Great Road Trip Scavenger Hunt - Items 13 & 14

We had lots of fun with the next two in different ways.

Firefighters having a meal in a fire station. In hindsight, we really didn't have much to worry about. The winning entries had photos that were not much different than ours. There were a couple photos that showed a table full of firefighters sitting down for a meal, but more often the pictures were like the one we took.

Our photo was taken with Fire Captain Paul Eckstein of the South Lane County Fire and Rescue station in Cottage Grove, Oregon. He almost looked lonely in the fire station as most everyone else was out on calls. We pulled up to the station mainly because we smelled food.

Turns out the Fire Captain was at the station working over a BBQ. So we had food on the grill but no crew to eat it. We didn't have a lot of time either so we improvised. That's how we got the photo.

Before getting the photo, we toured the station. The grill in the back "yard" of the station was a giant Weber appropriate for a fire station. Off to the left of the garage was a narrow hallway leading to a room where all of the chairs were lazy boy recliners. The recliners were lined up facing a wide screen flat panel television mounted on the wall. Immediately behind this room was the kitchen counter and in the kitchen were two fridges side-by-side. It was not fancy, more functional and had a feel that it was a boys' place.

What they say about fire fighters being really generous turns out to be right on the mark.



So what do you picture when you hear "merry-go-round"? Here's what we found.


The photo was taken at a local park in Albany, Oregon. I think we were trying to find farm machinery that we had seen from the freeway when we found the park. It's not often that you see an old-fashioned merry-go-round in parks these days. I can't think of any parks where we live that have such a play structure, but when we were kids it was one of our favorite.

Gone in 59 Seconds

Spit! Ethan is on a fluoride rinse program prescribed by his dentist. The poor guy. Last year he had a dental visit where we were told that he had 8 cavities. He just has teeth susceptible to cavities. He and Naomi brush the same way each day. Naomi's had nary a cavity.

Rinse. Rinse. Rinse. This goes on for a minute. Ring. Ring. Ring. We have a timer that goes off after a minute signaling that the fluoride rinse can be spit out.

At dinner last night, we were talking about telling time. This is something that we've had to really work on with the kids. They still have trouble sometimes telling time from a clock with old fashioned hands. I think that this is so because most of the clocks they see are digital clocks. It's pretty easy to tell time if the clock says: 7:45. You just have to know if it's 7:45 AM or 7:45 PM.

So at the dinner table last night I asked the kids, "How many seconds are there in a minute?"

Without hesitation, Ethan answered, "59 seconds."

"Why 59 seconds?" I asked.

Ethan was giggling, "I don't know."

Then I realized why. "Is it because of the timer we use to rinse?"

"Yeah, Dad. It says "59" whenever I rinse."

"That's really funny. Is it because when I start the timer it always starts with 59 seconds on it?"

What happens is that the timer starts with 1:00 on it, one minute, but the second that I start it, it shows 0:59 and continues to count down. Ethan had associated the 59 he was seeing as the time for one minute.

The Seal Dribbler Kerlon

Check out this video.

The Hawaii Slideshow

Here are some fun photos from our trip to Hawaii.

Great Road Trip Scavenger Hunt - Items 10 to 12

The next three items were each: one that would be easy to find, a second that was a head scratcher, and a third that was "what is that?"

The one that would be easy to find was a machine that flattens pennies. Our kids have a very large collection of such pennies from several places in Japan and the U.S. On this trip we documented our find at the Seattle Center in the shadows of the Space Needle. Lianne, Yuki's daughter, joined us for the photo.


The next one was a real head scratcher. A vehicle unique to the region that we would be visiting. We thought, "maybe we need to drive to Pennsylvania so that we could photograph ourselves with Amish driving horse and buggy." The best we could come up with were triple trailers. Triple trailers are illegal in most states. Oregon is the only state on the west coast that allows triple trailers. The other places where triple trailers are allowed are: Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Indiana Toll Road, Kansas Turnpike, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, North Dakota, Ohio Turnpike, Oklahoma, South Dakota, and Utah.

The photo is one that Dorothy took during our drive on the road to Portland, Oregon. I'm in the foreground of the picture because one of the requirements of the hunt was that a member of our traveling party needed to be in each photo. We ended up with this moving photo because for some reason the only place where we could find triple trailers were while we were on the move. At the truck stops where we stopped, we found only single and double trailers. We wondered, "Do they have other stops just for triple trailers?" Fushigi datta (Japanese for "it was a mystery").


This next one was maybe the one for which we did the most research. We only had vague notions about phosphates. The scavenger hunt only said, "An old-fashioned soda shop that serves phosphate."

We did most of our research only after we had reached Seattle. We could not find any soda fountains serving phosphates in the Seattle area. The closest locale that held some promise was a soda fountain in Wenatchee, the apple capitol of the world in central Washington. We thought about driving there, but then we found two possibilities in Oregon.

The first one in Albany was a strike out. It turned out to be a candy shop in Albany called The Velvet Touch. Would we really find a soda shop in a place called The Velvet Touch? Sounded more like an adult entertainment establishment. It turns out they had great ice cream. So there we were at 10 in the morning eating ice cream. It was not a total loss.

The Grants Pass Pharmacy was our last chance. This was not our first visit to Grants Pass. The last time we found statues of dogs dressed up as batman and robin in front of a motel. This time it was all of the bear statues on the downtown street corners. San Jose had their shark statues. Seattle had their pig statues. Santa Rosa, home of Charles Schultz, has the Peanuts character statues. And Grants Pass has their bear statues.


The pharmacy did have a real soda fountain. It was a small soda fountain right in the middle of the pharmacy. And it did serve phosphates! The price was right, too. Twenty five cents. We pulled up to the counter and asked for a phosphate. The soda jerk said, "what flavor?"

"What are the flavors?"

"Anything on the board."

There were something like 20 flavors (coke, diet coke, Dr. Pepper, sarsaparilla, sprite, diet sprite, root beer, orange, grape, cherry, etc.) on the board. We had no idea.

The soda was made by mixing flavored syrup, soda water and what I assumed to be phosphoric acid. We ordered grape. It lasted just like a regular grape soda pop.

Great Road Trip Scavenger Hunt - Item 9

This is the item that prevented us from having a chance to win the scavenger hunt. Of the over 300 hundred entries received by the paper, well over 100 were for entries where all 20 items were found. We found but 19.

We just ran out of time on our trip to Seattle. We needed to return by July 8 to the Bay Area so we departed Seattle on July 7, Friday. We reasoned, since Saturday would be 7-7-07 there would be some wedding in one of the towns that we would be driving through.

Also, we still needed to make it to Grants Pass and the the Grants Pass Pharmacy in the hopes that it would have a soda fountain serving phosphate. The pharmacy was only open until 600pm or so on Saturday.

So here we were driving down I-5 in Oregon on Saturday trying in vain to find a wedding. We even stopped and asked people if they knew of any weddings in their towns. Maybe belief in lucky numbers is not important in small towns. We couldn't figure it out. We thought, "there's got to be one wedding some place."

We placed a call to Yuki during the drive. She reported to us how a church in Seattle had been performing weddings every 15 minutes since midnight because of the demand for weddings on 7-7-07. Just our luck. Maybe we should've stayed in Seattle.

Wedding Bash

Tonight wrapped up the Jen and Matt wedding miniseries that started for us with our departure to Honolulu on September 3 to attend their wedding. Jen is Jennifer, Dorothy's niece.

