June

 Half of the year is finished!

That's hard to believe, it's gone by so fast!

June is a hard month for me! Emotionally draining, Hisao's birthday at the beginning of the month and Mom's passing at the end.

It's also one of the most physically draining months for me. The heat and humidity start in earnest this month, which saps what bit of energy I have. This year, however, it has been a bit cooler, and the few hot days we've had, the humidity has been low, which really helps!

After the ephinay I had the other week, I decided that it was time to start doing, not just collecting ideas or thinking about doing things, just get on with it!

To that end, I started to use Printify to make designs for T-shirts!

My plan was to design a few T-shirts, open an Etsy shop, and start selling. According to all the gurus I watched and read, it was an easy thing to do! 

Not that easy! Designing the T-shirts was the easiest part. I've learnt a lot by trial and error. I'm still figuring things out, but I'm actually enjoying the process.

The difficult part was setting up the Etsy shop and signing up with the company that handles the financial side of the business.

Because Etsy is a USA-based company, there is a field to fill in for your state tax. I'm not in the USA, so any sales I make I'll have to report on my income tax form next year. But that field needs something in it so you can click continue. For about 2 hours, I tried different things, I asked Etsy for help and tried AI. In the end, all I had to do was place the cursor there and click on the box! The site recognised that my address and IP address are outside of the USA, so it automatically moved me on!

Two very frustrating hours!

The other problem was the finance company. I understand that they need to be strict about ID, etc., but again very frustrating. There were only two options for ID: a passport or a driver's license. I don't drive, so I had to use my passport. The problem was I had no idea where it was! Took over 3 hours on Sunday to find it! Yesterday I had to send photos of my passport and a selfie to see if it's really me. I then had to scan a document to show that my address is real. The site said a tax bill or utility bill with your name and address on it. The problem is that here everything is in David's name. I did find a bill from the last house that was sent here with my name on it. After all that, I have to wait for at least 3 days to see if everything is alright!

Just one more step and my Etsy shop will be up and running!

I hope I can make some money from it. I'm not expecting big sales, but enough to get things done. I think teaching English is not going to work here, as I said before, it really is the countryside, and the elementary schools are closing down, just no kids! I would love to get a few adults, some ladies, but I'm not holding my breath!

I have a little trip with Hannah next month. I thought I would have more money by now, but I don't, never mind. I was watching a video of two young men exploring Tokyo. They went to a yaki-niku restaurant, where you grill the meat yourself at the table. The meat was Wagyu beef, one of the best types of beef in Japan. They had two plates of beef and some side dishes. As I was watching, I was thinking of trying to find that restaurant, as it's something that Hannah would like. That's until the bill came, 2,3000 yen, about £107, for one meal, that's way out of my budget.

Just a photo of Sam to finish with, nothing to do with this post. He's just cute!

Today Was Hot

 Today has been the first really hot, uncomfortable day since the middle of May. I had to run my air conditioner for a couple of hours this afternoon. It's going to cool down again from Wednesday, more rain is forecast. I don't know how accurate the monthly forecasts are, but it looks like July is going to be very wet but not extremely hot, the hottest might be 34℃. That's still hot but better than the 38℃ that we have had in the past.

I've spent the day just messing around. Actually, I got a lot done in the early morning, but then my energy just dropped. I'm still not sleeping properly at night. No matter what time I got to bed, I still wake up after about 3 hours of sleep. I try to fall asleep again, but most nights I'm just lying there, tossing and turning. I keep a notebook and pen by my bed so I can write down anything that is bothering me, any thoughts or ideas that I have. I thought that by getting the ideas on paper, I would be able to relax and sleep again. Sometimes it works, most nights it doesn't! I try reading, which sometimes helps!

This morning, I woke up at 3:30 am and tossed and turned until 4:30 am; at that time, I gave up. My alarm is set for 5:00 am. I spent time reading. I've just started "Pride and Prejudice ". 

At 5 o'clock I got up, cleaned the kitchen, made obento, started lunch, made breakfast and did the laundry!

