tourists and pretend to go through your town like new comers; take loads of pictures and be sure to flash the peace sign in all of them.

- Bake a pie! Baking something that reminds you of your mother's cooking and letting all those awesome flavors take over your home brings you back to when you were 5 and used to watch your mother baking this infamous pie. It doesn't matter if it's not perfect; it's perfect in its imperfection.

- Have a musical marathon; I'm talking Rent, High School Musicals, Hairspray, Grease and all that jazz. Seeing people resolve conflicts with song and dance is so what our world needs right now.

- Go into an expensive store and try on what could be the biggest expense of your life and act like you're gonna come back tomorrow to get them. If you can, snap a picture of yourself in them. (Obviously you're not going to get them but it's always good to pretend in your head that you own them).

- Load up your Ipod and go for a long walk.

- Have a fashion/top model faceoff with friends. Do your Best Miss J's impersonations with HUMOUR of course and judge one another.
" you're walking like you're on crack, child!";
" you're walking like you're chewing gum between your legs, girl!".

What are some of your favorite ways to unwind?

xx

Tag: You're it :)

My dear friend Krystal over @Well, this is growing up tagged me in a cool game where I have to answer 8 questions and then ask 8 different questions to 8 other people! Dang, that's a lot of 8's. So here we go! If you do feel like playing along, please leave your link in the comments section so I can come check you out :).

1. How do you resolve conflict in your life?

I try to talk it out and I apologize. Sometimes I can get stubborn and think I'm never wrong, but like 90% of the time, I am wrong and I have the hardest time admitting that but I am definitely getting better at it.

2. Is the glass half full or half empty?

The glass is always half full; no matter what happens, I like to think that there's always a silver lining in all things that happen.

3. If you could tell a certain someone something, what would it be? (no names please)

I'm sorry.

4. Have you ever volunteered? If so, what for?

CHEO telethon {Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario.}

5. Do you keep a personal journal or is blogger your journal?

Ever since I could remember, I always wrote what I felt on little notepads and school papers and diaries; but Blogger gave me a bigger outlet to express my feelings and moods.

6. What's your most embarassing moment?

This one might just be it :)

7. What are you Christmas traditions?

As I am muslim, I don't celebrate Christmas so therefore no traditions. But if I ever did, I would have the whole works; the bright lights, the Christmas tree with stacks of presents underneath it, the stockings on the chimney, the songs floating through the house, the gingerbread house and some eggnog.

8. When you're having a bad day, what never fails to cheer you up?

Little things like my friends who are also the cast of Friends, some hot chocolate, and a good warm blanket to curl up under.

That was sooooooooooooooo much fun to do! Thanks Krystal. So here are my 8 questions.

1. If you could travel anywhere, all expenses paid and everything included, where would you go?

2. Do you believe in love at first sight?

3. If you could meet someone, dead or alive, who would it be and why?

4. Name your favorite movie, favorite TV show and favorite song {of the moment }.

5. Did you ever leave Facebook or thought of leaving it ?

6. What are your beauty staples?

7. Sauna or jacuzzi/hot tub?

8. What is your life's motto?

And I tag: Ssdawna @Beauty and a budget

Dani @Ok, Dan

Mrs GiggleWurth @Little boats that sail

Lindsey @Lee La La

Philly Girl @Confessions of a Philly Girl

Lacey @Southern in the City

Brittany @Unexpected Surprises

Denise @Somewhat of a spectacle

xoxo

Currently Inspired by: Bollywood/India

Photos via {Weheartit and Google}

On the way down...

* Music is what feelings sound like.*

I usually take the same route home; a brisk walk through the woods, on to the parking lot, cross the bridge and I am home. Today, though, I took a bus. I didn't think it would change anything except that I would be home a few minutes early. I paid my fare and looked for a empty spot in the bus. The only seat vacant was right in front of this little old lady. Bless her heart, she was nearing 80. She wore this grey sweater vest with a dainty pearl necklace paired with some floral pants and silver slingbacks. She was deep in a conversation with this younger man, telling him about how her husband proposed to her in 1951. I smiled politely at her and took my seat. Realizing how long of a detour the bus was going to make, I decided to pull out my Blackberry; put my music list on shuffle and sit back and relax.

"Oh, I just died in your arms tonight, it must have been something you said", sang T-Pain. A face appeared in front me; a face so familiar at one point in my life and yet so distant from my life now. I closed my eyes to catch another glimpse of that face I used to cherish; I couldn't help but smile. I could picture his face just bobbing his head to the song and singing it on his way to work.

A few minutes passed.

"It's a quarter after 1, I'm all alone and I need you now" Lady Antebellum said. I remembered the pain like it happened yesterday; the times when all I've wanted was to pick up that phone and just have someone who really knew me on the other line flooded back like a wave crashing against the shore.

