2015.12.30

It was fine in the daytime, and rained at night shortly.

Since I was still sick, I spent most morning in bed.

In the afternoon I started jigsaw puzzle which I got for a Christmas present.

In the late afternoon we went to see a movie "Star Wars Episode VII The Force Awakens" at the IMAX theater.
There was no ticket box open in front but we could buy the ticket at the snack area which is clever for them to be able to sell both at a time.
The story seems to be continued.

For dinner I cooked salad, curry and rice.

2015.12.29

It was fine but I was not fine again.
I do not think I have a fever, but still having a runny nose and slight headache when I sneeze.
I did not do anything special but just slept and relaxed.

2015.12.28

It was fine but I was not fine.
I got sick, and had a fever of 101.6F in the morning.
Since we use celsius in Japan, it was rather hard to know how high my temperature was. Thanks to Google, I knew it was like 38.66C.
Yes, I was sick.

I had an appointment with one of the students from Florida International University who was interested in my book "Florida Report 2006 - 2008" at lunch time. I went to see him to give my book and had lunch together.

Besides this and grocery shopping, I stayed in bed and slept and slept.

I hope I will be fine soon.

2015.12.27

It was fine and hot like summer mostly and showered partially at night.

While driving, the ODO meter marked 101010 miles around 11:11 am.

We started from the Venice Beach searching for shark teeth. We could not find the good one but I think I found two parts of them.

We  visited the Outlet mall on the way to our destination. There were so many cars and people there shopping discounted goods.
Since I am not interested in shopping, I just walked around. There was a pond and the sign said "Beware of Alligators" which reminds me of being in  Florida.

There was a 50th wedding anniversary party and about 40 people were invited. Some came all the way from Chicago driving 18 hours or so.
It was held at the Bride's brother's house which is quite big and beautiful.
The bride wore the dress which she cut the bottom of the wedding dress she wore 50 years ago. It was impressive.
I was a totally stranger for them, but they welcomed me warmly.
I enjoyed eating and drinking.

We came back to Delray Beach around 9:30 pm.

2015.12.26

It was fine in the morning, but cloudy in the afternoon and rain in the evening.

I enjoyed walking along the Daytona Beach where you can drive by paying $10.  Since it was fine and hot like summer, most people there were wearing bathing suits enjoying sunshine and waves.

At lunch I ordered a bucket of Harricane, category 5 which serves for four to six people. It was tasty so I thought I could drink all, but could not at all because I felt drunk soon.
I was almost sleeping in the car all the way to Venice Beach.

Nice holiday, isn't it?

2015.12.25

Merry Christmas!

I came to Daytona Beach via St. Augustine from Delray Beach.

For dinner we went to the all you can eat place of Japanese and Chinese restaurant named Ichiban meaning No.1 in St. Augustine. There were so many people there because it was the only place opened on Christmas.

Today is the full moon on Christmas which happens only once in 19 years.
I enjoyed walking along the beach taking picture with the full moon.

2015.12.24

Merry Christmas!

It was a very cold rainy day in Japan.

I could not sleep at all last night. This is not unusual for me when I go abroad.

I left home around 5:15 am. It took about three hours to the Narita airport.
It's been a long time since I went there because these days I prefer using the Haneda airport which is much closer.
There were many changes at the airport.
I happened to see someone from the organization where I worked until 2013.

It took about 11 hours and a half to get to Houston.  I watched four Star Wars movies.

At Houston I had to wait for 3 hours or so. It was cloudy there. 

I arrived at Miami earlier than schedule, and came to Delray Beach around 4 pm.

I was invited to the Christmas Dinner and enjoyed meeting new people.

After that I went to see a famous Christmas tree of Delray Beach after 8 years.

It is still warm like summer.

It was a long day.

2015.12.23

It was a cold rainy day.

Today is a national holiday called Tenno tanjyobi (天皇誕生日), Emperor's birthday.  He became 82 years old.

During the daytime I stayed home to do many things.

In the evening I went to a French restaurant "Le Soleil" to have Christmas Dinner with my high school friends.  My best high school friend's sister and her husband run the restaurant.  And every year at this time some of us get together to eat special Christmas menu.  This year only three of us got together.  There were 6 dishes with drink.  Everything was delicious as usual.  Since the restaurant is located at the inconvenient place, we need to go there by car.  Therefore unfortunately drivers cannot enjoy alcoholic drinks.  So only my best friend enjoyed wine.

I hope we will have this once a year event as long as possible.

2015.12.22

It was fine and warm.

Today is toji (冬至), winter solstice, one of nijyushisekki (二十四節季), the 24 solar terms. The last one was taisetsu (大雪) on December 7 and the next one is shokan (小寒) on January 6.

Toji is the day when the daytime is the shortest in a year.  In Japan there are customs for us to eat pampkin and take a bath with yuzu (柚), which is called yuzuyu (柚子湯). If you do so, we won't get cold or sick.

2015.12.21

It was fine.

Today was the last day of working this year.

I can't believe it is already a holiday season.
This year I will have 22 days winter holiday.
Since we are in the mourning we cannot celebrate a new year as usual. Spending the new year by myself is not fun.
So I will go to Florida to be a snow bird for the first time from Christmas Eve.

What is your plan for winter vacation ?

2015.12.20

It was fine and cold.

In the morning there were three visitors.

In the afternoon I went to Kimono style Miya to receive the DVD of Kimono fashion festival in Kyoto on October 18. When we were participating, we only knew our scenes and we did not know the whole stracture. So I am looking forward to watching it.
I got some presents there by my kimono teacher in return of my book for Christmas present last week. I am looking forward to tasting them.

Then I went shopping.

2015.12.19

It was fine but very cold. Mt. Fuji looked very beautiful.

Usually I do not work on Saturdays but I went to work. The good thing of working on Saturday is I can take a transferred day off.

2015.12.18

It was fine and very cold.
Mt. Fuji looked very beautiful with snow.

Today was the last day for our colleague. So four of us went out for lunch. There is a Japanese restaurant nearby for reasonable price. We enjoyed having lunch together.
We were surprised to know each other's meal preference at home.

A new Star Wars movie was released today. And the first episode was on aired. There were many scenes  I have forgotten.

2015.12.17

It was fine.

At lunch time my colleagues and I had Christmas luncheon. This was the second party. We could not believe it's been already one year since last time. Eight of us attended. Some cooked and brought dishes, others bought and brought something. Everyone brought different dishes.
So we enjoyed salad, lasagna,  bread and bun, fruits, and cake.
We had a good lunch.

