Bamboo is fantastic. I think it`s proof there is a God (or Devil, if you`ve ever tried to get rid of it from your garden).
It can be as strong as steel, sharp as a knife, or so soft you can eat it! It`s useful for making all sorts of things, from boats to vases.
As you can see, my skill level is not high enough for the boat option yet, but this vase I made from bamboo looks pretty nice, don`t you think? I made it from bamboo I found on the beach at Mihama.
I stole the flowers from my mother-in-law`s garden.
On Friday, Ichinomiya Teragoya held a Tanabata Party at an izakaya called Wataminchi (why do staff always laugh when I say it?), which is in front of Ichinomiya Station. The interesting thing for me about this izakaya is that it used to be a Nova school before, and I used to work there! So the place we drank beer & ate food on Friday used to be a classroom where I taught English to students - pretty funny!
Anyway, everyone had a good time, and I realised I`m not a heavy drinker at all after sitting next to Mr. Kesao...
Thanks everybody for coming, & thanks to those who wore yukatas - you all looked so cool!
If you`ve been to Ichinomiya Teragoya this week, you`ll know it`s our Yukata Week (Gifu & Ginan are later). It`s good to see so many kids in yukatas - everyone looks great!
Girls often complain that yukatas (& kimonos) are uncomfortable & difficult to put on, but for men it`s not so bad. I have a few yukatas, and I quite like wearing them. It feels like I`m wearing a dress in public, which I don`t get many chances to do in Brisbane (Sydney is a bit different).
When I first came to Japan about 10 years ago, not many men wore yukatas to festivals. Recently though, I see that they are coming back into fashion for guys. That`s good, because I think they look pretty cool. Do you agree?
Monday was `Sea Day` in Japan, so of course I went to the sea. (So does that mean I have to work hard on Labour Day? I hope not).
I went to Mihama, in Fukui, which you already know about if you read my blog regularly. Which you should.
The water was clean - great! Unfortunately for me, the beach was also clean, so it was difficult to find enough wood for a campfire. When I come to the beach at other times, there is usually lots of wood on the beach, so I can make a huge fire. A huge fire is necessary when you go camping. The bigger the better. It`s common sense.
What did you do for Sea Day? Did you go to the beach?
I had intended to support Holland in the final, but after about 10 minutes of watching, I decided to support Spain instead. I don`t mind cheering on the `underdog` (= the team everybody expects to lose) but I don`t like dirty tactics & bad sportsmanship, and Holland played one of the dirtiest games of football I`ve seen in a while. They received so many yellow cards I lost count, & although they only received 1 red card, it should have been 2 or 3. Look at that tackle in the picture - can you believe he only got a yellow for that!?
I`m glad Spain won. Congratulations!
By the way, did you notice that the Japanese referee from the Holland v Brazil game was the `4th official` (the guy who holds up the Lost Time sign) for the final? I guess this was a kind of reward for his good performance, which I mentioned on this blog.
Mariko is a long-time student of Ichinomiya Teragoya. She has excellent English skills, she has an excellent English teacher (that`s me), she has excellent taste in English-speaking holiday destinations (she sometimes goes to Noosa, near my hometown of Brisbane), & now she has an excellent husband (but he`s not English, he`s Japanese). Congratulations! I hope you have a wonderful life together. And thanks for the bottle of wine which I won at bingo at your second wedding party - woohoo!
When I was walking near my house I saw a bicycle in a waterway. It was rusty & covered in rubbish, and - I guessed - damaged. Nevertheless, I wanted to rescue it & try to fix it.
And I did! It took a while, but it was fun.
However,if I use it, there is a chance I`ll be stopped by the police, and maybe they won`t believe that I found it & fixed it. Maybe they will think that I stole it & I`m lying (because I have a big nose). I don`t need that kind of trouble in my life.
So I don`t ride it; I just keep it in the garage. One day I`ll probably throw it back in the waterway.
On Sunday I went to an exhibition of art by Spanish surrealist Joan Miro at Kiyosu City Haruhi Art Museum 清須市はるひ美術館. Do you know him?
He`s an interesting guy, because he has a girl`s name. Also his art is interesting because it looks like a small kid did it, but he`s an adult...
Actually (maybe you can guess!), I don`t like his art much.
However, I`m interested in art, and especially printmaking e.g. etching, engraving & woodblock printing, which is what Joan Miro usually did. Besides the exhibition, the museum also had an interesting display of art printing equipment & decriptions of different art printing methods. I enjoyed looking at that.
Do you often go to art exhibitions? I recommend it. Even if I don`t really like the art, I always feel positive, creative & motivated afterwards.
At an izakaya or barbeque I usually drink beer, but when I have a nice meal, especially pasta, I prefer wine. A bottle of cheap wine in an Italian restaurant is usually about 2000 yen, but recently I found a family restaurant where a 500ml carafe of wine is only... 370 YEN! Wow - that`s cheaper than beer! And it tastes okay (but I`m not very fussy).
Of course the name of the restaurant is Saizeriya. It`s a chain, so there`s probably one near you. Do you often go there?
There have been a lot of bad refereeing decisions this World Cup, so it is good to see somebody do a good job. Congratulations to Japanese match referee Yuichi Nishimura - & his linesmen - for their performance in the Netherlands-Brazil game. I also like his `low-key` (calm & relaxed) style & manner. Other referees` actions are sometimes too energetic & theatrical - they look like they are doing Michael Jackson dance moves or something.
Did you know:
Referees tend to run 12 miles during a game - five more than the players, according to data from the U.S. Soccer Federation.
- ブログルメンバーの方は下記のページからログインをお願いいたします。
ログイン
- まだブログルのメンバーでない方は下記のページから登録をお願いいたします。
新規ユーザー登録へ
内倉憲一 
mokomoko 
KUMA 
yukio 
birdy 
エメラルド 
PSPINC JP 
田仲なお美 
bokushi