CLINIQUE: NEW All About Eyes Serum De-Puffing Eye Massage

Rollerball-type eye serum is now hot in Japan!!! CLINIQUE's NEW All About Eyes Serum De-Puffing Eye Massage is something I really wanted to get in NY :D

This instantly cooling rollerball helps massage away bags, refreshes and hydrates puffy eyes on contact. Brightens eye area immediately and over time. Combats dark circles, too. With caffeine, potent antioxidants and soothing botanicals. Oil-free, non-irritating. Ophthalmologist Tested.

Believe it or not, it costs $42 in Japan while it is available at $25.50 in the U.S.!!!

Keep it in the fridge! It cools down and refreshes your eye area more!!!

Try it out ;)

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COACH :: Poppy

Every year, I get something from COACH when I visit NY because they are three times expensive in Japan!!! This year, I bought "new COACH POPPY APPLIQUE TEE" and "new POPPY POP C COLLECTIBLE LARGE SPOTLIGHT" which came with free "LOVE POPPY Bangle/Bracelet". To tell the truth, I seldom buy bags at COACH, but the multicolored poppy bags were my kind ;) Luckily the free bracelet was the perfect match for my tee :D

Do you have any favorite brands?

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Apple iPhone 4

Have you checked out Apple iPhone 4 already? It was just released today in Japan.

iPhone 4 is the world’s thinnest smartphone! With a revamped design and features, Apple iPhone 4 is the big upgrade from iPhone 3GS! I bought my iPhone 3GS last year but iPhone 4 just serves my need for iPhone 3GS, I'm afraid to know these new changes X(

Aren't they cool?

Stainless Steel Band: Created from alloy, then forged to be five times stronger than standard steel, the CNC-machined band is the mounting point for all the components of iPhone 4. The band provides impressive structural rigidity and allows for its incredibly thin, refined design. It also functions as both iPhone 4 antennas.

Instead of the steel band, my iPhone 3GS is a plastic. It cracked a little around the buttons recently... oh boy....

Camera + LED: The iPhone 4 camera shoots gorgeous 5-megapixel photos and stunning HD video. And with its advanced backside illumination sensor, it captures beautiful images even in low-light settings. The built-in LED flash does double duty. And on the front of iPhone 4, the built-in camera is perfect for making FaceTime calls and shooting self-portraits.

I need this function for my picture-taking!!!

Face Time: iPhone 4 makes video calling a reality. With just a tap, you can wave hello to your kids, share a smile from across the globe, or watch your best friend laugh at your stories ? iPhone 4 to iPhone 4 over Wi-Fi.

I don't actually need this but sounds cool!

Moreover!!!

I wish I could upgrade my iPhone to iPhone 4. I'm sure that I have one or two more years to pay up my 3GS... Unlike laptops, newer is better, so I just can't take it! Anyway, I will definiately upgrade to iPhone 5 when it comes out! Ha-ha!!!

BTW, Apple iPhone OS 4.0 supports Multitasking! Now it supports wireless keyboard! Then I can write my recipe anywhere :D I should check it out, too!!!

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PhotoFunia

Do you know PhotoFunia?

PhotoFunia is an online photo editing tool that gives you a fun filled experience. You upload any photo and just wait to see the magic. It automatically identifies the face in the photo and let's you add cool photo effects and create funny face photo montages, too!

I found this application at AppStore on my iPhone. This is my favorite application to kill time on the commuter train! It makes me laugh, too. I love to edit my darling's pics.

Image above, I shoot a pic of my darling loafing around in the bed and made the front page. He-he.

Try it out & have fun ;)

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iPad magic

Have you seen this video already?



His name is Shinya Uchida, used to be a professional magician but now working for an ad company in Japan. Isn't it cool that he created magic tricks with the iPad?! He posted this video (original video without English subtitles) on the day the iPad was released in Japan (6/28/2010). Up to today (in 5 days), his video has reached more than 470,000 plays! His magic was amazing, but the way he promoted his magic is smart indeed!!!

Anyway, first time ever, I forgot my iPhone at home... I'm really out of shape almost daily! Damn!!!

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Massage @ Hands On

How often do you get a massage?

Me? Maybe once in a year.
I really felt tired on the weekend, so I went to get a massage near the station with my darling.

