BENTO!! No TV reward came in:)

The door bell rang. I look at my watch. 9:45am. The time the mailman delivers our mail. Could it be? He only rings the door when there is a package. OH my heart. I hobble down the stairs and open the door. No one is there. I look down and it felt like Santa had delivered my Christmas gift. Sitting there was this small box. Well my son always has things delivered here so I was not going to be fooled. No Sirry. I am too smart to be fooled again. I pick up the box and look where it is from. Hmm Japan. I don't think Kane orders things from Japan, does he? But still I will not be fooled. I look at who it is to. Konnie. Is there another Konnie residing here? I mean, I don't want to be presumptuous. I think. No, I, Konnie, am the only Konnie in the household. So I go upstairs and find a scissors. I open up the seal.



They sent me a bunch of plastic. Oh Crap! Sorry, pardon my Japanese, I mean French. I have researched and unless you walk or ride bike to store, it is more environmentally friendly to order online. I don't think they took into account the plastic wrap and bubble wrap that was covering the contents of my box. I was starting to think the plastic, was the contents of my box. Take off one large folded sheet of bubble wrap.



And the bento box is wrapped in more sheets of bubble wrap. (I didn't know my bento was made of glass) It must be or why would they wrap it up as if I had a precious relic inside. I look underneath and there is another large sheet of bubble wrap in the bottom of the box. I unwrap the contents.

They plastic wrapped the cardboard box that was protecting my bento. Does that make sense to anyone?

I unwrap the box, and inside is my bento. Wrapped in yet another plastic wrap.

You can't really see from this picture but 6 large sheets of plastic. I will reuse the bubble wrap for something, but the other three wraps will have to go into the plastic garbage I am saving for the month. Still, I am excited.

The pictures of the bento did not turn out too well, but here it is.

My Authentic Bento from Japan!!!!

LL is off of work next week. But I will have to find an excuse to make a lunch in my beautiful new CONTAINER!!!

Drum Roll Please............

Thank you everyone for your input. I had a few people comment on Face book also. Your input still helped with my ultimate decision but as usual, things changed. First thing you have to remember about me is.........................Nothing ever goes as I plan. Nothing! I have had friends and coworkers say I should write a book all about my life because nothing seems to come easy. Not even when ordering damn, I mean darn bento box and supplies.

Well it all started :) when I made my choices last night. I was all excited. Stayed up late reading all the features about each choice I was about to make. Debated on the two boxes. Looked at all the accessories and thought what do I really "need" and what can I wait on. I imagined cutting out cute little sandwiches for LL. Artistically arranging beautifully cut vegetables and so on. Soooo excited and I actually thought I made good choices. Then I pressed "go to checkout" and set up all the info. It then calculated the shipping from Japan. ALMOST $40.00. In addition to the cost of the items. Now I don't know if I am stupid, naive, or chemo brained but I never took into consideration the shipping from Japan. Not once did I even think about it.

So back to the drawing board. My goal was to still buy a Bento from Japan and get a few accessories to make more creative bentos. So I finally found a bento just like the first one. It is sold here the U.S. so the shipping is reasonable but was made in Japan. I like it better then the first one because it has a design on top and also comes with a bag for about the same price. Here it is.




It can be Microwaved and put in the dishwasher which a couple of you pointed out would be important for you.

So with the big decision made, I decided to take Kuusou's advice, (read last posts comments) and look for accessories elsewhere first. LL needed to go to the home improvement store in Salem and since my "digestion" was doing fine, I had him drop me off at the craft store right next to Lowes. I also got a couple things at our local Hi-school pharmacy/Ace hardware.

These cookie cut outs are the perfect size for small sandwiches and cheese. It comes with a matching top so when used gives the cutout more detail. There is a dozen of the plus the tops which makes 24 cutters.





This is every thing else I bought. I took Kuusou's advice and got the vegetable cutouts in the cake fondant area. I got the punchers for nori. I even got an exacto knife which wasn't on my on-line order. I got 3 times the amount of silicone cups. But get this. I got all the accessories for less than what the shipping was going to cost. No REALLY!! The only thing I didn't find or get is the punchers for the faces. I will wait for those and just cut them by hand for now.


