I liked Mixed-up Investigative Agency more than Coffee Prince ---
i liked it heaps more.....
- and now i'm sure everyone is going to hate me.
so, dear abby, oteke? oteke?

I just bought A Thousand Splendid Suns. My bookclub chose it as our next book. I loved Kite Runner by the same author so I'm looking forward to it. But, this whole year has been a mess when it comes to reading. Kdrama has really crimped my reading habit. What to do... Any way to squeeze out more "me" time in a day?

I'm currently on episode 10 of MIA and I can already say that it is better than CP. CP is cute, funny, and has great characters but MIA is so different. It's just as funny but it's also intelligent and I love mysteries hehe. Both CP and MIA are now in my top 10 all time favs.
BTW, when is Gong Yoo going to the army?! Do you know if he will still do a drama beforehand?
I miss Won Bin....lol

Well...I'm gonna get off topic a little I guess... I'm a 15 yr old girl trapped in a 20 yr old body...haha why do I say this well because over the last two days I have been obsessively watching and listening to both "SNSD aka Girls Generation" and "Wonder Girls" (after seeing WG picture on your blog...I thought it looked like a Mexican group so I though hey they copied us!! but no I was wrong..hehe).....I'm kinda glad that Hyun Ah little girl stepped out of Wonder Girls (even if it was health problems, hope she's better now) but she moved WAY TOO SEXY for a 15 yr old...now I think they look better although Hyun Ah can dance and I do like her...I would like to see her in something else maybe when she's older!! So yeah..that's my rant...my obsession is so bad that I dreamt I was back in middle school and for some reason outside of my school where SNSD and WG giving a concert and some how the rest of the Korean girls there understood my broken Korean half english (I don't speak Korean AT ALL! lol)

So what's the most anticipated drama? I'd say Gourmet, Robber, or I Love You, but there's also Il Ji Mae, Hong Gil Dong, and Cain & Able. Now if I could just get through Lobbyist, only watching because it was filmed near by, and Perfect Neighbor, love Bae Doo Na.
And on a funny note, watch episode 4 of the twdrama Romantic Princess, great reference to Korean Dramas.

i'm really hoping Robbers is good..i'm looking forward to it because of Lee Da Hae, but i'm a little hesitant, because the last one with her was such a huge MISTAKE. i watched it all, but there were many aspects that just didn't work. i sort-of-liked the male lead (am i the only one who thought he looked like an asian zach braff??) but i didn't like his character, or Lee Da Hae's character, or anyone else's character for that matter. but back to Robbers. i mostly just want to see another drama with LDH. there actually aren't many dramas that i'm looking forward too, but i'm thinking of watching Il Ji Mae or Hong Gil Dong.

So, what american shows do you guys like? (this has probably been talked about in another open thread but..whatever)

I can see how Mixed-up Investigative Agency is more interesting than Coffee Prince right now, since I'm really curious about the whole story, however, after I know the ending I can't see myself watching it again.

Whereas with Coffee Prince, I know I'll watch it several times before I get sick of it :)

Ahh...I feel like I have no dramas to watch! :/

Ever since watching...Dalja's Spring (?!) more than a month ago...I can't find anything else worthy to watch in its entirety.

C'mon fellow online friends, help me out. I am in the mood for a trendy/comedic/romantic drama. What's out there?

Javabeans,
Pardon me for sounding idiotic, but i'm curious about the work-about of fansubbing groups. So here goes the question (though you can choose to ignore it at your liking): How do you produce a subbed project? All i know is that it's a hard and time-consuming process. Or perhaps it's something top secret that i'll be better off NOT knowing?

