Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2, 1/125 sec, ISO2000 “Study TIme” Cedar Park, 2017
こんばんは！How’s it going?
As you can see from today’s photo, I have picked up a new textbook, Genki 1! Our future plans involve living in Japan, and it would be helpful if I could communicate with the locals a little better. So, it’s time to get serious (or at least spend some time) studying Nihongo.
I did some research on textbooks and the Genki books seem to be among the best, so I ordered textbook #1. So far, so good! The first chapters are kind of a review for me since I am familiar with all the greetings, numbers, hours, hiragana, and katakana. I’m also covering up the romaji as best as I can so that I force myself to practice reading hiragana.
So far I am having fun studying Japanese again! And having a textbook that I know is a highly regarded is a huge confidence booster. 頑張れ！
This afternoon Mariko and I attended a funeral. Mariko’s co-worker’s son passed away this past week… the service was sad of course, but it reminds everyone that life is fleeting and we should take the time to hug our kids whenever we can.
Here’s another photo I took this evening. Aren’t clouds amazing?
Are you the person who leaves the lights on? Not me. It seems like I am constantly turning off the lights here at home. I don’t know where this post is going or the point of it all, but whatever! Enjoy this random photo of a canned coffee ad featuring Tommy Lee Jones that I took in 2011, won’t you?
The other day I went with some workmates to a Japanese restaurant for lunch to celebrate a couple birthdays. It was a lot of fun and the food was yummy, but it got me thinking of how the food at the restaurant wasn’t really authentic Japanese food. But is that a good or a bad thing? I wonder…
I have a different perspective on Japanese food than I had 20 years ago. In 1996 I moved to Japan and live there for three years. I married my wife there (a native of Osaka), and I have been enjoying 20 years with her – an amazing cook and foodie/food blogger. So I’d say my experience with Japanese food is far more advanced than most Americans.
The food at the restaurant was delicious, but I still felt an internal conflict as to some of the dishes. For instance, instead of edamame, there was “spicy edamame” in which the edamame had a sweet/spicy sauce on them. It tasted ok, but it was strange… I mean edamame is edamame, and is traditionally eaten just salted or in something like a hijiki salad. Also, sushi with fruit on it is new to me. In short, this wasn’t authentic at all. (And I didn’t see any Asians behind the sushi counter, and no Japanese patrons)
Although I love authentic food and think that recipes developed over many (sometimes hundreds) of years have been tested by time, the newer dishes that are modified for the local palette can be wonderful too. They are both delicious!
Maybe I am getting hung up on the semantics of the word “authentic”. Perhaps “traditional” is a better way to denote the differences I am thinking about. I like that.
Traditional food is food that has remained popular and has withstood the test of time, using ingredients that are relatively unchanged.
The food at the restaurant we went to had some non-traditional dishes, some traditional dishes (I had the katsu-don, which was yummy), but in the end, what was important was that everyone enjoyed their meals. Food can be delicious and satisfying even if it’s not traditional. All different kinds of food can bring happiness and joy, right? Variety is the spice of life, as they say!
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Today’s photo is of the breakfast taco I enjoyed at the Whole Foods Market. It’s very convenient to order because you use a touchscreen at the counter to “build your taco” using various ingredients. When your order is ready, you see your order # pop up on a large tv, or you can have a notification sent via txt to your phone.
My taco had scrambled egg, chorizo, black beans, and cilantro-lime rice, on corn tortillas. I also added more cilantro and jalapeños. I have no idea if this is traditional or not, but it sure was delicious!
My second dorama to watch this year is Cold Case (コールドケース) which is the Japanese version of the US crime/detective show. It’s a 10-part series, centered around a group of detectives who take up unsolved cases from years ago. I enjoyed each episode because the plots were so varied, and there’s a ton of nostalgia too because some of the episodes flashback to the ’80s and ’90s and occasionally play pop songs from the era. なつかしい！. But, there’s also an episode in which the crime happened in the ’50s, and then an overarching story which takes place in the present. So there’s a ton of opportunity for the stories to go in many directions.
One of the things I really liked about コールドケース was the casting. Yoshida Yo (吉田羊) in the starring role did a great job, and the other detectives were strong and believable, each with their own mysterious pasts. None of them were explored deeply except for Yoshida’s character, but I’m hoping for another season so we can find out more!
If you like serious crime/detective shows, I highly recommend コールドケース. There’s no comedy or lighthearted moments, so if you are looking for hijinks you will be disappointed. But if you want good acting, believable characters, and a clever plot, give it a watch!
Lastly, check out the Instagram feed for the show to see photos of the cast which includes many guest actors. It’s fun to see them enjoying behind-the-scenes moments which is a huge contrast to the serious plots!
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I use a Fujifilm X-series camera for most of the photos on this site and my Instagram. Why not pick one up for yourself?
