To my son

Six years ago today, at 12:59pm, my son was born.  These past six years has been filled with his laughter, his smiles, sometimes his tears, but a lot of hugs and kisses too.  He fills me with such love and joy, it's unfathomable.

I'm proud of his achievements, as any parent would be.  I don't boast much of those things as they are benchmarks most children reach in their youth.  I am more touched by the things that make my son uniquely Him.  I love how he tells me that his entire body is his tickle spot.  Or how he wants to show me his entire fleet of Lego ships and explains what each piece does.  Sometimes he'll just run around the house at top speed, perhaps imagining that he's helping to make the world spin.  I'll catch him dancing to music but I can't let him see me watching him or he'll stop dancing.  He still doesn't like his veggies and most fruits but he loves tofu.  I love how he'll reminisce of Japan and say how he misses a friend.  Just out of the blue.  He has a sweetness about him, a wonderful innocence that I don't want to go away.  But then I feel guilty that I should not want for my child to have the experiences that would shape him into the wonderful man that he will become. 

He is a gift from God, a gift to this world, as all children are. And he is mine.  I love you Zelig.  Happy Birthday, my love!

re·pa·tri·ate (r-ptr-t) tr.v. re·pat·ri·at·ed, re·pat·ri·at·ing, re·pat·ri·ates To restore or return to the country of birth, citizenship, or origin

August 3, 2009:  We leave Japan, our home for the past 5 years.  13 hours later we are back in the good ole "U" "S" of "A".  We make our way to our new community in Georgia, looking forward to a new life, new friends and new adventures.

July 20, 2010:  I've cast my first vote as a citizen of my little town in Georgia.  I'm planning a birthday party for Zelig.  I gave our new dog, Sparkles, her heart worm medicine and applied caps to our cats nails.  I made a tasty meal tonight using vegetables from my garden.  I didn't have the opportunity to cut up the Armenian Yard Long cucumber.  I tell my friends that I'm still settling in although I'm feeling very settled.  There is so much to do with this house but I have time.  I'm not rushed.  I have at least 19 years to get it all done!

This one's for Kim

It was asked recently of me what life is like outside of the military.  Good question and for me, a hard one to answer.  My only experience with the military was the 5 1/2 years in Japan.  Those that have lived at more duty stations, overseas or CONUS, will know better than me the differences of living in the "real" world.  But of course I have put much thought into this question and the one answer that I can think of is "freedom".

Funny that as American citizens dependent on an active duty service member, we lacked certain freedoms that most civilians take for granted.  Whether you live on or off a military base, overseas or CONUS, our lives were restricted by boundaries and limits.  We had curfews, limits of speech, dress codes too.  Access of care and services had limits as well.  And of course, there's the military I.D.  Soon after arriving in our new town, for but a few seconds, I would panic as I searched for my I.D. before going into Walmart.  That was an easy habit to break.

Of course there are perks to being a military dependent, I'm not denying that.  But I'd rather give up shopping at the commissary and using 6 month, out of date coupons, for the right to say what I want and not worry about the reprisal on my spouse or myself. 

Finally, Buford Highway Farmer's Market!

There is something to be said about living in the country.  Last night I was able to enjoy a beautiful spring night sky with a few friends, something I couldn't have done, at least not as well, if we lived closer to the city.  We saw spring constellations and stars such as Orion, Leo, Sirius, and Gemini.  We even saw two satellites racing through the sky!  But that also means that we miss out on the wonderful opportunities of living in the city such as diverse dining opportunities, entertainment venues and anonymity.  We're only 30-45 minutes away from all of that so it's really not a hardship.  And considering how spread out and diverse the Atlanta metro area is, we can enjoy the diversity without even having to go into the city at all.

That means, I can get my Asian fix by heading up to Doraville, GA.  This area is basically a conglomeration of Asian cultures and businesses, mostly Korean and Vietnamese, with strings of strip malls lining Buford Highway.  Korean barbeque, hot pot and bibimba are offerings at these many restaurants as well as vietnamese pho.  This also means that grocery stores are nearby and that includes the Buford Highway Farmer's Market. 

The market is huge.  Huge!  It's not much to look at on the outside but on the inside, it's huge!  But considering that it's an international market, it would have to be large to accommodate the all the various food stuffs to satisfy the diverse cultures that live around Atlanta.  Now, ethnic grocery stores abound in and around the city, but it's nice to have a place like BFM that's large and clean where we can shop around the globe in a comfortable setting while enjoying samples too!

