My Favorite Things (Part 1)

I saw a curious question on my blog’s dashboard today. It was from someone I didn’t know but who apparently frequents this blog. This person asked,

Do you collect still? I visit your blog because I like your collections. Seems like a shame that you stopped collecting and writing about them.

I know I haven’t been much of a collector (or a writer) lately. After all that has happened with us in the last six months, cute kawaii things have obviously been last in my mind. Having lost so much – our peace, sense of security, and joy- we realized that no material possession could ever make up for the loss of these precious things. One afternoon, as I surveyed all that was left of the rampages’ wreckage, I decided that a life of hoarded, unopened boxes was not for me.

This, however, does not mean I’ve totally gone the way of the ascetic. What I have since acquired is a heightened prudence in choosing what works with our lives and what does not. This has shifted my perspective considerably; from the wanton purchase of pure eye candy, I now practice functionality and purpose as my most important criteria of selection. That it can be cute is an added bonus.

I know, I know. All you want is an answer.

Do you collect still?

Yes, I do. And just to show you that I still do, let me introduce Part 1 of My Favorite Things (because I do like lots of things, I just don’t need to buy them all). I am Kittymama for a reason; I like Hello Kitty. Still.

Far from the Kitty-addicted momma I was three years ago when I started this blog, I am now at a point in my life when I am ready to give many of them up. And they will go too (the task of documenting them in pictures is arduous). But things like these, I choose to keep.

The hippest Hello Kitty DSLR camera strap from Serendipitous Combinations

More iPhone4 silicone cases to match outfits (gifts from A; where he got them, I do not know)

Coming soon: a beautiful HK DSLR case I recently ordered from the Three Apples Online Shop  (expected arrival is August)

P. S. I’ll post the links to these wonderful online shops when I am off the iPad and on the PC. My PLDTDSL connection has been highly unstable since the last typhoon. (You should hear Alex grumble about this.) Good thing there’s mobile Internet to the rescue.

Need Kitty Love

I’m nursing a rather bad cold and right now, all I really want to do is curl up in bed and wait to be pampered with room service. But this being a household of an unusually hyperactive teenager (these last few days have been really manic for Alphonse), I guess I’d have to content myself with a cup of coffee in bed and a Kindle to cuddle up with. Room service might seem like a farfetched dream right now, but I hope it comes true when my husband comes home tonight. I need some babying, for goodness sakes!

And since we’re on the subject of what I need, aside from a working list of new Sylvanians, how about this for starters?

HK Nerds laptop case

I absolutely love Hello Kitty Nerd designs. Of all the newer designs in the past year, this one resonated with me the most. I have a red HK Nerds shirt and a scarf my husband got from Torrid and a Loungefly HK Nerds wallet from Sanrio Luxe. Now, wouldn’t my laptop look even cooler with this?

Made of neoprene and PVC, this fits smaller laptops such as the 13-inch MacBook.  It’s certainly perfect for my own laptop. (*dropping hints all over*)

Okay, back to bed for me now. If you see anything cool in Kitty world, give me a holler, would you? I need me some Kitty love right now.

Kitty Still Rules!

Who says Hello Kitty is dying?

Someone at the New York Times (see “In Search of Adorable, as Hello Kitty Starts to Fade,” 14 may 2010) must have gotten it wrong as fans don’t see Hello Kitty fading out from mass consciousness any time soon. How can she be “running out of lives” when the most kawaii Hello Kitty things still come up and hit it big in the markets?

Still not convinced? How about the newest Hello Kitty shoe collaborations as proof? I need only three letters to describe them, friends.

     O M G!   

      * faints*

For Dr. Martens’ 50th anniversary (Sanrio’s, too), their highly stylized boots and Mary Janes serve up massive doses of cuteness with tradition. The classic 1460 eight-eye boot is vamped with bright color tandems and the trademark HK ribbon. Mary Jane models follow the color composition of these pairs. A third boot model features what I call the “manga” look, with illustrations all over the shoe, and will retails at USD165, the most expensive of all models. (Other boot models at USD135 and Mary Janes at USD120.)

I’m not much of a boot person, though, once upon a time, back when my ankles were much, much thinner, I did traipse around the city in thick working men’s Doc Martens too. Back then, DMs were statement shoes, and anybody who wanted to be cool (even in this beastly hot city) owned at least a pair. They were heavy, but comfy. And yes, if you needed to stomp on the foot of a rogue boyfriend, these were your best bets for making your mark.  Now that I am much older, my ankles much thicker, and I have no pressing need to stomp on the foot of an erring spouse (I got lucky- I married an angel!), I prefer the more sedate Mary Janes. Kitty inspired, of course.

