Wedding bells (Part 2)

Since the end of 2009 is approaching, I couldn't help but reflect on the happenings of the past year. I am happy to say, I accomplished two happy things this year. I finally passed my 2nd degree (Nidan) black belt test in Shorinji Kempo! I've been building up my training and had a lot of support. I can barely believe I did it. Also, Scott and I had a second wedding ceremony for the family. I wrote this a while back and just finished it... it's kinda long, but it was hard not to leave anything out.


On September 20, 2009, Scott and I had a lovely wedding ceremony and reception in Brooklyn with our family and friends. But what? We're already married? Yes, well, we did get legally married at City Hall in NYC on July 27, 2007, but we didn't exactly invite anyone but ourselves to the ceremony. We thought we were being sly and got away with it, but not exactly!

Honestly, that was our attitude at the beginning of planning all this. Apprehension, some whining (do we have to?!), and then it started to get fun and exciting, but then it got stressful and then it got happy and then it got scary. Planning a wedding is no joke! I get it now when people talk about it and why there's so many reality shows about it. Now I kind of feel like we're part of a special club who've gone through it and can only understand it because we've gone through it. Who knew!



But the wonderful thing we never expected was all the love we felt from our friends and family. We had so many well wishers and genuinely felt their happiness for us. It was much more emotional than we ever anticipated. We really are so lucky to have such wonderful friends and family who support us and want the best for us. We can't thank you enough for everything!

Just to highlight some behind the scenes... our good friend Jane was gracious enough to custom make my wedding dress. It was so much fun shopping in strange stores in the fashion district for all the intricate pieces (esp the vintage lace) and designing and fitting. She also made my headpiece in one night! And her lovely mother Diane helped with last minute sewing needs. I've never felt so glamorous.


Scott's Dad made and printed all the invitations, the name cards and table seating charts, as well as decorating the tables with candles during the ceremony with beautiful fabric. Speaking of dads, my Dad made ceramic cups of all different colors for guests with our names engraved in them. Scott's sisters helped bring and set up everything for the party and many pitched in (my cousin Chris and Aunt Seiko, and best friend from home Rosemary, Felipe for the van!). My sister helped keep me calm and get ready and made a touching speech as my maid of honor. Our brother in law was a kickass DJ with all his pro equipment and helped with announcements and got everyone onto the dance floor. Moms for all their support and for trusting us on big decisions!


My friend Rich was an awesome photographer with great angles on account of his height. And my friend Dan provided elegant music for the ceremony and classy jazz tunes for the cocktail hour. My friend Maggie, a pro film director, filmed our ceremony and guests and her husband Masa provided lots of entertainment! Scott's buddies Evan and Adam really knocked it out of the park (Evan married us with a lovely speech, Adam made a humorous and touching toast as the best man).


Thanks to everyone we were able to relax, enjoy, and take in all the love!

Additional info:
Bacchus Bistro- wonderful location for our party with room for the ceremony, reception, dancing and ping pong! The food was classy and tasty, great wine, and the owner was so kind and helpful.

Opalia Flowers- Just down the street from Bacchus has unique and sweet arrangements that were just lovely.
Richard Louissaint Photography- Prints are available for guests at the link.

Metallic Art

A couple weeks ago, we made it out to the Met. It'd been a while and we heard about this amazing exhibit on the history of the Samurai. The exhibit is the first time most of the pieces have ever left Japan and been allowed to be shown outside of the country. It also groups together different time periods of the Samurai and their evolution and demise. I've heard they will continue to change the exhibit with new pieces so I totally recommend people to go out and see it. It's called Art of the Samurai.


After looking through all the intricately made swords and armor, Scott and I realized how lucky we had been while living in Japan. We visited so many museums and castles and even informal places that had historic pieces like this that we started to take for granted because we were able to see so much of it. Now we really appreciate those opportunities.


