Hokusai Katsushika Museum

After the Edo Tokyo Museum, I went to the Hokusai Katsushika Art Museum. It is just down the road. I walked there and actually missed it. I went too far and had to return. There is a park in front of the museum. The building is silver. I got my discount ticket and went in. I put my jacket and bag in a locker. Pictures are not allowed so I left my camera there, too. I only took my glasses. And I was impressed immediately. Mr Hokusai lived to be 90 years old. His most famous works are the "Thirty-six views of Mt Fuji". These works made him world renown. (That means famous all over the world.) I have seen them a long time ago. I have since forgotten about them. But now, I am in this museum with many of his works. Why is the museum here? Because he lived most of his life in this area, near the Sumida river. Again, I learned some of the history of Tokyo as well as about the life of Mr. H. But his work! His paintings and drawings were amazing! Fantastic! Unbelievable! I was especially amazed by the detail of his works. So many lines; so many curls; so many waves. The faces and bodies of animals and people were incredible. There were many of his notebooks on display. I thought think: How did he find so much time to create all these pictures and paintings? I suppose he loved what he was doing so very much. I also realized how much time I waste in my own life. 

Edo Tokyo Museum

I went to Tokyo February 17th. I wanted to explore the RyouGoku district. I had an ambitious plan. I wanted to visit two museums several parks, a spa and have a Chanko Nabe lunch. My first stop was the Edo Tokyo Museum right next to the Ryou Koku Gi Kan. I wnet in. After buying my senior discount ticket (Yeah) I went up to the second floor. And, lo and behold, There were guides. Thye spoke English and guided for free. Mayumi-san was my guide. She spoke very good English. She took me around the museum telling me the stories and history of Edo/Tokyo. She also gave me great tips on where and when to stand for special events. That was cool. The museum is huge. Visitors were there but not too many. The tour took 90 minutes and I must say that my legs were getting weak. I was happy when it was over and I did learn a lot. The displays are interesting and beautiful. There are bridges and buildings and high tech displays. My guide was fantastic. They also have guided tours for free in Japanese, if you are interested. 

The Noyaki Event by Sadako

 

On February 2^nd, I burnt the dead grass in my rice fields with farmers in my neighborhood. We call this event “Noyaki”. There are 15 ha of rice fields and the area of rice fields are about 6a.

    My fields have been cultivated by my ancestors through the ages. Twenty years ago, both my grandfather and grandmother passed away. After their death, my family had to cultivate the fields. But my father and my husband were car engineers, so the fields were cultivated by my kind neighbors for a long time.

  By the way, Noyaki is a big and dangerous event for us, because the dead grass  

is burnt with huge flames. 

So we have to inform the fire station before the event and prepare water.

Also Japanese agriculture is looked after by the elderly. My neighboring farmers are old, too.

  On that day, 21 members joined the event including my husband and me. The

average age of the members is about 75 years old. So my husband and I decided to join in past several years. (We are the youngest members in the event. My husband is 65 years old and while I’m not.) What will become of Japanese agriculture in the future?

  The event started at 7 am and finished 1 pm. During the event we talked about daily news, the memories of childhood and the future. It was a relaxing time. I could forget my busy schedule.

During the lunch time, we ate rice balls together on the bank of Motoarakawa river.

We bought rice balls at the convenience store near the riverside. While eating, sometimes I thought that these rice balls contradict the purpose of Noyaki.

We had pain in our lower backs for 3 days after Noyaki. But from the spring the rice plants will start to grow. In fall, after the harvest, I’ll make rice balls by myself. Surely it will be delicious.                            

  

  

Puzzler Answers

And now, it's back to Monday. I had a good weekend. How about you? Puzzler: Answers: CLICK HERE.