I mean do files get passed in the middle of the night via secret agents? Duh, obviously not. But you know what i mean. I assume everyone works at his/her own speed in a stepwise fashion with the coordinator masterminding the process. How big is you guys' hard drive, i've always wonder. I appreciate it if you can enlighten me.

are you in cali? it's raining here too, all day! I really like it.. def one of those good day to sit at home and relax kind of thing.

hellaakon, i felt the same way after watching Dal Ja's Spring. though this drama aired a year ago, have you seen Soulmate? i think its a good follow-up to Dal Ja's Spring. its really funny and definitely "trendy." after watching Soulmate, i'm in a slump again (i get that way after watching ANY drama). hopefully my MIA download goes fast...

It was snowing here and now it is too darn cold. I always wonder why I am still here in this place that has such extreme cold winters. Lucky for you that it is raining....it is always better than wind chill anytime. One day...one fine day I will move. Imagine that if given a choice, I'll pick dying in the harsh desert heat than the painful Antartica cold. LOL.

I love NGs. For some reason, it is fun to see people mess up their scene and see everybody's reaction. Or being able to compare it to the actual scene and know how brilliant these actors are sometimes. heee...I love funny NGs.

Guys, help me!!!

I'm traumatized... I just read @ popseoul that Pantene sucks. And not just in a crappy brand way but in a losing clumps of hair due to excess 'harsh chemicals' that swim in the ingredients. So put me out of my misery and recommend an, apparently; 'paraben-free and sulfate free' shampoo/conditioner brand (man, I didn't even know such a thing existed *_*) so I can salvage, what's left of my mane.

Products people, products, pretty please!!! I'm shopping for these gems tomorrow. =]]]

edit:::
ginnie-beans *pokes* <333

hah! don't believe everything you read on popseoul

it's "band of horses" btw

^
^ babe, I normally don't believe anything I read anywhere without overkill scrutiny but, the freaky ass coincidence is that I'm currently using that mofo brand and noticed the same darn thing! So I'm freaking out in the shower thinking up all sorts of excuses; 'I'm stressed!', 'is it because I use a hair straighter?', 'is the water harsher in the north or the south?' you catch my drift.

Man, it's easier to blame my shampoo lol. =]

edit:::
Sorry, got excited that was XENA... again *grins* =P

Hey!
I read Colbert's book, too! And really, it's very very VERY funny. You'll enjoy it so
so so much! His sarcasm and wit... it's just greatness.
Oh and about Mixed-Up Investigative Agency... I saw a few episodes on KBS World... and I have to say.. I REALLY REALLY miss Lee Min Ki as Kang Tae Bong! T_T
I wish he'd do a role like that one again... *sigh*

haha Xena...you are still alive!!! woman!!!
Your shampoo question....it may not be as serious as it sounds because there can be other factors that contributed to the hair loss and clogging. LOL.

Ah..anybody watched Tokyo Tower?
http://www.serenity-group.com/movie/tokyo/
I want to watch it but no clue where to get it. Give me a story about mother-child-father...and for sure I'll need the tissue box.

^ *winks*...

Alive, well & friggin losing precious strands of my hair it seems *sobs vain ass off*. <3

The rain is nice and makes for good sleeping environment.

#7 kotatsulove
Yeah! Lee Ji Hoon does look like the asian zach braff.

Xena, have you tried Herbal Essence or Loreal? Are those different from Pantene or do they all have the same ingredients?

One more thing, I went grocery shopping the other day and was wondering, "what the difference between wavy Lay's and Ruffles?"

My experience with Pantene included loss of hair T_T Any other brand I used didn't kill my hair so I really don't know what to recommend.

hellaakon, have you seen Soulmate? 'Cause everyone lovesss Soulmate.

Tiki, I share the same sentiments about Lee Min Ki...

Thanks merriwether! I was so nervous about actually posting something.. it felt nice when someone responded! =D

Anyway, yeah I heard that Pantene isn't very good for your hair in the long term. =/ How's Herbal Essences? I kinda wanted to try it out XD

doozy: wavy lays and ruffles? ahahahaaha... XD i'd like either. (man, now i want chips -_-)

Hey, it's my B'day today Yay! (and you'd say "as if I care!").
I wish to buy a new book today, (just finished with "running with scissors" by Augusteen B) Anyone wants to give me a recommendation?

