-
28 hours in Aomori
Yesterday I got on a plane for the first time since September 2019. I flew north to Aomori for work with Rob and CCJC. I was called in at the last minute to assist on a video shoot for the launch of Coca Cola’s new Ayataka tea products. My key task was driving, but I…
-
Cutting grass, inaka style
Recently, I started hearing the buzz of kusukari-ki, our pared-down country lawnmowers, around the valley. I took it as a clear sign that grass cutting season had arrived. Last year I made a mistake and started cutting the jungle at 555 in March…several weeks before everyone else. That meant I trimmed back flowers and forage…
-
Extending birthday week
I was wrong; birthday week wasn’t actually over. We had one final cake last night at dinner with friends. What a blast! P.S. Naomi said I look like “old Peko-chan” which made me laugh. I do look like her and I definitely have Peko-chan’s desire for sweets!
-
Ending Birthday Week
It’s the cats’ birthdays today. Mine was yesterday. Birthday week is now over. Fritter and Maura were born five years ago. Facebook shared a memory with me today – a 25 second video of Three licking infant Maura clean. Little did she know she’d be doing that thrice more for Futatsuyama, Calico #3 (later Isabella…
-
Birthday flowers
A log of what’s blooming today, a love letter to the plants 555, and a birthday gift to myself of walking around outside at dawn with with a cup of coffee and a camera. Before I even leave the house, I see flowers from the windows. The late-blooming camellia in the front garden is going…
-
Package design
When I was a younger woman, I was fascinated by package design. I loved the way cardboard boxes could be fashioned in surprising ways to safeguard their contents. Tetrapacks were lovely little puzzles which I finally solved; see my Tetrapocket pattern from 2006. I seriously considered a degree in industrial and package design. In my…
-
Birthday Week
My sister and I, and her daughter have birthdays all within the same week. So of course we refer to this as Birthday Week. There is a lot of cake baking activity. And though my family are far away, I have nearby friends with birthdays this week, too, and I try to keep up the…
-
Bonichi Shimbun
Today I am on the front page on the local paper, the Bonichi Shimbun. And at the top of the digital edition, too. On Monday, I was interviewed about my activity at Oyama Senmaida, specifically how I am working with Ushimura-san to update their English language materials and planning an English version of the website.…
-
Cat-astrophy
Yesterday, I headed over to Tod’s office to help with spring cleaning before guests start to arrive. When I alighted from the car, arms full of cleaning supplies, I heard a cat meowing loudly. So of course, I investigated. And I found this guy, with his leg completely wound up and stuck in the blue…
-
Winter into Spring
Woke up with a bit of a headache and decided to take a walk before yoga. Mother Nature gave me some lovely scenes on a foggy morning. Spring is on its usual rollercoaster of temperatures and precipitation. We’re finally getting rain so the weeds and grasses are waking up from their dormant rosettes. It won’t…
Archives