Photography isn't allowed in the store but I took a few quick photos anyway.  I wish I had taken photos of their seafood section. I would love to show you the cases filled with live crayfish, the seven different types of shrimp, as well as the other shellfish selections and the live fish.  The smell wasn't offensive which means they make sure their products are fresh and their space is clean.  There is also a butchery too but for some reason, I'm never impressed with meat.  But their produce selection, WOW!

  Various root type vegetables

 

 Just a small section of their green vegetables.  There is another display of more leafy green vegetables including snow pea leaves and others that I have never seen before!

 There are at least 10 varieties of eggplant on this table!  There are more on the curve of the table that you can't see.

 

Of course, there is always the snack section.  It's always one of the first places I check out when I go to any Asian grocery store.  Do they have my favorite candies?  Well, no KitKat bars but they do have other yummy goodies such as Hokkaido chocolate cheese candy, (oishii), Crunky, gummy marshmallows and yes, they even have Hi-Chus!!

 

 

YAY!  Hi-Chews!?

A few of their salad dressings.  They do have the Pietro brand including the sesame miso flavor and soy sauce flavor.  FYI: In the upper left corner of this photo is a bottle of yuzu juice.  I should have bought one but it was $20!  So I bought wasabi/yuzu dressing instead.

 This is a cold case in the Eastern European section.  It's an incredible selection of caviars, pickled fish and one of my new favorites, cold smoked fish!

I'm going to go back to BFM soon.  The shrimp and mushroom dumplings that we had brought over to our friends house last night got left in our car and, well, you get the picture.  The car doesn't smell bad at all which is a good thing and I get to go back to the market to replace the dumplings which is a better thing!  So if there is anything anyone needs, please let me know.  And btw: they have great crispy tostadas and an almost complete selection of dried chilies too!

Pollen, Leeches and Frogs, Oh My!

What you are seeing is a photo of a small contribution of the 5500+ pollen count that hit Walton County yesterday.  I looked outside and was reminded of the Gobi Desert dust that would fly into Japan on a toxic front from China usually around February.  This front would then rain yellow and brown dust and and leave us with burning eyes and sputtering coughs for maybe a day or two.  But this, this is pollen.  Nothing but pure, Carolina Pine pollen.  This year us Millers are fine and not showing any allergic reactions but next year, well, can I say I'll just hold my breath?

Not art or is it?

I hope the fish are alive.  Doug and Zelig

bought 10 goldfish from Walmart last night but

I don't see them down there.  They are small.

I just hope they survive the next few days.

Speaking of ponds, Doug and friends finished the pond overhaul.  It really needed a good cleaning too.  The pond had to be drained to the last drop whereupon Doug and his junior helpers discovered LEECHES at the bottom.  They found every one of them, I HOPE, a few frogs too.  Finally they threw out the rest of the debris, rocks and pine straw, and got that pond clean and clear.  Of course the photo above does not show a beautiful product but I hope you get the gist from the ones below.

 Falling Waters III?

 One of our friends took it upon herself to put the slabs back around the pond.  

Thanks to all of our helpers on our pond re-do: Michael, Zelig, Thomas, Jolie and Terry.   You all did a great job.  You too Doug!

Update: Life in Monroe in March

It's still cold in Georgia.  Maybe one or two sunny days, those are just teasers!  This month has been cold and quite honestly, I'm starting to get tired of it.  Mainly because I want to garden and Zelig's practices are later in the day and outdoors of course when the nights are cold. 

Zelig had a game tonight.  They were CREAMED!  18 to 6!  Yikes.  But Zelig doesn't mind.  Actually, he doesn't really care one way or the other.  We try to give him some commentary at the end of the game, just so he can understand what was going on.  All he cared about was playing out some scene from Star Wars the Clone Wars or looking at the ground for any snakes.  Yep, he's in the outfield.  The very last inning of tonight's game, the coach put a few of the regular outfielders in to the infield.  Zelig was at 2nd base!  He did fine too.  Actually, he looked more mindful of the game and seemed to actually PLAY the game, as opposed to watching it.  One of these days, I'll take a few photos of a game to share.

