Poppy = Impressionist’s photography / W-Pinhole Photo

As it is in the season, I’m seeing number of interesting photos of the Poppy in the Net.

One Photo-blogger Lemony showed her Poppy photo (link here) taken while intentionally

shaking the camera and created blurred image which I dubbed “Impressionist’s Photography”

and I promised her I’ll show my “Impressionist’s Photo” —– hence, here they are.

Isn’t this Impressionist, is this ?    Ha ha ha,    🙂

Those photos were taken by the Pinhole camera (Canon 5D Mk2)  but in this time it was by

two Pinholes of which the panel was fitted on front of the extension ring, therefore the

effective focal length was 84 mm.

With Two Pinholes, it produces off-positioned two images = similar to double exposure image,

or there used be a Double Image filter which used shallow prism = but such image can be made

by Photoshop much easily now. —– Still, I like those images, if the paintings of Impressionists

are still the painting, a photo of pinhole is still the photograph. (Why not ? )   😀

(What so ever, the best of all, two pinholes can make twice as many flowers instant.  😀  )

This photo was taken from the same position, but the Light Balance was set to Tungsten Light,

hence the color balance has shifted to blue. — (then,  contrast was increased and cropped)

= the image became even more like an Impressionist’s or an abstract painting.

This is an ordinary straight shot = as for a reference image. (Lens was Canon 70-200 F2.8 = set to

about 85 mm, and set to F4. —– ( This image looks like a Japanese Yamato-e Paintings.)

With the light balance set to Tungsten Light, it made the pale colored image more like a

Chinese panel painting.

Then, the same Poppies’ were taken by W-Pinhole. (not only the effect of the Pinhole, but

the wind shaken the flowers and made the image even more impressionistic  😀  )

(Under the wind, no flower stand still for 10 seconds, especially delicate Poppies )

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It seemed like the same situation, when people was bored by the too clean digital sound, they

started to go back Veiner or even Valve sound = when too clear sharp photo became too

ubiquitous, and easy to achieve, some went back to  B/W  Film Photography, some are even

trying to make their own print paper applying photo sensitive emulsion onto own material to

create textured fuzzy image (strangely, often fuzzy image seemed to have more connotations)

= there could be hundreds of the way to do photography.   (—– not only Pinhole   😀  )

This is the 84 mm W-Pinhole “lens” (?  😀 ) I’ve used.   Panel was a thin aluminum of a beer can

mounted on front of an extension ring.    Photo right is, with its “lens”  hood ! —– without lens,

it’s still need to have a Hood = you believe or not.  (Normally, a lens hood is to prevent a direct

sun hitting the lens = eliminates a ghost and halo.   Yet,  Pinhole without lens still needs to reduce

the light from the sky etc, which creates halo by scattering inside with diffraction. = Most of 

Pinhole Photographer doesn’t know this, as they think,  even the unnecessary halo is still the

character of the Pinhole photo  🙂  )  = Here,  seeing is believing.

Photo left is without Hood and the right, with hood = the difference is clear.    🙂

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Spoon !

One of the group I’ve been involved is OWN (Open Wireless Network) and their

weekly workshop = where people exchange the information and the skills around Computer,

Wifi connection, and all sorts of electronics (and having usual silly chats.   🙂 )

After a while, I suddenly realized, a guy who I’ve been thinking a graphic designer was in fact

a silver-smith.  (In any trade, people using the computer devices, having the same kind of

trouble or discovering useful knack etc. to talk about).

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I know few Jewelry Designers though, to encounter a silversmith who is doing welding

work of silver and gold every week, is a different matter.  Since I’ve been making a kind

of  twisted wire sculptures (Link here), to which if necessary I been using lead-solder which is

not strong enough (Lead-free solder is even worse ) = I need to use proper welding.

So that, I’ve been thinking to make a Spot-welder using series connected PC power supply

(such as 30A, 12Vx3 = 36V, with huge bank of Capacitors) though, I haven’t done yet.   🙂

I also have Arc-welder though, it has to be used in the proper workshop, not in a flat.

So that, to meet well-seasoned silversmith is a good coincidence and a sign,

it must be a time to work out, long over due silver work.

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Photo top is a Cherry-wood Spoon which I carved more than 10 years ago thinking

to put the hands, made by a silver wire.

= Here, it was completed with the proper silver wire acquired through him.

——– (Wood carving is not necessary done by the Chisel alone.  Fretsaw, Files for

——– metal work, Drill etc etc.  The most useful tool for this kind of fine carvings is

——– a Small piece of Blade in a holder and a Sawing Needle sharpened in angle

——– = work as a minute-size round head chisel.  Work start to make tools  🙂 )

—– Why spoon ?   Why spoon has the hands ? —– I would only say “why not”. 

