Poplets review

I have received a small sample of Poplets from Goodies.co. My review on this item is my own. I personally did not like this item. To me it felt like I was eating from the bottom of the popcorn bag. Sure they were all crunchy and not like you would find at the bottom of your popcorn bag, but I'm not sure I would just buy these to snack on. They look like popcorn that has been stopped in their process from popping. I really could not taste much sea salt or butter, they were pretty bland and had a very hard crunch. So do not feed these to a toddler. Would I recommend this item...no. Would I buy this item...sadly no. I don't think this product will last too long. Again it was a free sample and I did not enjoy this one.

The Mortal Instruments City of Bones

First of all, I've been familiar with Cassandra Clare's work for quite a few years now...of course, what I mean is that like thousands of other people, I knew her from her LOTR and Harry Potter fan-fiction days, under the penname "Cassandra Claire." She would probably be the most stellar example of what's known as a BNF, or a Big Name Fan. She wrote the "Very Secret Dairies" for LOTR and the "Draco Trilogy" (Draco Dormiens, Sinister, and Veritas) for Harry Potter. They've been translated into various languages and most likely if you read any Harry Potter fan-fiction at all, you've probably heard of Cassandra Clare. Unsurprisingly, there was also some controversy and accusations of plagiarism involved, since she paraphrased or "forgot to cite" a lot of phrases and quotes that she used in her stories, which she'd taken from other famous works/fandoms. You can read all about it at her very own Fanlore page <here>. As I recall, she may or may not have been gifted a laptop by fans when hers was stolen - though this is apparently one of the myths that got deleted off websites like Fanlore.

Anyway, all this is just background context, but it's important context, and you'll see why. So basically after this highly successful fan-fiction stint, Cassandra Claire became Cassandra Clare, the best-selling author of the YA "Mortal Instruments" series, which finally brings me back to City of Bones. With that said, City of Bones is more or less the Harry Potter world re-imagined  and what I mean by that is that basically almost every single concept and phrase and description in this book seemed oddly familiar... But that's kind of to be expected, since naturally a writer's style can't change overnight. Still.

Here's now the series works. Clary Fray is your normal teenage girl - for about fifty pages, anyway - and basically she starts seeing things that other people can't see. No, it actually isn't a book based off the ever popular faerie mythology. Clary sees three teenagers covered with weird markings kill someone they claim is a demon. Turns out, there's a whole "Shadow world" out there, where there are vampires, werewolves, faeries, and so on. One of those marked teenagers turns out to be a young Shadowhunter named Jace, who happens to have all the same mannerisms and characteristics as Draco Malfoy, especially the Draco Malfoy portrayed the Draco Trilogy. In other words, he's arrogant, wealthy, sarcastic, blond, and he even comes with a back story with some kind of stern father who teaches him that "to love is to destroy." The father spoiled his son with luxuries (they live in the Malfoy - well, a manor - after all) but the father also died. Jace is a Shadowhunter, meaning he's been trained since birth to kill demons and whatnot. A Shadowhunter uses a stele (which is a wand-like object, Clare's description, not mine) to draw runes, i.e. they use this "tool" to do magic. Cool, right?

Okay, Jace is actually pretty appealing (well, why not? He's basically Draco) but the similarities don't stop there. See, about 16 years ago in this magical world, this guy named Lord Voldemort - er, I mean Valentine - decided to get rid of everyone who he felt wasn't pureblooded enough, which in this case means anything nonhuman. There's actually quite a bit of snobbishness going on between the Shadowhunters and the Muggles - er, I mean mundanes - that don't know about this magical world that's hiding in plain sight. Anyway, 16 years ago, "Valentine" failed and everyone thought he and his wife and child died. His supporters, the Circle (okay, fail, Death Eaters sounds so much cooler), either died during the Uprising or turned themselves in and are somewhat co-opted back into the government, but exiled.

Clary, of course, turns out to be mysteriously connected to He Who Shall Not Be Named, who turns out not to be dead. Like you didn't see that one coming. Anyway, Valentine sends demons after Clary and manages to kidnap Clary's mom. Clary's dad conveniently died around the time she was born. Hmmmm. Valentine used to be this popular and handsome Shadowhunter who, you know, didn't start out evil but gradually became obsessed with killing all the Downworlders (those nonhuman, part demon whatevers) and using this thing called the Mortal Cup to create more Shadowhunters from regular humans. Problem is, only like 20% of the converted humans survive, but Valentine's not going to let that stop him. He builds up his followers - the Circle - which basically consists of the parents of all of Clary's new Shadowhunter friends. By the way, the Shadowhunter names are all things like Blackwell, Pangborn, Lightwood, Fairchild. Just so you know. No sense of deja vu, of course.

