Monday, February 4, 2008

Imagina

I have been looking forward to this meeting. Flowerbossa was first known to me through a link from bb’s blog to her own blog ‘Imagina’. Not only does the name ‘Imagina’ capture my interest, but the classic and serene atmosphere keeps me lingering over there. You can say that the character of a blog is a reflection of its owner’s personality, as I found out about flowerbossa’s interest in classical music, skills in translation and artistic influence (from her very talented mother Pallet).


Thanks to the selfless co-ordination effort of cloudnine onni, I had an opportunity to meet with flowerbossa last week. The screening of TWSSG (or Barefooted Youth) becomes a convenient meeting of choice for BYJ sisters here. I came out of the bustling Shinjuku subway station and 3 wonderful ladies were waiting for me – cloudnine, flowerbossa and LL. YES, LL! The
LL whose clever MVs that bb always showcases in her blog! Remember the ‘sleeping’, ‘sporting’, ‘without glasses’ ..... and the most recent ‘beautiful’? Thanks to LL’s tireless effort, we can view the droolingly-handsome acts of Yong Joon consolidated into specific themes over and over again.


Flowerbossa is as I have expected, an intelligent, articulate and courteous lady whom you feel as if you have known her for a long time. LL is pleasant and always smiling, she is modest about her English ability but she is actually quite good. She told us that it takes her 1-2 days to create a MV because there are so many Yong Joon’s pictures and footages now to choose from. Btw, she loves rock music, am sure you notice the hard rocks she chose for her MVs. Look at her latest artwork (hehe, thanks LL) :


We had a simple lunch near Wald9 cinema before we bought our tickets for episode 7. Remember the only ‘bed’ scene in TWSSG?

We really didn’t have much chance to talk because our eyes/minds/hearts were all fixated on one gorgeous man. Hehe, who can blame us? Cloudnine and I had to leave early while flowerbossa and LL remained to drool on episode 8. I am sure we will have more chances to see each other again. Cloudnine and I walked back to the station and before she left, she handed me a gift for my son’s birthday!


Up till now, I am practically running out of words to describe the kindness and thoughtfulness of cloudnine onni, and I can never thank her enough for the hospitality and care she has bestowed on me (well actually, that’s a future post in planning :) This is the very cute birthday card and the 2 colorful educational Japanese/English comics. Knowing that this is his first birthday in Japan and despite his friends are not around, he had the most wonderful time reading the books. Thank you very much, cloudnine onni, you’re just the kindest human being!


I was overjoyed when I saw the Japanese cookbook inside the gift package. I am already a terrible terrible cook and never have much creativity and talent in this kitchen department. It is hopeless now that I am dumped in the middle of a Japanese grocery store : can’t read ‘what is what’ and can’t ask ‘what goes with what’ and worst, not knowing ‘how to cook those whats’! Cloudnine actually accompanied me to the grocery store and patiently explained to me the different labels and products.


This cookbook is a lifesaver to me, it’s comprehensive with simple ingredients and clear instructions. It has all the Japanese dishes that I always hope to cook and make my family’s (big) tummies happy, I will treasure it so much! Hehe, I mean ‘treasure’ in the sense of trying the recipes out, not hiding it in a secret drawer :)




How can I repay this kindness, cloudnine onni? Maybe next time when HRH comes to Japan, how about I’ll scream at the top of my lung and ask him to give you a BIG hug?

25 comments:

bbmag said...

you know, jaime, i was just telling cloudnine that i'm so jealous! yes, of you :p

you got to spend so much time with the so-so-so-so-so-kind cloudnine, got to spend time with the lovely and fine flowerbossa, and you got to spend LL!

*bb pouts... a major one too!

but seriously, you've said it so well. i too feel the same of these ladies. they're just beyond kind, above just being a friendly person who happens to like YJ.

like you'd said, cloudnine's very thoughtful... i can still remember how she had even thought to bring me a carrier coz she had expected that i won't have a bag big enough to hold the goodies that some of the bae fans might have brought for me... a very small gesture, but a very thoughtful one. tells alot about the person.

and oh, when i was in tokyo last march, she came to where i was staying on the very first morning and walked me around... later, she told me that she had wanted to make sure i was staying in a safe neighbourhood. so nice, right?

and yea... i had the same feel about flowerbossa before i got to meet her. i too believe we can get an inkling of what a person is like through her blog... and flowerbossa is very much like her blog. all of understated elegance... a fine lady. i like her alot. (and even before you met her, i had a strong feeling you would like her lots too... )

and LL! should i 'forgive' you for meeting one of my idols amongst bae-fans even before i do?!! jaime!!

p.s. i sooooo... envy you ladies getting to spend time doing bae-things together... and i remember, you're meeting up again in a few days' time at gosireh, right?

must share more about the clip that you will be watching, k?

thanks for sharing... :)

and.. have i said this before? i'm really really raelly really really glad you blog.

