October 18, 2018

Thursday - Sunny and warmish

A good day.

I probably should skip right over the early part of the day since it was so boring and basically the same as all the other days this week.  I did a couple of loads of laundry, that’s it for excitement.

Around 6 tonight, F called to say that he was going to pick up the car and would I come with him.  The dealership had called and it wouldn’t be a hugely terrible fee. It was expensive, but it could have been so much worse.  

We trundled off to the car dealership and picked up the car.  I suggested that we get bentos again for dinner, F suggested getting ones from the bento shop near our favourite yakiniku shop.  We’ve picked up bentos for K a few times there, but never for ourselves.  We chose 3 bentos and went back to the house.

F and I got dinner on the table.  F being F had to have soup too.  Me being me, I had to have a drink.  We had our meals and the bentos were really good. Much better than the place we usually get them from. They were a tad more expensive, but really not that much!

After dinner, F washed the few dishes there were, and I dried them. We went upstairs for a few minutes and then headed out again. I wanted a few things for tomorrow and I needed some wifi. When I was at the car place, I tried to use theirs, but it wasn’t strong enough and I had a bunch of apps half-updated.  

We went to Komeda Coffee for an hour or so and used their wifi and had some coffee.  Then, we toured the grocery store nearby and bought a few things for tomorrow for me and for K.  

We came back to the house.  I took a shower and F  didn’t. I watched a little TV and then I blogged.  And now you are up to date with me!  It is getting so cold in the house at night. I told F that we really do need to start using the heater soon. I don’t do well when it is cold inside.  It’s around 18 degrees inside, probably we’ll lose a couple more degrees overnight. Sigh.

Tomorrow I have a few things that I need to get done, it’ll be interesting to see if I manage to do them or not! Come on back and see.  Until tomorrow….

October 17, 2018

Wednesday - Mostly Clear and Sunny

A good day.

I got up on time this morning but didn’t actually go very far. I watched the news from the bed, with the cover on me. It’s getting too cold in the morning for much else!  

I had a very quiet day except I did a couple of loads of laundry and hung them up in the room. I even put away my dry laundry, which is something I don’t often do!

I did manage to wrap my sister’s presents today. I hope to send them off soon.  I’ll probably have to send them EMS, but it is pretty reasonable to do that. 

I cooked dinner tonight. We had pork saute, green onion cake (frozen), miso soup and rice.  I completely forgot that I was going to do some broccoli too. Oops. While I was cooking dinner I started to get some back spasms, they haven’t gone away yet.  

F and I did the dishes and put them away.  He wanted to go to the onsen, but since his favourite place is closed today, had to go elsewhere. He kept trying to get me to take a bath too, saying that the bath would be good for my back, but I refused. The water is just too hot for my skin.  The baths are also dehydrating and I think that might be my problem. He was getting quite pushy at times. 

I went to the onsen with him and sat outside in the lobby while he went in.  I probably won’t do that again there as there is no wifi and there aren’t proper seats either.  I did do a little of my bobbin craft, read 25 pages of my new novel and had a drink too.

After the onsen, F and I went to the grocery store at Mina and bought a few things for the house and for me.  

We came back to the house and put away the groceries. A little while later, I sorted out the garbage bags and put them by the door.  So exciting.  

We haven’t heard from the car dealership yet so don’t know if that is a good or a bad thing.  Fingers crossed it isn’t an expensive thing!

It’s a cold evening so I’m planning to get to bed soon.  Come back later if you like and see what happens.  Until tomorrow….

October 16, 2018

Tuesday - Warmish and sunny

A good day, with a bad thing….

I got up this morning after F had left for work and got on with my day. The news was only half an hour long today so I watched it and then my NCIS show.  Not LA, the original.  

I had a really quiet day today. I didn’t see K at all. Perhaps she was avoiding me to punish me? I dunno.  

I wrote up some entries for my postcard blog and watched a bit more telly.  I did dishes and had my meals, usual kind of things. I also weighed the presents that I bought for my sister’s birthday in case I have to send them by EMS.

