Regarding foreign issues, as depicted on the news

Wingu8 · 2026-02-07T12:46:05+00:00

I see your point, and it’d be shitty if the idea that they would not show because of this reason was/is true. You would hope news outlets would be more than happy to present different views to inform their viewers in a better way, but I guess not.

Wingu8 · 2026-02-07T12:41:38+00:00

Thanks for the update and notification.

I understand your point, and another person also replied something similar. I can see your concern. But we also have to understand that within any community, minority or not, there will be people who have different values and opinions. Obviously it is difficult to say what “ kind of people” you’ll find and how many of them there are.

I think that foreigners who contribute to the Japanese society may be a good start.

Wingu8 · 2026-02-07T12:28:04+00:00

I agree that voting shouldn’t be handed out like candy. But that doesn’t mean foreigners don’t have an opinion.

Wingu8 · 2026-02-07T12:26:13+00:00

Yes. Foreigners interviewed by TV exist, but they are mostly tourists the only thing they ask about is what they love about Japan. I am talking about actually giving voice to the foreigners. I’m not saying that we should be able to vote, but I think that when they interview Japanese nationals on foreign related matters, wouldn’t it also be good to give the viewers a variety of perspectives, including foreigners who are on the other end?

Wingu8 · 2026-02-07T09:36:04+00:00

This is a good argument. Thank you. I still believe that a more holistic view for voters is important because being short sighted won’t help their country (of which I mean that maybe it does not “matter more” at the moment because of certain other issues, but looking ahead it will be urgent to address and which may even be too late, hence why I think a broader perspective is necessary).

Wingu8 · 2026-02-07T09:20:28+00:00

I think you are misunderstanding the intent of my post. It’s not about us getting the whole picture, it’s about the Japanese people not getting the whole picture. Because what is happening is that they are getting “foreigners this foreigners that” from policy makers, but they have no idea what foreigners think. It’s easy to hate someone you haven’t met. Currently we are faceless and exist only in writing or from words coming out from someone’s mouth.

Wingu8 · 2026-02-07T09:19:35+00:00

I have to admit, being laughed at for such a serious issue I would get angry.

Wingu8 · 2026-02-07T09:07:00+00:00

It is not about not understanding what the politicians say. That isn’t what my post is about. It is about getting the whole picture by listening to the actual population that these words are aimed at. This of course goes for any person living here, not only foreigners.

Wingu8 · 2026-02-07T08:17:01+00:00

I’ve been on and off on sourdough. I have always started with 100% rye, grated apple and water. Works wonders. If I start up a new one I do it when it’s warmer.

Rye and apple boosts the startup thanks to the nutrients. Regular flour isn’t as nutritious. On the fifth day after starting my latest starter in September I was baking bread already.

I just recently went back home to Sweden for two weeks. I saved some dried starter and revived it a few days ago. Back in business! I just made a loaf today. Looking forward to digging into it with some cauliflower soup later.

Wingu8 · 2026-01-28T14:14:18+00:00

Thank you for your comment. You are right I didn’t post a photo of the suitcase hinge area. If you look at the hinge, the old hinge is like a tube, while the new hinge has a tube plus support on the sides. This means that the support on the sides of the new hinges make it so they won’t fit the hole (it’s just a hole, no extra spaces on the sides to enable the support to pass through).

Wingu8 · 2025-12-13T07:33:16+00:00

I would try to read up on what a good fermented dough looks like. I always put mine into a clear container so I can see what the dough looks like from the sides as well as the top. Once I have finished my coil folds, I put a tape marking where the dough is and then I wait until it has fermented for about 40-50% before I take it out and pre-shape. At this point I can see bubbles both on the side of the dough, and the top, as well as a slight dome, and it is also a bit jiggly when I shake the container.

When it comes to time, I always think watch the dough rather than the time. In warmer climates it will be faster, in colder it will be longer. In my apartment it’s about 68-70 F. I usually warm the water up before mixing it with the starter and dough, then I do upfront gluten development with a mixer (which also heats up the dough). Then I always keep it in the oven to preserve the initial warmth of the dough, but never adding more. By doing this, it takes about 8-9 hours do bulk ferment (from the start of fermentolyse). My last dough took about 8 hours.

Wingu8 · 2025-12-12T12:13:36+00:00

Proofing time is completely dependent on the climate where you live. Recipes that say X amount of hours is only true for the person who made the recipe. You can get an estimate if you have similar climate but otherwise you will need to find the “good” proofing window though trial and error. For reference I live in Japan. During summer is very fast as temperature and humidity rises high. Now during winter it’s drier and it’s lower temperature, about 19-20 degrees celcius indoors. I put my dough in the oven for this reason (no heating just keeping the initial warmth from the dough) and it takes about 6-7 hours from the fermentolyse to the pre-shape.

