2014.5.2

Today is hachijyu hachi ya (八十八夜), eighty-eighth night from risshun (立春), the first day of spring.  It is a good time to pick up tea leaves.
It seemed it became the hottest day this year in Tokyo today.

I stayed home.  Since yesterday there has been something wrong with my iPhone, and most of the data were disappeared.  I could recover the contact addresses and pictures fortunately, but some useful memorandum and schedules were gone unfortunately, which makes me so irritated.  I need to make back up from next time which I often think but I couldn't do.
I believe after bad things something good will come.
I may buy the new one in the near future.

In the afternoon I watched a Japanese movie "Fune wo amu (舟を編む)" meaning compiling the boat on the ocean.  It got six Japanese academy awards, I think.  It is a story of editors at a dictionary making publisher.  To make a dictionary it takes a long time more than 10 years.  Editors have to choose and define the words.  For example, how do you describe "right" in the sense of opposite of left?  In our daily life we regard left and right as a matter of fact and we dare not define them.  But a dictionary has to explain the word.  So in this case, when you face west, "right" is north, or something like this. 

2013.9.1

A new month has started.  September is kugatsu (九月), and its old name is nagatsuki (長月) in Japanese.
September 1 is nihyakutoka (二百十日), 210 days since the first day of spring when we have many typhoons, and bosai no hi (防災の日), Disaster Prevention Day.  It's been 90 years since the Great Kanto Earthquake happened.  At schools we used to practice to evacuate on this day.  Today is Sunday, so maybe tomorrow they will practice.

At many theaters the first day of the month is a movie service day.  The regular price is yen 1,800 but on this day we can watch a movie at yen 1,000.  I went to Yurakucho (有楽町) to see two movies.  One is a Japanese movie titled "Natsu no owari (夏の終り)" meaning the end of summer which was released yesterday.  There were so many people there.  It is based on the story of Ms. Setouchi Jakucho (瀬戸内寂聴) who became a priest at the age of 51.  She is now 91 years old.  This year is the 40th anniversary for her to enter the Buddhist priesthood.  Next month I will go to her lecture therefore I decided to see that movie.  It was a heavy movie because of the complicated eternal triangle.
The other movie is World War Z.  I watched the 3D version.  Mr. Brad Pitt is my favorite movie star therefore I went to see it.  It was something different from my imagination.  When we watch 3D version, we need to pay extra charge and 3D glass fee.

In between the movies I went to my favorite bookstore and bought some books.  The reason I like there is its book cover.  The design of the book cover is flower based one.  They gave me a small present because I bought more than yen 4,000.  This was an unexpected present.  Yesterday I expected to get a DVD but I could not.  Today I did not expect anything and I got something.  I am glad to get it. 

2012.1.6

It is shokan (小寒), one of nijyushisekki (二十四節季), the 24 solar terms. The last one was toji (冬至) on December 22, and the next one is taikan　or daikan(大寒) on January 21. Shokan literally means small cold. Taikan literally means big cold. It is the time getting colder and colder. This morning was the coldest so far in this winter.

After work I went to see a movie Mission Impossible with my colleague. It was very interesting. I recommend you to see.

九月九日（kugatsu kokonoka）： September 9

September 9 is known as choyo (重陽). It is one of the five seasonal festivals and a festival for chrysanthemum. Other festivals are jinjitsu (人日) on January 7, jyoshi (上巳) on March 3, tango (端午) on May 5, and tanabata (七夕) on July 7.

It became a little bit cooler than before but still hot.

There was a good news. A Japanese actress Eri Fukatsu (深津絵里) received the Best Actress Award for Akunin (悪人), the wicked person at The 34th Montreal World Film Festival. Congratulations!
The movie will be released on September 11. I am looking forward to watching the movie.

六月六日（rokugatsu muika）： June 6

Today is boshu (芒種), one of nijyushisekki (二十四節季), the 24 solar terms. The last one was shoman (小満) on May 21 and the next one is geshi (夏至) on June 21. Boshu is the time around the sowing of cereals which has protuberances like needles.
It was very fine and warm.
Since the PC was repaired, I went to pick it up. Luckily it was repaired for nothing under the 5-year warranty.
Like last Sunday, I watched 2 movies near the electrical appliances shop. One is American movie, Sex and the City 2, the other was Japanese movie Kokuhaku (告白), meaning confession. Both were released yesterday and both are R15+ which means only those who are older than 15 years old can watch these movies. I expected many people were there, but not so much. Last night Sex and the City 1 was broadcast on TV. But of course some scenes were deleted. I felt both were worth watching. Especially the latter one might receive a prize I felt.