The garden is going well.  Check out Red Earth Diary if you are interested in more in-depth commentary.  But very quickly, I have a large cleared out lot in the back of my yard so I asked a few friends to share the space for their own gardens.  We each have our own beds, all are built and are awaiting final filling with wood compost.  My seedlings that I started are okay.  Not great, some are leggy, such as the tomatoes.  The peppers haven't sprouted at all but the kohlrabi are doing great!  I'm getting a little excited about the leeks too.  The rest of the seeds that I have in my "box of ambition" can just be direct sowed, usually when the weather warms up...whenever that will be.

As for my other gardens, I'm getting antsy there too.  I have a swath of lawn, off of the paved path, next to the back of the house, that would be most suitable for stone crop or sedum.  Around the corner from that bed, I think I can be a little more involved and put in more flowers, maybe iris and lamb's ears.  Those are great combinations by the way.

Doug recently installed a fountain in our pond.  I wasn't too convinced that a fountain is what that pond needed but once installed, it really is a nice change for the patio.  The sound of the water is mesmerizing, even tranquil.  I think we need a fire pit to finish off the patio!

Zelig found a snake the other day.  Actually, Doug found the baby garter snake but Zelig adopted it.  No, he did not bring it into the house and call it "Fred" but he did insist on holding onto the little critter until it fainted.  No, the snake did not die.  It was just resting as Zelig put it.  I think it was trying to play dead until Zelig let it go.  Which he eventually did, covering up the snake with a leaf to hide from the hawks.  

Things always taste best when you share with a friend

I really enjoying drinking a good cocktail every now and then.  I don't drink often, only during the weekend and usually just one drink at that.  Of course if the mixologist is whipping up a tasty treat, well then maybe two will do for the evening.  Lately Doug and I have been enjoying a few classic cocktails, the Moscow Mule and Bee's Knees.

Just like many of the classic prohibition-era cocktails, the Bee's Knees is an icy and sweet concoction created to mask the incendiary taste of speakeasy mash.  Current recipes will include a steeped lavender blossom to add to the mix but I can't imagine the bartender at a speakeasy during the 1920's going through the trouble of finding a lavender blossom and steeping it for several minutes. 

The Moscow Mule is not prohibition-era but a product of necessity, hence invention.  In a nutshell, back in NY, some argue LA, but definitely in 1941, John, John and Rudy,  all business men in the business of libation, had to think of a way to sell ginger beer.  So after warming up with a few drinks and nibbles, they came up with the idea of mixing the ginger beer with vodka, Smirnoff Vodka to be exact.  The concoction would later be served in a copper mug, but that in itself did not add to the taste of the new drink.  It was merely a marketing ploy to sell drinks and then the drinker could take home the novel mug.  Much like buying wine from a winery and getting to take home the vintner's etched wine glass.

If you ever get the chance, please try either drink.  They work well in any season but always taste best when shared with friends.

Moscow Mule
<

- 1 1/4 oz Smirnoff vodka
- 3 oz. ginger beer*
- 1 tsp. sugar syrup
- 1/4 oz. lime juice
- 1 sprig mint
- 1 slice lime
 Mix and enjoy

 
*After much trial and error, Doug and I have decided that Reed's Extra Ginger Brew Ginger Beer and DG Jamaican Ginger Beer are good products for the Moscow Mule.

The Bee's Knees
2 ounces gin
1/2 ounce fresh lemon juice
1/2 ounce honey syrup*
Combine ingredients in a cocktail shaker, stir briefly to dissolve honey syrup, then fill with ice. Shake well for 10 seconds and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.
* Mixing honey with hot water makes it easier to mix in a drink. To make honey syrup, simply combine equal parts honey and hot water, and stir until dissolved. Keep remainder refrigerated.

image: http://www.jeffreymorgenthaler.com

Baby It's Cold Outside!

It's February.  After a soggy Autumn, we now have cold winds and snow.  Snow?!  Wait, we're in Georgia.  What are we doing with four inches of snow on the ground?  Ah, yes.  It's that time for...EL NINO!  It was a bad El Nino Winter many years ago which drove me from a frozen Washington, D.C. to seek the sunnier climate of Central Florida.  I worked in Reston, VA but lived in Fredericksburg, (getting my B.A. in Art History).  Several times a week, I'd commute a little over 1 hour each way to get to either work or home.  Not that bad of a trip but anyone who has experienced Interstate 95 during rush hour, with a snow storm, (I think they even used the word, blizzard, back then) and of course, no more salt or sand to lay down on the roads, would understand my exodus out of D.C.  Yes, Mid-Atlantickers...D.C. ran out of salt and sand!  Let's just hope this Winter, the DOT was mindful and stocked up with enough grit to cover the roads.


