Finally ---

Anyway I wrote the result at first. This Friday my yougher daughter passed into a college. Fron next spring she is going to be a college student and to leave this home, though she is going to live with her daughter together.
I'm happy, I feel lost, and I'm sad beacause she is going to leave home.

In my elder daghter's case, I often wrote her situation how, what she was studying and drawing. But I didn't dare to wirte about my younger daughter's situation.

If you know my daughters, they have completely different character.
My elder daugter is a type to grind away for her purpose. So in her case she decided her concreat aim as soon as she became a high school student. So my husand and I was just watchng her, though unfortunally she failed in entering the college she wished for the best. But now she enjoy her another college live. Next week art festival is going to be held at her college.

My younger daugher-- it is difficult to discribe her character. optimistic, free, easygoing. Anyway she was living the world without "making efforts", it means she didn't study very much. Probably one of the reason was she didn't find a purpose after her graduation.
When she was in the second at high school, she was always in a bad temper. Her fasion was getting wild (from my eyes), she startedpart time job, and her grade got the lowest. My husband and I were really worried about her. But from last winter, she started changing, she started thinking about her feature, and she started show interests in interia.
And she suddenly started to study hard, and from the winter she has got good score.

So she got letter of recommnedation from school, and she got a test of "drawing".
It was not a usual examination. She had to draw her favorite buldings until the examination day.
On the examination day, she had to make a speech about her drawin, and wrote a short peper about a theme that was given on the day. And the theme was "design".

And yesterday we got a notice of "passing".

I tried to show you one of her picturers. But I couldn't attached it on this blog. I don't know why.
Anyway if you are intereseted in it, please drop by my photo site.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/choro/

What do you eat for breakfast?

I asked to draw a picture of breakfast to my students.

It was fun.Though we are all Japanese, some students eat toast, some students eat rice.

What makes me surprised, many students drink barley tea.

If you have visited Japana and stayed RYOKAN, probably they served grilled fish, MISO soup, a fried egg, rice , and Nori& Natto. I think it is a typical old-fashioned breakfast.

Most students eat rice or bread, some salad, some fruit. and barley tea. And sometimes eat ham, a fried egg.

And a student said "I want spaghetti with meat sauce".

Well, our breakfast; my daughter eat rice and left-over of OBENTOU.

My husband and I usualy eat toast and coffee, and drink homemade yoghurt with green vegetable powder.

candy sweet potatoes

What is the most typical vegetable for you in fall? "Sweet potaotes". In these area lots of kindergardents and elementary schools an event of digging sweet potaotes is held.
I got lots of sweet potaotes. There are various way to cook them; Tenpura, grilled potatoe, potato pie.
And one of my favorite cooking is this "candy sweet potaotes". It might be called "DAIGAKUIMO". But I don't know how to cook "DAIGAKUIMO". This season I often cook these candy sweet potatoes.

cut sweet potatoes , deep fried.

On the other hand prepare another pan.
put some oil and sugar(I use unrefineded sugar ) and heat them up.
And put some vinegar to make liquid candy.

put hot fried sweet potatoes into them.

The end.

Well, if you know about DAIGAKUINO,
http://japanesefood.about.com/od/sweetpotato/r/daigakuimo.htm

What book made an impression?

This weekend I attended Toast Master meeting. I was asked a short speech, the title is What book made animpression ?

It is fall, in Japan it is said that it is the best season to eat, to play sports and to read books.

I love reading, and usualy every other week I go to the library and borrow some books. But about sudde question I couldn't ghink of suitable books.

So I told about my kids. When my kids were little, my family used to go to the library every other week together. It was a kind of family event.

When my daughter was in the second or third grade, she suddenly showed interest of this book, because she performed it at school. I thought it was for her too thick to read. She was done. I really surprised and proud of her. From that her reading hobby has started.

I don't know the English name. This authour is Garmany. I want to read this book in English.

If someone tell me the English title, I'm really glad.

On the other hand my younger daughter was into Little King series. Even now this series is really populer among kids. I don't know whether are translated in English. On the other hand I found a little bit similar books. It is "Prince Bertram The Bad". The aurthor is "that " Arnold Nobel. my junior high school students and high school students loves him. So I bought the book.

GOYA

This spring I planted GOYA, and I got some GOYA. GOYA is usually grown in OKINAWA, and it is famous for the really bitter taste. Actaully I don't like it very much, but I heard it was good for our health and easy to grow, so I planted.

