Saturday was too beautiful a day to be staying home or running errands. So we decided to drive down to Santa Monica and watch the sunset.
A serene sight.
LA would not be LA without its palm trees.
After a quick dinner, we decided to pop in at Kelly's cousin's home as he lived nearby. Say hi to 7 weeks old Cameron!
Cameron and I, it's complicated. We have yet to figure out if he is my first cousin once removed (as the Americans would say) or my nephew (in Singapore terms).
This is the youngest baby Kelly has ever held. Can you tell?
Kelly got lucky. Once I got Cameron, he proceeded to regurgitate his milk, fart loudly a few times and poop. All while I was holding him. Does he hate me?
I have never ever seen a snoring baby in my life! On the cuteness scale, he's on par with my snoring cat.
I'm on a roll today, 6 posts in a single day. Heh, only cos I don't have tons of pics to resize and touch up.
Here's a tip. One thing that most people don't think about shopping for in US is beauty products. But you should and here's why.
I shop online at Beauty.com for my regular serum and moisturiser.
The skincare brand was running a promotion. With every $60 spent, I received a value pack worth $45.
In addition, Beauty.com gives shoppers 3 free mini samples. (I mistakenly inserted an extra item in this photo.)
And to top it off, Beauty.com paired with designer Chris Benz (confession, I don't know who he is but it doesn't matter) to design a makeup case for a special promotion.
Chris Benz came up with this suuuper cute vintagey travel case filled with all the goodies you see in the pic. All you had to do was spend at least $130 to get this amazing deal.
So I bought THIS,
And got ALL THESE FREE!!! The total package is worth more than what I paid for.
Every few months, Beauty.com partners with designers for special deals like this. Even if you only shop at cosmetic counters in department stores, the big brands have monthly deals where you get lots of samples with your purchase. And the qualifying amount is usually reasonable.
We were frying bacon for lunch one day when I decided to get adventurous with my food.
Bacon + Caramel ice cream = Not a good idea. The sweet-salty-greasy flavour didn't really appeal. One crazy combination I love though is McDonald fries with their vanilla sundae. What odd flavours do you mix up?
I was happy to discover this new (to me) flavour of Kit Kat in a Japanese supermarket here. This is Kinako Ohagi which is red bean mochi flavour. Was quite disappointed as it tasted very much like a regular Kit Kat with a slight tinge of powdery aftertaste.
For a few months, we kept hearing the sound of feet running on our roof and nails scrapping the side of our walls late at night. Scaredy cat that I am, I NEVER jump to supernatural conclusions. Why frighten myself right? So I always sought a logical explanation.
Which was the right one.
A nest of raccoons had taken up living space in my neighbour's house and they would wander about the neighbourhood in search of food nightly. After which the whole family of 5 (maybe more??!) would return home by using our roof as a spring board to leap over the fence that separates the houses.
So cute right? They are also bold fearless animals. If they are a safe distance away, they would observe you rather than run away.
My neighbour is doing some major renovations on his house now so I'm sure the family of raccoons have relocated. Which means no more poltergeist-like noises.
Perusing the revised menu at a Japanese restaurant, I came across this description for Oyako Don. Who can bear to order this dish after such a touchingly tender reunion??? So I ended up with ramen.
But I tabao (packed) the Oyako Don for next day's lunch.
While grocery shopping on Sunday, I came across this little stand at the supermarket. Curious as to why there was Marilyn Monroe, Elvis Presley and balloons?
These were cakes for Oscar viewing parties! The Elvis cutout threw me off. I thought he was just a rock n roll singer but apparently Elvis starred in a lot of movies.
I wonder if other cities/states sold such cakes too or was it unique to LA? The supermarket should have sold popcorn and champagne to capitalise on the whole Oscar theme.
Oscar's viewership was the highest in 5 years. While many more people tuned in, I wonder how many bought these cakes. The thing about these supermarket cakes is they are all sugar. You don't even bounce off walls. One bite and you just convulse on the floor in sweet delirium. Bleah.