Speaking of grit, Georgia, is ill experienced with snow.  But that's okay, they shouldn't be.  It's not supposed to snow here.  The average temperature in Athens, GA for February is 56 degrees.  56 DEGREES FOLKS, NOT 37!  So Wal-mart, (yes Wal-Mart) must be doing well selling cold weather clothes.  Good thing I bought Zelig's snow boots when I did.  They were the last in his size, but I couldn't find snow gloves for him in small.  What I bought him are huge but they keep his hands warm, (when his hands are in them and not in the snow making snowballs). 

Speaking of Wal-Mart...yes, I've shopped there.  And still do.  Maybe once a week.  I'd rather not.  I'd rather go to Kroger's or even Publix, but both are not in Monroe.  The closest of the two, Kroger's, is perhaps 15 minutes away.  It's certainly not too far out of the way to go after I've dropped off Zelig at school, but to be honest with you, it does cost more to shop at Kroger's and yes, there are times when I need a can of spray paint, snow boots and a carton of milk.  Where can I get all that in one stop?  Wal-Mart is easy on my wallet and saves my sanity.  I know all about the evils of Wal-Mart, doing business with the most evil and powerful country in the world, China.  I know China doesn't have the same safety regulations as the U.S., hence all the poisonous products they have and still do export out of their country into ours.  But until there is an affordable solution, most Americans, including myself, will shop at Wal-mart and even Target because they provide what we want.  It would be nice if an American company could do the same, provide a one stop-shopping experience with affordable, made in America products.  Don't you agree?

So what does Wal-Mart have to do with snow in Georgia?  Nothing.  I was going on a stream of consciousness.  It was fun.  Now back to work.

2009 has been a year of many transitions...so bittersweet.

We have been in Japan for five years, living and loving life in a wonderful country.  But the time came for Doug to end his short military career so we set our sights on moving to Georgia and starting our new life there.  So this last year, 2009, I called the Year of Lasts.  Our last Halloween on base (2 hours to go through eight bags of candy).  Our last Thanksgiving with the Norwoods, (I never had to make the turkey).  Our last meal at Wans (raw tuna bruschetta).  Our last trip to Kamakura and Tokyo.  Our last Leftover Night.  But as sad as I was marking those last days in Japan, I was very content and joyful too.  We had a good five years in Japan.  Heck!  We had a great five years in Japan.  We've met wonderful people, some whom we call our dear friends.  I look forward to seeing them again.  We've raised our son in Japan and although he doesn't know Japanese, he does have his own memories of living there.  He remembers the Shinkansen, Tea Ceremony, monkeys and shrimp tempura among many others.

But as I write this blog, I realize that I may be mistaken about one thing.  Maybe 2009 isn't about the Lasts.  It's also about the Firsts too!  I could say that the last six months of 2009 have been the first six months of our new lives in Georgia.  We moved into our home, made wonderful friends, found two kittens to bring into the family and Zelig started going to his new school. 

Yes, 2009 has been a year of transitions.  It has been bittersweet but oh so memorable too.  I can only hope that 2010 will be as remarkable!

Happy New Year to all our friends and family!

Too short for a full blog post...

I thought I'd use my blog as a journal today, writing down my thoughts and impressions on the day at hand.  These items aren't that interesting to elaborate on as single entries but they are interesting enough to me at least that I had to give them a few moments of thought.  Here are a few that have rambled through my brain today between the hours of 8am and now:

