Food for thought
...written on 06.24.02, @ 3:35 a.m.
Mon June 24, 2002
I've been making these little deals with myself lately. . .
"O.k. Kim, you can watch "The Return of the Mummy" video only after you finish the dinner dishes." Or, "No more late night internet unless you get your futon out of the closet, set it up, take out your contact lenses and brush your teeth, first. So far, so good. I am managing to keep my apartment neat while I attend to all of my little entertainments and drop into the futon after it all without much ado.
Today's entertainment consisted of my venturing forth into the great Japanese world outside to do some shopping and get some videos. I was planning on having tacos for dinner, but didn't have any salsa, so I was trying to decide which store of the three in Ogaki that had salsa, did I want to go to.
I stopped at the corner of a busy intersection on my bicycle to deliberate this further, trying to judge distance, not only from my apartment, but from the video store I needed to go to as well. (I hate backtracking! It is almost a phobia with me. I avoid it at all costs.)
I decided to go get the videos first. I have been wanting to see "The Return of the Mummy", but have never been able to find "The Mummy" on the store racks, so today I decided to ask where it was. The clerk took me to the "Action" section.
One of the things I must deal with when selecting a video, is to know whether or not the movie is in English with Japanese subtitles, or if it is dubbed in Japanese. Most videos have a sign that I recognize on the back, some even have it (gasp), written in English, but the "Return of the Mummy" video I was holding, had a different character grouping on it that wasn't familiar to me. I didn't see any salespeople nearby, so I chucked it into my basket anyway, hoping for the best. I've really only had one instance when I got a video I couldn't understand (Sophie's World), but that was because it wasn't originally made in English and had Japanese subtitles. Looks like I'll have to wait til I return to the States to see that one.
After the video store, I stopped by Jusco to buy salsa. I bought 3 jars since I am expecting a yummy food shipment tomorrow (more on that later) and I don't want to be caught short without salsa ever again. It is such a convenient condiment!
Apart from the salsa, I also bought another loaf of bread. I bought one the other day, but it was white bread and I really like this Roman Meal bread they have at Jusco. There is only one problem with it.
You see, the size of a normal loaf of bread in Japan is about 13 centimeters or 5.2 inches. That is about the distance from my wrist to the top of my pinky finger. These loafs, while a standard size, may vary in the amount of slices they have. The most popular size appears to be the 4 slice loaf. Next is the 6 slice loaf. I prefer the 8 slice loaf, as the slices are thinner and approximate the size of American bread slices. Can you imagine sticking a sandwich in your mouth, where the bread alone accounted for 2.6 inches? (Well, those big slices are used mainly for toast anyway.) Unfortunately, the Roman Meal bread was only available in the 6 slice quantity. Oh well, fills ya up faster and for longer!
While McDonald's & KFC have proliferated here in Japan, Taco Bell hasn't made it's way out of the big cities. I think there is one in Tokyo. I haven't found one yet in Nagoya. So, tacos aren't that well known here.
Of all the food I miss from the States, Mexican tops my list. I have found a place where I can get taco shells and seasoning, but chunky salsa must be procured in Nagoya or from my latest and greatest discovery, the Foreign Buyer's Club: www.fbcusa.com.
This club is located in Kobe and has three catalogs brimming with over 40,000 items from the US, Canada, Australia, Britain, etc. It was from them that I ordered an ENTIRE CASE of Quaker Grits. Tomorrow I shall receive another shipment of scrumptious goodies and learning materials (they have teaching books and supplies as well). I guess the only thing that I really want, but can't get is, Lever 2000 Pure Rain shower gel, that yummy clean smelling blue stuff that is so invigorating in the shower.
Egads, it's 3:30 am. Tomorrow is my day off and I have laundry sitting in my washer that I have programmed to go off in 6 hours. Must get some sleep. I am so glad I made that "get ready for bed before you touch the internet" deal. I don't think I'd have the energy to do all of that now.
Sweet dreams!