Christmas shopping in ol' Hirosh

On the weekend Sir S and I took the omnibus down to good ol' Hirosh for a super-busy weekend of pre-Christmas hustle and bustle, the purchase of much-needed winter garments and the spending of precious pennies (or yennies?) on precious things with which to deck the halls & c. The Tokyu Hands and Parco buildings were festooned cheerfully with gigantic wreathes and winking lights and sprouted various piney boughs of silver fir and Serbian spruce. My fave street, Namiki-dorii, was all a-glitter with those fancy electrified snowflakes entangled in the trees, and the shop windows were bright and cheerful with Santas and bells and jellified snowmen stuck to the glass. We took respite from the cold and devoured scrumptious okonomiyaki for our Christmas shopping fuel.

Among my purchases were:

1. The usual round of Japanese-style Yuletide cards: cute little Santas racing over Mt Fuji in a sleigh; tiny Santas gadding about nude in the local onsen; mini-Santas tumbling over the tatami mats getting squiffed on sake.

2. Kinoko baubles: one can easily find Japanese-style cards, but lo - one cannot lay a mitten on a Japanese-style bauble. My imagination at first went rampant at the notion of Mt Fuji-etched ornaments, but the shops are stocked full with only the European variety that one can get back in the Old Country. My Nihongo Sensei remarked that many Japanese are overcome with longing for European Christmas festivities, and along with the Japanese' endless affinity with Things Cute and Charming, European decorations are much in demand. However, I did stumble across some delightful wooden baubles in the shape of little storybook toadstools sprinkled with red glitter and silver spots. Anyone who has been in Japan for even a short time will notice the fascination with storybook mushrooms: keyrings, hankies, lunchboxes, home decor are covered in the stuff. I myself profess to owning a toadstool-spotted oven mitt (thanks Jen!), furoshiki cloth, sweat-towel and keyring(s).

3. 1940s-style grey woollen dress with black silk tie from fave shop Qrover. Very much the staid and strict schoolmistress in this vintage number! Will vamp it up with a red beret or cloche.

4. Broody grey pleated cape. Yes, this cape is pleated and has sleeves and pockets. Very practical indeed! The last time I found pockets in women's clothing must have been, well, last century. The cape-coat is exceedingly thick and has a high collar which scratches under one's chin and keeps one warm.

5. Christmas room socks. Hail O Season of the Fleecy Room Sock! (with little Santas dancing about).

So Christmassy was I on my return to Matsue that I baked a tray of Kerry Greenwood's Plum Pudding Muffins (yum - and thanks, Miss Violet!) and gingerbread biscuits (which turned out rather a disaster, especially when one has a yuppie-ish stainless steel wire "chopping shelf" instead of a kitchen bench - blasted dough always falls through the gaps!) to the tune of an ABC CD of Christmas Carols. And in November too. My sainted room-socks, lucky Sir S was out at the time, otherwise I'm afraid he would've been struck down with apoplexy at the sight of me befloured in my dragonfly pinnie, singing off-key to "The First Noel", my room-socks besmirched with globdules of gingerbread. Eek!