Little stamps! Little boxes!

This year I finally got a hanko, the magical little stamp that proves your identity anytime you deal with official paperwork in Japan. And today I finally got a case for it. Too bad I already chipped it, which will probably result in my being deported. Like I'll go stamp something from Amazon and they'll be like "WHAT! is this little GAP IN YOUR STAMP! There was no gap in the last one! Holy shit counterfeit, this is a serious problem. You must not be who you say you are! You cannot have this package." And I'll be like "oh my god are you kidding me? Here, look at my foreigner's card and my passport and my health insurance card and my bank card and my employee's card, dude it's me I promise." And they'll be like, "Well, miss, that's some straight-up evidence you've got there, and I see here that you have used this strange and inimitable handwritten signature of yours many times, so there should really be no question that it's you. Unfortunately this little stamp -- which your co-worker actually went and got for you in your name for about 15 bucks -- is the only true key to confirming your identity, so I'm afraid this spells doom for all future endeavors that require you to be yourself." "Fuck!" Oh, hanko. You make all the sense in the world. Nice case, though!

Look, little candies in cute boxes! Now stuffed in an envelope that has been sealed, addressed, and waiting to be sent for one month plus. Exotic old-fashioned packaging, labels in another language, thrill me no less today than when I was little. I love them! I could buy entire grocery stores when I'm abroad, I love foreign labels so much.

It got cold today. Winter! Why are you like this? I just ordered an electric blanket. I expect us to be best friends. I hate winter here! There is no escape from the stupid cold. It's impossible to insulate these cardboard walls and as soon as you turn off the space heater the cold rushes back in. There is no escape, absolutely no escape, no safe place to shave your legs or put on lotion. Conditions so harsh even I am compelled to keep my pants on as often as possible. I ordered this blanket from AMAZON JAPAN which is viewable in English, has free shipping, lets you schedule delivery and pay in cash when stuff arrives. For every nuisance there's a convenience. Talkin' bout you, Japan. P.S. Amazon doesn't require a hanko, I carelessly made that up.

Sunday Sunday Sunday

Yesterday it was fucking snowing. WTF. But today was beautiful. I tried to call my mom in the morning. She didn't answer, but her ring tone was Boston's Long Time/Foreplay. It put me in such a good mood. Let me share that with you.

Leaves! Leaves! Leaves! Summer! I'm ready!

I'm always relaxed and productive at this kissaten. I went there after lunch to work on lesson plans. I'm adjusting to a major lifestyle change this month. For the last year I've been working at a bottom-rung teaching job, part-time, miserable work, no money, and so much free time. It's been an extremely interesting. I'm not sure if you can tell or not. I know some of you can, haha.

I don't like jobs. I'm almost 25 and I still say that, and you shouldn't bother telling me to grow up. I want to live my weird life and write however I want and that's it. I just have to keep finding ways to get away with it. For now I'm compromising because I get my own class of older kids who speak native English and I get to teach them literary analysis however I want. I was hoping this would help ease the pain of waking up at 5:30 and getting home at 6:20 and going to bed at 10:30 and having no time to work on anything of my own. I was right. I don't have as much time to get into trouble but I am really fascinated with the way everything looks right now.

Plus, no more school lunch, so I get to pack my own! Don't make fun of it. You got camarones in your bento? Creo que no.

I also made cornbread today! It was so good. I love these cans of baking powder. I meant to learn to cook Japanese food in Japan but I didn't find it all that fun, for some reason.

PARFAIT TIME

CAN YOU HANDLE IT?

Bottom right features a Mrs. Kikuchi, apple juice, and a high five on the side. Apple juice was a popular drink accompaniment.


If I'm to eat a cheese parfait I'll be needing a cheese spoon.


THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT

Yaki-Yaki Parfait at bottom left, impressive.


Chocolate ice cream, tamago sushi, sweet potato, natto soda, vanilla ice cream, red wine. Child, you are the future.

Is it still winter?

Then I'm still compulsively making things.

These are called DEVILED EGGS, see? I put wasabi in them.

These macaroons = 3 ingredients + chocolate.

My first American biscuits! I'm so proud, even though I should have cut them with a knife instead of a jar. Their dome-iness didn't affect their deliciousness so it's okay.

March March March

Shit, who has anything to say on March 2nd of any year?

I can't stop eating spinach. I've been eating it twice a day for like two weeks. I came home one night and my roommate was making it and I thought shit that looks good and now it's all I can take. Last week I had spinach and chicken for breakfast and then the school lunch was spinach and chicken. I fucking own this city. No one pushes me around on the train now because they can tell I've replaced all my meals with spinach and I'm listening to Immigrant Song on repeat throughout my entire commute. I did fall down the escalator the other day, though.

In other news:

1. I only have a couple more weeks left at my elementary school and then I get a long broke spring vacation and then I'm starting a new teaching job that I'm trying not to be too excited about (but I think it might be awesome).
2. If I don't see the Pacific soon I'm gonna dry up. I need a seaside getaway somewhere not too far from Tokyo, with big wet trees.
   
