Where's the other half of my brain?

Swiss Delice Brasilia

2012-01-10T23:35:00.000-08:00

From August 2011. Actually a Christmas present from December. It's moose sandwiched between 2 layers of meringue and then dipped in chocolate. Kind of rich but light at the same time. (I'm contradicting myself.) Not too sweet either, and not too addictive. (Well, depends on how hungry you are.) Since it's so low density, it's hard to stop at just one. I always eat 2. Overall it's quite nice. But it can only be classified as candy. Not filling at all.

Rehab Center

2012-01-09T22:51:00.005-08:00

The first online order arrived, cool! I was gonna drop mom off to dad before my appointment but she wanted to be there at noon, so it didn't work. We took separate trips.

First treatment appointment today. Basically just goal setting and a simple homework assignment. One more thing nailed. My thought process is chaotic.

Of course mom got home first. With no time wasted, I didn't even go in. Picked her up and went to Mrs. K's who's on a trip. Mom's been checking her home while she's gone. Yesterday the carbon monoxide alarm has been beeping so mom got nervous. We checked today and it didn't seem too dangerous, except for it's plugged into a wall outlet. My dying battery theory doesn't hold up. We decided not to mug with it after calling Mrs. K up.

Ran a few errands... the teller tried so hard to sell me "investment accounts" which turn out to be the $5000 tax-free saving account. Geeze... He didn't even know what he was talking about. Wasted a lot of my time. I should have just said not today right away. They must be getting a commission for each sign-up or something. Got F's baby card... Got some grocery... Went home kept dosing off at the desk (as usual). It's eat-out day with brother's gang. Today's also niece G's b-day so we went to get some mini fruit tarts (as usual). Mom made a bunch of calls at brother's. Came home, and again, kept dosing off at the desk. (T_T)

A might be changing his mind about this Sunday's movie. It would be good if he can go.

Calendar

2012-01-08T23:09:00.002-08:00

(Forgot this photo...) Thanks A, R&B for the calendar. Thought I'd have to give up this year. Thanks!! (^_^)

Again

2012-01-07T22:12:00.003-08:00

Mom answered the phone call, I didn't. Apparently dad pushed a fellow resident onto the floor on Tuesday. (Why didn't they call sooner, then?) The lady fell and broke something... probably her hip, and went to the hospital for a few days. Mom speculated that the lady might have gone into dad's room, and he tried to drive her away. Of course, we'll never find out the truth. We constantly have to apologize for him. But that can't fix the physical damages he's done.

On the other hand, mom is going crazy. I found her leaving half a banana on her sewing machine. Sigh...

Dinner

2012-01-06T23:48:00.002-08:00

Thanks B for the b-day dinner invite. (It happens to be the same day as the Orthodox Church Christmas eve.) Got up late again (fail!) and as a result, went to Richmond late. Got A his coffee beans, and forced CT into my trip. I was very disappointed that the measuring cup with lid was 2 liters. Way too big. (The flyer didn't say how big.) The glass Tupperware was way smaller than I thought. (Again, the flyer didn't say how big.) Not willing to leave empty-handed, I got a set anyway. Those are useful stuff. (However, I forgot about the $1 magic eraser! Fail!)

It's been raining and traffic was bad. I could feel my jaws, neck, shoulders, back, hips and legs tensing and freezing up. Of course my mood also dropped. Got really pissed off at other drivers (got cut off many times when traffic was already hardly moving, plus way too many red lights). Picked A up from his place and went to Costco for B's b-day gift card. I needed washroom while he ate a hotdog. Got 1/3 of his hotdog.

We were late for half-an-hour at R&B's. Luckily R was still not home picking S up from daycare. S was really interested in A's i-pad... at such a young age! (Well... there are frogs and lizards playing i-phone games on Youtube.) Parking ran out at 7:30 so A bought another hour. We stayed until 9:15. Drove him home, hung out at his place and read flyers. Too bad he only has Fridays'. The CT one was from Wednesday. I searched online but failed to find which store has the $1 magic eraser. Oh well...

Connoisseur Grand Marnier

2012-01-05T23:59:00.002-08:00

Photo taken last January... yikes! (Why do "stock" photos keep popping up?) Grand Marnier is one of the most yummy liquor IMHO. It's still yummy inside chocolate. (Actually, all these liquor chocolate taste kind of similar.) These small packs are perfect as small gifts.

Disappointed

2012-01-05T23:34:00.003-08:00

Super disappointed. A refuses to see Milos with me. This is one of those "I need you" instances but he pushes me away. ("I need your help", "I need your understanding", "I need your support"...) Funny he made it sound so logical and democratic. Crap, is this actually funny? Maybe not. I'm more upset than I think I'd be.

Not sure if there's anyone else to ask. Tried J&M but no answer yet. They may not even be in town next weekend. Can't mix with C&S. What should I do... what should I do...?

Worst case scenario, I might have to go alone, which, will not be a pleasant experience. Sigh... I know I can't force A. It's not fair for me to make him do something he dislike. But there are way too many instances that make me think he's just excreting excuses, as he considers his time is so much more precious than other people's. (And what does he do? Play games or search for online deals.) Sigh... Is a companion to see a movie too much to ask for? (T_T)

Chiro, day-timer

2012-01-04T23:42:00.005-08:00

Thank God for chiropractor day. It's been exactly 10 days, but feels like 20. I know, I know, I haven't been exercising at all. It's bad. (No, worst.)

Stopped by the Broadway Staples to get my all-important 2012 day-timer. My worries of selling out was unnecessary as there are still plenty left. Still not cheap, though. About $6.20 after tax? Office Depot might be cheaper if they hadn't gone out of business. Oh well. However, only black ones are left. I may not be as "early" as I thought. This means, there's no difference between the old one and the new one!?!?!?! Yikes!!!!! (This company does not print the year on the cover!)

DeSerres is a block away. Could I resist? Ended up picking up a bunch of discounted scrapbook paper. Sigh... I've told myself not to buy anymore, but every time I fail. (I just need to actually make stuff out of them...)

Blank

2012-01-03T22:11:00.004-08:00

(Photo taken on December 4th and unrelated to subject... or does it?)
Sorry, totally missed today. This is just a space-filler...

Last day off

2012-01-02T23:25:00.003-08:00

Pouring rain. Didn't go to the Festival of lights. Oh well. Met up with A for dinner. Then watched one of the 3 Andre Rieu DVDs.

Maitre Paul

2012-01-01T23:52:00.000-08:00

Same brand, but a different liquor from this. Comparing to the other bean-shaped one, this chocolate seems to be softer and more creamy. I forgot to check, but I think the other one is dark chocolate while this is milk chocolate. The alcohol seems weaker, though. Don't take me wrong, I'm not complaining. After a while, they kind of all taste the same, though.

New year

2012-01-01T23:33:00.004-08:00

Dinner at brother's. Stopped by to see dad before that. These days, sis-in-law and the girls have dropped out. Can't blame them. Dad stinks too much, and his behavior would scare the girls. Today, he wasn't wearing anything but a fleece vest. (Yup, no pants at all.) His spitting is absolutely hopeless.

Sis-in-law cooked up a feast. We has steak, pita bread and salad. Made a bunch of phones calls and went home. Brother had a meeting so we didn't stay too long.

And then, why did I keep dosing off at my desk again?

Laundry and potluck

2011-12-31T15:17:00.007-08:00

Can't believe I had to have a fight with mom on this very last day of the year. Dear God, can't you let me have a happy day to wrap up 2011? The vampire had me hand wash some stuff including bath towel. When I took the stuff piling up in my room for the last 3 days to the laundry room, I found mom's haircut cape in the basket. I asked her if she washes that with other stuff, and she said yes. OMG that's why I keep finding loose hair getting onto all my clothes, which always drives me nuts. Loose cut pieces of hair are short, hard to spot, and sharp like needles. Mom may not feel them but I do. (Or do I simply have bad luck?) She kept saying, that cape is made of silk, and hair won't stick. She refused to accept the possibility of loose hair contaminating the whole load! I ran out of patient and said, don't force me to do my laundry elsewhere. She said that's fine! I can't believe she said fine!!!!!! OK fine then, I'll grand her the wish. Sorry A I'll have to come bug you... (T_T)

NO, God, I'm angry at you who took away my mood control! Why do things have to turn out this way? Why do you enjoy torturing me so much?

To make things worse, my car started acting wonky on my way to A's. I figured it probably have something to do with the brakes, since the car shakes when I brake. (T_T) This time, no cooking. I'm afraid to screw up again. Pizza is better.

Thanks A for hosting the new year's eve party. I got there around 5 to take care of my laundry. He was still cleaning. I helped cleaning in the kitchen. The rest of the guys were late and didn't show up until 8:30 or so. S's chicken skews were great! After some Hetaria episodes, we started a SingStar karaoke party. (We didn't have the Japanese new year's eve singers show M requested, so we might as well sing ourselves.) I can't sing, but it was OK. (Ended up washing in the kitchen most of the time, for the fear of running out of dishes... and I did wash everything twice or more.) It doesn't really matter... is it because I've lost interest in most things, including anime? Watching them sing, I realized I've missed the whole point of karaoke. All my life I've followed instructions and try to "do things correctly" in order to get a "correct" result. That probably has given me unrealistic exceptions of life and made me disgruntle. Karaoke... is not about singing the perfect note, but to just have fun. Why do I put so much weight on the result? Looking back at my high school choir days, I cannot let myself sing again.

