Little Jam Jars?

No, they're jars of sorbet. Little Brother's friend's grandmother gave us this box of sorbet as a thank you gift for Papa's help with the trip to Disneyland.

A Gift for Attending

Papa attended his boss's dance class performance on Saturday. She performed the tango. I watched the video. It was great! But I'm wondering...how does she have time to practice?

Anyway, she gave nicely wrapped boxes of "New Style Stick Donuts" to her friends and employees who attended. They all paid (a big ticket fee) to go, but it included dinner. It was a fancy dinner show. See the "Best Wishes" sticker at the top?

There was another fancy embossed label on the back. It was used to tape the paper together. Fuji Bambi is the name of the shop.

In the past, store clerks used only one piece of tape when wrapping packages. (Everything was wrapped back then.) This package had tape on both ends and that label on the back.

UV Indicator

I got a free gift when I bought some things at a department store. This strand of beads will change color to indicate how strong the UV rays are. The darker the beads, the stronger the rays. It has a strap on it so I can put it on my purse, bag or cell phone. Actually, I think it's for the cell phone, but I rarely use mine. How would it look dangling from my hat? I may start a new fashion! More likely people will just wonder about me.

The sky was really dark today. It rained a lot so I haven't needed it yet.

Tea Gift

Once in a while, there are small gifts given with drinks. This is a bottle of cold unsweetened tea. The cold case at Ministop was full of drinks with gifts around the necks of the bottles.

The gift is a small plastic box. There are several designs available. On one side of the package, the different designs are shown. Luckily, you can see through the other side of the bag so that you can choose the design you want. We chose the goldfish design. It is a common summer design. Of course it isn't summer yet, is it?

Little Brother came home saying that he can start wearing short sleeve white shirts to school. June 1st used to be the time when businessmen and students who wear uniforms to school* started wearing short sleeves. Things change!

*not all children wear uniforms to school. Private elementary school students wear uniforms. Public elementary school children wear what they want. Junior high school students and high school students at public school and most private schools wear uniforms.

Past Funeral Gifts

A reader asked about funeral gifts. Check the comment section on yesterday's post. Here are some gifts we received from other funerals. The green plates were given many years ago when Papa's boss's daughter died. We use them for Japanese or western cakes. They are quite fancy so we use them for special occasions. Each time we use them I or Papa mention her name because the children never knew her. Perhaps it's not a custom. It's something we do.

Big Sister and I use the opera glasses every year when we go to see "The Nutcracker". Nothing is said, but we are reminded of the neighbor's grandmother. She passed away a few years ago and we were given a catalog to select a gift after the funeral. We had presented an envelope of money at the funeral.

Check the label below for other posts.

Green Tea and Seaweed from a Funeral

Papa went to his aunt's funeral and was given this green tea and seaweed set. It was in a nice box neatly wrapped with plain paper. His aunt's name was written on the outside. Gifts are given to guests at funerals in Japan. Guests put money in a special envelope for the family of the person who passed away.

The tin on the left is filled with green tea. Actually, a small bag of tea is inside. The tin on the right is filled with seaweed strips. The seaweed can be used for sushi or it can be eaten with rice. The tins can be kept to store tea and seaweed.

Gift for Repair

A few weeks ago we had to have our shower door replaced. Afterwards, someone from the company asked to meet with Papa. He came with this nicely wrapped gift. (Papa unwrapped it before I could take a picture of the wrapping.) The box contained two bone china tea cups! What a nice repairman!

We have had repair work done in the past but never received a gift. The gesture could have been because the faulty door caused damage to the ceiling. It could have been the inconvenience of having everything torn out. (I had to wait in the kitchen to keep the dogs quiet.) Or it could have been because they gave us the wrong style of door. They put in a door without a lock on it. Our old shower door had a lock on the outside to keep out small children. Fortunately, we no longer have small children in the house.

P.S. I finally got the full story from Papa. The gift was for all those reasons, but especially for not explaining well. They stopped making the door with a lock because people got trapped inside (someone locked them in by mistake). Besides the door was defective because it leaked. They felt at fault. Apology and cups gladly accepted!

Summertime Gifts

A truck like this delivered a box to our house. This is a delivery service called Pelican.




A business assoicate of Papa's sent it to us. The box was full of cookies, cakes and jellies like Jell-o.

In the summer, gifts are given to show appreciation. The gifts are usually food or drink items, soap, or even household cleaning items. (We got a nice box of laundry detergent one year.) Department stores and grocery stores have big displays and an ordering service where you can have the gifts delivered.

I want to point out that the gift was partially wrapped. When I first came to Japan these gifts were carefully and completely wrapped. Even purchases you made at a department store were wrapped. Each store had its own design. Clerks were trained how to wrap packages using only one piece of tape. My sister kept the wrapping paper of a purchase so she could learn how to do it. Now, items are just placed in bags.




This tin of cookies was hand delivered by Papa's aunt. It was plainly wrapped. Grandfather passed away three years ago in July. For the anniversary of his death, relatives came to pray for him. Some brought boxes of things to eat. Others sent boxes of summer fruit.

The Gift

When you go to a wedding or a funeral here, you give an envelope of money to the couple or to the family of the deceased. You are then given a gift. Over the years, some people have started using a service that allows their guests to choose their gift from a catalog. We recently went to a wedding and chose this from the catalog we received at the reception. It was delivered just the other day. We've needed one for years. I am so happy to have it because it has rained a lot this month, and the rainy season will start in June. Do you know what it is?

I'll tell you later.