special-TEA-tuesday 5/29

Here is another reason I would LOVE to go to space... can you imagine. Tea with chopsticks???? Both my tea drinking passion and my chopsticks skill would come in handy! kind of geeky I know... but pretty darn cool.

Kaiten (conveyor belt) Sushi

cheers to my wonderful Husband- who found this funny video and posted it up over on TheNewsblog.net where he helps out- with the political blogging. This was in honor of our sushi dinner this evening... we had- Egg, Salmon, Shrimp, Tuna, Avocado, YellowTail and some tasty sake. YUM- this is too funny- video camera trip around a sushi joint in tokyo...

writing fuel

On Tues, I had a sort-of day off- still had meetings and a beer tasting meeting at fujimamas with The Brews News guy- but I had a few hours of down time too. The cup above is full of a delicious Latte at Gazebo in Ebisu. I am often drawn there on my days off mainly for the tasty coffee, bread bowl soups, cheese fries, sandwiches AND most importantly this time of year- a chance to set outside and watch the people go by in the fresh air.

On a day last year when I first started sketching in my sketch books and exploring the danny gregory book everyday matters- I drew this same kind of cup at this same table. So I guess this little cafe is becoming a creative environment for me.

the big problem is- they have great scones- but only occassionally. It is such a tease, the scones are on the menu but they only have them on the weekends and they are often quickly SOLD OUT :(

this and the cafe at the antique store GLOBE are great spots to write, draw, and daydream.

Gazebo http://daikanyama.st/gazebo/ Shibuya Ku Ebisu West 1-33-15

Nill Cafe in Nakameguro

There is a cute new little shop/bakery near our apartment. It is run by a pair of women who pooled their talents and opened a little business. One half sells homemade bread and spreads. The other half is some handmade clothes and jewelery. It is cute. Very girly- but sweet. Today is a sunny tuesday- and a day off for me- so I meandered overthere and picked up two small rolls, one with homemade raspberry cream cheese and one blueberry. I like the women very much- It will be a great little spot to pick up gifts and the occassionaly bread snack. fun. The postcard below is their business card- it is a photo of the front of the store. This kind of cute exterior is still quite rare in tokyo although getting more popular. Fun.

Take a moment

there is an interesting blog reader survey online- if you have a bit of time, give it a go...

Please take my blog reader survey!

Cops and Donuts for a good cause

Cops camp at Krispy Kreme for good cause
By John Ingold -Denver Post Staff Writer

Lone Tree - Who the heck is this dude sitting on top of the Krispy Kreme?--- Sunglasses. Bucket hat. Legs dangling over the side. Giving shout-outs to the drive-through customers.

"Hello to the woman in the blue minivan," he says into a microphone.

Just who the heck does this clown think he is? Well, he is Arapahoe County Sheriff's Department volunteer Tim Nye. And he is on an official mission. This weekend, the cops took over the doughnut shop. For the third straight year, law officers sat on the roofs of Krispy Kreme locations around the state - there are three in the Denver area and one in Grand Junction - to raise money for the Special Olympics.

They slept there, they ate there, they listened to music there and they coaxed donations from those below. read the rest here.

Special-TEA-Tuesday 5/8

I Loved this! hope you enjoy. It is tea time!

Something fun- so this week I discovered Swap-bot! I think it has been around for a while but I didn't know about it. very fun and cool. I am signed up for a few cute cheap swaps. I will report more as I do them. One funny one is about tracing and decorating a cut out of your foot! LOL.

this is from their site.

What is a Swap?

A Swap is a group of people that organize on the internet to trade items through the postal mail. Items are usually hand-assembled, cheap (but rich with craftsmanship and care) and can include mix CDs, postcards, crafts, or anything you can think of!

What is Swap-bot?

Swap-bot facilitates internet swaps. It removes the hassle of collecting swap participants and assigning swap partners.

How do you create a swap with Swap-bot?

1. Come up with a Swap topic and post the details online. Include a signup deadline, a deadline for sending out swap items, and the number of people each participant will send items to. You can also include a link to your own site about the swap and/or upload a swap logo you have created.
2. Pass out your Swap-bot signup URL.
3. Sit back and wait for your sweet swaps to arrive

What does Swap-bot do?

1. Swap-bot collects the names and mailing addresses of everyone involved in the swap.
2. Then, using a complicated, computerized algorithm, it mixes up all of the participants and assigns the specified number of recipients to each participant. No more stressing over hand-sorting participants.
3. Swap-bot emails each participant after the sign up deadline to let them know that they can now access their recipient's name and address. Participants must log back in to Swap-bot to get this information. Swap-bot also sends out reminder emails to participants close to the mail deadline.

How much does it cost to host/join a swap?

It's free! Signup for a free account and then join a swap or start your own.

Who can join Swap-bot?

Anyone over the age of 18. Swap-bot even allows for international swaps.

It seems like a nice community thing, and who can beat getting cool free stuff in the mail! check it out

A friend of a friend's site

A Friend of my Friend has a new website to share her art work. She is a professional painter and her work is quite interesting....
http://www.shansimiller.com/
from her bio

Shansi Miller was born on the island of St. Thomas and immersed in the West Indian culture. She was influenced by both parents who moved to the Virgin Islands in 1960. Shansi grew up listening to music under the bell of her mother’s French horn and watching her father develop photographs in his darkroom.

The most pivotal time for Shansi’s development as a painter began with her formal studies under the tutelage of Tom Saint Vincent at the age of sixteen. Saint Vincent introduced Shansi to color study and fostered in the young painter a high level of technical proficiency. After a brief time at the Corcoran School of art, Shansi returned to St. Thomas to continue her studies with Saint Vincent, who remains her teacher to this day.

The richness of Shansi’s background, coupled with the relative artistic isolation of the islands have been formative to Shansi’s work. The paintings are stylistically distinctive and rooted in West Indian culture. Each figurative painting is narrative in nature, whether depicting an individual in a moment of introspection, or a group in richly layered interaction: Two women recline against each other as one prepares the other’s hair for a party. Three men play dominoes, the action arrested at the point one slams down the winning tile. A group of friends sit at table, their faces and gestures reflecting complex hidden undercurrents, rivalries, and attractions. In each case, the paintings reflect Shansi's fondness and respect for the vibrant culture which has been critical to the development of her unique artistic vision.

Take a look at her site http://www.shansimiller.com/