Wordless Wednesday: Real Treasure

Silly Sign: If It Were My Home I Wouldn't Be So Calm

Somebody Put Too Much Sugar in My Coffee

One of my sweetest sister-in-laws stopped by

the office last night.

She gave me a whole case of canned coffee.

I can't complain. Free stuff  always tastes better.

So, I drank six cans.  I shouldn't have.

Way Too Much Sugar Makes You Silly

There are articles to be written and photos to process.

But, the brain refuses to cooperate.

A sugar high is worse than having writer's block.

The brain tries to put 10 stories out per minute.

Fortunately, the two typing fingers went on strike.

Japan's Anti-smoking Campaign Comes to the Rescue

Smoke is billowing from a stand ashtray.

If it were my home, I wouldn't be so calm.

MORE SILLY SIGNS IN THE DOOZIES

Visit my website for today's Feature Photo

A Day Trip to the Capital City of Naha in Okinawa, Japan

Here's something you don't see me do very often.  

Today, Doc Graff and I went to the big city, just in case it decided to rain.

Right off the International Avenue (Kokusaidori) they have a covered shopping mall.

The shops run air-conditioning and it feels great, after you've been out in the August humidity.

 We went through the meat market and took a few photos.

 Then, hit the fish market to shoot some of those colorful fish on ice.

Looking at all that food makes a person hungry so, we grabbed a quick lunch.

After eating, Doc knows we better get moving or, I'll fall asleep so, we left the city.

Naha wasn't very far behind us when I remembered I had some more business to do.

Probably, twenty years has gone by since I last stepped into this place.

They have the awesomeyummiest ice cream in the world.

I know.  That ain't a word.  But, it should be.

And, I really didn't need a scoop of strawberry cheesecake ice cream.

So, I had two.

Back up in the neck of the woods I call home, we had to break for coffee.

Richamocha Cafe was my temporary office for a few months so, I had to stop by and say "Hi".

The gals working in there know how to make a mean cup of coffee.

All my photos from the big city are developed and, I never even took my afternoon nap.

Maybe, on the way home I better stop off somewhere and have a beer !

Visit my homepage for today's Feature Photo

Note: Richamocha Cafe recently was reviewed by me on TripAdvisor.

Stop on by sometime and see all the reviews done by RyukyuMike.

Photo Essay: There's a New Coffee in Town

About a month ago I noticed the aroma of some fresh coffee brewing in the local

convenience store.

FamilyMart has a chain of these stores all over Japan.

It seems like only selected stores are getting the designer coffee, though.

So, I guess it could be a test marketing thing.

 

The cashiers all looked busy and I didn't know how to operate the gadget.

So, I just took a few photos and sniffed the coffee.

It smelled pretty good.

 

And, I like those prices.

So, I got a pretty gal to show me how to make the stuff.

But, she had to go back to work.

 

There was no good looking models available, for free.

That's how I got volunteered.

RyukyuRusty did the shooting.

Iced coffee is what I drink. I grabbed a cup of ice.

 

Iced Cafe Latte was the most expensive coffee they had.

I figured, as long as I was all dressed up, I'd splurge a little for you all.

 

Color codes are real important for this operation. That's why I pointed at that blue thing.

 

The cup of ice goes under the nozzle.

 

You have to line yourself up with the right color for whatever you're buying.

Then, push the button, just one time. And get back outta the way.

 

Steaming hot coffee comes out and says, “Pshhhh” when it hits the ice.

 

Add cream and sugar, if you like.

 

Then, take one of those color-coded cardboard things, with correct price on it, over to the cashier.

 

How did I like the new coffee ?

It was delicious. They should put it in all the Family Marts.

Look out Mr. Starbucks.

The competition just came to town.

Visit my homepage for the PHOTO OF THE DAY

 

Photo Essay: Another Day in the Temporary Office

 

Here is quick look at the temporary office I've been using.

 

What I try to do is get there early in the morning.

That way I can get the laptop warmed up and hog up my favorite four seats.

It's a nice clean place with hi-speed internet service and friendly people.

While I'm working online I drink lots of fresh coffee.

They even got my drinking this stuff called Bubble Tea.

