Oink?

I just wanted to share that I have come to the conclusion that I must have some recessive pig gene in me. Let it be known that I went to the commissary today. It's not our local commissary, but it's a much bigger one at a semi-nearby base. My intent was to just buy items that we don't carry at our local store, but noooo this little piggy was hungry or possessed! I went up and down the aisles. I started at the produce area looking for some fruit and then I came across the cake and frosting area. I immediately gravitated to the Betty Crocker Whipped Cream Cheese frosting. All I could see myself doing was watching Gossip Girl and spooning whipped cream cheese frosting a la Kevin James in I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry... I've been known to do this before. Put the little tub in my cart. I then went to the bread and baked goods aisle, I grabbed some light wheat bread and some sweet Hawaiian bread to eat on the ride home *drop*, followed by some Entemann's Louisiana Crunch Cake *drop*. I haven't figured out if it was a bit of nostalgia (my mommy and I used to scarf down a large slice with chocolate ice cream when I was little) or if I was just hungry since I had skipped breakfast and lunch. I kept moseying down the aisles and I got to the deli. I needed some turkey, had a 1/4 lb. cut just for me! Okay, I can't lie! I've tried, but I didn't go to the deli for turkey. I went for the delicious cakes and pies they have RIGHT NEXT to the cheeses!!!!!!!!! I NEEDED a slice of carrot cake with CREAM CHEESE frosting! There was no stopping me!!!!!! I made the deli guy cut me a slice of carrot cake AND a slice of chocolate cake with chocolate frosting!!!!!!!!!! In another attempt to lie to myself and TomTom, I told him that I bought him a slice of chocolate cake. I felt really bad and I figured I should cut back somewhere, so with my head down low, I went back to the cake and frosting aisle and returned the frosting to its original place. I have since eaten dinner and licked the plastic container that once held my carrot cake. I now find myself fighting every urge to not go downstairs and eat "his" chocolate cake! Seriously, WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME?!?!

I think I should note that just 15 minutes earlier, I had picked up triple chocolate M&Ms, 3 Rice Krispies Treats (one which I ate at the store), Sqworms and S'mores Pop Tarts...

Back in Japan

TomTom and I landed in Japan a week ago. I've been super, duper lazy at home this week. In my defense, it was a hectic week at work! As I type this, I am lying in the groove I've created over the last two days of vegging in bed.

We left on Saturday, May 23rd. We were at the airport quite early and we decided to have lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe near the airport. When we came back, we still had like 3 hours before takeoff. We waited patiently, took naps and took a couple pictures...

The flight was awful! There was turbulence throughout the whole 6 hour flight, I had a massive headache, I couldn't sleep...ugh, it was endless! TomTom said I looked as though death had run me over...ain't he sweet? We finally landed at Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok at about 11:30 at night and took the airport's limo to the hotel. It wasn't a bad hotel for $30/night. The decor was modern, new and it was in the financial district. We weren't so sure when we first drove up at 12:30.

At the airport, we had set up a tour through some pseudo government entity. We had breakfast at the hotel, which was included, and went downstairs to meet our guide. As soon as we met, she sent us right back up to our room to change. We weren't dressed "appropriately." I was wearing khaki bermuda shorts and a brown tank top and TomTom was wearing khaki shorts and a black t-shirt...in like 105 degrees with 100% humidity. Worse than Miami...by a lot. So we ended up changing into pants and sleeved-shirts; basically, what we flew in with a few minor changes. F! It's the only thing we had that fit the bill! We went to the Royal Palace, Wat Phra Kaew and SHOPPING! The temple and shrine were gorgeous. Such colors and detail. It really was quite beautiful. After sweating every ounce of water in our bodies, our tour guide took us to some jewelry place that is backed by the Thai government (a very important requirement). Did some damage there followed by a tailor. I was drooling over the different colors of Thai silk and TomTom was talking about custom-made French cuffs and flat front pants. We went to eat that night at the most amazing Italian restaurant followed by a trip in a tuk-tuk to Patpong, the red-light district. There was a night market where everyone kept pawing at us to buy all sorts of junk and plenty of ping pong bars.