Wow...so many fun topics running around :)
*Can't wait to buy the Colbert book. I've said it enough times, I'm a die hard Colbert fan, and the only reason I haven't gotten it yet is that it'd definitely be another distraction amongst many others right now...but I can't wait to read it. He did a reading of it for Itunes meet the author: its free on itunes, and I highly recommend it because him reading his own highly self-praised book is hilarious! Definitely check it out if y'all need a laugh.
Amyable: Khaled Hossein is a remarkable author. The second book is simply amazing. The Kite Runner was great, and the two can't be compared because they seem completely different and beautiful, profound, touching and strong in their own place. I think you'll enjoy it. I found myself wondering how a man could write a story about female protagonists so well.

*On the topic of fansubbing...its awesome. A lot of work, and a lot of time, but so fun. I got to meet such a variety of people and while there are no secret agent meetings you all feel like you're all in some big special project (which you are) and you're all planning, organizing, sharing this experience of trying to get this project finished (which feels good when its done, and done well :)). Though I've only participated a little while so far, I've already liked it a lot and hate having to focus on the real world stuff and give it up temporarily ;) Definitely greatly increased my admiration for all fansubbers out there (it was already high, but went up many fold) when I myself participated in projects: wow, what a time committment, and these are all accomplished, busy individuals who take on this work just because of the desire to share this interest/passion, and do it well, with so much devotion. Applause to all fansubbers everywhere!! *clap clap* Lets remember/promise never to bug them for subs or complain ever!

*Shampoo...i had to comment because I've been through a similar condition...except I went through a bunch of shampoos and no relief :( It worries me too to watch my hair just fall off...and now its beginning to lose its life too :( I stopped using Pantene a while back, and went through herbal essences, sunsilk, tresemme, neutrogena even some other expensive ones, and am now coming back to garnier, for a little bit. I do believe mine is stress-related, my doc says hair from a stressful period falls off almost 2-3mths after that period! So i'm perpetually losing hair, basically! But try this: the Burt's Bees all natural shampoo and conditioner. I'm going to order it soon, its also sold at a lot of drugstores and places, and while its a little pricey (for a pore student!), I've heard its really good, gentle on the hair while cleansing and its all natural so you don't have to worry about chemicals!! I love other Burts Bees stuff, face cleansers, etc, so I definitely recommend it as a great alternative to chemically harsh shampoos.

Edit: since people asked about Herbal Essences and I've tried several diff kinds, thot I'd throw something in: they're actually pretty decent. The hydration one really does make your hair soft, smooth, shiny, I loved the none of your frizzness, felt it helped me with my frizz (i have black wavy hair, and its usually very sensitive and hard to manage). I've heard the straightening one is good too. They use some natural ingredients, but i think they have a couple of bad chemicals too like any shampoo. Its just a trial-and-error thing...try little sample sizes to give it a shot, I'd say, and see how it suits your particular hair. I do love the cheesy names and the packaging...sucker for shiny pretty shampoo bottles =P

*Happy weekend everyone! Happy Birthday Blends! I'd recommend "A Thousand Splendid Suns," by Khaled Hossein, one of the best books I read recently, but beware, its impactful, sad, beautiful, yet hopeful. For an interesting, romantic, touching love story, try "The Time Traveller's Wife." I definitely enjoyed that one a lot too.

I found your website couple days ago and I'm glad i did. I like the way you write your articles :). Thank you for recommending Mixed-up investigative agency. I found the episodes on veoh and I'll start watching them once I am done with "Alone in love" (another under-appreciated drama if you ask me).
Is Anyone watching Golden Bride? First I was skeptic. How on earth would i be able to watch 50 episodes when the 20 something dramas always end up being boring as hell (think Winter Sonata :p)?? But I gave it a try and God knows I was damn right! I love this drama with passion. Jin Joo (the Vietnamese girl) was kinda irritating at the beginning (the way she cried and acted sometimes...lol) but overall I'm having a blast...still have 8 episodes to go :). Can't wait !!