The wedding was a small affair outside of Honolulu at a country club on the Pali Highway. It was attended by about 50 family and close friends, some traveling from as far away as Florida. It was a beautiful setting for a wedding, nestled in amongst the lush hillsides of the windward side of the island. Everything was green, from the groves of trees to the green lawn to even the bride's maid's gown. Naomi was the flower girl, which she thought was really cool. Waking up early to get hair done and dressed up for the wedding made it extra special for Naomi, and her first ride in a stretch limo wasn't too bad either.


Tonight's affair was the traditional Chinese wedding banquet. However, it also served as the main wedding celebration for most since attendance at the wedding was made available only for a small number of people. And it was quite the affair too. One of the largest wedding gatherings that I have ever attended, perhaps over 500 people.

Banquet Video
Video sent by CEmoto

This wedding was special for our kids also. It's probably the first one where they were interested in the cake cutting, the bouquet toss, the garter toss, and the other activities associated with the event. The following are a few of the sights and sounds from the wedding banquet from the point of view of our kids:

The Garter Toss

Dad: Were you able to see what they did?

Ethan: Yeah it was funny. Matt threw the headband and it landed on Bill's [Bill is Jen's younger brother] back. Bill didn't even try to grab it. Someone else took it off his back. It was really funny!

Wedding Favors

Dad: Ryan, why do you have two favors?

Ryan: Someone gave me hers.

Dad: Are you sure it's okay?

Ryan: No, it's okay. It was our other cousin who gave it to me.

[Later during the good-byes.]

Aunt Josie (Dorothy's Aunt): Did you see that I gave Ryan my wedding favor?

Dad: Oh that was you. I didn't know who gave it to him. He told me that it was our other cousin who gave it to him.

Left Over Food

One of the things that's done at Chinese wedding banquets is that the servers pass out take-out boxes for those who want to take home leftovers. The other family seated at the table with us did not want the leftovers so we packed what we wanted. The amount of food that is served is usually for 10 adults per table. Given that our table had one empty seat and three smaller children, we had plenty of leftovers. So we even filled up two boxes to give to Auntie Josie.

Dad: Ethan, can you take these boxes over to Auntie Jo?

Ethan: Okay.

Dad: Do you know which one she is?

Ethan: Yes, Dad. She's the nice lady who came over to see us. The one who has that thing [a cast] on her hand and blond hair. [Auntie Jo is recently retired and has graying hair. I guess to Ethan it looks blond. Maybe it was the lighting in the restaurant.]

So I learned tonight that Jen had a headband on her leg that Matt retrieved with his mouth and that Auntie Jo has blond hair and is really our cousin.

Great Road Trip Scavenger Hunt - Items 5 to 8

The Contra Costa Times showed some photos earlier this year that showed families posing in front of famous trees with bark seeming to show a face. There was one from some place in Indiana. Something tells me there was lots of research done to find some of these items. We did a little too, but not nearly enough to find all of the items prior to our trip.

The picture of the fifth item was taken outside the Charlotte Martin Children's Theater at the Seattle Center. The scavenger hunt did not say that the tree had to be a real one.


The next item was difficult to find at the time of our trip. We were able to find gas for less then $2.75 based on a tip from my brother. The picture was taken near Wood Village, Oregon on the Columbia River Gorge.


This year is the 40th anniversary of the writing of Jack Kerouac's "On the Road." This explained the lack of copies of this book at several libraries. We finally found one at the Burien, Washington library and Stephen the librarian was kind enough to pose with us.


Finding a red caboose was one of the easier items to find. The photo shows a red caboose in downtown Albany, Oregon that had been remodeled into a pet grooming shop. We were actually looking for a soda shop serving phosphates when we came across this caboose.

Great Road Trip Scavenger Hunt - Item 4

We had to reach for this one. We found that all sheriffs at least along the west coast are County sheriffs. The scavenger hunt specified a town sheriff. We did the best that we could by going to the Tehama County sheriff's office in Red Bluff, California, only to find that the sheriff was not in the office.

However, a very personable public relations officer came to our rescue with trading cards with pictures of the sheriff and other goodies for the kids. We learned that the sheriff was Clay Parker. The back of his trading card says that he is a 5th generation law enforcement officer with 27 years of experience. It also says that he enjoys outdoor sports and is an avid bowler.

This definitely was one stop that we would not have made without the scavenger hunt.

Great Road Trip Scavenger Hunt - Item 3

Did you know that there is a covered bridge association in Oregon? We did not know this. Always pictured covered bridges as an artifact of other parts of the country. Think "Bridges of Madison County."

The one that we found was located in Cottage Grove, Oregon.

Cottage Grove has special meaning for us. We first stopped there in September 2001. Ethan was not even a year old. Naomi was just past two. We were scheduled to fly up to visit Ojiichan and Obaachan, but 9-11 cancelled all flights. So we decided to drive. We stopped to get gas in Cottage Grove and were invited to join a candlelight vigil. We couldn't stay because we were trying to make it to Portland, but the image of streams of people passing through downtown Cottage Grove to a candlelight vigil will be something we will always remember.

Great Road Trip Scavenger Hunt - Item 2

The second item that we were to find was "an unintentionally funny sign." We actually thought the message on the back of the sign from the Eastern Orthodox church sign might be our entry until we realized that we took the picture sans a family member. Oh, well...

So we continued our scavenging. We found several signs that were funny, but they were intentionally funny. Finding an unintentionally funny sign was difficult.

Then we came across the sign below in Albany, Oregon. The picture shows Ryan and me. The other kids were not interested in leaving the car.

Bakery Thrift Store. "Does this mean that they sell used pastries? Are they half eaten?" The kids and I thought that it was funny. Dorothy was not completely in agreement, but went along with the majority. After all, we weren't having much luck finding a sign that fit the bill.

Next stop, the Emoto house in Gresham, Oregon.

Great Road Trip Scavenger Hunt - Item 1

Our road trip north this summer had a new twist. We visited places to find items for a road trip scavenger hunt by the Contra Costa Times, our local paper. There were 20 items that we were suppose to find and include in a photograph with one member of our traveling party.

We just submitted our entries as they are due this Monday. We were able to get pictures to cover 19 of the 20 items on the list, although a couple of our "gets" were questionable. The kids joined in the spirit of the hunt for the most part. There were times when their response was, "Do we have to get out of the car for this one?"

One thing we learned was that people are really very friendly even if you approach them in a library with camera in hand (see future post for Item 7). Here's the first item that we were to find:

Item 1 - A building shaped like something else

We didn't really get too creative with this one. The picture below was taken in Rogue River, Oregon. We were actually driving back from checking out a blue-domed churchy looking building that can be seen from I-5 when we stumbled across this, a drive-thru coffee stand shaped like a red caboose.


We just had to see the blue-domed churchy-looking building that we would see each year on our drive to Seattle. We knew that it was an orthodox church of some kind because of the cross. Well, turns out that it's an Eastern Orthodox church. As we were getting ready to leave the place, we noticed an interesting quote on the back of the sign to the church (see below - it says, "It's later than you think" Perhaps someone with a sense of humor? There was no one home so we did not get a chance to inquire.).

Obaachan, Auntie Yuki & Lianne Visit

Roaster Coasters and Other Fun for Kids

We had a weekend with enough kid-friendly activities to last a whole year. This was due to a visit by our niece Lianne. I think we adults were just along for the ride.

In reality, we probably could've spent the entire weekend in our house and the kids would've been able to create enough activities on their own. There were times when our house did resemble one of those amusement parks that we visited.

