Do Re Mi

So much cooking today...! (~ - o -)~ Even though I only made two things. Every year, I cook something for Christmas and New Years. Usually the traditional Japanese dishes because well, I'm Japanese... and it's convenient since I already know how to make this stuff. I've posted what I cooked on Christmas before but almost always, it's chicken katsu and Christmas cake. A nicer Christmas cake/hot pot from (2014) Christmas cake (2014) At times I think I should be more spontaneous and make a different kind of Christmas cake besides the standard strawberry shortcake. But I'm too lazy to learn to perfect a new recipe...  That's pretty much all I did today. A lot of cooking. I don't think I left the house, wow.

It's been about a week into my winter break. Time goes by too fast... (T-T) I have tried my best to make the most of my time. So that means more reading, watching all the TV shows/movies/anime I want, supplemental studying, pampering my skin to the max, and cooking & baking for my family because that makes them happy! \(^o^)/ I've been having a really nice time though. It's so nice to not worry about studies and passing exams. I actually got through the first year of nursing school. Can you believe it? And this last semester was so challenging for me. I'm honestly a bit worried for next semester where we'll have two classes at the same time instead of just one. Although the last class we had, it was like two classes in one with OB/Peds being two completely different animals. OB is seriously a whole other world. One of the biggest things I experienced was seeing a baby being born and watching procedures in the OR. I'm trying to come up with some kind of s...

Hello again. For some reason, every time I have an epiphany or just the urge to write about my life, I'm in the shower of all places. And by the time I get to my computer to actually write, I don't know what I should say... But I'll try my best. I'm in my second semester of nursing school. Not working, just school. And it's actually okay. I don't feel like my life is consumed by school and I feel like I have adequate time to study. I also feel super fortunate that I don't have to work while doing this because, well, that would kind of really suck as it would leave no room for life. So I can say, because I'm not working while in nursing school, in this second semester, I can still have a life. :D Albeit a simple life, since I'm on a strict budget. For 'fun', I've been doing what most people who are trying to save money do when they have no rights to spend on leisure. And that is watch movies and TV series and K-dramas and Youtube...

Hello, it's been too long! This summer has been fairly productive for me.  I finished the first semester of the RN program a few months ago and I've been working a summer job which keeps me pretty busy.  Grams from Hawaii is also moving here and I'm so excited for that. I wonder how common that is with other grandmas moving to an insanely new place at that age.. I've been thinking about some things I've learned as I love, love, love personal growth so any wisdom I've attained, I like to share it and keep it in record. (^v^) So here's some things I've learned this summer. 1. Saving money is difficult because you start to feel like a hermit in your own home.  But 'free' activities don't necessarily have to be watching TV all day. It's good to expand your mind and find the fun in simple things like DIY's, grocery shopping, and going to the library for a change of pace and scenery. 2. Never, ever, ever feel like the mall is a g...

I went into this movie pretty much blind since all I knew about it was that it was about airplanes.  Eventually I discovered that the movie takes place during the Great Kanto Earthquake (1923) and around WWII when engineers were creating the kamikaze fighter plane (Mitsubishi A6M Zero). I noticed similarities this film shared with Howl's Moving Castle in the way the planes and their sound effects were used.  The planes sounded alive; I was wondering if an actual person made the sound effects of the planes.  The earthquake also seemed like a living creature. Any scenes of war's destruction were hauntingly metaphorical which I appreciated because instead of distracting, it complimented the movie's focus: creativity and passion of flight. I usually like the move to make as much sense in context as possible and since "The Wind Rises" takes place in Japan, I would watch in in Japanese.  Alas, subtitles weren't really working too well for me so I watched it...

It's been a little over a weeks since the first semester of the college program finished.  I'm happy to say that I passed and I'll be moving on to the second semester in the fall. \ ("^ v ^") /  I'm sad that some of my classmates didn't make it to the next semester; I hope they can figure out a new path in their lives and new opportunities. Before this semester ended, I tried getting a summer job applying online and although I got an interview, I realized that because of my school situation, I'm not the most ideal candidate for many jobs.  Fall semester will start in a few months requiring my full-time commitment and because I would probably have to quit after a few months well...  it decreases my desirability by a lot. I recently texted my manager from a previous job, begging politely informing her of my new found summer availability.  She hasn't texted me back but it's only been a few days and in my experience, she only texts back when ...

Hello again. I haven't done one of these life updates in a long time. I'm sure many can guess that it's because nothing interesting has been happening lately and I have no interest in writing about my boring life. orz  *Warning, emo post below* But I suppose that recently, something has been quite eventful; I've finally started the college program I've been waiting so long to get into (a little over 2 years to be exact) and I'm almost finished with the first semester! \ ( "> v <" ) / I think that if people have been reading my blog from the beginning, it will seem like I've been in school for-f*cking-ever which is kinda true and kinda not. I've been in and out of school for the past almost decade to be exact. I would say that my life is about 70% school and 30% 'me' time. I'm extremely fortunate and lucky enough to not have to be working during this program. There are some people flip-flopping their sleeping schedule, wo...

