So I've landed safe and sound in New Zealand!
First stop - Christchurch!
My old flatmate from Japan came to meet me at the airport - it's been about a year and a half since he moved him and he hasn't changed a bit lol!
After a gorgeous drive in the mountains, we headed to his local where I was surrounded by a whole group of crude Kiwis, a Scot and an Irish guy. What a laugh!! It felt so weird hearing that kind of banter after such a long time! Christchurch actually reminds me of the UK a lot, except with wider roads!
Surprising thing number 1 - the damage from the earthquake here last year is still all too apparent. The CBD is practically shut down and there is still so much debris EVERYWHERE. I was talking to a guy in the pub last night and he's a catastrophe surveyor. He said that he was just AMAZED at who quickly Japan got into their clean up operation - I'm sure many people in Tohoku would disagree but from what he was saying, Japan have done alright!
Today I'm in Kaikoura, which is a couple of hours north of Christchurch. I got the bus at some ungodly hour this morning and I was a bit worried coz it was cold and looked like it was going to rain. It's 3.20pm now, the sun is blazing and the timing couldn't have been more perfect! I'm taking some time out after having finished a 3 hour walk.
This place is STUNNING. It's ridiculous! The mountains are so close to the sea - although it's a little bit cloudy so you can't see the peaks, but the water is gorgeously blue and the views from the clifftops were insanely pretty! I just loved every minute of walking along the peninsular and was just snapping away like a mad woman!
Surprising thing number 2 - on my hike I think about 15 people smiled and said hello to me as I walked past them. That always throws me because it doesn't happen in Japan OR the UK! But it's really lovely - the people hear just love to chat! Sometimes a little too much.....
I'll keep ya updated but I gotta go and catch my bus back to Christchurch!
xoxo
Sunday 23 December 2012
Sunday 16 December 2012
And He's Back....
Today was election day in Japan and, as predicted, the LDP have a landslide victory.
I'm not that into Japanese politics, but what has interested me most about this election from the people that I have spoken to, is that no one seems to have a clue who to vote for.
The LDP have won, but I feel that this is more of a rebellion against the DPJ more than anything else. Japanese people have told me that Abe-san is too right-wing and too old fashioned. The older generations, which make up such a large percentage of the population here, have such a strong voice and the government protect them so that they can rely on their support. I was watching the news and I couldn't understand where these stats came from, but they were saying the people over the age of 60 control 90% of Japan's wealth.
90%?!?!?!?!
I'm kinda hoping I might have misunderstood that.
What an imbalance!!! And given that the population is ageing and the birth rate is declining, this is only going to get worse. It puts such an insane pressure on the younger generations as we work to pay for old people to receive handsome pension packages. They must be collecting way more than they originally paid in!!! It just seems so unfair.
The fact that people don't see another option other than the LDP, well, it's a disaster waiting to happen! Abe-san only made it a year the last time that he was PM - how long is he going to remain in power this time? His policies include increasing public spending (his downfall in the past) and the controversial one of allowing nuclear energy to remain part of Japan's future.
Admittedly, Japan doesn't have a lot of resources but given the Fukushima disaster last year, this is going to be a tough one to move forward with.
I'm not sure if I understood 100% correctly, but the news was saying that something like only 40% (or somewhere between 40-45%) of the population voted. Ufffff.....
That's a pretty poor turn out. Even if people are undecided about the 2 main parties, they could make their vote count elsewhere. I know a couple of people who voted for Your Party while others said that it would have been a wasted vote to vote for one of the smaller parties. But surely not voting at all is more of a waste? No?
I was thinking back to the last general election in the UK. In the past I had always voted Labour, but in the last election, I honestly thought that Lib Dem had a real chance of winning. If everyone who had wanted to vote for Lib Dem actually voted for them, they may have made it. But it's the same thing - some people may have been feeling like it was a wasted vote and would rather vote for the Tories just so that Labour wouldn't stay in power. Saying that, we have this coalition government where the Lib Dem have done a 180 on their original policies anyway! So back to Labour next time for me!
I'm also a little scared at how many seats the right-winged Restoration Party managed to win...and that Shintaro Ishihara has landed a seat....is everyone trying to start a war with China?!
As Japan moves towards the far-right, I'm not sure that they will have anyone to blame but themselves to be honest!
xoxo
I'm not that into Japanese politics, but what has interested me most about this election from the people that I have spoken to, is that no one seems to have a clue who to vote for.
The LDP have won, but I feel that this is more of a rebellion against the DPJ more than anything else. Japanese people have told me that Abe-san is too right-wing and too old fashioned. The older generations, which make up such a large percentage of the population here, have such a strong voice and the government protect them so that they can rely on their support. I was watching the news and I couldn't understand where these stats came from, but they were saying the people over the age of 60 control 90% of Japan's wealth.
90%?!?!?!?!
I'm kinda hoping I might have misunderstood that.
What an imbalance!!! And given that the population is ageing and the birth rate is declining, this is only going to get worse. It puts such an insane pressure on the younger generations as we work to pay for old people to receive handsome pension packages. They must be collecting way more than they originally paid in!!! It just seems so unfair.
The fact that people don't see another option other than the LDP, well, it's a disaster waiting to happen! Abe-san only made it a year the last time that he was PM - how long is he going to remain in power this time? His policies include increasing public spending (his downfall in the past) and the controversial one of allowing nuclear energy to remain part of Japan's future.
Admittedly, Japan doesn't have a lot of resources but given the Fukushima disaster last year, this is going to be a tough one to move forward with.
I'm not sure if I understood 100% correctly, but the news was saying that something like only 40% (or somewhere between 40-45%) of the population voted. Ufffff.....
That's a pretty poor turn out. Even if people are undecided about the 2 main parties, they could make their vote count elsewhere. I know a couple of people who voted for Your Party while others said that it would have been a wasted vote to vote for one of the smaller parties. But surely not voting at all is more of a waste? No?
I was thinking back to the last general election in the UK. In the past I had always voted Labour, but in the last election, I honestly thought that Lib Dem had a real chance of winning. If everyone who had wanted to vote for Lib Dem actually voted for them, they may have made it. But it's the same thing - some people may have been feeling like it was a wasted vote and would rather vote for the Tories just so that Labour wouldn't stay in power. Saying that, we have this coalition government where the Lib Dem have done a 180 on their original policies anyway! So back to Labour next time for me!
I'm also a little scared at how many seats the right-winged Restoration Party managed to win...and that Shintaro Ishihara has landed a seat....is everyone trying to start a war with China?!
As Japan moves towards the far-right, I'm not sure that they will have anyone to blame but themselves to be honest!
xoxo
Saturday 15 December 2012
Guns Don't Kill People?
I am so overwhelmed with sadness at what happened in Connecticut yesterday (today in Japan).
I woke up this morning, was on the train reading the BBC News and I could feel my eyes well up a little.
A shooting at a PRIMARY school?!
A PRIMARY school?! Are you serious?! I can't get my head around it.
Of course a mass shooting is awful wherever it happens, but I'm sure I'm not the only one who choked up reading this news. These are such young children. 5 to 10 years old. It is so incredibly sad and heartbreaking to think that these parents in this apparently wealthy neighbourhood took their kids to school and then they were senselessly murdered.
It's just horrifying.
What also disturbs me is that the gunmen that seem to carry out these mass shootings are so young themselves. It's just such a waste of young lives. But never more so than today.
Why does the US keep letting this happen?!
I know the dispute over gun control has been going on for years. A pro-gun country, it's alarming how easy it is to get hold of firearms. Just nip down Wal-mart and buy one. This is the problem. THIS is why these mass shootings keep happening. Make it more difficult ot get hold of weapons and you're guaranteed to see a drop in the number of shootings. At least, I think so.
Pro-gun supporters always say that it's not guns that kill people, but people who kill people. And to an extent, of course this is true. But allowing anyone, including mentally sick and twisted individuals, such easy access to weapons, well, how can people not realise that this is the problem? People do kill people, but it would be a hell of a lot harder for them if firearms were banned.
Not every gun owner has the intention to use it for malicious intent, but why can't they "protect themselves" like the rest of us - with a baseball bat or a knife?!
I'm wondering if it's just a matter of people adamant to exercise their "rights" to own a gun if they want to. But these kind of shootings - I mean, this is the 3rd one this year alone! What is it going to take for these people to realise that firearms are evil? I'm sure they'd change their tune if this awful tragedy happened to them. Not that I would wish something like this on anyone, but if it was to happen to them, then they would be mad that there wasn't a tighter regulation regarding gun control.
If ever there was a time for these regulations to be introduced, it's now.
There was an interesting picture floating around Facebook with some interesting stats. It must have been pretty old because one of the countries was "West Germany" and I can't remember all the stats, but it said that in that year, there were 8 handgun shootings in the UK and then in the USA that number was over 10,000!!! I know it must have been old, but the fact of the matter is that NOTHING HAS CHANGED!!!!!
I fail to believe that gun owners who are parents wouldn't support the ban in light of what happened today. What if someone broke into their house, took their gun and killed their kid?! It just goes to show that anything could happen anywhere.
Come on America!!!!! Follow Europe's example and BAN THOSE GUNS!!!!!! This should not allowed to happen again - these are CHILDREN FFS!!!
My heart aches for those poor parents and families of those killed.
May they all rest in peace.
xoxo
I woke up this morning, was on the train reading the BBC News and I could feel my eyes well up a little.
A shooting at a PRIMARY school?!
A PRIMARY school?! Are you serious?! I can't get my head around it.
Of course a mass shooting is awful wherever it happens, but I'm sure I'm not the only one who choked up reading this news. These are such young children. 5 to 10 years old. It is so incredibly sad and heartbreaking to think that these parents in this apparently wealthy neighbourhood took their kids to school and then they were senselessly murdered.
It's just horrifying.
What also disturbs me is that the gunmen that seem to carry out these mass shootings are so young themselves. It's just such a waste of young lives. But never more so than today.
Why does the US keep letting this happen?!
I know the dispute over gun control has been going on for years. A pro-gun country, it's alarming how easy it is to get hold of firearms. Just nip down Wal-mart and buy one. This is the problem. THIS is why these mass shootings keep happening. Make it more difficult ot get hold of weapons and you're guaranteed to see a drop in the number of shootings. At least, I think so.
Pro-gun supporters always say that it's not guns that kill people, but people who kill people. And to an extent, of course this is true. But allowing anyone, including mentally sick and twisted individuals, such easy access to weapons, well, how can people not realise that this is the problem? People do kill people, but it would be a hell of a lot harder for them if firearms were banned.
Not every gun owner has the intention to use it for malicious intent, but why can't they "protect themselves" like the rest of us - with a baseball bat or a knife?!
I'm wondering if it's just a matter of people adamant to exercise their "rights" to own a gun if they want to. But these kind of shootings - I mean, this is the 3rd one this year alone! What is it going to take for these people to realise that firearms are evil? I'm sure they'd change their tune if this awful tragedy happened to them. Not that I would wish something like this on anyone, but if it was to happen to them, then they would be mad that there wasn't a tighter regulation regarding gun control.
If ever there was a time for these regulations to be introduced, it's now.
There was an interesting picture floating around Facebook with some interesting stats. It must have been pretty old because one of the countries was "West Germany" and I can't remember all the stats, but it said that in that year, there were 8 handgun shootings in the UK and then in the USA that number was over 10,000!!! I know it must have been old, but the fact of the matter is that NOTHING HAS CHANGED!!!!!
I fail to believe that gun owners who are parents wouldn't support the ban in light of what happened today. What if someone broke into their house, took their gun and killed their kid?! It just goes to show that anything could happen anywhere.
Come on America!!!!! Follow Europe's example and BAN THOSE GUNS!!!!!! This should not allowed to happen again - these are CHILDREN FFS!!!
My heart aches for those poor parents and families of those killed.
May they all rest in peace.
xoxo
Wednesday 12 December 2012
Yes, Yes, Yes!!!!!
As the year is drawing to a close, it's that time again to be thinking about resolutions.
LOL!!!
Once again I've failed miserably, but I have done better at a couple of them.
I've had the same resolutions for about 10 years - for next year, I will be making some but I think I'm going to keep them to myself. And start from February 1st.
You know what they say, if you start on January 1st, most people will fail within the first 21 days. I'd rather not be a part of that statistic, thank you very much!
Anyone, one thing I am aiming to do better next year, is make sure that I spend more time with friends. Not that I haven't this year, but I am pretty bad at replying to messages to people who aren;t immediately around me every day!!! It's really bad because there are people I still haven't gotten around to seeing and it's a shame really.
But I promise to do better next year! HAHA!
Really.
xoxo
LOL!!!
Once again I've failed miserably, but I have done better at a couple of them.
I've had the same resolutions for about 10 years - for next year, I will be making some but I think I'm going to keep them to myself. And start from February 1st.
You know what they say, if you start on January 1st, most people will fail within the first 21 days. I'd rather not be a part of that statistic, thank you very much!