Our first stop was Pixieland, which we blogged about in an earlier posting: Moshi Moshi Kame-yo!: Pixieland - A Hidden Gem

Another stop was Children's Fairyland in Oakland. This was courtesy of our friend Celia who had given to Naomi passes as a birthday gift last year. Celia and her husband Joe even joined us for this excursion that had Celia remembering back to her childhood memories of Children's Fairyland (see her comments to our Pixieland post above).

The Lindsay Wildlife Museum was another hit for the kids. Seeing local wild animals up close at this museum is always an adventure for the kids.

The kids also got a chance to burn off some energy at Matteo's Playground, an accessible playground in Concord. Much of the construction was conducted by local volunteers. It was a hot day so we didn't stay for a long time, just long enough for the kids to build up an appetite.

The weekend also had the 51st Annual Japanese Summer Festival at the Diablo Japanese American Cultural Center. We took in some great food (my mom: the food selection here is even better than at the Obon Festival in Seattle!), Bon Odori dancing, kids' games, and taiko drumming.




The one nearly daylong outing that we made was to Gilroy Gardens, touted as California's only horticultural theme park. It is an unusual theme park with rides and attractions built around a horticultural theme featuring what they refer to as circus trees. The park is definitely geared to a younger crowd. Buying tickets on-line will save you $12 on a regular adult ticket and $2 on a kid's ticket. Maybe it was because we visited on a Monday, but the parking lot was only about a third full and many of the rides did not have a wait.

On the way back home, we stopped for dinner at Tobie Tyler's. This is a Japanese restaurant in a Ramada Inn close to my work place. Dorothy's always wanted to check it out since she hears me talking about eating lunch there on a work day.

So what is this about roaster coasters? Well, that is what Ryan calls roller coasters. Ryan was even able to go on the one at Pixieland with me. As he told all of us, "you have to scream when you're on a roaster coaster."

He wanted to go on the ones at Gilroy Gardens but he was not tall enough. Maybe next year.

Neighbors 1

As was stated in the previous posting, this week was Spirit Week for the swim team. The final event was last night. It was the pasta feed. Almost every type of pasta one could imagine was on display. It was a potluck with all of the dishes lined up on a long series of tables as if they were being prepared for a parade. Of course, this is bound to happen with a potluck by a swim team of over 160 kids and their families.

Anyway, let's get to the story about neighbors...

I walked to the club after work so we wouldn't have two cars to take to our home which is no more than about 10 minutes away by foot. Ryan, threw a wrench into our plans to drive home together when he took up my not too serious comment to walk home by saying, "Yes, Dad, I want to walk home. Let's go."

So we were on our way to walk home, when we heard squeak, squeak. Squeak, squeak behind us. It was Naomi. She wanted to walk home too. A few minutes later mom and Ethan rolled by when we were trying to cross the street. We continued on our way.

An older man appeared about 100 yards down the street. He was wearing a red 49ers cap. He waved to us when we were nearer. We said the obligatory "hellos" as we started to pass, but this time I decided to say, "Hey, kids, say hello to the nice man. Look, Ryan, I think he wants to give you a high five." They proceeded to low five one another.

This started the following conversation:

Me: We're just returning from a pasta feed at the swim club.

Man: What, did you say that you were down at the field.

Me: No, we were at a pasta feed. You know, down at the swim club.

Man: Oh, the swim club. That's a great place. A great place for kids. You know, we grew up in the club too.

Man: Did you see all the cars down the street last weekend? I think they had the big meet at Woodlands (the swim club on the Walnut Creek side of Citrus Avenue).

Me: That was the Woodlands Invitational.

Man: We swam in that too. Woodlands was not in our league though. Or should I say that we were not in their league. They were very good. Much more competitive. This was over 40 years ago.

Me: It's still the same. Woodlands is still much more competitive, but now we're in the same league.

Man: We've lived in the same place now for 43 years. I'm 84 years old.

Me: Maybe if I'm lucky one of these I'll make it to 84.

Man: We live right down this street at XXXX San Gabriel. Things have changed quite a bit around here. Back then, they only let certain people live here. It was quite different.

Man: My wife is not doing too well. She almost had renal failure. She's suppose to be going in for an operation. My daughters will be here to help out. Can you believe that she might not be able to get a new kidney because she is too old? I think that this might be it for her. She has diabetes too.

Me: I'm sorry for that.

Man: How long have you lived here?

Me: We've lived here now for almost seven years.

Man: You're an old timer now, aren't you (laughing)?

Me: No, you're the real old timer (laughing).

Man: Yes, in more ways than one (laughing).

Me: We live around the corner on Joshua Woods.

Ryan: Can we go now, Dad?

Me: What's your name, anyway?

Man: My name's Gene. Gene XXXXXXXX. What's yours?

Me: Casey. Casey Emoto.

Gene: Casey? What's that Moto?

Me: Emoto.

Gene: What's your name (gesturing to Ryan)?

Ryan: My name's Ryan.

Gene: What was that?

Me: His name is Ryan.

Gene: That's a great name. Give me a high five (they proceed to give one another a low five). What's your name (gesturing to Naomi)?

Naomi: My name's Naomi.

Gene: That's a beautiful name.

Ryan: Let's go Dad (tugging on my arm).

Me: Okay, okay. Okay, Gene, nice talking with you. Hopefully we'll see you around.

Gene: Yes, take care.

Contra Costa Valley Swim Conference

Our swim team, the Ygnacio Wood Seahorses, is one of seven teams in the Contra Costa Valley Swim Conference. There is one other team from Concord, 2 teams from Walnut Creek, and single teams from Pinole, Antioch, and Brentwood. The league season concludes with the championships held at Los Medanos College.

The week leading up the championships is called Spirit Week for the Seahorses. Last night was movie night at the swim club. Kids are encouraged to bring sleeping bags and their own munchies. Although movie watching is a main activity for the night, so too is painting nails and hair blue (the team color). Our Ryan even got into the act, painting blue the nails on his left hand. Here's a picture of Ryan with Coach Russell Mikuni.


This year Naomi and Ethan are each swimming freestyle and backstroke at the league championships. Good luck to all!

Conversations with Kids - Part IX

Dad: Hey, Mom look at us. We're trying to swat flies.

Ryan: Yeah, look at us. Oh, look! Fly! Fly!

Dad: Where is it? I can't see it.

Mom: He has quite a keen eye.

Dad: I think that he can see the fly better because he is lower to the ground and can see it buzzing around above his head. [so I kneel to get down to his level]

Ryan: Yeah, let me get down to see better too. [as he proceeds to kneel down next to me]

This may not seem funny, but seeing him kneeling just like me with an impish grin on his face had both Dorothy and me keeling over in laughter.

Six Degrees of Separation from Kevin Bacon

During a recent commute home, the subject of six degrees of separation from Kevin Bacon made it into the carpool conversation. The premise of the play "Six Degrees of Separation" that generated the Kevin Bacon game was that everyone in the world can be linked to anyone else in a chain of no more than six people. The Kevin Bacon game posits that any actor can be linked to any other actor through a chain of no more than six actors.

I told our carpool that I could link everyone in our carpool to Kevin Bacon by a chain of no more than six people:

Carpoolers ==> Casey ==> Kiyo Ushino (principal planner at VTA) ==> Gary Ushino (Kiyo's brother who is a cameraman in Hollywood who worked on the film "Old School") ==> Luke Wilson (who starred in "Old School" and "My Dog Skip") ==> Kevin Bacon (who also starred in "My Dog Skip")

I guess this is what is known as mindless trivia.

