Monday, November 29, 2004
"I Thought Pumpkin Pie Was The Main Dish"
Dinner with Rie’s family on Thursday night was a lot of fun. Her family is really sweet. Sukiyaki is delicious, although I wouldn’t describe it as soup. The meal is cooked in a broth, but then you dip the meat and vegetables in raw egg to cool it off before you eat it. I’ve actually had it before, at my host family’s house in Yokohama in 2003, so the raw egg wasn’t as shocking. I mean, I eat cookie dough and cake batter with raw egg so I suppose it’s the same thing.
Friday night Koichiro and I made our weekly Friday night trip up to the pool. This time we took his car (who I named Midori-kun because is almost identical to my Midori-chan, but is obviously a boy-car) but I took my tapes so I was able to keep up my routine of singing tunes on the trip up. We swam for over an hour and he corrected my free-style form and quick-turns. We got ramen for dinner before heading to karate. We were late again, but it was worth it. On the way home, however, he told me that he couldn’t come to Thanksgiving on Sunday because he was too busy so I decided to be angry at him. Then he promised to come for an hour and I was happy again.
On Saturday I spent several hours shopping in the north and played basketball with Satomi in the evening. There were three of my junior high school boys there too and I enjoyed seeing them (it’s been three weeks since I went to Wakamatsu). I finally was able to relax during the second half of the game and made one point!! I’ve always been so terrified of basketball since that first awkward year in junior high school when all the other girls had been playing since elementary school and I was just a beginner. I’m afraid I’ll hurt someone or shoot an airball—which I do with amazing consistency—so I just don’t have much confidence on the court. But hopefully, playing with these laid-back friends I’ll start to do better.
So Thanksgiving was a success. I didn’t realize but Sunday’s Thanksgiving dinner was a first for everyone there except Kerry and me. I got many compliments on the food, which is good because I started cooking at 9 a.m! While eating the pumpkin pie together Catherine said, “I thought pumpkin pie was the main dish,” which I found completely hilarious, but I was happy to educate the crowd on this tradition. I’ve made 5 pumpkin pies over the course of the weekend and given them to neighbors, co-workers, students (there was a competition earlier in the week) and friends. I’ve fully embraced the Japanese tradition of giving out baked foods and snacks!
From left to right: Peter, Joe, Tomo, Hatsuko, Catherine and Kerry.
One with me in there too.
I’ve managed to waste the entire day in front of my computer today. I teach two classes at the high school on Wednesday, Wakamatsu JHS is canceled because of exams, and Thursday and Friday I’m making my first trip out to one of my elementary schools. So, it’s a slow week and particularly a slow day. After school I’m going to the onsen with Catherine and the Hatakeyama’s have invited me over for dinner tonight. What a busy girl, I am.
Love,
Sierra
Have to include Sierra’s Spot for Thanksgiving ‘cause I didn’t want you to miss my drawings of a turkey and pumpkin pie!
