I swear there's more to life than being drama/boy-obsessed and work. Well, the Korean-drama/gong-yoo obsession has finally dissipated (kinda). I think going out of town for a trip and my cousin buying the Wii Fit had something to do with it. Kept my mind busy. :D

Yup! My cousin bought the Wii Fit, and even though it's in Japanese, it's much fun. Can sorta guess what it's saying, and even if we can't, there are pictures. :P The universal language of pictures, yay! So, there's lots of working out involved. Well, duh, there's a reason it's called the Wii fit, but anyway, there's one where you're basically running in place and trying to catch up and pass the person in front of you. That one is WAY tiring. Then there are various yoga/stretching exercises and games where you dodge soccer balls, ski, ski jump, hula hoop, etc. Ahhh, it's so much fun. We'll see if I manage to lose the 1 kg I set as the goal in two weeks time. :P Have to admit that it's definitely more fun than running outside in the cold.

This past weekend we also went on a trip to Taichung. Visited the city on Saturday and met up with old friends. Ate lots, shopped, and just enjoyed the city (kinda). Went to Chungyo Mall and Feng Chia Night Market. Had dinner at all you can eat spicy hot pot place. Sunday we took a short road trip to the mountains nearby where there was a park-ish area. It had a castle-looking building and lake in it - very scenic, so we took tons of pictures. Also went to the mushroom street where they basically sold, yup, mushrooms. I love mushrooms. :) Anyway, it's picture time ... (all the pics are on flickr, so just posting some yum/scenic/fun pix)

All you can eat spicy hot pot - the center was the spicy one and the outside non-spicy for wimps (that would be me. sigh.)

Feng-Chia Night Market shot (can you spot Picker's head?)

Shaved ice with yummy toppings.

Us and our reindeer at Princess Annie's.

Cute little building at Princess Annie's.

Giant grilled mushrooms.

Summit Resort - seems like a fairy-tale castle location; if only there weren't so many people around.



Main building



check out the mountains in the background; if only it had been a sunny day. :\

This past weekend was basically spent watching that drama I mentioned in the previous entry (Coffee Prince). Ahhhh, it's so addictive, and Gong Yoo just makes it so much better. I went to bed late and woke up early just to watch :D I was an obsessed fiend.

However, after watching it (Yup, finished all 17 episodes), I realized why I don't like to watch these lovey dovey dramas. :( It makes me want a boyfriend that much more and wonder why there aren't those kinds of guys out there. It's hard to explain what kind of guy Han Kyul (the main guy character played by Gong Yoo) is in the drama, but the relationship between him and Eun Chan is so cute, so sweet, so so so awww-inspiring. :P Despite the fightings and stuff, their dedication to one another is so absolute and just too good to be true. I guess that's why these kinds of relationships seem to be found only in dramas, and even if they did exist in real life, it's like one in a million. What a depressing thought.

But yah, ahhhh, I want a boyfriend (as hot as Gong Yoo :P ... I wish).

So the question is - why can't I find a guy like that?! Wait, no, why can't I find a guy, period?! BAH.

Anyway, besides the Coffee Prince marathon, I took a break and went to watch some Johnny Depp - Sweeney Todd. It wasn't bad, but I have to admit that it didn't live up to my expectations (maybe I set them too high). It was slow moving at first, very blood-filled, and I just felt like there wasn't a high point. The ending was sad, but my sister ruined it by telling me, but I won't do the same and ruin it for those of you who haven't seen it yet. :P Plus side - Johnny Depp can sing, nicely. :D

How? Besides the lack of exercise due to sitting at the desk all day long, they keep giving us food! Well, whenever we have guests, they bring some kinda gifts, mostly food, though. Last week I got some Starbucks coffee and choco covered espresso beans for breakfast (yuuuuum), this week we had cherries, red bean sandwich thing (銅鑼燒), candies, fruits, etc. Ahhhhh. The food's yummy; I'm definitely not complaining about that. BUT! I get hungry, so I start eating them while sitting at my desk ... and yah, end result is not so good for my weight.

Comp store work was probably better for my weight - standing around, walking around, carrying heavy computers - all workouts for the body. Now it's just sitting at the desk, staring at the computer screen. Ahhhhhhhh. This is not good.

The idea is to go to the gym across the street and see if they offer any dance classes or even just aerobics or yoga (yes, I'll give yoga another shot). But that hasn't happened yet. Ahhhhhhh. Must. Exercise. Before. Getting. Bigger.


On a happier note, I've been watching this K drama lately (surprise!) called Coffee Prince (咖啡王子1號店) and the main male character actor doode is SO CUTE. So I'll end today's entry with a nice picture:

- Time to get out of Taiwan for probably the next four years, at least. Politics suck, majorly. I wish I could understand what people are thinking, then maybe I won't think they're all idiots.

