Finding it extremely difficult to fall asleep with a pounding headache and sandpaper throat.

I'm quite sick with the flu or a fever or something like that and I can't sleep, so blogging it is!


The other day, I watched this movie called Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. My mum said it was really good.

It was horrible.

Firstly, the name itself sounds ridiculous. Secondly, the directing was really really weird and the film was just way too slow. Thirdly, I had no idea what was going on until I read the Wikipedia article on it.

If you look at the picture though, the cast is amazing. And don't get me wrong, Gary Oldman here is fantastic, there is Mr Weasley from Harry Potter, Mance Rayder from A Game of Thrones, Tom Hardy (Bane from The Dark Knight Rises and Eames from Inception), Colin Firth (from The King's Speech), Benedict Cumberbatch (Sherlock) and lots of other familiar faces. The acting was really amazing. Unfortunately, I just didn't understand what was going on.

I understood that it's a spy film (based off the novel with the same name) and basically there is a mole in the top circle of the spy firm and they need to find out who the mole is. That's all I got. Usually, with a spy film you would think it'd be fast-paced and really crazy, but it was SO SLOW and SO BORING. It was so not worth the headache I got after! I think it could have been carried out a lot better and I definitely do not recommend it.


Also, I've been having loads of problems with my internet (which is why I've been watching movies the past few days). We noticed that for some reason, our upload usage has been really high, higher than our download usage. It says we're uploading about 1GB per day, which is ridiculous because, well, we don't.

We called customer service and the guy said that there are 3 main reasons:
1. Someone is stealing our Wi-Fi (but it shouldn't be because we changed our password and everything and even if they are stealing our Wi-Fi it means they are only uploading...)
2. If we are seeding torrents, it could account for unusually high upload activities (but we don't torrent)
3. We may have a virus

It's likely to do with the last one, so we instealled so many anti-virus programs and stuff but even now, those threats are supposedly fixed and we still have this issue.

We tried isolating computers by only have one computer connected to the internet at a time, but it seems like the problem is occuring with all three computers.

I'm seriously confused. Is it a problem with our computers? Is it a problem with the modem? Can someone help me out pretty please?


Apart from that, I finished reading Son of a Witch:

The beginning and ending were pretty good, although the middle and middle-end dragged on quite a bit and the whole novel seemed unnecessarily long. There are key themes and motifs that are really interesting though, and they lead on from the first book so it does indeed make me really curious about the next two books in the series.

However, I started reading My Sister's Keeper because I don't want to move onto the other books in The Wicked Years just yet. I think I just need a break from the language that Gregory Maguire uses and I haven't read a dramatic novel in so long. I also have the DVD for My Sister's Keeper but I really don't want to watch it until I finish the book, so I think that should be my next step! SOOOOO excited, I've been waiting for so long to read this book!


Also, my family played another board game called Snow Tails:

It's a pretty interesting game, but very mathsy and it hurt my brain a lot =[

You can make up the board with different template pieces, and then you need to put numbered cards down on your sled and the different numbers you put will create a different speed or drifting power for the sled (for turning corners, etc.), and the first one to finish wins (of course).

Another game we played was Mord im Arosa.

This is a really fun game because it's got such a different and unique concept. The background story is that there's a murder that happened (by Jack the Ripper) and you need to make sure there are no clues pointing to you being the murderer.

You use these pieces to build a tower, like this one:

And then you drop cubes into the tower and you have to listen and guess which floor/level the cube landed in. If you guess correctly, you basically reduce your chances of being caught as the murderer.


Also, I finally made a cover for my nook!

Honestly, it looks better in the picture but anyway...

It's made of foam that I sewed together, and then I put some magnets in for it to close properly, and then I glued on the fabric.

Oh and if you realised, in the background you can see my keyboard has white keys? Well, my mum kept complaining that she couldn't use my keyboard because some of the letters were faded, so I resolved it by buying alphabet stickers. That's literally the story, I can't expand on it, I just felt like I needed to explain myself there...


And I got a manicure done! It was a $19 voucher off Groupon for a manicure that's usually worth $60. It was near uni so I went during my break, and it's pretty close to Central Station (it's along Quay St, which is off George St near Railway Square). I was eating an apple walking there, and when I got to the small shopping complex (called Prince Center or something like that), I was wandering around looking for a bin. Then I went to the top floor and like just randomly it was an entrance into UTS. Firstly, why is there an entrance into UTS in some random dodgy shopping area? Secondly, why did the place not have any bins?!

