I’ve been playing (and winning!) some more games on Duolingo. Yes, I know, winning chess games on Duolingo doesn’t really count. But, for me, a person who only picked up chess very recently, every win counts for me! My current ELO on Duolingo is 401, which doesn’t mean anything, I know, but it’s a big deal for me!
Month: May 2026
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My new skincare routine.
You may remember a post from the end of April on my Threads account where I talked about purchasing some new skincare and beauty products from Ulta. I’ve been meaning to make an update, but I haven’t gotten around to it. So, I am finally making an update!
For about 20 years, I had been using AcneFree Severe. It actually worked for me. In fact, it was the only thing that worked for me. I had tried everything, and my skin reacted terribly to all other systems, except AcneFree Severe. I have PCOS, so I have hormonal acne-prone skin. I also have combination skin. Trying to find something that works for everything is impossible. AcneFree Severe was perfect for all of my skin issues. Unfortunately, AcneFree Severe is no longer being sold. I need to find something for my skin. I can’t just stop washing it. So, I went onto Ulta’s website, desperate to find anything that looked like it wouldn’t irritate my skin.
I came across the ANUA 5-Step Glass Skin Routine Set. It’s just a trial size, so it’s a bit pricey at $28. I didn’t want to pay that kind of money for something so small, but I decided to give it a try. If my skin had a bad reaction to it, at least I didn’t spend hundreds of dollars on it. There’s about enough to use daily (morning and evening) for about three weeks. That would give me enough time to see how my skin would react to a new system.
This system is completely different for me. There are two cleansers and three hydration products. I’m used to one cleanser, one toner, and one treatment. I knew my skin would be in for a little “shock.” The first step (purifying) is oil-based (Heartleaf Pore Control Cleansing Oil). I have never used an oil-based cleanser before, so that was a bit weird for my skin. However, I could feel it working in my pores, picking up the dirt and grime. The second step (cleansing) is a water-based foam cleanser (Heartleaf Quercetinol Pore Deep Cleansing Foam). This is my favorite cleanser! It is very soothing and, true to the name, it goes deep into the pores. The third step (toning) is a heartleaf-based toner (Heartleaf 77 Soothing Toner). This is one of the best toners I’ve ever used! The fourth step (treating) is a niacinamide-based treatment serum (Niacinamide 10 TXA 4 Serum). It helps lighten dark spots and to make the skin have a radiant appearance. I really love how it feels on my skin. Finally, the last step (moisturizing) is a ceramide-based moisturizer (3 Ceramide Panthenol Moisture Barrier Cream). This is what helped to “fix” my combination skin! It gives enough hydration to the dry part of my skin, while not overhydrating the oily part of my skin.
I was pleasantly surprised that my skin didn’t become irritated! I even have a healthy and radiant shine for the first time in my life! Because of my combination skin, any “shine” was usually from the oily part of my skin, but now my skin is hydrated instead, and the shine is welcome! The products feel very nice! I can actually feel the products working on my skin. However, because I am moving from a system with benzoyl peroxide, witch hazel, and retinol to one with heartleaf, niacinamide, and ceramides, my skin is currently going through a “purging” phase. From past experience, it usually takes approximately two to three months for my skin to go through this phase. The part of my skin that doesn’t have any of the purging acne on it looks the best it has ever looked! Hopefully, once my skin has completed the purging phase, it will be completely clear again.
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Winning my first chess game.
You may have remembered that the first time I played a chess game, it was a draw by repetition. Well, since I’ve left chess.com (that is where I played my first chess game), I’ve been using Lichess. However, I just recently discovered that Duolingo also has chess, so I decided to do some lessons on there and then try a game over there. It was a success!
This is my second chess game I’ve ever played. I managed to win! Unfortunately, Duolingo doesn’t have that nice game animation like chess.com or Lichess has after you play a game, so I could only get a screenshot of when I won.
Yes, I know how problematic Duolingo can be. Yes, I’m aware that this might not be a “real” win because it was on Duolingo. But, for me, it is a win. I will take a win, on any platform! I’ve only been learning chess for a month, and this is only my second game. It’s going to take (a long) time before I’m good enough to play rated players on Lichess.
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Leaving chess.com for Lichess.
Last month, I wrote about learning how to play chess and playing my first chess game. I’ve been using chess.com this entire time, but I’ve decided that it is time for a change.
chess.com has excellent tutorials and puzzles, but I find that it’s way too expensive. There’s a lot of bloat, as well. Since I’m a newbie to chess, I am looking for tutorials, puzzles, and game/move analysis. However, these are very limited on chess.com’s free plan. I decided to have a look at lichess.org. This was exactly what I needed! Tutorials! Puzzles! Game/move analysis! And it’s all free and open source.
I only have one issue with Lichess and that’s the app for Android. It’s nowhere near as good as the website. So, what I did was install the site as a web app to my phone. Now, that way, I can have the same access to all the features on the site. Perhaps one day the app will be better. But, for now, I’ll use it the site as a web app.
