a murmur of powdersnow

Canada

2007-02-07T20:26:00.000+09:00

I spend 10 days in Canada in the beginning of Janually. I was on my winter vacation, but it was a kind of professional training at a University in Burnaby, Canada.
The weather wasn't actually pleasant with lots of snow and the terrible coldness. My hosfamily said that I brought the blizzard from Sapporo to there・・・don't blame me on that!
I expected that it would be warmer in the west part of Canada! Because of the abnormal weather, the traffic was out and I had to wait for a bus to come patiently for a long, everyday. Apart from the fact that it was freezing, I had a great experience with my hostfamily and the people that I met in the training.
Moreover, it was one year after the last time I traveled abroad, I realized that I need that. It felt like that I could take a deep breath and refresh myself.

And I've got lovely friends there, they are two girls of my hostfamily.

When I showed them a little magic, their cute big eyes were bright and became bigger, hahaha.

Ahhh, I miss them sooooooo much♪

I try to put more pictures of Canada and my thoughts about it soon.

Hakodate

2006-12-04T00:01:00.000+09:00

This is a night view of the best 3 in the world, which rivals Hong Kong and Italy. I was standing on the top of Mt. Hakodate located in the southern part of Hokkaido. It was amazingly beautiful landscape of the shoreline in the clear air, which means it was freezing for real!

Pink

2006-11-04T15:15:00.000+09:00

What is your favorite color?
Mine is .....don't know, I like black, yellow, orange, green, peacock blue etc.
then, I've realized that pink is the color that always lightens up me.
A few weeks ago, I got a small bouquet of flowers.
There is something that makes me feel so good more than the color, which is the smell of lilies.
It is a bit strong, but when I get back to my room and see the color of pink, sense the great smell, I get into the sprit.

Autumn

2006-10-26T20:01:00.000+09:00

The Season have ways of repeating themselves.
Appreciating red leaves tells you that autumn has come and that winter is just around the corner in Hokkaido!
What's worring me is ・・・・bottomless appetite --;

a precious day

2006-08-29T20:25:00.000+09:00

Yesterday was my father's birthday. My family has been celebrating the day even since he died 6 years ago. To tell the truth, his birthday is much more important for us than the day he passed away. One day in November when he's gone is rather the day that I don't want to remember, or that I still feel he is away on a business trip or something.

This pic was taken just 2 weeks before his last birthday, and became the last pic that my dad and mom were together in.

It happened to be taken in front of the sunflower field.

In the lanuage of the flowers, sunflower signifies,

・・・・・・Well be thinking of you forever

I've always believed that he's watched over and will watch over me.

2006-08-12T17:11:00.000+09:00

I guess, you observe this kind of ads along country roads in Hokkadio. It says there are organic vegetables here. You can get fresh chemical-free vegetables at a cheaper price.

Sometimes, nobody is at a stall, instead there must be a fare box to drop the money into !

So, I really recomend, you should stop by a vege stall if you see this ad!

Summer has come!!

2006-08-08T14:36:00.000+09:00

It's been hot hot hot hot!! here in Sapporo, Hokkaido, these days. I'm exhausted(--;), however, how can you stay at home in such sunny days? Above all, I'm on a vacation, Yeahhhhh!

Did you know that you can enjoy lavender in Sapporo? and you can have a great view of Sapporo there, too! It's called "Horomi To-ge 幌見峠", a mountain path in the western part of the city.

Lavender is very famous plant grown up in Furano, which can bring thousands and thousands of people to see the wonderful, huge, beautiful field of lavender. I couldn't be bothered to drive from Sapporo to Furano for about 3 hours, but I desperated to shot pics of lavender!

I rushed to there after I heard about the path. I couldn't stop taking pics of the lovely scented flower in the bush, along with bees. My friend gave me chilly eye,,,,,gosh! I can't believe there are people who don't appreciate such beautiful nature.

Blessing of Hokkaido's Nature⑤

2006-06-17T22:13:00.001+09:00

My friend and I were actually heading for Lake Mashu. However, I had another purpose to achieve during this drive, that was to see an image of Kussie!! It is a kind of Loch Monstars that is believed to live in Lake Kussharo, which is derived from the name "Nessie" of Lock Ness in Scotland.

My family used to go for a drive to the Akan National Park where the Lake belongs to, when I was child. I had a strong and vivid impression of Kussie when I saw it for the first time in my life, hahaha. So, for the first time in about 20 years, I could see it again! I was happy!! I don't believe that it exists in the lake for real, though.

Lake Mashu (摩周湖, Mashū-ko) is a lake formed in the caldera of a dormant volcano. It is located in Akan National Park. Mashu is famous for the clarity of its water, and the fog that envelops its surface. There is a saying that you might not get married if you see the lake clearly without the fog.

It is too late,,,,, everytime I see the lake, it is clear(--;

From the other angle, you can see snow upon the peak. It was really really cold, freezing! on that day.

Blessing of Hokkaido's Nature　④

2006-06-13T23:06:00.000+09:00

Ummm, it's been a while again since the last time I updated this blog, but I'll still talk about my Dou-Tou (the eastern part of Hokkaido) tour during the GW! Yuppie!

This is a pic of clione that inhabits in the Sea of Okhotsk. It is a kind of fish-eating plankton that uses its tentacles to catch and hold the feed. It's called "an angel of the ice drift" due to the transparent skin of it・・・cute, isn't?

I found it in a bottle of water at a direct sales store in fron of the Sea of Okhotsk. You can't keep clione as a pet, can you?

Blessing of Hokkaido's Nature ③

2006-05-29T22:44:00.000+09:00

This is a picture of Mizubasyo: Lysichiton camtschatcense or Asian Skunk Cabbage, taken near Lake Abashiri. As the name shows, it looks like a cabbage.
We were driving on Route 39 to get fresh seafood products such as crabs, Atka mackerels, scallops etc. Abashiri is one of famous production centers of marine products in Japan.

My mother taught me where Mizubasyo grew in colonies on our way to Abashiri.

It was chilly and was drizzling, however we found many people taking pics of Mizubasyo here and there. It was at the most admirable to look at Mizubasyo in Abashiri district in the early of May. It was really beautiful and a great view.

I was into taking pictures of it ^^

Blessing of Hokkaido's Nature　②

2006-05-18T18:48:00.000+09:00

Before we went to the eastern part of Hokkaido, we stopped at Asahiyama Zoo. The zoo has made a record gate since it achieved a turnaround, actually the attendance of this zoo is more than any other zoos in Japan!

There are not rare animals like a panda, a koala in this zoo, which normally attract a lot of people. However, it has a warm atmosphere that makes probably you think that the distance between animals and the visitors is near. Although they've set up fences around animals, they've got good ideas to create a sense of affinity to the animals.

Blessing of Hokkaido's Nature ①

2006-05-14T13:13:00.000+09:00

How was your GOLDEN WEEK?
I had a friend from Nagoya who actually visited Hokkaido for the first time in her life. She had great expectations of appreciating the nature of Hokkaido, including the food. I was wondering where I coud show her around, coz Hokkadido is huge! Even within Sapporo, it'd take a few days to go sightseeing if you take an in depth look at the town. So, it was impossible for me to make her wish come true, which was to travel around all over Hokkaido during GW, coz I just had 5-days off in a row as the calender said (Some could take 9 days off in a row from the 29th of April to the 7th of May by taking 2 days off on the first and the second of May! I envied them･･･)

I suggested to her that we would spend a couple of days to drive around the eastern part of Hokkaido, where my hometown exsits, then take the rest of days to walk around Sapporo and Otaru. She'd already been to Hakodate by herself, in the southern part of Hokkaido, in the first half of the GW, while I had to work.

On the 4 th of May, we started our tirp to the east!

First of all, we needed to have a good meal to off to a good start (^w^)

This pic is a bowl of soba noodle with a sardine that we had at a drive-in on our way.

Hello to All

2006-05-13T10:19:00.000+09:00

Hi! How have you been?
It's been more than a month since the last time I updated this blog......
I've been extremely busy working and going places, ^^;

So, there have been a lot of pics that I want to post on here !
Ahh, actually, there are too many pics to pick up ones to show.

Well, pleasant season to visit Sapporo has come finally, as the sakura, Japanese cherry blossomes are at their best now, about a month later than that in the Tokyo area.

I went to a river terrace near my place to take this pic ↓ in the evening. The sakura in the twilight was really beautiful, it was windy and chilly though.

ROBA ROBA Cafe

2006-03-24T21:24:00.000+09:00

There was a cafe that I really wanted to go in Tokyo. It's ROBA ROBA Cafe . It locates in a shopping street in Kyodo, which I mentioned before.

I found about the cafe in a magazine for shutter bug, "Kamera Biyori - Life with Camera".
The magazine has introduced that the cafe provides gallery space with artists. I was expecting of seeing a photo exhibition.

Unfortunately, it didn't display any photos. It was an exhibition of plates and spoon for curry when I visited there (^^;)ヾ

Apart from the exhibiton, I had a lovely and relaxing time in the cafe with my friend. There were many lovely goods sold in it, such as tiny books called "Mame Bon -beans book-", and postcards with cute picture, hand-made candles that had a lot of pretty colors, etc. The cafe collaborates with a variety of artists.

The cafe isn't that large with a bar for a drink, but it has created a space for relaxation as if time goes very slow in there.

