Men In Uniform

It's my day off today and I decided to run away from my apartment to hang put with the forest friends. I was checking out their bookshelf over at their place.... when do I not peruse the bookshelves of my mates lol.

I stumbled on some pretty damn interesting magazines and comics. Interesting in a good way lol. I spent some time flipping through the books while it was snowing outside. Perfect way to spend the evening if you ask me and here's one of the reasons why. Here are my 2 favorite picks for tonight.

*drumroll*

"Men In Uniform"
How awesome is that??!!?? The book has detailed descriptions and manga illustrations of the various uniforms worn by men in Japan. Army, navy, coast guard, postman, you name it, the book probably has it lol.



The description really had me laughing my ass off. Wouldn't you want to have a look at this book? I want it, I'm going to put it on my wishlist lol. Time to go to the Japanese bookstore.



I love the description on the front cover of the book. Number 2 is pretty awesome as well and it's a manga of... Policemen lol. Notice a theme going on here? In case you haven't noticed, I love men in uniform. (hot men, 2D or 3D, a hot man in a uniform is instant win)



I love the little tag on the front that says "catch me please" in Japanese. And for some extra laughs, here's the close up of the description.

So Much Drama

I've dropped off the radar for a couple of weeks, just got too busy with work. Not much fun writing about work, that and the fact I don't really want to think about work when I'm off.

As misleading as the title sounds, the answer is no. I have not found the best new drama since Winter Sonata- which I hated by the way. I was referring to my day today.

I live away from home and family- home being a tropical isle planted just above the equator. To be a little more precise, I live approximately 8000 miles away from home and family.

This being said, can anyone tell me HOW I was suddenly dragged into a misunderstanding (that was blown waaaay out of proportion) when I am EIGHT THOUSAND MILES AWAY.

Not 8 miles, not 80 or even 800.

8000 f**king miles away. If I was in the same room or even the same country when the unfortunate incident occurred, you might say I was an innocent bystander who got caught in the line of fire. How is it remotely possible for me to get drawn into this mess when I wasn't even in the same f**king continent, much less the same freaking time zone. There's a 16 hour difference! I was ASLEEP when the molehill exploded into a mountain. F**k, it wasn't even an explosion, entire suns and universes were created in that big bang.

Come on people, I don't care if he said or she said shit. I wasn't there and even if I was it's none of my business. You can say what you want and do as you please but FFS, Leave Me Out Of It. This is worse than a b-grade melodramatic Korean drama with all the twists and turns.

I don't need to deal with this shit in my free time and I certainly don't need to hear about it when I'm at work. I really don't appreciate the guilt trip about not taking sides. And i don't know how, but this incident turned out to be the catalyst for listing my shortcomings and flaws. It's my fault, some how, it's all my fault. Everything that went wrong.

I'm sorry, how silly of me to forget, I'm the reason for every tragedy since the beginning of time. Ice age, yeah I did that. Extinction of dinosaurs, yeap that was me. Titanic? You didn't know I put the f**king iceberg there?

I'm not going to write all the sordid details, I might just end up slitting my wrists or slamming my head against the wall in hopes of knocking myself unconscious.

I'm ranting on my blog because I have no where else to vent. I don't want to hurt any of the people involved by saying something I would regret once the anger has faded. How do you tell a loved one the truth, even if you know it will hurt them? No matter how gently or kindly you put it, you know they'll be hurt by what you have to say. That being said, how do you talk to someone who only hears what they want to hear?

... ... ...

Screw it, I'm going out for a cigarette and then I'm going to bed. I have ranted, mulled, cried and been guilt tripped. I'm done for the night, so here's my one finger salute.

Accident Prone

Ash has an oowie.

It was one of those days. Didn't sleep... it was more like couldn't sleep.
Woke up late, poked myself in the eye with the mascara wand (damn you Mascara), ran for the bus and felt the knee go "Pop." Not a good sign when you're just starting the day.

Dealt with really shitty clients who were impossible to please but hey, isn't that the way of the world. It's not my fault some people are too cheap to pay for quality. I work in a "premium" retail store (so I'm told). The word "premium" isn't associated with words like "cheap" or "discount." FFS, save that money and buy a friggin dictionary. >GRRRRR<

And to top it all off at the end of my shift- Just when I thought I'd manage to end without anything else going wrong... I had to staple myself with the wonky stapler. And bleed. The stapler drew blood. It's on now- I'm going Bon Qui Qui and declaring war on that stapler. First chance I get, I'm going to break it's springs and have it thrown out. Note to self, suggest new staplers to management. And pens. Pens always seem to disappear once your back is turned.

Of course it only started raining AFTER I got off work. It didn't rain while I was at work, it had to start after my shift, literally when I walked out of the building. Walking in the rain is not so much fun when you have a ton of make up caked on your face. Runny eyeliner soooo not attractive. Waterproof my a**. Lies, Lies, Lies!!... I feel betrayed.

Thankfully, today's mishaps ended there. With any luck, I'll be able to make it to bed without tripping over my purse... oh wait, too late, already did that too. *sigh*

It's just one of those days. Accident prone Ash cannot catch a break.

Midnight Rant

I can understand that my apartment building is a non smoking building and that smoking isn't allowed in the building.

But I have a balcony. It would make sense that I should be able to puff away on my balcony but nooooooo. Smoking on the balcony isn't allowed either.

Hence I find myself sitting on the curb outside my apartment at 12.40 am having a cigarette. All because some idiot was smoking in their apartment and someone else complained of the smell. FFS people, get a life. I don't like your squalling kids but I don't kick up a fuss when they start crying at 3am.

