The Thailand Fiasco.

Just kidding..... but really though.

When you order from Thailand the following things always happen.

-You pay way too much for shipping

-You wait at least a month for your part

-Anything rubber, in my experience, doesn't last long

-Metal parts aren't as thick/sturdy

Some of the cut-outs for the internal wiring and internal throttle need cleaned up.

The bars overall seem really light......

 A little love from Japan

Thanks Yuto and Masako!

Japan. 2006. ?.

I found 3 roles on cd of 110 photos from Japan while I was in the basement the other day.

You could think of it as a miniature version of medium format I guess.
Toy camera.

This is the first one.

The CD is labeled 2006.

Memories.

I randomly started talking to an old woman next to the skatepark one day.

 She said her dog loved skateboards so she took him here a lot.

 Random street setup.

 Timmy!

 Chillin' in Kuramo's bug.

 Kuramo's arm.

 The old road bike I used to keep there.

 I used to ride the bike 15 miles one way to skate this park in 90 degree weather a few times a week.

In Tokyo traffic.

Sometimes I would barely make it home.

Learned backtails and smith grinds here.

That prefab 5 was so fun...

 Nice hair.....

 More of TJ.

 Yuto.

 2 summers before I started teaching?

 Lambo.

I miss Tokyo.

I miss it a lot.

Clockwork

When the mail came today the mailman's movements seemed slightly different.  

 I heard a faint *beep-beep* and knew instantly I had a package......

Every year for over a decade I have been getting packages from Tokyo around new years.

Thank you Yuto!

  I am lucky to have had him as a student and met him and his family when I was 21 living in Japan.

  Thank you soo much and アケオメ！ 

The package

The contents

Mojibakeru 6?!?

Sick sticker!

Japanese version of a Christmas card

Look closely

Yuto, Masako! 有り難うございます！

Every year Yuto and Masako hook up toys, sweets, and articles from newspapers that I am interested in.  More than anything else all year long, I look forward to these packages.  Around the first of the year I usually get something amazing.......this year is no exception.  

I know when I see the word "toy" on the customs form I am in for a good surprise.

モジバケる４が出た！

I have been collecting these for a few years now.  These are kanji for animals and insects that transform into what they mean.  今回は豹、鹿、猪、鳳、蜂、鰐バケる！

One of the things I miss most about Japan are the traditional sweets.  Even though they are still candy, I think most are healthier than what we have here and rarely have milk or egg ingredients....

There are also two brochures in this picture for stores in Japan that sell...for lack of a better word "washcloths" in traditional Japanese patterns.  I love this kind of traditional Japanese design!

-->www.eirakuya.jp

It takes a while to load and there are English cues in the menu...check it out the designs are beautiful.

Masako sent me this article.  It looks like it is from a newspaper.....if you know anything about vintage Honda's then you will recognize the poster on the top left of the page.  I am excited to read this!  

Last but not least the new years card.  I feel like these are always picked with my likes in mind...  

The 12 animals and kanji they are a part of represent the 12 animals of the Japanese/Chinese Zodiac.

これもモジバケるみたいだな〜

This year is of course the year of the Dragon.  

My seniors this year are pretty excited about it!