Upstairs, the roof garden was still open and we got to see this installation by Roxy Paine. Scott had actually seen job openings at the studio where they make these huge stainless steel pieces. We were trying to remember if it was last year that they also had metal trees in Madison Square Park as well. Anyway, I liked it better than last year's metal balloon things and Scott couldn't help but check out all the welds. Actually, as we were leaving we overheard a guy say, "It's pretty cool, but the welds are pretty crappy."

Every Vote Counts

Have you voted today? There's still time!

I did my civic duty at the below, the Immaculate Conception Church in our district. Hopefully something immaculate will come from it. I went in the middle of the day and found out I was only the 15th person in my district to vote. That was a bit disheartening. I guess it's not as exciting of an election as last year, but I was hoping the momentum for people to go out and vote would continue especially since other countries are dealing with threats and opposition to this privilege of democracy. Well, we'll see tonight who's in charge for the next four years and what they can inspire for our future. Just hope it's affordable.

Happy Halloweeeeen!

President for Peace

President Obama just won and accepted the Nobel Prize for Peace. It's really quite amazing. It will definitely add pressure to his expectations, but it also gives an opportunity to refocus his agenda. His words still resonate as he mentioned that he feels accepting this prestigious award is more of a "call to action" and that he accepts it "for all who strive for justice and dignity."

It's almost been a year since he was elected and everyone's still waiting for him to change the world (or at least all the big problems in America). Regardless of what policies get accomplished, with today's announcement, he's already changed so much. He has such a unique opportunity to speak to the world because apparently, everyone's listening.

Strangers in the night

The best thing happened to me the other night. I was waiting (in the disgusting heat) for the train at 23rd Street when a man and a little girl got off. I instantly recognized the man. I'm almost positive he's Japanese and he has crazy bleached blonde hair so he's pretty recognizable.

When I worked by Madison Park, I'd eat lunch there or take breaks with my coworkers. Almost every time we'd go to the park, we'd see this blonde Japanese man with his adorable little daughter. She had a bowl cut with short little bangs. The first time we saw them, she was probably about 2 years old, still learning to hold her balance while running around on the bumpy grass. We figured they must live nearby because they seemed to be there every afternoon. It was sweet to see. Eventually, we felt like we were watching her slowly grow up. When I saw her the other night, she looked at least 5 years old, baby fat shed away but still the short little bangs. I couldn't believe it was them. I hadn't seen them in years. I don't think they saw my gaping face, thankfully, and eventually I got myself together and got on the train, smiling all the way home. It's moments like this that make me love the city.

One Les Legend

I just found out sad news... legendary guitarist Les Paul died today at the age of 94. Though he obviously lived a full and seemingly happy life, it still saddened me to see another legend leave us. From what I hear, he had been playing weekly gigs in NYC for the last 20 years. Amazing. Before leaving for Japan, I did a bunch of NYC things I never got to do in case I didn't make it back here again and I'm so glad I did because one of them was seeing Les Paul live at the Iridium. He was amazing, playing completely at ease and with such joy. Scott and I waited in line outside hoping we'd get in and were one of the last to sneak in. We were surprised and pleased that it was still such a hot ticket.

A few things struck us the most. One was how frisky and slightly inappropriate he was with his sassy, much younger, female bassist. His comments were charmingly sexist, if that's possible, and he was pretty lewd! Another thing was how supportive he was of fellow musicians, especially young up-and-coming ones. He invited several unknown talents to the stage to play with him, one of many things that must've helped keep him young. And of course, his amazing talent. So smooth and quick with his fingers. It was truly a thrill to be in the presence of his musicianship.

Luckily, he won't be forgotten. The Les Paul guitar is the most famous electric guitar in the world and he also invented multi-track recording which changed the world of music forever. There was this amazing PBS doc about him I saw a few years ago. I just remember how much Les purely loved music and everything he invented (guitars, recording equipment, etc) was all in the name of that love. He used to record with his wife, Mary, and wanted her to backup her own vocals. Eventually he figured out a way to split tracks so that there were "two" Marys. That kind of simple inspiration is so incredible to me.

