How do I spend this summer?

I made it a rule to take a week off and go back to my hometown Shimane with my family members from the end of July to early August. But, I gave up doing so this year. Because, I took already two weeks off last April for traveling in the States and my elder daughter is busy to study for a high school entrance exam. She goes to a cram school twice a week. But, during summer vacation of her school, she goes five times a week.
I love spending summer season in Shimane very much but I can’t do this year. I should decide an alternative way to spend this summer… Maybe, it’ll be a camping or swimming in Tochigi.

Today is the day of upper house election. After voting, I went to company’s tennis court with Rina who was my younger daughter. Though she joined an athletic club in her junior high, she is still practicing tennis at neighbor tennis school once a week. I rarely play tennis with her. Maybe, last time I played with her was more than a year ago. We had a good time and I think it could be a good practice for her today.

Browsing on the Web; YouTube “Ken Tanaka”

I found an interesting series of YouTube videos few months ago. It has attracted me very much since then. The story goes like…
A man whose name is Ken Tanaka was born in Los Angeles in 1973. Later, a Japanese family in Shimane Prefecture adopted him. He has been brought up in Japan and is now looking for his real parents, Jonathan and Linda Smith in Los Angeles.
The videos are about his journey looking for his real parents and happenings around him.
How did I find it? Yes, I was brought up in Shimane same as Ken. One day I was looking for videos on YouTube with a search keyword “Shimane” and hit them.
There are 16 sets of videos, so far, and most of them are numbered. If you have time ,please watch them in order. I promise you can enjoy them.
URL follows,
http://www.youtube.com/user/helpmefindparents


When I was browsing on the web, a bird was looking at me. I took his picture.

Earthquake Strikes on Marine Day

Today, the 3rd Monday of July is Marine Day, one of the national holidays in Japan.
This consecutive three days holiday became a terrible one for many Japanese.
First, we had a typhoon on Saturday and Sunday. I booked my company's tennis court but canceled it again. I think many had to give up their well-planed schedules.

Furthermore, a big earthquake struck in Niigata area today. Many TV programs have been rescheduled to news programs reporting earthquake distressed area since this morning. I feel sorry for the victims.

How have I spent this weekend? I was doing netsurfing for long time lazily. The only good news is that one of my friends Michel living in Canada will have a baby in the end of this year. Congratulations Michel and Yoshiko!
I took these three pictures in Atami two years ago. I looked for pictures of the sea commemorating for Marine Day, but I don’t have many. Do you know why? ... Since I live in Tochigi… lol

Even In the Rainy Season...

It’s drizzling in the morning. A bunch of morning glory in the balcony keeps growing in the rain. Its vine has grown more than one meter so for.
I planed to play tennis with my colleagues, Yuzu Tennis members and my drinking friend Anthony at my company’s tennis courts. But, due to the bad weather, I had to cancel the plan. I sent cancellation mail to my friends in the early morning.
After that, the drizzle had stopped and the weather turned better. The feeling I wanted to play tennis grew bigger and bigger, then I asked Ms. Kaneda if they play tennis at indoor tennis courts or better condition outdoor courts today. My company’s courts are next to tall trees, so once it rains it takes a whole day to dry up the surface.
My goodness, she answered YES. So, I called Anthony again and rushed to join Mr. and Ms. Kaneda’s group or Smile Tennis Team. Thanks Mr. and Ms. Kaneda very much again! We had a wonderful Sunday.
I knew that Anthony kept practicing tennis for long years, but it was the first time to play tennis with him. His shots are pretty fast. He hits a ball with a small quick motion. His play style is rare among my friends. Sometimes, he loses the game by missed shots. I think that it's because he doesn’t practice regular basis after coming to Japan. If he keeps practicing regularly, he’ll become far strong a player than he is now.
Right: Anthony

Congrats on One Year Anniversary!

