Who is Scott?

He is a poet, a painter, a traveler, a wonderer, a singer, an archeologist, an English teacher, , , and what else? He is really multi-talented guy. Oh, last but not least, I should not forget to say that he was and is still “my friend.” He left Japan for Australia in May 2006. I talked about various topics with him. Biking, sports, travel, music, science, arts, politics, medicine, , , , I can’t remember all.
Thanks Scott. I’m proud of having meaningful time with you and other members for a whole year. I post two of your paintings, which you gave me as presents, on the web to share them with my friends.
I heard that Scott, you are going to attend a ten days meditation session at a Buddhist temple in Thailand this summer.
May Buddha bless your wonderful brightest future!

A picture Scott painted in Utsunomiya.

"The hope and future of a land is in its people.
Loss of a simple life can corrupt. ----Scott----"
This poem is not photographed but written on the left end of the picture.

How cute it is!

It’s the first time for me to pick strawberries in the strawberry field. I really had a wonderful time and all the more, they are very fresh and delicious.

Can You See Them? I've Already Eaten Some; It's Yummy.

Our family is supporting students living in Tochigi who come from foreign countries. AFS Tochigi branch representative Ms. Funada arranged strawberry picking tour with students, their homestay parents and supporting families.
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Cooking Strawberries. It's Fun!

After picking hundreds of strawberries, we cooked them and made strawberry jam. How yummy they are!

Omikuji in Yaegaki Shrine, in Matsue City

Omikuji is a traditional form of Japanese fortune telling in which a person's fortune is written on piece of folded paper and is typically sold at Shinto Shrines.

Yaegaki shrine’s Omikuji is quite unique. It is a flat piece of paper not folded. You buy the Omikuji and bring it to Kagaminoike pond in the forest near the shrine.

Then put the Omikuji with a coin on the surface of the pond. At the same time putting the Omikuji, fortune message appears on it.

It’s said that the sooner the Omikuji sinks in the pond, the sooner you will marry.
I found a Omikuji site, it follows
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http://www.asahi-net.or.jp/~EB3Y-KKTK/omikuji/omikuji.html

Hot Dry Summer Is Comming.

Hot summer is just around the corner. I can't wait for a hot dry summer vacation season.
Every summer, I take a week off and go back to Matsue city in Shimane prefecture where I was born.

Dragonflies, flowers, beautiful sea and fish are waiting for me.
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How Long Do They Live?

I used to take care of turtles. His name is Kome, left and the other one's name is Game, right.
It's said that turtles can live almost 10,000 years in a Japanese saying. But, they were not able to live more than a year.

Her Name Is Nobi.

She has short ears. She likes eating, eating, eating and eating. Her body is far bigger than her parents. Sometimes she jumps out of her 40cm rabbit hutch fence.
How can she do it with that heavy body?
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Where Do Snails Live?

In the middle of rainy days, I went trekking in Kirifuri with my family and colleagues.
When I was a child, I saw snails everywhere in this rainy season. I can rarely find them recent years. Where have they gone?

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Most foreigners are surprised by what they find when they come into contact with Japan
for the first time.

The country is seen as an overcrowded place where concern with technology and material progress has overwhelmed the more gracious aspects of life.

And so it is a pleasant discovery for many visitors to encounter a gentle, tranquil people who place great emphasis on preserving our centuries-old traditions and have a highly developed sense of beauty.