Japan Part I

I don't know how coherent any of this will be. It's 2:30 am. I'm wide awake and ready for dinner. Our return flight from Narita was at 5pm on Wednesday. When we arrived in Seattle (after I slept on and off for maybe two hours) it was 9 am on Wednesday. I completely failed at staying awake and took a huge nap midday into evening. I fell asleep at 9:30 last night and here I am, ready to go.

First some background on our trip. Students from my son's class were going to be participating in a five day homestay during which they would attend school. At the height of Swine Flu panic--back when Japan had only one confirmed case--the principal canceled on us. We started scrambling to reimagine our trip. Only a few days before we left our trip coordinator let us know that she had located enough families to take our kids for a two-night homestay and we would spend most of the rest of our time in Tokyo.

On Sunday, June 21st we left Seattle at midday. We arrived in Narita in the evening the next day. The kids did not sleep on the plane. They were all exhausted and wired and frankly so were the parents. We had plans to spend the night in Narita instead of trying to get the whole bedraggled group to Tokyo. It turned out to be a great plan. Narita is lovely. I was envisioning spending the night in a gross, dull, semi-industrial area like you find near most US airports. Instead Narita is a lovely, little city that provided a full-day of walking and exploring.


Narita Manhole Cover


I love these Narita school crossing signs. The little bow on the girl just kills me.

The next day we took the Narita Express to Tokyo. We arrived at Tokyo station and two trains later we were in at Iidabashi Station which is directly above the Tokyo International Hostel. The hostel takes up the 18 and 19th floors of an office building. The ground floor and basements are full of shops, restaurants and a grocery store. It's very inexpensive but, as you can imagine, a bit spartan. I was staying in a "family room" for the first three nights instead of a single-sex bunk room since I was a mom traveling with a boy. It was a traditional tatami room with just a thin mat to sleep on and a very hard, tiny pillow. The first night was okay but the second and third night's I was really uncomfortable.


We all loved this sign in the bathroom.

Our first day we visited the Edo Tokyo Museum. It was a really great museum but we did not get to spend nearly enough time there. Then we took a bus tour and visited Tokyo Tower and the Imperial Palace grounds (not enough time here either). I'm pretty height-phobic so I was hugging the inside wall up on the observation floor of the tower while my son was standing on the glass floor (!) and taking pictures.



We went on to Asakusa and visited the Senso-ji and then shopped at all the little stalls full of food, toys and souvenirs. This is where my son fell in love with Taiyaki. It's a sandwich made of two fish-shaped waffles and filled. There are more traditional fillings like red bean but my son got chocolate and it was delicious.



I didn't bring a whole lot of cash (Japanese) with me since I had been assured by several people that I would be able to easily get cash at Seven-Eleven or a post office. I had pretty much run out of money at this point (most places just deal in cash) so I got a map to my nearest Seven-Eleven and tried to get cash. My card was "invalid." I freaked out. My son and I were tired and hungry and we had 91 yen and an invalid credit card. We headed back to the hostel. We tried to call our bank. Finally our trip coordinator asked when the nearest post office closed (it was already past 8) and we rushed over to try it out. It worked and then I had to buy my son a double scoop at Baskin-Robbins with a waffle cone to make up for all the trauma.

The next day we spent in Kamakura.

I think I should try to get back to sleep although I can hear that my fellow traveler is also awake upstairs.

Tokyo!

I just got back from Japan this morning. The trip was so much fun and I am jet-lagged and totally exhausted. I managed to even find some sheep in Tokyo!



This one was hanging out at Mister Donut.

Thursdays Vacations are for What the Hell is This?

Since I will be out of the country and away from all computers for the next ten days I thought I'd leave with you an early Thursday post. This one has been sent to me several times in the last few days.

It's the love-child of the Topless Knitting Club and Big Ass Knits. For when you want to look naked but with added bulk.





And for when you're feeling more modest.



See you all in July!

Panic!

I am gripped with panic. I keep running through everything over and over in my mind. Passports? Yes. Tickets? Yes. Toothbrush? Yes. Knitting? Yes. I have decided on Coraline and already started the body. I keep thinking, "Should I bring another project, just in case?" I know I'm forgetting something. I guess I'll find out what it is once I'm in Tokyo.

Doubleknit #22

I sound incredibly tired and spaced out but it's up. Erin and I catch up after TNNA. Plus there's a silly video too.

How Did They Know?

While looking at Franklin's blog in Bloglines this morning I noticed an amusing string of terms in the sidebar.



What's that?



How did Ask.com know to pull out the most odd and random items mentioned in Franklin's post? Not to mention that it understands that "salt lick" or "fevered brain" are single search term.

Thursdays are for What the Hell is This?

The Topless Knitting Club has reformed! I haven't seen any of its members since January of '05. It seems they are busy as always knitting scarves and hats and the occasional sarong.



But no sweaters. EVER.

Interweave Crochet Preview

It's up and once again I'm liking a lot of it. Especially this.

The Whole Picture

I'm happy so many of you were touched by my sweet children saving a special piece of pizza for me on my return home from TNNA. I neglected to include a photo of the huge container filled with pizza with a note on it that read, "[Older son] and [Younger son] pizza. DO NOT EAT!" So you see, they weren't being thoughtful. It was just a diversionary tactic to keep me away from their pizza stash.

slea·zy

ADJECTIVE:
slea·zi·er , slea·zi·est

1. Shabby, dirty, and vulgar; tawdry: "sleazy storefronts with torn industrial carpeting and dirt on the walls" (Seattle Weekly).
2. Dishonest or corrupt; disreputable: Some sleazy characters hang around casinos.
2. Made of low-quality materials; cheap or shoddy.
3. Thin and loosely woven; flimsy: The coat has a sleazy lining.


