Creative Meanderings – Page 52 – My ramblings and wanderings through life

Tones

Apr 022017

It has been an amazing time spending it with my 11-year-old godson. He is really a good kid and his parents have done a fantastic job with him so far in teaching him to be a responsible little person. He has a lovely personality and no doubt will become a wonderful young adult.

Still, I have come to reaffirm that kids for me, might have been okay until the pre-teen/teenage years. I most definitely would have sent any child I had to boarding school…. Perhaps had I had my own kids I would have developed a way to cope with the teenage ‘tude by this point in their/our lives, but who knows – and am not convinced it wouldn’t be to send them away as soon as possible! 😛

Attitudes of entitlement and unintended disrespect are triggers for me that require a bit more meditation and introspection to fully understand. One of the recurring discussions with E is regarding tone and the use of “I know” in particular tones.

There is absolutely no doubt I was an “I know” it all preteen (perhaps I still am?!), but it is interesting to consider how tone can affect the response mechanism in others.

Since E is a bilingual speaker, he has learned that Japanese uses words to express respect or humility but has yet to fully comprehend how tone represents the same in English. Of course, he mimics his input in some ways and surely it is tough to be a kid sometimes. Still, learning the art of tone is a masterful skill when acquired fully.

For example, I could smile at my students while speaking sweetly, yet be scolding them to express my disappointment. They told me that was scarier than me becoming angry with them. 😉

An eleven-year-old mind cannot yet comprehend such complexity, so sadly for E it is a constant drilling and reminding. I look forward to seeing him develop more in mastering his mind and tone to his advantage. Until then… I feel for his parents and understand that it sucks to be a kid!! 😛
~T 😀

Interview

Going Mental No Responses »

Apr 012017

Well, I have kept this quiet until the interview was done and until I felt a little more certain about the possible direction. The former is probably about there while the latter will have to wait until some kind of response is received.

Still, there is a slight possibility of a job in Japan. I was not sure about doing the interview until I arrived, though I had done a Skype interview beforehand. Although I had initially applied for an admin job, it seems that a rare full-time position has opened up as well. That is what I interviewed for today.

So, we shall see. When I know more, I will share the company and more details, but until then I am just making note that we have another possible option on the table for getting out of the desert. 😀

~T 😀

Kyoto Day 3

General, Meanderings Abroad No Responses »

Mar 312017

Our last half-day in Kyoto was a cold and wet one. We put on our Oregonian minds and endured the rain drops enough to do the short walk along the Philosophers’ Path (哲学の道哲学の道) where we reminisced about the old days when J and I created our own pronunciation of philosophize to philoSOPHisize because we had trouble saying it correctly. Now, it will never be said properly…. 🤣😂

The Path leads to the Silver Pavilion (銀閣寺) which is J’s favorite place. I think I had a new appreciation for it this time around, perhaps because the rain enhanced the “silver-ness” of the place.

Normally, it is meant to be a place of calm and zen. When I visited the first time as an exchange student I remember being told it was a place for contemplation and to be respectful to other visitors by keeping as quiet as possible. Well…the tourists of today no longer have received this message or perhaps do not care. We had a few moments with some of the other Asian country tourists, but worked hard not to let it ruin our mood and enjoyment of what the historical space offers. 😍

Overall, it was a lovely way to end our visit, though it was not quite a long enough trip. Next time, we will try to make it a longer one especially since I also did not have the chance to catch up with friends there….😪😓

~T 😀

kkk

Kyoto Day 2

General, Meanderings Abroad No Responses »

Mar 302017

Nearly another 20,000 steps saw us with a “lighter” touristy day…. We decided to head out to Arashiyama since J had never been out there and it had been quite a while since I went out that way. It is not far outside of the downtown area and E was super excited about the train as it is some kind of special one – afraid it was lost on me. 😉

Arashiyama is more popular during the fall season for the changing colors of the leaves, but it was still rather popular and busy. The highlight definitely had to be the gardens of Tenryu-ji Zen Temple. We also hit a couple of the coffee shops that were listed in our guidebook at the hotel and were definitely not disappointed.

The first was % Arabica Coffee, which has a Hawaiian blend, but was started in Kyoto. We were surprised to find that it has become a chain in countries around the world. The simple branding of it makes sense why it was so popular that lines were consistently formed outside of it throughout the time we were there and probably the whole open hours. We were satisfied with our wait for it too.

The second coffee stop was at Togetsu Cafe on the other side of the bridge. It was less crowded and had a nice modern feel to it. The coffee was also nice, though probably average in taste. Still, coffee breaks are always wonderful.

Our other main pastime aside from cafes and walking to enjoy the scenery is eating. For two nights in a row we have managed to wait in line for dinner. Last night’s was a bit over the top with a nearly two-hour wait at a ramen shop – run by a cute older couple who are making a killing thanks to TripAdvisor. Tonight was just under an hour. Of the two, tonight’s was definitely more worth the wait – though both delicious.

