KEEP CALM AND READ ON

March 1, 2013March 2, 2013

It’s a hot date! Part 2a

1 Feb

Weather in LA is pretty nice.. filled with sunshine.. warm.. windy.. and does not get you sticky.. haha.. but i find it very bright.. so sunglasses were my best friend

First stop.. brunch at Blu Jam Cafe – which supposedly have the best french toast.. okok.. i felt like french toast.. haha

oh.. our rental car is a 2012 Ford Focus with sunroof!!! I mean.. we chose the cheapest and most basic rental car.. and we got such a cool car! Love it!! It’s like the first time we had such a nice&new car 😀

Food took a while to come… while waiting..clumsy BH spilled milk on me by accident!! OMG!! As it was a short trip, it didn’t occur to me to bring another pair of jeans… eeks… I kept my cool and didn’t cry over spilled milk :X The weather was soooo hot.. so my jeans dried up in no time ( just hope that i didn’t stink.. oh well…)

The food was generally alright – typical American breakfast food .. the french toast is sooooooooo sinful… i really wish i didn’t order it..

After a filling brunch.. we headed to Santa Monica Beach

It was a beautiful day to be at the beach… haha.. looks just like the magazines…

we also went to Muscle beach.. nothing much there… not even a good looking YOUNG hunk.. hahah

For dinner… we went to Yamashiro.

This is a upscale Japanese restaurant with a fabulous view.

Honestly.. come here for the view… NOT the food… and…. the only form of parking is valet (US$15) Our airbnb was around the corner, so we walked there (up and down the hill!) – it was really scenic.. gorgeous view of LA. This is the kind of place u might want to bring a date to, just to impress her… or… it’s a romantic place to propose to your gf!

The sashimi was quite fresh. My Lychee martini was VERY WATERED DOWN… no kick at all. BH loves his Moscow Mule ( actually I liked it too) – it tasted very refreshing.. My fave sushi was Black Forbidden rice – it’s not made using white sushi rice BUT the black one, hence the name. I felt that it was really unique. hmmm… This meal was very costly… oh well… once in a while – thank you BH 🙂

I really wanted to try the dessert sushi! I have NEVER tried dessert sushi before. However, I was sooooo full from all the starters and sushi… so I tried my luck and requested for a 1/2 order of the dessert… and the chef obliged!!! yay!! Great service!

Dessert sushi taste great! ok.. maybe because I like mascarpone cheese.. haha… they used coconut glutinous rice for the sushi.. i felt that it was a nice fusion!

well… if u are wondering…. our night didn’t end here….. we headed to the BEST FREE ATTRACTION IN LA ( in my humble opinion) – it was sooo worth it…. click some ads and check back tml!!! so excited to blog about it! 😀

February 28, 2013March 1, 2013

California girl for the weekend Part 1

BH just moved our site to a new server and he had been bugging me to blog. haha.. so here I am!

we went to LA! well.. it’s not my first time but it was BH’s 1st. The main reason for going to LA is for MayDay concert! I am so not a concert person however it’s really rare for a Taiwanese Rock bank to come to US for performance.. and this is BH (and my sis) fave band.. Off we went!

31 Jan

We took early flight.. so that we won’t waste any time 🙂 some random sights….

First meal was at Craft. BH and I had been watching alot of Top Chef. Going to one of the chef/judges restaurants will be soooo cool! Craft is Tom Colicchio’s (1 of the judges) chain of restaurant. It was a nice surprise to know that this same restaurant was featured on Top Chef this season!!! hahaha…

hmmm.. i personally felt that the food was alright… I mean.. not fantastic… ok.. if u r expecting HUGE portions, go to another place. The portions here are good for 1 person, not meant for sharing.

Lucky for us, when we were in LA, it was “Dine LA” (Please don’t pronounce as Dine lar, the singlish way, which I did. The server looked weirdly at me.. hahaha)- you can get a 3 course menu for about US$28.

I had salad as my first course… and the vege were kinda yellowish… i feel disappointed that it’s not THAT fresh…

My 2nd course was quail with herbs… wanted to try quail as it had been cooked quite frequently on Top Chef. BH had Berkshire Pork with Polenta, Greens and Dates – he liked his alot and found it very flavorful

I guess.. my favourite was dessert. It was Olive Oil ice-cream! wow…I have never tasted such before! It is actually very good (&healthy I hope) hehe…

Next… we checked out Hollywood!

We got our tickets to Jimmy Kimmel Live a few weeks before hand. BH was super thrilled to watch him LIVE! However, we were stuck in traffic… and couldn’t mk it to the line early enough…. so we didn’t get the chance to go to the studio . The most upsetting thing was we were the next 3 from the cut-off line… oh well… FYI, the celebrity for the night was Jennifer Lawrence!

Dinner was at Chick-a-fil. There’s no chick-a-fil at WA state.. so we thought of trying it… food was mediocre

It was a super long and tiring day since we starting fairly early… headed back to our Airbnb guesthouse after dinner….

To be continued! 😀

February 19, 2013

Sweet pea, apple of my eye ^.^

On Valentine’s Day, BH and I went for painting class at Palettes and Pairings

It was an amazing experience.. even better than standard fancy dinner followed by movie. Well, BH and I don’t really celebrate Vday BUT we try to create memories – I really don’t believe that everyday is like every normal day.. To me, everyday is special and exciting! 🙂 FYI, I didn’t receive flowers this year.. haha.. I guess the cookies replaced it. (Note to BH: RED roses next year!!!)

My first painting experience was at the same venue. I painted with friends then. BH and I actually wanted to paint together BUT we thought that it’s silly to have duplicate paintings. When we found out that there is a couples painting class, we signed up for it immediately! The cost was US$50 for both of us ( with drinks, light snacks, painting materials) We were very excited and looking forward to it!