Anyone, one thing I am aiming to do better next year, is make sure that I spend more time with friends. Not that I haven't this year, but I am pretty bad at replying to messages to people who aren;t immediately around me every day!!! It's really bad because there are people I still haven't gotten around to seeing and it's a shame really.
But I promise to do better next year! HAHA!
Really.
xoxo
Tuesday 11 December 2012
One More Week!!!
This time in exactly one week, I'm going to be packing, packing, packing!!!!
YAYYYYYYYY!!!!!!
I seriously cannot wait to get back into the sun and chill out. The magnitude of my trip has suddenly hit me as I've realised how mad I am to try and navigate the whole country by bus.
Madness, but it's totally exciting!!!
A spot of sightseeing, a spot of hiking, a spot of jetboating, a spot of shopping, a spot of hobbit chasing, crap loads of eating, gallons of wine, as much sun as my skin can take, maybe a skydive and now I'm considering treating myself to a helicopter ride to get over and see the areas that I don't have time to bus to.
Why the hell not, eh?
If ever there was a country seriously worthy of splashing out for an aerial view of, it's New Zealand. And since I don't have time to go to the glaciers, at least if I do this, then I'll get to see them. I checked online and then price is only a bit more than what I'm spending at my most expensive hotel for one night.
If I do that, though, the skydive is definitely out. There's no way I can do both...well, actually I could, but I just feel that that's obnoxiously splashing out. Especially when I consider how much I've already spent on hotels. Got stung again today when one of the hostels I'd booked at called to tell me that the website had made a mistake and one night I was due to stay there is actually fully booked.
DOH!!
I've managed to find another hostel but since it's only available on that one night, right before NYE, the prices have skyrocketed and it's a complete rip off for a hostel. But nothing I can do now since there isn't anything else under a 5* hotel available for that day. And I'm already staying in that 5* place the following night!!!
It was funny because I was telling someone at work today about my hiking plans. Is it so strange for me to be hiking?!?!?!?! Admittedly I will be doing it with a full face of make up but still! LOL!!!
Super pumped. It's going to be EPIC.
xoxo
YAYYYYYYYY!!!!!!
I seriously cannot wait to get back into the sun and chill out. The magnitude of my trip has suddenly hit me as I've realised how mad I am to try and navigate the whole country by bus.
Madness, but it's totally exciting!!!
A spot of sightseeing, a spot of hiking, a spot of jetboating, a spot of shopping, a spot of hobbit chasing, crap loads of eating, gallons of wine, as much sun as my skin can take, maybe a skydive and now I'm considering treating myself to a helicopter ride to get over and see the areas that I don't have time to bus to.
Why the hell not, eh?
If ever there was a country seriously worthy of splashing out for an aerial view of, it's New Zealand. And since I don't have time to go to the glaciers, at least if I do this, then I'll get to see them. I checked online and then price is only a bit more than what I'm spending at my most expensive hotel for one night.
If I do that, though, the skydive is definitely out. There's no way I can do both...well, actually I could, but I just feel that that's obnoxiously splashing out. Especially when I consider how much I've already spent on hotels. Got stung again today when one of the hostels I'd booked at called to tell me that the website had made a mistake and one night I was due to stay there is actually fully booked.
DOH!!
I've managed to find another hostel but since it's only available on that one night, right before NYE, the prices have skyrocketed and it's a complete rip off for a hostel. But nothing I can do now since there isn't anything else under a 5* hotel available for that day. And I'm already staying in that 5* place the following night!!!
It was funny because I was telling someone at work today about my hiking plans. Is it so strange for me to be hiking?!?!?!?! Admittedly I will be doing it with a full face of make up but still! LOL!!!
Super pumped. It's going to be EPIC.
xoxo
It's Back!!!!
やった！
My voice is kind of back!!!
Still a bit husky but it's there!! At least I can vaguely communicate again!!
That was so weird!!! It's not the first time I've lost my voice but normally when it happens is because I have a cold or laryngitis or something. This time, I was feeling perfectly fine, it's really bizarre.
Anyway who cares!
Sorry folks - my reign of silence is over!!!!
(^0^)
My voice is kind of back!!!
Still a bit husky but it's there!! At least I can vaguely communicate again!!
That was so weird!!! It's not the first time I've lost my voice but normally when it happens is because I have a cold or laryngitis or something. This time, I was feeling perfectly fine, it's really bizarre.
Anyway who cares!
Sorry folks - my reign of silence is over!!!!
(^0^)
Monday 10 December 2012
Where Did It Go?!
I told you that after my night out on Saturday, I woke up to find that I had lost my voice.
Well, when I woke up this morning, I was pretty disturbed when I realised that it still hadn't come back!!!!!
I cancelled my Japanese class and spent all morning keeping schtum and knocking back spoonfuls of honey. It was getting closer and closer to my shift at work and I emailed in to shift things about to try and teach as little as possible.
Why one of my managers called me after I told him I'd lost my voice, I'll never know. I didn't pick up and mailed him instead, only to find out that he was refusing to help with a tiny favour I had asked him.
Oooooohhhhh...wrong day to piss me off mate.
I'll remember that next time I'm asked a favour.
Trust.
Anyway I struggled through 3 lessons. I could see the strain in my client's face as they struggled to understand this tiny croak that was coming outta my mouth. I don't have a cold, it's not even painful....it's just not there!
Excellent news for many, I'm sure!!!!!
Hope it comes back tomorrow! I feel like a ******!!!!!!!!
=(
xoxo
Well, when I woke up this morning, I was pretty disturbed when I realised that it still hadn't come back!!!!!
I cancelled my Japanese class and spent all morning keeping schtum and knocking back spoonfuls of honey. It was getting closer and closer to my shift at work and I emailed in to shift things about to try and teach as little as possible.
Why one of my managers called me after I told him I'd lost my voice, I'll never know. I didn't pick up and mailed him instead, only to find out that he was refusing to help with a tiny favour I had asked him.
Oooooohhhhh...wrong day to piss me off mate.
I'll remember that next time I'm asked a favour.
Trust.
Anyway I struggled through 3 lessons. I could see the strain in my client's face as they struggled to understand this tiny croak that was coming outta my mouth. I don't have a cold, it's not even painful....it's just not there!
Excellent news for many, I'm sure!!!!!
Hope it comes back tomorrow! I feel like a ******!!!!!!!!
=(
xoxo
JAMES ARTHUR
I'm sure it wasn't surprising to hear that James Arthur is the winner of the X Factor 2012.
I would have been just as happy if Jahmene had one - they both are so effing talented, amazing and deserve it.
I've loved Jahmene since his first audition but I only really got James from about week 3 and even from then, I haven't loved every performance. Saying that though, over the last 3-4 weeks, he has KILLED everything that he has done. And his performance of Feeling Good on Saturday was the best performance of his yet.....MARGINALLY better than his rendition of Marvin Gaye's Let's Get It On. And you KNOW how much I loved that one!!!
So happy for him. Although in a way, it's the runners up who always seem to do better. There's no doubt that he's going to be a global phenomenon, but it may have been better for him to have come second and get more of a freer reign for him to do things the way he wants to. Jahmene seems like he'd be much easier to mould.
Anyway, it's all good and fabulous. I've thoroughly enjoyed the season this year. With a couple of exceptions, it has certainly been the most talented year ever.
And now you can breathe a sigh of relief - you have a year without any X Factor updates from me! HAHAHAHA!
xoxo
I would have been just as happy if Jahmene had one - they both are so effing talented, amazing and deserve it.
I've loved Jahmene since his first audition but I only really got James from about week 3 and even from then, I haven't loved every performance. Saying that though, over the last 3-4 weeks, he has KILLED everything that he has done. And his performance of Feeling Good on Saturday was the best performance of his yet.....MARGINALLY better than his rendition of Marvin Gaye's Let's Get It On. And you KNOW how much I loved that one!!!
So happy for him. Although in a way, it's the runners up who always seem to do better. There's no doubt that he's going to be a global phenomenon, but it may have been better for him to have come second and get more of a freer reign for him to do things the way he wants to. Jahmene seems like he'd be much easier to mould.
Anyway, it's all good and fabulous. I've thoroughly enjoyed the season this year. With a couple of exceptions, it has certainly been the most talented year ever.
And now you can breathe a sigh of relief - you have a year without any X Factor updates from me! HAHAHAHA!
xoxo
Sunday 9 December 2012
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
Well, that wasn't the night that I was expecting to have!
I was out last night to celebrate my dear friend's birthday. A few days ago, I decided to cancel my Sunday shift at work - it wasn't anything to do with the party - I just thought it would be nice to chill out and rest and finally get onto to working out all this stuff for NZ. More than anything, I just wanted to have a mammoth lie in!!
So I told my friend (and myself) that I would go to the party and then catch the last train home.
Yeahhhhhhh.......didn't quite work out like that.
I came stumbling through the door at 6am. With a considerably lighter wallet. >_<
DOH!!
The hangover isn't too bad, but I've been struck down by acute laziness, so there goes my super productive day! Oh and I've somehow managed to lose my voice - how the hell did that happen?!
Blinding night though - I love nothing more than watching my friend get down on the dancefloor!! It was great to see him having such a good time!!
And now it's time for The X-Factor final!
=)
xoxo
I was out last night to celebrate my dear friend's birthday. A few days ago, I decided to cancel my Sunday shift at work - it wasn't anything to do with the party - I just thought it would be nice to chill out and rest and finally get onto to working out all this stuff for NZ. More than anything, I just wanted to have a mammoth lie in!!
So I told my friend (and myself) that I would go to the party and then catch the last train home.
Yeahhhhhhh.......didn't quite work out like that.
I came stumbling through the door at 6am. With a considerably lighter wallet. >_<
DOH!!
The hangover isn't too bad, but I've been struck down by acute laziness, so there goes my super productive day! Oh and I've somehow managed to lose my voice - how the hell did that happen?!
Blinding night though - I love nothing more than watching my friend get down on the dancefloor!! It was great to see him having such a good time!!
And now it's time for The X-Factor final!
=)
xoxo
Friday 7 December 2012
An Emotional Evening
And to think that my day started off so well.....
Over the last few weeks, I've felt more earthquakes than I have in a long time. Most of them have been almpost unnoticeable, but then there was a large one in Chiba on the Thanksgiving weekend. That jolt shocked me and my ladies as we were preparing dinner and I wondered if it was a sign of things to come.
Then late this afternoon while I was teaching, a 7.3 quake hit the Tohoku region again, shaking Tokyo pretty violently. It wasn't the strength of the quake which sent alarm bells ringing in my head. It was the duration. When a quake doesn't stop after like 10 seconds, I start to get REALLY nervous and as it got stronger me and client stating packing up our stuff and reaching for our coats in case we needed to evacuate.
As the shaking continued, my heart leapt into my throat and I got sudden flashbacks, one after the other, of the devastating pictures of the destruction of the March 11 quake. All I could think was that this couldn't be happening again. The next thought was at least I was in Shinjuku and closer to my home than last time!
As the shaking subsided, there were sighs of relief all around my the office and my client removed her nails from my arm. LOL! Even if the lesson hadn't of been nearly over, neither of us were in the right mindframe to continue. I was able to put those feelings aside for the remainder of my shift, but on my journey home, I was plagued by the awful memories of last year and I had to bite my lip as I thought about my dear friends who were swept away by the March 11 tsunami and all the panic and uncertainty and aftershocks that followed that horrible day - the scariest of my life.
Everyone was saying that another big earthquake was going to hit - I'm just hoping it was that one. I have a friend in Aomori who I haven't managed to contact yet, but the news has said there hasn't been any major damage or reported fatalities so I have to trust that he is OK. I'm not sure I'd be able to go through all of that drama again.
So if THAT wasn't bad enough, I called home to tell my mum that I was safe and to get an update on my grandad. I don't wanna go into details but it's not good news and I'm embarrassed to say that I am related to some of the greediest, devious, heartless ******* in the world and what they are doing is shameful, disrespectful and just selfish. My heart goes out to my grandad, but even more to my parents who are breaking their backs to do everything that they can to take care of him. My uncle, my cousins - they don't give a **** and then they think they can just take, take, take. It's so sad to see my family get torn apart because all these damn people care about is money and all my parents are trying to do is make sure that my Grandad is well looked after. It's being taken to court. It's disgusting.
I feel guilty about taking a trip to NZ, but my mum has assured me that it's OK and there's nothing I can do. I'm sending letters and photos and getting updates every week which my parents tell me are cheering him up. I'm so mad at my uncle that I'm not sure if I'd be able to control my temper even if I was there. He's NOTHING like my dad, it's unbelievable.
Horrible, horrible man.
Emotions running high this even - memories and worry.
Ufffff.
xoxo
Over the last few weeks, I've felt more earthquakes than I have in a long time. Most of them have been almpost unnoticeable, but then there was a large one in Chiba on the Thanksgiving weekend. That jolt shocked me and my ladies as we were preparing dinner and I wondered if it was a sign of things to come.
