17/3 - Meeting our Benefactor

On Saturday we had a visit from our benefactor and "land-lady" Yoriko. Yoriko is Keiko's cousin and had offered us the use of her parent's house when she heard from Keiko that we were looking for a place to stay. Of course we were somewhat nervous - here we were living in her childhood house and hopefully not making any social gaffs (we knew for instance - from Keiko - that Yoriko had received at least one phone call from a neighbour saying that the front gate had been left (this is the driveway gate that as far as we knew was open when we arrived)). We shouldn't have worried - Yoriko is an absolutely lovely lady in person and made us feel completely at home.

Yoriko also brought around the cleaning lady "Suzu-chan" who cleans the house once a fortnight as well as giving it more a lived in feeling (more pressure that Yoriko receives from the neighbours - they don't want a house that looks unlived in - so Yoriko comes around a couple of times a week; opening shutters and so forth).

After checking with us that it was OK, Yoriko went back home and brought around her dog "Rock" - a Black Labrador - that loves to roam around the garden when she is here. Rock is a gentle sook and the kids had a great time playing with him and feeding him.

I'd wanted to add to the blog and make a couple of work-related emails, so I rode over to Mari's to use her PC. I found the ride and broken but wide ranging conversation with Mari very empowering - I've been relying on Maria's far superior Japanese too much on this trip.

At Mari's I also posted an email to Yoshida-san. She was a good friend of ours from the shataku (company housing) were we lived when here 12 years ago. She and her husband had taken us to the hospital in the middle of the night when Maria's waters had broken, and indeed, gave Zoe her first bath (which we still have on film) at home. We really wanted to see Yoshida-san, but didn't have a phone number (and she had moved out of the shataku). Anyway, within an hour or 2, she had called us and then dropped around for a visit (living close by still). Another great meeting of old friends and we made further arrangements to meet.

By that time Keiko, Hajime, and Nobuko had arrived - they were coming around for dinner and lots of catching up - so we had a rather full house. Anyway, dinner that night was great, and as the kids one by one drifted off to sleep we spoke of many things old, present, and new.