our trip to japan
alex and i went to japan for ten days in the middle of april. he was invited to give a talk at the annual meeting of the japanese pediatric society. this year, the conference was in morioka, in iwate prefecture. morioka is known for its rock-splitting cherry tree.
the people organizing the conference hosted a welcome dinner that friday evening at a restaurant on the sixth floor of a building (a common thing in japan). initially, alex was a bit reluctant to go but was very happy that we did. we sat near a very nice resident from the local medical school and a stanford university professor and his daughter. there were around 15 courses to this meal, including half a broiled lobster tail, sushi, blowfish (both cooked and raw), and cherry blossom ice cream. half the time, though, i didn't know what i was eating. it was all pretty tasty. i would say that dinner was one of the highlights of the trip and definitely one of the highlights of our time in morioka. did i mention there were some games and also singing?
we started out the trip in kyoto, where we stayed at a hotel right in the train station--very convenient! we went to a number of shrines in kyoto and to a bamboo forest on the outskirts of town. we stayed one night at a ryokan, a traditional kyoto inn--kind of like a bed and breakfast, but also with dinner. that dinner was kaisekai, also with many courses.
in tokyo, we wandered around many different neighborhoods. our hotel was in an area called shiodome, which didn't have much to recommend it, but was also located at a subway stop. we went to the canals in the western part of the city, which had many hipster-y shops. we walked around ginza, which had many fancy shops. we ate yakitori, sushi, and eels. we went to a bar called bar minimal that definitely lived up to its name--there were ten seats and only two other patrons there.
japanese fashion perplexed me the whole time we were there. women wore high-heeled shoes all the time and, probably because everyone takes their shoes off in the home, very fancy peds. like, with lace and straps and in many different colors.
also, nearly three-fourths of the women seemed to be pigeon-toed. perhaps i noticed this because i, too, am slightly pigeon-toed, but it was kind of extreme.
everyone had either a designer handbag or a le sportsac. the trend was towards a cowboy laura ashley--lots of florals (including some kind of heinous floral jumpsuit--the jumpsuit was quite popular) mixed with cowboy boots, denim, white eyelet skirts, etc. also: formal shorts with tights, which i haven't worn since 1995. i hope that this is not the future.
the people organizing the conference hosted a welcome dinner that friday evening at a restaurant on the sixth floor of a building (a common thing in japan). initially, alex was a bit reluctant to go but was very happy that we did. we sat near a very nice resident from the local medical school and a stanford university professor and his daughter. there were around 15 courses to this meal, including half a broiled lobster tail, sushi, blowfish (both cooked and raw), and cherry blossom ice cream. half the time, though, i didn't know what i was eating. it was all pretty tasty. i would say that dinner was one of the highlights of the trip and definitely one of the highlights of our time in morioka. did i mention there were some games and also singing?
we started out the trip in kyoto, where we stayed at a hotel right in the train station--very convenient! we went to a number of shrines in kyoto and to a bamboo forest on the outskirts of town. we stayed one night at a ryokan, a traditional kyoto inn--kind of like a bed and breakfast, but also with dinner. that dinner was kaisekai, also with many courses.
in tokyo, we wandered around many different neighborhoods. our hotel was in an area called shiodome, which didn't have much to recommend it, but was also located at a subway stop. we went to the canals in the western part of the city, which had many hipster-y shops. we walked around ginza, which had many fancy shops. we ate yakitori, sushi, and eels. we went to a bar called bar minimal that definitely lived up to its name--there were ten seats and only two other patrons there.
japanese fashion perplexed me the whole time we were there. women wore high-heeled shoes all the time and, probably because everyone takes their shoes off in the home, very fancy peds. like, with lace and straps and in many different colors.
also, nearly three-fourths of the women seemed to be pigeon-toed. perhaps i noticed this because i, too, am slightly pigeon-toed, but it was kind of extreme.
everyone had either a designer handbag or a le sportsac. the trend was towards a cowboy laura ashley--lots of florals (including some kind of heinous floral jumpsuit--the jumpsuit was quite popular) mixed with cowboy boots, denim, white eyelet skirts, etc. also: formal shorts with tights, which i haven't worn since 1995. i hope that this is not the future.