Then late this afternoon while I was teaching, a 7.3 quake hit the Tohoku region again, shaking Tokyo pretty violently. It wasn't the strength of the quake which sent alarm bells ringing in my head. It was the duration. When a quake doesn't stop after like 10 seconds, I start to get REALLY nervous and as it got stronger me and client stating packing up our stuff and reaching for our coats in case we needed to evacuate.
As the shaking continued, my heart leapt into my throat and I got sudden flashbacks, one after the other, of the devastating pictures of the destruction of the March 11 quake. All I could think was that this couldn't be happening again. The next thought was at least I was in Shinjuku and closer to my home than last time!
As the shaking subsided, there were sighs of relief all around my the office and my client removed her nails from my arm. LOL! Even if the lesson hadn't of been nearly over, neither of us were in the right mindframe to continue. I was able to put those feelings aside for the remainder of my shift, but on my journey home, I was plagued by the awful memories of last year and I had to bite my lip as I thought about my dear friends who were swept away by the March 11 tsunami and all the panic and uncertainty and aftershocks that followed that horrible day - the scariest of my life.
Everyone was saying that another big earthquake was going to hit - I'm just hoping it was that one. I have a friend in Aomori who I haven't managed to contact yet, but the news has said there hasn't been any major damage or reported fatalities so I have to trust that he is OK. I'm not sure I'd be able to go through all of that drama again.
So if THAT wasn't bad enough, I called home to tell my mum that I was safe and to get an update on my grandad. I don't wanna go into details but it's not good news and I'm embarrassed to say that I am related to some of the greediest, devious, heartless ******* in the world and what they are doing is shameful, disrespectful and just selfish. My heart goes out to my grandad, but even more to my parents who are breaking their backs to do everything that they can to take care of him. My uncle, my cousins - they don't give a **** and then they think they can just take, take, take. It's so sad to see my family get torn apart because all these damn people care about is money and all my parents are trying to do is make sure that my Grandad is well looked after. It's being taken to court. It's disgusting.
I feel guilty about taking a trip to NZ, but my mum has assured me that it's OK and there's nothing I can do. I'm sending letters and photos and getting updates every week which my parents tell me are cheering him up. I'm so mad at my uncle that I'm not sure if I'd be able to control my temper even if I was there. He's NOTHING like my dad, it's unbelievable.
Horrible, horrible man.
Emotions running high this even - memories and worry.
Ufffff.
xoxo
Wednesday 5 December 2012
STARVING!!!!
Normally on a Wednesday morning I go to the gym.
But when my alarm went off this morning, I just couldn't get up. And since I'm working 7 days a week until I go on holiday, I just simply rolled over and went back to sleep.
I woke up at 11.30!!!!!
Guess that goes to show I made the right call there!!!
Today was another one of those days where I've spent like an hour making lunch. It's still not eready yet and I'm absolutely starving! On the menu today is pumpkin soup and then a stuffed chicken breast. I wanted to make a potato fondant, but then I realised that I don't have any potatoes!
DOH!
Looks like it's just gonna be served with a side of spinach instead!!!
Excited - the smells filling my kitchen are amazing!!
xoxo
But when my alarm went off this morning, I just couldn't get up. And since I'm working 7 days a week until I go on holiday, I just simply rolled over and went back to sleep.
I woke up at 11.30!!!!!
Guess that goes to show I made the right call there!!!
Today was another one of those days where I've spent like an hour making lunch. It's still not eready yet and I'm absolutely starving! On the menu today is pumpkin soup and then a stuffed chicken breast. I wanted to make a potato fondant, but then I realised that I don't have any potatoes!
DOH!
Looks like it's just gonna be served with a side of spinach instead!!!
Excited - the smells filling my kitchen are amazing!!
xoxo
Sunday 2 December 2012
Unapologetic
I am seriously all over Rihanna's new album.
It's funny because I have loved every single one of her albums. Of course, I like some more than others but I've liked all of them. That's rare - when an artist has been around as long as she has, normally I would have lost interest but I'm loving her more than ever.
Sexy.
LOVE it.
It's been a pretty chilled out weekend. I went out last night for a gorgeous French dinner. My friend spoiled me rotten with champagne and she picked up the huge bill at the end of the night.
ごちそうさまでした！
And as usual I went to work today and rushed back for my weekly X-Factor fix.
I won't talk too much about it - you all know that I'm rooting for James Arthur to win. And to be honest, looking at the acts left, it should be a walk in the park for him.
COME ON JAMES!!!
I'm still trying to decide what to do about that guy I went on a date with a couple of days ago. He mails me way more than I ever reply and to be honest, he's crossing the line with the direction of his conversation....having said that, I bet if I thought he was smoking hot, then I wouldn't mind! Double standards, I know, but whatever.
We all have them.
Unapologetic.
If you didn't know, that's the name of the new album (and my mood right now). Check it out when you have time, ne.
xoxo
It's funny because I have loved every single one of her albums. Of course, I like some more than others but I've liked all of them. That's rare - when an artist has been around as long as she has, normally I would have lost interest but I'm loving her more than ever.
Sexy.
LOVE it.
It's been a pretty chilled out weekend. I went out last night for a gorgeous French dinner. My friend spoiled me rotten with champagne and she picked up the huge bill at the end of the night.
ごちそうさまでした！
And as usual I went to work today and rushed back for my weekly X-Factor fix.
I won't talk too much about it - you all know that I'm rooting for James Arthur to win. And to be honest, looking at the acts left, it should be a walk in the park for him.
COME ON JAMES!!!
I'm still trying to decide what to do about that guy I went on a date with a couple of days ago. He mails me way more than I ever reply and to be honest, he's crossing the line with the direction of his conversation....having said that, I bet if I thought he was smoking hot, then I wouldn't mind! Double standards, I know, but whatever.
We all have them.
Unapologetic.
If you didn't know, that's the name of the new album (and my mood right now). Check it out when you have time, ne.
xoxo
Friday 30 November 2012
DOH!
You know when you meet someone and then you smile to yourself at how hot they are...
...and then you see them again and you realise that they're not as hot as you thought they were?
Yeaaahhhh.........
*sigh*
Don't get me wrong - I'm all about personality these days, but it's still hard not to feel just a little disappointed when that realisation hits home.
And it's even worse when the other person is telling you that you are even more stunning than they thought you were!
DOH!
I'm going to be good, though, and give it a chance to see where it goes.
OMG I HAVE TO TELL YOU!!!
Last night I met a Republican!!!
You know I was saying during the election campaign that I'd never met one before? well I randomly bumped into one at a bar. The guy I was with was as pure a Democrat as you can get and oh my goodness I got caught bang in the middle of a hardcore debate about taxes!!
It was so funny and fascinating to watch - I couldn't believe my ears with some of the stuff that was coming outta the Republican guy's mouth! To be fair though, it was pretty much from a fiscal point of you (he's in finance himself) and he was able to argue his point way better than the other guy could.
Amazing.
xoxo
...and then you see them again and you realise that they're not as hot as you thought they were?
Yeaaahhhh.........
*sigh*
Don't get me wrong - I'm all about personality these days, but it's still hard not to feel just a little disappointed when that realisation hits home.
And it's even worse when the other person is telling you that you are even more stunning than they thought you were!
DOH!
I'm going to be good, though, and give it a chance to see where it goes.
OMG I HAVE TO TELL YOU!!!
Last night I met a Republican!!!
You know I was saying during the election campaign that I'd never met one before? well I randomly bumped into one at a bar. The guy I was with was as pure a Democrat as you can get and oh my goodness I got caught bang in the middle of a hardcore debate about taxes!!
It was so funny and fascinating to watch - I couldn't believe my ears with some of the stuff that was coming outta the Republican guy's mouth! To be fair though, it was pretty much from a fiscal point of you (he's in finance himself) and he was able to argue his point way better than the other guy could.
Amazing.
xoxo
Tuesday 27 November 2012
Thanksgiving
This Thanksgiving weekend was certainly eventful!!
I was absolutely knackered on Friday. I struggled my way through work and then had to leg it home to meet my girl who came up from Nagoya. After chilling out for a bit and baking brownies, I called it a night and passed out.
I woke up on Saturday as sick as a dog. The second I opened my eyes, I was overcome by a wave of nausea and started throwing up.
Typical.
I haven't been sick ALL YEAR. All year. And then the one day that I do get sick has to be the day that I was due to host a Thanksgiving dinner and my girl was here.
WHY? Sod's law.
My girl was amazing. While I was dying in bed and with my head sporadically down the toilet, I gave her a shopping list and she headed out to the supermarket to get the stuff we needed for dinner while I rested up in bed. She helped me clean and then we started cooking.
So what was on the menu?
I was so impressed with my pie!!!! The pastry was a little thin but it tasted absolutely delicious - not bad for a first attempt! There is no way I could've got everything done without my fabulous ladies though. They helped me get everything chopped and prepped so I could just go ahead and cook it all. It was so nice to see all my guests enjoy their meal - I barely ate a mouthful and was drinking water all night, but they had a good time.
And I finally attempted a plate of leftovers on Sunday while watching Breaking Dawn Part 2.
A little disappointed with some of the cringeworthy moments in that movie but I still enjoyed it!!
After mooching around, we headed out to Midtown to see the Christmas lights. Absolutely beautiful - I'd been in a festive mood all day because I'd boiled down the chicken bones to make a stock and my kitchen smelled AMAZING!!! So seeing the lights just made me excited to go back to the UK for Christmas next year. LOL - only I could be that excited about a trip that I'm planning to take a year from now!
Another spot of good news - when we were heading back to Roppongi station, I met a very fine specimen crossing the road. It was one of those typical moments when you're both looking around at each other shamelessly! HAHAHA! When I turned around again, he was running back across the road to talk to me, opened with a hilarious one liner and it was all good from there!
I've had the most disastrous dates over the last few months so I just cut to the chase.
Married?
Girlfriend?
Seeing someone?
Living with someone?
Age?
LOL!!!!! And all came back with very positive answers!!!
The rare thing about this guy?
He CALLS.
As in on the phone. No mail.
I can't remember the last time a guy called me just to talk to me. On the phone that is - I'm on Skype all the time. It feels weird but refreshing at the same time.
And even better?
Man, this boy CRACKS ME UP!!!!
HAHAHHAHAHA!!!
We'll see.
xoxo
I was absolutely knackered on Friday. I struggled my way through work and then had to leg it home to meet my girl who came up from Nagoya. After chilling out for a bit and baking brownies, I called it a night and passed out.
I woke up on Saturday as sick as a dog. The second I opened my eyes, I was overcome by a wave of nausea and started throwing up.
Typical.
I haven't been sick ALL YEAR. All year. And then the one day that I do get sick has to be the day that I was due to host a Thanksgiving dinner and my girl was here.
WHY? Sod's law.
My girl was amazing. While I was dying in bed and with my head sporadically down the toilet, I gave her a shopping list and she headed out to the supermarket to get the stuff we needed for dinner while I rested up in bed. She helped me clean and then we started cooking.
So what was on the menu?
- Brushchetta
- Pumpkin soup
- Chips and dip and a bean salad brought over by my friends
- Roast chicken
- Sweet potato and white potato mash
- Garlic sauteed green beans
- Carrots
- Broccolli
- Stuffing
- Gravy
- Pumpkin pie
- Brownies
- Copious amounts of wine
I was so impressed with my pie!!!! The pastry was a little thin but it tasted absolutely delicious - not bad for a first attempt! There is no way I could've got everything done without my fabulous ladies though. They helped me get everything chopped and prepped so I could just go ahead and cook it all. It was so nice to see all my guests enjoy their meal - I barely ate a mouthful and was drinking water all night, but they had a good time.
And I finally attempted a plate of leftovers on Sunday while watching Breaking Dawn Part 2.
A little disappointed with some of the cringeworthy moments in that movie but I still enjoyed it!!
After mooching around, we headed out to Midtown to see the Christmas lights. Absolutely beautiful - I'd been in a festive mood all day because I'd boiled down the chicken bones to make a stock and my kitchen smelled AMAZING!!! So seeing the lights just made me excited to go back to the UK for Christmas next year. LOL - only I could be that excited about a trip that I'm planning to take a year from now!
Another spot of good news - when we were heading back to Roppongi station, I met a very fine specimen crossing the road. It was one of those typical moments when you're both looking around at each other shamelessly! HAHAHA! When I turned around again, he was running back across the road to talk to me, opened with a hilarious one liner and it was all good from there!
I've had the most disastrous dates over the last few months so I just cut to the chase.
Married?
Girlfriend?
Seeing someone?
Living with someone?
Age?
LOL!!!!! And all came back with very positive answers!!!
The rare thing about this guy?
He CALLS.
As in on the phone. No mail.
I can't remember the last time a guy called me just to talk to me. On the phone that is - I'm on Skype all the time. It feels weird but refreshing at the same time.
