MacBook Pro Debut!!!

Believe it or not, on Saturday, while shopping the ceiling lights at an electronics retail store, I happened to find MacBook Pro 15" on sale, which was limited to 5 people and there were only 3 left.



Actually, those on sale were the previous model MC372J/A (Intel Core i5 (2.53GHz)/4GB/HDD 500GB). I read on some articles that the previous series are good enough, so I bought it without hesitation with AppleCare (3 Year Warranty)!

I think I made a right decision! They were all sold out on the next day ;)

I will use it after the removal (next week). I can't wait!!!

Please click below and vote for me.

Easy Tasty Cold Tofu

On 2/13, my "Easy Tasty Cold Tofu" ranked the 1st on Lettuce Club's website. Salt, sesame oil, and garlic really work up the appetite! I used momen-dofu (cotton tofu) which is pretty filling! It's a dish to go with sake or beer, too :D



Please try it out!

---------------------------------
Easy Tasty Cold Tofu

Difficulty: Super Easy
Time: 5min + refrigeration time
Number of servings: 2

Ingredients:
300g (10.5oz.) momen-dofu (cotton tofu)
A
*1 tbsp. sesame oil
*1/2 tsp. salt
*a touch of cracked black pepper
*a bit of grated garlic
chopped scallions
white sesame seeds

Directions:
1. Boil water in a large pot, break tofu into chunks (with your hands), place in boiling water for about 2 minutes, drain in a colander, cool enough, and chill in the fridge until ready to serve.
2. Mix A in a bowl and dress the tofu.
3. Serve in a dish and garnish with chopped scallions and white sesame seeds.

My original recipe in Japanese is here.
---------------------------------

By boiling tofu, you can remove excess water! Thus, it can absorb the seasonings well!!!

Yummy yummy!

♥Please Subscribe to my YouTube Channel♥
http://www.youtube.com/ochikeron

♥Please "Like" me on Facebook♥
http://www.facebook.com/Ochikeron/

♥Follow me on twitter♥
http://twitter.com/ochikeron (English)
http://twitter.com/alohaforever (Japanese)

♥My Cookbook♥

Crispy Hina-Arare Cheese Truffles

March 3rd is Hinamatsuri (Japanese Doll Festival or Girls' Day). On this day, we set up hina dolls (hina-ningyo) that are believed to protect girls from bad luck. Those dolls consist of the Emperor (odairisama), Empress (ohinasama), three court ladies (sanninkanjyo), and five musicians (goninbayashi) in traditional court dress of the Heian period.

On Hinamatsuri, we eat colorful rice puffs called hina-arare. They commonly consists of three colors: pink, white, and green: pink represents life, white represents earth, and green represents trees. Those who eat them are believed to drive out their misfortune and disease.

Today, I will show you a crispy truffles recipe using leftover hina-arare ;)

---------------------------------
Crispy Hina-Arare Cheese Truffles

Difficulty: Easy
Time: 10min + 60min refrigeration time
Number of servings: 8

Ingredients:
50g (1.8oz.) cream cheese *softened to room temperature
50g (1.8oz.) white chocolate *melted over a pot of boiling water
30g (1.0oz.) hina-arare (for filling) *use the small grains
moderate amount hina-arare (for topping) *use the small grains

Directions:
1. In a bowl, mix softened cream cheese and melted white chocolate, add hina-arare (for filling), and gently mix it in.



2. Divide the mixture into 8, roll into balls using hands, roll truffles in hina-arare (for topping), and refrigerate for 30 minutes until they set.



My original recipe in Japanese is here.
---------------------------------

Verrrrry easy, and not that sweet, so try it out!

Please click below and vote for me.

Blue Screen of Death

Last night, the Blue Screen of Death (the image from Wikipedia) came out unexpectedly on our 6-year-old FMV-DESKPOWER. (This was the latest PC with a built-in TV back then.)
It really frightened me a lot and the very first question I came up was:

When did I last back up my data?!

I couldn't get a real night's sleep... however, this morning, it came back on without an error screen. Whew...

Of course, I baked up all the important files before I go to work!!! How long you think the life of HDD? My former HDD lived for about 6 years... so I was kind of afraid to see the BsoD.

What a day :'-(

Please click below and vote for me.

My Accomplishments

Hi! Time to list my accomplishments again!

