Last Day of the Year

Wow... end of 2009 already. End of a decade. Interesting. Doesn't feel like it. Is it just me? I mean I have a lot of stuff going on that really seems to get in the way of thinking of new years eve. With Joji due at the end of January I'm not really thinking much about what happens tonight. At least not in the big party sense. That and some of the projects at work that are going on (yes some span the new year's break).

The end of the nineties just seemed HUGE 10 years ago. But that might have been also due to the Y2K thing. I didn't party much to be honest with you. I had a HORRIBLE cold/flu and it kept me on the bog and down with a fever. This time, we're going to meet some friends at their place, but I don't see it being too crazy. I'm guessing the fact that its ten years on that also making us all more mature and less worried about a single evening.

Anyhow... here is to the end of the year, and the decade. Health and happiness to all my friends and family for the next year.

Kiyomi's Birthday

Well it was Kiyomi's birthday a couple of days ago. Feel a bit bad for her right now, as being so preggers she just can't have any drink or get out too much.

Anyhow on the day I gave her some electric toothbrushes that she had asked for. Had those and and ready along with a card on my way to work. Then we went to a nice Italian place for dinner after I had finished work. Food was pretty good. I am constantly amazed with the quality of restaurants that we have in Oomori. There are a lot of really good places that won't cost you an arm and a leg.

Oh... also got her some roses.. here they are.

Da Bird

So last night cooked up a turkey for a few folks here too. DId my usual stuffing as well. The bird was big... but not that big. Its about the best size for my oven I think (6.5 Kilos - that or a little bit less). We got it at costco, and it was probably the best price around. If you're looking for reasonable priced birds... go there. This one was about 3000 yen, and if you get one smaller I think you can get one a little cheaper. If you're in Tokyo and don't have access to a car, then I would really recommend going to Nisshin (Meat Rush) in Azabu Juban. They're not as cheap as Costco, but they aren't that expensive either. I've heard of Japanese supermarkets charging up to 10,000 yen for birds. Some of the on line shops were about double Costco. Which is kind of a rip off in my books.

Anyhow... I fully cooked the stuffing, and then cooled it off. Stuffed the bird and it was ready to go:



After it was seasoned I put it in a Turkey bag, and put some tinfoil on top. In a small oven like we have in Japan... both of these are really important. Otherwise it is too easy to dry the Turkey out. The top of the bird is going to be very close to the heating element. In the bag I some white wine, the neck, some carrots, and a couple of raw italian sausages. They will all roast nicely with the bird.



And now... the final product!

The Crib

Wow.. buying a crib was not that easy I have to say. But Ikea made it a lot easier! In Japan Kiyomi and I really had trouble finding something that would be safe, and fit our house... that was a reasonable price. For those of you who don't know.... furniture in Japan can be very expensive (for junk too).

Anyhow... Ikea's crib was fairly well reviewed on the web, and we decided to go and check it our. Its pretty good, and the nice thing is that the "system" allows you to get everything you need and know that it fits! So we basically got everything and are ready to go. (Less than 4 weeks now).



A BIG shout out to Masa who was here the other week, and he was kind enough to put this together while I was in Kamakura with Karen.

More Photos

Check out this... was at the Westin hotel the other day. Had a nice lunch with Kiyomi and some friends. As Kiyomi is not overly mobile we took the car. Plus we would get free parking with the lunch, which basically meant it was the most logical way to get there. In the basement... as you could imagine there were some pretty nice cars as it is one of the nicer hotels in Tokyo. Here is a picture of one line. It went Ferrari - Porsche - Ferrari. And yes this was even an F40. One of the rarest of rare Ferrari's.



There were some pretty nice Christmas trees that I saw yesterday too... This was the one in the lobby of the Westin.



This was the one that was next to Ebisu station.

Fall in Kanto

So had a couple of Temple days recently. Not long ago a friend from work was visiting from Australia. We did a little walk around Tokyo. Starts in Shibuya, covers Yoyogi, Meji Jingu and then over to Harajuku. Covers a lot of ground in a couple of hours and you get to see a lot of Tokyo.



The next day had a big walk around Kamakura with a friend from Canada. It had been a while since I was in Kamakura in this season. It was really nice... I bet the colours would have been even better a couple of weeks before. Still was a good walk (again!) and did really like getting out of town. Some photos from the walk below.

Christmas In Japan

Christmas in Japan is a little weird. Its not really a big family night, as such a very small percentage of the population is christian. Its more of a date night. All the single folks rush out, book a nice (as they can afford... or sometimes more) restaurant, a hotel, and if you are a guy - get a nice gift. Think something like a tiffany bracelet, earrings or something along those lines. If it is shiny and expensive you really won't go wrong. Its a very, dunno, commercial feeling.

Families will usually get a bucket of KFC for christmas dinner. No ... I am not kidding people will actually line up for that sh**.

You do tend to see some pretty nice christmas trees here though, this is the one in the lobby of my building.

A quick visit to Akihabara

Not too long ago, had a quick visit to Akihabara with Paul. We dropped by on our day off, looking mostly at the import video games stores. For those of you who aren't familiar Akihabara is the electronic capital of Tokyo... Hundreds of electronics shops and computer stores all crammed into a few blocks just two stops away from Tokyo station. Its a bit bizarre, kind of like the people who shop there.

Took some photos while there... the first one is a couple of guys watching a guy demonstrating good model building technique. Kind of impressive that he was locked behind a booth or something. The next three are off fake air pistols that you can buy here in Japan. They look COMPLETELY real to me... supposedly they are also accurate to the weight of the actual guns too. They fire small round pellets.







Akihabara is a pretty interesting place... but stay away from the maid cafes!

December in Japan

So exactly cold is Japan in December... well I guess it really depends where you are. Those folks who are in the mountains or up north in Hokkaido will find it pretty cold. In Tokyo though, well its pretty warm. Especially by Canadian standards. The last couple of days when riding to work, its been around 10 degrees celsius. Which I feel is pretty warm. Its no Florida or anything, but a hell of a lot warmer than Toronto!

Check out my neighbors rose growing next us. I took this last week, and there are three more in bloom right now.