Saturday update from Japan

Well more bears made and more bears have found new homes!

Here is Rieko modelling Jonny,

and here she is with George who was finished today.

These two bears went off to new homes today...

and here are Patrick and Lucy, 2 other English artists here, with some of their work behind them.

The bad news is, I have gone down with shingles today. I started to feel unwell yesterday evening and by today it got worse and worse. I knew by the afternoon that it was definitely shingles and am feeling very ill. So that's a bit awkward to say the least!

After the Typhoon

Well I am delighted to report that the dreaded typhoon which decided to come early and was forecast for last night, then also chose to swerve away from Tokyo at the last minute and hit them further up north. Sorry for them, but very relieved for us. It was still a very wet and windy night although Reiko and Yuki slept through and didn't hear a thing, I only got 1 hour sleep so its been a bit of a jet lag day again. I am very relieved though. It was still very windy earlier on, but cleared now, and all is well!

The lady who tried to climb on my shoulder to watch me sewing the other day, came back again today. I think she is lonely and likes to chat which is amusing as I don't do Japanese and she doesn't do English, but it doesn't seem to stop her. She is fascinated with my hands and keeps grabbing them and squeezing them for some strange reason. Big Ben, the bear I made yesterday went happily off with some new owners today, so that was nice.

I had quite a few nice chats today with people who DO speak English (and some English people too!) and one lady of 80 had just decided to learn it, and was amazing already. So it was a busy day and I didn't get a bear finished today, so will have to work harder tomorrow. And on that note, its time to get some sleep.

Still in Japan

I thought I would upload a few pictures from the British Fair at Mitsukoshi in Tokyo for you to enjoy and see where I am and what I have been up to.

A happy new Warren Bear owner with Yuki

and another new owner who seems very pleased with little Samuel.

(A name that sadly proved very hard for them to say.)

Here are the 2 new bears so far.

The one in the blue duffle coat is Big Ben and the other is Marlborough (another tricky name for them!) He looks a bit cross in the picture but its just cos his fringe is squashed down.
This is Reiko and Yuki, the two ladies who are selling the bears for M's Collection here and looking after me so well.

This is a sweet little girl, loving the bear,

who then wiped her mouth on it straight after this photo was taken!!

She said "Hallo" so nicely too!

The typhoon is scheduled for 3pm tomorrow (Thursday 8th) so I hope I will still be here to let you know what it was like! I had an encouraging email from a friend who said he was here in a 45 second earthquake that knocked his beer on the floor and broke a fish tank of piranhas in the restaurant (I presume they are no threat floundering on a dry floor!!) and the local people took it in their stride so I hope they look after me tomorrow. I feel like its having earthquakes all the time. Its a strange thing I always get with jet lag, feeling like the world is rocking and swaying. I know it isn't cos I keep checking all the cabinets around me and they are all very still and not shaking but I swear they should be, it is rocking so much!

And all without the aid of drugs

(well apart from anti biotics but I don't think they can do anything exciting like that!)

Today was fairly quiet - still raining constantly - and I was able to try out the umbrella machine. Everyone here has an umbrella, even just about every man you see, and at the shop there is a special gadget that you put it into and it wraps your brollie. Its just like the Christmas tree wrapping machines and I felt that it ought to be tried out whilst I am here!

So I did!

Anyway, more tomorrow......

In JAPAN

Well hello from Japan (as you do!)

I didn't get chance to write anything after the show at Hugglets as I went down with the dreaded swine flu at the actual show. By the time we got home, I went straight to bed and was ill for a week and then had the complications in the form of a stubborn chest infection which is on its 3rd course of antibiotics and only just easing. So all my plans to have 3 calm weeks before travelling to Japan never happened. The long walks with the dogs, the various things I wanted to have time to go shopping for (saved a fortune!) the food I was going to cook and leave in the freezer, bears I needed to make ready to bring etc etc. It just never happened. All I did was go to the doctors 3 times! And then get up for my first full day on the day I had to fly 12 hours. Not ideal but I managed it and I am here and finished a nice little 13" alpaca bear in a peachy colour today.

People seemed to enjoy watching him being created, and I even had one lady virtually sitting on my shoulder watching the nose stitching from behind me. I was worried I would poke her in the eye with the needle if she got any closer! Lots of nice people practiced their English on me and all apologised that it wasn't very good - which is a shame they feel like that when my Japanese is non-existent. That was another thing I was going to do in that 3 weeks.... Oh well.

So no photos this post but just to say hello from a different side of the world this time and let you know what is happening.

Apparently we are getting a typhoon tomorrow which doesn't seem to alarm them in the least but I have to say I am absolutely terrified. When I asked what will happen I was told it will rain very hard and be a hurricane, and be dangerous to be out but we still have to go to work. Wish me luck please cos I am very scared.

Will let you know (hopefully!) how I survived!

Bye for now.