Sashimi House Sakuraya

To date (after more than a month after I reported the problem), I have:
- Had 4 line checks and a modem change.
- To call up the Singtel technical hotline every night to inform them about the disconnection. It has gotten to a point where I don't even remember which seminar rooms my classes are held but I know the 13 digit number for Singtel. Dial 1800 8486 933, press [broadband number], press '3' for technical, press '1' for wireless...
- Spoken to countless customer service staff and 3 tech managers, who make me repeat my month-long agony every time someone new takes over.
- In the last couple of days, received calls from a manager who tells me they are "monitoring the situation but still unable to find out the internet disruption".
-Expressed every desire to cancel the account, but am told it's not possible because they have to monitor the situation and submit a report to the management.

If you are thinking of signing up with Singtel, think twice. And think about me.

To top it off, it's crunch time at SMU and depending on the level of progress for each module- it's either:
1. consolidate report --> edit edit edit
2. attend meetings --> "brainstorm" (aka discuss and trash ideas) --> delegate (my favourite word) work --> arrange for next meeting

Lately, I found myself itching. Not itching for something sinful or decadent. Just itching. I think the new-found rashes on the back of my hands, elbows and ankles are indicators of stress. They aren't full-blown rashes but white flaky bits on red patches. These rashes are a new thing for me because I usually only binge eat during stress. How odd.

For reasons known to some, my tastebuds remain slow to pick up the enjoyment of Japanese food here in Singapore. Having Japanese on weekends is our family tradition and it is beginning to feel a little tiresome even if we were just going through the motion. I did it before, I have always done so and I should continue doing so. A cuisine whose regular dishes holds very little surprises, the real surprise is perhaps why most Japanese restaurants in Singapore fail to live up to expectations.



We had sashimi, Soba and tempura, Saba shioyaki, kajiki teriyaki, chawanmushi , nabeyaki udon, wafu salad and chicken karaage



There was nothing to suggest that the hot food was any more spectacular than say, conveyor belt branches. The dishes were pedestrian and the meal was a stroll down the well-trodden cobblestone path.



Perhaps food has been an easy scapegoat because delving deeper, I find myself yearning for the Japanese reserved pleasantness. Replicating the menu is the easy part, the difficulty lies in managing the "imperceptibles"- the ambiance, service and mood. I'm suddenly reminded of a course I took in Copenhagen on Outsourcing, where the lecturer spoke on how easy it was to transfer codified knowledge but one could never truly pass on intangibles, without altering the pre-existing culture.

I acknowledge the problem lies with me and my nostalgia for the Japanese characteristic service. Till I get over it, abstinence may be the only way to go.