Do you have eyes???

How can I miss these wordings??? Am I really, blind?????


My oldest daughter came up to me in middle of the afternoon asking if she could have snack with her younger sisiter. I said of course and asked her what she wanted to eat. Her reply was "Oreo Cookies!!!". Well, I don't buy oreo cookies. So I told her we don't have Oreo's. Next conversation went like this....

Daughter: Yes, we do... We have Oreo cookies, Mama.
Me : No, Mommy didn't buy them for you girls.
Daughter : But Daddy bought it for Sophie...
Me : When????
Daughter : Yesterday...
Me : What?????

So, my daughter took my hand and showed me where the cookies were being hid. Apparently my husband told my daughters that they can have them with him if they had been good. I am not that kind of mother who bans sweets from the household. Actually, I quite enjoy all kinds of sweets. I just don't buy Oreo cookies for myself.

Anyway, I grabbed the Oreo package and tried to open it, thinking my husband may freak out if we didn't wait for him. But I scribbled off the thought from my head and focused on making my girls happy at the moment. Well, I don't know why, but I was tough time opening it as my daughter looks up asking "Mommy, are you okay?" After a few minutes struggling to open with my two hands, I decided to cut them open. Now, I was saying to myself with a frustration, "What on earth, does this bag has to be so tight to open. It's so inconvenient!!"

The girls sat on the table with a glasse of milk for each of them. As they dipped the cookies in the milk, oh boy, the girls' faces lit up with joy "ummm yummy~~~!"
Looking at their smiles make me so happy...

That evening, when my husband came home from work and grabbed something to drink in the kitchen; he saw the cookies sitting in the refregerator.. "Oh well, well, well, I see someone enjoyed the oreo cookis today," he said. That's when I guess he noticed the clip on the package. He took the cookies out and brought it to me. The next conversation went like this..

Hubby : What's up with this clip, what is it doing over here..
Me : Oh my god! You wouldn't believe how long it took me to open this thing.
Hubby : What do you mean?
Me : The bag was so tightly sealed, I had to cut them open with a scissor. Oh it was
soooooo annoying!!!
Hubby : Why? What are you lookig at? Do you have eyes??
Me : What do you mean, do I have eyes? Of course I have eyes!!!
Hubby : Baby, look here. Can you read what it says here?????
Me : uhhhhhhhh.........

Now, please take a look at the pictures above. These are the messages I totally missed when I opened the package. It says "Stop! Open with Pull Tub on Top" where I cut the package. How can I miss that??? They use the easy pull tub to make cookies stay fresh!!! Now you know why our parents always told us to "Pay attention!" when we were little kids, not to be like me! LOL. I will be doing that from now on, carefully read all the instruction. So, folks, pay attention!!!

Can You Keep a Secret???

So, I listen to Sirius (radio) "Morning Mash with Rich, Ryan and Nicole" on the way to drive my oldest daughter to school every morning. They are funny to listen to. Their topic for today was "Do you keep your secrets from your loved one?" Oh it was very intereting.

One of the DJ's Rich said, "you know, the girls want to throw their secrets to their men's faces." I think I could agree with him. Girls tend to speak and wanting to tell everything in their minds. I often find myself getting into a trouble by saying too much or being honest which included talking about ex's. And I do believe most men don't talk a lot about their past to their girlfriends or wives. My husband doesn't talk alot where I tend to talk about it. I usually don't like secrets because it usually pararells to telling lies in order to keep secrets.
But please don't get me wrong, if my friend ask me to keep a secret, I think I'm the most trusted person to do the part because my friendships with my friends are sacred.

Anyway, so the dj's asked all the listeners bunch of questions; "do you keep secrets or you don't keep secrets. Do you tell your partners your secrets?" -- well many listner called in and one of the female listners said "Well, there are secrets that my husband does't know and he will never know..." Apparently, she was a stripper and also used to date his friend whom her husband hates now. But really, is it that bad to be a stripper? I understand that everybody has a past that not necessary he or she's proud of. I've done pretty shameless things myself. But then, if you marry someone, I think you ought to tell the significant other pretty much everything before you step in to the band of eternity... Don't you agree?

I understand, maybe many guys don't like to know their girlfriends/wives used to strip, but I figure they'll find out soon or later unless you moved to a differnt city or county or even a state???

I have several good friends who used to be strippers. And I have nothing against with it. I mean, they're making their own money, paying taxes and paying bills. Some of them even raised children. People may say, "oh exotic dancers = no class." I disagree 100%. I see so many unclassy people who have good jobs or have ton of money. I am a firm believer that one's classiness doesn't come from the job you have or financial status you have. Well, it's true there are skanky dancers as well, but that apply to any type of people. WIth that said, in my book, people with class is about who you are, how you carry yourself and who know how to treat others with respect. Rich men who treat waitlesses like their maids or servants, those guys have no class. So, my friends take care of themselves, proud of what they used to do and they don't hide their past. I understand some people connect it with self worth and self diginity, but my former dancer friends would say, "Well, that's the only thing would pay me well enough to support my living long time ago."

Well, I kind of got sidetrack here, but all of them are either married or in a relationship now. Their boyfriends or husbands know that they used to strip.. But what a hey, they have different jobs now, enjoying their life and they still can laugh about their past occupation.

I know it's okay to have secrets; they are often for protecting other people's feeling or well being. But if the secrets are to deceive others, then I'm not a big fan. Actually, I know secrets are very complicated and it's not that simple to be black and white..

Questions come to my mind are: Do you have a secret(s), if so, are you willing to keep them forever in your heart???

Friday 5 for August 29 : Sticky

1. What was the last song that stuck in your brain and wouldn’t go away?

A. "That's what you get" by Paramore - sorry, but I love this song and I can't get rid of it!!! My kids and I always sing this song out loud and we all LOVE and digging it!!!!