The next day we went to Wat Pho. A lot of history there. We walked around, took a couple of pictures saw the giant reclining buddha. We wanted to go to this aquarium that was in this huge mall. We went to the huge mall, but we never made it to the aquarium. We walked around, shopped a bit, saw a Night at the Museum 2 and then went back to the hotel to change prior to TomTom's fitting. Yes, they had already completed part of his order. Everything fit perfectly! He was quite happy. We ate dinner at Hard Rock Cafe and went to see Angels and Demons. Back at the hotel, we repacked and got ready for our trip to Phuket the next day.

We arrived in Phuket at around 10:30 in the morning. Sadly, the rainy season had just started. It was raining when we arrived and it rained until we left. Our hotel was amazing! We were right on the water! We had massages, took a dip in the infinity pool...it was sooo relaxing.

The next day, we had booked a trip to Phi Phi Island. This was the highlight of our trip! We took a speedboat there and spent the day going to different areas on the island including Mahya Bay where The Beach, with Leonardo DiCaprio, was filmed. We went swimming and snorkeling, all under the rain but it was loads of fun and everything was sooo pretty! Definitely going back. The next day we flew off to Samui.

Samui was in one word...disappointing. All the pictures we had seen were clearly taken elsewhere. The whole island reeked. Bad. And the beaches were AWFUL. I felt so cheated! We arrived at the hotel ready to take a dip in the beach; after all, we had flown in our bathing suits! So expecting things to change, we took a ride over to the center of Chaweng expecting to do some shopping. Nothing to really buy except knock-offs. F! Once again, there was more pawing and the sort. TomTom found a dive shop and booked a dive trip for the next day leaving me all by my lonesome...

The next day started pretty early. I decided I'd go out in town and I was determined to shop, as I had seen a REAL Catherine Malandrino dress the day before, and find a nice beach. Didn't end up buying the dress or anything else. I thought I'd get a manicure and/or pedicure, but I had a hard time finding a place that I liked and that looked clean so I ended up just heading back to the hotel to lay out in the sun.

The day we left, we visited the Samui Aquarium and Zoo. It was small and nothing like a zoo back home. We fed turtles and monkeys and took pictures with a tiger! I've come to find that the US has the best zoos and that most of those abroad would probably be considered inhumane, at least this is so in the ones I've been to. We got back to the hotel and had just enough time to eat, grab our bags and head out to the airport to fly back to Bangkok. We arrived in the late afternoon. We waited for the tailor to deliver TomTom's order. Soon after everything was delivered, we went to see yet another movie (yes, TomTom really missed a decent theater) and one last dinner before we left.

We got in the next day in the afternoon and drove the two hours back home. Luckily, the flight back was the complete opposite of the flight there.

Summary: Thailand is a colorful country. Lots of yellows, pinks, purples and blue. The shrines are beautiful, but you'd quickly become "shrined out" after 2 or 3. It can be quite cheap if you eat the food, which TomTom doesn't. You'll hear and read lots about buying clothes there. I didn't really see much other than fake Ed Hardy shirts, but there were plenty of tailors. An Irish woman I met seemed to agree with me as she had brought along few clothes thinking she'd buy a ton there only to have to pay for laundry service every 2-3 days. I was rather disappointed with the Thai people. After visiting many 3rd world countries, I had never seen such a sense of entitlement or desperation. Everyone asked for a tip as well as ask for more! I guess this became all the more insulting after living in Japan for two years and never tipping ANYONE. Taxis were absolute rip offs. Mostly in Samui. Amazingly, for a country that mainly runs on tourism and has a tourism police force with measures to protect tourists from jewelry hoaxes and such, you'd think they'd actually enforce the use of a meter! Just a suggestion... When you see Thailand, it has all the signs of a developed country: everyone has a cell phone, large buildings, livable housing, fairly new cars. Felt particularly unsafe, too. We'll definitely visit again. We might skip Bangkok and Samui, but we certainly want to see some other islands as well.

