Results matching “san” from Jeanette Hada's Wellness and Happiness Blog
I've been thinking how incredibly different life has changed with the baby. I wouldn't have it any other way. It's almost frightening how much I love this tiny human. The funny thing is, before she was born, my dear friend told me that it's important to not neglect the husband when the baby arrived. It's been non-stop taking care of her that there really is no time to pay attention to Naoki or really myself these past several months. Taking a shower uninterrupted is a luxury and I'm thankful when papa is able to take Aislee for a walk while I handle a few household chores. He spends most of his free time caring for the house and garden. What's interesting and a little funny, is that after you have this cute little one with small everything and inquisitive expressions, anything that was remotely cute or appealing in your partner ceases to be...well, cute. Suddenly, the baby has taken control of all that is cute. Not even Lucky, our comedic bird, can compete.
Other observations of life with baby... Buying new clothes, shoes, makeup is no longer a necessity. It has been replaced by buying food, toys (for baby), and diapers. I wear mostly what's comfortable now. Her comfort and well-being is my top priority. So far, I've been blessed with clients who are baby-friendly. She comes with me everywhere -- even to tour properties.
I never thought becoming a mother would incur so many changes. The pressure cooker Naoki purchased is a lifesaver. It makes healthy baby food in minutes! I'll try chubbing Aislee up with avocados, sweet potatos, and bananas. She loves Japanese pumpkin, kabocha, which cooks beautifully in the pressure cooker. I add a little cinnamon sometimes. She seems to enjoy it.
Finding time to eat for myself has been difficult while juggling caring for the baby and working. Making sandwiches enables me to eat and have a free hand while eating. My current addiction is Trader Joe's Garlic Cheddar Sourdough toasted and smothered with avocado on one side and thinly sliced cucumbers and cream cheese. Sometimes I'll slather raspberry jam and a savory speadable cheese on the same bread which is super good as well.
Ok, time for us to move to the Sun Room to sleep. This is where we now have our bedroom. The Star Room is our library/office, the Moon Room is also an office (that's in serious need of cleaning). I work in the Fire Room most of the time and the Sky Room (aka the dining room is used for gatherings. We'll be hosting Aislee's first birthday in July and hope to see some of you here at our gingerbread house.
I've really come to love this house with it's beautifully painted rooms. Naoki finished the Venetian plaster in the sun room and recently the star room. He did a wonderful job and they look wonderful and bring a warmer feeling to the house.
Life has been busy with family and business. We've been blessed in both areas. Naoki's mother and sister came for a brief nine day stay. They really enjoyed all the tasty fruit (navel oranges, pummelos, fuji apples, and oro blancos) that are in season from the farmers market in Campbell. I made a garlicky spinach pasta with fresh Meyer lemons from our yard one night. It came out very well, though I would have liked it to be spicier...recipe to follow.
In business, I feel very fortunate and again blessed to be working with so many incredible people. My listing in San Bruno thankfully sold and the seller is buying a lovely place to call home in Sacramento. Four deals have closed this year so far and with another in escrow, there is much to be appeciative for. Although the news is always painting a bleak outlook, they are usually behind in reporting how things are looking up.
Back to talking about home... We have nearly 50 fruit plants/trees in our yard now. The potatoes are sprouting in the crop circle Naoki made. The blossoms are radiant on Aislee's white peach / white nectarine tree and on the Georgia Peach tree we adopted from a home in Palo Alto. I'm looking forward to making fruit pies if the fat squirrels don't get to them first.
The old avocado tree that came with this house bears California Diablo avocados. They're smoother and creamier than Hass and have a thinner skin. They take two weeks to ripen once picked from the tree. Hopefully we'll have more growing as I love avocado sandwiches on toasted bread with Japanese mayonnaise (Kewpie brand) and slices of cold cucumber! So good!! I could go off on a tangent when it comes to avocados... Actually it looks like I did.
Ok, on to the pasta recipe -
Boil your preferred pasta al dente (slightly undercooked) as you'll be adding it to another pan to mix in with the garlic lemon sauce.
1. In a large sauce pan drizzle a tablespoon of grapeseed oil (olive oil is fine too) and a pat of butter, heat on medium flame.
2. Add crushed garlic, approximately 5 - 7 cloves
3. Sprinkle a teaspoon (or more depending on your heat preference) of red pepper flakes
4. Add a few pinches of salt to meld flavors, more can be added later to adjust
5. Careful not to burn the garlic, give your mixture a few pushes around your pan.
6. Once garlic is crisp, add spinach and pasta.
7. Mix everything well til spinach is cooked, adding a touch more oil or butter as needed.
8. Finally add thinly sliced lemon wedges of one lemon or juice lemon and add it's zest.
The ones you see in this cup were a few of the last cherries, before our guests and bird, Lucky, finished them. We'll have to wait until next Spring for the new harvest. I wonder how the cherry blossoms will look.
