A few of my favorite things...

-Los Angeles Arboretum: I forgot how much I love visiting the arboretum.  A recent visit reminded me and  immediately I bought a season pass.
-Fantastic Mr. Fox: If you haven't seen it...go now and do so.  You won't regret it!
-Hiking at Fryman Canyon: Best way to spend an hour in LA.
-lunch at Vegan Plate: Their soy chicken tastes so much like chicken, I can't really tell the difference.  Love it so much!
-Samantha Mathis:  You know that game, "who would play you in your biopic?"  Well Samantha Mathis would play me.  She's just a badass.  And I gave her directions on the Disney lot the other day, and I love that she left me a tiny bit starstruck.
-Corkbar: because chef Albert totally rocks AND they have the best grilled cheese sandwiches in ALL of LA.  Swear to GOD!
-Random flavored KitKats from Japan
-Free online lectures from Yale Professors:  I'm currently taking a class on Music appreciation.  I love it!
-Breathless by Jean-Luc Godard:  I haven't seen this movie in years, but its fantastic.  I've decided its time to revisit all my favorite films from film school: a reminder of why I fell in love with film isn't a bad thing.
-The Red Balloon:  Have a mentioned how much I love this movie yet?  It's 30 minutes of beauty and innocence.  A perfect film.

A few of my favorite things...

-Shaun the Sheep:  I love all the little shorts from this series.  Shaun is so cute and watching this is way better than counting sheep at night!
-Children's book illustrations:  I always find inspiration in children's books.  I often stop by the library on the weekend and load up on kid's books to look through over the upcoming week.
-Breakfast for dinner!  I was gifted some pastry dough by a chef friend, so the girls and I decided to meet up and have a breakfast for dinner party.  Bloody Mary and Mimosa station, blueberry cupcakes, farmer's market fruits and veggies, and egg and bacon empanadas.  What could possibly be more delightful?
-100 things to do before you die list (a list by some guy named Chris):  I've decided to create a new list for myself, but can't believe that the majority of the list is about visiting countries that I haven't been to yet.
-This little bit of magic made my whole morning!
-Rob Dunlavey's Crystal Cities sculpture makes me want to build my own city!
- Clogs!  While in Japan, I saw the cutest pair of clogs in Harajuku, and think its time that I considered getting a new pair...but whatever happened to that cute clog store on Fairfax?
-Hurt Locker: I think more than anything, this is a commentary on how people become conditioned to crave the insanity in their lives as a survival mechanism. Then have trouble relaxing and enjoying the quiet mundane everyday things.  Peace and quiet can sometimes be a letdown.
- Lost in Translation Blog:  Returning to Japan and seeing friends from my life in Kagawa, has left me pensive about choices I've made in my life, career, and travels.  Vivian's blog reminds me of the parts of living in Japan that I loved.  And the fact that she lives very close to my fishing village, makes it even more relatable.  Just in case you are curious, here is a link to my old blog about my life in Nio (It's best to start from the end and work chronologically to the beginning).
-Finally...my favorite picture from a shopping day in Harajuku:

A few of my favorite things from the past 2 weeks....

I've been away visiting family and friends in Tokyo and Beijing for the past 2 weeks.  Here is a list of some of my favorite things from those two fabulous cities:

-Gonpachi Sushi in Shibuya.  Apparently, this location inspired Quentin Tarantino, to create a similar setting for Kill Bill.

-Omakase at Kaikaya: By the Sea (We had the most delicious Christmas Dinner at this cute little Izakaya.  The chef is amazing and EVERY one of his choices were spot on!)

- Comiket 77: the fan-drawn manga and cosplay convention at Tokyo Big Sight was a great place to take photos...

-Sou Sou shoes (I love their modern take on the Tabi!)

-Okonomiyaki (my most favorite food from Japan!) 

- Muji!!!

-Yokohama's Ramen museum (even the mini bowls were huge!  So delicious!)

-No Man's Land exhibit in the former admin buildings of the Tokyo French Embassy.

-798 Art District in Beijing

-Napapijri's Marat down jacket (which was the perfect coat for 50 degree weather in Tokyo and 15 degree weather in Beijing...plus it folds up and fits into its left pocket!)

-Holidays spent with ALL the members of my family.  We live all over the world so its very difficult for everyone to be in the same place at the same time.  I feel very fortunate that we were able to pull it off this year.

-Lastly, now that all the gifts have been unwrapped and the paper recycled, here is an interesting list of packaging facts from Mother Jones to ponder for the next year's holiday spectacular!

A few of my favorite things from the past week....

-Caroling with Heidi at the Old Folks Home
- Driving thru the neighborhoods in South Pasadena to check out the Christmas Lights with Lauren and Heidi.
- The ability to check out the fashion trends of a neighborhood, before I go, so I can pack appropriately.
-Cynthia introduced me to her favorite version of THE NUTCRACKER, designed by Maurice Sendak.  Amazing!
-Watching Christmas movies while wrapping presents.
-Love Actually!
- TokyoMade market (like UniqueLA but in Tokyo!) looks awesome!
-Finding a restaurant for X-mas dinner that will make the whole family happy (and getting reservations!)
-Spending time with dear friends and family.

A few of my favorite things from the past week....

