ne(one)piphany

She is planning for me a death by inches, this shadow-me, and each day I flit between engineering her own, and entertaining the idea of just letting it happen. We are all too aware that there is no road on which the two of us, in traveling together, can join and become whole. Our roots will either choke for lack of space, or one will wither and the other flourish.

So we sit and plot, and smile stiffly at each other, frozen by fear of motion.

But on the other hand, Miranda, my skin is smooth and smells faintly of citrus and bergamot and white tea leaves — after all, if nothing else, we can live for these small pleasures.

Whirlwind day in Manhattan, browsing the sample sale at Triple Five Soul, shopping at Lush, H&M, and tons of cute little kitsch shops, ooh-ing at Origins’ fab new Modern Friction dermabrasion rub but backing away a little at the price. Also: nibbles at Jaya Malaysian, Woorijip and Le Pain Quotidien with Miranda and Lia (rockstar!), and finally meeting Jarvis and Samson, adorable fuzzballs — all while fighting off jet-lag.

Lots of fun, but tired tired tired.

Okay, breathe, Yuki, get some sleep. You’ve a train to catch in the morning.

Aromatic manna from the frozen north arrived today into my eager hands, courtesy of Rav. The take, all from Lush: “Breeze on a Sea Air” facial toner (“Made with fresh Hebridean sea water”), Aura Suavis bubblebar (my favorite!), and “Sweet Japanese Girl” facial bar (“Massage and exfoliate your face with this lovely little bar. Wash off and smile.”). The aforementioned enabler extraordinaire came into my office at work last Friday to give me a sample spritz of the toner, and that was all she wrote. I was sold.

What passes for winter in the northwest — bone-chilling rains and oppressive, grey skies — has begun in earnest. The three giant plum trees in the front yard have started shedding their bounty all over the grass, so I’ve been spending a lot of time soaked in the elements trying to clear away the mess. Nothing like an hour spent steeping in warm, fragrant goodness to cure the bad-weather blues.

Heavenly!