Day 200 - Due Credit

I just checked not only my credit report but also my credit score. The credit report shows an error--someone misspelled my last name, and it shows up as an alternate to my real name. When I clicked on it to dispute it, it said I can't do that online and gave a telephone number. After several minutes of a phone tree forest I was told hey, typos happen. It's not affecting your credit score. ...do you still want to dispute this trivial thing? Guess not.

My credit score came back and I'm thrilled with it--a B in their convoluted, non-FICO number system. Not bad for two and a half years of credit history. Oh, and in those two years I've had four addresses. Natch.

The friendly if ill-designed report even had some "tips" to help me improve my score. They boiled down to grow older (for a longer credit history) and buy a house. Um... no?

Day 193--I Voted

Have you?

Day 158 - Moving On

This may seem sudden... but that's because it sorta is.

I'm moving to Japan.

The whole story:

My boyfriend, Ken, is Japanese. He'll be finishing up school this December, giving us the opportunity to move someplace neat to start the whole adult/life thing. And where better than Japan? The chips really fell into place--his dad dabbled in real estate during the Bubble and bought an apartment, hoping to make money on it. He picked an awesome location--a five minute walk from two different train stations, a half hour from Shinjuku, Tokyo, on the 21st floor of a modern apartment building with views of Mt. Fuji on a clear day... the works.

Well, the Bubble crashed and now the apartment is worth half of what it was in the early 90's. The mortgage was finally paid off and the last renters left long ago, leaving a nice, furnished crash pad for Ken's flight attendant sister and business-tripping dad.

When Ken's family heard that we were interested in moving they said, "Why don't you stay in the apartment?" Rent free. O_O

So, we have a place to live, he's searching for a gaming company to work at (he's an illustrator), I'm doing the whole job search thing to find a nice English language school to teach at... and my life will be changing significantly come 2009. I can't wait. ^_^

Day 125 - Moving Forward

Test date: December 7th. Mad studying has been going on for a while and will only continue. Wish me luck!

Day 115 - Newness

I've tried out a few new things since I last wrote:

#71 - Dim Sum on Clement--yum.



You know the place has got to be good when it's packed with Chinese people and you hear Mandarin every where you turn. I tried a bunch of stuff where I didn't even know what it was... and it didn't matter. It was all delicious.



Yan here was a tour guide of sorts, telling us what was in each dish. "Who wants chicken feet??"

"Um... we'll pass."



Leslie, Susan, and Cathy. Totally going to eat here again.

New teas have been tasted:

Chai from Other Avenues--Pretty good. There's the right amount of spice, but it's missing a little something. Much better than some other chais I've had recently, though.

Blackberry--I got this in a tea swap, and it's decent. My tea tastes have developed over time, I think. Five years ago I would have been adding a ton of sugar to this and deeming it awesome. Now I'm not sure I'm a big fan of the fruit in my tea. I guess my taste buds have matured?

Organic Green--Also from a tea swap, so I'm not sure what brand it is. It's a decent morning cuppa, but nothing special. Scorches very easily.

Mystery Tea #1--It's a German(?) tea from the swap. It's the first herbal to knock my socks off in a long time--the nice red color hints at hibiscus, but there's some cinnamon in there to add a nice kick. If I ever see it in any kind of specialty shop I'm picking it up. ^_^

Tasting ten new teas didn't take long at all--another item off the list!

Day 92 - New Tea

I've tried all different kinds and have failed to mention them here. First, from Other Avenues:

Earl Gray--pretty good. Not as good as my favorite (Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf--it's to die for) but not as bad as some others I've had.

Gold Rush--meh. I think the base is Darjeeling which would explain why I don't like it. Lots of neat fruity stuff in, though.

There's also:

Mighty Leaf's Leaves of Provence--another meh. I like my black tea to be a bit stronger, with more kick.

It's been a while since I've had a tea knock me off my feet. I recently received a tea sampler of sorts, though, so I'm hoping.

Day 91 - Karla Meets the Pacific Ocean

Pics courtesy of Susan.