November 3, 2019

Sunday - Cloudy and rainy, clearing later

Today was a complete mishmash of things that I really want a do-over.  I woke up fairly early today, also got up early too. Well, earlier than yesterday anyway.  

F came upstairs and told me that his new credit card for his ETC had arrived. That made me angry and I told him so. I’ve been trying to get him to help me get a credit card in Japan for the 18 years that we’ve been married. He’s either ignored me or given me wrong and incomplete information for the whole time. He thinks it is funny that I have to have a joint card with my sister in another country rather than one in the actual country that I live in.  Anyway, that’s an argument for another day. 

He got really angry at me and started saying that he’d cut up the credit card and send it back because of me.  I don’t know what that was in aid of. I actually have been after him for 5 years to get ETC (the electronic payment system for the highways...you don’t have to pay cash, you just go through the machine and it charges you automatically.) Five years ago I even offered to buy him the machine for the old car but he refused.  Anyway, he went back to bed and refused to get up or go out at all. Since I’d had quite enough of that crap yesterday, I decided to do something else. I had a quick breakfast and then went out.  

I grabbed my bike and went out shopping. I biked over to a nearby hardware store and had a look around. It’s changed quite a bit. Part of the store is now a hundred yen shop. I bought a few things then went to another hundred yen shop. I didn’t buy anything there! After that, I went to the grocery shop and bought myself some chicken for my lunch, some snacks and found some imported sweet things in the bargain rack.  

I biked back to the house. It had started raining, steadily, but I did get back before I was completely soaked. I locked the garage and came inside. 

I heated up my chicken and then had a couple of pieces upstairs. F was still in a foul mood, but I didn’t really care anymore. I had gone out under my own steam. Yay me.  

It was nearly 2:30 when F asked me if I still wanted to go and see the movie. I was surprised that he was interested. Of course I said that I was.  

We went out and got K some food for later. It, the movie we planned to see was 3 hours long, so we wouldn’t be back before dinnertime. We got her some stuff and then came back to the house. F gave her the food and we drove off to Mikawa.

I was really surprised at the change in F. One minute he was mean, rude and cranky, then the next he was all sweetness. It didn’t make much sense to me.

At the mall we got the new movie cards and then bought our movie tickets. Then, we went off to have a late lunch. We both had the kinoko bibinba. I liked it again, and this time I didn’t put a ton of hot sauce in it. Much nicer that way! I don’t know if F liked it or not. It was very hot and we didn’t have a lot of time to eat it. 

We got drinks and popcorn. I had asked F to just get a little popcorn because I didn’t want to eat all that much popcorn. There was some mistake, either his or the servers, and he got a huge popcorn. Sigh. 

We saw It Chapter Two. I really liked it. It wasn’t as scary or gruesome as I worried it would be. There were tons of jump scares though. Even though I knew they were coming, they still got me!

After the movie, F was a little miserable. His neck was bothering him and he was fading I think. I asked if we could go and check out the men’s department in Aeon for my nephew, to see if the clothes might work for him.  I told him quite honestly that I wasn’t planning to buy anything today, I’d talk to my sister first.  

We went over to the men’s department and I saw a few nice things that might do, but I need to talk about sizes with my sister first. Also, clothes that work in Japan don’t always work in other places.

I suggested going downstairs with F and having a coffee at Mr Donut and he liked the idea. We went downstairs and had a doughnut and a cup of cafe au lait. It was nice.  F was deep into his phone, but I made him leave before 9 pm so that we could walk back to the car through the mall. It’s getting cold outside now.

We drove back to Tsuruoka and came back to the house via the gas station. F did ask if I needed dinner, but I told him it was okay. I had a bit of chicken leftover from lunch.

We came back to the house and I took a shower then went downstairs and made a nice sandwich and had it upstairs. F went to bed fairly soon but didn’t sleep for a while. I think he’s asleep now though.

I have no idea what we’re going to get up to tomorrow. I suggested going to an electric shop as I need new ink for my printer and I’d like to look at getting a wifi booster for his house.  I hope it doesn’t start with another argument. I’m getting to the stage where I’m afraid to talk to him. He’s looking for disagreements with me, at least that is how it feels.  I also hope to go to a hundred yen shop, a different one!

So that’s it. Come back later if you want to and see what happens. Until tomorrow….

December 11, 2010

Saturday - Clear in the morning, torrential rain in the afternoon, hail at night.

A good day. I got up this morning, watched news and then took a shower. I was planning to cook my brunch when F called to say he was finished work and was coming home. Yay!

He came home much earlier than he expected he would and so we went to Gusto for brunch. After that, he dropped me off at my school.

My first class was great as usual and my student and I had fun. After her class though, I got really busy! I washed all the towels in the school and while they were in the machine, I washed the dishes. I did paperwork, I set up the calendar for next year for the door, I worked on my Journal entry, read the newspaper, drank some tea, prepped a couple of classes for next year and even got a phone call from a student.

My last class went well and we finished the year on a good note. After her class, I quickly did up paperwork and then I called F. He was on his way to my school. Argh. I wanted him to come and get me, but I had a few things to do first. He has a tendency to do that, just show up and not wait. He even tries to get into the apartment without knocking. I keep it locked when I’m alone silly man!

We drove over to the theatre, bought our tickets and then had dinner at the restaurant in the theatre building. They had taken off my favourite dish-a stirfry- so I had carbonara instead. It was okay. F had curry.

I bought the popcorn and drinks and then we went in to see our movie. I had been looking forward to seeing Robin Hood for ages, but it wasn’t very good. I’m afraid I was rather bewildered by the whole thing. I liked the cast, but they threw in a whole bunch of things that didn’t belong. It wasn’t even that much fun. So, a big disappointment for me.

After the movie we came home via the grocery store and watched Top Gear. Tonight there was a race from London to Oslo by car and ferry. It was rather fun.

And that was it. My day. I stayed up far too late doing internet stuff and blogging, but no matter. Tomorrow I don’t have too many plans. I just have to get my suitcase packed so I can send it to the airport. Got to go. Night.

Flick Picks 2010 - November

Surprisingly, I only saw one film in November and I had to go to a city 2 hours away in order to have it in English.  For some reason local theatres are showing fewer English films and I am not happy about it.