Les Paul, you will be missed.

Phantom phone limb

My cell phone was stolen this week. Total bummer. But I now realize how I attached I was to it and how crazy everyone looks on the street clutching onto their phones, texting and checking texts and doing whatever else makes us feel secure and connected. On my way to the police station (I have to do a formal report for my insurance... that was a first and a whole other story!), I felt so aware of people and their phones, it seemed everyone had one and was punching info into it, engrossed in their private worlds, some people with one in each hand! It started to feel really creepy, like some Sci-Fi movie where they show the future and how humans are all reliant on some technology and become all zombie-like. Of course, I'll replace my phone, but I just hope I don't get all zombie again.

Star hunting

Last week I was in LA visiting my folks and we went out shopping to The Grove. It's this fancy shopping mall they opened a few years ago where I'm told famous people shop. Actually a few years ago we went there when it had just opened and I spotted Jake Gyllenhaal and Kirsten Dunst at the Apple store, but I will say that aside from some staring, they were pretty much left alone to browse like semi-normal shoppers. This time, however, there were these two women, apparent stars (but my mom and sis and I didn't recognize them) hounded by video cameras, regular cameras, paparazzi, and bystanders. It was nuts. I guess this is what is shown on those TMZ-type shows which as a side note, I've been noticing the actual news often sites as real sources now. That I find is disturbing. They'll say, "According to TMZ..." which is so strange to validate those paparazzi weirdos.

Anyway, back to the story... the cameras were all crowding around them as they were trying on sunglasses outside and they were just snapping and filming away like mad. The strangest thing is that it was so quiet, the "stars" weren't saying anything like "back off" or "stop" and the cameramen were just getting as much footage as possible. All you could hear were the snapping of cameras and flashes. It was really eerie and creepy. Then when they moved to another shop, my mom was almost run over by the entourage. Even if you didn't want to be a part of the mob, you were stuck in it. We still couldn't figure out who the stars were, but I guess we'll find out on the tube soon enough.

Sour music video

Scott and I were happy to help out our filmmaker buddies Masa and Maggie with this very cool Japanese music video (maybe my students in Japan can catch it on TV!). I will tell you, now that we've gone behind the scenes, it is really hard to act. I hand it to Johnny Depp and all those other people. It is tough stuff taking direction and making things look natural. I wish I could've smiled more but I was concentrating a lot.

Congrats to Masa and Maggie on their hard work for this awesome video! Thanks for letting us be a small part of it!

The future is canceled

I stumbled upon this ominous sign while walking around Brooklyn today. Perhaps it's fitting on a day that marks an end of an era.



I'm talking about the switch from analog to digital TV. It actually happened! Most people probably don't care or hardly noticed because they have fancy paid TV, but as I am a proponent of free TV and broadcasts in general, and stubborn about paying for such things, I am one of the affected. I will miss the site of snowy TV and trying to angle rabbit ear antennas just so, banging on the tube to get a clearer picture (all classics). Gone are the days. It is indeed a sad day. Everything about digital TV feels so cold and robot-y. But alas, our previous President deemed it so and now the day has arrived. Good luck fellow analog friends!

Spilled silk

As we've steadily had more lactose-induced, er, issues lately, we decided to try switching over to Silk Soy Milk for a while. So far, the results, if you will, are excellent. And I must say, it tastes quite good. Kind of lighter than traditional milk, but sweet and it surely is silky. I feared it might taste watered down or grainy, but it has been delightful. I think I had a bad experience with an old roommate's Rice Dream once where it had rock-like bits in it and tasted all watery. In conclusion, though slightly pricier than regular milk, we recommend Silk if you're having problems with the dairy digestion. Soy is the solution for so many things.

Birthday boys

Today marks my father's 71st birthday... Happy Birthday Dad! He doesn't look a day over 50(?), does he people? I'm happy to say that he's enjoying retirement, playing golf, working on his ceramic art, traveling, writing haikus, and hanging out with my mom. Ah, one can only hope to enjoy life as a retiree.

