The main seasoning is black sesame. To tell you the truth though, this didn't taste very good.
黒ごまの味なんですが、正直、これ美味しくないです。
Thumbs down!
Taken from our veranda around 9:00pm on Friday night.
It's almost midnight and it's still raining, and we're still seeing lightning and hearing thunder!
もうすぐ１２：００amなのに、まだ雨が降って、雷が見えて、音も凄いよ！
Birthday snacks from Tochigi Prefecture for me and Mikako from my friend Ayako. My brother would probably love the gyoza-flavored rice crackers pictured on the bottom left. Sazae-san cookies on top of the box and lemon-milk cookies, which are quite delicious.
崖の上のポニョ 「PONYO ON THE CLIFF BY THE SEA」 (2008) - The lastest film from Japan's animation genius Hayao Miyazaki. So much for not making any more movies. But fortunately, he has gone back to writing an original story instead of animating some known fantasy ("Tales of Earthsea", and "Howl's Moving Castle"). This little fantasy is about Ponyo, a human/fish child who is befriended by five year old Sosuke and falls in love with him and wants to become a real human child so she can stay with him. This isn't "Totoro" but it has all the makings of a classic Studio Ghibli film. I'm sure it will be released in the U.S. in the near future, however the title may change. It truly is a picture book come to life. 
めがね 「MEGANE」 International English Title：「GLASSES」(2007) - From director Naoko Ogigami who brought us the wonderful "Kamome Shokudo" (International English Title - "Kamome Diner" - also titled "Ruokala Lokki" - Japanese/Finnish production) comes a new film with two of the stars from "Kamome Shokudo" - Satomi Kobayashi and Masako Motai. Nominated for the Grand Jury Prize at this year's Sundance Film Festival. This is one strange but beautiful movie. What makes it strange? The fact that there is no plot is one. And although it's slow-moving, you never get bored of watching it. Weird. A woman from Tokyo goes to one of the smaller islands of Okinawa and has a hard time learning to relax and do nothing. The small inn she stays at, Hamada Inn, has a sign so small, the owner says most people cannot find the place on their first try. As to why not have a bigger sign, the owner says, "Too many people would come". Then, there's the mysterious woman who appears every spring and sells snow-cones by the sea. I suppose this could filed under "different". I still enjoyed it. You've heard of BGM (back ground music)? In this case, it would be Back Ground Movie.
PUBLIC TOILET Original Title:「HWANJANGSHIL EODIEYO?」, Japanese Title: 「トイレ、どこですか？」 (2002) - A Korean film that we thought might be fun to watch. Mikako and I love Korean comedies. And this appeared to be a comedy. Damn, were we ever wrong. It was a drama. And although it has received excellent accolades from a variety of film critics, this should seriously be flushed down the toilet. Okay, guy is born and left at a public toilet. It becomes his home. When he grows up, him and his friends hang out at the toilet and shoot the shit (so to speak). Add to this a woman who lives in the sea and has no bones (are you still with me?), and some relatives with a terminal illness where young dudes go out in the world in search of some medicinal plant that's guaranteed to cure a number of ailments, one guy goes to New York, another goes to India. This film is so messed up and hard to follow that I couldn't wait for it to end. I really hate it when others say that something this bad becomes a style all it's own. If this is the epitome of director Fruit Punch (yes, that's really the director's name), then I know I won't be renting any of his other films any time soon. This definitely belongs in a public toilet!!
サイドカーに犬 「SAIDO KA NI INU」 International English Title: 「DOG IN A SIDECAR」 (2007) - You may have noticed that I've been watching mostly Japanese or Korean films. This stars one of my favorite Japanese actresses, Yuko Takeuchi. The story centers on the relationship between two women, Yoko (Takeuchi), a woman in her twenties and Kaoru, the ten year old daughter of the man who Yoko is either friends with or is his mistress (it's never made quite clear). The movie starts out with Kaoru as an adult. And then it reverts to one long reminiscence of the time she spent with Yoko. The core of the story takes place in Japan in the early '80s, but the only thing I found nostalgic about it was the table style Pacman video game. Aside from that, this was a pretty boring flick. 