以下はスーパースクラブルパズルです。よく見ると、4つの空白のタイルが見つかります。 空白のタイルとは、何も書かれていないタイルのことです。それら空白のタイルは、ある単語の一部です。空白のタイルに、どの文字があてはまるかを考えてください。おわかりですか？答えは、ページを下にスクロールして下さい。GOOD LUCK。

Below is a Super Scrabble Puzzle. If you search carefully you will find four blank tiles on it. BLANK means that nothing is written on it. But, they are part of the word. Try to determine what letter the BLANK tiles are. After you have your guess you can scroll down the page to find the answers. As always, GOOD LUCK.

DEFACE            OATHES             COUNTRY/SWUNG             ORNARY

Puzzler Hints

Of course I will go to Tokyo today. But...where? Puzzler Hints: CLICK HERE.

February Home Project
今月のHPは、Color です。会話や文章、トピックにcolor （色）の単語を使ってみましょう。例えば、

 My son, who has red hair, is a singer. OR Some black crows flew in the blue sky.

OR these expressions: 

green with envy,      as black as coal,       once in a blue moon 

I was  blue. (=sad)       He is yellow. (=He is a coward.)

この場合、どちらの意味も彼は臆病です。という意味です。

Try your best and watch for COLORs in my BLOGs.

Lots of flowers and buds in our school plant. I'm looking forward to a prosperous year.

Puzzler

Welp, this is the last Saturday of the month. I didn't drink at all. Maybe I can continue though next weekend. Hmmmmm. Puzzler: CLICK HERE.

February HP Colorful

今月のHPは、Color です。会話や文章、トピックにcolor （色）の単語を使ってみましょう。例えば、

 My son, who has red hair, is a singer. OR Some black crows flew in the blue sky.

OR these expressions: 

green with envy,      as black as coal,       once in a blue moon 

I was  blue. (=sad)       He is yellow. (=He is a coward.)

この場合、どちらの意味も彼は臆病です。という意味です。

Try your best and watch for COLORs in my BLOGs.

Teein Museum from the garden

Lunch at Angelas

I went to the gym last Thursday at 9AM. Then Miwako and I went out to lunch. There is a nice restaurant in Kitamoto City called Angelo's. Do you know it? It is on NakaSenDou very near where the KenOuDou passes underneath. I teach at a Kindergarten very near there every week. The building is white with a brown coned roof. I always see many cars there and sometimes people lined up to get in. So, we went there just at noon. We didn't have to wait. There were many people there enjoying lunch. On our way to our seats I saw a case full of desserts. WOW! They all looked so delicious! When we were ready to order lunch, we were told that the special was Ikura pasta. It looked good, so M ordered it. I got a carbornara pasta lunch. Both included salad (very good) and dessert. I had a choice, so I went to look at that glass case. Then we ate. Everything was delicious. It was a bit expensive, but definitely worth it. BTW I don't drink coffee so I ordered a Maccha Lotte. And I got a tart with chocolate ice cream. YUMMY!

Teien Art Museum Part 2

Most rooms are square with high ceilings. The first floor has a front entrance hall, a great hall, and anteroom, a salon, a smoking room, a small drawing room, an official waiting room and a small dining room. The second floor has a hall, bedrooms, sitting rooms for each member of the family, a veranda, a library, a study, a main bathroom, a North room, a main staircase, and a stairway. The family includes the Prince and Princess and their two children, the young prince and young princess. I saw some very interesting things, too. In the main dining there are two long glass pieces in the ceiling above the table. There a figures of fruit etched in them. There are many fireplaces in the building. They are marble, green or black. They have grates in front of them. They contain fish figures. Some walls have wallpaper with figures painted on them.  Some walls are stucco with curved waves on them. I went through the building (house) once. And I read the explanation. I was very impressed with everything. I decided to go through the building again. I found the building fascinating. I'm so glad that I went.

