Wednesday, April 29, 2015

Marvel Collector Corps Subscription Box

The subscription box that I have been anxiously waiting for came last week. This post will be a bit photo heavy.
Marvel Collector Corps is a new subscription box that will come out every other month. It is a collaboration with Funko. Yea! The box cost $25 plus shipping, handling and taxes so it came to about $35 to ship to the US.
This month's box is tied into the upcoming Avengers: Age of Ultron film, which I can't wait to see. The next box will be in June tying into the release of Marvel's Ant-Man
I am someone who loves presentation as much as what is inside. Finding Captain America's face on my front porch made me happy. Collector Corps gave a few hints and spoilers for this box on their social media pages. The Funko Hulkbuster was announced pretty early.
This is by far the heaviest Funko Pop I have ever seen. This 6 inch Pop has a lot of details but like every Funko Pop it isn't perfect. I love Funko Pops but they are hit or miss with the paint jobs. 
Another Funko product included is this Ultron Dorbz figure. Dorbz figures are "adorable" caricatures of the characters. At least that is what they seem like to me. There is a whole line of these for Marvel characters.
In each subscription box came a tee-shirt in one of four designs. Mine has Thor and Ultron on it. I looked on twitter for pics of the other designs. They are all similar except for which characters are featured. I really want Captain America but Thor's pretty good.
They also included a variant cover comic book. 

And since everything cannot be a big ticket product, the "filler" for this box included an iron-on Collector Corps patch with Ultron and a Captain America Collector Corps pin. I would have like these better if they did not have "Collector Corps" on them. I would rather have just gotten a Captain America pin and a Ultron patch without the sub box promotion.
My overall opinion of this subscription box is pretty good. The shirt and Funko POP alone would cost about $35 together, give or take. I really like that it all ties into one film. Now I am even more psyched to see the film plus I know what I'll be wearing.






Friday, April 24, 2015

5 Fandom Friday: Games I Love To Play

Fandom Friday time brought to you by The Nerdy Girlie and SuperSpaceChick. Once again these lovely ladies give us geek girls fun prompts to write about. This week its games.

1-3 Batman, Alice and Zelda
I am notorious for not finishing video games. I need to get back into playing Alice: Madness Returns and The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess.
I have finished Batman Arkham Asylum. Still a little too proud about that.
If I ever manage to finish these games you can count on a blog post announcing such a triumph. I am such a bad gamer. 

 4. Star Fluxx
I watched Wil Wheaton and guests play this game on Tabletop. I don't have a lot of games that are not on consoles or the computer. Mainly because I don't have anyone to play games with IRL except my mom. And she sucks at this game and is such a sore loser. I do enjoy watching you face when she realizes she lost. Classic

5. All the LEGO games
Most of the console games I own are Lego games. Mainly because these seem to be the only games my mom can kind of play. I've tried to teach her platform games or even something like Epic Mickey. Massive Fail.
I do want the Marvel Lego game.


Wednesday, April 22, 2015

Adventures in Gardening: Part 1

Getting The Plants
Every year I think about getting a garden put together. Some flowers, herbs and maybe a few fruit plants too. Yet every year it just never happens.
This year will be different.

The Sand Springs Herbal Affair
My hometown has an annual festival that is perfect for getting plants to start a garden. It is the biggest event this sleepy suburban town has. It draws in a pretty big crowd. Besides the stands selling various plants there are crafts, tons of food and even play areas for kids. I go to this almost every year...they have pineapple whips.

Unfortunately by the time I made it there some of the plant stands were pretty well picked through. I did manage to get some basil, mint, cilantro and strawberries. The flower plants looked pretty grim. I could not find milkweed anywhere.

Cue a short road trip to the local plant farm- Riddles. 
We went to Riddles Plant Farm after leaving the Herbal Affair. We were on a quest for tomatoes and flowers. Alas, we were not the only ones to come up with this idea. The place was packed. I just managed to grab the last milkweed plant they had. Check out my reasons for wanting milkweed HERE on a previous post.

It has been a long time since I've gone to this plant farm. I ended up getting a decent start for my butterfly garden there. Also my mom found the tomato plants she want.
In all a pretty good haul. Once the weather clears up a bit I will start working on the garden proper. I still want to find some more milkweed. 
The quest continues... 