亀は以外と早く泳ぐ 「KAME WA IGAI TO HAYAKU OYOGU」 International English Title 「TURTLES SWIM FASTER THAN EXPECTED」 (2005) - Weird! Quirky! Wonderful! Finally, a gem in my choice of Japanese movies. Starring the lovely Juri Ueno ("Swing Girls", "Nodame Cantabile"). Ueno is a bored housewife who's husband is working abroad somewhere. The only conversation she has with him is his daily phone call to see if she hasn't forgotten to feed his pet turtle. Then one day, Ueno discovers an ad to become a spy. She answers the ad and is met with a middle-age couple who take Ueno under their wings. Her first assignment at being a spy is to continue her everyday, ho-hum life and to not bring attention to herself. Which means, she's to continue to be a bored housewife. And yet, now that she's a spy, she finds life more thrilling. Defintely go check this out in your foreign language section at your local DVD rental shop.
ショコラの見た世界 「CHOCOLAT NO MITA SEKAI」 English title: 「THE WORLD ACCORDING TO CHOCOLAT」 (2008) - A little fantasy that once again stars Yuko Takeuchi. Unfortunately, just when you thought the movie might get interesting...it ends! Okay, here's the story. Takeuchi has passed away. A few years down the road her younger sister meets Takeuchi's boyfriend by coincidence. It's raining, so boyfriend suggests going to grab a cup of coffee. Talk turns to older sister. Young sister says whenever she was sick, her older sister would tell her such marvelous stories that she totally thought were true. Of course now that young sister is an adult, she realizes they were fairy tales. But then, old boyfriend shows young sister, video clip messages that she had sent to boyfriend. All her stories were true!! The two decide to check out the last place where older sister sent the message, and here's when you think the movie will really get started...It ends! Only for fans of Yuko Takeuchi I'm afraid.
図鑑に載ってない虫 「ZUKAN NI NOTTE NAI MUSHI」 English title: 「THE INSECTS UNLISTED IN THE ENCYCLOPEDIA」(2007) - Also has the alternate English title of "Deathfix: Die and Let Live". Weird! Bazaar! Trippy! You might want to be drunk when you watch this. Free journalist working at some magazine called "Black Book Monthly" is given an assignment to go find the "shi no modoki". Which happens to be a bug that has the power to bring people back from the dead. Editor wants journalist to die, come back, and write about the afterlife. I did say weird didn't I?
PLEASE TEACH ME ENGLISH Original Title: 「YEONGEO WANJEONJEONGBOK」 (2003) - Korean comedy that Mikako picked out. The unfortunate thing was, we had already seen this film. But, what the heck. We decided to watch it again. Actually, we just put it on but and it became the background movie of the night. I think I even reviewed this in a previous post. If not, civil service worker is chosen to be sent to English school so she can deal with foreigners living in Korea who cannot speak Korean. At English school, she meets "Elvis" who wants to learn English so he can speak to his sister he has never seen who lives in the U.S. This was just as funny the second time watching it even though we weren't paying that much attention. My mother might enjoy this.
BLADES OF GLORY Japanese title: 「おれたちフィギャースケーター」 (2007) - After watching a series of Japanese and Korean movies, I was ready for Hollywood again. Mikako had seen this on our flight to the States last year. As I didn't see it from the beginning, I think I watched "Hellboy" instead. I had to wait almost an entire year before it was finally released on DVD over here. Standard Will Ferrell fare. So corny and out there, it makes you laugh. Mikako and I had a great time watching this.
アヒルと鴨のコインロッカー 「AHIRU TO KAMO NO KOIN ROKKA] International English Title: 「THE FOREIGN DUCK, THE NATIVE DUCK AND GOD」 (2007) - Another misjudgement on my part. I was fooled by the previews on a separate DVD. From the preview, it looked like a pretty funny comedy. But it turned out to be a rather dark drama of revenge and justice. And it all centers around Bob Dylan's "Blowin' in the Wind". Um, yeah - forget this one! And who translated that title anyway? The actual translation of the Japanese title would be "The Duck and Goose Coin Locker".
BURIED ALIVE (1990) - I know I said I wasn't going to review any movies I watched on television but I just loved this low budget made-for-tv movie, I had to share. Hey, and one of the stars is Jennifer Jason Leigh who plays a bored housewife who's having an affair with a doctor, and they plan to kill hubbie for the insurance money. Doc gives wife puffer fish toxin, wife injects toxin into hubbies wine, hubbie falls. They bury him in a cheap coffin. But, the poison doesn't kill hubbie. He manages to break out of the cheap wooden coffin, and then the fun begins. Doc is that annoying reporter from the first two "Die Hard" movies - William Atherton. Tim Matheson plays the good guy who gets his revenge! You couldn't help but cheer for him.
象の背中 「ZOU NO SENAKA」 International English Title: 「WALKING MY LIFE」 (2007) - If you know your Japanese, you will know that the International English title is not a direct translation of the original. That would be something more along the lines of "The Elephant's Back". Standard tearjerker of a family man diagnosed with cancer and is told he has about six months left to live. Man chooses not to undergo any kind of therapy and tries to live his life as normally as possible.