3. My birthday is in April!
   

Or Don't Be Mine

I spent Valentine's Day with possibly the worst hangover of my entire life. I was in bed until 9PM. I only stumbled out of my room a few times to swallow some tap water and swear I was dying.

When I finally got up, I was all alone and the only thing to do was go buy a bento and watch Heathers online and sulk. Classic Valentine's Day variation, right?

And I had already eaten my share of peanut butter cups. I never want to see another peanut butter cup or another cigarette or another glass of whiskey as long as I live. (Really!)

Apparently no one made chocolates for Valentine's Day but me. That's funny. These peanut butter cups tasted exactly like peanut butter cups, by the way. Peanut Butter Cups Recipe

ENOUGH

I hate winter! I hate being cold and bulky all the time with my bag slipping off my giant wool shoulder and my nose red and runny. I do like this coat Hanako gave me, but winter is such a pain in the ass.

And these days I am not the kind of girl who can stay in and read a book. I need to go out and read a book. Out into the cold! I do have some warm places to go, at least.

This has been my favorite kissaten lately.

So warm, decent coffee, good space to write in. And great toast. Kissaten make toast into an art form. Do you see that I'm drinking cafe au lait? Defeated. I'll be back to black when I'm back in Stumptown.

Hanako

My lost friend Hanako is back from traveling. She's been staying with us for a couple of weeks. It's been so fun. She's as messy as I am, and I love a mess (sorry, Ayabean).

But she also cooks delicious food all the time. I was slowly, happily shrinking on my distracted-bachelor diet and then Hanako fluttered in with her udon and shrimp pasta and okonomiyaki every night. "Because you don't eat well!" For god's sake, summer's coming! Let a girl starve! "And you should learn to cook!" Oh, yeah? WHAT DO YOU CALL THIS?

Jesus Christ delicious! I urge you residents of Japan to go buy a some jam, bread and a jar of real peanut butter and see how fond absence has made your heart. Has a peanut butter and jelly sandwich ever disappointed anyone?

Back to Work

Cold bottled tea and a fruit & yogurt cereal bar. That's what THIS champion likes for breakfast!

Red Red WINE

Sometimes I wonder if I moved to Japan because of labels like this. You know what I mean? Maybe that's what I should tell people when they ask!

Winter's Bananas

I don't like cold. I don't like coats. I don't like afternoon sunsets. I don't like winter. My instinct is to hibernate. I lose all my living urges. It takes a huge effort to get out of bed in the winter. Winters in the Pacific Northwest are especially long and dark and I have spent many unfortunate months sleeping through the cloudy mornings and afternoons until my waking moments are a dull zombie haze, like a perpetual 4:58AM on a Tuesday.

I need constant distraction and entertainment to feel safe from my seasonal inner zombie. So I am way into the holidays. BAKING and PARTYING are my winter coping mechanisms. According to my tradition, November to April should consist of gallons of cheap champagne, parties from 8 to 4, and wild-eyed sprees of baking ten pies at a time and 6 hour monster cinnamon rolls.

Tokyo has never left me under-partied, but the lack of ovens in Japan means baking requires some kind of new effort -- not really my strong point. Last night, alone on Christmas day, I decided to try making banana bread in a rice cooker. How long I've been astounded by the concept of baking with a rice cooker!

DUDE! What! Amazing! It took forever because I didn't know what setting to use. Normal was too slow, but okayu worked well.

Rice cooker! Ticket to Cake City! Population delicious!

Aya came home and we had supermarket roast chicken and banana bread and listened to old Christmas music. It was a fine holiday. Too bad my winter coping mechanisms are, as usual, threatening to pump me up like a sneaker.

Or pass me out in the genkan, respectively. Those boots are like, way hard to take off sometimes.

Christmas Eve

Last Christmas Eve, I was sitting alone on a rock in the middle of the river in Yamagata.

Seriously! I mean, it was a good day, in a Yamagata way.

This Christmas Eve, I was sitting alone on a bench by the pond in Inokashira Park.

I had hot cocoa and a book I didn't read. Look how beautiful the day is. It's been like this all winter.

This guy came and set up behind me. He struck up a really great Mr. Bojangles. I got emotional for a minute.

Anyway I would call this Christmas Eve an improvement. I might be starting to like spending holidays sitting alone on things around bodies of water.

When I got home I decided to make rocky road. My great-grandma used to make amazing rocky road every Christmas. Hers was some out of control fudge masterpiece, but I played it simple & cheap. Guess why! Because I'm lazy & poor. This way, you just buy chocolate bars, walnuts and mini marshmallows.

Chop up the chocolate and the walnuts. Melt the chocolate. Stir in the walnuts and mallows. Spread it out, let it cool, and slice that shit. I thought such an easy recipe could only be so-so, and I thought I used too many marshmallows because I was too lazy to measure anything, but I was wrong and wrong again.

HELP, other people must eat this as soon as possible!