2. What’s something that sticks around long after you wish it would leave?

A. Ahhhhh, some food stuff that stuck in between my teeth. Don't we all hate it? All the stuff I love; corn, straweberry seeds, etc...

3. To what use did you put your last sticky note?

A. The list for my shopping for lingerie at Victoria's Secret that I sticked in my wallet.

4. When did you last have Pixy Stix?

A. Pixy Stix??? What is that?????????????? Really, I've never had it before.

5. What is something you are a stickler for?

A. My husband's driving - I constantly pointing out what he shouldn't be doing or at least what I think he shouldn't be doing. He always tells me he doesn't need a mother to tell him how to drive. He is a skilled driver, but doesn't mean he's a safe driver. You understand the difference? haha

They Did It!!!!!

Have you ever heard of a blog called "JUNK"???? It is a blog about two guys who had made a raft made with thousands of plastic bottoles and a cockit, and had crossed Pacific Ocean to Hawaii.

Marcus and Joel finally arrived in Honolulu, HI yesterday safely (Aug27, 08) -- It is just incredible!! Can you imagine navigating a raft without any kitchen or any sort of nice amenities, spending 87 days out in the ocean??? They pretty much ate fish everyday which of course they caught by themselves. They got to enjoy cheesecake or some gourmet (lol) food once in a while which they stored in the freezer, but didn't touch most of them until they were close to Hawaii.

I was fortunate enough to come across their journery which was four weeks ago - Thanks to 'Blog of Note' and had followed their progress everyday. I even received a reply to my comment from them which was posted on their blog which was tremendous joy..

Their purpose for this journey is to spread the notion how badly our ocean has been damaged by plastic or debris or whatever we, human beings leave in the ocean or on land. They fished out so many plastic particles under the water, scamming through them one after the other which was pretty scary. Last week, they caught a fish to eat and while they're preparing it to filet, they found little tiny pieces of plastic in it.. Unbelieveable!!!

These two guys' determination to do whatever they did was beyond my belief and words; I mean, I always talk about global warming or saving planet, but really, besides using recycled papaer or turning off unused room's lights, I haven't done much to ease the problems. (I do, pick up stuff that people leave on the beach,etc.)
That's why I truly admire their mission: A selfless act of serving the the nature.

Their message indeed has touched my heart and I know I have to do all I can to decrease the use of any sort of plastic. Yes, we sometimes need plastic, but do we really need to use for everything? I banned to use plastic plates and utensils in my household : I say "No" when being asked whether we need them for our takeouts. I talked about this before, but have been using cotton bags for grocery shopping which I have been doing it for a while. I think, what it takes to save beautiful Earth is determination which demonstrated by ordinary people like myself or Marcus or Joel.. People like us have more power and voice than one big celebrity doing the cause. I am humble and always believe that we are not superior than our mother nature, but being a little part of its life. I mean who are we to destroy all the beauty of Earth?

So let's do it, folks, we can do it, just like Marcus and Joel had!! If you would like to know who Marcus and Joel are and what they have accomplished, please go to their blogJUNK" or you can go to my "Favorite Blog to Read". It's truly worth reading their blog and you'll be grateful you did.

Is This Sexy???

Ok, so, I know he's the greatest swimmer of all time or whatever it is, people are going crazy over Michael Phelps. BUT, do you think this pic is cool or sexy??? I don't know... I don't think he looks good at all in this cover. Actually, he looks kind of creepy with gold medals dangling from his neck... Couldn't they come up with something better photo opps?

P.S. is it only me who thinks those gold medals dangling from him looks like women's halter top?? ok, i think it's just me...

Beer Pong Party!!!!

My bro in law, Mr. D called me last week informing that he's throwing a beer pong party... Ok, I must admit I had never played beer pong. He said bring me and his bro = my hubby to his house on Saturday (8/23). Usually, my hubby wouldn't say "yes", but I guess something happened to him, he said "yes"!!!

So, make a long story short, we had a blast!!!! We really had great time. All of our friends were there, drinking and getting drunk even before the game started. Funny thing was that the keg that they had bought for the game was almost gone before game started which was so typical. Don't we all love beers???

The game was so simple, just put the ping pong in the beer cup and other team has to drink it down. Fun, fun, fun!! We played the game, but towards the end though, most of us didn't even care who wins the game. We all wanted to go out and party!!!!! So we did go out to a bar and socialize. What a great feeling!

My husband and I used to go out every weekend when we used to live in Hawaii, but because of my husband condition for the past four years (detail for later day), we barely go out now. It was so nice to see my husband smiling and joking around with friends. I think he needs that sometimes. I am so thankful to our bro, Mr. D for thinking of us.

Thanks for the exciting 14days!!!

Well, it's over again. I love Olympics and I always enjoy watching both Summer and Winter Games. Bejing Olympics had so many people talking, I thought maybe it's going to fail, but I think it's fair to say now that it was the most successful game in Olympic history. I'm sad it's all over (my husband loves the game, but very happy that it's over:)

I truly admire all the athletes' determination whether winning medals or even just to make it to the team. Their countless hours of training and becoming the Olympian is unbelieveable commitment; the endurance, the determination are beyond my imagination. There were times I had always dreamt of becoming an Olympian when I was a teenager. I was a short track runner for 100m and 4x100m relay in junior high school. I was of course, not even close to be an Olympian, but looking at those Olympic athletes compete always bring back old memories of my youth that was so pure and full of hope.

You learn so many stories about athletes during the Game. Most of the times, I end up crying because they're so touching. I would hope that London 2012 (gosh, I'm going to be 38...) will be an extaordinary event as Beijin Olympic!!!

Love Affair Part. 2~

I don't mean to always talk about sex, but I think it's important to talk about it when I want to talk about it.

