My birthday

It was my birthday last month which wasn't a very big deal. Usually everyone's busy entertaining family because my birthday happens to fall during the Obon holidays, which is when the souls of your dead ancestors cross over into this world to be with you. Most people spend the whole time at home, but Hanae and Yoko fulfilled their family obligations on the first day and had the whole rest of the vacation free.

The original plan was to go camping, but it was so rainy the whole time that we ended up staying at my place where we watched 12 hours of "So You Think You Can Dance." What a fantastic show. Thank you so much Speck for sending those tapes. We LOVED them. Not only were the dances great, we got totally into certain contestants and were crushed when Dimitri got cut. And I couldn't believe how professional they looked week after week from only practicing for 2-3 days. I wonder if they happen to have a compilation of the season's dances on a single DVD.

After being trapped indoors for a couple days we felt the need to do something outside. The only place we could think of that would be fun in rainy weather was the aquarium, which is usually $20 a person but half-price during the week of someone's birthday!

I hadn't been there since it opened and was a little disappointed to find some things gone. I was looking forward to seeing the Clione again and the dozen sea otters have somehow dwindled down to only one. Did they die? Those were actually my two favorite things about Umitamago. I found a picture of Clione in case you've never seen them before. They flap their wings back and forth, hovering vertically like sea angels.There were a few new things that were nice, like the mother and baby sloth in the birdhouse. And like the walrus that swam up to the glass and sucked himself while visitors gasped.I also liked the new snake-like fish that bobbed up and down from their holes in the sand. When something scared them they pulled back into their holes at lightening speed, then slowly peeped out again after a while. Hanae spent her time pounding on the glass to make them zoom into their holes, and I'm sure we would have been booted out of the place if anyone had seen her thumping her fist against the glass. She continued to do this for roughly ten minutes.

Then we went to see the poisonous frogs, and she did the same thing except the frog cases were made of a much weaker plastic. There was an enormous booming sound throughout the hall when her fist hit the case and the whole thing shuddered. I'm so relieved the case didn't shatter. She stopped pounding things after that.In the area with the pool of sea cucumbers and starfish, Hanae was the only one of us brave enough to reach in and pick one up. Apparently they're slippery and soft when you squeeze them.I never realized how beautiful pelicans were. At least I think these are pelicans.The clownfish are always a hit. Everyone stands around the tank calling them "Nemo" as if that's what they're really called. Retards.I love how the lights in the jellyfish tank change and make them glow.One thing I'm pretty sure you won't hear if you visit an aquarium back in the States is a bunch of people admiring the fish while shouting, "Oh! Delicious! I wanna eat that one!" It kind of grossed me out. I was having a nice enough time watching the beautiful fish glide through the water and skillfully avoid one another while swimming in such a small space, only to have my thoughts interrupted by someone behind me talking about which restaurants cook them up best. Cultural differences, I guess.

We stayed until closing time and went back to the big tank after everyone had left. It was nice having the whole place to ourselves and being able to enjoy the silence. It felt like we were underwater with the enormous manta rays and long-nosed sharks. And since we had the enormous room to ourselves, we pretended that we were on "So You Think You Can Dance" and leaped around, twirling in circles. There were even cushioned chairs that were great for jumping off of and using as dancing props.

I don't know what this creature is called. I'm pretty sure it's one of a kind.It was a really nice, relaxing 4-day birthday. We also drove over the mountain behind Beppu to Yufuin, but that's a story for another day.

Blackberries

Earlier I'd mentioned that the blackberry twig I planted last year bore fruit, but I never posted any photos. Don't they just look delicious? Every couple weeks I pick all the ripe ones and I've discovered a few things:

1) If you have to pull on the blackberry to pick it, it's gonna be sour. The ones that fall off when you touch them are really sweet.

2) Ants know which ones are sweet and usually get to them first, so you hardly ever get to eat the really sweet ones.

3) If you invite your friend named Yoko to come and visit, you will open the door to find her picking and eating all your blackberries.

Now you know about me and my blackberries. That is all.

Louis Vuitton wallet

Japan is totally materialistic. I was shocked when a friend told me his Louis Vuitton sandals cost $700 and his bag was a couple thousand bucks. How could anyone spend so much on an accessory? Simply ridiculous! Then I started looking around and noticed that pretty much everyone has brand name bags, watches, clothes, jewelry and shoes. Even high school students.

In my mind, quality is more important than the name. I used to hate labels. I even blacked out the white logo of my North Face jacket so it would be less visible and only bought stuff if there weren't any visible brand markings. I hated being associated with the image that came with a brand.

Somewhere along the line that changed. Maybe because brand name labels are so prevalent in Japan that having a Gucci belt or Ferragamo keychain isn't anything special. Everyone has something brand name. I guess if everyone has it then there isn't much of an image associated with the name (or is the image normalcy?). So when a friend gave me his Louis Vuitton and Gucci hand-me-downs, I started using them without a second thought. One of the things he gave me was his old Louis Vuitton wallet (photo from website).I loved it. It's hard to find men's wallets that hold coins. It was sturdy, a nice size, held a lot of cards and retained its shape well. But after a couple years he wanted it back because it was in a lot better shape than the wallet he was using, so we traded. I didn't like the "new" one as much because the part that holds coins is on the outside of the wallet, and I had to open and close the button several times if I'm using/receiving bills and coins at the same time. Even though the "new" one had cost more (from the Louis Vuitton black Vernis line), it was just less convenient than the first one.Then I found out that last month Louis Vuitton presented a new line called "Damier Graphite" that uses a black checkerboard pattern instead of the traditional brown one. So sleek! It looks so much better than the brown, and I instantly decided to get the Damier Graphite version of the wallet that I liked so much. Never having bought anything from the Louis Vuitton store before, I was surprised to see that the wallet came in a little drawer-type box and was carefully wrapped in its own pouch. The receipt even came in a little envelope with a formal printout of the transaction - my name along with what I bought, where I bought it, and the name of the woman who sold it to me. The saleswoman carried my bag for me and accompanied me to the door, then bowed very low as I walked out. What service!And how much did it cost? More than I paid for my car, which either says something about the cost of the wallet, or the price of my car. It has a nice texture, feels sturdy, is a perfect size, and I love it. So now that I've bought something from Louis Vuitton, does that make me materialistic? There was also a bag that I thought was pretty cool but the price is way more than I'm willing to pay ($1600). But who knows, perhaps I'm becoming more materialistic by the day and you'll see my new bag pictured here in the future, like this guy.On a sidenote, I started thinking about the most expensive things I've ever bought. Here's my ranking of most expensive things:

1) Bright Red Toyota Corolla with 10-carat gold lettering and wood interior (I loved that car and had to sell it when I came to Japan)

2) Dell Computer with scanner/printer

3) Plane tickets (Thailand, China, Cambodia, Taiwan, Hawaii, Spain, etc.)

4) Louis Vuitton Damier Graphite wallet

5) Mitsubishi Toppo (my current car). I love how the back has a door, I can fit my folding bike in it, the side mirrors are huge like bus mirrors, and it has a high ceiling with a compartment to store stuff.