There will be a full report coming on that stuff later but, if you just can't wait, GO HERE.

 By the end of the month I should be moving down the street to my new office.

It's really going to be different from where I'm at right now.

 It might take awhile for me to adjust to the new office environment.

For sure, I'll miss those gals being nice to me and bringing me coffee and tea.

But, I just noticed a little Richamocha Cafe motor scooter parked out front.

So, I reckon if I call them once in awhile, they could deliver the stuff to my new place !

Visit my homepage for the PHOTO OF THE DAY

Photo of the Week: Horsing Around at the Beach in Okinawa

Look what I found one day when I was supposed to be grocery shopping.

See, sometimes I let the wife stay home and rest.  Like I promise to do the shopping, all by myself.

That saves lots of time and money and everything is done before noon.

What I do is sneak out of the house early in the morning with the shopping list and cameras in hand.  I know how to shop.  Trust me.  If the list says bread, dog food and coffee.  That's what I come home with, just bread, dog food and coffee.  Day old bread if I can find it.

Nobody, I know eats a whole loaf of bread in one day.  So, don't make fun of me buying my bread at half price.  The bread you bought yesterday is a day old.  Do you throw it away or eat it ?

Back to my photo.

It was so early in the morning, I knew the store wouldn't be open, yet.

The sky was pretty blue and I had to drive right past this secluded beach that you can't see from the highway.

I smelled horses. So, that's where I went.

GIRLS WERE RIDING THEM !

Well, that just made my day.  These girls were used to cameramen.

They agreed to sign Model Releases for me in exchange for a free photo.

The horses didn't like that.  See the evil eyes and the way their ears are pointing ?

Whoa, Silver and Trigger,  I'm just a poor cameraman trying to earn a living, here.

The horses settled down after awhile but, I won't forget the first few photos, ever.

CUZ

That's the kind of looks I get from the wife when she figures out I took six hours shopping and come home with twenty bucks worth of dog food, coffee and two day old bread.

To top it all off,  I'm the one who gets accused of HORSING AROUND

AT THE BEACH IN OKINAWA !

VISIT MY WEBSITE FOR THE PHOTO OF THE DAY

Blogs Give Tunnel Vision If You Aint Careful (Photo Essay)

It's a good thing my friend Doc came by and got me out of town today.  Photos were prepared for today's blog last night but, I'll do that post some other time.  I was starting to get tunnel vision and that ain't good.

Caves are a great place to go when you want to reverse tunnel vision so, here's where we went, down inside this cave that has a Cafe at the entrance.  You'll hear more about this gem in the future.

They have some really cool photos on the walls of the place and I wish I had the photographer's name so I could give credit but, it wasn't available.  Maybe, I'll find out later.

The art was hanging in a public place where anybody could take pictures.  So, that's what I did.

Looking at other people's art and photography is something I do all the time.  Call it inspiration.

After I got my fill of inspiration I shot this photo of the cave ceiling while Doc was getting us some iced coffees.  I was sure glad he paid.  Can't tell you how much but, it was sort of tourist pricey I think.

Today turned out to be a great day for me.  Besides getting out for some fresh air and photography to cure my blogging tunnel vision, I went to an American bookstore.  And you should have seen my eyes light up when I found this on the shelf.  It was the last copy available of ..........

MACS FOR DUMMIES

That sucker is mine, now.

Is there anything special you do when tunnel vision starts sneaking up on you ?


VISIT MY HOMEPAGE FOR THE PHOTO OF THE DAY

The Flying Spider-monkey Tree Fern (Cyathea lepifera) Photos

The ferns right behind the pink and white flowers in this photo don't look very tall when viewed from this angle.  I was up in a tower shooting an Azalea Festival at the time and thought they added some interesting colors and contrast to my shot.  I took this photo with the Panasonic DMC-FZ50 in March 2009.

These ferns grow all over the forests of northern Okinawa, the area we call Yanbaru.  Today I was back up that way again shooting coffee plants when Flying Spider-monkey Tree Fern popped into my head.

Here's a shot from 2009 that I took with the Pentax KD10.  It's just a sprout of a fern that I couldn't identify, at the time.  I narrowed it down to two of the thousands of types you can find in the fern family but, was never sure what the thing really is supposed to be called.

