Shame On You!

My friend forwarded this link to me. It's about a radio show that catches people cheating by tricking them into revealing things on the radio. Pretty sad. It's called Desi Wife Catches Husband.

Banned Commercial

Best birth control ever...


Thanks for the video link, mamaluv!

Just Exactly What Is The Problem Here?

I just came across this on Pop Sugar. Ryan Seacrest has been lashing out at Angelina Jolie in the press for the interview he recently did with her and Brad at the Golden Globes. He's said a bunch of nasty things about it and here's what he said on E!

“I asked her four questions and she didn’t even answer me,” he complained. “I literally stood there and tried to ask a couple of questions. At one point I just kind of let the E! microphone sit in front of her for a second to see if she was going to acknowledge it, and she clearly wanted nothing to do with me or my question or my answer or any of it.”

I'm sorry but after watching this, I don't see what the big deal is.

How to Score a Free Ride on the Subway!

This morning I discovered the most brilliant trick! I was running a little behind (funny how often that happens), and picked up a croissant and latte to go before hurrying out to wait for the streetcar. There was an unusually long line up this time and I waited patiently with breakfast in hand - hands that were freezing at this point - for the squeeky old street car to pick us up.

I could see in the distance that it looked packed full and doubted seriously if it would have room for all of us. However, one by one the people ahead of me crammed themselves in full up to the stairs like human sardines. Though there really wasn't room for me, I got on anyway and found my forhead inches away from someone's butt with one hand holding on to my precious breakfast and the other up under someone else's elbow holding onto the bar near the token collector. Since my feet were on the second last step I couldn't even reach to put my fare in, so I simply didn't!

I couldn't help smiling a bit as I thought about the free ride I'd scored, until the old car pulled away and around the corner and butts and elbows stumbled into me and nearly pushed me out the door. I held on for dear life until we rounded the corner wondering if the doors would have opened had I leaned on them a little harder.

At the next stop just before Union station the street car stopped again (why do they always stop when there clearly isn't room for any more??) and I was humped from behind by 2 more winter coats who'd forced themselves on by some miracle.

I nearly fell out the door when we arrived at Union Station. But I saved $2.75!

70% off Sale at Mango

The sermon on Sunday said we should all try to live with less and avoid the consuming grip materialism has on our lives.

While I agreed whole heartedly with everything that was said, I couldn’t stop thinking about this gorgeous bag I spotted on a fashionable girl at the coffee stand that morning. I’d even asked her where she bought it and how much it was. “$50 on sale at Club Monaco”, she said. I nearly spilled my coffee in joy. What a bargain for such a gorgeous versatile piece!

I decided I’d have to check it out, but as the message went on, I started to feel a little guilty. While I don’t have a lot of clothes, I certainly think about having more of them every day. After all, it’s my job, no?

It doesn’t help that my school is across the street from one of the biggest shopping malls in Canada. Generally I’m pretty good at controlling myself, but today I found myself (somehow!) walking through the mall on my way home from school. Since I went ahead and did that I might as well tell you that there is a HUGE sale going on at Mango. I didn’t mean to go in there - or Sephora, or Club Monaco (bag was gone, dammit!), but when I saw the sale tables as I was attempting to leave the mall empty handed, I had no choice but to briefly pop in for a minute or 30.

If you need to stock up, go now! Cute tank tops for $6.99, gorgeous sweaters for $30.99, dresses, belts, jeans boots and bags galore. The whole friggin’ store is on sale. I behaved and only bought a couple of tank tops and a wool sweater vest I’d been looking for since fall ($25!).

When I got home I checked out their website and it turns out this sale is happening in all of their stores around the world as well as online. The store staff told me they are clearing everything out to make room for more European styles. Finally!

Just thought you might want to know…

Smelly Cheap Nail Bars

Have you ever been to one of those cheap nail salons where you get a manicure/pedicure combo for $30-$40? They usually have a cheesy name like "Classic Nails" or "Look Nails" and have 80's style posters in the windows. I've been to a few of these when I'm desperate for a little maintenance. It's a nice cheap way to get your nails done but why does it always stink like poison in there?

I went with one of my friends a couple of days ago and the smell nearly knocked me over. I felt like I was about to start hallucinating or pass out. Between the stench and the woman pulling the skin off my toes (she created a hang nail and then went to town on it), I felt more like I was being punished than pampered.

