Saturday, January 26, 2008

Lay Off The Smokes And Eat Some Meat

Rory Beca - Wrap Gown w/ Obi (in Smoke) [$380]
This is the kind of volume I like for gowns.

My brother made Chocolate Mousse last night.
It was good! My kind of chocolate: dark + bitter. It was rich.
You would have never have guessed it only had 3 ingredients.
He says he has enough ingredients for 2 more batches of 5 bowls each lol
It's the healthy version of the sinful classic chocolate mousse.
What do you think it is?
The first 2 ingredients are: Dark chocolate (melted) and vanilla extract.
I'll tell you @ the end.

It wasn't very cold this week.. well last night was a bit cold... but I just went outside to check if there was anything to eat in the garage and I was frrrrrreeeeezzzingggg. And now it's snowing! Yay I guess.

Anyway, the title is referring to Lee HyukSoo, a Korean model (1988er and 6'2) + actor. Quite emo. He has this quality that really captivates me.
He is pretty disgustingly skinny though... and it's too bad he seems to love his cigs.
He's has some nice features.
I like his lips lolMaybe he should have played L in Death Note hahaHe reminds me of Edward Scissorhands
omg... have a chocolate at least...
So he does eat! He has a cute smile.
This is the most personality I've seen him have.
Why is it that designer websites use so much Flash (I'm not talking about the light... I'm talking about the program... unless they use something more sophisticated than Flash)? They take forever to navigate...

CHOMP:
Breakfast + Lunch (eaten over a span of 3.5 hours):
Rest of the chocolate mousse
1 cup green tea
1/4 Chicken Caesar Thin Crust Pizza (Costco)
3 raincoast chips (which aren't really chips.. more like a healthy crunchy cracker)
Small bowl of Nissin instant noodles w/ egg + gai lan
2 cups water
Snack:
Handful of multigrain nachos w/ shrimp dip.. omg we still have some left
Dinner:
Pasta salad
Baked potato + sweet potato slices
Baked chicken
Cabbage
1 cup milk
Dessert:
More chocolate mousse
Orange slices

Today D came over and while I ran on my treadmill, we watched Miss America. I really liked one of the talent performances - I'll show you once it comes out on Youtube. Miss Michigan won. I missed that part 'cause I was taking a shower.

Answer:
The last (and secret) ingredient to my brother's mousse is...
dooga dooga dooga

Soft tofu!!
Yup.
You'd never have guessed!

Friday, January 25, 2008

Ride On

My choices for the 4 best (b/c I couldn't think of 5) Korean singers as of now:

Qualifications: good tone, sings on key live (pretty much all the time), evokes emotion in voice..
I happen to be partial to guys.
1. Junsu (from DBSK/TVXQ/Tohoshinki/Anyband)
2. Tim
3. Sung Si Kyung
4. Shin Hye Sung (from Shinhwa)
Runner up: Kyuhyun from Super Junior + Se7en

B posted this clip of Sung Si Kyung + Kenny G up on her blog yesterday. Sung Si Kyung is fully Korean but he sings in English so accentlessly!! "Sung Si Kyung never lived in any English speaking country nor studied abroad. He learned it all on his own, driven partly by his admiration for Mariah Carey's music during high school" He also speaks French pretty darn well! Not fluent like he is in English though... but
amazing!! He's not really my type, but I'm falling for him.
**
Next clip: Sung Si Kyung singing I Believe I Can Fly (2005)
Pretty good eh?! His voice is apparently priced at 1 billion $$.... how they price voices is beyond me.
**

