Disneyland of Food

A couple of weeks ago, we took some of our students to Costco in Fukuoka. My mom and the dogs came along for the ride. We piled into three vehicles and Miyuki was in the lead car. She knew how to get there. She did a great job of getting us there and back safely. Thank you Miyuki! We let Noriko in the lead car use one of our cell phones. English was the only requirement for using the phone. On the way to Fukuoka, I received a call from Noriko, asking that we pass their vehicle. I was puzzled as to why they wanted us to lead. The traffic was heavy and we were afraid to change lanes. I quickly handed the phone to Erika for clarification. Yep, sure enough, they wanted us to pass them. Miyuki wanted us pass safely so that we would end up in the correct lane while she blocked traffic…pretty clever thinking on her part.

Fukuoka is a two hour drive from Tsukahara. There are many full service rest areas along the highway. The roundtrip cost to drive on the highway from Yufuin to Fukuoka is about 5000 yen. Considering it would have taken a lot longer on the smaller side roads, it was worth it. The speed limit on the highway is 80kph, but I think the posted speed limit is a mere suggestion. Most of the cars were flying past us. I finally figured out why some Japanese own very expensive sports cars. They like to drive fast on the highways. We were passed by a Lamborghini, Ferrari, Porsches, BMW’s, Jaguar and a Maserati just to name a few. I often see cars like these in Tsukahara, but I couldn’t figure out why. The top speed on our country roads is 60kph. Why would anyone need a car like that to drive so slow? Now, I know the answer.

The highlight for the students was a chance to eat a Costco pizza. I had a couple of slices, but I satisfied my craving for junk food with a couple of foot-long hotdogs smothered in ketchup, mustard, and relish…yummmmm. The general impression was that Costco was huge, they had a lot of stuff, and the stuff they had was big. I guess that sums it up. Even the carts were huge. Judging from what I saw at the check-out lines, people visited Costco for the experience rather than actually buying a bunch of things. I saw many carts with just a couple of items. It was interesting to see the long lines of people patiently waiting to taste free samples. Each person would take only one sample knowing that the person behind them had been patiently waiting in line also. In the U.S., it’s not that uncommon for someone to eat all of the samples and leave nothing for everyone else.

The parking lot was filled to capacity. I glanced at the license plates and I was amazed at how far people traveled to come to this store. Erika reminded me that only two Costco warehouses exist in Kyushu. “A Disneyland of food,” is how I described Costco to the students before they traveled to Fukuoka. After the trip, I concluded that Costco is like a taste of America without the hassle and cost of jumping on an airplane. I hope our students came away with that impression too.     George

Well, that's it.

My mom’s visit to Japan was important for both of us. She had a chance to see my life in Japan. She was able to see how happy I am here. She also saw how busy we are with the business and remodeling our home.  She witnessed the difficulties and inconveniences of living in the countryside. I think the time she spent here put her mind at ease. She said that she could stop worrying about me, but I know that is impossible. She is an expert at worrying and she will always do so. The second purpose of her visit was to determine if she could live in Japan after she becomes unable to take care of herself. I don’t think she can live here. Reverting back to Japanese culture would be difficult after being an American for 60+ years. Come to think of it…for me, reverting back to American culture would be very difficult after living in Japan for only 2.5 years. Why? The differences between the two cultures are light years apart, especially comparing a life in a small community in the Japan countryside with a life in a moderately sized city in California. Let me explain…

Life in Tsukahara is quiet and slow. Life in the Bay Area (California) is not. In Tsukahara, everyone knows everyone. We try to treat each other with respect and kindness and expect the same in return. In California, I lived in the same house for ten years and I didn’t know any of my neighbors. I didn’t want to know them. I kept my doors locked and I kept to myself. It was safer to do so. For my mom, she has lived in that kind of environment for most of her life. One day, I found that all of our doors were locked in Tsukahara, because she locked them. She was afraid that maybe a deer would break into the house? On my last visit to my mom’s house, I found myself staying indoors even though the house is located in a gated community. All of the new stories about random murders and violence prevented me from having a pleasant visit to the golden state. Each night, the local news would spend the first five or ten minutes describing a recent homicide, robbery, or rape. I didn’t realize it, but I was numb to those stories when I lived in the states. Upon my return visit, I became sensitive to the news of violence…maybe too sensitive. I did not want to leave the relatively safe confines of my mom’s home.

