Maybe I should just resign myself to the fact that unless I'm on holiday - usually in Japan where I'm taking pictures of anything that moves and that doesn't - I don't update that much.
For the last two weekends I have mainly been making out like a bandit. First the Zurich Swiss-Japanese Friendship Society's (チューリヒスイス日本同好会) New Year's party. Apart from the amazing guitar, taiko drum and shamisen performances and making the partygoers do Obon dancing on stage, there was an interminable raffle at the end. They had to recycle the tickets twice! I won two sky lanterns, a JAL fine art calendar and a set of Sensai moisturisers, which was the only thing I saw that I really wanted. Well, if I knew what the sky lanterns were I'm sure I would have wanted them too, but it took me a while to figure out what they were. There were also amazing bento boxes from the legendary Usagiyama restaurant - I still can't believe Aarau has an onsen and ryokan - along with sushi and traditional sweets being sold in the lobby. I also picked up a new belt and a book for a few francs. Much fun had by all.
And last weekend I went over to see Mom and Dad - most of the time was spent exploring the settings on Dad's new camera and tying them up with those on his old camera and the ones he covered in his very good photography course (at the Irish Institute of Photography) and consolidating Mom's various address books, post-its, backs of envelopes, etc. into something we could get onto the computer and let Dad print labels for so that she can get back in touch with people. After spoiling the cat rotten (not that she isn't anyway) I came away with a pair of pearl earrings and a book on Hiroshige (that should have been my Xmas presents but had been "put away somewhere safe" and been sold out, respectively), a home-made paté sandwich, my plane fare, a tiny Slovak ceramic pig and a pair of snowball tea light holders, which I have loved for many years. Mom now has three small and one large one, and she gave me two of the small ones. Airport security were interested in them, but otherwise everything made it back safely. Even the paté sandwich.
It had thawed, but snowed again last night and is pretty cold today. I popped out to post something and get some stuff to clean the bathroom with. Yes, I'm at such a loose end that I'm cleaning. I've already baked a batch of muffins today (base recipe with chocolate chips and candied orange) and may even resort to studying German by the end of the day. I've got the wash room tomorrow morning, so I have some clean clothes to bring to the UK. I really hope that the week there lets us finish things up for good.
Other than that, getting back in touch with people in Japan and realising how soon my trip is! Just over 4 weeks now. I went a little mad at the airport and bought a Mondaine pocket watch for my homestay dad, but it was perfect. I've seen lots of pocket watches, but they were all too ornamented. This is beautiful. More than I was thinking of spending, but you can't put a price on how kind they've been to me and my entire family over the last 10+ years. I have a list of presents - mainly from the expensive but worth every rappen Heimatwerk - for others I am hopelessly endebted to. And the usual plethora of choccies for the agencies I'll be visiting and people I'm meeting up with. That combined with the strength of the yen is making even a 2-week holiday mostly staying at friends' houses quite damaging, but hell, I can afford it. I have to make a dent in my hosting space somehow.
