Thai Noodle Soup

I made my soup yesterday. We'll be eating it today too. I invited a few friends to come for lunch but I don't know if they will make it or not...kind of short notice. Anyhow, we haven't had the soup since my mom visited us in NC so it was a nice treat to have. It is finally cool enough (low 80s) that it is reasonable to eat soup and the last few days have been cloudy (we might even get some much needed rain today).

Anyhow, I don't make it in a traditionally Thai way because I learned to do it from both a Thai person and a Vietnamese person so I put daikon and carrots in my soup even though I don't believe that is a Thai thing to do. I just love the way the veggies taste after they have been cooking in the pot for several hours.

I wish my family was here to enjoy it with us, but maybe if they come visit when it is not too hot, we can make some.

Happy Halloween

We are a day ahead so we have Halloween happening tonight and I don't even have my pumpkins carved yet. Don't think it is going to happen tonight either...I guess I will be doing some fall motifs on them instead for Tday....

This pic is from last year's pumpkins...had to do something to add a bit of spook to my post.

Urinal Balls

We have a urinal in our bathroom that has the toilet in it. It doesn't smell or anything but it does get a little pink ring from stagnant water so I wanted to put a bleach disc in there like I do in the back of the toilet tank but I wasn't sure if I could without messing it up, so I purchased some of those little balls that sit in the urinal that are supposed (according to the pictures on the package at the 100 yen store) make it fresh....well, now the bathroom has that antiseptic bathroom smell because these little buggers are strong....don't know if I like the public restroom picture it brings to mind every time I walk by the door....

Bad Idea

Doing walking lunges and good morning raises (with 25 lbs) on the same day....I can barely move my hamstrings today!!!

What's Next

Saturday, 10/27/07

Well, the buyer on our house in WA fell through again...he wanted the entire roof (even though it didn't need it) replaced before we were to close in two weeks...not going to happen. That is okay though, because we have a new bidder and she seems very excited about the house. I am thrilled and hope it works out because that house really needs to have someone in it that loves it...it is so awesome and deserves to be treated well.

Our realtor is doing a great job and I give her kudos for being able to deal with us long distance too...haha.

Heading out to a beer tasting and live music festival tonight. We are going to take the mat with us and just chill out at the beach, listen to some music and drink a little bit of beer. The whole thing is happening within walking distance of our house at the beach so we couldn't really ask for more, huh?

Update at 8:05pm JST 10/29/07- we have another person looking at the house now...they want to be back up in case the current escrow doesn't go through. What, did everyone take their houses off the market last month and we're the only one still out there??? Works for me!!!

Amazing Weather

Fall has been fabulous here so far. The weather is sunny but drier. Heat in the low 80's everyday with a breeze usually. I have been loving the fact that I can open all the windows and let some fresh air in without sweating to death. Now, if only I could get some leave changes...which we don't get here at all, I would be feeling the fall for sure....

Mishka's Friday Feast

I am always late....grrrr!!!

Appetizer
Name a great website you would recommend to others.

Africam!!!!!

Soup
On a scale of 1-10 (with 10 as highest), how often do you dream at night?

10!!! All the time and I usually remember them...I think this is because I am a light sleeper.

Salad
Did you have a pet as a child? If so, what kind and what was its name?

We had many pets but nearest and dearest to my heart had to be Ernie Bert, my black lab and sheppard mix because he was the first and ext would be Madison my cat that I had for over 19 years.

Main Course
If you had the chance to star in a commercial, what would you choose to advertise?

Anything that helped to save the earth!!!!

Dessert
What is your favorite kind of hard candy?

Peppermints (real ones) because they make your tummy feel good and your breath smell great.

Packing Tape Monster

Okay, for those of you with sensitive dispositions, you might not want to continue or else you will think I am a cruel person.

I have a rule in our house....no pets on the furniture. The pets know this (the fish are particularly good about following this rule). Chase used to be really good about this but since someone spoiled her (no names, but it was not J or me) and let her sleep on the bed at Gma's, I have been trying to rebreak her of this.

So our guestbed, which is in the room that she sleeps in, has been a target of her late night lounging. I have caught her up on it physically more than once and I have come in to find her hair all over it a couple of times too. So I had to put an ugly blue tarp over it to keep it clean and in hopes that the cold crinkles would keep her off. Well it didn't...she was still getting up there.

