Welcome to My Blog

Thank you for visiting my blog site. This will always be at the top on this page with a brief summary of new postings. Please bookmark this page and check back often. And as always, I would love to hear from you.

What's new here -

- 2 Jan - supposed to be off today? (Jan 2)

- New Year's Eve (Dec 31)

- Post Christmas Blue (Dec 28)
- Christmas 2008 (Dec 25)

All the best,
Hideki (Brian)
五味　秀木

2 Jan - supposed to be off today??

I have been living in the US for long but still feel awkward to work on Jan 2nd and 3rd which are still holidays back home. I have really thought about working on Christmas and taking day offs on Jan 2 & 3rd instead. But my boss knows how slow things are over Christmas - most of our clients are Europeans. I suppose he won't buy it.

Things have been quite slow. I have let one guy at reservations go home early, who worked over post Christmas weekend. This morning, I chatted with a friend who just came back from China as part of his MBA program. After his hard study works while dealing with all sorts of stress such as a language barrier, I am glad that he has been enjoying his time in Vegas. He well deserves it. And also chatted with my friend in Cedar City this afternoon quite a bit. I know... it was in the middle of work hours but I did what I was supposed to do for work and I did the fun chats between so all is justifiable, I think. I have been having a bad headache all day. All alcohol and sugar I have consumed over the holidays finally decided to flow in the blood stream, I suppose. Or am I allergic for créme de marrons - if you have never had it, it is worth trying it. It is like Nutella without chocolate kick. One of guilty pleasures I do once in a while (more often than I should). I am 37, not in 20's anymore... I really need to watch for what I am putting in my mouth but as a guy who loves to eat and cook, it is the hardest thing to do. I got 5 more cookbooks - there are so many more I would like to try.

Over this holiday season, one of the biggest news was that my friend in LA who is in the same industry was getting married. I only have a handful of Japanese friends here. Among them, I consider him as my closest Japanese friend. He is a year older than I am - somewhat I feel like I am close to him than to my real brother. We have met through one of tourism trade shows years back. Sweet man with a good heart. We used to travel togther once a year to get away from work, b*tch about works & colleagues etc. Being able to speak Japanese all day when we travel - it is such a luxurious thing to do for me. Anyway, but I didn't know about his marriage until last week. It sounded like this thing has been going on for over a year! We both had dropped off the face of the planet or what. I was feeling that there was something going on but I didn't expect it to be a marriage. What a great surprise. I don't want to be too nosy so there is no details not asked yet but I get as excited as he is when I think about it. When the wedding will be, what he wants for a gift, where they are going for honeymoon (this is sort of occupantional concern lol). So Rocky (his nickname, that is) - we all your friends are looking forward to receiving more details really soon. Otherwise, all sort of rumors will be around - not good for your future wife if she is in the same industry. Be prepared! :).

New Year's Eve

New Year's Eve is called "Ohmisoka" in Japanese. It is certainly not for the night of partying Some do but going to shrines/temples in midnight with families is a tradition.  Japanese become quite lazy after Christmas. Many take a week off, special feasts are prepared and presented in special boxes (so they don't have cook for a few days), no house cleaning (usually from 29 Dec - 3 Jan. They consider is as a bad luck).... so all what they do is to eat, watch TV, and sleep. It sounds like Christmas for Christians, doesn't it? Ok enough about cultural lessons!

New Year's Eve plans have been changed several times this year. Originally, I was going to book hotel rooms in the downtown Denver, having dinner at restaurant, then going to a bar nearby or simply staying up until midnight while watching Dick Clark but some friends had to work until late afternoon (and some other silly reasons). I pretty much decided not to do anything with friends at first. Having my own time alone sounded darn good after dealing with so many people over Christmas in Iowa but the final decision was made on the 30th - having dinner with two guys in town and two friends from Denver. I am not a huge party go-er, especially when a size of party is relatively large - 4 to 6 is perfect in my definition of "party." 