• Why aren't bagels in the frozen food section?  Very confused but then realized my mistake--I'm no longer on a military base where most "fresh" items come frozen from the States.
• Monroe, (known as 'Mun-ROE' to the locals), really is a small town.  People are connected to one another in the strangest way.  I recently met a women, my age, who has a Senior daughter at GWA.  No big deal.  But her daughter is the "sponsor" to my neighbor's little boy at school.  Again, no big deal but what are the odds?.  This women I met grew up with my neighbor across the street--well of course why not?  She recently is divorced to the man who installed the alarm system in my house, of which this man is good friends with the people that used to live in the house.  This louse of a husband had an alleged affair with the women who I thought would hire as my personal trainer, (may not now).  Only in a small town.
• By the way, we have around 12,000 people living in mun-ROE.
• I had forgotten how wonderful American antiques are.  For the past 5 years, I've been looking at Japanese antiques, appreciating their beauty and their function.  I have a small collection of bobbins used for spinning either silk or cotton.  These bobbins aren't small, but large enough to use as a candle holder for wide candle columns.  I've also collected dainty sake and tea cups for the phantom sushi and sake party I'll have, one of these days!  But my vocabulary and appreciation of American antiques have been awakened recently as I've visited some of the local antique malls, small and few, in mun-ROE.  The smell is the same; dust, sprinkled with a little bit of mildew and moth balls.  But there, spread out before me, were the blue and white Flow Ware, Carnival Glass and Bakelite jewelry that used to get me so excited.  I even saw a small porcelain teacup and saucer which I think is Kutani ware.  The description of the cup said the figures where Geisha.  I think that's just one of those standard words for Asian Female as I did not see anything in the design that was associated with Geisha.  I might go back and get that cup!  It's been on my mind lately and I should go back soon or it might be gone.
  
• I've been enjoying my backyard, only because I don't have to do anything to it and wonderful things grow.  Like mushrooms.  Okay, so I have nothing to do right now so I spend time, walking and surveying the land, (I only have one acre in the backyard so it's a quick walk).  Mushrooms are intriguing to me.  They're unique and so tenacious, like the weeds that have grown up in the back yard.  But unlike weeds, they don't look the same.  Some are globs, some are blobs.  Some puff and some just blow up, only to fall back on itself, spent.  Some are red, some are yellow, most are white and of course, there are those pesky LBM's, (Little Brown Mushrooms).  Some are smooth, while others are stubbly or even warty.  Some are tiny, and some are freakishly huge! Didn't go out yet but planning on it soon.
  
• Reading the new Dan Brown book, The Lost Symbol, and Jeffrey Eugenides, Middlesex.  Dan's book is predictable.  He's a formula writer, but still effective as his latest is entertaining.  I like following the clues, trying to figure out the mysteries and red herrings Dan throws out to his readers.  I figured out early on who the bad guy is, (very obvious, don't you think?) and because of my Art History background, I got the AD clue.  Don't know what I'm talking about?  Read the book.  Middlesex is so much better on many levels.  I've been reading that book while in carpool, waiting for Zelig to get out of school.
• Only 37 more days until Doug and the dogs come HOME!!!
• Halloween is going to be a blast this year!!!!!
• I like speaking in exclamations and I usually do so after watching one of Zelig's favorite shows, Naruto.   The problem is, no one else really understands this so I can't really speak very loudly while in person, only while I'm writing.

That's it for now.  I'll post photos soon on the trip to Lookout Moutain, TN.  Zelig and I had a great time and, well, I'll tell you about it later.

Weekend trip #1

To break up the monotony of Doug's long absence, Zelig and I have gone on a few adventures together.  The first trip outside of Monroe was to Stone Mountain.  It's a state park located halfway between Monroe and Atlanta, an easy drive down 78.  The main feature of the park is a large chunk 'o granite.  I'll let you read the wiki explanation of the how's it but basically, what you see was at one time, millions of years ago, a large blob of molten rock or lava.  It collected, cooled, and what you see today is exposed from thousands of years of erosion.  What you see is only 1/10th of the actual rock.  There's 9 more miles of it below the soil.  Impressive! 

Bas-relief featuring three main players of the Confederate Army: Stonewall Jackson, Robert E. Lee and Jefferson Davis.  There is a rope way or cable car taking park guests up to the mountain and back down.  They pack 'em in so if you'd prefer, you can hike up or down the mountain as well.

 

A new attraction to the park: SkyHigh Hike.  Participants walk and balance along beams and ropes at a minimum of 10 feet off the ground.  There are three levels to the attraction.  Zelig and I did only the ground level and the second level.  We wore safety harnesses which tethered us to an above latch system.  It was pretty scary but Zelig wanted to do it.  I sweated a lot!  All you need to do is trust in this bit of wire cable to keep you upright.

 

From the top of the mountain.

