6 More Days!

Mood:

Only 6 more days until my birthday!Craziness! Hope everyone had a happy Halloween. It's also National Authors' Day, World Vegan Day, and National Vinegar Day. Also, hope my friends and family on the east coast are safe and sound.

This is my wallpaper for the month. It's Happy from Fairy Tail with a fish. Thought it was simple and cute. I was hoping to find a good birthday-themed wallpaper, but didn't find any this year. Oh well. 

My herb calendar has chives, green onions, garlic chives, and chive flowers. All related (all from the allium family where onions and garlic come from), and interesting. Last time it was all poppy seed related stuff. To me, this is much better.

My Jewish calendar has a table linen made out of linen, silk, and cotton from Southern Germany around 1900. It has a pretty floral design. There's also a tallit (4-cornered fringe garment, or prayer shawl) bag made out of silk, metallic thread, velvet, and brass. It's from the Netherlands in 1850. Finally, there's a tefillin bag made out of silk and cotton. It's also from the Netherlands in 1892. (Tefillin are also called phylacteries, they have 2 small black boxes with straps and contain verses from the Torah. You wear it on your forehead and on an arm. Mostly traditional/orthodox Jewish men wear them, although recently it seems some women, not many, are getting into it too.) 

These are the month-long holidays: Aviation History Month, Historic Bridge Awareness Month, International Drum (Percussion) Month, National Adoption Month, National Georgia Pecan Month, National Native American Heritage Month, National Novel Writing Month, National Peanut Butter Lovers Month, National Plum and Pomegranate Month, National Roasting Month, Spinach and Squash Month, Vegan Month. Some are important causes, some are to make you appreciate things you may take for granted, and some are just for fun. Interesting mix of holidays. I love pecans, peanut butter, plums, pomegranates, and spinach. Roasting is really good too.

Since we didn't have time to get a costume, I rummaged through things to make my own. I was kind of a devil or demon.Had devil horns, a tail, a red v-neck sweatshirt, and black slacks. Also, 2 rings, one on each hand. Was going for an almost yin and yang thing. (One having a white mother of pearl color in the middle, and the other with black.) Had one of my long black beaded necklaces, and my long clear red earrings. Put some makeup on as well. Normal with the foundation, normal for the blush, some dark red nail polish, heavy mascara, heavy on the eye shadow (used 3 different kinds, since I didn't have the exact color I wanted. Wanted it to be 'theatrical' too.), heavy on the lipstick (also 3 different colors, tried to get close to what I wanted.), and used some of the lipstick to make it look like blood was seeping through my lips. Like I just ate somebody, or something. Thought it came out pretty good. But, sadly most of the pics we took of it didn't really turn out.

Went to the market while I was still dressed up. Got a few looks, and 1 or 2 employees shakily saying hi. But, the people who got the most looks were the ones not in costume. Kind of funny.

We ran out of candy pretty quickly, even though the weather wasn't the greatest. Saved some for ourselves, though. We got some 3 Musketeers and Milky Way bars for it. It was a hit. But, I usually like to get the mixes, because that way there's a variety and it's like a surprise on what you'll get. Those candy bars seem awfully similar too.

At the cafe yesterday, one of their specials was a gingerbread latte. So, I tried it. It was pretty good. Not quite enough sweetness, but I can always add splenda to it. It also had a fancy leaf design on the top. Kind of made it even more 'special'.

Went crazy with studying my Japanese while I was there.Practiced writing out all the kanji I've worked on in the last several months, then went back and went over every one to go over different pronunciations of them and their compounds, went over a Japanese lesson, read some of Soy Source, and continued a bit on the drawing I started last week. We had to leave early so the person who drove me could be there to hand out candy to the kids who go through early. (Usually they're the toddlers/very little kids.) 

Dropped Shin Sekai Yori, or From the New World. It was too dark, and somewhat slow. So, I decided to go back to Hitman Reborn for this time slot. I have to say, this new season of anime is not the best.

