daily life from Nagoya Japan

Memories

2011-06-23T09:44:00.000+09:00

This is a photo of my grandpa when he was younger. He passed away when I was six. My mother told me that young grandpa was so handsome like a actor.
When I was small, he often came to visit me on his bicycle. Somehow he always brought me Kentucky Fried Chicken ;D At that time, my grandma's workplace was in my neighborhood. So he waited at my home until her work end, and they went their home together. He put grandma on the back of the bicycle. I always stood still at my veranda and gazed after them until I couldn't see them. I will never forget the sight as long as I live.

Christmas day

2010-12-24T21:38:00.001+09:00

I wish you a merry Christmas !!

;-)

So cold today!

2010-12-15T10:52:00.001+09:00

Yesterday was sunny and warm.

High temperature was 17 degrees.

But today's high temperature will be 9 degrees. And cloudy.

weather

2010-12-14T10:40:00.001+09:00

It was rainy day yesterday.

But today, it's clear and beautiful !

;-)

It's winter, again?

2010-03-07T19:57:00.001+09:00

It's so cold and is raining today.

Drop 10 degrees since the day before yesterday.

Perhaps we will have snow the day after tomorrow.

the sleeve

2010-02-28T01:31:00.004+09:00

This CD is new album of "Strawberry Goat".
The band's vocalist is my old friend.
So I provided my work for them to the sleeve.
If I recall that the previous album was the same....they used my work, I guess.

I take encouragement the fact that Maiko--the vocalist-- has been belting out since school. Now she is a vocalist, wife and a mother. I understand how difficult it.

I was so glad that Maiko said that she was encouraged by my works, because I am a wife and a mother, and yet I have been taking photos.

....wow.

Our old friends gathered at her previous concert. It was as if a reunion.

After the concert, we drank and talked for hours and hours....until midnight.

Spring is come

2010-02-24T15:00:00.001+09:00

High temperatures will be 20 degrees in Nagoya today.

I went to the nearby park to see plum blossoms.

They are blooming beautifully.

The wonderful smell of plum blossoms covers around there.

2010-02-24T00:15:00.001+09:00

Oasis21 : peer down from there...

2010-02-23T23:57:00.003+09:00

Oasis21 : view from the top of it #2

2010-02-23T23:46:00.002+09:00

Oasis21 : view from the top of it.

2010-02-23T23:42:00.003+09:00

Oasis21 : on way up stairs #2

2010-02-23T23:41:00.002+09:00

Oasis21 : on way up stairs...

2010-02-23T23:36:00.001+09:00

Oasis21 : looked up

a nightly walk alone

2010-02-23T23:24:00.001+09:00

Recently I went to Osu "ell.size"--the place with live music-- for
seeing my friend's concert.

It starts at 9:00pm.

I arrived with time to spare, so I wander around Sakae for an hour or
more.

I went to my favorite place. Oasis 21.
There are cafe, shops and wonderful night view.

And, that night, there weren't so many people ever though Saturday
night.
So, I could relax and enjoy the walk.

Amazake

2010-02-23T01:41:00.001+09:00

Now spring is almost here, Nagoya.

It's almost off-season of "amazake".

I love amazake. Amazake is a alcohol-free drink made from rice, suger
and malted rice. It's sweet and is common to warm.

Aromatherapy

2010-02-20T10:22:00.003+09:00

Today, I went off for a Teatree oil.

Use it for aromatherapy.

Teatree oil is known to be beneficial for cold prevention, for a change, for prevention of infectious disease, and so on.

An old stationery store

2010-02-18T15:29:00.001+09:00

The store in front of my daughter's elementary school.

I don't know this store's name.
And I don't know exactly how many years, but I 'm sure it has been
around for at least 30 years.

As its appearance, the interior is so retro-flavored. I just feel like
I'm time-trip in early childhood.
But naturally, the store sells modern stasionery --notebooks, erasers,
pencils and so on--.
So I was little confused.

newborn boy

2008-02-10T14:20:00.001+09:00

What a Wonderful World, originally uploaded by potaufeu.

Our new baby son Len who was born at 5pm on 11th of December, 2007.

Len emerged a healthy seven pound baby after a relatively short 3.5 hour labor.

