Eliminate B. O.

Recently  in the UK there have been reports of a hygiene problem. People are stuck without having enough money to pay for basic shampoo. They are resigned to staying in their homes and not going out. Keeping clean is important in any country. Here in Japan there are many ways to go about it. 

The above picture shows some basic care products for men.

In the top row you can see products designed to remove the stink most men seem to have. BO is a major problem in the summer and it's elimination is of great importance. The second row continues the BO battle and the prices suggest that they are the better choice.

The third row suggest giving you a natural smell while the final two rows lean more toward regular body soap. The prices at the bottom are on the cheaper end of the spectrum suggesting that they don't work as well.

Do they work? I have no idea and no desire to buy. When I first came here deodorant ( located to the left of the 3rd row) was almost impossible to find. Now it's everywhere. The only one I tried is the cheaper one towards the bottom (Biore). It worked well and I liked the cheaper price. My wife said it wasn't enough and got me something else. (Not pictured)  I do like it and she hasn't complained about my smell so a win.

It's the orange one in the center. The price is still good and it does the job. It says it's medicated persimmon extract. Again the price is okay and the best news is I don't smell as bad as before. At least my wife hasn't said anything.

So the best thing you can do is try and try till you get something you like. Also ask the people in your life. If they are like my wife they will give you an honest answer.

Cost of living

Been here over 16 years and in that time I've gotten used to paying the same price for all of my goods. Now things are going up. The milk I used to buy isn't 149 now. It's 199. A 50 yen jump. 

It's not much but it's the beginning of the end. Come on work. Give me a raise.

ChapaChe

 Why talk about Korean food? Like many new people to this country finding the right things too eat is sometimes very difficult. You can easily go to the convenience store and get a good bento but sometimes you want more. Today I`ll introduce some easy to make foods.

What is ChapuChe? （チャプチェ）

Chapuche is a popular Korean dish (spelled Japchae) with stir fried glass noodles, assorted vegetables, meat, soy sauce and sesame oil. It`s quite delicious and easy to make. From the above picture from right to left we have 

Chapuche　　　　チャプチェ

Salty Yuzu Chapuche　 ゆず塩チャプチェ

Burukogi　　　ブルコギ

Bibinba 　　　ビビンバ

To make it all you need to do is buy the package, get some extra ingredients and a frypan.

First the meat:

The instructions say to get 薄切り　or　Usugiri うすぎり　thin sliced meat. The one above is Komagiri or こまぎい　which is essentially the same thing. Check the packages for the size of the meat needed in grams.

Next the vegetables:

For the Chapuche it says to use Green peppers, or ピーマン. The Salty Yuzu Chapuche has the same instructions, while the Bibinba and the Burukogi say to use garlic and the Burukogi says to mix in rice and onions. You are welcome to add anything you want to it. I usually add mushrooms and sliced carrots to give it some more volume. 

Side note:

For the Chapuche it comes with the rice noodles (Harusame, はるさめ needed to make it so you don`t have to get anything else. However if you want some you can choose what you like to add to the mix.

Cooking:

Just follow the instructions on the back of the package. Fry up the oil and meat on a medium heat. Add some water, the two packages included in the pack, and let it cook for about 3 - 4 minutes. If you want to include carrots now is a good time along with your green peppers and mushrooms. Let it cook until the noodles and carrots are soft and your done. The most important thing to remember is to make sure the meat is cooked well enough.

To eat serve with rice, salad, or anything else you want to eat with it. The package usually makes enough for 2 or 3 people so it`s perfect for a family. Now I`ve never made the Bibinba or the Burukogi but I want to try. My usual supermarket doesn`t have them. Just remember to get the right ingredients on the back and don`t be afraid to experiment.

Photos by me.

The Enemy of Man. MOLD!

 

Kabi!!! 

One of the most difficult things to get a handle on in this country is mold. Its everywhere. From the kitchen, to the bathroom, even my air-conditioned. How can you get rid of it. 

One method is the spray above. It`s called Kitchen Haiter キッチンハイタ　and is very useful when cleaning the sink. It`s poisonous so when you spray it on the mold make sure you have nothing in the sink.

For the bathroom you should use the red stuff at the top or the blue stuff just below it. The red one is called Mold Killer カビキラー while the blue one is called Mold Haita カビハイタ。I`m not sure what the Haita stands for. Maybe mold killer stuff. Like the kitchen mold killer it is poisonous so make sure you turn on the vent when you use it or you could be in trouble. 

To use spray it directly on the mold, let it sit, than rinse it off. Easy. It doesn`t get rid of everything though. You`ll have to scrub it down to do that. But what it will do is make it easier to remove.

Next

There is a lot of extra sprays and smokes to use to destroy the mold. The one with the smoky happy face is quite good and is supposed to protect the bathroom for a few weeks. After cleaning you set it up in the bathroom and let her rip. My wife swears by it.

As for the air conditioner.

Contact a company to do it. You can try to do it yourself and there is sprays to do it that should get much of it. However if you want a good job call a company to do it for you.

For your washing machine there is a special cleaner you can buy, unfortunately I didn`t take a picture of it but it does the trick.

As for the secret, 100% guarantee to get rid of all the mold in your life follow this next step. 

Buy new products.

Or if your like me and have no money get the best deal you can. Head to the 100 yen store and buy some brushes and scrub like there`s no tomorrow. Look at it as exercise. 

Photos taken by me.