Spoon can be a Female Figure as well, hence it got hands.  I make something

with joke = I don’t like ostentatious, typical art-like art.  😉

If I see a wood, I carve it with my chisel. That’s all. That’s how creativity works.

To create something, there is no reason or explanation needed. It just happen !

In fact, this wood had happened to come from a cherry stump left in a garden. —– When I

removed it with my hatchet, I found it is a good wood to carve = so I carved it.

It occurred just as coincidence.  I take a coincidence as a given opportunity.

( —– In the mountain, often I needed to make a spoon but this was the first time I ever

carved nude figure = I learned a lot about sculpture and it opened new field to me.  😀 )

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  So, this photo is yet another Cherry wood Spoon.

  In fact, it was the last remaining wood, top end of the stump,

 hence the head part was cracked off, and I left her as it is.

 I liked this, as it showed an unexpected fate.

 In the carving, half of the design was the idea of the

 sculptor though, the wood itself determine the rest.

 The reason why this nude figure putting her hands there was

 = the wood had a hole in the left chest.

 In order to hide the hole, left hand had to come there = and

 right hand was placed in symmetry. (Click photo to enlarge)

In wood carvings, we can’t go back.  Once chiseled off.  That’s the end.

While carving without a model, I wasn’t sure of her back shoulder —– I’ve carved again

and again feeling not quite right hence, originally planed rather chubby figure shed a

fresh and getting thinner and thinner, ended up like this.

Still I wouldn’t complain the end result, as the shape came in its own.

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Our life is the same. = Want to live in such a way, was what we had wished.

Though, the actual figure was shaped by the external event and the condition

etc. etc.  Once chiseled-out, no one can glue it back and re-do.  Only one LIFE.

So, that the final work is the interaction of two or more forces which makes it even more

unpredictable, hence adding even more fun to live a life.  😀

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Keep clear eyes to see the flow of happening — If it was [Unpredicted], it

might be happened as [It should happened] = no time for Regret or

Resentment to dowel the past = The matter is What the next move is ? 

Cracked-off head told me  [Not cling to a crèche = Free the Mind].

This is what the LIFE is.

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Shallow Focus — Pan Focus (with tilting lens)

Some sharp eyed reader quizzed me, the photos of Dandelion seed are odd on previous post.

Very good eyes and the knowledge on photographic image !  —– So, I reveal the trick behind.

There is no such things [Lens Rivers Adapter for Canon EF lens].

But it is just a lens mount ring with a male filter thread on the other end.  That’s all.

If Canon is not selling,  make it ourself.   Why not  😀

Anyone can put two together with glue !   What’s the hands for ?  (not much brain needed ) 😀

But to make it,  I wouldn’t just glue together straight —– I glued them in 40 degree in angle !

(I wanted to make it 45 degree though, it was too much, and caused image-cut off = I had to

compromise though, the photo is using the image to the edge, quality became pretty low )

—– With this tilted lens, Focused field is 80 degree in angle to the camera = much easy to have

a light and able to creates Pan-Focus effect.  (Photo above, Left)

But, when it was tilted to the opposite angle,  focused field is perpendicular to the object, hence

it shows very shallow focus and exaggerated off-the-focus “Boke“.  (Photo above, Center)

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In fact, I’ve been using this Pan-Focus effect since I created Yoshi-Handy and Conica-Tilt

40 years ago, long before Canon TS lens. (You can see both cameras in an old post = Link here)

unlike this Tilted Revers Ring on 5D,  Conica Tilt gave a Pan-Focus from lens front to infinity.

———————- (Without the Lens lock pin, lens was secured by a crow inside, operated by the top-left round lever)

———————- (Incidentally, the Iris was automatically operated by a solenoid on the moment of shatter release)

To have a pan-focus to infinity in one shot, one side of the lens has to sink into the camera body,

so that, the camera front had to be Huck-sawed,  giving a margin of lens movement.

(See the inside detail in a photo right —– to do this kind of work = to prevent the camera

mechanism jammed by the metal dust, all the mechanism had to be removed

= it’s mean, camera had to be completely disassembled and made it to an empty shell).

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With this modification, lens can tilt 30 degree max, and one side of the lens is effectively

extended 18 mm = with such extension  to 15 or 16 mm lens meant, it is effectively

life-size macro !   (As I was an original member of  PCW (Personal Computer World Magazine,

until they were bought up by I.P.C) this tilting lens camera enabled to produce a photo 

“Foreground  is a CPU chip, and background is the computer company’s building, in one shot”)

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I’m planning to make yet another lens tilting camera using Canon 5D body (though, I have to

do its hack-saw work without disassembling the camera body   😀  )   May be I Just Do It. 

