It is the end of the year again. How fast.
December mean the month with many dinner parties here and there.
Bonenkai or year-end-party or literary translate as forget-the-year-party is the tradition in Japan. Every group of people (more likely that related with work) usually arrange a dinner to close the year with gathering, food, drinks, chat and bingo game (why Bingo game? don’t ask–Japanese just like this game so much). Every section, team, department, friends, social club, etc.
The office related Bonenkai become some kind of part-of-your-job thing. So here I am attended two Bonenkai so far and several more to go. Actually I like the idea to count the bless and say thank you for the work well done in a year round. But going for party again and again and spend 10,000 yen for each party is a waste, I think. It is the harvest time for the restaurant. All type of Restaurant. I went to a 5 star barbeque restaurant and a vegetarian set (healthy set they call it) at a Nepali restaurant. Every night in the month of December restaurant specially in office area are fully book. Imagine, if me who have just lived in Japan for 7 years has to attend 5 or so Bonenkai, how about the Japanese who life-time live here and has many many type of societies.
Tonight a Bonenkai to go. I actually hesitate to go, specially today is the Tsunami anniversary, I should stay humble. But it is part of the culture here and as I am now part of it I should go, specially the group I will go with is my close working team that has been head-to-toe worked hard together in 2005.
I think Bonenkai is a part of balancing system in Japan. People tends to work like a dog and they are personally not so ‘open’ people. So a gathering to make them relax (an ‘open’ as you will when you drunk….yes, it’s a Japanese party you know, the glass will keep on being poured).

Well, let’s see next month. January is the month of Shinnenkai (New Year Party) with groups too. I hope not that much party…
I wonder how many % of the bonus money that usually given by the company to the employee on the 20th of December in Japan goes to these parties…

A survey about Bonenkai

So, there was a small battle in my brain last month.
We got this 150,000 budget to spend on a tool to make life a bit better. Now, what to buy.

Choice one: The all in one washing machine.
This machine that you will drop the 9kg dirty clothes and within hours they are ready clean, dry, good smell and wrinkle less ( I wished there is one can iron the clothes too)!
Isn’t that a wonder! No effort to hang the wet clothes put outside or shift it in dryer machine. That will save a lot of my time and answer the rainy days problem. I will spare the time for something else like quality time with my kids in between my busy schedule at work and home. I will save my hand from that cold wet that disturb my cuticles.

Choice two: The "serious amateur" DSLR camera Nikon D50
My Nikon CP5700 has been my very good friend for the last 2+ years. I shot over 30,000 pictures with it including those that I consider my masterpiece so far. It travelled with me to many countries and it recorded many important memories I want to frozen in a viewable media. It brought me from just a snapper to be a more serious photography learner. Now time to step up. I want a DSLR camera.

The washing machine will make my life easier, give me some half hour free every day.
The washing machine will reduce my physical activity = not good for my body and target to reduce weight.
This is a house operation tool.

The camera will give my creativity side grow, enable me to be productive and create better pictures of personal and hobby.
The camera is just one additional of some cameras we got at our home.
This is a creative tool for my hobby and yet my family keepsake.

So won the camera, I choose a step up in creativity and exploring instead of easier household chores routine! (but it still in my list…)

