A New Piece of Furniture

Austin, a good friend of Dev, dropped this by today. It's our Christmas/Wedding/Birthday present. 

It looks just like a simple table but it's actually a Kotatsu. This is a part of the wikipedia entry they have "Most Japanese housing is not insulated to the same degree as a western domicile and does not have central heating, thus relying primarily on space heating. Heating is expensive because of the lack of insulation and the draftiness of housing. A kotatsu is a relatively inexpensive way to stay warm in the winter, as the futons trap the warm air. This is also the time of the year where many activities take place around the kotatsu, such as eating, reading, watching television, and socializing. Families may choose to concentrate their activity to this one area of the house in order to save on energy costs. In the summer, the blanket may be removed, and the kotatsu can be used as a normal table." 

Which means there's a space heater underneath and a blanket to keep the heat in. This is going to be so nice on the crazy cold days that usually happen in the wonderful state I'm currently residing in.

The table is simply gorgeous and Austin did a fantastic job on it. It's a perfect gift for my anime loving husband.

My mother actually served a mission in Japan and when I told her about the awesome new piece of furniture I had been given she was slightly jealous, wanted to show me the pictures of her sitting at one of them (which she's shown us kids a million times), and then promised that she would make us a legit Japanese dinner to eat in the authentic Japanese manner. I'm definitely taking her up on that offer as I love her gyoza, miso soup, and california rolls. I'm pretty excited!