Anyway, onto my actual manicure. I've never had a manicure before so I was quite intrigued when they whipped out this machine thing that releases UV light onto the nail polish for it to dry. Apparently, if you don't use this machine thing, then the nail polish will never dry (but I doubt that because there are UV rays everywhere, so eventually they should dry right?). Also, it doesn't come off with alcohol. So it's pretty much just magic.

But I was so terrified of the UV rays. I get so paranoid with UV and radiation and whatnot that I started freaking out and mentally killing myself over not putting sunscreen on. Afterwards, I read that it's actually quite safe as long as you put sunscreen on your hands so I should do that next time.

Their pricing is really cheap, but their service is quite bad! They were just a bunch of young Asian ladies all talking to each other, and the woman doing my nails even stopped completely at one time to check her phone! But obviously that's what you get for such a cheap price.


I'll end by pointing out that I added a Facebook 'like' button and comments that connect to Facebook! Yay! Unfortunately I can't find a way for the like button to specifically relate to each blog post, so right now it's only for the entire blog itself (that's why there have already been likes and all the like counts are the same). Also, I got rid of the other comment thing because the font was really stupid and annoying, and I thought Facebook comments would be easy (sorry to anyone reading who doesn't have a Facebook account, can't help you there!).

Anyway, previously someone commented:

"Anonymous said:
remember when you used to be christian lul"

I think this was because I said I didn't agree with the Bible being in the Top 101 favourite books. Which is silly because I also said stuff like how I didn't agree with Twilight and Harry Potter and whatnot. But anyway, here's the comment I posted in reply:

"Chloeeeee said:
@Anonymous, I don't get it lol. I don't see what that has to do with anything. When I read the Bible, tons of bits were really dry and I just didn't understand why they were necessary. Some books in it were really good, but I would never ever have said that the Bible as a whole is one of my favourite books of all time, Christian or not. Also, quite a lot of atheists consider the Bible to be a really great book, even though they don't believe in it?
I mean, as I said, I consider Harry Potter as a must read series, but I would never consider it in my top ten list?"

A Facial, A Movie, A Game and Several Books

So I got my facial done! It was a $24 microdermabrasion and mask peel that I got off Groupon for a place called Euphoria Skin Clinic at Castle Hill. It's supposed to be $220 but honestly, I think it was barely worth the $24. I'm not sure if it's because my skin doesn't have that many problems in the first place, but it wasn't that amazing. Microdermabrasion is supposed to be some technique to remove the outer layers of the skin, which helps to stimulate new skin cell growth and remove blemishes and things like that. I wanted it for my oily forehead (because I get pimples there at times) and my uneven skin tone along my cheeks.

Anyway, the microdermabrasion was really short and I think the only really effective thing was the facial peel, which only lasted about 10 minutes. Then I was finished a mere 20 minutes after I first entered the room (but it supposedly is meant to last on average around 45 minutes). The facial peel was good though, because I could feel it stinging and working its way into my skin, I just don't understand why anyone would pay $220 for that. I've noticed that my face is actually starting to get a bit dryer and parts of the skin are peeling (which is supposed to happen) but I still don't know if the thing is really effective. And you're supposed to do it every month or so, so I would definitely not go back to that place again if they charge that much.

But I did take a very valuable thing out of it. The lady that did my facial told me that we need to always reapply our sunscreens even when inside our home because there are UVB rays coming from our phones and computers and even just UVA rays from natural lighting. It's obviously in really small amounts but over time it can accumulate and do some damage to your skin, which is why I have these freckles (or splotches, rather) on my cheeks. The microdermabrasion helped to lighten it up at first but I'm not sure if it's come back already. Supposedly it was supposed to help lighten it and if I continue to reapply my sunscreen I could prevent it from getting darker...

Also, the place was this really old house. You could tell by the uneven paint and the cracks in the walls and things like that. It was also not even relaxing or comfortable. Facials are meant to be relaxing. I once got a facial done at Lattouf and because they are a massage/spa place, it was simply amazing. Relaxing bed/table thing, relaxing warm towels, arm massages whilst waiting for my face mask...Instead all I got here was a face mask left on for 10 minutes while the lady left the room, door wide open so I could hear the phone ringing and the employees walking all over the place and talking to each other...

