Current Obsessions

Haven't updated in awhile!  Been too stressed about life lately.  I'm currently at that point where I feel just stuck and extremely confused about what's going to happen next.  And I just hate that feeling of being unsure...*sigh*

In order to ease my stress, I headed off to Downtown Disney with Tati.  No matter what age, I will always feel giddy about heading off to Disneyland.  Truyen always laughs saying I never tire of that place...and it's true!  <3

One of my current obsessions are the pook-a-looz dolls at Disneyland:

It's the whole Alice crew~

Donald!  Too. Cute.

They're all so adorable!  The chubby round plushes are cute too:

Tati thinks he looks like a cheese ball haha!

Also, I love anything Minnie-related.  I think her big red bow just wins me over x)

Tati knows I love the Minnie ears so when I saw these hats, I made her wear them with me bwuaha.  She wasn't too excited about hers though..."This is probably the ugliest hat I've ever seen!" LOL.  I admit, it was a bit scary...

Bah, blurry.

I bought these cool Minnie ear phone clips!  There were Donald ones too but I ended up getting Minnie.  I might end up going back to buy the Donald ones though =P

 Duffy is also another character I'm in love with:

Not very many people are familiar with Duffy...he's much more popular in Tokyo Disneyland.  If you're wondering about his story, he's the official Disney bear that Minnie made especially for Mickey.  Mickey was about to journey overseas but Minnie was afraid he'd get lonely.  So she decided to make him a travel companion!  I love home-made gifts so I thought this was sweet x)

Last but not least, my biggest obsession lately is Rilakkuma and Korilakkuma! I got a Korilakkuma keychain so I can attach it to my purse.  Now she travels with me everywhere I go =)

More Rilakkuma merchandise I picked up recently...

Why are most of the things I like plush animals?  I guess I'm still quite the kid at heart.  You have to enjoy the small things in life.  A lot of people, including myself, forget that and I think that's a sign of life just getting to you.  That you've grown up.  And that thought kind of depresses me.  Don't ever forget to just take a breather and appreciate all the small things.  Otherwise, we'd all be unhappy, rude cynical people...and that's no fun.  I already have to deal with a lot of those people at work.  So be genki!  Life's too short to be swallowed up by bitterness.  I have to constantly remind myself that nowadays...

<3,
Juju

Harry Potter

I can't wait to watch the last installment of the Harry Potter films this summer!  I've been browsing different fan art/comics and thought these were hilarious:

Harry Potter + Mean Girls

And of course, Harry Potter + Twilight

<3,
Juju

Mumsy's Birthday

Even though my mom's birthday is tomorrow, my family decided to celebrate it during the weekend.  She loves shopping so we ended up driving all the way up to the Ontario Mills outlet stores.  It was extremely stuffy inside the mall and the massive crowd just made it worse.

I noticed the Coach factory was super crowded and wondered if there was some kind of event going on.  Stepping inside that store was probably my undoing.  It turns out, a lot of their merchandise was 30-50% off, and you receive an additional 30% off your entire purchase!  I ended up taking advantage of the promotion (because there's hardly ever a huge sale like this at the regular boutiques) and bought a new wallet:

I'm a big sucker for anything pink keke

Yeah, I know...shouldn't be spending so much over some silly wallet just because it's all fancy and has a label on it, right?  Well, I needed a new wallet anyway.  That's my justification =P I'm actually sad to part with my current Hello Kitty wallet, but it's starting to fall apart and I think it's time to let go before it suffers anymore damage...

There was a purse I wanted but I resisted and fought the urge to buy it.  The wallet was already a bit costly and adding a purse to the bill is out of the question.  However!  My mom actually bought that same purse I wanted and decided to give it to me because she bought another one for herself.

 
I'm still so surprised and ecstatic~ Thanks mumsy!  I should be the one buying her gifts since it's her birthday and all, not the other way around!  But I've learned over the years to not buy any gifts for her because she always returns everything I buy her.  Sad, isn't it?  She's just an extremely picky woman.  Instead, I just pay for her birthday lunch/dinner.  Food is her ultimate comfort.  Plus, she can't return it! =P

I also bought a cake from JJ Bakery in Irvine:

Came in a cute box!

It's vanilla-flavored sponge cake topped with strawberries and peaches.

My parents loved it!  They're not a big fan of the overly sweet Americanized cakes.  But since Asian cakes are never really sweet, this was perfect for them.  Even the frosting wasn't too sweet, and I usually hate frosting.  So it was definitely approved by the "Phamily."  =) I told my mom that the number of strawberries and candles signified her age--there were 5 strawberries and 3 candles, hence 53!  She had a surprised look and asked, "Did you ask the sales people to do that?  Or was it already like that?"  But I just gave her a mysterious smile and looked away.  She'll never know!  Bwuahaha...

