A Love for Japanese Films

I am not really an aficionado of Japanese films. I’ve probably seen more of them than any other non English language films–unless dubbed kung-fu movies count–but I am no expert. Also, except for a few films I managed to see on an airplane when I did those cycling trips in Asia, I haven’t seen anything new.

However, there was a time when I watched them and I have a few favourites. I am particularly fond of Beat Takeshi films like Kids Return and Hanabi. Of course Shall We Dansu? was a great film. After Life by Hirokazu Kore Eda was beautiful. I am also a big fan of Juzo Itami movies like Marusa no Ona, Mimbo and of course Tampopo–often billed as the first Ramen Western.

Tampopo became quite popular amongst those Torontonians with ties to Japan in the mid 90s. By these people I mean, ex ESL teachers, those with Japanese spouses, those who loved Manga and anime, and those who knew a little more about Japan. Someone even opened up a Tampopo Ramen near the University of Toronto. Since we didn’t get authentic ramen until the 2013 or so, this place failed to make the grade and disappeared.

These movies represent a very different time in my life. Sometimes I revisit them out of nostalgia, sometimes because they were just solid movies that brought a smile to my face. Sometimes I am transported back to that time, and sometimes they strike me differently.

This past weekend, I shared the movie Tampopo with my girlfriend. While she had seen the TV series Oshin growing up, she had not seen anything like a Juzo Itami film. She enjoyed it (so she said) and I felt good about sharing something from my past. An unusual Perfect Moment, but a Perfect Moment nonetheless.

A Weird Day

Yesterday was a weird day.  How’s that for an opening line?  There are so many places I could take this one.

After work, craving a bit of fresh air and freedom from screens I got ready to take a walk.  I changed into more appropriate clothes–because I have been working from home the dress code really only applies from the waist up.  I chose the music I would listen to (The Doors) and stepped outside.  Only, it was just starting to rain.  My feelings were conflicted.  I wished I had gone out earlier, but then I was also glad I didn’t get caught in the rain.

I changed plans and started to clean up my hobby room/teaching studio.  It was partly an organizational task and partly a dusting exercise.  I peaked out the window and it didn’t seem like it was raining.  I went outside to see if Mother Nature was mocking me.  It turned out that it was a misty kind of rain which didn’t leave telltale drops on the sidewalk but was managing to soak everything.

I managed to dust everything, throw out a few things, and find a few things.  You all probably understand how good it feels to find something you’ve been missing for several days.

I also came across the product you see in the photo above.  This is my favorite Japanese sports drink.  It has a lemon and grapefruit taste–kind of like Fresca without so much carbonation.  Someone sent them to me from Japan.  I am going to try them out when I finish a ride.  I suspect this drink is on par with drinking a Gatorade or something like that.  It is mostly there to restore electrolytes.  I have some other stuff to take on my ride, but I will be asking for my cycling readers about their ride nutrition at the end of this post.

On that note, I definitely should improve my nutrition plan for this year’s cycling.  As it looks like I am going to be doing more solo rides, I am going to have to be better prepared.

I also decided to do some baking.  I made some banana bread.  I didn’t follow the recipe’s sugar advice, so it isn’t very sweet.  It did use up some ripe bananas, so I won’t feel guilty about wasting food.  I hate that normally, but now I am even more cognizant.

Some questions for my readers.

Have you ever lost something for a long time and then found it in an unusual place?

And for the cyclists; what do you do for your nutritional needs while riding?

Rainy Day Movie

It was a rainy day outside and even though my girlfriend and I promised we would go out and walk a bit, we did not. Instead we ate a fantastic breakfast and a fantastic late lunch.  In the middle of that I had the chance to take advantage of her Amazon Prime membership and watch some stuff.

One of the things I chose was called Love in Tokyo featuring Jonathan Sherr.  I remember him from English Teachers.  I wouldn’t call this a great movie….maybe not even a good one, but that doesn’t always bother me.  I was feeling a bit nostalgic for Japan and even though Japan is rarely featured in a “normal” way in movies, there are usually occasional bits that I find appealing.

The best thing about this movie was that it treated Japan quite normally.  The main character wasn’t shocked at everything he saw and didn’t feel the need to explain things.  Yes, there was a bit of fish out of water nonsense, but that was amplified because the main character existed more online than in real life.  His online persona was cool, but his real life character was severely lacking.  Luckily, he meets a more down to earth “free spirit” (their description, not mine).  There were lots of predictable moments, but those probably exist in this blog too–those who live in glass houses….

