12 Days in Japan

Between the 13th and 25th of September, John and I were in Japan with a couple of our friends. With "a couple" I literally mean two people. During our twelve days we visited three cities and all the touristy-places there is. With that much to tell, I figured I will write several posts about this trip.

One Memory, Two Emotions

It is interesting when one memory can be great for one person, and terrible for another, though it is still the same moment, same memory. Memories change and we change what we feel about them, maybe because after years we can finally understand what was said, what happened, what we felt. I share one of these with my father - a memory in which he finds joy but all I feel is sadness.

It is not Hard once you have Decided

I made a choice on the thirteenth of August, the day before I turned twenty three. It was time to do it and I have not had any regrets so far! Though, as far as my stomach goes, I have had some troubles that are new and I do not know how to fix them. This is definitely a "click-bait" short for this post, but in this day and age it is allowed!

Reasons to Volunteer

During Thursday afternoon and into the evening I spent a couple of hours at The Cat Museum here in Singapore. There was a lot of visitors, but unfortunately only a handfull of volunteers. Once school started, many who volunteered during the summer left. Though I had lots to do, I talked to a British family who reminded me why The Cat Museum is great.

Think Green Singapore!

Singapore is known for its Super trees. This is what people think about when Singapore is mentioned. The view from Marina Bay, the Super Trees with the "ship" on top of three skyscrapers. It is a symbol of environmental thinking, the "future" of green energy. Though I really like the trees and what they stand for, Singapore's population is not as environmental as one would think.

Understanding The International

Recently The Dota 2 International was held in Seattle. Millions of dollars in the price pool, thousands seated in Key Arena, and the rest of the world behind staring at screens in their homes, watching everything play out live. Two years ago I understood little of what was happening - but with time and an unexpected Blizzard game I learned something new!

Carpet Working

I came home half past two last night, which is the latest I have come home in a very long time. Ash was managing an event and needed help, so I did. It was great fun and I walked away with more experience than I had before. Every opportunity I get to learn something new, I take!

A Normal Day Birthday

I turned twenty three yesterday. It was a good birthday, felt like any other day but better. Which is just what I was looking for! John usually takes me to places on the actual day, but this year we are going to Japan in September, and so that is my birthday-present (as well as his). Instead of something grand, we met up in Holland Village and ate at a restaurant we both love.

Two Days Left

It is nearing that time of the year again - a birthday. More specifically... mine! I am not a big fan of birthdays. There are plenty of reasons why, but I do not want to make this depressing. Let me just say that receiving gifts and having people walk around me trying to make my day makes me uncomfortable. I do not like being in the spotlight unless I choose to be in it. Yet ever since I met John he has managed to make my birthdays into days I truly enjoy.

First Sell Carousell

I have a website recommendation in mind, but I can not recommend it before I have tried it out fully. But on the other hand, I would like to do some commercial/shout out for myself! I am selling things at Carousell, which is just like ebay, amazon... blocket. Most of my items right now are books and clothes, because that is what I buy and need to make room for more. If you live in Singapore and are interested, head on to my Carousell profile!

Shouting for Japan

Saturday was a long day. We got so many things done that Sunday flew by with nothing done at all. I guess that is how we spend our weekends - one day doing things, the other doing nothing. It is functional. Highly recommend. It is nice especially since John is working five days a week, so when weekends come I want to do things with him and he wants to do nothing. Works out quite perfect!

Shopback - website recommendation

I have been thinking and changing my choice of websites to recommend. At first I thought I would recommend websites for Singaporeans, since this is where I live currently and these websites are (mostly) only usable in Singapore. Then I thought again and now I have decided to change to whom these recommendations are aimed at. Instead of Singaporeans, these website recommendations are aimed at expats who are new in the country or have lived here a long time to did not know about these sites.

First I want to recommend Shopback!

Mobile Space

It is Thursday again and as you may know by now I will go to The Cat Museum to volunteered during the opening hours. Though I might write about it tomorrow, if anything special actually happen, I will not write about it today. Instead I will share three of my absolute favourite mobile backgrounds. These photos are all space related, because space is beautiful.

