I am a native Japanese speaker who used to teach Japanese in a university somewhere on this planet. Currently I don't work but stayed in my house in Northern part of JAPAN. I hope that you could enjoy reading my posts and know what life in Japan is like.
I came back in Japan in July. Since then, I have been pulling the weeds, getting rid of roots of the weeds, cultivating soil, and planting seeds of vegetables in my garden. This work still continues. Though my garden is small tiny one, but there are a lot of things to do. Now in September, it’s the time to thin radish and green leaves. This is to give them a space for growing more by reducing the numbers. In this process, If it’s a small sprout, I just throw it. But now they have grown, I don’t waste them, but eat. Today I picked some red radish and carrots. Since the radish and carrots are still small, I use their leaves. In the supper tonight, radish’s leaves were used in Miso soup, and carrots’ leaves were cut in small and stir-fried with sausage.
I have told my mother the same thing again and again. But the failure repeated.
When she wants to drink coffee or tea, she puts a fire on the gas stove in the kitchen. Usually, it takes several minutes until water gets boiled in the kettle. She can’t wait for it, and then goes to her room to watch TV.
In the case of boiling water, sometimes it ends up drying up in the kettle. Worse is the case of cooking, food inside becomes charcoal, and the pan no longer to be used. Thanks to the modern technology, the gas stove in my kitchen is set to stop in thirty minutes. But quite often these vapor and charcoal happens within thirty minutes.
It is sad to say, but because of her age, my mother can neither learn from the failure, nor to use the knowledge of new experiences in order to avoid repeating the same thing to happen.
Given that situation, I thought I need to do something for the matter. Not allowing her to use the gas stove is one thing. But at the same time, I have to give her a way to drink hot coffee herself so that she can activate her remaining ability.
I know that if a Gas company employee look at this, the person would give me a strong warning. But this is my solution for the time being. I put an Induction Cooking Heater on top of the gas stove in day time between the time I finish cooking breakfast and the time I start cooking supper. Of course, I close the gas valve when putting the “IH cooker”. Actually, the switches of gas valve are right under the switches for burning. But once I close the valve, my mother cannot open it herself.
I made this stuff by myself. By the way, three burners are good for busy cooking.
I went to Niigata today. I needed to use an Automated Teller Machine in the city. When I walked a pedestrian road along the wide street in front of the JR Niigata Station, I felt the smell of Ginkgo. It’s not a good flagrance, if not odor. But it is sure that smell makes me realize that the autumn has come.
Just under the JR Niigata station is the Bus TerminalToyoko Inn and Bus TerminalJR Niigata StationMany Ginkco Fruits were on the Ground, smelled.After using ATM, I quickly returned home by getting on a Local train.
In the afternoon, I tried watching DVD in my house. The DVD was about teaching Japanese as foreign language. But I slept while playing it. Nothing was left in my memory.
The Left Peak is 1012 meter and the Right Peak is 1293 meter in AltitudeA Path on the River BankThe Machine was left on the Ground, Probably because of WeekendGun-Hunting is Prohibited in this Area by Niigata PrefectureMuddy Water in the River. Rainy days has continued Recently.Rice Fields and Gozu MountainsA Rice Field whose Rice has already been Harvested. A view from the Bridge.
Though it was a thing one month ago, my mother and I went to a Buddhism Temple. There is a cemetery behind the temple, and my father’s grave is there. August 18 was a little late for “Visiting a Grave in Obon”, but I chose the date. I thought it was difficult for me to call a taxi because there are so many people coming back from Tokyo area to Niigata during Obon season. But August 18 was still a busy day for the taxi company. When I made a phone call in morning hours, the person of the company told me to call again in the afternoon.
The temple is located in the middle of vast area of Niigata Plain. It is surrounded by Rice fields, and I could see some orchards of grapes and peers through the taxi window. We didn’t get in the main hall this time, but I have got in the hall many times for memorial services for my deceased father. There are thick wooden columns in the hall. And the columns have color changes at lower position. The chief priest had once told me that those color changes are traces of flood in the old times. The temple is near to the Shinano River which is the longest river in Japan. Since the main hall was built 250 years ago, it must have been some occasions of flood.
My mother and I went to the cemetery behind, and I prepared for pray. I placed two chrysanthemum bouquets right and left on my father’s grave. And then I put a fire on a bundle of Incense sticks. But I could not put a fire on three candles because of winds. Since we were making the taxi wait for us, I gave up the candles. We prayed shortly and got back to the parking lot in front of the main hall. If we had left chrysanthemum bouquets on my father’s grave, we would have made the chief priest removed them afterwards. So, I took the bouquets, brought them in front of the main hall, and offered them to the big Kan’non Statue.
About a half an hour taxi ride took us home. That’s it for the grave visiting in Obon of this summer. By the way, I have a suggestion. It is to move the time of Obon season from August to September. It is too hot to go to a temple in the current Obon season. Thanks to the global warming, now the summer heat is more and more becoming dangerous to the old people like my mother. Japan’s Obon is held in accordance with the solar calendar. If we have Obon in the lunar calendar, we will be able to go to a temple when the temperature is more comfortable in September like Chuseok in Korea.