Vampire, Migraine

2011-12-30T23:54:00.006-08:00

(Picture taken on the 16th and unrelated to subject.)
Yup, it's finally here after so many days of zero energy. Totally forgot to pay my credit card bill and must go out. Waited after dinner, though. Would feel safer at a busier branch, so I went to the one near the 41st LD. Got some more ginger cookie and the 3 boxes of Rizt for $5 deal. With 3 more packages in the trunk, I stupidly went to the Kingsway LD to try my luck, as their post office was open last time I was after dinner. Noooo they were closed. Oh well. Thinking I'd check out the punches, I headed over to the photo department. As I was leaving the food area, I noticed the typical fractal dancing light starting dead in the center of my visual field! OMG!!!!! I panicked and quickly return to my car to take 2 Advil. As I carefully drove home, the dancing fractal grew. Luckily it didn't block my view as much as usual. I think I caught it in time. So I decided to fill up at the pump as gas price has dropped slightly. Got home safely. Thank God. But then I kept dosing off at the desk. One nap later, my head was pulsing. I should have gone to bed there. (T_T) Instead, I continued with grabbing pictures from a dying web site. It's one of my favorite Pinky site. Thanks to the free hosting service ending, the site master may not find another. Perhaps she's done with Pinky. Nooooo... (T_T)

Mini purfurme

2011-12-29T23:59:00.003-08:00

Thanks M for the present! It's so nice, I'm afraid to open it!

Jaffa Cakes mini

2011-12-29T23:25:00.002-08:00

Photo taken June 2010. Thought I've used up the "stock"... but I haven't. This one I've sent to T without trying it myself first, because I'm confident that it's good. OK I've only tried the regular ones. But there's no reason this mini version is not as good.

House-sitting (3)

2011-12-28T23:55:00.007-08:00

(Photo taken on the 4th and unrelated to the subject.)
Mom worried about the student downstairs and urged me to take some buns to him. I ate dinner early before going over to brother's. Got there around 7. Took the buns downstairs but the student seemed to be away. Well, running out of food, I'd go elsewhere too.

Fed the guinea pigs, started the Mac, but couldn't help dosing off. Collected a bunch of links form Etsy, though. Brother came back around 11:30. I reported the food shortage to sis-in-law. Turns out it was as I suspected. The student ate 3 day's worth of food in 1.5 day. Plus, he was not supposed to poke his head around into the fridge or cabinets, or just poke around. He was trying to trick me... how annoying. Sigh... I must stand firm next time.

I also noticed the student was wearing short sleeve t-shit and shots. (I never took off my down coat while I was there.) I thought he has enough muscles to generate sufficient body heat. But noooo. Sis-in-law mention that he keeps the temperature at 30 degrees downstairs! WTF?!?! The reason why she tried to put all his food downstairs was to minimize our contact. (i.e. She worries that he may not be dressed properly and I'd feel offended.) This guy... sigh... should really be sent to the army to learn some common sense and discipline.

Niece G came back and the first thing she did was to feed the guinea pigs carrots. (Haha I was thinking to using them all up.) Only after I nudged her that she went to help unloading the van. Niece N saw me and immediately ask when her Pinkys would arrive. I told her there might be some problem with my card and need to wait a while. The repairs are difficult and sill not done either. So, am I only good for Pinkys to her...? (T_T)

House-sitting (2)

2011-12-27T23:59:00.003-08:00

(Pictures taken on the 2nd and unrelated to subject.)
Was going to see if there's anything worth buying, but didn't feel like going out in the rain. It's been raining all day. A phoned me up from Metrotown, and ended up coming to my place. (Wow! Extremely rare!) I was trying to beat the deadline to a Japanese shopping forwarding service deal. Too bad I couldn't make it after all those annoying sign up procedure. And, getting mad, I went ahead with EMS shipping, which will make the purchase too expensive. (T_T) Why do I always do stupid things? However, the transaction didn't seem to go through. I still haven't received a confirmation e-mail. (Later found out it's because of holidays.)

Stopped by LD before dropping A off home. Got a little bit of munchies. (Ginger cookie and marzipan.) Since I promised M that I'd call, I had to be at brother's by 6, which I managed to achieve. Did my chores, and sent the signal, waited and waited, but M didn't return mail! What's going on? Meanwhile the student downstairs came up and asked for food. What? Sis-in-law left a note saying she's put all the food in his fridge! Did he finish everything already???? He kept probing if there's anything in the fridge, or cabinet, or any fruit sitting on the floor behind the door in the other room. I told him there's no prepared portions. All that is left was leftovers, and some cake. I even showed him the fridge. He did look at it closely. I asked if he wanted cake, he couldn't even give me a quick answer. He ended up mumbling that's for the kids. There were 2 pears in the fridge so I gave him one. Instead of leaving the way he came, which was through the backyard door, he went down through the indoors staircase. Before he went, he peeped around. Honestly, I really don't like this kid. (18 is not a kid anymore!)

Finally, M's e-mail came 2 hours later. She couldn't get up. We talked until 12:30. That's like, 4 hours. The handset battery died and I had to switch. I ended up going home around 1:30.

House-sitting (1)

2011-12-26T23:11:00.008-08:00

Completely passed out. Nope, didn't go shopping at all. Thanks A for getting the candy. I appreciate it very much.

I'm supposed to go house-sit for brother because they're out of town for 3 day. They found some cheap hotel deals and have gone south of the border to shop with some church friends. (Yup, they never though of inviting me, but instead, save me for the house-sitter position. Sob sob sob sob sob sob sob sob sob... You bet I'm not happy at all.) Ended up going to brother's to feed the guinea pigs at 10:30 PM. Sis-in-law left a note saying no need to bring food to the student downstairs tomorrow because she managed to fit everything in his fridge. Phoned M and ended up waking her up. Sorry...! Niece N's broken Pinky parts need more work.

Lunch

2011-12-25T23:56:00.002-08:00

Went to R&B's lunch with A. Thanks for the invitation. Eastern European celebrate Christmas with Christmas day lunch. The lamb was awesome! Well, everything was. Thanks so much, B! After lunch, I dose off at the table... unbelievable! I guess my energy level went below zero. After all, the vampire can be here any time now. (T_T) Sigh... that was so rude of me. However, even more unbelievable was, A went off to sit at the couch and played with his i-pad all this time while I was asleep! Sigh... I don't know what to say or think anymore.

I probably dose off between 2 and 4. Stuck around until 5:30, dropped off A and then went home. Don't want to leave mom alone on Christmas day. She declined dinner at brother's, saying she'd be too tired to social. Well... I can understand that. B gave us some food to take home, so mom and I ate that for dinner.

Reese miniatures

2011-12-25T23:35:00.004-08:00

Thought I've posted this before, but not. Picture taken July 2010 (yikes!)... W's favorite. Sis-in-law's baby sister came to visit, so I asked her to bring W a bag. Too bad it was a hot summer, and the chocolate all melted while in transit. Not sure how W end up eating them, but I suggested him to use them as peanut-butter. (Just kidding... OK maybe 50%.)

The peanut-butter is slightly salty while the chocolate is sweet. You can call it an acquired taste. Once you start getting use to it, it's too late. You're addicted. That's how W did. Perhaps the saltiness masks the sweetness? It's dangerous as they're full of calories. And they're basically pure sugar, salt, and fat. No need to say more.

2 parties

2011-12-24T23:59:00.005-08:00

Thanks mom for helping me make the rice. It still didn't taste right, though. (T_T) Cousin-in-law K called to see if her parcel arrive. Too bad we didn't receive it. Probably got stole. It's a pair of fuzzy slipper for dad. She's afraid that dad may get cold. I appreciate her thoughts, but clearly she was not thinking. Or she just wants the satisfaction of doing a good deed. (She's a crazy Buddhist who plays chanting recording 24 hours a day at home, goes to the temple to pray without taking care of her house.) I told her straight that dad pees himself constantly so such slipper are not practical. (They'd be soak in pee, and keep dad's feet wet, which is the complete opposite of her exceptions.) Then she replied right away that, we should then wash them. Yeah? Take them home to wash??? Is that practical??? Sigh... in her eyes, I'm the most evil daughter in the world, and started lecturing me about how I should understand and tolerate dad. Easy for her to say. Clearly, she refuses to understand how bad it's been for us. And I had neither time nor patient for her Buddhist teaching. I had to get ready for 2 Christmas eve parties today. Told mom about the call, and she return her call. Sorry, I just can't talk to K.

Did some last minute gift wrapping and off I went. Again, my screwed up sense of time had me 30 minutes late. B cooked the trout to perfection, but it has way too many bones. (T_T) Then next stop, J's. Parking was impossible and we wasted a long time hunting for a spot. At last He lend us a residence pass so we could park in the visitor's sport. Still took us 3 trials. We were so lucky to catch someone leaving, otherwise we'd be circling around for much longer.

To my surprise, they didn't mind the rice! Wow! Thanks! S's chicken was awesome. I was too full to try any of A's beef, though. (T_T) His chest nut dessert was delicious. Then we watched a bunch of Train Man episodes. Before you know it, it was 1:30 AM. Since A and I were invited to R&B's lunch tomorrow, we left. Yup, this is re-timed to fit into the date.

Mom went to see dad today, and found him completely naked in his bed, with crap on the sheets. That was during lunch too. All the staff was busy. It smelled very bad and mom couldn't stand it. So she reported the accident to the staff and left.

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-24T04:40:00.002-08:00

... and a happy new year!

Burnt

2011-12-23T01:53:00.011-08:00

Last chiropractor's visit before they go on holidays. This time it's only a week instead of 10 days, but I was in bad enough shape that it didn't make a difference.