@ javabeans

Yeah, unfortunately everything you said is true. I guess I shouldn't be complaining about the lack of trendy/romantic dramas if it means mass-produced second-rate-ness like you mentioned. Sigh....oh the tragedy.

@ 13kotatsulove

Thank you for the recommendation of Soulmate. I went back and read the synopsis from javabeans and it does sound quite interesting! What the heck...I'm gonna give it a shot and see where it takes me. Oh no....I'm starting to feel that special electric feeling I only get from kdramas....Watch out people! lol. ;)

"How do you produce a subbed project? All i know is that it’s a hard and time-consuming process. Or perhaps it’s something top secret that i’ll be better off NOT knowing?
I mean do files get passed in the middle of the night via secret agents?"

tealeaf, you're right. It's totally top secret. Our subbers aka secret agents have code names to protect our identities even from each other. For example, we have an agent who goes by coffee007 (or is it beans007?). No idea who that is. And yes, files get passed in the middle of the night. Most mornings when I wake up, first thing I do is check if a file has mysteriously appeared for me. Even if the file is not for me, I get excited too. We root for each other all the time. Also, you should hear our whoops of joy when an episode gets released or a project is completed. It's the best feeling!

"a particularly difficult sub (some shows are more complicated than others, for instance an episode of Devil is much more tricky than, say, an ep of Coffee Prince) can go back and forth for a while until it’s ready."

sarahbeans, I started watching Devil last night (just the first episode) and boy, you're right about it being a difficult and complicated drama to sub. I felt I had to concentrate 100% and not even blink lest I miss something. So much going on and so many characters just in the first episode. I had a hard time keeping track of how they were connected to each other. Kudos to the subs team! I liked the first episode and am ready for Episode 2 but my Immortal Lee Soon Shin DVDs arrived today (gorgeous, gorgeous set!!) and this loony here will drop everything for Kim Myung Min.

what made up for my rainy day...to learn from Tom Larsen of YA Entertainment that 'Really Really Like You', as well as daily drama 'Be Strong, Geum-soon!' will be released next year (tentative release date April/May and March/April, respectively). 2 Lee Min Ki dramas!! Better start saving up your money!

And Tom tells me he's working on obtaining rights to 'Conspiracy in the Court'

Lets write to Tom and request for Mixed-up Investigative Agency (and Dal Ja's Spring while we're at it)!

@javabeans, docmitasha, and thunderbolt:
Ha. Thanks for the replies and thoughts. I have no doubt that you do what you love since it's obvious from your works that you love what you do. Thundie, i guess you haven't heard my screams when i happened to see those supposedly "professionally-subbed" DVDs. The experience greatly increased my respect for all fan subbers out there.

@doozy: Baked Lay's. All the indulgence and fewer regrets later. What do you think of Dibs ice cream?

@ Xena: No, you're not vain. Everyone called these cosmetic products, i prefer the term "preventive medicine". Please let us know which brand worked out. I'd like to try.

@docmitasha: highly recommend Burt's Bees lip balm also . But i'll take Rose Bud Salve on a deserted island with me everytime.

@ hellaakon: Soulmate's great; it won't disappoint. But do pay attention to the music (hehe). The ending is one of my all time favorites.

Coffee lovers: Peet's, Starbucks, or Coffee Bean & Tea? It's so nice to come back at the end of the year and see familiar monikers. Gramps?

wow, wow, wow.. i know we are in drama world but i gotta say that the movie "Changing partners aka Love Now" is mind blowing ... i mean its a lee dong gun and han chae young that we've never seen before... the music is fantastic, the cinematography outstanding, and the cast gave solid perfomances...no, not an oxymoron , cuz chae young's acting improved so much since "exhibitions of fireworks"....its almost like looking at someone else...Uhm Jung Hwa blew me away... the plot is simple, but all the emotions that came with are nothing less... so if you have time, CHECK IT OUT!!!