This is just one of a few bad experiences I've had. Another time at a different shop, the woman used a razor on my foot and sliced my toe. It bled all day and they still charged me full price.

In most of these places English isn't even a second language, it simply isn't spoken. I thought "ouch!" was universal but apparently it isn't.

There's a new place that's opened up down the street from me that looks neat and clean. I plan to check it out next month and see if I have better luck. But if it stinks in there I'm not going.

Does anyone else know what that horrid smell is? Is it just the nail polish itself, or is it from those horrid fake nail things? I'm sure it's hazardous to our health.

Frills and Toilet Paper

Here I am innocently watching the Golden Globes when my eyes are accosted by Cameron Diaz' horrifying toilet paper dress. I know I shouldn't pick on someone who's getting over a breakup, but this frilly looking thing reminds me way too much of the like Cashmere toilet paper woman...

FREEBIE ALERT: SeaVital

Hi everyone, while I promised to stop speaking in the 3rd person here, I thought it only fair if I pass on our lastest two FREEBIES so you guys can get a crack at it too...



SeaVital is a luxurious brand of skincare from Israel, which is based on minerals from the Dead Sea. The Dead Sea is the lowest place on earth and has long been touted for its healing properties.

We were first introduced to SeaVital last summer when MissChickie sampled their Aloe Vera gel to treat a pesky patch of psoriasis. A few applications of the lightly scented gel later, and her skin improved quickly. We've been believers of the restorative nourishing powers of SeaVital ever since.

So, when they approached us to tell you all about SeaVital, we said, "Sure! But give us some freebies for our members to try so they can see for themselves how it works!" And that brings us to our newest contest.... (drum roll please!)

We now present the "Refer a Friend" contest. You guys have been unbelievable with your support, excitement and many wonderful reviews. Now we want you to tell your friends! We're constantly working to get you guys as many free goodies as possible. But in order for that to work, we have to keep growing. So here's how it works:

10 of you will receive a FREE full sized 100ml product from SeaVital to slather, indulge and REVIEW (pretty please!), courtesy of SeaVital's Authorized Agent in Canada, Marina Glibitski.

There are 2 available of each of the following and you can state your preference for what you want to try:

• Hair Nourishing MudMask (150ml) retails for: $19.50
  
• Based on Dead Sea Minerals and enriched with natural herbal extracts of sage, lavender, seeweed and rosemary. Contains soybean and wheat germ oils. Stimulates metabolism in the hair bulbs, activating their natural energy. Strengthens hair enhancing its natural shine and enhances active growth of new hair.

• Seaweed Facial Mask for dry skin (100ml) retails for $21.80
• Based on the Dead Sea Minerals, natural herbal extracts and vitamins. Contains liposome complex. Improves the skin's ability to absorb moisture, activates metabolic processes, enriches the skin with micro and macro elements.

• Foot Cream (150ml) retails for $17.50
• Based on Dead Sea minerals enriched with natural herbal extracts and vitamins. Contains liposome complex. Improves blood circulation. Takes off the weariness and serves as an antiperspirant while moisturizing and nourishing the skin to protect it from over drying and roughening. It also accelerates the healing of chapping and microraumas.

• Exfoliating Facial Wash for all skin types (100ml) retails for $17.80
• Based on the Dead Sea minerals, natural herbal extracts and vitamins. Throroughly and deeply cleans your face, revitalizing your skin and improving it's resilience. Facilitates cell regeneration and contains gently abraiding apricot seed powder also having a slight whitening effect.

• Alojodo Rich Cream for normal to dry skin (100ml) retails for $17.80
• Based on the Dead Sea minerals, natural herbal extracts and vitamins. Contains liposome complex. Nourishes and moistens the skin favoring its regeneration and rejuvenation.

To win, refer your friends to ChickAdvisor using our Tell A Friend link on the homepage (under add a review). The 10 members who refer the most friends who become active members (i.e they create profiles, add reviews, etc), will get their choice of the above listed freebies.

We will contact the 10 winners after February 15th when the contest closes.

If you have any questions, feel free to post them here in the comments.

FREEBIE ALERT: Wild Sage Botanicals

Choke Cherries, Strawberry Leaves, Rosemary, and Mint are just a few of the delicious natural ingredients herbalist Garima uses to concoct her wildly popular organic skincare line, Wild Sage Botanicals.

