I have to confess to a secret hobby: I collect bento boxes.
For those who don't know, bento is a style of eating common in Japan. Bento boxes are popular with schoolchildren as well as adults. Parents pack attractive, healthy lunches in these cute containers for their kids. Here is a group on Flickr that takes pictures of cutsie-wutsie bento boxes. And here is a bento blog. See? It's fun!
And here is my small collection. Atsuko (lovely mother to this boy) was kind enough to get me a new box on her last trip to Japan.
Hey, at least it's not Beanie Babies, or those horrid big-headed, dopey-eyed Precious Moments figurines.
Posted by Jen at January 13, 2007 10:57 PM