The Doc Martens x Hello Kitty footwear will be available in September. Whether they make it to the country is another matter altogether. Oh, well, there’s always Sanrio.com.

Now, when it comes to more casual wear, how about Pony’s contribution to the Kitty world, the Pony x Hello Kitty limited edition sneakers?  (Not My Little Pony, silly!) They come in a variety of styles, in two high and four low top designs. Pale pink, silver and white are the predominant color palettes for four of the designs while black, white and red mark the other two with a dash of cutesy boldness. These sneakers speak the language of Kitty coolness yet reveal the sensitive side to your hiphopping soul.  At PhP3295 for the low tops and PhP3495 for the high tops, they’re not so expensive and cost less than a pair of Skechers shape-ups.

I have to admit that I am still deciding on this one. I loved sneakers while growing up; they were, in fact my staple shoes for many years, even in med school. But Crocs have got me spoiled with no laces to tie and no eyes to thread. The slip-on comfort of my Hello Kitty Crocs and my non-HK Prepair beats the rigor of adjusting laces for swollen feet or ingrown toenails (eeewww). I guess that’s why I love Mary Janes over the boots, too; no fuss slip-on is more my style. Now, were Pony to come up with  a style that features, uhm, lemme see…ehrm,velcro, you’ll find me beating down mall doors just to be the first to get one. As it is, I’m waiting till the weekend to decide.

At 36, we all know that Hello Kitty is not destined to be top cat forever. Newer, brighter, younger things may eventually outshine her. I sincerely doubt, however, that she will go the way of the dinosaur. For as long as interesting things come up, I think you’ll find her aging spirit there. Yes, she may be a little long in the tooth, but who cares? She’s got no mouth to show it anyway.

~0~

P.S. Special thanks to Saralyn and Steven (and my favorite Skyler) for telling their mom to introduce me to “Hello Pitbull.”

School IS Cool, Hello Kitty

My friends at Gift Gate told me about this series of events last week, a few days before the start of the actual Megamall event, but I only got this flyer by email yesterday. I won’t be able to come to any of these dates (I missed last weekend already, drat!) but if anyone else is interested, maybe this’ll help. There’s still one weekend left to get yourself and your kids your fill of Hello Kitty. And if a picture with Hello Kitty is what you want, then come on down and get your finest poses taken!

I’m not sure if the resized flyer is still readable so let me just jot down the activities for all of you.

• 1:00 – 5:00 pm Face Painting and Sand Art
• 2:00- 2:30 PM Galileo Enrichment Activity for parents and children on “Preparing for Back to School” (limited slots and pre-registration required)
• 3:00- 3:30 pm Meet and Greet/Photo Op with Hello Kitty
• 4:30- 5:00 pm Breadtalk presents “Creative Ideas for School Snacks”
• 5:30- 6:00 pm Meet and Greet/Photo Op with Hello Kitty

Just a reminder to all those who’d love to come, purchase is required for Face Painting, Sand Art, and Photo Op. Kitty addicts, enjoy this weekend at SM North Edsa!

Freedom from Hello Kitty Oppression

Hello Kitty Hell had another hilarious post last Thursday (March 18) and it reminded me so much of my eldest son’s relationship with all things Hello Kitty that I simply had to write about it.

It used to be that I got the run of the house as far as decorating was concerned. Our bedrooms were filled with girly things and the boys – all three of them – endured this mixed explosion of pinks and Hello Kitties without complaints.

As Alex grew older, however, he began to express his displeasure at having to sleep on Hello Kitty sheets or even wear Keroppi pajamas to bed. At six years old, he insisted on blues instead of pinks and willfully demanded Pokemon instead of Hello Kitty. My husband, perhaps seeing his chance at a Kitty-free zone, seized on my son’s demands and negotiated a treaty we all had to agree to. No more Kitties for the boys (except Alphonse, but only if he wanted to) and no more Kitties in the bedrooms, except for a small designated space by my side of the bed. Hello Kitty in the bathroom was a last concession, and Alex, in particular, seemed to find it funny that Hello Kitty stays with his poop.      

