Market Report 4 ― 2012/02/01
Sunny
A typical one-stop supermarket.
From yogurt to knickers, here you can get nearly every essential for your everyday life at relatively reasonable price (the quality is another motter, though).
This store used to be run by a local department store which was known for its conceited business manner (for me), and sold high-quality but expensive goods. But, after the department store’s downfall, it is now under the control of Walmart, featuring imported goods (the Great Value range) on the shelves. And as I posted before (here) , Asda wines are available and promoted with a rather luxury image. Oh, and don’t forget to check underwear by George (in limited stores) .
Looking at domestically produced goods, “Farmers’ Market” section is one of attractions in Sunny. When I came back to Fukuoka, the first thing my sister told me was that I should go to Sunny if I wanted fresh vegetables at reasonable price. My pilgrimage to local farmers’ markets started then.
Today I bought:
Scouring cream at JPY147 each (the lowest price in Fukuoka as long as I know) and a bottle of Mentsuyu (all-purpose soy-sauce base seasoning, by my definition) at JPY438. I don’t know why, but Mentsuyu produded by Ninben, one of Japan’s oldest Katsuobushi (dried bonito) companies established in the 17th century, is not available anywhere in Fukuoka. So (as an unemployed with a plenty of time to do so) I asked the company where I could get their Mentsuyu and was told Sunny dealt with it.
A pack of strawberries at JPY250
Repacked and reduced leftovers, but OK to eat at home.
A bottle of skin lotion for aged skin at JPY 714
It is wonderful to be able to get strawberries and an aging care at once!
My Verdict:
The supermarket of supermarkets, by many ways.
Ice Age (by Fukuoka standard) ― 2012/02/02
Fukuoka is experiencing the coldest winter for the first time in these 21 years, according to him.↓
The temperature has been sub-zero and we even saw snow. Even though the amount was only a little (people in heavy snow areas would laugh at us for saying it is snowing) , due to 2 cm-depth of snow covered some areas of Fukuoka, everything has stopped here. Motorways were closed and there was no one in shops and on streets, apart from some poor tourists who happened to be in this town at the worst timing and people working there.
On top of that, we are supposed to save electricity, which,
in my case, means we are supposed to forego electric heating, and electric
heating is only heating available in my flat. How could I do? Answer: simply turning off the air-con.
Every time I open my Internet browser, there will be warning about Setsudan, showing forecasts about consumption of electricity to power generation capacity of Kyushu Electric Power.co..
Today’s ratio reached 96%, near full of the capacity. What would happen, if the ratio reached, or overreached 100%? I didn’t imagine I would see an Ice Age at home!
…Could I blog at this particular moment, or turn on my computer in the first place?
Gorgeous Avocado ― 2012/02/03
JPY198 at Nishitetsu Store
I usually get an avocado at JPY 89 or JPY98 with no wrapping or sticker. So it has been my long-time aspiration to buy this luxury avocado in soft cushion wearing a gold belt.
Today, I had something to celebrate for myself, and, with a
burst of courage, get one to award myself. My long-time dream has finally come true!
Futon Dryer ― 2012/02/05
JPY6,480 at BicCamera (Note: You can get the same model at lower price online. Actually my husband told me off for having paid through the nose.)
Despite the recent “Setsuden” craze, I got a new electric appliance: a futon dryer.
It is basically a big hair dryer with a futon-sized bag which will remove dampness from futon and kill unpleasant things living in the futon. Plus, warming the futon with the hot air packed in the bag.
As well as on futon, futon dryers actually do a good job on bed.
Connect the bag to the hot-air nozzle, then set the bag onto the mattress of your bed,
and cover the bag with the duvet (s).
Turn on.
And after 70minutes (or shorter, depending on the program you choose) your bed is no longer a damp and cold torture, it becomes a warm and fluffy paradise!
Sinful
(taking the power shortage into account), but comfortable…would you call this a
“guilty pleasure”?
Market Report 5 ― 2012/02/08
Bon Repas
How could I describe…
I think I can see what this supermarket wants to seem to be, probably adjectives like “luxury”, “up-market”, or “high-end”. But I tend to think of “overdoing”, or “showing-off”, or “nouveau riche” when I shop here.
I don’t mean to ridicule it. It does stock a good range of unusual products, some of which used to be found only at department stores and speciality shops. And the perishables are always fresh and nice. This store actually made my life easier in a way where I am no longer have to go to the city centre for a bottle of vinegar or a pack of Miso.
But everything is too expensive here, at least 30% higher than my standard. As a “luxury” supermarket, this store is equipped with clean and spacious toilets with a powder room, and the shop staff is always kind and nice… which give me a weirdly mixed feeling. Actually, when shopping there, I feel like someone special, but I can’t help wondering why I have to pay extra for the “special”. At the same time, part of me scream: “Hey look! I am shopping here!” Too complicated to explain!
So after shopping here, because of the psychological struggle (maybe an aftereffect of my “bubble life” in the 80s), I always feel somewhat awkward and somewhat drained, though it’s just shopping at a local supermarket, not a job interview.
Today I bought:
A bottle of “made in Kyoto” vinegar.
Two bottles of curry powder, one of which was by Fauchon.
From these, could you see how it feels there?
My verdict:
Somewhere between department store and supermarket (I personally think recently department stores have been more accessible, though), or the remains of Japanese “Bubble” age.
Nabe, Nabe, and Nabe... ― 2012/02/10
Nabemono is said to be the best dish during the chilly season. Cooked on the table, it is naturally piping-hot, and easy to cook: cut everything, throw them into a pot, boil, and done within 10 minutes!
Although nabemono has such virtues, I don’t usually cook it so often. It becomes not cold enough to enjoy nabemono in Fukuoka, usually. But this winter, I have had nabemono unusually often due to the unusually cold weather.
As a result, I have expanded my repertoire of nabemono recipes. For example:
Curry nabe
(chicken thigh, turnip, brown enoki, etc),
Kimuchi nabe
(sliced
pork, bean sprouts, spring onion, etc),
Tomoto nabe
(meatballs, potatoes, cabbage, etc),
and Gyoza nabe
(Gyoza, Chinese chives, bean sprouts, etc).
By the way, this time, this little magazine, which had been sitting on a pile of cooking magazines for a long time untouched, helped me a lot.
In fact, this is the only magazine I buy regularly. It is like a textbook for housewives—very realistic (no balsamic vinegar, no gas oven), precise (every ingredient is indicated by the weight—not “a half of” or “a quarter of”) and reliable, telling me the basics of housekeeping as well as cooking with seasonal ingredients, and providing some light readings. Everything is written in very simple and "reserved" Japanese (I like this!). It might not be easily found at bookshops, but if there is a cooking class called “Better Home Kyokai (ベターホーム協会)” near where you are, you could get one at JPY200 (an extreme value for money!) there.
Today's Cat ― 2012/02/12
New Type Smoking Space ― 2012/02/13
A smoking room in a newly opened shopping mall.
Very stylish and relatively spacious… I think this type (looking like home makeover magazines) has been increasing recently.
Nice looking…but this space is the only place where shoppers are allowed to take some nicotine in this 33 thousand square-metre mall. And there is no vending machine or Dotour (No, Doutor. Thank you Deicchan-san!)from which you can get a coffee to accompany with your puff.
Despite the stylish looks, anytime I visit this kind of place (uh, I mean, family-oriented, peaceful-looking malls with only few smoking spots), I realise I am no longer welcome. Long ago were the days when I could find ashtrays and benches to have a break dotted outside buildings …
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