a packet arrived from japan today, having just escaped the disaster. this made my delight a little bittersweet... i wish so much i could take someone in from the cold and offer a bowl of hot soup.
my new silky toe socks are pure love. almost too precious for my damp ol' toes... i really do love them, with a place for each toe to curl up in... mmm. the only ones sold here tend to be garish, acrylic, 'fun' socks. these, i think, will be designated for sleepwear only, so they won't wear out too soon.
loving this mesh patterned masking tape, too. peeled every bit off the packaging carefully, like i always do. what is it about a good weave-like pattern? especially in formica, as a counter-top, i think it's just the best. probably has to do with the reckless order of it. something i'm always striving for. the mailer has a drawing of a city on one side, on the other it gradually becomes a dense woods. ♥
a magazine, tennen seikatsu i think it's called, arrived too. full of bento pictures, it's made me quite hungry especially having missed dinner yesterday. i can only read a word here and there and understand the ones in katakana, the trans... what's the word? the foreign ones.
i learned to read very young and remember my frustration at school when kids would decipher out words syllable by syllable. i appreciate that learning japanese has put me in that situation. it's humbling, but the struggle is also what makes it so captivating. and these lovely magazines. there is so much i want to understand! this issue has a marmalade recipe and directions on how to cook something that looks like field horsetail sprouts. and all that bento... not to mention the articles.
i've had a crush on japan for years, its sleek style and that wonderful sense of down-to-earth ethearalness. i love all that crazy, cute stuff as well. and as a people, the japanese seem kindred spirits to a finn, in many ways, but also very eclectic and outlandish and interesting in others. japanese plants appeal to me, too, always so elegant and beautiful. if anything good will come of the ruins of today, my wish is that it will connect people with each other as well the nature, encourage sustainability and remind that there is more to life than work and pay. not only in japan, but all over the world.
my wonderful things today were bought from uguisu, a shop owned by the very friendly and keen-eyed hiki in tokyo. she is now donating 80% of every sale for aid work, so not only do you get amazing goods in lovely packages, the money is also well spent!
