Five great Girl’s Generation songs

If you’re not already loving this great 8-piece girl group from Korea then you damn well should be. For the uninitiated, here are five great songs to start off with:

‘Gee’

cover

 

The one that got things going in a really big way. If you sing just a few bars of this song to anyone from Korea they will instantly recognise it. Check out the video for some great choreography.

‘Genie’

From the same time period as Gee, the song’s video showed a more mature look than the innocent outfits of their previous songs. Listening to Tiffany sing ‘DJ, put it back on’ is one of the great moments of K-pop.

‘Oh!’

Cover

Another great song and video which showcased some great dancing and costumes.

‘The Boys’

kenhnghenhacnetsnsd2_300

“The Girls Bring the boys out” they sing on this Teddy Riley produced number and you know they’re not lying. It’s the first song they recorded in English and there’s even a mix which has Snoop Dogg rapping on it.

‘I Got A Boy’

cover

This dazzling five minute pop symphony has been compared to Bohemian Rhapsody by Pitchfork. It blends five different genres of music and is simply the best song they have recorded so far in their career.

Diary of a romance part 7

Miho asked if she could see me tomorrow. It’s a big deal for me (I’ll explain why later). We met each other yesterday and she stayed the night. Normally I work on Friday’s, but I didn’t feel like going in today. I have been feeling groggy all week and knowing that Miho would have some time to see me (*Friday is her day off) gave me the impetus to call work and tell them that I wouldn’t be coming in today.

So instead of waking up bleary eyed, running around frantically trying to get ready, as per most mornings) I stayed in bed for an extra two hours more, having sex with Miho, and then eating eggs on toast with cheese slices and almond croissants. Well, how am I supposed to get better if I don’t do the things I enjoy?

Scan 18
Mihi knows that I love K-Pop, so she asked her mum to mail me this CD all the way from Japan,

Back to what I was saying earlier, the matter of Miho asking to see me tomorrow is a very big deal for the following reasons: Miho asked me if she could see me – showing that it was her idea) and two, it showed that she considered the time spent time with me a higher priority than any of the other things she could be doing with her weekend That for me is dedication. In fact, it may encourage me to start taking monogamy seriously…

Diary of a romance part 6

It’s been almost a week since I last saw Miho and I am actually missing her a bit.

We met on Monday but just to watch a film. I’ve been so busy with work that I haven’t been able to spend much time meeting up.

We re meeting tomorrow at the Royal Academy for the Monet exhibition with my mum.

Maybe the quality of the meeting is as important as how often we meet. I’ve picked what I think to be a good restaurant for lunch and its one that I think both my mum that my mum and Miho will enjoy equally.

But before all of that we’re meeting tonight for some Korean food and then, well, let’s just leave it there…..

Diary of a Romance Part 5

I used to be alone but now I’m not. That has been the single biggest change in my life since meeting Miho. It’s surprising that people don’t talk about loneliness much. Being alone doesn’t necessarily mean you are lonely.

There are times when I enjoy being by myself and times when I need to have company. But one thing is for sure: the world is more geared up for couples than single people.

I think it’s the right thing to do to spend time by yourself  sometimes but the way some people see it, it’s like a fate worse than death. It’s sad but people look at you differently if you go out by yourself. Either they assume that you’re by yourself because you want to be by yourself and they don’t talk to you for this very reason. I suppose this view is understandable but a little presumptuous.

But much worse are the people who look down on you and deliberately avoid you when you are out in a public place such as a restaurant or bar by yourself. It’s sad that people feel they need to act this way. We’re all alone at times and we all need friends and want to meet people so where on earth does this stigma come from?

Luckily I have Miho now and she’s around to keep me company. If I’m going somewhere I’ll ask Miho to come along. For one thing, I really enjoy having her around. And maybe I want to share my life with her and I have no reason to exclude her from anything, especially when it’s something she might enjoy.

That’s all for now. There’s so much to be happy about and I have no reason to focus on anything negative.

Diary of a Romance, part 4

I’ve decided that there’s no better time to be with someone than during Winter. If you’re alone during this time it can be really terrible. Not only do you have to face Christmas by yourself but a few weeks later you have Valentine’s Day too.

During the cold months, you want to spend your time snuggling under blankets and staying in, but this isn’t much fun if you’re alone.

I think it’s ok to be single in the summer. There are more opportunities to go out and meet people. People are keen to go out and meet people.

I’ve been staying in with Miho much more than I thought I would. It’s easy to think that when you start seeing someone you need to go out and spend a lot of money in expensive places. The problem with that is that you aren’t able to properly get to know someone if you are surrounded by distractions.