I am a person who can't have sex just for the sake of sex. I think most of women are build that way. Even you tell yourself that, "this is just sex", you'd eventually find yourself feeling this tingle in your back if you keep sleeping with the same man.

I talked about my friend, Mr. M's relationship with his wife several posts back; that because he loves his wife and his children, he agrees to let his wife to sleep with another man to avoid divorce.

Okay, so I've been thinking about this a lot. Really. A lot... And I came to the conclusion, it's just impossible in my book. If my husband came to me and told me that, "okay, the marriage is not working, we're not working, our love is not working, so what should we do?", then of course I would be devastated. And if he tells me the only way for us to save our marriage is to have an open marriage where he can sleep with another woman. I am sorry, that's when I have to draw the line.

It's true, nobody wants to go through a divorce. It's absolutely natural that parents want to protect their children from any harm including divorce. But, if you claim to love each other, then why would you allow your spouse to sleep with another man/woamn? I don't know...

I'm sure there are so many unhappy married couples out there. And I know marriage and love are not simple like we all want to believe. Because we have to work at it to make it work. Marriage is not a goal or solution to a relationship. It's just a start, a beginning to so many happiness and hardships.

But, we need to know that we have to have boundaries. I don't want to criticize my friend because it's working for him and his marriage. It's good for them and their life. But not me. I think if anything happens between my husband and I, I want both of us to have the courage to be honest and have enough respct for each other to let go of our marriage.. Because I think, that's love even at the end of love.

This week's Friday 5 questions.

1. What’s something really, really stupid you’ve done that could easily have resulted in your own death?

A. I have two episodes on this q's: First, I was up on the top roof when I was 5 looking down on people, waving 'byebye' and 'hello'. The neighbor saw me and my younger sister sitting on the roof, they told my dad, who, of course came back upstairs ANGRY. We both got belt. hehe. I didn't know what the big deal was then because I was fearless and I thought it was fun and people would be excited to see us. Now I am a mother of two little girls; Now I know how my dad must had felt like. It is scary and I would be angry if my daughters did the same thing. Really stupid!

Second, I was partying with bunch of friends for my 25th birthday. 25th!!! It's a big one, so everybody around me and in the club bought me my favorite shots of Tequila. Everywhere I turned, there's people holding the shot waiting for me to drinkking it down. I believe I did at least 20 of them and I got really really sick afterwards. I could have had alcohol poisoning on my birthday. Very stupid! Be careful, folks!


2. What makes you feel stupid?

A. When I realize I'm rambling and not making any sense. This only happens either when I'm super excited or nervous. Since English is my second language, that adds more anxiety and lame speech..


3. What’s something that’s stupid in a very smart way?

A. Paparazzi. This whole paparazzi and Hollywood thing is getting to me these days although I love Hollywood gossip (contradicting myself here). See, the relationships between paparazzi, Hollywood and us readers/viwers is so unique. The whole thing is stupid, but then, paparazzi knows what to do to make themselves tons of $$$. Smart, eh?


4. What’s an example of a stupid idea working out in a way that solved a problem?

A. I think Go Green and Be Green ideas were once called stupid and non-sense before. People now love Organic food and clothing, etc. People try to use less plastic bags, etc.. It's not 100% solving the problems we have, but I believe it's definitely helping to improve the condition of our enviroment.

5. There is apparently a brand of packaged popcorn called Smartfood. What might be found in the package labeled Stupidfood?

A. Bunch of sugar coated Tuna? Just kidding! I would say bunch of stuff that would make you weak; such as krispy kream donuts, pizza, onion rings, candy, soda and ice cream. So let's add the sugar and calories 100 times more to the food above and make them as Stupidfood.

Rhythmic African Poetry

I was watching "Third Watch" a while back when the series were on NBC, and the charactors in the show were talking about rap music. One of the officer who is an African American said, "Rhythmic African Poetry - R.A.P" I was like "Wow!!!" I'd never thought we could interpret the word "RAP" like that.

I love all kinds of music. I appreciate the art of music itself including RAP music. Yes, some of the hardcore, gangsta rap troubles me, but many rap songs give me a good groove on...

Some songs have very strong messages. Many people think rap music promotes violence which I agree in some extent. But the music also makes you think about the problems that many young black people are facing today; poverty, violence and drugs.

It's sad because so many black people in the old days fought for their freedom, so that their new generation would have a better life. It seems though, now, they are fighting each other. Gang members killing other gang members. I know the real issue is deeper than me talking about it here on a blog, but really, if anything, the generations of Rosa Parks or Dr. Martin Luther King are the ones who should have animosity towards the society.

Many young black people struggle everyday to overcome the stereotype of black society. It is true, violence does exists, gangs do exist and overwhelming poverty does exsit among black society, but also there are many new black leaders who try to change that. Because they believe enough is enough.

So question is this; are we really fighting the racism in this country?

Love Me or Love Me, Not...

Do you think people can stay in love forever or do we all fall out of love???
I have been thinking a lot about this lately.
I see so many people falling out of love...

What do you think? When people get married, is it possible to stay in love forever or are we all bound to fall out of love?

Just Do It featuring Marvin Gay & 08' USA Basketball Team

I grew up listening to Marvin Gay... This is one of my favorite CM now.

This week's Friday 5 questions.

1. What did you last replace batteries for?
A. For a crappy new Verizon Fios' remote controller.

2. What have you thrown away that you probably could have had repaired?
A. My kids' leapfrog computer..

3. Among items in your line of sight right now, what should probably be put in the trash?
A. Bunch of junk (paper scribble) in my diary notebook.. What are those paper doing in there?

4. When did you last use disposable cutlery while dining in your house?
A. I refuse to use plastic cutlery that goes straight to landfill - I always say "no" to plastic cutlery fot takeout.