• 30) Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows- Part 1 - Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Ralph Fiennes, Helena Bonham Carter (November 23, 2010)
  
  
  It's Harry Potter.  It's a given that I would love it.  And I did!  I wasn't expecting to enjoy this film as much though.  If you've read the book, then you know that this is the one outside of Hogwarts.  Harry, Hermione and Ron are on the run and are hiding out in the woods.  Their friendship is tested in believable ways and there are losses on Harry's side. The most grown up movie so far. Fans will love it!
  
  
  
  

November 23, 2010

Tuesday - Cloudy and cool, smattering of rain.

Happy Birthday to my guy!

Had a good day away. We left Tsururoka around 8:00pm on Monday night and drove to Yamagata. We checked into the hotel and then went out for a walk. We had dinner in Tsuruoka, but F wanted more food, so we went to an izakaya.

I had some chicken and some raw vegetables with dip that we ordered. The veggies especially were yummy. We walked back to the hotel and stayed up for a bit reading before going to bed.

This morning, we got up around 8:30 and had the hotel breakfast. It was mostly rice balls and miso soup. Not bad in some respects, just awfully carby. I skipped the coffee and had water instead.

We checked out of our room and went shopping for a while. We searched through the whole department store but didn’t buy anything. We left a little early for the theatre, got there and parked. We went in, bought our tickets and then tried to go to the nearby cafe for a quick lunch. We only had 20 minutes so of course they told us it wouldn’t be enough time. Sigh. Went back to the theatre and I bought the popcorn and drinks. Couldn’t get two sets as the oolong tea that I wanted wasn’t part of the set. It was a separate drink. Egads. Whatever.

Got to our seats, sat down and enjoyed the show. We saw Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 and I loved it! It’s been a year or two since I read the book, but thought they did a good job of it. I’d have liked more Snape, but what are you going to do?

After the movie, I suggested going to Bikkuri Donkey. We don’t have one in Tsuruoka so it would be a treat. F started driving in the direction of it, he said, and of course got us lost. Then he asked about going to the mall for dinner. Okay, fine. We drove and drove and drove and were getting to the outskirts of Yamagata when I suggested that maybe we were a bit past the mall. At a traffic stop, I asked him to use the GPS which he did, and it got us there much faster than him alone would have. Sigh. When we finally got to the mall, more than an hour had past since we left the theatre. I hadn’t had a decent meal at all that day, and nothing much to eat since 9 am, so I was ready to gnaw my arm off!

We had shabu-shabu in the mall and it was fine. This time we did something new for us and I really liked it. We were originally given two trays of pork and two of beef. Instead of F doing all of the putting meat into the soup, he gave me one tray of each and I could do it for myself. Yay. I could eat a lot less that way so I was quite happy.

After dinner we had a quick trip around Toys ‘R’ Us, didn’t buy anything. Then, we headed home. We made fairly good time and were back in Tsuruoka by 9:30 I think.

At home F watched a lot of TV about the Korean Missile thingy and then at 11 we watched So You Think You Can Dance. It wasn’t bad tonight, except I kept disagreeing with the judges! Oh well.

I think F had a good birthday. I gave him a couple of packages of ramen, a shopping bag, chocolate, and some fake money. There was also a bath salts kind of thing too. He said he liked it a lot. Yay me.

Anyway, that’s it for me. I’m tired and should really get some sleep. I didn’t sleep well last night. Got to go. Night!

October 2010 Films

I saw a few films in October. Here are the details of the films I saw. I think of all of them I liked Zombieland the most!

29) The Expendables - Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Dolph Lundgren, Jet Li (October 31, 2010)

A testosterone filled action flick about a group of mercenaries who try to take down a dictator and a rogue CIA agent on an South American Island. Don't look for anything to make sense, just check your brain at the door, get lots of popcorn and a good drink and try to enjoy yourself. Stallone is too long in the tooth for this sort of thing, but other than that, a barely passable action film. There wasn't enough of Jason Statham in this film for me. The cameos are funny and if you enjoyed these actors in their heydays you might have a passable time here. A very lukewarm recommendation. Only for interested parties.

Big Time SPOILER How come it's called The Expendables? Doesn't that suggest that some of the group should die?

28) Knight and Day - Tom Cruise, Cameron Diaz, Peter Skarsgard(October 10, 2010)

A silly date night movie, for nights when you don't want to think too hard. There's a meet-cute between a mechanic and a spy...he saves her life, and saves her life again, and again. They fall in something and have many adventures. It is quite brainless, but all in quite good fun.

Good for fans of the actors, or people who want to see various beautiful places in the world. It won't win any awards, but might let you have a goofy night out.

27) The Men Who Stare at Goats - George Clooney, Jeff Bridges, Ewan McGregor and Kevin Spacey (October 4, 2010)

An interesting mixture of drama and comedy, this is a story of a secret army unit that tries to build psychic supermen and the reporter who finds out about it. Ewan McGregor is Bob Wilton, a reporter who goes to Iraq to forget his marriage breakup. He meets Lyn Cassady, a former member of the unit and follows him to get a story. Parts of this film were ludicrous and parts were extremely funny, but it isn't a true drama, nor a true comedy. In my opinion, if you liked The Informant! you will probably like this too as it is the same type of film. Worth seeing if you like your humor offbeat.

26) Zombieland - Woody Harrelson, Jessie Eisenberg, Abigail Breslin, Emma Stone (October 2, 2010)

I never thought I would like zombie movies...and then along came Shaun of the Dead. I managed to sit through 28 Days later too, and now Zombieland. Perhaps I like zombie movies afterall? This one is a hoot. A zombie apocalypse has occurred in the US and "Columbus" has devised several rules for himself to help him survive. He meets up with "Tallahassee" who has a few rules of his own to ensure survival. The two men meet up with two sisters travelling together and...things don't exactly happen the way you might think they will.

This is a smart, funny, violent movie that happens to have zombies in it. A lot of fun, definitely worth seeing if a fan of the genre. Oh, and there's also an incredibly funny cameo to look forward to seeing.

October 31, 2010

Sunday - Happy Halloween! Cloudy and overcast. Warmish.

A good day!