We ate lunch at the park, bought some funnel cake, rode the Stone Mountain Railway, a very slow train ride around the chunk 'o granite and saw the new 4-D adventure movie, Journey to the Center of the Earth!  Whoopee!  It was a fun day with Zelig but Daddy was missed by us both. 

Next week...Lookout Mountain, TN!

Hellooooo...you still there?

I hope you all are still with me.  I've had a lot on my mind the last few months and haven't had the imagination or energy to pull a few sentences out of my whazoo.  Funny, I can't even pull money from my whazoo either.

I've made a few changes to my blog, now larger and easier to read with a little more interaction for my readers, (ahem...I mean you).  That means fun gadgets including a permanent slideshow which will be updated often with fun photos of family and friends, memories old and new.

So please stay in touch and I'll get you new postings on life in the Millerverse--now in Georgia!!

Whatever happened to those resolutions?!

Oh yes, THOSE resolutions! Well, I've pretty much chucked them all out the door after the first week of my bold statement. But you all knew I wasn't going to keep them, right? Well, now that's not exactly right. I am cleaning out my closets and drawers, just not every day. More like, every few days or week. I have a bad case of plantar fasciatis so I'm not walking as much, let alone with Nancy or anyone else. But as soon as it clears up...But then I'm not working out between my workouts with Ryan, but not for long. I really, really do want to get into better shape so while he's out of town, (Ryan is my personal trainer), I'm going to kick ass with my workouts so when Ryan comes back from his three weeks in the States, he won't even recognize me! Actually, I am cooking a lot more, even if it's just fixing several meals from the freezer but they're more substantial than the chicken tenders and Amy's mac and cheese. So I have failed on my endeavors but that's okay--no one took the challenge of guessing the end date of the resolutions, so there! So no Tim Tams or flavored Kit Kats for any of you! But if you would like me to send you Tim Tams or flavored Kit Kats, I could probably do that for you anyway:)

Do you Fugu? Whogu? Yougu! Megu? Yes, yougu! What do I do? Fugu!!

Doug recently ate fugu. He's alright. You would have heard by now if he wasn't. I'm glad he's fine as he is my husband but I was a bit worried too. With only a few rare incidences, fugu is "safe" to eat as long as you have the fish prepared by a licensed chef but still, there are those few rare cases...

Usually the poisoned diner will die from asphyxiation after 24 hours of enduring dizzyness, headache, nausea and then difficulty breathing leading to asphyxiation, all while being paralyzed and in most cases, fully conscious. Without proper medical treatment, the patient will die a terrible death. Japanese scientists are looking for an antidote treatment while others are creating a non-lethal fugu fish that is safe to eat without the necessary preparations.

I asked Doug how the fish tasted as I'm sure most of you might be curious too. Was there a distinctive taste unlike any other fish he had ever had? Was there a slight tingling or numbness on his lips or tongue as is sometimes the case when the most practiced of professional fugu chefs prepares fugu with just a trace of poison still in the flesh? Will he go back again? The answers are "No", "No" and "Probably not". It's all about the presentation, the mystique of this delicacy, the laughing in death's face. Doug is certainly not a thrill seeker but it was an opportunity he couldn't pass so why not?

There are several ways of preparing fugu but no matter how you slice it, (really), it doesn't taste that remarkable. There is the typical presentation of the fugu spread out on a printed plate, sliced so thin you can see through it. This is called fugu sashi or tessa. As I mentioned above, only the most seasoned of chefs can safely prepare the fish with a scant trace of poison to give that tingling sensation on the lips and tongue. Then you can eat it simmered as in fugu-chiri, which the fish is simmered in a broth along with vegetables. There are other ways to eat fugu--such as a fugu skin salad or even pickling the most poisonous parts of the fish for three year. I wouldn't be surprised if some ingeneous Japanese comes up with a fugu ice cream. Hey, why not?!

New Year Blues and bliss

Shogatsu, or Japanese New Year, is the most important holiday for the Japanese. January 1st is the beginning of the new year so for several days, even weeks prior to this date, many Japanese housewives will diligintly clean house, every nook and crany, as well as throwing out useless items. This is their chance to have a fresh start, a new beginning, an empty slate. This explains why the Hard-Off was more full than other times I've been there--they even had extra shelves to stock their hand bags!

It is also during this time that business, shops and schools close for several days over the Shogatsu, something we realized too late as we spent the nights of the 2nd and 3rd in Tokyo.

