This Is How You Spell Dog

Right at the onset or outset, or on the offset of this post, I would like to show this picture of the word "dog" in Japanese.  This is for a special friend of mine who has only just begun learning Japanese and had better have this character learned perfectly before I get back or there's going to be some 'splainin' to do.  And if you're not sure whether or not I'm talking about you then you should probably go ahead and learn it just in case.

Today it's cold and rainy.  Of course, by cold and rainy, I mean warm and rainy.  The point is, we all know I'm not going outside in this, except perhaps to collect any laundry I may have left hanging outside to dry.

I have the next two days off, because they are Saturday and Sunday (respectively), and this is our "off" Saturday.  Last time I had a break from work (2 days ago) I contemplated calling all of my coworkers and inviting them out for lunch (there are only seven of us total, so "all" isn't that big of an ordeal).  The difference between this past Wednesday and this coming Saturday, however, is that this time I might actually call.

On the way home from work today, I stopped at the store.  I bought a couple of things that you don't often find in the U.S.  First, GREEN KitKat bars!  I'm sure many of my friends would reel back in shock, and some of my friends would even scoff at the sacrilege that is a "Green Tea" flavored KitKat.   But when you realize that the selling point (shown here in a white font across approximately the center of the bag) is "Sweetness for Adults" then you start thinking "Hey, I'm an adult, I should like this."  I haven't eaten one yet, because I'm planning on sending them to a friend back home, which means I'll probably wait until really late tonight and then eat them.

The other thing I picked up is this package of wee squids.  Aren't they adorable?  And do I have big plans for them?  Well, I did when I bought them: take a picture and put it on my blog!  Now I have to come up with new plans for them.  I thought about releasing them back into the wild, but I have a feeling they will never be accepted back into the squid community at large.  So I will probably sauté them with some spices and eat a few and realize I don't actually know how to properly cook squid and throw them all away.  That's not what I want to do, and believe me it's going to hurt me a lot more than it's going to hurt them. But nonetheless, I may have to resort to that.

Here's a picture from my drive home that shows three things.  1) See, I'm not lying about it being rainy out.  2) Isn't that teeny truck cute?  3) The cherry blossoms are in bloom in Omura!  That means it's officially spring.  That and the fact that the first day of spring was officially Wednesday.  That also means it's officially spring.

Lastly, look what I did to my living room ceiling!