Know what makes painting so fun and interesting? I feel that thru’ painting, you get to know someone better… haha..and the BIGGEST challenge comes when you paint together! though BH and I are “old husband, old wife”, there’s still something new we learn about each other through painting. haha.. yes..this is our FIRST painting experience together and it is also our 10th Vday! yay! How romantic! 😀

This instructor (Elizabeth) was really detailed and clear on giving instructions – She makes painting ez!

It’s so funny… BH took only painted 2 strokes on the canvas and exclaimed ” I LOVE IT!”

Erm… after which, he became such a perfectionist.. I mean.. for the rest of the 2.5 hrs.. he hardly or rather DID NOT put down his brush! OMG! hahaha.. we were supposed to paint 1 side each BUT we ended up helping each other. You can imagine- i would paint and he would itchy hand come and touch up on my side of the painting and vice versa. yup.. so it was like this throughout the class.. hehe

He was extra happy with the painting.. and even thought that his background was the NICEST…

Which couple’s painting is the best? hehe.. u judge! Btw, we were one of the last 2 to leave the place as BH just had to perfect his painting. I am so glad that he enjoyed painting as much as I do… oh yes.. he is a MORE serious painter than me!
So we ended Vday.. happy, satisfied and tired! hahahaha.. what u thinking man!?!

Overall, it’s a great experience! Bh and I agree that we have different painting styles.. and he would come back again to paint – and to paint on his own canvas! hehe… We hope to make this Vday painting an annual event! 🙂

More photos!

February 14, 2013

Who stole the cookies from the cookies jar?

I have a huge love for digestive biscuits! Not any random ones but the McVitie’s. these digestive cookies are precious … They are really expensive here, so I actually brought them back from SG. As you know… The last few days were really bad for me – I was sick, drowsy after taking medicine and had little appetite. My roommate aka BH took advantage of vulnerability and…… Ate my precious cookies!

I didn’t notice the missing cookies…. Until I opened my pantry.

Booooooo…. So last night.. BH came home with these…

Imagine the look in my eyes??? Gleaming with joy!Super happy! If there’s one thing I totally love about BH, it’s his generosity – he sees no point in suffering if he can afford it. I.e. buying the cookies even when it’s costly! Haha.. What touched me the most is…. He bought it after work! I mean… The store is not even on the way or near his office! Haha… Though it’s a day early… It’s a great Valentine’s ay gift 🙂

The walkers cookies are a bonus… How cute!! If only they made them in corgi shapes.. Hehe

How are we spending vday? Well.. We are going for a painting class together!!! So exciting! I hope it turns out well… Hehehe..

Happy Valentine’s Day to all!!! My biggest wish this vday is… I hope all my current single friends (&sister) would find their mates soon!

February 12, 2013

Happy Lunar New Year!

It’s the year of the snake!! shiver.. I am horrified of snakes.. haha.. Wishing all who read this blog 恭喜发财! 万事如意!

Well… I caught a cold during the weekend of the lunar new year. It had been such a long time since I fell so ill. I had bad sore throat, fever, headache, runny nose – FULL package deal! As a result, we didn’t meet any friends.. neither did we celebrate by baking goodies or cooking good food. I was taking medication and resting most of the time. Fortunately, I woke up feeling much better today – slight cough BUT better overall. Thank God!

Over the weekend, while friends and family in SG went visiting.. BH and I also went to look at other apartments we can move to as our lease is coming to an end. We didn’t find anything better than our current place :/

Actually, I have got lots to blog about. We came back from LA last week and I haven’t blog about it yet… Stay tuned!

February 4, 2013

Monday…I’m in love!

Received another surprise in the mail today!! Yay!! Thank you Yuenmei for the lovely gift.. We plan to move to another apartment soon..So this towel will come to good use!! new place new stuff!!

Well… Something happened recently.. BH and I together with our group of friends are very saddened by it. Shall blog about it when I am ready… Its amazing that i didn’t tell any of my SG friends and somehow they seem to know…These thoughtful gifts Certainly cheered me up.. i feel so blessed 🙂

January 23, 2013

A happy day need not be a sunny day :)

It had been really foggy for the past week. I like the foggy weather.. Sun always give me bad headache ;(

Anyway, Caryn, one of my sweetest friend ever, sent me or rather us a small package for the new year.. Happy to be remembered!!! Thank you!! 🙂

January 18, 2013

Annual checkup

Ok.. so I went for my annual physical exam today. It was alright since I already had the experience.

Everything went on fine..just waiting for lab results

After many years of hesitation, I have decided to go on the Pill – well.. it beats getting paranoid all the time.. and also ( the main reason) it reduces the bad tummy cramps during that time of the month

Healthier years ahead!

January 15, 2013

Sweet surprise!

Alina gave me a surprise gift for no reason! I was delighted! The gift was wrapped up very nicely and I love such pastry cookbooks! 🙂

Took these pics on my iPad and used Aviary for picture editing… Not bad!!! Now I know why people take pictures w iPad… Hahaha…. But…. The no. of FREE apps for photo editing is so limited… Any others??? Do share!! I am iPad or rather apple noob!

January 13, 2013

Ipad

Ok.. My loving husband bought me an iPad for Xmas but I have been contemplating if I should keep it or not.

Finally, I unboxed it yesterday… Yes.. U read it right.. I only opened my present 2 weeks after christmas 🙂

Everything is good so far… Just that its kinda like my first experience with Apple product.. And it just occurred to me that I have no one to FaceTime with!!! Hahaha

Our first pic with the ipad… Bad quality :/