週二(1/1)1.福袋2.百大美麗臉龐

板橋區文化路一段421巷11弄1號 (陽光甜味咖啡館)

埔捷運站1號出口 旁邊7-11巷子進入20公尺 看到夏朵美髮左轉    PM 7:00-9:30

福袋

All About Fukubukuro - Japan’s Lucky New Year Shopping Bags! - LIVE JAPAN

Fukubukuro (福袋, "lucky bag") is a Japanese New Year custom in which merchants make grab bags filled with unknown random contents and sell them for a substantial discount, usually 50% or more off the list price of the items contained within. The low prices are usually done to attract customers to shop at that store during the new year. The term is formed from Japanese fuku (福, meaning "good fortune" or "luck") and fukuro (袋, meaning "bag").

On New Year's Day. Fukubukuro are an easy way for stores to unload excess and unwanted merchandise from the previous year, due to a Japanese superstition that one must not start the New Year with unwanted trash from the previous year and start clean. Nowadays, some fukubukuro are pushed as a lavish New Year's event, where the contents are revealed beforehand, but this practice is criticized as just a renaming of selling things as sets. (wiki)

One of the biggest parts of Japanese pop culture is its fashion and shopping districts, where the hottest Japanese brands can be found at department stores, clothing stores, and others. During New Year’s, many of these shops sell these popular items in so called “lucky bags,” called fukubukuro, at ridiculously discounted prices. They are limited in numbers, making it a popular custom for shopping aficionados. Join along as we dive into this curious culture, plus share tips and tricks for getting the best deals!

The concept of these lucky bags is simple: On New Year’s, stores attract more customers by putting a collection of items from the store into sealed shopping bags that people can buy.

These are usually placed at the entrance or the middle of the store, and advertise for themselves. The contents are valued more than what people will be paying for them. For example, a lucky bag could cost 2,000 yen but the value of the items inside are worth about 4,000 yen.

Due to their popularity, lucky bags leave the shelves fast. The commodity of these bags is the surprise of what’s inside. It can be a hit or a miss. A bag that has undesired items in it is called ”fukobukuro,” meaning misfortune bag. There isn’t a guarantee in getting good items, so it is a game of chance. Still, there is a way to know what kind of items will be in a lucky bag. If it’s a clothing store, there will be clothes in the bag. If it’s a technology store, electronics will be inside.

  

百大美麗臉龐

Taiwan's Chou Tzu-yu is one of the most b... | Taiwan News

Taiwan News

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – Taiwanese K-pop idol Chou Tzu-yu (周子瑜) was ranked as the second most beautiful face of 2018 by TC Candler.

On Dec.27, TC Candler, a British independent critic published his 29th annual list ranking top 100 most beautiful and handsome faces chosen out of a thousand celebrities all over the world.

The K-pop idol and member of South Korean girl group Twice, who is widely known by her stage name as Tzuyu, has appeared on the list four times with this year's ranking as the highest so far. Tzuyu's rankings in the previous years were 8th in 2016, 13th in 2015 and 3rd in 2017.

Topping this year's 100 Most Beautiful Faces list is a 17-year-old French model and fashion designer Thylane Blondeau. Meanwhile, "Aquaman" Jason Momoa takes the first place in the 100 Most Handsome Faces list.

Other notable top finishers included American singer Ariana Grande (90), singer and actress Selena Gomez (69), Indian newlywed celebrity Priyanka Chopkra Jonas (47), British actress Emma Watson (19). And last year's winner Lisa Soberano landed in the fourth spot in this year.

In the men's category, Tzu-yu's compatriot, Godfrey Gao earned a spot of 65th, along with other famous names, such as British singer Zayn Malik (85), Thor star Chris Hemsworth (74), Hong Kongnese idol Jackson Wang (35), British soccer David Beckham (13), Canadian singer Shawn Mendes (6), and BTS's member V and Jungkook at the 5th and 2nd, respectively.

