I noticed a sign on the way home from work yesterday that read something to the effect of, “Please be sure to read the traffic signs”. I thought that was weird. It’s sort of like when you are watching tv and an advertisement is shown for the program you are already watching.

This morning I started using a new toothbrush and I got to thinking about how much nicer it is when you throw your old, worn out toothbrush away and use a new, fresh one. I think it’s fun to pick out a new toothbrush at the market. There are so many kinds to choose from these days. But, I don’t think I will be using a traditional toothbrush anymore. For several months now, I have been using an Oral-B 3D Pulsating toothbrush and it is awesome. My teeth feel so much cleaner after using it, as compared to a normal toothbrush. I tried the Sonicare toothbrush, but didn’t like it too much because the brush head seemed too big. But the Oral-B seems like a perfect size for me. A couple weeks ago I tried using a regular toothbrush, it was a pain to use. Maybe I am just lazy now, but I could tell that the Oral-B cleans in between teeth much better, and even after I was done, my teeth didn’t feel quite as smooth. I totally recommend getting a power-toothbrush!

The Texas Department of Transportation has begun work on a new project by my house to connect Route 1 (MoPac) up to I-35. Everyday Bay and I see their progress, and it is pretty amazing. A couple weeks ago, there was just a big field, with longhorns grazing lazily. Now that field is has been dug up and leveled. It is amazing to see all the construction equipment at work, which right now consists mainly of big trucks and tractors. I’m not sure what that machine in the picture does, but it looked really cool. I enjoyed looking at the cows, longhorns, goats and the occasional deer that would appear in the field, now I guess I will have to get my farm animal fix elsewhere….

Lately we have been watching these two dramas on TV Japan. Kokoro is actually ending this week. The story is about the workers in a ryokan, and it is kind of silly. Last week there was an episode where two of the guests (real life comedians) helped entertain a group of businessmen who came to eat unagi. The crisis was that the ryokan didn’t have any wild unagi, only farm-raised. In the end, they found some wild unagi, and the comedians entertained (stalled) the businessmen while the eel was cooked. I am amazed how they could come up with these plots.

Mariko is really enjoying Niko Niko Diary which is on every night too. This one is only 15 minutes per episode, and is more serious. I have to admit, it is pretty good! Too bad I have to bother Mariko all the time to ask her what is going on.

Kill Bill looks like it’s gonna be an interesting movie. I like Uma Thurman, and the screens for Chiaki Kuriyama look really cool. Too bad Quentin Tarantino is going to be in the movie. He is so terribly annoying. I hope it’s just a cameo. And I wish they would have gotten someone other than Lucy Liu. The screens show her in kimono, but she doesn’t look Japanese at all.

This morning’s view from my desk.

I am not sure when it happened, but my registration info for Blogshares got lost. After I registed my account, I find that I have $500 worth of cash, and no portfolio positions! How lame! I had bought a bunch of shares in different blogs. I even had tons of my own stock, but that is all gone! I suspect that the people at Blogshares did a wipe of all data at some point, but I must have missed it. Or they did a wipe of all users who hadn’t logged into their accounts for a while, which included me… Oh well, Takoyaki.org is still being actively traded, so please buy shares!

Today we were going to meet the Japanese kids’ playgroup for “undo-kai”, but it was postponed until next week. So we went shopping instead. I got a Dodgers cap and Mariko bought some clothes. Bay had fun playing with those little rides that cost fifty cents. You know, like the little fire engine or rocket ship outside the supermarket. He used to be too scared to actually have the ride move, but today he actually did it!

Mariko made some awesome gumbo tonight. She said that she didn’t have all the ingredients, but it sure tasted great to me! I had a big bowl to start off with, then went back for seconds, and couldn’t help myself… I ate a third bowl. I am stuffed!

Today we went to the Asian American Cultural Center because they were having a festival. They had food, martial arts demonstrations, traditional dancing and music. We saw some amazing Indian-style dance, listened to traditional Chinese music, and ate some harumaki. We also met our friend Liam and his son Owen there. It was a nice way to spend the morning.