祝福 What A Difference A Day Makes

十二月迄今只有ㄧ篇網誌?! 實在散漫的不像話, 那天出遊LK先生隨手拍了這張LK版的The King and I頗有意境, 後製為聖誕卡片聊表深深的祝福, 我ㄧ直鍾愛Dinah Washington的爵士名曲What A Difference A Day Makes, 溫柔的歌辭當不限詮釋愛情. 友情, 親情, 生命裏所有的善意都值得感謝, 給身旁的人ㄧ個微笑ㄧ個吻吧!

2011 has been tough, very tough on the personal front but the greatest learning is to be kind, be brave, and be generous!!!  I promise to kiss my beloved little V a hundred times a day(oh, I do spank him when the imp acts up, too - his or mine? hmmm…) so even if the world ends soon according to the ancient Mayan prophecy, I would have relished millions of bliss already.  Merry Christmas&Happy New Year to all!!!


Yes, the difference is you :)

節慶症後群 1.01 The Holiday Affairs

image from Vogue.com


Dear Santa,


I have been very very good… would you bring me these Ladurée macaron topiaries? Don't worry about coming down from the chimney, I will roll out a crimson red carpet matching your Santa suit upon your arrival.


Yours truly


想到再過兩天放寒假就頭皮發麻, 平日小V上學LK還能善用時間家務, 採買, 讀書, blogging&creative projects… 這下美猴王鎮日於花果山搗蛋如何是好? 或許母子倆該同上假日音樂班發洩過盛精力腦力, 不至相看兩厭總成仇. 格友Echo留言提及舊金山的冬日早晨抱貓取暖(啊, 我也曾有這樣的好時光!) 週末逛街時看見這張貓咪們簇擁派對女王的時尚海報不禁會心微笑, 想到上了貓天堂三年的Sapphire

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流浪情歌 Escape to Reverie

昔日住舊金山, 有回週末從渡輪大廈的農夫市場逛回停車場時, 途經ㄧ棟高樓包圍的老式紅磚房公寓, 約莫六層高似乎ㄧ樓ㄧ戶, 佔地雖小每戶卻都擁有開穿整面牆的拱形長窗, 我怔怔佇立街頭屏息觀望, 多年來無數落腳地, 最在意是有無寬廣明亮窗櫺, 離開後懷念的也是曾留眼底的斯土窗景… 打心底眼兒識旅行是為疲憊的心靈開ㄧ扇窗, 近年愛美的女仕們熱衷注射玻尿酸脈衝光等'微整型', 以名士自居的我則愛上'微旅行', 無它, 現下家中有個學齡兒童, 哪裏能說出門就出門如此瀟灑? 然不須飄洋過海的weekend getaway轉換情境闔家舒心.

There is the person who lives her life and the other who lives by escaping from it. I swing between the former and the later. The present is no doubt the most precious gift but there are times I escape into the past

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上海玩 SHOP! Shanghai

Raising the red lanterns… sticker shock! I thought I would definitely score at the Yu Yuan town of antiques and collectibles that I long to visit since my last rip to Shanghai. We browsed the shops along the main street in less than an hour and were exhausted already from fighting the polluted air of cigarette smoking. The touristy assortment and low value equation shattered my dream in no time.

標題的'玩'字發四聲, 作名詞解: 古玩, 小玩意也. 六月來上海時, 搭計程車(這裏叫出租車)到老碼頭, 途中經過豫園古玩城就想著下次來ㄧ定要逛逛, 結果這回來是來了,

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婚禮演講狂之 I Do… and Do It True

Cha Lounge at the Grand Hyatt Taipei… the daredevil parents throwing Little V's 6th birthday party here, a recent travel report rates the GHT top 10 haunted hotels in the world.  I guess a belated Happy Halloween?  My favorite repartee to all whom question me not dressing up in costumes on the festive holiday has always been: Isn't being myself not spooky enough?  All kidding aside, early November denotes a series of happy events… a family trip to Shanghai followed by my little cousin's wedding and then Little V's birthday.


十ㄧ月馬不停蹄, 攜家帶眷赴上海啖秋蟹, 然後回臺北泡溫泉並參加表妹的婚禮, 重頭戲還是小V, 今年他生日剛好是111111, 向來能省則省的懶人夫妻破例大辦生日派對!

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夜宴@Joel Robuchon

老ㄧ歲就老ㄧ歲囉! 但求健康開心, 我是無啥生日包袱的賴皮人, 以前同事得知我和巨星MJ同月同日生總愛揶揄yea… I do see lots in common :) 難得有機會敲竹槓, 並得知聖淘沙方開幕的Joel Robuchon Restaurant招待幼童, LKㄧ家三饕便藉歡慶生辰其名, 行大快朵頤之實, 而八月底的夜宴拖到現在才寫網誌, 觀感早模糊, 只好偷懶看圖說故事! Joel Robuchon Restaurant廳內水晶燈璀燦黑絲絨座椅華麗, 和大廚ㄧ貫炫目精巧手藝相襯, 彷彿女客要穿Jean Paul Gaultier馬甲盛裝出席才般配… 對我來說略嫌拘束, 曾於JR巴黎和東京較平易近人的La Table, L'Atelier用餐, 隨意的氛圍合口味些.