Naomi's 8th Birthday

Naomi has what's considered a good swim birthday. The cut-off for the swimming age groupings is June 15. This means that next year even though she will be 9 before the end of the season Naomi will still swim with the 7 and 8 year olds.

However, having a summer birthday when many families are setting off on their final vacation before school starts is no piece of cake. Further complicating matters for swimming families such as ours are the twice a week swim meets. This will be the second year in a row that Naomi's birthday party with friends will take place well into August.

This evening after a swimming team event at the swim club we bought pizza and a cake to have a small family celebration at home. Earlier in the day we went to the newly renamed Six Flags Discovery Kingdom. This was part of our birthday gift for Naomi along with the first two Harry Potter books. Yes, we're one of those families who had not yet been bitten by the HP bug.

We've been to Discovery Kingdom now on two consecutive weekends and have probably only seen about a third of the place. This is mainly because we've gotten late starts for both visits. The good thing is that it's only about 30 minutes away and we do have season passes so we'll likely be going back. They do have a new attraction featuring Thomas the Tank Engine. We (including Naomi) were slightly disappointed with Thomas Town. Maybe we were expecting too much, but it seemed to be geared to the under first grade crowd and was smaller than what we expected.

Taiko Drumming

Ryan says that he wants someone to teach him how to taiko drum after seeing video clips such as the following.

Weekday Evening in Golden Gate Park

Very seldom do we get a chance to spend time in Golden Gate Park on a weekday evening, but such was the case this past week when Dorothy attended a close friend's father's wake.

The first stop that we made was at Spreckles Lake as we entered the park on 25th Avenue from the Richmond District side. The evening was cool enough to warrant jackets. Ryan insisted on being pushed in his stroller. There was a flock of over 100 pigeons fussing over their evening meal. The kids could not resist the temptation to chase the pigeons who were more worried about not getting their share of the meal.

We came upon two groups of older men huddled for entertainment. "Look dominoes! They're playing chicken foot!"

It was dominoes, but not Chicken Foot, the variation of dominoes that our kids learned from the Portland Emotos. No, these men were playing for money. We didn't stay for too long. "Dad, let's go, I don't like the smoke."

So we continued our short walk around the lake, passing the same older couples that we had seen earlier who were walking counter-clockwise to our clockwise round trip. There was an occasional bicyclist, but mostly it was older couples, bundled, walking or resting on benches, speaking in Cantonese. Some would point to the kids and smile or wave, but I don't think the kids noticed.

The next stop was the buffalo paddock. We found the area with construction underway to install new fencing so the buffalo were all herded into a small area near the roadway. Ethan and Naomi were satisfied with seeing the large animals from the minivan, but Ryan wanted to get out so the two of us went out for a closer look. We counted seven buffaloes, a much lower number than what I expected. My recollection was a larger herd roaming the open field. There were some tourists who were also at the fence. They were speaking in German so I didn't know what they were saying, but I couldn't help wonder if they knew that what they were viewing was not the usual view of the buffalo.

We continued our journey down to Ocean Beach. I knew that Dorothy would be calling us soon so we didn't get out, but the kids were happy just to see the ocean and the waves rolling onto the beach.

We drove toward Geary Boulevard. The phone rang. It was Dorothy. The wake was over and she was ready to leave. Ryan reminded me that he wanted to see the shiny house. What he was referring to was the gold-domed Russian Orthodox church on Geary Boulevard. "Look, there it is!" exclaimed Ryan as we drove past the church.

Dorothy was in front of the mortuary chatting with old friends. We drove off trying to figure out where to eat dinner.

The Pink My Little Pony Backpack

We attended a Seattle Mariners game during our vacation. I think it was before the game started when we saw three or four of the bullpen pitchers making their way across the outfield to the bullpen. My sister tapped me on the shoulder and said, "Take a look at that." Strung across the shoulder of one of the pitchers was a pink backpack. We all chuckled. I think someone even said, "It must be a gift from his daughter."

A recent article in SI explains the pink backpack. It is actually a symbol of the older pitchers "schooling" the younger pitchers on the ins and outs of MLB pitching. J.J. Putz, the Mariners' closer, and another "older" (J.J. is only 30) pitcher on a trip to Oakland enlisted a clubhouse attendant to find a pinker roller bag for the younger pitchers responsible for carting around the requisite munchies (e.g., chewing gum, sunflower seeds, PowerBars, and I'm sure other assorted snacks) for the bullpen. The attendant came back with the My Little Pony bag, which perfectly fit the bill.

So now the bag is passed between Brandon Morrow (former Cal pitcher) and two other rooks, depending on who is on a hot streak. So if you happen to catch a Mariners game and see a pitcher with a pink backpack, you'll now know that it's more than just a pink backpack. Who knows, if you ask for a PowerBar out of the bag, maybe they'll toss you one.

Math Magic

I remember seeing something like this in a Japanese math exercise book that our parents got for us when we were kids. I didn't totally understand it because the book was all in Japanese. It looked kind of interesting, but I wondered if it was really faster to do multiplication this way as compared to the traditional approach taught in school. Now here is a video that shows the entire method.

Ethan the Dancing Machine

Ethan can dance!

Even up on the Space Needle!

2007 Road Trip Stats and Photos

Our road to Seattle was a memorable one, but then again all of our road trips are memorable. Here are some stats about this road trip:

1. Included a scavanger hunt as part of our travels.
2. Took over 770 photos with our 2 digital cameras.
3. Stayed overnight in Red Bluff, Roseburg, and Portland on the way north.
4. Saw Mt. Lassen, Mt. Shasta, Mt. Hood, Mount St. Helens, and Mt. Rainier.
5. Took in views from the top (or near the top) of the Smith Tower, Columbia Center and Space Needle in Seattle.
6. Saw the 4th of July fireworks over Lake Union.
7. Saw the statue of Lenin and the Troll.
8. Stayed overnight in Albany and Medford on the return trip.
9. Traveled about 2120 miles over 10 days.

Here are some of our photos:

Seattle Trip 2007

Road Trip Stats and Photos

About 770 photos and 2120 miles later we were home.

Here's a link to some of the photos:

Seattle Trip 2007

Road Trip Stories - Volume 07a

Ethan's Mets blue and orange baseball cap and mit caught my attention. "We're going to an M's game so maybe we should bring these on the trip," I thought. So I grabbed these last two items on my way out the door as we departed on our road trip to see Ojiichan and Obaachan.

Arriving home nine days later, we checked the front steps for delivered packages. There weren't any, but Dorothy and I were hoping that there would be one.

We had called once while in Seattle to ask if a small boy's baseball cap had been turned in by one of the cleaning ladies. The front desk person who answered Dorothy's call was not too pleasant. Dorothy did not want to call again, but she relented to my prodding. She placed a second call to the Windmill Inn of Roseburg the next day and was greeted by someone who seemed to care that there was a heartbroken little boy who missed his hat. She noted our name and address and said that if the hat was found it would be mailed to us.

In Seattle, to make up for the lost cap, Obaachan bought a new M's cap for Ethan at the ballgame. He did not let this cap out of his sight.

We said our goodbyes and headed home on Friday exactly a week to the last day that we could remember Ethan with his Mets cap. Driving through Cottage Grove about an hour or so north of Roseburg, we stopped to check the Dairy Queen. This was the only other place between the Windmill Inn and Portland where we could've left the cap, but we didn't have any photos from the Dairy Queen to verify if Ethan was wearing the cap. He definitely was not wearing the cap during our short visit at the fire station in Cottage Grove because we had photos from the visit. It was the same staff at the Dairy Queen. They only had a red cap.

