Product Review: Personal Microderm

by Jillian @ http://blueshelled.com . July 29, 2010 . 4:02PM

Have I mentioned lately how much my sponsor, SkincareRx.com, rocks? They send me cool stuff to mess around with and then I get to tell you what I think about it. Otherwise, let’s face it, my need for new gadgets would go unfulfilled. They sent me, a Personal Microderm so I could let you know if these things really work or not. I had to promise that I would be truthful and not just say “yes, I like this” which actually makes me like them all the more because I’m a girl who is all about the honesty and it would have made me really uncomfortable to accept an item to review if I couldn’t be honest about it.

I’ve mentioned before that freebies are the way to my heart. However, when I received the box with my Personal Microderm in it, I was very concerned. See, in some ways, I’m like a man. The first thing I saw was a DVD that said I must watch the instructional video before using my Personal Microderm.

…

… … …

Luckily for them, it was only 6 1/2 minutes long or I may have had to send it back. I really am just that impatient. The kicker that got me to watch is that this is a complex tool that looks like a face dremmel and it’s going to be rubbing and sucking my face. I should probably learn how to use it.

Fine. I decided to watch the video. It wasn’t bad. The perky show-offs actually worked for me and it’s pretty easy to learn how to use the Personal Microderm. I have really sensitive skin, so I use the little blue discs on my face and the big ones on the other skin on my body. I don’t let it suck for long periods of time and keep the skin taunt or my face will blister and I’ll look like The Thing from The Fantastic Four. Got it.

I opened the rest of the items and got to work. I plugged in the Personal Microderm and got it set up. It was only with slight trepidation that I set it to whirring and stuck it on my skin and…

Oh! WOAH! OH MY JELLY BEANS! WHAT THE SNICKERS BAR IS GOING ON HERE?

There was no pain but it felt like someone was trying to give me a hickey on my face. OOOOOH, ok. Too much time spent on one area. Move on more quickly. I did it on my entire face and the time spent? Less than 4 minutes.

My face glowed for a good 6 days after using the Personal Microderm. People noticed it and I didn’t need my makeup. I consider this a very, very good thing. It evened out the redness in my face. And the best part is that I only have to replace the discs every 2-3 months. For $15, this is a great deal after the initial investment. My skin is beyond super sensitive and I’ve seen no ill effects from using Personal Microderm, though everyone’s skin is different.

Thank you Skincarerx.com for an impressive showing and the opportunity to review such an awesome product!

Road Rage and the Infinite Sadness

by Jillian @ http://blueshelled.com . July 27, 2010 . 8:44PM

When you have a 9-year old in the car, it can sometimes be a necessary thing to be creative with what is clearly a mild case of road rage.

Yes, it’s mild. I didn’t run into someone’s car because he had an Obama sticker on it, though the thought has occurred to me as recently as earlier today. See, we were cruising along at 40mph in a 40mph zone, which is a little slow for me, but it’s the law and I always abide by the law. Ahead of me by about a quarter of mile, I see a stop light and a car that is just sitting there with a green light. Clearly, Chumbass (as her new nautical sounding name was for the ride) was not paying attention to the light and as we began to get closer, I began to panic. Chumbass finally paid attention to the light and inched her way through the green at a solid 10mph.

Did I mention that Chumbass had a huge dent in her left rear backside? Right next to her Obama ’08 sticker. Yep, this was not her first go round on the magic green light debacle.

What happens in this situation?

I say these words slowly, on the off chance that Chumbass has taken her eyes off the cellphone, donut, brisket or pen she has dropped: “Driiiiiiiiivvvvvveeeee Yooooouuuuuuuurrrrrr Caaaaaaarrrrrr Chhhhhuuuuummmmmbbbbbbaaaaasssss.” My goal in this is that she might read my lips and see that I was really concerned that she might not realize that hey, she’s driving a car, and remember to drive her vehicle.

In fact, my biggest comment in the car is “Drive your car” spoken slowly so the the other driver, who clearly cannot discern what I am saying, can understand me when spoken to slowly. From another car. Which may be behind them. Or far enough away that they can’t see.

However, like Obama, I have hope. For all the Chumbasses in the world.

Book Review “The Embers: A Novel” by Hyatt Bass

by Jillian @ http://blueshelled.com . July 24, 2010 . 1:17AM

If a book has ever surprised me with quiet complexity of character and familiarity with the inner workings of a family, it would be The Embers: A Novel by Hyatt Bass. The story of a nuclear family that seems solid on the outside but rots internally from its very core is one that many will be familiar with either in their own experience or their knowledge of the experiences of other. Characters are dynamic in that their initial perfection is marred with their incredible and humanistic flaws. As the book flashes back throughout the novel to the life-changing scene for the family, you can sense that no one in the family is blameless for the problems within the family and that the only consolation for them is that they can blame one another for their faults.

Bass ends the novel on a promising note, however, and the book was an excellent, clean read that had me savoring every chapter. It was not a book that I wanted to rush through, nor did I have to force myself to read it. I could pick it up at my leisure and continue on and enjoy the book in increments. This is rare in a novel. Well-written and thought-provoking.

*Disclosure: I received a free copy of this book in order to review it. Thanks for allowing me to read this book and share my thoughts on it with others!