Chicken quilt

Yesterday I had a DECADENT day of sewing and listening all day to an audio book.  No crosswalk duty (we're on spring vacation now), I had done my "required" swimming laps the day before so I didn't go to the pool, no English lessons or visitors, and a late evening dinner date with some out of town friends which meant no cooking for me (I let Tetsu fare on his own).  I did put in my walking quota but that was necessary just to keep my shoulders from stiffening up over the sewing machine.

And today I sewed the rows that I had made yesterday and I guess I am now at a mid point with this quilt...  It is becoming a rather large quilt but the pattern still calls for a wide border...  What do you think?  Does a big quilt make it harder to display?  This is definitely an art quilt, not a bed quilt.  The suggested dark border really looks nice but where is there going to be a wall large enough to display the finished product?

I really had to squeak out the last of that mottled white in the checked lattice.  I ran out of fabric and the very last 2 1/2 inch square (somewhere in there) had to pieced together twice before I could get 2 1/2 inches!  That is definitely called patchworking!

And can you find the block that I invented on my own?  For some reason I could only come up with 8 of these block kits...  I don't know if there were only 8 to begin with or if I lost one over the past couple years in which chase it may turn up in the corners of my closet someday...  Anyway, I needed to "make" my own block from looking at the provided picture on the back of the pattern packet. 

 Which one is it?

It is the center chick block on the bottom row.  I didn't have the pattern for that so I used left over fabrics from the other kits and made up my own flowers and chicks.  It works...  That's why it is called an art quilt.  Nothing has to be perfect!
 

Sewing some and a grandma picture

Okay...  I've been back from Morioka for over a week...  What have I been doing recently?

Ah...  We talked to Leiya once.  She is planning to move to Detroit to be near her boyfriend.  I guess she is looking for a job and an apartment right now.

I chatted with Marcy on the way to Morioka and she said she and my brother were going away for the weekend to celebrate my brother's 60th birthday.  This means of course that Grandma has to be taken care of while they are gone (I guess she's not trusting Kiana and Colin to do Grandma Care) and it was arranged for my mother to spend four days in a care facility provided by hospice.  Don't you find it amazing that my mother has been in hospice care for over two years now?!  Someone misjudged her energy levels!  Anyway, as Grandma is completely bedridden and needs diaper changes and feeding then the respite benefits were used to their fullest so that Marcy and Keion could get away.

And here is my mother at 96 being wheeled into the care facility by my grumpy looking brother!  Thank you, so many blog friends, for asking about my mother regularly.  As I don't get much information from Marcy on a weekly or monthly basis I really can only tell people that I guess my mother is fine.  I would hear if she wasn't.

Marcy said that Grandma was scheduled to get her hair cut while she was at the facility so maybe she came home looking a bit less fly away...  I am planning another summer stay in California so hopefully Grandma will still be holding her own until I get there!

Though I may sound (and maybe am) a bit blase about keeping in touch with my mother, for my own satisfaction I am still sending her fabric post cards each month.  This card got made earlier this week and I will send it off today.

I also worked on McKenna collages this week.  I have two more to do until I start thinking about putting these all together.

And these two squares have been made for the last couple of weeks now.  This was supposed to be a learning project to see if I could do the different techniques available for making the Cathedral Window block.  The one on the left is machine done...  The one on the right I spent many nights doing by hand.  I don't know what I am going to do with these blocks...  There are probably still more ways of making this block but I'm not sure if I'm going to continue to experiment.  For the final product the finished block is nearly the same so maybe I'll just go back to machine sewing....  Though I think I've already forgotten how I did that...  Sigh...

And dang it all, if Mary (of Making Scrap Quilts from Stash) didn't entice me to do some knitting with her beautiful projects.  I went out and bought yarn and came home and didn't like the yarn and now I am again experimenting with leftover yarn in my stash.  I am so unfocused!  (And just collecting yarn again.)
 