So we arrived home on Sunday night after two day of traveling. We reasoned that maybe someone would have a good heart and turn in the cap. After all, it had his name written on the inside and even his uniform number, #1. But it had been a week now. Who would turn in such a small seemingly meaningless item?

We get packages from time-to-time. Sometimes we have to sign for the package. Other times the delivery person just knocks on our door and leaves the package for us. This time the UPS man just knocked and by the time the door was answered, the only item remaining was a Otis Spunkmeyer box. This looked odd, but on closer inspection there was a Windmill Inn return address. Dorothy's immediate thought was, "It's the cap!" And so it was.

Ethan was away to his karate camp so he was not able to have this same immediate sense of recovery at the package's arrival. However, later in the day, Ethan was grateful that there was someone at the Windmill Inn in Roseburg who cared about his cap just as much as he did.

A Little Visitor

You never know what you'll find in your garden. Today, Dorothy came back into the house with a little friend on her shoulder - a young praying mantis. Check out these photos.

We're happy to report that the praying mantis was returned to the garden.

The Lion Sleeps Tonight

Hank Medress, who sang lead vocals with the Tokens in 1961 on their hit single "The Lion Sleeps Tonight," passed away this past Monday.

This is a catchy tune that is a favorite of our kids. See our earlier blog post on this from October 2006:

The Lion Sleeps Tonight video clip

Our kids especially like the part that goes "wimoweh" that is apparently from a traditional Zulu melody. The song was first sung by the Weavers in the 1950s.

The Midnight Sun Game

This game has seen major leaguers the likes of Barry Bonds, Tom Seaver, Dave Winfield, Bob Boone, and Rick Monday play in it. Current A's player Bobby Crosby has played in it. So has former A's player and current Yankee Jason Giambi.

This year marks the 102nd time for this game that starts at 10:30pm and usually finishes around 2am. The sun is to "set" at 12:47am, but the game will go on without lights as has been the tradition since the first year the game was played to settle a bar bet by a man from San Francisco. The game has grown to where it is now televised around the world by Internet.

Most people don't associate baseball with Alaska, but the Alaska Goldpanners of Fairbanks are one of the most successful amateur teams around. They've won six National Baseball Congress (NBC) titles over the years, and they've been runner-up another six times. Their last title was in 2002. In the early 70s, the Goldpanners won back-to-back-to-back in 1972, 1973 and 1974. And they aren't the only Alaska Baseball League team with an NBC title. Other champion AK teams include the Anchorage Glacier Pilots, Mat-Su Miners, and Kenai Peninsula Oilers.

The Midnight Sun Game has been tabbed as the #8 ultimate baseball experience by ESPN, on this list with baseball experiences like visiting spring training (#3 on the list), visiting the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown (#2 on the list), and an evening at Fenway Park (#11 on the list).

The current manager of the Panners, Tim Gloyd, sums up the long daylight that is summer in Fairbanks best in a recent article on Yahoo! Sports. "Your mind doesn't comprehend it at first," Gloyd said. "You may be sitting at Denny's, just talking, and next thing you know it's 3:30.

Having been born and raised in Alaska, the long summer daylight experience is not new for me. I remember playing our version of stickball in our yard well past 11pm on some summer nights. These games would usually start in the middle of the day and continue through dinner with people leaving for dinner and returning to join in the game. We would keep score and I remember scores that ran into the 100s for just one game.

On a trip to Alaska with Dorothy several years ago, we had the same experience mentioned by Tim Gloyd above. It never got pitch black dark, just a very dark blue hue. We were just sitting around talking getting caught up with friends after arriving in Alaska. Before we knew it, it was 3 or 4 in the morning.

The Last Day of School!

Here's what Naomi has to say about her last day of 2nd grade:

The last day of school was very busy.Miss Andrews put lots of old crafts and writings in bags for us.We got to watch a video.We went into the office and gave her a book with writings that my class wrote.Then we went into Miss Catalini's room.In Miss Catalini's room we got to watch cartoons and eat pan cakes.When we got back to the class room,Miss Andrews gave flowers to the parents that helped.We played two different games Zip-Zap and The Boss.At The end of school I couldn't carry all the stuff I needed to take home.My mom had to help.When I went out I knew she would come to my swim meet.I had fun that day!

I Love Me!

Every child thinks he/she is at the center of the universe. This video is from the summer of 2006 on our trip home from Seattle. We were near the end of our drive home and Ryan decided to express how he really felt.

I Love Me!
Uploaded by CEmoto

Riddles, jokes, and giggles - Part 2

Here's another installment of giggles, this time brought to you by Naomi and Ethan.

Q1: What do you call a stolen yam?

Q2: How do you fix a broken pizza?

Q3: What do you call a joke book about eggs?

Q4: Why didn't the hotdog star in a movie?

Q5: What do you do when you run out of ranch dressing?

Q6: Where do sheep go to cut their hair?

Q7: How do you ask a horse what his/her name is?

Q8: What does a lion say when he's mad?

Q9: What does a riddle say when it hits its funny bone?

Q10: Why didn't the dino cross the road?

Naomi actually was the one who typed in the last 4 riddles. Her first blogging!

(scroll below for answers)








A1: A hot potato.

A2: With tomato paste.

A3: A yolk book.

A4: The roles weren't good enough.

A5: You buy more ranches to make the dressing (Ethan's own creation).

A6: At the baaaa-ber shop.

A7: You say,"What's your naaaa-me?"

A8: "I'm roaring mad!"

A9: "I feel funny."

A10: It was the chicken's night out.

Magic Trick

I wonder how he does this?

Grandma's Song

Here's a song to all grandmas out there.

Grandma's Song
Uploaded by CEmoto

Brake Lights to Clogged Speakers

Ethan is convinced that he will grow up to be an inventor. He has the right characteristics. He's always asking how things work. I asked him to help me change a burnt out brake light bulb. He learned how the brakes light up with just a tiny little bulb. I let him be the one to verify which light was out. I let him step on the brakes while I made sure the light was working once again.

Later the same day...

Our new computer came with a wide screen monitor that has speakers built into the monitor. The monitor was part of a package with the computer. In theory this sounds good, but the speakers in the monitor are quite underpowered and tinny sounding. So I connected the speakers from our old computer to the new computer. Upon hearing the new sound, Ethan asked, "are these speakers (pointing to the now disconnected speakers on the new monitor) clogged?"

Ryan's ABC Song

Here's an original rendition of the ABC song.

Ryan singing the ABC song
Uploaded by CEmoto

Happy Mother's Day!

This is a Mother's Day greeting to our obaachan. However, I think it portrays a universal message of love and enthusiasm that can only be expressed by children.

Mother's Day
Uploaded by CEmoto

Memories of NBA Basketball on the Radio

I remember listening to the NBA basketball championships the two years back-to-back where the Washington Bullets played my Seattle Supersonics. I listened to the games on shortwave radio with my dad in our home in the Aleutians. In the 1977-78 series, the Sonics lost to the equally surprising Bullets in a close but strange series where each won on the other's court, and had the Sonics being forced to only one game at home to start the series due to scheduling conflicts. Later in the series, the Sonics played a game in the Kingdome because their home arena was being used for a convention. Even though they had over twice the number of fans on-hand, playing in the enormous Kingdome did not offer the same home court advantage and they went on to lose the pivotal game four match-up. I remember complaining about how unfair it was that the series had a strange 1(s)-2(w)-2(s)-1(w)-1(s) format and the Kingdome move, which probably had an impact on the series outcome not benefitting Seattle. Even though the Sonics were going to be home for game 7, I for some reason did not feel good about the Sonics' chances. It was during this play-off run that Dick Motta made popular at least in sporting circles the phase "the opera isn't over until the fat lady sings." I remember being heartbroken after the Sonics' game 7 loss.