I had a terrible image of Tokyo that it was the city where cold and bad people lived and it was rather a foreign country for me. I can laugh about that now, though.
For what it is worth, I felt happy and my heart healing when I saw old ladys chatting outside, clothes being dried in the sun, and a tall chimney of a sento(public bath) in the shopping district near the station(Kyodou).
I'm glad that I've found the place in Tokyo where I could feel the people's life and warmth.

Click this pic! you can see a dog watching you♪　→

Vietnam⑥

2006-03-18T17:50:00.000+09:00

There are more stuff that I want to show you about my Vietnam trip.

I got clothes tailored in Ho Chi Minh City.
It is popular among Japanese to get custom-made clothes in Vietnam, coz it's much cheaper than get ready-made clothes, and it's fun that you can pick up fabrics you like from local markets and designe your own dresses, which are going to be the only ones in the world.

The first one is an one-piece made of smooth satin with pearly luster. The one-piece dress fits me very well and makes me look elegant.
So, I'll look forward to having a special occaision to put it on! maybe for a wedding party.

The second one is a kind of loose blouse made of sheer silk. It is really tender and pleasant to the touch. It goes well with either jeans and formal wear.

It was a great experience to hold a frank exchange of views on what I wanted with Vietnamese staff.
I'm very satisfied with the outcome.

Chihuahua?

2006-03-16T20:58:00.000+09:00

Look at this cute creature......something weird with this chihuahua.

Hahaha-someone drew its eyebrows!
I saw it was cute, um? rather funny, at the first sight. I couldn't stop taking pictures of it. Then, a guy standing next to it started talking to me in Vietnamese. All I could was just smiling.
Yup, I was in Hanoi, the capital city of Vietnam, last week♪

He was tring to say with gestures that it was the woman over there who had drawn the eyebrows, I interpreted. And I noticed that she was waving to me with a big smile and proud expression(^^;)

She had the same eyebrows on her face!!
What a charming lady!

I've come to like Vietnam very much. That people, the food and the city itself that has a nostalgic air.

Oh, by the way, that dog isn't a chihuahua. It is a miniature pinscher-★

Mocha Harrar

2006-03-07T23:04:00.000+09:00

I went to Tokyo last weekend.
I had a wonderful time there by wandering in a small town called "Kyodo" on the Odakyu-line.

I happened to find "Mocha Harra", which is a kind of coffee that I had been looking for.
Ummm, smells nice. actually, too strong. But I'm happy! I am addicted to coffee.

I haven't opened it yet. I'll wait for a special occasion to drink the coffee♪

Oh, I made a coffee Bavarian cream, coz I had to use the leftover of whipped cream that I'd used for a cake, which I'd made for my friend in Tokyo who had just engaged!
Congratulations~*

Snowboarding !

2006-02-26T11:28:00.000+09:00

I went to Sapporo International Ski Area for snowboarding yesterday.
Since it has been snowing, snowing, snowing, the condition of the area is magnificent. Moreover, the challenging level of the slopes is right for me, I guess.

It was so good day that I could see the Sea of Japan over the mountains! The panoramic view was breathtaking landscape.

I got a hustle on too much actually, my muscle are sore at the moment.

Let's stay inside today. maybe, I'm going to make a cake later on~*

an apple cake that I made the day before yesterday ☆→→→

St.Valentine's Day

2006-02-16T00:33:00.000+09:00

2 days after St. Valentine's Day.
How did you spend that day?
I hope you had a lovely day.

Me? I made brownies! for friends, people who help me at work, and myself.

Now, I am a great confectioner (*v*)ヾ

Hand-made Gyoza

2006-02-12T12:16:00.000+09:00

I was inspired again to cook!
I was out for some errands all day long yersterday. On my way back home, I was a little bit hungry and I became to want to have GYOZA. I was wondering whether I'd eat out or I'd make it by myself.

I've established a GYOZA CLUB with my co-workers who love gyoza, so we have been to several nice gyoza shops or restaurants where we could find delicious gyoza together. However, I didn't have the courage to go for one of them alone. Umm, Gyoza isn't kind of food that women want to eat alone in any shops, I suppose.

So, that fact (or my assumption) fueled the spark of imagination that I could make it all by myself.
It all went great! and this time, I made a little change in the gyoza. I followed gyozo recipe but I made it look like steamed dumplings(or called soup dumplings) by screwing up the top of the skins that cover the fillings. Ahhh, that remined me of Din Tai Fung in Taiwan, which is the best dumplings restaurant in the world!

My mouth is watering again～♪

STORY

2006-02-10T19:38:00.000+09:00

Do you know a fashion magazine targetting mostly women in their 40's: STORY?

I'm not 4o's yet, but my co-worker sitting next to me brought the magazine for me, today. You know why? She found the cappuccino machine in it that I'd bought, which I mentioned on this blog before!! (If you want to see the page, click the word above~☆)

It features stylish kitchen-ware such as coffee makers, espresso machines etc.

Probably, there are many shops that deal with the same machine, importing it from oversea to sell it. However, I am happy to know the fact that my cappuccino machine has been put forward in the magazine, which I guess has a large circulation, fearturing elegant life style for mature women (^W^)

So, let me jump into the fancy conclusion that I AM stylin' ,,hehehe,, yahoo--

Vietnam⑤

2006-02-09T19:05:00.000+09:00

I'll show you some of my favorite pics taken in Vietnam~☆

@the central post office

I felt like that the portrait of Ho Chi Minh was looking at me, as I was waiting for my friend to finish sending post cards. Hahaha- how stupid !

@a temple on the way to Mytho for taking on a fayboat on Mekong River

It was built in French style but you see the board with Chinese characters,
which has created unusual atmosphere.

I did like this place.

I went up to the rooftop of a Hindu temple. There was something to bow the knee to and the fence displaying decorative figurine of animals in color on the top.

I took a lot of pics in Vietnam, I mean a lot!! I have a look at them often.
Ahhh~, I want to go to Vietnam soon again.

Vietnam④

2006-02-05T18:00:00.000+09:00

Still, I have pics of food that I had in Vietnam♪
This time, I'll show you sweets I enjoyed.

① Che : iced milk drink with sweet bean jam 　② Dried fruits, my favorit was coconut ③ a variety of fruits ④ Banhflan : creme caramel in Vietnamese style which I found old familiar taste of it like the ones I had when I was child ⑤ Mango pudding that I had in the airport in Hong Kong ⑥ Bee ice-cream, How cute! ⑦ a plate of crepe with whipped cream for breakfast at a fancy cafe called "Funny" ⑧ Green beans agar ⑨ a variety of che in a huge market, look at the colors! ⑩ Waffle at a very stylish cafe ⑪ Ice-cream of purple potatos at a very popular ice-cream shop "Kem Bach Dang" ⑫ Colorful fruits on the streets, I heard that the fruits were plums, but they looked like bell peppers

I never tried anything to eat and drink from stalls coz I was concerned about sanitation. However, those refreshments were quite attractive to my thirst.

If I lived in Vietnam, I'd try....umm, yh, definitely!

I think that one of the main features in a hot country like Vietam is the vivitness in color. Even the food, especially the sweets and fruits attract you visually by the color.

I found more things of various colors and the beauty of the contrast between those colors. I'll show you pictures of those next time ♪

Vietnam③

2006-02-01T21:58:00.000+09:00

Yahooo-!
Here is the vietnam cuisineⅡ

⑬Pho (rice noodle with pork) ⑭Iced Vietnamese Coffee ⑮ Fried Rice ⑯ French Baguette and Canel ⑰ Banh Xeo (Okonomiyaki in Vietnam style) ⑱ Spring roll(?) ⑲ Takikomigohan (rice cooked with many ingredients and flavoring) ⑳ Bread for breakfast at my hotel, Oscar, HCMC

Unfortunately, I don't know the original names of some dishes above. but that doesn't matter. What is important is that I did enjoyed all of the food I had in Vietnam.

Hahaha-ha-, you know what, of course, they were NOT ALL the food that I had-☆

Home-made Cake

2006-01-28T14:04:00.000+09:00

Ta-da! I made a cake last night.
It is apple chiboust that is meringu mixed custard on the top of an apple tarte!
All of sudden, I got an urge to make a cake while I was working.
It was Friday, I'd have a off next day, so I made my mind up! I was so stressed out that I wanted to do something.

It was the first time that I made a cake since the last time I did about 10 years ago.

It took me for about 3 hours to make it, but I quite enjoyed it. I was really into it.

I found a good way to release stress. At the end, I could let the stress out even if it was just for the temporary.

It turned out to be extremely successful-★☆★

Vietnam②

2006-01-26T19:50:00.000+09:00

Yummy! Yummy!

Bravo-! Vietnamese Food-☆

I really enjoyed it. To tell the truth, I was thinking about what I was going to eat next right after each meal.

Snow(←me) "Umm, that was excellent! I loved to have a pho. "

Flower(my friend) "Yh, I'm stuffed."

Snow "Hey, what are we going to have for lunch? I really want to have spring rolls in Vietnam style"

Flower "Well, I'm stuffed....."