Cheering Cherry!

There has been a lack of posts on this blog lately. One can say I have been in a trench, if that is an expression used by other people than me. I will try and be better, try and write more about thoughts and discoveries and not just what I do during a day. It feels like that will be more interesting. At least that is what I think!

City Kitty Comeback

The two previous Thursdays I have been too unwell to help out at The Cat museum. Yesterday I went back, feeling like I had been away from school for two weeks and was about to return. Would they remember me? Would they question me? Am I the only one thinking these questions in similar situations? 

My Lady Jane - book review

I just finished reading My Lady Jane by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton and Jodi Meadows. It is a five hundred pages long book, but does not take very long to get through. This review will contain spoilers, but I also write spoiler-free reviews on my Goodreads page!

To read the spoiler-free review, click here.

To Orchard Us Two

July has not been a great month for me. This is obvious to people reading my blog, since with one week left of the month I have not even managed to write ten posts. There has been things to write about, but no energy to do so. For two weeks I have not been feeling well and thus have been indoors most of the time. Two weeks is a half month, it is a long time. I am only just now getting back on my feet.

Act Well and Keep It Secret

It was our friend Steve's birthday on Friday. Ash and Steve came over to hang out and celebrate after everything was done that day. It was just the four of us on Friday and they both stayed the night, so we had Saturday too! Though in the evening we had a little surprise for Steve...

An Hour a Friend

Strange thing happened today. I think I made a friend. It was the most unexpected way and I am still unsure what was really said, but it is a story... and a good one! Let me tell you what it was and you can see for yourself if it is odd.

New Recommendations

Ever since I compiled my App Recommendation List into one post I have felt done with recommending apps. Though since then I have found new gaming apps that I really like and will perhaps do recommendations on in the future. For now I have decided to do a new recommendation series - websites!

There are a lot of websites out there in the World Wild Web... World Wide Web. Some you stumble upon to stay a few minutes and once they have been shut down will be forever forgotten. Other you revisit daily, perhaps even hourly. I have found some that I always have up in a tab so I will never forget them. They all serve me a purpose and because they do, I felt I could share them with my readers.

I will start of with another post for the first website I recommend. As before I will try and do one a month, maybe even two since I already have so many in line. Last time I was almost up in a year of recommendations. We will see for how long this will go on!

If you find a recommended website that you like or have another website that is similar to the one I recommend, feel free to comment about it. I am always on the look out for new and better updated sites to use.

Dripping in the Dark

John is a night owl and even though I try and want to stay up late, once it is past midnight I get very sleepy. I think it has to do with that I can not sleep past ten in the morning. My inner clock wakes me up. It is possible to stay in bed and lay there thinking for hours, but I can not sleep. So when John came in to the bedroom around three in the morning I was deeply asleep, but the dripping and his voice woke me up!

Growing Confident

Thursday was a really great day at The Cat Museum. I learn so many things and I can feel myself growing more confident every time. The cats are all getting used to me and I can tell some of them even recognise me. It is really an amazing experience to work there!

Burning Barbecue

We ended last week with a barbecue at The Minton. The Minton is a condominium, much like d'Leedon where we live. John's colleague Elson lived there and had invited a bunch of friends to a long lived feast.

Fucking Bunnies

Our good friend Dawn invited us to go see a short movie her long time acquaintance had written and starred in. We knew nothing more about the movie than the name: Fucking Bunnies. It was screened at a place called The Projector, known for its high prices and hipster setting. I had never been there, John had but in another part of the building.

Triumphant Volunteer

Another day at The Cat Museum. John and I discussed if it is still called "my job" even if I do not get paid. We both agreed it is still work, since it is voluntary work. I do enjoy going there every week; the cats are lovely and most of the costumers are friendly. I have gotten to know some of other volunteers and are making new friends.