In the evening, F called and then came back. I had asked him to bring his mother a bento as I was afraid she hadn’t eaten anything during the day today. I didn’t want to repeat that tomorrow.  He did and then came up to see me.  We had the usual kind of spat about where to eat and at one point F said he wouldn’t eat.  I thought he’d like to go and have a bath at his onsen and suggested we eat there. He liked that idea and asked why I hadn’t suggested it first!  I was waiting for him to say he wanted to go to the onsen.

I asked K what kind of groceries she’d like and she basically just wanted mikan oranges. Okay, easy enough. F and I drove off, but he needed to go to the bank machine. We went to one in MaxValu but then F couldn’t find his wallet.  We came back to the house for it. Then we went to a bank machine for F.  Then, we headed for the onsen. On the way, F stopped into a gas station that we haven’t used before.  He bought some gas and we continued to the onsen.

When we were nearly at the onsen the car started making a horrible noise and shuddered a bit.  We’d made a mistake in the type of fuel we put in the car. Sigh. We drove back to Tsuruoka and F put the right kind in and we ended up at the car dealership which was closed. F called the salesman and he arranged for us to get a loaner car and for the service department to check the car tomorrow.  

F is very worried about his car and how much it’ll cost to fix it.  I am too but am trying to stay calm. F is worrying enough for the both of us.

We had dinner in the restaurant near the car dealership, Cocos. I had their Halloween Special which was quite nice.  I got a salad, turmeric rice and a burger with grilled veggies and then dessert. Drink bar was included as well, so not bad at all. F had a Japanese meal with fried oysters. 

We bought groceries after dinner and then came back to the house. I’m going to make dinner tomorrow night. Nothing fancy, just a bit of meat with some rice and a veg.  Sounds like we might have to economize a bit. 

I have no plans for anything tomorrow. I’ll have to wait and see what happens. I might wrap my sister’s present so I can get it in the mail soon. That would be a good idea I think!

Come back later and hear what goes on. Until tomorrow….

October 15, 2018

Monday - Sunny and warmish

An odd day.

I woke up around 5:15 this morning, but managed to go back to sleep. However, someone woke me up at 5:30 turning on the lights in the room and ransacking his area to find medicine. I wasn’t pleased. I got up and went downstairs, then went back to sleep. I slept a bit late.  I didn’t wake up until 9:00 this morning. Oops.  I got up, got dressed and had my tea.  So much so usual. I had my breakfast a little later, then heard K call me.  I thought it meant I had a postcard so I went running. Turns out she wanted me to wash the windows in the door!  I told her I’d need to change my clothes first. I was wearing a light coloured sweater and it isn’t one I want to do chores in. She wanted me to do it right away though, but I insisted.

I went upstairs again, changed my clothes and came back down again.  I did wash the door, it wasn’t a big deal, I just didn’t understand why it had to be done just then and by me! 

I gave her back her cloth and bucket, then went back upstairs.

The rest of the day was quite quiet. I wasn’t feeling great as my nose is still plugged up and running.  I sneezed a lot when I was outside doing the door, not sure why.  

I washed the new glasses that we bought for the kitchen and F’s dishes too.  I had lunch later on, but not a big one as I wasn’t too hungry.

When F came back to the house tonight I suggested going to buy bento.  We ordered on line and then drove over to pick them up. I just didn’t want to cook when I’m not feeling great.  

We sat at the table and ate together. It was quite nice. I cleared the table afterwards, but F volunteered to do the dishes, so I scarpered upstairs.  I watched a couple of my TV shows, F was downstairs I assumed watching volleyball.  I loathe volleyball. 

Later on I went downstairs and made some popcorn in the microwave. While it was popping I dried the dishes and put them away.  I saw K and said goodnight.

I took a shower tonight and then watched American Idol.  The show really needs a Simon Cowell again.  It just isn’t as good when the judges are nice!

And that’s about it. I have no idea what I’ll get up to tomorrow.  I hope this blooming cold goes away as I hate feeling like this!  Come on back if you want and see what goes on here.  Until tomorrow….

Oh, PS…I’m sorry but I have enabled a filter or whatever it is on commenting. I’ve been receiving a lot of bot comments or comments that don’t make any sense, so want to stop them getting through. Apologies if it is a pain. 

October 14, 2018

Sunday - Cold and a little rainy

A surprisingly good day.

I woke up this morning quite early then went back to sleep.  F had made bread in the bread maker overnight and got up to take it out. He brought me some, but I didn’t want it at 8:30 in the morning. I wanted more sleep.  