Yestetday there were two big judgements regarding marriage at the Supreme Court.  Having different surnames for married couple is unconstitutional. Divorced women cannot get married for 180 days after divorce is unconstitutional.
Civil law will be modified to 100 days.

I think having different surnames should be accepted.
It seems only Japan does not admit it though we have a longer history of having different surnames.

2015.12.16

It was fine.

Yesterday the kanji of the year was announced. The kanji of 2015 is an (安). It came from security (安全:anzen) related law issue and anxiety (不安:fuan) by terrorism. 
There were 129647 votes and an (安) got 5632 votes. The second was baku (爆), 4929 votes which was used for bakugai (爆買い), heavy shopping. The third was sen (戦) battle, 4556 votes, which means 70 years after World War II.

An (安) is used not only for anzen (安全), safety and anshin (安心) security but also yasui (安い) cheap.

2015.12.15

It was cloudy.

I took a compensation holiday and went to Yokosuka.
Last Friday I went there in the evening so that I did not notice, but there was a new building near the tower mansion. I was so surprised at the changes. 
I visited two stock companies to submit the necessary documents to ask for the financial statement of my father's asset.

After that I went to attend a monthly meeting. It lasted for 7 hours or so.  We enjoyed lunch as usual.
There came a new member whose talk was unordinary and interesting.

On my way home I went shopping.

It became a nice day off.

2015.12.14

It was cloudy.

After work I attended the open lecture of Dr. Chizuko Ueno(上野千鶴子) who is a professor of sociology and Japanese best-known feminist.
The title of the lecture announced was "Hikon desu ga sore ga nanika?(非婚ですが、それが何か!?), meaning "I am not married. What's wrong with that?" This is the title of her book published this summer.
But the title of today's lecture was slightly different from that.
It was "the reason of increasing unmarried people - future of modern family. "
It started at 6:30 pm and lasted till 8 pm. She introduced herself wearing Christmas tree ornament on the head.
Her lecture was interesting, informative, and attractive.  Inspite of the rather dark and heavy theme audience laughed and laughed.
This was the third open lecture for me to attend this series. There were most people attended.
After that her 50 books were sold there, and she autographed.
To my lucky I could buy one and get her autograph, what is more I could take pictures with her.

Since I have wanted to listen to her lecture for a long time, I am glad to do so.

Thank you, Professor Ueno.

2015.12.13

It was a rainy day.
I am glad it was fine yesterday.

They say tomorrow is the night we can observe the Gemini meteor shower. I hope it will be fine tomorrow night too.

At the figure skating Grand Prix Final in Barcelona, a Japanese skater Yuzuru Hanyu (羽生結弦), 21 years old, marked the highest score 330.43 ever made in the world and became a champion for three times straight, which is also the first record in the world history.
Shoma Uno (宇野昌磨), 17 years old became a bronze medalist.
Satoko Miyahara(宮原知子), 17 years old became a silver medalist.
Congratulations!

2015.12.12

It was fine.

There was a Christmas party of Kimono Style Miya in Yokohama. My appointment was 3pm, but there were many people and my turn came nearly at 4pm. First hairset, second make-up, and third dressed up.
I wore homongi(訪問着).  Obi (帯) matches bag.

There were about 30 people. Some attended with family. There were many foods and drink. And I ate a lot.
We exchanged presents. Everyone prepared the one within yen 1000.  I prepared a pair of gloves and got small bags in return.
After the party we took group pictures in front of Christmas illumination.

The night view of Yokohama was beautiful.

2015.12.11

It was heavily raining and windy like a storm in the morning, but became fine in the afternoon. It was rather warm like 20 degrees centigrade.

I took a compensation day off and went to the city office to get registered documents. Then I went to Yokohama to attend a monthly meeting.
After that we had a year-end luncheon at a hotel restaurant which has a beautiful view of the Yokohama port. There were about 60 people and I heard many impressive stories.

After that I went to Yokosuka to visit the national pension office.
They say the rules were changed from October.

I could do many things which were pending. 

2015.12.10

It was fine in the daytime, but started raining at night. To my lucky I did not have to use an  umbrella.

Today the new bakery was opened on my way to the office, so I went there to buy lunch. Salad was rather cheap.
There were some eat-in spaces  too.
They have a point card. You can get one point for yen 300. If you get 25 points, you can change to yen 500.

After that I went to the post office to pick up some documents to apply for insurance.  It seems I need to prepare some official documents to apply.

2015.12.9

It was fine and cold. They say it was the coldest morning this winter.

Today I found out that We will have 21 days off during winter vacation. How nice it is!

What will you do if you have 3 weeks?

I will travel, meet my old friends, and hope to finish translating my book into English for my foreign friends.

2015.12.8

It was cloudy.

There was a year-end luncheon.

December 8.  What do you think of this day? Pearl harbour? Or John Lennon?
I think of my high school classmate's birthday. I have three close classmates. My birthday is May 8 and two of them were born in July and the other is December 8.  And finally we became the same age again. In five month I become one year older than them again.
Happy Birthday!

2015.12.7

It was fine.

Today is taisetsu (大雪), one of the nijyushisekki (二十四節季), the 24 solar terms.
The last one was shosetsu (小雪) on November 22 and the next one will be toji (冬至), winter solstice on December 22.

Taisetsu literally means big snow, and it is the time for heavy snow.

I bought a new pair of gloves last Saturday and started using them today.

2015.12.6

It was cloudy.

I thought of Christmas letter today. There were many things happened this year. Christmas letter is a way of wrapping up the year.
I picked up the things I have done from the 10 year diary. There are schedule pages 
before each month and a free space to wrap up the month after the last day of each month. So I checked them.
This year I was closely connected with kimono. I got some kimono for the gift.
I have visited many shrines and temples during their special years.
                         

2015.12.5

It was fine.

I went to Ikejiriohashi to attend a general meeting. It was the first time for me to use the Tokyu denen toshi line and it took longer than expected. There were about 60 people. After the meeting I went to a park on the highway.
From there I could see Mt. Fuji.

After coming back I attended a year-end party for the local representatives.

2015.12.4

It was fine but windy in the morning.
The sunset was beautiful orange.

After work I went to see the illumination along the Meguro river.

I went out for dinner. There was an attractive menu said "Tuna raw ham avocado" and I ordered. I expected to have tuna with avocado and raw ham with avocado. However it was just raw tuna with avocado. I asked them where raw ham is. The waitress pointed this is raw ham. I asked again where. She said here. That is there was no raw ham at all. They meant raw tuna as raw ham. I thought ham is made of meat of pork. So I was disappointed.