I overslept this morning. I had set my alarm so I wouldn’t oversleep, but managed to sleep right through it. I got up at 12 to an empty apartment. F had taken his mother shopping. Today they bought her a new TV and a fridge. Talk about Trick or Treating. Still, I know that she needed both, so no worries.

When F came home we talked about what to do and I voted for the Mall. I really needed to get a start on my Christmas shopping. We drove out to Mikawa, and had lunch at an okonomiyaki restaurant there. It was one of the kind where you cook your own, so I made F cook it. I’m so mean! We also had a little yakiniku with it, which was a nice change. When we finished we talked about getting more food, but I pointed out that recently we’ve both eaten too much and regretted it. We could always have a snack in the mall, if we got hungry later on.

We drove to the mall and did a lot of shopping. We bought quite a few things for other people and a very few things for ourselves. Or me. I am now the proud owner of a new pair of fuzzy navy blue slippers. Yay. Oh, and before I forget, one store had a little basket set up by the register for people to take a candy out. It even had a little jack o’lantern sign on it. I was so happy to be see this silly sign of Halloween, it made my day.

We had a maple latte at Seattle’s Best and then talked about what else to do. I voted for going to a movie, so we did. Tonight we saw The Expendables. It was about as silly and dumb as you would expect, but parts of it were quite fun. Stallone directed it and probably should have hired someone else to do the job!

We did a little more shopping after the film. I wanted some whole wheat bread from the bakery so I got that and then we came back to Tsuruoka. We had dinner in a new izakaya on the way back into town. It was good, for all we had. F had ordered us each some fried tofu and it was huge. I was so full when I finished it that I really didn’t want much else. Next time, we’re going to share that one.

We came home and watched a bit of The Island, before F started watching weird Japanese stuff. He finally went off to bed, but I’m not sure that he’s sleeping properly yet. I keep sneezing loudly, so I may be waking him up. Sigh.

Anyway, that’s it for me. Tomorrow I have to finish my column because I didn’t do any work on it today. After that, I’ll see what I can do with myself. I also need to send off my sister’s birthday present. Sigh. Gotta get on that too. Night.

October 17, 2010

Sunday - Rainy, clearing, rainy and repeat.

A good day.  I got up to an empty house.  F had gone to get his hair cut. It looks quite good though.  I do have a hard time convincing him to leave his hair just a little bit longer.  When I first met him he always had it buzzed off, but I think it makes him look so much older.  Happily for me, he does seem to like it a little bit longer these days.  

We tried to go for lunch to the buffet at the Farmer’s Market place, but when we got there it was just about over.  The place was packed too. There was going to be a dance performance there but it was pouring so all the dancers and their families were in side.  There were also tour groups coming in too, so really too many people for me.  We had a look around at the food and I spotted kohlrabi, which is a veggie I used to love.  My mum grew it and cooked it, so I got some. It was really cheap, only 110 yen for 4 small ones.  F spotted some bagels so he bought some of them too. Yum.  

We went to Kintaro Sushi for lunch, but not our usual one.  We went to the one that was closest to where we were. It was nice, and not quite as busy as our usual one I think.  

After lunch, F wanted to go for a drive, so off we set.  He wanted to go to Mt. Gassan to see the changing leaves.  Then he noticed the car’s gas was a little low.  Finding a gas station was a bit difficult.  We were outside our city so had to really hunt for one.  Finally we ended up going to a full service one.  We haven’t done that for a while!

Gassed up and ready, we headed over to Mt. Gassan.  I was a bit sleepy so I kept nodding off.  The road wasn’t too busy and we made good time.  We were nearly at the top of the mountain when F exclaimed and told me to look outside.  We couldn’t see anything.  We were probably in a cloud!  He slowed the car to a crawl and a few minutes later we made it to the parking area.  We parked and got out.  We couldn’t see very far at all. 

Mt. Gassan Parking area.  Or the end of the world?

Carefully we walked over to the washrooms and made use of the facilities.  I saw this rather interesting vending machine. 

I’ve never seen one of these before, but think it’s a great idea.  The AED is an automated external defibrillator.

We drove back down the mountain.  I was able to stay awake this time and enjoyed the view until it got dark.  We drove back to Tsuruoka and had a cup of Royal Milk Tea in Doutors.  Then, we went for dinner to Grado. Grado was rather nice today, I had pot au feu, which I don’t really like, but was okay, and F had Shonai pork which he said was nice.  

We came home via the grocery store and then watched Up.  We bought it a few months ago, as the theatres only showed it in Japanese here.  It was so good.  I had tears streaming down my face in the first 10 minutes or so, and again later on.  The whole wordless montage of Karl and Ellie’s life together was so very well done.  I really enjoyed it, and even the extra features on the DVD were great.  The bit about the animators going to Venezuela to see the tepuis was really interesting too.  

Anyway, a very enthusiastic recommendation from me!

That was about it for our day.  Apart from all the rain, it was almost a perfect one!  Night.

October 10, 2010

Sunday - Very rainy but warm

A really nice day. I got a good night’s sleep last night, managed to sleep all through the night. In fact, I even overslept. I had planned to get up a bit early but it wasn’t to be. Sigh. Oh well.

When I got up, F and I discussed what we wanted to do. He wanted to go to Sakata for something so I suggested having lunch there too. We drove to Sakata and had lunch in Udoku, a very swank place! We had fish for lunch, with lovely appetisers and soup and then a very nice dessert.

We did a bit of shopping in Sakata. I didn’t buy too much today, just some new soap. I didn’t get the gorgeous soap I usually buy, I got a cheaper kind. I’ll see how I like it. We went to La Casa, a bath and kitchen store, then Yamaya to pick up some things for Halloween for my students. We drove home after that.

On the way back, I suggested going to see a movie. As it has been ages since we’ve seen a movie together, F thought that sounded like fun. We decided to go to the Tsuruoka theatre as it has a restaurant attached to it. So, we went home for a bit and then headed out again.

It was raining so heavily when we got to the theatre I didn’t want to get out of the car, even with my umbrella in hand. Finally we did and made a sprint for the building. F bought the tickets and then we had dinner. I had pork and veggie stir-fry and F had some pork on rice thing. We had dessert here too as we were ages too early for the movie.

We went to see Knight and Day. It was silly, but you know, it was fun too. It was an enjoyable way to spend a rainy evening. F said afterwards that he laughed enough at the movie and didn’t really need the subtitles, so hey, that’s good enough for me.