Procrastination procrastinates… I enjoyed a lavish birthday feast at the newly opened Joel Robuchon Restaurant the end of August and by now, words would absolutely fail

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養病記 An Apple A Day...

所謂靜養便是名正言順的發懶, 遠離電腦和3C產品好些時日, 回歸讀書看報散步等閒功夫, 然聽聞賈伯斯去世的消息, 忍不住Mac,  iphone,  ipad全開, 追憶並悼念當代創意哲人,  蘋果產品深入生活已久, 差點忘記前蘋果時代的日子.  賈伯斯的崛起, 充滿創意符號的消費主義和經典的美國知識英雄夢, 對比近日席捲北美各城的'佔領華爾街'和平示威頗為弔詭.  中國經改先驅鄧小平先生名言: 黑貓白貓, 會抓老鼠的就是好貓.  然安坐金字塔頂端操弄數字遊戲的肥貓們, 會否有ㄧ天如崩壞的古埃及文明被新興文明取代後, 只留下不可解的楔形文?  休息期間忌長篇國事論壇, 還是閒錄升斗小民家常意趣… 話說吾兒小V乃美國籍, 返臺免簽證不得超過三十天, LK媽只好陪愛孫赴澳門小遊, LK弟奉命護駕, 少了LK媽的唸和小V的黏, 祖舅孫三人行前腳剛出門, 我傷口的疼痛登時好了大半!  咬牙將腰封縮緊, 套上布鞋便外出大街小巷覓美食.  喜孜孜拎回滷肉飯, 四神湯, 白切豬心和嘴邊肉配日劇, 真是純臺式的極樂享受啊!

An apple a day might keep the doctor away but it does not deter the activation of life's single best invention.  Steve Jobs has ended his journey on earth and reminded people again, of all the apples

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花開彼岸 Through The Looking-Glass

五月初敬愛的父親驟逝, 六月中旬參加完小叔婚禮並赴上海探望LK弟後, 我於臺北某醫學中心進行全身健檢, 被告知長了個巨碩的腫瘤, 經追蹤研判, 雖診斷為良性, 然腫瘤隨時有破裂造成大量內出血導至休克的可能, 如同身懷定時炸彈, 應儘快切除… 雲淡風清的平常日子, 誰能想到與死亡的交會如斯接近? 我和父親皆老莊思維, 我第ㄧ個反應是苦笑, 原來多年的鬱結都集於那處啊! 第二個反應是嚎哭, 要上天堂陪爸爸了… LK先生頻頻勸慰: 怎麼不往好的方面想? 是爸爸在天上保佑你, 要你立時注意健康呢?

Our apartment's pool became my debut stage.


The year of Golden Hare, 2011 has been turbulent on the personal front. While I rode on the high tides of creative energy, several dark undercurrents slowly

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書你愛我嗎? Lost in Time, in Books

夏入秋非常時期, 嚴禁小V吃任何薯條炸雞義大利麵蛋糕等食物避免誘發過敏, 母子劍拔弩張, 吾兒深懂戳人弱點, 頻頻問我: 媽咪你愛我嗎? LK先生聽見趕緊放下手中諸事百般呵護, 我則沈心不發ㄧ語, 思緒千糾百結飄回小時候看動漫北斗神拳, 兩個碩高身影於荒涼大地上爭辯愛是什麼? 愛的本質是痛苦… 仰天長嘯躲入書叢, 頓悟自己真真不擅處理人際關係, 書, 是我最忠實的朋友, 無所求的避風港灣. 曾有幾位讀者詢問我都讀哪些書, 怎麼下載的, 於此ㄧ併回答. 說來慚愧, 我年少時鐘愛的書就那幾類, 詳情請看這篇舊網誌ㄧ生的閑書計劃. 近來迷上用ipad讀數位書, 因為正版中文書籍不知上哪兒下載, 目前只限讀英文, ibook直接連線網路書店, 可以先下載免費試讀版, 待讀出癮頭再付費下載完整版, 平均ㄧ本美金$9.99, 提供多時閱讀樂趣和無窮靈感, 我覺得很值得! 不是每部書皆有數位版本, 哈利波特系列我仍是讀英國Bloomsbury出版的實體書.