- I hate it when people, especially those around me, criticize celebrities for their physical "imperfections," when they're not even imperfections. They can be what makes them unique, yet because it's different from the "norm" it's considered unacceptable for these famous people to have because they're a celebrity. So then they go and get plastic surgery because of all the pressure on them to fit in with people's expectations of what celebs should be. But then once they do, other people criticize them for getting breast augmentation or liposuction or whatever. They can't win.

Ok, granted, they are celebs and should know that that's what they're getting themselves into since it's become part of their "job," but if they're making good music, acting well, then aren't they doing their jobs of providing entertainment? Why do we have to be so judgmental about how they look? It's because of all this societal pressure that most of the ladies on the big and small screens have to look good 24/7 and be skinny and not have any glaring imperfections. If they do, then they get criticized like no tomorrow.

And people wonder why young people today have some sort of eating disorder or major issues with their body images. Is it really the media's fault? or is it society's? It's a negative cycle with constant reinforcement going on, and I don't foresee it going away any time soon.

It just makes me really frustrated when I hear people around me so critical about someone else's appearance. What's it to you?! Why does it matter? It's not harming you in any way, but it could be harming them in a major way.

- The latest fashion trend in Taiwan, well, Taipei at least, seems to be knee-high boots with short skirts or shorts and tights. Basically, it's skirt/shorts with tights underneath and knee-high boots. Taiwanese people sure love to layer things; they did it with shirts, now they're doing it with the lower body.

I don't really understand the short skirt/short with knee-high boots when it's like 10 degrees celsius out. No tights, just skirt/short and boots. Aren't they cold?! I also don't understand shirts that are long, but not long enough to be dresses with tights. That's not just a Taiwan thing, but it's becoming more prevalent here. Tights are not pants. That's all I can say.

Yes, I hate tights. I also really dislike those people who wear knee-high boots with neon-colored-knee-high stockings that are 2 inches higher than the boots. It's ugly! It doesn't look good, IMO anyway. Ahhhhh.


Image from A Bug's Life.

There's a store that sells glasses near our apartment where apparently six cats reside. I say apparently because I've never seen all six at once, but there's always one or two sitting/sleeping/playing in the store window. And they're so cute! I know there are two adults because we saw those two before, but then one day when we were passing by we saw SO MANY kittens sleeping on the little bench in the store window. I heard they were giving some of them away, so I guess there are only four remaining. They're growing bigger everyday! It's like watching them grow up. I wish I could have one. :( If only I didn't have allergies. BOO!

Anyway, pictures! There are like three pictures of the same cat because that one's my favorite - its fur has three colors! White, orange, and gray. SO CUTE. Enjoy :)












Awww, it looks so peaceful while sleeping. awwwww <3

I just finished watching the Japanese drama 一公升的眼淚 (A Liter of Tears), which I started watching back when I was still in LA. I caught the final episode on TV tonight, and right now, my eyes are so swollen and tired from all that crying. This is one show where I can actually cry through the whole thing. I think it's a good thing I kinda skipped a couple (like five) episodes otherwise my eyes would be way more swollen than it is right now.

It's based on a true story about a girl with Spinocerebellar Atrophy. Basically it's a disease where the cerebellum atrophies :P useful, huh? Anyway, they basically lose control of fine motor movements and eventually can't walk, speak, swallow, and most likely will die as there is no known cure for the disease. :( Anyway, although she goes through the part of asking why her and being in despair, in the end, she holds on and tries her best to help others. She writes in her diaries, which she publishes in a magazine for hospital patients, and she inspires other people with the same disease to continue fighting and living and not giving up. Anyway, I'm doing a bad job explaining it, but man, I wish I had her spirit (not her disease >.<). I don't know how she manages to keep fighting and her spirits high and continue to be selfless in the face of death. She doesn't give up and appreciates her family like no other.

There's this one scene, towards the end, where she's telling her doctor that if/when she dies, she wants to donate her body to science because she wants to be useful to the other patients with her disease and also to the doctors in hopes of finding what causes this kind of disease. And it's like, wow, even in pain and suffering she can still be so strong and selfless. T~T

And the last scene, when the parents and the doctor are standing at the grave of the girl, you see all the people she's touched in her life coming towards them, not just her friends, classmates, and family, but also others with her same disease who are in wheelchairs and look up to her for her positive attitude during her sickness. It was so touching.

Sigh. It's so sad and touching. Non-stop crying. I should probably stop complaining about my misfortunes from now on.