@ blends... Happy belated bday!!! have a blast...

Everybody is been talking about "Mixt up investigation", i'll take a peek...mainly because of the younger sister from "Que sera sera" (top 5 drama anyone??)....I saw Lee Min Ki on "Rainbow romance", and is acting was really green.. I just hope that he has improved and doesn't rely solely on his eyes anymore... lol, i'll watch it like i did Coffee prince, without subtitles and then come here for translations....

so i always thouhgt Rain/Bi was sooo overrated, but that's because i was a hater...oops :P....but i've changed my mind big time...his voice is pretty soulful but also playful...dangerous mixture for a girl like me...

music, music....with no time to watch dramas like i used to, i'm reliying more and more on music to improve my korean.... here are my ipod all stars:
1.As one - soulful duo
2.Clazziquai - alex melts me
3.Loveholic - her departure is a big loss... snif sniff
4.shinwha (the slow tempo songs)
5. Jeon Hy bin - "If" makes me want to dance all over my house...

"I saw Lee Min Ki on “Rainbow romance”, and is acting was really green.. I just hope that he has improved and doesn’t rely solely on his eyes anymore…"

tenretni, 'Rainbow Romance' wasn't Min Ki's best, but did you watch 'Really Really Like You'--the drama he left 'Rainbow Romance' for? I believe his bout on 'Rainbow Romance' helped him a bit here, especially with developing that amazing motormouth. Or, 'Taerung's National Village' (done around the time that 'Rainbow Romance' started? Or, even his debut work, 'My Older Brother' from the writer of MISA, Sangdo! Let's Go to School! and A Love to Kill?

'If you think about all the samples of music in that show, the producers couldn’t have paid royalties on all that music. It seems impossible that they did and if not, then how could YA release it in the US?'

It's interesting if you paid attention to the the background music in Mixed-Up Investigative Agency, you would also hear certain ones that had been used in Dal Ja's Spring, as well.

Also, did Samhwa Networks take part in Mixed-Up Investigative Agency? I think the only time I saw the Samhwa Networks logo was on the drama's poster.

Shopping spree over and I really don't know how to feel! Should I rejoice at the fact that I have 'apparently' scored myself a safe, natural, plant based shampoo and conditioner, or cry my ass off at how much aveda products are???

doozy, yep sweets have tried and tested Herbal Essence and L'Oreal but they weren't brilliant for my hair. I find that the ones that smell divine aren't really that divine for your locks in the long run. It's a gamble but I like the idea of using natural products. It's trial and error, no? What's good for her may not be good for me, blah, blah!

Tealeaf, I'm being drawn to anything that reads as 'natural' (as natural as they can get without me running into the garden and washing my hair with wild flowers and lemon juice *grins*). I loved using baby shampoo for a time but my hair didn't feel 'scrubbed' enough *keke*.

So, yeah looking forward to hitting aveda later, wow on a Saturday whoopee, I really am wild. For that price I want locks dripped in diamonds or at least lined in white gold, heck gold plated will suffice (well, maybe not gold plated, hmm, moving on...). *ahem* and another one I'm tempted to try is Biolage (looks scrumptious enough to eat, lol that's got to be a good sign!). I never thought I'd be this excited about washing my hair. Ek, times are changing *cracks up*.

Wish moi luck <3
Thanks all round ladies... :)

Edit
... and maybe gents. <3

@tentretni, you should see Bi in the movie "I'm a Cyborg, But That's OK." i didn't really like him either, but this movie was AMAZING. its pretty weird too, and a little indie-ish, so keep an open mind when you watch it.

@xena: good luck with your shampoo! i had no idea pantene did that..i use herbal essences, and i have noticed that more of my hair is falling out lately..but i have really thick hair so its not too much of a problem. still, its really scary to think what those chemicals do.

