old enough

I recently watched 'Old Enough!' on Netflix, it's a Japanese reality series that documents toddlers, aged roughly 2 to 5, completing errands alone for the first time, all while being under supervision & recorded by camera crews in disguise along their journey.

I find the premise of show and the execution of it very interesting. Having a toddler of my own, I even imagined how mine would look like in the scenario. One time I even floated the idea to my wife - to set up one simple errand and to send our kid out for a quest, with all the candidates (relatives/neighbours) who could join as crews, the checkpoints along the route and what not. I would't say she's very amused with my pitch haha.

The lacklustre reception to my idea makes sense because there's significant cultural differences between Malaysia & Japan in terms of approach to child-rearing. Japanese puts more emphasise to and encourages early responsibility and self-sufficiency. And the fact that their crime rate is one of the lowest, on top of many other factors that characterise them as a society such as the neighborhood, policing, discipline, respect, and social harmony - all makes a safer environment for such experiment showcased in the tv show.

But I'm not giving up with my plans yet. Would be so cool if we get one done for the home videos collection, and show it to our kid when he's all grown up right? haha

motion sickness

2nd quarter of 2026.

time passes by really quickly, with everyday worldly pursuits, too often I was caught lacking to realise how precious time is.

I watched this short reels on social media about a character called Uncle Mike. After some digging I learnt that the clips were from a Japanese TV series titled The Solitary Gourmet. The story took salesman, Gorō Inogashira (a.k.a Uncle Mike) travelling through Japan for business meetings before becoming hungry and heading off to find a local restaurant to eat. He visits various restaurants and street booths to sample the local cuisine, with each chapter featuring a different place and dish. What's interesting to me is each restaurant visit and meal time portrayed as a personal revelation to Uncle Mike, starting with curiosity turning to fascination ended with appreciation. Uncle Mike took his time experiencing the restaurant he visited and dish ordered off the menu, sometimes even ordering seconds when it's that good.

These past year, I spent time on work probably more than ever, even doubling down by getting into part-time freelancing. I may be gaining in certain areas, but I am sure regressing in some other areas too. For example, I accumulate stress and have less disposable free time.

In the series, after a day's hard work Uncle Mike rewards himself by going food hunting that does not only nourishes his body but also rejuvenates his spirit. I aspire to slow down & take more time for more immersive experience like Uncle Mike, and enjoying simple pleasures of life- not just going through the motion of everyday every time.