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Tanada Go-nin Otoko
Kabuki debut! It’s been years since I’ve been on a stage for any sort of performance and this one was special – a Kabuki skit in Japanese, and I was in drag. Since I was in makeup at 9:30 and in costume from 11 am for our 2 pm performance, I made sure to add…
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Martial Traditions
Today we went to Mishima Jinja in Kimitsu to watch the festival there. It’s a special demonstration of traditional martial arts based on swords and farm implements. Five hundred years ago, the area didn’t have a daimyo overlord to provide protection from warring neighbors, so the peasants had to defend themselves as best they could.…
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Now, Autumn
Hooray, the weather has changed! For the first time since June 22, the overnight low was under 20C. I slept with all the windows open last night and enjoyed the light chill of 18.2 degrees and low humidity. For the next ten days, daytime highs are forecast to be 30 or under. A welcome change…
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Yumbo!
One of my goals for 2024 is to get my excavator certification. It’s not a typical goal for a middle-aged lady, but read on for the why. Thanks to a lucky chain of events, I am helping to organise an English-friendly certification course in Kamogawa in November. We are currently hustling to get enough students…
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Rice shortage
Japan is facing a crisis of its main staple, rice. In terms of food self-sufficiency, rice is about the only thing that Japan produces in large enough quantities for everyone – about 7 million tons/year. But since summer, rice supplies have dwindled. Prices have jumped about 20%. Grocery shelves are empty and customers are limited…
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Trivial Pursuit 日本版
Yesterday at a thrift store, Tod stumbled upon an old Trivial Pursuit game in a dusty original box wrapped in cling film with an oddly printed out import label on it. We both have fond memories of playing Trivial Pursuit around our family tables, so he snatched it up for 2000 yen. Upon unboxing, we…
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Wara no junbi
At Oyama Senmaida, the season’s first official harvest activity is on Sunday, when the sake owners’ program brings in its three paddies of grain. I was there for the planting and I’ll be there for harvest, too. There is lots of work to be done before the owners come for their event. One of the…
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Typhoons incoming
Last weekend was the annual festival at Oyama Fudoson, where the seven local villages carry their portable shrines up the mountain to pray for rain to swell the rice before harvest. I think those prayers may have worked too well (but too late) this year. A couple weeks ago the JMA made its three month…
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Paneer vs Chikko
As a fun Saturday project, Tod suggested we make paneer. I was on board with that because I have been wanting to make the Chiba version of paneer, chikko katametano. Chikko katametano (entirely too long a name, so I just call it chikko) is traditionally made with colostrum, but since that’s not available unless you…
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Oops, I slid it again
We had a long, hard deluge of rain on Friday night into Saturday morning. Thunder boomed; lightning crackled. Kamogawa announced a Level 4 evacuation and the local school opened up as a shelter for anyone in landslide territory. It was a big deal. It was hard to sleep, so the cats and I were up…
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