“Freedom from Hello Kitty Oppression,” my smart aleck son calls this movement, and his reluctance to have anything to do with Hello Kitty has only grown stronger with time. When he was younger and I could still force him to accompany me, he always showed his disapproval by standing in protest by the nearest escape route. He was immune to Kitty’s charms and not even Hello Kitty Café and its food could entice him. If you look closely at the picture below of him and me at the Café (Alex was only eight then), you will see that I had to hold him by both arms to keep him from breaking free. Today, Gift Gate is still the last store he would be caught alive in.

Son: "Let me go, Mama!" Mom: "Not before a picture, son. Now hold still."

These days, even Alphonse seems ready to break free from my Hello Kitty strings. One minute he’s cuddling my Hello Kitty dolls, the next, he’s decapitating them. He’s also given up the pink Hello Kitty comforter in favor of his red Spiderman blankie. As much as I wish otherwise, he’s starting to exercise a little bit of independence from my Hello Kitty influence. He’s not totally there yet, but one day soon, I fear that he will be.

Ah, these are the times I would have really wanted a daughter. Sigh.

Last Song Syndrome

I woke up unusually late this morning, feeling sluggish and slowheaded. As much as I wanted to crawl back under the covers and get a few more hours of shuteye, I had to get up, else, Alphonse will follow and sleep through the day as well.

I know I should not have stayed up last night to  finish Stephen King’s new 1074-page novel, “Under The Dome.”  (What can I say? Stephen King’s magic is sooo back!) What I really wanted to do was finish my dollhouse and take some pictures but the book, waiting for me since New Year, beckoned. I could not resist.

Guess what woke me up from this numbing stupor.

THIS:

Video Details
Title: The World is Saying Hello (Kitty)
By: The Sanrio Digital Frequency featuring Chantal
Music: Greg Chun
Lyrics: Jason Mayland
© Sanrio Digital 2009

Have a happy Hello Kitty day, friends!

Christmas Is Coming!

It’s confirmed! I now have it from a very reliable source- Christmas is definitely coming. It’ll probably take a few weeks, but she’ll be here.

And you thought we just had Christmas? Sorry… Am I confusing you?

Let me give you clues. Limited edition. Great gift. Got an idea yet?

Okay, here’s another one: She’s cuddly, soft, and weighs as much as three apples.

 Kitty Bee, what are you doing??? Why are you dressed like that???

Sorry for Bee’s interruption, folks. She’s been like that ever since she got the news about Christmas. Me thinks there’s a little sibling rivalry going on here. heehee.

Anyway, let me explain. Christmas is the name of my brand new Hello Kitty 35th Anniversary Build A Bear. A got her for me on the last day of the holidays (he was able to avail of free shipping to anywhere in the US), and because she was intended as a late Christmas gift, I have named her Christmas, or Chrissy for short. I already have a HK BAB named Cory, so Chrissy (yes, Chrissy with a CH and not a K–that would have been too obvious) was a logical choice for a name; I hope to get a Noy soon. (See where my loyalty lies?)  Here’s what she looks like.

Instead of the frilly 35th Anniversary dress or even the star pajamas, Chrissy will arrive dressed up in Jedi knight fashion. While Chrissy is all girl and as such, loves frou-frou clothing, I decided on this to give Chrissy an extra boost in the Force as she helps battle evil and corruption in this year’s elections. Don’t feel too sorry for her, though; she’ll get the rest of these clothes as well, fashionista Kitty that she is.

Jedi Knight rules!

What I really want for her, though, is a yellow campaign shirt. Would anyone know where I can find one, infants’ size small? I think she’ll look absolutely patriotic in it.

“Just when I thought I was out… they pull me back in.”

Michael Corleone’s famous line from Godfather III haunted me this weekend while A and I made our way to the cash register with a 35^th Anniversary Hello Kitty nohohon in hand. I have not made any significant Hello Kitty purchases in the past three months, save for some miniatures from Re-Ment and Sanrio which were meant for my Sylvanian Families dollhouses. At each time I was tempted to buy anything — be it a Hello Kitty bag (my personal weakness) or holiday decorations (like the fabulous red and white HK Christmas tree skirt) — I was weighed down by having to choose between Hello Kitty and Sylvanian Families. I ended up favoring the latter most of the time, thus, leading me to believe that I was finally over my Kittymania and that I have become a sober,  recovering HK addict.

That is, until the presents started pouring in. First, there was the pink HK umbrella and small plush from my sister-in-law. (Sorry, I forgot to take a picture of them.) Then came a queen-sized ultra-soft pink fleece blanket from my sister Joee.

