hy's blog

Difficulties and retirement

2007-12-21T17:36:00.001-05:00

I am retiring this blog. Killing it in fact. I am getting through divorce hell at the moment and have no time to blog.

Feel free to find me on Facebook where my current Yahoo email address is located. The existing one no longer works since it was hacked into.

I feel like shit. I feel like a wreck. I feel depresssed. I feel relieved. I feel angry. I feel sad. I am on an emotional roller coaster. I want to get off.

Love

2007-11-10T09:19:00.001-05:00

is a curious concept. It can be hurtful, wonderful, overpowering, peaceful, confusing. Why is this?

Minor Halloween mishap

2007-10-31T22:33:00.000-04:00

The afternoon of Halloween started off reasonably well. I picked up Marlis from school at lunch and we ate lunch at Yoshi and then took her to piano lesson.
We get home and she changes into her costume (fairy-princess something) and she is running around the driveway with her wand. Next thing I knew, she looked upset. She dropped her wand into the sewer drain. Tears are welling up and we scramble to find her other wand. Well, in her haste, she tripped over R's beer that was laying on the ground. He gets upset and then the crying and wailing start. Meanwhile, during all this, I am on a telecon and my understanding classmates, hearing the wailing, tell me that I should hang up.

We find another wand. The rest of the night of trick-treating goes well.

It's amazing how it seems like the end of the world to lose your wand (and spilled beer).

Spin classes

2007-10-24T18:30:00.000-04:00

are my new addiction at the Y.

We went to Rhinebeck on Sunday. The weather was gorgeous. I was reserved in my yarn purchases. Only 2 skeins of Brooks Farm Tierra blend (lambswool and alpaca blend). And a felted hat for me and a felt hat for Marlis. (from www.robinshoods.com) Marlis had a great time on the rides. Richard drank beer. We ate dinner at Terrapin.

I did take some photos but haven't been bothered to download them yet.

In case you were wondering about the non-responsive to emails person, yes, I did get a reply. Lesson to be learned: don't send out more emails until the recipient has replied. Less frustration.

I am not crazy

2007-10-16T23:39:00.000-04:00

I have been feeling rather gloomy these days. Probably the weather, school, work, life. (not necessary in that order). I don't even feel like buying any yarn these days either!

On the knitting front, I have several FO that need to be seamed and tidied up. I also need to frog the work I did on the Tree Jacket since it is HUGE on me. I just don't get pattern measurements.

I am just not getting much of anything these days. I hope the gloom clouds will pass eventually because I am not liking who I am at the moment.

Pleasant weekend

2007-10-14T23:54:00.000-04:00

Spent a pleasant weekend. Should have been studying but instead went to the Arts/Crafts Fair at Brookdale Park on Sat and went to CultureFest on Sunday in NYC at Battery Park. Met up with some friends in NYC and ate a Souen, a macrobiotic restaurant.

I have been so full of mixed emotions since my return to NJ from Basel. On one hand, I yearn to still live there, on the other hand, I would really miss the vibe and energy of NYC.

Well, I still have more or less 1 more year of school left and then decide whether to return to Basel or go to Shanghai on another international assignment. Maybe I should just toss a coin and see????

Oh yeah, something I have been wondering, is it a female trait to expect replies to emails from the recipient or is it just me who is demanding? Is it common courtesy and politeness to respond to emails? If the email recipient don't ever reply, should I continue writing? Why bother, right? It's like writing and throwing my thoughts into a black hole. Or is the recipient hoping that I would take the hint and stop communicating all together?

Yup, been so full of emotions lately that I don't even know what to think.

Is it

2007-10-06T19:37:00.000-04:00

possible to love someone without really knowing them? Is it possible for life to be just cruel enough to keep apart people based on timing and circumstances?

Is the gamble worth it, knowing what you lose and not knowing what you gain?

Is it worth it??

Does Blogger adjust...

2007-10-05T03:12:00.000-04:00

its interface depending on which country you log into? I am sitting in the Swiss Lounge in Basel airport and my interface is in German! (I actually wanted to check emails but couldn't log on).

My 2 week trip to Basel has come to an end. Again, I leave a little part of myself behind. I am already missing Basel and I haven't even left yet.

Two weeks was indeed a long time to be away and will certainly be happy to see my family but it seems to be a good duration since I was pretty much able to devote at least 1 evening to each set of friends. And I was able to go to Ursula's class twice.

Some new photos

2007-09-21T01:22:00.000-04:00

Here are some new photos.

Dance class!
Swimming at the company picnic!

After haircut (in Montreal).

I just got my invite!!!

2007-09-12T22:16:00.000-04:00

to join Ravelry!!!

You can find me as: yogamom

Don't hurry though because I won't have time to put anything in there until sometime in Oct, after my trip to Basel. (I am in Houston now)

What have I done??!!!

2007-09-08T16:56:00.000-04:00

I bought a car. Well, tomorrow is when I hand over the $$. My good friend is relocating to Singapore, like, tomorrow and the person who was supposed to buy his car backed out so I opened my big mouth and asked how much. Next thing I knew, I was at the bank making sure I had the $$.

So tomorrow, I will be the proud owner of a 2005 Infiniti G35 Coupe. So much for my idea of being a 1 car, 1 child family. At least we will still be a 1 child family. That's a sure thing.

Me too I want these treats...

2007-08-01T00:02:00.000-04:00

www.veganyumyum.com/2007/06/knit-night-cupcakes/

Facebook

2007-07-31T18:48:00.000-04:00

I finally signed up on Facebook. Lots of old friends. I posted a pix of Marlis instead of me on my profile. I hope people won't think it's me although she does look very much like me.

Oh Canada....our home and native land...Happy Canada Day!

2007-07-01T22:45:00.000-04:00

You Are 18% American

You're as American as Key Lime Tofu PieOtherwise known as un-American!You belong in Cairo or Paris...Get out fast - before you end up in Gitmo!

http://www.blogthings.com/howamericanareyouquiz/">How American Are You?

What finger are you?

2007-07-01T22:38:00.000-04:00

You Are a Pinky

You are fiercely independent, and possibly downright weird.A great communicator, you can get along with almost anyone.You are kind and sympathetic. You support all your friends - and love them for who they are.
You get along well with: The Ring Finger
Stay away from: The Thumb

http://www.blogthings.com/whatfingerareyouquiz/">What Finger Are You?

Purchases from Knitch (in Atlanta)

2007-06-30T22:31:00.000-04:00

I am too lazy to take photographs but I had a GREAT time buying stuff from Knitch (yarn shop in Atlanta). I bought almost all the patterns from Cindy Taylor (www.cindycindy.com) and Cascade Baby Alpaca chunky to knit the Garter Bar cardigan from Cindy Taylor. I have completed the back, both fronts. All I have left are the sleeves which I was hoping to complete this weekend but looks unlikely. The cardi seems to be too big for me so I will just give it to Mom. (I think she will love it. I love it and will probably buy more of that Cascade Baby Alpaca chunky to knit another cardi for myself!)

Knitters Tea Swap goodies...

2007-06-29T23:20:00.000-04:00

How many people actually get to do their swaps in PERSON???? I am probably one of the lucky few! For the Knitters Tea Swap 3, my swapee was Jenny from Flowery Branch, GA. I had the good luck of going to the DIA conference in Atlanta the week of June 17th so I asked Jenny if she was anywhere close to Atlanta and she was! We met up on that Monday, June 18th and went to her fav italian restaurant, Enoteca Carbonari (http://www.enotecacarbonari.com/), did our swap and ate and chatted. I have to admit that I was a wee bit nervous about meeting someone with whom email was the primary mode of correspondance. But everything worked out great! (And Jenny wasn't even as big as she described in her blog!!!!!!). Here are some pix of us, her, and the goodies (I took the pix of the goodies in my hotel room (I stayed at the Marriott Marquis downtown).

I was pretty embarassed at the sheer volume of goodies and yarn that Jenny got me. All I gave her was a sock yarn, some dpns, the requisite tea and treats. She even gave me a BAG to carry everything with! (OK, I didn't need the bag but I did have to convince my colleague who had driven down to GA from NJ to bring the honey and jellies back for me). What wonderful goodies did I get?

Well, I LOVE Timtams (these are the "Arnott's" biscuits in the photos. They are australian treats and Jenny managed to hunt them down at World Market!). The caramel ones have already been eaten and am now half done with the original flavour.

Ok, I digress. Jenny made a binder filled with useful info about Atlanta, ie. the yarn shops close to the hotel. She also included info about the teas she got me and the Moravian cookies too, a few patterns. What else? A book "Little Women", Twilley's yarn which I have heard of but never used, JaggerSpun Zephyr (sooo soft), honeys from her birthplace, handmade coasters, a great ladybug cup for Marlis, peach jam, teas from North Carolina, a neat foldup totebag (I love these things!), a notepad, a cool teamug, and a needlecase she had made! I was very touched by the thoughtfulness of each goodie. (And so was my husband - who also had a hand in helping with the Timtams)!
Thank you very much again Jenny!

Back from Atlanta

2007-06-27T16:23:00.000-04:00

I got back from Atlanta last Thurs and had a great time! I met up with my Knitter Tea Swap pal there and did our swap in person! Jenny really outdid herself. I haven't uploaded the photos of what I received yet because I am still catching up on all the unread emails qhile I was away. You would think that the email senders would get discouraged by my "out of office" message and "don't bother expecting a reply during my absence".

sigh. I have just managed to finish unpacking my suitcase last night.

Pix of the goodies and my purchases from Atlanta coming soon!!!!!!