I had a colleague share this foodie tip with me recently and internally I scoffed at it. C'mon the combination sounded to bizarre to be good; however, curiosity got the best of me after my brother said he'd tried and liked this concoction. So, yesterday after a quick stop at Whole Foods to pick up super ripe organic strawberries (good enough to eat on their own) and tub of sour cream, I ripped open that bag of light brown sugar Naoki was waiting to use for one of his breads (that's his current obsession btw). Together those three simple ingredients were absolutely delish!! I had heard that it would have a cheesecake like flavor, which I am not a fan of, but was pleasantly surprised that it was even better!
If you have a chance to try this combo, I would highly recommend it (unless you're lactose intolerant, in which case contact me for the perfect enzyme supplements).
NUTRITION INFORMATION: Per strawberry: 29 calories; 1 g fat (0 g sat, 0 g mono); 2 mg cholesterol; 6 g carbohydrate; 1 g protein; 0 g fiber; 2 mg sodium; 43 mg potassium.
1/2 Carbohydrate Serving
1. An egg salad sandwich on croissant with a dill pickle spear and avocado on the side
2. Tofu from the San Jose Tofu factory (delicious recipes here - http://www.theppk.com/)
3. My mother's spinach, cheese, and mushroom quiche - hot from the oven
4. Apple crisp with a blueberry crumble topping - also hot from the oven, ala mode!
5. Fruit salad made of cantelope, honeydew, watermelon, berries, and red flame grapes
Afterwards, I would like to...
1. Finish my crochet project before summertime
2. Curl up with a good book and hot chocolate (stirred with a cinnamon stick)
3. Surf the 'net for gifts for my friend's son's 100 day ceremony/celebration
4. ...darn, I really want that fruit salad...
5. Pay my bills, organize my tax receipts, and prepare items for donating
I'm either...
1. Dealing with severe insomnia or slept too much today
2. Getting old or well...getting older
3. Pregnant having horrible food cravings and have messed up my sleep schedule or ?
4. Delirious from lack of sleep or spending too much mind numbing time at the computer
5. Finding an excuse to write something on my blog or killing time.
Wouldn't it be lovely to have a 24 hour delivery service that caters to people's late night cravings? They'd have access to books, movies (though we can practically find everything online these days), healthy midnight snacks or other food items, clothing/shoes/accessories (just in case), etc.
It would cost a low monthly fee to use different levels of the service...and well, I just wish I could order an egg salad sandwich right now.
For dinner we had yummy tempura zucchini with a soy-vinegar dipping sauce, and braised portabello mushrooms that were marinated to perfection. As our main course, we had tofu steaks that had pretty little heaps of mashed potato, crisp greens, and grilled sweet onions. Served on the side was a garden fresh mix of salad with juicy citrus and crisp pears. A deep purple, sticky sweet rice was also served. Everything was absolutely tasty and you could tell cooked with care.
We moved to the sitting area for a cup of light flavored chamomile tea from Korea and special treats prepared by my girlfriend. More crisp Asian pears and sweet oranges served with tiny whale toothpicks added just the right sweetness, and to make it even more perfect, she prepared a cake that wasn't too sweet and had bits of pistachios that added crunch and a complimenting flavor. See recipe below...
2 cups of sweetrice cake powder
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I hadn't seen my friend in two years, so this get-together was a very special one. It was our first time meeting her absolutely charming, talented and interesting husband. It was a blessing to meet a couple that pair together so well. Both are musically inclined, share a passion for traveling and fine food, as well as seem to be very in love with each other (after being together for 10 years).
~ pictures to follow at http://jeanette.hada.us
Sunday was an interesting and relaxing day. I had the pleasure of catching the last day of Camille Rose Garcia's exhibit at the San Jose Museum of Art. Her stunning art is a vibrant display of sparkles and intense color.
I've never seen fireworks as breathtaking as the ones in Japan!! Please be amazed at my remarkable picture taken with my low-res camera phone...
Tuesday and Thursday evenings were spent watching the summer hanabi/fireworks show in two different locations by the river. We had the best seats that gave us an upclose view right near the launch pad. Fiery ash and debris rained downed upon us and those unfortunate enough not to wear glasses got an eye full of soot. Naoki's camera equipment has scorch marks and we both sustained a few burns. There were also a variety of flying/biting creature near the water. Luckily I had a paddle fan to swat and smash with.