Scott's birthday is this week as well. He'll be 28, so it'll be a while until he can retire. The two most important men in my life are Gemini. I feel like that should mean something, but I'm not sure if it's a good thing if it does mean anything. I'll just say that they're both lovely, handsome gentlemen and I wish them both a very happy birthday. Love!

(The photo is when my father came to visit us in Japan. This is the night we took him to dinner and sprung the news on him that we secretly eloped... and he's still smiling! Whew!)

No news is good news

Top 3 most viewed news stories online in NYC today:

Queens teacher accused of rape
NYPD officer killed in friendly fire
Police sodomy case

There is definitely something wrong with that...

Terminator tanked, Tank Girl has not

Being the true Americans we are, we went out to the movies over Memorial Day weekend. We saw the new Terminator movie, but sadly were pretty disappointed. I won't bore you with why or ruin it with any spoilers but just say that it was pretty unmemorable. In fact, we were so un-satiated by it that we walked over to the local Blockbuster and bought a bunch of used DVDs (4 for $20!).

Scott picked out "Tank Girl" for $3.99 and I totally forgot how fun that movie is. First off, I've always had a place in my heart for Lori Petty since she's petite (which I appreciated in my awkward adolescence since I was a late bloomer) and has a cool voice and was in "Point Break" with my beloved. There's also a ton of grunge-tastic music throughout the movie including hits from L7, Bjork (a lot in fact), Veruca Salt, Belly, Portishead, Bush, Hole... (ok, some are better than others), now that I'm listing them, a ton of women rock which makes sense with the whole theme of the movie. Man, I miss good, hard, lady rock. Belly, L7, and Veruca Salt were so good! Damn. Total nostalgia. It also features a young Naomi Watts and Ice-T as the leader of a gang of crazy underground creatures. It will take you back!

Notes from the underground II

Found this lovely gem on the platform which seems to be the start of a poem, maybe, and the rhyme made me smile a bit. Turns out we're not done freaking out about this new strain of flu. There was another unnecessary "we interrupt this program for a special report" today with Bloomberg and others reporting about the closure of 3 other schools in Queens. I do hope people stay well, but I wish the media would stop blowing this illness out of proportion. Bloomberg's tone was very calm which I appreciated and one of the reps today pointed out that the closure of schools is causing a lot of stress for working parents. She urged their employers to be sympathetic and for there to perhaps be a new policy for incidents like this. I imagine most employers can't afford to be sympathetic, but it was a nice, public attempt for workers' rights.


In other slightly related news, these crazy subway grates have popped up in our neighborhood. Have they in yours? I don't know what genius thought of these, but they are both distracting and obstructing. The sidewalks are already crowded with people waiting for the bus and trying to get around. They're also really really ugly. I don't get it. Plus Scott was bitter that someone most likely got overpaid for the steel work on them. What the??

Notes from the underground

While waiting for the F last weekend (I had just missed one and knew I was in for a long wait), I noticed this lovely sign. I had heard about the MTA screwing us E and F line people with less trains, but now it's been confirmed. As you can see, most of us straphangers are a tad distressed about these changes. I just hope the fare hike isn't as severe as they're saying it will be. There's constantly changes to routes due to "construction" and yet it's hard to see what exactly is being constructed and/or improved. I hope the MTA can get it together or they're bound to have some teed off customers. I gotta start greasing up my bicycle.

And now, a haiku

the sun suddenly
broke out today, a welcome
from the wind and rain

Now I've seen everything

Today I had the pleasure of walking around the city with my friend Maggie. It was a lovely day, we sat near some cherry blossoms for lunch in the park and then we ran into this crazy scene. Talk about ingenuity. Everyone was stopping and staring in disbelief. Two cops even stopped in their tracks and I heard them say to each other, "Well now I've seen everything." Awesome.