Started Monsters on Monday. Just from that first episode, I can tell it's a new fave. The first episode was a 2 hour long special, so it felt more like a movie. The 2 main actors are awesome in this! I also love them in other dramas, so it was interesting to see them together. The characters themselves are very well done. Heihachi Hiratsuka (on the left in the pic) is loud and impolite, but most of the time has a very creepy smile. (When he's not smiling, it seems even more creepy, almost like he's tuned you out and got really serious about something.) Unlike Heihachi, Kosuke Saionji (on the right) has a keen sense of justice, naive, and honest almost to a fault. He gave hints in the first episode that he comes from a very wealthy family. Kosuke is designated to the investigation team that he's always admired. Unfortunately, his job is to watch over Heihachi to make sure he doesn't do anything rash. Heihachi was the sole member of his team, but he's always successful at solving his cases. So, the other detectives are also curious about his methods. The humor is great too. Perfectly timed. 

12 More Days!

Mood:

Yay! 12 more days until my b-day!I don't think I'll ever become one of those people who dreads their birthdays. It's celebrating your life! I think of it as I made it this far, what more great and interesting things await me?I love how it's exactly a week after Halloween. They always feel interconnected to me.

Speaking of Halloween, yesterday I found my mom's stash of Halloween decorations. So, I put up a poster thing of a black cat coming out of a jack-o-lantern on the front door. Found some webbing that has 4 fake spiders. Put that up around the front windows. There were 2 wooden Halloween-themed figurines, I put on the counter next to the kitchen table. There's also these ghosts that hang on things like bushes, we used to put them out every year. Somewhat for directing the kids to our door. I'm debating whether I'll put those up too. (If we have a wind storm, they're a pain to find. Since they blow away so easily.) There's also some Halloween garland I can put somewhere, if I want. 

Managed to get the fire started in our wood stove yesterday. Couldn't totally do it on Sunday. But, I apparently didn't put enough wood in. So, it died down pretty quickly. Might try to do it again today. I'm not used to how our stove works. Dad gave me a few tips, after I asked her last night. So, we'll see.

My penpal from Japan finally sent a letter to me!(Snail mail.) It had been about a year and a half since she last sent something. I was really on the ball last time, and sent something as soon as I could to her after that. That last letter she sent, she sounded so depressed. Which is understandable, considering she was in the tsunami affected areas. But, not hearing from her for so long, I was a bit worried, and also thought maybe she didn't want to have anything to do with me anymore.She has a number of health conditions. Mental and physical. Anyways, she sounded much better in the letter that came yesterday. Again, still depressed about what happened. (I'd probably be the same.) But, things seem to be looking up for her. Makes me feel a bit more relieved. She said she hopes we can still be friends, even if it took her forever to respond. Of course we can.She's kind of cute that way. She had a sticker pic at the end of the letter of herself. She also asked if we could talk about our fave bands and send each other a ripped CD of some of their songs with each letter we send. That sounds interesting. Not sure if I'll do it, but we'll see. We have a lot to catch up on!

Went to the Hadassah meeting Tuesday night. Only one other person had one of the cookies I brought. I think the others were too scared of it. I guess they don't like trying new things.So sad. The other things seemed a bit plain. Like brownies, shortbread, etc. Don't get me wrong, I like that stuff. But, it gets old. I think for a dessert potluck, you'd want something exciting.

Anyways, the members seemed to really like my hairstyle. (Some haven't seen me for a long time.) One member went over to me, and begged to touch my hair. It feels a bit awkward how people react to it.I love it too, but I don't constantly touch it, and ooh and ahh. 

They were a lot nicer to me this time. Not trying to act like their my mom or anything. I have a parent, thank you very much.Just would like to be treated like another member. (I'm a life member now of the organization as a whole. So, I'm really a member of every Hadassah group/chapter now, for the rest of my life.) 

We talked about more ideas of how to draw people in, and more ideas for fundraising. A lot of people had stopped coming because they hated that every meeting ended with mah jongg (or mahj for short). Plus, our main fundraising event turned into a mahj tournament. They felt that's all that we were about. Frankly, I'm glad we had such a great fundraiser, but I have no interest in mahj. So, it really doesn't feel quite right that our group has focused so much on it.People brought up that maybe we should have that tournament every other year, instead of every year. But, we'd have to come up with something to replace it with the years we don't have the tournament. We also talked about projects that help raise money for certain organizations or causes. Like, breast cancer research, something to do with the Hadassah hospital in Israel, something to do with mental health, stem cell research, etc. That might be a good draw for people. We thought about bringing some things back, like lecturers, a Jewish poetry reading group called Drash to come again, workshops, etc. 

