Yo ho HO!

Yo!
      Ho!


            HO!


If I wear this every day for the next week will Okaasan be full of Christmas cheer?
Maybe ;-)


I visited another teacher's class yesterday to surprise two of my former students - aged 6 and 7. I hid in the side room and when she said: "Can you hear something? Can you hear bells?!" - I yo-ho-hoed into the classroom much to their amazement.
Of course they knew it was me...the beard and hat can't disguise that Queen's English - but they played along with it all until imminent suffocation forced Santa to de-beard.


All good fun. What Christmas is all about etc. Sweet to see their faces.


But the extra class visit pushed back my schedule for Saturday, so I got home after 7 pm - still in Santa pants and hat - and flung dinner together.
Heated the curry, rice, dressed up supermarket salad, pickles etc - got it all on the table in 15 minutes flat.
Okaasan enjoyed the costume, I tried to chat and chat about stuff. Yujiro does this (with no effort because as a Japanese male he is hardwired to go on and on and on), but I'm not so good.
But I hope that if I chat she will actually eat and give responses. If I prompt her into Memory Lane stories, it's all great for her brain, but then she waves the chopsticks around and doesn't actually EAT. Dinner goes on for ever.


So. All was well. I got out by 8 pm and finally relaxed at the end of a working week with a mug of mulled wine (Thank-you Sachiko!!).


So. Here we go.
Winter holidays with Okaasan.


She seems ok with it so far - even telling me last night: "Tomorrow you have work? (no it's Sunday), ahh...you have work...don't worry about me, I don't eat in the morning, so just relax".
She asked me for some money in case she ventures out.
She came out and said "Good morning" in the kitchen just now.


Starting good.
It may all end in anger and tears and accusations.
But we are starting well!