2015.12.3

It was rainy in the morning but stopped raining later.

There was an illumination lightening ceremony for the two big Himalayan ceder trees at campus. Those trees are about 100 years old and 25 meters high. 1150 illuminations were lighten up after the ceremony. There were many audience including neighborhood residents.
We were handed the candles  until the lighten up.
The illumination will last until January 6.

2015.12.2

It was cloudy in the daytime, and became raining in the evening.

Yesterday there was an announcement of the new and popular word of the year. And two of them got grand prix.  One is bakugai (爆買い) which is a phenomenon many incoming tourists buy many Japanese goods at a time.
The other is Triple Three, which was the accomplishment two of the professional baseball players made this year, that is 30% batting average, 30 homerun, and 30 steals.

I knew the former but I did not know the latter.
Did you know them?

2015.12.1

It was fine.

A new month has started.
December is jyuni gatsu (12月), twelfth month, its old name is shiwasu (師走), literally means teachers run.

There  is only one month left.
Time to think about the plans of year end party and holiday season.
How many parties will you attend?
How will you spend the holiday season?

Today after work I attended the open lecture by a famous psychiatrist at school. Its theme was "Why people are deceived?"
It started at 6:30 pm and finished at 8 pm. There were more audience than last time.

This is the second lecture of the four lecture series. I am not interested in the next one, but I hope to join the last one.

2015.11.30

It was fine.

The last day of November.
I can't believe it has been already 11 months past and there is only one month left.

How was your 2015 so far?

Mine was another unforgettable year.

The worst is because of my father's passing.
I became sick in summer which made me not to go to Hokkaido.

There were some good things too. I got many kimono & obi and attended the Kimono fashion festival in Toji in October.
I accomplished visiting 88 temples in Shikoku on my birthday and went to Koyasan and Zenkoji temple too at their special memorial year.
I attended big events such as Morinda's ILC in February,   Golden Life Program in May, and a university reunion after 30 years in November.

2015.11.29

It was fine.

I went to see three movies. First I went to Kamioooka and watched a Japanese movie, Ore monogatari(俺物語!!), My story. This is a high school students' love story, and it was very nice.  The actor gained much weight to be this character.
Then I went to Kawasaki and watched "The man from uncle." It is a spy movie.
Finally I went to another theater in Kawasaki and watched another Japanese movie "Grasshopper." It was a revenge movie, and has a surprising ending.

2015.11.28

It was fine.

I went to Shinjuku to see movies and shopping.

At first I watched 3D "Everest" by myself.  Then I watched Imax "007 Spectre" with my mother's friend. 
I was impressed by camera work for Everest, and the action scale for 007. Film making must cost a lot.
After the movie we went out for dinner. 
We tried to find the place where we can eat crab. But there were full here and there.  We decided to go to the Izakaya Hokkaido where we can eat and drink. First they ushered us to the smoking area, but I refused. Then they led us to the small room which was much better to talk. We could have some crab too.
It's been about a half year since we met last.  At that time we enjoyed hotel lunch, cruise and Tokyo sky tree.
My mother and she met about 27 years ago or so when my mother was traveling Okinawa by herself while my parents lived in Kanoya, Kagoshima for my father's job.
My mother's friend has come to our house several times after that.
We have met each other several times even after my mother passed away 13 years ago.
This time she felt sorry for me receiving my mochu hagaki (喪中ハガキ), mourning greeting card recently and wanted to encourage me.
I am glad to have such kind of people around me.

2015.11.27

It was fine and very beautiful. Sky was blue, Mt. Fuji was covered with white snow, the sunset was orange, and the moon was white in the dark.

Today is Black Friday in the USA. When I was there I was wondering why people go shopping from early in the morning.
Did you buy anything?

2015.11.26

It was a cold rainy day, but stopped raining later.

After working I attended an open lecture about interpreters in the history books written by Akira Yoshimura. The lecturer was a famous professor and she used to be an interpretater.
When I was young,  I used to listen to her English lessons by radio.  I am glad to hear her lecture by live.
It started at 18:30 and ended around 20:00. It was interesting and I learned a lot. She introduced four books which I hope to read someday if possible.

2015.11.25

It was cloudy and rainy, and very cold.
They say it snowed heavily in Hokkaido after 62 years.

Today I got a flower gift from my university friend for my father.
Since I sent mochu hagaki (喪中ハガキ) some people wrote me emails and a post card or called me. 
Even my father's friend wrote me.
Since my uncle sent mochu hagaki, some relatives sent me
Okoden(お香典), monetary gift for the departed  soul.

I have not replied when I used to receive them, but I felt important to express my feeling.

2015.11.24

It was cloudy in the morning but became fine in the afternoon and the sunset was  beautiful.

It has been 100 days since my father passed away. The day after 100 days of one's death is called hyakkanichi (百か日). This is a milestone of this year.
Next big day is August 17, 2016, just one year after the death which is called isshuki (一周忌) and we will have a ceremony with relatives. And the next after that will be August 17, 2017 which is called sankaiki (三回忌), the third year anniversary though it is only two years after the death.
After that we have seventh year service called nanakaiki (七回忌), 13 years later we have jyusan kaiki (十三回忌), and 17 years later we have jyunana kaiki (十七回忌), 23 years later we have  nijyusan kaiki (二十三回忌), 27 years later we have nijyunana kaiki (二十七回忌) and 33 years later we have sanjyusan kaiki (三十三回忌), and 50 years later we have gojyu kaiki (五十回忌). 
But it will be impossible to have such a ceremony.

2015.11.23

It was a cold rainy day.

It is a national holiday called kinro kansha no hi (勤労感謝の日), Labor Thanksgiving Day.
However school is open and I went to work.
The trains were not so crowded.
And I could come home  in two hours, which is more than half hour earlier than usual though I had to stand for the first 30 minutes or so from Shinagawa because there is no express train starting from Shinagawa on weekend and holidays. On weekdays there are express trains starting from Shinagawa, so I usually wait for the one I could sit down.  There are other trains called "Wing go (ウイング号)" which start from Shinagawa but you need to buy a ticket.
They say from December they start the service like Wing go from Miurakaigan which is the second end station of Keihinkyuko line.

2015.11.22

It was cloudy.

I stayed home except visiting two neighbors whom I could  not meet yesterday to collect the third district fee. I felt relieved to collect all the district fees for our area this weekend.

