Ｊａｐａｎｅｓｅ Ｔｅａ Ｃｅｒｅｍｏｎｙ

I had the pleasure of being invited to attend a Japanese Tea Ceremony last week. My dear friend Mariko teaches the tea ceremony and knows that I like to "partake".
If you ever have the chance, I highly recommend it as something well worth experiencing. Just tell your host that it`s your first time and you need instructions.
The tea ceremony is highly structured and has many rules. As a guest, your host will instruct you and help you enjoy. As you learn the rules, it`s even more fun.
In olden days the tea ceremony started with a meal and ended with tea. Now it`s just tea. There are different ceremonies for different seasons and occasions. There are also different "schools". It`s quite interesting but very deep. People spend their whole life just in the study of it. That is one of the reasons that I prefer to be a guest.
Thank you, Mariko, for inviting me.
It was lovely.

Cuff Bracelets

I just LOVE crafts! Making things, using them, giving them to friends......love it all!
Today`s crafts are some cuff bracelets I made for a Bazaar to raise money for my Grandkid`s Pre-School.
I`d simply love to take credit for this idea, but I won`t! The originator is Lee Meredith at her ( leethal blog) www.leethal.net. Really awesome blog! Lee is a knitter......I`m not. So I took the idea and used string and macrame cord. I crocheted, and used macrame and nauticcal knots. I`m quite happy with the way these turned out and am planning to make a few more for gifts for friends.

OBON

This is OBON season in Japan.

OBON is a Buddhist festival to honor one`s ancestors. Because the festival includes visiting and cleaning of ancestor`s gravesites, it has also become a family reunion time. In different areas of Japan OBON is celebrated at different times. Tokyo, Yokohama, and the Tohoku areas celebrate in July, but for other areas , the more common time is August.
OBON is a three day festival. It`s believed that family ancestor`s spirits come "home" during the three day celebretion.
OBON IRI is the first day....ancestors are welcomed into the home where the altar is maintained. The way of welcoming the spirits is different in defferent areas. The family might go to the gravesite with a CHOCHIN, a lamp, to guide the spirits home. Some areas burn small fires at the entrance to the home to welcome the spirits. The home will usually have an altar prepared for the ancestor`s spirits with offerings of food, fruit, and MANJU, a pastry made of rice flour with sweet red bean past inside. Lovely CHOCHIN are also set up to light the altar area. Here for three days the ancestor`s spirits are treated to food and prayers.
On the last day, usually late in the day or even after dark, the spirits are sent back to the gravesite, either on foot with a CHOCHIN to light the way or another small fire at the home entrance.
Although this is not a national holiday, many businesses close during the period or give their employees the days off.
Although I`m not a Buddhist, I think it`s lovely, and the heart of the festival is warm and loving.

Castle Town

Yes, Sakura City is a " Castle Town". In the days of warlords and samurai there was a Sakura Castle.

The central government in "Edo", now Tokyo, sent their officials out to the various areas. In order to insure these official`s loyalty to the Edo government, their familes remained in Edo, hostages? To show how important the officials were , there were very large entourages. Always included in the entourages were "intellectuals". "Intellectuals" in this period were priests. Officials took good care of their priests. Where ever they were stationed the officials built the priests temples or shrines as dwellings.

Another way that Edo insured their official`s loyalty was to move them around. This insured that the officials never became to close or chummy with the locals. When the officials were transferred their entourages went with them. The shrines and temples were left without priests.

If they were kept up, it was by the hands of the locals. Some, of course, fell to ruin.

Here in our small district of less than 70 households, there are two shrines and one temple.The residents have taken care of these over the years. There is a separate roster for each, and when your name comes up on the roster, your group, usually 3 or4 households, is expected to take care of that shrine or temple for that month. This means raking and sweeping the area and making it presentable for anyone who may come to pay their respects to the shrine.

Pictured today is the smallest of the three. Our group of 4 households was responsible for this shrine last month. We went in on the first and the fifteenth to clean up. I think that you can see by the picture that the shrine is well taken care of and loved.

If you stop by my blog, please feel free to leave a comment. I would truely love the feedback.
Thanks for stopping by!
Have a nice day!!

Summer Pickles

It`s SUMMER!!

There are lots and lots of fresh garden grown veggies!! I love to use these veggies for pickles.

cucumber 2
carrot 1
daikon(Japanese radish) 100gr
green, red, yellow, orange peppers 2@
celery 100gr
califlower 100gr
mushrooms 60gr

garlic 2(crushed)
salt 30gr
water 120cc
vinegar 360cc
sugar 70gr
only laurel and rosemary are required but dill, coriander, mustard seed, poppy seed, black pepper can also be used

1. put everything other than veggies in a saucepan and boil...set aside to cool
2. cut veggies into bite size and dump in a saucepan for a few seconds
3. put the veggies in a large jar and pour the cooled liquid from (2) over them
4. put a lid on the jar and refrigerate...usable after 1 day.... best after 2 days... keeps about 1 week to 10 days

Green beans, snow peas, corn, cabbage, onions, many variations are possible. Try them and find your favorites.
This makes a great side dish or addition to a green salad.