Seven Random Things about me

2007-05-25T23:16:00.000-04:00

Norah who was my Secret Pal from SP8 tagged me for this meme. (The scarf she knitted for me as part of the swap has keep my neck warm throughout the entire winter!)

The rules:

Each person tagged gives 7 random facts about themselves. Those tagged need to write in their blogs 7 facts, as well as the rules of the game. You need to tag seven others and list their names on your blog. You have to leave those you plan on tagging a note in their comments so they know that they have been tagged and need to read your blog.

Seven random things about me:

When I was 5, I used to fly kites out of the window from our studio apartment which was located on the 15th floor.

The first time I tasted a potato chip was at age 7, during a visit to Granby Zoo. (and yes, I like potato chips!)

When I was in Hong Kong for summer holidays (I was 8), the movie "Pocket Money" (Truffaut's movie L'argent de Poche) was showing in the theaters and I desperately wanted to see it.

I hope to eventually meet up with my portuguese/chinese cousin again (but will probably never happen since no one in my dad's family has kept in touch with my aunt and uncle because it was considered shameful to marry outside your race back then).

My maternal grandmother made the best fish cakes (chinese style)!

I loved eating pickled veggies and salted pineapple from the street vendors in Macau.

"Are you there God, it's me Margaret" was one of my favourite novels as a pre-teen.

OK, now I have to tag seven others for this:
Rhonna, Michelle, Shelby, Suzie, Amy, Vivian, and Jenny.

The Rules for Being Human

2007-05-21T13:59:00.000-04:00

-From Lilipoh mag - Cherie Carter-Scott

You will receive a body : You may like it or hate it but it will be yours for the entire period of this time around

You will learn lessons : You are enrolled in a full-time informal school called Life. Each day in this school you will have the opportunity to learn lessons. You may like the lessons or think them irrelevant and stupid.

There are no mistakes, only lessons : Growth is a process of trial and error: Experimentation. The "failed" experiments are as much a part of the process as the experiment that ultimately "works".

A lesson is repeated until learned : A lesson will be presented to you in various forms until you have learned it. When you have learned it, you can then go on to the next lesson.

Learning lessons does not end : There is no part of life that does not contain its lessons. If you are alive, there are lessons to be learned.

"There" is no better than "here" : When your "there" has become a "here", you will simply obtain another "there" that will again look better than "here".

Others are merely mirrors of you : You cannot love or hate something about another person unless it reflects something you love of hate about yourself.

What you make of your life is up to you : You have all the tools and resources you need. What you do with them is up to you. The choice is yours.

Your answers lie inside you : The answers to Life's questions lie inside you. All you need to do is look, listen, and trust.

You will forget all this.

Catch up post - April

2007-05-19T19:27:00.000-04:00

This is a "catch-up" post considering my absence from blogging.

The Senecal Egg hunt at Verona Park (because the Easter Egg Hunt at Van Vleck Gardens started earlier than the designated time - erg!):

Easter Sunday at Zabi's (another egg hunt!):

Branchbrook Park during the Cherry Blossom Festival (April):

Agriculture and Folk Festival at Rutgers University at the New Brunswick campus (April)

I am back!

2007-05-13T23:34:00.000-04:00

I am back! Happy Mother's Day to all mothers out there.

Been busy working and was in Las Vegas last weekend at the IYNAUS Convention. Haven't been knitting much though :-( and haven't finished sewing on the buttons for the cardi I completed weeks ago. More later!

Oh yeah, joined the Knitters Tea Swap round 3, should be fun!!!!!! Didn't sign up for Secret Pal because I am behind in my knitting and still haven't used the yarns sent to me from the other 2 Secret Pal swaps.

Blogging holiday (at least until the laptop bugs are sorted)

2007-03-08T22:10:00.000-05:00

Blog will take a small holiday. The laptop is not working quite right and it's been sent back, oh, a few times now. The warranty will expire soon so we want to get all the glitches out soon. I am still knitting and studying. Finished knitting the ChildHood cardi from knitty. All I need is to weave in the ends and sews on the snaps and buttons. Also nearly completely the right side of the Zipped Dog cardi from Easy Knits (Debbie Bliss).

I promise lots of FO pix and some great pix of Buonas.

Quatch...Saanen/Gstaad

2007-02-19T18:06:00.000-05:00

"Quatch" was a term I picked up from my friend's g.friend the weekend between Basel and Buonas. It means "Bullshit" but nicer.
Here are some pix of Gstaad. I did not see any celebrities but did eat a delish apple poppy seed cake while walking around the town and bought a spaetzle pan and another plate warmer.
I wanted to buy a magnet too but refused to pay 19 CHF for a magnet.

The ski weekend was a bust and terribly expensive. I paid 55 CHF to ski 1 run, lost my mitten, and had to buy a pair for 130 CHF. But it was fun to hang out with my friends and their respective partners and speak German, French, and English all at once.

We stayed at a great little wellness hotel that also catered to the blind, located in Saanen. www.solsana.ch The food was terrific. Still thinking about the wonderful kaeseplatte (cheeseplate) that I ate: Vacherin, Etiva, Eiche Blau, some hard goat cheese.

We drove back to Basel quite early on Sunday so I met up with a co-worker, ate heisse marroni and had soup at Zum Isaak in Munsterplatz and we ate together at Erlkoenig.

Back from my travels - week 1

2007-02-19T17:44:00.000-05:00

Back again from 2 weeks travelling. Week 1 was in Basel. Spent a nice weekend attempting to ski (terrible and unpredictable weather conditions) in Saanen/Gstaad. Week 2 was in Buonas by Lake Lucerne.

Meanwhile, look at the pretty little ballerina! (Photo taken on Feb 3rd).

And here's a pix of grumpy-faced Marlis when she realized that she was going to be dining out in restaurants every night I am away.

Ina and Fabian waited for me at the Basel SBB, as per routine. I don't know how I would adjust to Basel time if it weren't for Ina (and Fabian)!

Here's the view of Barfuesserplatz (Bare foot square) from my hotel room. I always stay at Hotel Brasserie Au Violon when I am in Basel. The staff there are the friendliest I have ever encountered.
Ina and I did our usual, went to Piadina Bar and got ourselves piadina and walked around Basel. Then we went to our favourite shop. Mouton a cinq pattes and checked out the designer duds for sales. I bought a gorgeous coat there and was glad for the extra space in the suitcase. Then we went and hung out at Ina's place until very very late.

The second day was spent hanging out with Jenny, Elia, and Patrick. Also stayed out very very late.

Day 3, went to yoga and then met Julia for dinner. Ate a nice meal at Da Gianni's over by St-Johann.

Day 4, went over to Ina's for tea and then met up with Cornelia and Andreas for drinks, ate at this new sushi/Japanese place called Noohn and then more drinks at Unternehmen Mitte. Was again a very very late night.

Oh yeah, I also had to work during the day...

Secret Pal revealed!

2007-01-31T21:46:00.000-05:00

Sob...today is the end of the Secret Pal 9 exchange. Sad that it's over because I've had so much fun. I connected with both my spoiler and my spoilee.

My spoiler was (is?) Michelle of www.knitty-bitty.momo4ever.com . She sent me cool stuff all the way from Australia!!!!! We plan on doing some personal swaps. In fact, I have a box of yarns that she ordered through me from www.littleknits.com which I will ship to her once I return from Basel.

My spoilee was (is?) Rhonna of www.rhonna.net . I sent her cool (I hope!) stuff from the USA all the way to Norway!!!!!! Rhonna was terrific at corresponding and in fact, my acceptance into my program at Temple was probably due to her advice on my statement of goals and objectives!!

Thank you again Secret Pal!!!

2007-01-30T14:06:00.000-05:00

Guess what I got in the post today??? You completely made my day with the wonderful surprises that you sent! All Aussie goods too!!! You've been a great Secret Pal! I look forward to finding out who you are...

The yarns are sooo soft and the colours are perfect. I think I already have an idea of what to knit with them!!!

And I've already polished off 3 of the Chewy Caramel Tim Tam, so much for my New Year's resolution of not eating too many sweets. Well, I can always make new resolutions for the upcoming Chinese New Year. Good to have a fallback plan, don't you think?

On the knitting front, I wonder if I will finish this cardi before I leave for my business trip? This is the "Childhood" pattern from Knitty, sans hood. I started this cardi like last year (March 2006) and then picked it up again recently (when I was at the in-laws over Xmas break). All I have left to knit is the 1 sleeve, the button bands, and the neck band. And find some buttons and seaming it all up. Hmmm, maybe only the remaining sleeve will be done before I leave on Sunday.

And I LOVE the way Mission Falls wool yarn feels on the Addi Turbos!

In memoriam

2007-01-25T21:48:00.000-05:00

I found out today that my highschool friend's mom died last thursday, less than 2 months after the death of her husband (my friend's father). In less than 2 months, my friend lost both her parents.

We send our heartfelt condolences to my friend and her family.

What the f#%$ ???? Do I need my hearing checked?

2007-01-21T22:23:00.000-05:00

Yesterday I decided to drive to the Whole Foods market that just opened in another town, a significantly larger one, instead of going to the small Whole Foods near my house. I spent way too long in the store and spent way too much $$ but that's not what irked me. When I was walking and pushing my grocery cart to my car, some woman yelled out of her car "Move it, you chink!"

I thought to myself, wow, comments like that must be illegal here in this day and age. Had I not been so shocked, I might have taken a pix of her license plate and reported her to the police (?).

When I mentioned the incident to Richard, he was completely shocked.

What to make of this, I don't know. I don't think I can completely forget about it either.