This morning Miho got up around 9 and I cooked breakfast. (I used the last of the Hotteok cakes from the freezer). I also used up a stale 1 day old croissant and cooked it in the oven with some cheese and ham.

Now we could have easily gone somewhere to eat breakfast. However this would have involved several decions, the first being where to go, and then what to eat, where to sit, how long to spend there, before eventually leaving and returning home.

Now, the beauty of staying in is that you already are at home and you don’t have to make countless small decisions.

I’m pretty sure Miho enjoys the breakfasts I make. There is washing up to be done after but this is a small price to pay.

We’ve been eating a lot of chocolate lately. Miho loves it (and so do I). It can only mean that it’s nearly Valentine’s day.

I surprised Miho by giving her chocolate early. Last week I ordered some Anthon Berg chocolates from Amazon. I’ve never had them before but they look different and they aren’t sold much here.

We also went to our favorite cafe together again (see photo)

20160212_142054 (1)

For the first time, I haven’t made plans for Saturday with Miho. The reason for this is that I want to give myself some free time. Plus, we don’t need to spend all our time together.

I have so far been very impressed with how much time Miho has been willing to spend with me and I feel she has been very generous with her time.

 

I spend a lot of time when I’m with Miho thinking about the next time that I will see her next but I would like to be able to just focus on the time spent in the here and now.

 

Diary of a Romance Part 3

Its amazing how many things you start to be come aware of when you start seeing someone. Like the cleanliness of your bedroom. If its just gonna be me in there, I don’t bother keeping it clean. I let clothes pile up in messy piles; books and paper clutter themselves on the floor. I get used to things staying in this way because its only me and I don’t think I deserve any better. Its a bit like Teri Hatcher’s Burnt Toast idea (you know how when you burn a piece of toast, but you eat it anyway because you don’t think you deserve a new piece).

When I knew that Miho would be coming over often, I started to think about my room and spend time cleaning it. Firstly, I made an effort to pick up all my worn clothes and keep them in one place. Its a habit I’ve gotten into and its taking real effort to change. Next are papers and books. I have far too many and I don’t have enough shelves, so inevitably, they aren’t properly arranged. What to do with cosmetics? I seem to accumulate moisturisers and shampoo. I have really dry skin so moisturising is important. I currently have a tub of body butter (which I don’t use by the way) anti-aging moisturiser, Nivea cream….. All scattered about. They all need to go somewhere.

So here’s what I’ve got planned for date weekend no 3:

I’m meeting Miho in Wimbledon in the afternoon. There is a Uniqlo store there that we like. I’m such a fan of their clothes. They change their stock regularly so there’s always something new. So we’ll try and find some good outfits.

Then, I need to get her back home quickly.

Sunday 7 February

We went to Uniqlo. Miho helped me pick out a shirt and a belt. We bought some groceries at the Morrison’s store for the morning.

The train from Wimbledon to New Malden takes five minutes but can’t get there fast enough as far as I’m concerned. There’s two more stops to make before we’re home.

The Place cafe (I’ve mentioned it on here before) is the best coffee shop around. So we go there and I order a Macchiato and carrot cake with an Americano for Miho. Man, the carrot cake is good. Lastly, we make a quick detour to discount supermarket Lidl, which has a good wine selection. I select a Bordeaux.

It’s just before 4pm and I’ve taken Miho upstairs. I don’t make a drink or anything. I ask her if she thinks that my room is cleaner and she says she can’t see any change (she’s lying, it is cleaner and there aren’t so many piles of crap everywhere).

I ordered some massage oil from Amazon in the week. It’s a bit strong like they overdid the essential oils but it’s fun squeezing oil on to Miho’s body.

I think I will try a softer, sweeter smell next time. Another weird thing about oil (I’ve never really used it) is it actually applies another layer to your skin). after sex Miho puts some of the oil on me, for an hour I can still feel the oil on my skin. Unpleasant.

I’ve got the movie sorted. It’s the South Korean film Always. always

I’ve watched it before but it’s nice to watch it again with Miho. You always see more on the second viewing.

Then it’s dinner. 9 times out of 10, it’s never a good idea to eat in restaurants when they’re busy. Not only are the staff feeling stressed, the food isn’t at it’s best. (I guess it’s because the head chef is probably off on Saturday night). Even worse, we have to wait 15 minutes for a table to be ready.

Sometimes, in spite of convenience, restaurants aren’t any better than eating at home. It does depend on the restaurant of course. It’s Valentine’s Day next week. I’m considering two venues. There’s Sakura, which would be great because it’s Japanese. But expensive. I think Pizza east would it be a great choice. It’s in Notting Hill and has a great vibe. But it’s no big deal. In Japan it’s the women who buy chocolates for men. Nothing like our crappy Valentine’s Day here.