A different side of Tokyo

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I am about to get on a jetplane to go visit the land of the rising sun: Japan. K will be meeting me at O'Hare to head to Tokyo!

I'll be going for family, friends, and food. The last time I visited Tokyo, it was the world cup and Korea was duking it out with Turkey for fourth place. After the game, Wayne and I ended up on a random night out in some small club listening to the producers of Pizzicato Five spin. We made the obligatory visit to a convenience store at 5 just as the sun crept up before we got back to the hotel.

I've learned that when you're traveling, make sure you have a place to sleep. The rest of the time, play it by ear. However, those who know me, know that I'm a researcher at heart.

I present to you, my tokyo notes. These are points of interest beyond the normal touristy spots that I'm eager to check out.

I'll report back what I ended up doing...

Breathing life into Che

How che appears from simple text...

The Anatomy of a Nap

Everybody has a routine that they follow when they get home. Mr. Rogers would change his shoes and put on a nice sweater and then proceed to talk to a trolley. More often than not, I'll get a glass of water and head to the couch, flip on MSNBC and fall into a quick 20 minute nap. Every once in a while, I wake up two- to three- hours later. I kinda look like this:
In "How to Nap," the Boston Globe tells us everything we've always wanted to know about napping. It notes that midday napping can boost alertness, creativity, and mood. In fact, a British study found that knowing a nap is coming was enough to lower blood pressure.

The graphic helps us define the optimal time to have a siesta (around 3 for me), how long your siesta should be, and what you need to do to prepare.

The only fact I don't completely buy is the ability for a nap to improve my mood. I am the grumpiest person alive when someone wakes me up mid-nap.

Cold War Digging

Source: CIA

Try building a tunnel into a Soviet-controlled city during the cold war. That's what the CIA did, all in secret, under Berlin.

Read the article.

I visited the starbucks yesterday and noticed that they seem to have restarted the "pick of the week" with apple.

And much to my surprise, I did a double take when I noticed it was Priscilla Ahn (I did the same thing when I saw Frederico Aubele). Her song, Dream, welcomed me into the new year.

I later found her website to see if she was going to be touring to promote her new CD. She is, but not in Chicago. She's playing later tonight tomorrow (June 16) in NYC. Alas, its not fated for me to see her live. (I emailed K and implored her to go... for me).

While I won't be able to see her live, I went on a mini shopping spree to make myself feel better. One-Click(TM) later, I bought the digital album off amazon. But for those who want to hear before you buy. Here's the Download Code from the starbucks "Pick of the Week" card: W94HXWPKYJAN. (I don't need it because I have her album).

You go into iTunes and redeem the code. First come, first served. If you like her stuff and want to support her, you can pick up her album, A Good Day.

Inside scoop on the Underground at Bonsoirée

Last weekend I finally got a chance to check out Bonsoirée. Located in Bucktown, its one of the best BYOB places I've been to (so far) in Chicago. Every Saturday, they hold an "underground" event--an invite only 5 course tasting menu (menu attached below).

I got there a bit earlier than my friends and decided to pick up a bottle of wine. The server quickly gave me directions to the nearest store with their recommendation. (tip: skip the 7-11 and go to the Food Smart). As Ask the server, they know what's in stock at the Bonsoiree what pairs with the dishes of the evening.

Shin, the chef, first amused us with foie gras with a blueberry sauce. It's a big deal for Chicago who recently made foie gras legal after a prohibition stint.

The chef had just returned from an "eating tour" in Japan so a lot of the meal was Asian-inspired. I loved the Fennel and Edamame salad--delicate and crunchy--great for a warm summer night.

The course climaxed with a a couple juicy Kobe Beef cubes that melted in my mouth.

Next time I go, I'm going to try to catch the early seating and sit in their back patio.

Tips:

• The place only serves 20 or so seats, so make sure you make your reservation.
• On Sundays, the five- and seven-course tasting menus are discounted.

Bonsoirée
2728 W Armitage Ave
Chicago, IL 60647
(773) 486-7511

I was part of a cause...