This summer my husband and I have had GOYA & yoghurt juice almost every morning. Though the taste was really bitter, but the vivid green juice looked really healthy.

A friend said ripe GOYA is not so bitter.So I waited some GOYA to be ripe.

The usual green GOYA is hard, but the ripe GOYA is really soft.

I made GOYA tempura with gree peppers.

Unexpectedly or as my friend said, it was not so bitter , proper bitter taste. Even my daughter was willing to eat it.

This summer we really enjoyed "GOYA". Thanks "GOYA".

I don't like gardening very much, and I'm not good at gardening.BUT this time we could get ripe goya because I did gardening. Growing vegetables in the garden might be add to the list of my hobbies.

Japanese pears

We call PEARS in English LA.France, and we call Japnese pears just "pears", though it is usual. We have lots of kinds of Japanese pears. When I was a child, my family lived in SHIMANE, so "NIJYUSSEIKI" pears used to be usual pears, and we moved to KANAGAWA. Here, "CYOUJYURO" pears used to be usual pears. And now I'm in TOCHIGI. From the late of August to the begining of November we enjoy various pears. The first pears are called "Kousui". And now we enoy these pears; from the left "Nansui", "Housui", "Akizuki".

Everything is delicious and of couse all of them have little bit different tastes.

Though it is just my thought, "Nansui" is really sweet, "Housui" has lots of mosture, and "Akizuki" reminds me the taste of "MIJYUSSEIKI" which I used to eat when I was a child. It has plain taste.

Going out --with my yougner daugher

My elder daughter and I tend to show the same interest though we often have quarrels. On the other hand my yougner daughter and I tend to have different interest. But I want her to take there. So I showed this brochure. according to expectation she showed an interest.

She loves Asain taste. And this artist is influenced a lot from Mexico. Asain taste and Mexican taste seeims to be differnet but I thing something is common.

The art itself is wonderful. But AKIRA, the artist is really strange carrer, if I dare to say he used to be a hippie. My daughter tend to yearn such a unprecedented or fantastic or strange world. So I don't want her to be influenced by him. On the other hand I want know her there is one life.

Anyway she enjoyed this exhibition. And I also enjoyed. After that we have a good lunch. Compared with my elder daughter, she is a still obedient child even though she is a adolescence.

Additionaly, I also went out with my husband --- to golf shop. For me it was a little bit boring. it can't be helped.

Going out --with my elder daughter

This weekend I went to MITO with my elder daughter. Though I didn't know that, in Mito there is a famous art museum, "Art tower Mito". http://www.arttowermito.or.jp/atm-e.html

It seems to be produced by the famous conducter "Seij Ozawa". Do you know of him?

Anyway we went there to see a exhibition of HIBINO KOZUE.

She seems to be famous as a fashion designer. And these days she started to produce funitures and kitchen tools through her housewife situation. And in the same time a dance performance was done. The dancer was KAIJI MORIYAMA, he also seems to be famous among the youth like my daughter.

Unfortunately I didn't know both of them, but I could really enjoy the exhibition and the performance.

BUT, did you remeber who I went with there? yes with my daughter.

Each time I said a comment, she said "You are middle aged woman (OBASAN)". She doesn't like my comments. Everything I said seems to hear negative for her.

For example, there was a cute bag. But the bottom was made by felt. The color is really vivid and cute. But I thought "felt is easy to be unkempt". ( I don't know how to say in English, felt is easy to rugged by static electricity??.)
My daughter said "if you want to say some negative comments, at least after negative comments you should say positive comments".

Why I was been lectured by her??

She also said "it can't be helped because you are gettin older."

It is difficult to go with my adult child. Though I could went a good place, I was often irritated ( and my daughter was also irritated.)

But now I'll miss her!

Going out ---with my friend

I went to listen to a lecture with a friend. The lecture was done by a pictuer book writer. Her major is not art, not literature. Her major is Spanish. But she has liked drawing. One day she asked to draw a picture on the menu when she worked a part time job at a restaurant. And her life as a picture writer has started.

She is not still so famous, but a little by little she is getting famous in this area. To be surprised she has lived nearby.

Her original chracter is this bare boy?. She said her baby gave her a lots of hint to draw pictures. So she decided this bare boy as her original character. I bought this new calendar with the character and simple phrases.

My favorite words in this calender is "enjoy change".