I would like to thank you all for your support leading up to Len's birth.
:)

close to the due date

2007-12-04T01:37:00.000+09:00

Actually, I'm very close to the due date.
(Wow, I'm more than nervous ! )

I'll give birth to a baby boy.

Maybe I'll not make an appearance here for a while.

If I forget to tell you later, I wish you a merry Christmas ....
:)

in the womb

2007-06-12T14:16:00.000+09:00

A baby in my body.
A soul in my body.
Very uncanny feeling.

I'm now four months pregnant. And I have morning sickness. Morning sickness is killing me--but it will soon be over, maybe--.

Changed my sense of taste, I became picky eater.
Not only that, I guess my sense of color was changed, too.

The presence of innocent life inside me.
It is a big part of my life.

conflict

2007-04-10T01:40:00.000+09:00

A conflict .... I mean, conflict between what I wants to do and what I should do.

I love to taking pics. And of course, I'd like many people to see my works.
That's what I thought all along.
Still feel the same ....

.... maybe.

My head is messed up right now. I know. I just too busy and my mind is not relaxed. So I'm thinking about it that way.

OK. Things will work out ;)

spending busy days ....

2007-04-03T02:05:00.000+09:00

Things have been hectic.

Though I don't know why since mid-February, I'm spending busy days.

I had a private exhibition of my works at a gallery with my friends, when this was over, a few things --private concerns of my family-- were happened, and when things calmed down, I'm busy getting ready for enter the kindergarten.
My daughter will enter the kindergaten from this month.
So I have to make place mat, lunch bag, slipper bag, extra clothes bag, cup bag and so on !!
I make them on the sewing machine. phew ....

In addition, I have a lot of ground to cover.
But .... it's just one of those things, isn't it ?

Awww .... I wonder if I can make it to the entrance ceremony.

Chikache, make it quick !!

"Village Green Tea Room"

2006-11-21T10:15:00.000+09:00

My friend Kaori opened a cozy cafe named "Village Green Tea Room".
The cafe's basic concept is "United Kingdom".
The guests can enjoy both UK music and scented tea. Kaori knows so much about UK rock music and tea.
And she is nice friendly person. So if you visit there, you will have a lovely time.

I don't mean to be too personal, but .... actually, my works are showing at the cafe.
About 20 my photographs there.
The photographs on display were taken on Nagoya area.

If you ever come this way, you should stop by :)

"Village Green Tea Room"
E-MAIL. VillageGtearoom@aol.com
PLACE. 1 Castiene Chiyoda, 1-4-1 Chiyoda, Naka-ku, Nagoya, Japan
OPENING HOURS. 11AM-7PM (Wednesday CLOSED.)
CLOSEST STATION. Yaba-cho, Meijyo-line. City of Nagoya municipal subway.
The cafe is a 5-minute walk from the nearest station's Exit 3.

*The pic on this blog is taken by Kaori. She send it via Email to me :)

curious cat

2006-08-21T09:30:00.000+09:00

isecat
Originally uploaded by N & M.

This pic taken by my father.
When he went to Grand Shrine of Ise with my mother and sister, he found this curious cat doll on a street corner near the Shrine.

Small cats of the backdrop is ”beckoning cats”. Of course, they looked familiar in Japan. But I've never seen this kind of big and curious cat.
Reading from the notice board, it says that ....
"煙管(tobacco pipe) / 一服(taking a draw on pipe) １００円(100yen)".
Hmmmm.
So this big cat is holding a pipe. And I think this cat is a poster cat of this shop. I feel fairly sure that this cat can catch people walking.

I want to see the real thing !!!!

slip back in time to my undergraduate days

2006-05-28T00:51:00.000+09:00

Today, I went to a wedding after-party of my senior at college.
We --erstwhile mate-- got together and hosted a dinner party in honour of the newlyweds.

In college, I belonged to a light music club. He --the groom-- is my senior at there.
He is a drummer, and that party had some band's performance.
These bands composed of his former associate.
The performance was wonderful, and I received a great impulse.

And also, it seemed like some kind of a homecoming. Everyone exactly the same as it was when we put ourself into music. I felt like slipped back in time to my undergraduate days.
And I felt like I was in a completely different world.
Anyway, it was an extraordinary time.

Mr.T, have a happy life together !! :)

wall of barbed wire

2006-03-26T10:30:00.000+09:00

romper
Originally uploaded by chikache.