( It is a Zen in ACTION !   With open-minded way, there is no prohibition.  Only, Do the best  :-))

This is a photo of a Canon EOS Body.   Although this is the Body of EOS RT,  as most of the

camera designer in the same company are using the same layout of  the mechanism, even

using the same frame die-cast,  (since the position of Switch, lens-lock-pin are all same)

it wouldn’t be so different on 5D body.  = to modify the body to tilting-lens body only needs

to remove the metal frame marked between yellow stickers. ( —– in theory.   😀 )

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Thought on MARATHON — SUFFERINGS

Tomorrow, tens of thousand of people will run for London Marathon.

Quite few of my friends did it and till some years ago, I was thinking I’ll do too though,

I’m becoming aware, better not.

( I can invent hundreds of the excuse not to do = it’s mean to think about itself is utterly a waste of

time.= So that, in accordance to my Zen Moto [Just do it] => Just think not. Ha ha ha 😀

Therefore, in my peaceful mind — Marathon ?  What Marathon ?   What a nice day !

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Why people run for such enduring action which is not even their imperative, which is,

some said useless action.  = Of cause, some are running for the Champion Medal and some are running

for Charity though, bast majorities are running for a sake of just running, or even for a fun.

What is a fun while giving 50 km or so torturing, punishing task to the own body ? —– of cause, as

I used to be a member of the Alpine Club, I know what it is, as we did similar training and above all,

we did pretty similar body punishing long walk in the mountain, often carrying 40, 50 kg of lord on

our back. —– and we mountain climbers were always making joke

“ What silly things we are doing 😀 ”

[]

Then give a thought or two. —– ? ? ?

Have I, have we ever had an easy life ever ? —– We, the greedy creature, the human,

always assess an action in comparison to the gain though, is this kind of view true ?

For a sake of convenience and to have an quick answer, we Buddhists having a tendency and good

excuse to end the argument, we have pretty nice story to convince ourselves into contented, which

called Enlightenment 😀

—– See this in reverse. = Need to have an excuse to have a peace of mind is,

because it is not in a peace at all isn’t it. 😀

[]

In Lord Buddha’s teachings, life was defined as SUFFERING (how nice). Yes in deed, this is true.

So, a training is the training for this unavoidable enduring life. = training for the Marathon but the

Marathon itself is a training to face a situation in the life.

June in every year, we members of our High School Alpine club had a special stamina training for a

preparation for a summer climb while carrying 40 kg of stones to a 900 m high mountain top,

starting 6 o’clock morning, reaching the top about mid day.

It was on a ridge called Baka o-ne in Oh-yama, west of Tokyo. Why it called Baka o-ne, Nut’s ridge

is, it is just one continuous boring climb, no respite = makes anybody just fed-up.

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While carrying 40 kg of utterly useless stones, I cursed every single step “What am I doing.

How silly I am. Ok, on the next step, I’m going to through this stones away and shout to the leader

“ Kill me here, I’m out” — on the end we reached to the top AND came down with empty ruck-sack,

that was all.  (Since many clubs are doing this many years, the mountain top having tens of tons of

round shaped river stones, which makes innocent walkers just puzzled.  “How come ?” 😀 )

( Soon or later, I tired to complain = after all, to join the club and came to the mountain was my

choice.  I’ve gained a kind of contemplation [Just walk] otherwise I shouldn’t have born to this

world. — And I continued this, while keeping Mountain shelter as a volunteer, we had to carry-up

the food staff for the lodgers of up to 300 people a night, without receiving any money, far from it,

we had to spend our own money to get there  Kita Yatsuga-take.)

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Anyhow, the life is the suffering  😀     But, if we have a training while having heavy punishment

to the physics and to the mental strength, we obtain good resilience to a cause of those sufferings.

To over-come the endurance of Marathon, the person gain the proof in the fact, I did.

And this proof gives the person a confidence = I can do, because I have done.

This confidence brings a peace of the mind = Don’t worry too much, it may not

as bad as the Marathon. 😀

So, it is a good news, it wouldn’t be in vain.

Enjoy a running.   Have a good Marathon 🙂

___/\___

[]

MEANING

Looking into the Stats page of my blog ( well, it is only a Stats I can access —– unless I ask my

hacker friend to hack into other’s blog site I have no idea what others’ blog environment) —– the most

interesting thing which provoke my thought is what [search term] the reader has used, and end-up here.