EDEN Japanese title: 「厨房で会いましょう」(2006) - A decent German movie about the relationship between a lonely but well-respected and quite overweight chef who begins a friendship with a married woman and her daughter. Chef learns woman's daughter is having a birthday and decides to make her a chocolate cake. Woman takes a little taste of the cake and with that little taste, woman starts to frequent chef's place on a weekly basis which blossoms into a type of love. Of course, husband does not understand this friendship and his friends laugh at him behind his back.
BOMBON Original title: 「EL PERRO」 (2004) - Argentinian film about a man who worked for over twenty years at a gasoline stand who finds that one day he is out of a job. He tries his hand selling home-made knives, but business is bleak. On the highway, he helps a woman who's car has broke down and in exchange for his help, the woman gives the man a beautiful white dog. Other people take an interest in his dog and convince the man to enter a dog show. His new dog wins in his division and the man now finds himself working in the dog show business. Interesting, but not great enough for me to recommend it to friends.
THE NAMESAKE Japanese title: 「その名にちなんで」(2006) - A movie about family-ties, tradition, and being Indian immigrants in the U.S. based on the novel by Jhumpa Lahiri. A Bengali woman marries a Bengali man and starts a new life in New York. When their first child is born, he is not given a name. It's tradition for the grandmother to name the baby. But as the baby was born in the U.S. and requires a name, the father names him Gogol, after the Russian writer. As a teen, Gogol hates his name and wants to change it and asks his father, "Why Gogol?". It isn't until the near the end of the film that you find out why. Very decent movie.
腑抜けども、悲しみの愛を見せろ 「FUNUKE DOMO, KANASHIMI NO AI WO MISERO」 International English Title: 「FUNUKE SHOW SOME LOVE, YOU LOSERS!] (2007) - Once again I was fooled by potential previews. It looked like it was going to be a hilarious movie. Unfortunately, it only a got a few chuckles out of me. The rest of it made me want to slap the good for nothing older sister upside the head. Played by the beautiful Eriko Sato. But it's the younger sister who steals the show, as she draws manga of her sister's antics, which gets her into big trouble, which older sister never forgives her for. It's a little roller-coaster ride of humor, drama, love, sex, and whatnot. It makes you tired but not quite to the extent of something like Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner's "War of the Roses".
Egyptian shawarma / エジプトのシュワルマ
Syrian kebob (I think) / シリアのケバブ（かな？）
German sausage / ドイツの焼きソーセージ
Turkish shish-kebob / トルコのシシケバブ
Pakistani curry and nan / パキスタンのカレーとナン 
Korean Sangyopusal / 韓国のサムギョプル
Thai pork sticks / タイのポーピアムゥトード（豚スティック）
Laotian herb chicken / ラオスのハーブチキン
Palestinian maftul (I really don't know if that's the correct spelling or word) / パレスチナのマフテュール
Not sure which countries food-stall served these red beans / どこの国の屋台でこの料理が出たのか分からない。
Indian samosas / インドのサモサ
Falafels most likely from one of the Middle Eastern food-stalls / ファラフェル（多分中近東の屋台から）
Mexican nachos (seems very American to me though) / メキシコのナッチョーズ （僕にとって、アメリカ料理に入るけど）
The last bits of Spanish Fideua (pasta paella) / スペインのフィデワ（パスタのパエリア）の残り
Chinese gyoza (very, very delicious) / 中華の餃子（これは超旨い！）
Chinese manju / 中華の饅頭
Peking duck / 北京ダック
Swedish meatballs with cranberry sauce / スウェーデンのミートボール
Tunisian brique / チュニジアのブリック
Tunisian couscous / チュニジアのクスクス
Laotian curry / ラオスのカレー
Italian rice croquette / イタリアのライスコロッケ
Too many picture for one post - to be continued...
写真がありすぎて、つづく。。。
I thought I'd share with you the variety of instant noodles that's available over here. This is my first installment. I will add more from time to time. This ramen has a pork-based soup with chili peppers.
Rating: thumbs up!これは美味しかった。
This is Ian...but no matter how you look at 'im, 'e looks like Lemmy from Motorhead.
