Bubble-licious

I felt like sparkling this afternoon while catching up with Denisse.

Each delivery was as promised in the menu... Refreshing and crisp to berries with creme to strawberry nose with watermelon accents. Pow!

Add candid bonding and pleasant weather and it's one divine experience!

Joshua Makes Dinner

Romanesco.

I've wanted to create a dish with Romanesco since last fall but i found out one week too late it was a late-summer harvest and never had my wish granted. Seeing it again @ Whole Foods was like stumbling upon gold!

Except i didn't have to cook this time.

Joshua's shell mobile. All the way from Oxford, England. The setting sun hit it beautifully.

Napkin folding that reminded me of Strelitzia, flower named after the bird of paradise.

Salmon with red miso, lemongrass and ginger. Baked wrapped in parchment paper @ 350° for ~ 25 minutes. So simple, so good! Possibly the best salmon, ever!

Maker Faire

Orzo salad with sun-dried tomatoes and feta cheese

Intriguing netting. I was quite captivated.

All In a Day's Work 35

This afternoon, after tweeting that i wanted flan, i told the boys hanging out in my office.

Kinda backwards, i know.

Barry wrinkled his nose, "I don't know about flan. It's so... It's, like, nothing!" Then with a big grin he added, "I like fried ice-cream!"

"Yeah, flan is not substantial," Derek II chimed in. "It's like this jiggly thing!"

I laughed, "The flan is not manly enough for ya?"

"It doesn't even make me full!" Exclaimed Barry.

Wow. If, by the time you hit dessert, you're still hungry, i think you've got a problem.

Snippet 110

V:
She looks loonie!

Denisse:
Yeah. But the outfit is cute!


Photo courtesy J. Crew

Siam Sunray

The Guardian provided ingredients but not exactly the recipe so it was trial-and-error:

Vodka
Cococut liqueur (Malibu Rum was used here)
Chili pepper (Serrano was used here)
Lemongrass
Ginger
Suger (Powdered sugar was used here)
Lime juice

Slice dry ingredients; shake with the rest. Strain into a glass with ice and club soda.

Joshua* had the wisdom to improvise by smashing the slices with a pestle and mortar first to release to juices. Okay, maybe with my persuasion.

He adorned the rims with lime, adding, "If we are to be classy..."

I cracked up.

We had a lot more trials and errors for the rest of the night and there was hell to pay the next day but it's a long weekend and as ill as we wound up i say it was well worth it.

For the record it's best to shake with ice as if you're making a martini.

When i first walked in the door i saw Joshua studiously slicing away in the kitchen.

"What are you doin'?" I asked, and couldn't help but smile. The keen concentration, the vulnerability. I thought it was the most adorable sight.

"Remember the drink i told you about?" He asked, and slided me the article. English, no less.

And the rest, as they say, was history.


*Not his real name

Winetasting in Palo Alto

Gift From JM

No Caption Necessary 8

Photo courtesy Weber

Quote 177

There's so much beauty in the world, it hurts.

- American Beauty


Disclaimer: i may be paraphrasing

Induction

Normal human voice frequency is 500 Hz or lower. Anything above indicates anxiety, anger or fear.

Every time Marcos greets me he sounds practically on helium. I am so bewildered my vocal cords go missing. I simply smile and wave. The smile is genuine.

I wonder which emotion it is with Marcos.

Quote 176

Being a part of something special makes you special, right?

- Glee

Boogie on the Bayou

Oooh... "Dirty" rice! I like the sound of that!

I literally asked, "How elegant can it be? Does it come with a bow-tie?"

Ainsley House

Roasted vegetables salad with balsamic glaze. The best in the world!

Greek Festival A

The new chapel

Roast lamb


Not very Greek but oh so delicious!! : )

Greek Festival B

Could not enter the cathedral due to the last restriction.



Alternate spelling = yiassou = hi. You can also simply go, "Yia!"

Lucky Lot

Crystal Suede

She has, like, NO boob!


