Sachiko's guide to cooking with a microwave oven

Sachiko Murakami has an extensive, well-organized website on cooking with a microwave oven—and not just nuking a burrito, either. Her site has recipes for full-fledged dishes, such as "spicy tofu" (see below).





—Mellow Monk

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Japanese fiddle player In Branson, MO

Shoji Tabuchi came to America from Japan 30 years ago with not much more than his fiddle and a love for country music. Now he has his own theater in Branson, Missouri, and of course a website.


—Mellow Monk

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Boost your energy naturally

When your energy level is low, here is a list of ways to give yourself a boost naturally.


The clearly clued-in people who put together this list include green tea, which can give your system a healthy but mellow boost.





—Mellow Monk

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Give your bedroom a sleep-inducing makeover

To get a better night's sleep, you don't need to buy an expensive bed. Instead, there are simple, easy ways to make over your bedroom into a more sleep-friendly environment.


—Mellow Monk

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Dolls for Japan's elderly

In Japan, toymakers are scrambling to find new customers for their products in the face of falling birth rates and a shrinking population.

An important new market for toys is the elderly. For instance, a talking toy doll has become a big hit among elderly women.

Then there is elder-care technology that goes beyond the realm of mere toys.





—Mellow Monk

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Dairy industry discovers green tea's anti-browning properties

Add this to the list of uses being found for green tea polyphenols: as an additive to naturally prevent browning in dairy products.


—Mellow Monk

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Relatives still hunt for Japanese war dead

A grim but engaging story:

Iwabuchi Nobuteru has visited New Guinea more than 200 times over the past 40 years -- not to relax on a tropical beach but to look for human remains.

—Mellow Monk

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Japanese archaeologists get their Mojos working

Deep the Amazonian jungle, a team of Japanese archaeologists has found a veritable treasure trove of relics of the long-lost Mojo (also spelled "Moxo") civilization.


—Mellow Monk

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Extreme ironing in Japan

The newest extreme sport in Japan: extreme ironing.



He must be using a veeeery long extension cord.


—Mellow Monk

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Traveling to Japan on business?

Richard Quest offers a concise list of tips for business travelers going to Japan.


What really surprised me (in a good way) the last time I was in Japan is one of the things on this list: ATMs at the Japanese Post Office now accept foreign ATM cards. Since the Post Office has more branches than all of Japan's banks put together, this is an incredibly convenient way to get cash.


—Mellow Monk

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Dog makes break for freedom down Nagoya subway tunnel

NAGOYA -- A dog that strayed into a subway tunnel here Tuesday morning forced one train to stop and others to travel at reduced speeds, the operator of the line said.

—Mellow Monk

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Anyone for a green tea shvitz?

"Hakone Kowakien Yunessun" may be a mouthful, but it's a fairly impressive-looking spa resort. One of the dozen or so spas there is a green tea spa, pictured below.





—Mellow Monk

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Pass the cranberry sauce

Happy Thanksgiving!

Today, be sure to have an extra helping of cranberries—they're good for you!


Speaking of Thanksgiving, you know what's really nice after a big, heavy meal? A nice, warm cup of green tea.


—Mellow Monk

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Japanese sub hits cargo ship

Whoops. A submarine of Japan's Maritime Self-Defense Force struck a cargo ship off the coast of Miyazaki.



Notice the damaged rudder.


—Mellow Monk

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Green tea diet

Just in time for Thanksgiving: a piece on how green tea can help you lose weight.


—Mellow Monk

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Retired husband syndrome

In Japan, throngs of men once married to their jobs are retiring to stay home all day and drive their wives crazy.



Mrs. Terakawa deals with Retired Husband Syndrome (RHS) by collecting teddy bears (which is probably better than throttling Mr. Terakawa).


—Mellow Monk

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Tokyo's massive storm drain system

By way of Digg.com: some stunning photos of Tokyo's underground storm drain system. The photo below shows what's termed a "storm surge chamber."


On the photo page, click on the left and right arrows in the bottom corners to view other pics.



"What? A storm drain, you say? I thought this was modern art."


—Mellow Monk

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Massage away the knots

A Theracane is a great way to give yourself a massage. Even a good, old-fashioned walking cane will do if you have one.


One caveat: I've never bought from any of these Froogle.com merchants, but I can vouch for the Theracane itself—it's great.





—Mellow Monk

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Meditate the stress away

From the Miami Herald:

Before Mira Bergen starts her hectic day of meetings, phone calls and site visits, the commercial real estate broker enjoys quiet before the storm.


I could not live without meditating," said Bergen, who began in 1981 and says the 20 minutes each morning helps keep her focused. "If I miss it, it's like not brushing my teeth."

—Mellow Monk

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Hand-through-aquarium illusion

Los Angeles magician Cyril, who's a huge hit in Japan, performs a pretty nifty illusion: putting his hand through aquarium glass. (Unlike thousands of college students, Cyril does this without breaking the glass.)


—Mellow Monk

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Tea ceremony photo

A photo of an outdoor tea ceremony at Yushima Tenjin Shrine in Tokyo.