I leave for Japan on Sunday. Part of my prep is figuring out what knitting to bring. I began swatching some Knitpicks Shadow I got as a door prize at the Knitters Guild in December for the Featherweight Cardigan.



I get that this is supposed to be open and drapey but there is no way I'm knitting myself a sweater with this yarn at this gauge. There's open and then there's open. So once again I'm at a loss. Should I start a new sweater to bring with me? Maybe Coraline? I tried on Ysolda's version at TNNA. While it was far too small for me I could see that it would be a good sweater for me (in my own size). But lugging a whole sweater's worth of yarn to Japan? Is that a good plan? I also considered just taking a big bag of oddballs and making hats for charity. No patterns to follow, just knit. But again, that's a lot of yarn to lug around. A decision needs to be made. And soon.

TNNA Wrap Up

Well that was a blur.

Thursday:
I flew to Columbus on Thursday. I left very early in the morning after too little sleep and didn't arrive at my hotel until nearly 8. I was starving. I looked around the convention center hotel lobby for some familiar faces and saw none so I headed to Marcella's by myself. I thought I'd waltz in for dinner or get a seat at the bar. There was a 30 minute wait for a table and no free seats near the bar. I hovered feeling exhausted and so hungry. The general manager passed me several times and finally stopped and asked if she could get me anything.

"I'm just looking for a seat."
"Can I bring you a chair?"
"Yes!"
I was so grateful.
"Can I bring you something to drink?"
"Yes," I replied, nearly tearing up, I was so exhausted and hungry and grateful.
When my table was ready and the hostess showed me to my seat I felt a tug on my leg. I looked down and saw the yarn for Georgie trailing through the entire restaurant and back to the bar. I followed it back, rewinding it until I got to an amused though confused young woman standing in the bar holding the remainder of the skein in her hand.
"Bet that's the first time that ever happened here," she said.
"There's a yarn convention in town. It's going to happen a lot."

Friday:
I had an all-day class with Cat Bordhi on writing patterns. It was about formatting and editing not the creation of a design. I got some very good information from it.
Then there was Sample It. This is an event where vendors, if they choose, can offer one item at wholesale prices--sometimes slightly below wholesale--to buyers. This, in theory, allows buyers to try out a product before committing to a whole order. But really people just use it to buy themselves a bunch of stuff. It's always super-hot and jam-packed. I got some items for my shop--not for me!--and then fled to the much cooler, calmer lobby. There was a teacher's gallery where experts who offer classes can connect with shop-owners. Mary Beth Temple was there. She is a crochet designer and teacher. Her brand is called Hooked for Life. There was a slight typo in her signage.



Next was the fashion show which was much, much better than the January show. It went more smoothly and faster and the designs were better on the whole.

Then it was off to the Tip Top for a much needed late dinner. I ordered a Diet Coke and was handed a vat of soda. Seriously, look at it compared to my cell phone.



Or Laura Chau's head.



Saturday the market opened. I shopped and walked and shopped and walked and shopped. I'd say I'm most excited about Spud & Chloe. Blue Sky Alpacas are a class act and they do a beautiful job on the yarn, the patterns, the whole packaging. Plus they always have the cutest, most inviting booth at the show.

There are social events and lots of food in the various booths. Interweave hosted a Twitter meet-up (tweet up) called Let Them Tweet Cake. They served massive cupcakes and coffee. So that was lunch (nutrition and sleep both suffer terribly at TNNA).

More shopping and walking and shopping. Then out to dinner with several designers from Stitch Co-op plus several other crochet designers. We met up with...well, everyone in the universe...back at the Hyatt lobby. There is a huge circle of chairs, and couches. We rearrange all the furniture. We sit and knit or spin. You just grab a free chair and when you see a free seat next to someone you want to talk to you just go over and plunk yourself down. That is how I met Melissa La Barre and Cecily Glowik MacDonald. These two extremely talented ladies, who are also a hell of a lot of fun, are collaborating on a book from Interweave. I am really looking forward to seeing it.

Sunday was more market. At this point I was operating on almost no sleep. More shopping and walking but also more staring off into space. So tired. A huge group of us had converged on the Stitch Coop booth where Cat Bordhi and Ysolda Teague were on the floor playing with a trash can full of water and dry ice. It was in part a recreation of last year's dry ice session. I'm sure the internet will soon be flooded with photos of it. After trying for a while to find a restaurant that could accommodate 20+ people with no notice, we gave up and split into small groups. I had a really great dinner with Laura, Ysolda, Miriam Felton and Mandy Moore. We then made the required trip to Jeni's for awesome ice cream. Everyone wanted t-shirts but they were pretty much sold out. The guy behind the counter was apologetic.

"Yeah," he explained. "There's this knitting conference in town and they just went nuts."

Back at the hotel, during all the hanging out, knitting and laughing, Cirilia Rose and Ysolda began to act out all the cliches of knitwear photo shoots. It looked something like this.



And that is what TNNA is like.

Welcome Home

When I got back to the house I found this in the fridge.



They saved me a slice of pizza. They know me so well.