紅白歌合戦

it's that time of year again. 紅白歌合戦。wasn't really interested this year so i didn't really know who was going to be in it. ま、でも年越しはやっぱり紅白見ないとね。だから一応見始めた。お寿司食べた後にね。えへへ。so, i thought i might as well look up who's on it. then, guess who was on it?? L'ARC~EN~CIEL!!!!!!!!!! :O 超ビックリ。でもうれしい！！once i heard what song they were playing, it became pretty clear as to the obvious reason as to why they're on it. they sang 「BLESS」. that was the NHK theme song for the Vancouver Olympics this year. そりゃ出るだろ。ま、曲が良くて選ばれたから、紅白出れるのも当然だね。えへへ。才能だね。

oh man, and hyde looked as sexy as ever too. :) もう、かっこよすぎ。しかも、ラルクまた活動開始みたいだから、来年は楽しみだね。HAPPY NEW YEARS EVE!!

Currently listening to: BLESS - L'Arc~en~Ciel

Relationships

the bestie and i were finally able to hang out tonight. it's been a while. apparently, at least 3 months. lol. 長いね。but it was fun. we just sat at a cafe and chatted while we ate.
one of the main topics was relationships. specifically, how it's difficult to maintain one. 私は今の彼と付き合い始めて、3年半くらいになるけど、友達はあんまり長続きしないみたい。so we were discussing how it'd hard to make relationships last. i think she's a bit aggravated because now that we're done with college, it's time to start thinking about our future, including a career and family. そうなると、今付き合う人が生涯の伴侶になるかも知れないでしょ？だから、そういうの考えると焦るんだと思う。わからなくもないけどね。

but i think marriage is still a long way off. at least for me. a lot of people marry in their thirties now and there really is no need to rush. take things slow at first. お互いのことを良く知ることが大切だね。we also discussed how important communication is. she asked if it ever gets boring between the bf and i but i think that just highlights the importance of communication. お互いにコミュニケーションを取って、新しい発見や趣味などを見つけるといいかもね。there needs to be an effort by both parties in order to make things last. take interest in each others' hobbies and try to find new things to do together. i'm sure you'll be able to find the one, the one that'll make you smile through tough times and always be by your side. just keep trying. i know you and i know someone will love you for who you are, just like i do. keep your chin up girlie :)

Currently listening to: Best Friend - 西野カナ

医者

今日は姉と祖母が風邪なので、お医者さんに行ってきました。man, it was freaking far... they used to be a lot closer but they moved. and where they moved is really ghetto.... a bit scary. but not much other choice right now so had to go.got there around 10:20. 祖母は初めてだから、資料を色々書かされた。病歴から保険の資料とか色々。annoying but necessary process, i guess. but man, even though we had an appointment, it took them nearly an hour to call us in. -_- 前々から遅かったけど、ホントひどいね。絶対長すぎると思う。まぁ、医者が医者全部そうでは無いと思うが、だから医者ってキライ。i rarely go to the doctors. as far as i can remember, i've only been to the doctor's a handful of times. and most of it is my pediatrician. for vaccinations and stuff. 後はほとんど行ったこと無い。別にいいよね？行かなくても．．．一応健康だし？but yea, i really don't like going to the doctors. but then again, who does??

Currently listening to: ほんとのきもち - 高橋優

Merry Christmas!!

it's christmas!! and i'm sitting at home doing nothing.... well, not really nothing. been watching a lot of doramas. ギルティー、黄金の豚、ナサケの女、パーフェクトレポート、などなど。あと、バラエティーも結構。クイズヘキサゴン、Happy Music、ヒミツの嵐ちゃん、などなど。so many things to watch, so little time. but i have to watch them in order to clear up space on my hard drive. lol

さて、今年のクリスマスは祖母が一緒です。this entails some good things and bad things. good = my mom isn't as annoying and she doesn't get mad as much. reason being that she kinda spends a lot of time complaining about my grandma. そんなにイヤなら、呼ばなきゃいいのにね。bad = my grandma is annoying as well. or, it's tough being nice to her since no one else really is. 誰もあまり相手しないから暇みたいだし。ugh...

it also sucks cuz both my grandma and my sister are sick. and now, my mom is complaining that she might be getting sick as well. ホントうるさいんですけどぉ。and bc of all the coughing going on, it's hard to get a good nights' rest. *sigh* あと、今年のクリスマスは彼には会えないので、さびしいです。家のことで忙しいのはわかるけど、あんまりほっておくと浮気しちゃうぞぉ。ま、でも、手作りのクリスマスカードをくれたので、何気に満足です。えへへ。

Currently listening to: Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer

多門

for lunch today, my mom took me to the restaurant Tamon in the Miyako Hotel in Little Tokyo. あるのは知ってたけど、初めて行った。あんまり、ホテルに入ってるレストランって行かないじゃん？

一応和食屋さんみたいで、色々メニューがあった。my mom recommended i get the chirashi since she's seen it before and thought it looked pretty good. considering the fact that my mom doesn't like raw fish, you wonder how such raw fish would look appetizing to her.... ま、なんにせよ、ちらしを頼むことに。i look through the menu and find it. it costs a whopping $20!! :O 高くない？ウチ今余裕無いから躊躇したけど、お母さんが頼めって五月蝿いから結局ちらしにすることに。