Bought ingredients for my aggressive fried rice dish plan. I was stupid not to realize there's a Safeway on my way, and bought stuff at Choice Market which is higher-end and sells mostly organic products. A small bag of raisins cost 6 bucks. A tiny bag of pine nuts smaller then half of my palm is 9 bucks. (T_T)

Then I stopped by brother's to take a bunch of pictures using his ornaments for super late last-minute Christmas cards. Helped sis-in-law pick up some stuff at her branch of Safeway. (Daaaah! A second branch! Aaaargh!!!!) It's a big day tomorrow as they'll have an army of church friends over for Christmas and niece N's b-day party. Lots and lots of food need to be cooked.

It was very late when I got home. Like 9? After quickly grabbing a bite, I started to cook the impossible rice dish for tomorrow's potluck. It's impossible because the recipe I heard from the radio is full of holes. With minimum cooking experience and skills, it would be a miracle if I succeed. And of course, the miracle didn't happen. I burnt the stuff. (T_T) Good that I bought a can of cashew nuts when I got sis-in-law's stuff, and didn't use the super expensive pine nuts. Not wanting to waste the rice, I tried to pick out the burnt parts... and wasted hours! I managed to eat a bowl of the remnants, but decided to dump everything at the end. (T_T) Not only did I waste food, I wasted lots of time. Sigh... (T_T) Tomorrow, I'll have to cook another batch. I'll be playing it safe.

Winter Solstice

2011-12-22T23:15:00.005-08:00

Shortest day of the year... and perfect for hibernation. There are frost on everything in the morning. I'm just glad that it's not snowing. Some people think I'm selfish, but have they put themselves in our shoes? There's no able body in the house. Who's gonna shuffle the snow?

Family dinner today. Brother's gang didn't call yesterday so I thought nothing's going on tonight. Turns out he took mom to see dad before I even got up, and came for a haircut afterwards. I was shooting last minute junk food Pinky pictures of a bunch of out-going Christmas gift candies. As I was gauging the possibility of L's visit, A called for pickup help in Richmond. We had roughly 2 hours before I had to be home to pickup mom. It was kind of dangerous because we would be diving straight into rush hour. However, if we only need to make one stop, it should be sufficient.

The destination was the UPS depot near the airport, which is unreachable without a car. (I did see 2 people walking. I wouldn't do that.) There was a long lineup. OK 5 people in front of us is not any big deal elsewhere, but at this UPS depot with only 2 clerks on duty, it took forever. I didn't have time to for washroom before leaving home, and was in need of one. There was no public washroom, unbelievable! They have long lineup yet no washroom for customers! Not even any chairs! How mean!!! I asked the receptionist next door at the main entrance, and was given a "no". However, she did point me to the gate security staff. If they agree I can use the washroom, they can escort me inside the building. And that was exactly what I did. (Did I have a choice?) The security guard was way nicer than the receptionist.

The warehouse was very big. When you need to pee and have to walk that far, it was like you're running from an explosion. But then I get to tour the warehouse, haha...! When I was done, the security guard apologized that there's a closer one. Now that I look back, I hope he didn't do it on purpose. Am I mean to think this way? But if he works there, how can he not know? Not needing to use the ladies room is not an excuse at all, because that's also where the mens room is.

Met up with A again at the pickup. After running up and down between the reception, the gate, and the warehouse, there were still 2 people in front. Sigh... (T_T) A guy was filling forms when I got there, and seemed like he just turn around and cut in front of us. He did show some curtsey and asked if he was there or something (But I'm sure what he meant was actually "can I go next" regardless of what he said). A mumbled something vague and that guy went in front of us without lining up at all. Wasn't that strange? Was it fair? There were 4 people behind us! Was that guy bad? Or did A not willing to stand up for himself? He knew I was in a rush. I hate it so much when he's usually the one who complains at the top of his voice in public about lineups while lining up, like he wants to make sure everyone hears him complain and leave. (Will they? of course not! How can he not know? This action only embarrasses the hell out of me! And A considers my Pinky picture taking embarrasses the hell out of him!!!!) When it comes to actual confrontation, he's the biggest coward in the universe. Sigh... Seriously, will this guy stand up for me? No, I don't think so. He can't even ask for washrooms when he needs to. And I'm so fed up that he doesn't seem to understand he must pass this hurdle before I feel more comfortable. To him, I'm the one who has problems, and I should be all over him. Sorry, that's way too early for daydreams. It makes me mad writing this. Sigh... (T_T)

I also didn't have time to grab a Pinky, so no Pinky picture at the lineup even though I had time to kill, and usually I'd take Pinky pictures.

Made a stop at the Italian bakery. A complained about a strange smell getting into their food. I didn't sense anything. Oh yeah, he used to swear by that place, and now this? Sigh... Picked up a loaf of fruit cake and some kind of fried dough pieces with powdered sugar as my contribution to tonight's family dinner. Dropped off A at his place, and went home to puck up mom. (He did offer to take the bus midway, but it would be too mean of me to do that.) I was slightly late. Luckily, still barely managed to arrive at brother's on time at 6 sharp. (Sorry... I speeded...)

Sis-in-law demonstrated how to use the pressure cooker. Then we ate. Ever since the girls got their high-tech gadgets, they hide in their own rooms. Oh well. We tried to take advantage of brother's long distance plan. Mom called Mrs. L but she wasn't home. I tried M and unfortunately she was not home either. C went to work too, which I expected. I only managed to reach W and chatted for a bit. Meanwhile mom kept saying lets go home. Sigh... (Make me mad that she's soooo... grrrr... I don't even have a word for it! Fun buster? How can I feel happy when I'm surrounded by super negative people?)

Asked niece N about getting more Pinkys. She gave me a list, and 4 sets of broken wigs to repair. OMG how has she been playing with them? (T_T) It's not like I don't want to help her repair, but my hands are gonna hurt having to drill for these many pieces! (T_T)

Came home, tried to make a Christmas card, and kept dosing at the desk. Woke up and it was already 1. What's wrong with me? (T_T)

Roca dack truffle

2011-12-21T22:59:00.001-08:00

Christmas 2010. Thanks niece G for this. It's good stuff! The dark chocolate is fragrant and isn't too bitter, and the butter-crunch adds the right amount of chewiness. Best of all, almost no sour after taste. I'm impressed for a U.S. made chocolate.

Lunch J, intersection photo

2011-12-20T23:25:00.011-08:00

Picked up A to have lunch with J. The ramen place was pretty good! The main purpose today was to hand over the Christmas candy. Otherwise I could have just called him.

Took A to Bestbuy after lunch. As usual, he's only interested in games or high tech electronics. Sigh... (T_T) Coffee, and then CT. He didn't find any deals good enough to buy and was not please. Sigh... He claims that he need shopping to keep him sane. Sigh... What can I do? Nothing!!!! #%&!!

Yes, my back has been very bad. The previous chiropractor visit only lasted 2 days. I'm grumpy. Grumpy like hell. However, while talking to J, I was not grumpy. Somehow A has the talent to bring out my worst. This... is bad.

Did some grocery shopping, and dropped off the stuff to his place before meeting S for dinner. (There was ice-cream.) Finally, mailed 6 more packages. (The total as of today is 11.) Again, I find myself not as grumpy when talking to S. A seem to make me focus on my negative side, or just anything and everything negative. Sigh...

Even during dinner, A could not stop talking about the supposingly unbelievable boxing day deal on the LD flyer... and there wasn't much else on his mind, or interested him. Why can't I have any good... or even normal conversation with him???

Oh yeah, of course there's the other thing he's interested. But that's all. I don't want to be that one single dimension thing, though. I wonder if he understands this. There's no way we can move on until we connect on a higher mental level.

Not sure if the clerk did it on purpose. I forgot to ask for more custom forms when I mailed my stuff before dinner, and went back to the post office outlet at LD afterward. He said he ran out, but still gave me 5. I wanted 10 but 5 were good enough. However, as I walked off, I noticed the forms all had their branch number filled out. This means I must come back to this branch if I want to used them. How cunning!!!!! How evil!!!!!!!! Technically speaking, I could have taken them and use them as hair pick-up at home, but I return them. Sigh... speechless... (T_T)

S wanted to buy some wine probably for Christmas gifts, so we went to the liquor store nearby. A needed washroom badly. But he refused to ask for direction. He even said he'd walk home for it. Sigh... (T_T) Why why why why? I'm sure LD has one. He wouldn't listen. What's wrong with this guy? (I'm getting mad as I type this. Not good. Can't help it.) Even Safeway next door should have public washroom. So I ended up asking a clerk if there's one in the liquor store. He pointed us to Safeway. At this point, A still would believe me. Why? Why didn't believe me even with another person saying the same thing? I think he really needed washroom badly, finally cave in and went to Safeway. He was gone for a while. By the time he came back, S was still choosing his third bottle of wine. Well I guess it worked out fine at the end. But it still upsets me that things happened that way. Sigh... (T_T)

Why am I so unhappy? Why am I so unhappy with A? Why is he so good at pushing my wrong buttons? Am I being unreasonable getting upset over this "not willing to ask" issue? I think I'm fed up. Yes, I'm mad, now.

Oh! Can't forget to put this down. When A and I were on our way to J's office, I think I got photographed at an intersection during a left turn. When light was changing, the oncoming container truck didn't seem to slow down. Would you advance into the intersection? Nooooo of course not! Then there were flashes. I do hope whoever on the other side of the lens understand the situation.

Parcels

2011-12-19T23:41:00.003-08:00

This year's Christmas parcels are all late. (T_T) Technically speaking, they can still arrive before year's end, but of course I don't have the budget for airmail. After mailing all 14 of them, I'd be broke already. (T_T) These will turn into belated new year's gifts...

Walker and dinner

2011-12-18T23:13:00.008-08:00

Y's package arrived! Yay~ thanks!!!! (^_^) Originally, brother was to pick us up and go see dad together. But mom and I wanted to catch the shift change at the nursing home, so we went separately. However, brother went directly from the restaurant after lunch, and beat us to dad. We missed him by just 15 minutes. Oh well.