The following year both teams I think were favored to win their conferences or at least contend for the title unlike the year before when both were surprise teams. I think the Sonics had some close calls in their conference series (especially against the Suns with Paul Westphal and Alvan Adams), but they made it to the finals to find the Bullets waiting for them once again. This time the Sonics dominated the series and won in 5 games. To this day, this championship is the only one that the city of Seattle has had in one of the three major professional sports. There's even a web page devoted to the 1978-79 Sonics.

I remember pretending to be Downtown Freddie Brown in make believe games with my brother and other friends in our porch where we used a 5-gallon bucket as the basket. We would play games of horse and even play 3-on-3 games in this 8-foot by 8-foot area porch with bodies crashing into walls and cabinets. Other players that I remember from these Sonics teams include JJ (Johnny Johnson, whose son is now a guard for Stanford), Jack Sikma, Lonnie Shelton, Marvin "The Human Eraser" Webster who was actually traded for Lonnie, Gus Williams, DJ (Dennis Johnson), Paul Silas, Wally Walker and their coach Lenny Wilkens. I even remember the players from the Bullets: Wes Unseld, Elvin Hayes, Bobby Dandridge, Kevin Grevey, Mitch Kupchak and Greg Ballard come to mind. I don't think that I would've remembered this if it weren't for our listening on the radio. Compare this to this day and age, where usually by the next year most people cannot even name the two teams that were in the previous years' finals.

So as a tribute to those long lost days of sports on the radio I found the following video clip. Enjoy.

Video Killed the radio star
Uploaded by lojeanz

Shampoo! Shampoo!

Sometimes what kids hear is more enjoyable than what is reality. During a slideshow of our trip to San Diego, a picture of the world famous orca from Sea World flashed on to the screen. "Shampoo!" yelled Ryan.

Of course, we're talking about Shamu. There are points in the Sea World show where the audience is encouraged to chant, "Shamu! Shamu!" to get the big orca to make a big splash. I think it would be immensely more entertaining to hear and see a stadium full of people chanting, "Shampoo! Shampoo!"

Goooaaaallllll!!!!!!!!!

FC Barcelona forward Lionel Messi scored a goal reminiscent of Maradona's famous goal for Argentina against England in the 1986 World Cup. Messi's goal was in a Spanish Cup semi-final match on April 18, 2007 against Getafe.

The video below shows a side-by-side comparison of the two goals.

Comparativa gol de Messi y Maradona
Uploaded by cariacolov

World Thinking Day

Naomi's Girl Scouts troop along with others in the area celebrated World Thinking Day earlier this year. Each troop was able to select a country to share information about with the other troops. Naomi's troop selected Thailand.

The purpose of World Thinking Day is to celebrate girl scouts all over the world. Every February 22nd, the girl scouts from around the world think of each other and give thanks and appreciation to their sister scouts. At World Thinking Day, each girl scout in Naomi's troop received her World Trefoil Pin to show that she is part of the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (aka WAGGGS). The pin is a golden trefoil on a blue background representing the sun shining over all the children of the world.

Swim Season is Here Once Again

Here's a picture of Ethan with one of his instructors taken last week.

The Cats of Mirikitani

My sister told me about this documentary called "The Cats of Mirikitani" that is being screened in the Mission District of San Francisco April 27 through May 3 at the Roxie New College Film Center.

Jimmy Mirikitani was born in Sacramento in 1920. His family returned to Hiroshima (where several perished in the atomic bomb), but he returned to the U.S. at 18. When WWII started he was interned at Tule Lake. Through the course of events, he landed homeless on the streets of NYC.

My father John was born in Snoqualmie Falls, Washington outside Seattle in 1929. His older brother's American name was Jimmy. My father with his family returned to Okayama before WWII. He returned to the U.S. on his own after WWII. Eventually he was drafted by the U.S. Army and served some of his time in the military in Japan. Through the course of events, he landed in the Aleutian Islands of Alaska where he would spend most of his adult life. Now retired, he lives outside Seattle.

One of my carpool partners recently said, "fate is whatever happens to you; you can't control it."

I suppose this is one explanation.

Play Ball!

Baseball season is here! Ethan's playing in the Peanuts Division of the Continental Little League of Concord and Walnut Creek. His team is the Mets.

Stats Redux - March 18, 2007

Here's an update on stats first posted in November 2005, updated January 2006, June 2006 and October 2006.

Price of Gas: $3.13 per gallon (has fallen a few pennies over the past week, but still near an all-time high; election season must be over; saying that it's due to changing of blends)
Price of Milk: $2.99 for hormone free milk at Trader Joe's ($0.30 price drop since June 2006, but no change since October 2006)
Bridge Toll: $4 as of January 1, 2007 on all Bay Area bridges except Golden Gate Bridge (first month remained at $3 for FasTrak users; FasTrak now available at retail outlets like Safeway and Costco)
Today's High Temperature: 72 degrees F (overnight low of 48)
Dow Jones Average: 12,110.41 (up 162.71 since October update of these stats); and over 1200 since first 2006 trading day
Shopping Days to Christmas: 281 days including Christmas Eve (there are web sites that have this stat, believe it or not)
Dinner Tonight: Carnitas burrito for me, enchilada plate for Dorothy, 2 older kids had rice and bean burritos and the little one had a cheese quesadilla
Average Commute Time: still over an hour (in a 2-person carpool MWF and a 3-person carpool TuTh)
Cost of Area Homes: the median price rose just 0.3% from $618,000 to $620,000 in February 2007; but the number of homes sold slipped by 7.9% to 6,305 for the 9-county Bay Area (the lowest volume for any February in 11 years)
Movie Ticket: $9.50 ($6.25 matinee); still NetFlix customer too, but cut back to one movie at a time recently (just haven't had time to watch the movies that we had)
Time with My Kids: testing the world of Tee-ball with my oldest son; trying to just keep up with our 2-year old who is testing boundaries; and helping my daughter with her math homework

Conversations with Kids - Part VIII

Naomi: Why should we exercise?

Ethan: Because it's good for our health?

Naomi: Yeah, but also because it's good for every body. Get it? Every body!

Cell Phones

If you're in the market for a new cell phone, here's a site that you should check out before shopping.

A Day with the Kids

With Dorothy out with the flu, I was charged with watching the kids.

Up and At'em - wake up the two older ones for school and go take a shower...out of shower and washed, but kids are still on bed (Ethan) or in bed (Naomi)...play "throw the clothes" with kids to motivate them to get dressed...Ethan out to eat a quick breakfast of cereal, milk and breakfast bar...Naomi joins the breakfast roundtable
quick wash up and brush up...get vitamins on the way out the door...Ryan wakes to catch us leaving; I take him crying to Mom...arrive by foot at school; we talk about the phrase "friend or foe"...hug goodbye with kids; Naomi and Ethan hug each other too...back home again

Ryan's Tumbling Class - class of about a dozen kids...Ryan's in the parent participation class...actually that's a good name for the class since I think I participated more in the warm ups than did Ryan (his idea of stretching is to bounce around like a pinball)...teacher says, "why is it that the kids perform better when the dads are around?"...I ask him if he wants his snack (a granola bar); his answer is "no"

Shopping for Printer Cartridges - we make a Staples stop...Ryan asks, "why are we here?" about every 2 minutes...we buy our cartridges and leave...when in the car, Ryan asks for the granola bar and asks, "why are we leaving?"...anyway, I learned that Ryan's favorite word is "why?"

