Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Happy Valentine's Day!


Last month, I decided to participate in the Valentine's Day blog swap hosted by Fabulous But Evil. I got paired up with Christine from Little Me as Mrs. B. We corresponded via email a few times before sending each other our respective surprises.


I got a box in the mail last week:



Inside it was a bunch of neat stuff:



  • A wreath that's repinnable to hold decorations for any holiday
  • Hot pink nail polish
  • A bag of SweeTarts
  • Red, pink, and black argyle socks
  • Valentine's Day tissues
  • A reusable tote with a cute retro theme

Looking at some of the posts from other people participating in the blog swap, I guess I didn't do a very good job picking out items to send to Christine. I got her a pretzel tower from Dylan's Candy Bar, as well as two pairs of earrings and a small bottle of Bath and Body Works' Sea Island Cotton hand lotion. It's not really Valentine's-themed, but I tried. :( I really enjoyed participating in this swap and hope to do so again in the future.

Thursday, February 09, 2012

If you truncate these words, I will abbreviate your face

FYI: If you say any of the following "words" in my presence, you will not be allowed to speak to me again. I understand that with text messaging, one might need to abbreviate words to economize space. Also, I realize language is an ever-changing entity. However, truncating words is not ironic, funny, or cute: it makes you sound lazy and stupid.

Without further ado:

  • "totes" (unless you are actually referring to totes)
  • "adorbs" (no, no, no, no, NO. Please, for the love of all that is holy and sacred, please do not say this around me or anyone, ever.)
  • "suey" (as a truncation of "suicide"; hog-calls are ok)
  • "unfortch"
  • "whatevs"
  • "deets"get it? she TOTES JELLY
  • "haps" or "the haps" (sounds like a disease... "dude, I got the haps from that girl I met at your party!")
  • "awk"
  • "bestie" (not me, if I catch you talking like that)
  • "vacay"
  • "cray" (because it's too hard to add the "z")
  • "fab" (hey, why not throw an "oo" on the end and pretend you're Wakko from "The Animaniacs"?)
  • "natch" (I know this is an old one, but it still sounds dumb)
  • "presh" (Gollum wasn't looking for his "presh", was he? NO.)
  • "offish" (it's a truncation of "official")
  • "cazh" (an abbreviation of "casual")
  • "ridic"
  • "jelly" (unless you're talking about the stuff you smear on toast)
  • "gorge" (a bastardization of "gorgeous")
  • "uzh" (because "usual" is just too long)
  • "vag" (come on, there are tons of slang words for the female genitalia, and this is the best you can do?)
  • "obvi"


Words that are marginally more acceptable and will not cause me to fly into a blind rage:
  • "legit" (only if you're MC Hammer)
  • "yum" (it's an onomatopoeia, and I like onomatopoeia)
  • "hubby" (I have never referred to my husband as such, but "hubby" isn't the worst thing I could call him)
  • "cami" (most people who use this word probably can't even spell "camisole", though)
  • "prolly"
  • "comfy"
  • "convo"
  • "noob"
  • "peeps"

Friday, February 03, 2012

REVIEW: BrytonPick - FLOSS in Seconds




Yes, those are my teeth!


Last month, I was contacted by the makers of the BrytonPick to do a review of their product. Having spent a considerable amount of time on my oral hygiene since I got braced in November 2011, I was excited to try a new dental product. Yes, that's what gets me excited these days.

According to the insert that came with my BrytonPick samples, "only 12% of the population flosses regularly" because "there is rarely time or a proper place to floss after meals." This doesn't hold true for me, since I am fastidious about keeping my teeth clean at all times, but I would imagine those of us not sporting the tin grin would be stymied by the lack of available flossing areas.

To remedy this problem, the BrytonPick was developed. It's a novel interdental cleaning tool made in the US from recyclable materials: the handle is plastic and the cleaning strips are stainless steel. They come in an assortment of snazzy colors and fit into a small carrying case that slips easily into your wallet, purse, belly bag, or other carrying device. The stainless steel cleaning strips are germ-resistant, allowing the BrytonPick to be reused for up to 30 days.

I first tried using the BrytonPick after eating a salad. I still eat salads, even though it makes me look like I did a faceplant into an herb garden. Although the video below makes it look easy to slip the stainless steel end of the BrytonPick between the teeth, I struggled with it every time. The power chain on my upper teeth has made the contacts extremely tight, and the only thing that fits between some of them is dental tape. I was able to slide the BrytonPick between the tightest contacts, but it took a lot of effort. Slipping the BrytonPick between my molars was almost impossible.


How to use the BrytonPick with braces


It was interesting to see how much food debris the BrytonPick removed from between my teeth, even after I brushed. Because of the braces, I brush my teeth after every meal or non-water beverage, and save the flossing for evening. Since the BrytonPick still scraped out some food debris, I wonder how this product would work for someone who doesn't brush or floss regularly (*cough*mybrother*cough*).

Overall, I would recommend the BrytonPick with some reservations. While it does work with braces, I found it to be just as time-consuming as using regular floss -- at least until my teeth are a little straighter. If you're a tinsel-mouth in the later stages of treatment, the BrytonPick would probably work well for you. For those of you lucky enough to have "normal" teeth, you'll have better success with this product.

If you want to check them out for yourself, visit http://www.BrytonPick.com or check them out on Facebook. For a limited time, you can get a sample pack of BrytonPicks for the cost of shipping and handling.


I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.