Kanako’s face turned red. Her cheeks blushed as an apple. She was surprised. She thought it will be another friendly lunch just with me and Atsuko at my place. But it turned out, when she entered the door, all of good  girlfriends from office were in the living room yelled "SURPRISED!!"

Who doesn’t want to participate to throw the Baby Shower party for a sweet girl yet a professional secretary like her. For me, for the last 3 years she has been very supportive helping me with all the administration stuff, yet a great friend.

Atsuko and I had been arranged this from weeks before. The food lined up. They were from Costco we bought in the morning, hours before Kanako came. That, plus my homemade schotell and the bake Devil’s Food cake. We decorated the room with balloons and banner. The baby diapers cake was there too. We made it. It look so nice..or should I say, delicious?

Tons of presents from us, mostly in the shade of pink. Baby’s cutie little jumpsuit, bib, socks, book, pillow, rope, car tray, CD, cream, soaps,… I hope I can remember all.
Games for her. Everyone threw a question. From "what to check if a baby cried ?" until  "what will you say if you daughter want to be one of the Momusu’s girl?". She got to answered each of them.
Then, everyone suggested a name for the little baby girl. Completed with the meaning behind the name. She might get more confused….the name list getting longer. From Ayu, Mika, Tenka, Kokanako, until Gabriella.

All in all, we care about her. We want her to get the message. We wish the best for the rest of the pregnancy, the smooth delivery and the easy and happy moment of caring the baby.

She, indeed, was so happy. I am sure her confidence boosted for the big day, June 4 2007.

Gambarre Shussan !

Momusu = Morning Musume a vocals group consist of 14 young girls which is recently hip in Japan.

Gambarre Shussan = Have a success baby delivery

Since I change my working location and move to this cubicle from middle last year, I got a different lunch team as well. The senior guys in the department.

I used to sit surrounded by women of my ages. We went lunch together and endeavor to try every new restaurant nearby, taste the new menu here and there even in our own cafeteria. Calorie is no big concern. We love to eat and chat and eat and eat and snack and so on. Not only lunch, all type of snack fly around from desk to desk. Lucky them, they have those impossible-to-get-fat body. Not like me.

My new lunch team consist of four people. All above 48 years old of age but me. All are health-conscious people. Each take the result of annual health check-up very serious and detail. The numbers listed in the check-up result discussed among the team and doctor’s or nutritionist’ recommendation followed religiously.

Every time before start to eat, we compare the receipt we got from the cashier which listed down the total calorie of your lunch. Guess who always take the highest score?
Yeah right. Me.
I used to be the only one took the chicken katsu set, completed with the tartar sauce and potato-mayonaise salad plus the dessert either pudding or cake.
The youngest and the only woman ate the highest fat, highest cholesterol, highest calorie.
While the others eat soba noodle, raw tofu, green salad with water base dressing, konyaku, bake fish, boilled meat and all the healthy choice.

Gradually the embarrass side in me grew and I start to change my selection. Avoid creamy, fried and sweet things. More green, fiber, raw/half cooked. More Japanese food selection but tempura.
Those foods in fact, taste as delicious.
Since one the member got a friendly warning of blood pressure last year, he tries to eat a balance food, concentrate in raw and fiber and avoid meat. I follow him just for fun. But after some month, this grow into a habit in me. Now I am happy to be able to maintain around 400 Kcal for each lunch I consume.

The day I changed my eating habit was December 10, 2006. Two months after, I lost seven kilograms of weight, which honestly I feel: effortless.

Thanks to my lunch team.
But that not merely because of only the lunch, but I changed my lifestyle in general.
Which I will tell in another story.

When I wonder around in a shopping mall, my hubby will just sit at the kids corner watch over the children so I can have some freedom to browse around. In fact, he doesn’t like shopping that much. If have something he needs, he just  do this straight-to-the-point-shopping. But, don’t let him watch the TV shopping channel and have the phone nearby. QVC, Nihon Bunka Senta are his bestfriends. If I am around, I always play my role as the negative force against that positive force to buy the TV try to sell. But I am not always around.

Look what the TV plus phone has done. When I came back from A business trip, my husband welcomed me with the new steam iron which can iron the clothes on its hanger. Came back from B biztrip, he proudly shown a new vacuum cleaner which use water bin instead of dust bag as filter. C biztrip, a sewing machine present for me ( I never sew in my life!). Swivel Sweeper, a type of floor sweeper tool is another one.
Two weeks ago I was away for a five days trip. Yes there was a new product welcomed me back, Billy’s BootCamp a high impact Taebo exercise DVD, set of 5 disk.

I used to feel uncomfortable with dearly hubby’s habit. The TV shopping product always cost expensive and after some month the product will be in the market, in half price. Other than that what they promote in the TV are not always right. It always look better than the real. I am the type of person who need to check and try prior to the purchase.

But, then I think.
The total of amount he spent there is actually nothing to what I spent in my shopping days bought many me-my-mine items. The fact that the product he bought are those of unselfish items that for family use. The fact that he never intentially try to switch the channel or search the product, only when the commercial came in between programs or a transit stop between channels (not like me with eBay or Amazon).
In addition to that, the most important fact is that he is so supportive to my job and career and happily handle the kids when I have to be away. That is a big thing. So, if this TV shopping make him happy, I am peaceful with this.

I am a fan of Michael Jackson aside of his Court things and personal issues. I love his music and dance. But am not disappointed to know that the 400,000 yen (about $3400) ticket to meet and greet Michael in Tokyo this week has been long sold out.

First, the ticket it way way way too expensive (say, compare to the concert of A list singer like U2 or Madonna or Bon Jovi).

Second, it doesn’t secure the chance to hear him sing at all. There is no guarantee he will sing, instead, it guaranty that each ticket holder will get the chance to meet and have thirty seconds of personal time with The King of Pop, perhaps a short greeting.

Well, not for me… so I said no to a friend who offer the ticket at double the price from the net.
Double? Come on… I am not even interested with the original price ticket to help Michael go out from his financial difficulties in his still-posh living style…

The expensive Strawberry color 100% leather Japanese school backpack has been bought for Raisa. She’s going to start her elementary school next month.

The school bag called randoseru (from the Dutch word: ransel), is part of Japanese tradition which being kept and continues for hundred years. Not much change in the style and shape from years back, except the color which originally was available only in black for boys and red for girls, now available is all shade of color. For me, I don’t think it is  a good idea to have this bag which prize range from 200-900USD (compete with Mom’s Prada or Gucci) empty weight around 1000grams to be used in six straight years. But this is the tradition here in Japan. Each kids got to use this bag, take care of it for the rest of the elementary years.

The bag serve as symbol of discipline, unity and the hard work of the kids in the basic school years.
Some accessories for randoseru also offered like the water proof cover for rainy days, a hanging device that connect to the GPS so parents can locate where the kids are (in response to some criminal case against the children when walk back home after the school), etc.

I have to also mention, that according to the tradition, the bag will be presented by the grandparents as a present to the kids. Thanks God!
So my Japanese mothers brought Raisa to the shop last week and let her choose the color by herself, packed and paid. I mentioned to them not to but the one at the high-end since I still think the price is ridiculously expensive, so they choose the middle range.

For me, I still think a simple not-so-expensive-follow-the-trend-backpack, bought freshly new every one or two years, giving a special excitement to the kids. But got to be Roman in Rome…