Snow "Don't worry, we'll have a lot of walk from now on! which is good for our digestion ^w^"

Ok, I'll show you the food that I enjoyed in Vietnam~☆

Here is the Vietnamese Cuisine Part Ⅰ

① soup made of purple potatos ② fried spring roll ③ the sauce with Nouc mam (fish sauce) for the roll ④ deep fried dragon fish ⑤ sea food hot pot ⑥ deep fried rice cake ( called mochi in Jp) that puffs up like a ball ⑦ lunch plate, there wasn't the English menu so I had no idea about the name, it was fried squid with veges ⑧ a bowl of salad with French loaf ⑨ deep fried shrimps dipped in coconut ⑩ nems : raw spring rolls ⑪ a bowl of spicy soup with crab ⑫ fried rice

Vietnam ①

2006-01-15T17:10:00.000+09:00

I came back from Ho Chi Min City in Vietnam to Sapporo yesterday. I had a wonderful holiday there. There are many food choices in Vietnam, such as French, Italian, Japanese, and of course Vitenamese. Vietnamese cuisine is great. I mean, yup, it's tasty, attractive and healthy!

I spend 5 days in HCMC and 2 days in Hong Kong because of flight transition. After having a exciting time abroad for a whole week, I was exhaused as a matter of fact.

I ended up sleeping for about 13 hours last night and now I've got a terrible head ache(--;) I still need a rest.

Let's have a cup of Vietnamese coffee that is strong and bitter without milk, and think fondly of my lovely days in Vietnam.

Happy New Year!

2006-01-01T19:44:00.000+09:00

Happy New Year!
Finally, the new year 2006 has come. Are you enjoying?

Frankly speaking, I m bored at home. What I have been doing since I got back to my hometown is eating, reading, watching TV and sleeping (^w^;) Sometimes I help my mother to cook, clean the house up and remove the f**k snow! but something is missing.....it is so quite here.

Well, calm down(I am saying this to myself), I came here to relax, just to relax and relieve my stress, however, I have realized that it is enough for me to take a couple of days for resting at home. Gee, Im bored.

I found some pictures that I sent my mother 2 years ago, which are worth showing you,,hihihi.

This pic was taken in Amsterdam, Netherlands. It was a month before Christmas in 2003, so I guess that thing I was holding was a Christmas wreath.
I saw a lot of flower all over the city. It was really beautiful to see flower outside everywhere I went. It added a glow and a charming touch to the atmosphere of the city in the dull winter in Europe. Umm, lovely!

Here it is! The next is a picture taken in a club in San Francisco on the new year eve, 2003.
I flied back from Greece to the UK where I was living at that time, and then flied again to the States to spend a new year with my friends.

I got a party at the club to celebrate coming 2004. My friend put a tiara on my head, saying *Happy New Year*. Funny, isnt it?

Ahh, I had a lot of fun. Those have become great memories in me now.

Ok, dont look back. There is nothing wrong with looking back to the past, but it is not good to get stuck in some points in the past where probably you had a good time.

The moment that you are experiencing is also going to be a good memory later on, either in a good way or a bad way. It is totally up to you.

I am going to have a wonderful, fabulous year, 2006! and I will say at the end of the year,
″I had a great year with a lot of fun and memories. ″

That is my resolution of 2006 (*∀*)/

What is your resolution?

Blizzard!

2005-12-30T15:36:00.000+09:00

It was a disaster! You can't imagine how terrible and fearful that blizzard was.
I was about to flight to Tokyo on Monday, however, it was impossible for any planes to fligh on such a day.

I had to give up. Then, the weather was obviously getting worse.The crosswind was strong enough to get cars stuck in the snow and visibility was reduced to almost zero. But, I didn't want to get stuck in the airport until the weather would calm down, which I had no idea when it would be, so I diceided to get out of there!

That was the beginning of another disaster for me.....

Usually, it takes me for about 45 minutes to drive from the airport to my place (acutually, at this time, it was my mum's place). You know how long it took me to get back???
It was about 6 hours to get back to home!!!

I wanted to put pictures of the blizzard on this blog...but seems I can't, Damn it!
I'm in a internet cafe right now coz there is no fast access to the internet at my mum's place. but the pc Im using at the cafe does have a difficulty in uploading pics...bummage.

Well, you might want ask me how possibly I could take pics while I was driving in such a horrible weather condition. hahaa-coz you couldn't drive as fast as you do normally, so there was room to take pics ^^;

Phew, I wanted to show you how severe the blizzard was.... (--;)

Anyhow, it was the worst blizzard that I've ever had.
Everyone, especially those in Hokkaido! Drive carefully in the winter,
Have a happy new year!

Icecream therapy

2005-12-18T21:51:00.000+09:00

I've got a cold......headache, a runny and stuffy nose. Gee, I can't, shouldn't!
The end of the year is coming soon, which means that my winter holiday is just around the corner. I must take care of myself and give a good treatment to myself (^w^). Otherwise, I could mess up and go into my holiday with a bad feeling.

Usually, I hardly have a icecream, however, it's a kind of my treatments to have a cup of icecream when I have a cold. Especially, when I have a fever. Is it unconscious self-defense to bring a fever down? Ummm, I don't know, but anyhow eating icecream is my favorite thing to do in front of the heater.

Everyone, get warm and have a good sleep

SAS!

2005-12-18T12:42:00.000+09:00

Where was a bunch of people going? Yes! It was SOUTHERN ALL STARS Live Tour 2005 in Sapporo! People were heading for their seats hurstling and jostling in the Sapporo Dome.

It was cold and snowing outside, but the inside was very hot!
The fans have strong passion and burning sincerity for the band and they ranged from young to old. The SAS has been performing for about 30 years, and still seems as deep-rooted as ever. That's why everybody can enjoy its songs without distinction of age or sex. What a great rock-band!

I had a wonderful time. The main vocal is good at singing (but very difficult to understand what he says), guitar(of course), and chatting. It was a real entertainment.

Christmas Card

2005-12-11T14:20:00.000+09:00

I received a Christmas card from the one who loves me the most probably in the world. It was just a few days after I cried in spite of myself while talking to her on the phone. It was an accident. I was telling what had been happening to me at work. I wasn't sad. I was just frustrated deeply.

She made a deep sigh and told me not to blame myself. I wasn't sure what my feelings were.
I was spitting out my pent-up discontent, which was rather dissatisfaction with the fairness of the system.

I have confidence in my work, and am valued for my ability. However, emotionally, it seems that I can't go on any longer. Have I had it enough? I can't stop asking myself that quetion.
It is like that I'm stuck in a dull place and going round and round in there.

I know that nobody can solve my problems.
Maybe, I need to take my time to think about it and my future.

It was also true that I felt a little bit better after emotinal release by crying.
And I renewed my awareness of the fact that there is always someone who cares about me.
That makes me believe I'm not alone. That makes me believe I'm going to have a great Christmas and the end of the year.

Aspire after Perfect Beauty

2005-12-04T17:47:00.000+09:00

I went to a monthly tea tasting with my friend yesterday.
This time, they served a kind of Oolong tea called "Phoenix Sung Special". The taste was mild for me with its wonderful sweet smell like a peach or a grape.

In China, tea was believed to be herbal medicine. What caught my eyes was its benefits, which was to prevent obesity and aging! Ahhh, that's why I like Chinese tea. Moreover, drinking a tea for a long time contributes to prolonging life, according to a number of Chinese classical pharmacological literature. I believe that !

On the way to the tasting, my friend gave me small presents: a pack of bath salt with brine taken from the Sea of Okhotsk that is the nearest sea from my hometown, and a pack of massage salt with six kinds of essential oils. Wow! She knows me very well! I'll have to polish myself more and more.

However, appearance is not the only crucail point to jugde you, but your character.
I've found a good expression.
Today's word →→→　" Beauty is but skin deep."

It is also true that if you look good, you feel good, though!

I'm going to polish polish polish in the bath from now on （＾w＾）β
Thank you, Umaco~☆

Fantasizing about Vietnam

2005-11-29T21:08:00.000+09:00

All of sudden, I've decided to go to Vietnam during my winter holiday. I'm planning to travel in Ho-Chi-Minh City where is called "petit Paris of the East".
When I read guidbooks, I can't stop myself beaming. Everything is so fascinating, cute and cheap, I'd say, such as restaurants, cafes, sundries....
I'm placing more expectations on traveling in the city.

I've never been to the country, although I've wanted to visit for a long time. I've been learning things about Vietnam from the guidbooks by little and little.

It's a socialist state. Its population is about 82 millions and the population of Ho-Chi-Minh City is about 70 millions. What a big city ! or What a packed city it is!
Ok, I like lively, bustling and hot cities. Actually, it is hot even in the winter, which I don't like but will try to bear.
Its nation flag is called Co Do Sao Vang : the Golden Star Spangled Banner →→ makes a strong impression~☆★☆

Hmm! I was enjoying wondering what I'd have in Vietnam, especially going cafe-hopping, over a waffle with whipped cream and raspberry saurce \(*v*)/

Home-made or Eat-out?

2005-11-23T20:31:00.000+09:00

Ohhh! What a colorful picture! isn't it?
I wanted to put together pictures of all of the dishes that I had at my favorit Chinese restaurant . Excellent!
I love Chinese. Chinese food tastes as good as it looks.
It was a little bit oily but a balanced meal with lots of vegetables.

You might notice...... yh, apparently I hardly cook at home (^^;) ゝ
I don't know why, but I've lost my fascination for cooking, not for eating, yo. I used to cook almost everyday and loved it, though.

Well, having food isn't just eating. Having someone to share the food and the time together makes the food more delicious. That's why I like eating out with my people.
(I don't eat out everyday, just weekends)

Um? yh, I could surprise them with my homemade dishes. Right, but how can I avoid such a gorgeous and delicious meal that is rich in nutrients outside my home?
Inspite of that fact, I'm telling you that I'm a good cook!
.....not carry much convinction??