On 2/5, I attended the award ceremony of 青の洞窟 (Ao no Doukutsu) idea recipe contest. I happened to appear on the news article, too. (I'm wearing the blue cardigan.) The result page was released on 2/25! Again, I found myself on the image. Blue color stands! hehe

On 2/13, surprisingly, my "Yummy Salty Tofu" ranked the 1st on Lettuce Club's website. Salt, sesame oil, and garlic really work up the appetite! Yummy yummy!

From left to right image, on 2/14, 10th person photo reported my "Lucky Bean Rice" at Cookpad. I cooked rice using the lucky beans which was leftover from the bean scattering on Setsubun (2/3). On 2/18, 10th person photo reported my "Melting Heart Vegetable Curry and Rice" and "Kimpira Stir-Fried Mizuna and Chikuwa". Thanks!!!

On 2/22, I won the grand prix at COBON recipe contest. COBON is a wild yeast drink product. It is honey-sweet syrup, so you can use it instead of sugar. Wild yeast is used to produce fermented foods such as miso, soy sauce, sake, etc... Lately, Japanese lack wild yeast due to the dietary habits imported from Western countries, therefore COBON was made and consumed over 60 years (since 1950) to help ferment foods you consume, not to decompose in your stomach! Anyways, I added COBON to my everyday soy banana smoothie with a hint of ginger ;)

I think I expect nothing for April, since I cannot enter any contest in March due to the removal stuff. Hopefully in May!?!?

Please click below and vote for me.

How to Pronounce "R" and "L" in English

As you might know, Japanese people can't pronounce "R" and "L" correctly...

My darling is studying English every day for about 25min using Skype and of course he has the same problem.

While at cafe, he showed me the Mouth Positions for R and L Sounds...



LOL XD

But it's not a laughing matter because I do have the same problem once in a while. But at least I know how weird I pronounce those, I believe I have a chance to improve them someday!

Maybe future video recording might help me improve it :D



Practice makes perfect!

Please click below and vote for me.

Renovation Updates: 6th Week

Last week was the 6th week and my kitchen was placed! I heard that the kitchen counter was so big that it didn't fit into the elevator, so the carpenter wrestled it up stairs! Thanks goodness X(



We will apply the ECOCARAT on this side wall (image below)!



This week, wallpaper will be applied. And finally, this coming Saturday, our home will be completed! Time to make a final confirmation :D

*Renovation Updates*
- 5th Week
- 4th Week
- 2nd and 3rd Week
- 1st Week
- The Start Date

Please click below and vote for me.

NEW MacBook Pro with Thunderbolt I/O

Amazing news!!!



Yesterday, new MacBook Pro was released, incorporating Intel's new Thunderbolt (formerly codenamed Light Peak) technology into the device. Thunderbolt pipeline is more than 12 times faster than FireWire 800 and up to 20 times faster than USB 2.0! It can create a professional video setup for the laptop!



The laptop also includes two USB ports, a FireWire 800 port, mic-in, audio-out, ethernet, and a SDXC camera card slot, all of which are shown in one side and SuperDrive slot for DVDs and CDs on the other side!

No wonder, I will get this soon :D

Please click below and vote for me.

Renovation Updates: 5th Week

My post is one week behind but last week was the 5th week of the renovation and our walls and ceilings (construction) were done.



All the fittings were framed and set. We fitted up some of the furniture in the room to save space!



This week, my kitchen and bathroom sink were done. I will update about it next week :D

*Renovation Updates*
- 4th Week
- 2nd and 3rd Week
- 1st Week
- The Start Date

Please click below and vote for me.

Creativity is the key to Business Success

Can I be proud of myself today?! LoL.

In 2001, I graduated from college with degrees in Fine Art and Business Management. Also minored in Computer Science.

Recently, I came across the post that refers to one of the Harvard Business School's Breakthrough Ideas for 2004: "The MFA Is the New MBA" by Daniel H. Pink.

Businesses have come to realize that the only way to differentiate their offerings is to make them beautiful and emotionally compelling - which explains why an arts degree is now such a hot credential in management. Meanwhile, MBA graduates are becoming this century's blue-collar workers: they entered a workforce that was full of promise only to see their jobs move overseas.

And in 2008, Daniel Pink again argued that "it’s time for our imaginative right brain, which sees the entire forest all at once, to take center stage." : Let Computers Compute. It’s the Age of the Right Brain.