Though I showed you the same kind of photo recently,Rice was already harvested in some rice fieldsBeyond the Railway is a Residential Area. I think they are a rare kind of sunflowersHead-down; It seems Rice Grains are heavy for the Stem
Today’s highest temperature was 31 Celsius degrees. It was still hot. But since tomorrow, the highest temperature will be below 30 Celsius, according to the weather forecast. Will it be the end of summer? I hope so. This summer was an extraordinary hot one. I have been feeling very bad through this summer because of the heat. I hope I will be able to be more active in this fall.
桃李の月餅、五個入りです。
Nothing has to do with rice fields in Niigata, but I found a photo that I took just one year ago, on September 17, 2024. It’s “MOONCAKE”. I bought it in the supermarket in the campus.
Today, in the morning, I worked in my field. When it comes to growing vegetables in this autumn season, there is not much thing remaining. But I still have one thing to do. That is to plant onion’s seedlings and garlic’s bulbs. In order to plant them, I need to make one more ridge in the field. It will be five meter long; three meters for onions and two meters for garlic. What is tough is to get rid of roots of weeds from the place for the ridge and furrow. Since the place had been untouched for two years, now weeds’ roots in the ground are like spaghetti.
I worked in the field from 8 to 9:30 am. and then I got shower. From 10, I was watching a DVD that is about teaching Japanese as a second language. Actually, I had brought those DVD with me to the campus during the years I was teaching in a university. Watching the DVD today, I regret that I should have watched while I was teaching in the university. There are a lot of tips for teachers to teach a foreign language. For example, there is a concept of MMC for beginner’s level; the first M is mechanical training, the second M stands for meaningful training, and C for communicative activities. Did I do that? Usually, I didn’t extend my teaching to communicative activities. And there was no clear distinction between mechanical and meaningful trainings in my teaching. I would like to improve my teaching skill, but I don’t see any chance to apply improvements to my teaching in the future. I have already retired from the job as a Japanese teacher.
I had planned to go shopping in the afternoon. But it was hot like 34 Celsius degrees. So, I didn’t go to a supermarket, but continued to watch the DVD about teaching Japanese in the afternoon. I practiced my piano from 4 to 5 pm, cooked a supper from 5, had the supper at 6:30, and then I went shopping. I got back home at 8 pm, and started writing this.
DIY store is called as “Home Center” in Japan. I just wanted to buy some items in a Home Center in the town next to my village. In this afternoon, I got on a local train.
The Train crossed a RiverTangerine Tree Seedlings
I saw a lot of fruit trees were being sold in a store. Though I went to three stores in the town, I didn’t buy anything. I don’t know why. Something in my mind prevented me from buying commodities. I went back to the station, got on a train, and got to my home at around 3 pm.
I practice a piano from 4 to 5 pm these days. Today, too, and near the end of the practice, I was singing “Will you still love me tomorrow” with my piano accompanying. The song was composed by Carole King, and I was singing it in key-E with Roberta Flack’s version. I like the repeat of the (E) and (D on E) at the end of that version.
When I finished singing, I realized that it was getting dark outside, the sound of wind grew stronger, and it was like a storm’s coming. Looking through my window, I saw strong rain and trees were bent by the wind. I remembered that the window left open on the second floor. So, I went up the stairway and saw that a lot of rain drops were coming into my bedroom. I shut the window.
I feel that Climate change is real. We have had the hottest Summer these three years. I can’t go outside because of heat and strong sunshine for almost two months from the middle of July to the middle of September. Another change that I feel is how it rains. When it rains, it is not drizzle nor light rain. It’s terribly strong. I frequently hear a new word to describe a strong rain in weather forecast on TV. It is “Senjo-Kosuitai”, which is Linear Precipitation Belt. Probably, the strong rain of today also came from a Linear Precipitation Belt.
Now the climate is different from what I knew in my childhood and younger days. It seems that the change is not for good, I mean the hot summer and strong rains are both troublesome for us.
I don’t think it is good to always looking back things in the past, but I found that today is the day I left my hometown two years ago in order to go to a university in foreign country. Until then, I had been teaching Japanese for that university on-line because of the pandemic. The on-line teaching lasted three and a half years. Finally, the pandemic had ended, I got my work visa from the consulate on September 4th in 2023, and then I got on a Jo’etsu Shinkansen (Bullet train) to go to Narita International Airport.
Niigata Plain from the Window of Joetsu Shinkansen
Since then, I had taught Japanese language in the university for two years. There were so many things happened during those two years, that I cannot write something in detail tonight about them. Although I think I had tried doing the best, I am sure that my teaching was not the best, especially for grade-23 students. I regret my teaching style in the listening course.
An Airplane in Narita Int’l Airport on September 11, 2023
If I teach one more year, could I be a better teacher, or I be able to teach more sophisticated way? This is a difficult question. And I’d say “NO”. When I made up my mind that I would not renew my work permission for another school year, I had already felt that it was too much for me. If I write like this, I may make some of my students sad. I am sorry for that.
An Airplane in Incheon Int’l Airport on September 12, 2023
The best thing to me was that I could meet some good students. Learning together with them was my sheer pleasure. Although I have already left the Campus and I cannot see them in person now, I hope that I can be able to keep exchanging with those good students into the future.
My Room in the Residence Building for Foreign Teachers in the Campus; September 12, 2023
Agony or Fun?! Second Language Learning 