life – Page 3 – Have you eaten?

Spring Came Early This Year: Daffodils and Kathy

February 6, 2015by have you eaten?2 Comments

Spring has come this morning.

Working in a corporate environment is challenging. You enjoy working with intelligent, knowledgeable, dedicated, passionate and friendly co-workers and you become friends with some of them. It is a challenging time for all of us at work. I am about to lose someone who is very close to me and who is nothing but helpful, always willing to assist me and always there as a good friend. I won’t be able to work with him any more in the same group. We get a cup of coffee together every morning, joke around a lot like brother and sisters. I have been quite confused, sad and emotional since I found out about the news.

Kathy came by this morning with a hint of spring. She was holding a bouquet of daffodils (so delightful and charming!) and said to me that I looked quite down for a last few days so she bought something to cheer me up. What a thoughtful person she is. If the world was full of these people, I guarantee it would be a better place.

Like Dalai Lama said, “The planet does not need more successful people. The planet desperately need s more peacemakers, healers, restorers, storytellers and lovers of all kinds” Kathy, you are truly one of them.

I decided today is the 1st day of spring this year because of the daffodils I received this morning. It has been raining 3 days straight in Seattle now but who cares. Let’s celebrate the arrival of spring together.

Happy Spring!

Subscribe to Blog via Email

life, Personal

Merry-Go-Round Life: Sending Aloha from Seattle

February 5, 2015by have you eaten?Leave a Comment

Sometimes it happens. Your gut is telling you to do something right now. That was me in April 2010. I moved back from Atlanta, GA in November, 2009 with all these boxes and mental baggage. All of a sudden, 5 months later, I felt an urge to reach out to her.

So I did. The first 2 times, she wasn’t able to answer (later I found out she was vacationing in Honolulu, HI), but she called me back. I asked if she could meet up with me for brunch and she was up for it. We had brunch on Saturday morning at Broadway Grill in Capitol Hill, Seattle. I remember I felt so relieved as soon as she gave me a BIG hug. I nearly cried from the feeling of release. The funny thing is that we worked together for a while and got along great, but we were not that close until that day.

Since then, we were lunch/brunch/movie buddies. She is one of 3 people on the earth who does not make me feel uncomfortable and insecure about speaking English in front of them (my native language is Japanese). I lost a significant person in my life in Atlanta and it had been destroying me. I was able to be honest with her about what I was going though. She listened, commented, encouraged and listened. I have a few close friends in Seattle but she was the first and probably only person I wanted to tell what the hell was going on with my life back then.

A couple of years later when I decided to move on and made a big decision about my life, what she said to me was, “I am so happy for you because now you can ride a merry-go-around.” My life had been insane like riding a roller coaster until then, now I can live a calm and quiet life with occasional exciting adventures without drama (well, most of the time) that I had longed for.

My dear friend. You made a courageous decision to move forward to find your own “Merry-Go-Round Life” filled with happiness, fun, glee and joy but without obligations and dramas (except for Korean & Taiwanese dramas!). Whatever you choose to do, I promise I will always be your biggest supporter and be here for you. Thank you for being such a great friend and never giving up on me. I am forever grateful.

Now you go get it, girl.

Subscribe to Blog via Email

personal view, quote

$12,690 vs. $0

January 26, 2015January 26, 2015by have you eaten?2 Comments

Luxury. What does that mean to me, I wondered when I saw this quote Sunday morning.

“Luxury to me is not about buying expensive things; It’s about living in a way where you appreciate things”

We have been lucky to have a warm winter in Seattle this year. It was sunny and spring like yesterday.

When I took my slightly overweight Chihuahua, Ginger to do her business early in the morning, I noticed it was such a gratifying morning. Air was clean and slightly wet from last night’s rain and ocean nearby. I inhaled big this air as if I was filling my whole body with freshness of winter morning. Then all of a sudden, I heard something humming. I thought it was a bee at first but it sounded a little louder than a bee.

I realized that was a humming bird hovering and humming away right in front of me for good 5 seconds. I was not moving and probably I was not breathing because I didn’t want this pretty bird to go away. She (the bird looked like she) was holding one bright pink petal of winter camellia, which is one of my favorite flower. It felt like she was trying to tell me to take a moment once in a while and just BE.

This is exactly what luxury is all about to me. The beautiful humming bird brought such a quiet yet strong message yesterday. By the way, above quote is by Oscar De La Renta, high-end couture fashion designer. The most expensive dress of his you can buy online is $12,690. However, like he said, you can find your own luxury, whatever that may be, when you choose, you don’t even have to pay a penny.

Subscribe to Blog via Email

cooking, food

Color of Saffron: STAUB 22cm

January 24, 2015by have you eaten?Leave a Comment

I don’t like shopping really. No, let me rephrase that. I do not like shopping except for books, grocery and kitchen tools.

