Wednesday 10 June 2009

Out and About (J)

Sometimes it takes a stranger to kick start you again.

Today the photographer came to take my photo for a project she is doing on Foreign Wives in Japan. I had a lot of doubts and wasn't looking forward to it. But it was fun!

In the morning I did some gardening - well weeding really. Even Yujiro came and helped me pull up the weeds. We both sat on chairs on the LAWN to work. It actually is deserving of the title LAWN now!!

Then Reiko Shibata arrived and I took her by car to the near bye Tenjin Yama Park where I hobbled along slowly while she enjoyed the Hokkaido greenery. Then we did photos all over the park - with flowers and trees and Sapporo city as a backdrop.

She has travelled all over Japan taking photographs of 100 women - all married to Japanese men. Her photographs are beautiful and she hopes to have an exhibition in the Ginza Nikon Salon http://www.nikon-image.com/jpn/activity/salon/index.htm in Tokyo. My only disappointment was that many of the women appear in their national costume : Philippines, India, Thailand, Kenya or China. Me? England has NO national costume. I appeared in slacks and a shirt...

She came back to the house to do an interview over tea, (and meet Bob cat) and Okaasan and Yujiro enjoyed the photographs of all the beautiful women all over Japan who have ended up falling in love with Japanese men...

Anyway. Thanks to Shibata-san's visit I felt very much revived. My knee seems a little better and I enjoyed being outside. I have no idea if she'll use the picture though...I think I looked a bit windswept.

And tonight?

Okaasan amazed us by not only asking to eat tacos with us ("I went to Mexico years ago, I ate tacos there you know!")...but she tucked into FIVE tacos shells with mince meat, sauce, lettuce etc. Yujiro had a small curry on the cooker ready in case she backed out at the last moment...but no - she seemed to enjoy tacos.

She always says she doesn't like mince meat. So we didn't think she'd ever eat this!

2009年6月10日(水) 
外出できるようになって 
時々再始動するにはよその人が必要ね。 
きょう写真家が彼女の取り組んでいる日本の外国人妻たちの企画のためにワタシの写真を撮りに来たわ。ワタシはたくさんの不安を抱えていて期待していなかったんだけど、楽しかったわ! 
午前中少しガーデニングをしたの-実は草引きだけど。ユウも来て雑草を取って手伝ってくれたわ。ワタシたちは二人とも芝の上の椅子に座って仕事をしたの。実際今は芝生とよぶのにふさわしくなっているわ!! 
そのあとシバタレイコさんが到着し、ワタシは車で彼女を近くの天神山公園に連れて行ったの。そこで彼女が北海道の緑を満喫している間ワタシはゆっくりと足を引きずって進んだわ。それからワタシたちは花や木や札幌の街を背景にして、公園のあちこちで写真を撮ったの。 
彼女は百人の女性-全員が日本人男性と結婚している-の写真を撮りながら日本国中を旅しているところなの。彼女の写真は美しいわ。彼女は東京の銀座ニコンサロンで写真展の開催を希望しているの。http://www.nikon-image.com/jpn/activity/salon/index/htmワタシがただ一つ残念だったのは、多くの女性がそれぞれ、フィリピン、インド、タイ、ケニア、中国の民族衣装で登場していることだわ。ワタシ?イギリスに民族衣装はないの。スラックスとシャツででたのよ。 
それからお茶を飲みながらのインタビューをしに家に戻ったの。(それとネコのボブに会うためにね)。そして、お義母さんとユウは、日本人男性と恋に落ちてしまった日本中の美しい女性たちみんなの写真を楽しんだわ・・・ 
ともかく、シバタさんの訪問のおかげで、ワタシはとても元気が出た感じよ。膝は少しいいようだし、ワタシは外にいることを楽しんだわ。彼女が写真を使うかどうかわからないけど・・・すこし風で乱れたように見えたと思うのよ。 
で、今晩? 
お義母さんはワタシたちにタコスを食べたい(“私は何年も前にメキシコに行ってそこでタコスを食べたのよ”)と言っただけでなく、挽肉とソースとレタスなどのタコスシェルを5つも平らげてワタシたちを驚かせたのよ。ユウはお義母さんがドタキャンしたときのためにあらかじめ調理器に少しのカレーを用意したの・・・でも、いいえ-お義母さんはタコスを楽しんだようよ。 
お義母さんはいつも挽き肉が好きではないって言っているの。それでワタシたちはお義母さんがタコスを食べるなんて考えなかったのよ!                   

2 comments:

  1. Now everyone's going to think that slacks and a shirt is the national costume for England.

    I'm surprised that okaasan was so fond of tacos that she ate FIVE! I don't think I could eat that many.

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  2. National costume of England...nylon sweat pants with a hooded top...sports shoes..

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