We also stumbled upon a filming being set up in Chinatown. There was a fake Chinese billboard and lanterns set up so I'm predicting that it's supposed to be set in China but they didn't want to spend the money to film there so they're going to the next best thing. The signs mysteriously said filming for "The Sorcerer's Apprentice." Remember that old animated Disney film with the anthropomorphic broom? I can't imagine them filming that live action so as one IMDB commentator wrote, seeing as Nicolas Cage is set to star, this is probably a front for the next "National Treasure" movie unless Nicolas Cage plans to wear that crazy pointy hat instead of a wig this time.

Root for The Roots

Hey, it's Easter so I will say as I always do, hope you all had an eggseptionally eggsellent day. Apart from it being a bit windy and chilly for springtime, it was a nice day out and things are beginning to bloom which is always nice to see.


Speaking of peaceful events, I got to check out The Roots jam session last week in the city. They are doing this residency at the Highline Ballroom and doing it like a jazz jam session with special guest vocalists and instrumentalists. It was all very fresh and fun with a good vibe. Something that's lost its way in modern music. Everything is so robotic and commercial, it's nice to hear rawness and soul live. On top of that, it's only $10 and all ages. It was nice to just walk in like a human being and not be carded, stamped, or patted down. There were definitely some little kids in there which made me feel ancient, but the crowd was good. Aside from a few annoying drunk yuppies, everyone was just there to hear some real music, bob heads, and have a good time.

Non fiction life (post #100!)

This marks my 100th post so it feels like some sort of momentous occasion. Hurrah! I will share that lately I have been feeling inspired by words and motivated to write more myself. Recently I've been interested in some non fiction books which was always a section in the library I avoided, um... boring! Maybe it's because of my year away from the Americas or the momentum of hope that the presidential election got going, or our present economical turmoil, but I really want to hear about what people are thinking and what direction we're hoping to go into. I've also been working part-time and it's been giving me more time to think and develop some ideas that have been cooking in the ol' noggin.

One book I just finished and borrowed from the library (use the public library people, it's great! They even have DVDs and video games!) is called Snark and is written by David Denby, a film critic for The New Yorker. I found out about the book from either Charlie Rose or Tavis Smiley, both great resources for non fiction books. I love that they interview authors and journalists, people who want to start discussions about all the wrong and good things happening in the world. Anyhow, this book is about the decline of journalism and how the internet is a wonderful tool that is unfortunately being abused. He talks about how journalists used to be very careful to fact-check and write in a neutral tone and that the tone in journalism today is nasty and false because that's what sells. Blogs and comments on web sites are mean and crude and it seems the way we communicate is actually declining. (It's probably ironic that I'm writing about this book on a blog, but I do try to avoid "snarkiness" when I write.) The book also brings up the quality of political comedy which I do agree has been a good alternative to all those "snarky" political "news" shows on cable. It's not a perfect book, but it's a good read and a good discussion about where we are heading with all this negative behavior.

Today also marks the loss of John Hope Franklin, an author and historian who lived through segregation and the Civil Rights Movement and became a Harvard scholar and later a Professor of history. He also worked with President Clinton to begin a national dialog about race and was rewarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. I must admit I didn't know of him until today, but I'm glad I do now because his life sounds fascinating and I plan to read his last book, Mirror to America, where he challenges us to all look at ourselves honestly to see all the negative, selfish things within ourselves and hopes we have the desire to want to improve ourselves. It also makes me miss my grandparents and wish I had more time to speak to them about their struggles and accomplishments. I think their generation also tended to keep the past silent out of respect. They never talked about the war or the prejudice they must've experienced when they came to the states. They did however take lots of photographs (my grandfather was a photographer) so I plan to go through those and rattle my parents' memories for stories. If you're lucky enough to have grandparents, get them to spill the beans before it's too late!