We came home via the grocery store and then vegged at home. F put on Veronica Mars which I enjoyed although I have no idea where I am in the story.

And that’s about it. He went to bed and I’ll likely follow soon. Today was a pretty good day. Hurray!

September 17, 2010

Friday - Clear and sunny.

A good day. When I woke up this morning it was a little late, but I got up. I checked some of the internet sites that I use, but my favourite gaming site was down and continued to stay down for much of the day. Grr. I made the bed and then took a bit of a nap on it!

Around 2 pm today I decided to have an adventure. I grabbed my bike and went off to the Tsuruoka cinema. I wanted to see The A-Team again. It was fun, but really wasn’t worth watching again. However, this time I knew about the two scenes at the end and was able to watch them more closely than I did the first time.

I visited the bank and then the mall for a bit. I didn’t find anything I wanted to buy at the mall, so I just came home. I didn’t even have my tea as it was starting to get dark.

F came home tonight around 7 and immediately went to the bedroom and had a lie down. I wasn’t best pleased as he didn’t even talk to me. I went to talk to him and my stomach started growling. I was hungry.

We went for dinner to the new sushi restaurant that just opened today. We had to wait about 15 minutes, so not bad. F said not to worry about price, so I took him at his word. I had a lot of sushi, some of it was really good. Some of it was okay. They do have a drink bar which is a nice thing for those of us who don’t really like green tea. Our bill afterwards was about double the bill at our usual place, so I’m not really sure if we’ll go back or not.

We came home and watched a couple of episodes of Desperate Housewives that I had on tape. Things are getting weirder on Wisteria Lane. I do wish they’d wrap up this whole Dave Williams story. It’s getting rather tiresome.

F went back to bed after the programmes finished and went to sleep. It’s a little sad because he barely talked to me today. Oh well. I suppose we have the next few days to talk to each other.

That’s it for me. Tomorrow I have two classes at work, hours apart so I’m hoping to get a lot of work done. Please wish me luck! Night!

August 2010 Movies

I saw three films in August. I enjoyed all of them! They were all action films and not erudite, but for a hot summer month, a good way to spend a couple of hours.

• 24) The A-Team - Liam Neeson, Bradley Cooper, Sharlto Copley, Quinton "Rampage" Jackson (August 21, 2010)
  It's TV's The A-Team rebooted for a new generation and it's a lot of fun. There isn't a lot of work for your brain, but it is rather fun to see the new cast take on the old characters. All in all, they do a pretty good job. There's a lot of hokum, lots of explosions but unlike the TV show, people die in this one. Fun for fans, and a few laughs from the new characters. Worth checking out if you like this sort of thing! Stay in your seats for a couple of scenes at the very end, especially if you were a fan of the original show.
  
  
  
• 23) Predators - See July (August 13, 2010)
  
• 22) Salt - Angelina Jolie, Liev Schreiber, Chiwetel Ejiofor (August 1, 2010)
  Evelyn Salt is a married CIA agent who is asked to interview a possible Russian agent on the day of her anniversary. When he fingers her as a spy, he sets in motion a chain of events that may bring about a nuclear war.
  Angelina Jolie is one of the few actresses today who could be believeable in this part. She runs, jumps from truck to truck, climbs walls, shoots and hits and we buy it because she looks like maybe she could do this in real life. It's a great, summer action movie. It is not exactly a feel good time at the movies, but it's better than it had to be.
  I would say that fans of Angelina will love it, and action fans will like it too.
  

August 21, 2010

Saturday - Hot and sunny. Gets a bit boring!

Turned out to be an okay day.

This morning wasn’t great though. I got up and discovered that F had just taken a shower and was doing laundry. It was annoying because I was the person who really needed to take a shower. I stopped the washing while I was in the shower. The heat and steam from his shower was nearly overwhelming. We had a few words and he left for a bit, but did come back.

We went to Gusto for brunch and then F dropped me off at my school. I got set up quickly and my student came when it was time. We had a good lesson. She learns so quickly. When the class was over, we opened the door only to find her mother was asleep on the floor! Usually she wakes ups before we came out, but today she didn’t.

I did a whirlwind of turning things off or down and then grabbed my purse and went outside. F wasn’t there! But, then I saw him coming down the street. Hurray. He picked me up and we zoomed over to the dentist’s office. My visit wasn’t too bad today, except they did another brushing of my teeth. Ack. I cannot express how annoying it is to get my husband and me on a Saturday, my busiest work day, into the dentist’s office only to get my teeth brushed by the hygienist. The dentist did examine me and she asked me to come back in November. I told her that food is still getting stuck in my teeth, but not much can be done about it.

We left the clinic and then returned our DVDs. Then, I suggested going to Mosburgers for a drink. We went and had coffee milkshakes. They were nice, but not strong enough. Then, I asked F to take me back to my school.

At the school I did the dishes, my paperwork for my lessons, then read the newspaper. After that it was time to get ready for my classes. Both students came and they went fairly well.

After classes I did a very very quick finish up and called F. He came for me and we zoomed over to the Machida-Kinema. We bought our tickets, and then saw a friend of ours in the lobby. We went over and said hello, then ran off to have dinner. The restaurant there is in the chain that our favourite Tonkatsu shop belongs to. F had ramen (of course it wasn’t real ramen!) and I had a pork and veggie stir-fry. It was good and quite different from the last one I had as the vegetables had changed.

F paid for the meal and I went and paid for the popcorn and drinks. We went into the theatre and saw The A-Team. I hardly ever got to watch The A-Team when it was on as we only had two channels and it wasn’t shown on either of them. However, the movie was quite fun. We both enjoyed it and I howled a few times at some of Sharlto Copley’s jokes. One in particular was very unexpected, but so funny. We both enjoyed the movie a lot. I can see it having a sequel or two made. It wasn’t a particularly intelligent film, but it was quite amusing.

We left the theatre and came home. At home we relaxed for a bit. F made us drinks and I watched the new 90210. Later on I watched House. It was an odd one to be honest.

And that’s my day. It started with arguments, but ended rather nicely. Talk to you tomorrow. Night!

August 13, 2010

Friday - The dreaded Friday the 13th!
Sunny, cloudy, rainy, rinse and repeat.

