She's home!

My sister took a mini trip to Texas Thursday. She came home tonight. I was looking forward to having the apartment to myself, but I really missed her. I spent the weekend sleeping and watching reruns on TV of shows I never really watch in the first place. This is another busy week and I'm already excited and tired.

Quiet night in

My weekend is finally here. I plan on doing some shopping, seeing a movie, and working on the apartment. We've been here for almost two months and still nowhere near done. It's mostly me. I hate organizing. But I know it'll make things easier and prettier. And I know once I am more organized than the decorating can really begin. It's a good thing my sister is very organized. We complement each other in many ways.


I wish West Elm would stop torturing me with their emails and catalogs and online sales. I'm planning a visit to the store soon. I enjoy the convenience of buying online, but for most things, if I can see the item in and store and take it home with me/arrange delivery, it makes me much happier.

You've Got Possibilities

It may seem so far that starting this blog and my commitment to it is a chore, but that is far from it. I want to write. I want to create. I want to share. But I'm rusty and lazy and right now, I need to push myself. There are many things I'm excited about doing this year. I want to start doing some drawing again. I want to finally sew the scarf I've been "working" on for three years. Okay, I actually did finish that scarf a while ago, but I have another prototype of it that has sat around for half a year. That second scarf, that I want to finish.

I want to learn to hem and alter my own clothing and maybe even make some from scratch. I've got some vintage patterns waiting and a few more I want to buy. I want to write some scripts. I want to start working out regularly. I want to explore the city more. I want to make new friends. I wouldn't mind falling in love.

Those are my hopes for the new year.

Goodnight

I need to start writing earlier in the night. I used to be a night owl, but now that I work a "normal" shift, I can't stay up like I used to. 

Just making it

Wow. Day three, and already I almost didn't make it here. It may be the holiday hustle and bustle catching up with me (I feel like I didn't actually have a vacation) or maybe it's the post-taco haze, but I'm so tired. I actually spent the last two hours napping on my couch, swaddled in my sister's pink frog-printed blanket. The kitchen's a mess and I need a shower, but both will have to wait until the morning. Too tired. Oh, and next time I feel like making refried beans from scratch, I will use canned beans.

Ringing in the New Year

There is one tradition I observe every New Year's: the making and eating of ozoni soup. Ozoni is a Japanese soup with mochi and other ingredients. My grandma would always make this every New Year's morning and all the families would trickle in at various times to eat it. Her soup would contain the otsuimono base, clams, abalone, daikon, mochi, and mizuna.

Ever since moving to Los Angeles, I have attempted to make the soup for myself every year, usually with varying results. My dad was visiting for Christmas so I didn't have time to make a trip to a Japanese grocery store. I usually go to Marukai, either the one in Torrance or downtown. I was thinking of trying 99 Ranch Market, but the only one in the greater Los Angeles area is in my old neighborhood and I'm not quite ready to face the traffic in that area again. So I chose to go to a Korean market in Glendale. The only time I've been to this market was four and a half years ago, with my dad, when I was apartment hunting and going on job interviews.

I can read some Japanese and am very familiar with Japanese ingredients, so I thought shopping in a Korean market wouldn't be too hard. I was wrong. I think I did the best with produce. I was saddened that there was no mizuna. It is a fixture in ozoni and my absolute favorite part of the soup. I hunted around and found some choy sum (Chinese broccoli) which I learned is called yu choy in Korean. At least I think it was the same thing. Not very close to mizuna, but choy sum is another of my faves, so I thought I'd substitute it. I could not find canned clams for the life of me, so I bought a clear container marked "seasoned clams." I'm not a fan. The clams were so salty, even after rinsing them and letting them soak in water. Luckily I already had packets of soup base and mochiko to make mochi at home.

The soup turned out good, which was a relief, but next year I'm going to make sure to go to a Japanese store so I can get my mizuna and clams and get ready-made mochi. And that Korean store was an experience. Ever since I was little, I was always a sucker for food samples in stores. The market had tons of samples scattered throughout, served by women who spoke to me in Korean. I am 3/4 Okinawan and 1/4 Japanese and do not know any Korean save the few phrases I've picked up from Korean soap operas. So my solution? Just smile and nod and say "Mmm!"

And so it begins

I don't usually make resolutions. I know what they should be, but I'm good at procrastinating. Not fulfilling your resolutions is one thing but procrastinating on even making them? Pathetic. There's so many things I want to do but don't, so many things I start and never finish. Writing is at the top of that list. I've always loved words and writing, telling stories and listening to them. Yet I don't make time for it. I'm too hesitant, too lazy, too scared of judgment. I really think it takes a lot of strength to be able to write honestly and unapologetically. Not being afraid to air your opinions or be embarrassed or vulnerable. 


I always feel like things need to be perfect on the first go. And of course life is not like that. You're supposed to make mistakes so you can learn and move forward. If you hold back because you're scared of failing, you never go anywhere. Falling backwards does not mean failure. At least you're moving in a direction. I think far too much and act way too little. Even with this blog, I've thought about what the theme should be, what font is good, and if anyone will ever read it. But did I ever write anything? Not until now. And I started this blog a whole month ago.


It is my goal to post something every day, even if it's just a few sentences. I aim to be active and moving somewhere, even if I don't know where I'm heading. I can figure things out along the way, but I need to take that first step. Happy New Year!