*Photo courtesy Free People

All In a Day's Work 34

My note to Derek II:

His response:

Sensory Integration Disorder

Elsie suspects both AC and OC have it.

On a clear day you can see forever.

I think i have it. I've never been diagnosed. But that would explain SO much!

Because when i watched Bang perform in downtown Campbell this evening, i was fascinated and appreciative of the talent, but shit i could NOT handle the loudness. Taiko came to mind. Ripped male bods did not compensate fully.

I clutched my purse to get a grip. And was mindful of my facial expressions lest they speak volumes.

I felt more misunderstood than ever recalling youthful episodes when my involuntary intolerance would be reprimanded.

Late Night

I don't turn on my music anymore. The music plays in my head.

When it gets staticky i just close my eyes.

Not a Bad View

Quote 175

Raise your hopeful voice
You have a choice

You have suffered enough

- "Falling Slowly", Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová

Insomniac 3

My bursa hurts.

Lord, have mercy!

Quote 174

You always did have a funny way of saying "I love you".

- Zoe Landau, Lie To Me

Just Realized

Concern can sound like criticism.

Quote 173

Nobody knows what's comin'
So why not take a chance on lovin'?

Underneath a tangerine sky

I'm a sucker for happy endings

- "Lemonade", Amusing, Chris Rice

Snippet 109

[On the way out of the Children's Discovery Museum, at a door painted purple]
AC:
What is this door?

V:
[Reading the sign]
It is for "group entrance"!

AC:
Can we go in?

V:
It takes a whole lot of people to be a big group!

AC:
We're small people...

Light My Fire

Backyard of Derek II's... where Buttercup and i met again... and kissed again.

Her lips were every bit as soft, moist, and luscious as i remembered them.

They glistened like virgin snow. I was in awe.

She actually remembered me! I was very flattered. AND she is now single.

Also had my very first body shot. Wish it was off Buttercup : )

Split 2

"Hot" coffee candy with ginger from The Ginger People

My Mother's Day Gift To Elsie

This image reminds of Tina Fey.

Split

These miso rice crackers has yuzu juice in them. Yuzu is probably related to grapefruit and pomelo. So, in a word, citrus.

Savory and fruity. Talk about schizophrenia!

My Lunch Yesterday 2

Saba Shioyaki = broiled mackerel = "meal replacement" @ Nijiya.

At $2.99 a pop, replace away! At restaurants you'd probably be dishing out a minimum of $8.


Nitsuke = shrimp in a sake/soy-based sauce = "cooked fish" @ Nijiya. $3.99.

Having just what you want, no more, no less, in the comfort of your own home? Priceless.

V-String On a Doorknob

Quote 172

If every simple song i wrote to you
would take your breath away
i'd write it all.

- "Hey There Delilah", All That We Needed, Plain White T's

Achieve

Five summers ago, after my divorce, before i remotely considered dating, i visited my Asian hometown.

On a whim i consulted a sidewalk fortune-teller who happened to be blind.

OF COURSE i had to inquire on love.

"You'll find true love at age 40," he declared.

I was in my early 30's. 40 seemed SO far away! And OLD!

"NOOOOOOO!!" I screamed in my head.

Well, hasn't stopped me from tryin'.

These days, after many trials and errors, when i meet a prospect, i joke with Denisse, "We know he's not the one. I'm not 40 yet!"

Denisse laughs.

"He didn't feel my face or anything! How did he know?!" I have said to Denisse. "Actually, if he would've felt my face, i would've been weirded out. 'You're pretty... And you're gonna die soon!'"

Last time i visited my hometown that's not home anymore, the fortune-teller wasn't there.

Now, pushing 40, i think if i find love it's not gonna be some guy but the greatest love of all. That's right. À la Whitney Houston.

Quote 171

I'm just sitting on the shelf.

- "Why Do You Let Me Stay Here?", She and Him

Face Off

My current status on Facebook is:

The happiest i've been in a loooong time... just for being me : )

W decides that he likes my status.

I was flabbergasted. Does HE even like me? For being me?

As Posted On Twitter

Why someone decides to follow me on Twitter is totally beyond me.