Pick Up Ethan at School - we take the stroller to pick up Ethan before lunch...before we head out Ryan manages to grab a rice cracker snack to take with him...I tell him that he has to share with Ethan...we arrive at the school and Ryan asks, "where's Ethan?"...I tell him that we're a little early...actally we're the only ones in the courtyard area wich surprises me; I thought there would be a few parents milling about, but not a soul and it's only 10 minutes early...we go and sit on the bench by the giant pine tree...Ryan surprises me with this zinger, "Dada, why is there poo-poo in the tree?"...I had no idea what he meant until I look up... the tree has large dark brown, cylindrical pine cones in clusters...oh, what must go through the mind of a nearly 3-year old...Ethan comes out with his class, gives his teacher a leg hug and runs to us... we walk home with Ryan holding onto his rice crackers (he does share them with Ethan when we get home)

Make Lunch for the Kids - play with the kids...check work email and phone messages at work and make some phone calls...make lunch from leftovers...continue to play with kids and keep each other occupied

Pick Up Naomi at School - Take Ryan to school hoping that he falls asleep...success, he nods off in the stroller just as we're arriving at the school...Naomi turns the corner walking with Katrina just like the last time I picked her up (they must be best friends)...this time she spots me and seems to say something like, "there's my dad over there" as she shoots me a sideways glance...Naomi is very chatty talking about the gross boys...we arrive home and Ethan and mom are playing Labyrinth

Take Naomi to Choir Practice - Ethan and I take Naomi to choir practice...we get there right on time, but again I realize that "on time" is actually early...Ethan and I wait in the car for the 75 minutes...I do some work and read about 25 pages of "Totto-chan" by Testuko Kuroyanagi...Ethan works on homework that is due on Friday (he gets to where he is about two-thirds complete)

Shop and Pick Up Dinner on the Way Home - we get take-out at a Chinese restaurant that we've never visited before...we also shop for milk and ham as requested by Dorothy and on impluse buy jello, salami and a couple other items...stand in the 15 or less items behind someone who has well over 30 items (I think they were counting the 10 yogurts as one item)...finally we're home for dinner, washing up, baths and bed time to get ready for a new day

Washing Up Can Be Fun!

And you thought that washing up was trudgery!

Bicycling in Japan - Part III

Continuing this series on bicycling in Japan, here's what Cousin Keiko had to add:

There are differences in bicycle parking between a place like Okayama and a larger city like Tokyo. [My thoughts: Let's put this in perspective though. In Japan, Okayama is viewed as a smaller metropolitan area even though the Okayama prefecture area has a population of around two million. The San Jose, California area has a population of about 1.7 million.]

An ordinary bicycle like the kind that you see at train stations generally costs less than 10,000 yen. Below is a picture of such a bike.


When I (Keiko) lived in the Ikebukuro area of Tokyo, I paid to park my bicycle at the nearest subway station because parking my bicycle near the station on the street was impossible. The bicycle parking charge was 100 yen per day or 3000 yen per month. Below are pictures of typical bicycle parking areas near stations near my present home town of Kurashiki in Okayama prefecture. The picture in the upper left hand corner includes a sign that basically warns people not to ride their bicycles across the opening to the stairwell to the bicycle parking area.


Office buildings in Japan do not have bicycle parking because there is really no need. People usually bike from their home to a train station near their home. At the other end it's usually a walk trip to the office. In a smaller city like Kurashiki, commuting by car may be more common. My husband commutes to his office by car. When I go to Okayama station, I use my bicycle to get from my house to Kurashiki station and take the train to Okayama station.

Apartments and hospitals in the Okayama area do have bicycle parking as shown below. The first line of photos shows parking at an apartment complex, while the second line shows parking at a hospital.

Bicycling in Japan - Part II

Continuing this series on bicycling in Japan, here's what Cousin Hisayo had to add on the subject:

Public facilities for bicycling in Japan are poor, especially when it comes to bike lanes. Under present traffic laws, bicyclists have to pass on the left side (left side driving in Japan) within the traffic lane. Passing is allowed only when the paved travel way is 2 or more meters in width.

An ordinary bicycle in Japan costs about 10,000 yen (about $80 at 125 yen per $). Many of these lower cost bikes are imports from China. At most, these bikes have 3 gears. It makes sense to use lower cost ordinary bikes for ordinary every day use, especially with the threat of theft or vandalism present. Recently, battery powered bikes to provide assistance on slopes have gained popularity particularly for the middle-aged, older and women crowd.

Parking at stations may or may not be free. Bike parking when in a building ranges from 1500 to 3000 yen per month. At roof covering-only bike stands, parking is sometimes free. However, many people will not use such dedicated parking areas but instead will try to find an open place closer to the station. For many bedroom communities, this is a common problem because often the bike parking area is constructed after the area has been developed. Then the only places available for such bike parking are further away from the station. If the designated location is say more than 100 meters from the station entrance, people are more likely to park illegally closer to the station than to use the designated parking area. The most common place with large designated bike parking areas is a station. Other areas could be large shopping malls or supermarkets.

In some cities, bike rental systems at a reasonable cost have sprung up. The cost for such bike rentals is comparable to the cost for parking bikes.

There really is no need for providing bicycle parking at urban work sites. Most commutes are not conducive for biking to work. The most common commute modes are trains, buses and private auto. [I don't think bikes are allowed in stations and on trains and buses either.] Commuting by motorcycle (50-mL engine variety) may be more common than commuting by bicycle.

Bike parking at the work site may be more common for a suburban office or factory where many workers live nearby.

What is the Cost of a Bicycle in Japan?

A colleague recently asked me if I could find out from my relatives in Japan what a typical bicycle that one would use for commuting in Japan costs. Interesting question.

I went to school in Japan for one year; and actually my bike was my main form of transportation between home and school, between home and store, to the train station, etc. But I never really thought too much about the cost of biking.

The bike was passed onto me from a student who was finishing up his stay in Japan. It was a rather plain lime green bike with a beige colored seat. It had a flat rack on the back where I could bungee my school bag or whatever I needed to transport. It was an everyday bike that I used every day. When I left Japan, I passed the bike onto another foreign student to keep the chain going.

Based on on-line information uncovered by my sister, a good commute bike in Japan probably can be had for about $100. However, I wouldn't be surprised to find out that many of the commute bikes parked at train stations are hand-me-downs or bikes bought on the cheap. It is an everyday almost disposable commodity.

Christmas 2006!

Bay Area Activity Destinations for Kids

The Bay Area has much to offer for kids (and for parents who are still kids at heart) interested in learning about the world in which we live.

Lindsay Wildlife Museum - [1931 1st Avenue, Walnut Creek, CA] Connect with wildlife and learn about the animals found in our backyards and open spaces. At Lindsay Wildlife Museum you can have close encounters with many live, non-releasable wild animals such as an eagle, hawk, fox, snake or mountain lion. An on-site wildlife hospital treats more than 6,000 native California animals every year. The museum also features changing art and natural history exhibits, classes for children and adults, and a discovery room with hands-on activities for children.

Our kids like the scavenger hunt where they have to search for animals in the museum ranging from mice to whales (okay, there's not a real whale).

