Politeness

I wish certain people in my company would know that being nice and polite does not mean I am inferior to you. It means I respect you. I am not obligated to be nice to you. I do that because we are colleagues and I am genuinely nice. If you are taking this for granted, I will show you the side where you do not even deserve my respect... where there is not a single ounce of niceness or politeness... where I treat you as an object.

Think before you act.

stop apologizing, start thanking

a different mindset and attitude can make beautiful changes :)

Bubbles!

my boba/bubble tea addiction is acting up :D (had bubble tea thrice this week :O)

Spring!

welcome Spring!! let's hope the weather stays this way!!

Bye Showa/Heisei welcome Reiwa!

so many snacks!!!

my office decided to have a "Farewell Showa/Heisei and welcome Reiwa" party just before Golden week :)

this is so Japanese

hahaha this bear is so cute... wish the flowers were real though :(

strange houses in Japan

my friend went house hunting and found this.... who would make a bathtub to be in the middle of a room? :O

Miso Soup

THAT IS SUCH A HUGE BOWL OF MISO SOUP hahaha

fellowship time

I was celebrating my friend's last day at a cafe in Ginza :)

This tea was really good, it was their Lemon and Mint tea

it is always a pleasure spending time with fellow brothers and sisters :)

is something wrong?

haha, apologizes for posting such a cringe-worthy pic :P I was experimenting to see how stainless steel straws work with beer XD... don't do it... it is weird

Today I learned... Mr. Goodbar

Today I learned there's a Hershey's milk chocolate bar with peanut chunks called Mr. Goodbar :O 

seasonal snacks - strawberry roll cake

This Strawberry Roll Cake from Family Mart is really good... it is so richly strawberry :P

reusable straws!

my set of reusable straws :)

I have officially followed the no plastic straw movement (or whatever you call that). I went on Amazon and ended up buying two glass straws and one stainless steel straw. One this for certain, I don't miss the plastic taste in plastic straws!

Click here to read my review and experience on glass straws
Click here to read my review and experience using stainless steel straws

Fear

Fear is real. It determines what we will do, it steers us into a path of mistakes and wrong decisions.

When someone is living in fear, you can tell what their next steps will become. They are not only predictable, but they also dig their own grave.

One of my struggles is fending off my fears. I sometimes let my emotions get to me, so I am unable to see a clearer picture and end up making the wrong decisions.

My mid-year challenge for myself is to not be driven by fear, not be controlled by fear.

sun and clouds

So... how do I do this? Easy, speak to God more, let Him be my first resource, read the Bible and let His truths sink into me so I am deeply rooted. As the Bible says in Psalms 1:3 "He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water. Which yields its fruit in its seasons And its leaf does not wither; And in whatever he does, he prospers" also in Jeremiah 17:8 "He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit."

Crabtree and Evelyn in Japan

Crabtree and Evelyn is in Japan! I'm looking for Le Source (the salt scent) but they were sold out :(

Winnie the Pooh

Winnie the Pooh is so cute... and he is Canadian. He is from Winnipeg. It was like seeing a fellow Canadian :)

Such a cute sign :)

cute Japanese dolls

I love their expressions... aren't they cute?

Shinjuku views

I love staring off into the city :D

the sky is so beautiful

glasses anyone?

When you have a cute mascot tempting you to buy glasses... can you resist?

Chupa Chips Bath powder

Chupa Chips bath powder/salts... who wants to smell like candy? :D

up to your own interpretation

Hermes building in Ginza

What do you think this is?

• here are some things my friends and I thought:
• some kind of flower
• a shrimp eating something
• a swirl of colours

Souvenirs

One of my coworkers came back an got us Hersheys and Spicy Ginger tea :)

The tea was extremely strong... :O

Squiddly Steph

The first time I see my name written on a cheese string wrapper XD... what is Squiddly Steph? Never heard of her....

Disneystore!

Minnie Mickey and Minnie... I adjust them after this picture

It has been a long time since I've last been to the Disney store... here are some of the things that caught my eye :)

Bambi, Thumper and Flower

sleeping :D

Dumbo

Today I learned... dumplings

My friend taught me to make dumplings! :D My parents... heritage... ancestors are from the south, so dumplings aren't as significant to us as it is to those who live in the north.

so Today, a friend of Beijing heritage taught me that when we are making dumplings it is important to make sure there is no air inside (do not leave excess air) or they will break when you boil them!

I'm sure that at least one of these dumplings were made by yours truly :)

Forgetfulness and Tokyo

arg... so I left my purse at home today... so I have no wallet, no credit card, no lipstick, no mints, etc.

luckily, I have my phone, my ID card, my Suica (train prepaid card), an umbrella, and loaded ¥10000 on my Line Pay Account.

Can I survive?????

The answer is:... yes

I did, luckily my office has lots of free food, apparently, in Otemachi, the Wall Street of Japan, NONE of the places take Line Pay -______-|| I am appalled, disappointed... shocked. I thought Tokyo was better than that...

I went to 7-eleven, a few restaurants, and some bakery and NONE of them accepted Line Pay... which is ridiculous, especially for 7-eleven... since that was where I loaded ¥10000 into my Line Pay account...

Plastic is a dilemma

It is hard to ignore the fact that more and more places are cutting down on the use of plastic straws and encouraging people to use glass/stainless steel straws to "save the environment".

I have nothing against that... but I am quite aware that people are advocating the use of plastic (e.g. polyester, microfiber) in their clothing instead of fur/leather... so... how is this helping the environment???

Do we realize how much of that microfiber gets washed away with each wash? isn't that more damaging to the environment?

also... plastic straws are still widely used in Japan... if it weren't for social media, I wouldn't have heard about glass/stainless steel straws.

lunch today

It looked like this.... it's Margo & Salad's Taco Rice salad.

I destroyed it after a few seconds... I like mixing everything together... it tastes so much better this way :P

Train Delays

It was only light rain... and you are a subway (Mita line)... why is there a delay? :( based on this schedule, the train was late for atleast 20 minutes... 

However, this did benefit me... I ended up getting to work 5 minutes earlier. I shouldn't be complaining.... hahaha

relaxing time

I find comfort in taking baths... they relax me and I feel they make me healthier :)

Today's bath salts contain Teatree & Rosemary, it is called "refresh" I wished it had a stronger scent though... the Teatree was present but I could hardly tell there was rosemary.

still a good time :D