Wednesday, April 15, 2015

April Birchbox and Ipsy



Once again it is Birchbox and Ipsy time. Each subscription box cost $10 a month, shipped. I share these with my mother so any of the products in GREEN are the ones she choose. With Birchbox this month I opted for the "Guest Editor" box because it was Mad Men themed. I choose the California one over the New York box since I have received a few of the samples from the New York box already.

  • Clean Eau de Parfum- This is a bright soapy scented perfume. My mom loves the perfume samples. 
  • LAQA & Co. Sheer Lip Lube Pencil in Honeypot- I will say that this goes on smooth and it is a bit minty. I just do not like the color and that is my own fault because I knew what was going to be in the box before I choose it. I was just hoping it would be a brighter pink. 
  • Cynthia Rowley Beauty Brightening Illuminator- I really have no idea how to use these highlighters. I have gotten a few from these boxes and they are just not for me or my mom.
  • 12 Benefits Instant Healthy Hair Treatment- I really like this. I used it last night before I blow dried my hair and my hair was shiny and smooth afterwards without any fizzing.
  • Not Soap, Radio Body Wash in Bathing with sharks- I didn't get a chance to smell this before my mom took it. Good sized sample and appealing simplistic design. 
Ipsy always comes with a make up bag. See the top photo for this month's "Beautifully Bohemian" bag.
  • Mullein Sparrow Mini Lip and Cheek Tint- A vegan product. I thought this would be a nice deep color...nope. No color at all. I am a pale person so if it had any pigment it would have shown on me.
  • Lather Ultra Light Face Lotion- A very creamy moisturizer. Not bad but it will not be replacing my normal moisturizer.
  • theBalm Cosmetics NUDE Dude Eyeshadow Single-  In the shade Flirty. Kind of a fun packaged eye shadow. Decent sized sample for a single color.
  • Starlooks Satin Finish lip gloss- In the color Cuddle. Almost a pearlescent dark peach lip gloss. Not the best sized sample though.
  • JulieG Nail Color- In Damsel. A vivid pink nail polish. I love getting nail polish in these boxes. Even though my mom snatches those pretty fast.
Mom also took the make up bag this month.
I can't choose a winner this month. They both had their hits and misses. My favorite from Birchbox is the 12 Benefits Hair Treatment and from Ipsy it is the nail polish
Do you get these subscriptions? If you get Ipsy did you like this month's Glam Bag?


Friday, April 10, 2015

5 Fandom Friday: Magical Items I Would Love To Own

I have been in a blogging drought lately. I blame it on a lack of anything interesting happening and an existential crisis. So I am grateful to The Nerdy Girlie and SuperSpaceChick for continuing to come up with these 5 Fandom Friday prompts. Otherwise I would probably be writing about my intense hatred of tornadoes instead of something fun like this.
This week's prompt is about the magical items I would love to own.

1. Jareth's Balls
Hehe. Sorry had to do that. When a double entendre presents itself so perfectly it must be acknowledge. Labyrinth has been one of my favorite films since before I can remember. Oh David Bowie, you are perfection in tight pants.

2. Invisibility Cloak
The uses for Harry Potter's invisibility cloak are endless. Bad hair or make up day...poof invisible. Trying to avoid someone...poof you can't see me. Pulling a cruel prank...poof gotcha sucker. The one use that Harry and his companions seemed to forget. Bank Robbery. Watch Misfits on Hulu to see how perfect invisibility works for this. Love that show. The first two seasons are the best.
   
3. Alice's Mirror
I do have a bit of an obsession with all thing Alice. Wouldn't it be amazing to just walk through a mirror and begin an adventure. Of course since there are many variations of Alice and her Wonderland who knows what could happen. You might end up in the fun live action Disney TV series version or you might end up fighting for your life and sanity in the American McGee one. Or something in between. I would gladly risk it for a chance at an adventure.

4. Mary Poppins' Purse
Everyone that has seen Mary Poppins remembers the purse scene. I want a purse like that. Just open it up and anything you could possible need appears. It defies science. I need it. Only I would prefer on that does not look like something found in the bottom of my great grandmother's moth infested closet. It needs a style update. 



5. Ned
Ned's magic so he counts. I still miss Pushing Daisies. If was just a fun, odd and beautifully filmed show. Vibrant and magical. It would be nice to have need around. He bakes and can bring people back from the dead. Perfect. 