There's also a new movement where the organization is trying to draw in younger women. Specifically women in their 20s and 30s. My age group. They have a subgroup for them, and have a bit of a different focus. I think that's cool. I might want to join something like that. One of the members said there was a 4-day class on how to lead these groups for younger women, and wanted me to join it. I absolutely have no intention of leading them.But, I'd be happy to join one of those groups. (If you have a life membership, you're still considered a member of the younger groups.) 

This same member was the person who drove my friend and I to it. She used to be the group's president, while I was the secretary. Lately, she's had major problems with her hearing. A lot of the time she forgets her hearing aids, and therefore seems cranky when she can't hear anyone. Anyways, while we were in her car on the way to my place, she snapped at me big time. She couldn't see my lips, so she couldn't lip read. She essentially didn't hear a word I said, and thought I wasn't answering her. So, I said it louder, then she got even more irate. It was a very weird/emotional situation for me.And, my friend was put off by it too. I'm reluctant to get in her car again. I'm trying to stay away from people who may hurt me emotionally. I don't need that pain. Even if it's unintentional. Feels like I have to protect myself.

Went to the cafe this week. Had some hot chocolate with whipped cream, and a little chocolate syrup drizzled on top. Really good! While I was there I read an article in Japanese from Soy Source about Halloween costume and decoration ideas. Practiced my kanji. Up to about 72 of the 'current' ones that I've gone over. I know a lot more, but these were the ones I didn't go over before, or didn't go over enough of. That's a good number of them. Went over 3 Japanese grammar lessons. And, practiced making several Japanese sentences. Started drawing the clock tower that's at the university from my story. It's becoming pretty ornate looking. Kind of fun. I got sucked into it, while I drew. Might continue it next week. And, eventually post it.

A couple of days ago, I made a thing called Noodles with Tomatoes, Sardines, and Mustard. Another recipe from my new Asian cookbook. Almost all the recipes in the book say which country they got it from, except this one. We're thinking it might be Filipino or Thai. I left that open and asked people on dA, as well. Someone said it looks and sounds like a Thai dish, so I don't know. It was really good. Just needed more 'dressing' (mustard/olive oil/garlic/lemon juice), and a lot less red onion. (WAY too much onion!) I like the flavor red onion gives to a dish, but I don't really like eating them. I think I would have either taken out the red onion entirely, or used half the amount and cooked them to nothing before tossing them in the bowl. But, I wanted to see what the end result of the recipe would be before I tweak it too much. People on dA seem to really like this one. It already has a lot of faves, and a couple of comments. 

Last few days I've also gone over some of the 'new' current kanji, and some compounds. The compounds, for some reason, are really giving me a better understanding of the language. The grammar lessons have helped a lot as well. 

Posted a chapter of Alliance to one of the forums I'm apart of. Apparently, someone already really likes it. I thought no one cared. They liked the post, and commented saying that they really enjoyed that chapter. But, they also said I shouldn't wait so long to post the next one. I ended the one I just posted on a huge cliffhanger. So, it might be a bit cruel of me if I don't post the next chapter within a month or so.

Also, managed to play more of my clarinet this week. Did some Mozart and some tunes from my newest solo book. Hasn't been too bad. The Mozart book is for advanced players, especially the last pieces. (One of them he specifically made for the clarinet, and was one of his last pieces before his death.) So, I messed up a little on those. Oh, and forgot to mention, today's also Pumpkin Day, Pretzel Day, and Mince Meat Pie Day. Sounds like the perfect combo, to me!

National Curried Chicken Day!

Mood:


Most chicken curries are really good. (Actually, I like curry in general. Not just with chicken.) Interesting to have a day for it. 


Not feeling too good today.Throat's scratchy, can't breathe too well through my nose, nose is runny, and my stomach hurts. Yay!I feel like just eating comfort food, and lazing around in bed all day. I can do the comfort food thing, but I'm definitely not going back to bed!Still have stuff to do. Only really bad part of this is that I'm helping out my mom during the day. She has cancer, so I have to be extra careful when this happens. Oh joy of joys!


Went to the lunch on Tuesday that was supposed to have a few Hadassah members show up. Our president, and a few other members, cancelled almost last minute. We found out that Ichizen, the place we were going to eat at, had moved to another location only 2 days before that.Good thing we bumped into another member just as we were pulling up to Ichizen, and we agreed to eat at Pho T&N instead. We really like this place, plus it's not too bad price-wise. It was just the 3 of us. But, it was nice. The other member was the one that we were going to say goodbye to just before she went to Cuba. She plans to meet the Jewish community there. At least Mom and I were there to talk about it, and say goodbye. She'll call us when she gets back. I had their chicken coconut curry, by the way. It's become a fave of mine. So good!