目の前に運ばれてきたちらしはなんと、2段重ね。すごくね？めっちゃ豪華で贅沢。there was quite a few different kinds of fish. 鯛、はまち、マグロ、サーモン、いくら、鯖、などなど。一番うれしかったのは雲丹！i love sea urchin. and this one was definitely good!! ものすごく贅沢な昼食になりましたね。Currently listening to: BUNNY LOVE - BREAKERZ

おデート

今日は彼と久しぶりのデート。ever since i finished school and moved back home, the bf and i have not been able to spend any quality time together. this is especially the case since the mom's work is kinda 暇。でも、こっちにしてみたら、ものすごい迷惑ですね。

before i was able to go out with the bf, i had to go to chinatown to deliver something to my mom. 超迷惑。最初っから持って行っていれば、雨の中運転しなくても済むのに．．．but yea, had to drive all the way to chinatown in the rain. it wasn't so bad tho. didn't take the freeway since i expected it to be kinda scary. but the streets weren't so busy so it didn't take long to get there. 行きも帰りも道がすいてたから、楽に行って帰れた。事故の心配もあんまり無いし。雨でも全然らくしょー。

after i got home, i quickly changed and went off for my date with the bf. at first, we were thinking about going to the movies. でも、ちょっと事情が変わって、結局行かず仕舞い。instead, we went to round 1 with his friends. we did a bit of games but since his friends were broke, we just ended up sitting and talking. ま、そこそこ楽しかったかな？coulda been better. but i'm not complaining. 久しぶりに母無しでリラックスできたしね。ま、門限があったけど．．．

Currently listening to: Wannabe - Spice Girls

魚市場

今日は午前3時半に起きて朝からサン・ペドロにある魚市場に家族で出かけました。初めての体験です。since it's raining, it was kinda cold. but not as bad as expected, which is a good thing. we weren't really sure of the place but found some helpful hints on yelp and decided to give it a try.

5時前に着いた時にはすでにいっぱい人が。it's a once a week, early morning sale that is open to the public. usually, it's just wholesale so on this day, the public can get some pretty good deals on the seafood. 車から下りてあたりを見回すと、魚を丸ごと担いでる人がいっぱい！after walking in to some of the stores, it's easy to see why: whole fish can go for as cheap as $1 something a pound. 安いっしょ！だから皆さん箱いっぱいにシーフードを買い込んでた。we ended up getting some tuna sashimi, calamari, lobster tails, and crabs. i think everything came out to a bit under $30. and we got a lot!! 絶対一晩、5人では食べきれない量。とにかく安いし、新鮮。どう調理しようか楽しみです。いまから色々レシピを探しておかねばですね。一番わからないのがロブスター。さて、どうしましょう。

Currently listening to: Tell Me Goodbye - BIG BANG

Desert Hills Outlet

went to desert hills outlet with my mom and grandma today. i don't really like shopping so it was mostly to keep mom and grandma company. でも、近日中にお仕事を始めなければいけない私は仕事着があまり無く、一応見てみることに。そしたら、いっぱい買っちゃうことになりました。

i think i spent a little over $200 on just myself. i didn't buy everything, but i did pay for some stuff. 母も少しは払ってくれた。in the end, i ended up getting a long-sleeve tee and jeans from J Crew, heels from Factory Direct Shoes, a handbag from Kate Spade, and tights from Ann Taylor. 一番高かったのがかばん。冬用限定のかばんだけど、$100しちゃった。キャー。初のブランドバッグです。

other than that, my mom bought some things for herself but that was mainly about it. not too much shopping for the most part. 何せ高いです。今あまりお金に余裕の無い我が家は節約中です。後少し、家ができるまでは我慢、我慢ですね。

Currently listening to: Firework - Katy Perry

Christmas Illuminations

the family and i went around to look at christmas illuminations tonight. it was only around the neighborhood. 最初は別なところに行く予定だったんだけど、急遽近所の家たちに変更。long story short, my mom got mad because there wasn't enough gas in the car and we ended up just going around nearby because getting gas and then going would've been too late.

まだ早いのか、そんなに飾ってる家がない。もしくは経済悪化の結果かな？either way, the number of houses that were actually decorated on the outside were quite few. many had christmas tress visible from the outside but not too many houses had lights around the house. でも、結構キレイに飾ってる家も何件か。趣味が出るのか、きれいなのもあれば、ケバイのもあり、色々あった。センスのいいところはすごくキレイだったね。

overall, it seems as though the houses that aren't really seemingly expensive tend to do the most decorating. looking at really expensive areas, there are either no decorations or very minimal decorations. why is that?? are the rich people too cheap to invest in decorations?? だから、飾りを見るなら、そこそこミドルクラスのところに行かないとね。