And even better?
Man, this boy CRACKS ME UP!!!!
HAHAHHAHAHA!!!
We'll see.
xoxo
Wednesday 21 November 2012
Masterchef?
I've just spent an hour making lunch.
I'm just amazed that after a seriously tough aqua workout (which was more like aqua kickboxing than aqua dance!!), I could still be arsed to come home and put so much effort into my lunch.
So what was on the menu today?
Cumin infused hamburgers with a salad.
And they were DELIGHTFUL!!!
Maybe I should go on Masterchef!! Or not...HAHAHA!!
Super excited about this weekend - my girl will be arriving from Nagoya on Friday night and I have my other girlfriend coming down from Saitama and we're having a massive cook-a-thon on Saturday for Thanksgiving. None of us have done it before. And none of us are American!
HAHAHAHA!
Gonna be so much fun though - we're gonna have chicken (no time to defrost a turkey) with a whole load of sexed up sides! A variety of stuffing, sweet potato mash, garlic and rosemary roasted potates, a whole load of vegetables cooked with a twist, bruschetta, stuffed peppers and pumpkin pie!! Haven't made a pumpkin pie before either - gonna attempt that on Friday night.
How it all turns out remains to be seen!
xoxo
I'm just amazed that after a seriously tough aqua workout (which was more like aqua kickboxing than aqua dance!!), I could still be arsed to come home and put so much effort into my lunch.
So what was on the menu today?
Cumin infused hamburgers with a salad.
And they were DELIGHTFUL!!!
Maybe I should go on Masterchef!! Or not...HAHAHA!!
Super excited about this weekend - my girl will be arriving from Nagoya on Friday night and I have my other girlfriend coming down from Saitama and we're having a massive cook-a-thon on Saturday for Thanksgiving. None of us have done it before. And none of us are American!
HAHAHAHA!
Gonna be so much fun though - we're gonna have chicken (no time to defrost a turkey) with a whole load of sexed up sides! A variety of stuffing, sweet potato mash, garlic and rosemary roasted potates, a whole load of vegetables cooked with a twist, bruschetta, stuffed peppers and pumpkin pie!! Haven't made a pumpkin pie before either - gonna attempt that on Friday night.
How it all turns out remains to be seen!
xoxo
Tuesday 20 November 2012
Missions
Trying to work out my itinerary for NZ has been seriously tough going!
I've decided to bus my way around the country and it's meant that I've had to cut out a couple of places that I was DYING to go to for the sake of time. It's just annoying because some of the places are pretty close together but there are no direct bus services between them. There is always the option of doubling back, but when you're travelling 8 hours to get somewhere, well, you've lost a day pretty much.
And when you only have about 17 days to get around the whole country, time is precious.
I talked about Abel Tasman National Park before. Incredibly stunning, but unfortunately it's one of the places that have been cut outta my plan. I've decided to fly between the islands instead of taking the ferry as I'd originally planned so that I would have enough time to spend in some gorgeous spots in the south.
You just can't do everything in such a short space of time! I'm already being my usual self and cramming in a million things as it is, but I will still have some time to relax, which is what I want. Chilling out against a perfect backdrop of stunning mountains and lakes. Nice.
Not only has that National Park been cut out, I'm foregoing the glaciers. I know they are a super famous attraction, but there is no direct route between Mt. Cook and the glaciers so I've decided to go straight from Mt. Cook to Queenstown. As it stands, I do have a day extra in Queenstown, but the glaciers are 8 hours away - unless I can find some amazing day trip, then it's just not going to happen. And that's OK because I don't wanna miss Lake Tekapo or the stunning view of Mt Cook. The days that I'm there are gonna be the ultimate chilled out days because the bus times SUCK which means I have longer there that I would ideally want, but hey, it's gonna be boxing day and a nice wind down afte visiting friends and probably blowing a fortune in Christchurch.
Now that I've worked out a rough itinerary, I need to start looking at hotels and getting a bus pass. I don't wanna book everything because we all know that things can just change, but if I can book something, then most of the time you'll be OK cancelling a couple of days before.
Gonna be such an awesome trip - I can't believe it's only a month away!!!
So this is roughly the route I'm thinking about taking:
Christchurch-->Tekapo/Mount Cook--->Queenstown--->Milford Sound--->Wellington--->Taupo--->Tongariro National Park--->Rotorua--->Waihi--->Auckland
There are definitely more stops in the north, but it's OK because the towns are really close together and it's all on the way back to Auckland. Looking forward to catching up with friends in Christchurch and Waihi and then making new ones in between!
I wish I could take just a few more days out. Technically, I could, but it's not worth the financial strain I'd have to endure upon my return!
xoxo
I've decided to bus my way around the country and it's meant that I've had to cut out a couple of places that I was DYING to go to for the sake of time. It's just annoying because some of the places are pretty close together but there are no direct bus services between them. There is always the option of doubling back, but when you're travelling 8 hours to get somewhere, well, you've lost a day pretty much.
And when you only have about 17 days to get around the whole country, time is precious.
I talked about Abel Tasman National Park before. Incredibly stunning, but unfortunately it's one of the places that have been cut outta my plan. I've decided to fly between the islands instead of taking the ferry as I'd originally planned so that I would have enough time to spend in some gorgeous spots in the south.
You just can't do everything in such a short space of time! I'm already being my usual self and cramming in a million things as it is, but I will still have some time to relax, which is what I want. Chilling out against a perfect backdrop of stunning mountains and lakes. Nice.
Not only has that National Park been cut out, I'm foregoing the glaciers. I know they are a super famous attraction, but there is no direct route between Mt. Cook and the glaciers so I've decided to go straight from Mt. Cook to Queenstown. As it stands, I do have a day extra in Queenstown, but the glaciers are 8 hours away - unless I can find some amazing day trip, then it's just not going to happen. And that's OK because I don't wanna miss Lake Tekapo or the stunning view of Mt Cook. The days that I'm there are gonna be the ultimate chilled out days because the bus times SUCK which means I have longer there that I would ideally want, but hey, it's gonna be boxing day and a nice wind down afte visiting friends and probably blowing a fortune in Christchurch.
Now that I've worked out a rough itinerary, I need to start looking at hotels and getting a bus pass. I don't wanna book everything because we all know that things can just change, but if I can book something, then most of the time you'll be OK cancelling a couple of days before.
Gonna be such an awesome trip - I can't believe it's only a month away!!!
So this is roughly the route I'm thinking about taking:
Christchurch-->Tekapo/Mount Cook--->Queenstown--->Milford Sound--->Wellington--->Taupo--->Tongariro National Park--->Rotorua--->Waihi--->Auckland
There are definitely more stops in the north, but it's OK because the towns are really close together and it's all on the way back to Auckland. Looking forward to catching up with friends in Christchurch and Waihi and then making new ones in between!
I wish I could take just a few more days out. Technically, I could, but it's not worth the financial strain I'd have to endure upon my return!
xoxo
Sunday 18 November 2012
Crushing
Recently I've developed a couple of new crushes.
James Arthur anyone?!
I know that he is not conventionally hot, has got busted teeth and is that little bit awkward, but there is no denying how incredibly SEXY his talent is. I absolutely hate the song he sang on the X Factor this week, but just the fact that he completely made it his own made it easier to listen to.
Over the last 10-12 years, I've done that typical switch that most girls make where they really start paying more attention to personalities. And his is diamond.
The second crush?
Gotta keep that one in. All you need to know is that it's someone I know. And I'm just going to admire from afar. LOL! Sorry!
xoxo
James Arthur anyone?!
I know that he is not conventionally hot, has got busted teeth and is that little bit awkward, but there is no denying how incredibly SEXY his talent is. I absolutely hate the song he sang on the X Factor this week, but just the fact that he completely made it his own made it easier to listen to.
Over the last 10-12 years, I've done that typical switch that most girls make where they really start paying more attention to personalities. And his is diamond.
The second crush?
Gotta keep that one in. All you need to know is that it's someone I know. And I'm just going to admire from afar. LOL! Sorry!
xoxo
Saturday 17 November 2012
ANTM **SPOLIER ALERT!!**
OMG I am soooo disappointed with the winner of this cycle of ANTM!!!!
Don't get me wrong - I was a HUGE Laura fan in the beginning. She's absolutely stunning and just looked amazing. But ever since she went all "Team Kristen" and turned on Leila, she just became this horrible, bratty bitch.
I was rooting for Kiara. I was the opposite with her - hated her and all her attitude in the beginning, but that girl has developed and grown so much and by the end she was my fave and seemed to have gotten absolutely STUNNING!!! That waterfall shoot anyone?! Damn girl!!!
There's no doubt that Leila is the best model but she can't walk for s***. I was gutted for her when she fell in the final runway show. I would've been happy if she'd won, just because I really don't think that Laura deserved it as much.
Spoilt rich girl....of course, even rich girls have dreams too, but it would have just been that much more special for Kiara to have won. Everyone LOVES a rags-to-riches story. And she showed that she has a heart of gold and a wonderful personality.
Such a shame.
I'm sure she'll go on to do really well in the future though
Do you know what, I was thinking about ANTM this week when I was in the hairdressers. You know when they have the makeovers and you always get the girls who go insane when their hair is cut too short? I always thought they were ridiculous - I mean hair grows back, it can't be that big of a deal, right?
Wrong.
I showed my hairdresser a pic of how I had my hair cut back when I went to England in the summer. A sweeping gradual side fringe, starting from just below the eyebrow. My hairdresser was all confidence and smiles as he asked me to trust him.
What a mistake that was.
He was standing in front of me so I didn't have a clear view in the mirror. I heard a snip and then I felt my hair fall against my forehead...
,,,ABOVE my eyebrows!!!!
I pushed him out of the way and was absolutely mortified at how short he had cut my fringe. My hair has a natural wave and even though the roots are straight, there's no way I can carry off this ridiculous fringe. As I shouted at him to fix it, he kept cutting and cutting and cutting and I was just holding my head in my hands telling him how much I hated it.
He kept trying to fix it and then when I eventually had the courage to look in the mirror again, it happened.
I CRIED.
I NEVER thought I would be one of those girls that cried about hair. But it looks so AWFUL and completely changes the way I look. I absolutely HATE it.
I think my hissy fit lasted for about 10-15 minutes before I demanded that he give me some vlips and I clipped the fringe back and had to go back into work.
Gutted.
The problem is now that I'm gonna have to clip the whole thing back until it at least grows back past my eyebrow. And then I'm going to have a nightmare styling it anyway coz it's a strange shape and just looks ghastly. I washed my hair this morning and normally I would just be able to leave the house with wet hair and let it dry naturally, but because the fringe is so damn shorts, it looks ridiuclous so I had to blow dry it. And then it looked even weirder having this dead straight fringe and gentle waves so I had to blow dry the whole lot straight.
I don't mind wearing my hair straight - it just requires a whole extra load of maintenance...like brushing!!! HAHAHA!
it's interesting though coz my hair has gotten CRAZY long. I had no idea until I blow dried ti out just how long it is. Another inch and it's gonna be past my boobs! YAY!! I've been trying to grow it this long for ages, but now I'm thinking about getting it cut. Not for a while though - I love how ultra feminine having super long hair feels. And it keeps me looking young as well!! Always a bonus.
Rant over - I'm going to bed!
xoxo
Don't get me wrong - I was a HUGE Laura fan in the beginning. She's absolutely stunning and just looked amazing. But ever since she went all "Team Kristen" and turned on Leila, she just became this horrible, bratty bitch.
I was rooting for Kiara. I was the opposite with her - hated her and all her attitude in the beginning, but that girl has developed and grown so much and by the end she was my fave and seemed to have gotten absolutely STUNNING!!! That waterfall shoot anyone?! Damn girl!!!
There's no doubt that Leila is the best model but she can't walk for s***. I was gutted for her when she fell in the final runway show. I would've been happy if she'd won, just because I really don't think that Laura deserved it as much.
Spoilt rich girl....of course, even rich girls have dreams too, but it would have just been that much more special for Kiara to have won. Everyone LOVES a rags-to-riches story. And she showed that she has a heart of gold and a wonderful personality.
Such a shame.
I'm sure she'll go on to do really well in the future though
Do you know what, I was thinking about ANTM this week when I was in the hairdressers. You know when they have the makeovers and you always get the girls who go insane when their hair is cut too short? I always thought they were ridiculous - I mean hair grows back, it can't be that big of a deal, right?
Wrong.
I showed my hairdresser a pic of how I had my hair cut back when I went to England in the summer. A sweeping gradual side fringe, starting from just below the eyebrow. My hairdresser was all confidence and smiles as he asked me to trust him.
What a mistake that was.
He was standing in front of me so I didn't have a clear view in the mirror. I heard a snip and then I felt my hair fall against my forehead...
,,,ABOVE my eyebrows!!!!
