The Dog Days

We're in the middle of a run of unbearably humid and hot days in Osaka. Daily temperatures in Ibaraki are about 95ºF with the air nearly saturated with moisture. It's so bad, I'm writing sentences like a possessed weatherman.

We were thinking that we could be strong, that we could just grit our teeth and survive the next two months without an air conditioner. But we were wrong. We're weak. Yes, we're wusses. Yuki ordered a savior for us last night and it should get installed by Saturday. We need it. The computer needs it. It gets overheated way too quickly.

Guess who is having just an awful time?


Every day, she spends all her time in a never-ending quest to find a comfy spot -- some cool shady place to nap. When I open the front door to get some air circulating, she tries to take advantage:


Look, a chubby long-haired calico just wasn't built for a Kansai summer. Don't despair, Ponzie. Help is on the way!

梅酒 update with some other random pics

Here's what the plum wine looks like after a month of rest in the closet:


You can see that all the rock sugar has dissolved. The plums have lost their vibrant green and look more pickled. They're starting to wrinkle a bit also. For a comparison, just scroll down or look here.

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As long as I got the camera loaded, let's empty it out and see what's there. Hmmm...not much to choose from.

Here's a shot of the police box sign that I see a lot around here but never in Niigata:


I don't know why but the style of the drawing looks French to me. Can someone draw a Japanese-style toilet in the bottom left coner, please?

Next to my city is Takatsuki-shi (高槻市), home of factories and distribution centers. Meiji Seika, makers of the Meiji chocolate bar and カール, has a factory in Takatsuki with a huge mural on the side of one of its buildings:


Oh, and the last box from the US to be opened was the one containing Yuki's Gilbert & George print:


ギルバート&ジョージさん
日本へようこそ