I was so happy to get a few things done. I planned on tidying my room, putting away the heavy winter blankets and sorting out the clean laundry.

That was the plan. I sent a message to David to pick up a few things that we need. He usually shops on the way home from work. On the list, I asked for oil and sesame oil. I wrote "Oil, sesame oil". When I went to cook lunch, I noticed the sesame oil but not the cooking oil. I asked David if he had bought cooking oil, as it was on the list. He said, "No, I thought you were doing a James Bond thing, the name is Bond, James Bond. Oil, sesame oil" 

After I sent the message, I was sleepy. I thought I could doze for an hour, which was at 7:30. I woke up at 11 am. Never mind!

I've been playing around with AI again. Yesterday I was listening to something and doodling at the same time. As I said, I have no artistic ability, but I enjoy doodling. I wondered if AI could do something with my doodle.

This was my doddle, kind of childish!

This is what AI did with it.

I might print this as well!

I'm still setting up my Etsy store. I will figure this out, one day!

Almost Done

 Yesterday and today, I have spent hours trying to set up my Etsy Store.

Over the past couple of months, I've watched a load of videos and read numerous articles about print-on-demand marketing. All of these videos and articles said the same thing: it's so easy to set up, you can do it in a couple of hours. Yeah, sure!

The biggest problem I ran into was setting up an account with the company that handles the money. I had to send my email, and they sent a verification code, standard procedure. The problem was that when I left the page to go to my email, the original pop-up where I had to enter the code would disappear. I tried 3 times, with the same result. I realised that I should check the email on my phone and then enter it. But after three attempts, I was told I would have to wait an hour before trying again. By that time, I was so tired and frustrated that I decided to wait until today.

Today, I managed to get part of the information entered, then the company asked for ID, either a driver's license or a passport. I don't have a driver's license, so I had to find my passport. That took over 2 hours of moving boxes and emptying drawers! My passport will expire later this year, so I'll need to buy another one. I hope it's okay to use! By the time I had found my passport, the page had closed, so I'll have to try again tomorrow.

One thing that was holding me back was the name of my shop. I tried a few different AIs that are recommended for making business names. I wanted a name that reflects both this blog and my cat blog. I'm starting off with T-shirts that have a cat/Japan theme. I want to make some that are just Japan-themed in the future.

The name I came up with is Jackie's Neko Tale. Neko is Japanese for cat! I went to ask David what he thought. He, of course, misheard. What he heard was Jackie's Naked Tale! Typical.

I've uploaded a few T-shirts, but the prices are wrong. I need to figure out how to change that and get the payment system set up. I hope that by the end of this month, it will be up and running!

I really hope that this will work out. I honestly don't know what else to do to make money. I really need to invest in the house. I need someone to come and check that the structure is sound and that paying for some basic improvements is worth the money. I know that I live very far away from where the earthquakes have been happening the past few months, but every quake that hits reminds me of how vulnerable this country is. There is always the possibility of having another big one here. I would love to have the house earthquake sound. I don't know if that is possible, but it's something that I want to investigate.

If you've read this blog, you will know that I don't like insects, but for some unknown reason, I can tolerate spiders!

I was sitting on my bed last night when Christopher sent this photo.

Christopher said that it had just walked over his face!

I was having a good laugh until I felt one walk along my neck!

Prompts

 I have no artistic skills at all! One time, I drew two stick figures to teach "He is" and "She is" to some kids. The kids just looked at the drawing and asked what they were. I explained that one was a boy and the other a girl; the kids laughed! 

To make the T-shirts, I'm using AI. I wish I could draw or paint, but I can't. I understand that people, especially artists trying to develop and sell their art, see the use of AI as cheating. I guess in a way it is. But it's not as easy as I thought it would be!

The image I have in my head, and what AI comes up with, often times is very different. Sometimes better, many times so far from my idea that I don't know what went wrong.

For example, I had an image of a cat peaking out of a cup. I wanted a cartoon/anime style, but I didn't specify that in my prompt.

