November 1, 2026

Sunday - Cloudy but warmish 

Today was an okay day. 

I slept in this morning for the first time in a couple of days and it was lovely! F got up early and cooked breakfast for his mother. It was horribly stinky too, some kind of fish. Urgh. 

I got up around noon I think, then got dressed. F and I talked about going out, but didn’t for a while. Then, he picked a restaurant and we went over there. It’s one I’m not a huge fan of, they serve ramen and curry. I don’t like their curry much and F doesn’t like their ramen but we can both eat something at least. 

We left the restaurant around 3 pm, their closing time. I asked F if we could go over to the Oyama Nature Center as I just really felt like being out of the city and in a natural place. F was okay with that and we drove there through all the country roads. We saw a lot of swans in the fields and finally arrived at the nature center. 

We parked and went for a walk. It was not warm, but it wasn’t cold either. There were a lot of people around, walking dogs or children, and for a change, a lot of birds. I’ve brought a friend there once and there were NO birds at all. She thought that I was making up the bird sanctuary bit!

Oyama Nature Center...with birds today!

F and I walked back to the car, the long way around. It was nice to be out and about and in nature!

We drove back to Tsuruoka proper. On the way, I asked F to drive through some rice fields so I could get pictures of all the swans in the fields.  We found a good place and took some pictures. 

Siberian Swans come to Japan to spend the winter. They love the rice fields!

We ended up at Doutor in S-Mall. We had a drink and spent some quiet time there. Over our drinks, F proposed that we get bentos for dinner. I wasn’t too pleased but whatever. I didn’t get a bento. I got some kara-age and a salad for myself, F got a bento for himself and K too. 

We came back to the house and relaxed for an hour and a half. The original plan was to eat at 7pm, we waited until 7:30!

We went downstairs and I heated up the bentos and my food. We ate and then yes, I got to do the clean up afterwards. I guess it didn’t matter that much. I didn’t have to cook either. 

I headed upstairs and watched a bit of YouTube. I then decided that I wanted to watch a movie, so I chose Death Race, the Jason Statham movie. F and I saw it in Mikawa years ago, it was silly but fun. The volume kept going up and down which was bad. The racing was loud, the conversations were really low. 

And that’s about it. Tomorrow I’m cooking dinner, but I’m not really sure how that will go! Hopefully well! F is back to work for one day as Tuesday is a national holiday. 

Come back later if you like and hear all about my day. Until tomorrow….

 

October 31, 2026

 Saturday - Sunny in the morning, cloudy and rainy later on

Happy Halloween!

I woke up after 9 am when my alarm went off. I got up and went downstairs. I came back upstairs but didn’t go back to bed! I got dressed, checked the internet a bit, relaxed a little and then at 10 am went downstairs. F was just about ready and we left the house a few minutes later.

We drove over to Sakata so he could check routes for work on Monday.  After he finished, we were going to have lunch. Unfortunately, the place we picked didn’t open until 11:30 and it was barely 11am. We drove around a bit, we found a drugstore and got ourselves drinks, then went back to the restaurant. 

F had a filet pork dish in tomato sauce, I had a beef hamburger that was really nice. Both our dishes came with soup, salad and rice and then coffee. It was quite nice.

We drove out of Sakata and went to Don Quihote on the way back to Tsuruoka. I got myself some cereal and F picked up some snacks and some ramen! They always have his favourite brand of instant ramen by the door.

We came back to Tsuruoka and went to a grocery store so F could get something for K’s dinner. 

We were back to the house around 2:30. I was rather sad if I’m honest! I came upstairs, had some tea and relaxed for a bit. I watched some YouTube and Reels on FB, then F came upstairs around 7pm. 

He’d fed K and he told me that she was complaining about me again. I thought she hadn’t done that in a while. I asked him what she said but he wouldn’t tell me. Sigh. He’s putting it down to her dementia, but the sad fact is that she’s never liked me.

We went out for our dinner and I requested Cocos. But first, we had to go to the main post office to mail a birthday card to my sister. We had forgotten to mail it earlier in the day when we were out.

Cocos have a special dessert for Halloween and I felt like having it since we don’t do anything else for Halloween. F ordered a Japanese set meal which he didn’t like (same as usual), I ordered a chicken with mushroom sauce and veggies which I did like. We both had drink bar and shared a small order of fries that I got for free with my app. We stayed for a while, we both had three drinks which were enjoyable. 

O-Ba-Ke (Ghost) Dessert

We came back to the house and F stayed downstairs with his mother for a while. I watched some YouTube and then at 11pm I watched The Hunting Party again. It was fine. 

