How safe are you??

Japan is well-known for its safety. A woman can walk alone through the toughest streets of Kabukicho at 3am and have nothing to worry about (save for the occasional mass stabbing and even rarer gassing, but whatever). So why are there all these old men in the train stations up on platforms with yellow armbands that say, in English, "On the alert!"?? The bullet trains and subway monitors also all proclaim "On the alert!".

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Now even the cleaning ladies in my apartment building are on the alert... the yellow flags on their mop carts say "On safety patrol in the projects".

I suppose I feel a little safer from those stray cats... but what if there's a rhino stampede? No need to worry, they've got plenty of old men with sticks, nets and a bucket ON THE ALERT.

¡Lo quiero el pulpo!

Misericordia - original designs all handmade in Lima with locally-grown organic cotton. The clothesmakers are paid 35% more than the minimum wage and have superb benefits (including being able to use leftover material to design and make their own clothes and getting 4 weeks paid vacation). This is no sweatshop.

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If my wages were just 35% higher, I'd be able to afford that octopus Tshirt...

(and to continue the Peruvian theme - click on the album cover of Los Hijos del Sol below left)

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A lovely meal but...

Spinach, yellow peppers and black-bean sprouts swimming in a ginger dressing with loads of lemon, cayenne and sesame seeds. Shockingly spicy, cool and crunchy. Unfortunately, the new $1500 tooth I got yesterday spontaneously split in half just before I tucked in. Thus it took me an hour to gum it all down with the right side of my mouth that's still missing a tooth. Sheesh.

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THen - made a nice cuppa mint tea and went back to the paper I've been working on since 8:00 this morning when, lo and behold, the file was fucked beyond repair!!! Hooray!!! Ten hours and ten pages magically turned into kanji, little squares and gobbledygook...

NO I did not back it up so don't even ask...

Typhoon of stupidity hits Japan!

This was so ridiculous I had to get out of my sick bed (which I've been languishing in for 5 days) to post this blog. Forgive me if it rambles, it's the medication typing...

ANYWAY... a new fad diet has taken Japan's consumers (aka "sukkaz") by storm. It's something like if you eat a banana in the morning, then you can snarf down bags of pork rinds or whatever and yet miraculously lose weight. Absolutely dumbass. But wait - it gets even better. Last week I couldn't buy bananas because of the throng of people grabbing the little yellow buggers (I am totally serious!). This evening in the supermarket I was met with completely empty trays and this sign (below) apologizing for the banana famine placing the blame on the crazed banana dieters! Oh - and by the way - there's still a bloody butter and parmesan shortage going on thankyouverymuch!!!

gaaaaaa!!!!

Niigata - magical land of beer

And yet another marvelous microbrew from Niigata~ fantastic taste and a cool woodcut print of a cloud to boot. I like the name: Eight Ocean Mountain Spring.

Tragedy is, I can't remember where I bought the damn thing...

autumnal flavors

No one enjoys the change of seasons more than the Japanese and about every 3 months the consumers are dazzled by new products themed on Spring, Summer, Winter or Autumn. On the left we have the latest seasonally-flavored gum: chestnut.

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I didn't try it.

Cool n Easy

Bite-sized cubes of raw tuna chilled overnight in a drizzling of sesame seed oil, dry chilis, garlic and sea salt. Pulled out of the icebox and tossed onto a mess of mizuna and quartered, yellow cherry tomatoes.

Dammit! I forgot to add the avocado... :(

(Adapted from Joy's original yummy recipe)