Hello Spring

It has been kind of quiet around here.  I guess we've been in hibernation waiting for the cold weather to move out so that we can enjoy traveling around.  Today we were finally able to take off our jackets and go for a nice walk.  Here's Drew checking out the ducks in the old, abandoned neighborhood that we frequented this past summer.

This 50 degree weather even had us hankering for a milkshake.  Without going to McDonald's, which we have vowed we would not do, the closest we can get is Coolish.  It's like a milkshake in a bag!  Although it tastes really great, we've been discussing the problem with the product name.  If it's just coolish, were they trying to say that it isn't cool enough to be considered cold?  Because it kind of says to me that this product is just okay, but not great.  Only cool-ish. Not sure they thought that one through when they decided to use English...

In other news, I finished my second practice hat, which turned out to be a much greater success than my first attempt.  It is a bit too wide for our heads, but at least it has given me the confidence to begin Drew's hat.  Hopefully this time I can get the sizing right.  

Refills

One of the things I love about Japan, that I'll probably forget about after returning home, is that they sell refills for everything.  Shampoo, lotion, dish washing soap, hand soap, etc.  Rather than having to buy a whole new hard plastic container for everything, you can just buy one of these soft plastic refills to add to your container.  In Japan, this kind of soft plastic can go in the non-burnable trash, but something made of hard plastic, like a shampoo bottle, has to be sent in the "dangerous" trash.  Such a great way to cut down on the hard plastic trash that is difficult, if not impossible, to recycle.  This, along with only turning on your hot water heater when you are about to use hot water, are such easy solutions.  I'll admit, I still have trouble only heating one room for a few hours a day, but I wish I could bring some of these practices home.

Our shampoo refill

About that practice hat...I got to talking to Drew while working on it and had a few mishaps.  First I started knitting the wrong side, then I dropped a stitch that I never figured out how to pick up.  So I went ahead and finished it off early, making an incredibly tiny yarmulke.  I'm currently working on another practice hat.

Baby Lettuce Greens

Transplanting day arrived this past weekend and we moved several of our lettuce plants into bigger pots.

Since we planted a bunch of seeds right on top of each other, we decided to thin it out a bit so that the strongest looking ones could thrive.  That allowed us to make a baby lettuce salad with the extras that we snipped away.

The verdict.............

Contemplating

Magnificent, of course!  This was the first time I'd ever eaten anything that I grew myself.  It's probably a rule that you always love the food you grow.

Hat Project

I've finally started working on Drew's long awaited hat.  My first step is to make a small prototype before using the yarn that Drew chose for the final product.  Turns out, making a hat has its own challenges.  Here are my first attempts at trying to join my yarn in a tube form.

Needless to say, I was getting very frustrated and started to think that there was no way I could figure this out using YouTube videos.  I'm much more of a hands on, teacher in the flesh kind of learner.  But then I got this.

A tube!  Anybody want some leg warmers, because I am all over that!  This gave me the confidence to start on my mini practice hat after a good nights sleep.  I started with the "rib stitch", then moved on to the "stockinette stitch", and then added in a stripe.  So far, so good.

My next move is to see if I can properly decrease the stitches to create the top of the hat.  Drew has requested a grey hat with a couple of hunter green stripes.  I'm basing his hat on the pattern linked below.  However, I don't completely understand all of the pattern's instructions, so I will be going by one of the easier hat patterns that is in the beginners book that Kerry got me for Christmas.  Thanks again for that!

http://brooklyntweed.net/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=2_4&products_id=13

Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day is not a big thing in Japan, but in each store I can usually find one or two chocolate displays. Honestly, if Drew hadn't mentioned that it was approaching, I think I may have completely forgotten about the holiday.  As part of my present to Drew, I made tacos and macaroni and cheese for dinner.  He also really likes those simple butter cookies, so I found a box of them at the international store.

He surprised me with two delicious doughnuts from our favorite doughnut shop, Mister Donut!  I was very impressed that he could get these for me without indulging in one himself.

Chinese New Year

Drew and I went to Yokohama, which is home to the largest China Town in Japan, to celebrate the Chinese New Year on February 10th.  I loved seeing all of the beautiful gates and temples.  The Chinese style is very colorful and somewhat gaudy, but I really like it.

There was an excessive amount of incense burning at this temple.  I could barely breath and had to escape the scene before bits of ash floating through the air could blind me.

Drew spotted a panda store where everything they sold had a panda on it.  How fun!

Panda slippers, why not?!

We got to see a parade with firecrackers, drums, and a dancing dragon.  Thank goodness Drew had the camera because I could barely see over the kids on their parent's shoulders.  Maybe I should have hopped on Drew.

There are hundreds of restaurants within China Town, but it seemed that more than half of them sold the same exact thing.  Steamed dumplings filled with things like meat, beans, and even chocolate.  They're good, but no need for such volume.  

Another steamed dumpling stand

A good chunk of the fun was looking in the shops.  This one had a whole wall with traditional Chinese medicine remedies.  Shark fin seemed to be very popular. 

After a few hours in Yokohama, Drew was booking it back to the train station.  Guess he can only handle these crowds for so long.

Lettuce: Day 18

Our lettuce is still alive!  I'm sure you were just dying to know.  You see, we are kind of in a "saving money" mode in preparation for our return home in a few months.  Hence, the lettuce being the most exciting thing to report on today.  Luckily, this weekend is the Chinese New Year and should bring a fun adventure.

Maybe we should be transplanting soon??

Setsubun Festival

February 4th marks the beginning of Spring in Japan.  On February 3rd, they celebrate Setsubun, the "seasonal division".  On Setsubun it is tradition for the Japanese to have a bean throwing ritual where they throw roasted soybeans at someone dressed up like a demon to drive away evil spirits from the coming year.  We went to the Ashikaga where they had a parade and armor festival for the occasion.

Lighting the lantern

Lined up for parade

Walking to the sound of battle drums and a conch horn

On the way to the Temple to scatter beans

Food stalls as always

Just to throw it in Spring's face, it snowed two days later.  Guess I'll be needing that scarf after all!

Scarf Complete!

I finally finished my scarf!  It seems to be just in time for warmer weather.  Today it actually got up to 50 degrees.  Oh well, it will come in handy next year.  Plus, it just felt good to complete my first knitting project.

Trying it on

Now I need to get started on Drew's hat.  I'm a bit nervous about the complexity...