So, today was a bit of a mixed bag. One good thing was I took my iPod with us in the car and we got to have my car Karaoke! I was singing along with Gowan’s A Criminal Mind when F asked if I could find him the words for the song so he could try to understand it. Of course, I was only too happy to oblige later in the day. I love Gowan and enjoy his music so I want to spread the love!

Tomorrow we’ll have to get groceries and maybe kerosene for the coming week. Tuesday is a holiday so maybe it’ll work out that some things will be done then too. I’m hoping we might visit the Chido Museum too as we haven’t seen their exhibit yet and I have a membership. 

Come back later if you like and hear all about my day. Until tomorrow….

October 25, 2026

Sunday - Rainy and cooler

I woke up around 10:30 this morning. I got up a bit later then came back to bed for a while. F got up and made his mother some breakfast, I got up a bit later and dressed. 

F and I talked about where to go for lunch. I was fine for a bit, but F wanted lunch soon. We talked about where to go and I suggested a couple of restaurants in Oyama. F picked the one he liked and we went there. We did have to wait a few minutes, but it was okay. 

We had omrice with chahan inside, and pork on the top with soup. It was really nice, but a bit too big for me! F and I both decided that next time, unless we’re really hungry, we’ll get the smaller version!

This was big!

After our meal we went to K’s Denki and after a lot of conversation decided on a new washing machine. It wasn’t the cheapest (which made me happy!) and it was a Japanese-made one (which made F happy). We’re going to get it delivered on Tuesday. F plans to take the day off so he can be around for them to install it and have the old one taken away. 

We next went to Daiso where I bought a new glass cup for my tea. It’s bigger than my older one, so I’m not sure that is a good thing. It is clear glass and I can use it with my cup warmer so that’s good. While we were looking at the cups, F found a medicine calendar for his mother. Lately, we have the sneaking suspicion that K isn’t taking her medicine properly. We’re hoping that this will help her. F spent some time tonight putting her medicine for the rest of the month in it. 

We came back to the house and relaxed for a bit. F made dinner for K around 6 and then when he finished wanted to leave for our dinner right away. 

I plumped for Gusto and that’s where we went. I’m happy about that because I was riced out and I don’t need to have rice for every meal like dear hubby does! He had chicken with a garlic-soy sauce sauce and rice, I had a burger and fries with the drink bar too. I enjoyed my meal, but F’s phone died during the meal and he wanted to leave before I did. Sigh.

We drove over to Mina and I went in to do the grocery shopping. Before I went in, I said to F that I wouldn’t be able to give extra money if we went over the amount that he gave me to do the shopping. He didn’t pay me back from the last two times I added money in. I’m not even buying junk food (like he does) or things we don’t really need. 

Anyway…We came back to the house and I put away the groceries and then went upstairs. F had a shower before coming upstairs. I decided I’d watch an episode of Carnival Row, which I did. I need to get this series finished as I’ve had it on the back burner for far too long. 

And that’s about it for my day. Tomorrow I’m going to try and do a load of laundry in the machine we have now. It’s a pain in the butt as I’ll have to be there the whole time, but I need some clean shirts!

Come back later if you like and hear all about my Monday. Until tomorrow….

October 18, 2026

Sunday - Warm and Sunny

I woke up around 9 or so this morning. I went downstairs and then had a little bit extra sleep. I did drag myself out of bed before 10 am today. Not bad for a Sunday. 

I got dressed and then went downstairs. F hadn’t really prepared the living room for the Social Worker’s visit so we hurried to do that. He hadn’t even told his mother that she was coming. K was bopping around in her pyjamas. F went and told her to get dressed!

The Social Worker arrived a little late today. There was a lot of traffic on the main road so she had trouble making the turn. F told her all about K’s latest exploits. The worker didn’t say much, but at least we got to tell her. 

After the Social Worker left. I asked F if he was going to feed K. He ended up giving her the leftover pasta from Friday night. Normally that would be my lunch on Monday, but I won’t be there so it is okay. 

F helped me by carrying my suitcase downstairs for me and I brought down my backpack. We got in the car and were going to go to the new Pizza place to see if we could have lunch there. F suggested a different place on the way, and I was fine with that. We ended up at Niku Shokudo. We didn’t have to wait long to get seated, and we had already ordered and paid at the door, so that was good. I had a kara-age set meal and F had a chicken cutlet with stuffed cutlets. His looked good, mine was very nice. 

We finished about an hour early for my bus, so I suggested going to the mall and going to Doutor. F was okay with that. We finally found parking and walked into the mall. F got us a seat and then I ordered. I had a cold rooibos tea, F had a coffee. 