Great View of Sapporo

2005-11-23T11:49:00.000+09:00

There are a number of nice places to go in Sapporo. This is one of them, a cafe on a hill in the west part of Sapporo where you can command a panoramic view of Sapporo.
To tell the truth, I was scared on the way up on the hill to the cafe coz we had already had snow before. The road was actually Not icy, though, it looked like.
When I reached the top of the hill, I felt SO GOOD. It was sunny and a little bit warm day. The lovely cool breeze were blowing.
What a pleasant time! I could escape from my hectic daily life for a while having good food and the excellent view.
Oh, yh, no wonder that it would be really great to go to the cafe to enjoy the night view. How romantic~☆ But I doubt if I can go up the hill by my car in the snow.

Seasonal Treat

2005-11-20T22:16:00.000+09:00

My boss gave me a gift yesterday as a refreshment during the weekend work. It was a persimmon: Kaki in Japanese. The persimmons turn orange as they grow ripe. So, it must be the time to eat it, but I wanted to keep it for a while just to see.
Look at the shiny round shape! I found it dignified.....hahaha-it's just fruit, though.
I could see people who have cultivated it with care. You know, how many persimmons could go on the shelves in the market? It's not only about persimmons but also all of agircultural pruducts, I guess. Even if the taste isn't bad, it is doomed to be dumped because of the deformed feature.
The one I got was the pick of the litter!

Silent Night

2005-11-18T19:22:00.000+09:00

♪silent night, holly night ~☆♪　 no no no..it's too early to sing the song.
One day, I had a beautiful evening. It was just quiet and sanctity. There was nothing out there but the first star of evening and a crescent. Occasionally, I find myself hungering for such peace and quiet.
I tend to keep myself busy, then what happenes? end up being tired and getting down in the dumps.
Just going for a drive for a while for nothing and seeing the sky at nightfall makes me think I'm happy to be here.
Well, I have to work this weekend. But, you know, the next weekend certainly comes as a holiday or I'll have a day off soon, like the moon is never gone out of existance.

Cafe at Home

2005-11-16T22:05:00.000+09:00

Just arrived! It just came to my home!
I happened to find out a lovely cappuccino maker with cowskin print pattern at a shop on the Internet, which sells kitchen utensils imported from Europe countries.
It is a cappuccino maker produced by an Italian company: BIALETTI.
It was like that I had a strong electric shock when I saw it. I love this kind of animal motif such as zebra, giraffe, yh of course cowskin....not leopard, though.
Well, I'm addicted to coffee too. Especially, I love cappuccino. From now on, I can enjoy a cup of cappuccino at home. How fantastic!
I wasted little time in making cappuccino with it by myself for the first time.
Look at the frothy milk! I made it!
Although I used soymilk (coz I didn't have cowmilk), it didn't matter.
I'll try to get up a little bit earlier in order to spend a luxury morning having cappuccino from tomorrow-☆ Ushishi～

Stamina☆

2005-11-15T21:31:00.000+09:00

Get stamina by eating soup curry! A bowlful! Put a lot of vegetables and a tender chiken thigh with bone too!
There is nothing better than having hot curry soup with lots of spices on a cold night.

Preparation for Winter

2005-11-14T20:17:00.000+09:00

It's got colder and colder in Sapporo since we had our first snow.
All I need is to prepare for winter.
I've already fitted my car with new studless tires.
Then, I must get myself warm~♪
Uhuhuhu, I'll show you my favarit stuff for this winter.

It's woolen underpants and a woolen hat with a bobble on the top ☆
They are so cute that I couldn't resist myself buying them. Especially, that bobble hat!
I was waiting for my friend as I was wandering in town. When she gave me a call, I just reached a cloth shop that I like. It was less than 5 munites until she got me in the shop...she was quite nearby. Haaah, I was standing by the casher to pay for that lovely hat. It was "coup de foudre": love at first sight. Actually, I had been looking for that kind of knit hat.
It is difficult to find a thing when you are looking for it eagerly, but it likely happens that you can come across it when you don't expect a lot.
So, my motto is "Take it if I love it~!". You never know when is the next time you can meet what you love. Don't miss it (´▽｀)ゝ

The First Snow

2005-11-09T21:08:00.000+09:00

Today, we finally got our first snow of the season in Sapporo! It was really warm the day before yesterday, the temperature reached around 18℃. That was abnormal in Hokkaido, in the northern part of Japan, in November. The moment we were concerned that it would take longer to see the first snow, we got it. The temperature dropped to 6℃. It was quite cold today (--;)
Everybody got excited about it. I don't know why it is so exciting to see the first snow every year. We have a lot of snow through the season probably from Nov. to March, I mean a lot, though. Sometimes, we have unexpected snow in April....so we get stuck in the snow for almost half year. You may think that we can enjoy winter sports or anything...Not really. Yh, that's true. In the meantime, we suffer from shoveling the snow in the morning when we are in a rush, or a blizzard and more.
However, I was also so happy to see the first snow fall that I took many pictures of it (^◇^)ゝ゛
Umm, the snowy season is just around the corner~!

My color

2005-11-08T20:38:00.000+09:00

I like this blue. It's not just "blue". It's kind of cadet blue, kind of blue with a tinge of green. Umm, I can't explain what this bule is. It's different from pure blue, I suppose. Anyhow, whatever it is, I tend to take it if it's this blue. Enven though it is supplements. I bought the bottle of supplements in Hong Kong, which I was persuade was good for skin.
And, the one between the supplements and the skirt is a candle lantern that my friend brought back from Bali. She is attempting to run a shop soon to sell this kind of lovely stuff from Asian countries, so-called Zakka shop. What she is preparing for her new business is not only buying things from countries, which she wants to sell in her shop, but also designing original bags made of clothing fabric from Vietnam. She's created a website of her shop all by herself in her spare time as she works for 8 hours at a company.
I really admire her passion and ability to get things done!
I request her to make a cute bag and ao dai for me in that blue ☆゜

From Mother to Daughter

2005-11-07T17:40:00.000+09:00

I found a pair of boots at my mum's place the other day. They are nice beige color and still in good condition. I remember that I tried to put them on when I was 20 or 21 years old. I couldn't zip them up at that time coz I was fat...not really I was fat. I used to do sports so hard that I possessed a great pair of calf muscles. But, I can wear them this time! They fit me perfect! Although the tip-toes of the boots are a little bit worn out, they still look OK. Actually, they look stylish yet, I think.
How amazing! She had kept them for more than 30 years and now her daughter takes over them from her!
You know, fashion comes and goes, and what goes around comes around.
She dressed how my generation dresses. I'm beaming.
I was about to buy a new pair of boots for this winter, but I don't need anymore! I can save money, hihihi (^^)ゝ
Ummm, my mum used to look like a million in her girlhood and had a lot of fashionable clothes.
I'm going to rummage about in her closet to get more stuff such as bags, shoes and clothes that I can use.
It's a kind of transmission of trends from generation to generation.

Hearty Cheers to You

2005-11-04T00:07:00.000+09:00

I want to yell for my friend who is in a hard situation right now.
I know that it's not easy to go through that bitter experience.
But, remember? you have had lots of fun and great time,
and you will have more wonderful life.
What I can do for you is limited but I'm always with you.
Whenever you want to talk, just call me.
You are like a sunflower. You are being full of cheerful activity.
You have affecting grin, which makes other people around you happy.

Take your time to rest for a while and have a new lease on life.
No need to push. You've made enormous efforts.

I hope you can have a good sleep tonight ☆

Viva! Onsen

2005-11-01T23:47:00.000+09:00

I had a day off today. I went out for a drive with my friend by my new Vitz. We went to have a hot spring: Onsen in Lake Shikostuko. On the way to M arukoma Onsen, we enjoyed beautiful autumn tints of yellow, gold and red.

Marukoma Onsen has a beautiful scenery in its outdoor hot spring that links the lake: Shikostuko. Ahhh, what a great holiday! I'm so satisfied. I can sleep well☆

I work tomorrow and have an off again day after tomorrow, which is a national holiday!

Viva! Viva!

Wise Up!

2005-10-31T23:00:00.000+09:00

I have noticed it,,,,yh since a long time ago, actually.
I'm hasty.....(--;)
I think that people loose thier temper as they get older.
Or some could say that you could become mellower than you used to be as you get older.
In my case, according to my latest emotional condition, I'm the former.
I have to wise up before I completely loose my temper.
Nothing is to be gained by losing your temper!