A pretty good day today. I woke up this morning just before 8:30, used the washroom and on the way realised that hubby dearest hadn’t taken out our garbage this morning. How he’d managed to walk past two big pink bags of plastic garbage was beyond me, but he did! So, I quickly got dressed, grabbed my wallet and took it out to the gomi station. I’m quite lucky here, we don’t seem to have Garbage Gestapo in this area.

I came back in, washed my hands, and went back to bed for a few minutes until my alarm rang. There wasn’t any news on, so I spent a bit of time on my computer then took a nap. It went on a bit too long, so when I woke up I felt a little disoriented.

I got dressed and did a load of laundry. It was the load I didn’t do yesterday. How about that, I’m all done and I wasn’t quite down to one pair of pants for the coming week!

Around 2:45 in the afternoon, I got my backpack packed and I went out. I did something daft but something I really wanted to do. I went to see Predators again. Yep, it was the third time for me, but you know what? I enjoyed it even more this time. It was fun seeing it in a smaller theatre today too. There were a few more people there, all guys. I was the only female in the theatre. I don’t really enjoy seeing a film with Japanese people. They are just too darn quiet. I like to see movies with people who laugh or gasp or actually appear to be watching the same film I am. No matter…I still had a great time.

After I left the theatre I decided to go to S-Mall for tea. I had brought my book…The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and am enjoying it thoroughly. So much so that I am taking my time with it. I had been afraid that the translation would be a bit fuzzy…I’ve read other Scandinavian lit translated and the characters all sound like Yoda, but this one is fine. (I got into a bit of trouble in Uni because I just couldn’t read a book because everyone talked Yoda-ian —that and the prof told us not to bother reading the first 30 pages or so of it. If it was worth reading the novel, surely the first 30 pages should be read too???)

At the mall I checked my phone, only to discover that F had phoned me 3 minutes before. I rang him back, told him I was at the mall and would he like to meet me there? He would. I went in, had my tea and read a few pages of my novel before he joined me.

After his tea, we had a quick zoom around the grocery store. We got a few things for dinner and life, then came home.

F changed, as did I, and he started his rice. After a bit I began to prep dinner. I made a big salad by combining a few things, then when it was a good time for him, I cooked the chicken. F also prepped some cucumbers for us to eat. We had a great dinner. We had fried chicken, salad, macaroni salad, cucumbers with miso too. F had rice on the side too. Very nice dinner really. F did dishes and then we relaxed for the evening.

It was quiet for a long time. I watched Top Gear tonight which was exceedingly silly, but enjoyable as always and then turned off the TV.

This Friday the thirteenth wasn’t bad at all. In fact, it was rather a nice day.

Tomorrow I’m at work again. I have a few things to do and a long stretch between classes. I think I may have time for a little bit of reading. I hope so. Night!

August 1, 2010

Sunday - Hot and humid. Not rainy.

A good day. I went to bed terribly late last night so I didn’t get to update you on my Saturday. It was a mostly good day. F took me to work after brunch and I taught. I popped out to the drugstore in the middle of my classes and after class did some work for a couple of hours. I had dinner at Gusto and afterwards wished I hadn’t as it wasn’t very good.

I bicycled home and had just arrived when F called me and asked me to join his group at karaoke. I did! I had to ride off for another 10-15 minutes, but it wasn’t bad. I stuck to well lit roads and made great time.

Karaoke was fun. I didn’t know anyone and they didn’t speak English, but we managed. F and I stayed until the party broke up around 1:30 am. We rode home together.

This morning I did wake up about the time I wanted to and got up too. We had a quiet time around the apartment and then went for lunch to the Daiichi Hotel. We had variations of the same dish, both local pork but with different toppings. I think mine was slightly better.

We went to the travel agent after lunch to pay for our travel insurance. I didn’t do anything there! Then we drove around for a bit before coming home.

In the evening we drove over to Mikawa and had dinner at Cocos. It was okay. I had chicken and salad, F had curry.

Then we went to the Mall and saw Salt. I really enjoyed it. I thought it was great to see a movie with a woman who can do all sorts of action and still be intelligent. I think that Angelina was one of the very few movie stars that I could see in this role.

After the movie we just came home. F watched a bit of TV and I called my niece to wish her a happy birthday. I’m a day early, but wasn’t sure where I’d be on the actual day. It was nice to talk to her. I also talked to her little brother, who is very well spoken for a 5 year old, and my sister.

And that’s about it for me. I’ve updated you. Tomorrow I’m off work, so I may stay home, or more likely go out and arrange to get some travellers cheques or something. Wish me luck! Night.

July 2010 Films

In July I went to a few movies and they were a diverse bunch. I saw one film twice as I really enjoyed it, and what may be the most talked about film this year, Inception.

Have you seen these? What were your impressions of them? Please comment below.

21) Inception - Leonardo diCaprio, Ellen Page, Michael Caine, Marion Cotillard, Cillian Murphy, Ken Watanabe, Joseph Gordon-Levitt (July 17, 2010)

• A very interesting film from a director who seems to deal with mind-trips. diCaprio runs a team of specialists that break into people's brains to steal information. He is given the task of dropping an idea into a businessman's mind and must deal with a new team member, an angry ex-wife and the defences of the businessman. A very unique film. Very much worth seeing.
  
  
  
• 20)Predators - See below (July 16, 2010)
  

  I enjoyed it even more the second time!

  
  
• 19) Predators - Adrien Brody, Laurence Fishburne, Topher Grace, Alice Braga, Danny Trejo (July 11, 2010)
  

  A sequel of sorts to the original two Predator films, this is a full on action film. Surprisingly, it isn't a stupid action film, but rather a well acted and interesting time at the movies. We start by seeing Adrien Brody freefalling and unconscious. He wakes up in a panic and then his parachute opens and he lands safely. The question is, where does he land? He finds others who have had the same thing happen and they band together, looking for answers. They realize they are being hunted and try to discover why and by whom. The actions they take seem logical and the story builds in suspense.

  It is refreshing to see a balls to the wall action film that has a brain or two as well. The actors are all interesting and most of them are very believable as people who can handle themselves in tight situations. The biggest surprise for me was seeing Adrien Brophy as an action star. He completely fit the part.