Thursday, March 18, 2010
children by the millions
alex chilton has died. maybe with his death, more people will discover the awesomeness of big star.
my favorites are:
thirteen
the ballad of el goodo
september gurls
from his solo stuff, of the songs i know, i like:
bangkok
you can't have me
can't seem to make you mine
with a girl like you
free again
also, just for fun:
the replacements :: alex chilton
the bangles :: september girls
my favorites are:
from his solo stuff, of the songs i know, i like:
also, just for fun:
nina from 5 to 7
got home at 5 PM with asher. took off shoes, put down bags (three of them), hung up coat. took asher out of stroller, walked around the house so that he could point at things. went into his room and unzipped him out of his snowsuit. smelled like poop.
attempted diaper change by plying him with books. was successful. put laundry into washing machine. played in his room--read some books, banged on the toy piano, sat and watched as he crawled around.
~5:30, relocated to living room upon some crankiness on asher's part. he proceeded to crawl into the kitchen and pull up on things, cruising around a bit. made bottle in anticipation of ~6 PM meltdown. diverted him from putting various things in his mouth: dry pasta in a bag, split peas in a bag, the electrical cord to one of the floor lamps in the living room, the wires to the computer. watched as he pulled books off the shelf: lady oracle, by margaret atwood; practical biostatistical methods, by steve selvin.
further crankiness ensued. in an attempt to stave off freakishly early bedtime, picked him up and carried him around the room again, picking things off the bookshelf for him to touch: wolverine bobble head, bronze buddha head. please do not ask about either of these objects; they are obviously alex's.
~6 PM, beginnings of meltdown. attempted to change diaper again and put asher into pajamas. failed. brought him back to the kitchen where he consumed some of his bottle and some of his dinner. mostly, he wanted to eat gerber puffs. brought him back into his room, changed his diaper (again plying him with a book), put him into pajamas, and put him into his crib ~6:20.
emptied dishwasher. put dishes into dishwasher. cleaned asher's bottles from today. set up asher's bottles and snacks for day care for tomorrow. took laundry out of washing machine. cleaned everything else up in the kitchen.
attempted diaper change by plying him with books. was successful. put laundry into washing machine. played in his room--read some books, banged on the toy piano, sat and watched as he crawled around.
~5:30, relocated to living room upon some crankiness on asher's part. he proceeded to crawl into the kitchen and pull up on things, cruising around a bit. made bottle in anticipation of ~6 PM meltdown. diverted him from putting various things in his mouth: dry pasta in a bag, split peas in a bag, the electrical cord to one of the floor lamps in the living room, the wires to the computer. watched as he pulled books off the shelf: lady oracle, by margaret atwood; practical biostatistical methods, by steve selvin.
further crankiness ensued. in an attempt to stave off freakishly early bedtime, picked him up and carried him around the room again, picking things off the bookshelf for him to touch: wolverine bobble head, bronze buddha head. please do not ask about either of these objects; they are obviously alex's.
~6 PM, beginnings of meltdown. attempted to change diaper again and put asher into pajamas. failed. brought him back to the kitchen where he consumed some of his bottle and some of his dinner. mostly, he wanted to eat gerber puffs. brought him back into his room, changed his diaper (again plying him with a book), put him into pajamas, and put him into his crib ~6:20.
emptied dishwasher. put dishes into dishwasher. cleaned asher's bottles from today. set up asher's bottles and snacks for day care for tomorrow. took laundry out of washing machine. cleaned everything else up in the kitchen.
things we talked about before, during, and after my grandfather's funeral, in no particular order
- the fact that my uncles' sensei came to the funeral
- whether or not knishes from yona schimmel's knishes are kosher
- the six-pack of kaffiyeh-style scarves that my brother bought in coalition forces colors
- the drawbridge on the gowanus canal and how it swings upwards at an angle
- schnitzi's schnitzels, which sarah, josh, and i ate after the funeral on the way to the cemetery
- getting free tickets to NFL games
- police chaplain rabbis and how it's kind of a political appointment
- switching phone service from verizon
- strawberry quik
- the presence (or really, absence) of chocolate rugelach
- the last mallomar
- gloves with lead pellets in them, also josh's
- the cuteness of henry, cora's maltipoo
- the cuteness of asher, in absentia
- how much grey is in my sister's hair
- moving to cleveland
- sororities at brooklyn college
- teaching french at midwood high school and at lawrence high school, my alma mater
- garlic knots from mother kelly's in cedarhurst
- riding a bicycle on the belt parkway
- the difficulty of getting to manhattan beach on the Q
फ्रॉम : अंडी रहली
है गुय इन्गीं बेरिता यंग लेबिः अक्तुअल लगी नही इकुतीं ब्लॉग साया या लोल हहहः Andi
0 komentar:
Posting Komentar