kyburg | This year's fukubukuro take

This year's lucky bag from Marukai.

This year's take includes dessicant for the shoes in the closet, shaving cream, two kinds of waterproofing for your shoes, moisturizer, measure spoons, a calculator, a loofa, a Japanese bath towel, four placemats, shower soap (two kinds), a tea and cup set (rustic, hand-built-like) and FM/AM transistor radio (BONG).

It also includes a complete set of baby dishes (a cosmic hint?) and some storage items.

But this year, they had a line snaking around the building for this thing - you could only get one bag of either kind (non-food or food - this is a non-food bag, natch) - and the cost was only $20, but you had to have cash.

They sold out in an hour. Next year, I get there earlier! But note - little old Japanese people are frightening on New Years Day. Frightening, I tell you.

Welcome to 2005 - so far, so good.

And now, we pack up Christmas and put it away until next year.