Golden Week

 Yesterday was the first national holiday of Golden Week.

Golden Week consists of 4 national holidays,  Showa Day, Constitution Memorial Day, Greenery Day and Children's Day.  This year April 29th was the first holiday and the next three are on May 3rd, 4th and 5th.  A lot of places close and people take advantage of the long holiday to travel.  This year is going to be crazy as it's the first time in two years that there have been no restrictions on travel.  Yesterdays news was showing airports that were crammed with people going abroad.  Also many places in Japan will be packed.  

I have a long holiday this year but I don't want to go anywhere. Traffic jams and long queues are not my idea of fun.  My plan is to read, clean (as always) and make some materials for teaching!  I want to get in the garden but the weather is not good, yesterday I woke up to heavy rain and then very strong wind.  Today is sunny but the garden is full of water and mud, it'll need a few days to dry out!

Oh **** **

 Yesterday was such a great day.  I managed to do some chores I had been putting off, cooked a nice roast lunch and healthy dinner, wrote on this blog and even helped Hannah with her English homework.  In the evening I was sat on the sofa, watching TV, chatting with the kids as they wondered in and out.  Then it happened.  Not a big thing but not nice.  As I stood up from the sofa I lost my balance and fell.  I smashed my left leg into the corner of the sofa and my foot on the floor.  My right knee that I have problems with was jarred and at a funny angle.  I now have a lump and lovely bruise on my leg and bruising under the nail bed of my big toe.  The problem started when I went to bed. I usually sleep on my left side but because of the bruise that was too painful.  Turned to my right but that made my knee ache, tried sleeping on my back but my sinuses are bad because of hay fever.  So I spent most of last night tossing and turning looking for a comfortable position.  Finally after 1am I started to doze off when Alfie cat decided that was the best time to start meowing and scratching at my door, so I got up to let him in and the whole process of finding a comfortable position started again.  

Alfie the one o'clock door scratcher!

Jokes And Tall Stories

 We all have a crazy sense of humor in this family.  It helps when things are stressful to be able to laugh over small things.

The other morning I was saying about my age, that in a few months I'll turn 60.  David said that I was growing old like a tree.  A first I thought it was a compliment, that I was growing strong and graceful. Then I saw the big grin on his face and realized that he meant I was putting ring on every year!  I threatened revenge.  He made that easy for me by taking weird selfies with my phone!

David pulling faces!

Mikey loves a captive audience.  I try to avoid being in the car on long rides with Mikey as he tells these awful jokes.  But the other day I wanted to go to the supermarket that is in the next city, 30 to 40 minutes drive!  I braced myself.  This time though he spent the time telling me about Japanese history.  About a slave that was bought and kept as an animal.  He was the first black person in Japan.  Nobody knows what happened to him.  Where he was staying with his master was burnt down, the master was killed but nobody knows what happened to the slave, did he escape or was he killed as well.  Then we started talking about Hidden Churches.  There is a town near here that has some, I'm hoping we can go and see them.  The last story that Mikey had was about darts.  He said that the game of darts started from butchers.  That they would sharpen the bones and throw them at the cattle. The eyes are the hardest part to hit and that is why the center of the dart board is called a bulls eye.  I'm listening to this andsaying that it's very interesting and also wondering how Mikey knows such things.  He then smiles at me and says "Of course if this were true it would be very interesting". He had made the whole thing up and I had fallen for it...........again!!!!

Intimidated

 Some of my students love my cats.  They are always asking to see photos or pet the cats.  Some want to see the cats but are afraid and others have allergies.  Also some kids are using this to put off study, which I understand, they are tired after school and probably would rather just relax.  When it's just a few minutes or the kids try to use English it's okay but sometimes it drags on and on, eating away at the time.  So I was thinking how to let the kids enjoy the cats without taking up time of the English class and decided to make a little blog.  Loads of photos, some stories of the cats antics and if I can figure it out some videos.  The kids can look at them on their time and if I keep the English simple (or translate the more difficult bits) it will give them some reading practice.  I was wondering are cat blogs a thing, would others than my student look at it, could I make a bit of money from it.  I looked up cat blogs and there are millions.  Most of them are geared toward taking care of cats, what food to give, best toys, how to help cats who are scared or recovering from being abandoned.  I have no advice to give.  I'm still learning about cats in general and my cats in particular.  I felt intimidated by these experts but then my blog has a different purpose!  So I am now wondering what to do.  To cat blog or not cat blog, that is the question.

New Stove Top

 At last I got a new stove top.  The old was getting to be very dangerous!  I burnt my hands the other week as a pot of boiling water was sliding off and I caught it!  Not nice and very painful.  The new one is nice, easy to use, has timer and temperature settings, easy to clean and it talks.  Freaked me out last night.  I was frying an egg, when a voice suddenly announced that the flame was too high and it was turning it down (in Japanese of course), a few minutes later it said that it was turning up again. Hannah downloaded an app for me so I can see if it has been left on when we go.  Very useful as a few times I've had to go back to check that the gas is off.  The app also has recipes and will regulate time and temperature.  

The top, it's a bit bigger which is good.

Controls for temp and timer.

I'm happy I can start cooking without worrying about pots falling off or gas escaping.

Finally

 A chance to write! 

The past couple of weeks have been busy.  Most of our students have returned, a lot have changed the day or time they come.  Which is great, except I need to get use to the new schedule.  One high school girl came the other day, I had forgot she had changed her day and I asked her "Why are you here?".  Fortunately she has a good sense of humor and just laughed at me.

Also I've been getting out a bit more.  I do local shopping once a week but haven't been out of this area for ages.  Last week Hannah had to pick up her text books for the new school year.  She was worried that she would have to get a lot of books and they would be heavy to carry from the campus to the train station, a 30 minute walk. I wanted to shop so Mikey took us in the car.  It was a nice ride out and lovely to see somewhere different.

Hannah's university entrance.

Also we have finally ordered a new stove top.  The one I have was getting very dangerous.  The places that balance the pot above the flame are broken and the pots keep sliding around, a few times I managed to catch them before they go on the floor.  The other ring keeps going out and with it being gas can be rather dangerous.  So the gas company will come on Monday to fit the new gas stove, which means I have been scrubbing out the kitchen all week.  I knew it was bad but  didn't realize just how bad.  The kitchen is in constant use, we make 3 meals a day plus there is always somebody making snacks or baking!  Any way I'll be glad to get the new stove top.

For Christmas David gave me a google hub that has a photo gallery on it.  The photos are from my google photos and come up at random, sometimes two photos on one frame.  The one last night made me laugh.  The one of the cat was Hannah messing with some filter, the other one is just David.  Usually when it is two photos it's the same person or just the animals. Wonder why these came together?

Alfie the cat and David.

Christopher's Turn

 David was telling me a few days ago that when he was about 9 he watched a TV program saying that stress shortens a persons life.  He told me not to get too stressed.  The next day he broke his arm!  This seems to be a theme in my family, getting sick, breaking bones, job problems, the list goes on and on, all to make me stressed.

This time it's Christopher's  turn.  He has had glasses since he was in junior high school, too much computer, playing games and reading, he always has his nose in a book.  His glasses broke a while ago and he has been putting off getting new ones but he went today.  Apparently he has a problem with his right eye (he told me the term but I forgot what it is!).  He had to get a special lens for that side.  It's cost him over 200 pounds!  I hope this helps and he doesn't need anything else for his eyes.

Always seems to be something.

David is fine.  Spoiling the cats.  The past week he has bought a cat tower and water fountain for the cats!  I tell him to save his money but he seems to like buying things at the moment.

Cat fountain, took two days before they used it!

Cat tower