Hands On give you a massage based on bodywork system (整体). Your masseur will stretch out your body and massage for around 30 minutes or more! Unbalanced body will cause stiffness in your body, so they add stretch technique to loosen joints and make you supple.

I think I feel better this week!
I wish I could go there once in a while!!!

Anyway, I still regret that I cut my hair... Why now? Why before wedding... Damn!!!

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Did I Cut My Hair Too Short?!

Yesterday I got a haircut (after 6 months) because I thought my hair was too long. But do you think my hair is too short now?! Or my hair trimmed too straight across the bottom?! Damn... I decided to cut little bit shorter than usual but I guess that was a mistake X( Anyway, my hair looks heavy, so maybe I should ask my hairdresser to thin out the bottom...

It's pretty depressing when I cut my hair too short than "no change" after the haircut!

I hope I can make an appointment for this afternoon...
Tonight, I looked forward to going to the GYM but no time for that now!!!

Oh, I have many deadlines today!!!
I gotta concentrate on my deadlines first!!!

What a busy Monday :(

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Micro SD Adapter

This morning my Micro SD Adapter broke. Actually it kept on saying that the card is LOCKED, so I tried to unlock it. But first of all, as you can see in this image, you can't tell which way to unlock the card! Damn product!!! So, I tried the either way, but somehow both sides were recognized as LOCKED. Therefore, finally, I opened it to see how it works...

What a simple product! I knew that the cost price of "10 bucks micro SD adapter with 2GB micro SD card" is only a dollar (adapter is less than 10c), but what a product...

BTW, have you ever thought about the cost price of the products around you?

- $200 contact lens: 10c
- $300 suit: $30
- $14,000 car: $2,200
- $2 fried potatoes: 15c
- $5 umbrella: 10c
- $10 condom: 20c
- $2 milk: 13c
- $3 cake: 30c

But actually PlayStation game has a deficit. $250 game costs $240!
Also, beef bowl pays little. $5 beef bowl costs $2!

(Data from NAVER)

I think I digressed a lot...
Anyway, I gotta get a new Micro SD Adapter!!!

Take care!

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Hope and Wish!!!

Last night, I had dinner with my ex-colleague in NY. We talked and agreed with each other that every goal can be reached if you hope and wish strongly.

Sometimes, I feel discouraged thinking that my efforts are not rewarded, but thanks to that fruit of efforts, I think I am getting a better result in a different form, which is close to my goals.

Goals, usually are the things that make you happy and may change as time goes by. You don't have to achieve your goals perfectly if you result in happiness at some point. But to get such a result, your effort is necessary. So what I realized is we should always hope and wish toward our future (goals) and do our best at anytime!!!

I hope you understand what I mean...

On my previous post, I mentioned that my dream is "To live every moment with all my energy". Yes! I always want to hope and wish to reach my goals and do my best with all my energy because I know I can be happy in that way!!!

Don't give up!!!
(Saying to myself. Ha-ha!!!)

Illustration by hiroto.

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My Dream...

"Write down your dream...a dream so BIG you haven't told anyone, not even yourself."
This was a question from Kym.

Good question! I was just thinking of my dream recently...

To be happy can be one but that answer is unclear since it makes me wonder what my happiness is...

Is my dream to become a culinarian? Is my dream to make a cookbook? Is my dream to make a profit? Is my dream to have a baby and lead an ordinary life?

Those can be some of my goals, but not my dreams...
What if I could or couldn't reach those goals?

So... what I thought is my dreams are something indescribable and unreachable. I always want to feel motivated. I don't want to be a clock-watcher.

"To live every moment with all my energy", could be my dream!

Even when things are bad, I always want to do my best in that given situation. This sounds simple, but not. As you get old, you learn things by what you have seen and you can somewhat get dogmatic and stubborn to start new things or improve things.

I think people who always try things at their best are stellar. They have an aura to motivate others, too. Maybe my dream is to become someone like that! I don't want to talk about my past but future, you know...

Is this clear?!

But please don't take it too seriously. This is something what I thought at this moment! He-he!!!

Have a good one :D

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Customer Service in Japan

This morning, I saw an interesting story on TV that most overseas tourists said they were amazed by customer service in Japan.

