Chinowa

Chinowa (or sometimes referred to as suganuki), is a large ring made of cogon grass that is as tall as a man, and put up on the pathway that leads up to a Shinto shrine. According to Shinto tradition, visitors visit the shrine and walk through the chinowa, which looks like a big Hula-Hoop of grass, in June or July during a purification ceremony to ward off evil.

It was a bit hard to catch a good shot of this chinowa at night using an iPhone.

Pix4Japan by R.D.S. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Napping Playtime

Mary taking a nap. 

She makes it hard to get up and do some work or anything else for that matter. 

As expected, Dale wants to play fetch with her squeaky ball. 

Pix4Japan by R.D.S. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Two Girls and a Boy

Took Mary and Dale for a dog walk this afternoon. Got stuck in a rain storm, so we took shelter in a highway underpass until the rain passed.

Mary can't stand the cold and was shivering a lot! So much for her exercise. We ended up playing kangaroo -- me the mother and she the joey.

Finally after the long afternoon walk, Dale chilled out and took her nap on the kitchen floor.

Mary took her nap on my lap as usual.

And Morris, who is too young to go out for dog walks since he hasn't got his vaccinations yet, just chilled out because that is what dogs do best! :-)

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Best & Worst

Finally back home from the hospital after getting stitches in my head and a cast for my thumb.

Took a day off from work and took Dale and Mary for a slow, quiet afternoon walk to the local shrine.

These poor girls have been through a lot in the past few days.

I promise to keep them safe and to make them as happy as I can.

Mary and I have hit it off very well. 

Morris is a new addition, but three dogs is just too much. I need to find a new home for him before I get too attached.

Pix4Japan by R.D.S. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Red Shrine

Prior to heading home, I visited one of the many, many Shinto shines on the island.

I made the customary offering, offered a prayer, and prepared for the short trek home.

Shinto shrines tend to be not painted, and take pride in the natural color and graceful aging of the wood. Others, however, are painted in bright crimson red. I wonder if their isn't some influence on Shinto architecture from Buddhism that made its way here from China hundreds of years ago.

Pix4Japan by R.D.S. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Hawkish Moon

The waning moon makes her appearance at the same time the sun arises to bath us in her life-giving warmth.

If I lived in this area, I would love to wake up early every morning to go for a jog along the coast or down on the beach!

If I were on the other side of this island, and if it were clear enough in the sky, I might be able to catch a glimpse of a reddish Mt. Fuji!

It is at times like this that I wish I could fly like a bird and just coast on the warm air currents rising up from the ocean!

One of my favorite shots! Took more than a hundred shots of the hawks until finally got just the right one I was looking for! Thank heavens for the digital era!!

As she flys off and away, I am reminded of the time, and that I too must head back to my real life of humdrum toiling in a square enclosure of stel and cement we call offices.

So lucky to have visited here on such a clear morning!

Pix4Japan by R.D.S. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Enoshima Sunrise

Every year in June, I visit Enoshima Island to watch the sunrise.

On the eastern side of the island, we can see a boat harbor, a small lighthouse, the other side of Tokyo Bay, and the Pacific Ocean.

Hawks can be seen flying from their nests over the bay looking for food and making their unique screeching sound.

So far, I have been lucky in that the skies have been clear or partly cloudy.

We can see fishermen heading out to sea for their daily catch and we can see other fishermen returning to port with their catch.

And behold, the sun doth riseth.

I was a little surprised to see construction cranes on top of the hill on the other side of the bay.

Morning has arrived, and I'm looking forward to another wonderful day in the Land of the Rising Sun.

Pix4Japan by R.D.S. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.