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Recommendations for ROM Lunch

prettypinkpetals — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 12:24:36 +0800

My ROM is this Sunday and I am trying to look for a good place to have lunch with all the attendees. Need some good recommendations on good chinese restaurants in KL. Can be around Mid Valley or Jaya One. Or anywhere else. Looking to only book a table or two for about 15 to 20 people only. There will be one vegetarian so hopefully, it will be a restaurant that has good vegie dishes as well as meat dishes.

I have checked out Oriental Pavillion and it seems pretty OK but would prefer to look at a couple more before I make my reservation.

Thanks in advance Any recommendation will be appreciated.

Westlife to split after 14 years

prettypinkpetals — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 20:30:56 +0800

It's too bad they're splitting up.

QUOTE

If you had seen the four lads sipping pints in a Kuala Lumpur hotel bar, you might have thought – if you couldn't see their faces – they were just four Irish lads, abroad for work, catching up over a beer; chatting about going home, about the families, wives, partners and babies they had left behind, about the future.
What you couldn't have known – even if you could see their faces – was that these four fresh-faced young men with pints in their hands had just agreed to break up the most successful boyband in decades.
In doing so, they were waving goodbye to millions of euro; closing the book on a 14-year collaboration that had brought them 14 No.1 singles, 44 million album sales, 10 sellout tours – and riches beyond the dreams of (as their manager once labelled them) 'some cute culchies and a Dub'.

They were also turning their back on a £5m deal from RCA, the giant record company that also boasts talent such as Alicia Keys and David Bowie. And, of course, they were breaking the hearts of millions of fans worldwide – and none more devoted than those at home in Ireland. But the truth is that the break-up of Westlife, while a shock to their devotees, had been brewing for more than a year. The group had been torn apart by concerns about their direction; a wedge had been driven between them by Simon Cowell's record label, Syco; and they were finding separation from their families increasingly unbearable. Despite all the money, the adulation and the achievement, Westlife, quite simply, had had enough.

While all bands experience various strains and stresses on the way – U2 recently admitted nearly breaking up during the recording of Achtung Baby in 1991 – Westlife had proved remarkably resilient. They had easily weathered the loss of Bryan McFadden... to the extent that it was he who was begging to rejoin them last week. The fact that three of the members – Shane Filan, Mark Feehily and Kian Egan – were all from Sligo had given them a strong bond, without ever suggesting that the fourth man, Nicky Byrne, was an outsider. They were still selling out Croke Park and their lustre appeared undimmed. During 2010, however, they began to have serious problems with their longtime label, Syco – owned by Simon Cowell, the most powerful man in pop. Even the fact that they were managed by Louis Walsh, a close friend of Cowell with an unparrallelled track record, didn't help.

Westlife felt Cowell and his label had lost interest in them and were unwilling to co-operate with the singers' plans. The band felt the last two Westlife albums, Where We Are and Gravity, contained some of their best work, so good they felt that there were three singles on each – but the label seemed unwilling to back them up. The first release, Safe, limped into the British charts at No.10, their weakest-ever position. Beautiful Tonight had been earmarked as the second single but Cowell pulled the plug on any further releases. 'This was when the cracks started forming within the band,' said a well placed source. All four felt Gravity was an 'incredible' album but Cowell wouldn't release any more singles. Cowell knew Westlife fans would buy the albums anyway so why waste money on videos and promotions for singles? It was February and the British leg of the Gravity tour was under way but only one single had been released.
'Mark was very upset by this, having written on four tracks,' said a source. 'He desperately wanted the group to take control back from the Syco and made it clear to the others that if they didn't leave, the band was doomed. So they phoned Louis and told him the situation. The future of the group and their friendships were in jeopardy.'