Catching up and photos

2007-01-18T22:11:00.000-05:00

January is the "catch-up" month. Here are some photos that I should have posted back in December. Here is a photo of Marlis' friends sleeping. Here is another photo of typical 3-yr old reaction to Santa Claus. (either that or it was the size of the gift that displeased her!)

And here are some pix of my bday party last Saturday! We had about 25 people (including the 8 children). It is amazing that they all fit into our tiny house!!!! Everyone contributed such delicious foods. I think a good time was had by all.

And me, the birthday girl holding up with yummy ice cream cake that my friend Sean bought me: (uh, the photo is not that flattering of me but rather pay close attention to the cake!!)

And lastly, I finished knitting the skein of Seven Sammys I bought at Rheinbeck ages ago but here is a rather blurry photo of it. Also I completed but haven't weaved in the ends of the hat I knitted for Marlis using the Morehouse Merino Bulky.

Happy Birthday to me

2007-01-12T22:13:00.000-05:00

My birthday today and I had a more-than-usual lousy day at work. And I have be working my butt off at my party tomorrow. No rest for the weary. I need a vacation from my life.

Belated Merry Xmas and Early Happy New year!

2006-12-30T19:11:00.000-05:00

We spent the week in Austin with R's parents. We are not keen to do it again. It was an interesting week. We just got back this evening and I am completely beat from the plane ride and a certain little girl stomping on me throughout the entire ride.

On the knitting front, I am almost finished Marlis' bulky roll neck sweater and making good progress on the other WIPs. Will upload the photos of some new FOs tomorrow.

Richard's tarot

2006-12-17T22:51:00.000-05:00

You are The Sun

Happiness, Content, Joy.

The meanings for the Sun are fairly simple and consistent.

Young, healthy, new, fresh. The brain is working, things that were muddled come clear, everything falls into place, and everything seems to go your way.

The Sun is ruled by the Sun, of course. This is the light that comes after the long dark night, Apollo to the Moon's Diana. A positive card, it promises you your day in the sun. Glory, gain, triumph, pleasure, truth, success. As the moon symbolized inspiration from the unconscious, from dreams, this card symbolizes discoveries made fully consciousness and wide awake. You have an understanding and enjoyment of science and math, beautifully constructed music, carefully reasoned philosophy. It is a card of intellect, clarity of mind, and feelings of youthful energy.

What Tarot Card are You?
Take the Test to Find Out.

Updates and tarot cards

2006-12-17T22:38:00.000-05:00

The tarot card posting below is kind of nostalgic, I guess. I remember back in 1996 or 1997, me and some g.friends had a night out and we went to a club on St-Laurent and there was a tarot card reader at this club. Both my friend and I had our cards read and sad to say (or happy to say), most of what that tarot card lady told us came true. The breaking up with my university love, the travelling, etc.

Anyhow, my university love has since spent the years after our breakup with a good friend of mine. Ok, there were hard feelings at first but time passed and we all mature. They just had a baby girl on Friday: Arianne Naomi. Isn't that such a gorgeous name??? Haven't seen the photos yet but I am sure that she is a gorgeous little girl, very much loved by her parents.

On the knitting front, not much done, maybe a few more inches on the Zip cardi from LMKG. I did buy some more knitting books, Alpaca Silk book 1 and Cashmere book from Debbie Bliss. Now, if only my littleknits.com order would hurry up and get here...

Which Tarot Card are you????

2006-12-17T22:36:00.000-05:00

You are the World

Completion, Good Reward.

The World is the final card of the Major Arcana, and as such represents saturnian energies, time, and completion.

The World card pictures a dancer in a Yoni (sometimes made of laurel leaves). The Yoni symbolizes the great Mother, the cervix through which everything is born, and also the doorway to the next life after death. It is indicative of a complete circle. Everything is finally coming together, successfully and at last. You will get that Ph.D. you've been working for years to complete, graduate at long last, marry after a long engagement, or finish that huge project. This card is not for little ends, but for big ones, important ones, ones that come with well earned cheers and acknowledgements. Your hard work, knowledge, wisdom, patience, etc, will absolutely pay-off; you've done everything right.

What Tarot Card are You?
Take the Test to Find Out.

Xmas meme

2006-12-12T15:34:00.000-05:00

Took this off of www.peasoupoftheday.blogspot.com.

Egg nog or hot chocolate?
Hot chocolate for Malris. Herbal tea for me. Coffe with Kahlua for hubby

Does Father Christmas wrap presents or just set them under the tree?
Wrapped and placed under the tree.

Coloured lights on tree/house or white?
Coloured lights on tree. No special lights outside.

Do you hang mistletoe?
No

When do you put up your decorations?
Usually mid-December although we don't have a tree this year because we will be my in-laws.

What's your favourite Christmas dish?
Last year, I made a roasted duck stuffed with a wild rice stuffing with a garlic-port sauce. Not sure what the in-laws will be making but whatever it is, I am sure either the dish will contain meat or pork. :-(

Favourite Christmas memory as a child?
We didn't really celebrate Xmas in our family so every year, I remember my parents, my bro, and I searching for a decent restaurant to have Xmas dinner. I think one year, we ate at McDonald's. (Most restaurants in Montreal close on Xmas day and it is usually -15 C around that time so we were not keen to walk around)

When and how did you learn the truth about Father Christmas?
Like at 5, when my mom took me to get my photo taken with Santa Claus at the Bay.

Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve?
Growing up, my parents did not believe in wrapping gifts (they still don't) so we got our gifts as soon as they bought them. Now, Richard insists that we wait until after breakfast on Xmas morning.

How do you decorate your Christmas tree?
With the ornaments that we've amassed from various Weinachtsmarkt in Europe.

Snow! Love it or dread it?
I Love it. I miss it. I love being able to go sledding after the a major snowfall!

Can you ice skate?
YES!!!! A definite pre-requisite growing up in Montreal!

Do you remember your favourite gift?
I got a working baking oven one year! I made many many cakes.

What's the most important thing about Christmas for you?
Chilling out with family and friends.

What's your favourite Christmas dessert?
Flourless chocolate cake with raspberry sauce and vanilla gelato

What's your favourite Christmas tradition?
Baking about a million cookies to give to friends and colleagues.

What tops your tree?
One year, we put a little mitten up there because that's what we found at the Basel market. Now, a little art work from Marlis.

Which do you prefer: giving or receiving?
Both but lean toward giving.

What's your favourite Christmas song?
Handel's Messiah, the entire oratorio

Candy canes?
Nope, only a tree decorations. We stay away from high fructose corn syrup as much as we can.

Cranberry pear walnut cake recipe

2006-12-12T15:20:00.000-05:00

I baked this cake when I should have been working on my tallying up how many documents I have reviewed and approved this year...

Here's the recipe (I modified the recipe from www.taste.com.au "Country pear cake")

1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temp
1 c sugar
2 eggs, at room temp
1 1/2 c unbleached flour
2 t baking powder
1 pinch salt
1 dash ground nutmeg

reserved juice from peeling the pears and 1/4 c (+ 2 T?) of buttermilk

2 ripe Bartlett pears, peeled, and chopped
1 to 2 handful chopped pecans
1 handful roughly chopped frozen cranberries

some honey (I used Wildflower honey)

- Preheat oven to 350 F

- Grease 9-inch round cake pan, line bottom with parchment paper

- Beat (with mixer) together butter and sugar. Add eggs 1 at a time. Beat until combined

- Sift flour, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg into another bowl

- Add some reserved pear juice/buttermilk to butter mixture. Add about 1/2 the dry mix. Blend. Add rest of dry mix and end with the liquid. Beat until just mixed.

- Fold in the pears, pecans, and cranberries

- Spoon into pan, even out the surface

- Bake 1 hr (?) or until toothpick comes out clean

- Brush honey on top

-Cool for 10 min, invert onto rack, invert cake again so that the honey side is facing up

- Yummy! and try not to eat too many slices all at once!!!

I am such an idiot

2006-12-10T21:43:00.000-05:00

Can you spot what I did wrong??!!!!!

Funny thing because I did not realize it either until I had knitted about 15 bloody rows of the Hourglass sweater (this will be the 3rd time I had to rip this cursed WIP).

In case you still can't figure it out, I twisted a stitch (es) and well, frog, frog, frog...

For my Secret Pal, hehehe

2006-12-10T21:34:00.000-05:00

Look at what I got in the post last week!!!!!

Okay, okay, I had also ordered some stuff for me too. Namely the Lantern Moon baskets but I have to tease you with the photos of the yarns you ordered!!!!! And the colours are definitely more vibrant in real life than in the photos!!!!!

It's a catastrophe! Shoulders, shoulders!!!!!

2006-12-03T18:21:00.000-05:00

I went to a yoga intensive at the Yoga studio in Madison, NJ this weekend (started Friday night). The intensive was taught by a Senior Iyengar teacher from Florence, Italy. Gabriella Giubilaro (www.yogawisdom.com). She was fantastic but tough. She LOVES to do arm-balances. I swear if I practiced those arm-balances, I would probably be able to arm-wrestle R and WIN!!!!! We really worked on our shoulders on Saturday and she kept screaming "It's a catastrophe!" because we kept losing the rotation in our shoulders when we were doing urdhva hastasana. And also we were flexing our spine in uthitta trikonsana. One thing I am proud of is that I can kick up w/o assistance into pincha mayurasana.

Next weekend is the intensive with Manouso Manos. Looking forward to that but I know he LOVES to teach all the standing asanas and sitting asanas. Better be good this week and not eat a lot of crap. Definitely no wine cuz I don't want my cells to be drunk.

