Autumn And Reading In Japan

 I remember being told that the Japanese associate autumn with eating more and reading.

The eating more I understood: appetites disappear during the hot, humid summer; cooler weather brings them back. Also, there are so many lovely autumn foods and dishes.

But why is reading associated with autumn? I read all year round; I always have two or three books on the go at any given time. I don't go out so much now, especially in the summer, so reading is one thing that I can enjoy. My idea of a peaceful place in the summer is an air-conditioned room, a cold drink and a good book. 

One phrase that I've heard a lot is dokusho no aki (読書の秋). Aki is autumn, dokusho is reading, so the autumn of reading.  As the temperatures drop, the evenings get darker earlier; the idea of curling up with a book is a welcome change from the busier summer days of going out. It feels cosy. 

There is a reading week, even though it's two weeks, in Japan, from October 27th to November 9th. This was established in 1947; the founding declaration stated that the purpose was to create a peaceful, cultured nation through the power of reading, which was a reflection of Japan's postwar aspiration to rebuild through education. During these two weeks, there is a national holiday, "Culture Day"; the last day coincides with "Good Book Day". I remember when the kids were little, there were events at libraries at this time of year; now I know why.

I'm going to continue with my reading of the classics; I managed Wuthering Heights last autumn. I've almost finished Pride and Prejudice and am struggling through "The Confessions of St Augustine". I'm wondering what to read next. Any suggestions?

Does anyone else enjoy reading? It was the one thing that I missed when I first moved to Japan. There are a lot of libraries, but very few English books. English books were very expensive, plus it involved going to the big city, not fun with babies or toddlers. Now I have my Kindle with thousands of books on it. David reads a lot, in English as well as Japanese, so I raid his bookshelves sometimes.

A few photos of yesterday's sunset. It was very beautiful; the photos don't do it justice. The colours were a lot more vivid!

Feeling Listless

 I'm glad I went to the doctor yesterday and got some medicine to deal with my sinus infection.

I know that it's not a big deal, but I feel so listless; I just want to sleep all the time! 

I went to bed early last night, had a good sleep, and woke up thinking that I could get a few jobs done. The first thing I noticed this morning was how cold it was. I thought I had left my air conditioner on, but I only had the fan on! I love cold mornings; getting a nice cup of tea, waking up slowly, taking a few minutes before having to start the day feels nice. In the summer, I don't get that feeling. 

I was so happy that it was cold. I planned on doing lots of jobs but only did two things. I took down the rack that I keep my pots and pans on and gave it a good scrub, plus I cleaned the stovetop. These aren't big jobs; they took about 30 minutes. I planned to do a few more things, but I was so exhausted after that that just making lunch was an effort.

I've slept most of the afternoon and could sleep again now, but I want to have a good sleep tonight, so I'll stay awake for a while longer. One thing that drives me crazy is having an early night, going to bed at about 10pm only to be wide awake at 1am! Then tossing and turning for the rest of the night!

I hope that this cool weather continues! I really suffer during the summer, even with an air conditioner. The cooler weather helps me to get moving, not just doing chores but getting out in the garden and doing more exercise!

Hannah has another trip planned for us in October. To Kagoshima, the prefecture south of Kumamoto where the earthquake was. The hotels in those areas are offering cheap accommodation to get tourists back after the earthquake. Hannah has booked up for two nights away! There's a lot to see in the area, so we need to make a good schedule. I'm looking forward to it; I just have to make some money!

The other evening, the moon was so low and very beautiful; I took some photos, but they don't capture how lovely it was.

Doctors

 I suffer from allergies; I've had this problem since I was a teenager. 

Most of the time, I take a couple of over-the-counter antihistamine tablets, and I'm fine. Occasionally, however, my allergies are so bad that the medicine doesn't help at all; I need something stronger, which means a trip to the doctor.

Yesterday afternoon was bad, very bad. My nose was just dripping; I kept on sneezing like crazy. I even had to cancel my online class; it was that bad. I couldn't sleep properly because when I was lying down, the pain around my sinus area was unbearable; I felt like I had been punched in the face. This morning I went to the local ear, nose and throat doctor. Not my favourite doctor, but no choice!

One thing I'm very glad about is the accessibility of doctors here in Japan. Most doctors, clinics and hospitals don't have an appointment system; you can just walk in. Even the medium-sized hospital I go to for my cancer and diabetes checkups has an appointment system; you can still walk in and see a doctor. You might have to wait a while, but I'm talking about hours, not weeks.

