I did it!

  Though it is even May, it feels like summer.  According to the weather report it will get cool as usual this weekend, but, I decided to change the covers.

I started doing it from around 10 and  finished before 12.

I  ooked my lunch by myself and had it.

Well, the winter covers are piled up.

Another day, I'll take them to a laundry shop by car. 

In a week the laundry shop starts sales week, though I know, carpets are not included as things for sale. 

voluteer reading at the library and luch at a cafe

Last Sunday it was a day of my volunteer reading at the library.

A friend came to help me.

On the day many events were held in Utsunomiya, but four families joined us, and two of them were regular families.

I introduced these two books, saying "happy belated Mother's day".

The friend is my good model to learn how to spend our retirement life.

Her husband used to work at the same office of my husband, So she knows very well about our financial situation. She has two daughters and the daughters don't live in this town. The situation is very similar to ours.

After the activity, we dropped by a bakery café, and shared this big baguette.

 

 

We had free refills on coffee. What a economical café it is!

 

We talked about "FU-genn- byou".

There are two meanings. One "fu" means husband, the other "fu" means wife.

Both of them are kind of disease caused by husband's presence, or wife's presence.

Starting a retirement life, for both a husband and a wife, It is for the first time to stay at home together all day since they got married. So each presence might be stressing each other out.

 

What do you think of it?

 

I boungt pairs of supports for my knees and ankles

Even now I continue doing walk of about 5000 steps and going to gym more often.
Why?
The urgent reason is I thought it is now to do such thing, I should do that before coming humid and tough summer.
And the main reason is that Yuki's retirement life is just around the corner. I'd like to go out with him.
And do you know that his pedometer usually shows over 10000 steps. Additionally when he goes golfing, it shows about 7000 steps.
Getting to the point, He wants to keep his current exercise situation. So even when we go out by car, probably we walk lots there.
For him, 7000 steps is not enough, but OK. For me, 7000 steps  is now too much, but I want to be able to do it. So I've started this training.

However, my ankles seemed to be too tired. Sometimes they hurt a little.
It seems to be a tuning point. To do it much more won't be good, but to keep it will strengthen my knees and ankles. So I bought ankle soft supports, and knee soft supports. When I walk or do exercise I put them on. They seem to work enough.
On the other hand I constantly feel tired on my legs (calves).

Do you know these flowers? They are flowers of potatoes.


Po-ta-to flow-ers  Step creep-ing up  smooth-ly One month has passed

a concert at noon on a weekday

Though not so many, they organize a music concert by famous artists in my town. The sponsor is our city, or us who pay city tax, so that the fee is very reasonable.
It is a noon concert (we call it lunch concert), so about 1-hour concert.
This time it was full of people. Probably it was for  the first time to be full in the hall since this project started. At first some local musician performed, but unfortunately they didn't appeal to us so much. Then some famous artists were asked to perform for this project. And gradually the high  popularity and the  good quality spread by word of mouth.

The next "lunch concert" will be held in September. Oh, our retirement life will have started.
I wonder we will go there together.

I'm happy to go there together, actually many senior couples were there.

On the other hand --- one of my pleasure things might be lost.
It is to drop by a café.
I payed some money for the concert and the café.
Well if I keep the same price, --- I won't be able to drop by a café.

 

wisteria at a private house

It happened on a  weekday  last week.

I heard that a private garden is wonderful with wisterias. It is not so far that I can drive there by myself. So I was going to go there when I had free time.

One day I talked with a neighbor and told this information. She was so interested in it, and we decided to go out there in 15 minutes. 

Coincidently another neighbor passed by, so we asked her to go there together. She gave a big smile.

In 15 minutes we went out. It was 25 minute drive.

 

 

 

 

 

For the 15 minute preparing for it, I prepared thermos with coffee.

What a big garden it was.

What beautiful wisterias they were.

There were some tables under the wisterias. We had a good time with coffee and sweets (another lady brought them.) and talked for about 20 or 30 minutes there.

It was about 2 hour tea time including the start and end.

 

I'm almost in my 60's, another is almost in her 70's, and the other is almost in her 80's.

A lady is a widow and doesn't drive. Another lady has a husband who is in his late 70's so they don't drive so far.

 

Well, well, I talked about my husband. And I said "he might be a good chauffer when his retirement life starts." Every one laughed saying "Oh, sorry, but we won't hesitate. Please say hello to your husband and please take care of us!"

 

 Our retirement life must be full of laughing with our senior neighbors.

 

 

 

How many steps did I walk 0520

Since this big holiday I have continued doing walking.
Well, more than 30 minutes walking seems to make my knees, ankles, and muscle too tired.
To keep walking,  I try not to do much.

Anyway, as I always tell you, I don't like exercise very much.
So to bring fun to my walking, I installed "what glass it is --application" on my cell phone.

 

These are Katabami ( I don't know the name in English).

I did 8416 steps. It was too much.

 

Katabami; Lower your eyes  Find kindness

 

They are also pink Katabami.

I did 3400 steps.

 

Katabami; The first step, Bring me power

Before concert, I walked around the area.

This flower is marguerites.

Marguerites; Make my back straightened  up  By Young violinist

 

 

 

I attended a workshop at a kindergarten where my daughters graduated. It was the first time for me to go since then.

And I had never walked there.

I walked back home. It was nearer than I expected. I did less than 5000 steps.

 

Rice fields;  Kids with their mud hands Nostalgia runs deep

 

I hope someone will give me more suitable phrase.

 

Pre-cooked dishes and discarding 10 things 0519

Today, it is the day of volunteer reading at the library, in 2 hours I'll go out.
I have already done my weekend chores.

 I pickled raddishes. I light-boiled spring onions and carrots with  chikicensoup, and Japanese raddishes with Japanese soup stock. I made Bouled yam salad. Probably there are preserved for a couple of days, and served for our breakfast.

I also discarded 10 clothes including some sockes which don't have the other one, (pleas don't laugh . We are not very thorough. )

I've started to write in our cloth diary. 

Well ugh I am using " pre-cooked dishes" of my weekly cooking. Is it a suitable word?

Pre-cooked side-dish? Pre-cooked ingredients?  Reguraly used ingredients?  What do you think of it?