On November 11, 2006, at 4:48PM (Japan Time), The Boy was born. He was 9lbs 5oz and 20.5 inches at birth. The Wife went into the hospital to be induced, but it took a few days to kick in. She handled the delivery very well, and made childbirth look deceptively easy. She did not scream or curse at all, like movies and sitcoms would have one believe. I think I performed my role of standing around and staying out of the way pretty well.
All fingers and toes were accounted for, and apparently everything else is in working order as well. The Boy’s middle name, Edward, comes from my brother, who lives in North Carolina. My brother is a very good-natured fellow and I only hope The Boy grows up to be half as nice as him.
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Babymoon! • September 13, 2006
We have returned from our babymoon. We spent one lovely night at the Hotel New Awaji on Awajishima. We didn’t much besides drive around, relax, and soak in the rotenburo (basically an outdoor hot tub).
Day One
We got a late start, as usual. Check-in was at 3:00, and we didn’t want to waste a moment of hotel time before they kicked us out the following morning at 11:00am. We anticipated a 90 minute drive, and left the house around noon. I meant to take the highway there to save time, but first I missed the turn to get onto the highway and drove all the way to Kobe before picking it up. Later, I accidentally exited the highway early and we drove the rest of the way on a small road (with a nice view of the water, as it turned out).
Right after the Akashi Kaikyo Bridge takes out of Kobe and onto the island, there is a rest area with a large ferris wheel (about 430 ft, apparently), along with the usual rest area goodies; toilets, greasy food, local omiyage, throngs of travelers, etc. We took a ride in the ferris wheel, which managed to scare the daylights out of me. I’m not one for rides of any sort with a hint of danger. This was probably the most secure looking structure I’ve ever been in, but once we were 2/3 of the way up I was stammering and sweating, especially when The Wife moved over to my side for a photo and the balance shifted. Fortunately, I was able to enjoy the view, which was across the water looking at the bridge and Kobe.
The hotel was nice, but not so nice that I wouldn’t be able to afford having the baby. When I drove into the parking lot there was a bellboy there to guide me into my spot, so of course I drove the wrong wayagainst the arrowsaround the lot, and then did a very strange maneuver into my spot (always back into a space in Japan, no matter how inconvenient). Once in the hotel, we got an explanation of the fees and amenities. Then we were led to a seat in the lounge. The bellboy who led us there marveled at my foreign-ness and exclaimed how “handsome” I was. I’m not sure if he wanted a tip or a kiss; I gave him neither.
In the lounge we received a complimentary yoghurt drink, and another explanation of the grounds and amenities. We were taken to our room, where we were instructed to wait for a new woman to come and give us yet another explanation of the grounds and amenities, as well as go over the evening’s menu with us. We had very little intention of using any of the amenities external to our room, or travel the grounds much at all, except to get The Wife a massage. One phone call proved that the massage table was booked solid for the night, so we weren’t going to leave the room at all. There were several bath rooms in the hotel, but I really do not like to venture in alone. I would with a friend, with whom I could lose myself in chatter, but on my own I feel a bit too much of a standout. The Wife showed trepidation about taking a dip herself, since these rooms are usually full of slippery rocks or tiles.
Our room began with an entry way for removing your shoes, which led to a toilet on one side and a washroom on the other. Through a wall of shoji was the main room, with a table in the middle. This would later be transformed by hotel pixies into our bedroom with two futons. At the end of this room, beyond more shoji, was a little sunroom with a low table and chairs. A door led to a shower, which in turn exited onto the veranda with an ocean view and an open-air hot tub.
We filled the tub and had a dip, then wandered the floors a little to see the special guest lounge, which was a few couches, some dog-eared magazines and a coffee machine. Then we settled in to wait for dinner. It was quite a spread, and much too much to eat. I’m not sure what everything is called in English. The specialty of the area is called Hamo, which is a long, eely kind of fish. This was served cut into chunks that you could cook in a broth with some vegetable. Yummy. There was lobster sashimi (also yummy) with some other sashimi. There was a spiral shellfish called sazae (a common beach treat, and the name of a popular comic-strip housewife) that neither of us cared for, though we both usually like it. The Wife treated herself to a glass of plum wine, and I enjoyed two beers, more than I’ve had in total since March, probably.
After dinner we treated ourselves to a few more dips in the tub, and watched the first episode of the first season of “24.”
This is getting long-winded, so I will add links to the appropriate photos in Flickr and write about day two tomorrow (or the next day).
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Crikey! • September 4, 2006
Irwin died ‘doing what he loved’
So, Steve Irwin loved getting stabbed through the chest by stingrays? That guy was bound to kick it sooner or later with a passion like that!
But, seriously folks, it’s sad to see this character go. I always enjoyed seeing him on Leno, He seemed so naïve and sincere.
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