Police in the town of Nagareyama were at a loss about how to return an escaped African gray parrot to its owner, so the bird, tired of waiting, did the natural thing—he recited his name and address. And when I say "name," I mean Yosuke provided his first and last name to the police.Not bad, bird."I am Yosuke Nakamura, and I live at ..."—Mellow MonkVisit our tea pageWatch our videosSubscribe to this blog Read Full Story
If you look closely in this massive image of the Sun, you can see the Atlantis space shuttle and Hubble orbiting telescope silhouetted against it.caption—Mellow MonkVisit our tea pageWatch our videosSubscribe to this blog Read Full Story
Here is a fascinating optical illusion. When the page comes up, stare at the black dot in the middle of the image, then prepare to be amazed.If you want to start over, refresh your browser window.—Mellow MonkVisit our tea pageWatch our videosSubscribe to this blog Read Full Story
Mmm, don't these look scrumptious? Matcha truffles.I volunteer to taste-test any matcha truffles you make.—Mellow MonkVisit our tea pageWatch our videosSubscribe to this blog Read Full Story
The karesansui garden at Kyoto's Ryoanji Temple contains 15 rocks, but only 14 can be seen from any one location. The idea is that no matter what your perspective into any situation is, you're always missing something. Karesansui means "dry landscape" and is more commonly known in English as a Japanese rock garden.There are more pictures of the beautiful Ryoanji Temple here.As you sip your green tea, close your eyes and imagine you are contemplating this serene garden.—Mellow MonkVisit ... Read Full Story
Of all the abandoned structures shown in this collection, my favorite—in a kitchy way—is this old Bulgarian Soviet one.Click the pic for a large photo of this magnificent monstrosity.—Mellow MonkVisit our tea pageWatch our videosSubscribe to this blog Read Full Story
A sister site of the super well-done Japanese food site Just Hungry is the equally excellent Just Bento."Spring pasta and chickpea salad bento."—Mellow MonkVisit our tea pageWatch our videosSubscribe to this blog Read Full Story
When I first saw the heading about "sweat tea" I thought it might be referring to a "sweaty" pitcher of tea, or maybe an offshoot of Japan's super-popular beverage Pocari Sweat, but it turned out to be just a misspelling.Or maybe it's tea mixed with chili sauce?—Mellow MonkVisit our tea pageWatch our videosSubscribe to this blog Read Full Story
From green beauty expert Julie Gabriel's Green Beauty Guide comes a recipe for making your own green chai facial toner.Click the pic to see the book's Amazon page.—Mellow MonkVisit our tea pageWatch our videosSubscribe to this blog Read Full Story
The New Tea Lover's Treasury author and Tea Society founder James Norwood Pratt says:There is literally nothing better you can do for your physical self than drink tea. It fights everything from tooth decay to cancer. It's impossible to name any one substance that confers as many benefits as tea.Well said, Brother Pratt.The Tea Geek has recently interviewed Mr. Pratt.—Mellow MonkVisit our tea pageWatch our videosSubscribe to this blog Read Full Story