"Bole Chudiyan, bole kangna { My bangles say, my bracelet say}

Haai main ho gayi tera saajna { I have become yours sweetheart}

Tere bin jiyo naiyo lag da main te margaiya { Without you, I wouldn't have life; I would die.}

Le jaa le jaa, Dil le jaa le jaa {Take away, take away, take my heart away}

Le jaa le jaa, Soniye le jaa le jaa {Take away, take away, oh radiant one, take it away.}" started singing Kareena Kapoor.

"Since when do you listen to Bollywood songs?"was his first question.

"There's lot of things you don't know about me. I've fell in love with Bollywood about 2 years ago and that is still one of my favorite songs."

"Didn't think it'd be your kind of music, that's all."

I started humming the melody.

"Sing it to me, please."

While my voice was trying to keep in tune with the melody, I saw his eyes gleaming; he knew what those words meant and how quickly those powerful words could entrance a person. He had finally hope.

"Drew looks at me; I fake a smile so he won't see" began Taylor Swift. A pull at my heartstrings. Granted his name wasn't Drew but the feeling was the same. I felt the longing; the need.

"I'm bringing sexy back; them other dudes don't know how to act", wailed Justin. I sensed a smile curling up slightly on my lips; he used to sing that song out loud. Crazy thing is he was bringing something back; a blend of sexiness and just plain goofiness. What a killer combination.

That's the thing about music; we often associate a small moment in time with a song we loved at that point. A heartbreak or a tragic moment in life can be healed through music and that's the thing about memories as well. It can be 5 years that you haven't felt such emotions but as soon as you hear that fateful melody, everything comes rushing back. Some people might hate it but I love it. It reminds me that I am human, first and foremost and that feeling things can be okay.

As I sat there on my way home, I felt things I haven't felt in ages. As I was getting up to get off my bus, I excused myself to the young man to see if he could remove her groceries that was blocking my way out. She looked up at me, smiled widely and said, with her slighty southern accent: "Ahh l'amour! Quand tu nous tiens!" {Oh love! When you have a hold on us.}

I smiled at her and got off the bus. As I made my way home, I wondered how she knew. Was I that obvious?

Communication: A-to-Z Guide.

Communication is something we, sometimes, take for granted. Communication is one of the many secrets of an everlasting relationship. Communication is the key to everything. But sometimes, we just do not know how to communicate in relationships. It's like the more we try to talk, the harder it gets for some of us. We end up fumbling on our words, saying things we do not mean and act a certain way. But what would happen if you had a girl's and A GUY's perspective on how to communicate effectively? Say what? You would TOTALLY love it? Well, you're in luck. Your eyes are not cheating you, dear friends; this is a collaboration post with my dear and good friend Barryck ; this idea came to us whilst discussing a certain issue and how communication would be quite effective in that situation. And so this little gem of a post was born. Here's an A-to-Z guide on "How To Communicate Effectively In a Relationship" .


A Relationship: Being in love and having a partner is to be in a relationship, relating to somebody is talking every time you need to share a thought with the one you are sharing feelings.


Being: Simply be; be yourself with one another; learn to blossom together, accept one another.

Circle: Build your relationship as a Circle not a straight line. So Even if your minds turn each other backs and start talking they will end up meeting again hence the round limit of the circle.


Debate: The best part of communication is debating your thoughts with your partners’. It has to be an instructive debate though, not having these am-always-right torrents going in your mind.


Engage the conversation: Don’t wait for the other to engage conversations when you guys went on a rough talk. But wait for the proper moment. (not until you witnessing him/her coming to talk to you though :P ) Wait for the partner to cool down then engage a conversation about what happened and try to apologize or Debate (remember?).


Friendship: A relationship without a good base such as friendship, is like a home without a good foundation to rest upon. It will eventually fall apart. If you feel like not talking to your partner, go to them as if they were your friend. Sometimes, falling back onto that friendship level is what allows you to say your side of the story without going off the deep end and saying things you WILL eventually regret.

Giggles: Laughter, smiles, giggles is the best way to invite your partner to talk about a serious issue in the couple. Redirecting the mood is sometime best done with the giggles.

Jokes: Sometimes cracking a funny joke in one heated moment, will have you guys bursting down in laughter. Don’t trust this result 100% but I promise it works. Only if you have the proper joke for the proper moment. Caution! Guys don’t you joke about her Weight when she is in this "youneverlikewhenamdressedthisway" crisis! Avoid this rule.


Hang out often: Hanging out is a great tool to enhance the communication in a couple. Meeting people, sharing thoughts, talking about everything will help you discern what your partner feelings are about an issue you never thought he/she will react that way.


