Daily Life

Croc Of Spite

January is the coldest time of the year in Japan, and the Fountain of Strewth has turned to ice and the Croc of Shite is more a Croc of Spite as ice drives it to the bottom of the fountain until the morning sun thaws it, almost as a reminder of the harshness of the winter.

With the still short days, the lengthy dark periods make the cold seem colder.

But this year seems to have been a return to the past.

The two most recent winters have been comparatively warm, but cloudy.

Cold, wet, dark winters are common in Melbourne, where I grew up.

But Tokyo winters are brilliantly sunny with crisp, dry, icy air. Yet that had not been the case in either 2023 or 2024.

But so far, this winter has been more like what I had regarded as customary, and I am hoping the increased sunlight will lead to more flowers in the spring. In the meantime, we have continued to be blessed by our grevillea, which has continued blooming unabated.