In the world of Save. Spend. Splurge.: Remember those mysterious Amazon seeds?

1. Mystery solved

Remember those mysterious Amazon seeds from China everyone was up in arms about (and it provoked rather racist diatribes)? Well, the mystery has been solved. The answer is a lot more brilliant / simpler than I imagined, and frankly, I have been the victim of such nonsense, having ordered some jewellery and having none of it shipped to me, but in return, I received a random top I did not order.

2. LED Party

I did it. I bought this expensive AF LED mask, and I WILL DEFINITELY review it after 3 months. Yes, the price tag hurt (a little under $650 CAD), but if it can with regular use, keep my acne at bay and give me better skin, I am willing to pay it and do it. I am not going to spas any time in the foreseeable future and this mask is worth about 5 visits, so … let’s see.

Speaking of spot treatment, I have used this product for 2 years, and I can unequivocally say that each time I get a bumpy pimple, this BHA 9 product significantly cuts down on its lifespan. Used it 2 days ago on some bumps that were taking forever to go away, and within 2 days, it flattened out. Magic.

3. Language discrimination

This was an eye-opener on how English can be used to shut people out of opportunities, especially when they are making it so incredibly difficult for no reason by using rare words that not even native English speakers know of or use on a regular basis!! What they are doing, is basically making English a barrier if you do not speak it at a level of … well, kind of like an English professor.

That kind of level is not something most native speakers even reach, to be honest. I see lots of grammar, spelling and usage mistakes in conventional speech but no one is policing native speakers, only the non-native ones. It’s a way to keep elitism alive, frankly. If you can speak, and write it, that’s good enough for me in my opinion. Accents are also a way for people to mock others, which has its own set of elitist rules (think: French and Italian accents being dreamy, even the harsh guttural German over let’s say Asian accents. Any Asian accent), which is racist and disturbing as it elevates white Others, not those of colour.

Then on top of all that, we have slang, we have idioms where we say “what’s your beef?” to mean “what’s your complaint”, and like in ANY LANGUAGE, we should be giving others grace. Heck, I can barely pass Grade 2-3 English sometimes, based on what they’re asking Little Bun.

4. Bunny talk

This docuseries from Amazon is fantastic detailing the Playboy empire and how it started. I know it seems like an unusual thing for me to promote or watch, but this is quite an interesting series, almost like a walk back into history as well. I obviously see a lot of things wrong that I disagree with, but I also see a lot of good things in what he has done which surprised me. I also see that women’s body shapes from the past until now, have completely changed beyond what they were in 1953 (Marilyn Monroe, size 6), to today (skinny / very athletic).

The entire show is from Hefner’s point of view. So obviously he will come off looking a lot better than he was, his infidelities were just a passing mention, very casual, as all the accusations from feminists surprising him, which.. let’s be honest, is the same reaction we have today with just basic views of the rights of women to their own person, self and bodies.

5. Duped

Remember that gorgeous Reiss off shoulder tops that I had been posting about (and now own)? Well, here is a much cheaper dupe of both in a nice beautiful white-ish cream colour, black, and tan! This is the off-shoulder knit top for $89.50 USD in white or for some reason it is $139 in black. They also have the dress version on the site!!!

6. Sunscreen

My favourite sunscreen is Coola (tinted), but I am going to try out SuperGoop! as I have heard lots about them and they are reef-safe which I am happy about. Reef-safe means it doesn’t bleach the corals AS MUCH. All sunscreen bleaches corals, but the reef-safe stuff without the WORST offending chemicals which are:

• Oxybenzone
• Octinoxate
• Octocrylene
• Homosalate
• 4-methylbenzylidene camphor
• PABA
• Parabens
• Triclosan
• Any nanoparticles or “nano-sized” zinc or titanium (if it doesn’t explicitly say “micro-sized” or “non-nano” and it can rub in, it’s probably nano-sized)
• Any form of microplastic, such as “exfoliating beads”

The best sunscreens are mineral. Generally quite safe but not 100% safe, though better than chemical ones that are KILLING CORAL REEFS and bleaching them. Check your labels.

7. Barista

What.. how.. how can anyone possibly make a drink order that is 13 items long at Starbucks? I MEAN REALLY. It also talks about other barista horror stories. I feel like they’re jokes. And they’re mostly additions of syrup… (and I thought my drink order was bad!)

8. Loungey

I have tried very hard to not want a robe to swan around in, but this one is just so much fun… as is this maxi silk one, if I were to just lie in bed all day and read, drink tea and relax. The thing is, I know this is impractical because I am not someone who wears a sleep outfit, and then a robe on top of it. The less layers the better, as I run hot and sweat very easily.

So while I love the idea, and I fall in love with the concept of being in a silky robe, this will never become a reality because… I wouldn’t want extra layers.