Yesterday, this little but heavy box arrived at my cube at work. I tried so hard not to show my excitement. But it was really hard, Oh My God. It was my Staub pot! When I decided I was going to get rid of all tools, pots and pans that I was not in love with last year, I especially started to invest in pots and pans. I contemplated for a LONG time, like 8 months. Which one was better for me to get, Staub or Le Creuset (I am a thinker, what can I say)? Finally I decided to get Staub and my first pot was Grenadine Round Cocotte 28cm. It was a significant decision and I enjoy cooking even more because of Staub. It is cast iron pot and it is heavy but what I love about this pot is the lid. The lid closes very tightly and steams inside really well with small amount of water. Let’s say you are cooking winter vegetables, it usually takes a long time to cook them because they tend to be dense. Because of the tight lid closure, it cooks with small amount of water, which means that it cooks with water that vegetables contain, therefore it has a stronger flavor. Also these dimples in the lid. Whoever thought about these is genius. My hat’s off to that genius. Here is why. Those dimples circulates water inside of pot and has a basting effect.

I do have an emotional connection to this series. This my 3rd Staub and this is just gorgeous. There are so many things I want to cook. This a damn good problem to have.

books, coffee, movies

Liberal Arts: Worth Every Penny

January 23, 2015by have you eaten?4 Comments

If you are a book nerd, this is a great place to fall in love with another book nerd. http://acornbookshop.com/Acorn_LibartsMovie.html

Below is my favorite movie dialogue from “Liberal Arts” I thought that creators of this movie examined inside my head. This movie is full of stuff that I love about life such as coffee, books, travel, and music.

Ana: I love books. I do, in like, the dorkiest way possible.

Jesse Fisher: Oh, me too. It’s a problem.

Ana: Like, I love trees cause they give us books.

Jesse Fisher: super cool of the trees to do that, Right?

Ana: I’m actually… this is weird. I’m actually trying to read less.

Jesse Fisher: Why?

Ana: I felt like I wasn’t watching enough television. No, l just started to feel like reading about life was taking time away from actually living life, so I’m trying to, like, accept invitations to things, say “hi” to the world a little more.

Jesse Fisher: That sounds scary. It’s going well?

Ana: It’s… okay. I keep thinking I’d be so much happier in bed with a book, and that makes me feel not super cool. I still read tons. I just feel like I’m more aware of a book’s limitations. Does that make sense?

Jesse Fisher: Yeah, totally.

P.S. This is me as well, especially #11. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/beth-bartlett/youre-a-book-nerd-if_b_5374605.html

Subscribe to Blog via Email

coffee, starbucks

Coffee Fixes Everything?: Starbucks Reserve® Sumatra Peaberry Lake Toba does

January 22, 2015January 22, 2015by have you eaten?Leave a Comment

My morning was interesting. Well, it was not interesting, it was actually bitter start.

Coffee. Yes, coffee is needed for this kind or morning or any kind of morning. Our office building has a few Clover® machines. The very first thing I do every morning is to go to 9^th floor and make myself a delightful cup of coffee. No sugar or milk is added in order to taste pure whole beans. One of perks of working on a coffee team for a coffee company is the opportunity to taste millions of different coffees. My favorite is Starbucks Reserve® Ethiopia Sun-Dried Yirgacheffe™ because this coffee gives you BAM!! blueberry smell when you open the bag and nice semi-sweet chocolate flavor. What a romantic combination.

Anyway, Starbucks Reserve® Sumatra Peaberry Lake Toba, I detected light acidity in the back of my tongue and very mild and smooth bitterness spread in my mouth slowly. This coffee also has a bright fruity note and some sort of herbal note. I was trying to think of a good description and finally figured it out. It is green apple (!) for fruity flavor and cedar wood for herbal note. This is such a charming combination of note and flavor. Sumatra Peaberry Lake Toba has juicy entry and silky/smooth finish even though beans from Sumatra are very bold, almost chewy. Because of the chewiness and density, I usually do not like Asian coffee, however, Sumatra Peaberry Lake Toba is the very first Asian coffee that I ever liked. When enjoying this coffee, I was picturing myself sitting on swing in lightly humid but comfortable morning in early summer and enjoying sunrise. I almost could see the moon fading and the sky turning from purple to deep pink to orange.

How can I carry on with the bitter morning start all day after this lovely cup of coffee. You simply don’t.

I am a firm believer of this. Coffee fixes everything.

personal view

Food for My Soul

January 21, 2015January 21, 2015by have you eaten?2 Comments

“If you strip everything away that person has, including clothes, shoes, hat, job he/she has, what kind of car, titles so forth. Family, friends, obligations, tasks, home, money, experience, past, future, I mean everything. Now take a look at person again. If you are still in love with that person, that’s the one” – unknown

I am leading a fortunate life because I do have that person.