<3,
Juju

How to Make: California Rolls

I don't know about you, but sushi is one of my all time favorite Japanese meals.  I'm still learning to appreciate sashimi since the thought of eating raw fish makes my stomach turn a little.  But I love California rolls, spicy tuna rolls, and my favorite--crunchy rolls!  Since sushi can be a little expensive, I tried making California rolls at home.  The process was a bit daunting at first, but after a couple of practice, they came out better than I expected.  I thought I'd share the recipe with you all =)

Ingredients needed:
2 cups short grain rice
1 cucumber
1 avocado
Several sheets of nori (seaweed)
Imitation crab meat
2 cups of water
1/2 cup rice vinegar
2 tsp salt
1/4 cup sugar
Soy sauce
Sesame seeds (optional)
Japanese mayo (optional)
Masago, or fish eggs (optional)

Materials needed: 
Rice cooker
Bamboo mat wrapped in saran wrap
Wooden spoon
Large (bamboo) plate
Small bowl filled with water
A very sharp knife

Directions:

1) First, rinse the rice 3 times and let soak for 30 minutes so moisture is sealed in.

2) Drain water from rice.

3) Add 2 cups of water to rice and cook in rice cooker for 15 minutes.

4) While rice is cooking, mix rice vinegar, salt, and sugar into a small pan and heat until salt and sugar dissolves.

5) Once the rice is done cooking, immediately remove the rice and place into a large plate.

6) Take the sushi vinegar mixture and drizzle over the hot rice.  Mix the two together by "slicing" the rice with a wooden spoon.  This slicing motion mixes the rice and vinegar together without breaking the rice grains.

7) Once everything is mixed, let the rice cool for about 30 minutes, or until it's room temperature.

8) Cut a sheet of nori in half and place it on the bamboo mat.

9) Wet hands in the small bowl of water, grab a small portion of rice, and press the rice on top of the nori.  Sprinkle sesame seeds if desired.

10) Flip the nori over, so the rice is on the bottom.  If desired, spread a small amount of Japanese mayo on the bare side of the nori.  I discovered that the mayo is actually the magic ingredient that makes the sushi taste even better!  But that's just my opinion =P

11) Begin slicing the avocado, cucumber, and imitation crab meat.  Please excuse my poorly sliced avocado...I need to work on my knife craftsmanship x.x

12) Assemble the sliced avocado, cucumber, and imitation crab meat on the nori.  The crab meat should be on top, then the cucumbers, and lastly the avocado.  The reason why the cucumbers are in the middle is because they contain the most moisture and move around easily.  If they're in between the crab meat and avocado, it'll be easier to roll the sushi without the ingredients falling out.

13) Once everything is placed, start rolling!  This is the fun part =) You should end up with a sushi roll that looks like this:

14) Take a sharp knife and wet it.  This makes it easier to slice the sushi roll.  If desired, you can sprinkle some masago on top of the roll before slicing, but I personally don't like fish eggs.  Slice the roll into 8 pieces.

15)  Last but not least, enjoy!  They taste even better with soy sauce =)

I think the tricky part is cooking the rice.  Sometimes it'll come out too wet or too dry so it's difficult to get the right combination of rice and water.  The general ratio is 1:1.  Hope this recipe helps and hope your California rolls turn out delicious!

<3,
Juju

Hello Kitty Car

I was walking to my car after work and guess what I saw!

Isn't it awesome?!  I need me one of these...

<3,
Juju

Yoda Backpack

Look at what I found at Disneyland today:

Tati kept trying to persuade me to buy it but I have no idea where I would wear it.  Is this the same backpack your professor wears to lecture, Nhakhanh?  I should come to your class so we can match.

<3,
Juju

Pride

I've lived in a bubble most of my life and as a result, I'm much more sheltered and oblivious than others.  It took me a little longer to realize this, but not everyone is going to like you for who you are.  There's always someone who will criticize, judge, or hate you.  And if you can't reconcile with them, then there's really nothing more you can do than to just accept it and move on.  But that's easier said than done.

I was raised to treat others as I would like to be treated.  And sometimes, there are just stubborn people who will take advantage of that and try to trample all over me.  If I knew there was someone who disapproved of me, then I immediately question and blame myself.  But I have to realize that it's not always  my fault.  My low self-esteem and paranoia usually gets the best of me, and that's what I need to correct.  Why must I waste my time and lose sleep over such people?  They are so blinded by their own spiteful convictions, that it's impossible to reason with them.  I know there will always be haters and I shouldn't let what they think affect me.  But when they start to judge my character without properly hearing me out first, then I get upset.

Who are you to judge me?

Based on some misunderstanding, you'll always see me as this greedy little liar.  And it hurts that you even think of me that way.  I have integrity, I have morals.  And by accusing me of such actions, you insult everything I stand for.  You insult my pride.  But there's nothing more I can do or say to persuade you.  So just remain stubborn and think whatever you want to think.  I know who I am, and that's all that matters.  Pretend like nothing happened.  Smile at me, I'll smile back.  But underneath it all, I know you'll always think of me that way, and it will never be the same as before.  You may no longer be angry, but your words will always hurt my pride.  And for that, I can never see you as the same person again.