Dropped of the 3 huge cans of cookies to dad's nursing home. We successfully greet staff from 2 shifts. (That why we aimed at between shifts.) Mom wanted to take the cane and one of the two walkers home as dad is no longer using them. (She's more afraid they'd be stolen.) We're too late for the one aunt Y lend us. He has already broken the release buttons!!! AAAAARRRGGGHHH!!!!!

Otherwise, dad is as usual. His room stinks like urine. Blobs of spit on the floor. His shirt unbuttoned and belly showing. First thing he asked was "is there anything to eat?" Sigh... Mom went to pee in his washroom and found out there's no toilet paper. She seems not to understand that dad cannot be given any toilet paper or paper towel. (Has she forgotten what happened at home already??? Or was she just acting???) A staff told us that this morning dad plugged the toilet again because he pulled the whole roll of paper towel into the toilet and tried to flush it. The hallway was flooded. (T_T) Brother did tell us that when they arrived, the floor was being mobbed the second time today. Sigh... (T_T) Mom asked dad if brother's visited, he said no! Sigh... (T_T) However, he was able to name me today. That's a surprise!

We went home afterwards, and I started wrapping gifts for brother's gang. Our family don't have the habit of Christmas gift giving. But since they have a Christmas tree and 2 kids, it's only appropriate. Since I've never been trained as a kid, I suck in buying gifts. That's actually a useful skill.

Dinner with uncle Y's gang and aunt C. 10 people in total. The restaurant was a good deal and we had a bunch of leftovers to take home. Mom only took one container for dad, not for us. The majority when to brother. Aunt y and aunt C took some too.

J called during dinner. He seemed to be making greeting calls and didn't talk to me much. It would be nice if we could set up something at A's, as he seems a bit sad that S and I made him cancel the turkey. There's no way for the 3 of us to deal with an 8-pound turkey. It's only going to waste. And I'm glad he's sensible enough to make the decision. It's only fair to get something going at his place.

Came home and kept dosing off at the desk... (T_T)

Dream

2011-12-18T22:52:00.003-08:00

I was driving to J's place. The streets looked like HMT near the YWCA. I keep screwing up and making dangerous mistakes, like, at a left-turn lane, passing 2 motorbikes that were already lined up, and pulling up side-by-side with the first one. It was like I lost control of the car. Luckily the bikers didn't get mad and left. There were other stuff like speeding and running red lights. (OMG!) It was really strange that for moments I felt like I was in the back seat. Then I realized that was tunnel vision. (Not like the peripheral going black, but physically pulled back for a few feet.) Knowing I was in trouble, I tried to ask J if I could take a rest at his place. (But don't think I actually called him up.) The driving continued for a while. Then I arrived at some kind of apartment complex with a mall on the ground floor (and possible underground). I followed the car in front and reached a dead end. It was a circular concave corner with stairs to some kind of mall or department store entrance. Clearly a pedestrian area. (How did cars go there???)

The next scene, I was on foot, walking on the street, on a raised ramp(?). I saw a bunch of high-school classmates walking in the same direction. I might have greeted some of them, I might not. Can't remember exactly. But I'm very sure I saw W and didn't greet her. I really wanted to talk to her but was hesitating, because I thought she would hate me. (Sorry W...) Then brother showed up, also walking in the same direction. We chatted a little. Somehow I knew he lives in the same apartment as J, so we walked together. Now that I think of it, this means everyone was heading towards J's too! (This must have something to do with J's talk about a Christmas potluck.)

Noblesse Assorted

2011-12-17T23:53:00.000-08:00

Noblesse Assorted Biscuits and Wafers. Photo taken January 2011. Got it at LD, thinking bags are better for mailing to T. (Boxes or tins weight more and hence more expensive postage.) The picture on the packaging looks really good, doesn't it? But don't let it trick you. The contents are actually very banged up and look nothing like the picture. Well, the assortment is fine. You do get those biscuits and wafers. But they're all chipped and covered with powdery crumbs. Kind of unsightly. Plus, they don't taste as good as the picture look either. Lesson learn. Of course if you plan to eat it yourself, it's not a problem. It doesn't look good as a gift.

Packages

2011-12-17T23:40:00.003-08:00

(Photo taken on the 14th and unrelated to subject.)
It's way too late, but still better late than never. (Chinese new year instead of Christmas?)
My fault, but I have no energy to write Japanese mail, hence can't confirm some of my blog friends addresses. (T_T) Or... am I afraid of how much I'd end up spending on postage?

Chiropractor

2011-12-16T23:43:00.004-08:00

Bad weather. Cold, drizzling and the sky was dark grey. Met with S and got back the unsold figurines. I'm surprised that many got sold. Thanks for lunch and showing me to the good Japanese restaurant. Too bad C couldn't make it.

When weather is this bad, my back can't be good. It's been achy. My left shoulder actually hurt! I went directly to my chiropractor after lunch (which was before 2:30) and realized I forgot to bring Christmas treats. Luckily there's a Shopper's nearby, and I quickly got 3 packs of chocolate. The other receptionist left early, but the doctor's wife showed up, so it worked out perfectly. I was early but the clinic was quiet enough, I got treated soon.

Went home, trying to cleanup my supply folder, kept dosing off at my desk for the rest of the day... (T_T)

Dream

2011-12-15T23:13:00.002-08:00

Forgot most of it, but the microwave part sticks. It was super realistic!

I was trying to reheat some food, and started the microwave. Then I realized I forgot to put the food in. (Dreams sometimes don't make sense.) I tried to stop it, but couldn't find the stop button. I smell something burning. With no food inside, it had to be the machine itself. I panicked. Thinking opening the door would stop it, I opened the door (aren't microwaves set up that way?) but it kept running even with the door open! I thought I was being radiated and panicked even more! Then I found a button that could reduce the remaining time, and pressed it until it reached zero. It finally stopped. Phew... but I was already radiated and would get cancer! Aaaargh!!!!! Somehow, the senseless dream had me repeat this whole thing one more time! OMG...

In real life, I do jump to 5 feet away after starting the microwave.

Rehab

2011-12-14T23:20:00.003-08:00

Thought I would be there exclusively to receive test results today, the lady gave me 2 more tests. It only took 30 minutes. Then meeting with the doctor, who said the results are consistent with the symptoms I described. He's very optimistic. I didn't tell him I remember doing the block test, though... Treatment will begin in January.

A called when I was on my way to the rehab center. So I called him back afterwards. Was gonna visit dad and not meet A, but dad was asleep. I didn't want to wake him up, so I ended up meeting A at Whole Food. Worked out fine as he bought a bunch of grocery. Forgot to take a Pinky picture of their pizza slice!

Hawaiian Sweet Maui Onion

2011-12-13T23:19:00.002-08:00

Long name. Hawaiian Kettle Style Potato Chips "Sweet Maui Onion". From January 2011. Onion chips with onion! Wooooow they're sooooo good! Thanks A for this one. Super addictive! The onion makes all the difference. And it's not like your regular sour cream onion flavour. The onion comes from within. (Well... actually, these are not ground up and formed later like Prinkles. The potatoes are sliced.) There are smaller bags and other flavours at LD although I haven't tried them yet. These are really good for my chips cravings, but give me canker sores. (T_T)

Keyboard

2011-12-13T22:57:00.004-08:00

The wireless keyboard has been acting unstable, and finally to the point of annoying. As that's my first one ever, I don't quite know how to trouble-shoot. After a few guesses, it's the batteries! Those came with the keyboard when I got it from A. They were leaking liquid!!! Yikes!!! Totally gross!!!! Luckily, after cleaning up and new batteries put in, the keyboard works fine. I guess I should have been smarter with batteries.

Posts

2011-12-12T23:30:00.006-08:00

(Picture taken on the 4th and unrelated to subject.)
Cleaned up blog posts... I've been writing but haven't been publishing for 2.5 months. Managed to cleanup just under one month's worth of posts. Image processing is always time-consuming.

Queensborough

2011-12-11T23:49:00.005-08:00

Met up with A around 3:20. Late because I couldn't get up. My back, neck and shoulder were all frozen. We made a stop at his building's Christmas tea gathering so I could have a few cookies for lunch. (Thanks!) Someone's Santa suite dog was the star of the party! So cute!

Took A to Queensborough landing outlets for an exchange. He went with S to the Banana Republic opening yesterday. I wanted to go too... but I had to go to the charity fair. (T_T) Those two guys took the bus in the rain... which made me feel so guilty... (T_T)

Anyway, mission completed, and we walked over to Walmart. A was hoping to find some game deals, but there were none. I, on the other hand, did not expect to find anything but ended up buying findings and chocolate. Then we stopped by Michael's to exchange my 12 x 12 box. Yessss they had some clear ones left! Yay~!!! I also picked up a small circle punch and made use of the half price coupon on a bag on pompom. The cashier girl screwed up and charged me the exchange item. I guess it's been a tough day for her.

Dinner at Cactus club. Thanks A. I was surprised I finished the salad. I must have been hungry. The makeup mirror in their ladies' room is hilarious!

Charity fair

2011-12-10T23:50:00.006-08:00

Why do I always screw up my sleep? Ended up sleeping less then 2 hours. Why? I was trying to set up display and package some earrings. They're studs and cannot be hung. But why did it take so long? Why?????

Last night, sis-in-law said parking day-passes are only $3, but they're actually $10!!!! Oh well, there's no way I could find parking in this shopping season if I opp to move my car every 3 hours.