Sleepy Four Days

John has been home for four days! I have missed him a lot, but I think his jetlag is contagious. Since Monday I have been so tired, both of us went to bed at ten o'clock last night. That said, you will understand that not much has happened during these days. We went out to have dinner at a restaurant yesterday, but after eating John almost fell asleep at the table!

Gift Giving Give Up

Rain in Singapore can really keep one from going outside. This was the case of today and it was not only stopping me from going, it was also stopping Ash. We were supposed to meet at Nex by twelve thirty, but the weather was so bad that even going the few meters to the stations was impossible. Eventually we figured it out!

Not Caring is Relieving

Yesterday I was talking with Annika, my boyfriend's mom (is it okay to call her my mother-in-law even though John and I are not married? I do it anyway.) and we talked about getting a tan. More as in... why I still do not have one.

Why I would be a good candidate to live on Mars!

This might be misleading as I am mostly talking about seasons; why I dislike them for various reasons (unexpected rhyme), but at the end of this post there is a paragraph about why I would like to live on Mars. Do not skip ahead though! You will miss the why...

App Recommendation List

From June 2016 to April 2017 I made an app recommendation series. I tried to make one every month, but I only made nine out of the eleven I had planned. Half of them are games, and the other half have mixed use. Click read more to see the complete list with links to the individual posts.

Potato Movie

Ash and Dawn came over yesterday for dinner and a movie. I really enjoy hanging out with those two, but their choice of movies are not the best in my opinion. They both really like horror movies, the kind that leaves me laying awake in bed long after they have left. Though last night we decided on a chick-flick...

Much Needed Hug

Last week Ash and I had a small dispute, where I was totally in the wrong and Ash had every right to be angry. After an explanation and apology over text, as modern people do these days, we made plans to meet today at Nex.

John turned Cat

E3 is happening in Los Angeles next week and John will be there. This means he will be gone for two weeks, along with some of his colleagues. One of them has a cat and I am cat-sitting during the time he is gone. Before he arrived to stay we had two cat-dates to make sure they could get along, but now he is here.

Thursday Duty

It was a long day Thursday. Between leaving the condo and getting down to the cool underground subway-station, I was soaking in sweat. During "winter" in this tropical country I forgot summers are even warmer! When it is thirty-two degrees, it feels like forty. But I am not complaining! I am enjoying the heat.

A Quick Catch-up

I have not been posting anything new here as frequently as I wish. A haunting headache while being social is not a great combo. When alone, with John still around, I was resting or fast asleep. Here is a long post about what has happened since Friday.

Met Vet

We took Ymir to PetsAvenue today for his second dose of Feline Rhinotracheitis-Calici-Panleukopenia-Chlamydia Psittaci Vaccine. It really rolls off the tongue. While there the vet checked other things as well and we ended up buying two expensive products again.

Food, Books and Cats

Third times a charm, right? This time at The Cat Museum was the best so far, and the busiest. I had a great time with the other volunteers and the cats were so playful. Though I need to stop buying books every Thursday, or else I am going to end up like a library.

Mushroom Kingdom Chronicle

Last week I wrote a guest-chronicle for a Swedish gaming website called Svampriket.se. I wanted to post it on my blog as well, but since I know most of my readers do not understand my native tongue I asked if I could translate it. Permission granted. To see the original text, follow this link. Reading it in Swedish is a lot better than English, so I recommend it if you do understand the language. As for you English-speakers out there, continue reading this post.

B-Day BBQ

One of John's colleagues turned 32 recently. John was invited to his birthday barbecue and I came along as his plus one. Some of the other guests I knew from previous gatherings and such, but most were complete strangers.

Sushi Cats

On Thursday it was the second time I volunteered at The Cat Museum. Seeing as I needed to be there half past three, I thought I would have a late sushi lunch at Bugis. I have been a bad friend as of late, so I invited Dawn to join me.

Recap & Thoughts on Guardians of the Galaxy vol. 2

I am so disappointed in this movie! The first movie was great with original characters and interesting plot, but this... The plot seemed to waver and the introduction of new characters felt unused. Though I enjoyed a continuation of Star-Lord's story, I did not like where it was going.