1. Usually, by this time, everyone has their own 'life' so it sucks that much more if we need to meet outside of class .  Peer bonding?  Gag me.  Sorry, we're not a club or sports team, and I don't wanna see these bastards anywhere but inside our educational institution!  Don't even get me started on people being late when we agree on a time to meet. 2. Most people are lazy and won't take initiative to do work. When someone responsible finally steps up to the plate, delegates, organizes, and puts in a lot of effort because no one else will, they're instantly labeled as one or more of the following: bossy, uptight, overachieving, attention whore. 3. More often than not, the hard worker in the group is under appreciated and exploited while the so-called popular, lazier one in the group seems to get all the thanks and credit for doing a small task.  What... the... fuck? 4. Since college instructors don't aid in the delegation of tasks, the workload...

This is basically me when I try to get to my studies.  I'll sit at a desk, telling myself that I won't go anywhere until I devote at least an hour or two studying. I start to study and realize that I need to use the internet to look up some material.  Telling myself that I will not get distracted , I search the info necessary and then, somehow, s-o-m-e-h-o-w... I always end up gif surfing.  You might be wondering, "why not just turn off the computer then?"  I've tried, and the result is me looking like an idiot staring off into lala land after about half an hour. This time it was ALoK gifs (I got my sis addicted to the series and we've been watching it. lol).  Has anyone else watched this show?  I'm in love ; the animation is gorgeous, the plot is incredible,  omg, too much awesomeness... I can't even. If you're ever feeling frustrated in life, just go gif surfing.  Trust me, it's definitely one way to feel better. Allow me to indu...

Not to knock vegan diets, but with all these health promotions about going vegetarian or vegan and the benefits of 'healthier' skin...  I feel like it's slightly misinforming the public. On the other hand, I'm not saying that a vegan diet is completely bad, because it's true that there are a number of health benefits from switching to greens.  It's just that it does NOT guarantee better looking skin in the long run.  I'll explain my reasoning later. As for me, my main motivation for eating healthier is to feel better, manage my weight, and to achieve the best skin health possible for me.  I eat lots of salad, especially as a meal, but I am not a vegan nor am I vegetarian.  What I like to do is limit the amount of meat I eat.  Not cut it out completely. So why would not eating meat, fish, or dairy foods be bad for your skin? Because of collagen production . Adequate collagen production is the key to all skin problems having to do with aging and app...

Hello! Thank you to everyone that commented on my last couple of posts on otome games!! I also sincerely apologize because I've deleted those posts off this blog and posted them in a new one. It's called Otome Love and here's the url: http://otomeloove.blogspot.com/ I've been playing quite a bit of these games and I don't feel like I can organize them well on this blog. It's one of those topics that kind of demands its own page. x) So if anyone's interested in reviews on playable characters for Voltage otome games, then feel free to check out that blog. I'll be posting reviews there. (^_^) Happy reading! -- Minapi

So it's been a few months, and I've been... dealing with this beast called 'hormonal acne'. What is hormonal acne ?  It's when you're out of high school and you finally got out of that horrible teen acne stage.  You didn't think it could get any worse...  But guess what?  It can!! (-__-) I started to notice that I was breaking out with inflamed acne around the top of my forehead, in the middle of my cheeks, and along my jawline.  A lot of the acne was the painful type, under the skin (cystic). At first I thought that there was something wrong with my skincare regimen.  I thought about if my skin was the oily type and maybe the moisturizers I used were clogging my pores or maybe my cosmetics were comedogenic (pore clogging). After trying and failing many times with different products, I found that it wasn't the products at all and that the cause was something far more sinister and underlying. Hormones. If you're wondering how I came to th...

1. When you see people driving in cars, do you ever make judgments about them based on what kind of car they're driving?  Like, "oh, a middle aged man driving a van...  He probably has kids." or "old man driving a BMW. That must be his retirement car." 2. I've gotten really into smartphone otome games.  It makes me feel like I'm using my imagination again. If anyone judges, I say, "At least I'm not playing candycrush all day." 3. Some wise lyrics from a 2pm kpop song: "Energy is the gift of youth, distress is the poison of youth." 4. It's amazing what perspective can do. It has the power to make old problems look like nothing. 5. Don't postpone happiness.  Be happy NOW.  Make the most of any situation you're in.  Make the most of life. 6. Do your best! You won't have regrets if you know you're giving it your all. 7. Don't worry so much about the future that you forget to live in the present...