Anonymous said...

You are very lucky Jaime, how I wish I cauld meet these Bae sisters. So far I've met wtih very nice and beautiful two Bae sisters, Vegas and Fendi, hope to see you all someday.
Cloudnine sounds like a very very nice sister.

bbmag said...

haiyo... in my 'envy', i actually typed 'got to spend LL' :p

hee... of course, i meant 'got to spend time with LL'... :)

vegasbyj said...

Add me to the list of envious ones!

Seriously, I'm very happy to know that such friendships among Bae sisters exists. This is truly something, getting to meet and know and build lasting friendships.

I have not met Cloud Nine personally, but she has also shown me much kindness and thoughtfulness.

I have corresponded with LL and I too am a fan of her work. She rocks!!!

I think we are very very lucky to have this family!!

Lucky gal you Jaime!!

jaime said...

hehe princess, no need to be jealous la, I'm sure there are a lot of very nice Singaporean sisters over there too. I actually worry about writing all these out :

1. maybe embarass these sisters as they are so modest and shy

2. making others think I am gloating. I am really not, I am just so touched and amazed (to a point that I can't believe it myself) that the Japanese sisters are so hospitable.

I am sure when you come here, they will be ecstatic because you are so well loved :)

love ... jaime

jaime said...

hi hi yee,

Yes, cloudnine is sooo nice. You are very lucky to have met Vegas and fendi too. I wish I knew Vegas more last January when I went to LV. I would definitely have called her up then :( It's nice to meet Bae sisters and talk to them in person, eh?

love ... jaime

jaime said...

hi my dear vegas,

oh, you write to LL, in Japanese or English? which MV do you like the best? there are so many!

please don't envy me la, I am very thankful that I have been taken care of everyday. I sure hope I can share that joy with others.

love ... jaime

Anonymous said...

Hi Jaime, bb, yee, and vegas,

I blushed for too sweet words for me. In Japanese we have a saying that "if there's a hole I wanna hide myself", yes I should hibernate till our HRH's visit to Japan.

cloud nine

flowerbossa said...

Hello Jaime,

Being the typical Japanese (i.e.modest and shy^^;), I too want to crawl in the hole to keep cloud nine company...

BUT I am sincerely happy that with cloud nine's kind help I was able to meet you at last!! I just want to add that it was fun hearing about the sisters in North America whom I never had the pleasure of meeting, and how Asian dramas are becoming popular over there.

Enjoy your lunch at Gosireh!

love,
flowerbossa

Anonymous said...

Hi Jaime, and sisters,

I am so happy for you that you are having a wonderful time with Japanese Bae sisters in Tokyo. Yes, they are modest and humble, and full of sincerity and caring heart. I do love their company whenever I go back to Tokyo. HE, you know who,is responsible for all this amazing friendship that we will cherish days, months, years to come. I love LL's MV a lot, too.
Enjoy meeting with sisters and watching TWSSG.

Take care!
ba-ba

xiaoyi said...

Dear Jaime,
Gong Hei Fat Choy to you too!

Have been really really busy with my children nowadays. How are you? You must be enjoying an exciting life in Tokyo ^.^. Anyway, do take good care of yourself and Happy Lunar New Year to you again!!

Loves, xiaoyi

jaime said...

cloudnine onni,

really? this really bothers you. I should have asked you first before I post it. I'll post something new, ok?

love ... jaime

jaime said...

omigosh flowerbossa, you too?! soon, no japanese sister will want to meet with me anymore, sob sob.
hope u know i just write straight from my heart. no filtering, didn't really mean any harm or embarassment. i should ask my sensee more about japanese culture :)

love ... jaime

jaime said...

my dear baba-san,

how are you in LA? so happy to hear from u. i can't wait to see u again soon. this time hopefully I won't look so ignorant :)

please take care!

love .. jaime

jaime said...

thank you xiaoyi ..... i know you are very busy with your children, your blog and CNY! I am doing great here, trying my best to live a meaningful life everyday.