Sorting Garbage

Here in our City garbage is sorted before it goes to the curb.
There are six different categories that are sorted ,bagged and taken to the garbage sites.
1.Brown bags...Combustible garbage including kitchen scraps.　Pickup 3 times a week.
2. Blue bags...Landfill garbage...ceramic items, light bulbs, lighters, razor blades, etc. Pickup once a week.
3.Red bags...Cans...Pickup once a week.
4.Green bags..Bottles...Pickup once a week.
5.White bags...Other paper containers including tissue boxes, paperboard boxes,paper bags, etc. Pickup once a week.
6.Yellow bags...Other plastic containers and packages. Pickup once a week.
These six categories all go into city bags that can be bought at markets.
In my kitchen I have cabinets with pull-out hampers for the 6 different types.
Other types of garbage...
*Oversized garbage,which includes bicycles, pots and pans, furniture, bedding, etc. Collected on
a reservation basis for a fee.
*PET Bottles...plastic water bottles, etc. Markets have collection sites.
*Used cooking oil. Pickup once a month at specified sites.
*Used Dry－Cell Batteries...anytime at collection sites.
*Used Florescent lights...At collection sites such as storefronts.

Isn`t garbage a bore!
But it`s for the good of the planet...so I`ll do it!
How `bout you? Are you doing your part?

Remake Coke Crates

Here`s another remake that I`m quite happy with.

I`ve had these two Coke crates for a very long time. When the kids were very little I used the crates as shoe racks. Little shoes fit perfectly into the compartments. But... as we all know, children grow up, right? So eventually, their shoes got to big to store in the Coke crates anymore. For a while, I used them in the kitchen, but I was on the lookout for a better use.

Then a couple of years ago, I decided to do a complete remake on them. One that holds some of my sewing equipment has two shelves and a drawer.The other is now a magazine rack. I really like the new lives I`ve found for the crates.

Whaddaya think?

Have a nice day.

Remake Clock

There is a special place in my heart for old things. You know, not quite old enough to be labled as antiques, but still nostalgic. I`ve been lucky enough to be able to come in possession of a couple of real nice old wall clocks. Such lovely pieces , don`t you think?

One I`ve recycled as a towel dispenser. This is in the utility room off the the bath. These towels are different than our hand towels in the U.S. They`re kind of "all purpose" towels used for everything from "wash rag"to"spill wiper".

I did this by removing the insides and remodeling the "door"on the front of the clock. I arranged it so that the folded towel is put in on top and you pull out the one on the bottom to use. I`ve put a towel ring on the bottom of the clock to hold the hand wipe towel currently in use. If I lived in the U.S. I would probably use this in the kitchen for kitchen towels. It`s very handy.

I have another recycled clock in the kitchen that I`ve made into a spice rack. This was very simple to do. I just removed the insides of the clock and put in a couple of shelves. It looks nice and still earns it`s keep.

It`s fun to find ways to reuse these lovely clocks.Although I`m sure avid clock collectors
absolutely cringe at the thought of what I do to these clocks, I`ve found a way to cherish them while using them....and I`m OK with that.

Have a nice day.

Bath and Toilet Etiquette

A little "heads up" on etiquette concerning the bath and toilet.

Let`s start with the toilet. There will usually be a pair of slippers inside the toilet area. Please remove the house slippers you are wearing and change into the toilet slippers. When you leave the toilet , please change back into the house slippers and leave the toilet slippers in the toilet area.

Allow me to explain....It`s a fact of life, guys I`m sorry ,but I`m going to be blunt....guys spray when they take a leak! It`s a fact! Also, and this includes gals, when you flush the toilet with the top up, there is also a spray. This is FACT. So the toilet floor is NOT clean. You don`t want to wear room slippers into the toilet area getting, forgive me, urine and feces on the bottom of the slippers and then wear those same slippers all around the house. Wouldn`t you say that is ,to say the least, unsanitary! And GROSS!

Next is the bath.The sink and the bath are usually made so that they can be closed off for privacy at bath time.You remove your clothes in the sink area and go into the bath area and close the door. The bathtub will be full of hot water. The temperature of the bath will range from probably 38C to 44C, depending on the season and the preference of the family. All body washing should be done on the tile deck area. Most homes have a shower....use it to wash and rinse yourself. Please make sure that you have rinsed all the soap off before getting into the bathtub.If there is no shower,you will have to scoop the bath water with the little scooper thingie you can see in the picture.Think of it as a water ladle. NO SOAP IS USED IN THE BATHTUB! EVER! The bathtub is for relaxation . When you`re ready to get out ....PLEASE DON`T PULL THE BATHTUB PLUG! The same bath water is used by the whole family, another reason that no soap is used inside the bathtub.

