Wisconsin Cheese in Tokyo: "The TK Cheddar Dog"

Today I may have discovered the greatest find yet in this phenomenal metropolis.
Aeon, a giant grocery store chain, now carries Crystal Farms Cheese from Lake Mills, Wisconsin.
It was a beautiful sight to behold.

I hurried home to create the best bachelor's food yet this side of the Pacific: I dub thee "The TK Cheddar Dog."

Throw it in the toaster oven and top it off with some delicious Mucho Aloha hot sauce and be prepared to have your world rocked!

Last day of Training

Day is finally finished, what a day!
7:35 AM Hit the snooze on cell phone
7:45 AM Repeat
8:00 AM Get up, eat the last of my precious Costco cereal
8:30 AM Scooter on over to Ichikawa Station for train to Immigration Office
9:15 AM Transfer to the Chiba City Monorail (realize I don't like dangling 100 feet above the ground in a box)
9:30 AM Arrive at Immigration, take a ticket and begin the wait
11:00 AM Still waiting
11:15 AM Contemplating leaving
11:25 AM Called to the counter
11:35 AM Leave Immigration office after successfully changing my Temporary landing visa to a Work Visa (good for one year) (this process should have taken two weeks and would have prevented me from working for another two weeks.
11:40 AM Race home to change into a suit.
12:10 PM Race back to Ichikawa station
1:30 PM Arrive ten minutes late to the final day of training for Berlitz Japan-Otemachi
9:10 PM Finish training successfully and given permission to start work tomorrow!!
9:45 PM Moped through a "Tokyo Blizzard" with the equivalent of racing slicks for scooters. I don't consider it the most dangerous things I have ever done, but certainly not the smartest
10:00 PM Home safe and sound with only good things to look forward to.
Tomorrow: Invest in a good rain suit as well as a solid raincoat. Oh, and buy more Costco cereal!

Coming of Age Day 2012, 成人の日 Seijin no Hi

Coming of Age Day is a Japanese holiday that takes place annually on the second Monday of January. It is a holiday that celebrates the coming of age of everyone who is 20 years old or turning 20 for that year.

Check out the wiki page Coming of Age Day for a nice overview and history of the holiday. 

I spent the day playing in a basketball tournament with my friend Teru. After the game we met in Shibuya with Celia and Yurie for dinner. 

Pictured: Jon, Teru, Célia, and Yurie at Hachiko exit Shibuya Jan. 9, 2012

That particular Monday night just happened to be the Coming of Age Day and all of the restaurants were packed, the streets crowded, and there was excitement in the air. 

Pictured: Célia, Yurie, Teru, and Jon at an izakaiya restaurant enjoying delicious food, enthralling conversation, and endless laughter.

What I enjoyed most was the beautiful women dressed up in their winter kimonos, celebrating their Coming of Age: an absolutely stunning sight to behold. So much so that I just had to take a picture with them. So before returning for the night, I had a picture taken with a group of four lovely, kimono-clad women just outside the Hachiko exit of Shibuya JR station. 

  Pictured: Myself with the four lovely, kimono-clad, Japanese women I met at the entrance to Shibuya station on Coming of Age Day, January 9th, 2012.