Plastering the Walls

Our house is old. Many of the walls in the house look old-fashioned. I don’t mean “old-fashioned” in a good way, like: traditional, historic, or antique. I mean “old-fashioned” in a bad way, like: out of date, or out of style.

The walls in some areas were very dark as well. This made the house seem small and unpleasant. So, I have been plastering the walls.

We chose an off-white plaster, so it is a very light color. First, I plastered the walls in the entry hall and the hallway, since anyone coming to our home sees them. In December, I plastered the walls in the bathroom (that means toilet in polite speech). Now I am plastering the walls in the changing room for the bath.

The house looks so much bigger and feels very fresh.

Have you done any home improvement? What did you do?

Fast Route

Eight years ago I moved to Tsu. It is the capitol of Mie prefecture. Usually traffic is not so bad, but during rush hour some roads are very busy.

When I first arrived work had started on the Chusei Bypass. It was planned as a road to connect Matsusaka, Tsu, and Suzuka. The planned path bypasses the crowded parts of Tsu.

For a long time the road was not connected, but they have been working hard for the past several months.

Finally, this month, the road is being completed. We are hoping it will be easier to travel between Matsusaka and Suzuka.

Do you live in this area? Will you drive on this road?

School Opening Ceremony

For students, today is the first day of school this year. We had a ceremony in the gymnasium. It was very cold. The ceremony was very short so we could go back to the office and warm up.

We sang the school song and listened to the Principal talk about the importance of making a good plan for the year.

The students had meetings about the new term. After that, they went home early.

There is no school lunch today. Unfortunately I forgot to bring a box lunch, so I’m a little sad.

Do you have a good plan for the year?

Bolivian Food

We had some business at City Hall today. Just by chance there was an international festival at the same time.

We visited the festival and ate some food. There was good food from Brazil, The Philippines, Korea, Tanzania and other countries. I really liked the Bolivian food.

Some of our friends were there as well. It was good to see them.

Do you enjoy foreign food? What is your favorite kind?

Moon Viewing Party

Monday was a holiday. It was also close to a full moon. Our friends recently remodeled their home. They decided to invite us to a moon viewing party at their home.

Everyone brought lots of good food. We drank some special beer.

When the party started, the sky was overcast so we couldn’t see the moon. After we ate dinner and prepared the garden, the sky cleared up. We had a beautiful view of the bright moon.

We made Japanese tea in the garden and ate sweets. A perfect end to the long weekend.

Quick Break

I work at elementary schools. Every day I get a break for 45 minutes. The school office is noisy, so during my break I want to go someplace else. I want to go someplace quiet, but there is no place close enough. Usually I sit in the noisy office and work instead of taking my break.

Recently I moved. I was living in an apartment in another town. My new home is a small house very close to my schools. Actually, it is only about two minutes from my Friday school.

Today, during my break, I went home and sat in my own living room. It was very quiet and peaceful. Rays of sunshine were coming in through the curtains. It was a short break, but it felt very nice.

Do you live far from work? Do you get many breaks? What do you like to do on your breaks?

Talking with my Friend

Yesterday my friend visited me on his way home from work. He came to my new house.

We had some bread and tea while we talked. He talked about his new hobby and his two year old son. It is always nice to hear about his son.

I gave him a book to read. Also I gave him a tour of the house. He likes the house.

I hope many friends can visit the new house and chat.

Where do you live? How long have you lived there? Do friends visit often?

Lugging About

In Japan there is a custom of carrying portable shrines during festivals. The portable shrines are often quite large. In October, I will help carry a portable shrine in Tsu. We will have about 30 people carrying the shrine. It is very big and heavy.

In Japanese we use a special verb for carrying a shrine because it is heavy. In English we also have a special verb ‘lug’. We lug things that are very awkward or heavy.

Living in Japan, I have moved four times. Each time, I have lugged many books around with me.

Everyday I carry many teaching supplies, my Japanese dictionary, a thermos of tea, and a few other things. My bag is heavy, but I lug it everywhere with me.

We often refer to heavy suitcases as luggage.

Have you lugged a shrine? Do you lug anything heavy around?

Home Repair

Yesterday a typhoon passed through our area. We had a lot of rain and strong wind, but little damage.

We moved to a new house less than a week earlier. When the wind was blowing, I noticed that one of the doors is loose. It rattles when the wind blows.

Tomorrow I have a day off work, so I will get some thin foam rubber pads to fix the door.

I really like peace and quiet; especially when I am studying. It is much easier to relax and concentrate when it is not noisy. Also, my work place is noisy, so when I come home I want to refresh in a peaceful place.

Does anything rattle at your home? Will you fix it or just accept it as it is?

Hiring Movers

Yesterday we had representatives from three moving companies visit our apartment. Each person gave us an estimate for moving our belongings from the apartment to our new home.

In Japan many things happen at the end of March and beginning of April. School years end and start at that time. Companies hire new staff at that time. Older employees retire at that time. Because of this, moving companies are very busy during March and April.

We are moving in September. It is not a busy time for the movers, so we could negotiate the price. The third company to visit our home gave us a very cheap offer. We accepted the offer.

Have you moved recently? Was it during the peak season?