French fry vending machine

I didn't know.


There are also live bait vending machines, hot pizza vending machines in Italy, marijuana vending machines. There is one vending machine for every 23 people in Japan. 

Someone needs to edit this in Wikipedia. I'm too tired to do it.

en route

the travelers are on their way! this picture makes me very happy, except for the fact that the little airplane icon is pointed in the wrong direction... anyway, in a mere twenty-four hours, we will be meeting the bedraggled adventurers in boston. i can't wait!

every flower enjoys the air it breathes

such a lovely weekend, and i'm kicking myself for my lack of documentation. i.e. i have been bad lately about taking pictures with my picture-ma-phone* (i also made somewhat of a resolution to learn how to use mark's actual camera, but as usual i am all about planning things out in my head and not doing them in real life). anyway, on friday night we took the freshly fifteen year-old boy out for indian food at tandoor, where we met up with m. meiklejohn. we then had a bit of a poker party, complete with isaaccash, bills printed out with isaac's face where the president should be.

anthony and jason and leander also joined us, and we had a great time and ate cake, vegan devil's food with creme filling and a thick ganache to be specific.

we also skyped with zoë and max and got some glimpses of their generous host in tokyo, josh. zoë was happy to get to chat with her pals jason and david (pictured below in the rabbit costume, for zoë's amusement).

there's been rain and rain and rain, but there was some sunshine this weekend, and digging in the dirt and grilling pizza outside on the actual grill and open windows. saturday our great friend heather was in town, staying at eva's house, and we attended a fun party there, with (again) grilled foods and little kids running around and party tricks (specifically, the chair trick, which mystified everyone and was performed a dozen times as we tried to uncover its mystery, unsuccessfully). and once again, i took no photos (except for a couple of strange unflattering ones of party guests standing with their heads against the wall, their bodies bent into a ninety degree angle, and holding a small chair...never mind, it's a long story). mark and isaac played tennis with leander and megan, bowled with anthony and karen, and then played tennis again (i pulled something in my neck, so i stayed home working on my pile of library books and enjoying the breezes through the open windows. oh, and i gave minnow a haircut).

so many words, to make up for the lack of (my own) photographs! i filled up the ice cube trays. a sure sign that warm weather's on its way.

zoë and max's adventures continue, only in japanese!

*two-thirds of these photos were stolen from mark