lioness in japan

Dear reader, I think by now you would have realized I am dog crazy and I’ll probably grow old with a bevy of pugs in my stinky old woman’s house.

But in the past year or so, I’ve grown very fond of cats, a dog person’s nemesis. What changed my mind, or rather who did, was little Rocco.

Isn’t he so adorable? He is actually my student’s cat and he loves taking English lessons. Sometimes he would lie on his back listening to us or purr by my side on the sofa. He’s Scottish, you see, and apparently doesn’t mind my Singaporean accent.

While many Japanese prize their toy dogs, there are probably an equal number who have a cat fetish. In fact, I see a lot more cats being featured in Japanese movies and anime. I’m not sure why the Japanese cat is much more in the cultural dialogue here but it is for some reason.

Rocco is like my student’s baby and she has stopped going on vacation because he gets depressed when he is left alone with a cat sitter. He has also been anchored into posterity by having his own book. My student’s husband, who suffers from Parkinson’s disease, wrote a fictional story of a cat and used a photo montage of Rocco to accompany the text. He penned this book when he had to stop working because of his illness but wanted to keep his mind active.

I was touched that my student would show me something so personal.

Hey guys, I am officially 32 this year and I’m celebrating my birthday in quite a different way. My birthdays usually involve a lot of eating and imbibing of noxious spirits for the most part but it has changed in recent years.

Last year, I had a fabulous awesome raw dinner at Manna chased by drinks with Tokyo friends at Two Rooms, a super gaijin bar.

But this year, I’m flying to Moscow. Big yay!

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Our very first blueberries…..EVER!

Tadaima means “I’m home!” in Japanese…

They tasted oh-so-gorgeous and slightly sweet, too. They seem to be easier to grow than strawberries which take a few seasons to get plump eatable fruit.

Our garden has been burnt to the ground by the scorching rays of the Tokyo summer sun but the blueberry plant held up well…

I enjoyed the month of July travelling loads but am very happy to kick-back in my home in Tokyo. Looking forward to posting on my trips so look out, peeps, lotsa blogging on my holidays.

Ja, ne!

My stay in Sydney has been busy but somewhat relaxing. We’re spending a lot of time catching up with friends and family like what we always do, but this time it feels a bit different.

A dear friend once put it in a succinct way, “Once it’s official you are getting married, they are so much nicer to you!” Not that the kangaroo clan has never been nice to me but they are even nicer now, if that’s possible. And I think it goes both ways – my folks love the kangaroo and I feel so blissed out that both families accept us both for who we are.

Sorry for all the marriage and family talk but it really does feel like I’m entering unchartered territory and I’m still marveling at what is strewn my way.

Though we both speak English, coming from two different cultures makes for puzzling incidents and funny gaffes. The kangaroo puts “lah” at the end of every sentence indiscriminately just to make me laugh; I finally know what “fair dinkum” means (honest, true) and that only out-of-touch Aussie politicians use it; the importance of Asian face is still somewhat a mystery to the kangaroo…and many more.

Let alone the rest of the kangaroo clan understanding Singaporean culture and my mystifying brand of vegetarianism, and vice versa.

And sometimes I am rendered speechless in certain situations, so I realized all you have are actions, and well, food.

Mrs Kangaroo has been receiving depressing reports about a close relative suffering from a dangerous brain tumor and was in tears this late morning. I wanted to say something kind and comforting but found no words and so I offered to make lunch, to which she kissed me on the cheek and sighed, “You’re making chicken? You’re not eating chicken? Yu Ming you are so sweet.”

So I made Asian chicken stir fry with orange juice (this is not my photo and there was no rice in reality; photo credit here):

Recipe:
Juice of one large orange
2 small chicken breasts, sliced
Half a white onion, diced
5 cloves garlic, chopped
Splash of sesame oil
Dash of soy sauce
Generous pinch of black pepper

Marinate the chicken in everything but the onion and garlic for half an hour. Sautee garlic and onion in olive oil and then slide in the meat and marinade. Simmer for 10 min and it’s done.

I made a huge salad with rocket, alfalfa sprouts, corn, cucumber, baby tomatoes, avocado drizzled with a parsley dressing, to accompany the chicken and I paired my huge helpings of salad with raw crackers from Raw Pleasure, an Aussie raw online store.

Tears were gone and ice-cream was also consumed and peace and harmony were restored for the time being.

Blogging has been a bit slow because I’ve been in the Whitsundays and Brisbane. I just arrived in Sydney yesterday afternoon so I can finally use my iPad like no tomorrow.

The Internet connection on Daydream Island in the Whitsundays was pretty patchy so those of you following me on Twitter or Facebook got a coupla updates from me.

Though I’m totally stoked by having a new iPad, I’m a bit frustrated that I haven’t quite figured out how to easily upload images and put them up onto Wordpress which is the blogging platform I use. I can’t cut and paste URL links from Photobucket either and need to painstakingly rewrite the HTML code for each photo.

But I can email and take care of Beauty Box from afar so that should be good enough for now.

Anyway, what’s going on with me? I’m sniffling from having too much dairy the night before (dairy causes mucous and stomach upsets for me) and waiting for the kangaroo to finish up his work so we can go running at the Centennial Park in Sydney.

The hunt for the perfect wedding location is still inconclusive as we love almost all the places we have seen. We decided that a poll is in order for our friends and family but I can only work on that when I get back to Tokyo, seeing that I need to download a suitable plugin to make that happen and it seems a bit too challenging for my iPad. Gosh i make it sound a bit useless, don’t I?