On a slightly more optimistic note, I have cut down smoking. Thank god for little mercies, you might think? Well, f**k that. It's dark and it's cold and I'm sitting outside.

On a completely random note, my wireless rocks. I still get a signal out here.

Looking Left, Looking Right

There was fog over the water today. I didn't get to wander down to the beach till this evening. By the time I got there most of the mist had evaporated. From the little pier, looking to left, you can see a little bit of mist covering the bridge. A subdued and subtle view.




But looking to the right, BAM! One of the
Most beautiful sunsets I've ever seen. A photograph from a mobile device doesn't do it justice. I wish I'd brought my camera with me.




Just another reason why I love where I am. Sunsets and gorgeous views always make me happy. At the same time, I feel a little wistful that I can't share these moments with the people I'm closest to.

Cinnamon Spice and Everything Nice

It was a beautiful Autumn day on the Pacific West Coast. The sun was shining, the skies were clear blue, it wasn't cool but not unbearably so. That was this afternoon.

As soon as the sun set, the temperature plummeted and it's now a chilly 5 or 7 degrees celsius outside *brrrrr* Not that I mind the cold, i usually do like it a bit chilly. Especially when I have a day off and I can curl up in bed with a good book.

And the perfect thing for a chilly night- a mug of Cinnamon Spiced coffee. I wouldn't say it was heaven in a cup or molten starlight but it is coffee. Good coffee. And to me, that's as close to ambrosia as it's going to get. Strangely enough, this delicious cuppa came to me in the form of instant coffee and I'm surprised it's so good. I think tomorrow I'll be moseying down to the great temple of the goddess with 2 fishtails to buy more of this instant magic brew.

That was pretty much the excitement of my day. Discovering awesome instant coffee. If you're thinking I need a life, may cigarette smoke sting your eyes. Today was great and I hope I have more days like today before it gets too cold to sit outside.

On to more pressing matters, my coffee is getting cold...

Drop by next time to read about the blind date that is supposed to happen tomorrow.

A Taste of Things to Come

Halloween is coming and people are getting excited. I wonder what I'll be doing for Halloween this year. Last year I celebrated by going for a talk by Neil Gaiman during a writer's festival. That was amazing. There was no dress up or wild drunken partying to speak of but it was memorable none the less. (It's Neil Gaiman ffs, he's my hero!)

This year, I'll be working on Halloween so I'm not sure if I'll be able to handle any partying after. I'm looking forward to seeing all the crazy costumes though. I'm fairly certain there'll be people walking around downtown dressed up.

Since Halloween isn't exactly celebrated on the sunny isle I hail from, this year I'm looking forward to carving my first pumpkin! A few days before Halloween, I'm meeting the forest friends and we're having a pumpkin carving party. It will be messy but I think it's going to be good fun.

Speaking of pumpkins, everyone's in the mood for some spookiness. Even the coffee joints. Pumpkin Spiced Lattes are a hot favorite and here's what they're serving up at the coffee shop just around the corner from where I work.

Ash loves Uni

Last night I had a fantastic time with the forest friends (you know who you are) and because they knew how much I adore uni, they took me out for dinner.



It was rich, it was sublime, it was heaven in a bowl. I think I died and went to heaven. I could wax poetry about the goodness of uni. Fresh (very fresh) uni. And all for the shocking price of $15.



Good food and good company is always a great combo. I'm looking forward to my island friends coming over to visit me so that I can take them to all my favorite eating spots and watering holes.

Best wallpaper

I was looking through a wall paper App today and came across one that made me laugh unexpectedly.



"Good Morning. I see the assassins have failed."



It kind of makes me wish I lived with a prying busybody who goes through my phone. I'd love to see their reaction to that... Or maybe I could leave that on a post-it for the next time my landlord pops over.

Ironies of all Ironies

The paid App sucked. It was an epic fail.

The free App on the other hand is great. Using it now and I love it!! Can't wait to take this baby out and blog while I'm out and about.

Ash like Apps

Just trying out a blogging app to see if I like it.

I've had my iPhone for a while but I really wonder how I ever got along without it. seems like I'm perpetually on this damn device. Not that I mind, I have some wonderfully entertaining apps :)

Let the testing begin.

The (not quite) Daily Ash

This is the daily sprinkling of Ash, a flick from the end of the cigarette butt that was my day.

The mornings usually start like the first puff of the day. Eager and enthusiastic, that first hit of nicotine on the tongue is ambrosia. But by the time you've lost count of how many sticks you've had, the throat starts to itch and it becomes almost painful to smoke. But you do it anyways. Why? Because the damn thing is already lit, what else are you going to do with it. Likewise, at the end of the day, what else are you going to do other than to finish off what you've started- painful as it may be.

Sounds a little cryptic? Maybe to the non-smoker. What's my obsession with ciggies? The fact that I can't smoke in my own home and it's driving me mental.

Anyways, The Daily Ash is more for everyone else who's wondering what I've been up to since I tend to disappear for long periods of time. And since I can't (and don't want to) write the same thing 50 times in emails or snail mail, it's easier to put it all up in one blog. One big happy blog- like a smoke screen in a club, all encompassing and ... oh wait, you can't smoke in clubs anymore. Ah well, I can't promise a daily sprinkling of ash but I can promise there will be periodic flickings. I'm still trying to find a good app so that I can blog from my phone. I think smoke breaks are perfect for blogging.

Happy Reading for the future posts. But for today, like all good ciggies must come to end, it's time to stub this little post out.