As the band began touring Britain earlier this year, the atmosphere had deteriorated to such an extent that the four members were not leaving their dressing rooms. Because of increasing frustrations, tempers were often lost backstage before gigs. Shane and Mark had chartered a private plane to fly them home to Sligo each night after shows – allowing them to make it home no matter what happened. Nicky was spending more and more time working with 2FM on the radio and was in constant demand. Kian's girlband, Wonderland – whose members included his wife, Jodi Albert – was on tour with Westlife, and the dual responsibility demanded 20-hour days for the singer, further fuelling stress. Shane, on the other hand, was preoccupied with his family as his daughter began school in Sligo.

At times, phone calls between the members ended in shouting matches, with Mark threatening to walk out on a number of occasions. Then, on March 14, a deal was struck with the record label – and it seemed peace had returned. After 10 years with Simon Cowell, Westlife were released from their contract. They would finish the Gravity tour and afterwards become free agents.
The singers had gained control of their music and could plan their own future. 'It was like a blood transfusion for the four of them,' reveals the insider.
Within days, they had lined up another label, RCA – like Syco, still part of the Sony family. Louis used his connections to set up a meeting, and it looked like the group's fortunes were changing. As the band's future became more secure, relations continued to thaw between the singers. On March 25 they played the LG Arena in Birmingham, a venue they had performed at many times before. That evening, they met RCA to negotiate the terms of the album that would be Westlife's next step.

As Wonderland warmed up the crowd, a party of five executives listened attentively as Mark, Shane, Nicky and Kian discussed a greatest hits project. Louis waited nervously on the phone, eager to find out how the meeting had gone.
Each member of the band would pick three songs for the record, along with four new tracks. These tracks would be worked on with producer John Shanks in LA and released as three separate singles. The record executives doodled on the paper tablecloth in the canteen. By 7pm, a deal was agreed – one album, a greatest hits tour and then a two-year break.
A grinning Shane was unable to contain his excitement as he talked of the new contract, sinking back in his dressing room chair as a broad smile crept across his face.
'It's unreal and we are just over the moon right now to have done the deal,' he said.'We are still in negotiations with RCA over the finer points but we have signed with them for the Greatest Hits. It's a trial period because we aren't going to sign our life away to someone we don't know. We need to see that this is the right place and home for Westlife.'
It was a statement that would prove prophetic – and one that hinted Westlife were no longer content to sit back and let executives manage their lives. The Gravity tour ended with four sold-out shows in Dublin's 02, after which the band flew business class to LA and recorded their new tracks: Lighthouse, Beautiful World, Wide Open and Last Mile Of The Way. Mark and Shane co-wrote two of the tracks. But Shane's foreshadowing became piercingly relevant in July, when manager Louis Walsh received a call from RCA. The label wanted to extend its relationship with Westlife – offering a £5m deal for a series of albums.

Louis was ecstatic: but the band was not. Intent on following their hearts and their own paths, Westlife saw a downside to the deal.
'Louis called the boys to give them the news expecting to hear excitement,' a source said. 'But the new contract would have them back recording in 2012 and touring again in 2013.
'They were exhausted. They had their hearts set on taking a break. Life on the road had changed. And while the conditions had greatly improved – they enjoyed the best tour buses, five-star hotels and first-class flights – their personal situations had altered dramatically. They weren't twenty-somethings any more – they had responsibilities.
'They were about to embark on a six-week tour of the Far East and the thought of working solidly for the next two years was too much to bear. Kian was going to be a father, Shane and Nicky were desperately missing their families. Mark, whose writing had taken him in a different musical direction, was keen to do other projects.'
They decided to call Louis and reject the deal. Their longtime manager already had an inkling that they might do exactly that. And he also suspected what would happen next.

