5 December 06 | 7:58 pm
In Buddhist tradition nature is extremely important. When someone is close with nature they have found god.
This is the reason Japanese homes aren't outfitted with insulation – they want to be close to nature. I say, “Screw that, I'm freezing!”. Japanese homes have neither insulation nor central air. The homes almost breathe on their own, which is great in the summertime, but I don't know how we're going to survive through the winter.
When I arrived in Japan in June I thought it was so beautiful that the homes were made with such natural materials – just wood and paper, but now that winter's here I'm having second thoughts.
People here either heat their homes with kerosene heaters, which are great heat sources once you get over the smell, or a traditional kotatsu (a table with a heater under it). Most Japanese homes have a kotatsu, and it becomes the center of family life once the winter months set in. Too bad we don't have one. I think I'm getting used to the kerosene smell.
One of the worst parts of living in a Japanese home in Japan in the winter is the shower room. There's nothing worse then standing naked on the shower room's stone floor waiting for the gas to heat the shower water.
Brrr...I think I need to go fill my kerosene tank.
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