New Year's Eve

Usually I cook Osechi on New Year's Eve, though mine is so simple.

But this year I don't cook it.
No one doesn't come back here. We are going to go to see our mothers, relatives and my daughter.
We are spending quiet Eve at home.

However, we cook some pre-cooked food for this usual our week.



Marinated carrots, and I pickled sliced onion in "honey".

とりあえず、にんじんフラッペと、たまねぎの蜂蜜漬け。


I also cooked sweet potato paste, sweet beans jelly, and boiled eggs soaked with soy sauce,

Tomorrow, I will serve these with special plates to celebrate a new year.

Two days before New Year

It is raining now. Some people (mainly husbands) might be happy to "avoid" winter cleaning. And "unfortunately" I skipped washing my car. Yuki already finished washing his car early of this month.

In the morning "I" went to the gym to work out. It was the last business day of  the gym.
Then we went out to take our special feast for our new year to a restaurant. And did some shopping at a shopping mall.

This year it is the Year of the Rat according to Chinese zodiac.
I'm going to present a small candy bag when I start my class. So I'm making the bags with ORIGAMI.

Before New Year

Wow! 10 days have passed since I updated this blog.
Our "fulfilling" Christmas week was finished. Each of Yuki and I participated in a concert as a player. Yuki played the guitar, and I played the bass recorder.



Then we went to an art gallery  in Tokyo.

Some of my daughter's works were displayed and of course sold. However unfortunately we didn't see the tag of "sold out". It can't be helped.

I put away Christmas ornaments,  and put some New Year's ornaments.

And, in the morning, we went to an apple farm to buy the last apples of this year. There I got some bamboo. I made my ordinal easy "KADOMATSU" instantly.

What is "KADOMATSU"?
Many Japanese decorate the front door of shops, company buildings and houses with a pair of "Kadomatsu" during the New Year holidays. "Kado" means a gate and "Matsu" means a pine tree. "Kadomatsu" is a decoration consisting of bamboo and pine branches and symbolizes longevity and prosperity. It is said that this is the appropriate way to welcome gods. 

What is fun for me "now"?

I know that it is my custom to complain or mutter.
Well, now I'm muttering --- what is fun for me "now"? What makes me easy up "now"?
I'm really happy and thank that our retirement life has started without troubles.

On the other hand, I feel that nowadays things I do are done out of obligation or by the rule of "saving". I seem to have no room for fun in my heart.

A friend said "you enjoy playing pretend ---saving"


Actually, now we try to accumulate point coupons  effectively as much as we can.
It is fun. So I put advertisement of super coupon day on the calendar. It is OK.
However, sometimes we think "on the day we have to go to the supermarket", or "except the day we must not go to the supermarket".
We feel to be subject to restrictions.

We enjoy one-day trip with lunchbox.
It is easy to have lunch when we want to eat, and we don't need to find a restaurant nearby.
And of course we can save.
On the other hand, sometimes I think "I have to take lunchbox to save money"

Well, nowadays I feel I do all things while calculating spending tightly. I (now we) sometimes feel it is  hard life for me.

Well, well, I know, how lucky we are because we spend days freely.
So I think "we have to enjoy,  we have to thank"
I'm subjected to the way of thinking "have to".

How we feel calm, and happy naturally?
Starting from the style or obligations, it will reach to natural style???


Well, well, nowadays I present small teabags.
They are filled my homemade herb tea.






Some friends are waiting for them.
I know it is a kind of way to save ---- I might put down myself too much.

walking diary 1216

This winter pepper is still alive.
I walked  to my friend's beauty salon to get a hair cut. 5909 steps.
Toward the end of the year, finish cleaning the windows, get a hair cut

I found this plum-leaved apple tree. We call one "hime rihgo"--- princess apple.
Since Yuki retires, we have often been downtown to do errands, mainly our financial situation.
On the day we changed a credit card into other's company's credit card. I walked 5700 steps.
Christmas is coming Teabags filled with homemade tea  Decorated by bows

This is my friend's vegetable field. You see Japanese radishes and Chinese cabbages.
How great they are.
I waked there and did 5900 steps.

Cook Daikon; without entering the field , only wait outside

 

lunch diary 1216

Monday, I went to a building where our city social welfare council is. My husband also went there together. I wanted some advice from them ---- how our laughter yoga meeting is registered as a senior health activity supported by our city. We went around some departments which are on different floor. Each of them understood what I wanted, but --- we just got a bureaucratic runaround.
Anyway we had lunch outside. I forgot to take a photo. We really understood that it would be very difficult for such a private small activity organized by a person  to be officially licensee by city.