Highlights: Phi Phi Island, our kick ass hotel in Phuket, dinner at Biscotti

Not so much: Taxis, streets, pollution, beaches in Samui, rain in Phuket

Tick, Tock?

There's been a lot of baby talking near me over the last few weeks. Lots of talk about strollers, crib sets and gadgets...
So, all this baby talking has got me thinking about me becoming a mommy...is this me subconsciously wanting a little one? If and when, what will my reaction be? Will I be happy? Will I panic? What will it feel like? I become very excited when I hear of others expecting, but I don't think I'm quite ready. TomTom and I are happy with things the way they are; we thoroughly enjoy being selfish and only focusing on ourselves. There is also the fact that I'm also petrified of childbirth. I honestly don't think I can handle it (so if anyone is willing to pimp out their uterus, I will pay!). When all is said and done, if I looked back at my life after 50 years or so and saw myself childless, I think I'd feel pretty unfulfilled. I wonder if I'll know or reach a point where I'll yearn to be a mother...

Is Nothing Sacred Anymore?

I have to be honest, I hate old people using technology! Call me selfish, but dammit! I enjoy the privacy (as ironic as that may be). It's like there is always a question regardless of how many times you've explained it before: how do I do this? or that? YOU JUST DON'T! While there are some folks that are probably more computer proficient than I, they're not the folgies I know!
HM has decided that we should target a younger crowd by using Facebook and Twitter. I'm on Facebook, and as you may have already read, I rant and rave on there to my miserable heart's content! Now, he takes THAT away! He can barely turn his computer on and now he tries to torment me, and others, in our virtual world of freedom. Is nothing sacred anymore???

Hey there, Stranger!

I've been gone a while...I know this. So I wanted to get back into the swing of things with a bang (yes, pun FULLY intended).

I debated whether or not to post the following pictures, but they're just too good not to! I warn you, some are graphic and not for the faint-hearted but while it was tons of fun...it was also a CULTURAL EXPERIENCE.

Last Sunday, BH, Mrs. AK and Mister Mrs. AK went to the Kawasaki Fertility Festival. We had been warned, but it was a must see. We were immediately greeted by flags and that's how we knew we were THERE!

There were tons and tons of people there. A lot of Japanese folks and definitely a lot of Americans. From what I read, this has been a tradition for a gazillion years and ladies of the night would go to the shrine and pray that they'd avoid diseases and such. Now it's changed a bit, I'd say... When we first got there, there were quite a bit of people and then in a matter of an hour or so it was packed! It really didn't seem as though the park could accomodate that many people. Safely. But I hate to sound like a wet blanket...

We soon became hungry. I had had some Lucky Charms on the way there and after 2 hours or so, this little piggie was hungry! BH of course had had Gatorade for breakfast. All together now: GROSS! So we found a radish stand, but again...gross! So we moved along and found a potato stand. I thought it was a fried baked potato stand and my tummy immediately went "Oink!" Alas, it was not. It was a boiled potato that was undercooked on a styrofoam tray with chopsticks to jab at it with. Miraculously, I didn't end up wearing said potato.

After giving up on my potato and crepe (which had BANANAS in it!), we walked around a bit. They had a couple of stands selling novelty items but everyone was gathered near the front of the shrine and so we thought things were going to start and headed in that direction. Well, the parade didn't start for another hour or so. We decided to make the best of things and become one with the Japanese. Why not in front of a giant pink mushroom a la Alice in Wonderland? PEACE!