I pushed him out of the way and was absolutely mortified at how short he had cut my fringe. My hair has a natural wave and even though the roots are straight, there's no way I can carry off this ridiculous fringe. As I shouted at him to fix it, he kept cutting and cutting and cutting and I was just holding my head in my hands telling him how much I hated it.
He kept trying to fix it and then when I eventually had the courage to look in the mirror again, it happened.
I CRIED.
I NEVER thought I would be one of those girls that cried about hair. But it looks so AWFUL and completely changes the way I look. I absolutely HATE it.
I think my hissy fit lasted for about 10-15 minutes before I demanded that he give me some vlips and I clipped the fringe back and had to go back into work.
Gutted.
The problem is now that I'm gonna have to clip the whole thing back until it at least grows back past my eyebrow. And then I'm going to have a nightmare styling it anyway coz it's a strange shape and just looks ghastly. I washed my hair this morning and normally I would just be able to leave the house with wet hair and let it dry naturally, but because the fringe is so damn shorts, it looks ridiuclous so I had to blow dry it. And then it looked even weirder having this dead straight fringe and gentle waves so I had to blow dry the whole lot straight.
I don't mind wearing my hair straight - it just requires a whole extra load of maintenance...like brushing!!! HAHAHA!
it's interesting though coz my hair has gotten CRAZY long. I had no idea until I blow dried ti out just how long it is. Another inch and it's gonna be past my boobs! YAY!! I've been trying to grow it this long for ages, but now I'm thinking about getting it cut. Not for a while though - I love how ultra feminine having super long hair feels. And it keeps me looking young as well!! Always a bonus.
Rant over - I'm going to bed!
xoxo
Sunday 11 November 2012
Best Of British
I absolutely loved The X Factor this week.
The theme? Best of British. Quality.
If there's one thing that Britain does well, it's music.
Two words. JAMES ARTHUR.
His version of Adele's "Hometown Glory" was just simply PHENOMENAL. I was backing Jahmene to win but I've changed my mind, just because James Arthur is a true artist. That and I wasn't a huge fan of Jahmene's performance this week. James Arthur is gonna go on to be a global superstar, and I, for one, will be buying his album. He has one of those voices that you can just listen to all day. It's truly incredible and he is raw talent.
I highly encourage you all to check it out on You Tube if you're not watching the show.
Other stand out performances of the night go to the boy bands. I absolutely ADORED both of their perfomances and it helps that their song choices were iconic. Eric Clapton's "Tears In Heaven" and Coldplay's "Fix You". Even if you're not into the bands, how can you NOT just absolutely LOVE those songs?! Beautiful performances and I really enjoyed them!!
People are always cussing out reality shows. I've said time and time again that I support them when the objective is to find talent. Everyone loves to slam the X Factor, but there's no denying the platform that it has given to certain acts that have gone on to become GLOBAL SENSATIONS.
Leona Lewis and One Direction are easily the biggest thing to have ever have come out of The X Factor. Not to mention other acts like JLS, Olly Murs, Cher LLoyd which have all enjoyed global success since being on the show.
One Direction are insanely growing in popularity in Japan. Guys and girls of all ages just LOVE them and my clients are always raving about them. These kids only formed their band 2 years ago and have already had something like 12 million record sales and they entered the Guiness Book of Records for being the first British group to have a debut album go to number 1 in the US Billboard Charts. Whether you're a fan or not, that's impressive.
They're a little too poppy for me, but I have to admit, I kinda like their new single.
*hanging head*
xoxo
The theme? Best of British. Quality.
If there's one thing that Britain does well, it's music.
Two words. JAMES ARTHUR.
His version of Adele's "Hometown Glory" was just simply PHENOMENAL. I was backing Jahmene to win but I've changed my mind, just because James Arthur is a true artist. That and I wasn't a huge fan of Jahmene's performance this week. James Arthur is gonna go on to be a global superstar, and I, for one, will be buying his album. He has one of those voices that you can just listen to all day. It's truly incredible and he is raw talent.
I highly encourage you all to check it out on You Tube if you're not watching the show.
Other stand out performances of the night go to the boy bands. I absolutely ADORED both of their perfomances and it helps that their song choices were iconic. Eric Clapton's "Tears In Heaven" and Coldplay's "Fix You". Even if you're not into the bands, how can you NOT just absolutely LOVE those songs?! Beautiful performances and I really enjoyed them!!
People are always cussing out reality shows. I've said time and time again that I support them when the objective is to find talent. Everyone loves to slam the X Factor, but there's no denying the platform that it has given to certain acts that have gone on to become GLOBAL SENSATIONS.
Leona Lewis and One Direction are easily the biggest thing to have ever have come out of The X Factor. Not to mention other acts like JLS, Olly Murs, Cher LLoyd which have all enjoyed global success since being on the show.
One Direction are insanely growing in popularity in Japan. Guys and girls of all ages just LOVE them and my clients are always raving about them. These kids only formed their band 2 years ago and have already had something like 12 million record sales and they entered the Guiness Book of Records for being the first British group to have a debut album go to number 1 in the US Billboard Charts. Whether you're a fan or not, that's impressive.
They're a little too poppy for me, but I have to admit, I kinda like their new single.
*hanging head*
xoxo
Tuesday 6 November 2012
GO OBAMA!!!!
I haven't been following the Presidential race as closely as I did 4 years ago.
As we approach election day in the States, I decided to get up to speed and watch the 3 debates.
And I'm sorry, but I really fail to believe that people feel Mitt Romney is a viable candidate for the Presidency.
Seriously?!
Half of the bull**** that was coming out of his mouth left me gobsmacked - absolutely OUTRAGEOUS!!! I was thinking about my American friends and I feel pretty confident that none of them would vote for this fool. Well, I truly hope they wouldn't.
But of course, everyone has the right to vote and everyone has the right to their opinion. To be honest though, if anyone I know does choose to vote Romney, I think I'd prefer not to know about it. America gained a lot of worldwide respect when they voted Obama into office 4 years ago - let's hope they make the right decision today.
It's only been 4 years people!! Rome wasn't built in a day!!
GOOD LUCK OBAMA!!!! \(^0^)/
xoxo
As we approach election day in the States, I decided to get up to speed and watch the 3 debates.
And I'm sorry, but I really fail to believe that people feel Mitt Romney is a viable candidate for the Presidency.
Seriously?!
Half of the bull**** that was coming out of his mouth left me gobsmacked - absolutely OUTRAGEOUS!!! I was thinking about my American friends and I feel pretty confident that none of them would vote for this fool. Well, I truly hope they wouldn't.
But of course, everyone has the right to vote and everyone has the right to their opinion. To be honest though, if anyone I know does choose to vote Romney, I think I'd prefer not to know about it. America gained a lot of worldwide respect when they voted Obama into office 4 years ago - let's hope they make the right decision today.
It's only been 4 years people!! Rome wasn't built in a day!!
GOOD LUCK OBAMA!!!! \(^0^)/
xoxo
Wednesday 31 October 2012
Can't. Stop. Eating.
I have spent the majority of my day off in 2 places.
On the sofa watching Masterchef and in the kitchen.
What did I manage to rustle up today?
A humungous amount of Thai green curry, strawberry cupcakes and a stunning dinner of pork fillet stuffed with garlic, green onion and wild mushrooms on a bed of wilted spinach, served with nira mash and some brocolli.
It was seeeriously good! If I do say so myself - haha!
Watching Masterchef has given me so many new ideas for cooking meat. Normally I would stew pork fillet or poach or roast it, but I saw a new technique today where you wrap the fillet (or whatever other meat you're cooking) in baking paper, twizzle the ends like a Christmas cracker and then shove it in the oven as is. I wasn't sure about doing it, so I put it on a low heat of 150 and let it do it's thing for 40 minutes.
My goodness, the meat was PERFECTLY cooked - so tender and juicy with all the juices gathered in the paper - which made for a good sauce over the top. As you unwrap the paper, the fragrant stuffing just wafts in your face and it smells AMAZING! I'm a huge garlic fan, so I added a couple of small cloves and it was just heavenly. LOVE the smell of onions and garlic together. I really enjoyed it.
Then I made some custard and had it with a couple of cupcakes for dessert. They were OK, but ended up in a variety of different shapes and were much sweeter than I was anticipating! So why did I eat them with custard? Because I didn't ice them and they're too boring on their own.
So full now though. In between the curry lunch and pork dinner, I scoffed 3/4 a huge bar of white chocolate and some cockles. Love those things - the tiniest amount of vinegar and they are ready to eat.
Lovely jubbly.
Not looking forward to getting on the scales at the gym next week!
xoxo
On the sofa watching Masterchef and in the kitchen.
What did I manage to rustle up today?
A humungous amount of Thai green curry, strawberry cupcakes and a stunning dinner of pork fillet stuffed with garlic, green onion and wild mushrooms on a bed of wilted spinach, served with nira mash and some brocolli.
It was seeeriously good! If I do say so myself - haha!
Watching Masterchef has given me so many new ideas for cooking meat. Normally I would stew pork fillet or poach or roast it, but I saw a new technique today where you wrap the fillet (or whatever other meat you're cooking) in baking paper, twizzle the ends like a Christmas cracker and then shove it in the oven as is. I wasn't sure about doing it, so I put it on a low heat of 150 and let it do it's thing for 40 minutes.
My goodness, the meat was PERFECTLY cooked - so tender and juicy with all the juices gathered in the paper - which made for a good sauce over the top. As you unwrap the paper, the fragrant stuffing just wafts in your face and it smells AMAZING! I'm a huge garlic fan, so I added a couple of small cloves and it was just heavenly. LOVE the smell of onions and garlic together. I really enjoyed it.
Then I made some custard and had it with a couple of cupcakes for dessert. They were OK, but ended up in a variety of different shapes and were much sweeter than I was anticipating! So why did I eat them with custard? Because I didn't ice them and they're too boring on their own.
So full now though. In between the curry lunch and pork dinner, I scoffed 3/4 a huge bar of white chocolate and some cockles. Love those things - the tiniest amount of vinegar and they are ready to eat.
Lovely jubbly.
Not looking forward to getting on the scales at the gym next week!
xoxo
Nom Nom Nom!!
I swear Masterchef is seriously starting to take over my life!
HAHAHA!!
I watch that show and then while I'm at work or in bed, I'm constantly thinking of different food combinations and recipes I wanna try!!
And it's all coming a day before I'm due to go to Costco which means I'll be able to pick up the ingredients that I need to actually make some of this stuff!! I'm so excited it's not even funny!!
After a hardcore workout in the pool, I hit up the supermarket. I have 5 supermarkets within a 20 min walk from my house. The thing is, every week the prices of fruit and veg are different in each one. The one nearest my house is suddenly really expensive, so I thought I'd pop into Seiyu today - mainly because I wanted to pick up some Asda white chocolate! I was in there and I thought I'd just have a peek at the fruit and veg before nipping to Tesco....and what a surprise I got!!
EVERYTHING was sooo much cheaper than usual!! Avocados for 78 yen and so much other stuff for under 100yen!! I completely filled my basket and then after I'd been to Tesco as well, I had to lug home 3 very full bags fo fruit and veg. Happy though, because it means that when I come back from Costco tomorrow, I'll already have all the fruit and veg I need to start cooking some awesome dishes!! Masterchef inspired of course!!!
Absolutely loving it!
On a completely different note, I can't wait until this week is over so I can stop seeing stupid Halloween pics clog up my FB News Feed!!! Driving me crazy!!! **** Halloween! HAHA!
And on that note, I'm off to bake a cake!
xoxo
HAHAHA!!
I watch that show and then while I'm at work or in bed, I'm constantly thinking of different food combinations and recipes I wanna try!!
And it's all coming a day before I'm due to go to Costco which means I'll be able to pick up the ingredients that I need to actually make some of this stuff!! I'm so excited it's not even funny!!
After a hardcore workout in the pool, I hit up the supermarket. I have 5 supermarkets within a 20 min walk from my house. The thing is, every week the prices of fruit and veg are different in each one. The one nearest my house is suddenly really expensive, so I thought I'd pop into Seiyu today - mainly because I wanted to pick up some Asda white chocolate! I was in there and I thought I'd just have a peek at the fruit and veg before nipping to Tesco....and what a surprise I got!!
EVERYTHING was sooo much cheaper than usual!! Avocados for 78 yen and so much other stuff for under 100yen!! I completely filled my basket and then after I'd been to Tesco as well, I had to lug home 3 very full bags fo fruit and veg. Happy though, because it means that when I come back from Costco tomorrow, I'll already have all the fruit and veg I need to start cooking some awesome dishes!! Masterchef inspired of course!!!
Absolutely loving it!
On a completely different note, I can't wait until this week is over so I can stop seeing stupid Halloween pics clog up my FB News Feed!!! Driving me crazy!!! **** Halloween! HAHA!
And on that note, I'm off to bake a cake!
xoxo
Saturday 27 October 2012
Halloween
Saturday night and I'm hiding out at home.
Why?