Ran into P! Wow! He was volunteering at the fair. We didn't get to chat much, and I failed to ask more about him. OTL

There were fewer than 10 tables excluding food and games, definitely not what I expect. The table size worked out OK, but I still think we could use more space. Sis-in-law bought food for lunch at the vendor tables, and then found out afterwards that staff can eat for free in the office. (Catering food, but wasn't that good.) Sleep deprived, I didn't have much appetite anyway.

There were performances and games. More people than last November's craft fair. But most people were facing their backs to us as they watched the stage. Sales was not good but still better than last time. Sold 6 pairs of earrings and one necklace. Total sales $26. After donation, I pocketed $18 after spending 6 hours. Nope, I'm not in the blacks at all. I wonder if I'll ever be. (T_T)

The event was supposed to end at 4, but people started packing up soon after 3, probably thanks to the lack of customers. Because we were going to a new Taiwanese restaurant for an early dinner, we didn't want to leave mom alone at home. She refused to come at first, but I think brother manged to convince her. Mr. L might be the other reason, as mom wanted to see his new apartment. However, she didn't make an appointment in advance and couldn't reach him today. So mom ended up going grocery shopping at T&T while we sat at our table. She brought back toufu pudding for everyone.

The restaurant was pretty good. Then I noticed they didn't say no MSG. Yup, thirsty.

Well, those labels I made a special trip to get yesterday were never used. OTL

Korean seaweeds

2011-12-09T23:59:00.007-08:00

From April 2011. After the 3-11 Japanese earthquake and tsunami, I got a craving for seaweeds. Here are 5 varieties from 2 supermarkets.

Hosan Rosted Seasoned Sea Laver
This was the first one I bought. The default. Pretty good. I though it contains MSG but it's not on the list. The ingredients are: sea laver, sesame oil, corn oil, salt. The shorter the list, the better.

"Rosted Seaweed"
Smaller packaging. 8-packs were on sale for $0.99. Seems to be a good deal. (As long as they're not polluted by Japanese radiation... Who am I kidding? The earth is round!) Tastes... like seaweed with MSG, just like the normal ones. Good, at least I didn't screw up.

ChoripDong Rosted Laver with sunflower seed oil
Same as above, no suspicious ingredients. Sunflower seed oil is not as fragrant. One of the packages was super oily and a bit soggy.

ChoripDong Rosted Laver with olive oil
This one's pretty good. It's on the same level as the first one. Not sure if I tasted olive oil, though.

ChoripDong Rosted Laver with grape seed oil
I don't even know what grape seed oil tastes like. Can't really tell the difference between all these oils. But this still tastes awesome.

Last minute

2011-12-09T23:53:00.008-08:00

Needed some last minute shopping and must go to Richmond again. Figured out I need labels and it's better to just buy some than making my own... for which I made a special trip yesterday to buy a paper punch... (T_T) Should have just bought the labels yesterday.

Do malls reuse the same Christmas decorations every year? I don't remember what they used last year. But I'm sure this is the first time I've ever seen upside-down umbrellas under Christmas trees. It may be a clever idea, but doesn't look right.

Gas price seems to have dropped a little...

Richmond

2011-12-08T23:33:00.006-08:00

Thought today was the day I deal with the exchange and be done, but nooooo. Michale's has sold out of the 12 x 12 clear boxes. I managed to find one somebody misplaced. But I still need to exchange one more. Oh well...

Thought Netlink was gonna move into the smaller ex-piano store next door. Nooooo they actually are expending. The new section is gonna be a Samsung store.

Resin flower

2011-12-07T23:03:00.003-08:00

Gotta take this last chance before the fair to work on the resin flowers, as they may not mail well. (Yup, they've been sitting on the desk for a few days.) Retouching took waaaaaaay too long! Hmm... is this really "you get what you pay for"? They aren't that cheap either.

Korean food

2011-12-06T23:36:00.007-08:00

Eat-out day with brother's gang. Mom and I were supposed to wait for them at a small Shanghai restaurant near his place, but the place was full! (Amazingly, mom called brother when we left our house. They're only 2 blocks away, yet still manage to be quite late!) The lady at the restaurant tried very hard to persuade us to sit at a smaller table, but we didn't think it would work. So we decided to go to a Taiwanese restaurant in Richmond. I parked my car at brother's and he drove his van.

To our surprised, that Taiwanese restaurant was closed for staff holiday! By this time, everyone was grumpy, especially brother and sis-in-law. The atmosphere was like, they were ready to fight each other. (They could decide on whether to stay and try next door, or go to the other branch.) Since we've come so far, it was better to stay. So we ended up going into the Korean restaurant next door.

They're family style and the interior reflects it. It really looks like someone's home. The place isn't cheap, though. Plus, there's no small items. All $7 and above. The food has no MSG. Wasn't excellent, but not bad either.

Found out from J that sis-in-law is gonna join the charity fair on the 10th. I admit I'm a little worried about table space. But we'll see.

Olive Oil Potato Chips

2011-12-05T23:47:00.001-08:00

From March 2011. Thanks A! This is excellent. You can tell it's good quality. The spice overpowers the potato a bit, but I don't mind at all. Too bad it's very expensive.

Chiropractor

2011-12-05T23:34:00.004-08:00

Chiropractor and errand day. Was gonna mail a bunch of packages before the appointment but I was too late. So I did it after. Managed to enter a post office 10 minutes before they closed at 5 (I thought they close at 6). 2 of the 5 packages needed to be weighted and then sealed. I didn't have enough time. The sealing was butched and very ugly. (T_T) However, I think I narrowly made the collection.

The parcels took longer than I thought, and I didn't even have a chance to call S. I was supposed to call her at my chiropractor. Hand over some toys for her company's charity auction. I wish I could join, but of course it's employees-only. (T_T)

Vanier park

2011-12-04T22:34:00.003-08:00

A wanted to go to Vanier park for a walk. It was far away, but since I haven't seen him for a week, I went along. It was cold! Very cold!!!!! There were dogs going into the sea despite the cold, though. Incredible!

Grocery shopping at Granville after that. With the ingredient we bought, we made sandwich for dinner. Forgot to take Pinky picture. I must have been hungry.

Black and white

2011-12-03T23:35:00.002-08:00

Pompom attack! (Actually brooches I'm sending to my Japanese blog friends...) They're all gonna be late for Christmas, though... (T_T) And I don't have everyone's mailing address...

Near miss

2011-12-02T23:25:00.004-08:00

Thanks to evil half price Michael's coupons, I went to Richmond. Well, I do need some craft supply. When I went back to my car, I noticed the car next to mine had a broken passenger side window. It wasn't covered either. Yikes... Then, after I put my purchase into my trunk, I saw the broken glass on the floor. That car... got broken in just now?!?! OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG!!!!!!! That, could have easily been my car. It was late and I didn't know when my next stop close, I left without doing anything. Hmm... now that I look back, there was noting I could do anyway.

Home Depot was selling Chinese-looking narcissus, which I thought blooms in February. Hmm...

Dark Chocolate Blackout

2011-12-02T22:58:00.000-08:00

From April 2011. Thanks A! I know you always think of me when it comes to dark chocolate, and I appreciate it very much, but this one is not good at all. Hmm... the cacao is there, but doesn't taste good. Maybe it's just me not knowing how to appreciate this kind of raw bitterness. Plus, there is a sour aftertaste. Sorry...

December

2011-12-01T23:04:00.004-08:00

Yikes... only one month left for this year... how come it went by so fast?

Finally finished the pompoms. Way too late for Christmas, though. Hope they don't mind. (T_T) The E6000 glue sucks. Why does it get good reviews? It's too thick and stringy, loose tack too soon, really hard to apply without making a mess, and stinks when curing. And, can't believe our version contains carcinogen! What's the government thinking? Why worry more about fire then cancer???

As I worked on the pompoms, I got a headache. I know it's from the glue. This reminds me of my ex-boss, who did not believe I'm so sensitive to chemicals.... She also didn't believe I cannot use the mouse and must substitute with a tablet. Or I simply cannot work as fast as she wants, and all of my stupid mistakes.

Why do most people not believe me? Why do they all think I'm wrong or crazy? They don't even want to believe I'm not as smart as they think. Who are they to judge how I feel when they're not me? Is there really something wrong with me? Why do I keep getting negative responds? Is this what the world is trying to tell me? Is God trying to push me over the cliff?

Why am I here? What should I do?

What's wrong with me???

Migraine

2011-12-01T05:27:00.006-08:00

Not sure when exactly it started (4:30?), but I was dizzy for a few moments. Then I thought I've looked at the monitor for too long. (It's true that I couldn't resist looking at a bunch of extra sites.) My vision felt weird. It was like my blind spot from the accident had grown and shifted. Alarmed, I started to wrap things up. Then, it appeared. The trademark. The zigzag spiraling fractal. Very tiny at first, near the center of my visual field. Ah-ha, that explains the blind spot.

ASAP, I ran to take pain killers. This time I decided to try the Advil A gave me. If he takes 2, 2 should work for me. Then I quickly turn off everything in the computer room and took a shower. The fractal grew to fill up the right half of my visual field, but it didn't really block the scene like it usually does. As I went on with my business and accessed the cabinet above the toilet, the fractal suddenly disappeared! It was like, I took my attention away for a second, and it was gone. Hmm... strange! Was it because I took Advil instead of my usual Tylenol? I think less than half-an-hour had elapsed since the migraine started. A little bit sooner than usual. However, I felt dizzy again. It was like marking the start and end of the attack. No, I'm not complaining.

So, after brushing my teeth, I was about to go to bed. But then I thought I should write this down first. Another strange thing is, as I'm writing this, I do feel a slight headache around my eyes and the front half of my head. It's like a diluted migraine. Hmm... The Advil may not be strong enough, but it can explain my lightheadedness. However, my head and eyes are actually feeling very heavy. Very unpleasant. Better go now.