This is Magnus...What? You thought it was Angus? Look at his cap. That's an M not an A!彼はマグナス。。。何？AC/DCのアンガスと思った？キャップを見て。「M」ですよ、「A」じゃない。
SLAYER!!! No, wait. This is Terry, not Kerry King.スレイヤー！！！あっ、違うよ。彼はテリ、ケリー・キングじゃなかった。
This is the Gorilla Building (I think you can figure out why.) これは三軒茶屋の茶沢通りにあるゴリラビル。
The 26th story Carrot Tower. There is a few restaurants and a supermarket located in the basement floor. A variety of stores on the first floor. Tsutaya (DVD / CD / games rental and sales shop) and Tsutaya Books. A small cafe. More shops on the third floor. There is also a small theater located in this building as well. And there is the restaurant on the 26th floor. 三軒茶屋にある２６階建てキャロットタワー。地下にレストランとスーパーがあって、一階はいろんな店もあて、二階はTsutaya。三階も店もあったかな。小さな劇場もあって。で、２６階にもレストランがあります。
View from the the top of the Carrot Tower.
キャロットタワーから見た景色。
Last Friday, Mikako and I were going to meet our friends Mari and Nori for lunch at a new restaurant that opened in our neighborhood. It's called "Hippopotamus" and their specialty is beef stew. Unfortunately, last Friday was the middle of the Obon season and the restaurant was closed!! So, we decided to meet for dinner instead. But our second choice was also closed. As was our third. We finally ended up at this izakaya that was opened. (And if you take a brief tour to the "Tone Deaf in Thailand" blog, you will see why I'm writing up a post on izakaya fare.) Hi Janet!! And not to disappoint Janet, I will share this evenings morsels. What? Some of you are asking me what's an izakaya? It's where the Japanese hang out for beers and snacks with their good buds. Not exactly a bar or tavern and not exactly a restaurant. It's in between. But you won't find nachos or pizza on the menu (actually you can find pizza at izakayas but they won't be your idea of a pizza).
Nori and Mari's son was enjoying his calpis (calpico in the U.S. - can't have people saying he's drinking "cow piss"). Shoei and Mikako also had ice cream for dessert.
From my mother-in-law, Oirase Yogurt drink from Aomori Prefecture. I love this. I think it tastes much better than my brother's favorite Japanese yogurt drink - Yakult.
義理のお母さんから。奥入瀬のむヨーグルト。これ大好き。自分の兄貴が好きなヤクルトより旨いと思う。 
And from one of my co-workers. One of my favorite American snacks. These go great with beer! They come in more flavors but these are my favorites.
同僚から貰ったアメリカのお菓子。これも僕が大好きなお菓子。いろんな味がありますが、やっぱりハラペーニョとハニームスタードが最高！ビールとおつまみにもってこいものです。
Dokken-san of Rock Bar Dokken / ロックバーのマスタードッケンさん。And today's star - Kua Aina / で今日の主人個 ― クアイナ
And lets not forget the star of today - the Avocado Burgerで、忘れずに、クアアイナの定番スターのアボカドバーガー
But the open sandwich picture doesn't give you an idea of how huge these burgers are so I also took a picture of it before I took my first bite. Oh, and I ordered my burger with provolone cheese.
オーペンサンドの形じゃバーガーのデカさが伝わらないと思うので, 食べる前にもう一枚の写真を撮りました。あっ、僕はプロベロネチーズのトッピングもオーダーしました。
Today's Curry Special at Ali Baba (Chicken/Vegetable Curry), served with nan, rice, and mango lassi. Tasty!!
今日の日替わりカレー（チキン・野菜）。ナンとライスとマンゴラッシも付いてます。超旨い！
Mikako's tom yam kun ramen. Also very tasty!!
美香子のトムヤムクンラーメン。これも超旨いですよ。
As it was hot day today, between lunch and fireworks, we treated ourselves to some snowcones!
今日も暑かったので、ランチと花火が始まる間にかき氷を食べました。
I had myself a Blue Hawaii. 僕はブルーハワイを食べました！
While Mikako enjoyed a green-tea flavored snow-cone with condensed milk and azuki beans.美香子は抹茶と練乳と小豆のほうを食べた。
And now for the fireworks.
さて、お待ちかね、花火の時間が近づいた。
Darn, Riko-chan and my mother-in-law are hidden behind Mickey's right arm.あっ、残念。リコちゃんと美香子のお母さんがミッキーの腕で隠れてます。
That's Riko-chan touching Minnie's hand
I was able to get a picture of Riko-chan and Mikako with Goofy.