Swans

The morning before we headed back to home Tetsu and I decided to do a bit of walking as we'd spent most of the weekend in the car and had another 6 hour trip ahead of us.  We had spotted swans overhead when we'd been in Morioka and so we headed over to a pond where we'd visited occasionally when we'd been dating.  It took us about an hour to walk around the whole pond.

 I don't know why but half of the pond was frozen over and half was still water.

 As usual there was a mixture of wild ducks and swans.

I love watching the swans take off and land from the water.  When they are coming in for a landing I can hear them from quite a ways off, honking and cheering each other on.  They make quite a racket!

 I got carried away with soaring swan photos.

 The fowl-life seems equally at home swimming...

Or strolling around the ice.

Ooh...  Nice photo Tetsu!

We left later in the afternoon and headed south to home.  We just missed the rain that was rolling in and got home a little after dark.  How fortunate that the weather stayed nice all weekend for us!

 

Lots of people pictures

I guess you don't need to see private photos of the ashes interring ceremony at the Morioka cemetery...  I do want to say that watching Martha pour the ashes into the grave confirmed my suspicions that cremation in Japan and cremation in the States is very different!  (Remember last August when Tetsu's mother was cremated?  The Japanese cremation ends in BONES while Martha definitely brought ASHES from the States!)

The verse on the headstone reads,

Rejoice always.
Pray without ceasing.
In everything give thanks.
          1 Thessalonians 5:16

After the ceremony we all headed back to the Zenrinkan Christian Center where the Lammers' friends and students gathered for a celebration party...  What absolute fun that was for me and I think for Martha and her family!  People I hadn't seen in nearly 40 years I'd spot across the room and call out...

"H-san?"

"Tanya-sensei?"
There were a lot of question marks and scratching of heads trying to figure out who was who...  A big, happy reunion for so many of us!  

I recognized both these ladies as two of the students from a women's class I'd had just before I got married.

Tetsu wanted to wear kimono at our wedding.  I wanted to wear a wedding dress...  The ladies of the class figured out a way that I could inexpensively wear a kimono for part of the wedding reception.  One lady loaned me her kimono, another lady loaned me a brocade obi (belt).  Someone loaned me the silk brocade slippers, another the embroidered collar... And somebody else dressed me!  I think it was the lady in the kimono in the previous photo that loaned me her obi on that day so long ago!  None of us could remember!

I had a wonderful few hours renewing old acquaintances and hearing about how the Lammers impacted so many people's lives.  By the time the afternoon was over my eyes and nose were red and dripping.  So many wonderful people who have blessed my life!

This photo was taken the next day when we got to have a quick lunch with Martha and her daughter.  On the right is my good friend Nobuko-san and her husband (who live off in the mountains so it is hard to get in touch with them...  No wi-fi or cell service!)

I'm so glad we got to see Martha again!  She is amazing.  Even at 93, even after living the past 30 years in the States, she has no problem with the Japanese language or remembering our past adventures and conversations together. 

The old and the new

On Sunday, Tetsu and I went off to church only to find that we were an hour early...  We chose to spend the time walking around the neighborhood visiting places we had memories of. 

And what is this rather dilapidated building?  This was the apartment that I lived in for about a year before Tetsu and I got married!  I think it was rather old when I moved in and 40 years hasn't helped it much...

"Is this really the place?"

Tetsu said he remembered the stairway...  I remember it looking out on the parking lot...

The apartment was a two tatami room place with its own kitchen and bath (some of the apartment in that era had shared bathroom spaces...).  I had moved here and commuted back and forth to the Christian center by bicycle which was a first for me.  Until then bicycles were for recreation, not for transportation!

Tetsu and I had been dating for over a year and he had already "proposed" a couple of times but I couldn't see myself living my life out in Japan... One winter night I returned to my apartment to find the water frozen in the pipes and being a Southern California girl had no idea what to do.  Tetsu who would stop by on his way home from work, left me inside the somewhat warmer apartment while he set to work thawing out the pipes and then wrapping them in towels to keep them from refreezing.  He must have worked an hour or two out in the cold and it was at that point that I realized how well taken care of I'd be if I married him.  A couple of days later I accepted his repeated proposal.