We moved along to the street where the parade was going to go through and waited patiently. First a priest and some cantors came down the street to perhaps bless something or other. It was in Japanese, so I have no idea what was said. One of them had the fiercest shoes that Victoria Beckham would envy! Then the portable shrines came bobbing down the street. After they came and went, we went back to the park, listened to some taiko drummers and then it was time to go. We decided to skip the bus and head over to Hard Rock for some yummy-ness and finally home! All in all, it was an interesting trip.

Highlight: Spending the whole day with BH.

Not so much: Whole lotta ass

Hello, Oscar!

It's been foreeeever since I last blogged. I've been pooped...I'm sorry. What better way to jump back into blogging than by going over Sunday night, the Oscars.

Even though I was never a big fan of the Oscars, I always found the fashion part of the night to be the best part! It was always very inspiring. My prom dress was "inspired" by Jennifer Garner's Valentino dress she wore for the 2004 Academy Awards:

This year's dresses were a bit of OOH and a bit of BLAH. Here are my top three:

LOVED Marisa Tomei's dress. It was perfect for the Oscar's! For an awards show that highlights the dramatic arts, what better than a beautiful, dramatic dress? Kudos, Marisa!

Another favorite was Evan Rachel Wood. Don't believe I've seen her in a movie or anything and I know she was dating that freak Marilyn Manson, but the girl cleans up well! I love this dress. Whoever her stylist is, they should get a raise! This dress is gorgeous...

The last one to round off my top three......................

Yes, I know! I'm almost ashamed! But alas, I have put on my big girl panties and admitted that I LIKE Miley Cyrus's dress. It's a dress that someone young and spunky can wear, like Miley Cyrus, or someone that lives on the edge of fashion like Sarah Jessica Parker or Diane Kruger (love her!). I love the top, I could do with some smaller petals but it gets a thumbs up for me. It all pulls together nicely: accesories, hair and makeup.

I was torn for the #3 spot as I thought Taraji Henson looked amazing, too! I was also torn because I didn't want an all white/beige list. I thought the Golden Globes were a bit washed out, but white is H-O-T-T!

My biggest LOSERS, where do I start...

BEYONCE, what in the hell are you wearing? Designing jeans is one thing, but a dress to the Oscars??? Did you and Jay hit up a hydroponics lab before getting ready? Momma did you some serious wrong. Definitely FUG!!!

Next, Amanda Seyfried. I loooved her in Mamma Mia. She seems so down to earth, but this dress is so beyond earth's level of ugly. The color, the cut, the matching lipstick...ugh! Save her!

Last and definitely least, Marion Cotillard. Remember she wore that gorgeous fish scale dress last year when she won for best actress? This year she has disappointed the Oscar gods! The dress was not pretty at all. Whoever designed it must have been inspired by a black eye! And the makeup. She must have stopped by Hialeah's Westland Mall to get her Chonga makeup done. Pobrecita.

Anxiety Nation

As some of you may or may not know, Virginia didn't work out for us. When Tom first told me, I felt as though I had been punched in the stomach. I had begun to plan my new life in VA. I went house hunting online, researched schools in the area and in my head, I even saw my babies running in a backyard again.

As I've said again and again, I don't love living in Japan but I don't hate it either. The last couple days have been rough for me. I have this constant feeling of anxiety. As though I'm trapped in a glass box and I can't break through. I think a lot of it is that in nearly three years of marriage, this is the longest we've stayed at any one place and the longest I've worked anywhere. We were in Jacksonville, FL for three months and Kings Bay, GA for nine. I've been in Japan for twenty months!

I haven't been home since and I think I have to start planning a trip soon because I'm going to end up in a nut hut otherwise! I need a breather to step away from work and life here. I miss good ole American/Latin food, family, friends, sun, beach...America. Case in point, V-Day is this upcoming Saturday. If we were home, we'd probably go to a nice restaurant just the two of us. Here, we don't know any nice restaurants and if we did they'd be outrageously expensive and the food wouldn't be very good...bland and odd. I'm stuck in a rut: home, work, home.

Maybe I need a new hobby. Any ideas?