Thank you Secret Pal!!!

2006-11-29T16:24:00.000-05:00

My package from my Secret Pal arrived on Monday! (yeah, tardy posting but thanked my SP via email already!)

The goodies came all the way from Australia and definitely travelled first class!!!

Here are some close-up pix of my goodies: A gorgeous skein of worsted weight merino handpainted yarn from The Knittery Yarn,three skeins of DK wool from Sean Sheep, a pair of Swallow DPN that I've been searching high and low for over here in the USA, 2 packages of Tim Tam in flavours I never tried before. (Too bad we can't get Tim Tams over here in North America, no, maybe it is a good thing. I already ate half the packet of the Chewy Caramel, bad bad me)and 2 bars of handmade soap. The soaps were so fragrant that their aroma escaped from the box before I even opened it!!!

Thank you so much my dear Secret Pal!

Fabian and the Big Bad Baby Blanket

2006-11-20T09:26:00.000-05:00

Taaa daaaa...drum roll...Here is a pix of Fabian and the blanket that I knitted from SnB book!

It's nice to get photos of the knitted gifts being used by the recipient!

Les Invasions Barbares (The Barbarian Invasions)

2006-11-11T22:08:00.000-05:00

I watched this movie "Les Invasions Barbares" (written and directed by Denys Arcand) this evening instead of writing my application essay for grad school.

This movie is the sequel to "Le Declin de l'Empire Americain" (The Decline of the American Empire). Both were great movies but this one (The invasions) seemed to have touched me more. Both well worth watching.

On a fiber note, I went to the LYS this afternoon and pick up 2 Morehouse Farm knit kits. One is for knitting the schoolbus scarf: http://www.morehousefarm.com/KnittingKits/Scarves/SchoolBus/

And the other kit for knitting a hat for Marlis. She actually picked out the pattern and the yarn, it will be in pink, of course!

http://www.morehousefarm.com/KnittingKits/Hats/SuperTop/

I am already 1/4 of the way complete with the hat (knitting while watching the Invasions movie).

Pix to come when the husband returns from the UK. He took our camera with him.

Chez Leo et Alice

2006-11-07T16:18:00.000-05:00

Voici quelques photos de notre visite chez Leo et Alice!!!

Sienna cardigan from Interweave Knits Fall 2006

2006-11-06T22:29:00.000-05:00

Will post a photo later but I have never frogged so much as I have for that cardiga. I am getting gauge width-wise but definitely NOT getting gauge lengthwise. sigh... Why is it sooo easy to frog yet so difficult to knit. It takes me 3 min to frog something that took 1 hr to knit.

I guess knitters all have patience of steel??????

Short post tonite because I am all blogged out and pretty tired since the husband is galavanting around the UK for almost 2 weeks.

McGill Alumni event

2006-10-30T12:07:00.000-05:00

Happy Monday! The week is not starting out well. My VPN certificate did not work so I had to dial into my usualy telecon w/o an agenda since I was unable to access my work email. It wasn't until almost 10:30 this morning that I was able to retrieve a new certificate.

Last night, me and Richard went our first alumi event. It was a wine tasting soiree hosted by an Alumni couple. I wasn't really that keen to go but since we already RSVPd and Marlis was with Alicia, we went.

Anyway, we were there, chit-chatting with some of the other alumni, most of them were non-Montrealers, when JP and Stephanie walked in.

JP was living in the upstairs flat and studying at the same uni as I was. I ended up living with his room-mate the year after JP graduated and moved away. This was more than 10 years ago!!!
What a small world! It was good to see them and to catch up.

Rhinebeck Sheep and Wool Festival

2006-10-23T23:00:00.000-04:00

I went on Saturday (Oct 21). Yup, even though I had a midterm for school the next day, I still went. It was a bit overwhelming as it was my first fiber festival. I wish I went with someone more experienced though. I still managed to buy some yarn and some cute stitchmarkers!
Pix coming soon!

48 Things You Could Care Less About

2006-10-23T22:25:00.000-04:00

1. FIRST NAME? hy (these are my initials!)
2. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE? no
3. WHEN DID YOU LAST CRY? can't remember
4. DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING? sure
5. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCHMEAT? I don't eat lunchmeat
6. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU? yes
7. DO YOU HAVE A JOURNAL? online blog; used to have a paper journal when I was in high school and uni
8. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS? Yes
9. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP? depends
10. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL? oatmeal with dried blueberries, toasted almonds, maple sugar, and soy milk
11. DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF? yes
12. DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG? sometimes
13. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM FLAVOR? vanilla gelato (mine, of course!)
14. SHOE SIZE? 8.5
15. RED OR PINK? red
16. WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT YOURSELF? I like myself!
17. WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST? My family and friends in Montreal and in Basel
18. DO YOU WANT EVERYONE TO SEND THIS BACK TO YOU? I didn't send it to anyone!
19. WHAT COLOR PANTS, SHIRT AND SHOES ARE YOU WEARING? jeans, orange t, socks
21. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW? the quietness of the house when both daughter and hubby are fast asleep
22. IF YOU WERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE? Plum purple
23. FAVORITE SMELL? my daughter
24. WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE? my friend Sean who called me to ask me if I was planning on going to yoga class tomorrow afternoon
25. THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE YOU ARE ATTRACTED TO? their teeth
26. DO YOU LIKE THE PERSON you stole THIS from? never met her. She is my SP9 coordinator
27. FAVORITE DRINK? water
28. FAVORITE SPORT? slalom skiing (to watch); alpine ski (to do)
29. EYE COLOR? Brown
30. HAT SIZE? don't know
31. DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS? no, I can't put anything in my eye. Hence no eye makeup either
32. favorite food? sushi
33. scary movies or happy endings? happy endings
35. summer or winter? winter
36. hugs or kisses? hugs
37. favorite dessert? fresh fruit (is that too boring?) ok, creme brulee too!
38. who is most likely to respond? didn't send it to anyone else
39. least likely to respond? same as #38
40. what books are you reading? The Quality Audit Handbook (for school) and The Year of Magical Thinking (Joan Didion)
41. what's on your mouse pad? i have a laptop
42. what did you watch last night on tv? we don't have a tv but we watched a Pedro Almodovar movie on DVD "What did I do to Deserve This"
43. favorite sounds? silence
44. the rolling stones or beatles? beatles
45. the furthest you've been from home? Hong Kong
46. what's your special talent? cooking
47. where were you born? hospital in Kowloon
48. who sent this to you? Pinched it from a SP9 participant

FO: Mittens using Ann Norling pattern

2006-10-17T22:13:00.000-04:00

I finished the left mitten very very late last night. Marlis was thrilled and wore them to school today.

I used Artfibers yarn "Basque" (that's the mc), the pink yarn is also from Artfibers too but don't know what it is because I found it in their sale bin.

Kofi Busia workshop

2006-10-15T16:28:00.000-04:00

I was at a yoga workshop given by Kofi Busia this weekend. There are 3 things to keep in mind:
- Spine straight
-Legs straight
- Arms straight

Sounds so simple yet it is difficult to keep to it. The workshop was great, as usual. He is such a great teacher with wonderful anecdotes. You don't feel like you are working too hard. Well, dhanurasana to adho mukhasvasana back to dhanurasana is really really tough, esp if you don't have a strong dhanurasana!! (which I don't!)

Namaste!

My favourites

2006-10-15T15:52:00.000-04:00

Got this from Shelby's blog (http://shelbyknits2.blogspot.com/): she is our coordinator for SP9 (she got this list from someone else, etc)

List your favorite:
Actor - Al Pacino (for the acting); Jude Law (for looks!)
Actress - Parker Posey
Animal - Koala bear
Band - Depeche Mode (I am sooo eighties!)
Book - The Blind Assasin (Margaret
Bubble Bath - can't stand it!
Candy - Rowntree Fruit Pastilles
Color - Red
Drink- Water (at room temperature)
Flower - Tulips
Food - Sushi
Lip Balm - Carmex
Lotion - Fresh Sugar Lychee
Movie - Cinema Paradiso
Place - My home
Song - Goldberg Variations by JS Bach; A Case of You (interpreted by Diana Krall)
TV Show - I don't own a tv
Yarn- Just one?!? How about the yarn I DON'T LIKE? Araucania Cotton
Vacation Spot - Prague

Big Bad Baby Blanket: finished and blocking

2006-10-12T18:09:00.000-04:00

I finally finished the Big Bad Baby Blanket from the Stitch n Bitch book. I started the blanket back in April and just completed it today and blocking it. The lucky recipient of this blanket is Fabian Rafael Remane. He decided to make his appearance 2 weeks before the due date, definitely made me hurry to finish it. Of course, I gotta ship it to Basel so it might take another few weeks before he receives it.
I used Koigu Painter's Palette Premium Merino PPPM colourway 111 (I think!). A little less than 8 skeins (I think!)

Look at what I got in the mail!!!!

2006-10-12T18:02:00.000-04:00

Look what I got in the mail!!
Tilli Thomas yarn!!! I started swatching it together to make a scarf using basket weave pattern but it looked too busy and weird so I ordered another skein in the light grey instead. So still waiting for it. What should I do with the purple skein?????

Knitters Tea Swap 2: package received

2006-10-05T22:43:00.000-04:00

From the thoughtful Kelli: www.knitterbunny.blogspot.com

THANK YOU Kelli!

Like all the action photos??? Not sure why Marlis has decide to lose her eyes purposely for the camera.

I have yet to send my package to my spoilee. I am still shopping.

