Top Five Favorite Japanese Places:

• Shiga Kogen area of Nagano Prefecture.
• Kusatsu, Gunma Prefecture.
• Motobu peninsula, Okinawa, Japan.
• Meiji Jingu, Tokyo.
• Yanaka Cemetery, Tokyo.

Top Five Favorite Japanese Foods:

• Okinawan-style tempura.
• Mozuku (a slimy brown vinegared seaweed).
• Miso soup. 
• These funny fried and salted mushrooms you can get in this tiny restaurant in Ome.
• Pickled daikon (or pickled anything, really).
• Bonus:  Suku garasu: tiny salted fish served on blocks of cold tofu (Okinawan).

Top Five Favorite Japanese Words, Concepts or Phrases:

• Mono no aware (物の哀れ):  Sadness towards the ephemeral nature of life.
• Daijoubu (大丈夫):  OK, or quite literally, “big husband”.
• Gochisosama deshita (ごちそうさまでした):  Thanks for the feast (said after eating). 
• Taakii (ターキー ): Turkey, in Japanese it seems to mimic the soporific effects of L-tryptophan.
• Fuwafuwa (フワフワ): Fluffy.

Top Five Strange Things to Do When Alone:

• Trim split ends on hair.
• Smell entire perfume collection until I get hives.
• Match socks.
• Watch Japanese infomercials.
• Stare at the Christmas tree in complete silence.

Top Five Favorite Artists/Photographers:

• Giorgio de Chirico.
• Hokusai.
• Leonora Carrington.
• Remedio Varos.
• Frans Masereel.

Ask.