Author Archive for taro

Page 69 of 88

Water from Heavens is not Cheap

Published on July 18, 2009 in Food, rant and Review by taro. Closed

IMG_0045On a shopping visit this past week to Marukai, spotted something new, a sparkling soda version of one of our fave J soft drinks, Momo no tennensui. We like to call it heavenly peach water because of the ten kanji, but really tennen means natural. We love it because the flavor is of real peach, and it’s not as sweet as your typical soft drink. So when I saw this soda version, I had to grab it. Unfortunately when it came to checkout time, it wouldn’t scan. I guess it was so new it wasn’t in system. After going to the customer service counter, they said it was $3. Ouch. I decided just this one time I needed to try it. The veridct? A refreshing carbonated version of the Momo no Tennensui we love, but at $3 a pop, that’s sticker shock way in excees of the highest vending machines in Japan.

2 out of 4 empty wallet monkeys at this price point, I can’t see them being able to sell much of this if that is the correct price.  If it were a reasonable normal price, then it would be 3.5 out of 4.

To Air is Good

Published on July 15, 2009 in car, rant and Review by taro. Closed

This should go under a category of what the heck have I been doing until now?! I finally purchased and setup an air compressor for the garage a little while back. Bought the bargain 14pc kit with it. This past week used the 1/2″ impact to take off the wheels on the hachibroku. It was almost fun! After a few impacts the lug nuts spun right off, it went by so fast I felt like a racetrack pit crew person. Continue reading ‘To Air is Good’

Hachibroku

Published on July 12, 2009 in car by taro. Closed

IMG_5303Well the racing debut of the red chalk monster was less than stellar. After scurrying about during the week to buy and mount tires then getting alignment on Saturday, today was the long awaited resumption of the Hawaii SCCA Solo II autocross. There had been a long hiatus due to the Hawaii State Farm Fair occupying the same space, but of course I do this stuff at the last minute. Things were looking good and the car was running decently. So I thought. I’m scheduled to run first heat and arrive just in time to sign in and get set up. Spirits are high, everyone is eager to race after the long time off. I’m pretty amped to go too since this is going to be a new experience driving a different car and setup. Continue reading ‘Hachibroku’

Hatsubon

Published on July 11, 2009 in Culture by taro. Closed

P1010549Yes, I’m terrible, my mother was so involved with all the cultural goings on, and after she passed away I was/am quite ignorant of it. I know I had noticed these wooden things in the past, and saw them again this year on the grounds of the Jodo Mission. I had been meaning to ask about them as I had a vague understanding that they were to honor and commorate your loved ones that had passed. The large o-toba need to be preordered. It just so happened that my sister and younger nephew are visiting and we decided to visit my mother’s niche this Saturday. And it just so happens that the Jodo Mission was performing the obon rituals this weekend. So we got the express “chutoba” version. I understand that these toba tablets are unique to the Jodo Mission sect. During obon, it is believed that the spirits of the deceased come back for a visit. The bon dances and festivals is a celebration, the spirits are partying along too, and when it’s over, the spirits are then sent back with the toronagashi ritual to symbolize that. The toba are thought to be the temporary lodging so to speak for these spirits.

So mom, I’m awkward with this cermonial stuff, but somehow as much by chance, or perhaps some etherial hand gently nudging events, we showed up for this. So me, Tokiko and Sascha made it to your hatsubon, first obon. Enjoy!

Giro Xen mountain gloves

Published on July 6, 2009 in bike and Review by taro. Closed

P1010546I’ve been using a pair of Oakley gloves that have been threatening to unravel themselves after suffering a slash on palm seam from a tumble on volcanic rubble. To its credit my hand suffered no cut in that incident. But that seam is bit by bit coming apart, so I finally picked up these new Giro gloves to try. Only used on one grueling hot crosscountry ride so far, but my opinion is positive. Continue reading ‘Giro Xen mountain gloves’

Tougher Than You?

Published on July 5, 2009 in Review by taro. Closed

P1010543I am the camera slut. The digicam manufacturers dream customer.  I’ve bought so many digital cameras that I would have to sit and give it serious thought to count them, and most of them still work fine. Maybe later I’ll gather them all together for a group photo. The latest in the lineup is this Canon Powershot D10. The outstanding feature that prompted it’s purchase was it’s waterproof and ruggedized construction. That category seems to be the new growth category for the manufacturers, almost every one is comming out with a model now. The Canon is 10m (33ft) depth rated, just over 1m (4ft) drop rated, and “freezproof” rated to -10c (14f).

Continue reading ‘Tougher Than You?’

Rising from the Ashes

Published on July 4, 2009 in rant and Review by taro. Closed

P1010536Well, the PC was quite dead. A RAM and P/S swap borrowed from D could not revive it. So I procured a replacement. A refurb Dell monster. Decent price for a basic core 2 w/2G RAM, 500G HD, DVD drives and a video card. Housed in a monstrous XPS series case with 700W power supply. This monolith has 1/8″ thick aluminum exterior panels and weighs a ton. BTX format, space inside for 4 SATA HDs with its own fan, 4 external accessible 5.25 bays, 2 external 3.5 bays. I harvested the hard drives, DVD burner, card reader from the old machine and installed into the new machine. Powered up, everything pops up fast, and the floor of my room is bathed in a blue glow. There are eights LEDs on the front of the PC, and some on the back that all they do is glow. You can even go into BIOS and configure the color. Sure, it’s cool for dramatic effect, but I can see it being annoying if I leave the machine running at night. Thankfully one of the options is off.

Anyway, so far the machine looks good. Going through the pains of reinstalling software and shuffling files around.

BSD

Published on June 26, 2009 in SUAR by taro. Closed

Dang it, home PC went kaput last night. Been flaky for a while, finally gave up. Tried getting into windows recovery, no goo. Boots far enough to ask if you want to run the recovery. Wonder if i can find a XP machine locally.

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Banned?

Published on June 21, 2009 in car, rant and SUAR by taro. Closed

With the soon to come cell phone ban during driving, we’ve been talking about the other stupid things we’ve seen people doing while driving. I’ve seen someone reading a news paper, someone curling eyelashes, Risu witnessed someone eating a bowl of cereal. About a week ago I saw someone trimming his toenails! So what about all these people?

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Home Improvement

Published on June 21, 2009 in Uncategorized by taro. Closed

Well now, originally the plan for Sunday was for a couple of the guys to come over and help me haul out some old junk to the sidewalk for the monthly scheduled bulk trash pickup. That plan took a detour when dad pointed out that there was something wrong with the toilet. Every time it was used, the ground around it would get a little wet. This was on Saturday, I took a look at the toilet. It didn’t look like the water inlet fittings or the tank was leaking. I figured the gunky gasket thing around the base at the poopy outlet was failing. Bleah. Shouldn’t be a terribly difficult repair, but kinda icky, and assistance would be good to lift and install the toilet on the drain. The call went out late Saturday. Continue reading ‘Home Improvement’