We had ODEN-lunch.
This is ODEN.

At city hall get a runaround ; the last month of the year



Tuesday, than I expected, Yuki went back before noon.
So I cooked one more meal for "us".
Yuki stopped working in September, but the last winter bonus was payed. It is the last working income (probably)

Last winter bonus; The retirement life has really started Get on the ball 



Wednesday, we went to our favorite fish shop. Because on the day the owner's wife cooked something special. Can you see it was in the black bin.
It was tuna-Shigureni.
Shigureni (seafood or meat that has been cooked in soy sauce and mirin) is a kind of tsukudani (small fish, shellfish, konbu (a kind of kelp used for Japanese soup stock), etc. boiled in sweetened soy sauce) cooked with ginger.

With Sigureni  Freshly cooked rice; A winter lunch



Thursday, I went out with this rice ball to do errands.
With a bow on top Tea bags filled with my handmade tea: Christmas present



Friday, it was really cold. I cooked ramen noodle for me. The day before it was warm like a day in the middle of October.  So the coldness was very tough for me.

On a cold winter, make me enjoy hot noodle, bearing the coldness

"my" wish list

Last week, I went hiking  to Mt. Ohira. Well, for many people it might not  be hiking, just walking. But for me it was enough to call it hiking. Hiking Mt. Ohira was one of my wish.


Three or four years ago, I wrote out what I want in my senior life.
Then, I was with a friend who was 10 younger than me. She wrote out what she wanted in her 50's.
She picked 100 things. I could pick 50 things.
And now I did 12 things. The number of the rest is 39.

Some things are really specific, like taking a medical bath ( a kind of hot springs) in a Japanese inn.
Probably we'll go in no distant future.
Others are abstract, like organizing our house in a cool way. What is "cool" we consider?

I want my house looks cool, looks tidy. So I continue discarding 10 things a week.
I don't know what is the goal, so discarding 10 things might have kept all my life.

Some things need physical power. I want to improve my English skill, so I need concentration. Keeping concentration needs physical power. So it might be difficult to improve it, but I try to keep my current English skill.

Some things need financial ability. When I wrote out this list, our daughters were in Japan. Now the younger one is living in Thailand. So we earmark the necessary money for visiting them instead of overseas travel.

I need reconsider this list. And I ask about Yuki's list.
The person who uses our saving first wins?? No, No, we always discus about how to use our savings while quarreling or discussing.

Well, Yuki was a businessman, so lots of things including taxes are withhold from his salary automatically. Now we are understating our real financial system.

What rules do you have in your house?

The other day, two high school students and I talked about what kind of rules of you house  we have.
It was interesting. Well, on the day the target sentences we have to learn were "must", "be forced to do", and "be supposed to"
A girl said:
We have an old dog, so we must take care of him.
My brother and I are supposed to give meals and water. From Monday to Tuesday I do,
and from Wednesday to Saturday my brother does. But we don't walk him because we go to school on weekdays. So my mother is supposed to walk him. On Sundays someoput tne who is available is supposed to walk him.

A boy said:

We are a family of three, my mother, my father and me. We have our own room. So we must clean their room by ourselves, even my father. My father and I are supposed to clean our own room on Saturdays, or Sundays, because we are not home on weekdays. My mother is strict about using a cell phone. We are forced not to use or check our cell phonse while we have meal at home.
While I was listening to them, I was thinking about our rules of our house.

Now we are a family of two, Yuki and me. And now both of us are housemakers.
So we must take care of our house and do errands autonomously.
While I'm preparing for meals, he is supposed to help me instead of doing his things. As of now he isn't able to cook well, so he is forced to set the table. After having meals, we are supposed to clean the kitchen together. We don't have a dishwasher, so while either is doing the dishes, the other one dry the dishes and put them away.

lunch diary 1209

Though it is in the middle of this week, I write my lunch diary of last week.
Monday, Yuki and I went to Tokyo. We got off at Tokyo station, but on the way home we detoured. We went to Ueno station and had a nice Chinese lunch at our favorite restaurant.

