An Enlightening Birthday with my two Osana-najimis

Who did I spend my birthday with? My two osana-najimis I've known for the longest time, G and A. G is a succesful lawyer striving to someday become the kind of carefree man who doesn't give a damn about what people think, and have the guts to do the most outrageous thing at a Chinese restaurant(The photos of G got censored so they're removed...). A is "the caring mother" and the only person in this world who will bawl me out for hours and I shall actually listen to.

Finding me depressed because of a particular painful incident, they left me with one memorable gift of "an intense session" to remind me of my self-centeredness. The "heated discussion" continued till this morning. G pointed out to me with the tone of the wise Yoda, that I am lucky to have friends who care deeply about my happiness. So guys, I may have sounded really stubborn and ungrateful, but I deeply appreciate what you had to say. So thanks, I am really lucky to have you both as my osana-najimis. I really mean it. And thank you for understanding and accepting me for who I am...the eldest child and the uncontrollable one.

FotoFacial RF Skin Treatment

So my best friend from kindergarten, A, is visiting from California. Before eating shabu-shabu, I took her to a dermatologist in Shinjuku. What is bothering us these days is our face line sagging and brown spots appearing. California sun is especially brutal to her aging skin. After much research, my recommendation to her was FotoFacial RF, a medical light system (Not Laser) that has incredibly positive effect to rejuvenate your skin. The system is often referred to at clinics as “Aurora.” FotoFacial RF combines two types of optical energy into your skin, IPL of Intense Pulsed Visible Light and energy with radio frequency (RF) which work synergistically to deliver satisfying and lasting results. This is how it works. The visible light energy or RF energy gets absorbed by the pigment in the skin’s surface and stimulates the production of collagen and elastin from within the dermis. This helps the skin to noticeably firm up. Also, the IPL light energy can also work on dark sun spots by stimulating the melanin to surface and eventually disappear after 3-4 days. 4-5 treatments would be sufficient to rid your brown spots and the treatment is usually administered every 4 weeks. So I took a photo of my friend’s skin after the treatment. Notice the melanin pigments appearing on the surface? These will disappear and your skin will look spotless and smooth after a few days. Will post her photo after a week so please look forward to it!
(A, don't forget to send me the picture!)

Reuniting with Highschool Friends!

Although we chose to take different courses in our lives, there was one thing we all shared...none of us could believe that twenty years have actually passed. So what did we talk about after this long absence? About children, work, fatal bear attacks, real estate, tax filing and unnecessary advice that I am a terrible driver and shouldn't even think of buying another car...
By the way, it is my unwelcomed birthday today and my friends are taking me out to eat shabu shabu(my favorite food.Yeay!)

New Year's Hot Diet: The Reverse Diet Solution

My ageless friend, A from California is visiting Tokyo this week. She told me that people gain on the average 3 kilo-grams between Thanksgiving and New Year's. I am not surprised since I have experienced it firsthand. I spent the New Year's at my parents' and ate day and night...

Apparently, a weight loss method of eating meals in reverse has created quite a stir in the US. So these are the tips:

Don't Eat:
Salt, sugar, alcohol, caffeine and carbonated beverages.

Do Eat:
All vegetables, fresh and frozen, including potatoes
Extra virgin olive oil (the darker, the better)
All seafood, chicken and turkey
All berries, peaches, pineapple, apples, grapes and plums
Eggs
Lemons
White cheese
Fat-free sour cream, salad dressing and skim milk
Low-sodium margarine
GARLIC
All spices, excluding salt, read your labels!
Post Shredded Wheat and Bran
Uncooked Old Fashion Oatmeal
Orange juice
Red meat and pasta, in moderation and small portions

Tips:
Eat a BIG breakfast.
If you don't normally eat breakfast, take tonight's dinner and put it in the refrigerator and have your breakfast for dinner. This will jump-start your metabolism so fast, you'll be running to the scale!
Never skip breakfast.
Don't overeat. Save leftovers for snacks.
Eat a medium lunch and small dinner. You do not need to fill up at the end of the day.
Use water, margarine, olive oil or orange juice when preparing meat.
Drink two glasses of hot lemon water per day.
Drink when you're thirsty. Don't force eight to 10 glasses of water per day.
Eat when you're hungry