I got up a few hours later and F brought me more bread, which was lovely of him.  It was a nice breakfast. He made something like whole wheat craisin bread.  It was good.

He took a nap for a while and around 1 I asked him if he wanted lunch.  He said he did, so we finally left the house. I gave him lots of suggestions for places and he chose the Daiichi Hotel’s restaurant.  However, when we got there, he said his stomach wasn’t good so he wouldn’t eat. Yay. We went in and were informed that lunch would finish at 2:30, which I knew already.  I had one of the daily kinds of pasta, a cabbage-bacon-eringi mushroom peperoncino.  Yum.  With it, I got the salad bar, coffee and a small dessert.  F had coffee.  He enjoyed the free wifi and seemed a bit put out that I’d rather eat than play with my phone. 

After lunch, we couldn’t think of anything to do.  We were going to leave the mall when I suggested F look at the bookstore. I looked around too, but then remembered I wanted something from the hundred yen shop. I went in, got a few things and met up with him again.  

After that, we went to the car and drove off to his house.  When we got near, he asked me if I wanted to drive to the beach and I said yes.  

We drove off.  Around Kamo Port, he turned the wrong way and we ended up at the aquarium.  He really only planned to turn around in the parking lot, but he was directed to a parking spot and parked the car.  I pointed out that we have passports so could go in for free and since it was late in the day, shouldn’t be too busy.  Well, we went in and it turned out there was a concert that evening!  When we visited the aquarium on Monday, we saw the signs but didn’t think we’d remember. And we were right!  We decided to stay on a bit and watch.  We toured the exhibits and got to see lots of lovely looking jellyfish.  The place is amazing.  F wanted to get his free ice cream that he is supposed to get for visiting five times.  All the places were closed.  I can never understand how he doesn’t know these things about Japan. They close early. If last entry is 4:30, the restaurants are closed by 3:00.  Luckily I noticed that the front desk was selling onigiri so he got a couple for himself. He was hungry finally.  

We stayed for the concert…it was a duo concert of piano and trumpet. It took place in front of the huge jellyfish tank, so it was cool to watch the jellyfish while listening to light jazzy music. I enjoyed it but was cold. My chair was in a draft zone. Luckily I had my jacket and could use it to protect myself from most of it.

After the concert, we drove back into Tsuruoka to get dinner.  We decided on one place, then F changed his mind and drove to another. He said the name of it, but I confused it with another better place.  When we got to his place, it was nearly closed. He said he’d go to the place I thought he meant but started whining about it being expensive.  Since I wasn’t feeling that great by now(I have a cold coming on) I told him it was fine. He could just drop me off at the grocery store and he could go where he wanted. We ended up deciding to get food at the shop. I made him get something for his mother’s lunch tomorrow too as we thought she’d be in bed already.

We drove back to the house and K got up. She wasn’t too pleased with us. Actually, that one I understand. We didn’t let her know we’d be out late and didn’t have much food in the house for her. She ate the bento that F got for her lunch tomorrow then went back to bed.  

F and I ate our meal upstairs.  I was in a bit of a mood, not feeling that well and not getting to buy food that I really wanted.  Took a while, but I got over myself and we were fine.  

F has gone to sleep and I really need to get some too. I don’t want to be sick, but I think I already am. Darn!  

Oh, and for your viewing pleasure, some jellyfish!!

The huge tank.  I have no idea who is in front of the tank!

Come back later and see what I get up to. Until tomorrow….

October 13, 2018

Saturday - Sunny but cool

An okay day.

I woke up this morning to an empty house. F had taken his mother off to the onsen.  Fair enough, I knew he was planning to do that, but was surprised that he did without waking me up!  I got up around 9 today and got dressed and then took care of a few chores around the house. I did a little vacuuming up here and grabbed my breakfast too.  As I was going upstairs I heard the door open. Sigh. No time to relax for me.  F came upstairs and was all happy and cheerful and I was grumpy to him until he went away!  

A little while later we tried it again, and things were fine. I offered some hot water for coffee and he had some.  We vegged for a while and then talked about lunch. I suggested a lovely local place which F inexplicably disses every time I mention it, he countered with another place that has good food, but a crappy atmosphere. Since he was in a mood, I let him go there. I did warn him that it wouldn’t be good for his stomach. He’s trying to avoid meat these days.  It’s a restaurant run by a butcher’s shop.  See the problem?  

