Tag Archives: family

visiting family

Posts, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Emma and I flew to El Segundo to visit family. We stayed with my Dad (grandpa). It was very fun but so hot!

One afternoon we visited the Getty museum. It is free and so lovely. We only went in one building but saw paintings, photography and decorative arts.

We sat outside under the big umbrellas and sipped coffee. It was so nice there. I wish it was not so hot so we could have gone through the gardens.

One day we went to the Del Amo mall in Torrance. There was a new Mitsuwa marketplace. The Kinokuniya bookstore is our favorite.

We ate outside in the evenings on the patio at my Dad’s place. It would start to cool off and we would just chill out there.

Our beach day was so refreshing. The breeze off the ocean was cool and it was the first time I wasn’t sweating. Emma enjoyed playing on the shore and watching dolphins play out in the water.

We visited with lots of family. I had so much fun that I forgot to take more pictures. It was so great to hug my siblings after a long time apart.

maiki had been traveling as well and we were super happy to be reunited again.

only the essentials

Posts, , ,

As I dwell on our current circumstances and how we all exist now in what is basically a one room studio with a big closet we can access, I realize how few things we use. Its all here in this room: books on the shelf, photos on the wall, blankets and pillows, Emma’s dollhouse, our electronics and a functional kitchen. We have access to laundry down the hall and more clothes and shoes than we need. We have the best food we can buy. We have clean water. Outside is the lake, garden, libraries, museums. What else could we need?

When I read about people fleeing their homes and rushing to grab those precious items that they do not want to lose I wonder what would I take? Photos, hard drives, friends’ artwork, momentos? They are spread all over our home. I keep the things I love and use all around me and would be floundering to collect them all if I had to evacuate in a hurry. I would want to take everything! It is an interesting thought exercise for me. At the very least I should better organize our important documents since our individual social security cards, birth certificates, and passports are kept in different locations in the closet!