First Snow

Yipee!  Thus begin the countdown to the start of the snowboarding season!!

We are SO ready for it!!

Haul from Lisa's Cosmetic Warehouse Sale

Freebie from Clinique :)

 

I got a little postcard in the mail from the Bay inviting me for a free consultation and a little something to practice with after they teach you how to use their product - but when I dropped by the Clinique Counter today I was told that I needed an appointment but they were fully booked for the day.  So rather than a mini-makeover where she could show me how to use this little compact, the sales lady offered to let me walk away with the eyeshadow palette without having to sit through the sales pitch -

 There were 2 colorways to choose from but the neutral shades seemed to be too bland and would probably look better on someone with a cooler undertone - whereas this combination of cool colors would probably work better on my warm undertone.  I love the way they have little labels below the shade to suggest where on the eyelid the color should be placed.  I don't know if I will make any use of it though - I do have quite a few eyeshadow palettes that I am using with similar shades, so maybe it'll get passed on to someone who would get more fun out of it. 

MMA!!

I've heard so many friends and friends of friends starting to do MMA that I had been entertaining the idea of trying it out.  Although I'm not a big fan of pain and bruises (like the ones I see on my dear friend Diana who started about 3 months ago), I liked the fact that it's a good work-out that shows quick results - everyone I knew doing MMA had lost a lot of weight and got really toned in virtually no time at all.  So when a co-worker told me about the gym he goes to around the corner from work, I was excited to check it out.

I thought I was only going to observe, but ended up participating -  I  learned quite a few other things from this experience: 1. jumping rope is much harder than what I remembered doing as a kid and much much harder than it looks.  2. Kicking and punching is so much more fun when you make contact - the Wii variety of air-punching just won't cut it anymore.  3. Going back to work covered in sweat is definitely not an enjoyable experience - and it makes you all the more self-conscious when others walk by.  4.  The pain and the soreness that comes with strenuous exercise hits long after the workout is done.  But all-in-all, I'm proud to say that I had survived my first MMA class!

Goodies from Mish

Can't wait to try them out - especially the hair mask and the smokey eyeshadow palette!!

 

Time to get off the couch and start moving yeah!

Couple of weeks ago we took advantage of bonus Optimum points plus instant rebate in the form of a Shopper's Drug Mart gift card to bring home the XBOX Kinect bundle - and now it's all set up and ready to go!

So far my favorite is still the adventure game that came with the console - especially the obstacle course you cruise through on a platform where you have to jump over and duck down bars among other things.  Can't wait to try out other Kinect games!

Experimenting with FlavorWave Oven: Grilled Eggplants

A while back, B's mom insisted on getting a FlavorWave Oven - and that was before she heard about it from Mr. T - and I'd have to be honest that I was more than doubtful at first.  To the point that I had bet on the ridiculous-looking device not being used more than twice.  Boy was I wrong.  This thing turned out to be the handiest addition to his kitchen yet.  Wings on the grill are done within 20 minutes, and even kalbi (Korean-style beef ribs) turned out perfectly using a steam rack that let the fat drip off and gave the ribs grill marks.  Using it as a baking oven, however, was a hit-and-miss.  The middle burns too easily while the outer edges don't get cooked as much - and we found that puff pastry simply won't puff up in it.  Roasting chicken drumsticks in a casserole dish charred the top but left the bottom uncooked.  But basically anything you can throw on the BBQ grill, you can throw it in this oven and it will get the job done.

My latest experiment stemmed from a sudden craving for Japanese-style grilled eggplants.  This is how I tried to recreate the wonderful sweet and savory taste and tender, melt-in-your-mouth texture of my favorite veggie dish at Sushi Hour:

Wash Chinese eggplants (they are longer and skinnier than the kind you see in Italian cuisine) and remove stem.  Cut into half length-wise then into shorter chunks.  Rub surface with minced garlic with a bit vegetable oil to prevent browning.  Arrange in a single layer on a steamer rack.

Stick the steamer rack into the FlavorWave Oven, eggplants and all.

Set timer to 15 minutes and temperature to 350F.  Then sit back and let it work its magic.

When the eggplant is almost done (and when you are no longer amused by the light and how it's cooking your food), chop up a stalk of green onion to start making the sauce.

Over medium heat, add about 2 tablespoonfuls of vegetable oil to a heated wok, and when it starts to bubble around the chopstick you stick in the oil, add some minced garlic, a teaspoon or so white sugar and the chopped green onion.  Sautee the green onion for a minute.  Then remove from heat and add 2 tablespoonfuls soya sauce.

  
Take out the roasted eggplant and arrange onto serving dish.

Pour sauce over eggplant - and you're ready for a great veggie dish that goes great with rice!

cheer UP!

there's always room for....

...ice cream!  And REAL ice cream, at that - not the "frozen dessert" crap they try to pass off as ice cream.  This Breyers Double Churn Extra Creamy Real Ice Cream here met, if not exceeded, our expectations and even converted a die-hard Häagen-Dazs fan.  The intense chocolate flavor and velvety smooth texture got us wanting more despite the drop in temperature.

I bet it'll be good too with some Bailey's drizzled on top!

yikes... not again!!

What is with my bad luck with cars this year... is it a sign that I shouldn't be driving anymore??  Oh wait - this time, my car got hit when I wasn't even in the car!!  And my poor baby just got all fixed up in June when some woman drove into my car when she turned left and left a huge dent on the door and scratched the whole left side.  Who then tried to blame it on me for trying to run a light (I don't ever recall it being a crime to keep going under a green light...)

This guy here in the parking lot today backed into the back of my car and left a crack just behind the wheel on the bumper and a scratch on the quarter panel just below the fuel intake - then tried to brush it off and said it's just my car being dirty.  Good thing my co-worker was just looking out the window and caught him before he could take off - otherwise I'd be at a loss.  I don't really know what to do though - would it be worthwhile to get my car fixed again?

moose's pick

Raspberry tart-like cookies that are perfect with a cup of tea.

Green Onion Pancake

moose diaries is 2 years old!

How fitting it is, then, to celebrate my diligence in the latest endeavor to regularly keep record of my life (in case my memories fail, which happens quite often) with a new template!

I was just curious what the new templates were like after seeing a fabulous manifestation of it on Michelle's blog (my first attempt to apply a new template a while back caused problems with older posts) but when I saw this background I knew this had to be IT.  It's reminiscent of my snowboard - the Burton Feather - and guess what?  It also looks like the background I have on my Nexus S!  (Well, I guess I did choose my phone's background because it reminded me of my snowboard...)  Whatever the reason, I'm lovin' it!