typhoon...and chips

LL's last day in Tokyo before she's off to London, and mad mad typhoon rain, so I skipped the dojo and headed down to Dubliner's for some farewell bevvies and chicken and chips, and fish and chips, and ... chips.
Nothing finer than a big, fried, potato-like structure, hot and smothered in ketchup.

take the skinhead bowling!

Work's yearly Bowling Night! I missed last time, so I was definitely in. We engaged in The Sport Of Kings at Tokyo Dome's Yellow Building 5th Floor bowling lanes (just up from th off-track betting.)
I bowled okay, considering how long it has been since the weekly league back in Munster, Indiana when I was 5. First game 135, second game 137.
Managed to come away with the team win, as my partners in crime managed to stay out of the gutter and throw only one open frame the second game (for individual 3rd place) respectively.
But such glory is not without sacrifice!
After such a brutal workout in the dojo on Wednesday (45 minutes non-stop with the music cranked, then situps, back arches, and pushups for another 10, then a final hour of target kicking) I was already sore, and lofting an 11-pounder at the pins for an hour just finished me right off.

monja


monja, originally uploaded by renfield.

Daboo and N3i came back from Kansai and we had monja and okonomiyaki for dinner. They fly home tomorrow and definitely need to come back to Japan soon to hang out with Ton-chan!

baby stuff and bag

P and I went to Akachan Honpo (kinda like a Japanese Kids 'R Us) and loaded up on kids stuff: crib and all the fixings, bottles and feeding stuff, high chair, blankets, etc. DAMN this parenting is expensive, and this is before the kid is even born and after we got all the other stuff from everyone. I think I'll name my daughter "Money Pit".
After the kid shopping we braved the raining? weather and challenged Shibuya on a Sunday afternoon. Many umbrellas and packed as expected. We headed for Seibu Department Store so that I could finally get a decent replacement for the ratty old REI backpack I've been using for 10 years.
Checked out the cool Paul Smith bags but finally settled on the Tumi Tech Flow messenger bag. It has all kindsa cool pocketness and is expandable. I really liked the Sando messenger bag but it's too narrow for carrying dojo stuff.

To avoid the rain we headed into subterranean Tokyo, bought a bunch of dinner food at FoodShow, and bussed home.