I went to have a Ganbayoku, today, which is a bedrock bathing.
You lay down on a heated natural rock bed consisting of black or white silica, or tourmaline (Don't go to ones by radon!) that generates negative ions and far-infrared ray. That allows you to sweat a lot , which means to excrete bodily wastes. It's a detoxification. It can be a altrenative medical treatment, too. I'm not sure about that, though.
It's effective not only to detox and release you from the phisical strain by warming your blood but also, I guess, to cathersis.
Everytime I go to have a Ganbanyoku, I can refresh myself and forget problems of myself after flood of perspiration.
I need to find emotional outlets more and more. That's why I like going out (^^)ゝ

Hello, Good Bye

2005-10-30T19:18:00.000+09:00

I had a car called "Opti" from Daihatsu. I'd droven the car for 9 years including 2 years that I was away from Japan. I loved it very much, which arched its edges softly and had a vintage style. As a matter of fact, it was beat-up. It took a while to speed up and was difficult to keep up with the flow of traffic, especially on a superhighway. It started slowing down even on a gentle ascent. I began worrying.
However, I had a deep emotional attachment to it. When it was a windy day, when it was a sunny day, when it rained, when it snowed, and when I was happy, when I was sad, when I was tired, when I was exuberant, and wherenever I went, I drove my Opti. For the last 9 years, there had been many things happened in my life. I drove between Sapporo and my hometown almost every weekends to see my father who had been in hospital for about one year, which was about 360km and about 5 hour drive. My precious car had racked up more than 84,000 kilometers. It was worn out.
I noticed that it was the time for my Opti to rest in peace.
Yesterday, I woke up earier than usual weekends to wash it and give it a good shine all by myself for the last day with it.
It was really sad to see the back of Opti on a lorry trucking it. I felt like crying.
Thank you, Opti. Good bye.

I'm going to have a new life and histroy with a brand-new car: "Vitz" from Toyota.
I've given it a good name, "Yoneko"! (@^.^@)ゝ

Thai Massage

2005-10-28T22:44:00.000+09:00

Phewwww, this week was over.
I was thinking what I would do for a night before weekend. I was so tired that I decided to have a Thai massage to relax, today.
It helped to release the stress from my body, especially my stiff shoulders, by stretching and gently massaging. It took two hours to have that from head to toe, the first half an hour was taken for foot massage only. Ahh, that was the happiest time for me \(^v^)/
In the meantime, I was interested in things from Asian countries such as Thai, Vietnam, China, in the shop. Some looked like a curios. I loved a golden pot like a round ball with cute illustrations of birds. And, a herb ball was quite interesting, which is said to be effective for reliving the tonus in the muscles and healing your tired mind by patting pressure points in your body with it and having the smell of it. I must buy it next time.

Have a great weekend♪

ps. A friend of mine passed a exam for employment!!
Congratulations !!

Art in Autumn

2005-10-27T20:36:00.000+09:00

Feel so good with the clear sky and red and yellow leaves of autumn! We went to a park to see the colorful autumn leaves the other day and brought back lots of the leaves and pinecones. I was struck by the beauty of them, at the same tim, I was amazed how imaginative children were.

The one on the right is obviously "a face" or "himself ".

Can you see what the left one represents?

It's "an elephant". Yh, yh, I see the trunk, big ears and fat feet of it.
I of course helped them to make those works, but it was children that decided what to make. Children's imagination enable them to create beautiful pieces. It's unpredictable!

A Wedding Party

2005-10-23T21:17:00.000+09:00

I was invited to my cousin's wedding party on Saturday. I was a little bit reluctant to participate in the party. His wedding...means that most of my relatives on my father's gather and would ask me how I am (that's fine,) and how my marrige would be(^^;). But, it turned into a great opportunity. From the beginning, I found myself excited. I got dressed up and put a little bit flashy make-up, which I don't wear normally. I think that I have a strong self-love, so I said to myself in the mirror, "Umm, look at you! You are gorgeous! beautiful! stunning!" I'm kidding yo-hahaha. Somehow, I was satisfied to glam it up, although I dressed up mild not flashy.
I hadn't seen most of my cousins for ages. There were some whom I couldn't identify immediately when I went into a waiting room for the relatives of the groom. Perhaps so did they. Some had been fathers and mothers already. I couldn't stop thinking that how fast time had passed. I recalled those days in our childhood. We'd got along well each other. I'd been looking forward to seeing them once or twice a year. Only my father in his family had left his hometown to work and had a new family in a different town where I grew up. What a fond memory! So, no matter what they ask me, that means that they care about me.
A table that I had a seat was for only cousins. We were pumped up for exchanging the latest news about ourselves and drinking. Gathering of relatives once a while is really great and fun. Ohhh, we didn't forget to celebrate his wedding☆\(＾＾)/☆
←some missed his wedding due to thier work, we took a picture of us, cousisns in memory after the party.

A Multiple-Tenat Building

2005-10-18T19:01:00.000+09:00

I do like going cafe-hopping. There are so many nice and chic cafes serving great coffee in Sapporo. I think, the recent tendency is to open a cafe with a smat atmosphere in an old building housing a number of independent business concerns.
A cafe that I went to the other day is one of them. Although the cafe locates just behind a big department store in town, it is quiet and retro-flavoured around there.
As I went into the inside, I was a bit thrilled coz the lift to the 7th floor was old and small, so I felt like that I'd have been trapped in.
I heard ♪jazz from the entrance to the cafe.
I was wondering what made this small cafe great. Maybe, it's the contrast between the white concrete wall and the wooden floor and the muted-color furniture. Maybe, it's the contrast between the bustle of a big city outside and the slow stream of time within the cafe. That's created an aura of peace and harmony.
I was relaxing as if I could spend a whole day in a comfortable chair listening to jazz, which was loud but didn't hurt your ears. I got warm by drinking a cup of coffee with whipped cream.

When I left the building, I found two shops that sell goods imported from Vietnam and Bali. I must go to the building again.

Oh, you know what? this cup is the Royal Copenhagen (*v*)

I did it again・・・

2005-10-16T00:53:00.000+09:00

Sorry that this is a bit disgusting to see, but I'm shocked. I have a bad habit that I leave food and forget it for a long time. I knew that I'd left a canned pineapple in the fridge for weeks.
I just didn't feel like eating it. Ahhh, I wasted food again. I checked it out just before and found it rotten. Ummm, how can I get over this bad habit? I try not to buy a lot of stuff to eat and not to keep them in the friedge.
I'm watching a TV drama: ER right now as writing this blog. Gee, I feel sick. I need to go to bed. Good night, everyone. Shrift.

A Gorgeous Time ☆

2005-10-14T22:05:00.000+09:00

I made it perfect,huhuhu. I had a gracious bath time to soothe my tired body after a hard week of work.
All I needed was a bag of bath salt with green tea leaves, which smells wonderful, two floaty candles and a good music. I have a water-resistant speaker to put a portable CD player in it. I chose Mozart this time. Classical music is better to listen when I want to calm down.
It was somewhat ethereal to see candle flame flickering on the water and effective to relax. I soaked in the hot bath for about an hour. It was like meditation to gratify my senses. I felt the stiffness in my shoulders and neck relieved. Have a good sleep and a great weekend (^-^)/゜

Hip Hip Hurray !!!

2005-10-11T22:37:00.000+09:00

Unbelievable! I've got it, I've got it! Actually, a friend of mine got it. You know what???
Hihihi, it is the ticket for Southern All Stars Live Tour 2005 ☆
It was yesterday, the 11th that the tickets were released in a limited quantity only by telphone a week earlier than the date scheduled to go on sale, which is on the 16th. The order started to be accepted at 7pm yesterday. I began to call 10 minutes before 7....but the line was already busy. I kept on redialing. To tell the truth, I was having a foot massage at that time and almost falling into a trance(^^;) , so I gave it up and got my mobile phone back into my bag around 7:30pm.
I eventually dozed off...zzZZZ
Then my mobile rang around 8:20, which told me that I received an email.
It said, "I've got the tickets!", from her. That woke me up immediately. I felt like jumping up out of the seat that I was sitting. Yes! She did it! Thank you very much. She secured the ticket for me!
Good job! NyaNya! I love you(*з*)　XX
The concert will be held on the 17th of December. The ticket costs ￥8000.....expensive but worth it. When it comes to think of the difficulity in getting a seat for that pupular band concert, it is priceless, yo-!

Enjoy The Three-Day Holiday Fully!

2005-10-10T22:13:00.000+09:00

With a little bit hangover from the last night in Susukino where you can enjoy night entertainment in Sapporo, I woke up this morning with my motivation for making the last day of the three-day holiday better. I went out to throw away garbege first. Woo, crunchy! As my friend and I talked yesterday, we went shopping to the biggest outlet shopping mall in Hokkaido, Rera in Chitoshe. Cos another friend of mine went to Bali and got us cute souvenir, which were animal-shaped magnets. That definitely stimulated me!

I was excited to do a lot of shopping , although the weather wasn't as good as I'd expected. It was raining and very chilly. But I was happy when I found apple trees on a median on the way to the mall.
We had spent about 3 hours in the mall weighing up. To my surprise, I didn't buy much, unlike my friend. That's good. You don't have to spend so much money on things that don't strike you. I bought clothes in the first shop and the last shop we stoped by. So, I was looking enviously at her shopping most of time. Good, good, she could find something that she liked. You can get really good deals in the outlet mall. The price is probably 30~50 % off the regular retail price. I bought a T-shirt and a skirt from Tommy Hilfiger, and jeans from another shop. The total cost was about ￥15000!! (^^)v
Look at what I've got today!

Can you see the stars on the skirt? I like that kind of motif on clothes, and the pink fur on the back of the jeans as well. After I got home, I held a fashion show all by myself. My room's now messed up...

Afternoon Tea

2005-10-09T12:02:00.000+09:00

You can enjoy the British style tea service, such as afternoon tea and high tea, in Sapporo too.
I went to a cafe of the Laura Ashley, which is a company that sells products from clothes to funiture, in a department store the other day. I felt like spending the afternoon in the atmosphere of British alike:-)

I ordered a high tea that a pot of tea comes along with rolled sandwiches, two scones and a cake. A cake of the day was a pumpkin chiffon cake with a whipped cream, which was very nice.