Teien Art Museum Part 1

I finally paid a visit to (went to) the Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum. It used to be the residence (home) of Prince Asaka and his family in the 1920s through the 40s, up till the end of World War 2. I have wanted to go there for a while. One student visited it and said it was great. So, two Sundays ago I made my plan. I blogged last week about the train ride there and back. So, this time I will only blog about the museum itself. First of all, it was dark inside. Look at the pic. The building is very  simple. It is square. There is a collage collection on display inside now. The curtains are drawn (closed) on most windows to protect the art. Therefore, there is not much sunlight inside. And, I must say that it is not very colorful. The collage works are all black and white. And the design of the building is drab. The main colors are brown, dark green, yellow and gray/black. The floors are all covered with a beige carpet to protect them. At one point I looked inside the bathroom upstairs. The two toilets were white and the walls were gray and blue tiles. Very simple. There are two floors. I was up and down twice to revisit all the rooms. Continued tomorrow.

USA Taxes

Do you know what 'taxes' are? Very simply, taxes are the money we pay to our governments. We pay money based on our income. Do you know what 'income' means? Income means how much money you get (earn) for working. I live in Japan. So, I pay taxes to the Japanese government based on (according to) my salary (income). Also, I am an American. So, I have to pay taxes to America IF I make a lot of money in Japan. I do not make a lot of money in Japan. So, I never have to pay taxes to America. BUT, I do have to file taxes. Do you know what 'file' means? File means that I have to report my income to America and explain why I do not have to pay. I do this every year. And I never pay taxes to America. But it is a hassle. Do you know what 'hassle' means? Hassle means that it is a pain in the neck = troublesome = extra work. All Americans file taxes every year. The deadline is April 15th. It is famous in America. Many people put off (delay) filing taxes because ... it is a hassle. Nobody likes to pay taxes. Benjamin Franklin said "in this world nothing can be said to be certain except death and taxes."

Puzzler Answers

So, here we go! It will be another busy week. I am looking forward to it. Really? Puzzler Answers: CLICK HERE.

以下はスーパースクラブルパズルです。よく見ると、4つの空白のタイルが見つかります。 空白のタイルとは、何も書かれていないタイルのことです。それら空白のタイルは、ある単語の一部です。空白のタイルに、どの文字があてはまるかを考えてください。おわかりですか？答えは、ページを下にスクロールして下さい。GOOD LUCK。

Below is a Super Scrabble Puzzle. If you search carefully you will find four blank tiles on it. BLANK means that nothing is written on it. But, they are part of the word. Try to determine what letter the BLANK tiles are. After you have your guess you can scroll down the page to find the answers. As always, GOOD LUCK.

CANNED/EXIST      BOATING/BOLTING/BOOTING        QUOTES        WEB

Puzzler Hints

If it is a nice day so I may venture into Tokyo. Where shall I go? Puzzle HInts: CLICK HERE.

February HP Colorful February

今月のHPは、Color です。会話や文章、トピックにcolor （色）の単語を使ってみましょう。例えば、

 My son, who has red hair, is a singer. OR Some black crows flew in the blue sky.

OR these expressions: 

green with envy,      as black as coal,       once in a blue moon 

I was  blue. (=sad)       He is yellow. (=He is a coward.)

この場合、どちらの意味も彼は臆病です。という意味です。

Try your best and watch for COLORs in my BLOGs.

Teien Art Museum Garden

Puzzler

Here is another weekend. However there is no holiday Monday. It will be a (little) blue Monday for me. Puzzler: CLICK HERE.

February HP Colorful February

今月のHPは、Color です。会話や文章、トピックにcolor （色）の単語を使ってみましょう。例えば、

 My son, who has red hair, is a singer. OR Some black crows flew in the blue sky.

OR these expressions: 

green with envy,      as black as coal,       once in a blue moon 

I was  blue. (=sad)       He is yellow. (=He is a coward.)

この場合、どちらの意味も彼は臆病です。という意味です。

Try your best and watch for COLORs in my BLOGs.

Kids playing cards (in English) at RAM school.

