precociously mujer

So it seems our girl is turning into even more of woman with her vaso de tinto.

Natsuko just came back from her 2 months study program in LA so last night three of us ( Yukkin couldn't make it since she was away this weekend) flocked in Umeda for regular wine& dine session and most importantly it was her 23rd birthday. Gosh, years pass astonishingly fast; we're both 18 when we first met in uni. Things have completely changed now.

My friend who never fails to be the most adorable girl in the whole universe.

...And a secret of the night was revealed:). Happy Birthday my dear lady! You are forever a girl of Reppeto although Manolo Blahnik may dangle its voluptuous high-heels before you.

Simply the best shot of the night.

So I'm leaving for Tokyo tomorrow night! See you later all my ladies and gents, and enjoy your summer with oodles of ice-cream and sun shines! I'll be back in a week.

Best summer time wishes xxx

Virgo in August:"you've just climbed one heck of a mountain and now it's time for dawn."

Returning massive volumes of books to the university library, going to hairdresser, outlet store shopping and sleeping without alarm clock; yes, summer holiday is here! oh, I feel super.

Exams went decently good and fortunately I won't have to stay restless over the summer in terms of my results.

So, 3 more days till I leave for...guess where:). I'll give you some hints. 1) Beijing for 2008 Olympic Games. 2) Melbourne to visit my dearest peeps. 3) Tokyo. Well, I've been unemployed for so long so you know whether I could possibly cross the border with the current insane airfare price.

I'm going to Tokyo!

This is indeed my first time to properly visit there( so far my Tokyo experience only happened in Tokyo Disneyland, Yoyogi national stadium for cheerleading competitions and for job-interviews at one of the firms. What a shame;p) so I'm lusting to see real Tokyo this time. Plus the thing is that I'll be travelling with my favorite french guide. You'll find out what this means later*grin*.

and guess what I inherited from my daddy yesterday...

I cannot be happier, seriously.

We are still No.1

Just a quickie...

Cheerleaders united♡ Each one of us now leads their own path, but our spirit is forever.

Big hug and kiss,

Enchanted---Kyoto Gion Festival

I'm embarrassed to confess this, but despite being born in Japan and have grown up in Kansai for almost 23 years, I'd never had a chance to go to Kyoto Gion festival. Some foreign connoisseurs of Japan may be shocked at my unfaithfulness to her own culture, but come on, it's simply same as people who never visit tourist attractions in their city. We often forget to appreciate the things near us, yes? ;P

Anyways, Gion festival is one of the three grand matsuri in Japan, and when I went it was yoi-yama, the highlight night of the festival.


The city was veiled in dreamy ambiance as the sun went down.

Beautiful lantern float, an iconic symbol of the festival.

It was regrettable that I wasn't wearing yukata that night. Walking on the ancient Kyoto alley with yukata would definitely be more fun, and bring us the feeling of festivities. I'll surely do it next time.

Alrighty... I'm off! I'll be back once my exams are over. So please stay tuned all my loves:).

Lost in Annabelle

Although the recent summer climate no longer recalls us the fact that the rainy season isn't officially over yet, today's photos are all about hydrangea, the most precious gift of Japanese rainy season.

My mom and I went to see hydrangea festival at neighbouring botanical garden.

It was quite overwhelming to see so many of them altogether. Almost like hydrangea carpet!

And more...

I have no need for referring to their beauty, don't I? Pictures do speak for themselves.

Resting...:).

Exams/report pressures are getting intense, and project from my firm is also bothering me a lot now. (By the way, does anyone agree that facebook is a terrible killer during exam period? I tend to get so distracted from it especially when I have to study for exams.... it should have been created for procrastination, yes!)

But after 3 more heavy weeks, my 2008 summer adventure is ready to begin!

Early summer greetings, everyone!

certitude

Once before I decided not to alight on the road.
Because I needed more time, to contemplate if it was a place which I was meant to stop.
I was scared.

But this time, though my feet are still trembling, I unbind myself.
Because now I think I know this is where I'm meant to go down.

I'm reaching you.

nascency

In the midst of lingering rain, we often fail to discern the blessings it will bring us after the dreary weather---after 6 months of brokenness, now I firmly believe that they were after all innegligible stepping stones that had led me to the one optimum conclusion.


Yes, I've got a job! ! ! ! Finally! ! ! ! !


