Birthday Tasties!

Today I took myself out for a birthday lunch (all my friends were working) to Soba-ya. I promised myself I would have a trip to Japan via my taste buds today, so tonight we are also headed to Bozu another favorite Japanese tapas bar and restaurant in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, more about that tomorrow. Anywho, here are pics from my lunch set, which included a bento filled with grilled salmon, pickles, mini chirashi, tofu salad, hijiki, and lotus root, then it also came with soba noodles, and shrimp tempura. Last but not least dessert, strawberry pana-cotta! Delish! and very affordable. The staff is very sweet and the restaurant is decorated with lovely bamboo and pretty light colored wood. The most fun is watching the guy making the noodles because they make them fresh there, so he has his little station for carefully but quickly slicing the noodles.








Earlier, I enjoyed some lovely treats Panya and snuggles with my beast, Budda

Pre-Birthday gifts!

Tomorrow's my birthday but I've been already cashing in on a few awesome and thoughtful gifts. First of all, my absolute favorite is my hand made necklace from my partner, Debra, she did an art exchange with our friend Michelle who's a jewelry designer to make this sweet little foxy face pendant necklace for me, so it's a one-of-a-kind! Debra made her the wonderful Victorian portrait of Francie (my chiwa) that I posted a few days ago. Then my thoughtful friend Joe gave me two rolls of film, one, my favorites, Kodak Portra NC400, which is now discontinued and a Fuji Superia 400 one of his favorites so I can try it out!
Next is another super sweet gift from my friend Judy, she gave me a tiny terrarium! Tiny pencils! and a Tenugui!

More gifts to come on my real birthday, tomorrow....

Motoyuki Daifu: Japanese Photographer

On Wednesday I made my way to the gallery district in Chelsea to the Lombard Freid Projects on 19th street. This is one of my favorite galleries because they will often have great photography exhibitions, like the one they hosted this month, Motoyuki Daifu: Lovesody. Motoyuki-san is one of my favorite Japanese photographers, his photographs are a living diary, and this series documents his brief and potent relationship with a young single mother whom he met when she was pregnant with her second child. I saw Motoyuki-san's work last year right after the earthquake in a group show at the same gallery in which he documented the chaotic life of his family living in a small apartment in Tokyo, but Lovesody is a much more intimate look at a moment in his life. Here are my pics of a few of his photographs but you should visit his site or Lombard Freid Projects site to see the collection. The show runs until March 2, so if you're in New York, make a quick trip over it's worth it.

Cha An-photos

I just wanted to share a few pics from my trip to Cha An, which I've mentioned here before, a wonderful Japanese tea house in the East Village....







...last pic just some nice oranges at home...