Being a total dork

Something very exciting happened to me this week. I've been told it is blog-worthy though it is also very embarrassing to speak about. Actually it is equally exciting and embarrassing to talk about. Anyway, here goes. At the hat shop on Tuesday, a certain renowned actor I very much admire and respect casually walked in. No, it's not Keanu, but I swear I'm getting closer and closer to meeting him (this actor was in a movie with him and I rubbed elbows with Martha Plimpton at a show once... it's going to happen).

So at first I wasn't sure if it was really him, but he definitely has a distinct face so I knew it had to be him. He browsed the shop and I nervously made some comments about our hats and then when he was close to leaving I thought to myself, you know I never talk to famous people because I feel bad about bothering them when they're just trying to live life and be normal but there's no one else in the shop and he's made eye contact with me twice so he doesn't seem to mind that I'm ogling him and he must know by now that I know who he is so damnit I'm going to say something this time not like the time I literally bumped into Steve Martin on an elevator and just stood there with my mouth open until he said excuse me and I moved and said sorry.

And after all that thinking, this is what I came up with saying, "I'm sorry to be annoying, but are you John M___?" (I'm intentionally leaving out his last name in case he or someone he knows googles this and I'm out of a job but let's just say he was in a movie called "Being John M___"). He answers in a very quiet voice, "Yes". Then I proceed to say, in my proudest moment, "You're really cool." WTF?? Man did my face turn red. Of all the things I could've said, this is what I say. Then I stepped out of his way and said (much to my own surprise outloud), "Oh no, now you'll never come back to this shop. I'm so sorry!" But he was very nice and waved his hand and said something like (he was very very soft spoken), "No, no, it's ok. I really like this shop. I'm rarely in town and when I am, I like to stop by." At least that's what I heard. In any case, I left him alone and he looked around a bit more and then waved and said goodbye to me.

I was still mortified, but I take it as a good sign that he didn't blast out of the store the second I harassed him and we actually had a sort of conversation. Now I've decided never to bother a celebrity again because I obviously have nothing good to say anyway! Though I do think there are certain circumstances when it is okay and not okay to bother someone famous. I think the elevator thing with Mr. Martin would've been really awkward, him stuck in the elevator with a crazy fan, not good. I think the John M thing was okay because we were alone in the shop, I wouldn't have done it if there were other people in the shop causing a scene. Also, when I was in high school, I went to a taping with some friends of the TV version of "A League of Their Own". The show didn't last, but that day Tom Hanks was the director and there was a monkey on set which was unintentionally funny. So after the show was over, my friends and I were all freaking out that Tom Hanks was standing right there so out of nowhere I shout out, "Hi Tom!". He turned, smiled and waved... at me! Or not, who knows, but I think that situation was also appropriate. Those are my two shining celeb harassing moments. Let's hope I can keep my pride intact in any future encounters.

Classic alternative

Yeah... I couldn't resist going up to see "U2 Way" up on 53rd and Broadway. I still enjoy the U2 and I believe the excitement around them is called for. There's something about them, they're able to create this positive energy wherever they are. It's infectious. Electrifying even. I want to be cynical about it, but I can't help but get pulled into it. I was lucky to experience it firsthand when I saw them at Madison Square Garden just a couple months after 9/11. It was the most uplifting, energetic show I've ever been to. I'd always wanted to see them having seen videos of their live shows growing up and was hoping it wouldn't disappoint. It was more than I ever anticipated. I totally cried when Bono came out! Really wasn't expecting to be that moved.


Anyway, back to the present... I had the day off yesterday and was just running errands and walking around so I made it up to U2 Way and took a nerdy pic of it (incidentally it's only temporary). I did not however stick around with all the kids anxiously waiting outside with guitars and other paraphernalia hoping they'd come out and sign after the Letterman taping. See, I'm not that bad. I did talk to a couple of high school lads who informed me of the exact, approximate time U2 was supposed to come out and that they did sign autographs on Monday after the taping except for Larry who apparently doesn't sign anymore after getting elbowed in the face by fans in the past. Thanks for the info boys. I haven't heard the whole album yet, but so far I'm feeling lukewarm. Their performance on Good Morning America was pretty amazing though.