We discovered her fabulous products in Toronto at Elixir Organic Spa and couldn’t get enough of them. So we decided to look up Garmia to find out more about her line and see if we couldn’t swing an exclusive deal for ChickAdvisor members. She agreed! But more on that later…

ChickAdvisor:

How did Wild Sage begin?

Wild Sage:

I had just turned 40 and decided I should start doing something about my skin, but couldn’t find anything as good as what I was eating. I had a huge garden full of herbs, which were just billowing and blossoming. I knew about the powers of various herbs and wanted to create something natural for my skin. So I started experimenting and making stuff. Eventually people started asking me what I was using for my skin and then they wanted their own. Then they started asking for toners, heavier moisturizers and other products and I started to expand my collection.

ChickAdvisor:

Where do your ingredients come from?


Wild Sage:

Most of the ingredients are from here in Colorado. In fact, I grow most of them but the Shea butter comes from a women’s farming operation in Uganda. They don’t use any chemicals in the process of making it and the program is set up to help women’s education and benefit the land. I try to find companies I really like where I can help people. The Sunflower Oil is from France because that’s where you can get the best quality. They’ve been pressing oils there for generations.

ChickAdvisor:

So give us a run down on which products to use for oily, dry or combination skin.

Wild Sage:

For Oily Skin I recommend the Almond Face Cleanser, which is good for all skin types. It helps balance the skin and has nice exfoliants in it. It’s kind of a cookie dough consistency.

The Rose Hazel Toner closes your pores and really helps with skin problems as well as dehydration after you wash.

Then follow it up with the Lavender Rose Moisturizer. It’s light and less oily than the other moisturizers. You skin naturally wants a little oil so stripping it away is actually a bad idea. Just having a tiny bit helps your oil glands balance.

For Combination skin, again use the Almond Face Cleanser, then follow with the Lavender Mint Toner and the Rose Geranium Face Lotion. The Rose Geranium is a little bit richer and includes Shea Butter, which is a natural sunscreen that helps fight against wrinkles, dry skin and also helps with arthritis! It lets your skin breathe and doesn’t clog your pores or oil glands.

For Dry Skin, I recommend the same procedure as for combination skin, but follow with Brilliance Face Cream instead of the Rose Geranium. The Brilliance Cream has Shea Butter, is deeply moisturizing and a nice citricy and bergamot scent that men really like, actually.


ChickAdvisor:

Speaking of men, do you have anything for the guys?

Wild Sage:

For Men, I’ve created Slap It On Aftershave, which is essentially a Toner + Aftershave. Men have thicker skin and don’t show problems or wrinkles quite as easily.


Wild Sage is offering a FREE Papaya Honey Mask exclusively to the first 15 ChickAdvisor Members who purchase an order of $20 or more of Wild Sage products on Apothena.com.

See the Deals section for more information.

Happy Organic Shopping!

Organic Skincare online from Apothena.com

I've recently had the pleasure of doing some business with family owned apothena.com, a website that specialises in selling organic skincare products online.

I was so thrilled to hear about them from Wild Sage. They have wonderful selection, give free samples with every order, and the service is phenominal! Before Christmas I ordered approximately $100 worth of goodies from them (some were gifts, some for myself). The shipping was free and I received my order in about 3 business days. My order also came with a personalized note thanking me for my purchase.

Who says you can't still get amazing customer service? I know where I'll be shopping from now on.

Introducing the "Official" ChickAdvisor Blog

We finally got our acts together and started an official ChickAdvisor blog here.

My MissChickie blog will be the same as before. The point of the ChickAdvisor blog is to allow people to comment on articles we post on ChickAdvisor and stuff.

It also means I'm under no obligation whatsoever to attempt to sound interesting or (uggggh) speak in 3rd person here on MissChickie when I'm cross posting. I always feel foolish saying "we" when it's clearly me.

MissChickie will continue to be me and my opinion and whatever I feel like talking about.

Check it out! www.blog.chickadvisor.com

C.A Featured on She Finds!

Michelle over at SheFinds scours the web for the latest and greatest for her readers and we are so humbled that she wrote about us!


SheFinds has an informative weekly newsletter, which is a great resource for the busy career woman who, in her own words, "doesn't have time to shop. She doesn't even have time to browse the web much less paw through endless piles of cashmere sweaters at the mall. But she still wants to look good and stay on top of the trends."

Thank you, Michelle!

