Friday, April 30, 2010

Yukiko Hanai

      Due to the heavy rain this Wednesday, the doorbell rang at 11:05 as three soggy ladies arrived for English conversation. Our fourth member, the Obaasan, was nursing a granddaughter with a fever, and our fifth member was out of town. Five minutes late, I checked the calendar: Isn't today Wednesday? Gomen nasai! (Sorry): As a group they shed dark raincoats to reveal outfits in pastel tones that favored pink. Composer-san always matches a headband to her blouse (a style she adopted 30 years ago). All eyes were on the cardigan worn by the cooking-sensei (the one who consults the feng shui specialist to help her younger son keep his mind on his studies).

     "Yukiko Hanai," she explained about the cardigan's label. In seashell pink it closed with a small hook and eye.  Collar and cuffs were covered in what appeared to be flower petals in shades of pink. "I went to a sale  last week in Aoyama Itchome (think: Madison Avenue) with my friend, who bought one for her daughter," she said. "Do you think it is too young for me?" Not at all -- we all made a mental note to head for the shop. Hanai from Yokohama has been around since 1970, yet this is the first I've heard of her! No time to lose in checking out her new line, Optimist, and trying out her beauty line.

    Along with coffee I served Owl and Pussycat sugar biscuits from England that I found in Kinokuniya fancy food emporium on Omotesando. "Let's read the nonsense poem from 1871 by Edward Lear that inspired these cookies," I said and distributed both. While the cookies were easy to appreciate, the poem was not as palatable. The concept of rhyming aside, why pair an Owl with a Cat? Sail away for a year and a day? In Nihon where matchmakers still make a living, why would a couple "tarry"? "Let's return to Pooh-san," I suggested, turning to the chapter where Christopher Robin leads the expedition to the North Pole. Everyone smiled at the idea that the adventurers expect to see a pole stuck in the mud up north. Nice to be on familiar territory.  

 

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