We went and for a change were able to get in fairly quickly. We bought tickets from the machine and then ordered the amount of rice we wanted. I had steak on small rice, F had mix fry with regular rice I think.  The waitress had told us that if it got busy we’d have to have other people sitting at our table, but luckily that didn’t happen. It did get lined up though.  The food was good and I liked my steak, but it’s not a place that I’m anxious to go again in a hurry.

We went for coffee and dessert afterwards to Aomoriya and then ran a few errands.  I got some more cotton thread at the hundred yen shop and then we tried to get a reservation at a restaurant for next week. However, they were already fully booked. Sigh. F made a reservation for Bistrot des Pontes again. Yay. It’s for his mother’s birthday. I just hope she’ll go!

We went back to the house for a while and spent ages in our room. F napped a bit, I was on my computer for a long while. Around 7 I suggested getting his mother some food or going out.  F checked and his mother had already eaten, and was on her way to bed! I was getting peckish so asked that we go somewhere.  We ended up at Gusto, which was fine tonight. I had chicken, F had oysters and udon…it was some kind of Japanese set.  Around 8:10 I asked that we go to Yamaya to check it out. It’s the local alcohol shop that sells foreign foods. We didn’t leave the restaurant until 8:35. F heads out onto the main road but does turn when I pointed the entrance out.  Instead of trying to park outside Yamaya, he heads towards the big MaxValu!  I had to strongly protest. I wouldn’t have been in a hurry for MaxValu as it is open 24 hours. Yamaya closed at 9:00!  We did a little shopping. We got a few snacks and I got more rooibos tea. F got some “fake” beer and as he was in line for the checkout, they started to play the “get-out” song…aka Auld Lang Syne. We left at 9:02 I think.

We came back to the house and had a quiet night in. I watched a little telly, but not much. It’s quite cold in here tonight, I can see I’ll have to start using my heater soon. Boo!  

And that’s mostly it for today. We have NO plans for tomorrow and that is a bit scary. Come back later if you dare and see what does happen. Until tomorrow….

October 12, 2018

Friday - Cool and cloudy, a bit of sun at times

A good day.

This morning I got up out of my warm cozy bed and watched the news.  I feel bad for the people in Florida. I have a friend who lives within 6 hours of the hurricane zone, so I am hoping that she and her family are okay. 

I got dressed, watched Chuck, had breakfast, did some laundry, watched more TV and just generally had a good morning. I wasn’t BUSY, but I did seem to be up and downstairs fairly often.  

In the afternoon I watched a little telly and then went down for my lunch.  While I was there I decided I’d have some of my soup and then I offered K some too.  She accepted, so I heated up the soup, cut some of the French Bread, toasted and buttered it, and gave her some.  I think she was quite pleased.  I did make the plate look very nice for her.  

F came back to the house around the time of the soup heating for a quick visit. I did offer him soup, but he didn’t want any. He did take some of the buttered toast though. I ate my hot soup in the kitchen as I really didn’t want to carry it upstairs.

I took my salad upstairs and then brought down my chopsticks later on to wash. I also grabbed the ice cream that my hubby had brought me from the freezer. Yum.

F was back at a reasonable time tonight and we talked about dinner.  His mother had a request for a change, so we decided to go out and get some food. K had made rice today so we could have some of that, plus the last of my soup, plus whatever we bought in the store.  We did well I think. We bought some sashimi, chicken roll, gyoza, and then had that with my soup and the last of the French bread toasted and buttered. F & I had rice, K & I had soup.  Dinner was good.  F washed dishes afterwards and I dried them. 

K went to bed and F and I went out.  We went to the Internet Cafe and got massaging chairs.  It was nice and relaxing for me. There weren’t enough at first so F let me go first for a change.  That was nice. I watched some telly and then some YouTube. 

We came back to the house when the time was up and I took a shower.  When I came back to the room I watched a bit of TV.  I’m probably going to bed soon as I feel quite tired.  

We have no ideas about this weekend’s activities so you’ll just have to come back soon for an update.  Wish us luck. Until tomorrow….