5. actions cause you to waste time you otherwise wouldn’t waste?
A. Okay, I'm always out the door to the car and in the car, only to realize I forgot something in the house, so I go back to the house. This always happens every-frickin'-time when I go out.. Can anybody please tell me what I should do to prevent this stupic action of mie that cause me to waste time???

Love Affair

A good friend of mine, Mr. M told me the other day that his wife of 16 years is having an affair with another guy for the past 6 months. I was really shocked. He never showed any sign of troubles in his marriage. But this is nothing compare to the story I am about to tell you...

Mr. M told me that because he has the best interest in protecting his children from any harm which includes Divorce he agreed that she can keep seeing this guy she's sleeping with. WTF??? Yes, I said it "WTF!?" But he was calm and reasonable and said he's not being desperate. He said he still loves her and he knows she loves him. But sometimes, two people fall in love and fall out of love, but they want to keep the children as family, so they talked countless hours and days and they chose to have an open marriage.

He is not happy talking about it and they are not swingers, but he told me he's come to grips with it and made the commitment to be with her for rest of his life, so he'll go through with it...



Now, the question comes to my mind was whether he would seek a friend like his wife has... The answer is he doesn't know yet. He told me that he would eventually wanting to make himself happy, but not right now. I asked him why he didn't give her the divorce when she came up and told him maybe the marriage is not right for her anymore. He said because he believed they still have chance to make it work. That's how much he loves her. They're no longer in love with each other, but they love each other still and he strongly believes children should be raised by both parents. He said he comes from a divorced parents and he hated all those days and years he was forced to going back and forth between his father and mother spending different holidays. He doesn't want his children to go through what he went through...

With that said, let me say this: I'm so confused. I'm really, really confused.. Is this really possible? I thought it's only possible in the movies or some crazy swinger's world, but he's not like that. He's a genuine human-being. I feel bad about it. But also I'm amazed the weight of one man's dedication to his children. He's unbelievable!

One Good Fight

Randy Pausch 1960 - 2008 ***The Book I treasure so much written by late Randy Pausch***

It took me a while for me to write this entry, talking about a wonderful teacher who taught so many important things in life to so many students, including myself. I personally did not know him, but I know who he was, how special and courageous person he was... His name is Randy Pausch. He was suffering from a terminal pancreatic cancer and lost his battle last month on July 25th.

I first saw him on Youtube last year giving a lecture to hundreds of students about his life and life itself. It touched me, he moved me and he taught so many things. I will not get into it in detail, but I was truly devastated when I learned his death.

I can't explan how much his book means to me ever since I laid my hands on it. He talks about love, hope and dream and NEVER, NEVER give up to live your life to its fullest. I hope that all of you have the chance to read this book "The Last Lecture". It will change your life, the way you want to live your life....

When the love is tested

This is the statement that has been released by Mrs. Edwards. Would you be able to say the things she says if you're in the same shoes as hers??? I applaud her courage and grace...

"Our family has been through a lot. Some caused by nature, some caused by human weakness, and some most recently caused by the desire for sensationalism and profit without any regard for the human consequences. None of these has been easy. But we have stood with one another through them all. Although John believes he should stand alone and take the consequences of his action now, when the door closes behind him, he has his family waiting for him.

John made a terrible mistake in 2006. The fact that it is a mistake that many others have made before him did not make it any easier for me to hear when he told me what he had done. But he did tell me. And we began a long and painful process in 2006, a process oddly made somewhat easier with my diagnosis in March of 2007. This was our private matter, and I frankly wanted it to be private because as painful as it was I did not want to have to play it out on a public stage as well. Because of a recent string of hurtful and absurd lies in a tabloid publication, because of a picture falsely suggesting that John was spending time with a child it wrongly alleged he had fathered outside our marriage, our private matter could no longer be wholly private. The pain of the long journey since 2006 was about to be renewed.

John has spoken in a long on-camera interview. Admitting one's mistakes is a hard thing for anyone to do. I am proud of the courage John showed by his honesty in the face of shame. The toll on our family of news helicopters over our house and reporters in our driveway is yet unknown. But now the truth is out, and the repair work that began in 2006 will continue. I ask that the public, who expressed concern about the harm John's conduct has done to us, think also about the real harm that the present voyeurism does and give me and my family the privacy we need at this time."

One Man's Mistake, Actually a HUGE Mistake..

I was kind of surprised to know about Set. Edwards' sex scandal. He had this clean image he presented to the public; a good and a loving husband to a wonderful wife and woman, Elizabeth who's fighting breast cancer for the past four years, and a wonderful father to his children. If anything, he'd be the one to criticize men who are unfaithful to their wives. I think he did that to Bill Clinton. He seemed very sincere and charming.

But, I want to say, "Wake Up America!!!" I don't want to be cynical, but do you think he's the only one who cheats on wife? Many people are doing it behind the closed door. He's not the only one who cheats on their spouses. I hate to see Senator Edward be the scapegoat for so many others who are doing the same thing as he had done and portray as a bad person.

True, he's a political figure (once a presidential candidate) that many had looked up to, admired and trusted and he had no right to break the trust. But he's also a human being who made mistakes. His political life is done. He won't be able to come back. But I'm sure he'll do all he can to build back the relationship with his wife and family, that should be his priority. And I hate to see this situation unfold on TV when I know his wife and family want to deal with it privately (as it reports, him and his wife already talked and have dealt with it since 2006.)

People are angry because they say he lied about it; but what would you? Wouldn't you deny at first? I mean come on.. Well, it's true, he should never betrayed his family and wife, but I'm sure he'll be paying a lot of price for it with his dignity stripped away.....

R.I.P. Bernie Mac

What a shocker....