Tohoshinki is promoting their new album around Japan. They've split to do so (randomly): Yoochun + Changmin, Jaejoong and Yunho, and Junsu by himself haha
Poor Junsu - he's lonely in Tokyo. Here he is, calling Yoochun + Changmin.
Of course, he's (lonely and a bit nervous but) fine with it. I'd be so nervous though... to go from always having the company of your members for interviews to doing radio shows and live broadcasts (that he found out last minute!) for the first time all by yourself!
Jaejoong + Yunho seem to be doing well.
Anyway, to be honest, I'm not as impressed as I usually am with their new Japanese "T" album. It seems a bit too digitally altered... but I think I just have to listen to it more when I get it 'cause I've only been listening to it as background music a couple days ago. I always seem to have to grow to like their Japanese songs 'cause the style is different from their Korean songs.
" Junsu! We answered a quiz on the show and they gave us Lamb meat.
It's a souvenir!
When we return let's eat it all together.
Yoochun, Changmin."
Aw.
lol apparently I'm not alone - In their KISS したまま、さよなら song, I thought they kept repeating "lonely people", but it's actually apparently "long way people" (which doesn't make sense...) hahaha... other ppl on Soompi thought so too. We won't find out for sure until ppl receive their albums.

Funny - my right calf is considerably smaller than my left! Of all the disproportions... lol
Sun Run training Session #2 today. It's the same as last time but it's only 6 times instead of 8. It was a bit annoying changing the speed from 4.2 to 5.9 all the time (thumb hurt) so sometimes I just ran for 2-3 minutes instead of running 1 and walking 2. Then I did a bunch of stretches, crunches, squats, and lunges. Wow.. lunges..... I really felt it in my thighs and butt hahaha
Haven't been doing any arm exercises though like I said I would... tsk.

I just came home -- it's 10:15PM. After Japanese class, I walked around Metro to update myself on what's in store and what's hot or not. A bit disappointing -- all the stores were trying to get rid of their Winter stock so there's sales galore. So I browsed around Chapters for about 1.5 hours. I ended up reading the whole Style: A to Zoe by Rachel Zoe.
She's a renowned celebrity stylist. I've read reviews that this book is basically her bragging about which celebrities she styled and how much recognition they got from what she chose for them. Yea - that's pretty much it. Example: How her and Nicole Richie were coming from one event and Nicole realized she couldn't dance in the dress she was wearing so they quickly stopped by Gucci and picked out a coral coloured dress... xept it was a size 10. So, Rachel took the broach from the front of the dress and used it to pin all the excess material in the back to make it fit her and then they went to the event. Apparently the paps couldn't stop snapping away at her lol.
Anyway, she does give a few tips on how to buy vintage + how to pack for various holidays. I was quite inspired by what she calls excessories. Yea they're just accessories... but she believes that accessories make the outfit and that instead of having another pair of pants, she'd rather have a new belt 'cause that can change the outfit moreso than new pants. I love her jewelry - she layers them well + it's all yellow gold! Her style is bohemian meets vintage from what I gather... has some nice pieces sometimes. She really loves to wear flowy/shapeless pieces.
She also inspired me to invest in timeless designer bags (like a Birkin) instead of trendy, flashy "It" bags. I couldn't agree more. I sort of thought she'd dress a little better being a stylist and all but she does have her own style.
I guess she shouldn't outshine the celebrities but c'mon... what is this........
Here's one of her better looks. I actually (surprisingly) really love this one.

Anyway, my brother won't let me in the kitchen right now. He's making some sort of dessert I think.... but this is great 'cause I can ask him to get me/make me anything from the kitchen. Dai Daiiiiii I'm thirsty! Water please! hah.

CHOMP

Breakfast:
Banana
1 cup Milk
The last single piece of chocolate we have in the house... hee
3 cups water (run)
Lunch:
Rice
Cha Siu
Gai Lan w/ Ho Yaow
Jellyfish
Snack:
Multigrain crackers w/ cheddar
1 cup water
Dinner:
Trailmix
2 cups tea

Hmm.. realized I didn't eat a decent dinner.
brb

Ok got the brother to get me "dinner"... which is just his leftover T&T meat (marinated wings + chicken) on rice... and NO veggies except for gross cooked red + green peppers (which I've had plenty of in the past week)! Oh no...
I wonder what he's making....
Tapioca maybe! haha I guessed and he said "go away" so that means I'm probably right.
Oh nevermind... he's blending something now. What could it be?? He asked me if this bottle was vanilla extract haha... which is why I guessed tapioca in the first place.. also 'cause he loves tapioca + it's relatively easy to make.