Not just because I'm tired but I'm just not a fan of Halloween.
I don't wanna go as far as to say I hate it, but I'm just not interested in it AT ALL. Especially not over here. It's increasing in popularity year by year, but the whole dressing up as Disney character thing drives me insane. The times when I did go to Halloween parties was the excuse I need to go out dressed in just my underwear. LOL!!
I just don't wanna be out surrounded by it. But all you who have put copious amounts of effort into your costumes, you go for it!
But for me, it's gonna be an evening of catching up with TV shows and an early night.
Rock and roll!
HAHAHA!!
xoxo
Why?
Not just because I'm tired but I'm just not a fan of Halloween.
I don't wanna go as far as to say I hate it, but I'm just not interested in it AT ALL. Especially not over here. It's increasing in popularity year by year, but the whole dressing up as Disney character thing drives me insane. The times when I did go to Halloween parties was the excuse I need to go out dressed in just my underwear. LOL!!
I just don't wanna be out surrounded by it. But all you who have put copious amounts of effort into your costumes, you go for it!
But for me, it's gonna be an evening of catching up with TV shows and an early night.
Rock and roll!
HAHAHA!!
xoxo
Thursday 25 October 2012
Noooooo!!!!!
PAY DAY!!!!
やった！！！！！
As soon as I finished work this morning and had my appointment, I went straight to Marunouchi...and into Burberry.
I was all set to buy that coat I was raging about earlier in the month. I picked it up, tried it on and probably spent about 15 minutes posing in front of the mirror. It looked AMAZING!!! Hate to be arrogant but seriously, anyone could put on that coat and looked good. It clung in all the right places, was the perfect length AND the perfect thickness. Thick enough to keep you warm, but not so thick that you'd be sweating bullets on the train in winter thanks to the insane heating. The colour, the cut - everything was stunning. There was no way I was leaving the store without it.
Grinning from ear-to-ear I reached into my Coach, pulled out my Gucci (label whore, much?!?!) and was heading to the till to pay. I had already decided that 200,000yen would be acceptable for the coat. I had no idea why I thought it cost that, but I did.
On the way to the till, I realised that I hadn't actually checked the price and about 10 metres from the till decided that it would be a good idea to do so.
And then my heart broke.
That stunning piece costs a whopping 495,000yen!!!!
NNNNOOOOOOOOO!!!!
The thing is, I CAN afford it. And even though I would have some cash left over, it would be another month scrimping and being tight. I've just managed to survive October on 40,000yen and I don't wanna go through that again.
Actually, what am I talking about - it wasn't even that bad!! Perfectly doable without sacrificing nights out.
Anyway, the point is, as much as I do love my brands, not even I can justify spending that much on a coat. My friends already thought that 200,000yen was pushing it and I disagreed. But nearly half a million on a coat - that's just a little too expensive for me. I'm not a rich girl you know!!
However if someone wanted to buy if for me, naturally I wouldn't stop them! HAHAHA! Looks like I need to find a sugar daddy!!
Gutted.
xoxo
やった！！！！！
As soon as I finished work this morning and had my appointment, I went straight to Marunouchi...and into Burberry.
I was all set to buy that coat I was raging about earlier in the month. I picked it up, tried it on and probably spent about 15 minutes posing in front of the mirror. It looked AMAZING!!! Hate to be arrogant but seriously, anyone could put on that coat and looked good. It clung in all the right places, was the perfect length AND the perfect thickness. Thick enough to keep you warm, but not so thick that you'd be sweating bullets on the train in winter thanks to the insane heating. The colour, the cut - everything was stunning. There was no way I was leaving the store without it.
Grinning from ear-to-ear I reached into my Coach, pulled out my Gucci (label whore, much?!?!) and was heading to the till to pay. I had already decided that 200,000yen would be acceptable for the coat. I had no idea why I thought it cost that, but I did.
On the way to the till, I realised that I hadn't actually checked the price and about 10 metres from the till decided that it would be a good idea to do so.
And then my heart broke.
That stunning piece costs a whopping 495,000yen!!!!
NNNNOOOOOOOOO!!!!
The thing is, I CAN afford it. And even though I would have some cash left over, it would be another month scrimping and being tight. I've just managed to survive October on 40,000yen and I don't wanna go through that again.
Actually, what am I talking about - it wasn't even that bad!! Perfectly doable without sacrificing nights out.
Anyway, the point is, as much as I do love my brands, not even I can justify spending that much on a coat. My friends already thought that 200,000yen was pushing it and I disagreed. But nearly half a million on a coat - that's just a little too expensive for me. I'm not a rich girl you know!!
However if someone wanted to buy if for me, naturally I wouldn't stop them! HAHAHA! Looks like I need to find a sugar daddy!!
Gutted.
xoxo
Wednesday 24 October 2012
Pay Day!!!!
Nyyyaaaaaa!!!!!
Tomorrow is pay day!!!!
I'm so damn excited because it means that I can FINALLY go to Costco!! Man, I am so gonna wipe everything off the shelves in there - MEAT, CHEESE, CEREAL and this time I'm gonna stock up on a crap load of baking stuff and treat myself to a whole loada sweets and crisps. I'm totally allowed since I didn't last time.
Mustn't go too mad mind you...need to put some cash aside for my trip to NZ. So my mammoth shopping spree for new clothes is gonna have to be toned down....maybe. (^_-)
Just got back from the gym - I love mornings like this in Tokyo! The sun is shining, I've got the music pumping as I walk to the gym and then 30 minutes of aqua to club classics! And to top it off, FINALLY the cute lil ol' ladies called me by my actual name today! RESULT!
They're too cute. And I never fail to be impressed by their fitness - it's far superior to mine!
Feeling great today!
xoxo
Tomorrow is pay day!!!!
I'm so damn excited because it means that I can FINALLY go to Costco!! Man, I am so gonna wipe everything off the shelves in there - MEAT, CHEESE, CEREAL and this time I'm gonna stock up on a crap load of baking stuff and treat myself to a whole loada sweets and crisps. I'm totally allowed since I didn't last time.
Mustn't go too mad mind you...need to put some cash aside for my trip to NZ. So my mammoth shopping spree for new clothes is gonna have to be toned down....maybe. (^_-)
Just got back from the gym - I love mornings like this in Tokyo! The sun is shining, I've got the music pumping as I walk to the gym and then 30 minutes of aqua to club classics! And to top it off, FINALLY the cute lil ol' ladies called me by my actual name today! RESULT!
They're too cute. And I never fail to be impressed by their fitness - it's far superior to mine!
Feeling great today!
xoxo
Monday 22 October 2012
Drained
As October is drawing to a close, I'm feeling absolutely shattered.
Working my arse off and have a lot going on in my personal life.
So, so tired.
I tried to catch up on sleep last night. I was in bed by 10pm...and still lying there awake at 1am. When my alarm went off this morning at 5.15am, I got up and was pretty much walking around with my eyes half closed - such a mission to wake up.
But no early night tonight either - I'm heading to take my girl out for a very special belated birthday dinner. It's rare that we can both find a gap in our schedules, so when she mailed me yesterday to tell me that she suddenly had the day off, even though all I want to do tonight is just mooch around, I couldn't say no. Only because her birthday was in September and we both have an insanely busy November lined up.
I promised I would take her somewhere really nice as well, so we're heading to a very plush joint in Ebisu. I know it's gonna be great - I just wish I had a bit more genki in me right now.
There's just too much that has happened this month to go into everything. I realised as well that it's exactly 2 months until I arrive in NZ - really need to start looking into what I'm gonna be doing when I get there. Time is just disappearing in the blink of an eye.
On a completely different note - the X Factor results this week? WTF?! Rylan and Jade completely sucked on Saturday night - how they managed to escape the sing off ahead of MK1 and Kye is mind boggling. My support for Rylan disappeared last week - his performances are now making me cringe...although I LOVE the fashion!! And Jade? Well, naturally she has an awesome name and I DO love the tone of her voice, but I just find her so damn dull to watch!! I haven't enjoyed ANY of her performances in the live shows yet. Just goes to show that you never know what will happen.
Who am I backing this week?
James Arthur.
Undeniable talent.
xoxo
Working my arse off and have a lot going on in my personal life.
So, so tired.
I tried to catch up on sleep last night. I was in bed by 10pm...and still lying there awake at 1am. When my alarm went off this morning at 5.15am, I got up and was pretty much walking around with my eyes half closed - such a mission to wake up.
But no early night tonight either - I'm heading to take my girl out for a very special belated birthday dinner. It's rare that we can both find a gap in our schedules, so when she mailed me yesterday to tell me that she suddenly had the day off, even though all I want to do tonight is just mooch around, I couldn't say no. Only because her birthday was in September and we both have an insanely busy November lined up.
I promised I would take her somewhere really nice as well, so we're heading to a very plush joint in Ebisu. I know it's gonna be great - I just wish I had a bit more genki in me right now.
There's just too much that has happened this month to go into everything. I realised as well that it's exactly 2 months until I arrive in NZ - really need to start looking into what I'm gonna be doing when I get there. Time is just disappearing in the blink of an eye.
On a completely different note - the X Factor results this week? WTF?! Rylan and Jade completely sucked on Saturday night - how they managed to escape the sing off ahead of MK1 and Kye is mind boggling. My support for Rylan disappeared last week - his performances are now making me cringe...although I LOVE the fashion!! And Jade? Well, naturally she has an awesome name and I DO love the tone of her voice, but I just find her so damn dull to watch!! I haven't enjoyed ANY of her performances in the live shows yet. Just goes to show that you never know what will happen.
Who am I backing this week?
James Arthur.
Undeniable talent.
xoxo
Tuesday 16 October 2012
Run, Run, Run!!
So I told you last week I discovered a forest with a jogging course behind my house.
This morning I decided to check it out.
I got all decked out in my Stella McCartney for Adidas gear (OK, fine my trainers were Nike!!!) and headed out.
I didn't actually do that bad - the course is only 500m a lap and I went for 20 minutes straight with trance blaring out of my iPod.
My God I hated every single second!!! I will never understand this running for fun lark. When I was younger I actually did a lot of long distance running, but as age and laziness has taken its toll, I just can't do it anymore. Give me an hour of intensive aerobics any day over running. It's so....boring!! It's funny though, coz I can easily walk for hours. I just hate running!!!
So why did I do it?!
Well, in NZ this winter I'm planning on doing a lot of hiking and I really need to get my fitness in check before I go. I don't have time to go to my aqua boxing class before work so I figured I'd go for a run instead. I'm still considering cutting it fine into work to make the aqua class - it's way more rewarding than running. I'll see how I feel in about 30 minutes.
Respect to all you runners/joggers out there!! I don't know how you do it!!
xoxo
This morning I decided to check it out.
I got all decked out in my Stella McCartney for Adidas gear (OK, fine my trainers were Nike!!!) and headed out.
I didn't actually do that bad - the course is only 500m a lap and I went for 20 minutes straight with trance blaring out of my iPod.
My God I hated every single second!!! I will never understand this running for fun lark. When I was younger I actually did a lot of long distance running, but as age and laziness has taken its toll, I just can't do it anymore. Give me an hour of intensive aerobics any day over running. It's so....boring!! It's funny though, coz I can easily walk for hours. I just hate running!!!
So why did I do it?!
Well, in NZ this winter I'm planning on doing a lot of hiking and I really need to get my fitness in check before I go. I don't have time to go to my aqua boxing class before work so I figured I'd go for a run instead. I'm still considering cutting it fine into work to make the aqua class - it's way more rewarding than running. I'll see how I feel in about 30 minutes.
Respect to all you runners/joggers out there!! I don't know how you do it!!
xoxo
Monday 15 October 2012
Well Done UK!!
I've just watched the results from the second live show of the X Factor.
The public got it so right this week! Not necessarily with the bottom two - I mean, I love District 3's vocals - they are absolutely stunning - but with sending Melanie home.
I've never really been a fan. She does have a good voice and she can sing, but I just felt like she screamed her way through every performance with her power notes. Look at Ella and Jahmene - both of them have power notes and can deliver an amazing performance without the screaming so I never really enjoyed any of her performances.
And like Carolynne, even if she had stayed in the competition, she would never have won. That's the truth of it.
I've had a really chilled weekend. Given the fact that I'm trying to hold out until pay day, I'm saving the little cash I have for next weekend. My girl is coming down from Saitama and my other girl is coming over from Nagoya and a few other Tokyo peeps are gonna hit up my place and then we're all heading out to ageHa!!
Really looking forward to it - it's gonna be a Friday so I'm gonna be able to get my dancehall groove on!!!! Yay!
Roll on Friday! Hang on a sec...it's only Monday!! =(
xoxo
The public got it so right this week! Not necessarily with the bottom two - I mean, I love District 3's vocals - they are absolutely stunning - but with sending Melanie home.