I was going to watch a movie at home, but I was somehow busy and could not.

November 22 (1122) is known as iifufu no hi (いい夫婦の日), day of good couple. There must be many couples who get married today.

2015.11.21

It was fine and Mt.Fuji looked beautiful capped with snow.

I went to Yokohama to buy a commuter ticket. Last week I tried to buy it by the vending machine using the credit card but since I input the wrong PIN and could not buy.  I tried the next day too but I could not use the credit card. I did not know why. I totally forgot about the ride ticket. If your commuter ticket starts on the day or a few days later, the ride ticket to get there  on the day will be reimbursed. Since I forgot about it, I used PASMO on my way. So it was not reimbursed. I should have bought it yesterday at Shinagawa.

After that I went to see two movies. One is The Monuments Men and the other is a Japanese movie titled "Galaxy Kaido. "

After that I went to the beauty salon to have my hair cut and permed.

Then I went to a kimono shop.

It was a nice Saturday to have done many things.

2015.11.20

It was cloudy and a bit cooler.

Lunch time is one of the relaxing times during work. I usually go to buy salad and croquette bun and dessert at the supermarket on my way to work and take lunchtime from 12:30 to13:30 and eat them with soup and milk tea at the lounge with colleagues. From 12:45 to 13:00 I watch NHK's TV drama, and from 13:00 to 13:05 I watch the news with my smartphone. Besides these I enjoy talking with colleagues.
Today there were three of us who have lived in the United States before. One was in California, the other was in Arizona, and I was in Washington and Florida. We enjoyed talking about the differences between Japan and the United States especially car and driving, Christmas and New Years and so on.
It is fun to have someone to share the same experiences.

2015.11.19

It was fine but getting a bit cooler.
Leaves are turning yellow and red, and some of them are already dead and start falling.

The third Thursday of November is known for the opening day of Beaujolais Nouveau. Serveral years ago there was a boom to drink it  just after midnight but these days I do not hear the news about it.

Do you like wine?

2015.11.18

It was fine in the morning but became rain in the afternoon.

I took a compensatory day off today. 
There are something we can do only on weekdays such as bank related issue or calling.  I could finally go to a bank to ask the account transfer payment for water charge, and change the name of registration for photovoltaic facility.

There was a meeting with friends and I enjoyed listening and talking and eating.  So it was a good day off.

2015.11.17

It was fine and rather warm.

After work I went to see a doctor to consult about the result of health check. Data said the treatment is needed but the doctor said I do not have to worry and there is no need of medication.
I have been worried since I received the result but it is over now. It cost nearly $20 but I felt relieved.

2015.11.16

It was fine in the daytime,  cloudy in the evening, and rained at night.

I sent mochu hagaki (喪中ハガキ) this morning finally. When I input them to the post, I found the collecting time. It said something like Monday to Friday at 10:30, Saturday at 11:00, Sunday at 10:36. I felt it interesting. Why 36? Since it is estimated time of collection, I think there will be no problem writing 10:30 or 10:40, but it was not.

On my way to work, there was something wrong with a door of the train ahead of us and they checked the car and our train delayed for 20 minutes or so.

2015.11.15

It was cloudy in the morning, but became fine in the late afternoon.

I went to the Toyota car dealer to have my car fixed the place where there was recall.

I went grocery shopping later.

November 15 is Shichi go san (七五三), literally means seven five three.  Girls of three years old and seven years old, and boys of five years old get dressed and go to local shrines to wish their healthy growth.
There is a special long candy called chitose ame (千歳飴), literally means 1000 years candy for this occasion. 
I did not see any shichigosan children today.

2015.11.14

It was a cold rainy day.

I stayed home all day long.

I made two types of mochu hagaki (喪中ハガキ).  One is for my father's friends to thank their friendship while my father was alive, the other is for my friends to let them know that I am in the mourning and cannot celebrate the new year as usual.

2015.11.13

It was cloudy and a bit cold.

I took a comp holiday.
I went to Yokohama to attend a monthly meeting in the morning and afternoon.
During lunch time I went to Kimono Style Miya. There is a rugby shop in the same building and they say there will be ruggers tomorrow. I asked if Mr. Goromaru would come or not and there won't.

After the meeting I went to a post office to buy some stamps for mochu hagaki.  There I found other memorial stamps too and bought three different sheet. It's been a while since I bought these stamps. I like to write letters and cards but these days I seldom do so and write emails instead.

After that I went to another kimono shop. There was a  lottery and I got the fourth prize which was a washable kimono.  There was an roketsuzome (ろうけつ染め) artist whom I met on Oct.18 last year.  I enjoyed trying to wear some kimono. One of them was so expensive, yen 5 million. 

2015.11.12

It is cloudy and getting cooler.

I received two okoden (お香典) from my father's relatives in Iwakuni.  I have never met them so I am not sure who they are.
I think they must be my father's cousins.
I have been wondering why.
Now it is the time to send mochu hagaki so that those who received the post card from my  uncle decided to send okoden.

2015.11.11

It was cloudy.

They say today is the day for care, kaigo no hi (介護の日) which was established in 2008, the day for battery, the memorial day for world peace, the day for peanut, and jewry day.
I did not know any of them.
November 11 is written as 11 11, so I understand somehow about the day of care and day of peanut.
11 is possible to read as ii which means good in Japanese.  Therefore "ii hi ii hi (いい日いい日)" which means good day good day. Thanking for warm care every day is the reason of establishing this day.

2015.11.10

It was a rainy day.

I received the first mochu hagaki (喪中ハガキ), the mourning post card, of this year. It informed of my friend's father's death at the age of 77.
Mochu hagaki is sent around the middle of November and early December to let the people know that they are in the mourning and refrain from greeting the happy new year message next year.

I myself need to prepare them for my father soon.

2015.11.9

It was cloudy but the sun was shining in the morning and rained in the evening.

They say today is the day of 119.
Do you know what this number means?
It is for emergency such as ambulance or fire.
I dialed this number on June 10 when my father had a difficulty for breathing.  It was really hard to dial when in panic. I felt long until the ambulance came. There were three emergency medical technicians and one of them was my student. While they were contacting hospitals, I felt long again.
My father was brought to the hospital and saved his life at that time and I appreciated.
But after all that became a trigger for his death...

2015.11.8

It was a rainy day.

Today is ritto (立冬), one of nijyushisekki (二十四節季), 24 solar terms. Ritto literally means stand winter, it is the start of winter.