So, it was a time waster, but it was nice in that regard. There were some other Japanese films I would have like to see, but there’s plenty of time for that.  Winter is coming.

The Coin That Brought Nostalgia

I’ve got a random collection of coins from all over the world. They are poorly organized and not displayed in any fashion.  These mostly came from students who proudly wanted to show off their country, or at the very least, wanted to show off their money.  I gladly accepted these tokens, but most of them reside in my bedside table.

Of all these coins, the one that resonates the most with me was one I basically bought from a student. It is a one hundred yen Japanese coin.  Having spent a considerable amount of time in Japan, I have dropped thousands of these coins into vending machines of one sort or another.  I always had them on hand in case I needed a cold drink of Dekkavita C or maybe an Yebisu beer.  These days, I use the coin when I buy the occasional scratch lottery ticket.

Today, when I entered class, the students were all looking at a bunch of change on the desk in front of them. I listened in on there conversation while I prepared my board.  They were talking about currency and what the coins could buy.  Since they were speaking English in a topic of their own choosing, I tried my best to stay out of the way and think about how I could use this later in the class.

When the conversation died down, I approached the desk and one of the students presented me with a 50 yen Japanese coin. I didn’t let the oddness of the situation get to me.  He is Korean and lives in Korea.  What he was doing with a 50 yen Japanese coin I have no idea.

As for me, I really like this token. There is something about the feel of Japanese money in my hand that takes me back to those days in my twenties.  I was living an adventure on the other side of the world, and despite the obstacles, I was really enjoying myself.

Nostalgia can be oppressive at times, but not today. In this case, receiving such a comforting gift and getting swept up in nostalgia is Today’s Perfect Moment.

A Look at Sharing

I don’t know what it is inside of us that wants other people to like what we like. At my most pessimistic, I think it has something to do with our own insecurities and our need for external validation.  At my most optimistic, I like to believe that we just want to share something good with other people.  It could be our favourite song, or drink, or restaurant, or YouTube video.  It could be a particular flavour of gum.

Today, after a meal at J-Town (the Japanese shopping centre) which consisted of both Tonkatsu and chicken-katsu, we did a little shopping. I was planning on having a shucream–which, I have to suppose, is the Japanese version of chou a la creme.  What I came to learn is that these are already available in my girlfriend’s country of origin and hold absolutely no surprise or delight.  However when I loaded up my hands with some Hi-Soft, she asked me just what kind of chocolates they were.  There was a complete look of surprise when I explained that these were soft and chewy caramels.  So she bought a box.

We hadn’t even gotten our seatbelts on before she had opened the box and put one in her mouth. She seemed genuinely happy with the taste.  She then managed to do something that I have never been able to do. She closed the box and put them in her bag.  I usually devour the whole box before I can stop myself.  How she managed to do it, I may never know.

It turns out that she liked them….a lot. Her willpower eroded once at home and she texted me later to explain that she had eaten most of them.  I was not surprised, but happy.  It is one of my favourite treats and I want other people to think so too.

Pizza for Breakfast

I am still catching up on Perfect Moments, and I think I am almost there. Over the weekend, I took some time to rest, and hopefully finally get rid of this cold that has been plaguing me for weeks.

Somewhere I managed to have the breakfast of champions. That’s right, pizza for breakfast.

Okay, I realize that this is not the breakfast of champions and if I were in the Tour de France, I would be left in the dust even more than expected if I ate pizza for breakfast every morning. So maybe this isn’t breakfast of champions, but it is the breakfast of a teenager.

As everyone knows, I love pizza and pizza loves me back. How could I not salute it.

A funny story related to pizza for breakfast was from a previous co-worker who had also spent time in the Kansai region of Japan.  When his host family asked him what he wanted for his birthday, he replied that he wanted Pizza for breakfast.  He meant that he wanted to buy it at night and eat it cold for breakfast the next morning.

Perhaps something was a little lost in translation because what they understood was somewhat different and they convinced the owner of the pizza place to get up early and make a pizza for his birthday breakfast.  I am not sure if they went and picked it up or whether it was delivered.  In the end, I was impressed by their efforts.  Sadly, he was not.

What is your all time favourite breakfast?