Several weekends later we attended the Ikebana International's Japanese New Year Celebration in Kamakura. We were fortunate to be able to enter the home of the head priest that attends the temple at Hase. There, taiko drummers performed energetic numbers as our children covered their ears. A traditional Japanese comedien livened up our afternoon by showing us how to pound mochi, sweet glutonous rice which is steamed, then pounded into a paste which is then used in traditional Japanese cuisine.

We understand how fortunate we are to be able to have these experiences and are saddened too that these will also be our last in Japan. This new year does represent a new slate for us Millers and we wish that you, our friends and family, will have a year filled with hope and happiness.

The Strawberry Crawl

One of our favorite local activities is strawberry picking, or itchigo gari. It's a unique experience for us American because 1) strawberry season is December through May and 2) it's a finger-staining, chin dribbling, all-you-can-eat fest, all done within 30 minutes!

The strawberries however are so sweet and they taste just like a strawberry should, not like the strawberries you get in the grocery stores that are mostly sour or tasteless. We are even given a squirt of sweetened condensed milk in our trays to use as a dipping sauce for our strawberries. I must admit that a little extra sugar doesn't hurt the flavor but the berries don't really need it, they are sweet enough all on their own.

We've gone several times, always aware of how many strawberries can actually be eaten in 30 minutes. We know we never make it past 15 minutes, our trays full of the green, leafy discards, but we try anyway.

Also, the attendents at the green houses are always on the lookout for those of us trying to sneek a few out of the building--no such luck! You have to eat all the strawberries on site, not ever bringing any out with you. Not too bad since you can purchase a small box at the main building. And they make a wicked good strawberry preserve too.

What are YOUR resolutions?

A resolution is "a decision to do something or to behave in a certain manner." Typically we make hollow resolutions at the stroke of midnight on January 1st every year then deny them a few weeks later claiming that, well, no one ever keeps a resolution! So I'm going to make my resolution public and in a few weeks time, I'll let you know when I've stopped, okay? And we can turn this into a contest. The person/s who makes the closest correct guess on each resolution wins a special Japanese prize. Okay, here we go:

1. I resolve to cook for my family three times per week, (a real meal, not heating up frozen dinners or eating cheese and crackers).
2. I resolve to work out between my personal training sessions.
3. I resolve to walk with Nancy at least once a week.
4. I resolve to go on a trip outside of Japan once a month, (this is going to be hard to follow).
5. I resolve to go through the closets week by week to clear out all our junk for our move back to the States.
6. I resolve to go out on a date with Doug once a month.
7. I resolve to update this blog at least once per week.

Okay, that should give you all a chance to participate in this contest. Good luck to you all and most of all, good luck to me. BTW: What are YOUR resolutions for 2009:)

Gomenazai!

Dear friends and family,
It has been a while but you knew I was still here. I just had other things on my plate. I hope I can keep your attention so please stay tuned for updates--lots and lots of updates! And photos too! I know how you all like looking at our photos. All is forthcoming.

Meanwhile, I've put together a slide show or two to whet your appetites. Little tid bits from the past starting with our frozen journey to Sapporo for the Yuki Matsuri, or snow festival.

Our trip to the 5th station of Fuji-san

A Good Navy Day!

Doug and I had the honor one afternoon to board the U.S.S. Shiloh for a day cruise into Tokyo Bay. Our day started at 9:30, wandering around the docks trying to find the ship. We finally found the ship wedged between the dock and the U.S.S. John S. McCain. The day was slow to start as it seemed we did nothing but wait: wait for all the guests to arrive, wait for the commencement of the tour as everyone had something to say, wait for the word for the tug boats to pull us out. But once we got going, it was Fair Winds and Smooth Seas! Thank goodness too. All week, the weather was cold, windy and rainy. I had my reservations about going out and had even anticipated sea sickness by taking half a tablet of benadryl just before pushing off.

I appreciated the Ward family's hospitality by letting us tag along for their tour. LTjg Paul Ward took us along with his wife and several children, grandchildren and a few of their Japanese friends through the bowels of the ship including the command center, bunks, mess and engineering to include a fire drill demonstration. Our cruise included a fantastic lunch featuring homemade hotdog buns, some phillipino dishes, (yum!) and of course, really huge hamburgers.

What a wonderful adventure we had. Thank you to the crew of the U.S.S. Shiloh for a really nice navy day!