Category Archives: Food

What Do Mermaids Eat? . . . Rahqa

Posted on October 10, 2024 by johnrachel

Meet Rahqa, a mermaid with muscles, tattoos, and some very passionate concerns about the destruction of the oceans. You can’t blame her. It’s where she lives! Continue reading →

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LIVE FROM JAPAN! Revisited Redux

Posted on July 5, 2024 by johnrachel

My my how time flies! LIVE FROM JAPAN! was published end of January, 2021. I sent the first shot of love here to the fans of the book June 2023. Then, as now, I let everyone know that the saga continues, as I regularly post articles on new happenings and my evolving perspective on life here as an American expat. Continue reading →

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What Do Mermaids Eat?

Posted on June 22, 2024 by johnrachel

I’m thinking about how many times in my entire life someone has asked me this question . . . “What Do Mermaids Eat?” Ah hah! I remember. ONE TIME! That was when my unpredictable, truly fascinating Japanese wife was sitting across from me in a café on Taketomi Island, Okinawa. Masumi smiled and said, “What do mermaids eat?” That was the one time. And it became the inspiration for my latest book! Continue reading →

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Life In Japan: A rose is a rose is an onion . . .

Posted on May 16, 2024 by johnrachel

I was trying the other day to imagine what went through my mind when I was 25. It’s both a difficult and amusing exercise. One thing I can assert with absolute certainty . . . I never imagined I would at this stage in my life be living in Japan growing onions in my modest garden! Continue reading →

Posted in Deconstruction, Education, Food, Japan, Philosophy, Revolution, Spiritual, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Life In Japan: Shitake Barbecue Restaurant

Posted on April 24, 2024 by johnrachel

My wife, one of her twin daughters, and I had an interesting experience recently. We went to a shitake barbecue restaurant, specializing — you guessed it — in shitake mushrooms! What made it so interesting is that we gathered our own shitake to grill. They grow it on the premises and when you enter, they give you a little green basket and off you go, personally selecting the feature food item for today’s barbecue feast. Continue reading →

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Chiang Mai, Thailand: Cooking School

Posted on August 4, 2023 by johnrachel

Masumi and I got an introduction to how to prepare Thai food during our recent visit to Chiang Mai. Truly unforgettable! Continue reading →

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Life In Japan: Hyogo Prefecture, Breadbasket of Asia

Posted on July 20, 2023 by johnrachel

Little did I know that Hyogo Prefecture — the equivalent to a state or province — is among the top producers in a host of other agricultural products. Continue reading →

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Life In Japan: Rice Balls

Posted on July 7, 2023 by johnrachel

When Americans need to eat on the fly, they grab a hamburger. When Japanese need to eat on the fly, they grab a rice ball. Suggestion: Choose what you eat as if your life depended on it. Continue reading →

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Life In Japan: Eating Octopus

Posted on June 30, 2023 by johnrachel

For at least six decades of my life, I never once thought about eating an octopus, or any part of one. I put them right in there with rats, earthworms, cockroaches, garden slugs, slime mold, the beating heart of another human, in the I’d-rather-starve-to-death folder. Now I love eating octopus! Continue reading →

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Life In Japan: One Potato Two Potato

Posted on June 21, 2023 by johnrachel

You’ve heard the expression, “The world is an oyster.” It’s attributed to Shakespeare, from The Merry Wives of Windsor. I have to come clean. I never bought into that. In fact, for some reason lately I’m leaning toward: “The world is a potato.” Which puts a whole new spin on global warming, wouldn’t you say? Continue reading →

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