In the meantime, I’m happy to be out of hotels for now. We are putting up at Mrs Kangaroo’s home and it feels nice to be whizzing up green smoothies and juices in the kitchen. “Babe, is that what life’s all about? Food?” asked a bemused kangaroo.

To be honest, I am happiest when I’m healthy but I am truly enjoying being back in Oz. I cracked up inwardly when our jet-skiing instructor said this: It’s all over, red Rover. – to mean something is doomed to fail. And how to have a deadpan face when doing a wind-up (to have a dig at someone seemingly serious).

“Naps are only for old men, honey,” I said, when the kangaroo mentioned he wanted to lie down after our action-packed day of sailing in a catamaran. He looked indignant then realized it was a wind-up and laughed. Gotcha.

Alrighty, I have to go walk Mrs Kangaroo’s dog, Pixie, because she is out playing tennis. This is quite a different type of post for me and hope you are enjoying it as much as I did writing it.

Will be back soon for more picture-less posts…

I’m blogging from The Gallery Hotel in Singapore — I arrived yesterday afternoon from a 12-hour journey that took me from Tokyo to Nagoya to Singapore. It’s very nice to be home. I’m already speaking Singlish at top volume to cab drivers and fruit sellers at food courts.

The parents were keen to squeeze in as much makan (eating) time as possible. Food is the way they express their love and they sure did put in a lot of effort to make all my favourites.

Last night, we had popiah (rice paper veggie wraps with a mean chilli dip), sayur lodeh (Malay veggie curry), our family veggie stew (it’s usually made with deep fried chicken slices in a tomato stew of peas, onion, carrot and potato but there was a separate vegetarian version for me), Chinese spinach soup, and durian for dessert. My dad drove all the way to Bedok (an eastern suburb in Singapore; we live in the north) to buy creamy Malaysian durians for me to feast on. Awwww….

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If you follow me on Facebook or Twitter, you will know that I have been slowly training for the Tokyo Marathon next February. I know, the application process hasn’t even started and I’m telling people I’m running it.

Well, I’m fairly confident of getting it even though it’s a lottery-style selection process, because word has it that all foreigners who apply for it will get it, like all.

Most guides or experienced marathoners will tell you three to four months is enough to train for a marathon. I would have to agree it is enough if you are consistent and careful with your running schedule.

So why am I starting to train now? In fact, I made up my mind in January and have been on the look out for half-marathons or other long distance running events to take part in. Taking off by yourself on a 20km run can be a bit dull, plus I wanted to get used to the whole process of Japanese marathons — from the application process to getting to the location.

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Wow, yet another birthday-related post. What did I tell ya? The kangaroo’s birthday celebrations were as long as an Indian wedding. Many thanks to all who made it happen.

We squeezed about 20 people into our small one-bedroom apartment last Saturday night for some bad-ass karaoke singing. I got the karaoke set for his birthday pressie and we both agreed that this was the best party investment ever.

That’s the kangaroo getting the ball rolling. It didn’t take very long for others to follow suit.

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I’m not alone in soaking up the lovely sunshine and bright blue skies this May…

Our garden is starting to flourish again. Look, strawberries…

Here’s a close up of the first red strawberry:

Being from the tropics, I’m always so amazed how a change in weather could affect my mood so dramatically. I only realized how awful last winter was until it got warmer — being constantly wrapped up in wool, turtlenecks, boots and scarves sets in a kind of insidious mental claustrophobia but you get numb to it and the hunger for something piping hot can’t be shaken off.

But with the switch to 29-degree weather and cool breezes, I’ve been feeling pretty blissed out and cheerful. I can actually feel a pep in my step.

Even my sensei commented how well I’ve been looking, but then again, she seemed a bit desperate to flip to another topic when I started to describe the nude exhibition by Marina Abramović I saw at MoMA in New York two weeks ago — in halting Japanese no less. It was probably like nails on a blackboard to her so she suddenly chirped, “Yu Ming-san, your skin looks so beautiful today!”

Who cares why she said it, I’ll take what I can get.

Sorry for the long absence — I’m finally back from my hiatus and this post is definitely a lot happier than the last. I’m still struggling with a deluge of emails, photos, teaching, Beauty Box matters, and adjusting to Tokyo’s cold and dry winter after a whole month of sunny weather. Watch out for new posts coming up…

For the sake of my blog readers, I’m making this announcement, so sorry to you folks on Facebook who got this news already (I link my RSS feed to my FB profile).

The kangaroo surprised me with a proposal on a deserted beach in Goyambokka, a slice of paradise in the south of Sri Lanka, near Tangalle.

Some folks thought it was about time (we’ve been together for over six years) and some considered it was a miracle (the kangaroo was a self-declared, anti-kids bachelor), but I kind of expected it because there were lots brewing in his mind in the past few months…But not so soon…

He was quite the detective — ferreting around my costume jewellery to check for ring sizes; trying to get hold of my dad’s mobile phone number; and not raising any suspicion on my part. He loves surprises, as you can see, but you know, so do I.

No, he did not go on bended knee, and no I didn’t cry. We took the photo above just after I said, “Yes!” We couldn’t stop grinning and I had a million questions for him.

Here’s the beautiful ring he got me — it’s the prettiest thing I own.