Riko-chan riding "The Whirlpool". ティーカップに乗った時のリコちゃん
Me and Riko-chan waiting in line for the Jumping Jellyfish.次のアトラクションに乗る列。
After the Jellyfish ride, the four of us lined up and took a ride on the "Blowfish Balloon Race". After that, it was lunch time. We ate a place called Miguel's El Dorado Cantina. It serves what passes for Mexican food in Japan. I had the soft tacos while Mikako and her mother had the paella (which Mikako said didn't taste all that great). Neither were the soft tacos but we were hungry. We had time for at least one more ride. Riko-chan wanted to ride on the tea-cups again, this time with Mikako (who of course refused). So, Riko-chan and I stood in line to ride on "Flounder's Flying Fish Coaster". Now, kids coaster I can handle!!
クラゲのアトラクションのあと、四人で一つのアトラクションに乗って、その後はランチタイム。ミゲールのエル・ドラード・カンティーナで食べて、（レストランのテーマがメキシカン料理）、僕はソフトタコスを食べて、美香子と美香子のあ母さんがパエリアを食べた。あんまり美味しくなかったので、写真撮るの辞めました。まだちょっと時間があっとので、リコちゃんは美香子と一緒にティーカップに乗りたかったが、美香子が拒否したので、僕と一緒に子供用のジェットコースターに乗りました。僕はジェットコースター凄い苦手なんですが、子供用なら平気、平気。
As we were about to leave the park, we decided to stop and have some ice cream.
帰る前に、アイスを買って食べました。
We once again met Goofy, at the same time we met Pinnochio.またグーフィーと会って、すぐ近くにピノキオもいあました。
And the last bits are my random pictures of Riko.
I had such a great time. I hope Riko-chan comes and visits again.
Riko-chan at the airport on her way home to Aomori. Next time, we'll see you in Aomori.空港でお別れ。今後私たちが青森でリコちゃんに会いに行きます。
Even the hand-rails are cute.
Donald Duck near the Front Gate of Disney Sea.
Inside Disney Sea
Mysterious Island with Mount Prometheus in the background and the Fortress Exploration attraction in the foreground.
The Lost River Delta and the Temple of the Crystal Skull.
The Arabian Coast and the Caravan Carousel.
Tower of Terror
Resident of the Mermaid Lagoon.
To be continued...
つづく
But the star of the home party wasn't the food - it was Rino-chan of course!
Rino-chan / 梨乃ちゃん
Rino-chan and Me / 梨乃ちゃんと僕
Cheers!
Fried fish on a stick. Mikako ate the best parts and left the rest for me - it was bitter and awful! 
I just had to try this drink as well. It's like Squirt or Fresca. Refreshing on a hot day (we were at Disney Sea all morning and afternoon!)
A post for my friend Mari to remind her of her time in Kumamoto. Chu-Hi oishii ne.
On Friday, August 1st, I took Mikako out to see a movie for her birthday (her birthday was the day before but we were both working.) The first of the month is also "Movie Day" so the price of films at most theaters are 1000yen. That's 800yen cheaper then regular price. We went to see the new Hayao Miyazaki film "Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea". It's not "My Neighbor Totoro" but you can still recognize it as a Studio Ghibli film. When the movie ended, it was dinner time and we decided to eat out. Mikako had been wanting to eat some Chinese noodles for a while and we had come across this ramen shop on one of our walks (where I also discovered Manuel - the Portuguese restaurant). This is a chain shop but I found the ramen to be delicious. The featured summer menu was something called Soo Rah Tan Men which also looked very appetising but I opted for the Tokusen Chuka-Soba. We also ordered a side of gyoza filled with meat but it was just average.
Beautiful isn't it? Taken from our 4th floor apartment.
綺麗でしょう。自分のアパートから撮った写真です。
1. WALTER THE FARTING DOG by William Kotzwinkle - I actually read this last month but it appears that I had forgotten to include it with my June 2008 "Page Turners", so although you may not have gotten an introduction to Walter, I still shared with you Walter's adventure at the yard sale. This is the first book in the series, where Walter is chosen by the children at the dog pound only to find that he has a slight incontinence problem. Actually slight is too light a word to describe Walter's problem. He farts and farts and farts. Day in, day out, morning, noon, and night. Father wants to take him back to the pound but the children love him and say they don't mind his farts. But still, Mother and Father have the final say - tomorrow, it's back to the pound for Walter. But in the evening, two burglars slip into the house and before they could get away, Walter lets one rip, the burglars can't stand the smell and are soon caught. Walter has saved the day and is now a member of the family.
