Happy Thanksgiving to our American viewers! How are your turduckens and piecakens coming along? Let's see the pics! Hey! When's the last time we did a mailbag? Maggiemayday writes: "I'm looking at planning my 2015 spring vacation and Vancouver is an option. So, is April or May a decent time to visit? We visited Vermont…
November 27, 2013: Buyer’s remorse!
It's always great to receive recommendations about pick-ups and purchases I may enjoy, but I think that equally as important are the flashing red light warnings about those I should steer clear of. And so, in that spirit, and in a desire to save you all the headache, here are some recent investments I have…
November 26, 2013: Projects on deck!
That Super Secret Project: The best laid plans of mice and men often go astray. Especially in the film & television industry. Particularly when legal departments get involved. Such is the case with this project that was humming along quite nicely until.... I was contacted, we had our initial discussions, I pitched out what Brad…
November 25, 2013: The Return of Football Sundays!
Even though I was in Tokyo for a few weeks, I did keep up to date on world events while I was away: the nuclear deal with Iran, Ukraine's shift away from the E.U., and, of course, my fantasy football team - the Snow Monkeys - and their drive for playoff spots in two different…
November 24, 2013: Upcoming under-the-radar movies to look forward to! Or not!
The ones that caught my eye: LAST DAYS ON MARS Release Date: December 6, 2013 What it’s about: On the last day of the first manned mission to Mars, astronauts make a horrifying discovery. What it’s got working for it: It's SF with a mystery angle. Sounds intriguing. What’s it’s got going against it: Cool…
November 24, 2013: Upcoming movie releases to look forward to! Or not!
Just a few that caught my eye: THE HOBBIT: THE DESOLATION OF SMAUG Release Date: December 13, 2013 What it’s about: The second instalment in the sprawling Hobbit trilogy. No, really. What it’s got working for it: Director Peter Jackson and oodles of production value. What’s it’s got going against it: Three really long movies…
November 22, 2013: News of note!
Now that I'm back home, it's time to catching up on the latest news...Following word that Hollywood is planning an ill-advised sequel to It's a Wonderful Life, Yahoo's Kevin Polowy offers his list of 2o Classic Movies Hollywood Can't Remake or Revisit: http://movies.yahoo.com/blogs/movie-news/untouchables-20-classic-movies-hollywood-t-remake-revisit-235511819.html Any you'd care to add to the list?6 Sneaky Ways Movies and TV…
November 21, 2013: The Day After!
I'm doing better today. But I'm not taking any chances. Thus, this was my lunch today: And these were a couple of the things I missed out on the last day of my trip: Between the jet lag and the stomach thing, I wasn't feeling particularly ambitious today so I took it easy, reading the…
November 20, 2013: Back on the home front! Akemi bloopers!
I advised Akemi that the best way to avoid jet lag and get back on your regular schedule is to sleep through the flight back to the west coast. Leave Japan at 6:05 p.m. local time, sleep for 8 hours, then land in Vancouver at 9:45 local time. You'll be well-rested, have enough energy to…
November 20, 2013: Tokyo Day #15!
The old adage is true. You never truly appreciate something until it's gone. Like, say, your appetite. Or even the ability to eat something without having it transform your stomach in a raging maelstrom. At the beginning of this trip, I was on the top of the world, assuming I'd get to try anything and…
November 19, 2013: Tokyo Day #14! Back on the horse! Oden! A return to an old favorite! And, of course, desserts!
I think I actually put on some weight on this trip. No. Really. Upon my arrival in Tokyo, I had a choice between two notches on my belt - the first, a little tight; the second, a little loose. I opted for the latter and, fourteen days later, that loose notch is actually kind of…
November 18, 2013: Tokyo Day #13! The Fine Art of Ramen! H.H. Giger prepares my meal at Chikuyotei! I finally pay the price!
Nobody appreciates the fine arts like I do and it should come as no surprise that there's nothing I enjoy more than hitting the local museums whenever I visit a foreign city. Such was the case yesterday when Akemi and I woke up early so that we could catch the bullet train to Yokohama and…
November 17, 2013: Tokyo Day #12! Doggy Daikanyama! Sushi Kanesaka! Dominique Bouchet!
Tokyo is a vibrant metropolis of neon lights and raucous party districts, 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. work days and all night manga cafes were salarymen who have missed the last subway home can catch a few hours sleep before sunrise. It's can be chaotic and crowded... And yet, there are parts of Tokyo that…
November 16, 2013: Tokyo Day #11! Esquisse! Kushiage! Star Bar!
I have at least one revelatory dining experience every time I visit Tokyo and, on this trip, it was the dinner I had at Esquisse, Tokyo's hottest French restaurant. Located on the 9th floor of the Royal Crystal Ginza, Esquisse has only been open a year and a half but, in that short time, under…
November 15, 2013: Tokyo Day #10! Line-ups, Geek Central, and Chicken Sashimi!
If there's one thing the Japanese love, it's a line-up. And this fact was reinforced as we strolled through Ometasando yesterday where we noted not one, not two, but THREE line-ups. The first for a newly opened popcorn shop (?), the second for some other presumably new shop of indeterminate nature, and the third...for a…