As I wrote before, quite few of them are obviously intended to seek porno site, may be because I often use

rather naughty choice of the sexual words. ( my friends said , it is not MAY BE but obvious facts —–

Because, I hate a pretense to be a kind of holy thinker. —– I rather stay to be an old dirty man as

many of us are = sorry folks. ( or you may say, only you are different.)   😀 )

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[ Self awareness starts from looking into our own shit ] = to see what has been digested and

what wasn’t —– if you actually do this, you will find that the vegetable you eat raw, comes out as it is

= pretend to be natural, is often having hidden reality = how you lost the weight is not because it is healthy

but simply your body couldn’t digest them = effectively eat less.

Head-big thinking, boasting buzzwords has exactly the same situation.

( A loss of libido may not occurred because of Buddhist’s enlightenment,  but simply because eating

so-called Buddhists humble food which caused Malnutrition.  Ha ha ha  😀 )

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Among the search term, what caught my eyes were [Meaning of Lemon Zen] = it’s must refer to

one of my old post [Lemon Zen] —– ? ? ?      But what is the question ?

My old post has explained how a practice (actual body movement) affects our brain activity

= which lead to vacates the thoughts = and lead to have the state of Mushin (Mind of no-mind).

There is no meaning in the practice.   As all the Buddhist’s practices are, the practice itself is,  just a

body movement and has no meaning at all.

So that, in a glance, it may looks silly and useless.

Useless, still you have to keep doing it. = This mind-set is, what was stated in the fundamental

Buddhist Teachings,  Four Noble Truth [ This teaching have to be actively cherished].

There is no meaning.  = But Just Do It.

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Virtually all the Lord Buddha’s teachings were, The instruction.   Not the Belief.

Instruction to do. = Because, while doing it, the organization of the brain, especially in the

region of subconscious changes.  (This the aim of his teachings =this change is not occurred

by the intellectual understanding which is in the New cortex in the brain.  

Subconsciousness is in the Old cortex / Limbic system, where the body movement affects)

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Lord Buddha’s word [ Don’t believe the words, but think yourself] is, because as he had

been teaching what and how to DO, —– as he, himself as a living sample = think by the

self-observation about what the self is doing and feeling.  = DOING is the stimulus.

Only dealing with this, is what called Mindfulness.

=== Without having this DOING, but — what to think about the meaning ?

—– What is the object or issue to think about. —– In this context, the word of

Lord Buddha = [Think yourself] may be understood as [Grasp yourself].

Lord Buddha meant not abstract thinking ( which many of you might be misconceived)

but the brain activity occurred only in the moment, while DOING it.

Because, the abstract thinking had been already defined as a Delusion.

And the Truth of that there is no fixed situation, had been already taught.

( Disciples were expected to have fully understood those teachings )

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So, again, there is no meaning in cutting a lemon. —– Just Do It.

( And have a nice cup of tea = it comes with a peace of mind   🙂 )

___/\___

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Creative Zen Mind

What can you see in the photo ?

It is a strip of bras metal from an Art material shop.

In fact it is just a cut-off, left-over of a bras panel, yet sold as a material.

Material for what ?  —– for Art ?  For making small parts of electric device ?

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Some may think to utilize it as a book marker or throw into a bin after twisting it for a while  😀[]

But, flat metal doesn’t necessary to remain, as a flat object. Cut-off piece doesn’t

necessary be a rubbish = They are the stereotypical preconceptions =

If we couldn’t go beyond this kind of preconception, our ancestor couldn’t have invented

an arrow- head out of a stone.

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If it was a Zen question —– the answer could be even “It is the Universe, Sir ”

———- Did you get it ?   😀

If it is a thin metal, it can be easily cut by ordinary scissors, and easily twisted to make a shape.

It can be anything. (Well, in a theory. 😀 )

—– So, here, one of my attempt. This is a kind of 3D line drawing. = Strip of metal was cut even

narrower strips and twisted.  If this is still a sculpture, how cheap and easy = This is the beauty of it.

And this is all about [What you can see in a strip of metal]

——– (The face shows different expression with different viewing angle —- I’m studying how and why  :-))

BUT, to see it NOT as a strip of metal, but as a 3D figure, isn’t it a Delusion which exists

only in the mind ? = good question 😀

( Here, famous story of Flower Sermon (捻華微笑経) comes = a flower can be the Universe = Dharma.

—– though, why only Maha Kashapa could understood it ?  What other disciples were doing  ?  😀 )

—– Zen has its completely detached eyes, hence see it no more than it IS, but in the

same time, as it posses no preconception = see it in the Blank Space, it can see even

an invisible = it can be a Truth.