Since our business meeting was rescheduled for Saturday, we set out to visit some local shrines in Ise, which is approximately an hour and a half away. All together we went to three different places and walked through lush green gardens that have over a thousand years of history. The crown prince of Japan was set to visit the following day so the shrines were exceptionally clean and in order.
The first place was hidden within the city and appeared to be well kept. Naoki informed me that they move and rebuild the shrines at the particular place every 20 years as the gods tend to get bored of staying in one place. To me, I guess any change after two decades in one place would be good.
The second location we went to next was my favorite. It was so vast and had a river running through it. To enter, a long wide wooden bridge needs to be crossed and lengthy pebbled walkways surrounded by trees and foliage of various hues of green shaded lead you to each god's shrine. When you approach, you make an offering (a coin or paper money will do), bow two times, clap twice, then give your thanks. Oh, I almost forgot. Every entrance to a shrine has a well or fountain with ladles to cleanse your hands (some people also use the water to rinse their mouths) before entering. Aside from the amazing scenery, I loved that this place was next to a shopping area. We had a delicious lunch (see photo) of marinated tuna over rice, a smoky flavored miso, cold noodle w/ half cooked egg (somen), pickled daikon, and a tiny seasoned tofu patty, scallop, and what appeared to be a small purse of tofu stuffed with mushrooms and vegetables. Yes, all of it was super delicious!
Our third place to visit was a shrine for a moon god. I'm not sure what that exactly means, but this was a very hidden location. Due to the overcast weather conditions, it was really dark and difficult to see. Four shrines in a row were set up. After Naoki and my in-laws attended each one, we left for home.
We just arrived in Japan yesterday after a long journey by car, plane, speedboat, and minivan!
Our first place to visit was my in-laws in Mie. My lovely mother-in-law, Misako-san, prepared a wonderful assortment of dishes of different types of sashimi, homegrown edamame (soybeans), lots of fresh vine-ripened veggies from their garden, and mixed rice loaded with yummy bits of shitake mushroom, tofu, and other greens. In addition to their green tea, they also have a huge garden of tomatoes, cucumbers, shiso (a type of basil), grapes, and much more.
For breakfast this morning, we had grilled mochi (rice cakes) wrapped in seaweed, miso (w/tofu, seaweed, and more mushrooms), fishcake stuffed with cucumber, and more melon and white peaches...yum!
A friend of mine sent a "Funky Sock Exchange" letter to me a few weeks ago. It was reminscent of the "Dish Towel Exchange" many of our mothers did during the 70's and 80's. Similar to a chain letter without the threat of bad luck, death, or involving money of any sort, this exchange, should someone decide to participate (optional, of course) would yield 36 pairs of funky socks from all over the place within a few weeks.
So far I've received two pairs of socks - one from San Antonio, Texas and another from San Ramon, California. This is the first time I've ever participated in one of these and it's been surprisingly fun!
If you'd like to participate, please send me an email at jeanette337 at gmail.com. Please keep in mind that funky is meant to mean "cool" or "stylish", not foul in odor.
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funky
adjective
1. offensively malodorous; "a foul odor"; "the kitchen smelled really funky" [syn: fetid]
2. (of jazz) having the soulful feeling of early blues
3. stylish and modern in an unconventional way; "she likes funky clothes"; "we did it all in black and white in a very funky sixties style"
4. in a state of cowardly fright
This is "omurice" (Japanese-style omelette rice topped with demiglace sauce) from Clover Bakery in San Jose.
Last night I found two teabags of my favorite organic mulberry tea and enjoyed it alongside my pastries filled with spicy fish roe (mentaiko) this afternoon. The flavors brought back memories of our travels to Taiwan and Japan two years ago. Taipei is where I purchased this wonderful tea. Naoki and I often ate Japanese style pastries/bread while we were running around Japan hosting presentations and promoting our business.
Did you know that there are a number of indoor plants that can help improve the air quality of your home?
NASA, along with the Associated Landscape Contractors of America (ALCA) conducted a clean air study on plants that may provide a natural way of removing certain toxins such as benzene and formaldehyde that often come from a number of manufactured items we place in our homes and offices (carpets, mattresses, etc.). The study looked at ways these plants might be effective at neutralizing the effects of sick building syndrome (SBS).
