This is one of the cutest thing I have ever seen.

SUPER CUTE die-cut and … one of my old fav. characters.

But expensive …

More than 300 yen.

Why buy it? Because sister’s little baby really like seals and stickers.

I just thought this would be an interesting item to her …

And after they received it, they sent me a picture of baby playing this … SUPER FUNNY!!!

I think this is ONE GOOD candy.

Taste good and the shape looks cute.

I accidentally find this in one of the new store inside the 新宿 station.

200+ yen … what do you think.

I esp. like the 半透明 soft candies … that was why.

The above also taste ok, but … almost 150 yen and it did not last very long … so few inside and … light …

sometimes you just really really have an urge to eat SOBA.

but the above is from 大戸屋、soba was kind of soft …

but the taste is good.

and it is close to the work place, comparing to the real tasty and cheap SOBA place.

Lately I’ve been shopping for furniture and been amazed at the technological and design advances that seem specific to Japan. Single beds with enough drawers and secret compartments to store all my worldly possessions! Mattress pads and blankets that, supposedly, have some kind of heating or cooling effect depending on the season. Desks and bookshelves that fold up and slide away. I forget the wonder of the every day things around us, so I always like coming across new things like this, to remind me how clever people are.

Sakura season has come (and gone) again! I saw the blossoms on Saturday, and Sunday when a storm raged through Tokyo and winds shook the house, I was sure the flowers would be completely gone by Monday. But when I went out they were still there. I know sakura are popular for how they represent fleeting beauty, but when I saw them hanging in there, I liked the idea of celebrating sakura for their resilience despite their short time.

Movies have soundtracks, right? Characters have music that accompanies them, tells the people around them what the mood of the scene is, gives us some hint of their personality and their feelings. But why should characters in movies have all the fun? When I go running I like to have my own soundtrack – mostly things borrowed from action movies, because if there is a time when you should feel like a superhero, it’s running for miles before most people are even awake. But I also like having my own soundtrack while I’m just walking around the city, or going about some mundane task like writing. Give it a try, find your theme music.

I really have to stop this.

Almost every day, I had to stop by the snack store.

And I am not talking about just 1, but at least a few.

Recently, even though the Japanese snack seems SOOOOO healthy and delicious compare to the US sugar junk,

I am starting to あきる 。。。

And with the 8% sales tax now, really have to rethink my “lunch overspending” habit.

So poor …

The snow was not all bad for me.

Snowing is romantic, but only when if you can mostly stay indoor or VERY CLOSE to home.

The TV was broadcasting crazily about the heavy snow and all,

but compare to the -70 degree celsius that I had when I was in Minnesota,

the amount Tokyo had was like a child’s play.

But cute.

Yes, this photo is from March.

This year, during March, Tokyo has been snowing …

A couple days the snow was SOOOO full that it completely covers all streets.

Sometimes it gets really tall.

But after a few days, when it melts, only the hardest “snow” left.

That meant “ice”.

残り生きるのは、いつも the toughest モノだよね、と感じる。