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But, [What is the Truth ?] —– is the big question.

The Truth, which affect our life ? Or fundamentals of our existence ?

Is the Truth which is relevant to our life, is the Truth ? —– Isn’t it a bit too utilitarian view isn’t it ?

How about Big-bang and Black-hole, are they True, or anything relevant to us ?

( So far the historical fact, therefore the statistical provability showed, that Zennist

didn’t find any important scientific Discovery or earth-shuttering Truth to the human

= thus, most likely, we don’t need to worry about Big Truth.  We are busy enough to

deal with the handful headache in the dairy Life and the matter of the Self.  😀 )

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(When Lord Buddha was asked about those Big Truth, he didn’t give any answer. 

Since then, traditionally Buddhists doesn’t talk about those question, which is out of our Life.

After all, so-called Mindfulness is to eliminate any thought other than the matter

the person is facing up front.

—— Even today, the scientists who is seriously dealing with Black-Hole Theory are not more than

handful in the world = it is nothing to do with rest of us, other than an interesting talking piece   🙂

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—– the choice is totally up to to you = the matter of who you are

= if you are a person to see it as a bare strip of metal, see it.

Or if you are a person to see it as a figure, go for it = Zen is not a fixed dogma or

an attitude, since [To be who you are] is only a matter !

But this [Who you are] is neither fixed or ideal existence, as time goes, the same YOU

may not be the same person on the next moment = try to act in a fixed face IS a delusion.

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So, enjoy each moment.   And enjoy a creative moment when it comes.

When something new idea of figure, or even an enterprising business plan came up to your mind, while

you are in the state of Mushin (Mind was open to Blank space) the idea was a product

of your subconscious thinking  (generally called Intuition, some called a voice of Heart,

the other even calls it as a voice of God = it could be just a random occurence, yet

it could be a result of Karma) = Why not TRY it = Just DO it.

===> Have a fun and enjoy your creative LIFE !

___/\___

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Japanese New Year’s Cooking = Ozoni

In Japanese New Year, eating Ozoni (rice-cake in soup) has almost ceremonial importance.

Though, the meaning of its name Ozoni (お雑煮） is unceremoniously humble = Jumble soup.

As Japanese staple diet is rice, anything else is accompanying dishes and a soup, since the rice got its own

taste, it has to be individually appreciated = it’s mean, put the rice together with something else is looked

down as jumble, such as Zousui (rice in the soup. —– Put a rice into Miso-soup was called Ojiya and this word

was used to describe a things in a mess = even a design which got few contradictory concept together would

be mocked as  “ It’s an Ojiya”   😀 )

So, to put a (or two) rice cake into a soup is Zoni. (put O to Zoni is a bit more polite expression).

To be a Japanese, it is [the must have cooking] though, there is no fixed style, and the

ingredients of the soup vary a lot, region to region and a family to family. —– nobody knows

the reason why, but in the western Japan (Kansai)  Zouni is based on a Miso-soup and the east of Sekiga-hara,

Zoni is the Kanto style, on a Soy-source based clear soup = Smashi-jiru.  (It’s a fun to know, in the

western Japan,  people makes Ozoni with  round shaped Rice Cake (made like a dumplings)   🙂

As I grown up in Tokyo, my style is Kanto-fu, and this is Yoshizen’s adaptation to make it in England  🙂

The ingredients, photo above are, (from the left) ;

*   Dried Shitake Mushroom, from a Chinese food shop. (from Taiwan seems to be the best )

— (Don’t buy so-called fresh Shiitake grown in this country under artificial light = they are tasteless.

— Shiitake got to be grown and dried under the strong sun light = Hence they are very rich in Vitamin D)

*   Dried Kombu (Kelp sea-weed) from a Chinese food shop.

*   Lime fruits. ( Yes, Lime —– substitute of Japanese Yuzu Lemon)

*   Glutinous Rice Powder from a Chinese food shop (Must be Glutinous ! )

*   Mangetout Beans (or can be a bunch of Spinach —– to add a green color  🙂 )

*   Onion (one medium size for 4~5 people)

*   Japanese Soy-sauce (Can not be a Chinese Soy-sauce.  It never be the taste same )

*   Chicken (I’m buying Chicken thigh to cut it into small pieces)

Preparation and cooking for 4~5 people ; ( see the photo above)

*   Make Rice-Cake according to the post [Make Rice Cake in 15 minutes] (Please click here)

— (Hardest part is to take cooked cake out of a plastic container — cover them with potato starch)

*   Quick flush 5 Dried Shitake Mushrooms under running water, then soak them in the 2 cups of water in a small

— pan and heat them ( but not boil —– to soften them.  Keep this water as Dashi !)