Speaking of music from my youth, at the hat shop we've been listening to the "classic alternative" station on Sirius radio. I'm still offended that 80s/90s rock is now considered "classic" but I'm digging the station. Plus, Richard Blade DJs on it! I totally was devoted to him growing up on KROQ. It was so good to hear his voice again. Radio lives! I also hear that the new Morrissey album is pretty damn good. The Onion gave it 4 stars. I'll have to look into that.

Man, if anything good can come out of this global recession, I sure hope it's an all-out renaissance.

Keepin it raw(men)

So what is up with this ramen trend in NYC? Frankly it baffles and annoys me. I just saw a review of the latest ramen shop to open in the city in Time Out (incidentally it's the same issue that Arth got featured in. Yeh!). I firmly believe ramen should cost less than $10 at all times, if not at the most $7. It's just so strange to me that it got so trendy that it deserves fancy restaurant settings and has crowds of people waiting in line for it on Saturday nights. In Japan, it's a very basic dish, perhaps the equivalent of chicken noodle soup. You can grab a bowl at any corner (photo is outside of a train station in Tokyo) or as we all know, an instant package of it at the convenience store (I still love Cup Noodle). At the same time it is special, every region has its own soup base that they're quite proud of and often a person's preference is a direct response to where they grew up or where their family is from. I feel like this is being diluted (pun intended) with this whole cool, trendiness of ramen. But with any trend, I'm sure it will fade and then something like peanut butter & jelly sandwiches will be the "it" thing and cost $15.


One cool, Japanese trend that would be good to catch on is their environmental awareness (the photo is from my Aunt's neighborhood in Tokyo, it's a playhouse made entirely of recycled milk cartons. Brilliant!). Tokyo is a crazy, insanely crowded city and yet, the streets are impeccably clean. Japan also has these awesome, mini cars that use alternative gas and get around great. Super easy to park! NY1 is doing this series called Green Samurai (not so sure how I feel about the name) that reports on Japan's latest green efforts. I just checked it out today. Hopefully this makes up for the horrible, video game that was splashed on all the papers this week. Sigh...

Flavor flav

I officially have a new favorite snack. Pumpkin flavored Pretz! It is a unique blend of... I don't even know. It's just tasty as heck. They're little stick crackers, much like Pocky and they're a little salty and a little sweet. To be more precise, it is kabocha flavored, which is a type of Japanese pumpkin. Growing up, I was sort of on the fence with kabocha. My mom loved to cook it with just a little bit of soy sauce and sugar which is delightful, but my father always hated kabocha because he says it was one of the few things they had to eat during the war when he was a kid in Japan so he grew to hate it. It wasn't until we lived in Japan that I had a newfound love for it. Now it's used in pastas and all kinds of dishes in Japan. We even found mini ones in the produce shop by our house in Kunimi. So in conclusion, I highly recommend this new flavor of Pretz. Next on my list is tomato basil Pretz. Hmm...

Scene and heard...

... on the Subway

After you settle into a new neighborhood in NYC, you get to know the same subway "performers" on your usual commute home because they are VERY consistent. There's this one guy on the F that Scott despises. He plays medleys, really long medleys on this little keyboard, you know the kind you blow into? And it's always the same set of songs. And it really does go on. The only time I heard him switch it up was when he did a Christmas medley which is even more horrifying than the usual.

But the other day, I was nearly brought to tears by this other regular who's thing is Sam Cooke songs. I think it was all the optimism of the inauguration and the hope that's been floating around that things are going to come around for the better if we all just stick together. He was singing acappella, "It's been a long, long time coming... and a change gonna come. Yes it is."

It's moments like this that make me happy to be back. Every subway ride has a story. I have so many, I've been jotting them down. Will have more to share...

I pledge allegiance to...