-"My favorite color is neon beige." (best quote from the film PRECIOUS)
-10 Reasons you should never get a job - article by Steve Pavlina (fabulously thought-provoking!)
- Scotch tasting and appreciation class with Heidi and Lauren...they let us mix our own scotch!!!
- Heidi's Office Holiday Party (a fantastic evening with a "disco cowboy theme."  See photo on right)
- Dinner parties at Hans' house (I've known him since I was a very small child and its great to have people you've known for so long in your life)
- Pho at Gingergrass (so perfect for a cold, rainy night)
-Homemade real Indian chai (recipe courtesy of my dear friend Drew, I spent a few hours on Saturday tracking down black cardamon pods!)
-Muppets Singing Christmas Carols!
-Parcel packages (I know they have been around forever, but these theme packages just make me happy!)
-Poladroid (I had forgotten how much fun it is to make my pictures look like polaroids!)

A few of my favorite things....

-Finding a pair of boots I've been coveting on the sale rack, then convincing the store to give me an additional discount because the boots were the display model!
-Game night with Ray, Kevin and Luke..(Kevin and I totally beat Ray and Luke at Sequence!)
-Luke's Zale's commercial (he's the cute boy with the sparkler!)
-Free Japanese lessons to brush up on my conversation skills before heading to Tokyo.
-John Goddard's Life List (which made me feel terribly unaccomplished, but also inspired me to revisit a life list that I wrote when I was 17.)
-Small, intimate holiday parties with some of your closest friends.
-Mary Poppins at the Ahmanson (I love that she flies over the audience at the end of the show!)
-UniqueLA's holiday craft sale. (my favorite purchase is this ring by Plastique!)
-The Princess and the Frog...I love that Disney is doing 2-D animation again.  And this story is so happy and heartwarming, I really enjoyed watching it.

Tuesday's favorite things

-Maira Kalman's NY Times Blog about slow food (I love her illustrations and whimsical way of explaining how she sees the world.)
-MI-5 (I've just discovered this fun BBC gem on Netflix, and I can't get enough of it!)
-Realizing that cruise ships aren't "your thing," but being grateful you were able to make an informed decision (and being even more grateful that you aren't still stuck on the boat!)
-House/dog sitting for 2 big dogs who LOVE long walks at night and in the morning.
-New Astrologyzone horoscope!!!
-This beautiful video from the New Zealand Book Council
-My talented friend Brooke's new website, showcasing her beautiful artwork (including a lovely piece I bought from her a year ago.)
-Babes in Toyland (I love Christmas movies...even the cheesy ones!)
-Brown paper packages tied up with string...I must begin my holiday wrapping!
-Dishing about good and bad dates, the economy, and other insane topics over gingerbread pancakes at IHOP.
-Holiday dress shopping (the invitations have begun to arrive daily!!)
-Being able to celebrate Thanksgiving with good family and friends.

Tuesday's favorite things

My favorite things from the past week:
-LA Kings (I Love Hockey!)
-MOCA
-Jessica Kagan Cushman jewelry, especial this ring:









-Accidentally On Purpose (not quite sure why I relate to this show, but I totally do!)
-Half priced Sushi lunches with Nancy J.
-Tatty Devine's new line for the holidays.
-SilverLake's new public library (so many fresh, new books available to borrow...eek! I was overwhelmed!)
-Getting back my favorite Gillian Wearing poster from the framer and finding that I love the piece more than ever! (I dropped the the frame 10 years ago, and cracked the glass, then put it in storage. I've only just now gotten around to fixing it!)

Tuesday's favorite things

-Disneyland when its decorated for the winter holidays.
-Snowfall (especially if its the faux snow at Disneyland, because it isn't as cold as the real stuff)
-Homemade carmel corn
-Acupuncture
-Good books that relate to your current situation (The Lost Girls, by Laurie Fox)
-Designing holiday cards
-Sequined black berets
-My little brother*, who makes me laugh, is super smart, and knows how to put things in perspective.
-Dearest guy friends who play along, (even if you are acting like you are stuck in High School) and do digging to find out if your crush likes you.
-Gossip Girl
-Waking up early enough to read a couple chapters of a good book.

* Artwork by Mandy Sutcliffe.  Check out her stuff and other amazing artists with free downloadable art here.

Favorite things of the week

-Annie (the John Huston film, one of my favorite movies as a kid and it still makes me smile)
-pedicures
-fabulous friends who immediately email after I send out a distressing, heartbreaking tweet
-delicious saffron and garbanzo bean soup
-forgiveness
-hotel parties in Venice Beach
-Where the Wild Things Are (both the book and movie...I love being reminded of how it felt to be 7),
-dinner with old friends
-picking oranges for Food Forward
-trying out a new restaurant
-Mama Mia (my current favorite guilty pleasure)
-Mechanics that "pay it forward" when you least expect it
-Finding a box of my favorite purses that I thought I had accidentally donated charity
-Having a crush on a cute nerdy boy and feeling like I'm back in high school

A few of my favorite things....

Sometimes I lose track of all the amazing, lovely blessings that have been bestowed upon me.  I don't mean that in a religious way, but in a "see, life is beautiful" kind of way.  So every Tuesday I will to post a list of my favorite things from the past week.... starting now:

Nottinghill (the movie), Trader Joe's Mixed Bean Salad (so delicious and its only $1.09),  Jack...the neighbor's cat that greets me some nights when I come home from work, the scent of tennis balls when you open a new can, TV stars that laugh at the joke you told while walking thru the lobby at work, Polish pottery, new gold tights, silly J-pop videos, Sunday crossword puzzles, making new friends, having heart to heart conversations with old friends, dressing up for Halloween, goat cheese with cranberry, meeting up with friends you haven't seen in years, pumpkin spiced lattes, finding a new brunch spot (the brunch at Proud Bird is insane!), cuddling under the duvet, day-light savings (or at least feeling like i get an extra hour of sleep!).