Bay Area Discovery Museum - [557 McReynolds Road Sausalito, CA; in the Fort Baker area at the foot of the Golden Gate Bridge] The nationally recognized Bay Area Discovery Museum is a one-of-a-kind indoor/outdoor children's museum that offers a full range of programs for children, parents, school groups and educators. Located on 7 and 1/2 acres in the Golden Gate National Recreation Area at Fort Baker in Sausalito, CA, the Museum's unique programs feature hands-on art, science and environmental exhibitions, performances, special events and ongoing educational curricula... all with a focus on fun!

A favorite for our kids is the outdoor play area complete with a small fishing boat and a replica of the Golden Gate Bridge.

Children's Discovery Museum of San Jose - [ 180 Woz Way, San Jose, CA; has its own VTA light rail station for easy transit access] The striking 52,000 square foot purple building, designed by Mexico City-based architect Ricardo Legorreta, signals the purpose of Children's Discovery Museum to serve the needs of children, families and schools as a center for learning and discovery.

A favorite activity for our kids is the waterworks exhibit.

Oakland Zoo - Nestled in the rolling hills of 525-acre Knowland Park, the Zoo is located at 9777 Golf Links Rd., Oakland off Highway 580, and is home to more than 440 native and exotic animals. The Oakland Zoo is a non-profit organization, managed by the East Bay Zoological Society. Founded in 1922 by Henry Snow, the Zoo has been located in its current Knowland Park location since 1936.

Located just outside the zoo is a small area with amusement park rides for kids - have to admit that this is a favorite for our kids.

Habitot Children's Museum - [ 2065 Kittredge Street, Berkeley, CA; in downtown Berkeley] Habitot Children's Museum was founded by parents and educators in 1992 to meet the unique needs and interests of infants, toddlers and preschoolers in a safe and appropriate community setting. Habitot opened its first facility in downtown Berkeley in 1998, after six years of community outreach and fundraising.

Lawrence Hall of Science - [Lawrence Hall of Science #5200, Berkeley, CA] Lawrence Hall of Science (LHS) is a singular resource center for preschool through high school science and mathematics education, and a public science center with exciting hands-on experiences for learners of all ages.

One of our favorite features is the view of the Bay Area from its location above the UC-Berkeley campus.

Chabot Space & Science Center - [10000 Skyline Blvd., Oakland, CA] Chabot Space & Science Center (CSSC) is an innovative teaching and learning center focusing on astronomy and the space sciences and the interrelationships of all sciences. Its observatory, planetarium, exhibits, and natural park setting are a place where a diverse population of students, teachers, and the public can imagine, understand, and learn to shape their future through science.

A favorite for our kids is the museum of mirrors up on the second floor of the museum.

Tilden Regional Park - [Berkeley, CA] Tilden Park has several activities for children. These include: the Herschell Spillman merry-go-round, the Steam Train, the Golden Gate Live Steamers, the Pony Ride, the Little Farm and the Tilden Nature Area and Environmental Education Center.

Children's Fairyland - [Oakland, CA; adjecant to Lake Merritt in downtown Oakland] Created in 1950, Children’s Fairyland is a historic 10 acre outdoor park and educational facility in which children’s literature is "brought to life" through fairy tale exhibits, animals, and talking storybooks that children activate by turning a "Magic Key".

Their web site says "Adults are not admitted without children. Children are not admitted without adults."

Pixieland - [Concord, CA] See our previous post regarding Pixieland.

In a future post, we'll write about places we've visited outside the Bay Area.

Conversations with Kids - Part VII

Saturday - January 20, 2007

We are all crowded onto our couch in the family room.

Dad: Ryan, where's mom?

Ryan: She's at the beach.

Dad: So what are you doing at the beach?

Ryan: We're swimming.

Dad: What do you like to eat at the beach?

Ryan: French.

Dad: Do you mean french fries?

Ryan: French fries.

Dad: What do you like to drink at the beach?

Ryan: Apple juice.

Happy New You!

It was January 2nd...Ryan and I had just returned from walking Naomi and Ethan to school when our neighbor greeted us with a "Happy New Year!" I called out "Happy New Year!" in return. And my little shadow chirped out "Happy New You!" Now Ryan's been chirping out "Happy New You!" to everyone he encounters. Just this morning he chirped "Happy New You, Mommy!" It crossed my mind to try to correct his pronunciation, however, he may be right on course with the use of "you" in place of "year." After all...isn't that why we make new year's resolutions? We make resolutions that we hope will make us a better person...a "new you." So, everyone, good luck with those resolutions this year and Happy New You!
~~~ Dorothy ~~~

A Hero

We're in the midst of the college bowl season. It's gotten so cliche to say that there are too many bowl games, but it's true.

But there's something that I cannot really stand at all. It's when the announcers talk about the courage of a player or team who is just playing football. "That was such a courageous effort." What are these people talking about? Do they realize what words are coming our of their mouths.

Contrast this with what happened yesterday in NYC. A man performed an act that really was courageous. One 50-year old Wesley Autrey jumped onto the subway tracks to save a total stranger who had fallen into the way of an on-coming train. Wesley tried to get the man back onto the platform, but wasn't able to do so. So he did the only thing that he could. He pushed the man into the space between the tracks and laid on top of him to try to make sure that the both of them would stay below the train's under carriage. The train passed over the two of them. They emerged with only a few minor injuries. Quite amazing. And you thought this was only possible in movies.

I'm fairly certain that I would not have been able to do the same if I saw someone fall in the way of an on-coming. Autrey is quoted as saying, "I think I did the right thing. And it ain't about being a hero, it's just being able to be here and help the next person."

Conversations with Kids - Part VI

After dinner at my parents' we're just sitting around when...

Dorothy: Ryan, stay away from the outlet. That's not a toy. You might get zapped.

Ryan had been sitting in the dining room chair that Ethan sat in for dinner. He was leaning back in the chair reaching for the speaker cord plugged into an outlet.

Yuki: I remember when I was in Sand Point I got zapped a couple of times. One of the times was when I was washing dishes. Our house had a light in the kitchen that had a metal on/off switch that I reached to turn with my hand still in the water.

Casey: What happened?

Yuki: I just swatted the light away as hard as I could. That's all I could do. I think that maybe only you were home or maybe it was dad.

Ethan: Did it hurt?

Yuki: No, there wasn't enough juice.

Ethan: What if there was a whole cup full?

Coated Pretzel Sticks

From Dorothy's kitchen...

Coated Pretzel Sticks! I helped lead a moms group in making these this holiday season and made some batches to give away as well. Several people have asked how to make them. These are oh so yummy and easy to make!

What you'll need...
chopped nuts (I've used a mixture of peanuts, cashews, almonds, pecans and walnuts)
toffee bits (Heath brand is sold in the baker's aisle)
approximately 12 oz. or 2 cups of milk chocolate or white chocolate chips
approximately 1 Tablespoon shortening
bag of pretzel rod sticks

What to do...
In a pie pan or plate mix chopped nuts and toffee bits and set aside.
Place chocolate chips in a microwavable cup or bowl. Heat in microwave on high for 30 second intervals, stirring in between, until chocolate has melted. Then add shortening to melted chocolate and blend well.
Dip pretzel rod in chocolate and/or use a spoon to coat the pretzel rod in chocolate. Then roll coated rod in nut and toffee mixture to coat.
Set aside on wax paper till set (approximately 1/2 hour).

How much does it make...
Quite a bit!

How many calories are in one chocolate dipped pretzel...
Who knows...just enjoy every last calorie!

Twists on this...
Try using mini chocolate chips or cake/cookie sprinkles.
Or try using food coloring to tint white chocolate or colored chocolate melting wafers.