Actually managed to play my clarinet the last couple of days. I don't think I will today. Somehow, not being able to breathe normally, and my stomach hurting, doesn't sound like a good idea with playing my clarinet.

Fairy Tail's been having a very interesting story arc. Somehow seems more 'complicated', unique, and twisted than a lot of their previous ones. The group came up with a plan to switch the guild back to normal. They decided they'd find the king first, have Lucy's spirit Gemini touch him (therefor, absorbing some of his abilities), and figure out how to turn them back using Gemini. Without getting caught. But, they get caught by Edola's Erza and the Royal Army in the king's 'secret' escape tunnel. Carla wasn't sure why she had memories of the tunnel, but they followed it anyways. Erza and the army all bow down to Carla and Happy, calling them Exceeds. Thanking them for finding and leading the group into their custody. Carla and Happy aren't sure what's going on. And, Carla feels she's betrayed her best friend Wendy without knowing. Happy hasn't had any memories of the place yet. 

It feels like I'm getting close to the end of 666 Satan, sadly.I don't particularly like what Ruby's wearing in the pic. But, she hasn't had time to find real clothes since she was found. She just ripped apart something extra that another person had at the time. (She was locked away in a tank in her angel form. Which was like a fish. So, she didn't have clothes when she came out and transformed back.) Anyways, Ruby found her father that she thought had died at some point. He's the leader of Zenom. (One of the bad guy organizations.) Everyone's, except Jio's, nuclei was taken. (Although, I thought Ruby still had her's,too...) Jio has the most powerful recipe/nuclei (being Satan), so both Stea and Zenom have been disparately trying to catch him. I think he'll take Zenom down, and then Stea. He wants to conquer the world still, and that might help him meet that goal. 


Finished reading the December issue of You Maga at the cafe. Started reading the newest issue of Soy Source, and read more of Earth and Host. Earth has been hilarious, and Host seems to be really picking up. Also, got 3 shower gel scents from Avon when we got home yesterday. One that I normally get which is pomegranate and mango. (Really nice!) And, the other's I haven't tried before: vanilla and cherry blossom. Tried the vanilla, and I really like it too!Almost smells like I put frosting on.Not sure about the cherry blossom one yet. Kind of fun to mix it up a bit. (Been a long time since I've had my normal soap, so this is really nice!)

In Naruto Shippuden, Motoi (on the left) talked about how he once tried to kill Killer Bee (on the right). Just because he had a profound hatred for the Hachibi (8 tails. Which looks like a bull/octopus hybrid) who killed his father, and was sealed inside Bee. Naruto realized he had to confront his dark side, in order to become stronger and control his Kyuubi (9 tails. A 9-tailed fox) better. Turned out Killer Bee only remembers his friendship with Motoi when they were younger. And, still considers him a good friend. Motoi was scared to tell Bee about how he tried to kill him, so when he did, he was surprised by Bee's reaction. Kind of like he's saying 'no harm done, it's all good'. I really like Killer Bee's character. His attitude towards things is great. Although, his rapping was sometimes annoying at first. Kind of grows on you after a while. He seems to be a more complicated character than he let's on. 

In Ao no Exorcist, the exwires are taking care of the people who were attacked by miasma at the Kyoto branch. It's where Bon, Shima, and Konekomaru come from. (They're shown as little kids in the pic.) So, they got to see some of their relatives. Shiemi felt useless, and breaks down while talking to Izumo. Izumo tries to insult her, saying she's about as useful as a weed. But, Shiemi takes it as a compliment, since she likes them, saying she'll become even more like a weed. Rin met Bon's dad, who's also known as the Priest of the Cursed Temple. He's a survivor of the Blue Night. He doesn't seem to take his job seriously, and a lot of the time over indulges in alcohol. I think this was the part in the anime where everyone starts trusting Rin again. Not sure if it'll be the same here. I guess I have to read to find out.


deviantART fave: Funnel Cakes I did not make this! It's a pic of funnel cakes with some sugar falling down onto it. Nice effect, and looks so tasty! Done by an artist I watch. And, just like she usually does, there's a recipe link in the artist's comments.