As a matter of fact, while I was living in the UK, I never had a chance to appreciate any elegant amusement such as an afternoon tea at Harrods. There was no room in my mind to spend time and money on that, coz I was a poor student:-< But there were so many things that I could enjoy myself without spending too much money, instead. That is another story I'll tell you someday.

Anyhow, since I came back to Japan, luckily I've had a financailly secure job, so that my mind might be more relaxed. It is like making my life more attractive to go out and see, hear, smell and taste many things!
Adding a flower on the table alike♪

Foot Bath

2005-10-08T22:39:00.000+09:00

I've started a foot bathing everyday when I get back to home after work. I've been suffering from terrible stiff necks and sensitivity to cold temperatures.
I use a plastic bucket to put hot water, which is a little bit small as the tub for foot soaking though.
I heard that soaking your feet is effective to boost your metabolism because it improves the circulation of the blood, or vice verca. That helps to alleviate the tension in your shoulders and to burn body fat...hopefully!
Sometimes, I have a foot bath in the morning, too, if I have a time before going to work. It certainly helps to get warm and shake off my drowsiness in the recent chilly morning. Also, I've noticed that the coldness in my hands and feet has been being reduced. Ummm, it works!

We have a three-day holiday again in Japan now, due to a national holiday on Monday.
I had a relax day, today, doing nothing acutally. I'm going to take care of myself by having a body massage and a facail care by a professional, having delicious food and good sleep as well as a foot bath. What treasures of my life!

In Between Dreams

2005-10-06T20:01:00.000+09:00

I've been in the mood to listen to Jack Johnson, lately. It feels good. It feels like that my room has become cozy with a nice breeze, everytime I listen to his music. I also like "Chill Out" music, but his music is different from that. I've found his music largamente warming. poco a poco!

Number One Ramen !?

2005-10-02T14:43:00.000+09:00

Japanese is the nation that loves Ramen: Chinese-style noodles served in a hot soup. There are a plenty of ramen restaurants all over Japan, and museums, societies, too. I've never been to any ramen museum, wondering what they are displaying?? You can find TV programms on ramen, such as "Which one is the best ramen in Japan?", "Go and visit places where you can have delicious ramen!" or "Ramen War" which focuses on owners who are struggling to get more customs...something like that. If there is a very famous ramen restaurant, there are a number of people queuing up outside the restaurant waiting to enjoy the taste for a long time.

I'm not a ramen freak, so even if I heard about the names of famous ramen shops, I wouldn't be in a queue.

I was driving and found a sign of a famous ramen shop called SUMIRE by accident. I asked my friend if she had had Sumire's ramen? She said, "Yes, but everytime I went, I had to wait for a long time..." I'd never been... rather had no interest, but I was hungry and I wanted to try such a ramen that everybody goes to have in spite of being a queue for a long time. All of sudden, I came to be interested in the shop. Moreover, normally ramen shops are not big, probably keep several tables and seats at the counter in it. However, Sumire has its own 3 or 4 floors-building!! next to its ramen restaurant. This ramen is worth million??? the owner has cashed in on the ramen only??? Great! Let me taste it!

There was a ramen competition on TV before and the Sumire's ramen won the championship or anything. (I'm not sure about that, so if anybody knows, drop me a line:)
Anyhow, no wonder that could draw more custumers.

Ummm, I can't tell the differences in the tastes of ramen between shops, coz I haven't had enough samples. The only thing I can say is that I was happy on a full stomach and I AM still thirsty.

Three Months to Go ≡３

2005-10-02T00:25:00.000+09:00

Wow, it's the 1st of October. Time passes so fast. When I was a student, I felt that even an hour passed so slow, coz I couldn't concentrate on studying.

I had such a eventful day, today. In the morning, I went to town to take a lecture. After the lecture, I was shopping around and found something at the cash counter in my favorite cloth shop. That was a frog clip. It wasn't anything special, but it came into my eyes and I thought, 'Ohh, what a fancy frog!' I identified the frog with myself (＠o＠)?
I don't know why, but I felt a kind of affinity with it.

When the frog closes its arms, it looks like that it'd try to keep on going forward, being a hard worker. When it openes its arms, it'd seem to be saying, "Hug, hug"

There are two months left in this year. I'll be working as hard as usual and looking forward to the winter holiday. Above all, I'll be looking forward to meeting a real frog to give me a warm hug by the end of this year!

Wait, not two,, Three Months to go.......Hold my horses, be patient!

Murphy's Law

2005-09-29T22:42:00.000+09:00

Finally, I got one of my big job done at this time of every year! took me a long time to finish it up. I was screwed up at the beginning, that's why it took me ages to get that job right. Meanwhile, I had stomach pain due to drinking coffee too much. I needed to do something else sometimes to get refreshed. Then, I got a sore muscle as a result of doing some exercises. Then, I couldn't stop eating perhaps because of lots of stress, then I put on weight.

'Ok, fine, I'm gonna feel better soon, so let's get back to my blog!' I wanted to up-dated it.

But.....I've left my degit camera at my work place today of all days!! I sighed unconsiously.
Because of my hard days, I had a lack of sleep, felt exhausted and relieved, then I was muddleheaded(>.<) I've been distracted,,,still.

Anything that can go wrong will go wrong.

Gee, you can't go against Murphy's Law.

I know that I cannt blame that Law for my problems.....(--;)Zzzz

Autumn Reading

2005-09-26T20:13:00.000+09:00

I've made a resolution to be more intelligent! I've got a lot of books that I haven't read through.
I'm going to read them to enjoy the lengthening nights of autumn. There are two sets of books I'd like to read. One is a series of textbooks for primary school students in the US. The other is a thick textbook about psychology at the level of graduate school. If you are keen to study a second language, I think that it is effective to try from what you've already known in your mother tongue, then forwarding your study by taking in your interests at a bit high level or practical level. My first mayjor was Educational Psychology, and I still need to take what I've learned and the latest study of psychology into practice for my job. I want to polish my Englsih more. So, those books are the perfect ones to get round to!
Don't ask me why I have left them on the shelf for a long time (^^;)

Dog Shop

2005-09-22T23:25:00.000+09:00

I was so busy and tired this week that I fell over half dead:-<
I had a medical check-up this afternoon, then I could go to a huge supermarket after the check-up, coz it finished earlier than I thought.
I shopped around and got lovely stuff for my dog. Do you know what is in the pic on the left? It's a toy horse for dogs. You can play with your dog with it, maybe teasing and scaring your dog,,hihi. There were hundreds of that sort of toys in the shop. I was getting excited. I like shopping for myself. But, it's also fun to pick up something for one that you love. How many hours did I spend in the shop? Maybe two hours weighing up the stuff that I was interested in, and wacthing dogs sleeping or making dives at each other in the cages. How lovely they are!
When I came across a shelf to display clothes, I was overwhelmed by the many and various clothes. They were all lovely and cute, but EXPENSIVE >(*o*)<
Ta-da-!　It's one of newly-announced collections in Japan for this winter☆

I don't think that it's a smart idea to spend a lot of money on outfits for a dog, even though my dog is adorable. Instead, I got a toy dog, and socks for him to prepare for snow:-p I'll be off to my mother's place tomorrow, so that I can see him after a quite absence. Wait and see how he reacts to them (^v*)/

A Drive

2005-09-19T20:43:00.000+09:00

From the morning, it got hot, the temperture was around 26℃. I was still in a bed when I recieved a call from a friend of mine. She said, "why don't we go for a drive? it's really good weather, today! are you still in a bed?". She just bought a brand-new car, so I could imagine how much she was looking forward to a drive. I was gonna do some more work at home. As I opened the curtains, I realized that I'd be unable to stay in and work. "O.K. Let's get out of here!"
We headed for a small town, which takes about one and half hours by car from Sapporo, expecting to visit a museum called "ARTE PIAZZA" there.
I was surpirsed when we arrived at the museum. It was an old primary school that had been closed down a long time ago. It was the school where Kan Yasuda, who is an world renowned sculptor, studied. I felt nostalgic.

There were displays of his marble sculptures inside the school. Also, his big works were artistically displayed at some locations around the school.

I don't know about the art, so I was wondering what his work represented, but this is a matter of your imagination. You see things with your eyes and might combine what you see with your experiences or thoughts, then creat your own interpretation individually. My friend said that his works were heart-warming and tender. I agreed with that, but still puzzled.

I saw children playing around one of his works. What a peaceful scene!
It's not necessary to take it seriously. What is importatnt is to take it just as you feel, I thought.
To sum up our drive, we went to an Italian restaurant for dinner. We had great pasta full of organic vegetables grown in Hakkaido (^v^)

The sunset was beautifully artistic on our way back home.

I'm working right now!

2005-09-18T23:14:00.000+09:00

Hello everyone, how are you doing?
It's almost 11:30pm now in Japan.

Ummm, I have lots of work to do now, even at home, even on weekends.
But, I shouldn't complain.... that's how I make a living.

I had a great lunch at a French restaurant at the reasonable price today, enjoying the three-day off as well.

Also, My friends planned to play tennis, but it was rainning in this morning.....there was nothing to do but work.

Soon or later, I must get it done. I decided to spend this afternoon for my work at home.

an hour, two hours, three hours, I've got stuck!

Now, I need to refresh! streching my body, doing excersie a bit.

I'm gonna check my emails and browse on the internet for a while, too. I might be able to find something fun.

