Archives

Show All

  • 2009
  • 2008
  • 2007
    • December
    • November
    • October
    • September
    • August
    • July
    • June
      • Anticipation
        06/29/07
        Assuming the weather cooperates, our fuzzy dogs will join us in Japan tomorrow. Yay! I have been studiously avoiding any reports of Washington weather because I don't want to know how likely it is that they and Puller, who's accompanying them over, will get grounded. United won't f

      • View on the Way Home
        06/28/07
        My ride home from shopping takes me toward the mountains east of Kitakami. The mountains form a backdrop for the cement plant near us, which sets up this view:



        Even on a day during which the sky has turned as stormy as this one, this sight makes me inexplicably happy. It may

      • 8 AM at the Factory
        06/27/07
        Or, why I'm glad I don't work at the factory next door.



        Actually, having an exercise routine built in as part of your work day might not be a bad idea. The Japanese people are traditionally pretty healthy, and this kind of health program has surely contributed.

      • Self-Aggrandizing Photo Op
        06/27/07
        In "Let's Sharing!"'s introductory post, I mentioned that there had been riding of bikes while wearing cute shoes and carrying cute handbags. By popular request, here's photographic evidence:



        Yes, Mona, it's the MoojooKen bag. Word of caution:

      • Dinner at Home
        06/26/07
        Tonight, we made okonomiyaki for dinner. Okonomiyaki is, in a word, awesome. It's a frittata/pancake-like thing made from an egg, flour, and naga-imo (Chinese yam) batter. Mix in some cabbage and whatever fillings you like (we had shrimp and white "slice cheese"), toss on the gridd

      • Spider at Night
        06/26/07


        In Japan, it is considered good luck to see a spider in the morning, and bad luck to see one at night. Alas, there seem to be many spiders around our house that come out only at night! Almost every window has one of these guys there to catch any small insects attracted by our lights.
      • The Tohoku School of Language
        06/25/07
        Out and about in Kitakami, we use our textbook Japanese every day. Through the generosity of our neighbors, friends, and co-workers, we are learning the nuances of Tohoku-hogen, or the dialect of the six prefectures of northeastern Honshu. A few weeks ago, over a Chinese dinner with some friends,

      • Lost, Regardless of Translation
        06/24/07
        Q: What do Arlington, San Francisco, and Kitakami have in common?
        A: They all have lovely bridges. Also, I've gotten lost there.

        Whatever changes living abroad will bring, being able to orient myself geographically is unlikely to be one of them. Doesn't matter whether I

      • Miyazawa Kenji (the cocktail)
        06/22/07
        2 oz. Suntory Whisky
        1/4 oz. Sweet Vermouth
        Dash of bitters

        Shake ingredients with cracked ice in a cocktail shaker. Pour into a chilled cocktail glass and garnish with an awful maraschino cherry (or substitute a decent maraschino cherry if you can get one).

        This dri

      • Adjustment and the Next Big Thing
        06/19/07
        Two-and-a-half weeks in to the Japan adventure, I'm beginning to realize that everyday life isn't so different from life in America, but it's different enough that it will take some getting used to. I go grocery shopping almost every day because Japanese cooking places so much emphas

      • Adventure
        06/18/07
        When we made our plans to come to Japan, friends and family often commented on the "big adventure" we were going on, or "all the adventures" we would have in Japan. Heck, we even used that word ourselves when talking about the move. But since we've been here, have we reall

      • Swingin' at Cafe Goo-Goo
        06/15/07
        Finding Japanese classes in Kitakami is proving to be somewhat challenging. Given that it's not a city drawing huge numbers of gaikokujin, perhaps it's not so surprising. It's problematic, though, because I very much need to be studying formally. So, at least for now, I've dec

      • A Day in the Life
        06/14/07
        8:00 am -- Wake up to sounds of small city life, including clanking and machinery from nearby cement plant.
        8:30 am -- Breakfast. Sometimes we have toast, eggs, or cereal (Japanese cornflakes + Iwate milk = awesome). Other days, we eat rice topped with umeboshi (pickled plums that look like

      • Stick That Out Your Window and Aerate It
        06/13/07
        Several of you expressed consternation upon learning that we have Lucy and Ricky futons in our expatriate marital home. Also about the availability of storage space in the demi-closets, but that had more to do with the pending opinion in Handbags et al. v. Trains.

        There is, however, a ve

      • The Lydia Deets Experience
        06/12/07
        Lately (meaning within the last three days), whenever I've mounted my sketchy bike, one scene flashed through my head. It's the scene near the end of "Beetlejuice," when Winona Ryder leaves school on her bike, rolling cheerfully down the hill, waving to her friends. Now, I'

      • Gifts
        06/11/07
        You might be in Japan if... you get a lot of little gifts from the companies you do business with.

        Sure, back home, you might find the occasional freebie. Fill your tank with gas, get a free toy car. Buy a bottle of Scotch, get a free tasting glass emblazoned with the distillery's

      • We're Live!
        06/11/07
        Greetings from Kitakami, and welcome to Let's Sharing! If the last week is any indication of how our lives will progress here, blog entries will center on the following topics:

        1) Whatever I'm cooking or we're eating;
        2) The cult of Matthew's moustache;
        3)