Bernie Mac just passed away today at the age of 50.
He was funny and I always enjoyed watching him act both on screen and TV.

Rest in Peace, Bernie Mac. You'll surely be missed...

Bare it or Cover it???

Okay, here is the thing. Me and my husband often times disagree with many issues which is of course, a normal thing between a husband and wife. But today, we were at it again, so I decided to share what we argued about.

This happened when I was putting on makeup in the morning. I was right in the middle of putting foundation on my face. My husband comes in and had a look at what I was doing and started to saying, "you really don't need to put that much makeup, you know.." And I said, "what do you mean, 'that much' makeup.. I don't put a lot of makeup, honey.. This is oil-free, light/sheer foundation." So of course he goes like this, "Oh, yes you do.. you put a lot of makeup and you don't need it. It's complement. Don't take me the wrong way. I think you should forget about spending 10-15 minutes to make your face because you look beautiful without it." So we were going back and forth, yada yada yada....

In my honest opinion, I do believe I need makeup. I look pretty with it, not without it. I don't really put a lot of makeup to begin with, just a tiny bit of foundation, sometimes even just tinted moisturizer. I dust some blush, eyeshadow and liner and lip gloss. It doesn't sound much, right? And so, I really don't understand why it bothers my husband so much. I asked him, "Don't you want your wife to look nice, not ugly??" and his reply would always be, "It's because you're insecure about yourself. You really don't need it."

I do hear many men saying that they don't like to see their gals wearing lots of makeup. But really, I think makeup makes women feel pretty, it has nothing to do with insecurity. What do you think? Do you bare it or cover it?

Quote of the Day

My brother in law, Mr. D who can't seem to stay in a commited relationship swore last night at the dinner table for my mother in law's birthday (I baked the birthday cake by the way, thank you very much.)

"I'm going back to my old ways.."

This comes as he said he was dumped by this girl he was dating for about 5 days...

His old ways means to 'sleep around.'

"Are you nuts???? " I said... I thought he would come up with something better than that...

He's nuts. This is why he can't settle down even he wants to settle down. He's so cute and handsome, I just don't get him. I hope he's just joking, but just in case if he's not - Watch out for all the germies, guy.

This week's Friday 5 questions.

1. In Citizen Kane, the main character’s last word before dying is “Rosebud,” which is discovered later to be the name of a favorite childhood sled. The idea is that this rich, powerful, hated man, in his last moment, finds himself thinking of happy, innocent times. If the film were about your life, what word might you utter in similar sentiment?

A. "Rainbow"

2. In Groundhog Day, the main character is forced to live the same day again and again until he has learned to love others and to love himself. If you found yourself in an endless loop, living one day repeatedly until you learned the lesson that was holding you back, what would that lesson be?

A. To be okay to be alone... I am fearful of being alone (meaning I was afraid of being single when I was younger), but I was told from many that you have to be able to stand alone until you can be a full grown adult, which it seems I haven't been accomplished...

3. In Freaky Friday, a mother and daughter who have difficulty understanding each other find themselves each living the other’s life (occupying the other’s body and everything!). If this were to happen to you for similar reasons, whose body would you wake up in?

A. Definitely my husband's body..

4. In Raiders of the Lost Ark, Indiana Jones has to jump into an underground room filmed with the one thing that freaks him out: snakes. “Why did it have to be snakes?” he asks. If the movie were about you, what would you see in the underground room?

A. ahhhh.. roaches, the most disgusting creatures in the whole wide world and they will never be extinguished...

5. In Sideways, the main character is asked to explain his love for wine made from a certain grape. As he describes the grape, we realizes he is also describing himself, saying that it must be carefully tended and that it is easily damaged. If the film were about you, what passion (hobby, food, collectible, or activity, for example) would you describe and how would you describe it so that you were also describing yourself? *

A. Dancing -- you need to know how to breath, gotta have rhythm and free of spirit. You can't be too shy because you need to be able to express yourself.. And it requires some sex appeal when you dance..

Where is Caylee?

This is Caylee Anthony who's been missing since mid June. She will be 3 this coming Saturday. Since I live in Florida now, her story has always been the top-news on many tv programs here. Many have suspected that her mother, Casey Anthony has something to do with her disappearance, but with that said, I'm still concerned about her, and including my husband, I'm glued to TV news everyday and night... I am a mother of 2 and 4 year-old girls. I can't imagine losing my daughters. And I can't believe how selfish and irresponsible a mother can be, like Casey, who didn't report her daughter missing for five weeks. Can you imagine??? I would call 911 if I can't find my girls in my house looking for them for 10 minutes if that.

And watching the movie "GONE BABY GONE" the other night, makes me really nervous. I feel that even I don't want to admit it, this cute little girl, Caylee is already gone. It's really sad and tragic. I just hope that she will be found soon because she deserves to be found and find peace...

GONE BABY GONE

So, I saw the movie "GONE BABY GONE" with my husband last night. I'd always wanted to see it, so I was very happy finally I got to see it. It was awesome moive... It was full of suspense. And most of all, the movie made me think and taught me as a parent what it is to raise a child (in my case raising my two daughters) with all I have.

It's so disgusting to know there are so many pedophiles in this world and this film has made me more aware of that, and I have to do everything to protect my children and other children from any harm... And I know there are so many children who're still missing today and my heart aches just thinking about what they might have been going through.. It's horrible.

This movie is directed by Ben Affleleck and is based on the book "GONE BABY GONE". I don't think I should talk about it too much because I wouldn't want to spoil the movie for you guys. It was so unpredictable and you would think you know what's going to happen, but then you're wrong. No one could predict the ending, I think. The film was well written and acted. I suggest you go and rent it if you haven't seen the movie. You won't be disappointed!

August 6, 1945

This is the day I will never forget until the day I die and I will teach my daughters to carry on the legacy.

