Naan… was ok?

"Making Naan" Cedar Park, 2017
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/3.6, 1/125 sec, ISO2000
“Making Naan” Cedar Park, 2017

こんばんは。How’s it going?

This evening my wife went to work before she could finish making naan for us, so I had to take over. Mariko prepared the dough for me in the bread maker, and when it was ready it was my chance to succeed or fail. 😝

When I took the dough out of the breadmaker, it was really sticky and got stuck on my hand. I was thinking that this cannot be right! Did I take it out too early? Was it supposed to rest for 15 minutes? Did I miss something on the bread machine since it is all in Japanese? The doubts were going through my head. 😱

But then I floured up my hands and sprinkled flour on the Silpat baking sheet, and things got easier. I divided the dough into six portions, then went to work forming the dough into flat shapes. While I was doing that, our cast-iron skillet was heating up on the stove and starting to smoke a bit – just about ready to cook!

The first naan I put on was a bit too thick and a little dough-ey, but it was still delicious. The other five naan got better (and thinner) the more practice I got so I was happy. When each one came off the pan, I spread a little butter on it and sprinkled some salt.

The real test came at dinner when the kids tasted it with their curry. And they thought the naan was good! Koa ate two of them and even designated a section of his plate exclusively for curry sauce for dipping the naan in. No rice or chicken allowed in that section. 😄

I think the naan experiment was a success.

———————-

Below is a photo of my hiragana practice sheet. As I mentioned earlier, I am studying Japanese again and part of that is to get used to writing hiragana and katakana.

I’m surprised (and happy) that my writing is getting better and better. I was an art major in college, so you’d think I would have some skills at this, but I have always been very poor at drawing. However, I am really pleased with how it is going so far. I actually had to ask my kids if they did that third line of “あ” because I thought there’s no way I did it!

I still have a long way to go, but I’m trying to make sure I keep a positive attitude and not get discouraged if I go too fast. I want to enjoy the experience! That means a not-so-aggressive timeline. ☺️

"ひらがな" Cedar Park, 2017
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/16, 1/10 sec, ISO6400
“ひらがな” Cedar Park, 2017

I hope you had a nice Wednesday.

またね!

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Some Photos

"あんこ" Cedar Park, 2017
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/3.2, 1/100 sec, ISO800
“あんこ” Cedar Park, 2017

こんばんは。How’s it going? Have a nice Tuesday?

Tonight I will just share three photos that I took today: One of our cat, Anko, looking like a maneki-neko, the second one is the morning sky with tiny moon, and the last one is of our delicious Indian dinner that Mariko made.

And now it is time to practice ひらがな, read, and fall asleep. See you tomorrow!

おやすみ

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"Sunrise Clouds" Cedar Park, 2017
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/7.1, 1/100 sec, ISO2500
“Sunrise Clouds” Cedar Park, 2017
"Dinner" Cedar Park, 2017
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/5, 1/40 sec, ISO3200
“Dinner” Cedar Park, 2017

They grow up so fast

"2004 vs 2016" Redondo Beach, 2004, 2016
“2004 vs 2016” Redondo Beach, 2004, 2016

こんにちは。How’s it going?

I wanted to share a picture of my son and my niece that shows them in 2004 and then recently last December. 12 years!

We visit the Redondo Beach Pier often when in SoCal, and this scale has been there forever. I am amazed that kids grow up so fast and that time flies by so quickly – it makes me a bit sad because I do miss the days when they were tiny. But I am excited to see what the future holds for them!

I hope you are having a good day.

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P.S. In case you are wondering, I did get the kids’ permission to post their photos! 😝

Day Off

"Group Photo" Austin, 2016
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/5, 1/240 sec, ISO400
“Group Photo” Austin, 2016

こんばんは!How’s it going?

It’s funny but this afternoon I was enthusiastic about what I was going to write about tonight, but that enthusiasm has left me… my brain has gotten distracted by a couple things, most notably the news that an uncle of mine is in the hospital. I’ve been following the family conversation for updates on his condition in our Whatsapp group, so that is on my mind.

So, tonight I’ll just take a little break from the blogging, and just practice writing hiragana for a bit. I definitely need practice!

Oh, today’s photo is just something I saw this morning while I was waiting at a stop light. 🐦

おやすみ

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Wooden Spoons

"Utensils" Cedar Park, 2017
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/40 sec, ISO3200
“Utensils” Cedar Park, 2017

こんばんは!How’s it going?

Today in Austin, the wind was crazy! I was expecting for some of our older wooden fences to come down, but I think they survived. We really should get them replaced but I think we’ll hold out as long as we can.

The photo for today is of our shelf where we keep a bunch of our eating utensils – mainly our はし (chopsticks) and wooden spoons. We have a regular kitchen drawer where we keep our regular forks, spoons, and knives, but I prefer to use はし whenever I can, and instead of metal spoons, I like to use wooden spoons.

To me, wooden utensils make the food taste better because there’s no metallic tang that comes with regular silverware. Plus wooden utensils feel better on the lips, mouth, and tongue. Really!

One drawback is that the wooden utensils can’t go into the dishwasher since the extreme heat can damage them, but that’s a small price to pay for a more natural eating experience, IMHO.

If you only have metal eating utensils, why not get a set of wooden utensils and give them a try? You might just become a convert like me.

I hope you had a nice Sunday and a fantastic weekend!

おやすみ!

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