I went to the graveyard of my friend's uncle who took care of me a lot when I was young. He died of lung cancer at the age of 70. It's been 15 years and a half since then, but I have never had a chance to visit there.
After that my friends and I went to see the art festival of Shimoda citizen and watched some dances and saw the picture exhibition. I was surprised to see some of them made of seaweeds.

Then we ate lunch at a local fish restaurant and came back by local trains. The seat was set differently from other trains and people can enjoy the beautiful scenery.

I went to the Kimono style Miya to ask for laundry.

I had a nice weekend to see many friends from college.

2015.11.7

It was fine in the morning and cloudy in the afternoon.

I was rather busy today.

In the morning I had a local representative meeting, then evacuation training.  There I happened to see my friends from primary school.

Then I went to Yokohama to dress up in the afternoon and headed for Mishima to attend a reunion of university. It's been a long time since I went there last. There were about 60 people from 8 classes, two of them came from abroad, and there were 8 people from my class.  I have seen some people from other classes at other regular reunions before, but this was the first time for me to see my classmates. Two of them own their companies, three of them are housewives, one of them is an official sevant, and one of them is an office worker. 
Two hours passed so quickly and I could not eat so much but enjoyed talking.

After that I met another classmate after a long time.

Now I am on the train heading for Shimoda where my friend owns pension.

2015.11.6

It was fine.

These days the sun set is so beautiful.

I hope it will be fine tomorrow too.

There were many things to do at work and I overworked. I could finish some of them, and others were postponed till next week.

TGIF

2015.11.5

It was fine.

It's been 24 years since the kick off meeting of Expo 92 was held.  There were 35 Japanese attendants and we met each other for the first time on November 5, 1991. We had some training at Kawaguchiko before leaving for Spain on March 20, 1992.  Expo was held from April 20 to October 12. We have lived and worked together for 7 months. After Expo some went back home soon and others traveled or kept staying in Spain.
After 24 years I think about one third is still living abroad. We have had many different experiences, but whenever we meet we can go back to the feeling when we used to be together.

2015.11.4

It was very fine and Mt. Fuji looked so beautiful from my house in the morning and from the office at sunset.

It was the first day after 6 days off so there were many things to be handled at work.

In Japan there were many news too.

One of them happened at the stock market. Japan Post Group went public on the stock market.  There are three group companies and all of them had higher prices than expected. I wanted to book but they were so popular and few so it was impossible.

Another news attracted me was the case of using different surnames for married couple, fufubessei (夫婦別姓). In Japan if you marry, usually women change their surname to husband's name.  It is kind of discrimination.  I support having different surnames if they wish because one's name is very important to identify oneself. Why do only women have to change their names?
They say Japan is the only country that insists to have the same family name when married.

2015.11.3

Today is a national holiday called Bunka no hi (文化の日), Culture Day.

It is known as hare no tokuibi (晴れの特異日), singularity for good weather. As it is, it was fine and warm.

The other day my friend from the graduate school sent me an invitation ticket for a Japanese movie. I have got the tickets before too but I had never had a chance to see them and wasted them and felt sorry about that. The movie will be shown until this Friday, so I went to see it in Kawasaki. It was only shown twice a day there, and I decided to see another movie by the free ticket of stock holder's before that. I chose "The Intern" because my friends recommended. 

Before watching the movies, I went shopping for the postcards called mochu hagaki (喪中ハガキ).  Usually Japanese people send new year's cards, but those who had lost family members during the year send them to let the people know about the loss and mourning between the middle of November and early December so that people will refrain from sending the family "happy" new year's cards.  So when we are in the mourning, we won't celebrate the new year as usual and we will have a kind of sad new year instead of "happy."
But I found the template which says something like "We are in the mouring and refrain from sending the new year's greeting but please send us new year's cards as usual because they encourage us."
I have never received such postcards but I understand the feeling without receiving the new year's cards.

2015.11.2

It was a cold rainy day.

This is the fifth day of the special fall holidays and there is only one day left.

I got three lenzes which I ordered through Internet. They are wide lenze, macro lenze and fish eye lenze which seem nice and I look forward to using them.

In the afternoon I had a visitor who was supposed to come after 3 pm but came around 4:30 pm.

2015.11.1

A new month has started. November is jyuichigatsu (11月), the  eleventh month, its old name is Shimotsuki (霜月), frost month.

On the first day I feel refreshed and feel like starting something new.

It was fine and cloudy.
I could dry futon after a long time.

In the morning I delivered the monthly city newspaper to the seven neighbors, and had a chance to talk with one of them.

In the afternoon I visited the car dealer which has renewally  opened recently.  They had a campaign and I got a sweet and suvenir.

2015.10.31

Happy Halloween!

It is already the end of October. There are only two months left.

It is cloudy and rather cool.

Did you wear any costume?

I went to Kimono style Miya to have my pictures taken.

There was a cariculture artist and he drew my portrait while we were waiting. We met for the first time, but to our surprise we have a mutual friend. It's a small world, isn't it?

2015.10.30

It was fine.

The second day of the fall holidays.

I stayed at home all day long but had a visitor in the morning. While talking with her I realized that my turning point was 1992, working at Expo 92 and traveling around Europe for 5 months by myself.

When and what was your turning point?

2015.10.29

It was cloudy.

I have 6 days off due to the special fall holidays for a school festival.
There are something we can do on only weekdays. So I did such things.

2015.10.28

It was fine and very warm.

The reading week has started since yesterday.
I finished reading a book about Che which I have read at the lunch time.
My lunch time is usually from 12:30 to 13:30. I watch NHK's morning drama's rebroadcast from 12:45 to 13:00. So I only read 15 to 20 minutes per day and it took long to finish the  book.
While commuting I started reading another book about Yamato Colony in Florida.

2015.10.27

It was fine in the daytime and Mt. Fuji looked very beautiful. The other day the top was covered with snow but today it was not.

When I got back to the station, the earth was wet but I could see the beautiful moon. When I was cooking dinner, it started raining heavily. I felt lucky not to get wet.

Yesterday the ordered book "Yamato Colony The Men left "Japan" in Florida was arrived.  I started reading it.

2015.10.25

It was fine but windy.

The first cold winter wind called kogarashi ichigo (木枯らし1号) blew today.
Winter has come.

I went grocery shopping. When my father was alive, I used to go grocery shopping once a week and buy a lot then cook a lot on weekend.
However these days I have not gone shoppping regularly and cooked so much.