UK-born TC Candler has been publishing his annual "100 Most Beautiful Faces List" since 1990, which is devised by a group called "The Independent Critics" as well as input from the public. The team selects the 100 faces out of a list of 85,000 celebrities.

A Little About TC Candler & The Independent Critics

The world famous 100 MOST BEAUTIFUL FACES LIST has been published annually by THE INDEPENDENT CRITICS since 1990. What originally started off as a small collegiate project has grown into a yearly internet phenomenon. In recent years, the list has been seen by almost a quarter of a billion people from around the world. It is widely considered to be the most internationally recognized and prestigious list of its kind. THE LIST has been acknowledged / thanked by over 200 celebs that have been included on the lists over the years.

Unlike most other annual beauty rankings, The INDEPENDENT CRITICS LIST is not a popularity contest and it is definitely not country specific. It is not about the sexiest body or the most famous celebrity. Rather, the list attempts to inform & broaden public opinion instead of reflecting it.

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周六(12/29)1.火鍋歷史2.日本新年遊 下午4:00-6:00

板橋區文化路一段421巷11弄1號 (陽光甜味咖啡館)

新埔捷運站1號出口 旁邊7-11巷子進入20公尺 看到夏朵美髮左轉    星期六 聚會時間為下午4:00-6:00

火鍋歷史

Chinese Hotpot — A Popular Chinese Dish You Should Try  chinahighlights

Hotpot A mandarin ducks pot is a kind of hotpot with two separate soups: spicy and clear.

Chinese hotpot (火锅 huǒguō /hwor-gwor/ 'fire-pot'), also known as Chinese fondue, is one of the most popular meals in China. It consists of a simmering metal pot with broth at the center of a table, and all raw ingredients placed beside the metal pot, so people can add and cook whatever they like in the broth.

Why the Chinese Like Eating Hotpot

The hotpot has a long history of over 1,000 years in China. It used to be favored only in winter, but recently hotpot has been appearing on tables all year round.

Beside the delicious flavor, there are two other important reasons for Chinese liking hotpot: the first one is that it is a great way to socialize. People gather around the pot, chatting, eating, drinking, and having fun.

The other is that hotpot is a "healthy meal". Boiling is better than frying, and bone nutrients are released into the broth. Eating hotpot can warm the body and improve circulation in winter, and increase perspiration to help cool the body in summer. Some seasonings used in hotpots can help alleviate some minor illnesses like colds, blocked sinuses, and headaches.

Chinese hot pot: a brief history

The concept of Chinese Hot pot (huǒ guō) is believed to date back more than 1,000 years to the time of the Jin Dynasty. Hot pot's roots can be found in the dining practices of Mongolian horsemen who rode across the steppe and into northern China. Legend has it that the Mongols used their helmets as vessels to simmer broth over open fires, and cooked chunks of meat in that broth.

And their shields? They were used as a sort of frying pan to sear meat, of course. Mongol horseman knew how to pack light.

China resisted the Mongols. Heck, they even built the Great Wall to keep them out, which despite its splendour did not succeed. However, the Chinese took a little bit of the good with the bad and incorporated this style of eating, modifying it over the years for themselves. In the centuries that witnessed the growth of the Song Dynasty, hot pot moved — and morphed — further south into China, with each successive region adapting it to their local ingredients and tastes.

  

日本新年遊

Visiting Japan during New Year  japan-guide

Visiting Japan during New Year (shogatsu) can be rewarding, as you have the opportunity to experience Japan's most important holiday, but it can also be frustrating, as many tourist attractions, shops and restaurants are closed, and getting around can be inconvenient.

New Year's Eve

Traditional activities on New Year's Eve include watching the popular music program "kohaku uta gassen" on television and visiting a shrine or temple around midnight. In recent decades, countdown parties have become more numerous in the large cities, but fireworks at the turn of the year remain uncommon.

Hatsumode

If you are in Japan during New Year, you can join the crowds doing hatsumode, the year's first visit to a shrine or temple. Hatsumode festivities are held at practically every shrine and temple across Japan during the first few days of the year, especially on January 1.

