Joshua Tree Roadtrip

Crossed off the bucket list-- visit Joshua Tree and stay at a fancy vacation home.

Yet another track day at Thunderhill

I wasn't driving, though. 

Redondo Beach, LA

The view from my hotel room.

Mazda Road To Indy

As I just recently installed a rollbar on my miata and am considering to attend one of track events at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, I decided to first visit the raceway and see other people racing there. 

Sequoia Sake and Box Shop

Some friends of mine are friends with the owner of Sequoia Sake Brewery and invited me to attend their brewery tour and sake tasting event. 

Mazda Miata and Monterey

Lover's Point. Looks tropical in photo but was freezing in real. But it was a beautiful place!

I happened to buy a 1997 Mazda Miata I found on Craigslist for $3500. It's a old car and a bit shaky and noisy but has no major problems and drives great! I plan to install a hard dog roll bar on it so that I can do more crazy things with this guy, e.g. drive on a raceway. My dad in Japan is so jealous.

SF City

Which photo do you like the more?

Death Valley Road Trip

Because she said she wants to go to Death Valley for a starry nights' photoshoot, like, next weekend.

My Auto Challenge

To be honest, I had truly never been interested in any automobile things in my life until it suddenly became my job. I literally never paid attention on any of the car brands (For example, somehow I believed Toyota's emblem represent Hitachi, and Hitachi doesn't even make cars! :P), and had no idea about how much cars could cost or anything. I happened to start working at a research devision of one of those automakers a year and half ago, but when I got the offer at the first place I didn’t even have a US driving license nor my own car. Ever since, I try to put all my effort to learn about cars and get myself excited about it, and the challenge still continues...

A Visit to Santa Cruz

Three years in Bay Area and first time visiting Santa Cruz. It was a lot more prettier that I'd expected. There are still some other places that I missed this time in Santa Cruz so I will definitely revisit there hopefully soon. 

Auberge du Soleil: A Fancy Brunch at Napa

I am not trying to make this blog a food blog, but well, food is photogenic, in general...

I got to know this restaurant and their relatively-reasonably-priced brunch course ($70-ish), thanks to this Japanese article. Food was good, and what's more the view from their patio was fantastic.

Lobster Roll @ New England Lobster Company

This plate was a little more than $20. I think they increased the price... although it tasted good.

Trip to San Diego

Photos from my trip to San Diego three months back. Great weather, beach, food and most importantly, my best friend-- cannot help loving this place ;)

Phish Concert at Shoreline Amphitheater

I like going to the concerts at the outdoor concert hall Shoreline Amphitheater in Mountain View, CA. They have a nice picnic area on the lawn to enjoy the show, and a pretty good PA system. Its location is fairly close from Mountain View downtown (where I live), so I can ride my bike to get there and avoid traffic jams entering the parking area. That day I went to a show of the world-famous  improvisation band, Phish.