(Almost) Roadkill

Mom & Dad's truck and camper, before we hit the road.

Smoky likes to stick Spice in the corner.

We're driving back towards Anchorage (actually the town of Wasilla), and we start off early in the morning since it will probably take us about six hours.  We're a two car and two camper caravan with Mom and me in the pilot car, along with Smoky and Spice.  Steve has fun on the CB radio (reliving 70s movies).  For the most part the trip is uneventful - until the black bear jumps over the guard rail and crosses the road right in front of us.

Not my picture - but this is what he looks like.

Picture I did take along the drive.

My first thought is that it's a dog, then a second later I realize it's a black​ bear.  I thought it would turn around (like a dog will), because as it crosses from the other lane into our lane, we'll hit it - but he just keeps moving along.  Mom slams on the brakes and swerves, and we just miss the bear (and luckily no one is in the other lane).  He just keeps going and pays us no attention.  One thing I notice is he's very agile - his arms and legs seem very long and dexterous.  Steve asks if we take a picture, but I'm too busy gripping the armrests in anticipation of a crash to think about my camera. 

Once we arrive in Wasilla the RVs are set up and Mom and I run out for errands.  I have one last trip to Wal-mart to pick up items and we have another quilt store to visit - Sylvia's Quilt Depot. 

There are some similarities between all the little towns' quilt shops, such as they all carry the Alaskan designers of patterns and fabrics.  I'm happy to see bolt after bolt of batiks at each one!  At Sylvia's, Mom picks out an Alaskan applique project.  She wants to change the colors a bit, so we spend some time choosing the fabrics.  I again resist the urge to buy any new projects (though I do have some fabric purchases). 

Debating how the colors look together...

...and checking the values, too.

We also make a stop at the Joann in Wasilla.  I'm hoping to purchase a tailor's ham that's made by Dritz.  It's incredibly hard to find Dritz products in Japan - Clover (a Japanese company) has a monopoly on sewing/quilting supplies.  After checking several stores in Tokyo I can't find one that is the same shape as the Dritz ham.  I don't have any luck here, either, but they tell us to stop at the Joann superstore in Anchorage - they might carry it.

After five quilting stores, here's my Alaskan fabric stash:

 








Once we return home Mom cooks halibut, this time stuffed with clams.  We also have fresh corn - only $.50 for an ear, versus $2.50-$4.00 in Tokyo (and it tastes better too)...and hash browns...and leftover cake for dinner.  As always, it's delicious!  

The dogs are worn out from the travel day (you would think they had to pull the trailer themselves) but they graciously let the guys share the chair footrests with them. 

 

The rare siting of a trash can on the
side of the road! (at least, in Tokyo).

As we're nearing the end of my first trip back to the US in almost two years, it's funny discovering the little things that you miss.  On the roads, just seeing school buses (I don't know if they do any busing in Japan), being able to tell the price of gasoline, even speed limit signs - there are none in Tokyo (except maybe the highway, which I'm never on).

Then there's stuff like automatic paper towel dispensers in bathrooms (they're not in Japan), trashcans everywhere, salt and pepper ALWAYS at your table in restaurants, good quality disposable paper products (when I move back to the US it's only Charmin Ultra Soft for me!), drip coffee at home (for almost two years I've been thinking instant coffee is about the same - it's not!), Diet Coke with Lime (I forgot it even existed), and water glasses that hold more than a few
                                                    ounces of water.
 

Good quality napkins (plenty of them!) and salt & pepper - signs of civilization!

20 oz of water in a US restaurant

Japanese restaurant - glass only holds 4 oz, but they only fill it
halfway. (Seriously, I did not drink from it before this picture.)  Do
they worry an earthquake is about to happen and they don't want the
water to spill??

And especially the little interactions - people talk so much more in the US.  Even the "have a nice day" from a cashier.  They say thank you in Tokyo, but that's about it.  No other conversation.   

Of course, I wonder what I will miss about Japan when I move back to the US!