I did something crazy. Actually, WE did something crazy. My little family trio took a trip back to Japan this past July. Everyone told us we were idiots crazy for vacationing anywhere in Asia during the summer months. The weather anywhere in Asia is both hotter than the 7th circle of hell, & more humid than a sweaty ass crack in a Scandinavian sauna. I’m not even exaggerating, not even a little bit.
We went on a summer holiday to Osaka. July was the only time available between our little bean finishing preschool and the start of kindergarten at her new elementary school. I tried to plan ahead & bought a portable clip-on fan for us to use on the days it was overbearing hot, but that fan didn’t quite cut it, especially for 3 people to take turns. Sure, it worked well, & as advertised, but to truly beat the heat (the humidity was tolerable), we needed a stronger & larger fan.
Towards the end of our 2 week trip, I caved & bought a bigger handheld electric fan, one that I saw every other woman using or buying. Why didn’t I buy this fan at the beginning of our trip you might be wondering. Well, first of all, I wanted to justify buying the little clip-on one & not have Jian complain that it was a wasted purchase.
Next, we weren’t outside very often. Our hotel was connected to the main subway station & all of the nearby shopping malls/department stores (of which there were many). So we very much utilized all of the underground passageways and tunnel connectors between all of the buildings, & when we weren’t riding the nicely air conditioned subway, we were taking taxis. We made sure to walk outside as little as possible to stay out of the heat.
Lastly, we were so lucky to be in Osaka, which is near the bay, so there was plenty of breeze/wind to circulate the air & made the overall weather more tolerable. (Sorry, Tokyo.) The only time we got pummeled by the heat was on the day we traveled to nearby Nara so our little bean could say her prayers to the extra large Buddha at Toda-ji temple & feed the deer. (FYI, we are a Buddhist family, but we don’t strictly adhere to all of the spiritual teachings.)
At the end of our trip, we used the fan a couple of times, & I felt foolish for buying it, thinking that once we got home I’d have no other use for it other than the 2-3 week Indian Summer we get in the Bay Area at the end of September. Boy, was I wrong. So very wrong. I have been using his handheld electric fan almost every day since I’ve gotten back home.
I mostly use this fan at night after showering (we are a nighttime shower family). Other times I will use it throughout the day. I don’t know if it’s because I am going through what I think it might be for a woman roughly my age (perimenopause), or if I am just hot from the shower or doing strenuous manual labor, but I feel like I am experiencing hot flashes & need to use the fan quite often. This fan has been an incredibly useful tool.
My little bean tends to get hot when she sleeps, so often times when she co-sleeps with me, I will set the fan on its stand on my nightstand & turn it on for a few minutes to circulate the air around the room, while cooling down my little bean so she can have a restful night’s sleep. I also use the fan to cool down hot food sometimes.
The handheld fan comes with a stand that can also connect to a USB-C charging cable, or it can be charged without the stand. I am so glad I bought this handheld fan, & I am even more happy that I have found multiple uses for it, so I consider this purchase a success. Here are a few photos of the fan, in the exact color that I purchased:
Until the next post, cheers!
Song of the day:
Rabbits & Foxes 
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