SBS has a lengthy list of symptoms such as the following -
* Headache
* Eye, nose, or throat irritation
* Dry cough; dry or itchy skin
* Dizziness and nausea
* Difficulty in concentrating
* Fatigue
* Sensitivity to odours
* Increased incidence of asthma attacks/appearance of asthma in non-asthmatics
* Personality changes such as rage/weeping/paranoia/depression
* Putative cases of bronchitis or pneumonia which do not respond to antibiotic treatment
* Symptoms resembling Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)
This is just a shortened list of the 50 symptoms usually associated with SBS. Indoor pollution does take a toll on our immune system and overall well-being. With the recent concern over the use of ionic air filters and the issue that they may cause ozone pollution, it may be worth it to invest in plants that will not only help clean the air but make your home beautiful.
If you have pets that like to nibble on greens, please make sure you purchase safe/non-toxic plants.
Top 10 tips for new speakers and presenters
Posted by Allen Stern 02/05/2007
As you grow your web application and become successful, conferences and other venues might ask you to speak about yourself, your site and your success to their audiences. As I have sat through thousands of presentations both at work and at events, I thought I would share 10 tips for presentation effectiveness. This is not an exhaustive list but by doing these 10 things, you will absolutely increase your effectiveness of giving presentations. Some of this comes from listening/watching CEO presentations where they have only mere minutes (5-7) to get their audience engaged and excited.
Tip 1: Leave out the PowerPoint effects
This is probably the most important tip of all. Why? Because each of these effects take time and can provide severe distraction for your audience. The most recent example I have of this is at AlwaysOn in NYC when the CEO of Payperpost presented. He had 6 minutes for his presentation and clocking the effects, he lost 81 seconds waiting for the next screen to load. Are the effects cool? Sure, but leave them at home.
Tip 2: Verify your presentation works
When I give presentations, whether they are to my team, or to a large conference, I always have my presentation on multiple media formats. I am a bit over the edge but you can never be prepared enough. Just providing it to the conference planner is not enough. I usually store the presentation on a remote file server, and a usb stick drive as well. So total of 3 places including my laptop makes certain that I will always be ready. You should be ready too. Remember someone might want to ask you later about your presentation so having it locally will help afterwards.
Tip 3: Be relevant
Make sure the presentation fits the audience. If you are speaking to a group of young women entrepreneurs, tailor your presentation so they get excited. If you are speaking to young kids, don't bore them with a speech showing your service working with elderly folks. Remember that it is all about tip 4... engagement!
Tip 4: Engage the audience immediately
Two presentations at AlwaysOn did a good job of immediate engagement. Unfortunately I was unable to get the company name of the first but they used the ding-dong sound from the TV show 24 to get attendees to pay attention. Great job because when they showed the clock like on the TV show, they kept the clock accurate. 3-4 times overall for 10-15 seconds but the audience laughed and was engaged. The other presentation was from ClipSync's CEO. He brought in a story from his days playing basketball in Israel which drew in the audience. Once he moved to the discussion of his service, the person sitting next to me asked, "why did he talk about basketball, I don't get it?" So I am assuming more than just this one person didn't get it. Make sure they get it.
Tip 5: Provide multiple means for contact
Offer attendees multiple ways to contact you. Where possible stay after the presentation for on-site questions. Offer a phone number and an email address for other contacts.
I'm so excited about the opening of Nijiya here in San Jose! It will be the closest market to us that sells locally grown, organic produce, Japanese/Asian food items, delicious cooked lunch box sets, and yummy desserts!! We've been traveling to the Mountain View location to purchase their special organic brown rice and to Mitsuwa off of Saratoga Avenue to find other ingredients. This is so much more convenient.
Hopefully there will be other wonderful retail stores and restaurants that come to San Jose's Japantown!
After visiting a handful of properties, it's apparent more than ever, that it's necessary to view the property in person and not make judgements based on the images posted on the MLS. Listing agents are either getting better at angling their shots or using Photoshop really well. I have a few friends also looking to purchase homes, some even for the first time.
One of the benefits of working with a friend who's a realtor and understands the finance side of the purchase is she's upfront about the difference between affording and qualifying. Property tax, maintenance, utilities, and other general living expenses, plus having enough to invest in either other ventures or the market allows us to expand our portfolio and make more investments.
I've watched "The Secret" DVD three times now (actually 2.5 times - the first time was on our Alaskan cruise in their theatre. I'd fallen asleep after staying up late one too many nights in a row.) Every time I've watched it, I've come away with something new. All of it good in my opinion.
This documentary-style movie stirred up a lot of buzz within our group of friends, colleagues and also online with many of the Yahoo Groups I'm a part of. If you haven't seen it yet, it's something I would highly recommend be watched to my family and friends.
If you live nearby me (in San Jose, California) and are interested in watching it, please let me know. You can also go online and view it yourself for $4.95 at http://www.theSecret.tv or purchase it via that site or at Amazon.