American Contraptions, pt 2

Can you tell what kind of heater this is now?

It is a pellet heater. It runs on pellets that look like rabbit food, but are actually some type of compressed sawdust. (These heaters can also run on corn pellets.) Who knew?

Okay, everybody but me probably knew...

American Contraptions, pt 1

What is this? This was sitting near a wall in the living room of my aunt's house is Arizona. I am used to seeing unfamiliar contraptions in Japan, but this is in America. Do you know what it is? Do you know what it does? I will tell you that it is a heater of sorts. It heats up the room safely and proficiently. What does it use for fuel?

In Japan we have various types of heating. The most common are gas, electricity, kerosene or some combination. In our home we have an air conditioning unit in the living room that cools the room in the summer and heats it in the winter. It runs on electricity. We also have a heating unit in our floor. This also runs on electricity. It is one of my current favorite heat sources in winter!

The other favorite is the bath!!

Reconnecting

I arrived in the States the morning of the afternoon I left Japan. For some reason, this makes perfect sense to me and I can do the 41 hour day every so often. At present, I am a bit slower than normal (or perhaps I am unchanged but just think that I am slower because of the brain fog I am experiencing). It is nice every so often to have a legitimate excuse for incoherency.... The way my brain has been going lately I may have to start traveling more.

So far I have had a great day. Good flight, no baggage problems, time with my folks and seeing good friends this evening at church. I am looking forward to the rest of my time here.

The Chaperone Chronicles Continue....

Today I helped three other mothers chaprerone 21 girls to the Tokyo All-Star Games. This time it was a new venue for all of us. We were given a map of the sports center where the games were being held and we were warned of a rather complicated train change.

We gathered all the girls and waited together on the platform to board the first train. It was unusually crowded with many high school students disembarking from the doors we were trying to enter. A few girls ran for another door and I noticed a straggler. I grabbed the straggler and threw both her and myself through the nearest open door and it closed. Whew!

I started counting girls while working my way towards another chaperone. We did it!! All 21 girls safe on board.

The only ones left behind were the other two chaperones. One of whom had the map.....