気づけば今年も残り3週間ほどとなっています。

クリスマスやお正月が近づいてきていますね。

今年1年を振り返り、やり残したことがないようにしたいですね。

I love winter. It’s not as scenic as fall, but it is cold. Do I like being cold? I’m not insane, so no. However, I do like wearing wool coats and sweaters, and I like curling up in a blanket on the couch, and I like drinking steaming hot cups of cocoa. These are all things that I can only do in the cold of winter. Therefore, I love winter.

I have quite a few blankets at home. More than I objectively need, honestly. It doesn’t get as cold in Ogaki as it does in Seattle, so I haven’t really needed more blankets. However, my sister back home has been shivering her way through fall and into winter, so she clearly needs more blankets. What’s the point of such cold weather if you can’t become a proper blanket burrito? Then it’s just needless suffering. Since I’ve gotten so much yarn lately for crochet, I decided to make my sister a blanket for Christmas to facilitate her blanket burrito-ing. It’s not a huge blanket, since I need to fit this thing in my suitcase along with all my other stuff when I visit, but it’s certainly big enough for a nice lap blanket while on the couch watching TV or playing video games.

It’s finished now, but I’m terrible about photographing my crafting projects, so here’s a WIP from early on, when it was about 1m wide and 41cm long. And I can attest that it’s very cozy, because when I work on it (while sitting on my sofa watching YouTube on the TV), the finished portions cover my lap and keep me nice and warm and comfy. I hope she enjoys it even more in her bitterly cold Seattle winters.

How Did It Start?

The tradition started when an expat buying fried chicken at a KFC location in the neighborhood of Aoyama mentioned that, since there was no turkey in Japan, chicken was the next big thing. The store manager then proceeded to tell higher-ups about their findings. As a result, KFC launched its クリスマスにはケンタッキー (Kentucky for Christmas) campaign in 1974, which became an instant hit that has not lost any steam throughout the years.

By 1985, Kentucky had launched its Christmas Party Barrel, which includes eight pieces of chicken, a dessert (tiramisu for the 2019 set), a side dish, and a commemorative plate for a 4,100 yen.

This can be very expensive when compared to what Kentucky Fried Chicken offers in the United States, but in Japan KFC has a different kind of pedigree. This is one of the reasons foreigners are shocked when finding out how Japan associates KFC with Christmas. After all, in many other countries, Christmas is a holiday where people prepare spectacular dishes for Christmas dinners and lunches (depending on how each family celebrates, since there are families that will have dinner on Christmas Eve with one side of the family, and Christmas lunch with the other); and then you have Japanese people getting Kentucky Fried Chicken to celebrate an adopted holiday that has no true meaning for them. It’s a very fun example of how Western festivities can take a whole different shape in the Land of the Rising Sun.

The bizarre and incredibly popular custom has become so intense that people tend to pre-order their Party Barrels in advance so as to avoid the crowds or being left without KFC for Christmas.

Japanese people never fail to create unique customs, and this campaign is exactly one of them. If you happen to be in Japan during Christmas and would like to partake in this festivity, go line up at a KFC and get your Party Barrel. If you have Japanese friends in town, then make the day even better by celebrating with them, KFC style.

Thank you for reading my blog!

みなさん、こんにちは。

クリスマスが近づいてきましたね。

アメリカでは、感謝祭が終わるとクリスマスのデコレーションやら何やらと準備を始めるそうですが、

みなさんのお家では、いつ頃クリスマスの準備を始められますか？

今日は岐阜本部校にクリスマスツリーを出しました。

そして、ハローズのクリスマスパーティーも近づいてきましたね。

参加を予定しているみなさんは楽しみにしていることかと思います。

プレゼント交換などもあってきっと良いクリスマスの思い出になると思います。

まだ、申し込みはしていないけど、気になっているよ、という子たちはぜひ参加してみてください！

シュトーレン大好きです。

雪のように白く、レーズンやナッツがたくさん入っていて。

クリスマスに食べたいお菓子ですね。

他にもヘクセンハウス（お菓子の家）やレープクーヘン、

クリスマスプディング、ブッシュドノエル、ジンジャーマンクッキー、

シュガーケーンと暖炉の前で食べたいものがいっぱい！

過去にいろいろ作ってみたことがあります。イギリス人のお母さんに習ったり

簡単なセットを買って家を組み立てたりと。

それでもなかなかおいしいシュトーレンに会うことがなかったのですが

先日、ホットケーキミックスで作るシュトーレンのレシピをみつけワクワク

しています。美味しそうなので！！　そして簡単そう！！

どうぞ太りすぎないように運動してからスイーツを食べるようにしましょう。

レシピは・・・

ホットケーキミックス　１５０グラム

卵　　大さじ１

ミルク　大さじ１

砂糖　　大さじ２

ドライフルーツ　５０グラム

好みのナッツ　３０グラム

溶かしバター

粉砂糖（トッピング用）　適量

材料を混ぜ、クッキングシートの上に置き、１８０度のオーブンで２０～３０分

様子を見ながら焼きます。（詳しいことは、ネットで調べてくださいね）

１２月このクリスマスシーズンは華やかでいいですね！

コツリス聞きながら食べてください。ノートに粉砂糖が散ってもサンタさんは怒りません。

Stay home. And happy holidays!