Thanks everyone for your input. I have a few Bento pictures stacking up to show you but am looking forward to making new ones with all these fun things. BTW LL was actually happy for me and giggled himself when I told him how pretty his lunches will be. He really is a patient man where I am concerned.

Encourage Me or Talk Me Down

OK, first off as my defense, I am not normally a shopper. As anyone who knows me in real life, I hate department stores, I don't go to the malls, I hate trying on clothes, I really hate trying on shoes, I am Not a shopper. But there is something seriously wrong with me when it comes to my love of containers. I look at the bento web sites and my heart starts to pudder.

So I need your help. My LL, if you are reading this, now is the time you might want to log off. Might make you nervous.

So I either need you to encourage me to really splurge on a unnecessary purchase and buy the following, (which will make me very happy) or I need you to talk me down, (which will make LL very, very, happy).

Here are the accessories for making bentos that I want. With the exception of one item. They are all only between $2.50 and 3.50.

Rice mold


Silicone cups that are reusable

Cut outs to shape cheese and nori. Look, it even has musical notes!


Egg molds. I love the fish one.


Punchers to make faces. I know you can buy punchers at craft stores but I haven't been able to fine face ones. This is the one item that is a little spendy


Vegetable shapers. This is a for sure purchase because cookie cutters do not cut into carrots and cucumbers well and are usually too big.

And now is my real dilemma

This first bento is exactly what I was looking for. It is authentic, two tiered, large enough to hold LL's lunch if I decide to use it for that purpose and it can be put in microwave and dishwasher. It is wonderful.








But then I saw it. It's beauty called to me. "Look at me closer" I started imagining me packing my lunch for outings that I never go out on. I imagined sitting in the cafeteria with my imaginary coworkers looking on with envy. Saying "my what a beautiful lunch you have there". I imagined packing a nice snack in it for my romantic picnics in the meadow that LL and I have never and will never go on. I WANT this bento.

It is not microwavable, it is too small and feminine for LL to use, and yet I am drooling over this and so want to click on the shopping cart button and purchase it.

So for any of you that comment every so often, and for the ones that say you read this blog but never comment or are followers, I need your input
Do I ...............
A. Buy the Large Bento and accessories?

B. Buy the Beautiful bento and accessories?

C. Buy both Bentos and forget the accessories?

D. Or Buy the whole shebang? Which comes to about $85.00.

There is only a couple of the beautiful Bentos left so I will need to make a decision soon. So I will check back this evening and hopefully some of you will have read and gave your input. Remember, Encourage me:) or talk me down:(

No TV-Days 26, 27, 28, 29, and 30

I know, I KNOW! I really am not done with the 30 days until this day is over. But I know I will not blow it today because 1. I'm not really missing the TV and 2. After 29 days that would be really stupid, now wouldn't it:). I wanted to post this now because my weekend blogging is more sporadic.

The first 3 or 4 days of no TV was hard, I'm not gonna lie. It was hard mainly because having the TV on was just a habit. Those first few days I had to stop myself from just automatically turning the darn thing on. Weekends, even though their busier, tended to be more difficult because the rest of the family would turn it on to watch something and would tend to just leave it on. But it got easier. In fact, until the last couple days, I haven't missed the TV at all. I read more, baked more, researched organic gardening, gardened and visited with family and friends more. All very healthy and enriching activities for me. What has been hard this week without the TV is that physically I am not well and even though I can read and blog a lot, TV is one way to pass the time when I am not up for anything else.

I have decided to try to only watch 2 or 3 shows on a regular basis every week and then mainly watch when it is a good special or a movie. This will help me keep up with this healthier relationship I now have with the boob tube.

So with all that said, guess what I am doing today. Shopping for a BENTO!!!!! You might have forgotten that part of my 30 day challenge. I have not forgotten. I have already looked to see if the one I want is still available.

Remember this.........................