I'm glad I went this morning. Even though having a camera shoved up my nose wasn't the nicest of experiences, it turns out that I have an infection again. I've come home with some antibiotics, a very strong antihistamine, and a nasal spray. I hope these medicines work, as I have a lot to do. The weather has cooled down, and if the forecast is right, it might be cool for a few days! I'll have a chance to get some chores done before the weather goes to the opposite extreme and becomes too cold to do anything!

It's been raining all day, not too heavy but constant. This was the view of the mountains from the doctor's this morning!

Misty mountains!

I'm going to rest a bit more this evening and start on all the chores tomorrow. Christopher has a day off from work, so he can help!

August

 A very mixed month!

Why did I think it was a good idea to challenge myself in what is usually a very exhausting month?

August is hot and humid. This year, the temperatures have been extreme, up to 40℃ at one point, and have hovered around that for most of the month. Not good for doing anything, especially since we only have two air conditioners!

Now I feel exhausted; I think it is from the relentless heat. I'll be glad when it cools down, but according to the forecast, that is a couple of weeks off. We need some rain as well (just as I wrote that it started to rain!). We keep having these little, intense downpours; it will suddenly start to rain, then stop after about a minute. 

My health challenge flew out the window when Hannah came to stay. We don't have snacks or ice cream in the house, but when Hannah comes home, we buy some for her; of course, I end up eating them as well.

Between our trip to Tokyo and Hannah staying here, I put on one and a half kilos. As of this morning, I'm down two kilos, so I've lost half a kilo in August, which is amazing!

I'm trying to eat healthier but have realised that trying to do that 100% of the time is too stressful. I'm aiming for 4 good days a week. I am exercising more, which helps me feel better even if the scale doesn't move. I'm trying to be more active in general, doing chores. If it isn't too hot in the morning, I try to pull some weeds. Does chasing the cats count as exercise?

David's birthday was a nice celebration; just having everyone together was fun. I love that my kids get along. They all have a crazy sense of humour, and get-togethers tend to have a lot of laughter.

David over the years, from Google Photos.

My birthday was good as well. I wasn't that inspired to celebrate, but the kids took care of things. Also, I got so many birthday wishes from family and friends!

Getting a new desk and kitchen cabinet has helped my feelings about this house; I can see some potential. The kitchen cabinet has opened up that room; it doesn't feel so claustrophobic now. I do want to rip out the kitchen and have a new one put in, but that is going to cost a lot. 

My desk is lovely and big, which helps when I have my computer on and am studying from it. I have space for a notebook as well as my computer; the desk I had before didn't have that space.

I'm still working on my Etsy store. I haven't sold anything yet, but I'll keep it up for a while longer. The webpage that I'm using to design the T-shirt, Printify, had a weekly challenge. Design 10 products in a week, and you can win a prize. I won a month of the premium service, which is really nice.

With the premium service, you can use their mockup AI. Which is nice but it's freaking me out. I can make models wear the T-shirts I've designed.

These aren't real people!

This is the link JackiesNekoTales - Etsy Japan

Talking about links, I've noticed that on some of my recent posts, there have been random links in the posts. I haven't put them there. If I add a link, I explain what it is. I have no idea why this is happening; I've noticed it on some other sites I visit. It's something to do with Google Ads; they aren't links to viruses, at least not the ones I've seen.

I'm looking forward to September; I really hope that the weather cools down and I can get some real work in the garden done!

Creatures

 I seem to be sharing this house with a lot of little creatures.

Of course, the cats, but that was my choice, even if they are determined to drive me crazy! It's a good thing they are cute!

Taking over the table, it's near the air conditioner.

I do give the table a good clean before we eat there. I did try to stop them from getting on the table, but gave up! The cats are more stubborn than me!

The creatures I'm talking about are the ones that aren't invited into the house but somehow have wound up here!

The other day I was getting ready for an online class. I looked up and saw a massive cockroach strolling across the wall. I ran out, shouting for help. David came and saw the creature. I went to get some water while he took care of the cockroach. When I got back to my room, David was moving things around on my desk. He had tried to get the cockroach, but it had fallen onto my desk! There wasn't time to completely check my desk, as I had to start teaching. Halfway through the lesson, I saw the cockroach out of the corner of my eye. I apologised to my student and ran off shouting for David; of course, by the time David got here, the thing had disappeared again. That was two days ago, and I still don't know where it is! 

Actually, that is only the second one this year; not too bad, but I would rather have zero inside the house!