First try, I didn't specify anime style.

This was the image I had in my mind, cute anime style.

I might use both of those images, and also go back and change the colour of the cat.

I've come to realise that the more detailed my prompts are, the better the image. The use of nouns, adjectives and adverbs is important. I've come to realise that my vocabulary has become very limited because I don't really need to use it in daily life. 

I was playing around this morning and came up with this.

I can't use it because of copyright infringement, but I might print it out for myself.

Another thing that is holding up launching my store is thinking of a name for it. My niche is Japan and cats. I don't want a name that narrows things down too much. I might try other merchandise as well, so a name with T-shirts in it is out. I've asked AI, but the suggestions don't inspire me! If anyone has any ideas, drop them in the comments!

I just had a little walk in the jungle, I mean, garden! 

The stream that runs behind the storage shed is very noisy; I can hear it from my bedroom.  I decided to go and check on it. Even though it's very deep and concrete-lined, it has overflowed a few times. I was surprised that there wasn't so much water, but very fast-moving!

I took a video, it's a bit jumpy as I was balancing on the wall, and I have a very bad sense of balance, plus I was being eaten alive by the mosquitoes!

I checked on the blueberries, almost ready, a few more days, maybe!

Blueberries almost ready!

The hydrangeas are massive this year. I love this deep purple colour.

And I finally have a little green pepper growing!

I hope they continue to grow.

I had better get back to designing T-shirts.

Last Night

 The rain, which has been steadily falling for five days now, was very bad last night.

From about 5pm, I could hear thunder, but I wasn't worried; the rain was still just a drizzle. Over the next hour, however, it got heavier and heavier.

The thunderstorm started in earnest from about 7 o'clock. The lightning lit up the whole room, and the rain was so heavy that I couldn't hear the TV.

Then the evacuation alerts started. 

I understand the need for these alerts, and I do think they are a good idea. For the elderly or people who need assistance, getting the information quickly helps. 

But the alerts freak me out. The information is in Japanese, of course, and I have to really concentrate to see whether the alert is for our area! One thing that I've found interesting is the earthquake alert system. Sometimes, it's in English, it's a bit strange, the house is shaking, and my phone starts shouting, "Earthquake, earthquake!" as if I didn't notice!

Last night's alerts were constant; in 5 minutes, we had over 10 alerts.

We live at the foot of a large mountain; it's about 870 meters to where the mountain really starts (about 950 yards).  I know that part of the mountain has had landslides in the past. Some areas look bald, but I worry that a massive landslide could come down as far as we are. Is it possible? 

The alerts went on until about 10 o'clock.

These are two views of the mountain. 

This is the mountain on a nice day.

This was from my window today; you can't see the mountain at all.

The one good thing is that it's still rather cool! Even the cats are still snuggling together.

Cats snuggled up!

After all the excitement of the storm and the alerts, I was very tired. I decided on an early night, so at just after 11 o'clock I got into bed.

Just as I was dozing off, an insect started to buzz near my ear. I tried to swipe it away, but it went into my ear. I freaked out, jumped off my bed, pulling at my ear. The insect flew out, but I couldn't settle after as I had no idea what it was or where it had gone! I ended up sleeping with a small towel over my head!

Lovely ending to a stressful night!!!

I'm Back

 I didn't go anywhere. I've been busy over the past few days, plus I've had writer's block!

The weather here is terrible; it's been raining nonstop for the past 3 or 4 days. When we drove past the river yesterday afternoon, I could see that it had already burst its banks and was starting to flood the area next to it.

Already flooding

Where the trees are on the far bank is a park area, but it was already underwater.

When we were driving back last night, the fog was so thick that Mikey had to take a different route.

This is all part of the rainy season, but there are two typhoons heading towards Japan, we might get the edge of one. Places south of here have already been inundated with this rain; the added rain from one of the typhoons isn't going to help at all. Plus, the northern part of Japan had a rather large earthquake this morning! 