Today is the 63rd anniversary of bombing of Hiroshima... Well, it's August 5th here, but in Japan, it's already the 6th of August, so I always pray on the 5th.

My grandpa survived the A-bomb which was dropped on Hiroshima soil sixty three years ago. It was the first atomic bomb that was used on human population, the next one would be the last one, at least for now. Many people do not want to talk about it mainly because Japan was the offender during the WWII, causing tremendous pain and anguish to so many innocent civilians in China, Korea, South East Asia. And the U.S. was deffender for those people, fighting against Japanese forces.

I grew up listening to my grandfather's story, how horrible the war was and is still today... He passed away long time ago, but his message was this; War kills so many innocent people, women, children and eldery people. There is nothing you can justify it. Some say, bombings in Hiroshim and Nagasaki were the only way to stop the war and Japanese offense. We somehow learn how to shut my mouth when it comes to August 6 and August 9, 1945. We do talk about it among friends or family or in school, but we become somewhat hesitant because we feel this guilt of attacking Pearl Harbor or killing another innocent lives.

People of Hiroshima often say "we don't know why.. why the war had to happen.. if we didn't have the war, then our family and friends didn't have to die..." That's true, they're victims of war as well. I can go on forever talking about my belief, but I want to focus on the victims who died during WWII today. I pray for world peace, eternal peace we don't have to live in fear for nuclear war. Because of the sacrifices that innocent people made in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, we know how horrible nuclear weapons are, that we need to fight to abolish them.

I will talk more about my grandfather later tonight... Thanks for reading.

When Sex is Only Sex

Things get complicated when you fall in love with someone who is not capable of being in love. My best friend, Miss. K is going through tough time with exact that - being in love with my brother-in-law who just can't commit. I'm always in between of two people that I love and care. She calls me and cry how much she loves him, but she doesn't know what to do with him anymore. Then the next day on Sunday evening (we gather every Sunday for dinner at my in-law's house), I have to listen to him nagging about how serious things are becoming and he doesn't know what to do.

I always tell him if he doesn't want her as his girlfriend, then let her go, even it will hurt her now, it will save her in the end. He tells me he always tells her that it's just sex and he thinks that's what she wants too. Wrong!!! She tells him so because she's afraid of losing him. She always tells him how she feels, but he tells her he just can't commit. But once she decides to leave the relationship, he starts to freak out and wants her in his life, asking me bunch of questions about her.

So, I want to tell you Mr. D, don't confuse her, don't confuse me and don't play with her heart. Actually I can say this all the guys out there who think they can walk on gals hearts whatever they want. Effing wrong!!!!

Shopping wisely

*** All the non-platic bags that I own for grocery shopping including Anya Hindermarch's "I'm Not Plastic Bag" (no fake!)

***Kitchen paper & napkins

***Can you see the writing "100% recycled paper"?

I have posted my old blog from myspace about not using plastic bags when I go for grocery shopping the other day. I took some pics of all the bags I use when I go to grocery shopping today. Three green wise bags from Publix, one Whole Food's bag and Anya Hindermarch's famous handbag that I stood in line last year at Whole Food's in the rain in NJ.

Another pics are paper products that I just started using in the house; they are made of 100% recycled paper. Yes, there's no fancy color print such as flowers or character, etc. But I just wanted to see how durable they are because if I claim to be/go as green as possible, then I should use recycled paper. As long as they do their job which clean the mess on kitchen counter or dining table or clean our mouth after eating, then why complain? Being green is sometimes not easy or fansy, but necessary step to save this planet.

Miracle on myspace

You know, I used to be an anti-myspace gal. I used to shrug off my friends who had their profile on there because all I heard on TV or magazines was bad message; a guy gets arrested after chatting a 12 yr-old boy on myspace and initiate sexual contact or a teenage girl gets almost raped by a man she'd met on myspace or a girl kills herself after cyber bully on myspace. I mean I heard nothing positive about that online network site, until I'd come across the information that my favorite actor Tom Hanks had created his profile on myspace by reading PerezHilton. I was like "Oh my god, I have to be his friend!!!" That was last October, 2008. I did indeed created myspace account and now I am an addict to the site! How pathetic am I??? Not that I'm surfing on there, just updating my profile constantly, creating my favorite space. Many of my friends in Hawaii have their account, so I get to stay in touch with them better than before as well..

The reason why I am writing this blog today is because many great things happened to me for the past several weeks because of this myspace I used to dislike so much. And I hope you wouldn't mind telling you the story.

Well, I had this boyfriend when I lived in Hawaii - I dated him for 5 years from 20 - 25. I was madly in love with him, believing and telling myself that "I'm going to marry him!!!!" He was a great surfer on the North Shore and I loved every aspect of being with him. But I guess it's fair to say that we're both young. He was only 23 when we met, wanted to party with his friends and have fun with his life, not settling down. If I think about the last thing he'd want to do is to get married, you know what I mean?

So, one day, I received a phone call from him. "Hey, I'm at the airport. I'm leaving, back to Florida.." he said. I was like "WTF????????? What, what did you say???" He told me he's done and he wanted to start over. Before I could even say anything he clicked. He didn't have cell phone at the time so there's no way I could contact him. Just like that, our 5 year relationship which I had invested so much emotion, love and everything else was all gone. I was crushed!!!!!!

Well, of course it took me a while to get over him, but I had dated many guys after that, remember a famous saying "to get over your love is to have as many re-bounds as possible"? Then I met my husband. We got engaged, I was really happy. That's when I received an unexpected phone call/message from my ex, saying that he's back in the island. It'd passed almost three years since that heartbreaking phone call. I didn't know what to do, I couldn't delete that message, but still I didn't have the guts to call him back. His voice had brought all the good and bad memories that I tried so hard to forget back in to my lifejust in a second. It's not fair..