At popular shrines and temples you can experience a festive atmosphere with food stands and many people lining up for a prayer at the main hall, purchasing lucky charms for a fortunate new year and disposing their lucky charms of the past year. Most atmospheric is a visit to a temple around midnight on New Year's eve, when the temple's bell is rung repeatedly.

Some of the most popular shrines and temples, such as Tokyo's Meiji Shrine, Kyoto's Fushimi Inari Taisha, Osaka's Sumiyoshi Taisha and Kamakura's Tsuruoka Hachimangu each attract more than a million visitors over the first few days of the new year. Expect to line up for more than an hour at the more popular hatsumode sites in order to reach the offering hall for a prayer.

In order to accommodate the hatsumode activity, major urban train lines and lines serving popular shrines and temples, such as the Ise Shrines and Naritasan Temple, run through the night from December 31 to January 1.

It is a custom to dispose the old year's lucky charms during shogatsu

Emperor's New Year Greeting

On January 2, the Emperor makes several public appearances at the Tokyo Imperial Palace. It is one of only two occasions during the year, when the inner grounds of the palace are opened to the public. (The other is the Emperor's birthday on December 23.)

The Emperor and family members are scheduled to appear on a glass protected balcony around 10:10, 11:00, 11:50, 13:30 and 14:20, waving and shortly speaking to the flag waving crowd.

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週四 (12/27)1.交友心理學? 2.浪費時間的方法

板區橋文化路一段421巷11弄1號 (陽光甜味咖啡館)

埔捷運站1號出口 旁邊7-11巷子進入20公尺 看到夏朵美髮左轉    PM 7:00-9:30

交友心理學

Ways To Use Psychology To Get More Friends   psychologium

                                                                                                           

Having close friends can sharpen your mind, help develop your social skills, encourage you to get to know and understand yourself better, inspire you to reach your goals, further your career, lead to potential new friends or romantic interests and even help you live a longer life.

Psychology today suggests a few obvious yet helpful tips that will allow you to broaden your horizons and hopefully make a new friend in the process.

Simply Turn Up

Have you ever heard the phrase ‘Eighty percent of success is showing up’? Woody Allen’s quote can be applied to many things, including friendship.

When presented with an opportunity to attend a social event, take it. It’s that simple. Make the effort to interact socially and you’ll be able to make the most of the exposure. You’ll meet new people and get to know your acquaintances better.

Plus, the more you go out and attend social gatherings, the more likely you are to develop friendships and associations with the same people you see at them regularly.

Join or form a Social Group

No matter what your main interest in life is, chances are there are people out there who share it. A quick flick through a local magazine or an online search will show you any groups that meet in your area relating to your favorite topic. Once you’ve found one, there’s nothing to stop you joining in. You’ll meet like-minded people who will be all too happy to discuss your passions with you. If there are no groups in your area, why not start one? You never know, there could be others just like you, waiting for the opportunity to meet people with similar interests.

Take Names into Account

Using someone’s name in a conversation can give them feelings of validation regarding their identity, subsequently allowing them to view you in a positive light for making them feel that way.

Once you’ve learned the person’s name, try using it from time to time and see how they respond.

Keep an Eye on their Feet

Following on to the psychological approach, Psychology Today also recommends looking at people’s feet in order to make friends. Sound strange? Don’t be so sure – the psychology behind it is sound!

To put things fairly simply, looking at peoples’ feet in a crowded room may in fact indicate who is willing to accept a new member into their group and who would prefer to be left alone.

If members of a larger group are formed in a semi-circle arrangement with their feet pointing outwards, this may be a clear indication they are welcoming to newcomers.

However, if the group are facing each other with their backs to others in the room and their feet pointing inwards, it is very possible they’re hoping to keep their conversations private for the mean time. It’s surprisingly clear to see how psychology can affect our opportunities for friendship, showing just how complex the process can be. Use this to your advantage by researching social psychology and ensuring you remember as many tips and trick as you can in order to build up rapports with your desired peers and social groups.