The third purpose of her visit was to spend time with her older sister. I think they enjoyed each other’s company for a few days. Those moments were priceless. Overall, I was able to share five weeks with my mom. That fact is amazing considering I used to argue with her after 5 minutes! Erika was the very best daughter-in-law. She took care of my mom when I was at work. She took her shopping, and to the local restaurants. They did some sightseeing in Yufuin. She introduced my mom to some of the neighbors. Erika was even the last one to say, “Goodbye” to her at the bus stop before she went back to America. I’m a lucky guy to have such a great wife. Well, that’s it. My mom is safely back home and ready to start her new life in retirement.    George

I'm back!



First day in Japan. Mt. Yufu in the background.

It’s great to be home! I missed my wife, dogs, and most important…the volcano. In my previous post, I wrote that I had a surprise to disclose. What’s the surprise, George? My mom flew back with me to Japan. She will be visiting for a month. Believe it or not, she just celebrated her 85^th birthday. I was worried about her enduring the long flight from San Francisco. She ended up having more energy than me after we arrived in Fukuoka. She is an amazing woman. She has been here for about a week. Her older sister, niece and her son has been showing my mom the Yufuin/ Beppu area in style. You know…fancy hotels, hot springs, 11 course dinners. It has been a fantastic experience for her…so far. Thank you, Megumi and Nao, for taking great care of my mom. I think the most important part of the trip has been the time that she could spend with her sister. Sadly, they both believe that it will be their last.

Which one is my mom?

What did you do while you were in the U.S.? Not much. Before I left, my mom had not renewed her driver’s license. I was ready to help her prepare for a life without a car. I wanted to spend as much time as I could getting her used to using public transportation. As it turned out, she passed her driver’s test on the first try. She said that she couldn’t have done it without my help, but I disagree. She studied very hard on her own. Needless to say, she was ecstatic when she received her test score. I was grateful that I could be there to share that with her.

Jelly Belly Factory entrance

 

Jelly Belly bus

Jelly Belly mascot



Jelly Belly VW

Guess what it is? It's a Jelly Belly motorcycle



Made with 25,000 jelly beans

What else did you do?  Honestly, after being away from the hustle and bustle of the city, I was hesitant to get out and explore. I could not believe how much everything had grown. The cars and the roads seemed to be enormous after experiencing Japan for a few years. Traffic congestion was the norm. I didn’t know where everyone was going, but they were certainly in a hurry to get there. The speed limit is about 140kph on the freeway. It’s called a “freeway” because there are no toll booths except for the bridges. I’m used to driving at 60kph. I stayed in the slow lane for most of my driving excursions. There are six lanes of traffic in each direction. It didn’t take long to get used to driving on the right side of the road, but I often turned the windshield wiper on instead of the turn signals. Besides visiting the Factory Stores, which I hate to do, I visited the Jelly Belly Factory to pick up some gifts.



New homes near the park boundaries

I spent some time hiking in Rockville Hills Park. I have fond memories of the park. I used to walk my other dogs there. Even the park has grown. It used to be a place that was hidden away from the public’s eye. Now it is surrounded by million dollar homes and patrolled by park rangers making sure the park entrance fee is paid. Rockville Park is still a nice place to visit and it’s good to know that it’s being protected from future development. My mom and I ate at all of the local restaurants. I satisfied any cravings I had for pizza and fast food. I learned that things (fast food and pizza) don’t taste as well as I remembered them. I can live without that kind of junk food for the rest of my life. I sorely missed Erika’s home cooking.

Beautiful spring day at Rockville Hills Park

Here’s what I learned from my recent trip to the states: Living in California is convenient. The convenience comes with a high price tag. I’m convinced that the everyday stress of commuting back and forth to the bay area had taken many precious years from my life. It’s nice to be able to go to the mall and buy whatever you want. I learned that what I want and what I need are two entirely different things. Lightening the load has brought me a greater appreciation for the things I have rather than the things I want. It’s nice to live in a gated community full of stucco homes and manicured lawns. I’d rather live in Japan in a broken down log home on the side of a volcano. Peace and quiet are priceless. It’s nice to be in a familiar English environment. Perhaps, but not understanding what people are saying behind your back has its advantages. California does have great weather. Yep, there’s no denying that. Will I ever move back to the U.S.? What do you think?     George

NEWS

Here's a bit of trivia. Do you know what "NEWS" stands for? North, East, West, and South. That's not the news. Skip down a couple of paragraphs for that.

Before the door and wall was moved

 

After the door was moved

Before the wall was removed

 

Continuing the ongoing saga of our remodel…the door to the living room has been moved. A wall has been removed to make room for our couch. A new wall was built to accept the door using the recycled materials from the previous demolition.