Around 2pm I we left the coffee shop and walked the few steps to the bus station. We waited near the gate and I got myself a bottle of water and then visited the washroom again. The bus was about on time and there were a lot of people lining up. 

I got on the bus and had to go quite far down the bus to get a seat to myself. Unfortunately, I ended up sitting behind a man who had reclined his seat. That didn’t give me much room to put my backpack on my lap. I left it on the seat next to me, but I noticed a lot of people did that too.

We left the station. I waved to F as the bus went by him. We had a nice ride to Yamagata. It took a little over two hours and quite a few people got on the bus along the way. I was lucky enough not to have to share my seat, but a lot of people did.

When I got off the bus, I gave my ticket to the driver and asked him to get my suitcase for me. He said he would, but another lady got off the bus after me and she opened the cargo section. Her suitcase was right at the front, but mine was on the other side of the bus! She was nice enough to go into the cargo area and get it for me. The driver never did get out of the bus that I saw! I thanked her profusely and “Sumimasened” her a lot!

I crossed the street and checked into my hotel. They did ask for my passport, but when I said I was a resident it was fine. Yay for that. 

I’m in the hotel and I have a room at the end of the hall. It’s fairly quiet, although earlier today I heard someone getting very sick. It sounded like it was in the hallway, but later when I went downstairs I didn’t smell anything (thankfully!)

After I checked in and dropped my bags, I spent a couple of minutes getting comfortable and then headed out to the station. I did a little shopping there. I got some onion powder at the international food shop, some things for the room at the drugstore and then went upstairs to check out the new Tully’s Coffee. Last year when I came, I saw the signs that there would be one, it is open now. 

Yamagata Station at night

I went and noticed that they had a Rooibos Royal Milk Tea, so I had that. It was lovely. A little sweet, as many of the Royal Milk Teas are, but overall a really nice drink. I rested, texted a few people and read a little. 

When I finished my drink, I went upstairs to Caprichosa to have dinner. They had a special on for one person. You could have a half salad, (decent size, since the full size is for two people), pasta and a drink for ¥2000.  I had a caesar salad with bacon, carbonara and an oolong tea. I was a happy camper. I paid when I left and the waitress let me know how to get out of the building. It was a good thing, as the building had closed and the way I knew was blocked!  I took an elevator down to the ground floor and then panicked when I couldn’t find my handbag. I was going to go back up, then realized it was on my back! Idiot!

I went back to the hotel but made a stop at the convenience store next to the hotel for some snacks and a big bottle of rooibos tea. I went back to the hotel and up to my room.

I set up my room the way I wanted it and put out my clothes for tomorrow. I did go downstairs to the lobby and had a “welcome drink” (lemon infused water) and to get a foot pillow. They have a great triangular pillow here that is nice for raising your feet when you sleep. I usually get one every time I come here. I probably should ask them how I can get one as I really like it!

My original plan was to watch something on streaming, but I didn’t do that. I did my usual bit of watching some YouTube and then blogging and other nightly things. I’m a little under the weather. I think I might have picked up F’s cold after all and I’m not too pleased about that. 

My plan for tomorrow is to go off to the Tendo Mall. I hope that I can get myself there early. I don’t usually manage. If I get up for breakfast I might be able to, we’ll have to see. 

So, that’s it for me for tonight. Come back later if you like and hear all about my day. Until tomorrow….

October 10, 2026

Saturday - Warm and sunny

I woke up fairly early this morning, around 7am I think. F was awake in bed already. I went downstairs and used the washroom, then came back upstairs and fell asleep again. I woke up again after 9 when F came back in the room. He had originally planned to go driving this morning so I had set my alarm to get up and go out with him. However, he said that he didn’t want to do that today. He talked about going fishing, but when I asked him, he didn’t mean in the late afternoon, he meant in the middle of the day. Ack. I just can’t be standing out in the sun in the middle of a hot sunny day. Even with sunscreen I’d be burned to a crisp.

F next suggested going for lunch to Atsumi Onsen. I honestly don’t like the restaurant, but I do like the drive to get to the restaurant. Seeing as how it is a long weekend, the Michi-no-eki, or roadside rest area where the restaurant is was packed. We did find parking and were able to get right in to the restaurant. F had the sashimi set and I had their yakiniku set. It was fine. I did think about having fish this time, but didn’t. 

After our meal we walked around a little. I went and looked at the ocean for a few minutes. We had been separated for a few minutes. He was out front and I was out back! We met up and decided to have an ice cream cone. We chose a blueberry mixed with milk cone and it was very nice.

We got back in the car and drove up the coast towards Tsuruoka. Unfortunately, there was a detour at one spot…there’d been a rockfall on the road. When we detoured, F stopped us at Yura and we got out and walked around for a little while. It was a lovely day and the ocean was gorgeous. 