All in all, I'm not sure if I should do microdermabrasion regularly or something, but even if I do I would go somewhere like Lattouf, which charges $99 for 60 minutes and would definitely make you feel so much more relaxed.


So enough about that! I also watched Captain America last night on DVD. I picked it because I thought I didn't watch it before, but throughout the film I kept thinking, "Hey, this scene looks so familiar". Then I searched Blogger and realised that I wrote in a post in November last year:

"I watched Captain America last night but I think I was too tired so I didn't really pay attention to it. The one thing I got out of it was that the special effects were terrible."

Okay, the special effects were quite terrible but I guess paying attention to what is going on in the film helps with that. The cast was great, Tommy Lee Jones is just hilarious and Stanley Tucci was really good too. Hugo Weaving was great too with the accent but I guess I'm a bit sick of seeing him as a villain (because when I look at him playing a bad guy I can't help but say, "Mr. Anderson!").

Watching the ending made me so excited for the Avengers even though I had already watched it, so I guess that just goes to show how well they did that part.


Another thing is this cool game called Riff Raff:

It's super fun and super intense! Basically there is this ship that you assemble onto a pendulum and you need to balance all these items on it. For example, here is a picture of the middle of a game my family was playing:

It looks pretty easy but remember, the entire thing is on a pendulum so you need to make sure you place everything really carefully onto the ship. I thought I'd be amazing at this but my hands are actually really unsteady (they even twitch when I try to keep them still, thank goodness I don't want to be a doctor) and I sucked quite a lot at this game (and never won). But it was still a lot of fun!


I also picked up the Dymocks list of 101 Favourite Books voted by the members. I thought I would have read quite a few of them because I've read some amazing books out there but it turns out I've only read... 15 (3 of which are series).

Some of them I've read and loved (Hunger Games, A Song of Ice and Fire), some are obvious (Harry Potter), some I don't agree with (The Bible), some are classics (Nineteen-Eighty Four, Pride and Prejudice), some I've read just recently (The Great Gatsby), some I really want to read soon (The Perks of Being a Wallflower, My Sister's Keeper) and some I will never ever read (Twilight, Fifty Shades of Grey). Like, ever.

Anyway, this got me thinking: Which books do I love?

Thus, a list was born!

Chloe's Top 10 Books/Book Series
*(Note: I haven't even read that many books so this is just going off the limited amount of books I have read and can remember)
**Updated 24/11/13

1. (Series) A Song of Ice and Fire – George RR Martin
2. (Trilogy) [Children’s] The Hunger Games – Suzanne Collins
3. The Time Traveler's Wife – Audrey Niffenegger
4. [Children’s] Holes – Louis Sachar
5. The Book Thief – Markus Zusak
6. [Easy Read] Animal Farm – George Orwell
7. The Great Gatsby – F. Scott Fitzgerald
8. Nineteen Eight-Four – George Orwell
9. The Lovely Bones – Alice Sebold
10. [Children’s] The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas – John Boyne

Noteworthy books that weren't included in the list because they were quite difficult to get through (but the endings and concepts make them fantastic):

Life of Pi – Yann Martel

We Need to Talk About Kevin

Other Notable Books:

My Sister’s Keeper – Jodi Picoult

[Children’s] Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close – Jonathan Safran Foer

The Help – Kathryn Stockett

Before I get asked about why The Harry Potter series isn't included, I would like to say that I think the concept was really good, but I wasn't crazy about the series. I don't think it was an amazing read, I didn't really connect with it and it didn't really "change my life" like the others did (how cliched, but it's true). BUT, I will say that The Harry Potter series is a MUST read because of it's popularity and its uniqueness.

ALSO, I would like to add that I think Holes and The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas are the best book-to-screen adaptations I have seen. Both the book and film for Holes are amazing, whilst I think the film for The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas is better than the book (and I was kind of sad that I had already read the book when I watched the film). Together with that, I think The Silver Linings Playbook was a great book-to-screen adaptation, but I may be biased towards Jennifer Lawrence and my memory may have failed me because I read the book at least 3 years ago (I think).