Snippet 108

Elsie:
Is the relaxation candle relaxing you?

V:
I lit 2 nights in a row. The 1st night i really enjoyed the scent of lavender. The 2nd night i had to blow it out cuz the scent was starting to irritate me. But i always knew that i was fickle with scents. So, in a nutshell, no, i guess : )

The "Ade" in "Lemonade" Is "Aid"

I've been informed that people with GAD tend to make lists.

Illusory control. You know.

I never even considered lists as questionable : )

I'm actually proud when i'm able to take on more on my list. Instead of being overwhelmed.

My list tomorrow:

OSH
TJ's
The World Market
DSW
BevMo
Save Mart

I await complete liberation when i don't feel the need to explain why each is important to me, even for a fleeting moment.

Quote 170

Denisse:
I feel totally brain-dead now... Too crazy for a Friday!!!

V:
Are you mentally drained?

D:
Hell yes totally mentally drained!!!

V:
Aww : ( I'm tired too but i don't care. Cuz it's fucking Friday!

D:
I need some of your pep!

V:
It may not be pep. I could be just delusional.

D:
I can do delusional too if it makes me feel more alive.

Sky Without the Stars

A couple days ago i was driving by Apple on my way to lunch, wishing i didn't have to drive by Apple everyday any more, when Natasha Bedingfield came on:

Why waste a second not loving who you are?

And i had a moment of clarity, for lack of a better word.

Maybe i don't believe in coincidences, either.

Explicable

On Tuesday i saw Clarissa* again for my arthritic back.

I like Clarissa. She's cute. And genuinely cares. Dare i say empathetic.

(Even though "empathize" and "commiserate" practically mean the same thing, i associate the former with posivitiy whilst the latter carries a negative connotation to me. It suggests "to share misery"!)

It's a small world, the P.T. field. Denisse has worked with Clarissa. They remember each other fondly. Cute.

Oh, i said "cute" again.

Apparently i was really tense when Clarissa was trying to loosen up my muscles. She kept urging me to relax.

"There," she'd say, and proceed. Seconds later she'd exclaim, "You lost it again! Did you feel that?"

"No..." I'd confess, amazed.

She'd pause the kneading and the pressure. "I can see the band pop!" She exclaimed, probably amazed too i couldn't tell the difference. It was my back!

"Well," I said in my head. "Of course i tense up. I'm afraid you're gonna hurt me!"

But really i wasn't doing it intentionally.

"You have to learn mindful relaxation," Clarissa concluded.

I don't know how to relax? What a shocker.


*Not her real name

My Relaxation Burnt Funny

This is a one-wick candle i promise you

Breakfast

Pepperjack on wheat. Cuz i'm so sick of nonfat cream cheese!

I swear this blog was deep once.

Foxy

Megan Fox is SO hot.

When i see someone and i go, "Who is she?" and i actually take the time to find out...

That's how you spell haute.

Insomniac 2

I think... if someone picks up a pot from the stove like a tennis racket and hurls the boiling contents at my face,

it should be udon. Hopefully with chikuwa.

All In a Day's Work 33

Playing with dry ice

I Enjoy Vomiting Blood

Quote 169

It was real for me, too.

- Kayla, X-Men Origins: Wolverine

Snippet 107

Denisse:
[On OC]
He was like the cutest baby, ever!

V:
I never felt emotionally connected with him until recently.
[Pause]
I sound like an AI judge!

The Holy Trinity

Twitter
Facebook
Blogger

: )

Sanctimonious?

Yeah, that's me.

Shambles

How little it takes!

Quote 168

There's always the one who got away.

With guys.
And serial killers.

- George Simmons (played by Adam Sandler), Funny People


Disclaimer: I may be paraphrasing

Merriment 2

The BEST sangria in the world!!!

Mysterious Stare 2

Found at the Fremont Union High School District art exhibit. I saw humor in that there was "FU" in the acronym : )

Tomato Noodles

I dig : )

Red Yeast Organic Bean-Curd Cake

Sounds yummy. Not!