As I was leaving the area where the coffee plants were and brushing spider webs out of my face walking up a jungle trail, I spotted these guys overhead and shot them with the Canon G12.  No tripod, handheld and with camera flash turned on,  I snapped a few quick shots and got out of there as fast as I could.  Spiders and monkeys and ferns, I had to figure this out TODAY before it really drives me crazy.

Doc and RyukyuRu were up above at the coffee house drinking freshly made iced coffee.  I didn't mention spiders, monkeys, or anything.  I drank some coffee, too.  Then, shot a few more photos of little potted coffee plants.  Doc bought a couple of them.  We thanked the guy running the place and went off on our next adventure, chasing the sun with our cameras.

A few hours later as we were coming down out of the mountains RyukyuRu says "Hey, Mike.  Look at those ferns.  There's a bunch of them over there".  I told him they're spider monkey arm ferns, or something like that.  And, they have been driving me nuts, ever since.

Well, I downloaded my camera and developed the shots.  Then, I did some serious research.

They are Flying Spider-monkey Tree Ferns (Cyathea lepifera) because someone thinks the way the new plants and leafs form looks like a spider monkey's arm.  I don't make this stuff up.

REFERENCES:

THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF TREE FERNS photos and descriptions.

WIKIMEDIAORG photo from Okinawa, Japan.

SPIDER MONKEYS FROM NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC for monkey fans.

Sunday's Silly Sign (Photo) Jul 17, 2011 Smokers Doggonit !

The Anti Smoking Campaign

Must continue until we get everyone properly trained.

Doggonit, there's etiquette we have to teach smokers.

First, we ought to cut down on the size of the cigarettes.

Look at the size of that thing.
It could qualify as a bazooka !

Etiquette?  Well, if he'd side step a little further when he sees someone downwind of him, the smoke wouldn't have got the guy.

Look at the dog, though.  He aint no dummy.  Naturally smarter than his master or went to one of those schools like DOGGONIT ACADEMY

The dog came out clean. Hah!

This Sunday's Silly Sign was spotted at a convenience store in Okinawa, Japan.
It was posted on the ashtray outside the front door of the place.  That's where I go to buy my smokes and iced coffee.  Somebody with no Slurpy Etiquette spilt a drink on the sign !

VISIT MY HOMEPAGE FOR THE PHOTO OF THE DAY

Mr. Coffee, Now You Dunnit (Photo and Rant)

Most days, I don't go around shooting coffeepots but, today Mr. Coffee has me ranting and I'm going to let the whole world know about it. I've been using Mr. Coffee machines for years without complaining.

Mr. Coffee, I'm talking to you here. "If you're trying to get rid of a product-loyal customer, now you dunnit".

DISCLOSURE: I ain't gettin' paid for this but, I probably should be.

In the photo above you see my brand new Mr. Coffee TF Series 12-Cup Coffeemaker on the left.
On the right is the old one I drug back in the house out of the pile of junk I plan on hauling to the dump, someday. I decided I'm going to keep it. I like my old Mr. Coffee better. I'll just have to fix it.

There's always a pile of junk in my front yard.  I like to keep enough stuff stacked up in plain view from the front gate just in case somebody's coming around to take pictures for the Redneck Yard of the Month. 

I've been trying to win that prestigious award for several years without much luck.

Well, I've repaired my coffee machines in the past, even though I'm not an authorized Mr. Coffee Service Center Technician. I figure, I paid for the darn thing and can do whatever I want with it.

Here's what I have to say about that new machine. Number one is: What kind of idiot Researchers and Developers came up with the idea of making a coffee machine black ?

Maybe, I've been out of the country too long. Is everybody buying black kitchen appliances these days ? 

I'm not exactly an interior decorater so the only black appliances in my kitchen would be my laptop and cameras, the trouble light I use (hanging from a cup screw over the table) in case there's ever any trouble and, maybe, the one black dog I have.

He's the kitchen vacuum. I don't know if a dog qualifies as an appliance, though.

The good old Mr. Coffee had a glass pot. You could see what's inside the thing.  Like, tell if there was any coffee left and how much there was left. Imagine that ! 