@misskley: I had my doubts about Golden Bride as well, and really it isn't the best drama I've seen, but it's so addicting! Jin Joo WAS quite annoying in the beginning... -__- But what can I say? I love Heechul! XD

Hmm.. so Biolage then? =/ What do you guys think about Sally's Beauty Supply? Are their products really the same quality as those "brand name" shampoos and conditioners as they claim? Maybe it's a psychological thing, but I feel like it just isn't the same. XD

thanks you all! for b'day wishes *happy happy*

@javabeans, I love running with scissors.
Also, I've just bought that book by Dave Eggers yesterday!!! a friend of mine said it's one of the best books she'd ever read. I bought it out of curiosity hehe. It's such a coincidence that you mentioned the same book! (are you by chance a friend of mine??..hohohohoho) Anyway, Have yet to start, I'll let you know if I like it.

@docmitasha, thanks for the recomendation! I'll get that book too.
Have a great weekend everyone!

@ tealeaf:

thanks for the response. i pulled an all-nighter and finished soulmate in a day. sigh. this is baaaaaaaad. (rehab anyone? :P)

and i definitely enjoyed it; just the type of drama i was looking for. music, like everyone said, is really noticeable in here and that's saying a lot from someone who usually doesn't pay attention to it! it was cute but not cliche and thought-provoking too. i wish i saw more of the soulmates though. i want season 2.....why can't it be.... :(

hellaakon, I used to stay up into the early hours of the morning to watch dramas. I'd stay up until four or five am to satisfy my addiction. There hasn't been a drama that's really that addicted lately unfortunately. It's not healthy but it's fun.

i felt the same way after Soulmate!! i could have finished it in a day if i hadn't had discovered it during thanksgiving...so i had to take a break and socialize with family and whatnot. aah, what a good drama.

Xena. Woman with a mission. Congrats, congrats. Popseoul is really influential. I can just imagine all the Aveda stores around the country perplexing over their sales rush. Ha. I'm addicted to their overpriced hand cream. And don't you think their stores smell divine. I've personally used Biolage for years. No problem so far (though i don't correctly rotate shampoos like javabeans). Yup, I'm a high-maintenance-gal wannabe but actually more of a closeted geek at heart. Pssst, I think we've just alienated whatever percentage of dramabeans.com's male readers with this open thread. Girl power can be scary at times.

Peet's coffee is it. Berkeley over Seattle, hands down. CB is too watered down. Am enjoying their Holiday Blends right now. Thumbs up.

Soulmate addicts: I'm sooo counting on Robbers to fill the void. It better not disappoint.

As a male literal and metaphorical egg-head, I'm not into shampoos as such. But I do have a linguistic-cultural interest in one brand, namely Procter and Gamble's Rejoice.

When their labs cooked up a way of allegedly combining shampoo and conditioner in a single product, they needed to find a market to offload it on. They decided that South and East Asia was the place to find the maximum number of long-haired females. So they then set their advertising teams to dream up localized campaigns for the various submarkets in those regions, with the common theme "long, shampooed and conditioned from a single bottle shampoo good / long non-conditioned hair bad".

I suppose everyone has seen the Hong Kong version, if only on YouTube, where the guy's hands, unaware of the silky smoothness of Rejoice-conditioned locks, suddenly slide to a part of a girl's anatomy where they are not supposed to venture, or at least not on prime-time TV. Then there's the Tamil version, where the new bride has sadly failed to wash her hair in the right product, so her mother-in-laws hands get badly tangled up in it, and the Japanese one, which goes back to the smoothy aspect and allows a young lady who is, er... a little tied up to do a Houdini act thanks to the head-lubrication that comes with the product. Was there a Korean version of this campaign, because if so I missed it? The nearest I know was the Philippine campaign which featured failed Korean starlet Sandara Park (well she failed in her home country, hence her quest for stardom in warmer climes) singing in her supposedly cute Korean accent of the way that using Rejoice shampoo provided both a love-life and a head of hair that was "walang sabit" -- had no snags. The follow-up campaign used a native performer with a jingle that was so catchy the memory of it irritates me still, so I will spread the pain to my Filipina fellow readers by reminding them of "Instant Ayos": "Parang magic talaga / Kinamay lang umayos na!/Bilis ayos, kamay ayos/ Mula ng mag-Rejoice...", where the claim is that you don't need a comb to fix your hair if you use Rejoice