  A good action film that fits in quite well with the Predator canon. If you liked the original two films, you'll probably like this one too. Fun!



• 18) Up in the Air - George Clooney, Anna Kendrick, Vera Farmiga, Jason Bateman (July 4, 2010)
  

  The story of a man who flies around the US firing people. He lives in hotels, rents cars and collects his mileage points. He has a goal. He travels lightly, just one carry-on suitcase, no family ties, no steady girlfriend. And then, he is asked to help train a young up and comer at his company and his life starts to change.

  An interesting film about what is important to people. Great acting, well written, and quietly humorous. Worth looking for in theaters.

July 25, 2010

Sunday - Sunny and hot, plus weird rainbursts from time to time.

An okay day today. I woke up properly at 11:40 or so when I dragged myself out of bed. F of course was doing his “Gentleman of Leisure” bit on the couch. I made the bed and stayed up.

After a while on my computer and some decaf, F asked about lunch. We decided to go to Jour Faste, a restaurant we went once before. We had a nice, quite inexpensive meal there. It was a chicken saute, with tomato veggie sauce. It had lots of things with it like salad, soup and rice. We even got dessert and coffee for less than 1000 yen each.

We spent some of the afternoon driving around looking for travel brochures. I reminded F that many people take summer holidays and was he going to be one of them? We’re thinking about different options. We’d like to get out of Japan, but not spend a fortune. Also, F can’t take a long vacation so we’d appreciate somewhere nearby. We picked up brochures for Hong Kong, Guam & Saipan, Taiwan and Hawaii. I have no idea if anything will come of it. I doubt it honestly!

We had gone out to Mikawa’s mall, so we had an iced coffee drink at Seattle’s Best and then drove back into the city. On the way to the mall we’d passed a new shop that claimed to sell large size mens and ladies clothing. We stopped in. I did see a few interesting things, but when I tried them on I was a bit “meh” about them. They fit well, but the short sleeved shirts were too short sleeved! To be fair, the quality didn’t look that bad. F did get himself a shirt there. It was quite nice. Some of the mens clothing was interesting and another time I might even get some for myself if I’m desperate! I used to do it all the time when I first moved to Japan.

We went home and watched Mansfield Part with Billie Piper. I have to say that I quite liked it. It didn’t get off to a good start and Fanny has always been my least favourite Jane heroine, but the movie version made her more likeable. It was fun and I was surprised that F was getting into it as well.

We had a late dinner at Jiro. F did one of his usual, “Let’s get in the car and decide where we’re going to eat once we’re on the road.” things. I do not like that! Still, dinner was nice.

We came home via the grocery store where we got a few things for tomorrow’s dinner. I’m going to do a stir-fry.

That’s about it. We spent a bit of time watching TV. F was watching something about commercials so it wasn’t too annoying for a change.

Anyway, I should go. It’s late and I hope to have a fun day tomorrow doing fun things. Or something like that! Night.

July 19, 2010

Monday - Hot and sunny. Hot. Did I mention it was hot?

A really nice weekend! Saturday began a little badly and at one point F asked if he should cancel the trip. I wouldn’t have minded in a way, but now I’m glad that he didn’t.

After breakfast and then my class F picked me up and we went to the local souvenir area. He wanted to pick something up for our trip. After that, we finally got on the road. We arrived in Niigata City around 6 o’clock, but really didn’t get to our hotel for a while. We finally found the parking and then checked in.

We dumped our stuff and went off in search of dinner. We went to the Isetan store and checked out their restaurant floor. We found the place I went in February and had a lovely meal there. They were featuring truffles so I had pasta with truffles on top, and F had some on his steak. I don’t think I’d ever had truffles before. We split a salad as well.

After dinner we just had enough time left, so we walked over to the movie theatre and went to see Inception, the new Christopher Nolan film. Wow! It was cool. A lot of really interesting ideas and it was also a good movie. I liked it very much.

We came back to the hotel after the movie and had a fairly early night.

Sunday, we had breakfast in the hotel, then went to the Junkudo book store near the station. I broke my book-buying moratorium by buying two new books. Still, that was almost restrained and it really had been a while. I got the latest Sue Grafton and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. I’ve been planning the last one for a bit. At the moment though, I’m still reading The Spellman Files. It is a genuine hoot. It was a bookmooch. I digress.
We also bought ourselves a new coffee maker on the way back through the station. It’s from Thermos so it is supposed to keep coffee hot for a long time. I rather like the idea of it not having a burner on for hours, just the metal thermos carafe. We’ve used it once so far, will let you know how it goes.

We went to Lovela for a bit of shopping and then over to Billboard place for some tea. Then, we were tired and had a couple of hours to kill, so we walked back to the hotel and had naps and cool down time.

We met my friend Tina in Starbucks and tried to decide where to go for dinner. We were near a hotel, so Tina suggested going in to see if they had any brochures of local restaurants. While we were there, we noticed that their restaurant was having a “Sumi-yaki buffet” - basically grilled food. It sounded good to us, so we went there and had a great meal. We had steak, chicken, pork, shrimp, crab, and even fish and hamburger. We didn’t all have the same. It was an “order buffet” so we could order any dish off the menu. The others had two steaks for example, I just had one. It was a nice meal and we talked for ages. We closed out the restaurant.

Coffee or tea followed back at Starbucks and then when they closed F suggested karaoke! We went for an hour and had a great time. F and I did most of the singing, I got a stupid papercut which hurts like crazy, but we really enjoyed ourselves.

When our time was up, we walked Tina back to her car before we walked back to the hotel. A lovely evening, really fun. F was kicking himself because he’d bought Tina a souvenir from Tsuruoka, but had forgotten to bring it along on our outing. Sigh!

This morning, we had the hotel’s breakfast again. It wasn’t as good today, but still was okay. After that we finished packing and then checked out. Before we left the hotel, I asked F if he needed anything from the hotel to show the parking guy that we did stay in a local hotel. We couldn’t stay in the hotel’s parking lot, so used a city one. The desk clerk said he didn’t need anything.

We walked to the parking lot with our suitcases in the 30 degree heat and asked for our car. The man asked for our receipt from the hotel. We didn’t have the right thing. I sat down with our bags and F went back to the hotel. Comes back 10 minutes later. He brought one certificate. We stayed for 2 nights. F goes back to the hotel. I’m waiting. He finally comes back with the right things, but the parking guy says that really he should have had more from the hotel. What on earth was with the hotel staff? I don’t work in their hotel and I know more than they do!

