I voted!

Yeah!  I got an email this morning saying that my vote has been counted!

The election was quite a rigamarole for me this time around.  I have always been a California registered voter but I haven't always taken advantage of the voting rights.  The past two presidential elections I asked for a mailing ballot however, and had it sent to Japan.  The last time around I remember never being sure that I'd done it all right nor whether my ballot had been counted, so this time I registered for ballot tracking.

I was sent an automated email back on October 5th I think saying that my ballot had been sent and I waited.  And waited.  And waited.  I repeatedly got emails from the registrar's office reminding me to vote early.  

"Well!  I'd like to but my ballot hasn't arrived!"

Marlene, who is from New York said that her ballot had been sent out on September 18th and it took 10 days to arrive in her mailbox, so I continued waiting.  And Marlene kept checking in with me to see if the ballot had arrived.  Finally, I decided I could wait no longer.  I downloaded a Federal Absentee Write-in Ballot, filled it in, printed it out and then went to Marlene's to see if she thought I'd done it right (and I wasn't sure because I couldn't do it from my phone, the computer wanted me to fill in the blanks typing and when I printed it out it got resized.)

Marlene had never seen the Federal Absentee ballot website either but between the two of us we determined that I HADN"T done it right and I did it all over again at her house, this time printing it out first, filling it in by hand and then figuring out where to send the dang thing (not my county's voting booth site but the county registrar's office).

I sent out my ballot the next day though the Japanese post office gave me doubtful looks.  

"It may take up to a month for this to arrive in the States.  There is no longer Express Mail Service between Japan and America."

"Whatever it takes, get it there as soon as possible.  Write AIR MAIL numerous times in large lettering please!"

I went home and wrote the registrar's office that I thought the date for sending out California ballots to overseas residents was too short.  Especially in this time of Covid-19!  I got an automated reply thanking me for my valued opinion...  Hmmm.  Does anyone care if I vote or not?

In the meantime I've kept my eyes on the mailbox expecting the official mail-in ballot to appear but it never has!  I'm sure glad I gave up early and sent in the Absentee ballot!  Who knows where my ballot has gone?  Maybe it got diverted to my brother's house, though it has successfully made it to Japan before...

Anyway, yesterday another automated email arrived telling me my ballot had arrived and my vote would be counted.  Good because I never got THEIR ballot!

I am DONE with this election!

Last place...

I have more scenery photos, one reason because these were taken before we went to the lake the other day but so many other things were going on that I didn't get them posted, and two, because I've ended up stuck in a chair for the past two days because I slipped a disk while making the bed on Sunday  I feel old and decrepit and I'm completely useless right now!  I'm also mad at myself because I've had to cancel out on the pre-school Halloween event (I'm the witch!) and also two days of crosswalk duty and two classes of English.  Sigh...

Tetsu did take me to the acupuncturist on Monday which maybe or maybe not helps...  You can never be sure with these things.  If I just stayed in bed I'd probably get well in a week and if I go to the acupuncturist it will probably take me 7 days to recover...  I was also so out of it that I couldn't think about taking pictures of my pincushion back ("while you're sticking those needles into me could you please take a picture for me on my phone for my blog?") and thus you'll just have to take my word for it.  10 needles in my back and legs for 30 minutes...  I go back tomorrow for another treatment.

These photos were taken just before that television crew came visiting, maybe on the 17th and we woke up to find snow on the mountain range behind our house (it had all burned off by the time we went up to the lake though).

We just walked through the fields on our usual morning jaunt and enjoyed taking photos and marveling at the beautiful countryside we live in.

The people of Tochigi Prefecture where I live, were horrified earlier this month when the results of some survey was broadcasted on TV and radio and found on newpaper headlines.

"Tochigi Prefecture ranks as the LEAST ATTRACTIVE prefecture in Japan, coming in 47th of Japan's 47 prefectures."

WHAT!!!??! 

Tochigi prefecture is a perfectly lovely prefecture!  What are these people talking about!?

Over the years I've posted pictures of the pottery town of Mashiko, the rock quarry of Oya, the mountain range of Nasu, the Utsunomiya delicacy of gyoza pot-stickers, the shrines and temples of Nikko.  Not to mention the beautiful farmland, the forests, Mt. Nantai, the LAKE!  How can this not be one of the more ATTRACTIVE prefectures in Japan? 

It was rather a blow to the prefecture's population's ego.  

Ah well.  To each his own.  It's true that Tochigi doesn't have ocean or a seaside and that our seafood isn't the greatest but I find so many small beauties as I live out my life here...