Sit or Stand 2nd Part

When I returned home I got on at Meguro and sat down, no problem. I changed trains at Shibuya. I caught an Utsunomiya line train. I had to stand. At first I stood in front of a young lady. She pretended to sleep. So, at Shibuya I moved. I parked (stood) in front of a family of three. They got off at Shinjuku so my strategy (plan) worked (was successful). I sat down with three other people. Then at Ikebukuro. The person on my left and the person on my right got off. I sat but all the people in front of me did not sit down! I looked up and saw a mom and baby and an old couple. I immediatey slid to my left to sit in the oen space there. It was next to another mom and baby. The old lady and the mom and baby then were able to sit down. At Akabane, I got up to let the old gent (maybe 75+) have my seat. (I had rested enough by then). I stood until Urawa. Many people got off there and I thought I had a chance to sit. But a father and son beat me to two seats and then a 40-year-old guy beat me to the other. Surprisingly, he offered me his seat. I shook my head NO and said that I was getting off at Omiya. At Omiya I changed to the Takasaki line and got a seat immediately in a priority seat and sat until Okegawa. I took the elevator up.

Stand or Sit Part 1

I finally took a trip to Tokyo. It had been about a month since my last venture (travel) to the capital of Japan. I wanted to go, but every Sunday something came up (happened) so I couldn't go. This time I went to Meguro. I went to the Tokyo Metropolitan Teien Art Museum. I will tell you about that adventure in the next couple of Blogs. However, I would like to tell you about my adventure on the train. Of course I travelled to and from my destination (Meguro station) by train. When I left Okegawa I got on a local bound for Ueno. I found and empty seat and sat down. I wanted to go Meguro so I got off at Akabane and changed to the Saikyou Line. There were no empty seat this time. I stood until Ikebukuro when many people got off. I sat down then. I changed to the Yamanote line at Shinjuku and sat on the train until my destination. Cont. tomorrow.

My trip to France by Kazuko Part 2

It snowed our last two days in Paris. We walked around to see the town in the snow. The view from Monmartre, which is the highest place in Paris, was amazing. The opera house was glorious and luxurious, like a palace. I felt that I would really like to see an opera there. At Sainte Chapel, the beauty and magnificence of the stained glass took my breath away. I was very impressed with everything. In Paris, the Metro is a convenient means of transportation. We took it everywhere. However, transferring was a challenge for me. Why? There were no escalators! We had to go up and down the stairs when we changed trains. I was very tired. We worried about the current political situation in France before this trip. Luckily our trip was over without incident. I had a great time. France is awesome!

My trip to France by Kazuko Part 1

Visiting France was my long-held dream. I especially wanted to go to Mon-Saint-Michel. As you may know, Mon-San-Michel is a monastery. It is built on the tideland. We arrived there at night. From the bottom, the illuminated building was fantastic. The next morning we looked around the inside. The cold stone building was filled with a sacred atmosphere. I felt the deep faith and long history. After that, we visited some medieval castles. There were charming flowers here and there. The castle still had an air of the refined life of those times.

Puzzler Answers

And I can relax this Holiday Monday. BTW It is Constitution Day. Hooray! Puzzler Answers: CLICK HERE.

以下はスーパースクラブルパズルです。よく見ると、4つの空白のタイルが見つかります。 空白のタイルとは、何も書かれていないタイルのことです。それら空白のタイルは、ある単語の一部です。空白のタイルに、どの文字があてはまるかを考えてください。おわかりですか？答えは、ページを下にスクロールして下さい。GOOD LUCK。

Below is a Super Scrabble Puzzle. If you search carefully you will find four blank tiles on it. BLANK means that nothing is written on it. But, they are part of the word. Try to determine what letter the BLANK tiles are. After you have your guess you can scroll down the page to find the answers. As always, GOOD LUCK.

CLOVER               INFANTS               FIGHT         SMOKED/SPOKED/STOKED

Puzzler HInts

I am now tweeting  log into Twitter     @RamRick2
And I am not drinking this month and recuperating from my knee injury. Sigh. Puzzler Hints: CLICK HERE.

February HP Colorful February

今月のHPは、Color です。会話や文章、トピックにcolor （色）の単語を使ってみましょう。例えば、

 My son, who has red hair, is a singer. OR Some black crows flew in the blue sky.