Then one night I was out with my girlsfriends to this new bar that had just opened in Honolulu and there he was, out with his friends laughing and drinking. I brought all the courage to make this HUGE fake smile and went up to him. He was all smiley, hugging me and telling me how much he missed me like nothing ever happend. I was losing my mind simply because I was already engaged to my husband. Before I told him about my engagement, my ex spotted the engagemtn ring on my left hand. He looked at me puzzled, speechless. So, my friend said "oh, while you're gone, she met this wonderful man and got engaged, bye~" and disappeard. He said "are you, for real?" and I told him "Yes." The night was over... But then my ex started calling me, begging me to come back to him. He even told me that he'd marry me and move to Japan for me. Wow, that's a news. Actually, he did change, did a complete 180. He was smarter, calmer and had a good head on shoulder. I guess the soul searching journey really worked for him. It's just that the timing was bad between us. I never returned all the phone calls he made for me. I just didn't want to open a bad can of worms or start something I would later regret. The last time I saw him was when I was pregnant with my first daughter at a fair on the North Shore. He wish me good luck and that was it.

Now, after five years, I found my ex's profile on his friend (professional surfer Mr. L's) profile. I had to think for a few hours whether to send him a message or not, but I chose to say "hello". He did wrote me back a few days later and we put ourselves on each other's friends list. He has a girlfriend now and he's very happy. Now I'm 34, he will be 38 end of this month. Time flies really fast, but at the same time I realize it heals everything. We're friends again. It's a miracle on myspace and I'm grateful..

One of my favorite guitar tune

**This is John Mayer covering Justin Timberlake's "I think she knows Interlude". I honestly believe his guitar sounds so much better than Justin's original. Enjoy!

This is as good as it gets in Lakewood Ranch, FL

My family and I have been going to this town gathering called "Jazz on Main Street" in Lakewood Ranch for the past 9 months. Every first Friday, people get together at the shopping center (kinda tiny) for a night of fun; listening and dancing to the band music and eating and drinking. The full purpose is to boost economy in the shopping plaza because of the recent negative Florida housing market has caused the town tremedous damage financially and losing its customer.

Funny thing is every month, people come and crowd the place -- I don't know why, but us included enjoy the Friday evening every month. Not that much happening to tell you the truth. Just many old folks. LOL. But this is our favorite event at this boring Lakewood Ranch and we can't seem to get enough of it. Does it mean I'm getting old, too???

From John Mayer

I posted this blog a long time ago, but I thought I would share with you. It's a blog from John Mayer sending out an important message. Enjoy.


**This blog is written by me on January 13, 2008 and by John Mayer on January 12, 2008.

So, maybe we all should learn from this blog posted by John Mayer yesterday. We all love to have good time sometimes, but do we really think what could happen if we drink and drive?
I did exactly that last Friday. I didn't drive because I was no way near, capable of driving, so my best friend drove us home from the bar. She was fine and we got home safely, but it was probably not the best thing to do.
So, after reading this blog, I realized that I need to make more better judgement when I go out. Maybe I should be the Designated Driver for everybody since I don't want to smell alcohol for a while. So, call me when you need a ride after a fun night of drinking and partying. I will pick you guys up and drive you home. Enjoy John's passage - it's pretty enlightening.


SATURDAY, JANUARY 12, 2008
UNDER THE (IMPRESSION I CAN) INFLUENCE (PEOPLE AROUND ME)

With Chad, Left, seated. (with glasses)


I'm taking to the blog today to share something with you that I feel more passionate about than I saw coming. I want to make it short and sweet so that anybody who wants to re-print it can copy and paste without editing...

Went out to dinner Thursday night. My car. One glass of wine. Carpooled from dinner to go out to one more place. Everyone in my car. At the next spot, I do the Diet Coke with Lime thing. My favorite scotch (Lagavulin 16 year) arrives under my nose. "Can't do it," I say. Then I find out my friend has switched to Designated Driver and has a plan that involves everyone getting home safe. Cool. I love Lagavulin when the time is right. Now it's the end of the night and I'm feeling wonderfully buzzy and ready to get dropped off to my house in my car, except the person that was going to follow my car in the DD's car to drive him back isn't in shape to drive either.

It's 2 o'clock in the morning. I call my housemate Chad. Chad's sleeping. He was in the studio all day. I explain to him that I need him to jump in the back seat of my car, ride to the DD's car and drive me back home. Of course Chad says "yes" and comes through like a champ. A champ, I say.

Here's what I want to tell you:

If I, incredibly hot/fugly John Mayer can make that call, so can you.

The distance from the parking lot to my house was about 5 miles, mostly straight shot up the coast of Santa Monica, zero traffic. And I didn't drive it. Me. The guy who gets the VIP velvet rope treatment in life.

Oh, and the call? It's not the coolest you'll ever sound. And the logistics? It's kind of inelegant. You trace the same route twice when all you want to do is fall into bed. But you gotta do it.

This is all coming from a guy who you can be sure would have found a sexier way to get home if there was one available. And there just isn't, especially in LA. (You can be sexy again the next day when you wake up with the rest of your big, beautiful life in front of you.)

I'm not writing this to earn golf claps, it's just that if I'm going to stand in any way as an ambassador of something cool or influential, this is more important than any pair of sneakers or a guitar.

And to give a big high five to the Chads of the world. See you around

JM

POSTED BY JOHN MAYER AT 12:05 PM FROM LOS ANGELES, CA..>

When you can't still fall asleep...