My loving husband surprised me with a very pretty Hello Kitty charm bracelet (with extra charms) purchased in Hong Kong by a friend 

and topped it off with New Year’s Kitty fortune tree and a Minna No Tabo Lion Dance dragon doll.

And lastly, the gifts that finally pushed me off the wagon of restraint — a battery-operated HK toothbrush (surely this thing tests the limits of dental care cuteness),   

an elegant black HK plush from MAC with a MAC Couture lipglass,

and — holds breath —  a Hello Kitty Barbie doll. *screams in delight* 

 

Thank you, dearest Ondine and Jun, for the lovely gifts. I feel really spoiled.

It isn’t easy fighting off the demons of your addiction, not when the ones you love are your greatest enablers. And while this consuming passion for all things Hello Kitty is hard to shake off and really seems destined to be a lifelong pain in the pocket (to my husband), at least I have reached a point where choices are possible. I no longer feel the need to buy everything in sight just because a mouthless feline flashes her ribbon at me. And because I think before I buy, my purchases are truly more meaningful in my life.

Now, presents… Hmmm…those are another matter altogether, heehee.

P.S. Since we’re doing really well with pictures, here’s another one, the nohohon A got for me this weekend:

Eco-Friendly Hello Kitty

You have got to love this– Hello Kitty with a conscience! Not only are they really cute (and quite inexpensive), they give recycling a kitty-rific edge.

Handmade from the recycled aluminum of soda cans, these Hello Kitty pendants are funky and hip,  perfect fashion statements for the environment. Aluminum recycling, for one, saves 95% of the energy cost in processing virgin aluminum and the recycled product is virtually indistinguishable from newly extracted aluminum. I give two thumbs up for products like these. Finding other uses for what are considered throw-aways or junk reduces the need for and consumption of  raw materials, prevents waste,  and decreases the demand on our environment.  If you really have to have bling, why not get one with a social conscience?

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=30840201

 Coke vs. Pepsi- it’s your choice !

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=30874660

These wonderful prodcuts can be found at Etsy (Funky Recycling) . 

Hello Kitty Online

The hardest part about addictions is that they die hard. Really hard. Groan.  Mine is Hello Kitty. Duh. No need to belabor the obvious. And when you live surrounded by almost all things Hello Kitty, playing its online game becomes an inevitable next step. You can’t help it. You are drawn to it, your addiction so severe that it gives you cold sweats and hot flashes (and no, I am not yet menopausal, heehee).    

I was one of the original players invited by Sanriotown to participate in closed beta testing starting April 23 of last year. Being a gaming momma (as addicted to games on almost all platforms as Hello Kitty), I found the experience challenging, sometimes a little nerve-wracking (I do not recommend cooking and playing at the same time; you’re likely to burn your food), but a whole lot of fun.

On August 17 of this year, Hello Kitty Online, a joint venture between Sanrio Digital and Aeria Games, was officially launched in the Philippines by Level Up and by Sanrio and its licensing partner Great Gifts. In its Founder’s Beta Stage, HKO entices avid game players to try their hand on a fantasy world filled with the cutest of Sanrio characters.

With my friend Leira at the HKO Launch last August 20 at the Yaku Japanese Grill, Podium

HKO being a massively multiplayer online role-playing game or MMORPG (whew- that is a mouthful!),  it works on the concept of social networking within a virtual world. By performing various quests and gaining rewards and skill points, one gets to increase one’s ability to maneuver within this world. Virtual interaction (through membership in guilds, or at its simplest, online chats) enables players to make friends and help each other out in tougher quests.

Okasaneko in HKO

It’s addictive, to say the least. While there is no direct competition with others playing the game, completing quests on your own and moving with ease within the HK world is a very strong reinforcing activity. Some of the quests are harder than others, and some are hard enough to make you want to pull your hair out, but the satisfaction of completion makes you want to do it all over again.

The game isn’t linear in nature and newcomers might end up walking in circles, looking for things to do next. I say, that’s actually the best way to learn. Walk around and talk to everyone you meet. You’ll eventually find some players who will help you, and others who will need your help.       

I’ve been playing catch-up with myself in HKO. Having installed the game a tad late (mothers have lives, too, you know), I find myself trying to squeeze as many hours in a day to play the game. Between the household chores and my writing assignments, I stay up half the night just to put in a few hours into the game. It’s not easy: I wake up lightheaded and bleary-eyed most days. My lower back aches and my neck is often stiff. But, hey, I’m not complaining.  Just a scroll around HKO’s world is enough to keep the smiles coming.    :-)

Wanna play with me?