That was a pretty big lesson!

I really hope that you are able to enjoy your bath experience....Japanese style.

Have a nice day!

Bath and Toilet Areas

Today I`d like to introduce the bath and toilet areas of "Our House".

In most homes in Japan the bath, toilet, and sink are separate rooms. I say "most" because "all" is too encompassing. Some homes are made the "western" way with the three facilities in the same room. Many of the smaller studio apartments have what is called "unit baths" which have all three facilities in the same room. For the most part, however, they are separate, in the same vicinity, but separate.

Bazaar Goods

Grabbies!

Do you know what "Grabbies" are?

Babies go through different stages. If I remember correctly, Mothers please correct me if I`m wrong, at about 5 or 6 months old, the baby will reach out and take something offered or shown to them. Hence....Grabbies!

These grabbies are about 3 inches in diameter and have minimal stuffing making it easy for little hands to grab hold , mash around, and taste test....as babies will do.

I`ve put hoops on the top so they can be stung and hung on the wall or made into a mobile.

I`m not completely happy with these as the aren`t neatly round. I should be able to do better as I make more.

I`ve already had two orders from "Blog Friends" on my Japanese blog. They say that the imperfections are part of the charm. What can I say? Imperfection and charm are in the eyes of the beholder!?

Have a nice day!

Book

"A Walk in the Woods" by Bill Bryson.

My husband lent me this book to read. It had it`s ups and downs, but it`s humorous and very human. Mr. Bryson writes about his hiking experiences on the Appalachian Trail. I had heard of the Appalachian Trail, but this book gave me a very good idea of what it`s really like. He gives facts along with his own experiences , which made a fun read.

I`ll never get there on my own, so it`s the next best thing.

Have a nice day!

Bazaar Goods

These are needle cases. They`re made of bamboo. I`ve attached string so that the top and bottom won`t become separated.The string is attached with a Turkshead Knot or lace to make it fancy.

I think that they`ll make good bazaar items. Not too difficult, but fun to make and a nice addition to someone`s sewing equipment.

Etiquette

Here are a few quick tips on the etiquette of entering and leaving your Japanese friends home.

Please remove your coat or jacket before entering the door. Just think about it. When you remove your coat the lint and dust fly off of it and by removing it before you come in, you don`t deposit that lint and dust in your host`s house.
Your host will probably have a pair of slippers ready for you on the step up area. Remove your shoes and change into the slippers. As you remove your shoes, please don`t stand in your stocking feet or barefoot on the deck area. This completely defeats the purpose of changing from your outside shoes into the slippers, which is not to track in dirt from the outside. If you stand on the deck after removing your shoes, you get your feet dirty and track that dirt into the house.
After changing into the slippers, you are now standing on the step up area. Squat down (Ladies,
let`s squat in a ladylike fashion, OK?) and place your shoes side by side with the toes facing outwards. Move them a little to the side leaving the center area open in case someone else comes in. The center area should always be free of shoes.

OK!

Now enjoy your visit.

When it`s time to leave, you change back into your own shoes, of course. Once you`ve got your shoes on, turn around and replace the slippers side by side with the toes facing inside the house and a little to the side ,again leaving the center area open. Wait to put on your coat until you`re outside.

You may not remember all of this, but using as much as you can will make you a welcome guest.

Have a nice day!!

Our House

Let me invite you on a tour of our house.

Today I`d like to show you the entrance way, genkan in Japanese. Wait! Wait! Please take your shoes off and change into the slippers there on the step up. Thank you. Please, never never try to go into a Japanese home with your shoes on. BIG NO NO!

On the right you can see a big shoe cabinet. We store all our shoes here in the genkan. Above the shoe cabinet is a display I made from vines I took from the forest behind the house. The things I display change from season to season. At Christmas, it even becomes a Christmas scene.

On the right side is another shoe cabinet. Like I said, all the shoes go here so we needed two cabinets. This one on the right side is handmade by my very talented husband. He did the carpentry and I did the finishing. I think it turned out pretty nice, but then I AM prejudiced.

Next time I` ll show you another area.

See you later!

I really enjoy making things and dabble in various crafts. 　

Today I`m introducing what I call "Bazaar Goods"。　

These are made from empty pickle jars~~the big kind from Costco. I love the pickles but the empty jars get in the way. I know I can re-cycle them, but I was looking for a way to re-use them instead. So I paint on the bottles....cover the cap.... and they become cute kitchen storage containers.

I get the fun of making them...someone else gets the fun of using them ....and my Daughter‘s children`s Pre-School gets the money .

Works for me!!