I began updating my blog on July 1, 2006. Today is the one-year-anniversary.
I wanna say greaaaaaaaaat thanks all of you for visiting my blog.

I show you pics of the coziest Pub in Utsunomiya. I can’t get away from here.

Rain, Rain, Rain...Business Trip to Tokyo

I went to Tokyo on business yesterday and the day before yesterday. I attended a seminar of software development: that is about the standard of communication protocol between semiconductor production equipment. Learning new things is always fun to me and gives me power.

I’m working as a system engineer in my company. I had been in charge of a new project that would be completed in early 2008. But it was discontinued, judged by company’s top executives few months ago. It was sad not only for me but also for other members. Though, thanks to the cancellation of the project, I’m able to spend my working time more for learning, doing research and writing patents at my discretion.

Anyway, after the two-day-long fruitful lectures, I went to a photo gallery in Shinjuku one day and bookstores in Ochanomizu the other day. Those two towns are among my most favorites.
I took several pictures of rainy Tokyo.

A Bud of Morning Glory

I live on the 4th floor of a condo having a small balcony, where I keep several flowerpots. I can’t say I have green fingers, though I can grow plants all the year around: I love to see flowers there no matter how small and shabby they may be. Every year in this rainy season, morning glories put out their buds even I haven’t seeded at all. It’s really surprising. They have grown bigger and bigger as if they grow by 1cm per night since few weeks ago.

Morning glories have funnel-shaped flowers, open them in the morning. The flowers usually start to fade a couple of hours, last for a single morning and die in the afternoon.
New flowers bloom in each morning.

They’ll not only have beautiful flowers, but also have excellent vines for creating summer shade on the fence of our balcony.
I can’t wait for the clear blue sky summer and beautiful flowers in my balcony.

I promise every visitor on this site see pictures of beautiful flowers in August!

Clear Sky in the Middle of the Rainy Season

Meteorological Agency said last Thursday that Kanto area had been in rainy season.
Ironically, it has been fine since then. Thanks to the good weather, I played tennis yesterday with Yuzu Tennis members as usual and today with Smile Tennis Team members. It was the first time for me to play with Smile Tennis Team members.
One of my Yuzu Tennis members introduced me to Smile Tennis Team. Thanks Ms Kaneda! I enjoyed a lot today.

I felt somehow nostalgic when I found an azalea flower falling nearby the court. It’s the end of the spring.

Most of Yuzu Tennis members are very young. It is safe to say that more than half of them are high school students or younger kids. They like a powerful play style.
On the contrary, most of Smile Tennis Team members are senior. Some are already retired and the others are few years to their retirement. They rather enjoy the atmosphere of playing tennis and a conversation of their daily happenings than playing tennis itself.

My backache has almost gone but not perfectly. So, the play style of Smile Tennis Team is better to me right now than that of Yuzu Tennis.

A New PC and an Old PC Monitor

My PC monitor was not working properly. It suddenly displayed nothing on the screen after using it for few hours. In that case, I should turn the power off, wait for a minute then turn it on again. Sigh, I decided to buy new one.
I went to Yamada Denki, went up to the third floor of its building where PCs and PC peripheral goods were sold. PC monitors were on the corner far other side of the elevator, so I had to walk through the section where state-of-the-art PCs were sold. All new PCs looked very nice, so I just asked a clerk about new PCs on the way to the PC monitor section. While talking with him, I gradually wanted to buy a new PC rather than a new PC monitor. More than 30 minutes my questioning and his answering, finally I decided to buy a new note PC with windows Vista, Intel Celeron 1.46G Hz processor, 512Mbytes Memory and 80Gbytes HD.
Now I’m using the new PC. It works beautifully.
How about the PC monitor?
Yes, I decided to have the PC monitor repaired. It’ll be back in three weeks.



It has been raining or cloudy in Utsunmiya since last week. My backache has almost disappeared. Smile.