2. GREETINGS FROM BURY PARK: A MEMOIR by Sarfraz Manzoor - Last month I read about the undocumented laborers from China in Britain. This month I found myself reading about a legal immigrant family living in Britain. Manzoor emigrated to Luton, England from Pakistan when he was two years old. He writes what it was like to grow up Pakistani and Muslim in the '70s and '80s in his adopted country. He finds it difficult trying to find a balance between his traditional family and just fitting in at a regular school. It isn't until he's sixteen when his only friend, Amolak, a Sihk, introduces him to the music of Bruce Springsteen which changes his life. He finds comfort in the lyrics of Springsteen's songs, feeling that the Boss is singing his story as well. I think it's great that people can find inspiration in music no matter what their background. An enjoyable book.
3. THE ADVENTURES OF JOHNNY BUNKO: THE LAST CAREER GUIDE YOU'LL EVER NEED by Daniel H. Pink - A business book written in manga form to help you get out of a rut if you're in a nowhere job. Johnny Bunko works at an office at a job he can't stand, believing he's fulfilling his duty as a worker drone. But one day, he goes out to eat some ramen and is given magical chopsticks. When he snaps the waribashi out pops a magical girl who helps him learn the basics of how to improve one's lot from the office doldrums. Let's see if I can reiterate the six points - 1. There is no plan. 2. Think strengths, not weaknesses. 3. It's not about you. 4. Persistence trumps talent. 5. Make excellent mistakes. 6. Leave an imprint. Now, if they only made algebra and calculus books that were this easy to follow when I was still in high school, I might have found the subjects more interesting. Light reading for a serious subject. Beats the heck out of reading through any of Anthony Robbin's books, but that just my opinion.
4. S.A.S.S. (STUDENTS ACROSS THE SEVEN SEAS): NOW AND ZEN by Linda Gerber - This is a young adult series that features exchange students in different parts of the world. As you can surmise from the title, this is set in Japan. Nori Tanaka is the daughter of second generation Japanese parents. She was born and raised in Ohio. Nori is sixteen and although she looks Japanese, she can't speak a word of the language (hey, that reminds me of somebody.) But Nori has been accepted to the Global Outreach Program, where students will study the Kyoto Accords and try to solve other global problems. While in Japan, she falls for a German student and pretends to be a Japanese national - German guy think she's Japanese to begin with. I had to keep reminding myself this was a young adult novel, 'cause I thought - yeah right, she may look Japanese, but can't speak or read the language and has a total American accent. The German guy would have to be really dense if he couldn't figure that out. Oh and the other little thing that bothered me, Nori is always checking the internet for places to eat, things to see, and yet, the thing she was looking forward to the most was going to an onsen, but then has culture shock when she learns you must be undressed to enjoy it. If she did all that research for just places to eat, you would think she would do the same research for going to a hotspring (and she would have known the proper etiquette!!). I don't know, am I being too harsh? Maybe I'm a little too biased because I've been living here for so long? But still, I was entertained.
5. ROUGH WEATHER AHEAD FOR WALTER THE FARTING DOG by William Kotzwinkle - Professor Kompressor believes he has a cure for Walter's digestive problem by giving him an anti-fart treatment. However, the treatment goes awry and Walter finds the gas building inside of him causing him to float in the air. Although he tries to let go so he can come down from the air, he is unable to. It isn't until Walter finds a group of butterflies caught in a windstorm that he forces out the gas from his body once again saving the day. 
6. THE LATEHOMECOMER: A HMONG FAMILY MEMOIR by Kao Kalia Yang - If you've been reading my blog recently, you may have noticed some other BLOG links that I've added. It was from my friend Janet's, "Asia by the Book" blog (which you can find at http://weblogs.thingsasian.com/tablogs/page/asiabook where I discovered this gem of a book. As I have a special fondness for Laos, having been there twice, I enjoy reading about anything related to that country. Although Janet has reviewed this on her blog, I thought I would add my own voice and share with you what I thought about it. My first thought was, here's another group of people who's lives were used and then forgotten by the U.S. government. During the Vietnam War, the CIA recruited the Hmong to help fight against the Viet Cong and Pathet Lao. But when the war was over and the Americans had left, the remaining Hmong were then hunted by the victors of said war and were quietly being eliminated without the world knowing. So typically American - use other people to do our dirty work, then forget about them when they're no longer useful. But reading this reminds you of the strength of the human spirit. Yang's parents meet and get married in the jungles of Laos when their country was in the middle of a war - another illegal war the U.S. government kept quiet for all those years. Her parents escape to a refugee camp in Thailand where Kao is born. The story then follows the family living as refugees in Thailand and then making a new life in Minnesota. Unlike Manzoor's book about being an immigrant, this is the story of refugees from war who sought asylum far from their home country. At times heartbreaking, but inspiring as they learn to become Americans and still stay Hmong while in America. Excellent read.