Looking at the apartment building's crumbling pipes, I wondered if any of the tape and toweling Tetsu had used might still be there.  It sure looked like it and I pointed it out to Tetsu.  He, by the way, does not remember the story of unfreezing my pipes at all.  So much for romantic ponderings.

We argued between us as to whether I lived in the second apartment or the third but finally agreed that it is the one that I'm pointing at.  No one seems to live there anymore...  Not many of the apartments seem to be lived it at all.

 We got back to church in time to chat with a few of the older members.  The church has been rebuilt since our time and it is now a beautiful place where once it had had a black wood burning stove in the center aisle and the pastor's wife would throw logs into it during the Sunday service.

Some things stay the same, some things change.

First off... a cemetery visit

Saturday afternoon in Morioka Tetsu and I made a stop at the cemetery to see if anything needed to be done like weeding or cleaning away leaves etc.

We took a few snacks and rice balls and enjoyed a picnic lunch sitting on the little wall and looking out over the city of Morioka. 

A fine view though it takes a bit of stair climbing to get up to this point!

And here we have....

The view!  The building in the foreground is the new to us Morioka crematorium.  It is an ultramodern facility!  The area surrounding the cemetery is the Buddhist temple area of Morioka, old and full of history.  Each temple has its own cemetery but also behind the crematorium, the hillsides have been marked off for different denominations of Buddhist sects and for the local churches.  When we visit the cemetery, there are many, many graves of families here whom we have known.

We bought fresh flowers and dispensed with the silk ones we'd put there in November...

In the afternoon we visited with Tetsu's high school friends.  Just being with these two guys for a few hours makes Tetsu wish we could move back to Morioka!  Too cold for me!  (And for Tetsu... He was the one who complained of the cold most of the weekend.)
 

The Lammers

The six hour drive north brought us to Morioka which is the city where Tetsu grew up and where I worked in a Christian center when I first came to Japan at the age of 22.  I met Tetsu within weeks of arriving though I worked and lived at the Christian center with a few other missionaries.  I lived briefly in an apartment alone near the church I attended until Tetsu and I were married two years later.  From there we were transferred hither and yon by the company Tetsu worked for at the time so actually my years in Morioka only amount to three.  But they were life changing years for me! 

The Lammers post 2008.

We've kept our roots in Morioka though Tetsu's family has little connection anymore.  His brother and sister live in other parts of Japan so there is no family home for us to return to but we purchased a grave site in the Morioka Christian cemetery a couple of years after we were married...  for our first child but eventually Tetsu and my ashes will be interred there also.  We took Tetsu's mother's ashes to Morioka last November and now there is all the more reason to get to the city once or twice a year.

When I first started working at the Christian center, there were two missionary couples already there and the older couple took me under their wing and helped me get used to Japanese life and to being independent in general.  Dick and Martha Lammers fondly watched Tetsu and my romance bloom and when we got married, we asked them to be our Go-Betweens.  In Japan, traditionally the go-betweens are an older couple who helps arrange a marriage between two young people.  And I mean arrange!  Arrange a meeting, do the business of getting family history and future prospects on the table so that the families know who is who and whether a marriage contract should be arranged!  Of course by the time Tetsu and I were dating, WE decided to get married and the go-between custom was rather token.  The Lammers stood up with us at our wedding instead of a maid of honor or best man etc. 

In ways other than traditional however, the Lammers advised, taught, mentored us continually about our life as an international couple.  They had lived 40 years in Japan already and they knew both countries cultures and thought processes.  Many times before and after our wedding I went to Martha with questions and frustrations and in need of someone to talk to.  They advised when Tetsu changed jobs...  They offered comfort and support when our daughter died...  Their way of life and their way of thinking have molded me and given me something to emulate and hope to pass on.

