-
Oshima special trip
For about 6 weeks in early spring, the Tokaikisen jetfoil runs a seasonal service from Tateyama to Oshima for the annual camellia festival. Tod and I have wanted to make the trip for seven years, but this year I finally did it. But without Tod. This morning, Naomi, Fujii-san, and I hopped on board the…
-
Sleep anti-routine
Whoever manages good sleep hygiene probably lives alone in the city. Let me recount last night and see if there’s a clue about why I am usually tired in the daytime. 8:00 pm Beryl jumps off my lap and runs out of the living room. I look outside. There’s a raccoon peering towards the cat…
-
What if everything’s a spectrum?
Neurodiversity, gender identity, sexual preference, politics, religion, mental illness, physical wellness. While we aim for some personal goal or societal endpoint, all of our lives seem to be lived on a spectrum. A sliding scale. A gradient. A tapestry. What if all points on any spectrum were acceptable? Grey areas, in. Black and white, out.…
-
Before social media
This morning, I saw the headline of an article in The Atlantic, “The Age of Social Media is Ending” by Ian Bogost. It’s behind a paywall, so I didn’t read it, but… It got me thinking about the pre-platform days. How did we connect with people online? If social media dies, what will we turn…
-
Nearly drowned
Three days ago, I nearly drowned in the shower. That sounds pretty dramatic, doesn’t it? But it’s true. A combination of hayfever, a lingering cold, and jala neti almost did me in. I came home from several joyous hours at 555 on Saturday afternoon covered in cedar pollen which was making me itch, so I…
-
Cladding
Sasaki-san just started installing it yesterday, but I am already delighted with the exterior material of the house. It’s Japanese cedar, sugi, just like most of the house. I am happy to be using the trees that cause me so much allergy drama every spring. I hope these were chopped down and not replanted. The…
-
Hometown tourism
Yesterday, as we did our usual Saturday errand run, Tod surprised me with two brief stops en route. I love that he is always devising ways to make our days memorable, whether its with good food or unexpected adventures. First, we went for a walk on the rocky coast at Hamaogi. The tide pools are…
-
Insulation
Traditional Japanese houses are not insulated. They are built to allow air to flow through them which ventilates and helps to prevent mould, allows smoke to rise into the thatch, and all of that. The focus of traditional buildings is managing summer heat and humidity, not the hypothermic chill of winter. However, most people in…
-
Pickle Chicken
Every time we finish a jar of pickles, I do a happy dance. Tod makes the most delicious fried chicken with the leftover brine. We call it Pickle Chicken. To be honest, it’s a riff on J Kenji Alt’s Buttermilk Brined Southern Fried Chicken recipe, but with pickle brine substituting for the milk marinade. Pickle…
-
Kobayashi Mikan
Mrs. Kawasaki introduced me to the Kobayashi mikan tree on one of our early walks around 555 in spring of 2021. It’s a compact tree with low branches that sits to the west of the house. This was clearly a fruit she liked, because she lingered a while to admire it. “It’s good for jam,”…
Archives