President Barack Obama! At last, at last he's been sworn in and it's all happening now, history is now. It's officially Day 3 already. You'd think with my countdown I would've written the day of the inauguration, but I needed some time to absorb it all. (I also wrote a little diddy on the Arth blog that corresponds). So, where were you on Day 1? I was stuck at the Blue show thing for work so I was kind of bummed that I couldn't go to one of the rallies in Times Square or Harlem or in Queens. I was ready to bring the radio, but thankfully there was a lounge at the show with a big screen and everyone started gathering inside.

I made it just in time to see President Obama sworn in, which despite the awkwardness (I guess they had to do it over again to be official), was still exciting and the applauding, hooting, and smiling began. It was such a great energy to share together with others. Then came the speech. Man, a speech of a lifetime. It was well paced, intelligent, open minded, and so poetic. It will definitely be quoted for years to come. My favorite part was this (so beautifully written):
"To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history, but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist."

I thought he covered all his bases well and at times, his speech was even solemn which felt honest. He spoke to each of us from his heart and we all felt it. I do hope, if anything, President Obama will restore a positive energy to us Americans and to other nations. With his support, we have to do better, we have to think better. His last words are unforgettable:
"America, in the face of our common dangers, in this winter of our hardship, let us remember these timeless words; with hope and virtue, let us brave once more the icy currents, and endure what storms may come; let it be said by our children's children that when we were tested we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God's grace upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations."

At the end, my boss (who has been living in the US for 5 years, originally from Japan) said to me, "This is a great country. You're so lucky to be an American." Let's not forget that.


p.s. Google people, you are going to have to update your spell check to make "Obama" an official word!

The Arths collide

Perhaps all my silly puns have finally influenced the people of Arth. This is our display at the Blue Show in NYC. Uh, notice the globes?? So, let me back up a little. During my trip home to Cali, I stopped by the Arth shop in Costa Mesa and met the big boss, Satoshi Kurihara. We had a friendly chat and introduction and he mentioned Arth would be part of an NYC apparel trade show in January. I was asked to accompany him and work our booth, and so here I am now, actually doing it... presently.


We had a pretty good first day. The show is for menswear so from what I hear, it's a lot more mellow and laid back than lady apparel shows. I met some friendly buyers, some more aggressive than others, and some journalists covering the show. I do hope those I invited to our Soho shop show up. The only bummer is that I work on inauguration day so I'm seriously thinking of bringing a radio in for the address. 2 more days!!

bonus story: The lovely lady helping us work the booth, Yukiko, and I chatted a bit today. She was telling me she lived in LA for a bit and happened to go to the same college as my sister. Then she tells me she lived in San Gabriel and I asked where and we got closer in closer in location and it turns out she was living literally 10 houses away (maybe even less) from the house I grew up in! Wild stuff. Fate is a funny thing. She owns a cool wholesale retail house called Beagle House N.Y. named after her favorite cartoon character Snoopy. Um... adorable!

Bad deed of the day

This morning I was getting tea at a roach coach and the guy in front of me dropped a coin on the ground and went, "bah." I guess it was too cold to deal with (it was seriously zero degrees today with the wind chill) so then after he left, I picked it up and put it in my pocket. Was that wrong? (Actually I was kind of bummed because I thought it was a quarter but it turned out to be a nickel.)

p.s. Countdown to Obama: 4 days!

Guess I was good this year

Scott still won't tell me how he "got" my shiny, new bike but it was quite a surprise. We've both been missing our simple and efficient Japanese bikes that we had to leave behind so I was genuinely excited and happy to get such a cool set of wheels. Thanks Scottie! I took it for a test run down the street and it is smoooth. It also has 3 gears, but they're inner gears so you can't see it changing on the wheel. Crazy stuff. The K on the front was also welded by my welder man. Aww. The seat is super cozy too, which is not always the case. In short, I love it. All I need now is a little bell.

p.s. Totally unrelated: 11 more days til Obama! I'm loving the straight talk so far. Help me, help you people!