Cheery Pics

[rick]

Offered as an antidote to the often blind idiocy of 70's media (it was worse, in may ways worse that Blue Peter (no problem - Jim was the problem!) in Japan at the same time but not so hidden - does that make it better? probably not.)
Daoko, bless her (no mean rap artist, writer and singer) is, as far as I can tell, a very good egg indeed!
https://www.facebook.com/10005434096394 ... 089566089/
What else has got better since the 70's? Well progressively better since the 1880's really but with a lot of hiccups on the way. It is so short a time frame that it is remarkable but if lifetime progress keeps folding in like this then maybe, just maybe...

[LadyA]

This certainly cheered me up. I don’t know how we would manage without Poppy to get us up in the morning, make us go for a walk, make us get down on the floor to play with her, and offer us endless licks and cuddles. And when I go down to give the chickens their afternoon plateful of warm mash, it’s so peaceful watching them all contentedly pecking away at the food and turning it into eggs next day. Magic.
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyl ... oronavirus them

I am the same. Tbh, I think I would turn into a total recluse if I didn't have to get up and see to the cats and hens. This time of year, especially, when it's dark, very windy and wet here. I haven't even been able to clean the henhouse, because the back door faces into the prevailing winds. It's a pain.

[Marigold]

Offered as an antidote to the often blind idiocy of 70's media (it was worse, in may ways worse that Blue Peter (no problem - Jim was the problem!) in Japan at the same time but not so hidden - does that make it better? probably not.)
Daoko, bless her (no mean rap artist, writer and singer) is, as far as I can tell, a very good egg indeed!
https://www.facebook.com/10005434096394 ... 089566089/
What else has got better since the 70's? Well progressively better since the 1880's really but with a lot of hiccups on the way. It is so short a time frame that it is remarkable but if lifetime progress keeps folding in like this then maybe, just maybe...

Are you keeping up with your Japanese, Rick, in the hope of better times and another epic trip?

[rick]

I am really rubbish at second languages. I find it very hard to recall words for things but constantly looking up Kanji for lyrics helps a lot. When I went for beginners lessons it was hopeless – fun but hopeless. But I keep absorbing it and occasionally surprise myself by understanding something!
Did you see the BBC program The Secret History of Writing? That was very interesting.
I would love to go back and, amongst other things, find the Eye of Shinjuku which completely illuded me last time in that enormous labyrinth of a station.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Eye_of_Shinjuku
And actually see Mount Fuji for a change.
Surprisingly, Carol seems up for a tour by local trains to Sapporo and back, stopping off in places along the way. That would be great. I think we would need a month to do it justice and to make something like efficient use of the ridiculously huge carbon footprint of getting to Narita airport – but then, I rarely fly and Carol, who would go on a couple of short hauls a year, has been grounded too.
Yes, we will go back to the land of strange puddings!

[bigyetiman]

This could have gone under nature notes as well. It made us smile

[dinosaw]

I am really rubbish at second languages. I find it very hard to recall words for things but constantly looking up Kanji for lyrics helps a lot. When I went for beginners lessons it was hopeless – fun but hopeless. But I keep absorbing it and occasionally surprise myself by understanding something!
Did you see the BBC program The Secret History of Writing? That was very interesting.
I would love to go back and, amongst other things, find the Eye of Shinjuku which completely illuded me last time in that enormous labyrinth of a station.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Eye_of_Shinjuku
And actually see Mount Fuji for a change.
Surprisingly, Carol seems up for a tour by local trains to Sapporo and back, stopping off in places along the way. That would be great. I think we would need a month to do it justice and to make something like efficient use of the ridiculously huge carbon footprint of getting to Narita airport – but then, I rarely fly and Carol, who would go on a couple of short hauls a year, has been grounded too.
Yes, we will go back to the land of strange puddings!

We are lucky in that we get NHK World on Freesat. It has meant that we have got to watch all of the Sumo tournaments over the past three years. They have a number of language programs on there too. You may find this link interesting Rick,
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/

It is the NHK world website where they have a lot of programs free on demand and a load of free language lessons too. Mrs Dinosaw has Mal De Debarquement Syndrome which has meant that we haven't flown since we returned from Turkey, it's quite a change as we used to fly somewhere at least three times a year at one point and she used to fly so much with work. Still, the place she would bite the bullet to fly back to is Japan.

[rick]

This could have gone under nature notes as well. It made us smile

[rick]

Thank''s for the link Dinosaw. Truth be known, I could probably try harder and its about time that I had a go at some structured learning again.

[dinosaw]

After a horrible morning and early afternoon it came out really nice towards the end of the day here. A couple of photo's of a what I think is a Mahonia, doing very well for itself (I know some would say it is leggy but we like it). Plus yet another sunset photo I took on the way down from vaselining Kenny the Andalusian's gigantic comb.

[bigyetiman]

Lovely sunset. Not many people can say that is how they saw the sunset whilst en route with vaseline to a chicken