Calling a writer somewhere....

I find myself in need of a new line. Tonight I started with the usual, "You, madam....." and E finished with "are cwazy". She's figured me out.

TV, how I love you.

The TV is babysitting E while I type this up. Actually, I do not consider it babysitting at this point. It is a public service that I pay for, and I paid for the dvd that is currently playing. And, I just want a little down time.

Today a couple neighbor friends came by and it was good to catch up and laugh. Actually there were a lot of laughs. I tried to describe some of my recent language escapades of trying to explain to a guy that his work truck was blocking the street and I couldn't get through. About the only thing I really managed to accomplish was saying over and over, "I can't drive." Finally he decided to come out and see what I was talking about and then moved his vehicle so that I could get through. The old woman pulling her wheeled groceries that I had overtaken prior on the street got past me probably thinking, "I might be old but I'm small."

Today F is working late so I have some rice cooking. Beyond that, I'm defrosting some curry that I had leftover before. I need to take an overdue dvd back to the store---I never got around to watching it. That will be my confidence builder or buster for the day. I guess there's not much to say outside of apologizing that it's late and waiting for them to tell me how much I need to pay.

I'm going to a friend's on Sunday who is moving back to the U.S. suddenly. She'll be working at an immersion school in Seattle, her old stomping grounds. I have decided to try a new recipe that I've been looking at for a while, and I sure hope it's good. Black Pearl Layer Cake will contain wasabi, ginger, and sesame seeds. I became interested in the recipe because I bought chocolate from the chocolatier in Chicago who came up with the recipe. I liked the chocolate, why not try the cake?

I feel I haven't been getting my TV quotient lately though. It seems as though I'm mainly watching E's videos, doing an exercise vid, or catching a small bit of CNN. I need to exercise today....I'm feeling quite sluggard-like and ate a bunch of snacks this afternoon that weren't the best choice. I just want to have a lie down in front of the tv and let the evening pass though.

Okay, up I go. Got to do something lest I become attached to the kitchen chair here in front of the computer.

Just the usual.

Today we visited a friend's house. I picked up a friend from the subway station and drove to our other friend's house. I forgot yesterday to ask F to set up the navigation in the car, so I was going on the memory of driving my friend home once. We got there with no issues, but to be really honest about it, it was pretty straightforward. I just don't have a great deal of confidence, but I try.

A good day was had all around, I hope. E and the 2 boys present all took turns aggravating one another. As one of my friends said, "Well, no one was the clear victim today. That's good." Lunch, dessert, and farewells followed by 2 snoozing kids in the car while my friend and I caught up while I drove her back to our station.

Not much to report for anything else. Tomorrow we're having some neighbors here in the afternoon. F told me last night he's heading out of town Friday with a potential partner for a 5:00 pm meeting. He said that it was not the best time for a meeting, 5:00 on a Friday, so he expected he wouldn't be home until 11 or so. I actually don't mind since I'm having friends over, so I won't be rushing to get dinner on the table after they leave. E and I can have a very simple dinner (yogurt, cheese, cereal & fruit) if the mood strikes.

It's Thursday, and I'm just realizing that. I noticed the sound of boxes being moved around outside to signal that some foods are being delivered to people in our neighboring building who subscribe to the service. One of my friends does it, and I'm guessing it's because Thursdays are busy days for her with a rhythm class for her little girl and usual after school activities for her older daughter. The food is delivered so that you don't have to shop that day, though judging by the size of the box I see, it's more than one day's worth. Perhaps it's also other organic staples of life?

I'm trying to get more organized in that department, but I am usually at the store 2 or 3 days during the week not counting the weekend. Maybe it's the lack of space in our fridge, or maybe it's that food seems to spoil quicker than at home in the States, or maybe I'm just a poor shopper. My feeling is that veggies are not waxed here, making them susceptible to spoiling more quickly. I HATED waxed apples and cucumbers at home though. I've been reading Barbara Kingsolver's latest book Animal, Vegetable, Miracle and trying to make some changes regarding how I buy food. I'm reading labels of where the produce is coming from and trying to buy closer to home. It's not always cheaper to do so: broccoli grown in Japan was 179 yen the other day at the store and broccoli brought in from the US was 99 yen. What to do? I didn't buy either since I couldn't justify the cost of the Japanese broccoli when it wasn't on sale. (Yes I'm cheap like that.)

Lately I've made spinach tortillas from scratch since I don't want to spend $4+ on a package of 10 that I need to go to a specific shop to get. I made faux ravioli the other night using wonton wrappers. (Keef, please don't go into shock at my use of pasta materials.) Whatever isn't used gets frozen for future use, and I think I tend to appreciate that which I've made myself though sometimes it's a pain in the a**.

Well, dinner needs preparing and I need to get on it. I think tonight is going to be sort of a thrown together bit, but we'll get by until tomorrow when it's grocery shopping again.

Recommitting to blog.

Okay, so I don't post often. It goes without saying. Should I apologize for it? I could go so PA (passive aggressive) on my readers and say that I'm sorry that I haven't posted in forever. I'm just trying to raise a child, and I can't seem to find enough time, and ---this is where the eyes go misty and anime-ed---I'm sorry that I can't do everything to suit everyone. First a single tear rolls down from the corner of my eye, and you the reader is so sorry that you mentioned that I haven't been posting. But, I won't do that.

Life is what it is. I have no recollection really of where the last 8 months have gone. Settling in, visiting family, trying to figure out who the good doctors are, getting E settled into a hoikuen (day care) that I like. Playgroup, making friends, having people over, trying new recipes with foods I didn't grow up with, that all takes some time. But, I have enjoyed it. Okay, there are nights when I can't come up with anything to make for dinner, and I go to the store and buy ready made stuff that just needs eating, or heating and eating.

E is currently being bathed by Dad. I hear her screams as he's probably trying to pour water on her head or alternately trying to coax her out of the tub. Or she's telling him some story that's a mix of English, Japanese, and her own tongue. She cracks herself up at times. So, in turn, we find ourselves laughing. She's since exited the tub and is being lotioned up as I type this hurriedly. I know I only have a couple more moments of uninterrupted typing time, before she tells me it's time for bed. Okay, so I don't have a couple moments. She's come into the room, dripping, with the nail polish telling me that she needs "Paint." And, honestly, the past several nights I've promised to touch up her toenails. Tonight I think she'll be holding me to that.