Sushi Poppers

Well,  I have to say, I have not seen anything like this before.  Sushi Poppers.  Looks like you can order them frozen as well.  Not sure how good it would taste after being defrosted.  I am used to eating Sushi freshly made, but gotta love the fact that anyone can market their own idea.
 

Who Inspires You?

I have recently been thru a series of tragic experiences in a very short amount of time.  As I sometimes get into the "woe is me" state of mind, I think about a person who truly inspires me.  My cousin was recently diagnosed with a very serious illness. I have always thought of my cousin as a religious person, but only now do I really see what true faith is.  She has faced her situation with total faith in God and His plan for her and her family and with a sense of humor!  Not only is she an inspiration to me, but to her friends and family as well.  In an interesting way, she has inspired thousands with her faith and trust in God.  It's as if God is working thru her, to show what true faith is.  I often wondered what type of person, thru all adversity, would continue to honor God like Job did and now I know.

Cute Panda Sneezing

I have always found Pandas to be so cute!

Pepsi Commercial - Check It Out

Maneki Neko

Whenever my friends start a new business, I give them as a present a Maneki Neko.  This is a ceramic or wooden or  papier-mâché cat with its paw raised. There doesn't seem to be a clear explanation on what it means when the left paw is raised versus the right paw.  Mostly it seems though, the left paw raised will bring in customers to a business, that is the Maneki Neko that I give to my friends.  The right paw is just in general for good luck.  However, I have heard some people think it is the other way around.  Not sure when I learned about these cats.  They were always in Japanese stores I went to but I never really thought about it until I got older and then learned why they were in the stores.

Daruma

I don't remember when I learned about "Daruma" but I think it is an interesting concept.  When you first buy the Daruma, both eyes are blank.  The Daruma is very light weight and is made of papier-mâché and is hollow.  You make a wish and color in the "left eye" as you face the doll.  When the wish comes true, then you color in the other eye.  I have one little Daruma that I have colored in both eyes and a bigger one, still waiting for that wish to come true!  There are also Daruma festivals that are meant to celebrate good luck and they sell Daruma all over the place.  I think having the one eye colored in  is to remind you of the wish or goal.

OIOI

One of my favorite department stores in Japan has a big sign that looks like "OIOI".  I thought the name of the store was pronounced "Oh E, Oh E".  I mentioned that one day to a Japanese friend and she thought it was the funniest thing she had ever heard!  The store's name is Marui which means circle, so the "O" s are to represent the circles.  Well live and learn...

It Just Fits

One thing about Japan, I really do love is that many things just fit me.  When I rode on the trains the rings that hang down so you can hold on when the train moves around, are just the right height for me.  When I tried on jewelry, the rings and bracelets just fit.  I couldn't believe it.  I didn't need to re-size things.  The one thing that I really remember is that the shoes fit.  I have a really hard time finding shoes in the United States, especially sandals.  They just don't fit right.  Every shoe I tried on in Japan in my size fit.  It was just amazing.  Even now, I have dreams sometimes that I went to Japan and came back with tons of shoes.  Clothes, though, I seemed to be so big.  In the U.S. I can wear the smaller or medium sizes, there I needed to wear large.  Oh Well... guess you can't have everything!

OODS

I went to Japanese School every Saturday when I was in elementary school.  I can honestly say I felt it was a total injustice that I had to go to school on a SATURDAY.  However, I did have some memorable experiences.  I was sitting in class one Saturday and the teacher was teaching us some Kanji and new Japanese words.  He started talking about "oods" and then he wrote in Japanese what that was.  I turned to the girl sitting next to me, who was from Japan, and I said, "oods? what is that?".  She said, "you know oods".  I looked at the blackboard and saw in English, the teacher had written the letters "oods" on the board.  I was quite perplexed because everyone else seemed to understand what he meant.  Finally, the girl sitting in front of me moved her head slightly and I saw he had written, the word "woods" on the board. 

How to Use a Dressing Room in Japan

I went to a Japanese department store and saw some clothes I wanted to try on.  In the center of the clothing department was a little dressing room with a curtain that you pulled once you stepped on the platform.  There was a mirror in the room and looked just like a dressing room you would see in the United States.  Once I was in the room, I heard this commotion.  There was a woman yelling at me.  I wasn't sure what she was saying so I just poked my head out from behind the curtain to see what she wanted.  She seemed distressed.  I then saw her pointing to my feet and saying "kutsu, kutsu".  I then realized she wanted me to take off my shoes before entering the dressing room.  She had a very infuriated look on her face, so I was sure to say in English, "I am sorry, what is the problem?"  She was taken aback as she was so sure I was Japanese and just being rude.  I told her I was American.  She instantly became kinder and then pointed for me to take off my shoes.  I apologized, took off my shoes and thought, I better remember that!