Friday, April 3, 2015

5 Fandom Friday: 5 Times I Totally Fangirled

Today's 5 Fandom Friday is all about "Fangirling". Once again these fun, weekly prompts are thought up by The Nerdy Girlie and SuperSpaceChick.
Unfortunately I have not had that many opportunities to truly be a fangirl. Living in the suburbs of Oklahoma is rather boring. No one really wants to come here and I do not blame them in the slightest. Yet there have been a few people and events that allowed my inner fangirl a chance to come out.

1. Meeting Kristin Chenoweth: In 2009 Kristin Chenoweth wrote her autobiography and since she is from Oklahoma she came to Tulsa for a book signing. There were so many people there. Even Ms. Chenoweth was shocked. The bookstore (Oh Borders how I miss you) had to call different bookstores to get more copies of the book. I stood in line fore over 4 hours to meet her. I don't remember what I said to her, something foolish and embarrassing no doubt.

2. The Tulsa Trek Expo: A few years ago my mom won tickets to the Tulsa Trek Expo. We had never been to any convention before. We spent most of the time wandering around wide eyed. So many cosplayers. This was before I knew anything about cosplay. We didn't meet any of the guests since we didn't know how to sign up for that. I did see the actor who played Chewbacca. Also Leonard Nimoy was there that year. We saw him from up in the bleachers.

3. 2010 Muse Resistance Tour: After spending days listening to Z104.5 The Edge nonstop I somehow managed to win tickets to see Muse in Oklahoma City. Not only did I get tickets to the show they also had the winners ride on a bus to OKC "The Resistance Bus". A free ride to OKC and back, yes please. When I got through on the the phone line I really fangirled it up. I was just shocked. I may have squealed a bit.
It was an amazing show. Muse is one of the best live bands ever!

4. Tulsa's Rocky Horror Picture Show: I have been a fan of Rocky Horror for years. In fact, my friend Regan and I have RHPS nicknames for each other. She's RiffRaff and I'm Magenta. In Tulsa for a few years we had an amazing production of Rocky Horror. The actor who played Frank is beyond perfect. He may actually be better than Tim Curry *GASP! I met him after one performance. So pretty. I have a pic of the two of us together, but it is rather too embarrassing to display here. And yeas, I was dressed as Magenta.


5. My Belated Fangirl Moment: I didn't realize until way after the fact that I saw The Walking Dead's Emily Kinney (Beth) live in August: Osage County when it played in Tulsa. I had front row seats in the orchestra pit. I remember her distinctly in this production but it never occurred to me that she was Beth too. It was a great show, too bad the movie version sucked in comparison.  

Wednesday, April 1, 2015

Tales From Childhood: The Easter Bunny

There are things about my childhood that I look back on rather fondly. My mother had a knack for going above and beyond when it came to things such as the Easter Bunny, Santa...etc. As an only child, I relied heavily on my imagination, a skill I learn from her.

The Easter Bunny
Most kids have a version of the Easter Bunny. Either one that you visit at the mall for a photo op, one that leaves a basket of goodies or one that hides colored eggs.
My Easter Bunny left not only a basket of treats on my front porch, he left proof of his existence that would make a believer out of any child.
Rabbit Poo!

During this point we had a raised bunny hutch in the back yard. These rabbits did their business in there and it fell through the the hutch onto the ground below. Excellent for gardening purposes...and other things that an invented mind could devise.

My parents would put my Easter basket on the front porch and trailing away from the basket, down the stairs and sidewalk, would be a row of rabbit pellets (poo). Clever parents, clever.

I truly believed a magical rabbit left me a basket full of candy and toys ever year. I had proof. To someone under ten, this is rational.
The Easter Bunny is real!

I am grateful to my parents for these types of things they did. They worked hard to make my childhood full of wonder and magic. I do not know anyone else who would have thought of doing this just to make an imaginary creature real.

With parents like these, it is shocking that they never saw my wanting to be an actress coming. I am a product of an imaginative world. I am very lucky.

Happy early Easter for those who celebrate it. May the Easter Bunny leave you more than a basket too.
Juliet is not amused

Faux Foodie- Eton Mess

Since life is strange right now, I have nothing relevant to post right now... so instead a re-post/edit of one of my favorite desserts ...