Mt. Fuji and My Backache

I suffered from a terrible backache at the week before last and took two days off the office.
I rarely take days off due to illness. It was so terrible that I wasn’t able to even walk and sit more than five minutes.
I suffer from a terrible backache in every two to three years, especially when I’m very tired and work too much or in the same situation I play tennis too much. This time, I took part in a tennis tournament with my colleague even I had a cold.
I felt much better last week than two weeks ago but couldn’t say it a perfect condition. Same as other people, I don’t realize the importance of being healthy before I lose it. I played tennis yesterday but, while playing, I thought I should have taken a rest at least one more week.
We are going to have a rainy season this week or next in Utsunmiya. I think it’ll be a good rest for me since our tennis court is outdoor type.


I went to lake Yamanaka near Mt. Fuji with my mother, brothers, sister-in-law and my family members a month ago. It was very beautiful. Mt. Fuji matches very well with cherry blossoms.

Three Days at Disneyland

I took a lot of pictures at Disneyland. Yes, because I like taking pictures.
But, I think Disneyland is such a place that everyone can be a good photographer and take lots of pictures.
I’ve made a slide show with the Beatles BGM.

(If you can't watch the show, please try to update Adobe Flash Player.)

The Happiest Place on Earth, Final 3days in the States

My daughters' long waited day had finally come on the 12th day in the States.
It would last three days.

--> The Happiest Place on Earth

--> Where Dreams Come True

What's that?

THE DISNEYLAND!
My daughters, Emi is now 9th grade, Rina is 7th grade students. I think both of them will probably go to college after finishing 12 years education. I don't want to think of it, though the possibility that I live with daughter(s) after their college entrance is slim. So, I have only three and half years left living with Emi and six and half with Rina.
Then, it goes few questions to myself. Are you sure that you already have had enough wonderful memories with them? Are you sure that they think they have had wonderful memories with you? I can't answer clearly.
Anyway, arranging a three-day-visit to Disneyland was a present to my family members. After spending three full days, from early in the morning till the night, what did they think of my present?

Los Aageles to Anaheim, 11th Day in the States

After strolling around Downtown LA, I realized that I didn't have enough cash left with me. I had to pay bus fare of my family to go to Disneyland, so I withdrew $100 cash from a nearby bank.
We fetched our luggage and got on the Metro Bus to Anaheim. It took 1.5 hours from Downtown LA to Anaheim. I had thought it would cost about $50 for four members.
But everything of the Metro Bus system was different from I had imagined.

1. You don't have to book a seat nor buy a ticket in advance.
2. Fares are very cheap, especially a long distance ride.
3. They don't accept any credit card. (When I asked a bus driver, he laughed at me aloud!)
4. They don't give any change. (I inserted a bill into the machine in the bus and asked change, but he also said, "I’m a driver so I do not have money or change.")
5. One day ticket is very cheap. You can use it in both subways and buses for the day.


Bus ride was not so comfortable but enough bearable for a two-hour-ride. As I had been always a driver of Audi A4, just watching passengers in the bus (not driving) was interesting. I really enjoyed the ride. But there were no other foreign tourists like us. I thought most of them used a taxi on that route.
We were going to stay "Super 8 Motel at the Park", Anaheim for three nights and four days. Before coming to Anaheim, I was worried a bit about the hotel because it was the longest stay in this journey.The bus we got on was to go to Anaheim by way of Knotts Berry Farm.I just glanced at roller coasters while passing by Knotts Berry Farm, kept on riding and arrived at the final destination of our journey Anaheim in the evening.

It was five o'clock but still bright and warm enough to swim in the swimming pool at our hotel. After talking with the friendly hotel manager and checking in the comfortable room, my worries disappeared quickly. While we were swimming, a police car came and parked beside the hotel entrance. Even we went out for dinner and came back to the hotel, the police car was still parked. My curiosity brought me to the hotel front desk and I asked the hotel manager about the police.The manager told me, "The police came to arrest Jack." Jack was standing next to the hotel manger and laughing.I didn't ask more, went out the hotel front house and took a couple of pictures.
(I'm not 100% sure that his name was Jack. Sorry if it's wrong.)

