Island Humor

These were a little omiyage* brought back from Hawaii by our neighbor Cindy. Apparently the sign out in front of the store did not mention exactly what they were, so she was compelled to go inside to investigate. The giving of omiyage in Japan was thought to have originated in the practice of visiting Shinto shrines. Small gifts were brought back both as evidence of the pilgrimage and a transfer of protection from the shrine to whoever received the gifts. I'm not sure how much protection was conferred upon us by "donkey balls", but since they turned out to be chocolate covered macadamia nuts, it was a nice thought.

I came back from Pilates class, and sat outside under the yellow umbrella (seen reflected in the window) to wrangle dogs and supervise the placement of gravel--the finishing touch to our fountain garden landscaping. Peter came along to help OilMan with the irrigation. I fetched lunch from the farm to table deli/tasting room, which just opened in our neighborhood. They were a little unclear on the concept of getting the orders right, but we're hoping they figure it out, since it's has promise and is very convenient.

I brought out the Donkey Balls for dessert and liked the juxtaposition of Hawaiian humor, Hawaiian vegetation, plastic plates, and the fact that I now look forward to sitting out there. There's absolutely no cultural explanation for how the garden gnome got there--he's just always been there. Poor Dana has doomed her family to many dinners outside, even though they would probably prefer to be in the house.….

*A Japanese gift of food associated with the history of an area, brought back by a traveler to be given as little gifts to friends and co-workers who weren't able to make the trip.