The Washer&Dryer

The Camera

My winter’s love:
1. The snow, the snow, the snow, the white, the cold, the beauty,….have I say SNOW?
2. It’s not hot ( I hate hot weather)
3. Mt.Fuji is viewable from our apt building (the dry air being the reason, summer is just too wet for far visibility).
4. Laundry dries in hours.
5. I can see Deddy and family who are slim people a bit ‘fat’ stuffed by many layers of longjohn under their coat.
6. My make up stay longer on my face (as it won’t be oily in these dry days).
7. The beauty of new year winter sale at the first week of January.
8. The very merry merry christmas decoration here and there.
9. The year-end bonus, oh I love it!
10. Nabe, the very healthy and delicious boiled dish of winter.
11. That I don’t have to open a lot of my skin and my plumb figure, covered by sweater.
12. Time to wear my long boots, yeah!
13. The ski trips to the mountains, fulfilling my childhood dream of snow (specially that like-in-a-movie view of alpines and those snowy pine trees)
14. The feeling when zipping my hot chocolate drink while staring out of the window (with that feeling: warm-inside-here-cold-out-there).
15. Many many many new year cards in my mailbox, and those from the friends that have been long no words.
16. Dipping myself in the onsen (hotspring)…..oh….let’s go onsen!
17. This is the season that I don’t feel that much guilty consuming my favorite Godiva chocolate.
18. The delicious Japanese new year soup (Ozouni) and the beauty of the new year box food (Osechi)–not so delicious as they are too sweet.
19. That many many trivial christmas and new year gift from colleagues and friends…I know they stuffed my house, but receiving a gift is just a pleasure!
20. The straight 5 days holiday of New Year.
21. Very fine sunny day with dry air a perfect weather for my photography hobby.
22. Sky is bluer.
23. My bday and anniversary.

My winter’s hate:
1. The dry skin, all over my family’s body.
2. The cracking lips.
3. When it is bellow zero, it’s too cold.
4. Cold fingers
5. Heavy carrying many coats when wandering in shopping mall.
6. The damned cold steering wheel in my hand every morning when driving to work.
7. The icy, slippery pedestrians (and yet they are not snow).
8. Days when the weather forecast predicted of snow fall but yet it was only icy rain or very short fall that no snow piled. So disappointing.
9. Raisa want to go for pee after I put all of those tick layers on her (specially in ski resort).
10.Ken’s runny nose (he is so sensitive of cold).
11.The rush-to-reply feeling after receiving cards/gift from the unexpected fellow.
12.The gift shopping trip to buy 20 or so different gifts in a designated budget.
13.The jumping price of holiday related (plane, hotel, resort) in New Year holiday.
14.The dreadful feeling at the end of winter knowing that spring is coming bringing those poisonous pollen to kill me (I have severe allergic to pollen).
15.The full of frost windshield in the morning ( but I love it is they are snow)
16.Packing of that thick clothes at the end of the season
17.The freezing toilet seat touching my bottom at the public toilet.
18.Less visit to the park and beach : (

I am just so excited!
It may not piled up, it may not for hours, the flakes may not be that palm huge nor it is the crisp powder one….but yes it is SNOWING !!!
Never before in my 7 years life in Japan the snow fall in December. Mid January had been the soonest, till today. My never-ending-tropical-girl-dream-of-white-snow was put in a bit questioned before, knowing that this year the autum and winter came  two weeks late compare to average due to the global warming. Worried that the snow will not come this year.

But…..yeah baby, It’s snowing out there!

I am just so excited!
It may not piled up, it may not for hours, the flakes may not be that palm huge nor it is the crisp powder one….but yes it is SNOWING !!!
Never before in my 7 years life in Japan the snow fall in December. Mid January had been the soonest, till today. My never-ending-tropical-girl-dream-of-white-snow was put in a bit questioned before, knowing that this year the autum and winter came  two weeks late compare to average due to the global warming. Worried that the snow will not come this year.

But…..yeah baby, It’s snowing out there!

I am just so excited!
It may not piled up, it may not for hours, the flakes may not be that palm huge nor it is the crisp powder one….but yes it is SNOWING !!!
Never before in my 7 years life in Japan the snow fall in December. Mid January had been the soonest, till today. My never-ending-tropical-girl-dream-of-white-snow was put in a bit questioned before, knowing that this year the autum and winter came  two weeks late compare to average due to the global warming. Worried that the snow will not come this year.

But…..yeah baby, It’s snowing out there!

On the never-ending journey to find the most fit to my muscle the spoiled wellness treatment (read: masseur, tukang pijit), I think I found one that fit, at least I will stop searching (for a long while), enjoy and relax! It is my friend who introduce me to this lady. The lady practice massage, reflection and acupuncture. What? That needles? Well, yes ! Being a person who hate the idea of any metal things inject to my body (thank God that I survived those immunization years, including the recent 6 shots in a straight 3 weeks to treat my pollen allergy to get ready for Spring — another story), it was a battle for me to decide to give it a try or not. But the good story my friend told me about the after-feeling is just too good, plus her advertising on this natural medication thing.