My my, today I learnt that my tap water contains rocket fuel additive, dry cleaning solvent, an industrial degreaser, bromates associated with cancer and arsenic. Still, the government declares our water legally safe for consumption. It all boils down to outdated guidelines in the Safe Water Drinking Act. Since the rules implemented in the 80s, companies have been dumping more types of chemicals into the water.
Over the years, scientists have conducted continual testing of water sources nationally but their results have been lobbied against by economically motivated companies and strangely, ordinary civilians who think it's a sham to raise water rates.
In our home, we use a filter in the water dispenser. Though I wonder how much chemicals are removed. Yes, there is a bottled spring water option but I loathe having to spend extra money. I mean what's the point of paying for safe drinking water when all one can use for it is bathing and laundry? If you think about it, even washing dishes with tap water seem like a ticking time bomb.
On this track, how safe is drinking water in Singapore? I know we are always told it's one of the safest in the world but how safe is safe? What are the guidelines, what's filtered out, what's poured in? No one thinks to question and with perhaps 80%, 90% of the population subsisting on tap water, won't you want to know? It would be interesting, not to mention reassuring.
Maybe cos it's end of the year but I've been clearing gunk out of my life. From clothing to magazine clippings, products to blogsites. One just accumulates without fully utilising it all so I'm going to clear out what I don't miss. And take a curated approach to bringing in the new.
We drove to this tree lot along Hollywood to pick out a Christmas fir for our house. This year, all the trees were adorned with big red bows which makes them look festive and ready to go home with you!
After we chose this little tree which the sales guy calls a gnome, he asked if we wanted to keep the bow. It cost $5.25 and he personally recommended we keep it to preserve the tree.
Total head scratcher. How can a piece of red ribbon lengthen the life of a tree and why does it costs so much? Naturally I said no, at the same time that Kelly said yes.
I looked at Kelly and asked why we were using the bow and not our own decorations. Kelly's turn to look weirdly at me. He seconded the salesguy by saying that putting water in the bow helps to keep the tree alive longer.
Then it dawned on me that they were referring to BOWL and not BOW. *slaps forehead*
The big red bow atop our little noble fir tree. This is a supermodel tree. I know how crazy that sounds. Just that this tree is a really good size and the way its branches are spread out evenly creates a beautiful symmetrical shape. Anyway.
The smell of fir has permeated the living room and it smells like Christmas!
One min ago, there was nothing unusual about the scenery from my windows. To my astonishment, this lovely sigh greeted me seconds later. A double rainbow no less!
When was the last time I saw a rainbow? It must have been at least 2 to 3 years back. Rainbows just awe me but their beauty is fleeing. These were gone in 2 mins.
I've been less than inspired fashion-wise. For one, 70% of my wardrobe is black, grey or white. Which isn't so bad but my clothes are squashed together, sometimes 3 pieces on the same hanger, to maximise wardrobe space. So I can't visually mix and match.
And worst of all, I can't layer to save my life. So my perpetual uniform has become sweater, jeans and coat. Would you believe, I just bought my first pair of leggings?
I know I know, this is all so frivolous. But I like dressing up and it's hideous to be stuck in a rut.
Have this strong compulsion to colour my hair red.
Alas, my hair has been falling out in clumps lately due to hormonal changes related to the thyroid. The upside is that hair will grow back once my hormone level regulate itself to normal but it's going to take a long time. And I didn't have a lot of hair to begin with. Meanwhile, the number of strands has thinned considerably. It's like hide and seek with my scalp now.
So I am staying far away from chemicals, cuts and combing. Any recommendations for hair growth supplements?
Charming, witty and a good laugh. I've been wanting to watch this for so long and dragged Kelly to the theatre tonight. We are in love with this gem of a film. Catch Fantastic Mr Fox when it shows in Singapore!