We met up with all the guys, Gary#1, Gary#2, Mike, Ivan and Kirk, at 7 at Gary & Mike's place in town for wine and light snacks.  To be honest, I probably didn't need dinner after having them.  Anyway, these 5 guys are probably whom I care most in a circle of friends in Colorado. Mike is a psychiatrist, Ivan is one of deans at Regis University, Kirk is form. school principal... I don't know how we ended up being friends even if we work in total different fields but all of them are simply fantastic. At 8, we headed out for dinner at an Italian restaurant.... as always, I was a designated driver.  I wanted to get completely drunk as I wouldn't be able to remember anything happening a day before. Now I know why that has never happened to me. After opening 4 bottle of wines and seeing the guys being loopy already, I just couldn't let anybody else drive (and in the town of 150,000, it is hard to get a cab especially in holidays). We had a great dinner (more wine of course...), we shared each other's New Year resolutions and the biggest regrets of 2008, then chowed down super boozy rum cake at M&G's place.... Happy New Year at midnight.

Certainly not a wild party in New York nor Las Vegas, but I had a fantastic New Year's Eve. Except one regret, though.... I didn't even have a chance to talk and say Happy New Year to my friend in Utah whom I really wanted to be here, before midnight.... 

I am so grateful to have such caring people in my life. Thanks.

Post Christmas Blue

I was going to post something from the gift exchange event in Nashua, IA but it was disappointingly uneventful. Sure, there was a pile of gifts under a Christmas tree but it took only an hour. One person is really into giving one of those toy guns shooting out marshmallows. All guys in the family get it every year. I just don't see any point but she thinks it is a fun... Sure it could be a comical image that marshmallows fly during the gift exchange but think of it, 5 year old girl holding her daddy's marshmallow gun and giggling while shooting her 4 year old cousin. I saw this 3 year old girl drinking rum coke by accident - believed it was regular coke. I might sound like a goodie goodie but it is certainly not a pretty picture. One of my closest members in this family, Megan (20), brought her 21 year old boyfriend from Minnesota. It was quite entertaining to see his reaction towards the sceneries described as above.... he and I went upstairs in the middle of it to take aspirins. He is in navy. "Dan, what did you think about what was going on downstairs..." "No comment...." It was indeed quite a culture shock for non-family members like us.

I was so ready to come home.... on the 27th, all the "guests" were leaving at 7am.... it is the saddest moment for all the families. I really can see why there is a term, Christmas Blue, existing. For myself as a guy who didn't have a close family bond, it is such a beautiful scenery. After stuffing home made cookies in an empty ice cream bucket, I left Nashua behind... there was a major ice storm passing by in the area. Very slow driving for 2 hours. I-35 corridor got hit by the storm badly - just to avoid any potential troubles and delay, I took a country road located 30 miles west of I-35 to get to I-80 instead even if it added an extra hour in the long drive to Colorado. Hot chocolate, tea and diet Mountain Dew.... this temporally caffeine addict didn't realize how difficult to find a restroom along corn fields (everywhere could be rest stops I suppose). Finally, I found a tiny gas station in the middle of nowhere. Rushed in and took care of business... now I had a chance to look around... there was a huge vending machine selling "adult novelties." "French pleasure - French silk pie flavor. @#$%^&*$%$# It is a patriotic thing to do!" "Miracle from Phuket - Asian secret!" I think Target might want to learn some marketing techniques from such place rather than just putting Trojans and KY Jelly on shelves..... I grabbed a bottle of diet coke instead of condoms and headed to the junction for I-80.

Gaining one hour by crossing the time zone line is a good thing but it doesn't make any difference on the 14 hour drive.... I skipped lunch so decided to have dinner a bit early. I was in North Platte, NE where I bought the portable DVD player on the way to IA. There are several restaurant choices but I didn't want to have something I could have back in Ft. Collins. Three choices - Cedar Bowl (I have never had a meal at bowling alleys), Long John Silver's or oh, Hong Kong Buffet! After a week worth of holiday meals, I was so ready for Asian foods. I drove straight to this all-you-can-eat $8.50 buffet establishment attached to a small motel. Egg rolls / wonton soup with jasmine tea tasted darn good (I just ignored my wonder if they used MSG or not). Lo Mein with chili oil certainly stimulated my sleepy head. 3 more hour drive.... then Ft. Collins.... Clear sky with stars and city lights with the Rocky's silhouette. This moment always makes me think "I am so glad that I live in the west." It would be better if there were the ocean and it were in 70's.

Christmas 2008

I have been wanting to post something to conclude the chapter of my vacation in Hawaii but it has been 3 weeks since I returned. Too long to pretend I typed it in Hawaii so.... I will skip that part completely! There are photos to make up the last half of the vacation in Facebook. If you have an account, please check them out.