We drove over to the big mall in Niigata. On the way there, we stopped at the Musashi Home Center as a student had told me they had a craft shop upstairs. Wow! Did they ever! It was great. I didn’t buy anything, but I enjoyed looking around. I hope to go back sometimes. We did have a coffee there too.

We ended up at the mall after that. We hacked around. They were showing Toy Story in 3D in English, but not until 5:40. F was gung-ho about staying and watching it, but I reminded him we wouldn’t be able to leave Niigata until after 7 pm that way. It’s 2-3 hours home. Too late.

We had lunch at at kaitensushi place in the mall. We had to line up for ages and then just when we got to the front of the line, I noticed that everyone else had tickets with a number on them. F hadn’t registered to tell the restaurant we were waiting. Back of the line then. Sigh. The sushi, when we got in, wasn’t even that good. It was okay, but not great.

We bought a few dvds and cds, and visited Kaldi and I got a few essentials that are hard to find up here. Then, we were on the road home again.

The trip went quite well, and we got home around 6:30 tonight.

We had dinner at the tonkatsu restaurant and then picked up a few groceries. We came home, and F tried out our new coffee pot (not bad) and we watched a dvd. It wasn’t one of our today ones, but we hadn’t opened it before. Tonight’s choice was Elizabethtown, with Orlando Bloom and Kirsten Dunst. I liked it and think I got more out of it today than the last time I saw it. Good stuff.

F went to bed at midnight and I should be off soon too. I’m quite tired and have a longish day tomorrow. Wish me luck and all of that! Night.
(PS…in case you couldn’t tell, I had a great weekend :-) )

July 16, 2010

Friday - Changeable weather all day. It was quite unbelievable.

Well, today I followed through on my “cunning plan”. I got up at 9, watched the news and quickly did all my computer stuff that needed doing.

Then, I grabbed my backpack and went out. I was a woman with a mission. I wanted to see Predators again! The weather outside was dark and cloudy, but not actually raining. I decided to risk it. I rode off to the new Tsuruoka cinema.

I got there in lots of time, parked my bike and locked it, and went in to the building. I didn’t have any problems buying a ticket nor later buying popcorn and a drink. I was sweating, however. Ugh. My poor handkerchief was soaked in a couple of minutes.

Just before I went into the theatre to see the film, I looked outside. It was pouring. Bucketing down. Oh no! Granted, I had brought my rain cape with me, but I don’t like wearing it. Still, I was determined. I was going to enjoy my movie.

I’ve already written about how much I enjoyed Predators, but I really enjoyed it more this time. This time I knew the story so could concentrate on other things (Adrien Brophy). It was fun. I will be getting the dvd when it comes out, I know that!

After the movie, I got out of the theatre, and in typical Tsuruoka style, the weather had done a complete 180 and was now glorious sunshine! There were still a few clouds, but it was hot and sunny. Yay. I biked off to do a few errands. First off I went to my two banks to get my passbooks updated. In the second one, I had to go in there and ask them to fix the magnetic strip as it has gone AGAIN. I hate their system.

I decided to go to the S-mall after that. I bought a few things in the 100 yen shop and also went to the coffee shop for a sandwich and an iced tea. Yum. I was sweating buckets again, so I needed all the liquid I could take in. I checked the bargain bin in the grocery store and found a couple of nice things. They were selling off small packets of Walkers Shortbread so I picked up a couple for hubby and me, and they were also selling off some expensive tea that a friend had given me at convention. It was a bit expensive at full price, but I got it at half price. Hurray.

I came home after this and relaxed for a couple of hours before F came home.

After he was home for a bit, I made dinner. It wasn’t too difficult tonight. We had sautéed pork with a sauce that we bought last night. That was a nice touch. It was made with apples and ponzu I think. We also had salad and shu mei . Yum. F did dishes so a couple of hours later I fixed the blueberries and cream and we finished them off. Hurray. F kept complaining that they weren’t sweet enough, but personally I think they were fine!

We watched Desperate Housewives tonight and it was cute. I think the whole storyline involving Edie’s husband is coming to a head, and it’s about time too. At midnight I forced hubby to give up the TV (kidding) and I watched Top Gear. I’m not sure why a person who doesn’t have a car, who has never had a car, and will never have a car enjoys the show so much, but I do. Can’t understand it really. But it’s fun.

That’s about it for me. Tomorrow I have one class and then we’re off to the streets of Niigata for a little R&R. Saturday night we might take in another movie…depends how we’re feeling and how far I feel like walking.

We’ll be back on Monday night if all goes well, so don’t miss me too much.
Bye!

July 11, 2010

Sunday - Rainy and cloudy all day.

Hey, should we call today Convenience Store Day? It’s 7/11.
Okay, not. Sorry.

Had a surprisingly good day today. I didn’t really expect to, but I did. We didn’t go to bed this morning until 5:30 or so. I slept quite well, but was woken up by a stupid truck going around the neighbourhood looking for recyclables. I slept on. I had set my alarm to make myself get up, and finally got up around 12. Ironically, as soon as I got up, F went back to bed and he slept for a bit.

When he got up, he suggested going to Kintaro Sushi for lunch, but I vetoed it. His next suggestion was interesting. He suggested going to Steak Miya in Sakata for lunch. We haven’t gone there in ages, so decided to do that. We had a lovely lunch. We both had steak, plus drink bar and soup bar. We paid a little extra and got the soft ice cream bar too. Yep, all the soft ice cream you can eat. F had to start his meal with ice cream. I waited till the end.

After lunch, we drove to the Mikawa Mall to see if there was a movie. There was, but not for 3 hours. We did a little shopping first. We went to the hardware store near the mall and got some cleaners for the apartment, then hit up a travel agency to see if they could make a reservation for us for Saturday. The agent was able to make us one by calling the hotels for us. I just hope it’s a decent hotel. We actually took it for two nights, and I cancelled our usual place when I got home.

We did other things like have a tea in Seattle’s Best Coffee and some chicken at McDonalds. We wasted time, but it was okay. At 7:35 we headed upstairs and got our tickets to see Predators. We had free coupons for a movie, so it didn’t cost us more than the popcorn and drinks. Hurray.