—Mellow Monk

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The fire-extinguisher jetpack

It's a universal guy thing—the desire to strap something to your back and take to the skies.


A Japanese TV show similar to America's "MythBusters" tested the idea that it might be possible to create a jetpack from multiple fire extinguishers. (You can fast-forward through the movie by click-dragging the status bar at the bottom.)


Kids, don't try this at home!


—Mellow Monk

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Japan at a crossroads

Japan is at another crossroads: The economy is finally picking up, but the population as a whole is getting older, and China is taking Japan's title as manufacturer for the world. The number-one topic among the country's pundits is what the new national identity can or should be.


Will Japan's new prime minister—the first born after World War II—help the country "find itself"?



"I have a question. Shouldn't the dark fabric be used for the underarm area?"


—Mellow Monk

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Japan's robot wine steward

The Japanese are trying to come up with a robot that can tell good wines from bad and even recommend a cheese to go with your wine selection.


(It looks like eventually, the only job left for people will be to drink the wine and eat the cheese.)


But here's the funny part: At the unveiling, a wise-alleck reporter stuck his hand into the robot, which identified the human flesh as ... bacon.





—Mellow Monk

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Green tea for your skin

Green tea is being used in more and more skin-care products.


But there's an easier, less expensive way to give your skin the benefits of green tea: Take some cooled-down green tea and splash it on your face, then pat-dry the excess. After you face dries, it will feel clean, soft, and smooth.


—Mellow Monk

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Red Sox pony up $50M for Matsuzaka

The other day I reported that the winning American bid for Japanese pitching sensation Daisuke Matsuzaka was in the $30 million range, but those rumors were off by about $20 million. The Red Sox will pay his current team $50 million—and that's just for negotiation rights.



"So, how much per pitch does that come out to?"


—Mellow Monk

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Tsunami warning in Japan

From CNN.com:

Tsunami alerts issued after an 8.1-magnitude earthquake struck near Japan's northern coast have been lifted, according to the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center.

These folks weren't taking any chances—they got to high ground.


—Mellow Monk

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A pretty pair pummel presenteeism

"Presenteeism," a play on the word "absenteeism," refers to productivity lost on the job due to stress and other health reasons. Two British consultants have made a career of helping a company's employees figure out how to reduce stress in their lives.


This shows what a huge industry the whole "stress reduction" business has become. A much less expensive alternative is drinking Mellow Monk green tea.





—Mellow Monk

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A permanent tea infuser for green tea

Amazon.com has a good selection of permanent tea filters/infusers. Click here to check out the one shown below.


Permanent infusers are about the easiest way there is to brew loose-leaf tea. (You provide the cup or mug, and no teapot is required.) You place the infuser (sometimes called a filter) into your favorite cup or mug, drop a three-fingered pinch of Mellow Monk tea inside, pour in hot (but not just-boiled) water, wait three minutes and—voila—tea time!


It's a good idea to have a saucer ready so that you can place the infuser/filter on it when you're done brewing (otherwise, it will drip on your desk or counter or wherever you are brewing tea).





—Mellow Monk

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Angel doggie

The Angel Doggie website has been redesigned.


The artist who runs the site, Galen Hazelhofer, specializes in animal portraits, including "angelized" paintings of pets who have gone on, but she paints other subjects, too.





—Mellow Monk

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Japan's ghost pitcher to come to U.S.

Daisuke Matsuzaka is one of Japan's hottest baseball pitchers. He throws a pitch known as the gyroball, also known as the "ghost pitch," which is said to be the first new pitch in baseball since the split-fingered fastball.

Tonight or tomorrow, he'll announce which U.S. team he'll be playing for. The winning bid is reportedly in the $30 million range.





—Mellow Monk

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Coping with stress uncovers a real gift

Ivabelle Bernabe, 47, took up painting as a stress-relieving activity and found she had a real gift for it.

My own father, who had always been a "shower singer," discovered amateur theater after retiring. Today, he sings in a local musical revue that raises money for charity. He loves it.

Who knows what secret skill might be lying dormant inside you?


—Mellow Monk

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Maneki-neko, the beckoning cat of good fortune

Cat Fancy magazine ran an article on the origins of Japan's maneki neko, the ubiquitous beckoning-cat statue.

According to legend, the tradition dates back to a real-life cat who beckoned a famous general away from a spot where lightning struck the ground only seconds later.

I, however, had always imagined a different origin for the tradition. Anyone who knows cats know that occasionally they really do what looks like a beckoning gesture. In the Japan of old, shopkeepers often kept cats who earned their keep by catching rats. Perhaps one particular shopkeeper's cat sat in front of the store doing that cute beckoning gesture, attracting people to the shop and thereby filling up the shopkeeper's till. And the rest, as they say, is history. Perhaps.



"I swear, ma'am, 'twas not me what gone an' ate that katsuoboshi."


—Mellow Monk

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The cost of talking in your sleep

Talking in one's sleep is considered medically harmless, but that depends on what you say while asleep.


—Mellow Monk

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