tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-180255282024-03-07T18:16:46.506+09:00Adventures in JapanA Navy wife's life overseasCaroliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11637418089860927715noreply@blogger.comBlogger63125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18025528.post-28063683428613673242009-05-04T17:08:00.010+09:002009-05-05T01:07:49.563+09:00Stalking the Savage Fern(As always, click on photos for larger versions.) On a recent spectacular April morning, my friend Hiroko and her parents came to pick me up for a day of “picking up wild vegetables.” Off we headed to Mt. Eboshi. We drove up and up and UP the mountain. Hiroko leaned oer and solicitously told me to roll down my window, because "the air is much healthier up here." I was only too glad to do so,Caroliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11637418089860927715noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18025528.post-53149919327892712402009-02-06T20:08:00.007+09:002009-05-05T02:01:17.239+09:00Omedetou Gozaimasu Happy New Year… Happy Year of the Ox… Omedetou gozaimasu! Wishing you all peace, health and joy in the New Year. (Yes, I began this in January, but since the Chinese New Year was just a couple of days ago, let’s pretend, shall we?)Fearless Husband came home from deployment at the beginning of December, so we were able to have Christmas and New Year’s together (hurray!) Between Christmas and New Caroliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11637418089860927715noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18025528.post-56019955172281977692009-01-03T00:11:00.003+09:002009-05-05T02:01:36.730+09:00I Resolve......to post more often to this poor, neglected blog! Yes, I've been having adventures -- amazing, wonderful travel and experiences! I've taken a zillion photos, and have tons of notes, so I can blog about everything. But every time I sit down to write, another adventure pops up, or Fearless Husband comes home (and he does become Priority One!) or family and friends come to visit and adventure Caroliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11637418089860927715noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18025528.post-77174207763004743392008-09-01T19:08:00.017+09:002009-05-05T02:02:02.254+09:00Silent Auction of Japanese "Sweetness"**We have a winner!** Thanks to carliches for a winning bid of $45! Carliches, please e-mail me at carolie (at) wordmagix (dot) com and attach a copy of your paypal donation receipt. We can discuss what kind of bento you'd like, and then I'll send out your Japanese goodies. Thank you all for participating! (And anyone interested in Japanese candy or bento, please feel free to e-mail, and I'dCaroliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11637418089860927715noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18025528.post-75497883036214882412008-06-27T00:39:00.008+09:002009-05-05T02:02:39.892+09:00Lighting the Way HomeHere is another vignette from our lives here in Japan. There is so much more to tell you, but not enough time to tell it in! More to come, of course. Please forgive the blurry photos, as I was dealing with the dark, and my camera was NOT behaving. (Of course, I felt flash photography would not be appropriate in the least!) As always, click on the photos for larger images.Last summer, when we got Caroliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11637418089860927715noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18025528.post-73727820151599176692008-06-10T01:23:00.008+09:002009-05-05T02:04:09.403+09:00More Teasing, But This Time From TaiwanI am a terrible blogger, so busy having adventures that I'm not writing about them! I'm dreadfully behind, I know. But this time, I'm so full to the brim with the most amazing experiences, I will explode if I don't share them!So...with a solemn promise of many, many words to come, here are a few photos from my current visit to Tainan, Taiwan. As usual, click on the image for a large version.FreshCaroliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11637418089860927715noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18025528.post-79853124670097465352008-05-26T16:33:00.004+09:002009-05-05T02:06:11.597+09:00Remembering, Honoring and Thanking ThemToday is Memorial Day, a day to remember all our fallen service men and women, those who have served, and those who serve today. I think it's even more than just thinking of them -- I think this is a day to be grateful, and to express that gratitude.I'm a dyed-in-the-wool, pacifist, peacenik. I abhor the violence of war. But I am quite conscious of the fact that the Bill of Rights and the Caroliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11637418089860927715noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18025528.post-79269349674912767062008-05-02T19:18:00.006+09:002009-05-05T02:06:27.044+09:00I'd Like to Thank the Academy...Lookit what I got! I actually received the award for a post I wrote over two years ago about Japanese garbage collection and disposal, oddly enough. It wasn't even a post with photos.I was shocked, and surprised, and all-out-of-proportion excited to receive this award...and grateful. Very grateful.Do visit The Rising Blogger by clicking on the image, and check out some of the other recipents. I'mCaroliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11637418089860927715noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18025528.post-20033961398117120512008-04-27T22:36:00.005+09:002009-05-05T02:05:08.523+09:00Just