Phew---Ok, then, it's time to get back to the job.

I hope you are enjoying yourself. (^.^)Y

Gluttonous Appetite

2005-09-17T23:02:00.000+09:00

Hahhha, .....I have to admit that I love sweets!
I went to town today for some reasons. When I finished my errands, I had a little walk doing a window shopping. Then, I stopped by a department store to get some deli for dinner. As I walked through the sweets section, I couldn't resist gorgeous cakes. Normally, I try not to eat sweets coz I'm concerned about my weight(^^;)
But, this time I thought, "it's OK! I'm so tired that I need something sweet. I don't have to hold my temper. " It's caused by a lot of stress that I've got. Instead of drinking or smashing a window(??), I tend to eat to ease my frustration. I know, that's not good but I forgive myself for anything I want to do when I'm stressed out. Otherwise, I'd become crazy. However, it's too much to eat all of the three cakes at once. So, I had one, and I'll have the other two tomorrow morning for breakfast.
Actually, it's good for your brain to take something sweet in the morning. It wakes your brain up quickly. Believe me, it works!

Sleep Well

2005-09-16T23:23:00.000+09:00

I had really hard days of work this week. It was terribly hard for me to get up every morning.
Haahhh, I just couldn't wait for Friday; today! to come, then I can sleep in! I'll be off tomorrow!
We'll have a national holiday on Monday, so that I'll be off for three days in a row. Tonight is the beginning of the consecutive holidays Y(^з^)Y

Normally, I stay up till very late on weekends, but I'll go to bed now.....although I've stocked up with DVDs for weekend nights.

You sleep well and have a sweet dream, too.

Origami

2005-09-15T20:43:00.000+09:00

What a beautiful work it is! I have a co-worker who is an expert at Origami. One day, he made this flower by folding two sheets of paper and gave it to me. Just folding them without a cut. I was so impressed that I asked him to teach me how to make origami. You know, not easy ones like a box, a plane, or a flat flower. But, I didn't have it in me to do such finely-craft things. I can make a crane, though.

You might think that all of Japanese is good at Origami......that is NOT true.

He has a deft touch. Bravo-----!

The First Touch of Autumn

2005-09-13T19:17:00.000+09:00

Some leaves are beginning to turn red just after midsummer.

In Hokkaido; the northmost island of Japan, it's hot but dry in the summer, so that it is much more comfortable to spend the summer in Hokkaido than in Tokyo. From the beginning of Sep. the temperature significantly comes to drop at night.

Probably, that makes leaves turn red much eariler than any other places. However, I still feel the sweltering heat during the day. "Oh, My God, it's already autumn!?" Yeah, definetaly, we have an autumn sky that is clear blue as far as the eye can see.

The crimson foliage isn't the only typical sight in autumn. I found a autumn bloomer, which I've never seen before.

The yellow flower has a lot of hair spreading from the center. It lookes odd, but lovable.
Does anyone know what it is?

Chow-Chow

2005-09-12T19:24:00.000+09:00

I bought a bracelet yesterdsay. It was made in Vietnam. It is one of countries that I've been longing for. A broad range of sundries from accessaries to furnishings has been imported from Vietnam. It is cheap to buy those products even in Japan. However, if you go to that country, you could get much better deals there and maybe the prices could be negociable at the store. I instantlly fell for the color of the stones; deep purple, and the whole design of the brecelet, which enticed me to take it.
A cousin of mine is going to have his wedding party in the middle of Oct, so that I can wear it. Ohhh, I have to get a nice dress that suits the purple stones.

My interests are wide (maybe not different from others), from travelling, photographs to shopping, sports and blah blah blah. One that I'm into at the moment is Morocco cafe. A Morocco cafe in Oxford was the first place that I had a mint tea in my life, which was not a ready-made tea pack, but the real one decocted from fresh green mint leaves. The cafe was really cool with many Moroccan stuff like lamps, candle stands, tabels plastered with elaborate mosiacs and the cushions.....why didn't I take any pics of it???? at all??? perhaps, that's because I was hoping to stay in the UK longer and couldn't imagine that I'd take the pics for my memories. Ummm, too late to realize so(-.-;

Wait a munite! I still have a connection with something Morocco or Moroccan. I have a friend who is fascinated by Africa and goes to Morocco everytime she has a long vacation.

↑
This is her souvenior from Morocco this summer! (^v*)Y

Chinese Night

2005-09-11T16:54:00.000+09:00

I participate in a tea tasting at a Chinese tea cafe every month. A tea master who runs her own business in Hong Kong comes to the cafe. She brings excellent tea leaves from Hong Kong, Taiwan and the main-land of China, whic are very expensive on the market, so that I can enjoy various kinds of wonderful Chinese tea at reasonable price. You know, it's all you can drink for about ￡15 (￥3,000). She sometimes gets us a very rare tea that is about ￡50 (￥10,000) per 50 grams of it. Furthermore, she gives an interesting lecture on those tea and the history of it everytime. You see, this tasting offers great advantages!
But, this time was a bit different from usual. The master couldn't come to Sapporo due to her business trip or something. Instead of her lecture, the cafe offered us the perfomance of Erhu (Niko in Japanese). An erhu is known as a Chinese violin, which is a two-stringed bowed instrument and capable of producing sad, melancholic and joyful melodies. I'd say, it sounds more soulful and expressive! I had been to concersts of a world wide known erhu player twice with my mother, but it was the first time that I listened to the performance that close, so I was thrilled.

My friend and I went to another cafe to have a little more chat after the Chinese evening finished as usual. That cafe called 'Ajiko' during the day, 'Ajihei' in the evening, and 'Ajio' at night is one of my favorit cafes. So, it was 'Ajio' when we arrived there. It looks like a hiding place in the woods. After having a lot of Chinese tea, I was desperate to drink a COFFEE^^; I don't think that it spoiled that amazing Chinese night.....making an excuse, hehehe.
It ended up being a long night as drinking my favorit iced coffee, 'Moca'.

Go Bananas!

2005-09-09T21:21:00.000+09:00

I'm very concerned about my condition, especially my skin and my weight. There are some good drinks that I have every day. Put a banana, a slice of pineapple, two spoons of yogurt and some soy milk all together in a blender. It's kida like a smoothy. I bought a new pair of glasses so that I had the smoothies in one of the glasses last night. In my case, it is really good for my skin and relieves intestinal ailments. Of course, such things don't make your skin better in a day. However, due to the synergistic effect of those ingredints (I guess...), I haven't had any big skin problems since I started drinking this banana smoothies, and have got fine skin^v^ I used to suffer from pimples. I tried to do everything to get rid of the breakouts, and reached to the conclusion that being healthy from inside the body was essential and dealing with the stress as well!

The next is mint tea with ginger and lemon. Mint has a laxative effect, too. I prefer the iced mint tea. It's nice to have a cup of iced mint tea when it's hot. You can cool down and enjoy the refreshing taste. I drink almost a liter of it a day. I read an article on the effectiveness of it, which is detoxification.

My friends laugh their head off when I talk about goods, food, actually anything about staying healthy, specifically about the skin, cos I make an enormous effort to look after my skin one right after the other. They think that I'm crazy. Yh, I admit that I AM a health fanatic, hehe.

In the meantime,,,,,,,,, I'm addicted to COFFEE, which is bad for skin ^^;

Do you think that I'm contradicting myself?

Ummm, I'm going BANANAs now.

Stars and Stripes

2005-09-07T19:53:00.000+09:00

I was waiting for my friend to come in the park the other day. The park, Odori kouen, is a symbol of my city, Sapporo maybe known by the world wide snow festival (http://web.city.sapporo.jp/english/). It spreads 8 blocks long and has a TV tower at the east end of it. The tower is one of the notable things in Sapporo.

My place and my work place is far from the center where the park locates. I don't go to there that often, acutally. So, while I was sitting on a park bench waiting for her, I realized that I didn't have any pics of the tower and the park itself. It turned out to be a fantastic time to look around people in the park at night as well as the night view of things lighted up there.

It was quiet, but still many people were hanging around there. Some were just chatting on a bench, families with little children were playing around the fountain, and I saw a group of young boys practicing their dance (can you see them dancing?). Those were having a great time each according to their own fancy in the park.

It was the moment to realize again that I like my city, Sapporo. My ex is Greek and he always said that Greece was the greatest country, the high point of his ideas was that everything comes from Greece. One of my best friends is Greek, too. She was fed up with such idea, which she thinks that most of Greek people have. I'm not against his idea. It is probably just patriotic feelings. So, I can say now, 'Sapporo is the best place to live in the world!'

By the way, if the Greek believed that even 'Kimono' comes from Greece (Have you ever seen My Big Fat Greek Wedding? http://www.hollywoodjesus.com/mybigfatgreek.htm ), it would be funny, wouldn't it ? ●＾ｖ＾●

What heals you?

2005-09-06T20:29:00.000+09:00

There was something that I'd missed so much. I didn't realized how much I cared about my greens until I left them at my friend's place for a while.

I've got three pots of foliage plants. I tried to grow plants several times before. However I never succeeded. I just didn't know how to take care of it, or didn't care about it that much. Although I had the idea that having greens at home should be good, I didn't know why ^^; Maybe I was preoccupide with runing after what was said to be good. As a result, I forgot to water them often, yet I didn't take any notice of them.

