Lately

Doing many things over here, though our trip home and Christmas still feel far away. .

• Went on a date downtown to do some omiyage (souvenir) shopping and eat some yakitori (basically grilled chicken on a stick, though much tastier than it sounds) whilst enjoying a cold brew.  Sadly, both of the places we know were full, so we ended up eating at a ramen shop.  And no beer.  We took the bus for nothing. 😦  (A zero-tolerance drinking and driving policy here in Japan..)
• Got to browse my favorite Japanese store, Muji.  I could spend hours browsing that store — everything is so neat and tidy, all the packaging is the same, and they sell basically anything, from food goods to stationary to shoes to bikes to houseware to clothes.  A cool place indeed.
• Hosting three Christmas parties for separate groups, though much of the cooking burden is on our guests.  We’re providing the home, the tree, and the drinks/desserts.  Should be fun!
• It’s been raining all day and shows no signs of stopping.  This does not go with Christmastime for me.
• It’s cold in our house.  Not too cold outside, but since Japanese houses are built without insulation, the indoor temp matches the outside.  I pretty much reside on our living room couch, and I haven’t let the Nalgene bottle with hot watter out of my sight since I remembered it worked like a heating pad.
• I read “The Hiding Place” by Corrie ten Boom.  One of my top ten reads, I think.  Finished in three days, couldn’t put it down — now I feel hungry to read war-time books and stories.