It's a beauty isn't it? Well it is sold out. I will look at other sites to see if it is sold elsewhere, if not I need to pick a new one. I am also going to get a little bit of accessories to go with it. Like a face puncher, egg mold and rice mold. I know, LL will be humiliated but I can't help myself.

No TV-Days 20,21, 22, 23, 24, and 25 and Doctor Appt. Update

I see the end of my 30 days coming fast. I can't believe how fast it has gone. Well the first few days seemed long. These last few days here in Oregon has been beautiful, so I have been spending all my time outside working in the garden. This week it is suppose to rain off and on all week. So I will get out while I can but will spend most the week catching up on my much neglected house. Here is a little of what went on the last few days. I prepared some of the raised beds for planting. Went to the pet parade. Picked up Heloise's replacement.

Meat, I mean meet Hannah ................

Hannah is much feistier then Heloise was. Harriet has got competition on who will be top of pecking order. Henrietta doesn't stand a chance, the wimp.

I put in a lot of my garden. I am ultimately wanting to plant twice what I normally do and talking to my enabler Aunt Leone, she says I can plant a lot closer, so I will give it a try and we will only need to increase the amount of raised beds a little. I am also planting quite a bit in planters. This year I am going to try to stagger some of my plantings to extend the length so we get fresh produce a little later. I am sure I will be making a lot of mistakes but I can get advice from my farming family and an organic farmer Bill, who I have known since we were six years old said he would advice me on how to garden more organically. So I think I have got my bases covered.

So far I put in 11 tomato plants (6 varieties), 6 cucumbers (4 varieties), 4 egg plants, lots and lots of lettuce, herbs, 2 zucchini, walla walla onions (way too many), 48 impatiens, 48 petunias.

I still have corn, more cukes, more tomatoes, lot and lots of peppers, sunflowers, and pumpkins to put in. And seeds I am just starting for later plantings. Will see how it goes.

Yesterday, I got a great surprise when our friends Michele, Chuck and their son Devon stopped by to visit. They brought 2 new family members over so I could get to know them better.

Meet Otis....................

He is a brown long haired doxie

And this is Otis's brother....................

Simon, a blue doxie.

Are they just adorable and full of energy. Beau did not know what to make of them.

After our visitors left I made Homemade pizza, and brownie sundaes. I also made bread earlieri in the day. I am getting use to making almost everything from scratch, but it does take a lot more planning. I will get the hang of it though.

DOCTOR APPOINTMENT UPDATE

I went this morning to my oncologist for my quarterly check-up. Great News....No cancer detected. Lots of concerns about the damage from treatments and surgeries though but we will deal with that. The damage is worth it if the cancer stays away.

Have a blessed day.

No TV-Days 16,17,18, and 19

It's funny how our lives can revolve around what is on the boob tube. I think the DVR system has made people less needing to live on a television schedule, but still I hear so much of things like, "got to be home by 8:00 for .................fill in the blank. If you are a sports fan, this is even more likely. This isn't really judging on my part because I have done it too. Just an observation. For me, I am quite getting use to life without TV. As an unintended bi-product of my experiment, my family is watching a lot less and I am finding we talk more and have been more active as a whole.

Even with being an involuntary hermit (that's what I decided to call myself), I can find lots to do to occupy my day. I feel more productive and have lots of peace and quiet to contemplate and listen to Gods leadings and to discovery who I really am. I do find myself talking a lot to the animals, although Rufus and I are not on speaking terms right now. (refer to post below). It is much easier to work towards living intentionally when your mind and time is not taken up by a loud passive activity like TV watching.

I hope to the few who read this, you might be inspired to "tune out" for a day, week or perhaps a month like me. If for no other reason, just to prove to yourself you can. And I bet you will find your frantic pace changing and your mind finding relief.

Well I am about to start my last third of this experiment. I don't expect to be rushing to the TV on day 31 to watch what ever. I will make a plan, being mindful of what really is worth my time and of value to watch.

No TV-Days 14 and 15

The last 2 days have been very easy. In fact, the only hard times is getting a little irritated when someone else has the TV on just because I am enjoying the peace.