a Tease...I know, I'm so far behind it seems that I'll never catch up. But -- I've taken notes and photos, and I have so much to share! I'll try to find some time to get my photos, notes and thoughts in order and put some content up here. In the meantime, here's a little taste for you...a closeup of one of the many, many dishes served at the beautiful spring-themed kaiseki meal I attended with Fearless Caroliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11637418089860927715noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18025528.post-91804409557925718252008-01-31T13:49:00.001+09:002009-05-05T02:05:57.066+09:00Suddenly the Internet Feels Like Summer CampTime for a break in our less-than-regularly-scheduled programming. I have a list of blogs I really enjoy reading -- a very long list. I couldn't possibly read them every day, although there are a few, like Mary's blog, that I check almost daily. However, I do eventually visit them all. Imagine my surprise to visit DaMomma's blog today and see my name! Seems my cousin Susie posted a meme on her Caroliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11637418089860927715noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18025528.post-25286898871529927462007-12-19T20:35:00.000+09:002007-12-19T21:36:50.219+09:00Whaling Sheds & Banjo MusicMerry Christmas from Japan! After trips to Hong Kong (to meet Fearless Husband) and to the US (to see my family) for me, and a deployment that included stops in Hong Kong and Cambodia for FH, we're both back home, very happily settling in to spend a little time together for the holidays. It's finally cold here in Sasebo, much to my relief and pleasure, and we've got the kerosene heater going. Caroliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11637418089860927715noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18025528.post-72661098814055593502007-10-01T20:42:00.001+09:002009-05-05T02:06:47.420+09:00How to Succeed in Blogland (Without Really Trying)I do not do memes.Let me repeat, I do NOT do memes. However, one of my very favorite people (and fellow blogger) Mary at Resident Alien tagged me with this meme, so I find I can't help myself. She flattered me as well, telling me she was hoping to prod me into posting more adventures. What she doesn't realize is that posting this relieves some of the guilt and pressure I was feeling to post, so Caroliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11637418089860927715noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18025528.post-59721755773147515712007-09-07T23:15:00.000+09:002007-09-09T09:20:59.107+09:00Dragonfruit SeasonEdited with a new image, below!It's been far, far too long since I've managed to post here, and I apologize. Our unexpected trip to the US, my mother-in-law's passing, pneumonia, and simply having a husband at home again have all taken their toll. But...it's time to get back to adventures, and I'm still so very behind! Here's another grocery store story, to tide us all over until I can post more Caroliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11637418089860927715noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18025528.post-41021992812029088752007-07-28T14:39:00.000+09:002007-09-08T17:55:22.747+09:00AnnetteSorry for the silence...we're not currently having Adventures in Japan. Fearless Husband arrived home in Sasebo after a two and a half month absence. 12 hours later, we found out his mother was in the hospital and gravely ill. We scrambled, and with some help from the Navy and the Red Cross, we arrived in Nevada less than 48 hours after FH got off his ship.My mother-in-law is an amazing woman. Caroliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11637418089860927715noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18025528.post-77366803028242707732007-07-11T19:54:00.001+09:002007-09-08T17:31:34.816+09:00The Tomato SandwichNo photos, as my camera batteries are dead but...Imagine, if you will, that you are walking through a small neighborhood market in Japan. Your basket is laden with twelve tiny, incredibly sweet local tangerines, two skinny, glossy purple eggplant, ten pale green asparagus spears with tight, fat, rounded heads (almost like a cartoon of asparagus, or pale green Sharpie markers) in two bundles of Caroliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11637418089860927715noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18025528.post-40458046310965230192007-06-24T19:14:00.000+09:002007-09-08T18:04:19.343+09:00Dutch Tulips & Japanese Porcelain(As always, click on the images for larger versions.) MM and I headed out on Friday, March 23 to Huis Ten Bosch (click to visit their website), a huge, local amusemsent park. Unlike American amusement parks, there are no roller coasters, no "rides" (except a single, gorgeous merry-go-round), no midway games. Instead, Huis Ten Bosch is a huge Dutch village set incongruously on the coast of Japan, Caroliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11637418089860927715noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18025528.post-80897548529366011172007-04-11T19:31:00.000+09:002007-09-08T18:08:56.124+09:00Showing Off "My" JapanI'm sorry it's been such a long time since my last post. I'm so busy having adventures that it's hard to find time to write about them! As always, click on the images for larger photos.Even though I've still got