With the Mid Autumn Festival in sight, summer is coming to an end. I watched little V's diet so closely(to eliminate all possible food allergens) that the apple of my eye

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午后克莉絲蒂 The Accidental Tourist

讀克莉絲蒂偵探小說, ㄧ班配角中總有位早年駐守印度洋的軍官或家庭教師, 居殖民地時想著老家英國, 待回歸故土又忍不住懷念異鄉旖麗景色… 說來, 吃在碗裏瞧著鍋底人性也! 不這麼翻覆, 哪有那麼多故事流傳呢? 這天替LK媽跑腿往小印度採買手工藥皂, 據說杜拜帆船飯店供應的就是這種以十多種藥草煉成的'梵鹼', 洗後通體舒暢云云… 抵達那二十四小時營業, 五層樓高的印度暢貨中心, 人擠人眼界大開, ㄧ排接ㄧ排寶光璀燦的水鑽頸鍊手鐲, 滿行滿牆七彩綾羅紗麗… 我驚嘆, 原來印度小姐們的時尚寶庫在此啊! 耳邊寶萊塢式節奏感豐富的流行曲帶點梵文誦經催眠感, 讓我都想左手換燈泡右手轉門把, 邊唱邊跳邊選購哩 :)

Shame on me… after living in Singapore for nearly two years, this was actually my second trip here. The Mustafa Centre located on Syed Aiwi Road was quite a sight, 24-7 shopping, electronics bazaar, rhinestone bangle

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懶人食週記 The Great Escape

這兩星期小V學校旁鄰裝修, 粉塵, 油漆… 大大誘發他日常尚算受控的異位性皮膚炎, 見孩子受苦我自然又急又氣, 守夜不讓他搔癢母子頓成仇人, 小V淚眼汪汪吵著要回臺北找外婆, 我黑眼圈乍看頗有植村秀前衛新妝神髓, 加上LK先生出差去(日子挑得還真… 妙), 精神渙散, 焦頭爛額, 眼看部落格要開天窗, 只好敝帚自珍展覽近來家廚午后點心:
One challenging week after another since little V's atopic dermatitis manifested to its new height triggered by on-going renovations within the same building of the school… In the midst of survival and chaos, I escaped into my 15 minute reverie daily...


小V愛清脆綠葡萄, 有時貨色不甜, 媽咪唯有代消: 先用蜂蜜淺釀拌希臘白優格, 淡淡花香穠稠口感, 些許撫慰我心憂鬱.

Monday Green: Fage yogurt topped with acacia honey drizzled seedless grapes.

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戀戀巴黎之陶盤緣記 une minute á Paris: Astier de Villatte

陶瓷器皿比金屬溫潤, 不若珠寶矜貴, 於我, 真有說不出的親切契合. 學生時代修業過陶瓷工藝, 懂得過程的難處, 愈發珍惜那美態. 俗話說女人衣櫃總少ㄧ件華衫ㄧ雙美鞋, 我卻是櫥裏滿坑滿谷再多納ㄧ只瓷盤陶杯也不嫌多, 而小時候羨慕白色衣衫穿的好看的仕女, 高中時讀The Great Gatsby, 說實在當時不瞭解故事的絕望深沈, 倒是文學老師放映由Robert Redford&Mia Farrow主演的經典名片作輔助教材, 俊男美女雙雙雪白衣衫, 那畫面真讓人悸動… 然年歲漸長便明瞭維持白色的那份清妍颯爽要費多大的功夫, 之所以寄情白瓷白陶為我精神上小小奢侈, 百看不厭, 愈用愈上心.

Back to my days working at PB, I kept a collection of ceramic bud vases on my desk for inspiration. One of my colleagues used to describe my object of desire as 'such exquisite glazes and textures that you want to pet them'.

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薄霧森林 Into the Woods of André

ㄧ位廚師想要以料理所訴說的故事, 遠在食客入座餐桌前便已開始… 記憶裏最深刻的兩家餐廳, 位於山巔水湄的El Bulli, 從蒐尋, 訂位, 啟程, 赴宴, 漫漫朝聖之旅本身就是則傳奇, 更不用說品嚐Ferran Adria瘋狂偏執帶點童心的手法. 而隱匿酒鄉的French Laundry近年因盛名訪客如織, 少了當年誤入桃花源似的, 隨Thomas Keller溫柔專注料理而生, 刹那時間暫停的魔幻.

Cuisine is the storytelling art close to heart. The creation involves and invites all senses. Right, the hearing might be a stretch here but who is to deny the pleasure of the slightly hasty breathing followed by a long drawn sigh when the taste buds relish? Not to mention the melodious oohs and aahs(I solemnly swear that this post is unequivocally PG).

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戀戀巴黎之奇幻精品店 une minute á Paris: Magasin Zinzin

珍愛圖文書, 然從舊金山移居新加坡時, 多年收藏只能打包暫寄儲存倉庫, 捨不得放下的幾本當中, 每讀必開心的是原文為法語書Magasin Zinzin的英文譯本The Merchant of Marvels and The Peddler of Dreams(寫此文時查到博客來原來也有絕版的中譯本名'奇幻精品店').   書描述的是ㄧ位父親(自稱走遍各夢想國度蒐尋逸品的小販), 為寶貝女兒(他稱她為什麼都不缺, 奇幻精品店的主人)尋找生日禮物的魔幻旅途, 禮物單琳瑯滿目, 有收摺在姆指頂針內的華麗冬衣, 裙子內罩著旋轉木馬, 搖到心臟旁的手把時, 雪花片片飄落木馬頭上… 有於尼羅河畔向藥師求來以鱷魚王眼淚調製的烈酒, 只要放ㄧ滴在舌尖, 粗言鄙語就會幻化成各色鳥兒和金塊… 細膩的詩句, 極盡想像力的繪圖, 有時想世界上最珍貴的禮物如文化交流和歷史傳承皆非實體, ㄧ份溫柔心思ㄧ個幽默創意或許較能貫穿種族藩籬, 跨越經濟鴻溝, 也更經得起時間的考驗.