OR these expressions: 

green with envy,      as black as coal,       once in a blue moon 

I was  blue. (=sad)       He is yellow. (=He is a coward.)

この場合、どちらの意味も彼は臆病です。という意味です。

Try your best and watch for COLORs in my BLOGs.

Kids playing "Go Fish" at Ram English Okegawa

Puzzler

A three-day weekend. I'm luvin' it! What is the holiday anyway? Who cares?! It will not be a BLUE Monday, that is for sure. Puzzler: CLICK HERE.
February HP Colorful February

今月のHPは、Color です。会話や文章、トピックにcolor （色）の単語を使ってみましょう。例えば、

 My son, who has red hair, is a singer. OR Some black crows flew in the blue sky.

OR these expressions: 

green with envy,      as black as coal,       once in a blue moon 

I was  blue. (=sad)       He is yellow. (=He is a coward.)

この場合、どちらの意味も彼は臆病です。という意味です。

Try your best and watch for COLORs in my BLOGs.

This is the Okegawa City ShiMin Hall 7:15AM February 2nd 

Ouch 2

I woke up early Sunday morning. My plan was to go to the school, do some work and then go to Tokyo. I wanted to visit the Teien Art Museum. Before I left my house I opened the shutters. Then I turned too quickly. Ouch! I twisted my knee. It was in a delicate condition so when I turned abruptly (suddenly) it turned sharply. I tried to walk. Curses! It was more painful now. I couldn't walk well. If I went slowly, I could proceed, but it was too slow. My trip to Tokyo was off (cancelled). Heavy sigh. So I went ot the school. It was easy riding my bike. Why? Because there is no pressure on the knee. I got to the school at 7:30. I checked the Internet. The most recent Eiken tests have finished. So, they post the the complete test and the audio files from the listening practice. So now, I had something to do. I always make copies of the test (which is easy) and then I download the audio files. Then I transfer them to my old computer. That computer has a special software, I can edit the files and make CDs. But, please...don't tell anyone. BTW my knee is getting better. (The photo is of my school CDs which I made years ago.)

Ouch 1

Rick is tweeting at @RamRick2

I hurt my knee. How? It happened at the gym. I overdid it. That means that I did too much exercising. In this case, I ran too much. Here's the story. I have a routine at the gym that I follow religiously (= very strictly). First, I do a little stretching. The first part of my training is muscle building. That is for my arms. Then I run on the treadmill for 18 minutes. Then arm muscle training again. Well! When I did my running I felt a small pain in my right knee. I have felt little pains there before but they went away (disappeared) soon. But this time, after I got home my knee swelled up. There was no black and blue bruises but, it got bigger and hurt a little when I walked. There was not much pain but it was different. That was Thursday  afternoon. I managed to do all my lessons with no problems. It was a little uncomfortable, that was all. So, I went to the gym Saturday night as usual. Things went well. I got some instructions on how to use three new exercise machines. These will help me in my eternal (forever) quest (mission) to slim down my waist. But, the next morning something happened. Continued tomorrow. 

Birds

It was last Thursday. I just finished an early lesson at my school. That student comes by car so, I park my car at the MINE department store for about two hours. So, I was on my way to my car. It only takes about 3 minutes. And, after the first 30 seconds the road curves to the right. There, it turns green: there are trees, bushes and grass. Well, on this day, out of the blue, I heard a bird singing. I recognized that tune. It was a Japanese White-eye. And...there were two! I stopped in my tracks. I looked towards the singing. I searched and there they were. I looked closely. One flew closer to a new limb on his tree. He tuned left and then right to show me his pretty green feather and then his white eye. I felt lucky. I continue on and then there was another bird It was a Great Tit. It has blue an white an black colors. It did not sing for me. But, that was OK. I was very happy to meet these two colorful fliers from the sky.