Toward the end of the year:
Enjoy more than 10000 steps
At Imperial Palace



Tuesday, we had Chinese lunch at home.
On the day before, we bought special spice called "ganraa".
It is Yuki's favorite.
So I cooked Chinese lunch for him. Of course he sprinkled it on the meal as much as he wanted.

At a warm winter noon:
A taste reminds him of
Business trips




Wednesday, I ate the rest of yesterday's Chinese meal and fried vegetables.
I talked with my mother on the phone. She seemed to go shopping with me???
Year-end sale;
Mom waits with excitement
Though old enough



Thursday we went out to "climb" a mountain with our lunch box.
We were going to "walk" up a hill, but it was a real mountain for me.
On a warm winter day;
As soon as going through a shrine gate
Begin climbing




Friday, I got deep-fried tofu from our neighbor. They were sold at a famous tofu shop.
So I cooked Oden.

Stew Oden;
Share it with two of us
Three meals a day

walking diary 1209

Do you know these fruits? They are called "OHITABI" in Japanese. They seem to be called creeping figs.
Have you seen them? It was the first time for me to see them. Are the fruit editable?
We went to listen to a concert in which my friend performed. Before the concert we walked around, and walked 6218 steps.
OOITABI is not a seasonal word of autumn. I chose Camellia sasanqua (not camellia)

SAZANAK (camellia sasanquai);
Reflected their thick green
The pink shining more

 

 

As I wrote the last blog, we went to Imperial Palace to see Daijyokyu which is opened to the  public for a limited period.

Coming the end of the year ;

At Imperial Palace

14000 steps

 

We happened to have the other opportunity to see colorful leaves.  It was the real last time to enjoy colorful leaves this year.  We went to Mt. Ohhira.

Actually we was not going to Mt. Ohhira. We went to Ohhira shrine. But it was a mountain.

We walked 7004 steps.

A good winter day;

Going through the shrine gate

Begin climbing

 

Go to Tokyo

Until this week "dakjyoukyu" is open to general people.

Our retirement life has already started, and we might have lots of free days, but, than we expected we are luckily busy in our own things.
We happened to have a all-free day, so we went out to Tokyo to see DAIJOKYU. The period general people can see is only two weeks, after that the facilities (or buildings) are going to be removed.

We went on a weekday, but as we expected there were lots of people who were not only the senior, in their various generation.

This time we didn't have our water bottles, because bringing drinks were prohibited. And when we entered we had to take a security check. So we went there with just one small bag.

 

Anyway around Tokyo station, there were lots of people such as tourists, businessmen, and walkers.

We also enjoyed Christmas decoration.

 

This doll is "chiko-chan", Yuki's faviorite TV character.

 

A lady made a speech about Chiko-chan, she is a member of Toast Master club (well, I don't know her.)

 

lunch diary 1202

Monday, these are fresh TSUNA-bowls. I put fresh TSUNA dipped with soy sauce, Nori seaweed, and half boiled eggs. Of course I put WASABI.

Winter gourd, With a little extra effort Though only one bowl lunch



Tuesday, it was not a good weather though it didn't rain. Yuki was staying home while I held a laughter yoga meeting at home.
Early winter; No one call themselves the old While laughing


Wednesday, it was very called. I talked with my mother on a phone. While talking with mother I often felt irritated. Anyway she is busy in going to doctors. Thanks to doctors, she has to walk by herself. It is lucky to her.
Early winter, Mother watching a hot pot Stick in the house



Thursday, we went out downtown to do lots of errands. At noon, we had still errands to do, so we bought bread  With a sigh on the bench Still leaving errands



Friday, all cooked prepared meal finished eating.
Winter rain, avoid walking exercise, doing errands home

walking diary 1202

I was late for updating a record of the last week.

On this day, I did 7200 steps.
We went to listen to a concert, before concert we walked around the hall.

Early winter, walk with light steps, enough to make us sweat

 

Can you see big DAIKONs? It is a season of DAIKON. I did 5809 steps walking around my house.
DAIKON; Avoid having far to go  Having leaden feet

 

How magnificent a pair of Sazanka!
We went out for shopping, but the number of my steps didn't reach 5000 steps. So on the way home I got out of the car and walked home. I did 5871 steps.

Before winter rain (SHIGURE-cloud) Go to the city hall Without a title

 

Additionally, another day I went around my house by bike. The distance was about 4km. But my pedometer showed only 1600steps.
I joined our city health activity project. My walking steps is registered as Utsunomiya health point through their app. However their app doesn't count the point by bike correctly.