Also, in a twist you so couldn't see coming, Valentine turns out to be Clary's mom's husband, which makes Clary...right, his daughter. Oh no! To help you (and Clary) keep track of everyone, there's this old picture of the Circle when they were young, y'know that group of friends who were all together...too bad the picture isn't animated, right? Let's keep going though. So V's after the Mortal Cup, which Clary's mom has hidden, so Clary and Jace try to find it while some action and unrequited love pads the story. The relationships are painfully similar to what was in Draco Trilogy, but I guess you can't really plagiarize from yourself. On the romantic front, I won't spoil it completely, but just think Leia and Luke Skywalker. Uh huh, another classic. Jace also has an "I am your father" moment.

All right, all this said, despite all of the above, City of Bones is a pretty good book, in the same way that I thought that the Draco Trilogy was pretty fun to read. Incidentally, the Draco Trilogy can be downloaded as a PDF from a variety of places. Both the Trilogy and this "Mortal Instruments" series have lots of Latin inscriptions, lots of references, and lots of funny moments. It's only irritating because the whole thing constantly makes me think "wow, I've seen this before," to the point that it was really distracting. There wasn't a single part that I felt was all that new, but everything was pretty well done and well written. Clary is almost unbearably a Mary Sue, but I was way more distracted by the shoutouts to Jaida Jones (another famous fanfic writer turned published author, who actually did write a novel I liked, Havemercy) and Holly Black. Regarding the Mary Sue issue, though, can we please get rid of all these fantasy heroines who never seem to realize they're beautiful until their romantic interest tells them? Cliche much and annoying much? Please, you're telling me a 16 year old girl somehow never realized her own level of attractiveness. Really, now.

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Luster NOW! Instant Whitening Toothpaste

I been using this product for the past 5 days (two times a day, which it says is safe to do) and have noticed a considerable change on the shade of my teeth. It tastes and leaves my teeth feeling clean and smooth. The reason why I gave it a 4 star rating is because I didn't necessarily see the results "now" as it claims (I mean on my first brush), just don't expect this stuff to lift too many shades in the first wash, for me it wasn't until day 2 that I was able to see this stuff was working, that would mean a number of things though, and it's my personal experience with the product. I recommend giving it a try to gradually whiten your smile. I received this product complimentary for testing and review purposes from Influenster.

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Lean Cuisine Honestly Good

Although frozen, the Lemongrass Salmon is the most tender and juiciest that I have ever tried from the frozen section. The meal is 100% all natural and you can have 1 or 2 everyday and wont have to worry about gaining pounds. I mean its "Honestly Good". I'm normally a fan of frozen foods, because its quick and easy and I don't have to wash dishes. The Lean Cuisine is my first natural and organic meal. when I go grocery shopping I normally skip the "healthy and natural" aisle. But now I make sure to stop by the natural aisle first. I have replaced my normal frozen dinners/lunch with the Lean Cuisine® Honestly Good™ entrees and I don't plan on eating anything else. I plan on trying all the different entrees before this month is over. I have recommended this to all my friends and coworkers. A few of my co workers are now eating healthy, thanks to me!

**Update 06/22/2013**

I'm so excited to hear positive news from my co workers. One of my coworkers mentioned that she lost some weight while on her strict honestly good regime. We have been swapping meals for the past few weeks now and we always look forward to lunch time at work. My office has about 50 people and word has gotten around about our friendly lunch swaps. We may have a few new people added to the circle next week. We have tried almost all the entrees. I believe everyone has tried each dish about a good 1 time. All my coworkers now share their work habits at home thanks to me and my influence on them. I cant wait to see what else i can influence my coworkers to try.

I have received this product complimentary from BzzAgent

Dr. Scholl's For Her Ball of Foot Cushions

Dr. Scholl's For Her Ball of Foot Cushions are heaven sent. I'm able to wear heels for a long period of time, my toes stay in place and do not slide towards the front of my shoes. I have been wearing the insoles for about a week now and switching them back and forth between a few pair of heels that I like to wear. Once you place your insole in the right spot then you are ready to go. The insoles stay in place and the backing stays on pretty good no matter how many shoes you flip them around in. The gel cushion provides extra comfort and the ball of my feet no longer burn. I love how I can practically stand all day and still experience no discomfort when I'm wearing my insoles.

**I have received this product complimentary from Influenster.