*   After well washed, put two of 4 inch square Kombu (Kelp) into 7 inches pan with just enough water to

— boil them once.  Drain the water, then put 2 cups of fresh water into the pan and boil.

*   Take softened Shiitake out and cut each of them to 4~6 strips, then put the warm water which the Shitake has

— been soaked, into the pan where Kombu has been boiled (now the pan got 4 cups of water).

— Boil the Shiitake and Kombu, then put sliced onion too, for another 30 minutes.

*   While Kombu, Shiitake, Onion are boiling, cut the Chicken (2 pieces of thighs) to small pieces and add to the

— boiling pan. If you like thick rich taste, use the skin of chicken as well, otherwise remove the skin.

— (Of cause, it can be done without Chicken or alternatively, use Fried tofu is an idea for a vegetarian.)

— Then boil yet another 10 minutes.

—– As those ingredients acted to make the Soup Dashi as well, the soup is now very tasty.

*   Then put the Soy-sauce according to your taste (in fact a lots,

— may be 100 ml ? = 1/10th ~ 1/15th of the amount of the soup)

*    Put prepared Rice Cake (3×2 inches size)  one for each person

—-and Mange tout Bean, then boil further 3 minutes.

*     Make small cut pieces of Lime skin (see the photo left) and

— sprinkle them into the soup. (10 pieces like photo is enough)

— Then the Ozoni is ready to serve.  🙂

(Everybody must be amazed the tiny amount of the lime skin

Changed the taste so good  !  = this is the Japanese Art of cooking)

********************************************************

 ( A sort of Health warning )

Never eat Rice Cake in one big chunk —– as they are very chewy and sticky, never attempt to swallow in

big chunk.  It will stuck in your throat (every year tens of the Japanese people died with suffocation)

Otherwise, enjoy an Ozoni  and  have a Happy New Year  🙂

—-

Direct TRANSMISSION — a tiny Thought

A piece of cloth here has been with me in the past 37 years since I was given this from the Eihei-ji temple.

I have washed it may be 10 times or so —– and when ever I did, its color faded farther, so that I became

even more reluctant to wash.

I wrote about this in my old post [Life’s Domain] saying that it could be an intended teaching of

“Nothing stays the same,  nothing is Permanent”. —– ? ? ?    Was such big issue here ?

It’s just an old cotton cloth isn’t it, and it is nothing strange the color dye is fading.   ( Dye will be dissolved

and washed away by the water, and it degraded by the UV light as well)

—– Isn’t it thinking too much ?    Isn’t it a pointless delusion —– or the Truth ?

[]

To explain and prove a fact in the life = “Nothing stays the same” may need to have lot more than a word, yet

just a piece of cloth shows its truth far clearer.   This is what a Direct Transmission is.

—– Then, how about  “Should I wash more often” or,  in order to preserve its original state, I shouldn’t

have used it in the dairy life, let alone washing.

But, what’s the original state mean ?   Is that the color on the cloth and the name of the temple printed on ?

—– isn’t this, just a sentimental reminiscence ?   Clinging the past ?

There may not be such a value in its original state.   It may only be in the mind.

So, without having such THINKING,  just wash it = “Having no useless thinking and just do it”

might be more like the Mushin of Zen Buddhism. = and when the cloth become completely

white, it would be the enlightenment —– WHAT a beautiful metaphor ! ! !

Though, no such things could happen.

In reality, if you keep washing cotton cloth 30, 50 years, the cotton fiber would be disintegrated.

And, when we wash, intending to make the color disappear, ironically, color never disappear.

It is just like our DNA,  it would never disappear.

—– Does it mean, no white cloth, neither see the Enlightenment ?

[]

It was a good exercise of thinking = this is a practice of what

Lord Buddha said “ Think it by yourself”.  🙂

Just a small piece of cloth teach us all about the Buddhism.   This is very “Direct Transmission”.

—– strangely, some people having an illusion “There would be a mythical communication of the

Cosmic Wisdom (Panya Paramita) which suddenly come into the mind and enlighten the person” is what

the Direct Transmission meant. —– Ha ha ha, Don’t make me laugh.  😀

It is a worst delusion than a pretty picture of a spin-doctor’s medicine bottle.

If such magic could ever existed in this world, one of the highest enlightened man like

Dalai Lama could have received such wisdom, and the trouble of the Tibet could be solved long ago.

Though, there is no magic solution or escape,  hence this is the Samsara,

as Lord Buddha said.  —– We only able to become aware of the Truth by the observation with the clear eyes.

And the Truth is not our wishful thinking but the reality = face of the Dharma.