Currently listening to: I'll Be Home For Christmas - Bing Crosby

お引越し

今日はアパートを引き払ってきました。so sad. i definitely did not want to move back home. but for now, i really don't have a choice. お金もないし。残念だけど、とりあえず、家へ戻ります。

a bunch of people came to help me. そんなに来られても迷惑だったんだけど．．．-__- especially my mom. all she did was complain about how i should've started the process sooner and that i had too much manga. ホントうるさい。いない方が絶対マシ。うるさいだけど、最終的にはほとんど手伝ってないし。何しに来たのか．．．
my grandma, sister, and bf were also there. so it took only about 2 hours to clear out my room. it's not like i had a lot there to begin with but yea, it was pretty quick. でも、あの自由を無くすのはものすごく惜しいね。これからが大変かも。

Currently listening to: クリスマスイブ - 山下達郎

Painting

the bf and his family are selling the house. so in preparation, they had decided to repaint the entire house. 大変だよね。だから、私も手伝うことに。ペンキ塗りって以外と重労働だね。and it's really difficult to get the paint on the stucco evenly. but we did get a lot done. 後もう少しで外壁が終わる。その後の細かい作業はまだ残ってるみたいだけど。
i think the worst part of painting is the sun. 暑いけど、脱ぐと日焼けしちゃうから脱げない。ugh... so annoying. while i spent most of the time wearing a jacket, there were just some points where it was just too hot so i ended up in a short sleeve. なるべく日陰を狙って仕事してました。（笑）

でも、すっごい楽しかった。犬もいるんだけど、遊びながらペンキ塗りしてた。えへへ。彼ともいっぱい時間過ごせたし、よかったです。plus, he took me to kinokuniya afterward so it's all good. haha.

Currently listening to: Livin' on a Prayer - Bon Jovi

卒業。

おかげ様で、無事卒業を迎えることができました。って言っても、まだ確実じゃないけどね。it's just that i've finished all my finals and turned in all papers today. so i no longer have to go to campus anymore. and today was also the last day of work for me. i'll kinda miss it. 結構つまらない職場だったけど、それなりに情は沸いたしね。

it's still kinda hard to believe that i'm done for good. i'm not sure if i was able to pass all my classes tho... *fingers crossed* 4年間と3ヶ月。長いようでアッという間でしたね。色々と思い出もできたし、楽しかったなぁ。この後、家に逆戻りかと思うと憂鬱。hopefully, i can find a well paying job and move out ASAP.

Currently listening to: Pomp and Circumstance

Moving Sale

today we had a 'moving sale'. lol. yard sale last week, moving sale this week. 朝はめっちゃ早起きしたから、大変。疲れたぁ。眠いし。and, we didn't even sell too much... -__-

we didn't have much to sell but the bf did. he was selling a bunch of new shirts as well as some toys and electronics. 後、ミニ鎧みたいなのとか、アコーディオンとか。ホント色々。our profit was about $60. i think the bf made a bit over $100. so it was okay. not the best of sales. ま、確かに目玉商品があまり無かったしね。

we got elite restaurant to go for lunch. おいしかった。man, driving through s.g. chinatown to get there was hell tho. sooooo much traffic. and for apparently no reason too. -_- バカみたい。ホント、運転下手な人多すぎ。ま、人のことあんまり言えないと思うけど．．．

Currently listening to: 君って - 西野カナ

Due Date

had a movie date with the bf tonight. 久しぶりだったね。最近お互いの家や仕事のことで忙しかったから、ゆっくりする時間無かったしね。だから久しぶりのデートは楽しかった。

we first went to the movies to watch due date. the one with robert downey jr. and the guy from the hangover. zach something... lol. 前々から見たいねって言ってたから結構楽しみだった。で、映画事態は期待を裏切らなかったね。面白かった。but man, it was full of profanities and some gross stuff. lol. でも、笑えた。i think it was a good movie.
for dinner, we went to chin-ma-ya for dinner. the gardena store. we tried their pa-ko, but it was kinda gross... :( 彼は新しくできた辛みそラーメン、私は坦々麺を。からっかった．．．and i guess i wasn't very hungry because i couldn't even finish my ramen. i guess it's good for not getting fatter??

Currently listening to: Just the Way You Are - Bruno Mars

Yamato Restaurant

今日は急遽、働いてる上司と一緒にランチに。apparently it's because i am quitting after next week and she's not gonna be here next week. あまりにも急だったから、お弁当を持って来てた私。oh well, it's just pasta so i could eat it for dinner too. haha.

we ended up going to Yamato in Westwood for lunch. i've been to Yamato before for dinner but this was my first time at lunch. i think lunch is a lot better than dinner. 色々組み合わせられるコンビネーションがあって、種類が豊富。and it's not as pricey as i'd thought. でも、あんまりお腹空いてなかったのが残念。anyways, i got the black cod and tempura combination. it came with a lot of stuff. soup, rice, salad, edamame, seaweed salad, and the mains. ちょっと量は多かったけど、全部食べた。えへへ。食べすぎだね。

we talked about a bunch of different things. life, careers, food, japan, etc. 結構楽しかった。ご飯もそこそこイケたしね。now, i should be off to class. byeee.

Currently listening to: Just A Dream - Nelly