On the positive side...  If TOCHIGI prefecture rates last, just think of how wonderful all the rest of Japan is!  Wish you could visit and decide for yourself!

A day trip up the mountain

I have lots of scenery photographs again...  Let's see...  I guess I'll start from yesterday and work backwards.  (I had other pictures of our countryside that I was going to post but Takumi and Julieta-san's pictures took priority!)

 Yesterday at around 6:00 am when we were out for our morning walk, Tetsu said,

"It's such a pretty day.  Let's go up the mountain and take pictures."

"What!?!  It's a SATURDAY!  Half of Japan is headed up the mountain to look at the autumn colors and take pictures!  This is NOT the day to go!"

I am also not a spontaneous person...  I like to have my days and weeks planned out ahead of time.  Springing something into my schedule annoys me.  But I have to admit I don't always have a lot on my schedule. 

We turned home, brushed out teeth, packed up the car WITH JOHN and hats and gloves and headed towards the mountains.

As expected, we ran into traffic.  Yep.  Everyone is headed up the mountain.  Sigh.  Grumble.  Tetsu's philosophy is that we aren't in any rush anyway so bumper-to-bumper traffic is not a problem.  A trip that usually takes 30 minutes took us over an hour but we got up the mountain and searched out a place we know where not too many out-of-towners know about.  Even so, there were a lot of people at the look out point. 

Every year we visit this point and each year the colors are slightly different...  Maybe this year we are a bit early?   

Everyone was pointing their cameras at the very colorful hillside just below this point so Tetsu joined in.

And this is the scenery.

I tried to get a zoom photo after I chatted with an older man with a huge camera.  He said the secret is to pick out one tree and photograph that instead of trying to get the whole scenery.  I chose the yellow tree in the left-hand corner to focus on.

The veteran photographer.  He said he spends a week at the lake and takes pictures everyday to catch the changing colors.  Also, 3:00 pm is the best time for catching the light on the side of the mountain...

Except for a temper-tantrum as we were leaving home, John was a very good dog and seemed to enjoy the trip.  He did get car sick coming up the very windy road but even human adults get car sick on that road so it wasn't a surprise...  You will notice that I am actually touching John!!

He can look so cute when he wants to.

At a different lookout point we caught the colors of the trees against Mt. Nantai.

The lake is beautiful though at this distance you can't really see all the autumn colors.

Maybe this year won't have so much red?

We wandered around the lake for awhile.

John's first lake trip!

I got down on the ground to get mountain, fall leaves, water and shore in the same photo.  John and Tetsu watched from above.

The result of my efforts.

This area is at the former Italian Embassy villa which is now open to the public.  Such a lovely, quaint building for summer lakeside visiting.

There is also a British Embassy villa right next to this one and tourists are offered tea and a chance to learn some of the history of the area.

We, however, had John with us so we couldn't go into the villas.

 

John didn't mind a bit!

 

The trip back DOWN the mountain and through the temples and shrines area of Nikko took us another two hours to get home but as Tetsu says...  we weren't in any rush...

More fun news!!!

This morning Julieta-san texted us and sent us pictures!

We laughed and laughed! October 22!  Takumi and Julieta-san are married!!

Tetsu said, "Julieta-san is so pretty...  Isn't there a picture of her not joking around?  No regular wedding photos?

Yes, there are!  Cute!  They must be out in front of the courthouse.

Takumi and Julieta-san had let us know that today was going to be the day that they were going to the courthouse, so their "wedding" wasn't a surprise but Julieta-san hadn't told me what she was going to wear or if they were going to do anything else special.  Even though she and Takumi are living with her mother, she said that she was spending the night in her mother's bedroom so that she and her mother could get her ready in the morning without Takumi seeing her before hand...  I think he got his first look at his bride as they headed to the courthouse.  There is still the church wedding planned for next May, hopefully when the pandemic is under control and Tetsu and I are planning to attend that ceremony.  I'm sorry that we missed this one but Julieta-san said that even her mother wasn't allowed in the courthouse as a witness...  Corona precautions.

Then a couple of hours later more photos came into our iPhones!  Julieta-san titled this "Our Covid Wedding".  Isn't that a hoot!!  The masks say "bride" and "groom".

And then these gorgeous photos!!!  Those are REAL wedding photos!  Japanese style!  It is nice that the two of them live near Los Angeles where there is a large Japanese population and many authentic businesses.  Julieta-san said they had found this professional photographer who also had wedding apparel and staff that could dress the bride in kimono.  It is a real art to dress a bride in the many layers of kimono, in the right order, to tie the obi correctly.  Even the posing of the bride and groom is very important with feet being placed a certain way, the kimono folds artistically arranged, the heads tipped perfectly.  I am so pleased with the way Takumi and Julieta-san's photos turned out!