The other creatures that we see a lot of are the little lizards that we get here. I've heard different names for them, but I always call them tokage.

They are small and very fast. 

This house was empty for a few years; during that time, I think a few lizards took up residence here. When we were cleaning out the house, there were so many; every time we moved something, one or two would run out. These don't bother me; I would prefer that they stay outside, but unlike insects, I can tolerate them!

Yesterday evening Mikey caught one. He said he could feel something licking on his foot. At first he thought it was one of the cats licking his toes, but when he looked, there was nothing there. He went back to his reading, but the licking sensation continued. He checked again and found a little lizard crawling over his foot!

Mikey's new friend.

Very tiny and kind of cute.

Mikey put it outside. It looks like a baby; the ones I've seen in my room are a bit bigger.

I think this is one of the things that you have to put up with when living in the countryside.

I don't mind these creatures, but I would prefer they stay outside!

The Heat Continues!

 The extreme heat isn't letting up anytime soon!

Yesterday, Hakata, which is about an hour's drive from here, was 40.4℃. That's crazy hot!

Here everyday is over 35℃. I'm at the point now where I'm more than ready for winter!

As we drove to the other city to teach, I was watching the clouds build. I was really hoping for some rain, but all we got was a lightning storm.

This video is from the community centre where I was teaching. The sky is very dramatic; there are a couple of flashes of lightning!

Hannah sent me a video from her apartment; I think it was the same storm we were watching.

Again, dramatic skies but no rain!

Mikey had to go to a different community centre to teach. He said that as he was leaving, one drop of rain hit the windscreen, just one drop!

As I said, I'm ready for colder weather; even just a few degrees cooler would help. This constant heat is really exhausting. I'm lucky in that we have a couple of good air conditioners, but even though that helps, it is still hard. I don't want to move away from the air-conditioned rooms. Plus, trying to find the right temperature is hard. I get too cold, so I turn the air conditioner off, but after about half an hour I'm sweating again, so I put it back on. I've tried different settings, but nothing seems to work.

I really need to tackle the jungle! That's how overgrown the garden is now! I'm going to try and go out in the morning; even just a few minutes of pulling weeds or cutting back some of the bushes might help. I can't do a lot, but I can make a start!

There always seems to be a lot to do!

My Birthday

 I got spoilt for my birthday!

A good friend sent me a book that I'm going to start as soon as I finish Pride and Prejudice, which is taking longer than I thought, but almost there!

Christopher bought me a new cover for my phone; the cats had scratched my old one to pieces!

My old phone cover

My new cover and a backscratcher

Inside my new phone cover

He also bought me a new cord to recharge my phone; I keep breaking them, and a back scratcher!

Christopher treated everyone to cake as well.

Cake from Christopher

I was in my room yesterday evening. I could hear Mikey, David and Christopher talking and laughing; I wondered what they were up to! They were sitting, playing a card game. I'm glad that even as adults, they enjoy each other's company and like spending time together.

Just hanging out!

Today David took Christopher, Hannah and me out for sushi! Poor Mikey had to work!

We drove to the city where Hannah lives. Of course we got lost! 

I've been to Hannah's place many times, but because I don't drive, I don't pay much attention to where we are going! I remember parts of the journey, but how we get to a certain road, I have no idea! David is bad with directions and gets lost on the commute to and from his workplace, even after over a year of driving the same route! We only got lost twice, not too bad!

We picked up Hannah but had a bit of time before our reservation, so we went to a recyle shop. Hannah got herself some nice jeans and a top. She always does well at these recyle places; she got a new outfit for about 1,000 yen, £5. Another reason I should lose weight: I have to buy from catalogues. I would love to shop in these recyle places; lovely clothes and, if you are careful, very cheap!

We got to the restaurant. It was a conveyor belt sushi restaurant. 

As we sat down, Land of Hope and Glory started to play! I tried to record it; you can just hear it!

This played every 10 minutes or so! I have no idea why!

There was some sushi going round on the conveyor belt, but most of it you had to order. We kept watching the same things going round!

We ordered a selection of sushi and miso soup; Hannah got some fries. Both Christopher and Hannah had cake. I was stuffed by that time, so I just had a taste of Hannah's.

Enjoying the cake!

We had a lovely time.

I'm so lucky with my kids; they are really caring.

I had a lovely birthday!

A friend has challenged me to do 15 minutes of exercise, so I'm going to start tomorrow. 

I'll give an update in a week!