Going out with friends is really enjoynable. we could spend a really calm and elegant time in fine clothes.

my garden --not so good

The change of current temperature is sever, though it' s in fall. Today it is a calm day. Yesterday it was really cold like early winter, and before three days it was like summer. Though I planted some seeds and seedlings in the garden, they are not growing well.

The only fine vegetables are GOYA. (Well, green peppers are also fine, these days we don't need to buy green peppers.) This summer we (it means my husband and I, my daughter "hates" it) had enough GOYA.

I planted some broccolies, but they are not growing well.

And I planted seeds of spinach, finally they begin to sprout.

Can I get some homemade vegetables this fall???

What big eels are they!

Today's dinner is "eels". I'd wanted to have Japanese eels. And this morning a friend sent them.

Japanese eels are expensive. Though we can buy Chinese eels for reasonalbe price, I'm little bit afriad to buy them because of these days bad reputation of food additives.

The friend lives in KYUSYU region. Though Hamamtsu in Kantou is famous for eels, the region of KYUSYU has the most eels rop in Japan. So in her area eating Japanese domestic eels seems to be usual.

On the other hand this area where I live is famous for GYOZA, so many people eat GYOSA usually than other areas, I think.

I love eels. I'm really glad to get Japanese big eels. Thank you!!!

Well these eels are already cooked, so what I have to do is just "chin" ; I put them in the microwave.

Northern Europe exhibition

At a art museum in this area Northen Europe exhibition was being held. My daughter and I went to see it.

What kinds of things do you imagine when you hear "Northern Europe"?

Probably the most typical thing is "Moomin".

Actaully my daughter was looking forward to seeing Moomin things.

But unfortunately there was not so many.
Instead of them, there were lots of chair we can sit directly.
Our cuntry "Japan", it is a culture of TATAMI, on the other hand Europe it is a culture of chairs, isn't it?

It was really fun.

And I could see many pottery, I like pottery.

I thought their white is clear white, and Japanese white is a little vague, isn't it?

They like clear straight lines, and aboutJapanese pottery probabbly we tend to use curves, don't we?

It was also fun.

Young Leaves sticker

They are called "WAKABA" stickers. "WAKABA" means young leaves.

This weekend my elder daughter came back to stay with us and to drive.

This summer vacation she took driver's license lessons, and finaly she got a driver's license.

Beginner drivers have to put these stickers on the frond and back of the car when they drive.

They are her stickers.

This week end she gave us a ride (or we can say my husband and I supervised her drive sitting next to her.)

The drive was thriling and slow but not so dangerous.

Anyway we could spend family weekend after a long interval.

Which makes me got fat, Japanese fried pork( Tonkatsu) or Japanese stew of pork and potatoes (NIKUJYAGA)?

The explanation of Tonakatu and Nikujaga is here.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tonkatsu
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikujaga
I had thought; Tonkatsu did. Because we need lots of oil to cook Tonkatsu. But for elder people carbohydrate like potatoes, rice and so on is easy to become fat that oily foods. Carbohydrate is easier to be digested than oily foods. This fact made me surprised. Because not to get fat, I tend to avoid fatty food like Tonkatsu which is my favorite food and to keep energy I try to take carbohydrate like potatoes and rice. Especially during this hot and humid summer, to ride out this tough weather, I try to eat carbohydrate more, and to drink liquid (sugar free) more. --- AND I got fat!!! Oh, no!!

We can eat plants

Now I'm using a book in the grade 1 class.
The title is "we can eat plants".
We've been talking about many edible plants, though mainly about vegetables.
And yesterday I tried them to draw pictures.

They know carrots as root plants, but they didn't know the shape of them. -- They are like needls, aren't they.

As stem plants, they mentioned brocoll, cauliflower, and parsley because they saw my garden.
As leave plants, they mentioned lots of vegetables like cabage, lettuce, spinach, and NIRA (leek) which is also glowing in my garden.
And they know lots of fruits. So they drew their favorite fruits.
But a girls didn't know how grapes grew.
And surprisingly a boy didn't know (or forget) the outside of watermelons. In Japan most family are not big. They can't usually eat a whole watermelon by only their family. So in the market they sell quaters or halves of cutting watermelons. His image of watermelons was red with lots of black dots(seeds).

And I had another surprising thing.
As seed plants, they mentioned green soybeans, corn, kidny beans and "rice".
We are really "Japanese".