 

浪費時間的方法

Ways to Waste Time -- and How to Get It BACK!   huffingtonpost.com

1. Learn something useless. Funny thing about triskaidekaphobia. There are so many reasons why people have taken a dislike to this number. It goes back to Hammurabi’s Code (or maybe not, as it was a clerical error), the Vikings, early Christians, the arrest of Jacques Du Molay and the Knights Templar, Apollo 13, Jason Voorhees (however, to be fair, his mother was the killer in the first “Friday the 13th”). See all this? This is all pretty much information you will never need to know, unless you wind up on Jeopardy.

Instead, learn something meaningful to you. Learn things that are important in your daily life, or enhance your hobbies. For instance, if you’re a good cook, read and try a new recipe. If you like a weekend drive, check for exciting or interesting events going on in the area.

2. Spend countless hours on YouTube. The average length of a YouTube video these days is about three minutes. Combine that with the fact that after you watch one video, YouTube happily informs you of scores of others you might like too, and suddenly you could be staring at the screen all day.

Instead, limit the number of videos you watch. Set a time limit and stick to it. Videos with hundreds of thousands, or millions of views aren’t going anywhere, and you can actually choose the option to “Watch Later,” and bookmark the ones that appeal to you. Also, if you use Google Chrome, Safari, or Opera as your browser, you have YouTube options available under Appearances, and you can select “Hide video suggestions.” Now you won’t be asked if you’d like to watch something else!

3. Never turn off the TV. Sure, it can be a friend, companion, or secret lover, and there’s a lot of channels to sift through, but again think about your time. A movie on TV will usually last around two hours, while a series episode goes on for 22 to 44 minutes. Even with energy-efficient HDTV models these days, it seems pointless to leave it incessantly blaring if you’re not around.

Instead, make your own personal TV guide. The internet can help you find out what’s going to be on for several days in advance. Look up the shows and movies for the week you absolutely can’t miss, then keep the schedule close to your TV. This is a great way to limit your TV viewing, watch what you really want, and get on with the rest of your life.

4. Read all the junk emails in your inbox. Honestly, how many daily emails do you get that promise you the sun, the moon, the stars, the golden apples of the west, and the perfectly sized... um... cucumber? A corollary to this is to read all the junk in your snail mail too.

Instead, clear away the junk. Your email software should have a spam filter or junk folder. Check to see what is available, and use them. Empty your trash folder daily also, so you don’t get tempted to read anything you tossed out. Tell your postal carrier to put you on a no-junk mail list — unless you’re like me and use them to pick up spills or the cats’ little accidents. It saves on paper towels and they can be very durable

5. Stand in line and wait. It’s tough not to. A recent article claimed Americans spend about 37 billion hours a year standing in line for something. What better way to spend quality time than standing there, grumbling, and complaining until everyone else in line wants to hit you, or be so obnoxious that you embarrass yourself, your companions, and anyone in the vicinity?

Instead, make the best of time. I’ve gotten into the habit of keeping a paperback I really love inside my purse. My smartphone has video player capabilities, so I can watch Netflix or something. If lines are really long at checkout aisles, especially at grocery or department stores, I’ve actually gotten out of line and re-shopped for about five or ten minutes, and when I returned, the lines were gone or much shorter. It’s impossible not to wait for things. All I’m saying is, it’s not impossible to still get some other things done while you wait.

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週二(12/25)1.新年新計畫 2.韓流自拍手勢

板橋區文化路一段421巷11弄1號 (陽光甜味咖啡館)

埔捷運站1號出口 旁邊7-11巷子進入20公尺 看到夏朵美髮左轉    PM 7:00-9:30

新年新計畫

5 new year’s resolutions worth making  au.reachout.com

When we’re swept up in the cheer of the holiday season, it’s tempting to make overly ambitious resolutions for the new year. ‘I’ll never eat hot chips again!’ That’s just ridiculous. ‘I’ll learn to play one new instrument every month!’ Okay, Mozart. The reality is that most of our new year’s resolutions don’t even make it past the second week of January. Here are five resolutions that are both worthwhile and realistic.