Does that Chamomile lemon tea taste good with a dark chocolate raspberry square...yummy-licious!

Secret Pal 9 Questionnaire

2006-10-01T21:02:00.000-04:00

1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? What fibers do you absolutely *not* like?

Likes: natural fibers

Favourite yarns so far: Mano Del Uruguay, Cascade 220, Mission Falls, Artfibers Basque

Dislikes: Synthetic fibers and novelty yarn

2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in?

I have a Lantern Moon needle roll but most of the time, my needles are in a zippy bag with my WIPs.

3. How long have you been knitting & how did you learn? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced?

I have been knitting since Novemver 2005. I learned using some websites.

Skill level: beginner-intermediate. I am always learning new things as I knit.

4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list?

Yes. But I don't think it is very current.

5. What's your favorite scent? (for candles, bath products, etc.)

Cinnamon and vanilla

6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy?

I DO but I need to stay away from that stuff!!!!!

7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Do you spin?

Just knit.

8. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD)

Music collection is too long to name!! Variety of music from different countries.

MP3: probably not. Am a CD kind of girl.

9. What's your favorite color(s)? Any colors you just can't stand?

Fav: Reds, greens, purples, oranges: autumn colours, I guess.

Maybe yellow wouldn't look so great against my asian skin. Would probably make me look more sallow. And peach makes me looked washed out and tired (hmmm, I am tired!)

10. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets?

Married with a 3 yr old. No pets.

11. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos?

No ponchos.

12. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit?

Sweaters for my daughter, scarfs, and more recently, mittens!

13. What are you knitting right now?

Men's Zip cardi from Last Minute gifts
Scarf using pattern from Artfibers
Bulky raglan sweater by Melinda Goodfellow for my daughter
Mittens using Ann Norling pattern for my daughter
Swirl scarf from Shibui Knits

14. Do you like to receive handmade gifts?

YES. A person's got to be insame not to LOVE handmade gifts!!!!

15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Bamboo, aluminum, plastic?

Circs so far. I am loving the Pony Rosewood circs I bought to knit my Swirl scarf

16. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift?

No, I just use chairs

17. How old is your oldest UFO?

Not yet 1 yr old!!

18. What is your favorite holiday?

All holidays because each one has a special meaning!!!

19. Is there anything that you collect?

Seems like I am collecting lots of size 5.5 mm cir needles! Everytime I start a new project, I seem to end up buying a new pair of 5.5 mm needles each time!!!!

20. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on? What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have?

I am contemplating getting a subscription to Interweave Knits but I already bought the Fall Issue.

I am a subscriber to "Brain, Child" mag and "Ladybug" mag for my daughter

21. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn?

I am learning new things every day so hard to be specific.

22. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements?

Not yet but I have a feeling that my spoiler from the Knitters Tea Swap 2 is going to send me some sock yarn!

Size 8.5 feet, narrow.

23. When is your birthday? (mm/dd)

Jan 12. Capricorn!

Some seriously strange characters at our local Library

2006-10-01T14:13:00.000-04:00

I am at the local library now, there are some seriously strange characters there. This freaky dude sitting near me was here last Sunday too. And every time I change desks, he seems to follow me. I don't think he is stalking me.

Last week, when I was here, he was also here, copying words out of some a guide book. And surprise, surprise, he is doing the same thing today. At least he picked a different city! He doesn't annoy me but his incredibly smelly feet do! I opened the windows and get some fresh air in and it doesn't help.

I really should move desks again but I need to find one with an electrical outlet.

I should be doing my homework instead of blogging...

Swirl Scarf from Shibui Knits using Habu

2006-09-30T00:08:00.000-04:00

Here is a pix of the scarf I am knitting. (Pattern by Shibui Knits), purchased from www.pureknits.com

I am using the silk mohair hand-dyed kusa from Habu Textiles, in purple. So light and airy and soft and so darn slippery on the Addi Turbos. (I had to change to rosewood circs - LOVE those pony!)

Happy Birthday my baby!!!

2006-09-29T23:48:00.000-04:00

Here she is making cupcakes for her friends at school.

Birthday girl at school with her friends (even balloons!). Check out the birthday crown!

Marlis is 3 years old today.

GRE Completed!!! and Habu Textiles

2006-09-25T21:32:00.000-04:00

I wrote my GRE this morning in NYC! I did alright, not great but it is over!! YAY! And since I took the day off. I spent a leisurely afternoon walking around mid-town.

I also treated myself to some soft yarn at Habu Textiles. The showroom was, well, overwhelmingly small and overwhelming with skeins.

And to top off a perfect day, I made it to Mary's class at 17:30 but it was soooo packed that maybe I will just bite the bullet and go to Lara's class on Wednesdays. Mary is an exceptional teacher. It was a pranayama class so we did only 3 asanas to prepare. It was exactly what I needed.

Fig and chili tagliatelle

2006-09-23T20:15:00.000-04:00

It was really yummy. Recipe from The River Cafe Cook Book found in a magazine clipping (can't remember where):

8 black figs (fresh)
1 lemon
freshly grated Parmesan (the real stuff )
dash of red crushed chili peppers
6 egg tagliatelle nests
olive oil
100 ml heavy cream

- figs cut into quarters. Zest lemon and juice.
-cook nests in pot of salted water
- heat a fry pan, add oil. when pan is smoking, add figs
-caramelize. add chili. season.
- drain pasta. stir in zest and juice into cream.
-add to pasta. add figs
-serve with grated parmesan

Gumdrops sweater: almost there...

2006-09-19T19:26:00.000-04:00

I am thinking about not knitting the gumdrops but flowers instead. What do you think?

Aquadom

2006-09-19T19:01:00.000-04:00

Here are some photos inside the Aquadom that was in the lobby of our Berlin hotel. It was way cool!!! The aquarium is cleaned every day by 3 divers!!!

Berlin: Photos inside the civilian bunker

2006-09-19T18:05:00.000-04:00

Here are some photos inside the civilian bunker located underneath the Gesundbruennun train station. The tour guide is explaining how these toilets work, no running water, uses peat to cover up. This bunker was supposed to be a "muki" bunker. "Mutter und kind" mother and children. It ended up being a bunker for more people than was built-for. And yes, only for civilians who have special identity papers.

Sleepless in Berlin and GRE...

2006-09-19T12:01:00.000-04:00

Berlin has undergone a lot of changes since I was last there in 1999. We stayed at the SAS Radisson in East Berlin, the area renamed as "Berlin Mitte". The hotel was close to Alexanderplatz, Bebeliplatz, Berliner Dom, and the Fernsehenturm.

We passed by the Judaischer Denkmal on the way to the hotel but I did not visit it. My colleague did and he said it was quite amazing. Slabs of stone of various shapes and sizes to commemorate those killed in the concentration camps.

I did not have much free time there since I arrived Monday lunchtime and the Welcome reception was that very night. Some of us were bad, we went to yoga instead and got to the Welcome reception late and then buggered off to dinner at the really great Italian restaurant (Bacco il Bocca; I think!) I had a baked fig with goat cheese and speck and then tagliolini topped with shaved truffles.

The excursion on Wed afternoon was to tour the civilian bunker underneath the Gesundbruennen train station. It was an interesting yet sobering tour. We learned about the origins of the triangle and what the different colours represented. I did take some photos but have not downloaded them yet.

On a knitting note, I completed the Gumdrops sweater while in Berlin. In fact, I stayed up until 4 am last Thurs to complete it. I am wondering if I should even bother putting those "gumdrops" on (bobbles) since it looks great without. The annoying thing is, I think Marlis has actually almost outgrown this sweater!!!

GRE: is next week. Did not get any studying done while in Berlin. Why was I so optimistic to think that I would?????????

School starts tomorrow and Berlin

2006-09-09T20:56:00.000-04:00

School starts tomorrow.
I am also flying to Berlin tomorrow night. I swapped out my Addi Turbo for Addi Natura so that my baby blanket WIP doesn't get confiscated. In addition, I printed out the "allowed items on board" list from www.tsa.gov. Interesting that KY Jelly can be brought onboard and not toothpaste!!!!!!

WIP "Gumdrops" sweater (Jil Eaton)

2006-09-07T23:08:00.000-04:00

I have been knitting this since Feb. Well. I started it then, put it aside for months, frogged it and then re-casted on. Knitting with mohair was a learning experience. In fact, I am starting to notice a pattern (no pun) to my knitting. I cast-on, I knit a few rows, I set it aside for weeks (months), I pick it up again and forget where I stopped, I frog, I re-cast on.

For this sweater, I am using Classic Elite La Gran in "Julia's Pink" (colourway 6571). I was so afraid that I was going to run out of yarn that I ordered 2 extra skeins from www.purlsoho.com (it is in the sale bin) and now it looks like I will probably still have those 2 extra skeins left. I suppose I could knit myself a scarf with the extra yarn or something.

Secret Pal 8: I know who she is!!!!!!

2006-09-07T22:46:00.000-04:00

I received the 3rd package from my Secret Pal 8 this evening when I arrived home from the office!!! A book of cute patterns to knit for Marlis, a pair of knitting needles, and a skein of Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece yarn. Marlis was so happy to put the yarn to her cheek "Nice and soft" she exclaimed!!! Thank you very much!!!!!!!

My spoiler for Secret Pal 8 is Norah of:
www.texoergosum.blogspot.com

Here's a photo of Marlis. Couldn't resist. Look at her happy little face!!!!!! And it wasn't because she finished eating this:

Knitters Tea Swap 2

2006-09-06T00:02:00.000-04:00

I love tea. I drink tea while I knit. I found this swap by accident. Why not???
I am drinking "Liebestee": a herbal blend of hemp, sunflowers, and chamomile. Jenny introduced me to it.