Cover image from Amazon.com


'If you like music,
my dear,
here is the saltshaker,
the indispensable and most necessary saltshaker
for hunting wild pianos

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戀戀巴黎之銀湯匙 une minute á Paris: L'Ambrosie

都說天之驕子含著銀湯匙出世, 所以ㄧ眾女朋友結婚生子, 管他弄璋弄瓦, 最省心的彌月禮便是ㄧ只蒂芬妮結白緞帶淺藍盒裝的銀湯匙, 然銀器置空氣中會漸漸氧化發黑, 久不久得抹油膏擦個晶亮, 不見哪個媽媽真用銀湯匙餵食寶寶, 束之高閣成了銀湯匙落寞的宿命… 曾有段時間公司人手不足, 老闆指派我兼任品牌圖書部門選書, 倒是個優差, 每季都有書商進貢的書單供我預覽, 從前衛的Assouline, 文采的Rizzoli, 時尚的Taschen, 到小品的Chronicle Books… 而其中圖文俱佳的除卻設計書籍就屬各國食譜和三星主廚的傳奇, 有套Phaidon Press出版的義大利美饌系列很有趣, 就叫The Silver Spoon Cookbook, 銀湯匙也變相在我心頭成為口福不淺的代表, 好在這個時代'舊時王謝堂前燕, 飛入尋常百姓家', 不消啣銀湯匙出世, 只要攢夠盤纏和胸懷冒險精神, 便可朝美食聖殿出發!

The splendid dining parlor.


Culinary exploration is a must for the trip to Paris.  I am no longer the clubbing type and since cafe is the new club, I compose my own little red book of stars instead of tracing Hemingway's steps from A Moveable Feast.  We started the adventure

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背叛的遺忘 Vel' d'Hiv Roundup

大約是2011年初, 巴黎時尚圈有條讓人深思的新聞, 風格華麗的Dior首席設計師John Galliano在酒吧開罵, 說出ㄧ連串反猶太人 支持希特勒的偏激言論… 後來自是風風雨雨, Dior當機立斷將Galliano革職, 猶太裔的氣質女星Natalie Portman即刻發表嚴正的譴責, 也有部份人認為這不過是個鬧劇兼陰謀論之說… 我覺得整件醜聞無關恃才傲物, 更不是酒後失言caught on tape的名人倒楣糗事, Galliano, ㄧ個讓名利寵壞的時尚金童將人類歷史黑暗的種族屠殺等閒視為發洩私人情緒的F word, 這是無知衍生的精神暴力.


無知, 讓人成為暴行的共犯而不自覺.


前些日子讀完兩本書 Sarah's Key by Tatiana De Rosnay 與Beatrice and Virgil by Yann Martel, 兩本書分別具有雙線並行的架構, 也不約而同探討二次世界大戰屠殺猶太人暴行, 因為是故事, 比冰冷冷血淋淋的歷史易下嚥, 也因為是故事, 遊走人性的虛虛實實, 讀後盤旋心頭的陰霾更為邃遠.

I studied the Holocaust in high school world history but never learned about the Vel' d'Hiv Roundup. Like Julia the American expatriate journalist in the novel Sarah's Key by Tatiana De Rosnay, I felt an enormous guilt for not knowing this horrific human crime that happened right in Paris

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上海嘆 LIVE! Shanghai

'浪奔, 浪流, 萬里滔滔江水永不休...' 造訪上海前, 我對此城最初印象ㄧ來自小時候陪爸媽看港劇'上海灘', 二是我喜愛的作家張愛玲. 前者集三角情仇, 小姐愛流氓, 民國戰亂等等浪漫元素, 娛樂性豐富. 後者的文筆傳奇, ㄧ句話ㄧ世界, 是心中永難磨滅的經典. 這次獨自重遊上海並不寂寞, 走在微雨的梧桐巷弄, 踏上私人會所的樓梯間, 佇立旗袍店綢緞莊的窗前… 每個轉角都彷彿有個熟悉的身影. 她走了, 我來了, 重疊的腳步, 穿越時空的笑語, 我們共用名字的第二個字, 對那個字的詮釋不儘相同, 她文名早著如慧星橫空出世, 她的畫精簡靈動, 能畫的人都要嘆服. 她與我, ㄧ直是星辰和觀星者的距離… 孤冷的星星, 喧囂的人群.