The darkness came down over my mind like a hood.
And I'm in the middle of a slump now.
I feel like I have a wall of barbed wire in front of me.

Well, I know.
The problem isn't real .... it's all in my mind.
All I have to do is break down the wall of barbed wire exist within my mind.

Monday Michiru @ Blue Note Osaka

2006-03-05T17:42:00.000+09:00

I went to Osaka yesterday.
Monday Michiru had a gig in "Blue Note Osaka" last night.

The other members are Alex Sipiaguine played Trumpet/Flugelhorn, Henry Hey played Keyboards, and GENTA played Drums/Percussions. That's it.
--Nobody played bass.
Actually, program a synthesizer to do bass.
It was more wonderful than I had expected. I thought that is so experimental attempt.
But their playing had an uplifting feeling.
They had a strong sense of unity. We could felt that. That's amazing feeling ....

After the gig, my husband(he and Monday know each other) and me visited her backstage room.
She is so beautiful and cool.
She has an aura of assurance around herself.
We enjoyed speaking with her.

If you have never listened her new album "Routes", you should listen it.
And if you have never seen her live performance, you should see it.
Her performance is full of joy.

Monday Michiru website is here
Alex Sipiaguine website is here
Henry Hey website is here

lovely present from friend

2006-01-18T20:38:00.000+09:00

Yesterday, I met my friend for lunch.
Then he gave a gift to me. It was kind of a surprise for me to receive a gift.
And that is homemade pound cake (in this photo).
And, wow, how amazing !! He made it by himself !!

The cake is beautiful to the eye, and of course, it was so delicious.
It's not too sweet, and very moist.
Eating it was enough to make me happy.

Hmm .... I bet he has a professional-level proficiency in cooking.
Okay. I have to keep my chin up !
I'm going to try to make my special cake.

What's "detox diet" ?

2005-10-14T19:22:00.000+09:00

Lately "detox diet" has been in the headlines.
Many Japanese women's magazines run a spate of articles praising that weight-loss method.
Well, the new weight-loss method called "detox diet" is getting rid of the body's toxins and promote health, true to its name.
That is what I was trying to get around to earlier.
But, actually it's not known exactly how ....

Hm ....
Dip into the site about "detox diet", I automatically just felt something different about it.
The site saying that medicine's advertisement and biased eating method.
I don't like using the drug and fasting to lose weight, which is, .... you know, pretty impossible, you know ?

--OK. I've changed my mind. As usual, I practice yoga and drink mountain spring water --I like Contrex !!-- for mental and physical health.
And .... well, maybe it's okay to try bedrock bath --just lying on the warm bedrock, then rid the body of waste products--.
I think this is true that "Moderation in all things".

went to the hospital

2005-08-09T16:23:00.000+09:00

I went to the hospital yesterday.
Because I had a sore throat and the fever with temperatures above 38 degrees Celsius.
I waited an hour for my turn to be examined, and I got the doctor's opinion.
The findings in careful evaluation by doctor that it's just a cold. Phew. I was relieved.
The doctor gave me a prescription for my illness. So I went to the pharmacy to fill my doctor's prescription. I was given a 5-day course of medicine -- combination cold remedy, antibiotic drug, throat lozenge and throat washing --. The total -- diagnosis and medicines -- was about 1500 yen. Woow, inexpensive ! Thanks to health insurance system we are able to go see any doctor for a reasonable price. But, actually, there are many misgivings about the current health insurance system.

I should take this opportunity to recharge my battery.

my hairdresser

2005-07-26T12:36:00.000+09:00

I went to a beauty shop which is called "Cherubim" on Sunday.
I only trust my usual hairdresser (person of this photo) to cut my hair.
He -- my usual hairdresser -- and me have a longstanding relationship .... for 10 years or so. He is the same age as me, and his wife is my former classmate. And he lives in my neck of the woods. So I can see parking his car in his garage from my window !!
Well, I think he is a good hairdresser for me. And he has a sense of fun.

He will leave "Cherubim" to strike out on his own this September. Then he is busy getting ready for set up his own beauty shop now. And that's not all. His son will be born in November. Wow ! What a fantastic topic !
We talked up a storm about those topics, I stayed there 3 hours .... phew.

