Wrapping up the weekend

Another weekend passed in Japan. Atsuko showed me how to work the stove yesterday, so last night I ventured out and bought some rice and other strange articles of Japanese food that I don't really know what they are but they appear to go with rice judging from the pictures. I haven't had the courage to make any of it yet. I also found an "A-me-ri-ca-n-ko-n-do-ga" that was awesome, and for dinner made some pancakes and eggs. Very tasty, I was a little worried that Japanese eggs would taste like rice and soy sauce.

Saturday evening I took off on my little orange bike to do some exploring. I found Shikishima park, which is a beautiful place with many paths, ponds with cool turtles, fish, ducks and a swan. There was also a track, baseball stadium, great playground for kids and Janels, and an indoor swimming pool. From the looks of the people walking around, that's where you go for dates either with your girl or your dog. I'll take my beetles next time.

I was saying hello to some of the cats in the area when an older lady came over and gave them some deluxe catfood with whole fish on the side. She spoke very good English (had chaperoned student trips to Montana and Minnisota several times), and was on her daily round to feed the strays of Maebashi. I walked around to a couple of feeding stations with her and then back to her car that had a trunk loaded with catfood! What a wonderful woman. She reminded me of my grandma and her cat family. I want to take one of the kittens home so badly, but I would have to leave it and that wouldn't be good for either of us.

I'm still working on tomorrow's presentation. I've practiced the intro on a couple of people and they can understand it at least, hopefully I can have it memorized for recitation without notes tomorrow. I appreciate it so much when people present papers in English here for my benefit, the least I can do is a Japanese intro.

Back to work!
Janel