7. WALTER THE FARTING DOG GOES ON A CRUISE by William Kotzwinkle - More adventures of the fun-loving, cheese-cutting canine. This time we find Walter with family on a large cruise ship. But Walter's farts smell so bad, he's sent to the cargo hold. But his farts rise up through the vents, so he's then sent out a life-boat on his own and tries hard not to fart. But when the ship's engine goes out, Walter's farts once again saves the day. 
8. WALTER THE FARTING DOG: BANNED FROM THE BEACH by William Kotzwinkle - We now find Walter and family enjoying a day at the beach along with a self-centered old couple named Mr. and Mrs. Crabbe. When one of Walter's farts blows away the umbrella the Crabbe's were sitting underneath, they complain to the hotel and Walter is banned from the beach. Alone in the beach house Walter eats some tropical fruit in which the box says it should be thoroughly cooked. But since Walter can't read, he eats it. When Betty and Billy go in search of treasure and when they find something, the Crabbe's force their way in as well. But the four get stranded during high tide. Can Walter save them? And what was it about that fruit?
9. RICHISTAN: A JOURNEY THROUGH THE AMERICAN WEALTH BOOM AND LIVES OF THE NEW RICH by Robert Frank - Now here's a very interesting title. Written like a travel essay into a world few of us belong to. I used to think Rolex was the brand name in watches but guess I'm behind the times as the new "in" watch are $600,000 Franck Muellers! This book isn't about millionaires (which currently are a dime a dozen), but about the top one percent of the Richistanis, the people who are worth a hundred million or more. These people buy boats so they can store their cars and helicopters on them. These people own their own Gulfstreams (a luxury jet I found out). This is what the Publisher's Weekly had to say about the original hardcover release: 「When Frank, a columnist for the Wall Street Journal, began noticing that the ranks of America's wealthy had more than doubled in the last decade, and that they were beginning to cluster together in enclaves, he decided to investigate this new society, where $1 million barely gets you in the door. The Richistanis like to consider themselves ordinary people who just happen to have tons of money, but they live in a world where people buy boats just to carry their cars and helicopters behind their primary yachts, and ordering an alligator-skin toilet seat won't make even your interior designer blink. But Frank doesn't just focus on conspicuous consumption. He talks to philanthropists who apply investment principles to their charitable contributions and political fund-raisers who have used their millions to transform the Colorado state legislature. He also meets people for whom sudden wealth is an emotional burden, whose investment club meetings can feel like group therapy sessions. It's only in the final pages that Frank contemplates the widening gap between Richistan and the rest of the world—for the most part, his grand tour approach never loses its light touch. (June)」. Too bad these people won't help us peons with the rising price of oil, gas, and other consumer goods. Thanks to people like our president, it really is true that "the rich get richer while the poor get poorer". Definitely worth the read.
10. UNTANGLING MY CHOPSTICKS: A CULINARY SOJOURN IN KYOTO by Victoria Abbott Riccardi - You know, I truly love reading about other people's experience of Japan but I don't know if it was the author's writing style or my general lack of interest, but I had a hard time plodding through this book. Even if it was about one of my favorite subjects - food. The author spent a few years in Kyoto studying the culinary art of tea or cha-kaiseki. Some of you may have heard of kaiseki ryori which is itself an art form where fresh ingredients of the season are used and presented in a number of small dishes. Tea kaiseki is the meal that's served with the tea ceremony and usually includes a soup and three kinds of vegetable dishes. As I don't have the patience of a Zen monk and prefer chunks of charred flesh over vegetables and fish and would rather have my meal without ceremony, it was difficult for me to enjoy this as much as I wanted to. My Japanese culinary sojourn would take me to little yakitori stands (skewered chicken), yakiniku restaurants (Korean barbecue places), kaiten-zushi (revolving sushi restaurants), and unusual ethnic restaurants featuring the cuisines of countries like Tunisia, Peru, Romania, and Hungary just to name a few. But that's just me. If your looking for a bit of tradition, this might whet your palate.