I lvoe Panda Express.

If it's OK to call it Fast Food, my most favorite Fast Food restaurant in the US is Panda Express.
Dishes were very nice, reasonably priced and restaurants were ubiquitous.
Of course no chips were necessary and they served quickly.
All the more, Chinese foods suited my palate better than hamburgers or sandwiches.
I found them in UCLA, Universal Studios, Anaheim, Las Vegas and Needles, NV.
I haven't found them in Japan before. Why? Are there very few or not at all?


They gave us Fortune Cookies every time we visited. I liked them.The Fortune Cookie is a thin, crisp cookie baked around a piece of paper with words of wisdom.Why don't Chinese food restaurants in Japan give them to us?

Taking a stroll from 7th St./Metro Center to Civic Center, 11th Day in the States

We got off the train at the 7th St/Metro Center station and strolled to the Civic Center station on the 11th day in the States.

The centerpoint of Downtown LA, the Financial District was built adjacent to and parallel with the redevelopment of Bunker Hill. The area is dominated by upscale corporate office skyscrapers, hotels and related services as well as banks, law firms, and real estate companies. The Financial District is served by the Metro Rail Red Line and Blue Line, with the 7th St/Metro Center as the primary station. (Information Source Wikipedia)

The Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) --^

The MOCA downtown Los Angeles location is home to almost 5,000 artworks created since 1940, including masterpieces by classic contemporary artists, and inspiring new works by emerging and mid-career artists from Southern California and around the world.
In 1986, the celebrated Japanese architect Arata Isozaki completed the downtown location's sandstone building to international critical and public acclaim, marking a dramatic achievement in the contemporary art world and heralding a new cultural era in Los Angeles. (Information Source Wikipedia)
Walt Disney Concert Hall ---＾

The Walt Disney Concert Hall is the fourth hall of the Los Angeles Music Center. Bounded by Hope Street, Grand Avenue, 1st and 2nd Streets, it seats 2,265 people and serves as the home of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra and the Los Angeles Master Chorale.
The Frank Gehry-designed building, an example of Deconstructivism, opened on October 23, 2003 and features his trademark steel cladding. (Information Source Wikipedia) The Civic Center is located in the northern part of Downtown LA, bordering Bunker Hill, Little Tokyo, Chinatown, and the Historic Core of the old Downtown.

Westlake / MacArthur Park and Universal Studios, 10th Day in the States

We stayed at Quality Inn Los Angeles, which located 10 minutes walk to Westlake/ MacArthur Park Station in Downtown LA.
There were at least two types of areas in Downtown.
One type was the town around 7th Street/Metro Center Station.
There were high buildings, four-stars-hotels like Marriott and Sheraton, museums and big department stores like Macy's. They were clean and sophisticated.

The other type was the town around Westlake/MacArthur Park Station, we stayed, next to 7th Street/ Metro Center Station.
There were many small shops, supermarkets, peddlers, beggars, old apartments, woman's screams at finding a rat running (we saw it too) and guys sitting aimlessly on the streets. One of beggars asked me money on the streets at night when I was out for cans of beer.

I traveled many developing countries like Burma, Nepal, Indonesia, India and Thailand. Latter part of Downtown in LA was seemed like a part of those developing countries. I like both types of towns and it must have been a good experience for my daughters to see them.


The picture was taken near Westlake/MacArthur Park Station. In the background, you see high buildings near 7th Street/ Metro Center Station.
You can find the red entrance of Westlake/MacArthur Park Station on the right of the picture.

-----------Universal Studios------------------------------------------------
To talk about Universal Studios, it was pretty good as I had imagined. I enjoyed there but watching my kids’ faces with joy satisfied me more. I believed I was a good dad for them in the Studios.