Errand Boy

One more step Theo has taken on the slow road to independence is going on little shopping errands for me. At the end of our street is the Takegaki, a small neighbourhood green grocer that Theo and I have been to hundreds of times since moving to Fukuyama. About a month ago, I decided that he was trustworthy enough to write out a short list in hiragana, not lose the money I gave him, walk there by himself, buy the correct food, and manage to get himself and the food home safely. For the record, I would never have allowed him to do this in Canada where I would almost definitely be reported for negligence. Here in Japan though, children walking unsupervised to and from school, the park, and extra curricular programs is completely normal after the age of 6. Since April, he has been walking over a kilometer to school each morning with a group of other children and another kilometer back home in the afternoon, sometimes with other students and sometimes by himself. I was very incredulous of this system at first, and sure that Theo would get lost or hit by a car, but after only a few minor incidents in his first week it seems to actually work just fine. 

Theo was very excited when I explained what I wanted him to do and was eager to be entrusted with this little errand. He set off on a trot down the street promising me that this would be the fastest trip to the Takegaki ever. Fifteen minutes later he was back again and so proud that he had gotten every single thing on my list. The shop owner had even sealed up his change in a paper envelope and taped it shut. Thank you Theo for not letting me down, especially since your dad thought I was insane for trusting you to do this. 

It will probably be a big adjustment for both of us when we get back home and he is not allowed the responsibility and freedom he gets in Japan. But until then, we'll enjoy it while we can.

Laughable

Every week I encounter a number of bizarre things that catch my eye and make me chuckle. Usually I don't have my camera on me, one of the many reasons why I will never be a professional blogger, so I just snap a quick shot with my phone. This usually draws the curious stares of other shoppers as I whip out my phone and start snapping shots from different angles. Oh, well!

Here are a few gems that I snapped in the past while:

FaFa laundry detergent, which I am pretty sure is the same as the Snuggle brand we have back home (unless it is just a massive rip off), has a comical line of international scents. I have always thought the Snuggle bear was super cute and being dressed up makes him just that much cuter.

Finnish gnome Snuggle frolicking with bunnies amongst the mushrooms

Arabian Snuggle sandboarding

and Russian Snuggle with these cute little matryoshka dolls

Cephalopods. Maybe not the best word choice if you are going for tasty or descriptive.

I am pretty understanding of most English typos but this one was a bit excessive:

and though this English was written perfectly, number 43 seemed just a tad bit forceful for a family restaurant:

We just couldn't resist trying out these oddly named snacks:

This sign is announcing a butter shortage. This happens all the time and even though it is slightly annoying, the concept of a butter shortage always makes me smile. 

Here is a selection of on the go snacks available at your average convenience store. The boiled wrapped corn cobs always make me chuckle.

This cafe near the library has a vaguely threatening, mafia-esque name:

Here is one of the outdoor public restrooms at the Fukuyama library green space. I would feel just a tad exposed using that urinal, especially at one of the many public events that draws hundreds of people to the green.

Baby spats? Are you trying to dress your child as a Dickensian character or Scrooge McDuck? On a side note, did you know that spats is a contraction of the word spatterdashes? 

and lastly, this ridiculous car:

They Might Be Giants

Dustin, though he is the smallest male in his family, is 6'2. As for me, even the germanic people from whom I am descended would consider me "schön groß", or nice and big. At 5'10, I only occasionally meet women that are taller than me, and have a hard enough time in Canada finding pants that cover my ankles and shirts that cover my midriff. I remember that while living in Cambodia as a kid I had already started wearing women's large sizes by the age of 8. In Japan, where the average height for a man and a woman is 5'7 and 5'2 respectively, we will be hard pressed to find anything that would come near fitting. Our feet are proportionately large too, and unless I take to wearing men's shoes, or Dustin binds his feet, we will need to bring a few extra pairs.

Watch out Japan!

Next weekend, Dustin and I will be driving to the U.S. to take advantage of their good prices and our fantastic exchange rate. Our mission is to purchase most of the extra clothes/shoes that we will need for at least a year in Japan. I absolutely despise clothes shopping for myself, especially when I know that my body will continue to change over the next few months in its journey back to pre-baby shape. I know that what fits now will be fairly large in 4 months, so it is a gamble trying to buy clothes for the future. I am sure that I will end up mail ordering a few more things once we are in Japan. At least I enjoy shopping for shoes and Dustin's clothes, and we will be accompanied by my in-laws, so the weekend won't be completely joyless.

We are still impatiently waiting to find out where we are going to end up, but as Manitobans we have a freakishly large hoard of sweaters, jackets, balaclavas, thermal underwear, toques, etc. to use in the unfortunate event that we are placed somewhere cold. Here's hoping we find out next week!