Alright everybody, together now, "Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A, Start." I grew up with a Famicom (the original version of the NES) and will forever have that code burned into my memory.

I shudder to think of how many hours I spent hunting ducks, eating mushrooms to grow, or protecting some eagle symbol with my tank.

However, to help me cope, I think about how gaming technologies are going to revolutionize the world. Turns out Hospitals are looking to the gaming industry to increase the precision of surgeries.

Cardiac surgeons have borrowed a 3-D stereoscopic imaging technology from the video-game industry to help them guide their tools during intricate beating-heart surgeries. In tests of the new imaging device, a surgeon was able to more accurately navigate into pigs' hearts and then to more quickly repair the hearts' torn walls....

Recent advances in image-processing technology have allowed game designers to simulate 3-D environments--complete with depth perception--using stereoscopic vision displays. "To address structural heart disease, you need a three-dimensional map with depth perception," says Marc Gillinov, chief experience officer at Cleveland Clinic's Heart and Vascular Institute. "And that's what the stereoscopic glasses give you."

You can read the entire article here.

Best Covers

If it ain't broke there's no need to fix it. While that may work for some people, I sit on the other end of the spectrum. Maybe its because this was the first year I closely followed American Idol and heard David Cook's many interpretations or because I've always been a huge fan of Ztrip's mashups.

Whatever the case, there is something about covers that I find intriguing, perhaps its the familiar that becomes transmuted into something new. Here are my most memorable covers [combination of faves and most intriguing]:

1. I Want Those Flashing Lights - Colin Monroe [Kanye West Cover]
2. Your Love - Midtown [Outfield Cover]
   
3. Man in the Long Black Coat - Mark Lanegan [Bob Dylan Cover]
4. When Doves Cry - Vitamin Jazz [Prince Cover]
5. Just Like Heaven - The Watson Twins [Cure Cover]
6. Straight Up - Halifax [Paula Abdul Cover]
   
7. Toxic - Yael Naim [Britney Spears Cover]
8. Digital Love - Alphabeat, FrankMusik and Leon Jean-Marie [Daft Punk Cover]
9. Idioteque - Calico Horse [Radiohead Cover]
10. No Diggity - Klaxxons [Backstreet Cover]
11. Famous Blue Raincoat - Marissa Nadler [Leonard Cohen Cover]
12. No One - Wakey!Wakey! [Alicia Keys Cover]
13. Take On Me - Phonte [Ah Ha]
    
14. Headmaster Ritual - Radiohead [Smiths Cover]
15. Man On the Moon - Shout Out Louds [REM Cover]
    

There's a couple that almost made it on the list. I was going to put up Arctic Monkey's rendition of Diamonds are Forever, but I figured that Kanye was already represented and another nomination will probably go to Kaney's head. For a similar reason, I didn't include Brad Melhdau Trio's Jazz rendition of Wonderwall.

For the ones I coudln't find links for, I was able to find them in amazon:

Commencement speeches are blossoming again...

When I graduated, Pierre Omidyar, gave my commencement speech. Nowadays, you can get read his stream of conscious through his blog (which mostly contains tweets).

With a little bit a humility, dash of wit, and highlights of humor, commencement speeches, at its best, are inspirational and empowering.

Here are some of my favorite ones from this year:

• JK Rowling at Harvard
  
• Barbara Kingsolver at Duke
• PJ O'Rouke via LA Times
• Samantha Power at Pitzer-Claremont College

And of course, who can ever forget Conan O'Brien's speech from back in 2000. You can find ten of gawker's favorite commencement speeches here.

Top Chef Season 4 Finale-Find it online here...

After Dale got punted off the show, I promised never to watch the show for the rest of the season. But like a month to the flame, I just couldn't stay away and was drawn back.

Now, not neither TIVO or cable poses a problem. Where does one go to watch the episodes. While Youtube may have been a sufficient source of television shows, I recommend Hulu.com. A collaboration of NBC and FOX, Hulu (you can read about it here) contains your everything from SNL clips, episodes of Family guy, and movies like The Girl Next Door.