Here I am - Christmas day in Iowa. Cold but sunny. The scenery from windows here is like some painting you see in Hallmark cards. Farm houses, silos, velvet-like snow covered ground nobody has stepped in. It is indeed beautiful. At 9:00am, all Christmas meals were on stoves and ovens already. I am blessed not to be alone back home (not that Japanese celebrate Christmas as a family event but it is far better than being at work).

It takes about 14 hour drive from Colorado. Apologies that if some of you are from Eastern Colorado or Nebraska. 14 hour drive in this part of the country is deadly. You would be glad that your car has a cruise control. In winter, the scenery along I-80 is monochrome - McDonald's yellow arches are spot-able from miles away. If you think driving is boring in NE, sitting in a passenger seat is very irritating. Not comfortable to snuggle up with a blanket to read a book in car seat. Trance music in iPod could help my mind transport to somewhere else (lol) but it doesn't help in term of the scenery so.... I stopped by Walmart in North Platte, NE to get a portable DVD player....impulse buying but it is well worth to get time go fast. At least it has put me in a Christmas mood by watching Last Holoiday by Queen Latifah, the Holiday by Jude Law and Kate Winslet, Love Actually.... those are a few of my favorite things lol.

Since I got here Nashua, IA, I have not been doing anything. This is how Christmas goes, I suppose. Eating, sleeping, playing with kids. I have a soft spot for kids and no matter where I go, all kids love me for some reason. My mother used to say it was just because I had the same IQ level as 3 year old kids. Oh whatever....Far more relaxing than when I am on vacation. after giving them horsy rides, I ask "My back hurts - can you step on will ya?" Foods are amazing here. I used to get shocked by how Iowans fixed things. Microwaves are a must - every time they warm leftovers up, they put a stick of butter. Velveeta, sugar... but amazingly people are so fit here. My favorite dish is egg noodles fried with bacon and butter. I tried it at home several times but it never comes out as good as they make here. We had a big Christmas dinner at 1 on the 25th. It is 7:30pm - just had leftovers as dinner. Here comes a creative side of me. Rather than making my own TV dinner from leftovers which can be microwaved all together. Mixing mac & cheese which folks made for kids, turkey, corns, and fresh salsa from New Mexico and baked it until it turned golden brown. I bet some people here disgusted by my food but after having had farm meals for a few days, my stomach has been craving for a bit of kick.

A Christmas gift exchange at this place was insane until 3 or 4 years ago. Forget about recycling and eco-friendly. It took FOUR hours to open piles of gifts for all nearly 30 people.... they used to give me like 20 different kinds of gifts wrapped individually.... I don't know if they have figured some idea out on what I really like or what. They have been giving me one gift from everyone - a gift certificate from Banana Republic or Barnes & Noble or Amazon.com. Easy to take home and most of all, wrapping of my gifts won't end up being burned in backyard on the 26th.... This year, they decided to do this event on the 26th except for toddlers... I will post some photos tomorrow.

One thing - new discovery of Iowan culture. It takes FOREVER to leave a place after they say they are leaving. "oh close to the bedtime - better go home." If they say this at 9, it will be 10 by the time they actually step out of the front door. At least they need to talk about a few gossips in village....not only among ladies. Guys do the same thing here.

Hope all of you are having a wonderful Christmas with your loved ones. 2 more days before heading back home.... I am think I am ready for New Year's.

Molokai - Friendly Island

How can I describe the island of Molokai. The birth place of hula. It is the 5th largest island in the state of Hawaii after Hawaii (Big Island), Maui, Oahu, and Kauai. I must say probably only 1% of Hawaii visitors step in this island. Certainly it is not for everybody. Only reachable by small planes or ferries from Maui. There are only two grocery stores, two gas stations, maybe 5 restaurants (only one chain restaurant - brand new Subway), NO traffic lights. My first impression was that I felt like I was visiting my grandparents' small fishing village - not much changed since 50's (not that I have seen what things were like in 50's, though). Surely rustic but no matter where visitors are from, this island makes them feel nostalgic.

Many say Molokai is the most Hawaiian island of all while Oahu is often called the most Japanese, Maui is the most American. I agree. Time passes so slowly, people live in their own pace, people wave at you with big smiles no matter where you go.

