the best of my 2011

Sushi and Setsuko adjusted in January and are now inseparable.  They're like mom and daughter :)

The Red Hot Chili Peppers concert in HK.

Studying Fashion Design at Slim's and realizing I 'm not good enough at drawing and designing.  Not really a waste of time though...

...because I'm only discovering now that I'm crafty. I enjoy making things using my hand. 

My washi tape and yarn stash!

The Momijiya Bekkan Kawa No Iori in Takao, Kyoto. A very nice and unforgettable ryokan experience. 

 Our first ever authentic kaiseki dinner. Oishi katta desu!

The Koyoshi sushi experience in Osaka.

And the hot chocolate in Ripples Restaurant, L' Fisher Hotel in Bacolod City. The best!

More things to do, more things to accomplish and more places to visit in 2012!

nuninuninuninuninu

ang bilis ng panahon.

it's only 5 days before 2012.
only 9 days before my deadline.
and i can't believe it has already been a month since Kune passed away. i checked her FB page earlier and found out that it's been removed.

---

i wonder what 2012 has in store for me...

online shopping

argh. i just finished two scripts and i felt so deprived i wanted to shop. after finishing (almost) my Christmas shopping, i had to write another script again. but in times like this, all i want to do is to surf and shop again. so i went to Amazon and bought the usual things: master's blu-rays, food books, leather making tools, lovely fabrics which i'll add to my growing stack...

i also bought cones of wool in different colors from Sears because they're a little cheaper than in Amazon. plus they have free shipping within the US. erik has a friend in US who'll ship the items to us yey! 

knitting needles in various sizes

for our last shipment from Amazon (when i bought a sewing machine), we used Johnny Air. it offers shipping service for US to Manila cargos for $5.99 per pound. in fairness, with all the books, shoes and DVDs plus the sewing machine, they only charged us P8k. 

another thing with Johnny Air, you don't have to worry about taxes anymore.  you just pick up your boxes at the branch nearest you and that's it!

but 8k is still 8k right?

if you want the cheapest way to get your items,  ask a friend in the U.S. to get a balikbayan box for you.  nothing beats the price of a jumbo box at $90 more or less! the downside is you have to wait for a month before it arrives. but the advantage is for the prize of $90 (P4k), you can already fill a jumbo box 

with all the items you want without needing to worry about the weight!

reminder to self: 

don't buy anything expensive for self anymore. wait for April 2012 before splurging.

CORRECTION:

i found my Johnny Air receipt by accident. they didn't charge 8k. it was 16k for 39 kilos. which means $7.5 per kilo plus taxes. see receipt below. 

the $20 is for consolidation fee as there were multiple deliveries made to them. 

this is why i don't eat kangkong

you don't know where it was harvested. 

probably in a dirty river, somewhere. 

everywhere if you're in Pinas!

Chicboy scandal here

i don't like the food in Chicboy. 

this is not a loss to me as i don't eat here anyway. 

kadiri lang talaga!

anyway, here's a tip. don't eat kangkong!
if you're cooking Sinigang, replace it with mustard or spinach.
they are cleaner and more nutritious than kangkong!

Setsuko's stare

Setsuko keeps on staring at me with her sad, begging-for-attention gaze. 

sometimes while she's walking, she would just stop and stare at me.

then i have to stop writing and look at her and give her attention.

this while i'm writing so it's hard to concentrate.

i put her on the bed but she still keeps on staring at me.

so i put her on my lap and pet her and talk to her. she seems to relax.

sometimes, i'm afraid she wants to tell me something.

and i dread that she wants to say goodbye to me. 

it's just that lately, if she's not begging for food, 

she seems sad and introspective. 

oh no Setsuko. you have many years ahead of you.

don't leave mommy yet. 

knit, decoupage and bake

i'm restless and bored. most of the time i feel sleepy so i try to make myself busy.

i'll do anything but write!

my second attempt at knitting. it's perfect!

i'm thinking of making a wallet or bag out of it. 

no idea yet so it stays like that for me to admire for now :)

not everything came out perfect though. 

tried to make this sugar cube recipe and had it dried overnight.

but some of it crumbled. next time i have to add more water. 

i also decoupaged the new cabinet using origami paper. 

then the red and black linings are washi tapes :)

it took me about 7 hours to finish this but i'm happier (90%)

with my second decoupage attempt.  

on top is my paper lamp, my first ever diy project.

i also made this NO BAKE OREO BARS today with the help of Tata. 

recipe here. so easy to make and delicious too. perfect for black coffee.

i think i'm going to give this as gifts to my officemates instead. 

i added almonds on top and additional butter. 

next time we'll add more marshmallows and butter.

too bad my throat aches. it feels like i'm coming down with a flu.

get inspired

saw a Book Sale last night and bought books before watching The Road. 

Weekend Knitting

also bought some materials and gift items at Fully Booked.

i'm still waiting for time, inspiration and my materials 

in the balikbayan box before i start anything.

by the way, The Road was bad. i can't believe 

i had to get out of the house at night just to watch it.

a serial killer in the Philippines, are you kidding me?

sana nanood na lang ako ng C.I. buong araw!

i ended up playing The Creeps inside the theater.