Sumo!

After hiding the rest of the candy from the kids, we grabbed the camera and headed towards the park, located at the foot of the village shrine. Several food vendors and a toy booth were set up and folks were eating, drinking, and visiting with friends and neighbors. As we turned the corner, a table full of men shouted out "Michelle! Aaron!" Who were these men?? Oh well, in this place, everyone knows us. Aaron walked over while I followed the boys around and tried to keep them out of trouble. Apparently, one of the men is on the assembly and remembered Aaron from the after-party-party when the men went out drinking and I remained at home (like the good little wife that I am, right?). Conscious of the social nuances, I opted to let Aaron hang out with the men while I took care of the boys. No sooner had he sat than a beer was plopped into his hand. He made the mistake of finishing it, and then had to drink another. I don't know exactly what the conversation was about, but they were having a good time. Next think I know (about half an hour later), the table is being cleared and a couple of the men are challenging Aaron to some arm-wrestling. He only won one out of four, but he sure was becoming popular. After munching on some squid on a stick - yes, that's squid on a stick (chew, chew - crunch -oops, I guess that was the beak), Aaron heard the word, "SUMO!"

One of the day's events included a children's pseudo sumo contest. Kids took turns pushing each other around a sawdust filled ring. As you can see from the pictures, the contestants were of all ages. It was a blast to watch! So, Aaron's new found friend was challenging him to some "sumo"! Never one to pass down a challenge, Aaron cheerfully complied. Maybe this was a decision made easier by the third beer shoved into his hand (those of you who know Aaron, he's kind of like a two-beer kind of guy), who knows. The first match was kind of a draw (though I thought Aaron lost by stepping out of the ring before managing to throw down his opponent). With cries of "one more, one more" issuing from his partner, Aaron and the other man faced off once more. Within seconds, Aaron had reached down, grabbed the other man's pants leg, picked him completely off the ground, and tossed him down, winning the match and earning many cheers from the audience. It was awesome!

We watched the wrestling a bit longer, then headed over to the "par golf" golf course, to which Aaron had been invited earlier in the week. We arrived late (too much sumo), and the game was already in play. As we sauntered leisurely by, saying hello and greeting people, we decided to go home. For some reason, one of the organizers decided to give me one of the packages used for prizes (turned out it was dashi -used for making miso soup-, a bowl of quick cooking noodles, some dry noodles, and a plastic organizer). As we went up the street, Aaron and I decided it would be best if he hung out for a while, so I took the boys home.

Another beer. Poor Aaron - I can't believe he was able to have another one, though it had been a while. It's just so hard to tell them no. Seriously...not the kind of "it's hard" that you say when you are at some college party...but it's really awkward. Its another reason why I didn't sit with Aaron at the table with the men - I didn't want to have to refuse a beer. Anyway, he hung out, eventually played a game, and had a blast. Many of the guys (no women were there) were pretty drunk and spent inordinate amounts of time looking for their golf balls. After the first round, everyone got more relaxed with Aaron and started to tease him. Whenever he would try to swing, someone would yell, "Aaron-san!" He would turn, and be given a thumbs up accompanied by a wide grin. They really loved trying to mess him up. He said the golf clubs were soooo short for him that he had to step off the tee-off board to swing properly. The group decided after the first round he couldn't do that anymore, so he played very badly next go round. At least he was sober!

All in all, it was quite the adventurous day. While Aaron golfed, I returned home with the boys, only to have them invited over to Ruya's house. I actually had some time alone! It was weird, though, to think about my kids being next door in a house where there is almost no English. It's amazing how well people can get along even when they don't speak the same language!