Odds n Ends

I spent the last week putting away winter linens and clothes. I like to launder or dry clean everything one last time and put it all in plastic boxes with sachets. So, it’s all fresh in the fall. I took all of my loved one’s suits and work clothes to the cleaner. Hopefully he’ll be home to wear them – otherwise, I’ll just put them away again in the fall and get out the winter ones.

On a similar topic, I would like to add Dry-ell to my list of time-saving convenience devices (along with the swiffer and shower gel, if you’ve forgotten). While this method is not the best for items that need to be pressed, it is great for freshening up silk blouses, skirts, sweaters and the like. Of course, they still need to go to the dry cleaners once in awhile, for that “professional touch.” But, with Dry-ell, I was able to freshen up all of my beloved’s silk shirts. Back home this wasn’t such a big deal – the dry clean depot provided one-day service at a reasonable price, but here it takes a week to get something back from the cleaners. Being an American, I want stuff done NOW. 🙂

It has been raining for 8 straight days. Everything is chilly and damp. People are saying that this early start to the rainy season will be followed by a very hot summer. I hope so! This weather is making my knees and ankles ache.

We have had a few level 4 earthquakes here in the last few weeks. Two woke me out of a sound sleep. These were not the usual vibrate and shake kind, but the rattle and bump kind. I am seriously questioning the wisdom of hanging that picture over the bed.

Last weekend my daughter wanted to go see X Men 2 with friends at a larger theater than our own (it takes several months for first run movies to make it here). I was OK with her going on the train, but I was afraid the movie would let her out too late to get back. So, I decided to pick them up with the car. I have never driven there at night before. All of my usual landmarks were hidden by darkness and signs I’d never noticed by day were brightly lit. It was like a whole new town. 7-11 is not a good landmark (or any other convenience stores) as Japan is FULL of convenience stores and they all look the same. I was sweating. Nonetheless, I only had to stop for directions once and arrived safely to retrieve my daughter.

When I stopped for directions (it turned out I was going the right way) I also had an ebi-burger (shrimp-burger), to calm my nerves, of course. Most fast food places carry them. I love ebi-burgers. They are not at all greasy and come with mayo and shredded cabbage. Mmmm.

I think that’s all my Odds n Ends for now. Have a great day!!