I didn't master in my degrees, but before he formulated the theory, I naturally related the idea of an art and business while studying. Amazing, hah?! (I have nothing to be proud of, so let me say... LoL)

ART now seems one of the trends of the times. Even in the worst recession, it is highly appreciated: How High Can the Art Market Go?

Yes! Be creative!!!

But to add, I think moderate exercise is important of all things, because good health leads to vitality. I used to hate PE class, but now I love to exercise! I mostly come up with a new idea at the GYM. I hope I am on the way!!!

Please click below and vote for me.

Christchurch Earthquake

Yesterday (on 2/22), a strong 6.3-magnitude earthquake hit Christchurch in New Zealand at 12:51pm local time, after 7.0 earthquake on 9/4/2010. Police now have confirmed that 75 people have been killed and still 300 people missing.

As you know, Japan is prone to earthquakes so it concerns us a lot. It is said that there are more than 1,000 tremors which people can feel, per year. All buildings meet the quake-resistance standards but we always live with the fear of earthquake.

I listed this before but severe earthquakes have hit Japan since the beginning of the twentieth century.
In 1923, the Great Kanto Earthquake (magnitude of 7.9) took place, which caused extensive damage over a wide area including Tokyo. Then in 1995, the Great Hanshin Earthquake (magnitude of 7.2) took place, which devastated much of the Hanshin area, including Kobe and Awaji Island. And in 2004, the Chuetsu earthquake (magnitude 6.8) took place, which ravaged the central region of Niigata prefecture. In 2007, the Noto Peninsula Earthquake (magnitude 6.9) and the Chuetsu Offshore Earthquake (magnitude 6.6) took place.

In Kanto region we have frequent earthquakes these days, so we are overdue for a large one! No wonder, I am nervous about our new home. I wish to live there at least a month! LoL. But more than that, I hope to be alive...

Natural disaster can happen anywhere at anytime. We live busy lives, but the news made me stop and think.

Please click below and vote for me.

Mac or Win

I am a Windows user. The latest Mac I own is ibook G3. LoL.

Nevertheless, I have used my FUJITSU desktop PC for more than 6 years, so now I am thinking of getting a new one. Maybe a laptop because I believe they are now fast enough to do the video editting.

MacBook Pro or Sony VAIO E



No wonder, I love pink, so I was thinking of customizing Sony VAIO E series, but unfortunately, I cannot select the hibiscus pink VAIO due to the system requirements for video editing... so I am more for MacBook Pro now.

However, my worry is the compatibility. Is Mac now compatible with Windows?! What I remember from ibook is if I create something using ibook, many stuff got garbled on Windows X( I know I am talking about old days. LoL.

Are you a Mac or Windows user?

Please click below and vote for me.

Weekend Shopping

On Saturday, my darling and I finally decided on getting home electric appliances!!! Before we leave home, we called the electronics retail stores to compare prices. In Japan, you can negotiate the price at any major electronics retail store if you can prove that the other store has lower price (even a penny!).

Of course, we bought HITACHI Frost Recycling Vacuum Compartment Refrigerator on our wish list! We went for 475L because it was the thinnest with great capacity ;)

As for the washing machine, we bought Sanyo's AQUA AWD-TQ900(W)! The attracting unique function is ozone washing called "Air wash". You can clean your clothes without water! Oxygen in the air is converted to ozone, using an ozone creation device, and is sprayed on clothing inside the machine. Ozone has a strong oxidation action, which either destroys or disassembles the cell walls of bacteria. This allows for eliminating bacteria, odors, and dirt (organic matter). With this machine, you can wash delicate clothing, business suit, stuffed animals, and shoes!!! Of course it has a normal washing cycle that uses water as well.



Then for air-conditioning and heating equipment, we went for Panasonic with nanoe (air purifier which at the same time hydrates your skin)! For the living room, we chose one with additional self-clean function that cleans the filter automatically!



We still haven't decided on the room lights, so maybe this weekend...



Anyways, after shopping, it was already after 10PM!!! We tried to order healthy foods! Matcha-hi (shochu-based beverage) and collagen salad with salmon and ikura for a starter ;)



I am eating natto because I heard eating natto before bedtime is good for the skin! hehe



No wonder we run out of savings... but why not enjoy our lives!!!
My excuse X(

Please click below and vote for me.