Makinosato Minami Chonaikai Natsu Matsuri 2008

This year I was appointed block leader for block #12 in the Kobayashi Daimonshita district. This is not because of an election or anything but because it is our house's turn. So, this years big event was the Summer Festival at the park across the street from Kobayashi JHS.

On Friday before the festival day we set up the tents, tables, and stage in the park. That afternoon, since my block was in charge of potatoes and butter (Jaga Batah) we had to wash and pack the them for the next day's festivities. On Saturday we baked potatoes. They had this HUGE WOK that would be primarily used in case of an earthquake to feed the whole area if need be. We hooked up a kerosene tank to this electric motor that powered a fan to blow a fuel mix to a burner underneath the wok (Think of it like a flame thrower for your stir-fry). Needless to say, this thing shot a flame that seemed to be hotter than the sun. Most everyone, including myself tried to stay as far away as possible. We then prepared all 200 potatoes and waited for people to some by.

Even with the torrential rain that came down later in the day, we ended up selling out of potatoes due to my superior sales techniques. Also, my daughter enjoyed the ice cones with her best friend Honoka.