BTW Rick is tweeting at @RamRick2

My Driving Part 3 (The final episode)

Rick is tweeting at @RamRick2

Finally, about my driving, this time on the highway. Basically, I drive 10 kph (kilometers per hour) over the speed limit. If it is a clear highway (not much traffic) I will drive the speed limit. That means I do not drive over or under the speed limit. I drive exactly 80 or 90 or 100kph. If it is a three lane highway, I generally stay in the middle lane. If it is a two lane highway things get (become) a little complicated. Again, if it is 100 kph, I drive 110. Sometimes a car will come up from behind.  If there is no traffic, or very little traffic, I will move to the left lane. This will allow the speedy drivers behind me to go happily on their speedy, driving way. However, if there is medium traffic I will not move. If I do, I will be moving in an out of the left lane forever. After all, I am driving over the speed limit. If I try to move in and out, it could be dangerous. So, the driver behind me has to be patient and then go around me on the left. It may be a difficult situation. So, if everyone obeys the traffic laws and drives sensibly there would be less problems.

Puzzler Answers

Rick is tweeting at @RamRick2
It definitely is not a Blue Monday. I am ready to GO! Puzzler Answers: CLICK HERE

以下はスーパースクラブルパズルです。よく見ると、4つの空白のタイルが見つかります。 空白のタイルとは、何も書かれていないタイルのことです。それら空白のタイルは、ある単語の一部です。空白のタイルに、どの文字があてはまるかを考えてください。おわかりですか？答えは、ページを下にスクロールして下さい。GOOD LUCK。

Below is a Super Scrabble Puzzle. If you search carefully you will find four blank tiles on it. BLANK means that nothing is written on it. But, they are part of the word. Try to determine what letter the BLANK tiles are. After you have your guess you can scroll down the page to find the answers. As always, GOOD LUCK.

            

         

         AERIAL               OPEN              QUITE                  SNARE/SNORE

Puzzler Hints

I really hope I can make a trip to Tokyo today. I have to do many things for RAM English but I need a break. Puzzler Hints: CLICK HERE.

February HP Colorful February

今月のHPは、Color です。会話や文章、トピックにcolor （色）の単語を使ってみましょう。例えば、

 My son, who has red hair, is a singer. OR Some black crows flew in the blue sky.

OR these expressions: 

green with envy,      as black as coal,       once in a blue moon 

I was  blue. (=sad)       He is yellow. (=He is a coward.)

この場合、どちらの意味も彼は臆病です。という意味です。

Try your best and watch for COLORs in my BLOGs.

I found these photos. How's my blue shirt?

Puzzler

February is the shortest month of the year. So, I aways take this opportunity to abstain from alcohol. Wish me luck. Puzzler: CLICK HERE.

February HP Colorful February

今月のHPは、Color です。会話や文章、トピックにcolor （色）の単語を使ってみましょう。例えば、

 My son, who has red hair, is a singer. OR Some black crows flew in the blue sky.

OR these expressions: 

green with envy,      as black as coal,       once in a blue moon 

I was  blue. (=sad)       He is yellow. (=He is a coward.)

この場合、どちらの意味も彼は臆病です。という意味です。

Try your best and watch for COLORs in my BLOGs.

This is the photo I use on my TWITTER account. Check it out. RamRick2

My January

It is February first, 2019. That means that January 2019 is finished. My January went something like this:
1. I started the January by walking up in a hotel in Tokyo and then taking a taxi to Tokyo Tower to see the sunrise.
2. Then our family drove to Umi-no-Hotaru in Tokyo Bay.
3. Visited friends and relatives in Chigasaki and Kamakura.
4. Went out drinking with one buddy.
5. My lessons stared up in full force from January 9th.
6. Hired a young Japanese gent to make my videos.
7. RAM English administered the Eiken tests to 10 of our students on January 25th.
8. I visited NingyoChou in NihonBashi.
9. Watched six USA football games on TV.
10. Started new project. It is redoing the Homework for kids and creating two new ones.
11. Went out to dinner with the family including my daughter's fiance.
12. Came to the school on two Sundays to work.
13. Went to he gym 12 times.
I am looking forward to a dry, productive February. How about yo? How was your January, 2019?