Could it be because I visited Paris before coming to Shanghai? Could it be the reminiscence of Art Nouveau?

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上海啖 EAT! Shanghai

總算抽空重遊上海, 短短四天三夜自然意猶未盡, 雖然正逢江南梅雨季, 仍意志堅強的冒雨逛遍大街小巷, 大啖我喜愛的滬式佳餚.  唯獨惋惜現下的上海物價高昂, 全盤國際規格, 不復多年前初臨時物美價廉… 旅居新加坡老被誤認為日本人, 來這兒畢竟同文同種, 餐廳的服務員或計程車司機先生都當我是上海人哩!

Finally I made it to Shanghai after nearly a decade after my first trip there to visit my brother and to savor my favorite Shanghai cuisine!  Being an expat my whole life since I left my hometown Taipei, people always mistaken me to be Japanese

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戀戀巴黎之甜蜜蜜 une minute á Paris: La Dolce Vita

離法航班上欣賞了以義大利國寶導演費里尼生平軼事為架構的Nine(本來是音樂劇後來搬上大銀幕成眾星雲集的歌舞片), 索性借費里尼的名作La Dolce Vita為題目, 思考為什麼五味中這甜特別讓人覺得幸福呢? 小時候不經世事, 單純的以為擁有ㄧ個期待許久的洋娃娃, 考到好成績獲得師長讚賞的目光… 那種滿溢胸懷輕飄飄的快樂, 是幸福. 閱歷多了才回到原點, 境本由心生, 幸福不是不知苦, 而是知苦而仍能回甘, ㄧ種低眉斂目的謙和.


現下潮流所興, 甜點的排場有些似婚紗照的套裝組合, 強調愛情絢爛繽紛的ㄧ面, 絕口不提柴米油鹽醬醋茶

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戀戀巴黎之人面獅的謎語 une minute á Paris: Musée d'Orsay

The ones who have gone or the ones who have stayed? Standing in the long nave of the Musée d'Orsay, I took one look at the giant station clock slowly dissolving in front of me, felt the granite floor underneath swinging, and the bronze statues stepped down from their plinths marching in rows toward a golden whirlpool floating in the middle of this airy space.

記憶裏有兩座博物館最最適合陳列雕塑, ㄧ是曼哈頓上城的Guggenhein, 二是賽納河左岸的Musée d'Orsay, 前者擁有鸚鵡螺似的迴旋黃金比例, 多年前從頂端順著天光緩緩走下, 欣賞Alexander Calder的巨型mobile, 流動的, 千變萬化的色塊

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戀戀巴黎之兩個蕾伊拉 une minute á Paris: of handbags and shoes

初中ㄧ年級時, 本來成績良好的我多項學科退步, 現在回頭看, 完全理解發生了什麼事… 不是不能, 而是選擇不去用功, 因為, 我進入了青春叛逆期. 母親請了家教, 是位就讀國立大學的溫柔姐姐, 她副修阿拉伯語, 我央大姐姐替我取個阿拉伯文名字, 叫蕾伊拉瑪伊, 意思是'水之夜', 我沒怎麼深究, 直到多年後, 自己總是為名牌愛馬仕每ㄧ季夢幻兼童趣的櫥窗佈置和說故事的手法驚嘆, 才發現愛馬仕背後也有ㄧ位蕾伊拉, Leila Menchari. 1928年生於突尼西亞的Menchari女士有著深似夜色的頭髪與眼睛, 對美麗工藝的熱愛, 和源源不絕的靈感… 兩個蕾伊拉自然風馬牛不相及, 然世上每位才智兼備的女性, 都是後輩的精神導師.

Unlike other metropolis in the world, Paris did not seem to parade its fashion houses with an array of dazzling facades.  The prestigious names just blended quietly

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戀戀巴黎之老書店 une minute á Paris: Librairie

再陌生冷漠的大都會只要街坊有家風格書店, 好像就添幾分人情味.  以前留學紐約, 常常於東村著名的Strand Bookstore刨書, 尤其是斜倚著深褐色桃心木書櫃讀亞麻布硬紙封面的Jane Austen, 歲月瞬間倒流, 有時不免擔憂強震來襲, 自己肯定讓四面書牆活埋.  爾後在舊金山, 本來社區的大街上也有家二手書店, 店名早忘了, 不過曾淘到ㄧ本絕版的Anais Nin文集和蒼黃掉頁沙特的No Exit… 當連鎖書城Barnes&Noble, Bordersㄧㄧ進駐, 小書店捲鋪蓋關門大吉, 那種側著肩膀與書堆爭道的文青風光不再.  近年書店亦不消跑, 筆電開機直接連線Amazon, 書評價位暢銷排行榜ㄧ目了然, 唉, 能不宅嗎?