After spending literally all of their adult lives together, the four band members were keen to focus on their own families and careers – hoping to enjoy personal time that was not always overshadowed by the professional. The boys began to ask each other whether they should carry on as a band at all. Shane was already homesick when a cyber stalker threatened his family at home in Sligo. His decision was crystallised – he wanted to leave.
Simultaneously, Mark was dealing with his own cyber stalker. He was forced to call British police after threats were made against him and his partner, Kevin McDaid. He also wanted to quit.
Kian was now focused on becoming a father with his wife Jodi, and he had just landed a job as coach on the new RTÉ talent show, The Voice Of Ireland. He wanted to leave, too.
Nicky's stint on 2FM as a guest DJ had tapped into something of a talent and he found himself inundated with job offers. He was also homesick, missing his wife Georgina and his twins, Jay and Rocco. He wanted to leave.
So on that fateful night in Kuala Lumpur earlier this month, the friends decided to invoke the pact they had made when Brian left in March 2004. They had decreed that if one member wanted to leave, they would disband. And now that all four were ready to leave Westlife, the decision was obvious – and easy.

'It was their decision, all theirs,' Louis told the MoS. 'That was always the way with Westlife and I had to respect that. Could they have gone on for longer? Most definitely. I would have liked them to take a break and come back with a covers album and a tour.
But they all want to do other things. They have ended it on their terms and remain close friends. Had they gone on longer, who knows if that would happen?
'When the statement went out this week, I know that all four of them were hurting at the upset they caused their fans. But at least they will be able to give them a proper goodbye. And who knows what will happen down the line?'
And even if they choose to do nothing but enjoy the comforts of family life, they will still be able to bask in their riches – and in the fact that five kids from unfashionable parts of a little country called Ireland became the biggest thing since the Beatles. Not bad for a few cute culchies and a Dub…

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/artic...l#ixzz1bhYSEsEg

Westlife - Lighthouse (their latest and possibly last single)
[YOUTUBE]Tivph7mTku4[/YOUTUBE]

Reason why you should not share eye products

prettypinkpetals — Sun, 09 Oct 2011 12:56:20 +0800

These articles have been around for some time. This is why no one should buy pre-used mascaras/eyeliners/eyecreams/eyedrops. It is not recommended to share these items as it is unhygienic and you may also contract pink eye in the process. I have seen some girls use those demo/testers of mascara at stores and i cringe every time.

Be wary if you hire a makeup artist and they do not practice the correct hygiene. Take care of your eyes

Eyelash Mites, Yes, You Do Have Them [source:link]

Warning: Gross Stuff Ahead, Read at Your Own Risk

Did you know that most people have eyelash mites?

These mites live heads-in in your eyelash follicle, feeding on sebaceous excretion and dead skin cells. They come out to the skin surface at night to mate and return to the follicle to LAY THEIR EGGS! The eggs hatch and *tada!* you got babies and the population of eyelash mites you are host to increases exponentially.

And… here’s what they look like! That’s their heiny you see as their faces are buried into your follicle, feeding away. The big thing is the eyelash.

Demodex folliculorum, or the demodicid, is a tiny mite, less than 0.4 mm long, that lives in your pores and hair follicles, usually on the nose, forehead, cheek, and chin, and often in the roots of your eyelashes. (A follicle is the pore from which a hair grows).

Demodicids have a wormlike appearance, with legs that are mere stumps. People with oily skin, or those who use cosmetics heavily and don't wash thoroughly, have the heaviest infestations ... but most adults carry a few demodicids. Inflammation and infection often result when large numbers of these mites congregate in a single follicle.

An individual female may lay up to 25 eggs in a single follicle, and as the mites grow, they become tightly packed. When mature, the mites leave the follicle, mate, and find a new follicle in which to lay their eggs. The whole cycle takes between 14 to 18 days.

The mites have tiny claws, and needlelike mouthparts for eating skin cells. Their bodies are layered with scales, which help them anchor themselves in the follicle.

And don’t bother scrubbing your eyes out tonight when you shower. Almost nothing gets them out. But washing your closed eyes with baby shampoo helps keep their numbers down.

Experts say that they do no harm except that if too many are in one follicle, that eyelash will come loose and fall out easily. In fact, some say that eyelash mites and you exist in a symbiotic relationship in that they actually eat your waste material, thus cleaning you up. Maybe they’re trying to say that if you didn’t have eyelash mites, you’d have greasy and dandruffy eyelashes.

