Uneasy ...

A second-hand Japanese product...

... with quite a tale to tell—

After that build-up, it might seem the lemons should squeeze themselves.

But directions do appear...

... along with the usual extensive documentation and analysis of product features.

Perhaps the theme should be more like, Easy there, Pal!

After all, you have to wonder what the utensils might get up to, as soon as your back is turned... seeing as how the manufacturer needs to assure you that your "living partner" has "a mild heart"—

SEAVICE Rendered

Fashions come and go. Adding up the years, I get a frightening total of 30 since I lived (and bought T-shirts) in Japan. Fashions come and go, yet some things do not change.

GOOD SEAVICE
Don't make fun of weak or old people.

Yes, if it's the fourth Sunday in June, it's time for the annual Japanese flea market.

Another 30 years ago thing: I remember his product endorsements in magazine ads. Though the technology may be out of date, I'm confident that, in some format or other, he will continue selling English lessons from beyond the grave.

Values

Sadly, the only local non-chain dollar store closed this spring. When the store was forced out of its original space last year, the owner moved to a much smaller space to stay in the neighborhood. Unfortunately, stock space and business decreased too much for him to make a go of the location. 

It was a shame to see him and his family go. He was a good buyer, and I'll miss the possibility of surprise his stock offered.

I'll also miss having purchases put into bags from unknown supermarkets, located somewhere or other. These, like the stock, must have been bought in close-out lots.

Bags varied from trip to trip, and this one was the best.

Such happy throwback people...

Twelve Ways to Decorate a Dog: June

"Chinese Buttons make the eyes of the macramé trimmed dog..."—

Family Album

Judged by its cover, this library sale leftover looked more than a little bizarre—

"Grub," according to Goodall's introduction, was simply the family's nickname for son Hugo Eric Louis van Lawick, who spent extended periods of infancy and early childhood accompanying his parents on research trips.

Or, as the pictures and words have it—

There was a time when chimps came first in their lives...

but then things changed.

Grub, says Goodall

... had learned to imitate the roar of a lion, the whooping call of a hyena, the strange high-pitched bark of a zebra, and the grunting and lowing of a wildebeeste long before he could speak a single word of human language.

...

By the time Grub was two he could recognize and identify most of the different sorts of wild animals we encountered around camp or on our drives, just as a city child may pick out different makes of cars he sees in the streets. Grub stands no more danger of being attacked by a wild animal than a city child of being knocked over by a car, but from dawn to dusk our son is never out of the sight of some responsible person.

With pictures mostly by the photographer father, this originally was intended for grandparents and other family, not for publication, says Goodall.

But because so many people enjoyed it we decided that the pictorial account of a baby's life, in surroundings quite out of the ordinary to most people, might be appealing to other children and perhaps to their parents as well.

The result is a weirdly arresting mix: pictures from a childhood lived exceptionally close to a dramatic natural world—

Accompanied by the cutesiest of captions.

I made sure I didn't get left behind...

when Daddy and Mummy packed up to drive 600 miles to the shores of Lake Tanganyika

where the chimps are.
Mummy and Daddy built a whole, huge, strong, well-provisioned cage...

for ME!

In the next year's return to the field—

One morning I asked Mummy to help me study an elephant. But she wouldn't go close enough,

so I decided to study zebra on my own.

When I had finished I rushed back to tell Mummy about them.

The next day we moved to the Serengeti and I was able to get my first close look at a giraffe. Unfortunately it galloped away when Mummy ran after me.

Soon after this Daddy employed two nannies...

they were HUGE fun!

I always helped to collect firewood.

After reassuring readers about adult supervision, the book closes with Grub's kindergarten career ("I attended the local school and enjoyed outdoor sports the most")...

But I kept up O.K. with the academic side, too.

The End...

I've grown up a lot this year. I've learned to be ready for anything.
Now I'm all set for my next safari.

Twelve Ways to Decorate a Dog: May

Felt Fido...

...and Finals

Easter Parade

I have to admit that I spent several minutes transfixed in the aisle at Aldi with Easter promo stuff.

It was the German-made chocolate bunnies, chicks and lambs that had this hypnotic effect. In several different styles: all wacko, and all sugary stuff I don't need. In the end, I couldn't resist this group—

The outfits got me, complete with animal logos. And jolly Gumby-esque creature—

Sister J's immediate reaction: these must come from an East German factory, where the graphic style is unchanged since the 1950s.

I thought the googly-eyed faces are part of a more general German style. Sure enough, J later found this company site with similar stuff.

Although some of these products are a bit higher end ["Fairtrade"; "MinusL" lactose-free], there are others that definitely have appeared at the local Aldi.

Christmas for us; "First day of school" to Germans—

Sadly, there's also a sample of the New Year's fun and luck that we miss—