Pigeon Hole

Kind of like cornhole, only our bags are filled with bird food because corn feed is hard to find and expensive...

...and we put the hole on the lower slope of the board, so you have to land at the top and make your bag slide backwards.  Gravity works a bit differently on the other side of the world.

Miyamoto-san (Miyakoda-san's friend who does all of the woodworking for most of our projects) made these boards, and they are the nicest boards I have ever seen.  The wood he used is actually a purple colored heart wood known as 'purple heart' finished with a clear coat, no paint or stain.  (But they are heavy - not a problem since there is no tailgating in Japan)

Miyamoto-san and I make a few tweaks to get the holes on the right side of the board...I guess I need to work on my detail drawing.

that's looking a bit more like it

Let the games begin!!!

 Miyakoda-san liked the idea of having a pine tree as an obstacle in the middle of the field (in case you have not picked up by now, he prefers not to do much of anything the conventional way)

 Kinoto & Yuri handmade the bags and they are awesome

Now that it is dark it is time to move to the lit field of the outdoor stadium (back deck)

 A great place to play late into the night

 I think Yoshiko-san likes this game

So does Yuri 

'This is an american game, I am an American, and I will puff my chest out after a good shot if I want to.'  (I hate sharing this picture as I know I will never hear the end of it)

Foot fault.  Not really, but I will do anything to win.

More Fishing in Kiyosato

Fishing is one of our new favorite things to do in Kiyosato...

 The stock pool - In full disclosure we are not among the world's best fishermen, we are simply among the best at purchasing live fish that must be removed from their display with fishing poles. 

 Kinoto demonstrates the fastest way to remove a hook so as little time is wasted out of the water as possible

Yoshiko-san commented that it is funny to watch us compared to the groups around us - most people are leisurely fishing with their small children, happy to catch a few fish...we look like crazed maniacs trying to catch as many fish as possible as fast as possible.

 The photographer from Field and Stream (Yuri) trying to catch the madness on film

Aya's got one, so the pit crew takes over with me netting the fish, and then passing it to Kinoto to get the hook out.  Japan does everything efficiently son.

 Counting our score to make sure we have enough for dinner

 The final haul.  21 rainbows we caught + 3 mountain trout that another family gave us (I think they could see the hunger in our eyes)

The mountain trout were a bit bigger than the rainbows 

 about 1/2 of our fish prepped for grilling.  We had to eat these so we could use the skewers for the other fish

Campai.  Miyamoto-san and Miyakoda-san prepare for the feast

 mmmm beer and grilled vegetables

The reserves

"To be the man you got to beat the man! Whooooooooooooooo!!!" (or something like that I really do not understand Japanese that well)

Thank you for sacrificing yourself for such a delicious dinner!

Badminton @ the Park

A few weeks ago Aya and I were hanging out at our favorite park watching these 2 kids play 'badminton'

First they were hitting a soccer ball back and forth

 Then the boy on the right decided to see how far he could throw his racquet

Of course that lead to a new challenge and a new game of 'badminton'...nice form on the toss

Napping on the Train

A few pictures I took of Kinoto, Miyakoda-san, and Watanabe-san catching a few Z's on the way back to the office after a site visit to Zushi

I still have not perfected the art of sleeping on the train.  Japanese people are able to fall asleep immediately, and wake up at their stop.  I stay awake until 1 station before my stop and then fall asleep.  I need to practice.

Volunteering in Gotanda

The end of May we volunteered to help lead a group of elementary school students clean up a planting strip in front of Gotanda Station, and then plant sunflowers and some summer annuals.

Our army of free laborers in cute yellow hats.

Finally Aya has someone other than me to tell what to do

The weeds were about 1/2 as big as most of the kids

Aya and her helper making sure the plant spacing is correct

My friend Ricky.  He came up to me and said "Hey I speak English too."  He also speaks perfect Japanese (maybe he can tutor me). Turns out he is from Oregon, but has grown up in Japan.  He goes back to Oregon every summer, often with one or two of his friends from Tokyo, to attend summer camp.  At one point a group of girls came over and asked "Ricky no PaPa" (are you Ricky's father)?  That got a good laugh out of everyone.  

Miyakoda-san's special garden

Miyakoda-san demonstrates the proper way to water (after the kids had initially misted all of the plants rather than water them)

Group photo, and thanks to all of the kids from their hard work

Miyakoda-san shows off his most recently completed garden