I sided with writing a blog... As I wrote a few hours ago, I went out with my family last night and had a wonderful time with them. But I fell asleep and that was the beginning of the torture. I guess I fell asleep around midnight feeling little buzzy which was a good thing, then somehow I woke up --- of course I had to go to bathroom and from there, I went down spiral, feeling so sick. After countless tours to the bathroom, I feel much, much better, but no way near have I come to close my eyes. I do want to go to sleep though and I have tried for the last five hours trying that, but in the end I'm typing this.

So, what have I been doing besides toss and turning? I went to myspace, update some profile, send some messages to my friends and read my favorite artist, John Mayer's blog. He has several of them. Oh, I really love his personality - so laid back, down to earth, kind and funny.... Well, I'm talking like I know the guy, of course I don't, but he has this persona which makes you feel like you're his friend. He also loves Japan where I'm from, he speaks Japanese.. He's perfect. And his blogs are so much fun - you should definitely check them out - you'll find yourself amazed by him.

Awwwwww, I feel like crap...

And that's what's happening to me these days; a night of fun, drinking and having good dinner and feel like shit when I come home. I went out with my family tonight to this monthly gathering of the town we live in. People gather at this outside shopping place every first Friday night. I will talk about this more in another blog, but anyway, I had a few wines and after the music ended, we headed to a Japanese restaurant and had a good dinner. I come home, feeling kind of buzzed, laying next to the girls getting them down to bed and I, too, fell asleep. I woke up an hour ago at 2:30am feeling like crap!!! My head is pounding and I just found myself putting my head over the white toilet bowl. Ewww, so not sexy...

I don't know what's up with my body, but I used to be able to drink, drink and more drinking and felt fine afterwards.. No hungover next morning. But ever since I had this night out with my friend about four months ago, drinking my favorite vodka continuously, I fell ill the next morning, I somehow hasn't been able to drink like a champ like used to.... It's weird. It seems like my whole body is rejecting the alcohol... I'm telling myself again that I won't drink anymore. I hate alcohol.... Well, let's see how that goes....

YOUR FAVORITE ON-SCREEN BATMAN by Flick 4 Friday

Are you psyched? I know I am. Batman: the Dark Knight! WOO! Anyways, this meme goes for
all on-screen versions of Batman including those terrific cartoon versions you used to watch after school on the (now-defunct) WB.


My Answer: I must say Michael Keaton.. Somehow I loved the way he carried himself out through the movie... Although I love George Clooney, I wasn't too thrilled by the film, Val Kilmer was okay, not too bad.. Then Christian Bale came along!!!!!! Oh boy, he's so great at it.. So, the ranking goes like this :

1. Michael Keaton
2. Christian Bale (he may take the 1st place after the Dark Knight)
3. Val Kilmer
4. Geroge Clooney

When we do it together...

Below content is what I have posted on my myspace a while back, but I thought I share with you. I start to realize many people are doing their part to be kind to our planet and I'm very happy. But I think we have a long road ahead and let's do it together to save our Earth for our future generation!!!!

*************************************************************************************

When I go to grocery shopping, I use the shopping bags that I bought at the super market to bag the stuff I buy, so that I don't have to waste plastic bags. It costs .99 cents to buy them and they look cute also. "Green Wise" makes them and they come in three colors. Anyway, I went to the weekly grocery shopping today and I was very happy and hopeful when I returned home. I saw many people using the reusable bags just like I do -- from older people to younger folks bagging their stuff into non-plastic bags. I was really amazed! Some might say "oh what a big deal, it's just plastic." But I think the climate crisis is serious than many believe and I think even a little thing can change the world and save the Earth. I used two of my bags to bag my stuff today. I would have used at least 5 plastic bags to bag them if I didn't use reusable bags (the Green Wise bag can hold tons of stuff!) If I go to grocery store twice a week and use 5 bags each time, sometimes more than that, it means I would use 10 plastic bags per week. Then if I multiply 10 by 4 week worth of bags equal 40 plastic bags per month. If I do that for a year, then I would have used 480 plastic bags!!!! It's kind of a scary thought!!! And what do we do with it? We usually use them to pick dog's poop or something along the line which of course would end up in the landfill to stay there forever. It's just not good.. There are so many different bags out there that you can use for shopping. I also have Anya Hindmarch's "I'm Not a Plastic Bag" and use Whole Foods bags when I shop there. They even give you .10 cents back when you use their bags instead of plastic bags. It makes me feel really happy when I don't use plastic bags. It always makes me feel like I accomplish something big! LOL.

I am doing this for not only myself, but for my two daughters and their generation because they will be the ones who will have to face the most difficult time dealing with the climate crisis. I always tell my oldest daughter who tends to enjoy washing her hands longer than she needs to: "our planet is melting! Earth is heating up!!!" And she says "oh, Mommy, that's not good" and she stops the water. It maybe a little thing, but if we do it together, I know we can make a difference. So, let's bag your grocery in reusable bags, recycle plastic bags if you use them (many store takes them back from you), unplug your power cord including your cell phone charger, shut down your pc instead of putting it to sleep and conserve water!!! I think we can do this!
What do you think? Do you have what it takes to save the planet?

This week's Friday 5 questions.

1. Of television programs that aired before you were born, what’s your favorite?
A. I Love Lucy

2. What person of historical significance was from your neighborhood or city?
A. Historical significance in my book was my grandpa and others who lived through WWII even though they're ordinary people.

3. What’s a story that’s often been told about someone in your family in the years before you came along?
A. My Grandfather who survived A-bomb in Hiroshima on Aug 6, 1945

4. Which of previous generations’ dumb mistakes (in deed or thought) baffles you the most?
A. Racial segregation...

5. What aspect of life in the good old days would you love to see a return to?
A. When I was little, I was able to run around neighborhood and everybody in the neighborhood would watch us closely, so we can play safely... Everybody knew everybody. Now I don't even know if my daughters can do that on the streets - it's sad to teach my children not to trust people, but that's what we have to do these days..