Tonight is the thirteenth night. (十三夜:jyusanya). Another moon viewing night. The moon tonight is very beautiful.

2015.10.24

It was fine and cloudy.

At 7 AM there was a visitor who  thought I would go to work at 7:30 without noticing today is weekend.

I stayed at home and did many things I could not do.

2015.10.23

It was fine.

It's Friday. TGIF

I wanted to go to see a movie, but there was nothing to start at good time. So I gave up and came home directly.
At home I watched a movie on TV which I saw before but there were some parts I didn't remember.
They say for three weeks they show that series of movies.
I am looking forward to seeing them.

2015.10.22

It was fine.

After work I went to banks. Some are local banks so I dropped at Yokosuka chuo and visited there.
After that I went to a bookstore, but I could not find a book I wanted to buy.
There is a jewelry shop where I used to ask for battery change of the watch, and I had my watch fixed. It's been about a week since it stopped so I used the smartphone to see the time, but finally my watch is back, and I am very glad.

It was already nearly 9 pm, so I decided to buy sushi for dinner.

October 22 is known for jidai matsuri(時代祭), Festval of the Ages in Kyoto.  It is one of the three biggest festivals in Kyoto. Others are Aoi matsuri (葵祭) in May and Gion matsuri (祇園祭) in July.
Jidai matsuri is a festival of Heian jingu (平安神宮) and about 2000 people parade for 2km with wearing traditional costume.

Someday I hope to see those festivals.

2015.10.21

It was fine.

Today is the day when the movie "Back to the Future" went to from 1985. During this 30 years many things imagined in 1985 were realized.
What will be next 30 years?

Today there were something I regret. First impression is usually right. So I should have followed to my first impressions.

2015.10.20

It was cloudy.

It seems I left the earphone behind at home.
Usually I listen to the radio news on the train on my way to and from work. But I could not listen without earphone.
Not only news but also video program I could not watch today.
So I tried to read a book. But I gave up soon and fell asleep.

The suitcase was delivered tonight.

2015.10.19

It was fine.

I took a transferred holiday of September 21.

I sent a suitcase by home deliver service to travel light. It cost yen 1412.

I left Kyoto around 10 am and arrived at Shinagawa around 1:40 pm by Shinkansen Kodama.

Whenever I go to Kansai area by Shinkansen, I make it a rule to buy Kaki no ha zushi (柿の葉寿司) for lunch or dinner. In addition to that I bought a cup of green tea jelly for dessert today. They were tasty.

It was crowded at first, but after Nagoya there were many vacant seats.

After coming back to Tokyo, I went to Ikubukuro to visit my dead best friend's house. It's been almost 15 years since she passed away.  How fast time flies!

As I have started working at Ikebukuro since May last year, I wanted to visit there sooner, but I have not had a chance by now. I enjoyed talking with her husband about my friend's memory looking at old pictures.
She stays young and beautiful as she was.
I still miss her a lot.
I was surprised to hear that he lost both of his parents during the past seven years.
There was a family picture of my friend with her parents and her parents-in-law. All of them are now in another world.
I pray for their souls.  

2015.10.18

It was fine and very hot in Kyoto.

Today was the big day for me.
There was the 2015 Kimono Fashion Festival in Toji, where is the UNESCO 's World Heritage Site in the evening.

Hoshoen (芳裳苑) group decided to have a Kimono Fashion Festival at the World Heritage Sites from now on and this was the first event.

About 500 kimono models joined.
There were 12 scenes and I participated in two scenes at No. 7 and No. 11.
At No.7 scene, I wore irotome (色留), very formal kimono worn at family wedding. I used Tatsumura's (龍村) obi, sash which is high quality, very expensive, and very nice.  The person who dressed me was so impressed to know it was Tatsumura product. And she said she was happy to touch it.

At scene No. 11 I wore Sahari (佐波理), which is rare and very expensive.

This was the second time for me to attended the Kimono festival.

I enjoyed wearing the new beautiful kimonos at this occasion.

2015.10.17

It was rainy at home but fine in Kyoto.

I took Shinkansen from Shinagawa at 11:21 and arrived at Kyoto around 13:31.
I ate lunch on the train. The lunch sold at station is called ekiben (駅弁). I chose Shinagawa meibutu kaizukushi(品川名物 貝づくし) at yen 960. There were four different shell fish and it was tasty.
After arriving at Kyoto I headed for Toji (東寺) and changed to my favorite kimono. This kimono and obi are rose ensamble which I fell in love with the first sight.
After checking in the hotel, I went to Gion(祇園) by bus. There I went to a tea shop where I have long wanted to visit and ate kuzukiri (くずきり). It was rather expensive, but I am glad to visit there finally.
After that I went to eat dinner at a Japanese restaurant "Takeshibaro(竹芝楼)" and ate delicious meal with kimono friends.
There came special guests, maiko san (舞子さん) and Geiko san (芸子さん) and enjoyed taking pictures with them.
To walk around Kyoto with kimono was one of my dreams of the last few years, so I am glad to make it come true.

2015.10.16

It was rainy today.

I got a sad news today. My professor from university passed away the day before yesterday. When I knew it by email, it was already time of the wake and I could not attend. There will be a funeral tomorrow morning, but I will go to Kyoto tomorrow and I cannot attend it either.
He was a psychology teacher.
When I was a high school student, I wanted to be a counselor so that I took entrance examinations for psychology major, but it was in vain. So I majored in International Relations instead. But I still wanted to study psychology, so I took all the psychology related courses offered there and he taught every course.
After graduating from university, when I was a teacher of a junior high school, I was still thinking of studying, and he cared about me.
When I was in the USA, he called me.
When I published the book, he was very pleased.
He remembered the things about me which even I forgot.
He always encouraged me.
I feel bad that I cannot do as much as he expected to.

Thank you for everything.

Please rest in peace.

2015.10.15

It was fine.

They say it is "Newspaper Week." There are some special columns regarding newspaper in  today's paper.
With the spreading of smart phones, people tend to read news through Internet, and less people subscribe the newspaper these days. 
On the train most people are using the cellphones or smartphones and I do not see the people reading newspaper so much like before.
I myself listen to the news by smartphone while riding on the train or watch TV at home and don't have much time to read newspaper in the morning and read it at night after coming back taking time on weekdays.

When I worked at the places where subscribed several newspapers, I enjoyed reading some of them at lunch time.

Now there is a library at school, so I can read many if I wish. But I usually watch NHK's TV drama at lunch time, and read something else at office to save time.

How about you ?

2015.10.14

It was fine.