So a couple of nights ago, I put the packing tape back on there (the trick I had to use years ago to break both cats of countertop walks when I wasn't home). I lay the tape out sticky side up. Cat jumps up, get stuck and freaks out and doesn't get up there again. My friend uses tinfoil to keep her dogs off her bed because it scares them, but the tape works exceptionally well on cats.

So anyhow, it had been a few nights, and no kitty caught in the trap, and then last night, right after turning off the reading lamp to go to sleep, I hear a ruckus in the guestroom. I get up and she is on the floor, looking guilty and irritated, with a huge clump of tape stuck to her tail.....I spanked her butt, and left the room with the tape on there for the night. I got up this morning and it was still stuck there. I took it off. But it was funny to see the tape there in the morning...I figured she would spend the night trying to get it off there.

I know you all must think I am cruel but the tape doesn' t hurt anything but her pride and it does work as a deterent...since Chase doesn't seem to catch on as quick as some other animals, I might have to leave new tape up there for another week or so but she'll figure it out eventually.

Why Is It?

That the lady in the minivan that sits in the middle of the aisle in a parking lot waiting for a space to open (so you can't go around her) is the same one that puts her damn cart in the middle of the aisle once you get inside the store so no one can get around her ass?

Mishka's Friday Feast

Appetizer
If you were a dog, what breed would you be, and why?

I think I would be a black lab because that is my favorite. They are loyal, and loving companions.


Soup
What does the color purple make you think of?

Prince


Salad
Approximately how long does it take you to get ready each morning?

10 minutes unless I have to wash my hair and then it takes longer. I am not a foofoo head so I can be out of the house in nothing flat if I want.


Main Course

How many cousins do you have, and are you close to them?

I have quite a few actually and even more if you count my husband's too. I grew up with most of mine so we were closer as kids than we are now but I am still pretty close to a few of them.


Dessert

Take your initials (first, middle, last) and come up with something else those letters could stand for. (Example: SFO = Sweet Funny Otter)

That would require me to give too much away....heehee...

Travelblog Update

For those of you not on my subscriber's list....I updated my travelblog with our trip to the Tug of War this weekend. Hope you enjoy it. If you want to be added to my subscriber's list, just drop me a note at my email (in my profile) and I'll add you. All I need is your email address. Oh, and the emails come from Travelblog.org so don't block them if you can.

Mishka's Reading Update

Hey all,

I updated my reading list at Mishka's Reading today with September's reading. Sorry it took me so long to get it up there but I had to make some changes because of Amazon and my issues with them.

Check it out if you have time.

New Fish

This is one of my first mollies (note that none of the babies or the tetras survived). These three have been hanging out in the tank all alone for a week or two so the tank could cycle through.

This week I started to feel sorry for the two girls being hounded by my obnoxious male all the time so I decided to add some fish to the tank. I added 2 more female mollies but these are albinos orange ones and then I got some angel fish. I have never had angel fish before but these ones seem pretty cool. I have three of them in there and I have no idea if they are boys or girls since I think they are egg layers and it is much harder to tell. They seem pretty laidback and not nearly as hyper as the mollies are.

Chase At Home

My mom and I bought this little pop up tent thing for Chase when my mom was visiting in NC. Chase didn't pay it a lot of attention and then we started packing up so it was put away. I got it out a few weeks ago and it sits near the big windows in the tatami room. Chase is in it all the time...in fact when it is time for her to go to bed at night and we have to get her into the office, I have to put this tent up on something so she won't run back into it...

Anyhow, I thought Mom would like to see her enjoying it...

Planet Earth

I was searching the web to buy something educational for one of my "nephews" for his birthday. He is really into sharks, dinosaurs and dragons so I thought I might be able to find him something from the Discovery Channel Store. I was right (and I did) but while I was there, I ordered this for me. I had seen a few episodes on the Discovery Channel when we were still in the states but not the entire thing. I splurged and bought it for myself and am so glad I did. It rocks.

Mishka's Friday's Feast

Appetizer
When was the last time you were surprised?

When I went out to lunch with a new friend the other day and she gave me a gift.