It was terribly a long process with full of twists and turns, and I've settled in an industry which I initially had no clue about; it's a full-time position in human resource company, and I'll be assigned to do all sorts of employment arrangement works. Hopefully I'll be able to move on to work for international department or the team for foreign firms, which I'm highly interested in.

And it seems I still can't fully decompress myself since we've already got 2 months-group project from the company. ahem. But it is indeed better to prepare myself personally and professionally for next April.

Anyways, I really would like to thank for all my family and friends who had given me a lot of assistance during my job-search period both mentally and materially; special thanks for my parents, Misha, Jun and his girlfriend Ma-chan, both Naoko, Micchan, Natsuko and Chris. Thank you darlings!


Exams are awaiting me next month, but I've already started thinking of summer. too bad.


...and I have a special guest arriving from France next week!<3

Maybe it's not only about bad hair day

When it rains outside, nothing is more paradisiac than staying at home and pampering oneself with trifling comforts. It feels as if I've got a justification to be super lazy for a day.

Laptop, books, chai tea, new Coldplay and a piece of home-baked cake.

That's all I need.

Happy Saturday everyone:).

Kisses,

Jane Austen, coffee and best companion

...Sorry for the long hiatus, everyone! It has been another jam packed long week without much time to write. A row of interviews and 5 hours of trip between home and university has been totally annihilating my body; I slept till 1pm today.

I however managed to indulge myself in the mid of the week, and went to see The Jane Austen's Book Club, which I've been longing to watch ( foreign movies always come out late in Japan!) . The movie was superb, and now I've started to read Sense and Sensibility in English(I read Pride and Prejudice, but it was in Japanese). In fact I still have trouble reading English classics, but I found Austen's novels relatively easier than other classic literature. Anyways, I'm loving it so far!


Okay, I post up pictures from last Sunday, afternoon tea in Umeda with Naoko.

I had Saigon Coffee (Vietnamese style coffee) for the first time; it was a simple concoction of strong coffee and sweetened condensed milk, poured over the ice. Such an irresistible summer creation!




...and not to forget, my princess charming :). She's always an absolute doll.

3 hours of sincere conversation gave me a dose of energy to keep me going for the week. Thanks my dear!

So, tonight I'm giving another dose of energy for brand-new week with Jane Austen and a stock of Desperate Housewives;).

Hope you also had a refreshing weekend!

nonplussed

With the weather dithering between sunshine and rain, it's hard to know what clothes to wear every morning. Should I bring a cardigan or will I regret having to carry it in my already stuffed bag?

It's the same kind of dillemma when we have to make a major decision on something critical for ourselves--- Shall I confide in my own intuition or do I better trust the forecast by others?

realize

if each day,
each hour,
you feel that you are destined for me
with implacable sweetness,
if each day a flower climbs up to your lips to seek me,
ah my love, ah my own,
in me all that fire is repeated,
in me nothing is extinguished or forgotten,
my love feeds on your love,beloved,
and as long as you live it will be in your arms
without leaving mine.

---Extract from If You forget Me by Pablo Neruda

sneak peek

Here's my interim report.

First of all, wow, thank you everyone so much for continually checking me out despite my current absence. How sweet! I'm still not officially back yet, but I'll try to keep you posted when time allows and also when I desperately felt a need for a sense of creativity in life.

Also thanks for those who have been sending me a word of care and encouragement. You truly are all amazing souls, and I am so lucky to be always surrounded by such fantastic supporters. I am so blessed.

o.k. let me just give you a quick glimpse of what has been going on in my life.

My future is still not confirmed yet, and I'm still getting myself off to potential future employers or career conventions every week. Nonetheless, I'm more or less feeling determined this time and beginning to see a shaft of hope which I didn't see last time. Indeed I've just received an approval for the interview from the company I've visited last week in Tokyo;).

University life has been giving it an additional hecticness, but my favorite IR and Spanish classes are keeping me awake. Several new encounters with internationals are spicing it up even more.

And my heart pulses with something:)

Wonderful weekend readers!

bring on

" You can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something---your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever."

"When I was 17, I read a quote that went something like:"If you live each day as if it was your last, someday you'll most certainly be right." It made an impression me, and since then, for the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: "If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?" And whenever the answer has been "No" for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something."

"Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma---which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of other's opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary."

Steve Jobs, Speech at Stanford 2005