I'm still trying to figure out my T-shirt business. I need to choose a shop platform to use. Etsy, Shopify and Amazon are the most popular sites. Each one has good points and bad points. I'm looking for one that is beginner-friendly, and I don't want to spend too much up front, since I have very little confidence that I can sell anything!

I have to get a few chores done! Everything feels damp because of the rain. I need a couple of dry days so I can get the mountain of laundry done!

News Fast

 For just over a week, I've been trying not to watch or read the news.

It's harder than I thought, as the news is really in your face more than I realised before I decided not to watch or read it.

It's on my computer when I open my browser; it's on Facebook because one time I clicked on a news report from a British newspaper, and on YouTube. 

I never noticed how invasive the news was, how the headlines, photos and videos are there to draw you in. 

Are the headlines more sensational now than before because of the competition with social media and citizen journalists? 

Yesterday there was a train crash in the UK. The headlines all state the same thing but with different levels of emotional framing. For example, one headline stated "Driver dead and nearly 90 injured", whereas another just says "Bedford train crash latest: Injury toll rises to 100". Same news, different emphasis.

How often do I get caught by headlines, thinking that I need to know this news, spend time watching or reading only to realise that the news has nothing to do with me, that I can't change things, I can't undo the awful thing that has happened, and I'm left feeling sad and depressed because of it!

Lives are being destroyed across the globe because of wars, famine, crime of all kinds, the basic unfairness of life. Political leaders are more worried about the next election than the pain of the people they are supposed to be serving. Families are torn apart because of a thoughtless action that has killed someone, destroyed lives and left communities bereft. I read these stories; I cry for the families, I wonder if there is anything that I can do, and I realise that beyond prayer there is very little I can do.

What is the purpose of news? Do I need to know about every single knife crime in the UK? Even if my heart breaks for the families or it makes an interesting debate for my advanced students, debating the cause of escalating crime in the UK, what the government should and can do and why it isn't happening in Japan, does taking in that news help me?

No, it doesn't. I chose not to vote in the UK, as I don't live there and the government actions don't impact my life. So even in the one way I could influence things, I don't. I have no voting rights in Japan, but I encourage my kids to vote. I think having a voice is important.

I feel that taking in the news hasn't helped me, hasn't shown me what the world is really like. I joke with my students that in the winter in the UK everyone is going to be killed by a new virus, die from the cold or a storm or be invaded by Russia or nuked by them. The past few years, every winter has been the same news, with a smattering of royal scandals, knife crime or immigration takeover. But when I talk to my family or friends who live there, they say it isn't that bad. Yes, some areas are bad, but that hasn't really changed. Growing up, there were areas of my city that we were told to stay away from. The news makes it seem that there are criminals on every street corner, that all politicians are crooks and that you shouldn't trust anyone at all. 

I think some news is important. I think having discernment is important. Being sucked into the latest sensational news doesn't help at all; getting angry because of the awful things that are happening isn't helping me and doesn't change things.

So my news fast is opening my eyes to other things. I can see that I spent a lot of time watching or reading news, getting bent out of shape because of it (probably doesn't help my blood pressure) and having all this anger with nowhere for it to go!

I would react to a news headline of the murder of another kid with anger and grief, but that doesn't undo the action. I would wonder why young kids are killing each other; where have we gone wrong that kids think murder is justified? But what can I do? I have this little blog, but I don't want to go down that rabbit hole! I found that I would carry that pain and sadness with me. Not interacting with that for the past week, I feel lighter. Yes, these things are still happening, but I have enough problems to deal with!

Also, I didn't realise how much time I spent watching and reading the news! I was on my computer the other day. I finished writing this blog and was wondering what to do next; I was thinking of trying different AIs to design some T-shirts. I realised that after writing my blog, I would usually start looking at the news. I could spend up to an hour on that! An hour of shouting at the screen. What a waste!

The only news I look at now is the weather news; there's another typhoon just forming, so I'm keeping an eye on that!

Has anyone else done a news fast?

This is my news. Fluffy stole my chicken; she got my fork as well!