Thai fried rice

Last night I cooked Thai fried rice. I got a bottle of Thai basil sauce from my friend. So I cooked this Thai fried rice according to the recipe.

It's too hot and spicy for me to eat it without a sunny side-up egg.

Well, in the recipe, it doesn't say to put a sunny side-up egg if it is too spicy.

But I've seen this pattern at a Thai restaurant, so I tried.

It was yummy!!!

Last weekend I cooked spicy curry and rice, and last night I cooked this spicy fried rice.

My husband and daughter say "spicy dishes give us energy to ride out this hot and humid summer".

Probably it's right.

But I don't like spicy foods very much.

Anyway from today my daughter's school started.

My usual day has started.

This morning I managed to get up early at five thirty to make OBENTOU.

I need a nap at noon.

curry and rice

Today it was the last day for our (my husband and me) summer vacation. From tomorrow we'll have dinner separately.

So today I made two kinds of curry and rice.

Summer vegetable curry and coconut milk curry.

In Japan many people use commercial curry roux. Today I made them from garam masala and other spice.

It was the first time to make coconut milk curry. The other day I found the recipe I'd wanted to make it and my daughter had asked me to make it. So finaly I made it. It' not so hot, because just use onions, coconut milk, tomato , garam masala, and salt. I put an boild egg instead of rice.

Another curry was my usual curry-- vegetable curry. I put egg plants, green peppers, asparagus and GOYA.

They were yummy!!

Well, the GOYA grew in my garden.

Women are talkative ????

Today, it is the last day of OBON vacation (kind of a summer vacation), though we have a weekend.

During the OBON vacaiton, my mother-in-law and my mother stayed with us in turn. As soon as they met us at the station, they started to talk. Both of them live alone, so they might lack the time of talking with someone, though they go out somewhere almost every day.

The former part of the vacation, my mother-in-law came to stay with us. we went to play golf. She seemed to really enjoy playing golf with us. In the evening we were relaxing at home. About golf he was listening to her, but as soon as she started to talk tiny things of her usual day, he was boared and ran along to his room. I thought my husband should have listen to her because she is her mother. BUT he couldn't bear her talking. It can't be helped. So I listend to her.

The latter part of the vaction, my mother came to stay with us. One of her hobby is "GO". I can't play GO, but my husband can pla it. So they played GO. About GO he listened to my mother, but it was the same. When she started to talk about tiny things, he ran along to his room.

After they left home, he said "probably they talked everything as much as for one year."

It might be true, I was a little bit tired from listening (not tired of listening.)

And

on the day I dropped in on my friend to share their souvenirs. yes "dropped in on her", not "visited her". But as soon as I met her, I started talking and she also started talking.

She also welcomed her mother and tired from listening. We were talking for about 30 minutes standing in front of the entrance hall.

My husband was waiting in the car. (This time, he didn't have any space to run along)

He said "you are the same as our mothers, women love talking".

Well, do you remember that I was into KINKAN(kumquat) this eary spring and I bought a young tree. Finaly it started to put flowers. I hope all flowers fruit.

Katorisenkou

This something green is called "katorisenkou". According to the dictionary, it seemes to be "mosquito coles" in English. It's kind of insecticide and kind of incense.

When I was a child, it was a usual think in Summer. When it smelled, I thought summer came. Now we have electric mosqutio coils, i like this old-fasion type.

I put it on the floor of the entrance hall.

When I light it, my sagter says "smells like grandmama's house".

Some students say "it smells "Osenkou" (incense), it means probably incense at their Buddhie altars.

But somestudents say "stick", "feel sick".

These days fragrance-free is getting popular, peopel tend to be sensitive to smell too much.

Though I don't like strong fragrance, I like ole-fashioned smell, because I get used to them.

What francence will remind nowadays kids to their old days when they grow up?

Play golf? really?

Last night my husband, daughter and I wento to practice golf nearby. Why? Next week it is "OBON" vaction. My husband can take 8 day summer vacation. On the first half week my mother-in-law comes to stay with us. What she's looking forward to is playing golf.

I suggested her to play golf with her son (it means my husband). But she said "my grand kids has grown up, and she can do it, so let's enjoy together!"

My husband reserved time (how do I say in English?) at a golf course. We(my daugher and I) can rebtal golf clubs for free. And the junior high school student price is only 1000yen.

We are going to enjoy playing golf, hot spring and Karaoke with her this OBON vacation.