Making Buuz for Mongolian New Year

Mongolian New Year is held at the Lunar New Year in February. We celebrated with friends, made buuz, played knucklebone games and toasted one another with Mongolian vodka. In Mongolia, making buuz is a communal event. Groups progress from one household to the next, first helping to make, then helping to eat the tasty dumplings.

Recipes aren't necessary, but you can find them with a quick Google search. Essentially, the dough is flour and mixed with enough water to make a dough. Knead until smooth and let rest. Roll out snakes of dough, cut into walnut-sized lumps, roll into a ball then roll into flat circles with a rolling pin. Take a spoonful of filling -- traditionally, a mixture of mutton, onion, garlic, perhaps some cabbage, salt and pepper -- and place it in the circle of dough. Pinch the dough around the filling and repeat many times until you have enough buuz to fill your steamer. Steam the dumplings until the filling is cooked through. Enjoy with beer or vodka.

Donate to Japan Earthquake and Tsunami Relief Efforts

Updated Tues., March 15

AMERICAN RED CROSS

Red Cross officials say donors can text REDCROSS to 90999 and a $10 donation will automatically be charged to donor’s phone bill, or donations can be made directly on its Web site.

OBUBU TEA PLANTATION

"Among the generous supporters of Obubu in Japan, tea lovers who have helped us pursue our dream of spreading tea and tea farming around the world, we are announcing the From Tea Lover to Tea Lover Donation Campaign to help the 50 customers hit by the recent earthquake and tsunami in Northern Japan."

CAMELLIA TEAS ON BEHALF OF THE CANADIAN RED CROSS

"Please complete the form below to make your donation. On behalf of Camellia Teas of Ottawa, we would like to extend our heartfelt thanks for your contribution."

In addition to the Red Cross, friends have also suggested these websites:

CIVIC-FORCE.ORG

JAPANESE CULTURAL AND COMMUNITY CENTER OF NORTHERN CALIFORNIA

CATHOLIC RELIEF SERVICES

PEACE WINDS AMERICA

JAPAN SOCIETY OF NORTHERN CALIFORNIA

And even if you're broke, you can try to raise awareness:

http://www.newser.com/story/114071/japan-earthquake-how-you-can-help.html?utm_source=part&utm_medium=inbox&utm_campaign=newser

This list is from the New York Times website. (More information about giving, for this and other causes, is available online from the GuideStar database and CharityWatch.org on nonprofit agencies and the BBB Wise Giving Alliance.)

AMERICAN RED CROSS
Red Cross officials say donors can text REDCROSS to 90999 and a $10 donation will automatically be charged to donor’s phone bill, or donations can be made directly on its Web site.
AMERICARES
Information is available on the organization’s Web site.
CARE
CARE is one of the world’s largest private international humanitarian organizations. Their offices in Asia are on high alert and have ensured that staff are informed of the tsunami warnings and other related developments.
DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS
Information is available on the organization’s Web site.
GLOBALGIVING.ORG
GlobalGiving is working with International Medical Corps, Save the Children, and other organizations on the ground to disburse funds to organizations providing relief and emergency services to victims of the earthquake and tsunami. Donors can text JAPAN to 50555 to give $10, and larger increments can be submitted on GlobalGiving’s Web site.
INTERNATIONAL MEDICAL CORPS
Information is available on the organization’s Web site.
LIONS CLUBS INTERNATIONAL
Information is available on the organization’s Web site.
THE SALVATION ARMY
The Salvation Army has been providing food and shelter to Tokyo commuters who were stranded when public transportation was interrupted by the earthquake. They are to send a team to Sendai, a city about 250 miles Tokyo, to assess the situation there. Text JAPAN or QUAKE to 80888 to make a $10 donation. (Make sure to respond “YES” to the Thank You message you receive.) Donations can also be made on the organization’s Web site or by calling 1-800-SAL-ARMY.
SAVE THE CHILDREN
To make a donation, visit Save the Children’s Web site, call 1-800-728-3843, or text JAPAN to 20222 to donate $10.
SHELTERBOX.ORG
Shelterbox.org is a disaster-relief organization that focuses on providing survival materials such as tents and cooking equipment to families displaced by disasters.
UJA-FEDERATION OF NEW YORK
Information is available on the organization’s Web site or by calling (212) 836-1486.

"How to follow the Earthquake" from 'The Atlantic'

How to Follow the Japanese Earthquake on the Web

Mar 11 2011, 10:35 AM ET By Alexis Madrigal 2

A guide to news and information resources from across the Internet that will help you stay on top of this developing story.

A massive 8.9 earthquake struck about 80 miles off the coast of Japan, wreaking havoc on one of the world's most disaster-prepared countries and generating a devastating tsunami.
As in recent natural disasters, traditional news organizations, one-off sites, and Internet crisis agencies have swung into action. This is your guide for where to find information and resources about the 10th-largest quake since 1900.

