colouring my autumn

Where did November go? It felt like the chilly winds just came and swept the 11th month away. Before I knew it, the golds had turned to reds and browns, and not long after, they all came falling down.

Autumn sure was short. I guess it's true what they say; some of the best moments in life are brief. I was a little sad that I didn't get to do much autumn leaf viewing as in previous years. These few months were hectic at work; and will continue to be so into at least Q1 next year.

On the bright side, I did have some time to experiment in the kitchen. I tried making this for Ako-san's birthday, though would have loved to share it with more people. I made 2 versions - one for individual treats, and a bigger one for the group.

I call it my summer jelly cause it's just full of summer colours. I had a bit of fun with the coconut milk and had them guessing the secret ingredient!

Also had some time to host a friend from Tokyo who was here for the Kobe Marathon. I can't believe it's now entering my 3rd year being in Kobe with the marathon starting line just around the corner where I live. What a pity I'm not that into running!

Still, this bouquet made for some cheer despite the colds. Am thankful for little blessings such as these.

christmas chutney

Since I would be going home end of the year, it was a good excuse to clear the larder of anything that had expired was about to expire.

I realised I had this jar of Christmas Chutney with Cranberries that I had meant to enjoy when I had friends over. Better to try it out myself first so that I know if guests would enjoy it.

Initially I thought I had enough ingredients to last me 2 meals, so I kept the remainder aside. However, the mashed potatoes I made tasted so good I decided to go for another serving of everything.

I think I'm slowly gaining some of my appetite back, thanks to some sparks of creativity and God-sent goodies.

muffin in my mug

Since October had been rather busy with yakiniku weekends and long hours at work resulting in me eating lots of konbini food, I thought I had lost all desire to cook. The only new thing I "created" was this mug muffin.

Just 1 egg and all you need is a microwave oven and a mug large enough to hold your muffin. As Elaine's son would say, "easy peasy lemon squeezy".

rustling already

It's officially autumn. Though the top momiji viewing spots should now be reaching their peak with visitors jostling for the best angle and spot, the temperature feels like it's moving towards winter too soon.

Too many things have happened the past 6 months; I hope I can find some breather before the year ends. I'm still trying to figure some things out, hoping that at least some lessons learnt is the least I'd get even if no answers are forthcoming.

grilled meat no more?

I realised I've been having too much grilled stuff last month.

A rather romantic date with Dora after attending the Greg Miller Messengers' workshop in South Osaka. The samgyeopsal set looked so good we braved the outdoor chill to enjoy this.

My first time joining some of the guys from the IT department on their annual BBQ trip at Awaji Island. Though its already autumn, they still wanted to do BBQ outdoors, fishing and fireworks.

We had a surprise visitor in the form of Natthapong, a long lost Thai friend-colleague. Quite a lethal combination having the Thai, Korean and Japanese-Korean who all can drink.

October was kinda sad because I had to say goodbye to 3 friend-colleagues. It felt like I was just getting along pretty well with Kaga, Chyn and Li, and wish we could spend more time together.

Anyways, no more BBQ/yakiniku until 2015! (I wonder if my wish to detox might be overridden by the yummylicious grilled meat in the cold days to come)

cupful of vege

My cup overflows. I have enough organic vegetables to last me for months. Plus a little reminder of the Tohoku trip.

Though it had been tough months ago, things have been looking much better recently. They will never be perfect; and though some things can never be explained nor fully resolved, maybe it's okay. There is much to be thankful for; much more to do, and certainly the journey has its ups and downs. Maybe I don't have to understand; but I guess that's why life is interesting.

not wasted

Thanks to Lee Sin, I had the opportunity to catch John Piper's session at the Love Japan conference over the weekend.

It's always a treat to enjoy such conferences with international speakers, whatmore one whose book I had just read.

It's funny how life turns out. I received the "Don't Waste Your Life" book as a Christmas gift about a decade ago, thinking it was an insult then. I shipped that book, along with many others, with me to Japan hoping to catch up with reading.

I'm so glad I did. I had just finished that book recently, and understood fully the value of its content. 10 years ago, I wouldn't have known the events I'd go through today that would make it timely for such a message.

million-dollar nightscape view

Though I like my new toy because of the camera, it doesn't really do a good job of taking night shots.

We went up Mount Rokko for the "Million-Dollar Nightscape View", which was really spectacular; however my gadget didn't quite capture it as expected. Maybe you should go there for yourselves, or if Kobe is too far for you, the Mount Rokko website is a great alternative.

The weather had considerably cooled down after the typhoon, so we were trying our best to enjoy the view for as long as we could. Might have been okay if not for the wind.

It was quite an impromptu trip, with us renting a car and not really knowing which direction to head to. Still, it was fun being up in the mountains. Can't say I'm bored of mountains yet!