Hibernation

2011-11-30T23:47:00.004-08:00

(Picture taken in June and unrelated to subject.)
Was gonna go downtown and set my alarm at 11. Opened my eyes at 4. What happened? (T_T) I missed the whole day? OK I'm blaming the vampire. I was also pushing it too hard yesterday. (T_T)

Test 2 con't

2011-11-29T06:23:00.002-08:00

Last Tuesday's test was postponed to today. To prevent having to move my car every 2 hours, I took the bus. It was drizzling and cold. But not as cold as day 1, when I needed to get up at 7 and compete with the morning rush hour.

It was also eat-out day with brother's gang. I barely made it home, like, 4:50, 10 minutes before the scheduled pickup. But brother was half-an-hour late. We went to see dad first as usual. Then we ate at a Taiwanese place near brother's home. (The girls like Taiwanese cuisine, especially the chicken nuggets). Sis-in-law ordered some kind of mixed steak combo, and one of the "steak" was really bad. It was like minced left-over meat dipped in egg. Totally gross. Don't let the nice-looking photo fool you!

Lindt Excellence Intense Cranberry

2011-11-28T23:59:00.001-08:00

From May 2011. Thanks A again for this one. Cranberry itself doesn't have a strong enough taste, so it's totally drowned by the dark chocolate. On the other hand, it doesn't compete with the chocolate. If you pay attention, you'll find its slight tartness in the bitterness. They're still a mild, good match.

Vamp

2011-11-28T23:24:00.003-08:00

(Picture taken in June and unrelated to subject.)
Awwww it showed up. But tomorrow I must go to the test! (T_T)

Parcels

2011-11-27T23:25:00.002-08:00

(Picture taken in June and unrelated to subject.)
Too late for Christmas now... all the overseas packages are late... oh well... (T_T)

Caffeine

2011-11-26T23:49:00.004-08:00

Picture taken a while ago.

An article posted at my chiropractor's.

Thought it's interesting.

Click on it to enlarge.

Black Friday

2011-11-25T23:27:00.003-08:00

Since when did it mean the biggest shopping day? Doesn't it mean Friday the 13th?

Took A for a post office pickup, then some shopping. Burnaby Michael's, Queensbro Walmart. Late for my chiropractor but I've let them know ahead so it worked out OK. Then met up with A again to drop off his package because I couldn't unload his stuff when dropping him off. He wanted to eat out and treated me to Earl's. (Thanks!) Parking was so crazy, someone parked in the lane! Yikes! We were lucky to get a spot.

Lindt Excellence Intense Blackcurrant

2011-11-24T23:59:00.001-08:00

From May 2011. Thanks A! Lindt's high quality as always. The blackcurrant is as intense as it's name suggests. Reminds me of the Frutips gummy candy.

Bad logo

2011-11-24T23:50:00.002-08:00

Picture taken last February. (I guess I do have a big stock photo folder.) This, was a Taiwanese restaurant logo. The place no longer exist, though.

Dressew

2011-11-23T23:32:00.002-08:00

The second package of Pinkys from Japan arrived. This was economic shipping and didn't require any signature. The postman left the box in front of our door, rang the doorbell, and left. The content seems to be fine although the item description says it's used and damaged. Cool! (Or maybe I'll find out later.) The box is way too big, though. Yes, it cost extra S&H for this type of cheap shipping, but this is over packaging! I guess I can reuse the box. And, the shipping cost is cheaper than EMS.

It was the crazy Michael's coupon event. Can I miss it? Noooo. However, I didn't go early in the morning. It was late morning and I fear the good stuff would be all gone. Luckily my worries were not necessary. There were plenty of boxes. My main goal was accomplished quickly. It was picking out sis-in-law's Christmas gift that took a long time. When I was done, it was already 2:30.

It was a rare sunny day, a perfect day to visit Dressew. So I call A up, hoping to borrow his bus past. To my surprise, he switched to working from home for the rest of the day. (Awww which meant he wasn't feeling well.) Thanks for lending me your bus pass. I hung out a bit too long at his place. It was 4 when I boarded the train. One hour (actually less) was not enough to look at everything. I didn't even notice when they closed and was literally kicked out. Managed to get some ribbons, but not exactly what I want. I only made the purchase because I was rushed. Oh well, it was only a few bucks. I'll need to go back later.

Test 2

2011-11-22T23:30:00.001-08:00

It rained non-stop last night all night. Mom got up around 3:30 AM to check if we're flooded.

8:40, the clinic called to inform me that the examiner is sick and my test is postponed for a week. So much for getting up early. Weather has been bad and so is my body. No energy and achy. Thought I'd sleep until 11 or so, but woke up at 3. Sigh... why did I forget to set the alarm?

Despite sleeping that much, I kept dosing off at the desk and didn't get much done. At least started on the black and white pompoms... thought I could finish them, not. Sigh...

Parcel

2011-11-21T23:22:00.003-08:00

(Picture was taken on the 18th and unrelated to subject.)
The first package from R arrived. EMS took exactly a week. Signature required. One of the two used Pinkys has some major defects. One leg is short, and one arm was glued crooked. There are also some paint blobs. But it was cheap. Can't complain. They're for mutilating anyway. Lets see when the next one (by slower economy shipping) arrives.

Reme Rey Hedge Hogs

2011-11-20T23:36:00.002-08:00

From March 2011. It's organic! Thanks A for sharing! This is no comparison to the ones at Purdy's, of course. Less dense, less rich, but doesn't mean that it's not good. Although it's milk chocolate, it tasted a little bitter like dark chocolate. The filling tasted like... Ovaltine! Overall, much lighter than those specialty chocolate store ones. And I liked this lightness.

Dinner

2011-11-20T23:15:00.004-08:00

Sis-in-law seems to be starting a cold, so brother alone took us to see dad. (Actually he drove us. I should have driven.) The girls stayed home too. First time to ride in his new car. I think he chose well.

Mom brought dad sliced apples. He ate them without his dentures! How did he do that??? If mom hadn't notice, he would have eaten all of them without dentures. And of course, the floor was spotted with his spit, and his bed wet with his pee... Sigh... (T_T)

We ate dinner near brother's place with the girls. Sis-in-law stayed home and ate left-overs from lunch. Played with the Guinea pigs for a little bit after dinner. Sis-in-law showed us the new pressure cooker.

Wrote some mail, and then tried to view my credit card bill online. Kept entering the wrong password and my account is lock!!!!! Aaaaaarrrrgggghhh!!!! Sucks!!!!!! Sigh... it has to be this way, doesn't it? I can't even complain. The only thing to blame is my brain. Not feeling well, it must be the weather. Forecast says snow sometime this week. I agree.

Freezing

2011-11-19T23:59:00.003-08:00

Y&T's trip finished today. My job is done.

Finally activated my new credit card which expires next month. The online bank has been sending me a few reminders. It took 15 to 20 minutes to complete the activation. Lots of keys to punch. And then, what bugs me most was the operator kept soliciting me to join some kind of insurance program. I had already said no. She still wouldn't give up. When I told her straight that I'm already unemployed, she finally let me go, but her voice became grumpy. I wonder if she receives any commission from signing on each new customer.

Thanks to that, A ate lunch at home. Sigh... He complains that I seldom get up early enough to lunch with him. Sigh... When I finally had a chance, I blew it myself. Why can't I do anything right? I could have called him before calling the bank...

To save time, I gave up cooking lunch at home, and ended up eating junk food at his place instead. Then we went to get his coffee. Then Price Smart for mom's grocery. That branch had a reopening from renovation and was pretty crowded. Parking was hell! There were lots of stuff on sale too, but I couldn't take a look because (1) A hates crowds, and (2) he needed washroom badly. I knew there was a washroom, but couldn't find it because the walls are now covered with new counters. A wanted to go to Landsdowne mall's washroom instead. Was he crazy? We were so lucky to find a parking spot! If we give it up, we'd never come back! He'd rather give up logic to avoid asking for directions. Sigh... So I asked. I don't mind asking on his behalf at all, but don't like it because it shows me how he lacks backbone. Sigh... it was very simple too. The washrooms are now outside the checkouts. So! I went to line up at the cashiers while he went to washroom. If my cell phone had not run out of battery, I would have looked around a bit more. Who knows? I ended up waiting for him in front of the washroom for a while, just standing there, doing nothing, wasting time.

So, it was OK to wasted my time, right? Not his, right? I had to give up my chance to save money because I'm not allowed to look around, right? What bugs me was that, he also bought some stuff too. It's not a purposeless place for him, yet he treats it like it is.

Next, liquor store for A, also Best Buy, Future Shop, and Netlink. All these, I had no business in. But I tagged along. Last was Mobilicity to check out their half price deal. Mom still refuses a cell phone. A's iphone plan is also such a rip off, I'm sure he'd like to look around too.

When I tried to go to Daiso, A complained like it was a huge deal! I couldn't believe it!!!!!! I drove him to 4 places that I had absolutely no interest in but didn't say a thing, and now he complained!!!! And he said it's the way he is!!!!!! No apology!!!! It's times like this that I seriously think maybe we can't get along. Nevertheless, he went with me after I reasoned with him. He even bought a cushion and some batteries! Why did he have to complain, then? Again, it wasn't a purposeless place!

Then we went to Pisces for fish and chips. It was freezing. 3 degrees? Their TV was on the weather channel and A had his eyes nailed onto it. Otherwise he was doing something on his iphone. He even asked me if I want to play with his ipad! Jesus!!!! I haven't seen him for a week, and this is what he wants? Both of us playing with electronic devises rather than talking to each other?!?!?! Sigh... what is this?!?!?!

Did that make me feel good? No.

