So there is good news in the midst of the bad.....

The New York Times had two articles today that made me happy. The first was on coffee, which gives me hope even as I search in vain throughout the apartment for the glasses that are firmly on my head and the other was on germs, which made me feel much better about my implementation of the 5 second rule at Starbuck's yesterday.

For Moms Everywhere

Getting Used to My New F$&#*ing bi-focals

More than ten years ago, during a visit to an eye doctor to have him remove a foreign something in my eye, he told me I needed glasses. Quite a shock to me, as I thought my vision was fine. Sure, they seemed to be making street signs smaller, but in general I didn't have a problem with running into things, so all was well - I thought.

Until that visit.

Not only did he say I needed glasses, but he recommended bi-focals. Bi-focals!!! me??!??? I'm too young to have bi-focals!!!! I can still read menus in the darkest of restaurants!! He said "yes, now you can, but you are getting older and your eyes will have trouble refocusing near and far, so you really should get them". He wrote out the prescription and off I went,thinking him ridiculous and only getting the regular part of the prescription filled.

Fast forward to now. I lost my glasses over the summer and needed to replace them (hello, can you say procrastination???). Off I go to a store near Ariana's school that was recommended by a friend for their pleasant English speaking staff. Reality had sunk in and after those ten or so years, I really did need bifocals. They were ordered and last week I picked them up.

Now comes the getting used to them part. I have a brand new awareness of the way my head moves as, for those not yet so fortunate as to have these, you have to move your head in the direction you want to see. No more just moving one's eyes - either the whole head moves, or you see a blurry version of whatever is in front of you. At one point I felt like one of those bobble head dolls as I slowly tilted my head up and down to get the right angle to read.

The good news - finally, I can crochet and watch TV at the same time.

The bad news - I am old - old enough to have bi-focals. That's where the F*&#)#&!!ing part comes in.

True Story

During the screenings for one of the international schools, the children were asked "what keeps a dog warm"?

ex-pat children: "fur"
Japanese children: "coats"

You've read how much seeing little dogs outfitted in outrageous clothing sends me into outer space. This just confirms my outrage.

Back to School

"I don't want to go to school"
"I don't like school"
"I don't like my friends"
"I don't like morning - I like the dark"
"I want to bring this book and this book and this book and this book and my DVD's"
"I don't like apple"

These are the sounds that fill my mornings - what joy!!!! Mind you, she goes to school - is relatively happy when she gets there and seems to enjoy the day. I suppose it's just the idea of it that disturbs her.

When I dropped her off on Monday, there were forms for the new school lunch program - all natural, all organic, packed in ecologically sound containers, allergy free ingredients - all for 1800 yen a day - that is about $18. Are they kidding?????? Forget about the fact that my daughter would eat, well, let's see, NOTHING!!!! of the lovely all natural all organic lunch packed in the ecologically sound container - I don't spend $18 on my lunch!!

This is life in ex-pat land, where so called nutritionists think that 1) everyone has $18 to spend on their child's lunch and 2) they will be convinced that unless they spend the $!8 on said lunch, they will be condemning their children to an unhealthy life and an early grave.

I, for one, think that what is left over from last night's dinner or a little sandwich makes a fine lunch and since the lunchbox comes back empty, it seems Ariana thinks so too. I also think that the plastic Mickey Mouse or Puri fresh boxes I pack it in serve her just fine (for those interested, the possible danger from plastic is only when heating).

So, the sign up form has gone into the garbage (yes, I did put it in the "paper" garbage so that it can be recycled properly) and Ariana went to school today with leftover spaghetti.

There Should Be A Law...

......against any school vacation being more than two weeks long. Ariana has not been in school for about one month. Take away the ten days we were in Bali and that leaves over two weeks trying to keep a four year occupied and interested. We were sick for about a week (all TV all the time - I know, I'm bad, but I was feeling so lousy I didn't care) and the rest of the time I was emailing friends for ideas.

Her friend Yuto came over one day - his mom and I sat around chatting while they compared somersaulting techniques.

One day we went to a New Year's fair in Meguro, where Ariana spent a lot of time racing cars and sliding down the big inflatable slide. She won a bank, which she exchanged for a blow up sword, a plastic Mickey Mouse ball she lost on the way home and a water balloon, which is still around here somewhere, miraculously still filled with water.

We spent one day at the Toy Museum, a former elementary school turned into a place filled with wooden toys.


We both had a lot of fun, and if she hadn't been so tired (ok, I was the one who was tired) we would have gone to the Fire Museum down the street. We are planning on going there another day with Baba san, as I know he will enjoy it.

The Tama zoo was our destination a few days ago, where we saw more lions and even heard them roar as a few males faced off, while the females looked on nonchalantly as if to say "oh, here they go again". This one was either too old or too tired to join us, preferring to hang around with his mate.


We also saw a few Koala bears in the new Australian exhibit and many, many butterflies.