Also, small comfort: Eyelash mites are so efficient that they eat but do not has excretory exits and thus there is no eyelash mite poop falling into your eyes.

If you think you are safe, you’re not! MOST people have them.

If you use eyeliner and mascara, you most definitely have more of them!

If you don’t wash off your eyeliner and mascara well, you probably already have an infestation.

Thank you for your attention to this public safety announcement. We wish you a peaceful night’s sleep!

Eyelash Mites [source:link]

Eyelash mites also known as Demodex folliculorum, or the demodicid, are tiny parasitic mites, that lives in the sebaceous glands and hair follicles of all human beings. Usually with a size of less than 0.4 mm, these parasites in the human body are found latched on to the nose, forehead, cheek, chin and the roots of the eyelashes. Although the infestation of these mites is usually quite common, they do not cause any severe symptoms. However, in certain cases eyelash mites can be the cause of certain skin conditions. Here is more information on these parasitic mites, the causes and how to get rid of eyelash mites.

What are Eyelash Mites?

The adult mites are only about 0.4 mm long, with a semi-transparent elongated body. The body consists of two fused segments with the first body segment having around eight short segmented legs. The eyelash mites are covered with scales that are used for attaching the body to the hair follicle. The needle-like mouth-parts feed on the dead, flaky skin-cells, hormones and the sebum which accumulate in the hair follicles.

The female adult eyelash mites are somewhat shorter and rounder than males. A genital opening is present in both the male and the females of the species, and fertilization is internal. Once the mating is consummated in the follicle opening, the eggs are laid inside the hair follicles or the glands. At a time a female mite may lay up to 20 eggs in one hair follicle. It takes 3-4 days for the eggs to hatch and around seven days for the larvae to develop into adults. The lifespan of these parasitic mites can extend up to several weeks. They are transferred by the hair, eyebrows and the glands of the nose.

Causes of Eyelash Mites

While every person has some amount of eyelash mites, certain people are prone to large numbers of these creatures. This includes women who continually wear eyelash mascara and eyeliner and thus have a higher tendency to be host to more mites than others do, especially when the makeup is not removed thoroughly at the end of the day. Older people are also increasingly prone to getting eyelash mites while children have a much lower rate due to a lesser production of sebum. People with a suppressed immune system, caused by stress or illness may also have an eyelash mite infestation in large numbers.

While eyelash mites are usually harmless, a dramatic increase may result in a condition known as demodicosis. This skin disorder is characterized by itching and inflammation. Other skin disorders like rosacea and swollen eyelids caused by blepharitis are the result of an infestation of the Demodex mites. This can result in the eyelashes falling out and other eye problems. A persisting infestation may result in corneal irritation or scarring. In addition to blepharitis, eyelash mites can cause demodectic conjunctivitis which leads to conjunctiva blushing (eyelashes gluing in the morning).

Treatment for Eyelash Mites

The diagnosis of an eyelash mite infestation is made by observing individual eyelashes under a microscope and the presence of cylindrical dandruff around the base of the eyelash.

For chronic blepharitis, an antibiotic eyelash mites treatment may be prescribed by your doctor. Persistent human eyelash mites can be cured by tea tree oil which is known to control the symptoms and the heavy infestation. A weekly eyelid scrub with tea tree oil and daily eyelid scrub with tea tree shampoo for up to 6 weeks may result in effectively treating the parasitic mites. In addition to that, proper eyelid hygiene and eye care is extremely important. This should include:

Use of disposable tissues for washing the eyelids
Launder your paraphernalia and iron the towels and pillow covers every day
Your shaving set and spectacle-box needs to be cleaned everyday

If the eyelash mites persist despite of the treatment measures, then it is best to consult a doctor for an effective remedy.
By Parul Solanki

Video of demodex
[YOUTUBE]pZof6KvD88g[/YOUTUBE]