Fashion Week Spring 2007 Footage

Here's a video we made with the help of our friends from eyeseetv of the spring 2007 collections from Bustle and Andy The-Anh. There were a lot of other shows, some of which we saw, but unfortunately most of them conflicted with my pesky midterms.

However, we were able to glean some very important information about what will be hot this spring. It's all about legs. Short skirts, high heels and an eyefull of your gorgeous gams. Tone them, wax them, cover 'em with self tanner and stock up on flirty skirts, dresses and belts.

As you can see from the end of Andy's Show, belts are big now but they're going to be even bigger. They look great worn with a dress, over a sweater and well, pretty much anything. Have fun with it!

Bustle's collections are available in select boutiques in Toronto, Montreal, Calgary and Vancouver. Visit www.bustleclothing.com for a list of stores.

Andy The-Anh is available across Canada and USA. Visit www.andytheanh.com for a boutique listing or to see the whole collection on video!

Dear Endless, I'm in Love!

I've recently learned about endless.com, which is an amazon.com affiliate that has a huge selection of shoes and bags for women, men and kids. The best part is, they give you 6 views of the products you like so you can see it from all angles and they also have a zoom feature so you can look closely at the details & workmanship.

I'm embarrased to admit that as I type this I'm still in my pajamas as I can hardly tear myself away! The selection and prices put the malls to shame and there are so many things I love here I don't know where to begin!

Here are a few of the gorgeous things I've found there: This BCBG Girls Bleeker Hobo ($198) will go with everything and last for years to come. I lust it.

I've always admired the sophistication of Adrienne Vittadini's clothes and bags and I absolutely love this one.


















These are my dream booties. They are Charles by Charles David Tidy Boots for $149. I haven't been able to find anything even close to this in the malls. How cute are these!

















And then there's this one, another Adrienne Vittadini bag, which is the most expensive at $328, but it's my favorite. I should probably stop now before I get in trouble, but I think this bag will work with everything.


















Now, It's time for me to slowly step away from the computer and have a cold shower.

Men: What You Should Do For Us On Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day can be tricky. Yes, it is a mass marketing effort to sell cards, flowers and chocolate. Yes, it can be overpriced and ridiculous, and yes it can make single people feel bad. But, it's coming nonetheless and we all need to deal with it.

Guys, if you do your job properly on this day you can score big points and very possibly, get it on! If you ignore the day entirely - even if we excuse you from it - we'll still feel a little bad that you did nothing for us. You don't need to spend a lot of money, it's your effort that will mean the most.

Here's a short list of do's and dont's to help you out:

Don't:

- Buy a box of cheap chocolates (especially in a heart shaped box). Most of us don't want the extra lard and the heart shapped box is pure cheeseball. If your girl is a chocoholic, buy her the real deal. A small box of Godiva or Fauchon chocolates will be much more appreciated than a big box of crapola from the drug store.

- Buy us a teddy bear. We're not 12.

- Buy the typical dozen red roses. Not imaginative at all. If you want to buy flowers, pick another color or get a few colours. A bouquet of peach, pink and red or pure white can be gorgeous.

- Take us to an expensive restaurant. Restaurants are rammed on the 14th, the prices are usually out of whack and it ends up feeling rushed and like a rip off. Also, it's not original.


Do:

- Cook us a candle light dinner. The effort you invest here will not go unnoticed. Even if you screw up a bit, we'll think you're adorable for trying.

- Take us somewhere you've heard we wanted to go. For example, if she's been talking about wanting to learn Salsa, take her to a salsa club that starts off with a lesson.

- Be original. Sometimes the best surprises are the ones we don't see coming. One of our members, Mamaluv, mentioned that her husband surprised her by taking her to see Sense and Sensibility on year. Her husband is the sort who hates that kind of movie but he did because he knew she'd love it. BIG points there.


We've started chatting about this in the forums and there have been some great tips so far. Check it out!

Suggestions? Please feel free to add them!

I'd Like To Speak to a Human Being Please

I absolutely loathe automated telephone services. Especially the ones with a false sounding overly friendly psuedo human barking instructions in your ear followed by, "I'm sorry you're having difficulty!! Please tell me what you're looking for!!"

This bastardisation of customer service is the bane of my existence every time I am forced to use it. Giving these computer generated piss-offs a name just further insults my intelligence. "Hi, I'm Emily!!!"