Soup
Fill in the blanks: My eyes are ________, but I wish they were __________.

Hazel and I love them they way they are...

Salad
If you were a Beanie Baby, what would you look like and what would your name be?

I would look like a lion and my name would be Lucy

Main Course
Name two things you consistently do that you consider to be healthy habits.

Exercise and log my food

Dessert
What brand of toothpaste are you using these days? Do you like it? Why or why not?

I use Colgate Total Mint Paste, and have since I started picking my own toothpaste. I love it and I have never had a cavity so I must be doing something right....haha.

Autobacs

We purchased the little car I posted about earlier used and it came with a pretty decent Kenwood stereo system in it. Not only do we have a radio and separate equalizer, each face place moves away (on its own power) and behind one is a single disc CD player and behind the other is a cassette player. The entire thing is then connected to a CD changer under the passenger's seat. We weren't able to use the CD changer (I just found out today it holds 12 discs) because we didn't have a magazine for it. I have been trying to "talk" to Kenwood for ages about the model number of the magazine for it with no luck so today, I went into Autobacs which is a car part store (like those in the US but they also sell nice electronic car equipment and wheels). It is great for the street racers and drifters around here, I am sure.

Anyhow, I went in, hoping they could help me locate my magazine...and they did. I found a young girl who went out to my car to double check the model number, made several phone calls and was able to find out what I needed. I was there for about 45 minutes I am sure but in the end, I was able to order the magazine I needed and it should be in, in the next few days. They also gave me directions to the Nissan dealership because I need to get a replacement case for my remote access key. I just wanted to note here how awesome their customer service was and tell you if you are ever in Japan and you need parts for your car or car stereo, I highly recommend these guys.

Secret Beach

We were shown a secret beach by some friends of ours this weekend. It was really nice but we can't tell anyone where it is, because it will get ruined if too many people know about it. It is kind of cool to have a place that no one (or at least hardly anyone) knows about.

Fish S3x

I actually saw my fish having sex the other day...it doesn't seem like that much fun for anyone involved but it must be, because the boy chases the girls around constantly.

(Now) Super Typhoon Krosa

October 4th, 7:10am

Another one is one its way but this one is not tracking towards us much, we'll get some weather from it but unless it turns, we won't get a full hit. Sucks because they are cancelling all the weekend activities and this is a long weekend....grrr. Oh well, I guess we have two more months of typhoon season left so...

Update: October 5th, 11:09pm

Well, it still isn't coming to us but it has been upgraded to a Super Typhoon (equivalent to Cat 5 hurricane in the States) so we are getting some good wind and rain from it. We had a bbq at the beach with some friends today and we'll all probably have some wind burn on our skin because it was blowing pretty good.

Update: 8 October 5:37pm

Not an issue anymore. We still had our bbq at the beach and it is too bad that they cancelled all the activities this weekend because other than a bit of wind and some sporadic showers it was okay outside. Oh well, live and learn, I guess.

Mishka's Friday Feast

Appetizer
On a scale of 1-10 with 10 being highest, how much do you look forward to your birthday?

5-I look forward to it when I am around family because it is fun but when I am alone, it just makes me sad.

Soup
What is one word you don’t like the sound, spelling, or meaning of?

There are several but the n word, and the c word would be two of the top ones.

Salad.
Do you wear sunglasses when you’re outside? If so, what does your current pair look like?

Why, yes I do and they are dark blue Oakley 5s

Main Course
If you were to write a book, to whom would you dedicate it?

To my family and my husband for always urging me on.

Dessert
Name a beverage that you enjoy.

Alcoholic-Cranberry juice w/vodka
Non-alcohlic-Georgia coffees

Goodbye Amazon

They are on my sh1t list right now. They have changed their shipping policies (for the hell of it, it seems) and most of the stuff you can get from them can no longer be shipped to me. This sucks because when we lived here before, they were one of the few companies I did business with because shipping here was so easy.

So I have made my wishlist private so no one will buy me anything from them and I am not doing business with them again until they change their ways. In the last two months I have tried to order three different items to be shipped to me and none of them could be shipped but I was able to order the item from other sites and they were shipped with no problem.

So goodbye Amazon, until you can get you sh1t together!!!