明けましておめでとうございます

Happy New Year.
Wishing everyone a wonderful 2017.

今年もよろしくお願い致します。

http://merlinkafka.tumblr.com/post/147553336009/just-returned-from-an-epic-adventure-in-trentino

Well...

Personally, I'm still mostly here with Robin McKinley, but I love this message of compassion by Garance Doré.

And Bois de Jasmin keeps me a bit more grounded in the big picture, for which I am grateful. For example, the blog owner is currently planning a fundraiser for Doctors Without Borders.

Mini Review: Biokleen Sport Laundry Liquid

Biokleen Sport Laundry Liquid is working out really well for me.  I like the soft lavender scent, and it even gets the stinky SO's clothing smelling nice and fresh.  And it's theoretically ecologically friendly!

What is it like?

It's fast-paced, interesting, and there's a lot to do!

napkin rings - never for formal dining!

Did you know?

Apparently, napkin rings are used when re-using cloth napkins at home, to distinguish between each person's napkin.

Thus, one would never put napkin rings out when holding a formal dinner, as one would never re-use napkins then!  I had no idea!

Miss Manners column at The Washington Post

Happy 12th day!

2012/12/12!

Wishing that everyone is happy and healthy.

May you have a wonderful day!

stuff to remember

ON REGRETS “Always be honest” was the elders’ advice to avoid late-in-life remorse. Take advantage of opportunities and embrace new challenges. And travel more when you’re young rather than wait until the children are grown or you are retired.

As Dr. Pillemer summarized the elders’ view, “Travel is so rewarding that it should take precedence over other things younger people spend money on.” Create a bucket list now and start whittling it down.

ON HAPPINESS Almost to a person, the elders viewed happiness as a choice, not the result of how life treats you.

A 75-year-old man said, “You are not responsible for all the things that happen to you, but you are completely in control of your attitude and your reactions to them.” An 84-year-old said, “Adopt a policy of being joyful.”

The 90-year-old daughter of divorced parents who had lived a hardscrabble life said, “I learned to be grateful for what I have, and no longer bemoan what I don’t have or can’t do.”

Even if their lives were nine decades long, the elders saw life as too short to waste on pessimism, boredom and disillusionment.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/10/health/elderly-experts-share-life-advice-in-cornell-project.html?pagewanted=all

sunscreen reviews

I just noticed that I devour sunscreen reviews like nobody's business; having used up my Neutrogena dry-touch sunscreen, I need a Japanese replacement.  I'm using Allie Extra UV Gel Mineral Moist N SPF50+ PA+++ (review at Of Toys and Tokyo), but as Of Toys and Tokyo points out, it's a bit heavy for the humid Tokyo weather so I end up looking quite greasy.

I'm going to try Hada Labo UV Moist Emulsion SPF50 PA+++ next. Since chemical (or is it physical sunscreens?) sunscreens lose effectiveness over time, I like using up a sunscreen before I move on the the next one. If only I could be so disciplined about my other makeup products!

In beauty news, I'm lemming the new cream blushes from Visee and Canmake Whip Mousse Lips.

In general, I've started a major house-cleaning that is rather daunting in its scope so I keep procrastinating:
* need to clean
* need to weed stuff out
* need to throw stuff out
* need to organize so that cleaning is easier in the future

I was hoping to get everything done by the end of Sept. (typo: meant to write Aug.), but that didn't happen!  Anyway, like most things, it's good to just take one day at a time.

On my current playlist:
Teedra Moses - Another LuvR
Tamia - Beautiful Surprise
Crystal Kay - Forever
Brandy - Put It Down
Melanie Fiona - This Time
Miguel - Adorn
Youtube has too many ads. Time to switch.

busy busy

Wow, time is just flying by!  I forgot my phone today.  It's kind of free-ing, but a little worrisome.

Hope everyone is doing well.  My efforts to improve my posture are only half successful.

silver sandals

I ordered 7 shoes from zappos.com, but these shoes at David's Bridal fit the best.