I have resisted DVRing all my shows just because I don't want then to spend all of June watching everything I missed in May. That doesn't make since does it? But I did set it to tape one thing on the food network tonight. A family who's blog I read, are being featured tonight on a show so I decided to tape it and watch it in a few weeks.

If my digestion holds up I will be at Sears when they open up this morning to buy a digital camera that they advertised. It is only on sale for three days and they tend to run out when its a good sale.

The best part of the day is that my LL took the day off, and it's A Beautiful Morning! so today we will do a lot of yard clean up and take a load to the dump of things we can't compost. I love spending time with him. So have a beautiful morning and a spectacular day. And hopefully I will post pictures later from my new camera:)

No TV-Day 11, 12 and 13

Not watching TV is a very different existence for me. During the day, my house is quiet unless I put music on. I putt around the house with less distractions. It is a very peaceful environment. While in the house, I can hear if it is raining, my wind chimes clinking, the neighbors calling their dogs. I have found myself going in and out doing a few things outside and then coming in to work for a while. Usually, with TV as part of my life, I would go outside and feel I would have to get it all done at once so I could get back in at a certain time to watch that mindless show.

I guess what I am saying is the rhythm of my day has changed and I like it. I have had a rough time lately with my diet and digestion so being home more is definitely in my future. But I have no doubt I will make my 30 days. It is just a peaceful, quiet life during the day. The evenings and weekends are another story. I am either in the room reading while others are watching TV, or reading in my room where it is quiet. Sometimes I can get them to do something with me, but the weather has been iffy, so fishing, gardening and sitting outside visiting, has to wait. Boy I hope summer comes early.

IT IS NOT A BENTO!!

Ok this is so not my fault. It's my niece Lisa's fault. Yes you! I know your reading this. Anyway, it all started (those words are a sign I don't come out looking too good in this story) It all started when I was visiting my niece Lisa yesterday. She reads my blog and knows of my container love and asks me if I've seen the bentos at Target. Well my tail started wagging and I said I didn't know target had bentos. She said yes, by the grocery area.

So as soon as I could determine if my "digestion" would cooperate this morning, I got in my car with the intention of going to see my sister, go to Albertsons to get their sale items before they go off sale, and go to Target just to see what they had:) So I went to Target first because my priorities are that screwed up. And low and behold what do I find there. These 4 containers that stack up and are clamped together. Lisa failed to tell me they came in two sets of colors. What to do? What to do? Well what do you think I did? And you would be wrong. I did not buy both. I bought the blue and green set and said a long drawn out goodbye to the red and orange set.

Well about the time I decided on which one I started feeling funny. The funny feeling I get when my "digestion" kicks in. So I realized I would not make it to my sisters or Albertsons. So I grabbed a gallon of milk, my blue and green container, went through the checkout and got in my car just in time:(

So this is what I got. Mine is blue and green though.







Now I know what your thinking. This is her reward for making it 30 days without TV so either she has gotten her reward early or she needs to take it back. Well you are sooooooo wrong. You don't even know. This is not an authentic bento. It may look like a bento. But it is not from Japan. It may act like a bento. But Target calls it a Tiffin Box. So it is official. I still get my reward of ordering a bento from japan after 30 days. Don't give me any flack. In my simple mind I have this all justified and that's good enough for me. Oh by the way Lisa.............Thanks, your aunt loves ya.


Just to prove it to you, I will again show you a bento




Totally different, right. RIGHT!!

No TV-Day 9 and 10

Hey, this is getting a lot easier. I have stopped walking to the TV to turn it on. I don't have to come up with things to do to keep me busy. I just am busy. Friday after getting work done, when LL got home, we went fishing. Caught 10 and ran out of worms. I think we could of limited out. Then I dropped my camera and damaged it to the point that I don't know if I will be posting pictures later:( Saturday was a big baking day. Made a cake for special occasion, 2 batches of cookies, one batch for my neighbor. A savory pie. Visited with friends. Hi Michele! Took pictures of my beautiful daughter for prom. Hopefully she will let me post a picture. Read, and lots of my daughters friends came after dance for a marathon movie all nighter. They are now in my kitchen eating donuts. Its Sunday. A new day. If my "digestion" holds out I will be going to church and who knows for the rest of the day. All I know is that it will not include TV:)

No TV-Day 8

Easiest day so far! Kept busy around the house. Made a trial run on a dessert I need to make for an occasion this weekend. LL and I went for a long walk after dinner.

