Quite a lot of snow fell on Christmas night, so we made a snowman the next day (called `Boxing Day`). However, the next few days were sunny, so he started to melt pretty quickly, as you can see. Owen learnt a new word: melting!
We used green cherry tomatoes for the eyes, a red one for the nose (I found them in the mother-in-law`s garden), stones for buttons & mouth, sticks for the arms, & pine needles for hair.
I hate winter, but I quite like making snowmen.
Happy New Year! 2011 was a tough year for many people, but I hope you found things to be happy about too.
Thanks everyone who read my blog, and especially those who left comments. Please keep reading it in 2012!
This is my design for my New Year`s postcards for 2012 - year of the dragon. It`s a lino-block print, using black watercolour paint.
Good luck in 2012!
The other night my wife cooked roast beef, mashed potato & steamed vegetables for dinner - yum! I guess she liked the presents that I gave her for Christmas.
Anyway, this gave me an opportunity to teach Owen one of my favourite nursery rhymes (a kind of children`s song/poem), which features roast beef. It`s called `This Little Piggy`:
This little piggy went to market.
This little piggy stayed home.
This little piggy had roast beef.
This little piggy had none.
And this little piggy went wee wee wee all the way home!
When you say each line, you touch a toe on the child`s foot (big toe first). When you say the final line, you run your fingers from the little toe up the child`s leg & tickle them. You can see how to do it in this Youtube video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z8qMwieKTGA
Kids really love it, which is probably why it`s still popular after so long; it was first published in 1760.
How was your Christmas day?
After waking up, Owen checked what Santa had left him in his stocking, then we caught the train into Nagoya to attend church. Nowadays I don`t often go to church, but I make a special effort to go for Christmas. Even if you`re not Christian, I recommend going to church at Christmas - I`m sure you`ll find it interesting & enjoyable. Go on - next year - challenge!
When we got home we unwrapped all the presents under the Christmas tree, including parcels from my family in Australia, then ate Christmas cake, which curiously is an important part of Christmas day in Japan, but not in Western countries!
I had a busy but enjoyable Christmas day this year, and I hope you did too.
Happy Birthday, Jesus!
Like most people, I`ve been pretty busy for the last couple of weeks, so I`m sorry for the lack [fusoku] of posts.
I managed to find time to make some more Christmas tree ornaments though.
They are just painted pieces of wood, with a bent nail [mageta kugi] in the top.
On Saturday, Gifu Teragoya held its Christmas party. Our special guest was the talented and amusing Ozawa-san, who performed a variety of magic tricks for us all. Thanks and good job!
I also performed a couple of magic tricks - first I made some alcohol disappear, then I introduced myself to a student who told me that, actually, we had already met. I had completely forgotten - magic! Sorry...
Finally, after cleaning up, I disappeared to Bier Hall.
Thanks everybody who attended. I hope you had fun.
Do you have a Christmas tree? Have you set it up yet?
I made this snowman ornament from wood, wire, screws & beads. If I have time I`d like to make some more.
Actually, our tree doesn`t really need any more ornaments, but they`re fun to make.
I recently had lunch at Kirio Shopping Centre food court. I was interested by the English instructions on the paper around my dish. Three verb styles were used:
1. Mix well to cook!
2. Mixing it evenly.
3. To mix it well `till lean meat is cooked.
Which style is correct for instructions in English: 1. Mix? 2. Mixing? 3. To mix? Do you know?
UPDATE: The answer is 1. Mix...
If you don`t know, a `pot luck` party is one where everyone brings some food. The variety & quality of dishes at Saturday night`s party was excellent - pasta, salad, sushi, nabe (a pot of soup/broth/stew), cupcakes, pancakes and more. A very satisfying winter feast. Well done everyone!
Of course there were drinks too - soda/soft drink, juice, beer, & wine, including a familiar-looking bottle of beaujolais nouveau which managed to survive last week`s Gifu wine party.
Our regular Ichinomiya musician, Kiyotaka, was performing in Nagoya, so he couldn`t attend. Fortunately we had a charming replacement in Yoshiko, who brought her electric piano & played various popular Christmas tunes for us. We even had a sing-along for `Santa Claus is Coming to Town` - good fun.
Indeed, Santa Claus IS coming to town - have you finished (started?) your Christmas shopping yet?
Did you go to the airshow on Sunday? It looked like everyone in Gifu was there! It was more crowded than last year.
I arrived about midday, so we were too late for the formation flying display, but we were in time for a helicopter show, which Owen really liked. He was a bit scared by the loud jets though, especially the F-15 Eagle and F4 Phantom. But by then I was ready to leave anyway - I didn`t want to get caught in the closing time crush like last year.
What`s your favourite JSDF jet fighter? I think I like the F-4 best, even though (because?) it`s old. Japan is one of only a few countries in the world still flying them.
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