New year, new resolutions

It’s a new year, which means a fresh batch of new year’s resolutions. You resolved to eat more vegetables and to volunteer some of your spare time, while also going to the gym every day and learning Spanish. This year, before your resolutions fly right out the window, let’s try a different approach. Start small, be realistic, and break down the big, daunting tasks into more manageable ones. To give you an example, we’ve got some tips to help you stick to some of the most common new year’s resolutions.

The big 5

1. To enjoy life more. This one’s obvious; we all like to have fun and enjoy ourselves. But what does it actually mean when we say we want to enjoy life more? As far as vague resolutions go, this one wins first prize. Be more specific. Does it mean taking more trips? Does it mean hanging out with your friends more often? Be very clear about exactly what you want to do, and then you can figure out what you have to do to follow through.

2. To eat better and exercise more. Let’s be realistic for a second: you’re probably not going to go to the gym every day and eat only vegetables. Not only is that setting the bar a bit high, but it’s unnecessary. Set yourself up for success. Start with one trip to the gym, or walking every now and then instead of always taking the bus. As far as your diet goes, you don’t need to go to extremes – just try to maintain a healthy balance.

eat healthy

3. To learn something new. Trying new things and learning new skills is great, but let’s not try to learn everything at once. Choose one thing, and follow through on it. Set aside some time each week to work on your new hobby, and remember that learning something new is a gradual process.

4. To quit smoking. So, you want to quit smoking? That’s great; hats off to you! There are lots of ways to go about it. Put systems in place that will work for you and help you give this habit the flick. It often takes a while to quit successfully, so don’t feel too bad if your first attempts don’t work; just stick at it. Head to the Quit Now website as a first step.

5. To manage money better. It can be hard to keep tabs on your hard-earned cash, especially over the holiday season. One minute it’s there, the next it’s gone. This year, put in place some practical measures to help you keep a closer eye on your money. Apps such as TrackMySpend can help you budget and manage your spending.

 

韓流自拍手勢

Korean hand gestures     sofietokorea

By 소희

Koreans use their hands a lot when they speak, but their hand gestures differ significantly from what we know from Western culture. I have no idea why I never thought about writing about this before but in the past few weeks I have experienced all most of these hand gestures first hand (haha, lame pun intended), so I thought I’d give you a rundown of them here. And feel free to use them whenever you visit Korea!

The V-sign

You don’t see a photo in Korea without at least one of the persons pictured spreading their middle and index fingers in a V-sign. In fact, I dare you to hold a camera toward a Korean and see how they respond. You just have to pretend that you’re about to take a picture and they will make the V-sign instantly as some sort of superhuman reflex mechanism. 2 years in Korea have reprogrammed me to be just as quick with the V-sign, and I instantly present the same pose whenever someone holds a camera to my face. What can I say… When in Rome Seoul, right?

The finger heart

This one is relatively new. You simply take your thumb and index finger and cross them at the first joint so that the fingertips form the shape of the heart. This is a preferred photo gesture among younger people these days, but it does not look any more sophisticated than the V-sign. Due to Korea’s strong group pressure mentality, I’m a repeat offender of this one too, but I personally find it a bit tacky.

The promise

Koreans love to make yaksok, promises using the “pinky swear” gesture, where you lock pinkies and then say the word yaksok sort of as to solidify the promise. It doesn’t matter if you’re a teenager or well into your 30’s, I’ve lost count on how many times I’ve made a pinky swear with Koreans. I’ve recently been subjected to the whole routine of promise-sign-scan-copy – promise (pinkies lock), sign (you pretend writing with your index finger on the other’s palm), scan (you hold out your hand like as if about to give a handshake and then slide your palms by each other), copy (you place you hold your palms vertically on top of each other), which I suggest might serve well as a sobriety test since, as you can see, it involves a series of meticulously choreographed gestures.

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