I'm back:D!

Sorry not for updating my blog these days:) I was busy at part-time job and I have a cold now....That's terrible!! OMG!!!
I feel in many places, that Christmas season has come:D There are a lot of pretty chirstmas trees...!! Very cute:) I wonder why Japanese people cereblate chirstmas....it is popular for Japanese people to be with boyfriends or girlfriends on Christmas Day. But I like being with my family;)!!!
By the way, I went to a theater near my house:D! There, I found monsters as big as life sizes of "Monster's Ink."!!! They were so cute:)!! I didn't notice that signs said "Don't touch them!", and I touched a lot:P
And then, I found a pretty Japanese mom-and-pop candy store!!! It looked old style;) I like Japanese *dagashi more than modern sweets such as cakes because I don't like too sweet food. Dagashi means Japanese traditional cheap and small sweets for children, and they can buy dagashi by only 10yen or 20yen. (10yen is about 10 cent) When I was a elementary school student, there was a passed-over sponge cake, and it was a whole!! My mother said "You eat it by tonight!", so I ate it at a breath.......finally I felt sick very much:( Since then, I don't often eat such cakes:P Dagashi is Japanese unique tradition:D!!

Naita-Akaoni

My mom’s hobby is collection of picture books, so I really know a lot of interesting storybooks of Japan. Good storybooks are impressive even for adults. I’ll show you my favorite one, “Naita Akaoni.” It means that “Red demon cried.” It is very popular book in Japan;)
....... Naita Akaoni.......

Once upon a time, one red demon and blue demon lived in a mountain. Red demon was very kind, and he wanted to make friends with humans. However, people who lived near the mountain were afraid of him because they didn’t know or didn’t try to know that he was actually a kind demon. People run away from him and said, “Run, run! Cruel demon came to eat us!” when red demon approached them. He was always sorry that he was a demon.
He set up a sign in front of his house, and it said, “I am a kind and polite demon! Please come in and take a break with me! Don’t hesitate! I always prepare tea and sweets for you!” However, people said, “Demon will eat us if we go into his house! You know, he is a cruel demon.” Nobody came there, and red demon was very sad.
His friend, blue demon was also kind, and he was always sorry to see red demon. Blue demon said to red demon, “Hey, buddy! Don’t be sad! I think that you can make friends with humans someday.”
“Thanks, Blue demon. But I can’t because they run away from me!”
“Do you want human friends in any way?”
“Yeah! Yeah! Have you seen them play? They looked so fun. I wanted to join them…”
“……I have a good idea for you!”
“Really!? Tell me!”
Blue demon whispered his idea to red demon.
Red demon heard that, and he said,“Wow!! It is a good idea! Thank you so much, my best friend!”
“No problem! You are my friend, huh?”
Next day, they went to village that people lived, and they saw children play with a Japanese ball from bushes. Blue demon said,“Are you ready, buddy?”
Red demon nodded. Suddenly, blue demon burst from bushes, and shouted to children, “I’m from the mountain to eat you!!”
Children screamed, and tried to run away from him, but he caught one girl. She cried,“Somebody helps me!!!!!”
Blue demon said, “Nobody helps you. I’m going to eat you!”
At the moment, red demon appeared in front of blue demon, and said, “Release her!”
Blue demon said, “I don’t! Why do you disturb me? Do you also wanna eat her? She’s mine!”
“No! I want to help her!! If you don’t release her, I’ll fight you!”
Then, Red demon pounced at blue demon, and pretended to hit and kick him.
Blue demon cried, “Ouch! Ouch! Don’t! Okey! I’ll release her, so don’t hit me any more!”
“All right! I’ll forgive you. Go away!”
Red demon said that, and blue demon run away hurriedly. Children gathered around red demon and thanked him very much. The girl who were helped by red demon said, “You are so kind! Thank you so much! I didn’t know that there was so kind demon. You are my lifesaver! Could you come to my house and have dinner with my family?”
“Sure! Can I, can I go…?”
“Of course! Why not?”
Now, red demon was so happy, and he made friends with humans. He thanked Blue demon so much. The night, people held a party for him, and he enjoyed it very much.
After the party, it was completely dark and midnight. Red demon hurried blue demon’s house and wanted to thank him, but nobody answered although he knocked blue demon’s door. He wandered and opened the door. Soon, she found that there was a paper on a table, and it was a letter from Blue demon.
It said, “I’m really really glad that you made human friends. I have to go away from this mountain because people will become to hate you if they know that I’m still here, and I’m your friend. I’m okay, don’t worr.............. I’ll be your best friend forever...Good bye.”
Red demon read this letter, and started to cry. He cried and cried. He stopped crying, remembered blue demon and started to cry again and again.

Coffee:)

I am working at coffee shop;) Looks delicious!!! My part-time job is hard, and I'm always exhausted, but I look forward to free drink and ice cream only for fellow during a break time!
Actually, I don't like coffee well, but I want this machine.....espresso machine:D If there is it in my home, I can make delicious espresso, mocha and latte at any time! I want it, but I don't afford to buy it because it is so expensive, 32000 yen! It is about 300 dollars! I don't have money to spend for it:P I'm waiting the day that someone presents me it:) lol! (Maybe nobady dosen't give me:D) I'm not so good at making coffee, and I need to practice more, but it is so enjoyable for me:)!!!

Playfood:D

I took this picture in front of a restaurant of *soba. "Soba" is thatJapanese best-known noodle which is made with buckwheat flour! It is so yummy;) In Japan, people have to make sounds when they suck noodles because it is etiquette for cook. To make sounds expresses "This noodle is so delicious!!!" But too loud sound is rude....It's difficult:P

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Anyway, let's go on to the main subjest!! Can you belive that they are NOT real soba in the picture:)??? Actually, they are not real, but they are playfoods!! It means that they are fakes of food!! In Japan, such playfoods are displayed in front of restaurants, and they are very elaborate and they look like the real things:P One of my foreign friends were surprised by the amount of various playfoods including soba, parfait, hamburger steak, spaghetti, omelets, sushi, and many many things. I don't know that there are playfoods are popular in other countries, but Japanese playfoods are so on a high level:)!! There are key rings which have playfood, (of sushi or tempra, somthing like that) so you can get them, and your friends must be pleased if they get them as souvenirs!!
One day, I got playfood of garlic from my friend somehow, (I don't know why she have it. I wonder how and where she get it. LOL) and I tried to trick my mom. I gave her it, and I said, "Today, my friends gave me a garlic!" My mom were pleased and said "Really?? Wow! It looks yummy! I like it!" It was so funny, and I laughed at it! She moticed my trick soon after that, and she got angry....I'm soory, mom:P
Anyway, Japanese playfoods look like real things as much:P

Friends

About a week ago, I went to karaoke with my friends:) Before Karaoke, we went to sushi bar, and we had more than enough!! We sang lots of songs all of the night:D It was drink free!! I talked about many things with them. I was so surprised because I found that my friends are own women although they are 20 years old yet. What I felt the greatest was they really respect their own parents, and they think about their lives and future seriously.....and they face to study properly. They know that they have to become independent from their parents, and to go their ways. I can't notice these aspects of friends in daily life, but I knew that they have their thoughts although they don't reveal that normally. There are a number of people who don't think their lives seriouly though. I'm really happy because I have friends whom I can respect;)
I thought that I had to apply myself:D

P.S. Sorry not for putting pictures of food, kirk:P You must be starving. lol

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In Japan, there was a big news. Move of every share price stopped a whole day becuase of a failure of machine that display share price....It was heavy loss for Japanese economy:( It was first-ever event in a long Japanese history:O!!