 

My son and his bride always seem to think up fun things to do and I have a feeling this is Julieta-san's cheerful heart and playfulness that is going to add much to their marriage.  Maybe Takumi has changed too but anyway Tetsu and I have never been FUN so Takumi didn't learn it from us!

 

Okay... A western style pose is pretty great too!

Surprise at the crosswalk

I had a very interesting experience yesterday!  My morning started normally and I walked to the crosswalk as I always do at 7:30.  When I got there, there was a TV crew waiting for me! 

The three members of the crew didn't really give me much information and instead said that I should just ignore them and go on with my normal work...  Um...  Is someone going to explain what is happening?  I opened up the school gate, I walked my usual route checking for road trash and the camera man just followed with me in his sights...  He continued filming as the children began arriving and it wasn't until I'd closed up the gate again with all the children in the school that I got any real explanation.

It turns out that the crew was from a TV studio that has a regular program about foreigners in Japan, and they had happened to come to the sweet shop the day before and asked if there were any foreigners living in the area.  The sweet shop lady told them I'd be at the crosswalk at around 7:30 for an hour the next morning and so that was why they were there waiting for me.  They asked me a few questions about why I was in Japan and how I became a crosswalk guard...  and then asked if they could come home with me and talk with me some more.  

"Whoa...  Wait a minute...  I don't know about that and besides I'd have to talk with my husband first..."

They were very agreeable to me calling Tetsu and asking if I could bring them home with me and after a few tries (he was out walking John) I got Tetsu on the line and explained the situation.  And Tetsu hesitantly said that he guessed they could come... maybe he'd stay upstairs while they talked with me.

Long story short, the three crew people came home with me, stayed talking with Tetsu while I changed out of my uniform, interviewed both of us and asked about how we met, how we ended up in Nikko, what I liked about the city, where our children were etc. etc. etc.  They wanted to see albums and hear about my grandparents, they wanted to know about where all we had lived in Japan etc.  It came onto nearly 12:00 noon and they were still happily interviewing us!

"What do you normally do for lunch?"

"Well...  sometimes we go out for ramen noodles, sometimes I make fried rice..."

"What are you going to do today?"

With them around I hadn't given any thought to the day's lunch.

"I guess I can make yaki-soba (fried noodles)."

Oh dear...  I sure didn't have enough yaki-soba for all of us.  Did they expect lunch?

"Don't worry about us.  We just want to film you making lunch...  A normal day's lunch."

So I made yaki-soba while the crew crowded into my kitchen and filmed me.  And then they wanted to film us eating lunch...  So Tetsu and I sat down, bowed our head for grace and ate yaki-soba and at an opportune time I pulled out three more dishes and some disposable chopsticks and we shared our three servings of yaki-soba between the five of us.  And with the camera finally put away, we had a very enjoyable time!  I'm just sorry I didn't have anything more tasty to serve my surprise guests!  Yaki-soba is pretty poor pickings!

With lunch finished (they wanted to film Tetsu washing up the dishes since that is always his job at our house) they then wanted to see what I did on a normal day.  So...  I took them upstairs and showed them my sewing room (messy!) and gave a demonstration on machine quilting which I don't really think they understood what was so interesting about it...  Oh well.  They seemed to like seeing all our cats and John got featured quite a bit.  Me walking him, John and Mi playing together.  The TV crew finally left around 2:00!  What a whirlwind!

They asked that I not blog the name of the program that they are making until they determine if any of their filming can be used and until someone higher up decides whether there is anything of interest to make a few minutes' segment for their program, but from the above description most Japanese will recognize what program I'm writing about.  

Anyway, Tetsu and I were quite bushed by the time afternoon rolled by...  I think we both feel like maybe we talked too much?  My goodness, ask me a question and I'll spill my life story to you!  It was all very nice to have someone take such an interest but I sort of wish I had been more outspoken about my faith and not just about cats and quilts and Nikko's beautiful nature.  A chance like that isn't going to come around again!  But who knows if anything will even come of all that camera work... 

I did ask the crew to contact the elementary school if they planned to use any footage with the children at the crosswalk.  I had once been told that the school didn't want me putting pictures of the school children on my blog unless the photos were taken from fairly far away.  The crew promised to get permission if the making of the program got that far...

I said a prayer of thanks last night that I even HAD any yaki-soba in the refrigerator to make for lunch, and I had another burst of gratitude that Tetsu keeps our house straightened up enough that we can have people coming in with cameras and tromping up and down the stairs and into the kitchen etc.  Thank you, Tetsu!  I'm certainly not to be given any credit!