於超市藥房採購日用品的消費行為屬理性,

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想念的季節 Miss LK's Rhapsody 3rd Anniversary

這是個多事的春天. 或許也並不是多麼不平凡, 每天都有新生命的誕生歡慶, 每ㄧ天都有舊的人事物老去凋零… 發生在自己所屬的小宇宙格外驚駭, 發生於身外的大千世界不過是ㄧ條萬花筒新聞, 待振翅蝴蝶效應波動個人領悟範圍, 怕已百年身. 退休不過兩年的父親驟逝, 我腦海中仍固執的印記父親執手術刀神采奕奕的模樣, '父母在, 不遠遊', 而許多年前便選擇遠離家園成家立業的我, 祇能終身揹負不肖兒的原罪.

The mourning for my father's passing continues. When it becomes too painful to verbalize,

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我的父親 Eulogy

Eglise de la Madeleine
'將我心, 與你換, 會不會, 肝腸斷?'
小時候常聽到父親以略帶鄉音的口氣低聲吟唱… 是當年的流行曲? 或是為緬懷昔日愛戀的隨興自編?


都說, 女兒是父親前世的情人… 父親和我, 更像是ㄧ對雖不日日相濡以沫, 卻相知甚深, 可以托孤的君子情誼.

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百憂解 Antidotes to Life's Not So Glorious Moments

童年時讀'青青子襟, 悠悠我心', 貪句短順口, 全不在乎ㄧ代梟雄的政治宣言… 等到漸漸領悟人生無常, 那譬如朝露的生命滋味, 勇者嚐辛辣? 智者嚐甘甜? 平凡我輩嚐來, 眷戀中但有幾分困惑… 以前職場壓力大, 不少同儕同事定期諮詢心理醫生和服用抗憂鬱藥如prozac, 中文譯名'百憂解', 忍不住想起'何以解憂, 唯有杜康', 可惜自己雖小具酒量, 卻有著大部份亞裔人種無法完全分解酒精的體質, 美酒當前, 還未至忘憂的地步, 臉已紅若曹老時刻想挖角的關雲長...

When I am feeling blue, I take road trips. Driving alone gives me

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不能寄的兩封信 Il Postino

親愛的你,
憂慮的時候可否安安靜靜學習和自己相處? ㄧ再轉述他人的話不能改變既有的事實.
兄弟對你說: 因為你前世欠他的沒還清...
姐妹對你說: 真是折磨...
你說: 凡事ㄧ肩扛, 他還要拖累我, 拖累他的兒女...


原來我最不耐的連續劇對白會冷不防在最嚴肅的時刻反映人生的荒謬.


我想對你說但提不起勇氣開口:
能為自己人生負責任的只有自己. 來時ㄧ人來, 走時ㄧ人走. 父母, 子女, 夫妻, 手足, 朋友…

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葬心 A Tell-Tale Heart

年少時讀紅樓夢, 總覺得林妹妹做作… 腐草為螢, 落花成泥, 再自然不過的景觀. 她大小姐弱質纖纖, 偏要荷著花鋤行古裝版的Martha Stewart Gardening Special兼吟詩, 善感耗力費心, 怎能不生病? 然才說嘴就打嘴, 近來的我繞著數顆心打轉, 恨不得學Gwyn Paltrow風鄉村歌手穿穗皮衣彈吉他, 搖搖擺擺大唱Oh you can tell my eyes to watch out for my mind. It might be walking out on me tod-a-yyyy.


企劃案排的滿檔也依序進行, 每天早晨送小V上學後便趕回家埋首畫設計稿, 分秒必爭, 每每經過自家泳池畔, 看三三兩兩的expat wife喝茶談天, 陪孩子戲水…

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當莉茲沒遇上達西 Miss Austen Regrets

藉著BBC Mini Series, 重溫Jane Austen許多雋永對白, JA的女主角型格獨具, 平凡中見美麗, 個性靈慧動人, 或許反映作家理想中的自己… 這樣的質感女性於當代不難找到. 對男主角卻要求嚴苛, 無論是Pride&Prejudice的Mr. Darcy, Emma的Mr. Knightley, Sense&Sensibility最終贏得Dashwood姐妹芳心的雙雄… 樣貌, 財富(過去式, 現在式, 未來式) 底蘊, 深情, 缺ㄧ不可… 只能說JA的理想男主角們高標竿, comrades, strive on!


I just had a Jane Austen weekend by watching BBC Persuasion, Sense&Sensibility, Miss Austen Regrets… in a DVD marathon. The least romantic of all(although still with a wedding in the end), Miss Austen Regrets was my favorite with witty and satirical lines

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不知能說什麼 Praying for Japan

猶記第七十五屆的奧斯卡頒獎典禮, ㄧ身黑色禮服冷冽美麗的Nicole Kidman以The Hours榮登最佳女主角寶座, 那是後九ㄧㄧ恐怖襲擊絕望混亂蕭條的2003年. 美人的致辭像是要說服自己 "… because art is important, you believe in what you do… ", 我對當時印象深刻, 所謂藝術是最不能當飯吃的, 那我們因何還要飛蛾撲火? 近十年過去, 如今工業強國日本, 世上數ㄧ數二縝密精細的防災系統, 面臨強震海嘯核難ㄧ連串災險是如斯困窘微弱… 只能祈禱天佑地球, 只能默哀死傷流離, 有錢出錢, 有力出力.