Spoilers ahead.

Two Catsteps

It was a first time twice today for our young maine coon Ymir. Some things are just for the cat interested to read, this post is one of them. Sensitive readers wary of bodily fluids will be advised not to read any further.

Hawker Ramen

John has been really busy working all week, having a daily workshop with people flown in from around the world. I do not know much more, since it is all very secretive, but at least I knew he would not be home for dinner most of the nights.

First Day Volunteering

I was at The Cat Museum yesterday for my first day as a volunteer. Being on a LTVP here in Singapore I am not allowed to work, but I can volunteer. Thus I searched for options and found this well-known shelter. I grew up with two cats and spent some time at a shelter where I grew up, helping out in a similar way I was instructed to at TCM.

Go Buy Groceries Yourself

For some reason, I do not learn. There are so many times now that I have stupidly decided to walk to the store on a bright, sunny day at noon. I believe this is an old habit from Sweden, since there was never really a problem there. In Singapore, however, the sun is scorching at noon and one pale Nordic person might get burned.

Become a colonist of Mars!

Paradox Interactive announced a new game the other day called, as you may well have guessed, Surviving Mars. Being a space junkie, I was immediately intrigued.

O'bye!

Today I am both sad and happy to have come to the end of a long consumption of a dear product. O'boy. This morning I had a big glass of milk, filled with the chocolate powder I have so long loved, and it was the last glass of O'boy I will ever have. Better leave the product to linger as a great memory instead of slowly ruining it by keeping up the habit.

Alien: Covenant - movie review

Being a fan of the Alien movies made me believe I would enjoy this movie much more than I did! There were some moments where I completely forgot which series I was watching and other moments when I sat laughing because of the ridiculousness they try to make scary.

Minor spoilers ahead.

Cooking with Fumblefingers ep.2 - Done Delicious

It is time for another episode! This time I will give you my recipe for a very smooth and fast meal, done within forty minutes, depending on your choice of rice. I did my own marinade for the first time and, though I looked for inspiration online, I chose to mix it my way. In the end, this was the most delicious meal that I have ever made for myself!

Blood Mug Owned

I can not complain about the postal service here in Singapore. They always deliver directly to the door. If I am not home, which I usually am when I am expecting a package. When they do not get an answer though they take it to a post house. Obviously. Only the delivery-men sometimes forget to say who they are over the intercom.

Halt the Hunger

The week after my twenty eight days of diet was a disaster! The first day was girls' night and I thought I could handle it, but I could not. There were too many snacks laying around, too much wine to be offered, too much of everything I had spent almost a month avoiding. I yearned it, and I gave in! I could not stop, and so the first week continued like the first day, over and over again.

Event Horizon - movie review

Have you heard of Warhammer 40K? If so, then I highly recommend watching Event Horizon. Though it has not been an official statement, this movie is speculated to be a homage to the Warhammer universe.

Cinco de Mayo - Singaporean Version

If you are planning an event, specifically a celebration with cheap drinks, do estimate how many people will attend. Last night when we arrived a Chimichanga it was so crowded! The restaurant was a hole in the wall with few tables outside. It was ridiculous!

One Unforeseen Celebration

Holidays and celebration has never been a big part of my life. I never really enjoyed Christmas, never understood Easter, liked Halloween for a while but later lost interest since the original purpose was lost to the modern world. There are some holidays only celebrated in Sweden, or in few European countries, which I did take part in but never understood. Such as Walpurgisnacht, which was last weekend.

One Season Series

I watch a lot of series. I am a season-swallower and can re-watch a series many times if I find it interesting enough. There are a few that I can not let go off for some reason and others that I watch and then come back to after a longer period of time. I am so sad so many series are left to die after only one season, leaving the watcher, aka me, to wonder what happened in those fictional lives. Since most series end the last episode of the first season on a cliff-hanger it leaves me in so much pain not to know what happened next!