And coffee brands. Where pre-packed beans are concerned, despise not the ones they sell at Dunkin' Donuts. By all means (and despite the prominent product placement given to the brand in Alone in Love) despise everything else that franchise sells, including the "coffee" it serves in liquid form on the premises. but the beans are consistently of a quality that I find hard to beat anywhere outside Switzerland (where even the Nescafé tastes divine -- as does, incidentally, real Swiss Home-Market Toblerone, the sort they don't let out of the country). Any transatlantic visitors to the House of Gramps must drop a pack of Dunkin' Donuts Traditional Arabica on the kitchen table (taking care not to crack the table surface -- seven hours in the baggage hold of a Jumbo turns vacuum-packed coffee beans into mini slabs of concrete) if they want clean sheets on their bed.

Though I'm not a big coffee drinker (my frugal self can't fathom paying whatever the going price for a Starbuck's venti), I do have to have my morning cup of joe to be a reasonable person. It used to be Hula Pie from the Bad Ass Coffee Company (way cool name for coffee), but I can't really afford to mail order it anymore. Now it's the much more accessible Ghiradelli's Chocolate Raspberry. I would recommend both with a few tablespoons of Coffeemate French Vanilla.

On to another topic...I took an intro class to Sheila Kelley's S factor, the poledancing class. Let me tell you girls...GO TRY IT! It makes you feel good about yourself and you can be as sexy as any of those kpop singers (some of them should take a class from some of the vids I've seen. It's about 95% slow, slow, slow, sexy, sexy, sexy stretching on the floor and 5% pole time, which was really thrilling. I got to show off my bruises with a satisfied little smile :). It's a great workout for your abs, glutes, and hamstrings without breaking a sweat...until you get on the pole. I feel so disloyal, but...it beats power yoga hands down.

I gave in long ago to the more expensive shampoo brands because of my extremely dry hair. After much experimentation, Biolage's Ultra-Hydrating Balm is the best I've found. Yes, it's pricey, but worth it. Even after rotating with other salon brands - Aveda and Pureology, included - I had to come back to Biolage to repair my tresses.

As for coffee, I give you the recommendation of my coffee-purist husband. He roasts his own beans, but when he doesn't have the time, he buys Peet's fresh coffee. He says that Peet's uses better quality beans. The last time we were in LA, he actually drove 20 miles farther to get his morning cup at Peet's rather than the Starbuck's down the street. I must admit, properly home-roasted coffee is very good (in fact, the only kind I can drink black - otherwise, I stick to lattes). Coffee loses it's freshness five to seven days after roasting, so I *cringe* at the thought of those single-serving instant coffee packets I see so often in kdramas. Blah! Did you also know that darker-roasted coffee actually has less caffeine?

@merriwether:
well it's only fun if you are able to sleep in the next day.... =P

@kotatsulove:
i'm glad you broke away from the comp for family time. sometimes even that is hard! jk lol

@tealeaf:
what's robber? sounds familiar...time to google. haha.

Man, I had me an insane weekend *crackles wickedly*. I'm obviously lying to myself there...

Tealeaf, you held out on that Biolage sweets *pokes*... totally next on my, to explore and experience list.
Girl/woman and mane power all the way baby. =)

Gramps, there you are! You know, just when I had given up on hearing your delicious input in the important matter of locks! tis always a pleasure.

So next open thread we shall explore skin care, yeah, all? :)

If its raining on a saturday morning I want to watch the good old cartoons and sleep.

Hair falling out. What is your diet? Our hair like plants need nutrient from the roots and I don't mean scalp. I mean blood stream. True that you are stressed and that causes it to fall but also look into your particular diet.

I'm hungry going to lunch