You could tell if the wife washed the thing or not.  Maybe, even see if she put any rat poison or metal shavings in there.

The new Mr. Coffee has this stupid thing they call a Thermal Carafe. You can't see through it.

Your wife could put a Brillo Pad in there, rat poison and ground up glass and you'd never know until you're writhing in the throes of death on the kitchen floor.

Where do these stupid words like decanter and carafe come from, anyway?

Can't we just say stuff like "coffee pot" and quit trying to act like some kind of multilingual foreigners?

A coffee pot is a coffee pot. It's that simple. Quit trying to act like you're European, Mr. Coffee. Hear me?

Serious coffee drinkers, like me, drink several quarts (liters) a day. We're up before the sun. We stumble around in the dark making our coffee, early in the morning.

We don't want to turn on all the lights in the house just to find the BLACK COFFEE POT.

When we remember where we stashed the three pound can of coffee grounds, we don't want to open the top of the coffee maker and have to fiddle around with some stupid-black-plastic arm that has to be moved out of the way so we can dump our coffee grounds in the machine.

The little LED clock on my old coffee maker was alright. It had bright red numbers on it. You could read it in the dark. And, if you had a power interruption, during the night, it would tell you by flashing 12:00, 12:00, 12:00 in bright red LED numbers.

My new TF Series has black LED numbers on it. Black numbers on a black coffee maker. Duh.
I suppose, I could carry a flashlight when I go to make my morning coffee. That'd help.

Get this: The newfangled, stainless steel, thermal decanter doohickey IS NOT DISHWASHER SAFE !

In Japan, only extremely wealthy, lazy people have dishwashers.  I'm not extremely wealthy but, I am lazy. The wife is the dishwasher. Maybe, that decanter is not safe around her.

Mr. Coffee, you really dunnit, this time. Just as soon as my morning coffee kicks-in and I'm done ranting about that new machine, I'm going to fix the old one. It was a much better coffee maker.

What in the Heck is a Ryukyu?

It has been brought to my attention enough times, now that I need to explain what a Ryukyu is and tonight with just the right combination of beer and coffee in me, I may be able to pull it off.

Okinawa, before it was annexed as part of Japan, used to be an independent Kingdom known as the Ryukyu Islands. Some folks still refer to the group of some 160 islands as the Ryukyu Island Chain.

If you go back to the days of Commodore Perry and his gang, they called the place Loo-Choo, Lu-Tchu, Lewchew and probably a few other names they heard while they were mapping the oceans, sailing their boats, drinking rum and learning how to mispronouce everyone's name they met.

On this map, I borrowed from Wikipedia, you can see the chain of islands stretching from Taiwan to the Japanese island of Kyushu; the big island that has Fukuoka written on it. And, right near the second "YU" of RYUKYU  on the map is the island of OKINAWA. That's the island I live on.

So, there you have it. I live in the Ryukyu Islands. Now I have to decide whether to have another beer or a coffee !

Shot Myself Today !

This isn't what I usually do but it was freezing cold outside and

 I was trapped indoors.  I felt like a wild animal must feel stuck in a cage.  So, I took my cameras to my office and practiced shooting myself.

Really, I'm not into doing studio shots or any kind of indoor photography but, unfortunately, I have to.  It's part of this school I'm involved in and if I don't finish all my homework and graduate this year there's no telling what they might do to me.

Can they still drag you up in front of the whole class and whack your fanny with the BOARD OF EDUCATION?

That probably got outlawed in the last century, but, I'm not sure because I haven't been back to the USA in awhile.  I hear they have lots of lawyers making people behave and if anyone hurts you they promise to get you millions of dollars as long as you'll split it with them 50/50.

Somebody told me a fat lady spilled her coffee in her lap at a Drive-thru joint and got Six Million Dollars.  Is that true?

Well, anyway, I'm a Grandpa and I don't think I should have to do homework unless it's something that interests me.  Portraits, advertising, and fashion; they're all things I have to shoot to graduate from the professional camera school.  I'll do what I have to do and get it done.  And when I do, I'll go get my....

Millions the hard way, I'll work for them!