Adding the color

Getting my heart racing in a cardio-vascular way at the gym, running on the tread-mill, using the rowing machine and the cross trainer and the cycle really gives you that high, that feel good factor, especially after you slowly work down back to normal and you get that smile and that afterglow. A good workout, and I don't just mean at the gym or home exercise but a swim or an hour of something good that gets your heart pounding can release frustrations as well as being a good exercise. Another great way of relieving stress is taking up something soft, mild, gentle, something that has a soothing effect on your mind.
Origami or Flower arranging or Water paints?
The beauty of paint is that in tranquil moments it becomes extremely satisfying to see the transformation of daubs of color becomes something to admire. Careful placement of our pigments makes my white space become a representation of my perceived place of peace. This little e-masterpiece created by me is the Byodo-in temple which is not only a beautifully and traditionally constructed temple but it is also set in a wonderful garden with nature at her finest just beyond the borders...
Not only in the creation of it but also in the contemplation of it can I find serenity!
There are so many different people out there with so many different things that could interest us as their own preferred method of calming that savage beast within and as we can engage in them with a gentle approach we can find true relaxation. I wonder how you guys unwind.

Once again it's been a busy few days not only with work but trying to do the things I want to do. The demands of work and trying to fit in a life as well has left me over tired and my anemia is a condition that always takes advantage of that situation. I have had to increase the dosage of my Epogen during this last week to keep it under control. There is also a flu that's really affecting people in a bad way. I'm not sure but each year these flu epidemics seem to get stronger. Hitomi and I have had our inoculations and we are eating more citrus fruits as an added preventive measure. The vaccination isn't perfect and it won't stop you getting a common cold but in my mind anything that can stop you feeling miserable is worth following. I stopped seeing my ex-boyfriend for exactly that same reason ha-ha!


We went over to the Fuji photo studio in Ebisu to have some photos done that are made into Christmas cards that we will give to the girls at the party this weekend. We had to do a minimum order of twenty five prints for any selection that we chose but we still wanted to have a little variety and not have all the cards look the same. So we chose four styles and you can see the covers that we chose here and we'll give those to our friends in the Mars bar and at the Lexington.

We used the rest of the day together out hunting for small gifts for family and friends. This year we will spend the Christmas time quietly I think because Dad and the girls are not coming over and with a smaller family around me that will give me a time to breath easier after what has seemed to be an extremely busy month. There are some things that I like that can leave me breathless and its accompanying exhilaration can be a good substitute for the panting (that's panting and not painting). That certainly adds more color than a shiseido powder blush and a better hit than a couple of vodkas.
So the peach girl now shares the subtle tones of strawberry and although I feel like the 'red' in ready, it is not reflected in the pools of blood after I'm attacked by my vampire. But she can make me act the chameleon and glow in those scarlet shades of satisfaction when she leaves me breathless.

I wish you all a Merry Xmas.

Trivia: The abbreviation 'Xmas' isn't widely used just because it's quicker to type or because the 'X' somehow represents a cross. 'X' is the first letter of the Greek word for Christ, Xristos, so the shortened spelling of Christmas has been around for hundreds of years.

メリークリスマス