How hanged flower pots are destroyed!

Now everything was clear why our hanged flower pots are broken so easily.
The sand in the pots were covered by some hemp palm fibers which go bad easily.

I never imagined this, but...

White eyes pick the hemp palm fibers one after another!!!

I guess probably now it's time for them to breed, so they need some materials to make nests for it. Hemp palm finbers are probably good for them though, I almost laughed out loud. Never, never imagined they were the criminals :)

Even small living things work that hard to live on, why don't we?

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Puddings

I made these puddings in some small souffles. I do cook, it changes that the way how to cook something depends on the time. For example something must be sweeter before than now but nowadays less sweet things might be preferred because of the diet boom. It seems that there are many ways to cook puddings, I have my way to do as well as others. So i always try to find the best way for it by repeating some failures and success.



This one is in a bigger vessel originally for baking some cakes. 30 minutes needed in an oven. 20 minutes for souffles but this is bigger, so needed more time.




Biggest of the three!Very big but shorter then the previous vessel, so it just needed 40 minutes being in an oven.
I guess you know you can enjoy puddings soon after you take some from an oven if you have ever made any. Usually we enjoy puddings taking them out from refridgeators but hot ones are also great!. This is only those who make puddings by themselves can enjoy because puddings sold in shops are usually cold.



Hayaokidori website

A grove ground

A grove nearby which looks a little bit dark even in midsummer. Seldom found in big cities. If there were some bamboo grasses at the ground, maybe nitingales come to nest?



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A hornet?

I think this is a hornet which often visits delfinium flowers that are in bloom now to get their nectar. Some people say it's not a hornet, so I am really not sure it is or not. They work very hard to get nectar. When I observe them hard, I find they prefer deep flowers which they need to get in to get the nectar. For example, delfiniums and Nasturtiums etc.
I guess those flowers hold very yummy nectar :)

Hana shobu in a misty day

Went to the Hakuba Goryu ski slope alps daira gerande where some of botanical flowers have been transplanted by us. We need to volunteer to delete some weeds every year. Clowds surrounded the mountains so I thought it might be cold and no visibility. It said it was only 15C! Cold enough rather than cool at this time of the year. The flower in this pic are "Hana shobu" which is one of iris flower family. Hope it brings you some cool feelings in a hot and humid summer day.

20th anniversary today!

20 years have passed since I started this inkeeping business here in Hakuba. As an old verb says, time flies like an arrow. Sometimes I feel it very quick but sometimes very slow and long. Maybe depends on what's in your mind.
We will keep our mission to provide cozy atomosphere!

Hayaokidori website

Seibu & JR trains running the layout

A cuple of customers enjoyed the layout running their Seibu and JR trains soon after the Golden Week.
JR 183-1000 series limited express train.





Not easy to take a nice pic of running trains.





A F-class electric locomotive used to work for Seibu freight trains. Only Seibu owned some F-class electric locomotives as a private railway company at that time in Japan. But freight transportation demand has been decreasing little by little, I have not heard any newer F-class locomotives have been made after this series.




Hayaokidori website