Predators was fun. It was an action movie and wasn’t stupid. The actors were pretty good and the story mostly held up. I really enjoyed it and would say if you enjoyed the first two films, it would be worth seeing. Adrien Brophy is quite hot! I never would have suspected it really.

We came home via the grocery store and then spent a quiet evening at home. I am hoping to get to bed a little earlier than yesterday, but am already running a little later than my usual bedtime. Sigh.

Still, a nice day. A fun movie, a good lunch, a hotel found and no fighting makes this a better than average Sunday. Hurray. Good night.

July 4, 2010

Sunday - Sunny and hot, quite humid too.

I had a good day today. I had set my alarm for 11 am and managed to get up only 20 minutes later. I think F was quite surprised about the whole thing. We didn’t do much once I was up. F had put on some documentaries about Canada that he had taped yonks ago. I don’t know why he doesn’t erase them.

After 2 we decided to go out. Our restaurant of choice today was Kintaro Sushi. It was quite good today. The majority of the lunch crowd had left already, but the sushi makers were still busy so things were fresh and didn’t take a long time to come. I had quite a few things and I even ordered for myself for a change.

When we finished lunch we went to an electronics shop. About a month ago our dehumidifier gave up the ghost. We use it to help with drying clothes and keeping my books from going bad in this season. We got a new one. It’s more powerful so probably won’t run it so much. It was on sale, but when they rang it in we didn’t get the sale price, so they had to check on it. Luckily, we got it for the lower price.

We came home and F set it up. Then he left to go and see his mother. She’d asked that he visit her. I didn’t mind, so off he went.

In the meantime, I played on my computer and relaxed. Read a little email. The usual. He didn’t come back at 5. He didn’t come back at 6. He came back at 7 pm. I wasn’t too pleased as we were supposed to go and see a movie tonight. The movie started at 8:25 and we had to eat first. I did ask if maybe we should go a different night, but he said tonight was best.

We drove to the theatre and on the way his cell phone rang. He pulled over to take the call and found out that a co-worker had a death in the family and wouldn’t be into work tomorrow. I asked F if he wanted to cancel, after all, this was a pretty big surprise. He said no.

We went to the theatre and parked the car. They have a restaurant adjoining the theatre and we tried it tonight. F had ramen and I had a very nice stir-fry of veggies and local pork. F paid for the meal while I went to buy the drinks for the movie. Tonight we saw Up In the Air. I liked it a lot. I think I want to be like Ryan Bingham. I could handle living in hotels and travelling as much as he did. I’m just not sure I could pack as lightly though!

For some reason F seemed to be falling asleep during the movie. He said he wasn’t, but I’m not sure I believe him.

After the movie we drove around a bit. I’m not sure why F took the route he did, it was circuitous at best! Anyway, we hit the grocery store and got a few things for tomorrow’s dinner, including some lamb chops. I’ve never cooked lamb before, does anyone have any tips for me?

That’s about it for me. It was a good day, but tomorrow I might run a few errands or do something interesting. I hope. Got to go. Night!

June 2010 Movies

I saw 5 films in June. It is getting hotter and going to a cool movie theater is a pleasant way to spend a couple of hours. Generally, I was really lucky this month and enjoyed all of the films that are listed below. If I have to pick a favourite I'd say An Education. Carey Mulligan is so very good. Definitely an actress to watch.

17) Precious: Based on the novel "Push by Sapphire - Gabourey Sidibe, Mo'Nique, Mariah Carey, Paula Patton (June 28, 2010)

A harrowing, well acted drama about a girl who lives in the depths of hell and the struggle by those around her to get her out. Precious lives with her abusive mother, is pregnant with her second child and cannot read or write. She is sent to a special programme where her teacher tries to reach her and help her.

In so many ways, Precious is the complete opposite of Jenny in An Education, yet they both have to work for what they want in life.

Precious is a difficult movie to watch, it is unrelenting and sad, but on the whole, well worth the effort.

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16) An Education - Carey Mulligan, Alfred Molina, Peter Skarsgard, Dominic Cooper(June 27, 2010)

An amazing true life story of an intelligent 16 year old who falls in love with a much older, worldly man. Carey Mulligan is luminous as the lead. It is refreshing to see a girl take control of losing her virginity and worry about things like pregnancy, instead of throwing caution to the wind. Also nice to see a movie where the daughter and parents have a good relationship! This is a movie to be on the lookout for.

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15) Iron Man 2 - Robert Downey, Jr, Gywneth Paltrow, Sam Rockwell, Don Cheadle, Mickey Rourke (June 20, 2010)

A fun follow up to Iron Man. This one has Tony Stark under fire from the government as well as from a Russian physicist. It does have quite a good story although there are places where it is hard to follow just what is going on. Sam Rockwell shines as a business rival of Stark. It's nice to see a "comic book" movie that doesn't take itself too seriously. If you liked the first one, you'll most likely enjoy this too.

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14) The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus - Heath Ledger, Christopher Plummer,Colin Farrell, Lily Cole, Johnny Depp, Jude Law, Andrew Garfield (June 16, 2010)

Terry Gilliam's interesting look at fantasy and a man who made a pact with the devil. The movie looks as beautiful as Gilliam's always do, and the story manages to hold together until the end. However, knowing that Heath Ledger died during the film makes me wish that there was a little more substance to the film. Still, enjoyable and not as difficult to understand as some of Gilliam's other work.

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13) From Paris With Love - John Travolta, Jonathan Rhys Meyers (June 2, 2010)

I'm not sure why I liked this movie so darn much. I dislike John Travolta, don't enjoy dumb action flicks, yet I found myself carried along with with this movie. Basically it tells the story of a young Embassy employee(Rhys Meyers) who is marginally in the spy business. He asks for more responsibility and gets much more than he expected. He is partnered with Charlie Wax (Travolta) who leads him on a wild ride against drug smugglers and terrorists. Once the action starts it rarely lets up.

This isn't going to win any awards for acting or writing, but as a pleasant time waster...it's fun. Be warned that it is rather violent. If violence bothers you, don't bother with this film. Check your brain at the door and enjoy a little Paris vacation.