10 more weeks!

I hear from our kids fairly regularly though Leiya is the best at Facetiming us.  Leiya chats as she cooks dinner and asks random questions about when she and Takumi were born and what Japanese birth practices were back then. Gosh, it is so long ago...

I know that Tetsu was present for our first daughter's birth and that was a first time to have a father in the delivery room at that hospital.  Probably they figured they'd need someone who could communicate with me though Tetsu didn't have any English ability back then either.

Two years later when Takumi was born the hospital (different hospital) didn't let fathers in and the same was true when Leiya was born (though Mrs. Furui's son was born in the same hospital a year later and by then the hospital's policy had changed.)  I can't really recall if there was anything out of the ordinary but I have a feeling that all three births were on the natural side and there was never a mention of a C-section.  And I think there were always mid-wives present as well as the doctor.  With Leiya it was a youngish midwife and she told me later that it had been her first delivery...  I guess they wanted a veteran mother that didn't have a history of problems for her first time.

Leiya and Tony are hoping for a home-birth.  Gulp.  Now don't go telling me the risks involved, I'm not too sure of the plan myself but they are the ones having the baby and making the decisions.  I think I've decided to wait until after the baby is born to visit them though.  Leiya wanted me to be there when the baby is born but I don't really want to be sitting in the next room while my daughter has a baby...  

 Anyway...  we are heading into the 9th week.

Leiya and Tony got away for a mini-vacation last week.  Yep, she's looking pregnant!

Enjoying a bit of couple time before they become a three-some.

I love this picture that Leiya sent us this morning.  Marcy, Julieta, Kiana, Leiya and I are all on a Message Chat together (ladies only!) and Leiya was giving us a group update.  I guess I'll refrain from posting the photos of a naked stomach but anyway she is looking like a lovely mother-to-be.  The look suits her. 

I've got to figure out when I'm going to go to Indiana...  I don't want to bring viruses with me from the airports and airplanes but I'd like to be around for the first month of my grandson's life...  

 

Preschool

So far this has been a quiet week...  Marlene and I got out once for lunch and I also went to the preschool for the first time in two months.  

Preschool is always fun and I think I've taught there for almost 10 years...  Marlene knew the preschool principal and Marlene had been asked if she would be interested in teaching an hour class to the children not long after the preschool had opened.  Because Marlene had other teaching commitments she suggested that I might be interested and as I had already been teaching at a kindergarten for like 15 years, I had materials and a class outline in mind.  It was an easy choice to say yes to a one hour "gig".  At the end of the hour the principal asked if I could make a biweekly commitment and again because I was doing something similar at the kindergarten every week I took on the English teaching job at the preschool and there I've been for all these years.  (I retired from the kindergarten 5 years ago).

I still love teaching/playing with the little 3, 4, and 5 year olds but Covid 19 has thrown us for a loop this year.  Though the preschool continued all through the sheltering down months of April and May (when schools were closed) the preschool policy was to have as few outside people coming into the building as possible thus I didn't teach in April or May.  When June rolled around I was asked to start coming again but new precautions had to be taken.  Each class was moved into the main hall for their English period (I had formerly gone from classroom to classroom) in order to maintain a bit of social distancing between me and the children.  I was also asked to wear a mask.

Well, that was a complete flop!  I could hardly see the point of teaching English with my face half covered as the children couldn't see how words were pronounced.  I was taking the dang thing off, putting it back on over and over in a 30 minute class.  As I talked and taught the mask drifted down my face so I was constantly adjusting it.  For years I'd called children to my side to pick out flash cards, to give them a High-5 when they answered correctly, to sit them on my knee, and now we were practicing social distancing...  Maybe my teaching days are over...  Also to get some good airflow into the room, all the doors and windows were left open which meant the singing and yelling from other classrooms, the sounds of farmers mowing their fields from outside, made it very hard for anyone to hear.

When we headed into August, with Covid cases rising in our prefecture, the principal and I decided not to hold English classes again for a month.  During August the heat laid me low for about a week and as it was still reaching high temperatures in September, September English was canceled too (mostly for MY health benefit.)  

So this year I've seen the children a whole four times.  And I may be heading to the States in late December or January (to be with Leiya) and that will be another month break plus two weeks of required self quarantine by the Japanese government.  Takumi's wedding is on the calendar for next May too.  Maybe it's about time for the preschool to look for a new English teacher...  One who can adapt to the changes of the world a bit better than I can.  