But more relevant to this post, it has the most recent episode 13 (Season Finale pt. 1) of Top Chef. The compression is smoother and larger than anything you can find on Youtube, veoh, or surfthechannel.

If you haven't seen it yet, I advise you follow the following drinking rules put out by Metromix Chicago:

Rule No. 1: Drink every time Lisa curses.

Rule No. 2: Drink every time a Glad product appears on screen. Chug for the first five seconds of any Glad commercial.

Rule No. 3: Drink every time Dale lashes out, directly or indirectly.

Rule No. 4: Chug for five seconds any time someone says “threw me under the bus” or similar.

Rule No. 5: Drink for every tight shot/zoom of a GE Monogram logo.

Rule No. 6: Drink every time Spike appears on screen wearing a hat.

Rule No. 7: Drink every time Tom says “interesting,” asks “Have you done that before?” or “kind of just blinks and pulls his head back.”

8. Drink every time a contestant butchers the pronunciation of a Spanish word.

The Fruits of June

Not too long ago, I read Michael Pollan's The Omnivore's Dilemma. It's a great book that tracks back how four different meals are made. Michael discusses the benefits of eating with the seasons. Not only is the produce more fresh, but because they are in abundance, they're cheaper.

Tastes good and costs less!

For the month of June, check out: watermelon, strawberries, cantaloupe, cherries, blueberries, peaches, apricots, corn, lettuce.

Discover, month-by-month, the fruits and vegetables that you should buy here.

Kill Bill Splatter

New billboard promotes the TV release of Kill Bill with a little blood splatter. Love it.

Source: bestadsontv

Southern Fried Chicken Sandwiches

For lunch, I tried McDonald's new Southern Style Chicken Sandwich (SSCS, so I don't have to type it over and over again). It is my hope upon hopes that the SSCS rivals Chick-Fil-A's Chicken Sandwich (CFACS). Here's my review.

Chicken: From the first bite, I was pleasantly surprised at the juiciness factor of the patty. The Chick-Fil-A chicken is sometimes a bit dry and uneven.

SSCS 1: CFACS 0

Crispiness: SSCS were flying off the shelf. I had to wait for a bit while they made my sandwich. Unfortunately the freshness didn't translate to a crispy batter.

SSCS 1: CFACS 1

Pickle-Factor: While the McDonalds Pickle has nice flavor, it's not like the Chick-Fil-A's Chicken sandwich, which ingredients play with each other like an 'N-sync dance number. Could it be because Chick-Fil-A puts their pickle on the bottom? or the lack of mayo to bind everything together? I also found the Southern Style chicken Sandwich pickle too thinly cut and not crunchy in the middle.

SSCS 1: CFACS 2

Overall Taste: Diversification is risk. Chick-Fil-A only offers a couple items on the menu, but they're just so so good. The sandwich used the same bun as a cheese burger, so my tastebuds were a bit confused.

SSCS 1: CFACS 3

In Conclusion: McDonalds should stay with the all-beef-patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese... I just wish there was a Chick-Fil-A in the Chicagoland area. A guy can dream can't he?

Street Art Globalization

The Tate Modern in London recently launched a street art exhibition including artists from all over the world. Creativity Online interviews Will Gompertz, director of Tate Media, about the exhibit.

Read it here.

The History of Cubicles

According to Steelcase, we spend 70% of our office life inside cubicles. David Franz points out that while he doubts that we'll be seeing a one-hour Modern Marvels on the History Channel showcasing cubicles anytime soon, the fact that we spend so much time in these creations merits some study and exploration. After all, the 190 square feet filled with personal tchotchkes is our home away from home.

From the original vision of egalitarianism to its permanent position in corporate pop-culture a la Dilbert and Office Space, David tracks the history of cubicles. Yet another interesting article to read from you cubicle.

Ratatat just announced a very short short tour. I'm so sad that they're not stopping in the mid-west.

6/07 Seattle, WA - Chop Suey
6/08 Portland, OR - Holocene
6/10 San Francisco, CA - Slim's
6/12 Los Angeles, CA - Echoplex
6/15 Brooklyn, NY - Music Hall of Williamsburg

Thanks JP.