The service is exclusive. You can get the appointment only if any other customer introduce and request the lady to accept you as new customer. She is not (so) commercial. She has this 4X3m square room in her apartment designated for the massage room. In a corner is a cupboard full with the tools. Organized, shiny and….scary. The massage table in the middle, some plants and good mild smell, a relaxing music that you hardly hear.

She is young, but like typical Japanese, you can’t guess her age. She looks like 28, but later I learnt that she is 43. She is a licensed acupuncture practitioner. But the needles is actually used only at the end part of the series of massage. I told her I was scared, she said ok, I don’t have to do the acupuncture if I don’t want to. But to give a try for one needle is a good idea not to give up before try. Ok, sound acceptable. So I got this 50 minutes totally relaxing, refreshing, feel good massage. She then explain me about my anatomy. Which part of my body is weak, things to take care, etc.

Come to the needle time. I opted to see the needle first. It is a hair-thin instant (for one time used) needle, length about 3cm each. Ok, now that is it. I am waiting to feel the pain. But when she said, ‘how about that’ I was surprise cause I didn’t feel a single thing. Done, no pain at all. So I said ok, do that. So the lady had a needles party on my body. Each puncture bring the needle about 2cm penetrate the skin. Yet I can’t feel a thing! Wow. So there I laid, with each my micro fiber muscle unbundled. All my tissue loosen the stretch.

After the 5 minutes or so acupuncture and that 50 min massage, I feel so refreshed. When my husband asked me how do I feel, I said, "Do you know the fresh feeling in your mouth after brushing your teeth? Well, imagine that all over your body".

Acupuncture sites:
http://nccam.nih.gov/health/acupuncture/
http://www.acupuncturetoday.com/
http://www.acupuncture.com/

Rich in high quality protein, great source of vitamin B, iron and calcium, very low fat and no cholesterol.  Sound good? It’s tofu!
In Japan where the eating habit consider healthy (except those who like the tempura and deep fried katsu too much), tofu is a very popular option. I heard many many times my Japanese friends or colleague eat here and there at Tofu restaurant, but never in me any willingness to go to restaurant specialized in tofu. Maybe it is cultural bias in me where tofu is consider as side dish, and the ‘heroin’ will still be the meat, could be red or white.
But got no choice when one of my very close friend, Naoko, choose Tofu restaurant as the place where we celebrated her happiness, only the selected five of us plus the new Mr Lucky.
The restaurant is a fancy one. They serve almost nothing but tofu base menu, others are the side dishes. With opted the 5000 yen set. It is consider very expensive for a lunch set, but nothing too expensive for a dear friend’s celebration.
Came the tofu soup, different type of tofu. The firm one, the soft one, the silken one. Either raw, they are steamed or boiled. No fried, nor oil. All came in small fancy cup with darn beautiful decoration that you feel you don’t want to eat it for its beauty. More than ten flavor of tofu. Sesame tofu, Soy tofu, Wasabi tofu, Ginger tofu, Herb tofu, Egg tofu, … too much that I can’t remember. Many type of texture too from the chewy until those creamy that melt in your tongue. The tofu journey was closed with the soft sugary taste of tofu ice cream.
A new experience. It was nice, everything was delicious. It was light that you don’t feel so stuffed and feel so…healthy.
The only not good thing is the too expensive price. Still my Indonesian brain think….5000 yen and no even slice of meat!
Still, I will come back for the taste and the after meal feeling (feel so good to eat low calorie but high nutrition food), but definitely not often.

The restaurant named Maroza:
http://www.ikspiari.com/shops/shopinfo/H15.iks

Tofu web (nutrition, history recipe):
http://www.soyfoods.com/soyfoodsdescriptions/tofu.html
http://www.nutri.info/nutrition_facts/Tofu,%20okara.htm
http://www.thesoydailyclub.com/SFC/NFsoyfoods367.asp
http://www.tofu-recipes.com/