Scarfed the last latke.
Time for menorah cleaning . . .
. . . and kadomatsu.
Context: Each Holiday Season, after we’ve topped the last latke with Uncle Ed’s gravlax and savored Cousin Benjamin’s final sufganiyot, we turn our attention to Japanese New Year or “shougatsu“. The holiday involves vast amounts of home cooked dishes (think Thanksgiving volume) and the careful placement of kadomatsu outside of homes and restaurants. These whimsical decorations, fashioned from bamboo and fresh pine branches, beckon the blessings of ancestors and the offer hopes of a bountiful harvest in the coming year.
The Tokyo Yenta 