Today, I had the misfortune of having to speak to another one of these stupid things. I stood in line at Ryerson to pay my tuition, came to the counter and whipped out my banking card.

"Hmmm, the transaction didn't go through." The tuition man said at me over his glasses.

I looked at the keypad in disbelief and it said I had reached my maximum limit. I was unaware my bank had me on a daily allowance. What am I, 12? Annoyed, I called the 1800 number on my bank card.

"Hi! I'm @sshole!! Welcome to blah blah blah bank!! Please tell me what you're looking for!"

"Customer Service"

"I'm sorry! I did not recognise your response!! Please choose one of the following 10 options!!

I pressed "0" about 12 times, my usual trick to get past these monkeys.

"I'm sorry! I did not recognise your response!! Please tell me what you're looking for!"

"Customer Service"

"I heard you say you'd like to speak to a representative! Is this correct? Please answer yes or no!"

"Yes"

"In order for me to further assist you, please tell me what this is for! Choose one of the following 10 op --"

"I want to speak to a human being!!!!"

"I'm sorry you're having difficulty! Please choose --"

"Human being!" I hollered, "Homo Sapien!!! Now!!"

"I heard you say you'd like to speak to a representative! Is this correct? Please answer yes or no!"

The tuition man looked at me uncomfortably.

I pressed "0" another 34 times. There was a very long pause. At least 30 seconds. For a second I thought the computer monkey hung up on me. Finally the phone rung about 20 times and I got an irritible representative on the phone. Perhaps he was angry at me for shouting at the monkey.

Thankfully, several minutes later the human banking representative sorted everything out for me and I paid my tuition.

"Sorry 'bout that!" I smiled sweetly at Ryerson tuition man.

I'm sure he thinks I'm a psycho.

Congratulations to BubbleShare!

BubbleShare is my absolute favorite photo sharing tool, and it's just been bought by Toronto company, Kaboose for a nice chunk of change.

The company was founded by a friend of ours, Albert Lai. Alex also consulted for BubbleShare around the time we got married. There's an article in the Globe and Mail here.

Way to go, Albert! Enjoy your success.

Which Super Villain Are You?

I've been spending some time on ChickAdvisor member, geekigirl's blog and she took this quiz that I just had to try. Here are my Super Villain results:


Your results:
You are Poison Ivy

You would go to almost any length for the protection of the environment including manipulation and elimination.

Click here to take the Supervillain Personality Quiz


Here are my Super Hero results:

Your results:
You are Wonder Woman

You are a beautiful princess with great strength of character.

Click here to take the Superhero Personality Test

Geekigirl's blog is a great resource for sample sales and fashion news written in a funny/quirky tone.
iwantigot.geekigirl.com

Insomnia Due To Snoring

A bullfrog is being strangled in my husband's throat. It's nearly 2am and once again I can't sleep due to his infernal snoring. I don't remember when it all began, but he never used to snore this much and I never used to have under eye bags each and every day.

The gentle prodding and/or jabbing of my pointy little elbows into his side is no longer an effective way to make him roll over or close his yap. I shudder to think of how many spiders he's eaten over the last several months.

To add injury to insult, he never believes me when I tell him about his ferocious snoring. I've even resorted to recording it and playing it back to him, which just makes him laugh. I've tried waking him up in the midst of it all but then he mutters some dream jibberish or says (his favorite), " I was just trying to think."

I have to work tomorrow but I've clearly given up trying to sleep or make him stop snoring seeing as I'm now on my computer.

Anyone have any suggestions how I can get him to stop before I put him out on the balcony?

Why Twister and Toddlers Don't Mix

I took this video during the holidays. I heard my sister calling for help in the kitchen as it started and thought it was so funny I had to get it on film.

Luckily her digital camera was right there. Enjoy!

Bringin' Fanny Pack

As new bloggers join ChickAdvisor I have the guilty pleasure of reading their blogs. Mostly it's for my own amusement but I'm also curious to know what sorts of people use our site.

I found the following on Karmacake's blog and I thought it was so funny, I had to share. Read it to Justin Timberlake's "Sexy Back":


We're bringin' Fanny pack...yahhhh....ya mutha fuckas it's a belted sack.....yahhhh....You gonna laugh and call our fanny whack? Yahhhhh....I'll whip it off and you'll get fanny smacked!

KC Says:
I HATE Fanny Packs!


P.S: Here's KarmaCake's Profile link