Secret Pal 9

2006-09-03T23:06:00.000-04:00

I signed up for it! I thought it was such a cool experience from Secret Pal 8 that I just have to do it again!!!!!!!!!!! Anyway, it is a good excuse to go shopping. "something for my secret pal, something for me"

More frogging and re-starting (is that a word?)

2006-09-03T23:01:00.000-04:00

I frogged the few rows of the "Zip Cardigan" that I started knitting for Richard from "Last Minute Knitted Gifts" because I couldn't remember which was the RS or the WS. Pretty sad. But I re-casted on the stitches and have knitted about 6 rows and I used a stitch marker (given to me from my Secret Pal) to mark the RS, as a reminder. I am knitting the cardi using the Manos Del Uruguay in black.

Photos of our rainy camping weekend

2006-08-31T17:34:00.000-04:00

Brief respite from the rain. This was our rainy camping trip a few weekends ago. See Lucas and his face.

SECRET PAL 8: the big reveal

2006-08-31T17:27:00.000-04:00

It is today!!! I get to find out who my Secret Pal is...

I already sent an email to my spoilee and gave her the url to this blog.

The person I spoiled is: http://supasolsista.blogspot.com/

My 2 days as a SAHM and Knit Cafe book

2006-08-31T17:14:00.000-04:00

Hats off to all the SAHM out there. I must have lost my touch after returning to work when Marlis was 5 months old. Her school is closed the last 3 days of August and I was a SAHM yesterday and today. It is constant, no break, not even during her nap time because I am busy cleaning up the mess from when she is awake!!! Don't get me wrong, I enjoy having fun with Marlis but I need a break. I guess it is the same for her too because she was thrown off her routine.

It is on days like this that I really miss not living in Basel. We would have gone to hang out with Jenny and Elia, played in Schutzenmatte Parc, rode the bicycle along the Rhein, walked on the Fuess path near the dam to get reflexology benefits, did a Kneipp foot bath near the Papier Muehle museum, taking her to the Marionette Theatre, the list goes on and on.

I read somewhere that it takes an expat roughly 2x the length of time spent abroad to fully repatriate. GREAT. This means that it will take me about 5 more years before I stop missing our Basel life and adapt to NJ life. How depressing.

I digress, I had planned a playdate with someone today but that never worked out because we (me and the other mom) kept delaying the playdate time until both our children had napped sufficiently. Marlis did not go down for a nap until 16:00hrs and then it will be dinner time and then bedtime.

On another note, I received my Amazon order this afternoon. I ordered 2 DVDs (My FAIR Lady and Once Were Warriors) AND the book "Greetings from th Knit Cafe". I flipped through the book when I was in Barnes and Nobles in Chelsea and really liked how colourful the book is. I also liked the patterns but considering how quickly I finish projects, I will be old and decrepit before I get around to knitting any of these patterns. The other knitting bloggers must be very quick knitters because they seem to finish their projects in days whereas, I am a "months and months" person. of course, frogging doesn't really help either. I really really had to frog my Hour Glass Sweater because I think I was off with the gauge anyhow and it would have ended up pretty tight.

Frogging

2006-08-28T13:26:00.000-04:00

Today is a frogging day. I frogged the 10 rows I knitted (months ago) on the Hourglass Sweater. I frogged the Herringbone Lace scarf (knitted only 10 rows) and decided to use larger size needles. What will I frog next?????

Complete exhaustion and no patience

2006-08-26T00:45:00.000-04:00

I am completely exhausted. I have been staying up late attempting to brush up on my vocabulary. Memorizing 10 words per day is tantamount to watching paint dry. So my patience is really limited and I actually screamed at Marlis at Whole Foods this evening and carried her out of the store while she was wailing. Also, I have had enough of these 7:30 am telecons with the Basel colleagues to review the SDS document line by line. Why can't people read the document on their own (150 pgs and this does not include the appendices)???????

Good night.

Progress on the GRE studying...

2006-08-21T22:02:00.000-04:00

I did a practice test from www.princetonreview.com and scored a total of 890 (verbal and quantitative combined). I am so discouraged. Sept 25 is getting closer and closer.

Camping this past weekend

2006-08-21T21:59:00.000-04:00

We went camping in Lake George, NY this past weekend with some friends. Marlis liked it. It probably would have been more fun if it hadn't rained the entire weekend. Our tent is still set up in our bedroom, drying, full of sand. I did take some pix which I have yet to download off the camera.

Jein = Ja / Nein

2006-08-18T01:10:00.000-04:00

We are going camping this weekend. Um, car camping where you drive your car to the camp site. Should be fun, I guess. Car-camping....what can I say???!!! Not much of a workout there.

Anyhow, we will be in the Adirondacks this weekend by Lake George. Marlis is very excited about sleeping in her new sleeping bag (we got her a North Face bag - kids today have it all- I never had a brand-name anything until I was old enough to buy it myself) and in a tent. We wiggled around the living room tonite in our sleeping bags, pretending to be a caterpillar.

Bon weekend!!!

What we ate for dinner and Cultural awareness for Wimps

2006-08-17T00:15:00.000-04:00

Dinner tonight was:
- Prosecco aperitif
- chicken with madeira and shallots
- accompanied by garlicky mushrooms sauteed in Semillon and chives
- with butter-sour cream mashed potatoes

We drank a Semillon with it and then moved on to a Rotlan Priorat and then to a Haut-Medoc

- Salad of spinach, beets, cucumbers, and heirloom tomatoes with a Dijon-Champagne vinaigrette

- Dessert was a Chocolate-Rum Pudding cake with a small scoop of vanilla ice cream (did not make the ice cream; ran out of time but Stoney Farms makes a decent one without high fructose corn syrup in it)

- Dessert wine: Banyuls

What I had planned for tonite was not was we had, except for the dessert. My plan to make a watercress, beet, and grapefruit salad, and duck breasts with a port-cherry sauce with mashed sweet potatoes. But there was no fresh duck breasts to be bought at the store and no watercress. Still dinner turned out great.

Our friends from Basel came by for dinner. These were friends who used to live here and then we moved to Basel and then they moved to Basel and we moved back here. Funny, we really began to hang out together after we moved to Basel.

It was great to see them and we always have the greatest conversations. Because we were all from diverse cultural backgrounds: me (a Hong Kong born Canadian having lived in Swiss-land and now living here in the USA), Richard (an American who moved every 3 yrs as a child with his family and then stayed in Austin for 20 yrs, lived in Swiss-land and now here in USA), Cornelia (a German who grew up near Muenchen, lived here in the USA and now living in Swiss-land) and Andreas (same situation as Cornelia but I think that he did not grow up near Muenchen but another region of Germany). We talked about cultural differences and even though we had experienced some frustrations living in Basel, apparently, they being German did as well. They told us about a friend of theirs who lives in Nuremburg and visited them in Basel, he was shocked at how happy the Swiss people all look and by how friendly they were. (Richard nearly fell off his chair at that because he always had a different impression). We talked a lot and Andreas said that the only way to know who you are and how your surroundings influence you is to actually live in a few places. But does that mean I know who I am? Not really sure about that.

Faux pas: I asked the cashier at Whole Foods if he was well, meaning I asked him how he was. Because in german and in french, asking someone how they are and if they are well, mean the same thing. I did not realize that by asking he cashier if he was well, I was implying that he was unwell. Yup, the cashier looked taken aback and asked me if I thought he looked ill or something. Boy was I ever embarrassed.

Almost finished baby cardi and new WIP

2006-08-15T11:59:00.000-04:00

I am almost finished the baby cardi, I just need to find either a button or velcro thingie. More progress on the baby blanket I am knitting for a friend, due in September!! See the cute little bee? It is a measuring tape, from Lantern Moon!! I already have the sheep but couldn't resist the bee.
And I started (again, after frogging) the GumDrop sweater from MinnowKnits (no pix until I get further along, knitting with mohair is interesting), and another scarf using the yarn I bought in March when I was in San Francisco from Artfibers ( www.artfibers.com ). The yarn is 100% Tussah silk in Chai colourway, absolutely gorgeous!!! I love that shop, if I lived in San Francisco, I would completely spend all my paychecks there, mmmm, ok, maybe 75%, the other 25% on sushi and chinese desserts!!!

Saturday's company picnic

2006-08-15T11:47:00.000-04:00

The weather was perfect on Saturday for our company picnic. Sunny, not too humid, warm. The venue took place at the Tomahawk Waterpark in Sparta, NJ. Here are some pix of Marlis on the Swan pedal boat and of her and her friend Leo, eating ice cream and cotton candy (she had an extremely small portion of cotton candy!!)!

Flaky people: is it just us or is this a NY/NJ trend?

2006-08-13T22:07:00.000-04:00

Are we the only unfortunate sods who end up befriending flaky people or is it just a NJ/NYC phenomenon?????

Ever since we moved back to the NJ/NYC area end of 2004, we have been meeting with people who we think we can actually be friends with. What usually ends up happening is this type of scenario:

Us (eagerly): "let's exchange details and we can get together for dinner or something"

Them: "yeah, sure"

Exchanging of details, etc... Some time later:

Us (me, rather): "Hello, remember us, we met at such and such a place, daughter played well with your child, etc...Would you be interested in coming over for brunch?"

Them: "What a great idea!!"

More exchange of dates, times, addresses

The DAY of brunch, 5 min before they are supposed to ring our doorbell. Phone rings:

Me: Hello?