I've never really been a fan. She does have a good voice and she can sing, but I just felt like she screamed her way through every performance with her power notes. Look at Ella and Jahmene - both of them have power notes and can deliver an amazing performance without the screaming so I never really enjoyed any of her performances.
And like Carolynne, even if she had stayed in the competition, she would never have won. That's the truth of it.
I've had a really chilled weekend. Given the fact that I'm trying to hold out until pay day, I'm saving the little cash I have for next weekend. My girl is coming down from Saitama and my other girl is coming over from Nagoya and a few other Tokyo peeps are gonna hit up my place and then we're all heading out to ageHa!!
Really looking forward to it - it's gonna be a Friday so I'm gonna be able to get my dancehall groove on!!!! Yay!
Roll on Friday! Hang on a sec...it's only Monday!! =(
xoxo
Wednesday 10 October 2012
If You Go Down To The Woods Today...
....you most definitely are sure of a big surprise.......
.....a huge bite on your arse!!
HAHAHAHAHHA!!!
My girl hit me up this morning and asked me if I wanted to go on a picnic lunch. I'd just come back from the gym and thought it would be kinda nice to spend the afternoon outside.
She mails me and tells me that she'll meet me at Ekoda-mori.
Huh?!?!?!
Where?!?!?
She's like "えええええええええ？？？？ウソでしょう？"
Me: Ummmmmmmmm
Her: ジェイドの家の裏だよ！！！！！(It's behind your house)
Me: Huhhhhhhh???!!?!?!?!?!
I've been living in this house for 3 years and I have NEVER walked down the road that goes behind my house. I've never had to and I've never really gone exploring down that way. Even when I went exploring when I first moved in, I always walked the other way for some reason.
But sure enough, I walked down there and there is this huge park and forest!!! It's so pretty I could also kick myself for never having walked down there before. And on top of that, there is a jogging course!!!
Now you all know how much I hate jogging and the last time I did it was along the main road. But this is away from the road and the course goes around the park. Wouldn't do it at night but I'm considering giving it a bash. It's only short and literally less than a 5 minute walk from my house so I can bail out and go home easily! LOL!
We set up and enjoyed a really cute lil lunch and caught up. She is one of the first people I met when I came to Tokyo 3 years ago and we've been good friends ever since. She works her arse off, I work my arse off so it's hard for us to find a lot of time to spend together, but it's great because when we do, we always have such a fun time. She's hilarious and her inability to use a camping stove had me in stitches all afternoon.
Great afternoon in the woods. I was a bit worried because when I hit the gym this morning it was kinda cold and looked like it was gonna rain, but it held off and actually became really warm as the sun came out. Streaming between the trees, it was so gorgeous to be having a picnic.
I came home and called London to check on my grandad. It's not good news and it pains me to know that this is going to be a long and drawn out affair. It's hard for my family and even harder for him to know that he will suffer so much before he goes. I've offered to go home but my mum said there's nothing I can do there. My grandad knows that I'm in Tokyo and I've been sending him cards and letters which my mum said really cheer him up. But I told her, the second he starts asking where I am or if he starts asking to see me, I'm going back.
Trying to stay positive.
xoxo
.....a huge bite on your arse!!
HAHAHAHAHHA!!!
My girl hit me up this morning and asked me if I wanted to go on a picnic lunch. I'd just come back from the gym and thought it would be kinda nice to spend the afternoon outside.
She mails me and tells me that she'll meet me at Ekoda-mori.
Huh?!?!?!
Where?!?!?
She's like "えええええええええ？？？？ウソでしょう？"
Me: Ummmmmmmmm
Her: ジェイドの家の裏だよ！！！！！(It's behind your house)
Me: Huhhhhhhh???!!?!?!?!?!
I've been living in this house for 3 years and I have NEVER walked down the road that goes behind my house. I've never had to and I've never really gone exploring down that way. Even when I went exploring when I first moved in, I always walked the other way for some reason.
But sure enough, I walked down there and there is this huge park and forest!!! It's so pretty I could also kick myself for never having walked down there before. And on top of that, there is a jogging course!!!
Now you all know how much I hate jogging and the last time I did it was along the main road. But this is away from the road and the course goes around the park. Wouldn't do it at night but I'm considering giving it a bash. It's only short and literally less than a 5 minute walk from my house so I can bail out and go home easily! LOL!
We set up and enjoyed a really cute lil lunch and caught up. She is one of the first people I met when I came to Tokyo 3 years ago and we've been good friends ever since. She works her arse off, I work my arse off so it's hard for us to find a lot of time to spend together, but it's great because when we do, we always have such a fun time. She's hilarious and her inability to use a camping stove had me in stitches all afternoon.
Great afternoon in the woods. I was a bit worried because when I hit the gym this morning it was kinda cold and looked like it was gonna rain, but it held off and actually became really warm as the sun came out. Streaming between the trees, it was so gorgeous to be having a picnic.
I came home and called London to check on my grandad. It's not good news and it pains me to know that this is going to be a long and drawn out affair. It's hard for my family and even harder for him to know that he will suffer so much before he goes. I've offered to go home but my mum said there's nothing I can do there. My grandad knows that I'm in Tokyo and I've been sending him cards and letters which my mum said really cheer him up. But I told her, the second he starts asking where I am or if he starts asking to see me, I'm going back.
Trying to stay positive.
xoxo
Tuesday 9 October 2012
It's Back!
Nothing like a bit of American drama to make you appreciate that your life really isn't as bad as you think it is!
Now I'm thinking about my nan with a smile instead of sadness.
Gossip Girl is back!
I get totally absorbed in that show. That kind of life is something that I'll never understand...not that I necessarily want to but I just love it.
And this season is looking very promising indeed.
Scandal, scandal, scandal.
Love it.
xoxo
Now I'm thinking about my nan with a smile instead of sadness.
Gossip Girl is back!
I get totally absorbed in that show. That kind of life is something that I'll never understand...not that I necessarily want to but I just love it.
And this season is looking very promising indeed.
Scandal, scandal, scandal.
Love it.
xoxo
R.I.P
Today is the fifth anniversary of my nan's death.
And with my grandad still in hospital and deteriorating at a painfully slow rate, it makes the sense of loss even harder to deal with today. I always thought that as the years go by, the pain would subside just a little, but it hasn't. =(
When my nan passed, I was left a whole load of jewellery. I wear a piece every single day, so there isn't a day where I dont' think about her. She was a stylish lady back in the day with the most unbelievable collection of shoes.....which never fit me. Not that I'm complaining - I'm glad that size 8 feet didn't get passed down through the generations!!!
It's just kinda hard being here knowing that every day my family are getting physically and mentally drained taking care of my grandad. I'm not even sure he's going to remember what day it is today.
I miss my nan.
Gone but never forgotten.
xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo
And with my grandad still in hospital and deteriorating at a painfully slow rate, it makes the sense of loss even harder to deal with today. I always thought that as the years go by, the pain would subside just a little, but it hasn't. =(
When my nan passed, I was left a whole load of jewellery. I wear a piece every single day, so there isn't a day where I dont' think about her. She was a stylish lady back in the day with the most unbelievable collection of shoes.....which never fit me. Not that I'm complaining - I'm glad that size 8 feet didn't get passed down through the generations!!!
It's just kinda hard being here knowing that every day my family are getting physically and mentally drained taking care of my grandad. I'm not even sure he's going to remember what day it is today.
I miss my nan.
Gone but never forgotten.
xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo
Monday 8 October 2012
LOL
Today I went to work with my hair tied up.
Sure, I very rarely tie my hair up, but I didn't think anything of it this morning.
When I went out my house, so many people I encountered today commented on my hair...starting with the guy at the station followed by coworkers and clients. I didn't even do anything special with it - just scraped it up into a chignon.
HAHAHAHA! Highly amusing! I had no idea that I looked THAT different with it tied up!!
Just finished watching the first results show of the X Factor.
I have no idea why people are surprised Carolynne was in the bottom. At the end of the day, even though she has a great voice, her performance of that Nicki Minaj song was just horrible and people like her NEVER go all the way in the UK show. There is absolutely nothing original about her voice and she's up against so many more amazing singers who have their own thing going on.
Feeling well sorry for Rylan - the press are gonna rip him to shreds!!! What people forget is that he DIDN'T receive the lowest number of votes so people should give the guy a break!!! Not that he's gonna last much longer with the standard of talent being so high mind you.
xoxo
Sure, I very rarely tie my hair up, but I didn't think anything of it this morning.
When I went out my house, so many people I encountered today commented on my hair...starting with the guy at the station followed by coworkers and clients. I didn't even do anything special with it - just scraped it up into a chignon.
HAHAHAHA! Highly amusing! I had no idea that I looked THAT different with it tied up!!
Just finished watching the first results show of the X Factor.
I have no idea why people are surprised Carolynne was in the bottom. At the end of the day, even though she has a great voice, her performance of that Nicki Minaj song was just horrible and people like her NEVER go all the way in the UK show. There is absolutely nothing original about her voice and she's up against so many more amazing singers who have their own thing going on.
Feeling well sorry for Rylan - the press are gonna rip him to shreds!!! What people forget is that he DIDN'T receive the lowest number of votes so people should give the guy a break!!! Not that he's gonna last much longer with the standard of talent being so high mind you.
xoxo
Sunday 7 October 2012
The Most Talented Year Ever?!
Oh my dayz!!!
I've just finished watching the first live show of the X Factor 2012.
Even though I'm a ltitle gutted Amy didn't get voted back in, there's no denying how much talent is on the show this year. I truly think this is pretty much the most talented year EVER.
I started watching more religiously after Leona won back in the day. She is by far the most successful artist to come out of the show....but One Direction are right on her heels, smashing it on both sides of the pond.
I have 5 very strong favourites this year. Based on the performances last night alone, the front runner is easily Ella. My goodness, she absolutely SMASHED SMASHED SMASHED Take That's "Rule the World" in an absolutely stunning and faultless performance. I just love watching her - she takes my breath away.
Other strong faves include Jahmene, James Arthur and Kae. Jahmene has an incredible voice and is easily the best male vocalist, but both James and Kae have amazing tones and so, so talented as artists. They are gonna be absolute superstars after this.
MK1 have it for me. Super modern, super urban - I'm not sure we've seen someone like them before. I love the rap - it's always on point and I'm excited to see how far they're gonna go.
Since we're talking about the groups - Union J. Complete and utter cack. I thought before that Louis had made a mistake with the groups - he only choice this one coz they're 4 young boys and he's heavily reliant on the girls voting for them. He would have done so much better with one of the other original acts or that older (and extremely hot) boyband. Worst performance of the night, followed very closely by Carolynne.
Trying to make Nicki Minaj country?! Oh dear, that was a mistake. And a very boring performance. Hated it.
Speaking of boring perfomances - Chris. I LOVE him - he's adorable and he has an amazing voice but that performance was soooo cheesy and dull. I hope Gary does better things for him next week. I feel like Gary has the weekest category. Kae is great, but that Melanie? She has a very powerful voice, but she literally screams her way through all of her performances and it gets boring to watch. Not to mention that I'm really not feeling her style. oh well - each to their own. Not sure how far she's gonna go in the competition when she's up against much cooler and fresher acts.
Disappointed in Lucy last night. That's all I have to say about that.
And Rylan. Oh Rylan. Hands down THE FUNNIEST REACTION I have ever seen to being told someone's made the live shows EVER. Effing HILARIOUS!!! Yah, he's not the best vocalist but I LOVE him!!! Not to mention that he's absolutely GORGEOUS (yeah, I don't care that he's gay!!!) and I just LOVE his sense of style. Absolutely HATED the performance last night though. he could be in trouble after that.
Love, love, loving it! Excited for the results show tomorrow!!!
xoxo
I've just finished watching the first live show of the X Factor 2012.
Even though I'm a ltitle gutted Amy didn't get voted back in, there's no denying how much talent is on the show this year. I truly think this is pretty much the most talented year EVER.
I started watching more religiously after Leona won back in the day. She is by far the most successful artist to come out of the show....but One Direction are right on her heels, smashing it on both sides of the pond.
I have 5 very strong favourites this year. Based on the performances last night alone, the front runner is easily Ella. My goodness, she absolutely SMASHED SMASHED SMASHED Take That's "Rule the World" in an absolutely stunning and faultless performance. I just love watching her - she takes my breath away.
Other strong faves include Jahmene, James Arthur and Kae. Jahmene has an incredible voice and is easily the best male vocalist, but both James and Kae have amazing tones and so, so talented as artists. They are gonna be absolute superstars after this.
MK1 have it for me. Super modern, super urban - I'm not sure we've seen someone like them before. I love the rap - it's always on point and I'm excited to see how far they're gonna go.
Since we're talking about the groups - Union J. Complete and utter cack. I thought before that Louis had made a mistake with the groups - he only choice this one coz they're 4 young boys and he's heavily reliant on the girls voting for them. He would have done so much better with one of the other original acts or that older (and extremely hot) boyband. Worst performance of the night, followed very closely by Carolynne.