I have made the suggestion...  The principal has expressed a desire for me to continue despite the inconveniences I may cause.  We are both thinking about what is best for the preschool children and what will work for my continued participation...

But back to the mask situation.  I bought myself a mouth shield, one that is clear and sits on the chin.  It isn't ideal (I don't think it gives ANY protection to the person wearing it but it may prevent saliva spray by the person wearing it) but it is much easier to use in a classroom situation especially because it is clear!  (I also bought a clear shield that sits on the bridge of the nose like glasses but those get in the way of when I need to put on and take off my reading glasses!)  Teaching English is not like it was in the old days!

Actually I don't have any pictures of me teaching at the preschool BUT a friend of mine just went to a local park to look at the cosmos fields and I asked her if I could post one of her pictures on my blog.  She just happened to be at the park when a group of preschoolers/kindergartners were having a field trip to the park.  This is so typical of Japanese preschool.  Look at the line of children with all their colorful hats!  Probably each class is assigned a name like "daffodil class" or " hydrangea class" and they have hats that match.  Makes it nice so that the teachers can pick out their own children on a playground!  Everyone is in matching shorts and with their matching backpacks too!

 

Getting ready for the cold

There hasn't been much going on worthy of writing about.  Three weeks ago I was complaining of the heat and humidity and now I've got fleece shirts, down jackets and kerosene stoves out!  It is suddenly cold!!!

And with the cold season I am once again inspired to get my knitting needles out.  I might as well start thinking about knitting for Tetsu again.  (And didn't I declare LAST year that I wasn't going to knit anything for him again?  I ended up making him a vest...)  On one of my few trips into the city I went to the craft store to buy thread and to check out what they have in yarn but they are woefully under-stocked. Maybe they are fazing out their yarn section?  I checked another shop on my way home and found the same yarn as I'd bought last year but nothing else that inspired me...  

So finally, I pulled out some of Tetsu's oldest vests and sweaters and I chose one as a sacrifice.  Oh well, he hasn't worn this one in years and it was looking pretty tired and stretched out of shape.  I started in on some serious unraveling!  

It took THREE DAYS to pick out the edging stitching and then untangle everything as I went along rolling up balls. 

But I wasn't really sure if this would be enough for a new vest (especially as some of the edging had to be thrown out)...  I found two balls of left over cream yarn that is not really enough for anything and was pretty jarring against the blue, but I also found two balls of the very grey gradation yarn I had used last year (and thanks to my trip to the yarn store I know it is still available).  I decided to combine yarns and use larger needles...  MAYBE I'll have enough yarn for another vest?  I can only play chicken and hope for the best!  Knitting has started!

Tetsu also moved in our cactus collection (Takumi's Father's Day present this year) and we had to find a place for all the pots.  Tetsu is hoping to buy or build a small shelf for these but in the meantime I fashioned John's old kennel into a cactus shelf...  Cactus INSIDE and on top.  John isn't too happy with the residence of the cactus inside his kennel.  Even though he doesn't like the kennel he considers it HIS.

On the left there is our little "family" remembrance corner...  It is not really an altar like most Japanese have in their homes but after Tetsu's mother died he liked the one picture we had of her smiling so much he wanted to keep it out where he can see it...  Thus our corner was started....  My mother's picture, Choco and Shoko, our old dogs, Lemi and Velvet, our old cats, my father's picture and in front there is our first daughter, Maya's...  Actually we celebrated her birthday yesterday with cake that I'd baked and the small rose that Tetsu bought.  She would have been 38 years old.

M-san continues to come to my house every couple of weeks to do patchwork.  I sent her home with templates for making this cup pattern and the next time I saw her two weeks later she had something like 32 cups!  She has made a couple coasters and mini quilts and I decided she should aim for something a bit larger with a place to do some decorative quilting.  Yesterday I was showing her how to baste a larger quilt and she traced a quilting pattern in the border.  I can imagine M-san at home sitting in her family's heated low table hand quilting this colorful quilt!

Also because of the cold weather I cut up an old fleece shirt and made a neck warmer for myself with some of the kimono silk from one of Tetsu's mother's old kimonos.  I had bought a similar one last winter and have been waiting for the weather to change so that I could make one of my own.  All those dots on the kimono were hand tied before dying and this very elaborate kimono was called Shibori.  I had made something else from the kimono material (which Leiya claimed) but hadn't been able to part with even the smallest left over pieces. 

One beautiful morning at around 5:30.

During the day Mi finds a warm place under the covers in my bed.  Cleo has made a nest completely under the covers but Mi must have her head sticking out so she looks like a stuffed animal sitting on the pillow...

Ready for winter!