Them: We can't make it. Our child has come down with a terribly infectious skin ailment just now. We'll call you to make another date."

Me: "Ok, I hope your child feels better. Sure, no problem"

(Me: bloody sods, why couldn't they have called earlier in the morning, instead of waiting for the last minute. All the trouble I went through for this bloody brunch. ...expletives...)

So, this type of situation seems to happen to us A LOT. In fact, we have been back for almost 2 yrs now. We have met 6 couples (and their offspring) and about 5 of them have done this to us. Some of these people don't do this on the first few meetings but I would say, after about, the 5-6 meeting, we experience this. Some excuses we have heard are (the usual "sorry" is added in there somewhere):
- Can't have dinner with you, I have to write my audit report.
- I had this terrible sinus problem. (we met this couple the day after at their child's party so that was the reason for their no-show to some play we planned to go together)
- My fiancee is ill.
- I forgot you invited us to dinner but we now have this incredibly important function to go to.

I am not saying that we have never cancelled an planned engagment but we don't do it either at the last minute or no show at all. There were times when Marlis had a fever and we did not want her to go out so we called hours early to cancel.

We don't remember experiencing this when we lived in Basel. People there (or at least the ones we met) were clear on whether they wanted to get together or not. People there (at least the ones we met) were clear on whether they can commit to something or not. It's ok to say "No, we can't do it" or "No, this is not for us".

It is just plain rude to say "Yes" even though the intention is already, "well, we'll just cancel at the last minute and no harm will be done".

Well, as a FYI, we think this is ill-mannered and shows low character. Say what you mean and do what you say. Is that too much to ask?

Studying for my GRE

2006-08-11T21:50:00.000-04:00

Yup, I finally got off my big butt and registered to take my GRE. September 25! I wanted it to be over and done with before Marlis' 3rd b-day. And now I am kind of wondering what mental state I was in when I registered!!! I don't seem to have enough time to re-learn highschool math and to memorize th dictionary and practice writing essays.

Why do I do this to myself???????????????????????????????????????????

A/C setting at night

2006-08-10T23:45:00.000-04:00

Me and the husband have been at war these few weeks over the a/c temperature setting at night. I think it should be set at 74 F and he sets it at 70 F. We had a tussle over this tonite. He told me to calm my hormones on something else!@!#!

I wished I had a comeback to his comment but what could I have said??? "Jerk off, you idiot??" Anyhow, I ignored him and will set the thermostat higher a few degrees once he falls asleep. hehehe...Calm my hormones on something else indeed.

I am an Elf. What about you?

2006-08-07T00:27:00.000-04:00

What type of Fae are you?

Me me

2006-08-07T00:02:00.000-04:00

I saw this from another blog (but I can't remember which one!!!) and the idea came from this: www.figandplum.com.

I bolded what I have done:

01. Bought everyone in the bar a drink
02. Swam with wild dolphins
03. Climbed a mountain
04. Taken a Ferrari for a test drive
05. Been inside the Great Pyramid
06. Held a tarantula
07. Taken a candlelit bath with someone
08. Said 'I love you' and meant it
09. Hugged a tree
10. Bungee jumped
11. Visited Paris
12. Watched a lightning storm at sea
13. Stayed up all night long and saw the sun rise
14. Seen the Northern Lights
15. Gone to a huge sports game
16. Walked the stairs to the top of the leaning Tower of Pisa
17. Grown and eaten your own vegetables
18. Touched an iceberg
19. Slept under the stars
20. Changed a baby's diaper
21. Taken a trip in a hot air balloon
22. Watched a meteor shower
23. Gotten drunk on champagne
24. Given more than you can afford to charity
25. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope
26. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment
27. Had a food fight
28. Bet on a winning horse
29. Asked out a stranger
30. Had a snowball fight
31. Screamed as loudly as you possibly can
32. Held a lamb
33. Seen a total eclipse
34. Ridden a roller coaster
35. Hit a home run
36. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking
37. Adopted an accent for an entire day
38. Actually felt happy about your life, even for just a moment
39. Had two hard drives for your computer
40. Visited all 50 states
41. Taken care of someone who was drunk
42. Had amazing friends
43. Danced with a stranger in a foreign country
44. Watched wild whales
45. Stolen a sign
46. Backpacked in Europe
47. Taken a road-trip
48. Gone rock climbing
49. Midnight walk on the beach
50. Gone sky diving
51. Visited Ireland
52. Been heartbroken longer then you were actually in love
53. In a restaurant, sat at a stranger's table and had a meal with them
54. Visited Japan
55. Milked a cow
56. Alphabetized your cds
57. Pretended to be a superhero
58. Sung karaoke
59. Lounged around in bed all day
60. Posed nude in front of strangers
61. Gone scuba diving
62. Kissed in the rain
63. Played in the mud
64. Played in the rain
65. Gone to a drive-in theater
66. Visited the Great Wall of China
67. Started a business
68. Fallen in love and not had your heart broken
69. Toured ancient sites
70. Taken a martial arts class
71.Played D&D for more than 6 hours straight
72. Gotten married
73. Been in a movie
74. Crashed a party
75. Gotten divorced
76. Gone without food for 5 days
77. Made cookies from scratch
78. Won first prize in a costume contest
79. Ridden a gondola in Venice
80. Gotten a tattoo
81. Rafted the Snake River
82. Been on television news programs as an "expert"
83. Got flowers for no reason
84. Performed on stage
85. Been to Las Vegas
86. Recorded music
87. Eaten shark
88. Had a one-night stand
89. Gone to Thailand
90. Bought a house
91. Been in a combat zone
92. Buried one of your parents
93. Been on a cruise ship
94. Spoken more than one language fluently
95. Performed in Rocky Horror.
96. Raised children
97. Followed your favorite band/singer on tour
98. Created and named your own constellation of stars
99. Taken an exotic bicycle tour in a foreign country
100. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over
101. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge
102. Sang loudly in the car, and didn't stop when you knew someone was looking
103. Had plastic surgery
104. Survived an illness that you shouldn't have survived
105. Wrote articles for a large publication
106. Lost over 100 pounds
107. Held someone while they were having a flashback
108. Piloted an airplane
109. Petted a stingray
110. Broken someone's heart
111. Helped an animal give birth
112. Won money on a T.V. game show
113. Broken a bone
114. Gone on an African photo safari
115. Had a body part of yours below the neck pierced
116. Fired a rifle, shotgun, or pistol
117. Eaten mushrooms that were gathered in the wild
118. Ridden a horse
119. Had major surgery
120. Had a snake as a pet
121. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon
122. Slept for more than 30 hours over the course of 48 hours
123. Visited more foreign countries than U.S. states
124. Visited all 7 continents
125. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days
126. Eaten kangaroo meat
127. Eaten sushi
128. Had your picture in the newspaper
129. Changed someone's mind about something you care deeply about
130. Gone back to school
131. Parasailed
132. Petted a cockroach
133. Eaten fried green tomatoes
134. Read The Iliad - and the Odyssey
135. Selected one "important" author who you missed in school, and read
136. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
137. Skipped all your school reunions
138. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language
139. Been elected to public office
140. Written your own computer language
141. Thought to yourself that you're living your dream
142. Had to put someone you love into hospice care
143. Built your own PC from parts
144. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn't know you
145. Had a booth at a street fair
146: Dyed your hair
147: Been a DJ
148: Shaved your head
149: Caused a car accident
150: Saved someone's life

Sunday Lunch: my fave bakery

2006-08-06T17:28:00.000-04:00

Most of the blogs I have been reading seem to always feature some food or something. Anyhow, this what we had for lunch today. Vegan pizza from my fave bakery in town, The Montclair Bread Company (www.thebreadcompany.com), hummus on whole grain bread, and a summer salad of tomatoes, cucumbers, red onions, and basil.

The vegan pizza from the bakery is amazing, eaten at room temperature. The crust is made with spelt and toppings usually consist of su-dried tomato, swiss chard, onions, zucchini, and either cubed tofu or grated tofu (hehehe, pretty clever cuz it actually looks like cheese!). Heather (worker at the bakery) makes the most amazing hummus (lemon garlic!!!). [We will miss Heather when she leaves the USA in January 2007 to live in Costa Rica! She is going there to build houses and to further her pottery repertoire]

Unfortunately, the hummus we ate for lunch was not from there because me and Marlis got to the bakery just when another customer purchased the LAST container. (Lucky lady!)

AND their cranberry date spelt buns (with yummy maple syrup glaze) are the best, esp fresh out of the oven. Saturdays at 10 am is the time.

Tonight, we will be having dinner at a friend's place. He will make a classical French meal. Our contribution to the meal will be a bottle of Cava for aperitif and vanilla gelato for dessert, which I churned this morning and it is now curing in the freezer! Home-made ice desserts are the best! No preservatives and definitely no artificial colouring!!!!

BTW, I found out that I was unable to post or read blogs at work. They have set up all kinds of filters so that we can increase our productivity at work!

Container gardening

2006-08-06T11:30:00.000-04:00

The great thing about container gardening is how little time is needed to care for it. No need to weed, or add topsoil, just water and sunshine, which we get plenty of on our balcony. Another bonus is that I can grow yummy herbs and veggies without having to worry about animals and other nasty little insects feeding on them, pesticide-free!

Update on my attempt at composting: ugh! There's obvious a science to this. My compost ended up having so many maggot larvae in it that the husband had to throw it out. Gotta learn how to compost on the balcony.

Swiss National Holiday is today

2006-08-01T23:03:00.000-04:00

August 1 is the Swiss National Holiday, like the equivalent of Labour Day in Sept. sigh... If we still lived in Basel, we would have had today off.