Direct Transmission is a trigger to make us to actually see it = it is not a mythical magic.

In the famous [Flower Summon], the flower was the trigger to realize “What the Dharma is”=

Dharma is not in the special place, but even in a mere small flower = that’s why even small

flower can broom beautifully.

So, why not us. = This is what the Enlightenment is.

___/\___

—

Cooking MISO-SOUP

A kind of complaint I received time to time was that despite I’m keep saying “Just do it” and

“Our dairy life itself is Zen Practice” though, there was not so much practical instructions.

It’s true. Just talking about an idea of the Zen and make you guessing is a contradiction.

To show How I’m  Just doing must be more convincing than a nice story.  After all, Zen is not for talking.

It was already a year ago, I’ve shown how to make Rice cake,  I’m going to write how to cook

Japanese New Year’s cooking = [O-zouni] (お雑煮) (Rice-cake in Soup) and [O-shiruko]  😀

But to start with much common Miso-soup (味噌汁) (as a warming-up practice 🙂 ).

—– Like Minestrone in Italy, Miso-soup in Japan vary region to region and the Miso (Soya-bean paste) having

hundreds of  varieties, —– same as the Cheese made out of the same cow-milk having so many varieties.

So that, this is a Miso-soup in yoshizen style. (at least, this design has been tested and tasted by hundreds of the

people in the art events, Dorkbot-camp, Space-Hijackers party etc many times with good appreciation.

Hence, when ever like a House party, I’ve been always in charge with cooking this Miso-soup 🙂 )

The ingredients above, from the left ;

• Fried Tofu = bought in a Chinese food shop, always comes in a plastic bag ( = 10 pieces about £1)
• Tofu = also from Chinese food shop. (about £1.50 = would serve up to 10 people)
• Miso (Soybean-paste) = from Japanese or Chinese food shop (about £2.50 for 500g packet)
• Mangetout bean
• Onion
• Potato (option or alternative)

Then prepare the materials (to serve 4 to 5 people) = just cut as seen on the photo,

—– cut 5~6 pieces of Fried Tofu into four strips, half of the Tofu into 1/2 inch cube, slice the Mange tout bean

to narrow strip and slice an Onion (one medium size onion would be good for 5 people)

—– optional Potato (if it was Baked-potato size = cut each of two potatoes into 4 to 5 pieces)

———————-[Chinese Kelp] ————————— [Dried Fish flakes] ——– [Dashi-no-moto] — [Soup packet]

The taste of the soup is depend on the soup-base [Dashi] —– traditionally Japanese uses dried fish

or its powdered products [Dashi-no-moto], but if you are a vegetarian use the sea-weed [Kombu / Kelp]

(I’ll explain it later) —– If you can’t get [Dashi-no-moto] from a Japanese food shop, a cheating can be made

out of a soup packet of [Seafood-flavour Instant-noodle] (about 40P — use the noodle for another cooking)

*  Boil 4 cups of water in a 7 inches (medium size) pan on a strong fire, and boil Onion until they became well

— cooked. (this onion is more for the soup base / taste)

*  Then put Fried Tofu (and Potato as an option) and keep boiling.

*  Put soup-base (not Kombu case, and if you have put potato, it got to be near ready to eat)

*  And put Tofu (as the temperature drop, soup may stop boiling)

*  When the soup start to boil again, put the Miso = squeeze out from a cut corner (like a  1/3 inch thick

— spiral spewing out of the packet) and stir the soup for Miso to completely dissolve.

— (from a 500g Miso packet you may need to squeeze out about 1/3 of the Miso for 4 cups of boiling water,

— though it depend on one’s taste — if you put too much and feel salty, put more water to dilute the soup 😀 )

*  This is my secret, I put few drops of the West Indian Hot-Pepper-Souce into this soup.  (This would give a

— hidden punch 😀 —– some Japanese may put [Shichimi-Togarashi] = Seven flavored Hot-pepper)

*  When the Miso-soup started to boil again, stop the fire ( if it was on an electric hot plate, move the pan to

— another plate = never keep boiling the Miso-soup = it creates bitter taste)

*  Then serve into a bowl while sprinkling the top with sliced Mangetout bean (just give a green color) or

— some likes it with chopped Spring onion.

—– The beauty of this design is, well boiled onion’s sweet taste and nutty flavor from the fried Tofu making the

taste very rich = more like a western soup.  And with potato, it’s also filling as well.  Good for cold winter ! 