My sensei tells us stories of his childhood.. and we keep learning things about him. He's an interesting guy. Today we were talking about which movie we wanted to see in class after our 1st oral. I think we decided on Haru's Moving Castle. A couple ppl suggested a horror movie but he said he can't watch scary movies 'cause "when [he] was young, he passed away" LOL...... his English isn't perfect. He meant he passed out.
Japanese was pretty good in general today. We learned a lot of material... and I think I did pretty well on the quiz (finally)... and I made a few more friends. I guess that's the good thing of arriving close to the start of class than being early. There's only so many seats so when I'm (almost) late, I get to sit next to someone new instead of hanging out w/ the crowd from last semester (which my sensei doesn't want anyway). I feel old though. I'm not the oldest in the class (thank goodness) - there's a 4th year and at least a handful or 3rd years, but I feel so old when I meet 1st years! They're so mature. Were we like that? Or did I just not change at all?

Ok I'll have to tell you what my brother is making in tomorrow's post. Care to take a wild guess?? hehe
I still have no clue.
It's ready in 2 hours.

Thursday, January 24, 2008

The Traditional Side Of Me

I've been saving pics of interior decor for the past while. I have so many I can't post them all at once.
Here's a sample of the type of rooms that inspire me. I don't think any of these rooms are perfect or even close to perfect. I only like certain elements in each of them. I'm sure you'll find a common theme.

This was Jackie Kennedy's room half a century ago.
She had great style.
I adore the quirkiness of the pictures and the frames! The way the books are lined up is a cute detail too. Too bad most of my books are hunks of paper (ie textbooks). Anyway, this is my kind of clutter.
I like the subtle wallpaper a lot. Not too fond of the way they've mixed flowery + damask with a modern streamlined desk like that... and the lamp doesn't go.
I like the slight dimension on the wall and how the pictures are placed on the furthest wall through the frame of the door.
This one... I'm not too sure why I saved it. I like the couches. Maybe they're trying to bring out the colour of the walls, but there's too much wall space IMO. I would replace the starfish picture on the mantle with something more substantial to make this room look complete.
Love the antique white dresser.
The curtains are a bit heavy for such a narrow room but I love the detail on the ceiling and the colour of the drapes!
This room looks full. Quite traditional too in a sense. The inset (so it seems) China cabinet is a lovely feature... as is the crown molding detail (I love crown molding so much!!)!!
Neat "floating breakfast nook" as I call it... 'cause you know how breakfast nooks are usually against a wall or window. That bench/banquette creates its own division.
Purple, white, silver-gray, damask! What's not to love.
I love damask.
I've always wanted a white kitchen. Not really like this, but this has some nice details I'd like to add like the built-in cabinets with glass doors, stainless steel appliances (what everyone wants these days anyway), a decent sized range, island seating, durable hardware. I don't know how I feel about the dark granite to-the-ceiling back splash... though it does give the kitchen some depth. I like grand kitchens.
I don't really know why I like this room either. I just noticed there were 2 coffee tables! I think it's because the room is white... but I realize I don't like this room very much. Probably saved it in a hurry.
Simple and nature-like.
Love the mirror. Love the arch. Love the pot lights. Love the lighting in general. Feels like a high-end hotel.
A sparse and cold room but amazing windows! Sunlight!!!
I like looking at dining rooms + kitchens with a french country feel.
Oversized headboard in a low-ceiling room - good for focusing the attention on the bed.
After looking at all these rooms, this room seems a bit too white. Oh well. I love the light + huuuge mirror.
Something about this house... detail of french window surrounded sunroom + patio.
Pretty vanity room. Princess-like. Don't like the silver lining around the doors though..
Built-in bookcases surrounding doors are love. I remember seeing something really similar to this on Trading Spaces back in Gr 10 or 11. I like the colours in this picture. Everything looks pulled together.
Fresh contemporary-Victorian dining room.
I thought the seating was neat... and yea - the white attracted me again.
Scenery!
The detail + moldinggggggg <3>
Pretty.
How to dine in a narrow space.
I like the mirrored closets. They really open the space up. I also like the whiteness, the flowers, and the light, gauzy curtains.
Whoaa a lot of rooms eh?
I like a lot of other styles too, but I always seem to fall back onto classic traditional. There's a certain quality about them. They look full and expensive.

