Turning Japanese

A dream come true for me and my family: we have finally made it to the Land of the rising sun. We are currently spending New Year's here, in the land of Voltes V, Gundam, and all the anime I loved over the years.

I tried to learn a bit of the language before we got here but 98% of it went out the window! It's so different from theory. I must be approaching it the wrong way.

I am amazed at the technogy that abounds here. The main door to our accommodation unlocks itself automatically upon approach, then locks again when we exit. How is that even possible? Then they have light switches that you push only one way and the light turns on or off. Needless to say, the bidet was something else.

Our place also has the smallest bathtub which looked funny at first glance, but made perfect sense when we finally used it.

Then there's the people. So far everyone have been so kind and approachable. And patient! When they realise I'm not Japanese, they switch to English. All the more resolve for me to try and really learn the language.

There's so much art and beauty in this place. We are currently at winter time but it's a welcome respite from the Philippine's heat and humidity.

More importatntly, this break is doing us a lot of good for our family bonding time. ❤️  Enjoying our time here. I pray that we will remain healthy throughout our break!

(Incidentally, as of this writing I have never seen any Voltes V merch yet!)

Take me home, country roads

I re-watched the Netflix film 'That Christmas' last week. The first time last year, a quote in the film struck a chord with me; I found that it still resonates this year.

“I always think that Christmas is a bit like an emotional magnifying glass. If you feel loved and happy, Christmas will make you feel even happier and more loved. But if you feel lonely or unloved, the magnifier gets to work and makes all those bad things feel bigger and worse.”

I'm not sure what triggered it, but a couple of months ago I remembered the feeling of homesickness when we first arrived here in New Zealand. Back then I had to take two bus rides to get to work. The winding roads and greenery reminded me so much of my hometown that I would wish that just around the bend would be the familiar Camp John Hay gate and I would be off to Session Road, and to my home.

Based on stories shared by other migrants online, I'm not alone. Carry on we must! It's for our family that we forego our personal needs. Yes, there are many things we have missed out on especially with our extended family, but this is the life we have chosen for ourselves and we just have to make the best of it!

When this feeling resurfaced, I knew the warning sign

Getting away with it

 I added another year to my life a couple of days ago. It was a three-day weekend here in NZ as we celebrated Labour Day. So off we went to a holiday home near Paraparaumu beach!

We're still in the cusp of winter though so the water was chilly.... and so was the wind! We just had a recent storm pass through and we were still feeling the effects. But we made the most of the time with close friends.

It was nothing fancy. No extravagant celebration. Just simple home-cooked meals (adobo and rice, anyone?) and lots of story-swapping. It's actually funny that we all recalled how we all got together last year for my birthday and then this idea came up that we were all going to save up for a trip to Rarotonga when I turn 60. Well, the idea lost steam and then it came up again. We would have saved a year's worth for the trip by now! I wonder if we will revisit this idea again next year, or actually have something solid to work on this time around?

So what's different about me this time? Physically, I do see the signs. The wrinkles on my forehead and eyes are more pronounced now. There are times when my eyesight gets blurry. And there was one time when I was up til 1am because we were entertaining guests and the next morning I was hoarse. I also realise I like resting a lot more now. Afternoon naps especially. Or even evening naps when we're at friends' homes. They'd let me take a nap, then join back in.

This year had not been particularly good for me health-wise. I had the worst sprain ever, and then a bad case of the colds a couple of months back. These things do make me think of my mortality, and that I need to do more to keep fit and stop myself from having a third serving of rice!

Oh, and there's this DIY kit that was gifted to me. I had to ask my daughter for help with deciphering the instructions which are a bit small for me to read. And there's the kit itself which is a miniature version of a pop-up shop. But challenge accepted! Just give me a day or so to complete!

(I'm still not done with the kit after three hours working on it hahaha)

It's also this year that we had some friends leave our prayer group. Small misunderstandings can mount up, rumors can create hatred, words can hurt. Perhaps there is some truth to 'familiarity breeds contempt'. And this paragraph is the only amount of time and effort I will expend to this dilemma. Life is too short to muddle over such things. If they want to part ways, who am I to argue? I hope that in their journey they will find peace and reconciliation.

On the positive side of things, I'd like to believe that I've managed to gain some wisdom. I guess having a mortgage can do that to you. And friendship challenges. And a major sprain.

I've gotten back to reading again. Lunchtime walks bring me to one of my favourite places: the library!

And I intend to take on a new hobby. Perhaps not on collecting stuff, but learning a new skill. I'm still thinking what that ought to be.

So here's to another year of adventure!

***

So here's the story behind this post's song choice. I'm a huge fan of Pet Shop Boys music - they were my introduction to synthetic pop in the 80s. In the 90's, one of my high school best buddies - shout out to Sonny! - said I should also listen to Electronic. I've searched for this band, but to no avail.

Now, thanks to Spotify, I discovered Electronic recently! So this song is so spot on for today's post. It reminds me of a time so long ago when I got hooked with the music of my generation.