Trying to make Nicki Minaj country?! Oh dear, that was a mistake. And a very boring performance. Hated it.
Speaking of boring perfomances - Chris. I LOVE him - he's adorable and he has an amazing voice but that performance was soooo cheesy and dull. I hope Gary does better things for him next week. I feel like Gary has the weekest category. Kae is great, but that Melanie? She has a very powerful voice, but she literally screams her way through all of her performances and it gets boring to watch. Not to mention that I'm really not feeling her style. oh well - each to their own. Not sure how far she's gonna go in the competition when she's up against much cooler and fresher acts.
Disappointed in Lucy last night. That's all I have to say about that.
And Rylan. Oh Rylan. Hands down THE FUNNIEST REACTION I have ever seen to being told someone's made the live shows EVER. Effing HILARIOUS!!! Yah, he's not the best vocalist but I LOVE him!!! Not to mention that he's absolutely GORGEOUS (yeah, I don't care that he's gay!!!) and I just LOVE his sense of style. Absolutely HATED the performance last night though. he could be in trouble after that.
Love, love, loving it! Excited for the results show tomorrow!!!
xoxo
Saturday 6 October 2012
Fiercely Real
I've just watched the final of BINTM.
AT LAST!!!!
A girl with REAL effing curves has finally taken the crown!!!
In both BINTM and ANTM there are always plus size or curvier girls in the line up. But the sad truth is, no matter how much everyone gives them respect for being "fiercely real", in the real world of modelling, at the end of the day they are just too busty or too big. That's just how it is.
The girl that took the BINTM crown is absolutely, insanely, shockingly stunning. She actually kinda looks like Angelina Jolie and you can't help but be absolutely fixated by her. But not only is she stunning, she has a huge chest!!!! Like seriously!!! And it's nice to see that she was able to break out of the glamour model mode and be taken seriously as a high fashion model.
Good for her!!
Not only that, but the other girl in the final had as much personality as a plank of wood so I'm glad she didn't win!!! You can't deny how stunning she was, but she just sent me to sleep week after week.
It gives aspiring models hope that the industry is changing and we could be (hopefully) saying goodbye to size 0 models on the catwalk.
Who DOESN'T love boobs anyway?!?!
A deserving winner. If you wanna see what I mean, check out BINTM Season 8. Her name is Leticia.
Stunning.
xoxo
AT LAST!!!!
A girl with REAL effing curves has finally taken the crown!!!
In both BINTM and ANTM there are always plus size or curvier girls in the line up. But the sad truth is, no matter how much everyone gives them respect for being "fiercely real", in the real world of modelling, at the end of the day they are just too busty or too big. That's just how it is.
The girl that took the BINTM crown is absolutely, insanely, shockingly stunning. She actually kinda looks like Angelina Jolie and you can't help but be absolutely fixated by her. But not only is she stunning, she has a huge chest!!!! Like seriously!!! And it's nice to see that she was able to break out of the glamour model mode and be taken seriously as a high fashion model.
Good for her!!
Not only that, but the other girl in the final had as much personality as a plank of wood so I'm glad she didn't win!!! You can't deny how stunning she was, but she just sent me to sleep week after week.
It gives aspiring models hope that the industry is changing and we could be (hopefully) saying goodbye to size 0 models on the catwalk.
Who DOESN'T love boobs anyway?!?!
A deserving winner. If you wanna see what I mean, check out BINTM Season 8. Her name is Leticia.
Stunning.
xoxo
Thursday 4 October 2012
What's In A Picture?
**Grrrriiiiinnnnnn**
My day started off so crappily....and then late this morning the first smile of the day was put on my face....
...by a pro footballer. =)
All women living here know that insanely hot J-guys are few and far between. And the other girl that was also lucky enough to be in close proximity to this fine creation totally agreed. Only for window shopping though - he's married. =(
HOW hot?!?!?!?!
This was another 6ft 1 +, buff, tanned, jaw droppingly sexy guy with a few ADORABLE freckles!!! And not that it matters, but he was decked out in Tims and a Rolex.
Niiiiccccceeeee.
So naturally, as soon as we say goodbye, my instinct is to google him and find out everything. I was stunned when I saw his pics - is that the same guy?!?!?!?! If I had to go by that pic alone, I wouldn't batter an eyelid.
Pah - I know all too well that I don't photograph very well either. It just goes to show that you can't go by pictures of people! Either they photograph badly and look better in real life, or they're lucky enough to be photogenic....and then don't quite live up to expectations in real life.
I'll take the bad photo anyday if I get that kind of surprise!! HAHA!
xoxo
My day started off so crappily....and then late this morning the first smile of the day was put on my face....
...by a pro footballer. =)
All women living here know that insanely hot J-guys are few and far between. And the other girl that was also lucky enough to be in close proximity to this fine creation totally agreed. Only for window shopping though - he's married. =(
HOW hot?!?!?!?!
This was another 6ft 1 +, buff, tanned, jaw droppingly sexy guy with a few ADORABLE freckles!!! And not that it matters, but he was decked out in Tims and a Rolex.
Niiiiccccceeeee.
So naturally, as soon as we say goodbye, my instinct is to google him and find out everything. I was stunned when I saw his pics - is that the same guy?!?!?!?! If I had to go by that pic alone, I wouldn't batter an eyelid.
Pah - I know all too well that I don't photograph very well either. It just goes to show that you can't go by pictures of people! Either they photograph badly and look better in real life, or they're lucky enough to be photogenic....and then don't quite live up to expectations in real life.
I'll take the bad photo anyday if I get that kind of surprise!! HAHA!
xoxo
Wednesday 3 October 2012
One Lazy Day Off
I haven't had a day off where I've literally done nothing for ages.
I was up early with the intention of going to the gym....until I realised I hadn't washed either of my swimming costumes. Weak, I know, but it is what it is.
So this morning I was just chilling out on the sofa messing around on FB....and then I was overtaken by this massive urge to sift through my friend's list. I ended up cutting about 80 people from the list. I mean, seriously, what's the point in keeping people who have deactivated their account, or people that you dont' even speak to? There were people in there that I didn't even remember. Delete, delete, delete. I need to keep going but I got bored so I'm saving the rest for another day.
And then I started to go on a HIMYM marathon....until a wave of sleepiness washed over and I decided to go back to bed. It's after 1pm now and I've just gotten back up. Sounds gross, but actually that nap was only about an hour or an hour and a half.
Why I get up so early on my rare days off I have no idea.
Now it's back to HIMYM and then more planning for my trip to New Zealand!
What a fantabulously lazy day off.
xoxo
I was up early with the intention of going to the gym....until I realised I hadn't washed either of my swimming costumes. Weak, I know, but it is what it is.
So this morning I was just chilling out on the sofa messing around on FB....and then I was overtaken by this massive urge to sift through my friend's list. I ended up cutting about 80 people from the list. I mean, seriously, what's the point in keeping people who have deactivated their account, or people that you dont' even speak to? There were people in there that I didn't even remember. Delete, delete, delete. I need to keep going but I got bored so I'm saving the rest for another day.
And then I started to go on a HIMYM marathon....until a wave of sleepiness washed over and I decided to go back to bed. It's after 1pm now and I've just gotten back up. Sounds gross, but actually that nap was only about an hour or an hour and a half.
Why I get up so early on my rare days off I have no idea.
Now it's back to HIMYM and then more planning for my trip to New Zealand!
What a fantabulously lazy day off.
xoxo
Sunday 30 September 2012
Impromptu Nights
I don't really know what I was expecting from last night.
But it certainly wasn't an all nighter at ageHa!!
The evening started with a really awesoem BBQ at my friend's house. It's been ages since I've chilled out like that with a great group of people. Lots of food, lots of wine and lots of giggles. At the end of the night I knew I was supposed to be meeting a friend that I hadn't seen for ages. When he told me that he was planning to head to ageHa, I was like, no way - too far, I'm too tired and I can't be arsed. Plus the music is better on a Friday night there.
But as me and my girl were in a cab on our way to Azabu for a few drinks and a bit of a booty shaking sess, we just suddenly had a change of heart and found ourselves hitting up Shibuya to gett he shuttle to ageHa.
How did that happen?
Well, we figured that with the cost of a cab back to mine and considering that it was already after midnight, it would actually work out cheaper to go to ageHa. And I'm so glad we did!! She's absolutely gorgeous and we got to meet so many amusing people!!! After the BBQ and all the wine that we had had before, we weren't in serious dance mode but the weather was so nice so just hanging out outside and by the pool was cool. Just wish I could've got my dancehall fix! LOL!
It's funny how you can meet someone and in that same night, feel like you've known them forever!
Knackered today though - was debating going to the gym, but apparently there's a typhoon coming later and the class finishes kinda late. I don't wanna get caught up in that while I'm walking home. Good enough excuse as any right? HAHA!
So what does that mean for my Sunday?
Catching up with the X-Factor!! Don't judge - there's actually a lot of real talent on the show this year!!!!
xoxo
But it certainly wasn't an all nighter at ageHa!!
The evening started with a really awesoem BBQ at my friend's house. It's been ages since I've chilled out like that with a great group of people. Lots of food, lots of wine and lots of giggles. At the end of the night I knew I was supposed to be meeting a friend that I hadn't seen for ages. When he told me that he was planning to head to ageHa, I was like, no way - too far, I'm too tired and I can't be arsed. Plus the music is better on a Friday night there.
But as me and my girl were in a cab on our way to Azabu for a few drinks and a bit of a booty shaking sess, we just suddenly had a change of heart and found ourselves hitting up Shibuya to gett he shuttle to ageHa.
How did that happen?
Well, we figured that with the cost of a cab back to mine and considering that it was already after midnight, it would actually work out cheaper to go to ageHa. And I'm so glad we did!! She's absolutely gorgeous and we got to meet so many amusing people!!! After the BBQ and all the wine that we had had before, we weren't in serious dance mode but the weather was so nice so just hanging out outside and by the pool was cool. Just wish I could've got my dancehall fix! LOL!
It's funny how you can meet someone and in that same night, feel like you've known them forever!
Knackered today though - was debating going to the gym, but apparently there's a typhoon coming later and the class finishes kinda late. I don't wanna get caught up in that while I'm walking home. Good enough excuse as any right? HAHA!
So what does that mean for my Sunday?
Catching up with the X-Factor!! Don't judge - there's actually a lot of real talent on the show this year!!!!
xoxo
Wednesday 26 September 2012
Yeeooouuccchhhhh!
The good news.
I just booked my flight to New Zealand!! YAY!! The prices are always changing online but I found a very reasonable one online and asked a Japanese travel agent to match the price...whcih they did...WITHOUT any handling fees. Swwweeeeetttt!!! \(^0^)/
The crappy bit?
I have to pay for the whole lot tomorrow.
Of course when you buy something online you have to pay for it upfront, but normally with this travel agent, they let you pay a deposit and then the rest of the balance is due one month before. But because there was literally only 1 seat left on my return flight, I have to pay the whole amount to secure the reservation.
Ouch.
I've just paid my rent, health insurance, pension, phone bill, gas, water, electricity, internet/TV, commuter pass and some other expenses and having to pay this as well - man, I've just kissed goodbye to my whole paycheck. Which wasn't even that much in the first place since I only worked half a month in August.
It's gonna have to be a quiet October!!
xoxo
I just booked my flight to New Zealand!! YAY!! The prices are always changing online but I found a very reasonable one online and asked a Japanese travel agent to match the price...whcih they did...WITHOUT any handling fees. Swwweeeeetttt!!! \(^0^)/
The crappy bit?
I have to pay for the whole lot tomorrow.
Of course when you buy something online you have to pay for it upfront, but normally with this travel agent, they let you pay a deposit and then the rest of the balance is due one month before. But because there was literally only 1 seat left on my return flight, I have to pay the whole amount to secure the reservation.
Ouch.
I've just paid my rent, health insurance, pension, phone bill, gas, water, electricity, internet/TV, commuter pass and some other expenses and having to pay this as well - man, I've just kissed goodbye to my whole paycheck. Which wasn't even that much in the first place since I only worked half a month in August.
It's gonna have to be a quiet October!!
xoxo
Monday 24 September 2012
Close Call
Uffffffffff.....
That was SERIOUSLY close!!
After having a massive reality check and also having some sense knocked into me, I have decided to leave the cake well alone. As delicious and tempting as it is, it's not mine to eat.
Honestly, I have no idea what the hell I'm thinking sometimes!!!! And to be honest, it's very out of character - not sure what triggered that all off.
But it's all good.
Leaving well alone.
Phew!
xoxo
That was SERIOUSLY close!!
After having a massive reality check and also having some sense knocked into me, I have decided to leave the cake well alone. As delicious and tempting as it is, it's not mine to eat.
Honestly, I have no idea what the hell I'm thinking sometimes!!!! And to be honest, it's very out of character - not sure what triggered that all off.
But it's all good.
Leaving well alone.
Phew!
xoxo
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