 

Recyled materials after demolition

Moving the couch didn’t seem like a big deal until we actually rearranged the furniture. Amazing! All of a sudden, we have a huge living space. The couch, in its original position, closed off the living room from the kitchen and dining area. In other words, the couch was in the way. With the obstacle out of the way, we have room to roam. Cool! I forgot to mention that Erika and I are challenged when it comes to interior decoration. So when we have a successful furniture rearrangement, it’s a big deal for us.

After door and wall was moved. The tatami room will be removed next.

NEWS…I’ll be going to California for a couple of weeks to visit my mother. She’ll be celebrating her 85^th birthday. It’s been almost three years since I've seen her. I promise to take lots of pictures of the trip not only for the blog, but also for my students. I leave for the U.S. on March 12^th. I’ll be flying Hawaiian Airlines from Fukuoka to Honolulu to San Francisco. It’s a late flight (9pm) and I’ll be arriving in San Francisco around 10pm. I’ll catch a shuttle to my mom’s house which should take a couple of hours. Is Erika coming with you? Good question. Nope.

Sorry, but I’ll be unable to blog for the next couple of weeks. I’ll have a big surprise to share with you when I get back. Stay tuned…

The World's Largest Grapefruit

 

Erika was walking the dogs in Hasama and a farmer gave her three soccer ball sized fruit. The fruit is called, “Banpeiyu”. I’m assuming that translates into “the world’s largest grapefruit”. How big is it? The picture doesn’t accurately depict the size of this fruit. The diameter is 12 inches. Banpeiyu smells like grapefruit. It weighs several pounds. The flesh is yellow, but the texture is dry. I don’t know why anyone would buy this, but I do know it costs around 500 yen…each. I wish I had taken a picture of the Banpeiyu tree. It was odd to see a tree filled with yellow soccer ball sized fruit. It reminded me of a tree decked out in huge yellow Christmas ornaments.     George

Update

YUMMMMMY! This fruit tastes a little sweeter than a grapefruit. If you like grapefruit, you'll love this! The cool thing is that there is so much to eat...about two or three large servings. Would I spend 500 yen? Absolutely!

The seeds are large and easy to remove.

The flesh is not dry at all.

Eco-line

When we moved to Tsukahara, we were told that February was the coldest month. This is our third winter and the results are in. Yes, February is the coldest month. We haven’t seen a temperature above 5 degrees Celsius. About 12 inches of snow has accumulated. That’s just enough snow to make driving to work a challenge. One thing that Erika and I have learned. It doesn’t matter how prepared you are to drive in the snow and ice. The accidents occur when the other guy isn’t prepared. We live in a tourist area. Tourists acting like tourists love to stop in the middle of the road and take pictures, play in the snow and/or put chains on. Did I say the “middle” of the road? This fairly dangerous maneuver stops traffic in both directions. The narrow roads are hard enough to navigate during good weather. The unsuspecting tourist, Erika likes to call them “stupid”, can turn a 30 minute commute into an all day event. One of the benefits of being surrounded by tourists that lack common sense is that they provide endless hours of conversation topics. Erika shares her nightmarish commute stories with me every night and I usually have a few stories of my own.

There is a stretch of road, Eco-line, that climbs between two volcanoes. It’s part of Erika’s daily commute. The road is narrow and steep. The lack of traffic invites the deer to hang out on the road. Eco-line is not very well maintained and it’s riddled with potholes. At night, the pitch blackness makes it a strain to see past the headlights. Couple this with snow, ice, deer, and tourists…well, it's dangerous. Did I mention that cell phones don’t work on Eco-line. Lately, Erika calls me just before and after she attempts this treacherous road so that I know where to find her if something happened.

UPDATE:

The heavy snow curling down from the metal roof. I removed this hazard right after photographing it.



After writing this blog, Tsukahara experienced its worst snowfall in recent history. A neighbor who has lived here for 19 years told us that she has never seen this much snow. The snow around our home comes up to our knees. We spent the weekend trying to dig ourselves out of the snow. Eco-line is closed. The road to Yufuin has been closed to Beppu. The problem is that the tall snow laiden bamboo tends to lean into the road. This creates tunnels of bamboo which makes the road almost impassable. The road crews are working around the clock to clear these obstacles, but Oita is not prepared for a snow event of this magnitude. In order for Erika to get to Hasama, she must drive 1.5 hours around the volcano. Since some of the roads are closed, the main roads are clogged with traffic. More snow is expected over the week. This could be a very difficult late winter for everyone.       George

We managed to dig the truck out after a weekend of hard work

Kiley and Lucky know how to get around in the snow!