Day 10 will be fun hopefully if the weather holds out. We're going fishing:)

No TV-Day 6 and Day 7

As you can tell below. During the days I have kept pretty busy. Evenings are another thing. Last night I went to sleep about 7:30 pm. No lie. Lucky for me I was really tired and still slept through the night. Well most of the night.

Today I kept busy making bread, juices and chores. I also went to grocery store. Made homemade vegetarian Pad Thai. Well vegetarian for me. I put ham in it for LL. So that is the rundown of the last couple days of no TV. Need to find a rhythm or routine for the evenings. But still on track for that Bento:)

Bento "Window Shopping"

Well I am feeling a bit better today. Went to the doctor appointment in Portland. Beforehand I don't eat, do an enema (sorry), and take a pain pill so that the exam is bearable. So even though I am feeling better today, and I had great plans to get a lot done, my husband convinced me that I still need to take it easy for the rest of the day. By the way, doctor said everything looked good.:)

As I am not watching TV, I decided to window shop online for my bento reward. I know. I am only 5 days into this challenge but you can bet the first moment the 30 days are over I am getting online and ordering my first real bento. So here are my first bentos I am considering.

This is the laptop bento. Very practical and if I was shopping for LL's lunch, I might consider this but I want a bento more authentic. More Japanese.

Maybe like this.................................


Multicolored three tiered bento. Very cute and can be bought for around $35. I like this a lot and am thinking maybe this is the one. That is until I saw

This one........................................



This is a two tiered bento. Very authentic. I think the wood is beautiful. It looks like the right size. This is what it looks like inside.

I really think this is the one. It cost just under $35. There is one problem. There is just one left in stock. So by the time I am ready to order in about 3 weeks, it will probably be gone. But I know myself and will not order early. I will so not follow through with the challenge if I don't have this carrot spurring me on. Oh the games I have to play on myself. Well I will just keep looking. Who knows, maybe there is even a better one out there with my name on it.

No TV-Day 5

I got through day 5 and it was a challenge. It was a challenge only because I really was not feeling well, so I did not keep myself busy. I sat around most the day. Read a little, surfed the blogs a little, and mostly just sat and looked out the window. But I did not watch TV. Hopefully I will be feeling better. Today, will be day6. I have a doctor's appointment in Portland and hope everything checks out OK.

I will blog about day 6 later and hope I will be more active and more myself.

No TV-Day 4 Sunday

HERE FISHY, FISHY, FISHY........................

So we heard conflicting reports on whether they stocked the local reservoir down the road from us. Well, I am pretty sure they did not. We got skunked. But so did everyone else at the lake, so will try again later in the week.

We got out a little late, about 8:00


Oregon ducks, Not the college team but the original. Couldn't get a closer picture unfortunately.


LL yelling at me to quit taking a picture of him. Isn't that sweet:)



Now you might ask why I am wearing that ridiculous hat. Well I don't rightly know. All I do know is that my Grandma, who was the best fisherman I know, always wore a straw hat while fishing. Now days I could just wear sunscreen but in honor of my Grandma Agnes, who has been gone for 34 years, I wear this ridiculous hat.

Came home after a couple hours. I made french toast and bacon. LL did yard work and I wandered around having a hard time focusing on anything. I wasn't feeling well. Anyway, went and visited my mom, went for a walk, came home and put the wicker furniture that was painted the day before back on the balcony.




We took son M. on a car ride scoping out camping sites. Came home and made a dinner of Tilapia and rice. Read and went to bed early.

Weekends are definitely more of a challenge without TV, but I made it through the first weekend. Back to the weekday routine:)