Martha and Dick retired to the States nearly 30 years ago but before leaving, they too purchased a grave plot in Morioka saying that they wanted their ashes to rest in Japan, the country they have loved so much.  When Dick passed away a couple of years ago, his body was donated to science and just recently the ashes were returned to Martha who immediately set in motion the original plan of bringing the ashes back to Morioka.

Martha now is 93!  She and Dick had returned to Japan a couple of times in the last 30 years to do short missionary trips or work in an agricultural training center.  At any rate, Tetsu and I have been able to see the Lammers two or three times in the last 30 years.  They never changed!  And seeing Martha this weekend was like seeing her 30 years ago!  The rest of us all have white hair (or no hair!) but Martha remains the same old Martha!

I'm getting way into this story and still no pictures from this weekend!  Our purpose of going to Morioka was to see Martha, to attend the interring ceremony and to gather with other friends and students to honor Dick at a celebration "party".
 

Three days in Morioka

Tetsu and I went off to Morioka again this weekend, a six hour drive north.  We had a great three days there with the specific reason to meet up with friends from long ago.  Over three days I took 60 pictures on my camera (not including iPhone.)  But Tetsu took 420!!!!  I will go through the photos before I post much about our weekend...

Driving north we use the highway which extends from Tokyo to Aomori prefecture.  There is only one tollway that spans the whole northern part of Japan and as long as it isn't a holiday weekend, the drive is uncrowded and pleasant.  The highway itself is a well kept two lane road (two lanes in each direction) and is easy to drive.  I say that though I didn't do any of the driving this weekend.  The highway interchange is now automatically paid and we just drive through the tollway and get off at the other end without having to stop to pay tolls.  Along the way there are Parking Areas which provide vending machines and bathrooms and Service Areas which often have small restaurants as well as gift shops and local produce markets.  We made maybe three stops coming and going, to stretch our legs, get something to eat, to make use of the bathrooms.  At a couple of the service areas I reminisced about how on previous trips we used to let Choco play in the dog run areas that are also provided.

So here are a few photos I took during our rest stops. 

The bathrooms are always clean with a choice of Western style toilet (sit down) or Japanese style (squat).  They all come with a washlet feature including a bidet button.  Someone keeps the sink area cheery with fresh flowers.

Other decorations I found in the public bathrooms were these cute little chirimen (crepe silk) turtles and owl...

... and these ojizousan (Buddhist traveler statues).  They say "Wishing you a rest...  Thank you for keeping the service area clean."

As we had left our house at 6:00 am, we chose to stop at one of the Service Area's restaurants for breakfast.  Rice, a soft boiled egg, seaweed papers, pink pickled radish, miso soup and a plate with simmered seaweed, spicy fish eggs, one sausage, one slice of ham with shredded cabbage and a piece of salty salmon with grated radish.  Delicious and we got back on the road very full!

At one of the Service Area's gift shops where we bought chocolate and nuts, these little origami trinkets were set out for customers to take as they pleased for free.  Some of them say "Safe Driving Protection".   The little shirt ones are toothpick holders.

(Sorry... a bit blurry...)

At one Service Area there was a man and his dog enjoying being mini-celebrities.  The dog is dressed up as a high school student with a traditional high neck boy's high school uniform.  The man kept telling people to come and pet his dog and he was ever so pleased when passersby from the parking lot asked if we could take the dog's picture.

Pretty soon the man's daughter appeared with another dog, this one dressed in high school girl's uniform.

The man said that both dogs are 13 years old....  What fun it was to see them.  Pretty soon the man and his daughter and the dogs got into their red sports car and headed back on their travels down the highway.  I wonder if their purpose is to travel or to show off their dogs.

 After nearly 6 hours on the road we finally spotted Mt. Iwate, the mountain that overlooks Morioka.

Mt. Iwate is considered the Mt. Fuji of northern Japan. Yeah!  We had arrived in Morioka and were ready to start our weekend!