Today I got two FB friend's requests from a friend who is already my friend. I accepted them and she started chatting. I wondered why she sent the request twice and asked. She said her ID was hacked. She started talking strange things and I doubted if it is real my friend or not. So I asked her a personal queston. And she left.
On another timeline her other friend mentioned the same thing and she fixed the problem.

We should be very careful when accepting the friend's request.

2015.10.13

It was fine.

Mt. Fuji looked beautiful with snow on the top.

I went to the library to find the data.  Our university library is one of the biggest in its kind in Tokyo, but I have not used yet.
I should make use of it.

When I got home, there was a suvenir from my brother who traveled Germany recently. It was a box of chocolates with hazelnuts. I love chocolate very much. I am looking forward to tasting them.
Danke.

2015.10.12

It was fine.

Today is a national holiday called Taiiku no hi (体育の日), Health - Sports Day. It used to be on October 10 commemorating the opening of the Tokyo Olympic in 1964.
However it has been on the second Monday of October because of the happy Monday system since 2000.

Today is the last day of three day weekend but I had to work. So for me it was a regular Monday.

2015.10.11

It rained in the morning. Therefore the local sports meeting was canceled.

However in the evening there was a social gathering for local people as planned. Nearly 40 people got together. I went to prepare around 3 pm, and the  party itself started around 4 pm and lasted until 8 pm.  There was a Bingo game and I got an  apple cutter. I am looking forward to using it.

After cleaning the second party continued for those  who  have time, but since I have to work tomorrow, I came home.

2015.10.10

It was cloudy and became rain.

October 10 used to be a national holiday called Taiiku no hi (体育の日), Health-Sports Day.
But it moved to the second Monday of October.
So this is the first day of three day weekend.
But our school has classes on Monday, for me it is the regular Saturday.

There was a visitor in the morning and I did not go out and stayed at home.
I cooked dinner after a while prepared for the Kimono fashion show next week, and pressed autumn clothes.

It's been a while since I spent  Saturday like this last.

2015.10.9

It was fine and rather hot.

I was going to take a transferred holiday, but there was something to do, so I went to work.

After work I went to buy tickets to Kyoto for next week. Unfortunately the one I wanted to book was full and could not get it. Instead I bought a ticket of Nozomi, the fastest bullet train, which takes about two hours from Shinagawa to Kyoto. It costs yen 13,910.
For return I could book the ticket called Puratto Kodama (ぷらっとこだま). It takes about 3 hours and 40 minutes and costs yen 10,100.  I can save yen 3,810 and get a free drink ticket.

So if you are not in a hurry, I recommend you to use this special ticket.

2015.10.8

It was very fine.
I could see the beautiful Mt. Fuji with blue sky.

I have just watched "Jobs" by my smart phone on the train.  I have wanted to see the movie, but could not go while it was showing.
My commuting is very long and usually I can sit. I do many things with the smart phone while commuting. But I had never seen a movie because I cannot see it through. I have watched one hour TV programs but movies are usually two hours long so I hesitated to watch.
This time I watched the first half yesterday and the rest today, and enjoyed.
How convienient the world became!

2015.10.7

It was fine but cool today.

There was an annual medical check today. Items were height, weight, sight, blood pressure, hearing, abdominal girth, electrocardiogram, consultation with internal medicine, consultation with health nurse, chest X-ray, blood, urine, and stool tests.  We needed to bring urine and stool samples taken at home , and not to eat and drink for more than four hours.
It took about one hour in total.

2015.10.6

It was cloudy and cool.

Yesterday we were very pleased to hear that a Japanese researcher, professor emeritus Satoshi Omura (大村 智 80 years old) would be awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.
And today another professor Takaaki Kajita (梶田 隆章 56 years old) was announced to receive the Nobel Prize in Physics.

Congratulations!!

2015.10.5

It was cloudy and cool.

After work I went to attend the reporting session of students who experienced internship in the Philippines this summer. There were two parts, and I only listened to the presentations of the second and third year students who worked about a month. 
They say this is the third year of this program and this was the first time for students from other colleges joined.

When I was a college students, there were only internships of teachers and doctors.
But these days most students experience internship before graduation.

How about in your country?

2015.10.4

It was fine and hot.

It has been 49 days since my father passed away.
In Buddhism during the seven weeks after death the dead persons are wandering between this world and the other world, and as every seventh day they are judged,  we have memorial services for them.  The first seventh day is called shonanuka (初七日) and we usually have the sevice just after the funeral. 
Second important service is shijyukunich (四十九日), 49th day, seven weeks after death. On this day they rest in peace.
We had this 49th day memorial service last Saturday (September 26th) followed by placing urn in the tomb (納骨: nokotsu).
Until 49th day it is called kichu(忌中), in the mourning. And on 49th day is the end of mourning, kiake (忌明け).
Usually one year after the death is called mochu (喪中).
After that next important day is 100th day called hyakkanichi (百カ日).
We usually have memorial services on the first year anniversary, isshuki (一周忌), second year anniversary sankaiki (三回忌), seventh year anniversary shichikaiki (七回忌), and so on.

Today my father's soul leaves here for the place where my mother has been waiting for.

The person in charge of funeral company came here to clear the Alter we used to place the urn until last week.

2015.10.3

It was fine.

I walked to the station to go to Shinjuku to attend a monthly meeting. On my way I found flowers I have never seen.

After the meeting I entered sushi restaurant for lunch. Lunch menu was reasonable, but I was very surprised to see the receipt because an additional one piece of sushi with shell fish cost almost half the price of lunch menu. I should have asked the price before ordering. Usually at the sushi bar two pieces are served when we order one kind of sushi. So if I order the regular piecies  it cost about the same price as lunch menu which includes salad and miso soup.

In the afternoon I went to see the art exhibiton of my friends in Ginza.

I walked about 8 blocks and took a train ro Shinagawa and had dinner with my professor. I heard that my classmates have been an  associate professor or a  professor. If I continued  studying,  there may have been a different future.

2015.10.2

It was raining and windy like typhoon this morning. So I was worried about the train delay. It went on schedule up to Shinagawa. However JR Yamanote line was totally stopped and there were so many people at the station. It was hard to go to other platform so I decided to take the toei Asakusa line, Ginza line and Marunouchi line to get to Ikebukuro. I did not have to pay because I had a commuter ticket and they offered the transferred transportation.

When I arrived at Ikebukuro, it was not raining any more.

It became very hot today like summer.