Anna Sui Spring 2012 Collection mook

gee, I'm not even that big a fan of Anna Sui, but I think I'm going to get this year's girly gothic mook.

helping people be independent

Excellent advice from Carolyn Hax:

A goal to keep in mind: Don’t occupy a space in his life that couldn’t easily be filled in your absence. That can apply to anything from renting a place together that he can’t afford alone, to being his only ride to a job or only good friend. Model independence by giving advice only when asked, encouraging counseling (while he can use college resources) and saving heroic intervention for emergencies. When in doubt, treat him as an equal.

dame dashi

There's an interesting word in Japanese called ダメ出し; 駄目出し (dame-dashi).

According to Jim Breen's dictionary, it means "judging someone (negatively) and urging them to improve; finding fault (in somebody's work)."

It's easy to communicate negatively rather than positively; I'm guilty of this and I think many people around me are too.

Gotta work on emphasizing the positive!

I totally identify with this bride's thoughts.

Rather than be thin, I want a flat stomach. I also want to exercise more just to feel healthy, but above all, I want a flat stomach.

My reasons:
* If I had a flat stomach, I would look good.
* A flat stomach is a symbol of success.
* I am not confident about the way I look
* If I had a flat stomach, I could wear anything.
* If I had a flat stomach, I'd feel beautiful.
* If I had a flat stomach, I wouldn't care what anyone thought of me.
* If I had a flat stomach, I could own the room!

Funny what hopes we pin on something that really isn't important.
But this is what my mind is thinking.

I know from experience that dieting does not create confidence or self-worth. I know so many brides who lose weight for their wedding, still feel insecure and gain all the weight back on the honeymoon. Skipping the "weight loss" and working directly on our insecurities is the only way to create a confident and sexy bride. And amazingly enough, it's the most effective weight loss strategy and the ONLY way it's permanent.

After a few months of confidence boosting exercises, forgiving her past, connecting with her femininity, deepening her relationship with her fiancé and discovering her life's purpose, Julia far exceeded her goals for the kind of bride she wanted to be.

.

It makes a lot of sense. I should try this.

I got a belly dance dvd a while ago, but it's boring. It's well done and instructive, but boring.
My tai chi book is even more boring! I guess hoping that I could learn tai chi from a book was already rather doomed to failure.
But rather than waste money, I want to slog my way through each. I'll do one exercise a night starting tonight.

hulloo

I've been on a cooking kick - tried 2 different dishes in an effort to use fish sausages.
Hopefully I'll be able to try the fried rice this weekend - the whole reason I bought fish sausages to begin with!

Frozen veggies are handy - just open the bag and go. Clearly this tells you where I'm at when it comes to cooking.

I've been having trouble finding a shampoo that works with my hair. I've resorted to ordering a shampoo from the US, as it's the last shampoo that worked for me recently.

fashion: Christine Teigen

She looked fabulous at Heavy D's funeral. I would have preferred a more toned down look personally for a funeral (a bit more restraint while remaining flattering) but wow, my new fashion idol!

My sincere condolences to Heavy D's family on his loss.

what cheers me up

It amuses me to use my Sanrio Kuromi three-colored pen at work. Because using a pink and black pen decorated with a cute-goth cartoon character drinking from a milk bottle is a nice contrast to my serious, uninteresting office work. I should update with a picture of it.

it's so hard to throw away that which I do not need

So puzzling! It's trash, effectively, as I never use it, but I cannot bring myself to throw it away. Hum de dum.

editing

I find that it's useful to read my writing aloud in order to check that it is clear and makes sense.

a good weekend

I ran twice, cooked twice, cleaned the house, got some laundry done, and even got a smidgen of studying done!

I tried Chinese Beef, Egg and Tomato; my first try turned out pretty well and I'm optimistic that more practice will make it quite tasty. I used Japanese beef (和牛) - it's hard to overcook this kind of beef! It was delicious. The pack had a little black sticker "Tested for radiation" (放射能検査済　or something like that) labelled by the grocery store..

I tried making dumplings Sunday, but I was a bit lazy about following a recipe, and I bought chives instead of green onions. Still, perfectly edible.

Can't wait for the weekend, hehe.