Friday, December 31, 2010

On The Year's End

By the time this blog gets updated, I will be in UAE, doing God knows what. My sister asked me to come along with her on her spur-of-the-moment trip to Dubai a few weeks ago, and I said hell yea! to that. Right on the spot.

2010 is ending, and I need to take a moment to thank God for all the things that have happened to me because I was truly blessed this year. Everything that I could have wished for came true and better. Everything that was in question and in doubt fell into right places. So thank you with all my heart!

Thank all of you that are in, around, and out of my life.

Until next time,

Sak

Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Whoever Came Up With Tankinies Must Have Never Gone On a Trip to a Beach Resort

I have always thought that the anticipation is probably the best part of a trip. And this time, when I was heading to UAE, was no exception to my excitement a la packing, espeicially because I had never had the chance to take my bikini anywhere before.


I'm so glad I didn't chuck it along with other things I hadn't worn just a while ago.

And of course, my sun allergy is still good and valid, so I'm slipping into something cover my whole skin too, but who the hell cares! I get to wear a bikini in winter, whooo hoooooooooo!

Until next time,

Sak

Monday, December 20, 2010

List of 10 - Christmas Wishes

I was reading a friend's blog where she listed all the things for Christmas that she wants to wish for, and was very much inspired to make my own. So here it is. And since I am nearing 31 and no longer a little girl who is simply good or naughty (I'm hell of a lot more things than just good or naughty, thank you very much), lemme just blur out like a grownup woman without bullshits.

1) a kitten
I love all animals and wouldn't say no to having a dog. But cats are lower-maintenance, and for a woman with very little energy who can't bear the idea of going for a walk twice a day every day, a kitty will do.


2) an oven
Ovens are hard to come by in Japan, and I am dying for one. I haven't baked much this year, unlike last year when I blogged about my baking goodies a lot, and I partially blame the lack of oven system in this country for it. Sure, the gas price is sky-rocketing. But hell, if I had an oven like this one below, I'd save money on ... on... something, to bake pies and muffins all year long.


3) an apartment in Paris
Like, why the hell not?


I mean, what right-minded girl would NOT want an apartment in Paris, where she can go on a morning stroll along Seine or go museum hopping in the afternoon, or have a croissant-and-a-freshly-squeezed-OJ brunch on the balcony overlooking the Eiffel tower?


4) a TV
By July 2011, I need to have a digital television by law to watch TV in my own household. While I am not a big TV watcher, I will be very sad to miss out on The Big Bang Theory and The Mentalist on SuperDramaTV. So, a new TV by July, I need. And since I am getting one, I might as well get a nice one, the kind I will love for the rest of my life and my grandchildren will be saying "Your TV is so old, grandma!"

5) more time off
I want more time off. Time to be NOT working or doing or even thinking about things related to work. I have less and less of that, lately.

6) consecutive days off
And I want a consecutive two-day off on a regular basis. If I had that, I get to "not think about things related to work" that I mentioned in 5) at least one day, on the first day of the two days. Since I have Tuesday and Sunday off, I am thinking about Wednesday on Tuesday, and about Monday on Sunday. I'd looooooove not to do that, at least one day of the week.

7) a home library
You know the beginning scene from Beauty and the Beast where Belle goes town to the bookstore and finds her favorite book from the shelf as she rides on a sliding ladder? The first time I saw that when I was, like, 11, I was electrified. I was in love with that book shelf with the ladder. And I still am, as I approach 31.

Dad was a major book collector/reader, and still owns thousands. Mom, a not a big reader, has been trying to think of ways to get rid of them all. Hell to the no! I want to take over all of dad's preciousness and make me a home library one day. So mom, stop cleaning the loft!


8) a car
A Mustang, and a yellow one at that, has always been my dream car...
...but here in Japan, any American vehicles don't quite look right, not to mention driving one like a Mustang or a Corvette is a tad difficult to pull off in style: the roads are freaking narrow and curvy, parking lots are limited, and gas is super duper expensive. So lately, I am prone to droll at a Mini Cooper whenever I pass by one on the road. A European coop seems better suited for a country Japanadian girl like myself than an American convertible.
9) a central heating system
Oh my gawd it's cold in winter! And oh my gawd they need a better heating system in Japanese houses!

10) a fireplace
That's one thing I reeeeeeally miss about living in British Columbia. The smell of the cedars burning. The sound of the logs cracking. Now THAT is Christmas time.

Thank you, Santa, for at least reading my list. Show me what you got, alright?

Until next time,

Sak

Wednesday, December 15, 2010

Power Stones for Christmas

Mother of a student made a cell phone strap for all of our staff with power stones. She made them all with different stones, and I chose the one with pink opals. Very cute.



And she told me that pink opals are supposed to bring luck in love, affection , and well-being and strength.

Thank you, Mrs. N.

Until next time,

Sak

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

First Snow Day

Woke up at parents house, thinking that the lights coming into the room from the curtain gaps were a little too bright. I opened the curtains up to find...



...the winder wonderland!

Why is it so exciting, no matter how freaking cold and no mattter how grossly wet the street gets afterwards, to have the first snow of the winter on the ground?




Pretty all around us.

Until next time,

Sak

Monday, December 6, 2010

Lunch in Tokyo

Was in Tokyo for T's guitar (and my curling hair dryer), and for lunch we went to a semi-microbiotic restaurant where meat is allowed. I opted for a curry lunch, and the yumminess blew the roof off!




Num num.

Btw, I haven't blogged about how my macrobiotic life has been going, but I still do believe in and practice it. For lunch or dinner together with a company of someone, however, it's hard to follow the whole all-organic, no-animal-anything concept completely. I have meat and dairy, yet the enjoyment of having a meal with the people I love takes my feeling guilty to back seat. Like my beloved author Mireille Guilliano says, "moderation is the key," and I believe that should be applied to everything in life.

Untill next time,

Sak

Sunday, December 5, 2010

My New Magic Wand

How can a 30-year-old woman not get stoked when she is given a very special wand to give herself pleasures???

...oh my.

As erotic as the line might sound AND as I fully intented it to, you are probably imagining a different kind of wand right now so I should proceed right away to introducing my new...

...curling hair dryer!



It's not just a dryer, it's nano-ion dryer!

What the heck that is is a dryer that blows air that is packed with " (n)ano sized moisture ions (that) deeply penetrate into your hair to make it shine & healthy".



Ever since I got a haircut two months or so ago, I had been needing a curling hair dryer to make my morning ritual of hair styling a little easier. I knew about the nano-ion dryer that is far better than a regular nothing-air dryer, so when I was in Tokyo the other day I visited Bic Camera to look for one.

There were billions of dryers that are regular ones, and only two kinds that are nano-ion. The two are easily 3 times more expensive than a regular dryer. In fact, they are probably the most expensive nano-ness a person would ever pay for. But I really wanted one and I was debating which kind to get when T, who was with me at the time, offered to buy me one.

While I really didn't expect him to, he insisted on paying for one since I tagged along with him all the way to Tokyo just to go to this music store where he wanted to to check out guitars. So I gave in. Yay, it's an early Christmas gift.

Thank you, T! I will use this every day, you won't regret a nano bit!

Until next time,

Sak

Wednesday, December 1, 2010

List of 10 -Things That Never Fail to Cheer Me Up

1) pancakes
2) The Big Bang Theory (click for the theme song)
3) shopping on line
4) Walking With The Dinosaurs
5) a hand written letter
6) pedi and mani
7) a bouquet of flowers
8) Versailles Philharmonic Quintet
9) fruit
10) my little baby nephew

In no particular order.

Until next time,

Sak