What a strange day in Tochigi today. First it was snowing, then it cleared up, then it snowed again, and now it’s almost sunny. And I hope....
29 Mar 2:48 pm  from  Budget Trouble   [Profile]  [Recent] 

Midlife crisis. It’s always interesting to see how men deal with it. Some go out and buy Porsches, some exchange their wives for newer mod....
28 Mar 10:43 pm  from  Budget Trouble   [Profile]  [Recent] 

I finally managed to find and upload my old tapes of Tenno Sai in Utsunomiya in 2009. Here's my first, very rough sample. There will be....
27 Mar 11:39 pm  from  Budget Trouble   [Profile]  [Recent] 

A few weeks ago Loneleeplanet (a wholly excellent blog) presented a list of 10 weird Japanese foods. While there is no way in hell I will e....
21 Mar 7:54 pm  from  Budget Trouble   [Profile]  [Recent] 

Because Ms. Trouble is not feeling well, I will take over today and continue my report from the 14th Shinto Seminar at Kashima Shrine in Iba....
19 Mar 11:21 pm  from  Budget Trouble   [Profile]  [Recent] 

A couple of weeks ago I got an email from one Sora Kim from the PR department at Gap Adventures (so that’s why Gap Adventures offerings ar....
14 Mar 7:40 pm  from  Budget Trouble   [Profile]  [Recent] 

This is Dr. Trouble talking... When a Biologist attends a Humanities symposium The 14th Shinto symposium was held in honor of Kashima Go....
8 Mar 1:36 pm  from  Budget Trouble   [Profile]  [Recent] 

We were bored today and thought that seeing a couple of monkeys in goofy costumes would be a swell idea. No, we didn’t go to a cosplay eve....
6 Mar 11:54 pm  from  Budget Trouble   [Profile]  [Recent] 

Dr. Trouble has the floor today. Consider yourselves warned.As Ms. Trouble demanded, here is part one of the report on 14th Shinto symposium....
4 Mar 11:24 pm  from  Budget Trouble   [Profile]  [Recent] 

Don't get me wrong, I love Japan. But because there's more than just Japan in the world (though I do know people who would try to ar....
3 Mar 11:21 pm  from  Budget Trouble   [Profile]  [Recent] 

Getting up at 6:30AM on Sunday to drive about a hundred kilometers in the pouring rain (and sometimes snow) to attend a Shinto seminar requi....
28 Feb 11:40 pm  from  Budget Trouble   [Profile]  [Recent] 

Sorry, sorry. Yes, I know, I know... I should have posted something here during the week. But I didn't. I was busy. And Dr. Trouble coul....
27 Feb 11:52 pm  from  Budget Trouble   [Profile]  [Recent] 

My friend just called and told me she was on her way to a Brazilian restaurant in Moka. And that resulted in two things: 1. me getting ver....
21 Feb 11:04 pm  from  Budget Trouble   [Profile]  [Recent] 

Observing any matsuri crowd it’s very easy to figure out which foreigners are freshly arrived in Japan Americans. Those are the ones who l....
19 Feb 11:29 pm  from  Budget Trouble   [Profile]  [Recent] 

Today is Valentine's Day and because nothing says "I love you" like freezing your butt off in subzero temperatures, at night, ....
14 Feb 11:54 pm  from  Budget Trouble   [Profile]  [Recent] 

So, do they, or do they not like to take onsen baths? The Nikko natives are quick to tell you that they do, and if it’s really cold outsi....
13 Feb 6:36 pm  from  Budget Trouble   [Profile]  [Recent] 

Call me stupid, or spoiled and lazy, but I have serious issues with water. With standing water. And especially with standing water that has ....
12 Feb 11:33 pm  from  Budget Trouble   [Profile]  [Recent] 

The cats were not too keen on a road trip. But that’s normal. As soon as their travel carriers come out of storage, they run and hide. And....
11 Feb 11:25 pm  from  Budget Trouble   [Profile]  [Recent]