Back in Tsuruoka, F asked if I’d like to go to Gyomu Supa and of course the answer was yes. We did a little shopping. I got some cheese slices and baby cheese, then some cereal and some sunflower seeds. I picked up a packet of tortillas, found out they were made in China which doesn’t sound authentic!

We came back to the house and I put away most of the food. I went upstairs because why not and F stayed downstairs for his mother. We were quite early getting back though. 

F had suggested that he make a nabe for dinner and I was fine with that. However, we hadn’t bought the ingredients, so around 6pm we went over to the grocery store and F picked up his ingredients for the nabe and also for K’s breakfast tomorrow. We came back to the house and I unpacked a lot of the ingredients for him. I asked him if he wanted help and he said no. I went upstairs again!

F called me downstairs and I did help him by getting the glasses out and the tea too. We had to wait a bit as the nabe wasn’t quite finished cooking yet, but when it was ready, it was very nice. F did a good job of the nabe today!

He did the dishes too, so I didn’t have to help there either. Woot. 

F came upstairs around 9 and sometime around 9:45 or 10 pm I decided to go down and make some popcorn. I brought it back up to the room and gave F some. I watched an episode of Shrinking and really enjoyed it. 

At 11pm I watched The Hunting Party and that was okay today. F headed off to bed around 11 but didn’t fall asleep for a while. 

And that’s about it. I had a good day and it was beautiful. With us all being sick last month, we haven’t been able to go out much so it was lovely to be out in the sunshine for a little while. 

I’m not sure what we’ll be doing tomorrow, but please come back later and find out. Until tomorrow….

September 7, 2026

Monday - Cloudy and warm, humid

I woke up early this morning. F wasn’t in the room and I was probably cold. I went downstairs and then came back to the room. F came back to bed too, but his alarm went off at 7am and he had to get up. I did not!

I woke up later when my alarm went off, but I went back to sleep for a bit. I finally dragged myself out of bed a bit before 10am. I got dressed right away and had a little breakfast. I packed up my backpack and headed downstairs. I used the washroom quickly and then headed out of the house. Last week I left at the same time the bus was due, today, I left a few minutes earlier. I got there and a few minutes later the bus came back and picked me up. 

I took the bus “the long way” to the mall, but it got me there about 30 minutes before the next bus would have, so no worries. I went up to Daiso and did a little shopping, then downstairs to the grocery store. I did look at Pizza Hut Express for lunch, but sadly they don’t have the lunch special that I used to order, the one with very little tomato sauce. Instead, I went back to the bakery and had a few bready things. They were nice and I enjoyed them. When I finished, I left the mall proper and went to the bus station. I waited a few minutes for the bus to take me to Sanno Machi. 

I got off across from the main post office and crossed the street. I went into the post office and bought myself some stamps. The ladies working today were very nice and they seemed to understand me well enough. When I put my stamps away in my backpack, I decided to get my hat out as I still had to walk to the cinema. It was hidden in my backpack, so I yanked on it and the elastic cord on the hat snapped out of the bag and caught me on my finger. Oh my gosh, that was painful! It bruised immediately and over the rest of the day the bruise spread a bit. 

Just after it happened.

Later today

I walked over to the cinema and went in. I had a free movie coupon so I used that, and was able to see Obsession today. I really liked it. It was a horror movie, but a good one and it wasn’t as gross as I thought it could be. It just showed with some creativity and a good story, you don’t need to spend a fortune on a film. 

After the movie, I left the cinema and went back to the bus stop. I caught the bus back to the closest bus stop and then walked back to the bus. I was the last person on the bus so I hope it picked up more passengers later on.

At the house I came upstairs and relaxed. I had some tea and watched the news. F called at 5:30 and around 6 pm I went downstairs and started on dinner. 

Tonight I made hamburgers from scratch, cucumber pickle and steamed garlic okra. We also had salad and French Fries. It was a good dinner I think. I did the dishes after dinner and asked F to make rice for tomorrow. He refused and tried to get me to make it instead. I said no. I don’t like rice so _I_ don’t care if there is rice or not. Him and his mother might. 

I finished the dishes and then went upstairs and relaxed for a bit. I watched a lot of YouTube. Around 10:30 I went downstairs to take my shower. 

I came back upstairs to the room and decided to watch something from Apple TV. I ended up choosing Widow’s Bay. It was a spooky one and I quite enjoyed it. It actually seemed connected to the movie I saw today. 

Since midnight I’ve been back on YouTube and I’ve been getting my end of days thing done. I’ll be going to bed soon.

Come back later if you like and hear all about my day. Until tomorrow….