Gums

My last day in Japan. So long, and thanks for the fun times!

Hapiii

We went to the Rokkatei cafe the other day to celebrate mama's birthday. Rokkatei is my favourite  patisserie/cafe based in Hokkaido, and they have an awesome birthday deal: one free dessert, one free drink, and a super-duper harmonized rendition of Happy Birthday by the waitresses/waiters upon request. Highly, highly, highly recommended if you happen to be in Hokkaido! (Not just for the singing but for the desserts and sweets.)

Cookie Cult and Tom Jones

Random tea time conversations with my mom.

Harsh

It's handy because I can check out their profile for about 10 minutes and then delete them right away.

Pfand

The Pfand (bottle refund) system is very much a part of everyday life in Germany; people are obsessive about returning bottles at supermarkets, and some have made bottle collecting their livelihood. An avid Pfand-system user myself, I caught myself wondering for a split second where I should return the bottle.

Broken

This is the longest I've been away from Germany since I moved to Berlin more than three years ago. It also could have been due to the fact that I was caught by surprise, but it's pretty scary how quickly you lose grasp of a language you thought you knew pretty well. When I go back to Berlin, this is probably going to happen to my Japanese (though to a lesser extent) . . . I think I'll need to make some Japanese friends! 

Attempt 1

Here's my first attempt at drawing my grandma from memory. It doesn't look much like her . . . more attempts to come.

Shotgun wedding

Today was my first day visiting my grandmother, known for saying/doing inappropriate things at inappropriate times. She was on her best behaviour today so she didn't say anything that horrendous, but it was still a bit more information than I needed.

Unisex

Speaking of androgynous, did you know that Nozomi is actually a unisex name? It's more common among girls than guys, but male Nozomis are not unheard of (there is also a male-only variation of the name, Nozomu). I've met a few female Nozomis in my life, but I'd kind of like to meet a male Nozomi . . . but only if he's not a dick.

Androgyny

Well, apparently androgyny is the new black . . . yay?