2015.10.1

A new month has started. October is jyugatsu (十月), and its old name is kannazuki (神無月), which means the month without gods. Because all the gods get together in Izumo (出雲). So in Izumo it is called kamiarizuki(神在月) which means the month with gods.
However you need to be very careful about the calendar because they count in the luner calendar and the actual kannazuki sometimes falls in November or even in December.  And the welcoming festival for gods are held according to the luner calendar.

Two years ago I went to Izumo in October and knew about it for the first time, and last year I went there in November but the actual festival was held in December. So I have expected to visit there for the festival  wishing  sandome no shojiki (三度めの正直) "The third is the charm. "
But since my father passed away in August I cannot visit there this year. Those who lost family member are required to refrain from visiting shrines for a year. This period is called mochu (喪中) which means being in mourning.

2015.9.30

It was fine and hot.
I could see the beautiful Mt. Fuji from home and office in the morning.

Today is the last day of September which means three fourth of 2015 has been passed.
I have traveled around many places during the first half year. The third quarter was not good because of my sickness and my father's passing.
How about your life?

2015.9.29

It was fine and hot.

Today I helped some students for different reasons. One of them was to register the new address to the post office to forward mails.  Last week another student had brought the postcard to ask forwarding to open account at the post office.  So I knew it would be possible to register through Internet by that postcard. And today we tried it for the first time.
First you need to register the email address, then they send you the link where you can register. There you need to register the phone number, then you need to call from that telephone and input the designated numbers and finally it will be registered. The mails will be forwarded from October 2 for a year.

He will move to the suburb of  Tokyo tomorrow. I was surprised to hear the rent. It was far much cheaper than I thought because I thought the rent in Tokyo must be very expensive so that I should better commuting to save money.

2015.9.28

It was fine and rather warm.

At night I could see the beautiful super moon though there were clouds. I tried to take pictures but it was diffucult.

Today is taian (大安), lucky day. There were two announcements of big couple's wedding.

A new NHK's morning drama "Asa ga kita (あさが来た)" has begun. Asa is morning. So its meaning is the morning has come. Since the main character's name is also Asa (あさ) .
So it also means Asa has come. 
It is a story of a woman who established the first college. 

2015.9.27

It was cloudy.

There was a visitor in the morning.

In the afternoon I went to the beauty shop to have my hair cut.

After coming back I went to grocery shopping.  Since today is jyugoya (十五夜), 15th night, we usually decorate rice dumplings and silver grass and enjoy viewing chushu no meigetsu (中秋の名月), the harvest moon.  So I bought some sweets instead of dumplings. It is not a full moon tonight but it will be tomorrow.  And it will be a super moon.  I hope it will be fine.

2015.9.26

It was cloudy and partially fine.
I am glad it did not rain.

We had the 49th day memorial service (四十九日: shijyukunichi) of my father. It has not been 49 days yet, but it is acceptable to held the ceremony beforehand but not afterwards.
My father's younger brother and his wife from Hiroshima and my mother's cousin from Aichi joined us.

The ceremony started around 1pm followed by placing an urn in a tomb (納骨: nokotsu) and  ended around 2pm. When we were in front of the tomb, the sun appeared so I felt we were lucky so was my father.

49th day is the day when the soul of the dead person leaves the earth to heaven.
By now he must have met my mother there after 13 years and 4 months and 16 days.

After the service we went to a Japanese restaurant and ate a delicious tuna course dinner. Actually I was surprised to see the different dishes and impressed by the variety of Japanese cooking ways. There were too much and I could not eat all so brought leftover to home.

In addtition to that we brought back flowers so there are many flowers at home now.

The next milestone is 100th day.

We usually have one year memorial service next year and the third year memorial service the year after next for the dead person.

So we will get together again at that time.

2015.9.25

It is a rainy day and rather cool.

There is a saying "Atsusa samusa mo higan made (暑さ寒さも彼岸まで)."
It means the heat or coldness lasts until equinox week. It is really true.

Tomorrow we have a 49th day service and put my father's bones and ashes into the grave so that I hope it will be fine.

2015.9.25

It is a rainy day and rather cool.
There is a saying "Atsusa samusa mo higan made (暑さ寒さも彼岸まで)."
It means the heat or coldness lasts until equinox week. It is really true.

Tomorrow we have a 49th day service and put my father's bones and ashes into the grave so that I hope it will be fine.

2015.9.24

It was cloudy but started raining in the afternoon.

After work I went out for dinner with a friend from high school who happened to come back to Japan for holiday.
It's been a while since we met last.
We ate at an Oyster bar. There were many different oysters from different place and cooked different way.
In Japan Hiroshima and Miyagi are very famous for the Oyster places. However when I asked them, they recommended the one from Hokkaido and we ate the raw oyster which was really delicious. We ate steamed, fried, and baked one in a can. But I like the raw oyster the best.
Oyster is kaki (牡蛎) in Japanese.

2015.9.23

It was fine and hot.

Today is a national holiday called shubun no hi (秋分の日), Autumn equinox day.
And today is the last day of the  silver week.

Since I had to work, for me it was not a holiday.

Tonight I went out for dinner at a Chinese restaurant in Shinjuku with my tennis friends though I have not played tennis for a long time.  There were eight of us.  We ordered many dishes.  Good thing about Chinese foods is we can share.  So the more people,  the more food we can taste.

2015.9.22

It was fine and hot.

Today is a national holiday.

But our school was not a holiday.
At lunch time we had a welcome party for the new faculty and the returned one.
It is a good chance to talk with staff from different offices and faculty.  There were three tables and about 10 people each.  We draw the lottery number and the table is decided.
There were sushi, sandwiches, salad, fried foods, and snacks. It was interesting to see the difference of leftovers by tables.

2015.9.21

It was fine.

Today is a national holiday called keiro no hi (敬老の日), Respect for the Aged Day. It used to be on September 15. But since 2003, it has fallen on the third Monday of September because of happy Monday system.

According to national statistics, as of September 15, there are 33,840,000 people (14,620,000 male, 19.210, 000 female) who are over 65 years old which occupy 26.7% of all the population. Among them there are 10,020,000 people who are over 80 years old which occupy 7.9% of all the population. This is the first time to have more than 10 million of them.
Japan is really an aging country.
Since our school is not a holiday I went to work. Trains were not crowded and it arrived earlier than usual in the morning and in the evening too.

As the new semester began today my working time has returned to regular time, that is from 10 am to 6 pm. When I left the office tonight, it was already dark.
I feel the approach of autumn.