CHOMP

Breakfast:
6 pieces ha gao/siu mai
1 french toast
Tea
Lunch:
Lemon Poppyseed Loaf Slice from Renaissance
Tea
Dinner:
Steamed fish
Rice
Broccoli
Jellyfish
1 glass of milk
2 glasses hot water
Dessert:
Mini Lychee Jelly cup thingy

lol finally a basic day of eating (3 main meals no snacks) though lunch "was a bit lacking" as Asian people tend to say haha

My mom mentioned spin class and it sounds really fun I want to try it! It's at Trout Lake and it's a room full of stationary bikes connected to light bulbs. They dim the lights and then put music on and you're supposed to bike to the beat of the music! How neat is that? Apparently it's really popular. I think I might make the Thursday night sessions w/ my mom.

I can't seem to fix the font size..

Wednesday, January 23, 2008

To Give Him The Time of Day...

I found this girl on Wardrobe Remix. I like her style 'cause she's all about vintage + has some great tailoring skills and totally redid certain pieces. She sells her recreations on Ebay... and yea that's her modelling.
All I can say is: how come I can never find vintage pieces like these?!
This one is quite interesting. Too bad you can't really see the detail of the sleeves, but it's really neat. It was once a maxi dress she says (maxi dresses have material that almost touches the ground like these).
Nice! The neck is a bit high for her though.
I love these types of dresses for the summer to go flea market shopping or something.
Ok this is another amazing find. It's a recreated American Airlines stewardess outfit!! How cute is that. You'd never have guessed eh? Very kimono like. I wouldn't wear it though... but it's so cute to look at.
I love the 2nd dress from the right!! And possibly the dress on the left.. if it wasn't covered by that bolero-type thingy.
=0
Very nice! I want!
Belt down has such a pretty flare + I love the colour.
If I owned this dress, I'd make it more modern by cutting off the sleeves and making the top part of the empire waist very fitted.
haha it's almost a poodle skirt! Cute dressssss... but it takes up a lot of room haha
Imagine being on a busy skytrain w/ that dress on.
Very jealous about this find... subtle polka dot half-shirt dress.

CHOMP

Breakfast:
1 english muffin (crumpet)
scrambled egg w/ a slice of cheese
1 glass milk
Snack:
3 glasses of water (Sun Run training)
1 lychee jelly
Lunch:
1 banana
5 multigrain nachos w/ shrimp dip
Multigrain crackers w/ humus + tzanziki
1 tomato w/ feta
Snack:
Blenz Peppermint Tea (I've been pretty impressed by Blenz's teas)
Dinner:
Beef + tomato
Yummo cabbage
Rice
Dessert:
Giant apple slice
2 pieces of sushi Mrs. Young made

1st session of Sun Run training was a bit more difficult than I thought it'd be. My dad and I are following this section in the Sun that tells you how to train for the run.
Today was:
5 min easy walk warm-up
1 min run
2 min walk
Do this 8 times (the 1 min run 2 min walk thing)
5 min easy walk slow-down
Takes 34 minutes.
Sounds pretty easy right?
Time passed by soo slowly for the first 2 minutes of running for each run-walk... but after that, time flew by quick enough.

What -- LV increases their prices right before Valentine's day? How expensive...

Japanese class got me feeling sad again =(
I've heard Japanese is supposed to be the easiest to learn for a native English speaker but I don't think so. French and Spanish is waaaay easier by far.