Interest: Keeping an interest in your lover's day will allow them to feel understood and avoid the infamous blow-up where you stare incredulously into space, just wondering where the HELL did THAT come from?


Kissing: If nothing else works, KISS! Sometimes, when we girls tend to ramble on forever, and we do that, GUYS just plant one on us. But make sure it's a GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD one. We will soon forget what we were yet upset about.

Listen: Sometimes we listen to our inner voice that always tell us "You're right; you're so right you can't be wrong"; but more often, we are wrong and we don't hear what our significant other is telling us because we're so damn stubborn. Listening to the other party tell you their feelings is not a guilt trip nor is it them being naggy; it's them ACTUALLY feeling something. And we'd be stupid not to listen. It's real easy; put the little voice in your head on MUTE and open your ears to your loved one.


Memories: when upset, you have to look back on the good times; when you think about happier times, you feel less stressed and more open to having an actual conversation. Sometimes, you may even wonder what made you upset in the first place.


Neutral: If you guys cannot be in an closed space without one of you yelling at the top of their lungs, go NEUTRAL. when in neutral grounds, we're usually more reserved and do not want everyone staring at us like circus freaks!


Open mind: Not everything is black nor white; life comes in many shades of grey. Keeping an open mind to everything will enable you to see things in different ways and maybe, just maybe.....Dare I say it? Even see your partner's point of view. Yeah I went there!


Past: Do not, under any circumstance bring the past into a current argument. It doesn't matter that he ripped a page out of your Cosmo last year or that she ate your peanut butter & jelly sandwich last night; whatever happened previously, is exactly that. IT HAPPENED. Get over it and focus on the now and on how you can resolve it.

Questions: The best one in the couple is the one who tries to question everything about the partner, but be aware not to question too much about the relationship. If you start to question yourself or the other about the relationship be sure that your question will be answered with those negative answers we don’t like. Be positive, in your thoughts, and in your questions.


Respect: Respect each other's thoughts and feelings; when one is feeling repressed or misunderstood, we allow ourselves to cross some boundaries that we wouldn't cross in other circumstances. Allowing your significant other to feel however they feel might hurt you a little because maybe that's not the way you intended to make them feel but once you respect their feelings, you'll have a better view on how to rectify your error.


Sanctuary: your relationship should be the thing that is sacred from evil thoughts, backstabbing people, crappy bosses and plain haters. Let no one enter your little home away from home.


Trust: Trust your partner and believe in them! That's all there is to that; if you don't have trust you have nothing.

Understand: Sometimes when we come to deal with a shock we act just in the moment, not

pulling back and understanding the moment, the action, the what happened. Take your time, ask, Debate, Understand, and then Act! You just can’t act without understanding. That will have some bad returns in the future but would have great and wonderful returns if you literally pull back.


Vibration: Positive Vibrations must be spread when you guys talk. Negativity is this factor that makes us always stop a conversation and get to the nearest bar. Spreading Positive Vibrations will help you install this great atmosphere to talk. You can go to a chic restaurant, or to a beach then invite your partner to talk about this thing you disliked.

Work: Communication is not like a day at the beach; it's real work. You cannot expect to breeze through it; it's most definitely work. It's sometimes doing things you might not want to do. IT'S WORK! Did I mention it's work?


X factor: An on communication built relationship is the total opposite of this show. YOU are not looking for something cool he/she said to agree with, but you guys need to convince each other every time you talk. Remember debate?


Yes: We try so hard to not be a doormat and say NO, firmly, to all those ridiculous things our partners have a certain "FONDNESS" of and no, I am not talking about spanking; UNLESS............
Whilst that is a subject for another time, I mean just because we think we would look ridiculous wearing a chapka or doing crazy gymnastics moves in a crowded place, just because "IT'S NOT US." How do we know it's not us unless we try it? All I'm saying, we should start thinking about saying YES a little more often; yeah maybe we will look foolish for a moment, but we will have a great laugh for many many many years to come.

Zeal: Being in a relationship is a fight and almost a cause to defend! So defend your love as if you were fighting for humanity. Your life has to be turning around this honorable cause. What is it to fight for with the heart if it wasn’t for love? You have the answer. Feel the need to defend the cause with communication though. The best tool ever to keep it going and going and going.

What do you guys think of our little rules? Do you agree? Feel free to comment.
Hey Barryck, that was fun, wasn't it ?




P.S: If you love geeky news, informative news about this great big world wide web, please check out Barryck @ www.barryck.tanmanssi.com. He's the specialist. He's on Twitter too. TWEET TWEET!

P.P.S: All pictures via WeHeartIt and Flickr.