An Encounter with Muji

Decades ago, when I lived in Japan, various satirical magazines often made fun of what we termed Japanese English or Janglish. These were translation mistakes or misuses of English (intentional or unintentional) that appeared everywhere. They could be boldly emblazoned on T-shirts, product labels, vending machines, and countless advertisements. Often English was used to spice up a product. The word leant it a mystique, or tried to invoke an image, rather than translate some information about the product.  This use of English was actually targeted at the domestic market, rather than the English speaker.  When the internet came along, there were (and probably still are) web pages devoted to this.

I haven’t been back to Japan in a while, but I assume those magazines that catered to English speakers/readers still do this sort of thing from time to time. However, I would hope that the situation is somewhat better.   With access to computers and proofreaders all over the world, there should be far fewer of these mistakes–the unintentional ones at least. Of course, this was a common lament when I lived there, so perhaps I shouldn’t be surprised at the state of affairs now.

Currently Japan is riding another boom in popularity. When I was a child, only a few nerdy types likes myself sought out badly dubbed Japanese cartoons. It was a far cry from the popularity that came later. The current boom seems more directed at fashion, retail, and ramen. And that brings us to Muji, or more formally Mujirushi Ryōhin. This store has some awesome products and has garnered a lot of well earned attention. I don’t like shopping there because I can read the Japanese price on the products and know how much they have been marked up for Canada—big shocker, it is a lot. Of course these products needed to get here, and the rent is high in Toronto–but it still irks me a little and causes me to second guess any shopping decisions.

How does all this tie together? The eraser (which my student lovingly praised) pictured above is from Muji.

I Couldn’t Resist

I have been shopping at a Japanese market for years–though less frequently than in past. On Saturday, I took a friend to experience the place.  Despite trying to cut down on my sugar intake (and increase my exercise time) I decided to grab a bag of my favourite chocolates, and a couple of other treats.  I just couldn’t resist.

I’ve written about these before, so I won’t bore you. Suffice to say, they are delicious little chocolates with a variety of fillings or cookie backings.  My favourite is the one with the coffee nougat in the centre.  I hope the pack has at least five of them.  They are about 30 calories each.  I will do my best to limit myself to one a day……

 I had my usual tonkatsu lunch and enjoyed it.  Sadly, the bakery was closed for the new year holiday, so I didn’t have a chance to eat choux creme, or other flashy cakes.  Hopefully next time.

A Taste of Japan

This isn’t the first time I have posted pictures of my favourite Japanese chocolate. Much like the other times I was fortunate to find myself in possession of these beauties, they were a gift from one of my students.

I discovered these chocolates by accident when I was living in Japan.  I was brave in those days.  I bought things from the candy aisle that I was not completely sure about.  Sometimes I watched what the little children were purchasing and at other times I took random stabs at things. I guessed that these were chocolates but they could have been something else.  If you’ve been to Japan, you know what I mean.  Heck, if you watch any Jvloggers you probably know what I mean. Japan can mix some pretty adventurous flavours.

These chocolates have been around for more than 25 years. In Japan, if something doesn’t sell, and sometimes even if it does, the product disappears.  So these have staying power.

I’ve eaten three of them, and I am sure by tomorrow afternoon they will be all gone. What will I do then?

 

Lunch Decisions

Today, on the second day of a three-day long weekend, I found myself on the road.  I had spent the previous evening with my friend watching a double feature. (Avengers Infinity War and Deadpool 2–the PG and R superhero movies respectively).

I decided to stop for lunch and rather that gorge myself on a burrito, I hit J-town, the Japanese supermarket just on the other side of the Toronto Richmond Hill border–literally, one side of the street is Toronto, the other Richmond Hill.  I used to go there often, but these days those times are rare.

I usually opt for tonkatsu–deep friend pork.  Today, I decided to change things up….sort of.  I had katsu curry.  Basically that is the tonkatsu from above with a side of Japanese curry.  For the chopstick impaired, this one is most often eaten with a spoon.  As you have curry for flavouring and softening, tonkatsu sauce is not required.

For those who haven’t eaten Japanese curry…..well why haven’t you?  It is sweet and delicious, unless you mistakenly order the wrong one (which I did once is Tokyo Station because I lazily read the vending machine label and thought I was ordering upgraded pork rather than super spicy curry).

It was not the most elegant of dining situations, but who cares when the food tastes good?  I should make a point of going there more often.