But the worst always comes when I take him home and hang out at this place. What am I? What am I to him? Am I only good for one thing? What does he think I am? Yes I flipped. In the back of my head, I understand that he doesn't want to be with me long term. But I still like him because he's honest. But is honesty alone enough? Well, I AM thankful for the stuff he buys me. But that's different. He had improved a lot since we fist met, but I'm still fighting a loosing battle, am I not? We no longer watch anything in front of the TV anymore. We don't even sit on the couch together anymore! He absolutely hates the documentaries I choose to watch. And I don't like dramas. What usually happens is, he'd play games in his computer room or in the living room, and I'd read flyers in the kitchen. When he approaches me, it's always sexually motivated. He stopped giving me back rubs because "it turns him on too much and not fair to him". Fine. At this point, that's the only time I'm comfortable with his touch. I don't seem to feel complete trust. I bet he doesn't understand that he's giving up the chance to get closer.

Got home past midnight. Got M's mail when I was eating congee. Tried to use up mom's expiring phone card. Her record said $1.95 left, but the system said $0.15! What?!?!?! Fine. That seemed to translate into 7 minutes, but it actually lasted less than 4!!!! Was that a rip off??? M called me back to talked about the sight-seeing. She's done so much! Yikes!!!! I owe her one. Lets hope her trip next year would go smooth, and I'd be waiting for her.

Standby

2011-11-18T23:22:00.005-08:00

OMG winter is here!

Y&T's main even today. Just in case they'd mail or call me, I set myself on standby mode all day. The last mail from M was that she met up with Y&T successfully. Nothing after that. I hope it went well.

Mail

2011-11-17T23:24:00.005-08:00

(Picture was taken on the 8th and unrelated to subject.)
Wrote mail all day. It's not easy trying to use 3 different languages going between 3 people. M was awesome in planing! She called me up twice, long distant too! Thanks so much! You're awesome!!!

Pocky: Chocolate Caramel

2011-11-16T23:54:00.005-08:00

From March 2011. "Chocolate on Chocolate Caramel". Thanks A again for sharing. There were 4 bags in a box, and each bag has 3 sticks. Yikes... 12 sticks in total... very expensive! The caramel was intense, yet you can still taste the chocolate. The candy shell is so thick, it almost felt like eating Twix. It's nice, but out of my budget. (Meaning, won't go back for another one...)

No fancy toothpaste

2011-11-16T23:27:00.002-08:00

We usually use regular toothpaste. Mom's dentist gave us some coupons for free tubes of fancy toothpaste, so why not? No one's gonna say no to free stuff.

Let's say, I remember reading somewhere that there's no need for fancy toothpaste unless you have sensitivity. (Just like facial lotions.) This particular one is more runny, and contains tiny grains. I don't mind it at all, but mom doesn't like it. Hmm... Honesty, I can't feel any difference between this and regular toothpaste. Nor do I get any noticeable result. So, no need to spend extra. (Oh yeah, this costs like, 4 or 5 bucks if we didn't have a coupon.)

No fancy toothbrush

2011-11-15T23:27:00.006-08:00

These fancy toothbrushes are horrible! They suck!

They're more expensive, yet...
They have less hair.
The angle doesn't help.
Those "sticks" fall off.
They're bulky and prevent brushing movement.

What a difference when I switch back to ordinary toothbrush!

They just don't clean well, period. Don't buy those! They have to be a conspiracy to squeeze money out of you while making your teeth worse!

Torn / chiropractor

2011-11-14T23:31:00.006-08:00

Yup, dad torn up his own clothes again. This time it was his underwear. Mom has to mend it as usual. When will I be able to ask her to hem my 3 pairs of pants form May?

Eat-out day with brother's gang. We ate near his place so mom could make phone calls after dinner. This time she brought the numbers. The Guinea pigs seem calmer after they switch to lining the cage with hay. I still think they're dumb.

No visit

2011-11-13T23:30:00.004-08:00

(Picture was taken ages ago and unrelated to subject.)
Brother was busy with church matters and decided to postpone our eat-out day. However, he still went to see dad by himself.

Pocky: Sweet Pumpkin

2011-11-12T23:45:00.004-08:00

From March 2011. Wow it's been a while since I had unusual Pocky. Candyland no longer carry funky stuff. Thanks A! This one was nice, but I can't say I tasted pumpkin. A thought it was artificial, but I didn't pick that up. It did hint towards vegetable although I couldn't pin-point what it was. Rather, it reminded me of caramel, haha! But it was nice. The sweetness was perfect and didn't leave any aftertaste. The flavour of the cracker dominated the dipping, though.

Lame

2011-11-12T23:29:00.002-08:00

... rain...
... dark...
... achy...
... had a fight with S...
... lame...

Thanks A for trying to resolve the situation.

Confirmed. No one can understand what I'm going through. There's nothing to live for. I suck. I'm good for nothing. I should just die.

Cross-border shopping

2011-11-11T23:39:00.004-08:00

Hitched a ride with brother across the border. I didn't know it was a group trip with his church friends and would go further south than usual. My objective was to pick up Christmas gifts and a little bit of grocery and everyday items.

Line up at the border was bad, but I've seen worse. Perhaps the bad weather helped? (Like, made some people drop their plans?) I'm not sure why, but I almost always fail to sleep well the night before such a trip. (More like, fail to go to bed early.) So I've been groggy all along. Can't remember much.

Didn't want to leave the Premium outlet empty-handed, so I picked up some panties. (Need some anyway.) The price went up! By the time we went back to the car, the parkade was full!! Yikes!! Lunch was at a burger joint which looked like McDonald's class but was actually closer to Fat Burger inside.They bring you your food.

Brought some food items at Wincos, Ross, and Walmart. Dinner at Costco. The rain finally stopped at sunset. Oh well. We didn't get to stop at any Michale's. Joann only lasted less than 30 minutes because one of the families had no interest in craft supply and was waiting in the car. Brother didn't want to keep them waiting. All I managed to do was to buy a roll of ribbon. Did not get to see anything else! Fail!!! That, was the lamest Joann stop ever!!!! (To be fair, I did get some food stuff, so I can't say the trip itself was lame.)

At the end, I didn't find any shoes or cloths. I wanted to get some vertical strip ribbons and tiny rubber alphabet stamps too. Of course didn't happen. Oh well...

The back of the van was full. We did buy lots of stuff.

Mail

2011-11-10T23:39:00.004-08:00

(Picture taken 2009 November and unrelated to subject.)
Control room of CT scan (when dad had his appointment back then). We can no long bring him out of the nursing home thanks to his uncontrollable spitting. Just thought I'd use us some of my stock photos. Wrote Japanese mail all day and didn't do anything else... OTL

Resin flowers

2011-11-09T23:40:00.004-08:00

Time to use those large resin flowers...

Wildroots trail mix

2011-11-08T23:45:00.003-08:00

2011 February. From brother, to dad. This, is good stuff! "100% natural". There are almonds, cashews, dried cranberries and blueberries, and yogurt chips. (I thought those are white chocolate, dooooh!) Not only does this taste really good, it's healthy! Even at addictive level. I'm not sure how much it costs, but I'd like to buy one if I find it. Probably not cheap, though.

Update: It's available at Costco for about 12 bucks. And yes, I've since bought some more.

Finally done

2011-11-08T23:30:00.005-08:00

Finally finished Y's Pinkys... and mailed them today. I'm behind and time is tight. Airmail is more expensive but express is much worse. Should be able to make it before her trip. Also mailed T's book and trail mix by sea. Her last parcel should arrive soon... I hope it won't be the one day she takes off for the trip.

That Blockbuster is gone... and its parking lot taken over by some parking company already! (I hate parking companies!!!)

Test 1

2011-11-07T23:36:00.004-08:00

Big day for the full-day test. Parking wouldn't work, so I took the bus. It was rainy and cold. Besides the doctor, there was actually a separate examiner who gave me the test. Somehow the doctor didn't know she's got a medical appointment around lunch time, so we rushed the test a little. It went well. Then she went to her appointment, and I ate my lunch (pastry) in the reception area. Luckily I cold get some hot water from the cafeteria.

Despite finishing the first half of the test early, we only had half-an-hour for lunch. The examiner was late. At first, I was told to wait in the office, but after a while, the doctor asked me to wait in the waiting room instead. He said he wanted to talk to the examiner before continuing with my test. The she came back, trying to bring me back to the office. But of course I told her the doctor wanted to talk to her first. I kept on waiting in the waiting area.

A few moments pasted. The doctor came to tell me that it was for everyone's interest to continue the test on a later day. The examiner seemed to be upset. (I wonder if it has something to do with her "medical appointment". However, as far as I could see, she looked fine after lunch.) The funny thing was, I left my coat and water bottle in the office. Instead of letting me pick them up myself, the doctor asked where I put them, and fetched them for me. I followed him to the door. It was a super awkward goodbye. Hmm...

The rain stopped on my trip home.

Visit day

2011-11-06T23:32:00.005-08:00

Eat-out day with brother's gang. Not before visiting dad. The drug seems to be working. Dad knew my name! Wow! Afterward we had dinner at the Broadway noodle and congee house. Haven't been there for a long time. Parking was always challenging. Thank brother for driving...

Y's Pinkys continues...

Pinkys

2011-11-05T23:36:00.001-07:00

Y's Pinkys continues...

Merci

2011-11-04T23:37:00.001-07:00

From 2011-02. Christmas 2010 again. Thanks R&B! My first experience of this was at A's. I kept thinking this is a Japanese product, but it's actually German. Probably because there's no bad aftertaste. There are 4 different flavours inside each box. Dark cream, coffee and cream, dark mousse, and marzipan. All of them are good, but my favorite is marzipan. There both dark and milk chocolate varieties.