For the past few days, we have been spending a lot of time over Violette and Ulysses's house, where Ariana has been improving her french, learning how to kiss on both cheeks and riding Ulysses's scooter around the playroom, chasing him around shouting "roar, I am going to eat you!!!" Perhaps we are spending too much time around lions.

She goes back to school on Tuesday and I get to get back to my life - with a huge New Year's to-do list. Somehow I don't think it will be as much fun as as listening to Ariana sing the theme song to "Madagascar" though.

Lions and Tigers and Teeth

At the Bali Safari and Marine Park, we got to see two white tigers up close and personal - they are really gorgeous animals - with really big teeth - big, fierce, strong teeth that would make a tasty little snack out of my lovely little daughter. Which is why I was a bit hesitant (ok, totally freaked out) when we were invited to pet a tiger. A big tiger. Not one of those little tiger cubs that are held firmly in a trainer's hand, but a big one that could turn around and devour a little girl in a second. Not wanting to appear the totally paranoid mother that I was at the time, and after watching entire families go up with no one disappearing, Ariana and I made our way up and sat while baba-san, much too slowly for my taste, took pictures of the experience.

If you think I am smiling, I'm really not. I call it more of a grimace, in the "take the damn picture before we get eaten!!!! " kind of grimace. If that wasn't bad enough, a little later on there was a lion and we had to repeat the process. Even Ariana is starting to catch on here - big animal, big teeth - let's move along please!!!


She did have a fine time taking the Safari ride, where we saw all kinds of animals. Safely behind the windows of our Safari van. The rest of the day was spent visiting Temples:


This is the entrance to the Pura Gunung Kawi. Wherever you drive, temples are in view. In tradition Balinese homes, there are the family temples. For those not living in a traditional home, there are small shrines in a corner of a room. There are town temples and finally, the most important, the seaside temples. Religion is very important in Bali and there are always celebrations. We passed several town celebrations in our travels around Bali - the participants dressed in colorful sarongs, with the women carrying food and offerings on their heads:

And yes, always the motorcycles - Edy referred to them as mosquitoes - always buzzing about.



I leave you again with another beautiful sunset...........

Bali, Part 2

After an early morning stroll along the beach, we ventured out to Seminyak, a town full of shops and very uneven sidewalks. Our stroll didn't last too long, given we had too many near misses with the offerings on the sidewalks and Little Miss Grouch (Ariana's alter ego "Didi") was a little to heavy to be carried in the sunny heat.

these little "plates" otherwise known as offerings, placed outside of almost every establishment in Bali - watch where you walk!!!!

We grabbed a cab and headed to "Ku de ta", a trendy hot spot by night but very relaxing ocean side restaurant by day. Again passing security guards with poles sweeping the bottom of the cab, we entered what was to be our oasis for the afternoon. Great food in the shade and a wading poo for Ariana. A security guard watched from the steps to beach, protecting the patrons from the very aggressive peddlers seen everywhere in Bali, selling necklaces, kites, postcards, etc. We sat through a leisurely lunch and then had to pry our then naked child (Bali seems to make everybody shed more than their inhibitions) out of the pool.


The ride back to the hotel was the bumpiest I have ever experienced. The driver thought it would be faster to go on the side of the road (think crater filled moon surface) rather than wait in the traffic. I think the only rule of the road here is that there is none. We saw motorcycles all around us, some with babies - no helmets:

see all four heads on this one? one little one is in front, the other sandwiched between his parents - children's services, where are you??

It was truly frightening (the babies with no helmets being held in their mom's arms) and nauseating (the bump-bump-bump of the road).

We tried Cafe Butang on the beach for dinner, which had the freshest fish cooked in coconut leaves and amazing spicy shrimp. "Didi" had continued to make an appearance thanks to a stuffy nose and cough. The waitress came over, picked her up and started walking and singing to her, quieting her immediately and allowing us to enjoy the food. But half (ok, most) of me was nervous about some stranger in a strange land holding my child. As grateful as I was for the break, I was also remembering the little girl who disappeared while her family was eating dinner in Portugal and so we kept our eye keenly on her the whole time.

Tuesday we met Edy, our driver, who took us to the Elephant Park in Ubud. Through the single lanes of Bali, we passed row after row of stone carving stores, then the shacks where stone carvers worked out in the open with their entire families there and finally, just green. We climbed aboard our rides for the afternoon - Ariana and I were on Nimby; Arny had Rama all to himself, and proceeded around the park. Swaying back and forth, who knew riding an elephant would be good for your stomach muscles - mine were sore for a day or two after. Ariana was alternatively enjoying it - "look, elephant poop. They stepping in poop. Why they stepping in poop?" (for those of you who remember the book "Everybody Poops", the elephant's is depicted quite accurately) - and wanting to go home. She perked up when we got to the water and got to go swimming with the elephants. I was glad we were not actually in the water, as there were several workers fishing elephant poop out of the water.


After a quick lunch, we went to see the elephant show, where they did tricks, painted a picture and Arny's favorite (not!!) - squirting the audience with water.......

More on Bali later, for now..............Happy New Year to All!!!!