Now, three of my pots are back. I was relieved and happy to see them again. While I was away from them for about 4 weeks, I was thinking of them sometimes as if they were my lover, and emailed the friend to ask how they were. I don't know since when I started feeling better about keeping the plants and taking care of it. Maybe I'm getting older. Or I should say that I've become old enough to appreciate the blessings of nature. Moreover, I've realized that I'm healed by those pots. I love to see the brilliant green leaves in my sun-flooded room in the morning.

I happened to take a pic of my friend's pet, gold fish in a basin. I'm sure that the gold fish is something healing! Healing boom has come!
What heals your tiredness from a hard day of work?

Yummy Yummy!

2005-09-04T23:06:00.000+09:00

Dear my friends, I'll up-date my blog with pics of our Gyoza party yesterday!.

Gyoza originated in China, which is a popular dish in Japan as well. In Japan, Yaki-Gyoza (pan-fried style) is the most common variation, I think. Gyoza can be boiled or deep-fried, but the usual way is to steam-fry them, quickly to sear the surface of the skins to seal in juices so that they are crispy on the bottom, and smooth and slippery on the top. Ummm, just talking about this is making my mouth water.

This time, we made skins too, to wrap the filling, which is usually minced pork with chopped cabbege, garlic, ginger, and chive or green onion If you like. You can buy thin, ready-made skins from shops but I prefer thick, hand-made skins, yes absolutely! I'm not going to talk about how to make Gyoza, so if you are interested in it, please visit this site. http://www.japan-guide.com/r/e107.html

We made lots of Gyoza to enjoy the variations. Here Yaki Gyoza are first! It was hot and I could still feel the steam from the Yaki Gyoza. Ohhh, it was incredibly delicious to taste the juice of the filling when I nibbled a Yaki Gyoza.

The second variation to go was Sui Gyoza (boiled-Gyoza). Putting the special sauce for gyoza isn't only way to enjoy Sui Gyoza. Putting it into soup is also a popular way to appreciate Sui Gyoza in Japan. The soup should be bland so that you can again taste the juicy filling. It's, I think, kind of funny to feel the contrast between the firmness of the skin and the softness of the filling with gravy.

Ummm, I can't wait for next Gyoza pary! Guys, when are we gona have a Gyoza party again?

Tools for my blog

2005-09-03T21:01:00.000+09:00

I bought a brandnew digital camera just before my summer holiday. That was a great excuse for purchasing stuff I'd wanted. Hahaha- I'm always like this, 'I'm goning to London, so I need a camera, new shoes and .... Oh, don't forget get a jacket coz it must be chilly in London!'.....^^;
As a matter of fact, my old digital camera was almost broken. The battery didn't last longer than 30 minutes if you kept it on. It was the time for me to get a better one!

I shoped around to find out a nicer one as cheap as possible. I was amazed how small and light digit cameras are these days, and have got high functions! I couldn't make up my mind about which one to buy, but look at the pic on the left, you could guess what I'm gonna say??
Yup, I love this color! If there isn't much difference in terms of the functions between them, why don't I chose one by the appearence? However, there was one more camera that attracted me, which was red in color. Then, my mother said, 'Do you prefer this color, don't you?'. Yes, you're right, mum! This brilliant orenge color suits me. http://dc.casio.jp/product/exilim/ex_s500/

This picture shows how thin my brandnew camere is comparing to my old one. I keep this one with me all the time to take pics as material for my blog. Also, I use it for my work quite often.

There is one more thing that is really useful to take pictures at any time. It's my mobile phone.

It's been taken for granted that mobile phones have digital camera function in it in Japan. You can't find a mobile without camera anymore in Japan. Plus, the cameras built-into mobile phones allow you to take good-quality pictures for the last two or three years. This small device comes in handy (almost the same size of my orenge camera). You see, the two pics above, were taken by my mobile.

To think about the basic function as a telehone, you would never leave it somewhere and forget. I've never and won't! Wherenever I go, it is with me! Whatever I find something interesting, I can take a picture of it. Especailly, intriguing people, like those sleeping on a park bench, or on a train. You can pretend as if you are mailing with your mobile as you are waiting for your friend to come, so you won't let them know that you are taking pics of them. That's kind of how I get source of my blog, hihi. Don't get me wrong, I'm not sneaking around to take pics of something bad. I can't resist my sudden urge to photo, and I try not to bug others＠＾<＾＠

Beauty in color

2005-08-23T21:10:00.000+09:00

I'll talk about my hoby a bit more. Since I like taking pictures of buildings in palces I visit, I've found my tendency for me to be attracted by things in color.

This is a yellow apartment building in Volos, Greece, near my friend's place. It is really hot in Greece in the summer, as you know, but isn't much humid like in Tokyo (I don't live in Tokyo, though). I felt great when the wind blow, although the strong and dazzling sunlight was sticking in my skin. Oh, I remember that I dried my cloths in the sun for about an half hour, just 30minutes!....The building was like rising into the sky. The impression I got was all the more refreshing.

The second one was taken in Belgium just 2 weeks ago. I was walking along the river in Antwerp with my friend. Comparing to Greece, it was very chilly in Belgium, this summer, so I was kind of rushing in order to buy something to wear. Then, this building got into my eyes.
I thought, 'What a lovely building!'. It was an old builidng, actually. However, just painting in color added charm of its own.

Ummm, everytime I go to abroad, I see those kinds of colorful buildings, ...wait a minute! Have I seen anything of many colors like them in Japan or not? If there is something, isn't it possible to blend with the cityscape in Japan? Yes, it is and I found one that I was fascinated by its colors and playful mind of people who created it first in Japan.

This is it! This is Japanese paper called 'Washi', which I believe is still handmade by skilled workers of the first order. I found it in Kamakura that is very famous for the giant statue of Buddha, called 'Daibustu', which is huge, MASSIVE!

Apart from Daibustu, I was taking a little walk in the town with streets with a lot of atmosphere where It harks back to the Kamakura Period which lasted from 1192 to 1333.

Of course, I don't know about people at that time and what their lives were like. One thing for sure is that it wasn't as advanced as our age. However, I could imagine that they had pleasurable sense of art. Now, it is really precious because there has been decreasing the number of handicrafts who hand down traditional arts like Washi.

So, I'll show this pic to anyone who are interested in Japan or Japanese culture, to cherish it and keep the treasures of Japan. The Great Buddha in Kamakura!→
If you are interested in Buddha or Kamakura Period, let's go to this website
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2133.html

Photograph shows your feeling

2005-08-22T21:01:00.000+09:00

As I said my interest is picture in my plofile, I've taken a lot of pictures. I used to like being myself in pictures, striking a pose of typicul Japanese 'Peace' with a big smile. However, nowadays, I quite love taking pictures of objects such as buildings, flowers, dogs, blablabla. So, I'll show you some of my masterpeices today!

This is lavender (I think). It was a small flower bed within a zoo. It was really hot day and the sky was clearly blue when all of the flowers was in full bloom with bright color. I couldn't stop taking lots of pics of it from various angles, while a few of crows were wacthing for an opportunity to get our lunch box from above.

The second one was taken in Volos, Greece. (if you want to know more about Volos, go to the site http://www.cs.purdue.edu/homes/enh/PILIONWWW/pages/volos.html).

I visited my friend there last summer and had a great time.
She and her boyfriend took me to an excursion to the mountain.
At that time, I was puzzled about my life, like wondering which way to go......just 4 months after coming back from the UK. I was longing for going back to the UK and staying with my ex. But then, what'd be gonna happen to me? What'd I do? Those thoughts were coming and going to me all the time. I took some pics of the wonderful landscape. There was nothing around me but the high mountain rage. I shifted my gaze to the ground.....my shadow.
No face, no color, just shadow. The moment I felt depressed and emptiness, I felt as if a huge load had been lifted off my chest.

You see the mountains that have been there for hundreds years or more, no matter what have been happining. In addition, you can stand up how many times you fall down because the mother earth exists. You have no chance against the nature. You can't beat it! Considering the greatness of the nature, I realized my worry was itsy-bitsy.

You see?? I could recall loads of memories by a couple of pics, even if there wasn't anyone in them. My friends are sick and tired of me taking pictures of anything anytime especially when we travell together.....and I insist that pictures of something not only people must be better to see afterwards. As a matter of fact, You'd find it better to see pictures of objects you saw in a different country or any situations. That reminds you of the scenery you've seen and walked around. Moreover, That brings back your pleasant memories as well as your feelings at that time.

Can you guess what I was feeling when I took this pic??? hihihi

Happy made me happy

2005-08-21T02:24:00.000+09:00

I went to a sushi restaurant with my friends today. The restaurant is called 'Shiawase', which means 'Happy'. You can see the name in Japanese on the white paper in the pic. It is the happiest moment for me to have great meal like sushi^v^.

The sushi does not put a slice of raw fish on the top of it, but also a kind of the traditional sushi called vinegared rice rolled in seaweed......Did you notice?? The rolled sushi I had today was the other way around! inside out! Seaweed was rolled in rice!

The taste doesn't change, of course, since it uses the same ingredients. However, it looks better, doesn't it? You can see the inside clearly and the contrast between rice and fish in the middle is bright in color. Seaweed inside brings out the others modestly.

If the outside is covered by a sheet of seaweed, you might think, 'Oh my! what is this black thing? What is inside?' (if you've never tried any rolled sushi), hahah-.

So, I think that this is a really nice way to serve rolled sushi, and I'm pretty sure that inside out rolled sushi appeals to your appetites! Great invention! Banzai sushi!