There is no real hotel in this island (well, they call one "hotel" but to me, a motel). So I stayed in a condo located about 13 miles east of "Big Town," Kaunakakai. Absolutely in the middle of no where. Lovely ocean front unit - there are about 50 units but it looked like only quarter of it was occupied. From the balcony, palm trees and and the island of Maui on the other side of ocean. Relaxing and making you feel like reading a good book for hours..... meaning there is no much else to do!

The whole purpose I visited this island was to take a mule ride to an old leprosy colony, Kalaupapa. If I start writing the sad history of this island, I could spend all night. To make it short, many leprosy patients in Hawaii were shipped to this isolated peninsula - there was no proper treatment - they were expected to die... until Father Damien arrived. He dedicated his entire life for this community to give patients hopes. It is one of the most fascinating stories I have ever read - if you have a chance, please read Molokai or even the DVD is available....

Kalaupapa is located in such a small and very isolated peninsula - right now, there is a small airport for 9 pax planes but still most people only can reach by mule rides or hiking or boats because the peninsula is separated by the tallest sea cliff in the Pacific , 2000ft, from the rest of island. it takes two hours from the top of cliff to this town. The trail is.... so very primitive and skinny. I wouldn't recommend to anybody with acrophobia. The scenery during the ride is gorgeous but I felt like I fell right straight off from the cliff if I didn't pay attention to where I was going even for a second.... there was a Japanese couple from Tokyo who didn't speak a word of English. So rather enjoying my ride (or feeling scared myself), I tried to focus on what the guide said and translated to the couple. .

The entire peninsula is protected by National Park Service and nobody cannot walk around by themselves without permission so after arriving in the town, an old school bus took us around the sites including the churches and hospitals build by Father Damien. Very educational and again, simply fascinating. I really thought I would get really depressed after the visit but rather, my spirit was lifted and something positive happened inside of me - just by thinking about somebody dedicating his own life to help others. Such a beauty.

My stay in Molokai was only for 2 full days (since I got stuck in Honolulu for one extra night) but it was the most relaxing and most educational 48 hours I have ever spent.

The second stay in Waikiki

Dark and raining – took a 7pm shuttle to catch a 9:30 flight to Molokai. Well, it was canceled due to the low visibility in Molokai. If it were an all-computerized bigger jet, there wouldn't have had any issue but a 9 pax cesna. I wouldn't take any risk either. The carrier, Go! Airline wasn't certainly a go this time but they put me in a larger craft operated by a 24 pax Island Air. Hawaiian spirit – the folks in Island Air didn't care if I had a proper document or not. “We can talk to Go! folks later so hop in” Ok.... waited on runway for half hour. Surely, it was canceled due to the closure of the airport in Molokai.After exchanging my ticket to one departing in the following date, now, I needed to look for a hotel in Waikiki for one more night. Unlike many airports, there are only 2 airport hotels. Both are pieces of crap. No way I am going to spend $100 for one of those hotels located literally in the middle of nowhere. Here I was – a bargain hunter. What I looked for was a place I can access internet so I could try to find a cheap room through priceline.com. There was no spot for that at the terminal for the commuter plane terminal. Walked to the main terminal in rain for 5 mins. Still no spot. But I found the information counter who could assist me for this purpose. Even this nice lady couldn't help – in Japanese accent “This airport is so cheap – there is no free internet access” I got a kick of it. Until we both figured out that we were Japanese, we joked around in English. “Do you know if there is any good hotel close to Waikiki at reasonable rate over the weekend?” It doesn't seem that what day of the week affect the occupancy in this remote island but it does. There are lots of locals flying from other islands for weekend getaways or more importantly SHOPPING. Rates could go up 10 – 20% at hotels especially located close to the shopping centers. Anyway, “so what price range?” “Less than $100 but I don't want to stay at a crappy hotel.” “Crap?” She started giggling. She made a several calls and asked my name to make a reservation. “Oh are you Japanese?” Ammm.... Nothing sounds funnier than conversation in English between Japanese (or French, German etc...) I thanked her and moved on to the next terminal..... so I could cancel the booking she made for me. She found a good deal at Ala Moana Hotel but $166 was a bit hefty. I felt so bad but I found a room at $95 at a 3 star hotel close enough to the middle of action in Waikiki. Back to the trusty food court at the mall...