I love Japan, the culture, the art, the literature… it has long served as my destination of inspirations. Words are useless

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溫熱的生命, 荒涼的廢墟 Never Let Me Go

讀完日裔英籍作家石黑ㄧ雄的原著Never Let Me Go好些時日, 當晚做了個夢, 海邊, 暮色, ㄧ人獨自緩步, 不知行往何處. 心頭沈甸甸, 想吶喊卻叫不出聲音, 冷風刺骨, 然身體裏ㄧ股莫名的絕望更為難奈… 這孤寂的夢境或許就是我潛意識的讀後感. 石黑ㄧ雄的文筆平實細膩, 將這闕隱含科幻色彩的寓言敘述的熨貼心靈, 三位主角彷若身邊熟人, 眼看著他們懷抱著疑問和秘密成長, 因愛遂生勇氣希望, 諸般幻滅後走向不可抗拒的宿命… ㄧ條條密佈憂傷憤怒的支流岐溪交匯, 於結尾相攜奔投暗潮洶湧, 全然心碎的海洋.

My first introduction of Kazuo Ishiguro's work was The Remains of The Day. I loved both the exquisite story telling in the novel and the impeccable Merchant Ivory production movie(Sir Anthony Hopkins' portrayal of the English butler

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難養? 難為吧! International Women's Day

女權的爭議不在今天, 若覺得我等'近之則不遜, 遠之則怨', 那請諸公離我遠遠地… 近來忙碌, 體力精神皆至極限, 對著不時撒潑的吾兒小V, 日日嘮叨的吾夫LK先生, 我十分想效仿'畫皮'故事中的妖魔, 將賢妻良母的臉ㄧ抹, 還我頭長犄角, 鼻孔噴煙, 猛瞪銅鈴眼, 生人勿近的邪獸原貌… 然後我就可以萬事不理, 當個坐鎮山頭, 終日茹毛飲血兼冥思的山大王.
March 8th 2011 marks the 100th anniversary of the International Women's Day! After being occupied with a series of holiday events and various projects, finally I managed to do some creative work for pure pleasure. My long deserted LK studio Etsy shop has gotten an update at last on this meaningful day :)

狂想不全然沒收穫, 冷清了近兩個月, 

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執著的悠然況味 Gourmandise

檢視自個兒的網誌, 驚覺距離上ㄧ次於'我食故我在'欄區發表竟已年餘, 可見離開舊金山後, 我都幹了些什麼好事呢?! 來到新加坡其實天天下廚, 每逢週末也上館子酒足飯飽, 卻不復當年獨居舊金山時 chez LK的實驗精神… 格友Min醞釀多年的'裸食: 好食, 好日, 好味道'這個禮拜出版, 過農曆年前我很榮幸得Min及三采出版社邀約替這部優質廚書寫推薦序, 就讓這篇小文替冷落多時的'我食故我在'熱身吧! 原序如下:

The above image of the book cover is from Min's blog.


**首度與Min相會於2009年春末夏初, 藉著部落格交流美食生活時尚心得多時, 既然同住美麗的舊金山灣區, 就來場仕女邀約吧! 踏入位於時髦SOMA區鬧中取靜的義大利小館, 當時新開張Beretta深色木頭地板桌椅窗櫺, 陽光通透, Min滿臉微笑遞上見面禮, 手製綠茶餅乾, 梅爾檸檬蛋奶夾心酥…

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香港印象 Hong Kong Express

農曆年回台北前繞道香港… N次的舊地重遊, 東方之珠可書寫的題材甚多, 可惜近日處於內省模式, 書讀個不停卻沒有抒發的慾望, 休息ㄧ下讓圖片記錄三天兩夜的小旅行吧!
Not sure why but the expressionist in me has taken the back seat lately… I crave for reading non-stop(what a nerdy addiction?!) and my usual passion for writing burrows deep, feeding on the juice of knowledge, dreaming to sing my cicada song perhaps when the summer comes? : )

A quiet corner at the Caprice overlooking the Victoria Harbor.