So, aside from putting on about 5kilos this mini trip alone, we have definitely been enjoying our time! 😀

~T 😀

Kyoto Day 1

General, Meanderings Abroad No Responses »

Mar 292017

It’s been many years since I made a visit to Kyoto again after living there for three years in 2001-2004.

Sometime ago I made a short visit as my first time back since my divorce. I wanted to remember my love for the city outside of the time being unhappily married during those years.

Now, I am back again wishing my new hubby was with us, but loving the trip down memory lane with my BFF and godson – who is experiencing it for the first time at 11 years old.

Our first day was pretty full on especially since we were all up at 4:30am to get ready to leave and catch our 6:50am bullet train from Tokyo station.

Twenty-three thousand plus steps later, we had toured my favorite part of the city: Chionin Temple to Yasaka Shrine Park to Kodaiji along the Sannenzaka path which leads up to Kiyomizu Temple. Sadly, Kiyomizu was under construction so we did not go in, but we thoroughly enjoyed our walk stopping in the shops, eating and remarking on the new “kimono experience” craze by so many tourists.

Overall, despite being exhausted we had a great first day in the old capital city of Japan 🇯🇵!

~T 😀

An Ethan Day

Going Mental No Responses »

Mar 282017

Today was a day with my godson since J had to work. So, beforehand I gave him a task to organize something to do for us.

He had a good plan that we set into action. We headed to Roppongi to start our adventure at the Hedgehog Cafe.

Only in Japan would there be a place that they charge people to come in and pet hedgehogs with a time limit even…. It was an interesting experience and we were both glad we went though it was a little boring given that hedgehogs tend to sleep 80% of the day!

Afterwards E had found a ramen place nearby that has history going back to 1975. It was a large portion and though we could not share our usual gyoza plate, we both walked away with very full bellies.

We made our way back and are bonding over some TV/computer time. Overall I’d say it has been a successful Ethan day! <3

~T 😀

Staying Warm

Going Mental No Responses »

Mar 272017

The warmth of Abu Dhabi is starting to be a little missed, but for the past few days the desert has been full of thunderstorms, lightning and rain. The only difference is the temperature. 🙂

While I miss my big teddy bear warmer known as my hubby, I am staying warm with the company and spoiling of my BFF and family. <3

So, not too much to say at the moment as it has been a nice quiet few days. The weekend went quickly and I was not good at taking pictures, but it was lovely. A new week has started so will be updating on more activities soon enough.

For today – I am warm in heart and spirit if not physicall! 😛

~T 😀

Narrowing In

Going Mental No Responses »

Mar 262017

The male gender may not fully understand the art of the female chatter. However, the female chatter plays a very important role in working out different options for decisions to be made or to at least see different perspectives on possible options. Of course, at the end of the day things will happen as they are meant to be regardless of our desire to feel as if we are making any decisions for ourselves. 😉 If you do not believe in fate or want to hold strongly onto the concept of free will, then chatter helps to determine our decisions.

Japan holds a very dear place in my heart. Not just because my family is here, but also because it is familiar.

Still, as I consider what I would really like to be doing, it is not determined by a specific location or company. My heart wants to write for a living and to make that work for me. I want the freedom to be able to continue to travel but work or rather earn an income from wherever I am doing what I love most – writing. If I can write about travel and eating, well that would be the proverbial icing on the cake! 😛

So, while there are potential options here in Japan and I love the sense of normal that I feel being away from life is the desert, I still feel as if my priority is really on making an income from the movement of my fingers on a keyboard. To achieve this, I believe that I need to focus more on it and make it happen. Being an ideas person is not always a good thing if there is no follow through. Therefore, I need to start the follow-through on making this dream a true reality instead of just talking about it all the time here. 🙁

The good thing is that through our girl chatter, I have come closer to narrowing in on taking actions. 😀

~T 😀

Ikaho Onsen

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Mar 252017

Missed posting yesterday because J and I took a girls’ trip out to higher elevations, colder temps and warm hot springs in Gunma’s Ikaho Onsen area.

It was a short trip out of Tokyo (about 1.5hrs from Ueno Station to Shibukawa). We did the famous 365 steps up and down from the shrine to the bottom and back. It is a popular tourist location in the fall, but it was still a lovely trip – even more so because it was a free stay due to J’s hubby’s family. (ありがとうございました。)

Pictures probably say more than I can, so will let the pictures speak for themselves!

~T 😀

Spring is in the Air!

Going Mental No Responses »

Mar 232017

Missing the seasons or taking in the greenery has never been one of my sensory concerns. People have complained that living in the desert is so boring and bland; for me, it has never been an issue.

As I stepped outside today for a short run and later met J for a bit of traditional tea in a park tucked in the midst of the city, I found that I truly do appreciate temperate climates with the sacrifice of seasons or green.

That is not to say that I do not appreciate the beauty of blossoming flowers, new green leaves on the trees and plants and the fresh air offered by changing seasons and cool breezes.

It is nice to be able to experience the shifting season now away from the sandpit and fake rain clouds pouring ‘water’ from the sky. 😛

Here are some pics from the day.

~T 😀