matsuzakaya

Recently tried Matsuzakaya 

They are mainly a butcher shop and are also known for their roast pork and other foods

Apparently they have been in business for over 80 years.
 

We tried their sweet sour pork...932 yen (tax included) for 333 grams

This was delicious, not overly sweet with lots of tender pork pieces and veggies in it

and their koumiyaki (spice grilled) chicken...480 yen (tax included) for 5 wings

this was delicious too, not overly peppery, very meaty and tender

I'm glad we tried this place and I'll be back whenever I'm nearby

Matsuzakaya

1-44-4 Kitasenzoku

Ota, Tokyo

Closed: Wednesdays

Hours: 10:00-20:00

*cash only

putting out your trash

In Tokyo, since the roadways are sometimes narrow, there are areas to put trash out, this is so the garbage truck can easily access it

For homes, they seem to have "groups" where they (the housewives) take turns cleaning their trash area after it is picked up

Most condos in Tokyo, seem to have a "room" to put trash into and have staff to take it out on the trash days

When we lived in Osaka, our apartment only had an area that we could put our trash, the people who picked up the trash had access to it so no one had to put it out for pick up (photo from 2018 when we moved from Osaka to Tokyo) and we were only allowed to put the trash out on the morning of the pick up not from the night before

Sometimes, if you miss the time for trash pick up, you can “sneak” your trash under another net/area

The nets are supposed to deter the crows, but if you don’t cover the trash properly, the crows pull out the trash bags and make a mess!

I took this photo (above) when the guy in beige brought his trash down the street and tried to put it under the net and the lady in black ran out immediately to tell him that he wasn't allowed to put his trash there

I think she didn't want his garbage there because if the crows made a mess, she'd have to clean it up...

in the photo, you can also see a lady on the left cleaning up what the crows did to a "groups" trash area

Lots of unwritten rules, yeah?!

chikku takku

Been wanting to check out this teeny bakery, Chikku Takku

Not sure how long they have been in business but it is run by a cute grandpa

I tried their chocolate filled Doraemon...226 yen (tax included)

So delicious!

Glad I tried this bakery and will be back whenever I am near by

Chikku Takku

3-18-9 Sanno

Ota, Tokyo

Closed: Tuesdays

Hours: 8:00-20:00

*cash only

the fan (part 2)

So the management company called us last Monday and sent a guy to check out our fan last Wednesday

(They said that it would take about an hour)

What I was impressed with was this...this thing that has tape (green) attached to plastic film

He used it to cover areas that he didn't want to get dirty

Then he took the fan apart, measured things and took photos of things

He said that easiest way to fix it would be to get a new motor for the fan

If they cannot find a replacement motor, then they have to install a larger model, which means that we won't be able to use the shower area for a week!

Plus the panel with the on/off switch would need to be changed and we might also need a new breaker.

The second idea sounds too time consuming, so I'm hoping they can find a new motor...please send us good mojo...

kubota ice

At one of the supermarkets I go to, I found these ice cream bars, what the Japanese, especially Kansai (west Japan) people call, "ice candy"

These are made by Kubota Ice, a company in Kochi

What I like about these is that there aren't many ingredients in these, just milk, sugar and the fruit or "flavor"

Back in March I tried this strawberry & milk bar
 

and recently this matcha bar

So delicious!

I hope to try other flavors from this company in the coming months

mil's (final)

I told you about BIL telling Satoshi that they needed to make more changes to MIL's

It was about the same time when BIL was getting scammed

He lost his savings

And then he did something unthinkable

He stole from the company that he worked for and gave the money to the scammers!

Luckily the company did not press charges

Thankful that Satoshi’s company allowed him time off and to work from home/Kyoto in order to take care of things

Long story short, we had to sell MIL's

Because his name was also on the deed, Satoshi also received some monies from the sale, but needs to use this money to pay his taxes from the sale of the house

SIL divorced BIL to protect herself from any responsibility of BIL’s debt

Satoshi also cut ties with BIL so that we would not be responsible for any of BIL’s other debts

Before MIL's was sold, I had Satoshi bring the ihai (spirit tablet) of the ancestors, MIL & FIL to Tokyo

And the Kannon (goddess of mercy) that was on the butsudan (family altar)

A very sad adventure but lots of important lessons to learn from

I appreciate all the good mojo from family and friends throughout all of this.

this and that

Tokyo People: the guy with the sunglasses has his portable fan clipped onto the train pole...keeping cool
 

Kinda caught a glimpse of an Eurasian magpie. It was huge in comparison to the sparrows I usually see

Caught these two on the lanai the other day.

There was another one on the electric pole...

I don't mind except that they hangout but they also poop here and there on the lanai...boo!

Caught these two furry ones (can only see one) on the way to the DIY store

On the way back from the DIY store, I stopped into 7-eleven to maybe get a smoothie, but they had a big smoothie sale the day before, so they were all out of smoothies.

I instead got a warm chocolate chip cookie for the walk back home

Made lup cheong rice with the lup cheong I bought in Yokohama

Over the years that I've tried to make this, I think this was the best version

bought us some udon bentos from Marugame, one day for our lunch 

Their summer version has buta (pork) shabu and ume (pickled plum) okra...filling!

also got us some udonuts...kinako flavor

We went to Hamazushi one evening...during the weekends, the wait for a table or counter seat is krazy!

I think we waited for over an hour...

Since I wasn't really in the mood for sushi, I ordered other stuff...like mango & edamame

I did eat a couple pieces of sushi, but I also ordered cheese fries...

I made hoisin sauce chicken.

I was shocked to learn that raw tenderloin has more sodium than the brest?!

I simmered this instead of baking so that we could eat up the marinade too

I really like this building in Ginza/Yurakucho

We had a rather large earthquake the other day...it was quite "long" and our phones were beeping

It seems no one was injured, so that was good! but still scary!

Sanrio has the cutest mailers

Was lucky to take a video of Dr Yellow, the yellow train that checks the Shinkansen (bullet train) routes.

I had heard it was retired, but happy to see it.

The weather is still wonky, some days it is humid, some days it is blazing, some days it is cool, some days it is rainy

Hope you have a safe weekend.