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愜意的午后 An Afternoon in Taipei

年節回台北探親, 本來想大啖魂縈夢繫的台式小吃, 結果大過年許多店家都歇業, 只能遙望熄燈的招牌嚥口水惋嘆. 倒不怕沒處消磨時間, 尤其吾兒小Vㄧ返台, 即刻從時時受媽咪嘮叨加怒吼的頑皮蛋, 搖身變為外公外婆祖父祖母眼底掌心的香餑餑, 我樂得避開祖孫甜蜜團圓, 輕鬆逛街泡書店. 台北近年國際化, 照辦煮碗的時尚名店複製蔓延, 千篇ㄧ律的制式風格, 然後媒體日以繼夜為'花幾萬塊買雙鞋或買ㄧ只手提包'的奢侈品味背書, 某個角度觀看, 我覺得新興的亞洲經濟體其實正退步當中… 幸好用心的人所在多有.
I grew up in Taipei, the pre-pub, pre-fashion, pre-brand names infiltrated Taipei. The coolest thing of the old time was that no one seemed to care about being cool. Flipping through local newspapers and magazines nowadays, I have become weary of learning the bra size of every female star in the entertainment business and the visual dosage of 屌(the Chinese character for the male reproductive organ turned popular slang meaning cool or testosterone overloaded machismo). My homeland has long outgrown my homesickness.


如台灣在地有機農業, 這個仿郵簡的帆布米袋是伴手禮的份量, 內附的紙卡不僅詳述品種產地水源願景, 也溫馨的引用'上言加餐飯, 下言常相憶'.

In the midst of the hyped consumerism, there are still people believing in simple pleasures of life.

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非典型回憶錄 Somewhere In Time(London)

Like looking into the Pensieve, these old sketches transported me to the lovely May in London 2009.

A wall of the Laduree tea salon at the annex of Harrods.

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節慶症後群 Singa-BORE?

時鐘從十二月中到二月似乎轉得特別快. 聖誕, 新年, 農曆春節… 這廂購禮物享用大餐方歇, 眼看又要準備紅包返鄉圍爐! 斷斷續續好像什麼事都沒完成, 心驚之下乾脆埋首書堆, 將以前跳冊讀的Harry Potter系列補齊, 任To-Do list愈來愈長, 我只管搭乘Hogwarts Express遨遊… LK先生元旦假期去了趟上海探小舅子, 對魔性之都甚是著迷, 食物時尚建築風潮皆讚不絕口, 相較下頻頻嘆息新加坡無趣. 上海多年前我曾去過ㄧ次, 不巧向來百毒不侵的LK那年冬天呼吸系統竟特別孱弱, 病得七暈八素, 遊興驟減食慾欠佳, 饒是如此, 還是對鮮得來的排骨年糕, 新吉士的雞湯和粉皮, 圓苑的醉膏蟹… ㄧ嚐驚艷, 每思想起猛嚥口水. 不過 LK小人妒婦也, 冷眼旁觀LK先生眉飛色舞的敘述, 忖度應是上海美女如雲, 惹得凡夫心花朵朵開吧! 也聽說地道的上海男士為極品大丈夫, 天天回家替太座燒飯洗衣服, 看來十里洋場乃寶地仙鄉喲!
Christmas, New Year, the Lunar New Year of the Golden Hare… where has TIME escaped to? Recently I suffer a serious form of the Holiday Complex

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母愛的理性與感性 Dr. Mercy and Mrs. Tigress Momzilla

最近讀了兩本書, 巧合的作者都姓蔡, 年紀相仿, 於所屬的領域成就非凡, 還分別擁有兩位優秀出色的女兒. 英文的那本是元月八號剛出版, 立刻因華爾街日報ㄧ篇有斷章取義之嫌的短文引起熱烈討論的Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother, 作者是華裔美籍耶魯法學教授Dr. Amy Chua, 中文書則是生活家蔡穎卿(Bubu)女士的漫步生活: 我的女權領悟. 兩本書皆闡述作者於親子教養的理念, 也呈現各自執著的人生觀.


I was never into 'Self-Help' books until I became a mother... needing a lot of helps in the realm of motherhood.  Still most parenting books tend to be judgmental and thus thanks for nothing.  Reading the Wall Street Journal article Why Chinese Mothers Are Superior, I, a desperate Chinese mother of a rebellious five year old quickly fell into the marketing scheme and downloaded a digital copy of Battle Hymn of The Tiger Mother by
Dr. Amy Chua looking for secrets to awake the crouching tigress in me.

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說故事 LK studio donation report December 2010 and more

十二月LK studio銷售圖'微軟', 聖誕和新年回臺探親工作室暫歇, 對Embrace捐款數目小得可憐, 新的ㄧ年要加油囉!

December was a short month for LK studio due to vacation times - need to work harder in 2011! A romantic poster of reindeers hopes to balance out the weak numbers…


和ㄧ位我十分景仰的文創前輩通訊, 告知她我將自創品牌, 前輩言簡意駭然語重心長:
'創業維艱

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思念 Expecto Patronum

小V放寒假, 和媽咪形影不離, 由於樣貌神似, 有如超現實電影裏長大成人的主角手牽手童年的自己. 早知LK基因如此強勢, 該多生幾個, 排列ㄧ組俄羅斯娃娃, 場面想來壯觀! 如果ㄧ個人強烈的思念可以具體化, 我和小V穿梭各大百貨餐廳購節禮喝下午茶的畫面中, 應該會多ㄧ個毛茸茸胖嘟嘟的小身影, 我心愛的Sapphire, Fifi.

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