On to other news: there was an explosion of manholes today in the center of town this afternoon. I think no one was hurt. See this url for coverage: www.baristanetnj.com

GRE: my GRE exam is about 1 month away and I finally got off my fat-ass and started to study for it. Started the math section and 30 min into, I am completely distracted by, the Williams-Sonoma catalog, my bank statement, Marlis' books. It's going to be long and tough road for GRE-studying, I fear.

Relax in Sirsasana!

2006-07-30T21:42:00.000-04:00

"The worse thing about sirsasana (headstand) is falling over and landing on your butt with a thud" This is what the teacher at the Yoga Intensive I went to this weekend kept telling us. "Relax in Sirsasana. If you hold your body as stiff as a board in headstand, then if you do happen to fall over, the floor will treat you like a board."

I attended a yoga intensive taught by Kofi Busia (www.kofibusia.com) this weekend. The intensive began on Fri night (the session was from 19 to 21:30 hrs) and then Sat's session was from 12:30 to 16:30 and concluding today from 9 to 12:30.

It was the first time that I studied with Kofi and he is excellent. He is interesting and keeps you interested without being boring. He took us through a series of standing, twisting, sitting, and inverted poses. In fact, we held the asanas for quite a long time while we listened to him talk. The subject for Friday night was about curiousity and the desire to learn. He spoke about the history of science. And about moving the hips.
Saturday, he talked about the foundation and history of ayurveda. He explained the origin of the terms. I wish I remembered more of it though :-( He also talked about how important it is to give life in the vertebrae and to nourish the disks between the vertebrae.
The secret of Youth is in a healthy spine!

Sunday: how to lift oneself out of emotional misery. And moving the 3 cavities of the body

Kofi is organizing a festival in honour of Guruji in July 2007. I am considering making the trip out to Santa Clara for it. I mean, how many lifetimes am I going to get a chance to study with some of the most advanced teachers around the world?? Here is the site: www.yogacharya.org

Namaste.

Updated my profile

2006-07-24T09:26:00.000-04:00

I have updated my profile. Check it out!!!

Progress of cardi and almost finished baby cardi

2006-07-20T00:37:00.000-04:00

Here is a cardi that I started before going to Japan and the progress I made knitting on the plane. I haven't worked on it at all since I came back last month. :-( Novita Isoveli is really nice to knit with, even with the horrible plastic circs!

Hooray! hooray!! Almost finished the baby cardi from the Debbie Bliss "Easy Knits" book. All I have left is to knit the bows and then seam up the sleeves and sew on a button. I am wondering if I should block it before sewing? The edges are rather curly.

More pix...

2006-07-20T00:22:00.000-04:00

of Marlis, Daxton, Riley, Sarah, and Serita on the train, on the Staten Island Ferry and the water fountain in Battery Park.

Arigatoo gozaimasu Secret Pal!!!

2006-07-19T23:53:00.000-04:00

My surprise from my Secret Pal arrived on Saturday morning!!! Here are some pix of my surprises (apologies in advance for my lack of photography skills).

Thank you very much, Merci beaucoup, Vielen Danke, Do jeh, Arigatoo gozaimasu, Kiitos!!!

I LOVE the gorgeous scarf, the colourway is perfect for me. Can't wait until the winter (I love winter anyway, growing up in Canada and all!!). Ihave been wanting to try out that pattern for awhile now so now I have an actual sample to follow.

The CD is also great too, great mix. It is funny that my Secret Pal put a Chris Smither song on the CD because me and my husband saw him in concert as our first date at the Outpost in the Burbs!!!!!!!!!

My Secret Pal also mailed me a postcard from Michigan where she was on holidays last month! I felt quite nostalgic when I saw the postcard. You see, I lived and worked briefly in Lansing in 1998 and took a weekend drive to Mackinaw City and walked up the Sleeping Bear Dunes (it was a quite a drive from Lansing: www.sleepingbeardunes.com ). I also remembered meeting up with a friend who lived in Novi for dinners in Ann Arbour. Fond memories, sigh.

Some pix of Marlis and Sarah

2006-07-15T15:16:00.000-04:00

The photo on the left (icepop) is of Sarah and Marlis at the Montreal Jazz Festival. The middle photo was taken on the Staten Island Ferry. The photo on the right, they are at a children's art studio, Orange Kangaroo www.orangekangaroo.com

Marlis also got her haircut in Montreal, Sandrine, at Mod's Hair is an artist. www.modshair.com
Sandrine has been cutting my hair for over 10 yrs. She is from Bourgogne, France and will be visiting her parents for the month of August with her daughter, Elsa.

Case of the missing facial moisturizer and out of town visitors

2006-07-14T10:22:00.000-04:00

I have searched high and low for my moisturizer that I bought from Fresh NYC: www.fresh.com

I remembered using it right before I left for work the day we were driving up to MOntreal for July 4th weekend. Of course, the cleaners did come to clean the house on July 3rd and I have not been able to find it since. So I suspect they put it somewhere unusual. erg....Glad they are coming again this Monday so I can just ask them.

Our cleaners (woman and man) are from Poland and very nice people. We met them thru the woman's husband who painted the inside of our house. His wife works together with her uncle. They are very hardworking. The uncle works during the day at a hospital and then cleans houses in the evenings.

Out of Town visitors this past week:

Nobody has ever come to visit us since we moved here 2 yrs ago. And all of a sudden, this past week, our little townhouse has been filled to its capacity with visitors. My very best friend (we've been friends since we were 13 yrs old) and her 3 yr old daughter, Richard's oldest friend and his wife and their 3 children, my friend from Tokyo, and also a friend/colleague from Switzerland.

It's been a very busy week. Glad it is over but also sad that my best friend returned to MOntreal to her parent's house and then will return home to Edson, Alberta in September. Her daughter, Sarah got along really well with Marlis.

Montreal

2006-07-07T14:53:00.000-04:00

No pix of my Tokyo and Hong Kong trip yet. We haven't even really unpacked. We were in MOntreal this past weekend. The Jazz fest is on until July 9th.

Everytime we go there, I think: wouldn't it be great to move back there again. Fleeting thoughts because Richard would (probably) not get a decent job there because he doesn't speak french. And judging from how much German he picked up while we were living in Basel, I can safely say that he is pretty much unilingual. sigh.

We had a fun time though even though we only spent Sunday evening at the Jazz fest. We had poutine there and a Mexican food stand was selling perfectly ripened and SWEET mangos on a stick, with the skin cut off and the flesh cut into petals for easy eating. OISHI (japanese word for yummy!)

I really miss the good food so we always try to hit some of our usual haunts:

Chao Phraya: http://www.chao-phraya.com
I have to say that this is the best Thai restaurant I have ever eaten in. I am curious to compare their food with the food in Thailand. Maybe next year, we plan a trip to Thailand!!!

Stash: http://www.stashcafe.com/
Delicious Polish food. We were there for lunch on Monday and then we spent the afternoon riding quadricycle and pedal boats in the Old Port.

I am pretty disappointed that we did not make it to Cafe Santropol for lunch: http://www.santropol.com/ Hopefully, next time. Maybe Labour Day weekend.

Boy, I am really starting to feel homesick for Montreal.

Deliquent in blog postings

2006-06-30T14:05:00.000-04:00

Slap me on the wrist. Have not posted since June 14 but I guess my posting on that date was not sufficient since I was suffering from a nasty hangover from karaoke-ing with my Japanese colleagues and drank TOOOOOOOO many bottles of Japanese-sake.

Updates on my travels:

Tokyo: I LOVE it there. Everything is soooo clean, so orderly, people are polite and helpful. Very thorough. Ask someone for directions and they will practically take you there themselves. I cannot comment enough on the impeccable and neat attire of my colleagues either. EVERYONE wore great shoes. Neatly polished. The food was SUPERB, wonderfully fresh sushi from Tsuchiji Fish Market. "No, salmon is not in season. Therefore, we do not have this to offer". I had FRESH wasabi with my sushi at the sushiya by Tsuchiji market, none of that neon green stuff. Fresh wasabi tastes nothing like the powdered version. Mild, and almost sweet. Itadakimasu. I LOVE the food there and bought some obento-bakko to bring lunches and hooked on to onigiri.

Hong Kong: Great food. Dirty compared to Tokyo but seemed somehow more real. Humid like a sauna. My skin never felt dry, despite not having applied any body lotion. Aircon was set absurdly cold, wherever we were. Seems like the default aircon temp was 16 Celsius. Visiting my relatives was nice. They really enjoyed seeing Marlis. As a bonus too, the summer sales were on and I managed to buy a pair of gorgeous Ferragamo pumps for work at 35% less. Many many shops in Hong KOng.

Tokyo too. I love UNIQLO for their jeans.

Knitting update: almost completed the back of the cardi. Knitted not too long on the flight. Got upgraded to First Class on the outbound to Narita so was able to sleep very well. Will post pix of my knitting progress later.

Took many many many pix (well my husband did since he was on hols there while I worked).

Hello from Tokyo

2006-06-14T02:56:00.000-04:00

I have a wicked hangover.

WIP: knitting on the plane

2006-06-07T18:28:00.000-04:00

OK, this is the last posting before my trip. I seriously have to finish my presentations and pack.
The photo on the left is from "Debbie Bliss -Easy Knits" book. The photo on the right is what I have knitted so far using the Novita Isoveli yarn that my yarn buddy sent me. I am hoping to complete the back during the long flight to Tokyo (14 hrs), hence the plastic circs.