Cozy lunch spot with photography lesson

Thanks to Al for the photography lessons. The waiter was pretty but not well prepared.

Fall chill

It’s been cold this week as fall deepens. We’ve turned on our new gas heater, made plans to put up curtains to better insulate the apartment, and bundle up when going outside. It’s hat, gloves and scarf weather.

This being Tokyo, it’s also a wonderful opportunity to wear my favorite passive-aggressive “health” product, the face mask. It can be seen as a sign of courtesy since you don’t want others to catch your cold or flu. It can also be a way to ward off others’ contagions. Wearing it requires some adjustment, especially on a bike, when the mask tends to fog up your glasses.

The other strange cold weather accessory is the kairo (カイロ), an often disposable heat pack you put in your coat. My baby friend Akachan at the ceramics studio has a cute woven cozy, shaped like a turtle, for his plastic warmer. I will have to try this out soon.