Chiropractor

2011-11-04T23:03:00.004-07:00

The small bottles from E arrived. Seems OK. One has a missing bottom, though.

Got a call from a doctor from the rehab center. It's been about 6 months? I thought the neurologist had given up on me, but I'm glad that he didn't. The waiting list is 8 months. No wonder.

Went to get the glass bowl set at CT. Parked at Whole Foods for their parking refund. However, my usual favorite chips was discontinued. Took a while to come up with the right thing to fill the minimum purchase.

For the first time ever, I forgot my Pinky (at the chiropractor's). I tried calling immediately, but strangely, my phone didn't work. I tried calling home and it didn't work either. I waited until I finished at CT, only then my phone worked. Very strange.

Nevertheless, the reception lady put my Pinky aside, and I went back for it afterwards. Even got time to pay my B card bill. Amazing.

Spent the night cleaning the vials that arrived today... plus those I put off cleaning. Didn't get to pint... Technically speaking, I must mail the stuff before the 8th.

Micorwave and florescent

2011-11-03T23:12:00.006-07:00

Brother brought us a microwave and some spare light fixtures. I thought mom would go with him to choose but she didn't.

Hail came down around 3. By the time I went to pay my card bill around 4, there were 2 rainbows in the sky! It was amazing! Too bad (1) my camera lens is not wide enough, (2) the car window probably filtered the uv out and make the colour dull. I tried again when I reached home, but by then the rain was almost gone and the rainbow faded quite a bit.

Pinky painting painting painting...

Florescent tubes

2011-11-02T23:44:00.003-07:00

Had lunch with uncle and aunt Y, and went to visit dad together. As usual, he took apart another piece of clothing. This time it's the pair of pants from cousin B. Sigh.... Plus, he peeled the coating off his nice glasses case. (T_T) And of course, he stubbornly denied he had wet his pants or even need to go to washroom. Yet he released one full load before he got to the toilet. One strange thing was, he was wearing diapers but he managed to wet his pants, slippers, and the chair.

Uncle Y helped me with the stuck florescent tube. Thanks~ However, the brand new tubes still didn't work. After calling up C the handy man, because the ends of the tubes were responsive, the transformer should still be good. We were told that all 8 contact points have to be perfect otherwise the tubes would not work. Both mom and I took turns to try, but still couldn't fix it. The fixture is simply way too tight. Cousin D helped us install them... like 10 years ago? He didn't do it properly. And of course we don't want to go back to him because of late aunt Y.

So, I had to paint in the dark. Not much progress. Sent J the product photos for applying a table.

Microwave

2011-11-01T23:56:00.004-07:00

Our microwave died. I think I killed it. I pressed a button and everything went out. It was less than a year old. Warranty should still work but the receipt is lost. It was only 50 bucks. You do get what you pay for.

Then later in the afternoon, my florescent lights burnt out too. (I'm convinced that I'm cursed.) So, around 4, mom and I went shopping for new lights and microwave.

Since our last microwave was bought at Superstore, we naturally hit there fist. Their selection was pitiful. Only 2 to choose from, and not cheap either. They don't have florescent tubes either. We didn't want to cross the bridge, but there was no choice. Next stop, Home Depot. Got a 10-pack because it's $2 each. Otherwise it's $3 each.

Then the Richmond branch of Superstore. This one had our old model. But we still didn't want to commit before seeing more. So LD was next. They do have a good selection. Mom was concern more about the price then anything else. After much consideration, we had a Panasonic one in mind. It was regular price, so we didn't want to buy it right there. It's also better to ask brother for his opinions first.

The work-around I came up for the airbrush was to use a paint brush first. It looks super ugly for the first 4 layers but once past that point, airbrushing is much easier.

Schuckwerder marzipan

2011-10-31T23:32:00.002-07:00

From 2011 Feburary. Also from Christmas 2010. Also from LD. These are pretty nice. I used to be bias against mazipan, but somehow my taste changed, and learned to like them. Perhaps it was the texture. I hate coconut shavings, and these kind of remind me of it. After a few widely spaced attempts, I realized how deep the layers of flavours are, and got to like the almonds in it. Yes I can say surely that I like mazipan now. The down side is, they're pretty heavy and loaded with calories.

Halloween

2011-10-31T23:17:00.003-07:00

Happy Halloween! No time for a photo shoot... sorry.

Brother stopped by for a few minutes to show us his girl's new costumes. The candy vending machine was upgraded a little, then went to niece G. She actually sold about $20 worth of candies to her classmates. At 25 cent each, that was around 80 sold! Then niece N dressed up as a (new) pop-corn vending machine. Her classmates don't have money so she only sold very few. I got to try it on for a photo too, yay~!

I was lucky because I could ask brother airbrush questions. After they left, I finally used A's airbrush for the first time. It was way more difficult than I thought. First, the craft paint had to be thin enough, which, backfired on me. It lost coverage power and so runny, it left pools. Cleanup was a big hassle too. I need a lot more practice.

Of course dad torn up another shirt again...

Pinky

2011-10-30T22:46:00.001-07:00

Pinky continues...
I think I screwed up trying to repose the legs...

Pinky

2011-10-29T23:30:00.003-07:00

Pinky continues... The only masking tape I have on hand is the Diaso one, which I know as a fact that it will leave glue stain behind... but I have no choice... (T_T) (Doesn't worth a trip to Richmond.)

Pinky

2011-10-28T23:08:00.002-07:00

Y's Pinky (and my own) continues...
Endless cycle of putty and primer...

Desiree assorted wafers

2011-10-27T23:04:00.002-07:00

From 2011 Feburary. Actually bought during Christmas 2010. On sale at LD so I thought they would be good to send to Japan because they're not in a box. So I bought 2. One for a friend and one for me. It wasn't until after new year that I open mine. These are... way too sweet! Too much cream, too little wafers. The cream is sugary. Well... at least these are made in Germany. The north American ones would be 30 times worse. However, these don't feel cheap, like you know, from dollar stores. These are just sweet, but quality is solid.

Amazon mystery

2011-10-27T10:31:00.003-07:00

T's book arrived. It's a big mystery for me. I ordered it from Amazon with another book so the total would give me free shipping. That other one arrived quickly but this one took forever. It also became unavailable directly from Amazon shortly after. What's going on? (As of today, it's still unavailable!) Did they screw up on the whole batch? It's not like them. They've been pretty reliable. So I switched to a different seller. In order to avoid being charged shipping, I swapped with another book of the same price. Didn't think it would go smoothly, but it did. Thank God!

Who knows, I ended up paying slightly less even though the other seller charges shipping. I should rethink buying from Amazon from now on.

15 years

2011-10-26T23:26:00.003-07:00

Wow... it's been 15 years. I almost died that day. Since then things have changed and so do I. I've become a lot more negative, but I must remind myself to be thankful. Thankful that I'm still alive. (^_^)

Vamp and putty

2011-10-25T23:49:00.001-07:00

The vampire showed up. It seems to be early again... but I'm too lazy to check. It's more like I don't care anymore... (Not good... not good...)

Switched to work on something that doesn't need any brain: Pinky. Hopefully I'll be able to send Y's Pinkys by November 1st so she can take them with her on the next trip.

Chiropractor

2011-10-24T23:18:00.004-07:00

Today started with a fight with mom. Last night, I've explained to her about the leftover from Saturday lunch. (It was questionable... I'll explain later.) She agreed not to eat it. But today when I got up, she's already eaten a bowl, saying she has "processed" it, washing and re-cooking and re-seasoning it. So it's fine. Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

OK you can call me paranoid. The story actually started a few days ago. I happened to stumble across a Japanese blog post about the author's friend catching a mysterious disease after a trip to China. The symptoms are AIDS, but patients test HIV negative, it's even more infectious than SARS. Chinese government is denying its existence, and suppressing all information. Patients revenge by traveling far to donate blood, and spread body fluid like spit onto other people's tableware and food. After searching online, a few posts did come up. I can't say I'd trust this info completely, but I'd play it save.

My 2 cousins just came back from a 4-week Chinese trip. Who knows what they've c0me into contact with? Cousin H didn't use public cutlery, plus, when she packed the leftovers, she used her own fork. Sorry, after reading those articles online, I'd rather play it save. I should have discarded it before reaching home, but didn't have a chance.

I'm mad and disappointed not because of mom's pack-rat approach to food, throwing nothing away including expired stuff, but the fact that I don't feel like I can trust her anymore. She even said, if cousin H's got the disease, she'd died first. I said, does that mean you should die with her? Geeze... what was she thinking????? Every time I run into something like this, she makes me feel so hopeless and helpless. It kills my spirits... if there's any left.

Anyway, chiropractor day. Badly needed appointment. Thought I'd be on time today, but still ended up 20 minutes late. But the time I walk out the clinic, it was almost 5. Took slightly under an hour-and-a-half!!!!!!!!!!

Nonetheless, picked up some replacement cookies from Shopper's. Then stopped by DeSerres' Broadway branch for those sketch books that are on sale. There weren't too many left. I'm glad I got some. Just because they're almost sold out, I bought more than I need. Always fall for that trap. They're for my niece's Christmas presents, and now I have some for myself too.

Then went to see A because he's got cheese cake from "the best shop in town" for me... and it was heavenly! (Well I was quite hungry too.) Thanks!!! (^_^)

More and more, I notice when my moods are down, my luck goes down too. Very scary. On my way to A's, I noticed I haven't encountered a red light for a long time! That was amazing! My back was better from the chiropractor visit, and I got the sketch books. So I was pretty happy and relaxed. However, as soon as I noticed the "luck", it was gone. I hit a red light a the next major intersection. Sigh... How should I draw any conclusion?