11. THE FOREIGNER by Francie Lin - Lately, I've been finding myself reading a lot of Asian authors and books based in Asia. This was a compelling but somewhat dark story that mainly takes place in the underbelly of Taiwan. Emerson is a 40year old virgin living with his Taiwanese mother who owns and runs a motel. When Emerson's mother dies, she states in her will that she wants her ashes to be taken to her homeland of Taiwan and that she has willed the motel to Emerson's younger brother Little P who has been estranged from the family for the past ten years. His mother has left Emerson some property that she owns in Taiwan to him. Emerson goes to Taiwan in search of his brother and meets with his relatives although he cannot speak a word of Chinese and becomes entangled with the seedier side of life as Little P is involved with some shady business dealings. I had a hard time putting this book down although it was depressing the hell out of me. I couldn't help but hope that Emerson would grow a spine after being free from the control of his mother. You may be surprised to find that this is Lin's debut novel. Very intense.
12. FOUR PAIRS OF BOOTS by Craig McLachlan – I found this to be more entertaining the reading about learning tea kaiseki. Yep, I think it was just the subject matter. In this book, New Zealander McLachlan is inspired by Alan Booth’s “The Roads to Sata” in which Booth walks the length of Japan from Cape Soya in Hokkaido to Cape Sata in Kyushu. In 1993, McLachlan walks the length of Japan from the opposite direction keeping towards the coast of the Sea of Japan, as he says, “to go in search of the real Japan”. Fortunately for him, he can speak the language and has no trouble communicating with the locals even though he suffers his share of animosity and outright prejudice. However, the kindness of the Japanese people in the country outweigh the negatives. Even I can remember living on a military base in Tokyo in the early ‘70s. Once you step into the real Japan, you would see people staring at you, or see kids pointing at you yelling, “Gaijin da! Gaijin da!”. “A foreigner! A foreigner!” And it really does help to know the language because you can yell back at those people too. All the busy urban centers in Japan are full of foreigners so most of the Japanese living in the city are used to resident aliens. However, I do want to explore parts of the country I’ve never been to. Japan may be a small country, but there really is so much to see!!
13. THE GREAT RAILWAY BAZAAR: BY TRAIN THROUGH ASIA by Paul Theroux - Can you believe an avid armchair traveler such as myself haven't read Theroux's most popular travel essays such as this particular gem. I also have yet to read "Riding the Iron Rooster" and "The Old Patagonian Express". Not only are these books about travel, they're travel by train books. Reading this book, I don't know if I would really want to experience rail travel in a third world country. Although the book was originally published in 1975 after Theroux's four months of travels through Asia, it's still entertaining to read. You may recognize some of the names of the trains from literature or movies - The Orient Express, the Khyber Pass Local, the Golden Arrow, the Grand Trunk Express, the Kodama and Hikari Super Express, and of course the Trans-Siberian Express. Theroux rides them all. I'm not sure if the Hatsukari is still running from Ueno to Aomori as you can now take the Hayate Super Express from Tokyo to Hachinohe, and then transfer to the Tsugaru Limited Express to continue on to Aomori (a four hour journey). Better still, in two years time, you will be able to take the Bullet train from Tokyo directly to Aomori (We're looking forward to that.) You might feel like you time-slipped as well as Theroux writes about riding trains through Iran (The Teheran Express) when the Shah was still in power, through Pakistan and India to reach Ceylon (currently Sri Lanka). As there were no railways through Afghanistan, Theroux had to take a bus through that country. The reunification of Vietnam was still a year away (spring of 1976 if you didn't know), so Theroux could not take train from Saigon (currently Ho Chi Minh) to Hanoi. Oh, Myanmar was still called Burma and SLORC (the State Law and Order Restoration Council) wasn't in power. And the Trans-Siberian Express traversed the Soviet Union (which we all know collapsed in 1991). So not only a travel essay, but a bit of a history lesson as well. Can't wait to read his other travel books. I also recommend his "Dark Star Safari" in which he travels overland from Cairo, Egypt to Cape Town, South Africa.
14. A SHORT HISTORY OF TRACTORS IN UKRAINIAN by Marina Lewycka – This is Lewycka’s debut novel and I found it entertaining at times and quite frustrating at times. When a book evokes emotions out of me, I tend to regard those stories as done quite well. But as to recommending this book to friends and readers, I cannot decide. You will have to read it yourself and form your own opinion. The story. An eighty-four year old recently widowed Ukrainian immigrant to the U.K. has decided to get remarried to a 36 year old Ukrainian gold-digger which his two daughters are totally against. The daughters, Vera and Nadezhda, who haven’t spoken to each other in two years have decided to set aside their familial feud to try to stop their father from pursuing this marriage. It’s the story of an immigrant family who seems to have become dysfunctional after the death of their mother. The grandfather does remarry and it’s the start of whole new set of problems that the daughter try to help solve. The Japanese have a great word for the trouble the grandfather has gotten himself into – jigoujitoku, which means the grandfather only has himself to blame.
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