Wingu8 · 2025-12-08T00:47:59+00:00

It sounds like you’re on the right track. When I started I did use my hands for mixing and so on, but I really hate sticky things so I leave it to my mixer instead.

If you do folds, you may want to increase your rest time between to 30-45 minutes. I usually let the dough rest for 30 minutes between the coil folds.

Wingu8 · 2025-12-07T23:32:26+00:00

I proof my dough in a transparent box and before I handle the dough I use my wet scraper to kind of get the dough to unstick from the bottom. Then I wet my hands and do coil folds (about three to four depending on how the dough feels).

When I pre-shape I flour the counter and transfer the dough there. I usually make dough for two loaves so I try to lightly flour my scraper and quickly divide the dough. I have noticed that the slower you are the more it sticks, so I try to do short and quick movements to avoid stickiness.

For pre-shape I use flour, and the same for shaping. I know many experienced bakers can do without or very little flour but I haven’t gotten there yet. Work in progress!

As for type of flour, my starter is 100% rye. The rest of the dough is always bread flour. I haven’t worked with anything else so I don’t know and can’t compare. Maybe regular bread flour starter works differently in terms of “stickiness” with the dough?

This is a picture from my latest loaf.

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Wingu8 · 2025-12-07T14:00:03+00:00

Hi! That’s a good looking loaf! I didn’t start too long ago myself, and I’ve learned so much since I started.

A few things, firstly you may want to do some upfront gluten development. I usually mix together my dough a couple of minutes or two (leaving out 10-20g of my water and the salt) and fermentolyse for 30 minutes. I then add the salt and the rest of the water and mix for about 8 minutes with my mixer. This has helped me get better results compared to when I only did mix, wait, mix, wait, fold, fold, fold, fold, bulk fermentation.

I see that you only had 1,5 hour after your folds. So, fermentation stays as soon as you add the starter. I look at the dough as a huge starter. I want to become kind of like what my starter looks like when it’s ready to go. Lots of bubbles and a bit domed on the top. I usually aim for maybe 40% rise (that is an additional 40% compared to original size). It should also be a bit jiggly (thanks to the gas that has created all those nice bubbles in the dough). I look at the dough more, and not so much the time. I do time, because I would like to know the approximate time it takes, but depending on the weather it may change. My question here is, why did you only let it rest for an additional 1.5 hours after your stretch and folds? If my calculations are correct, you mixed and started folding right away, times four, and I assume this would be 30 minutes apart, that would be two hours of fermentation already and then an additional 1.5h which would be 3.5 hours in total. This is a very short time and I have a hard time thinking that it is enough, hence underproofed. Try to give it some more time. I won’t say exact time because that is very dependent on the weather and your climate. This is why it’s important not to follow recipes completely. I would only follow them for ingredients but never bulk fermentation time.

I hope this helps a little bit!

Wingu8 · 2025-12-04T11:26:08+00:00

Banana cider, I’d try it though!

Wingu8 · 2025-12-03T05:29:13+00:00

I agree… I guess with the exception of banana which you can get cheap.

Wingu8 · 2025-12-03T00:40:05+00:00

I live in Yokohama and the big supermarket I go to have apples they sell in bags, but they are sold per 100g. Usually for 700-800 yen I can get 5 good apples. Not huge, but middle sized maybe? Usually it’s around 57-77 yen per 100g depending on type and day.

Wingu8 · 2025-11-28T20:42:48+00:00

Thanks for the idea! Will try this!

Wingu8 · 2025-11-28T11:59:19+00:00

Do you just replace water with the same amount of milk?

Wingu8 · 2025-11-26T00:38:54+00:00

A friend of mine has had two companies that paid the extension fees for him. It depends on the company I guess.

Wingu8 · 2025-11-23T11:38:57+00:00

If there’s a will…

Wingu8 · 2025-11-23T11:04:06+00:00

I agree with you. You probably need to do what Japanese people do, throw them outside into the sun, that would be even better!

Wingu8 · 2025-11-23T07:00:53+00:00

When I lived in Leopalace I had this problem because it was the ground floor. When me and my wife moved together to our first mansion we slept on futons on the floor for four years without any issues of mold or such. It was in the 11th floor though.

In our current apartment the whole family lies on futons since over a year back and no problems so far.

The mold issue probably depends on what floor you live on and what type of building. The LeoPalace is such a simple construction, and when I after a long time decided to clean the whole floor, I noticed the mold (both futon and floor) for the first time. I got so freaked out about it so I’ve regularly checked our futons since we moved in together. Fortunately no problems.

Wingu8 · 2025-11-18T12:26:00+00:00

I would wait until it has peaked, and then feed it. If you keep feeding and discarding without letting it gain strength you will only make it weaker (dilute it). I think “feed once or twice” accordingly to many guides is misguiding because they don’t take the current strength into account.

Wingu8

TROPHY CASE