News Resources

• AP summary
• BBC liveblog
• Wikipedia page for the Sendai quake
• Japanese New York Times' commenters write about the quake
• NPR Facebook page about the disaster
• CNN Video
• @earthquake_japan [updates in Japanese]
• The Atlantic's In Focus photo blog
• The Atlantic Wire liveblog
• Mostly English Twitter hashtags: #japanquake, #jpquake, #earthquake, #Japan, #tsunami, #hitsunami
• Mostly Japanese Twitter hashtags: #saigai, #eqjp
• Columbia journalism professor Sree Sreenivasan's link aggregation

General Resources

• CrisisWiki.org
• U.S. Geological Survey quake updates
• Humanitarian Early Warning Service

Resources for People in Japan

• Google Person Finder: a pop-up message board to post and find information about people missing. Almost 7000 records have been entered into the database.
• Global Voices' bloggers on the ground in Japan
• Japanese Fire and Disaster Management Agency

Resources for the Pacific

• Pacific Tsunami Warning Center
• Tsunami travel time map
• @HawaiiNewsNow
• HITsunami.com
• Live cam at Ocean Beach in San Francisco by Mat Honan
• Inundation map for the Bay Area [PDF]

8.9 Earthquake, Tsunami

At 5:30 this morning, we were awakened by a "reverse 911" phone call: an emergency service that alerted us to a tsunami warning created by earthquakes in Japan of magnitude 8.9. We are unable to reach our friends in Tokyo, Yokohama, Shizuoka, Choshi and Kamisu. We pray that they and their loved ones are well.

We can do little but check FaceBook, Twitter and YouTube feeds for information. As the day progressed, we collected these links. Please share what information you have.


James Harada's blog and twitter feed from Kamisu, Ibaraki-ken
http://twitter.com/#!/jimkenhara
http://jimkenhara.wordpress.com/

Video of tsunami surge at Sendai
http://www.cdrole.fr/video-drole.php?vids=Video-exclusive-de-larrivee-du-Tsunami-sur-les-cotes-du-Japon

Japan Society of Northern California's relief effort
http://give2asia.org/japansociety

February Tea Ceremony Demonstraton

Ready for Ryakubondate, photo by Lauraven Dodd

Four lovely people attended our latest Chanoyu demonstration last Sunday, including a young lady who had taken a weekend seminar at Humboldt State University in 2006.

Harvey explained procedures and a little history behind the ceremony. Laura did a great job in the mizuya -- and took this photo. I did Ryakubondate -- not particularly well, but that didn't seem to matter too much to our guests. I still enjoyed making the tea and we all enjoyed drinking it!

Our next tea gathering will be on March 20. If you're in the area, please join us!

Plum Crazy

Plum trees have started blooming. It makes us giddy to think spring is coming soon.

Artware Affair 2011

The Ink People Center for the Arts -- ardent sponsor of fledgling arts organizations such as our own Horai Center -- had it tough in 2010. A magnitude 6.5 earthquake on Jan. 9, 2010, damaged the city-owned building that housed the Inker's offices and galleries. Officials yellow-tagged the building, and Inkers found haven in a suite of offices leased to the Northern California Indian Development Council.

The Artware Affair is an important fundraising events for The Ink People but this year it seems to have more importance in light of the burden of increased financial hardships. Hardships never put a damper on a good Ink People party, so vamos a guarachar!

2011 Artware Affair ~ HAVANA NIGHTS

Saturday, January 29, 2011 - 5 to 10pm
Wharfinger Building, Eureka, Calif.

artware.inkpeople.org

Un saludo carinoso!

Please join us for our 2011 gala celebration: HAVANA NIGHTS. The evening will be filled with exciting entertainment by the amazing HSU Afro-Cuban Club, fabulous food, decadent desserts and, of course, an incredible auction from local artists. This great event usually held in March is now January 29th... we hope you will mark your calendars. As they say, "Vamos a guarachar!" (Let's enjoy!)

Artists have big dreams. When these dreams benefit our community, The Ink People Center for the Arts is there to help make them happen!

This amazing evening will include live and silent art auctions featuring the work of many top artists of the North Coast, entertainment by The HSU Afro-Cuban Club and Bailarmos Salsa Dancers, mouth-watering food by Ms. M's Catering and a delightful themed Dessert As Art competition. Tickets are only $40 and a table of 8 may be reserved for just $280.
For more information, contact The Ink People at 442-8413 or Shoshanna at 616-6876.
We would love to invite artists to participate in this years' celebration... contact Shoshanna if you are interested!

Cigar Box Transformations

Artist-transformed cigar boxes will be auctioned for this year's Artware Affair -- and Holly Harvey of Horai Center made a contribution. This cigar box, titled "Bamboo," was inspired by Japanese maki-e or lacquerware. On display through the month of January at the Ink People's alternative gallery at Eureka's Adorni Center.

Before...

... and after! Click to enlarge.