[]

 * * * How to use the Sea-weed [Kombu / Kelp] as a Dashi;

Japanese food shop sells [Kombu 昆布or Dashi-Kombu] —– it might be from northern Japan of Hokkaido

but most likely from Korea.   Though, Kombu or Kelp grow all seven seas hence Chinese food shop sells it

as 海帯 (Kelp sea-weed) —– it would be cheaper there though, it might come with a lots of sand 😀

and the taste bitter, may be because of the residue of sea water.

(Japanese Kombu was washed in the pure-water before dry, but Chinese one seemed to be just dried on the beach.

—– So that, when you use Chinese Kelp, it needs to be soaked in the water and wash well, then boil it once and

change all the water, then make a soup base with fresh water (otherwise its taste would be quite bitter).

To use Kelp as a Dashi for this Miso-soup, use 2 of 4 inches square of Kelp pieces, prepare as above

and boiled over half an hour,  then take Kelp out of the pan (if it was a good soft Kelp, you can pinch

and eat) then use this soup base for cooking.   (for Miso-soup, Sumashi-jiru, Ozouni, etc —-)

—– Bonappetit or say  “ Itadakimasu” !   Enjoy a meal.

___/\___

PS :  Even after opened, Miso can last long time though, Tofu and Fried Tofu will go bad very quick.

—– Use them ASAP (use next day of purchase, even kept in a fridge,  is the limit) —– How to keep the half

—– of the unused Tofu left = never freeze (it would become sponge like texture = may be interesting for

—– other kind of cooking ) —– instead, put a Tofu in a small pan of water, and boil short time = keep without

—– open the lid = Tofu can survive till next day — (You may repeat for yet another day  😀 )

—

Quantitative Easing

When I was doing a voluntary work in a mountain shelter where we’ve been taking care of

up to 100 guests.   Still, 3 times every year we have to accommodate 300 guests for two ~

three nights at the so-called golden week on May and September, and the New Year holiday.

To feed 300 guests was nothing but a war. We keepers were in a constant battle of

cooking, serving, and washing. (In the same time, some senior keeper had to go out

to search missing person and some had to treat the injured person and so on)

In the kitchen front, we had only 70 or so dinner plates, and in such situation, serving a

meal of fixed menu, Cary Rice (because it can be served on one plate and a spoon = easiest

to serve and wash. ( No complaint. —– It’s a 2300m high mountain called Yatsugatake in

Nagano pref’ where snow fall could be up to 2m deep, winter temperature could be

dropped to -20 degree C. —– mind you, we keepers weren’t paid. We even had to pay a transport

to get there from our pocket.   If you don’t like don’t come,  was the base of rules.

Once in February, I learned how to live alone, without making even a single word,

as the owner has gone to the town and didn’t come back one month, just listening a

roar of snow storm and boiling noise of water on a stove was the life.

How nice to be in the remote mountain. 😀 )

non

When I was washing the dish to cater 300 guests, I noticed that the same plate is coming

back every 10 minutes —– I know it because the plate got minute spot on its edge.

While serving the guests, 70 plates rotating ( go-out with Cary Rice on it, and coming

back as an emptied plate ) = 4~5 times rotation would serve 300 people in 1 to 2 hours !

300 guest were served and they are satisfied (on the face. 😀 ) by the rotation of  70 plates.

non

It was an ingenious and intriguing imagination (joke), when I saw the economical situation, I found

the funny analogy between so-called Credit Crunch and the rotating plates. — as long as the plates

rotates 5 times in an hour or so, everybody will be fed before they feel hungry, or 300 guest were fed

and all of their stomachs were filled,  despite of only having 70 plates, 300 portion of the

requirement was fulfilled = 4.3 times more wealth has been created.

But if the speed slow down, someone end of the queue would be starved.   To alleviate the situation,

hand out a plate to each with a promise of that the food would be served soon = it’s called credit.

—– though, fundamental problem was, there are only 70 plates.

To calm the frustration of the guest, hand out 230 more paper dish to cover all 300 =

this is so-called Quantitative Easing. 😀

non

Everybody is expecting to get a meal while holding a paper dish in their hand.

We mankind has created funny system of economy and the false environment. — what’s this ? ? ?

—– I rather like to have, not a falsely inflated economy and uncertain promise, but to bring

fresh food material and cook by myself and eat = down to the earth humble life.

( Of cause, I know the politician and the bankers would say “ Don’t be limited by 70 plates,

create more wealth and spend it” —– ? ? ? Really ? —– [aren’t they stashing the wealth

created there, into their own pocket ? ]

It doesn’t need to see 70 plates. Everybody can see something utterly wrong

in the socioeconomic system today.  Raise your voice.  Make politician,

bankers to take notice.  So, go to the street,  join the protesters.

non