Anyway, I went to him, and changed my hairstyle.

camera

2005-07-06T01:27:00.000+09:00

I bought a new camera -- nikon D 70 --.
It was a "to-die-for item" for me. So I feel happy now.

I think that this camera is too difficult for me. But I believe that I will become mastery of it some day. I just have to do it !!

lavender

2005-06-25T02:45:00.000+09:00

roxo
Originally uploaded by chikache.

I went to my favorite park in the afternoon. It takes about 20 minutes by car.
There are field of lavender. It's in season now.
The field was swathed in beautiful purple lavender. It was very beautiful. The air at around there full of lavender fragrance. I breathed gently and deeply. Lavender fragrance made me relax.

I love bitter gourd !!

2005-06-18T01:25:00.000+09:00

bitter gourd, again
Originally uploaded by chikache.

Bitter gourd salad. I cooked this for today's dinner. Bitter gourd is a traditional vegitable in Okinawa. I usually call it "gohya". It's a summer vegitable and it contain particular vitamins. So I eat it many times in summer season.

Well, "gohya" salad's recipe is....
one : cut a gohya as thin as possible.
two : cut quarter an onion as thin as possible.
three : mix gohya and onion, add some bonito powder and put dressing --base of the soy sauce-- on a salad, it's ready.

That's bitter taste. But very delicious.

crowded places

2005-06-16T01:51:00.000+09:00

Today, I went to Nagoya Station by train.
It takes about 10 minutes to get there from my door. So close! I really appreciate it. Because I must go a bank by today. But, actually, I was not feeling well....

Station was very crowded. And the bank, too. Many people were forming a line in front of the ATM machine. I got line there with reluctance for a long time, and I finished the business.
So eventually, I went straight back home.

I Love Kabuki !!!!

2005-06-13T01:06:00.000+09:00

Today was sunny sunday :-)
I went to see Kabuki. You know, Kabuki is traditional drama performed by male actors.
My favorite Kabuki actor groupe is "The 21st century KABUKI-GUMI". I went to see their performance. Their today's performance was "YAMATO TAKERU". "YAMATO TAKERU" story based Japanese old myths. They played it in clearly understandable terms and their performance contain many surprises. So you'll enjoy it even if you are a beginner.
Today's their performance was very fantastic, amazing, cool and beautiful! Anyway, that's GREAT!!
I thought Ichikawa Danjiro --played Yamato Takeru -- is really marvelous Kabuki actor. And of course, Ichikawa Emiya, Ichikawa Emisaburo, Ichikawa Shunen, Ichikawa Monnosuke and Ichikawa Ukon are my favorite wonderful Kabuki actor.
I just can't take my eyes off these young Kabuki stars.

a way to spend the rainy season --2--

2005-06-12T03:59:00.000+09:00

Originally uploaded by chikache.

Yesterday's weather forecast appears to be true.
Today, it's raining. The weather forecast was right.
Despite the rain, I went for a walk in neighborhood. I took picture of street scene in the rain. I took a defferent aproach than usual. That was very fun for me. I really enjoyed it.

a way to spend the rainy season --1--

2005-06-11T01:09:00.000+09:00

Originally uploaded by chikache.

In this area it's supposed to beginning of rainy season tomorrow.
It was very humid today. Maybe tomorrow. And, according to the forecast, it's going to rain tomorrow. Phew....
I don't like rainy season. Because I can't go outside. So I end up keeping to my room all day long. This will last days and days.

Today was cloudy, with a chance of showers in the afternoon.
And then I made this cake today.
I and my daughter (2 years old) mixed cake together. And we ate baked cake with a pleasant smile. That was very fun.
What a fun way to spend the afternoon!
The idea was great.
Well, I wonder what are we going to do tomorrow?

"NaoVictoria" came to Port of Nagoya!!

2005-06-10T02:18:00.000+09:00

Originally uploaded by chikache.

Over a number of months, Nao Victoria came from Spain to Japan.Nao Victoria is a sailing ship.
I really wanted to see it. Opening to the public from the day before yesterday.
Finally, I went to see it today!!
But, my first sight was the long line in front of Nao Victoria. And I have to stood patiently in huge queues for an hours.

The first impression of the sailing ship is...."It's smaller than I thought!"
I couldn't believe the fact that it was sailed around the world about 500 years before.
Of course -- it's a replica in that time....
I think Nao Victoria combine technique with grace. I was very moved.