Yes, I agree! Salespeople in Japan are dedicated to making people feel welcome. They always smile and listen to the customers, so you rarely feel unhappy talking to them.

This is something we take for granted in our everyday life but I think we Japanese should be proud of it!!!

I sometimes don't like to live in Japan but what a nice country! Ha-ha :D

Happy Friday!!!

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CANON IXY 30S (will be released on May 27th)

Timely news!!! Yesterday, I found that Canon is going to release CANON IXY 30S on May 27th, which is the latest model of my broken IXY!

This camera of course is fully automated and what is amazing is that you can shoot crisp pictures without a flash in the dark! It's HS SYSTEM enhances image quality in low-light situations and helps reduce noise at high ISO speeds! Sounds perfect for picture taking at restaurants!!!

Offered in 5 different colors (Black, White, Silver, Yellow, Red), the camera will be available in Japan for 40,000 yen (approximately $430), which I think is priced out at this moment X(

Anyway, I'm gonna try it out at an electronic store after the release ;)

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Nikon COOLPIX S6

I once gave this camera to my darling but took it back from him last week when my IXY broke. He-he!

Nikon COOLPIX S6 is a slim digital camera with Wi-Fi! Now I carefully read the manual and realized it is pretty easy to use! The camera is fully automatic. The max ISO is 400, which is enough for snapshots! I wish it has a camera shake correction function, though... Anyway, the camera is old (released in 2005) but I think it meets my demand ;)

BTW, to fix my IXY (CCD), it costs at least 7,000yen ($70) which sounds like better to get a new camera..., so I ended up using my darling's camera! I bought a cute camera case for it!

Will see how it works ;D

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Canon IXY Digital L2

Too many unfortunate things have happened this weekend... X(

My compact digital camera (Canon IXY digital L2) broke after 3 years... Now it shoots a pic with stripes. 3 years ago, the same thing happened to the former model (Canon IXY digital L), so this was the second time! I always think "Why Today?", when the things like this happen.

Then another unfortunate thing is, my darling had a bloody nose and I was kind of worried about him for few days... On Saturday night, we had a big fight and it got worsen (didn't stop for 30 min) while he had a hemorrhage..., so I called an ambulance. I think I was O.T.T... but the next day he went to see ENT doctor and said the bleed was from a blood vessel! He had a little surgery and got better now but what a big deal!

There is something wrong with me physically, too. I think I need to get rid of my daily stresses...

There is nothing more valuable than good health!

Good luck to me!!!

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New Protector Band-Aid

While riding a bicycle at the outer market in Hokkaido, I lost my balance and fell off X( I hurt my knee and cut my shank! I think I hurt my leg after so long! Ouch!!! But a nice fish dealer gave me a wet towel and some band-aids. And that band-aid was really amazing indeed!

Later, I searched the Internet and found it is called New Protector Band-Aid (新プロテクターばんそうこう). It is made of 30 micrometers-thin, breathable and stretch special film, that you don't feel like wearing it! It is totally waterproof, so your wound doesn't sting! Also it doesn't hurt when you peel off.

Thanks to my injury, I found a new item for my cooking slash. Of course I don't want to hurt anymore, though...

Anyway, the high today is 80F (27C)! Hot like summer!!!

Have a good day :)

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Bamboo Trees

Last Saturday, my darling and I passed by the bamboo trees in Omotesando. Omotesando is known as an upscale shopping area featuring several international brand outlets. You can find many foreign people walking there.

I don't really find bamboo trees in Tokyo although they are kind of symbol for Japan, but finally in Omotesando! So I took a pic of them. Don't you think it's a relaxing view?!

But my darling says I am always busy, even in front of those trees, pulling the camera out from my bag! Oops X(

Anyway, I'm busy this week again... but keeping my posts ;)

Have a good day!

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Sakura Carpet

After the unstable weather, we finally have a clear blue sky! But most of the cherry blossoms have fallen on the ground... I think we had too many cold and rainy days this year. And still it is cold today that I wore my down jacket to go to work.

Anyway, today I am going out for lunch with my mixi (SNS) friend at work :D The weather is going to get bad from tomorrow again, so nice day to hang out!

Have a good day!!!

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