things to write about from last summer and fall (Thanksgiving, meeting various porcelain artists, the Yosakoi festival, a parade I happened upon one day, etc.), I want to give you a Caroliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11637418089860927715noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18025528.post-43078122203147826892007-03-05T15:45:00.000+09:002007-09-08T18:04:37.254+09:00Cocooned Buildings & YakinikuThere's so much to write about, and so little time! I can't believe we've been in Japan for over a year now. The time is just flying! Here's a mish-mash of observations and interesting (to me at least!) little things...sort of a collage of a post. (As always, click on the images for slightly larger versions.)Spring is trembling on the cusp of exploding here. The cherry blossoms are about to burstCaroliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11637418089860927715noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18025528.post-1171045044573341352007-02-10T02:50:00.000+09:002007-09-08T17:48:40.489+09:00Birthday Izakaya & Bits of NewsI'm so sorry for the long delay between posting adventures. I've been having them, and am so behind in writing them all down, but it's just been hard to actually sit down and do it! So...you may get several adventures in a row, out of chronological order. My apologies, but when motivation strikes, and opportunity presents itself, I have to get to writing! Current happenings below, catch-up stuff Caroliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11637418089860927715noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18025528.post-1168777227176600822007-01-14T21:16:00.000+09:002007-09-08T17:55:36.992+09:00The Joy of Coming HomeDon't get me wrong...I love the USA. My country offers freedoms found nowhere else (see the Bill of Rights). We have an amazing abundance of inexpensive foods (we spend less of our total income on food than people in any other country on earth). We've got broad, smooth highways and shining skyscrapers and vast vistas of forest and field and mountains and plains. Our diversity is second to none, Caroliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11637418089860927715noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18025528.post-1166717793709880392006-12-22T01:10:00.000+09:002007-09-08T17:48:20.547+09:00Ichinensei Jack O'LanternsHope everyone is enjoying the holiday season! I'm a very happy camper, as Fearless Husband is home safe and sound.I'll go back and do some catch-up later, but for now, here's an adventure following the Okinawa journey. Maybe I can get Thanksgiving posted before Christmas...we'll see!When I got home from Okinawa, I was in a huge hurry. Miyuki had asked me, months ago, to visit her school and carveCaroliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11637418089860927715noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18025528.post-1166628139221398042006-12-21T00:10:00.000+09:002007-09-08T17:47:59.241+09:00A Glimpse of Christmas at Our HouseHere you go. Real adventure coming soon (Miyuki's school, Thanksgiving), but in the meantime, here are a couple of photos. I know, the "snow" is pink. But it was the only sheet I had that I was willing to use as a tree skirt. Behold, the world's dryest Christmas tree. I think they cut them in the US in September and put them on a slow boat to Japan. Yes, Virginia, that IS a Christmas tree on a Caroliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11637418089860927715noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18025528.post-1164204331470764222006-11-22T20:59:00.000+09:002007-09-08T18:18:22.414+09:00Okinawan Hibiscus, Awamori & Shisa(As always, click on the images for larger photos!) I took the free shuttle from the base to the airport last Tuesday morning, and flew to Okinawa to visit my cousin Emily. Though I'd packed summer shirts and skirts, I was kind of stupid and wore a black tunic and dark pants for travelling. Okinawa was HOT! Em picked me up at the airport and immediately took me out sightseeing.I was fascinated byCaroliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11637418089860927715noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18025528.post-1163315021408611612006-11-12T15:51:00.001+09:002009-05-05T02:07:04.221+09:00We Interrupt Our Regularly Scheduled Programming.....to bring you this news bulletin. For now, my domain (www.wordmagix.com) points here, to Adventures in Japan. But eventually, though this blog will continue to exist, the domain itself will be for my freelance graphic design business. In the meantime, you might get momentary breaks from Adventures in Japan for announcements like this one.The big news--drumroll please! The Book is at the Caroliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11637418089860927715noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18025528.post-1162731403681540012006-11-05T21:05:00.000+09:002007-09-08T18:09:43.997+09:00Moonrise over the OnsenI've talked a lot about my Japanese friend, Miyuki. She's really an amazing person and a great friend. She started out as my "Know your Cho" volunteer, but we really hit it off and became friends almost instantly. We've spent a LOT of time together...she's taken me on several "tours" of Japanese grocery stores, and I've taught her to cook a couple of American dishes. We watch DVDs together with Caroliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11637418089860927715noreply@blogger.com8