Lucky wouldn't give up even in the deep snow.

BBQ?

Our firewood is under there somewhere.

 

 

New girlfriend. Her name is...

Aside from both of us being sick over the past two weekends…I found a new girlfriend. Well, Erika calls “her” that. “She” is a wonderful thing. She cooks my meals when Erika is busy or sick. Who is she? Her name is CO-OP. I’m not sure if “she” is a she, but it’s fun to think she is. I’m assuming that CO-OP is short for cooperation. CO-OP is a collection of local farmers and vendors that provide home delivery of their goods. A truck comes by with whatever I ordered from the previous week and picks up my order for the following week. The service costs about 200 yen a week whether or not I place an order. It amazingly reasonable considering that I live out in the middle of nowhere. Each order comes with a mountain of advertisements. The ads cover a wide gamut of goods ranging from desserts/snacks to clothing/cosmetics to appliances/ furniture to plants/flowers to complete meals. It's a department store delivered to your front door. The meals are packaged and frozen just like a TV dinner. Just pop it in the microwave and "ding" you're done! Did I mention that they sell beer? Not that I would indulge in that sort of thing. The complete meals are about 400 yen. Not bad considering how healthy they are. The meals would be considered small for an American appetite, but add some steamed rice and you're good to go. Oh, the meals that feature fish as the main entree have the bones removed. That's important for people like me who don't like to worry about stuff like that. The packaging is all recyclable plastic so dish washing is not required. That's also a good thing for people like me.

 

What's the real reason for the new girlfriend, George? Good question! Erika is planning for her...umm...let me put this mildly...death. What!? Don't get excited. She's not going to die or anything. She's just worried about me surviving in Japan if something terrible happened to her. She is a very responsible person. neh? That's why I married her. Everyone that knows me knows that I don't cook. I can boil water and I can pour a bowl of cereal, and most important...I can use a microwave. I think it's easy to see why she is so worried. Well, the problem is solved, sort of. I don't need to write anything in Japanese to order food. The order forms have the address already filled out. I just need to look at the pretty pictures in the advertisements and write the item number down in the appropriate box. Walla! Food delivered to my doorstep every week. I love CO-OP.

Haiku

I almost forgot to mention that one of our Tsukahara neighbors, Mu-chan, did a fabulous job of taking care of the dogs while we were busy with the Christmas party. During her visit, she created a few haikus. We were so impressed that we asked her to copy her thoughts onto the first page of our guestbook. She happily agreed.     George

Great Time

 

I grew up in Fairfield, California and I rarely had the chance to experience snow. Things have changed and snow is now something I enjoy every winter. I think you will agree that Erika and the dogs enjoy the white stuff, too.

 

Sledding is fun! Sledding with Lucky and Kiley is REALLY fun! The nearby hills provided ample opportunity to test the slippery slopes.



 

I quickly learned that going down the hill was a lot more fun than climbing up. After a few uphill trips, I decided that I had enough fun for one day. Snow? I can’t wait to do this again.   George

Doing, Did, Done

Over the holiday I was able to get some things done around the house.



Before the bench was added

After

I built a workbench for some of my tools. The legs are made from Hinoki. The bench is a little taller than I had planned, but it’s workable. I was able to assemble most of my bench tools and the tablesaw. They have been disassembled and in boxes for over two years. It's good to have most of my woodworking tools up and running again. Now It's time to figure out the best way to use the garage/ workshop space efficiently.

I’m planning on having a hobby area in the shop. The area will be used for building model airplanes and stained glass. The hobby shop will be usable after the attic is built.

Some of the oak trees were cut down to make room for other things such as…an observatory. One of Erika’s gardens will have to be relocated to a slightly different location to make room for the project. It will be a few months before I start construction.

I’m not getting any younger and the stairs felt like they were getting steeper. The next project was to install handrails in the stairwell. It should have been a simple job, but I failed to choose the correct size hardware. I had to reduce the diameter of each rail to accommodate the incorrect brackets. A two hour job turned into four hours. They’ll be stained to match the stair flooring that will be installed later.

Oh, I almost forgot. Part of the remodel included changing the tatami room into an expanded living/ dining room. The remodel began with removing the wall that supported the fusuma screens. I was tired of hitting my head every time I entered the dining room. The wall is gone…bye, bye! I’ll use the wood from that project to build a header wall for a door that will be relocated in the near future.     George

Future hobby area

Future attic

Tatami room remodel begins.

Upper wall sheetrock removed.

Upper wall...gone. Time to frame a door and remove a few more walls.