Hot water, tofu, pee and Japanese

Since I have no job, one way I will be killing time here in Tokyo is trying to figure out how I can most reduce my ecological footprint, yet still live the comfortable city life. Just a few weeks ago I was showering with a garden hose that had been left to warm in the sun, allowing us to completely turn off the hot water in the house, saving a lot of money and a little of the earth (?). I have been trying to apply a similar principle here in my new apartment with large east and south facing windows. An old 20 liter plastic bag used to deliver Tomoe's drinking water heats up quickly in the summer sun and hangs conveniently on the shower curtain rod. Without a shower head however, I am forced to pour the water into smaller basin which I can then pour over my body to wash. I have found that washing this way greatly reduces the amount of water I actually use as it's much more convenient than turning off the shower (and then trying to adjust it to the right temperature again when I turn it back on after lathering up.

The only problem now is that last night, the sack of water was laying on the roof outside our window waiting for the morning sun, when we heard a loud crash and commotion from the landlord's house below. The sack had slid off the roof and crashed into their patio. Maybe not the end of the world, but I have yet to introduce myself and asking for my sack of water is probably not the best way to start the relationship. It's also bad because I had planned to ask the landlord for permission to put some planters on the roof (in a more secured manner) in which we can grow lots of the goodies I enjoyed on the farm in Sweden.

The apartment itself is in a good location, close enough to almost anything I will need that I don't need much more than a bike. Despite it's convenient location and relative peacefulness (a few blocks from any major roads), there are a few disappointments. The biggest is that I am quite far from the eco-friendly coop I did all my shopping at before. I can't just take a walk to find locally produced, low or no chemical produce. The coop does deliver however, which I suppose I can look at as a plus. By forcing me to plan and order all my food in advance, I will probably be less likely to eat because I am bored. Also, the weekly order sheet gives more information about the product than is available at the shop, clearly marking each item as organic, no-chem, low-chem, local, etc... as well as when it was produced, and even such things as how many chickens are kept in the pen, allowing me to choose eggs from happier chickens.

There is an old family-run tofu shop a few blocks away I am itching to visit, but I'm sure it wont taste as good as the homemade tofu we whipped up a few nights ago. It's surprisingly easy, although it does take a bit of time. The thing I like about it though is that 1) I don't have to pay for and promote all that packaging from store-bought tofu (just the big paper sack our soy beans come in), and 2) we can use all of the by-products in other dishes, making it cheaper than buying the tofu alone. Home made soy milk has the same benefits since the tofu is basically made out of the home made soy milk.

Some fun things on the docket for future work-less days (besides looking for a job) include making my own sho-chu (potato booze), looking for some affordable, portable solar power equipment (unless this Pee-powered battery can be made to run my iBook and a small electric fan), and making a solar oven. I drink what seems like gallons of tea each day (can't wait for that pee-power) so such an oven would reduce my gas usage considerably.

I also have to figure out what to do about the library here. I live nearby a much bigger library than before, but yesterday when I tried to make a card, they discovered that I have a book overdue from six years ago when I lived in this area as well. In reality, these books were discovered a year ago before I moved to Sweden, and they were returned to the library in another ward, so I have no idea how to track them down now.

Finally, I didn't speak more than three sentances while I was in Sweden, and I read very little, so I have been trying to start a do-it-yourself crash-course in Japanese that includes lots of reading, listening to the radio and audio books, and watching Japanese movies. I'm greatly discouraged at how many kanji I have forgotten the pronunciation of, but at the same time, that might be the best thing to force me to do a thorough review. Hopefully the next few months will see my Japanese improve to spectacular new levels never before attained.

The photos are from around my new neighborhood. The first one is right out my window. Photos of Malaysia and more from Sweden will be coming soon.