All the best to your family!

love .. jaime

Anonymous said...

Hello Jaime!
I always wonder what I will do or what topic to talk about if ever I meet another baesister. I will surely feel excited at the same time nervous, there is so many question in my mind, will she like me? will she be bored with my company? that's just few of my concern but reading your blog about meeting other baesisters I feel so relieved just maybe when my time comes to meet some of you, I will have the same experience as you do.
Thanks for sharing your experience.

jelen

jaime said...

hi jelen,

I feel the same way every time when I am meeting a bae sister. I remember bb blogged about that feeling too when she met sister youngsun in her fanmories, hehe, even deciding what to wear, it was a very interesting read.

I guess it has to do with the fact that we share so much of our thoughts and emotions together online, sometimes even more than with your real-life friends. We feel like we are already old friends. However we are really strangers in a sense that we do not know the other aspects of each other - job, family, hobbies, appearance. So when there is really an opportunity for the Bae sisters to meet, this is like the next best thing to actually seeing BYJ himself!

Of course, like any friendship, some sisters you will find you have more in common with and feel closer to, while others may only have BYJ in common. But that's perfectly fine, I think as long as we bring our sincere hearts to our meeting and let everything else flow naturally :)

hehe sorry, i am no expert either, hope i don't sound like preaching (if yes, please tell me). I am nervous every time when I see a bae sister, just never imagine this is happening in real life.
Jelen, I do hope you will have your chance of meeting some very nice sisters in the future.

thanks for reading my posts.

love .. .jaime

gosijo said...

Hi Jaime,

Your reply to jelen reminds me so much of our first time when we were both baebies!

It seems that through reading about your encounters, all of us in far-away lands are closer to the kind sisters you are meeting in Tokyo.

Heehee, I will always remember episode 7! After my friend watched it, I asked her The Question about the "bed" scene and she said: "Gosijo! In that house full of holes!" So now we privately refer to it as The House Full of Holes Episode, haha!

bbmag said...

don't care!! am still jealous :p

gosijo said...

Hi Jaime, me again. I happened to visit KOB just then and koyuki has translated the remarks wuri YJ made when he received the Blue Dragon award for New Rising Star as a result of his movie debut in US. While answering a question about why his name was not linked to any scandal, our dear man replied, as per koyuki's translation: "Above of all, I think the reporters are not interested in me.......and..........a real pro does not make a sound." After this, everyone burst into laughter!

I think I have serendipitously found an answer to my friend's question about The House Full of Holes!

bbmag said...

hee... gosijo, i've all long thought that was an ingenuiously humourous answer :p

Anonymous said...

Thanks Jaime for the response, I don't take it as preaching, so don't worry. I always love stories of baesis meet another baesis. There is something heartwarming about these encounter. Can you imagine because of love & admiration for one man, people of different culture, belief, walk of life are finding common grounds.

I echo BB, I to is a little jealous,hehehe... ( even though I don't have any reason to be jealous of). You guys really had a good time.

Gosijo, when I read about YJ response (winning the blue dragon award) I thought what a "witty" response but your analysis makes me think twice....

jelen

Anonymous said...

Hi Gosijo and Jelen,

You writings made me think twice...
wow wow!! YJ's answer really implies...blush blush.!

cloud nine

jaime said...

hi gosijo, bb, cloudnine and jelen,

yeah, that 'a real pro doesn't make a sound' response has so many implications. Especially after he said he will marry in 3 years. Does that mean he's been guarding his love life really well that nobody knows? If he doesn't already have someone in mind, why would he make that kind of statement which is so out of his character? Even if that MC asked such a stupid question, he didn't really have to respond to him that direct??? Um hm .... a real pro, huh?

just wondering ....

love ... jaime

Marce said...

Hi Jaime,
Like a new baesis, i think that i lost alot of things, and I asked me, why i didnt meet BYJ before? well I love to read your old posts, and this one showed me how wonderful is the BYJ's Family. I 'm so proud and happy that i m part of this. I'm not sure if I will meet you or others baesis in person, but be sure that I love all of you. (and sure to our HRH).
marce