ライダー!?

This is my husband's new bike 'Yamaha FZ1 fazer'. It's a 1000cc bike. I had imagined that it was a very big bike, but it was not that big. I tried to get on the seat of the bike yesterday as if I was a really biker. What do you think?

If you see the picture, you will find that something is wrong with my face. I was going to put the picture on the blog as is, but I couldn't because the bike didn't look good on me and I wasn't brave enough to show you, so I decorated(?) it. I don't look good, but the bike is cool, isn't it? I don't really like the noisy sound of a bike, but the sound of the engine of this bike is very nice and low. When I hear the sound, it makes me feel excited!(lol) I wish I could ride a bike and feel the wind..

My husband says that I can go to the driving school to get a motorcycle license, but he doesn't think I can actually get it. He says,
‘You can try it if you want. You only have to finish the school for 9 months.’
I'm going to surprise him someday soon!

PS Alex, if I could get a motorcycle license, why don't we go for a ride someday?

日本語 version は続きから。。

続きを読む "ライダー!?"

木の温もり。

Have you heard of tole painting? It's a kind of coloring with acrylic paint. It's not that difficult. You can do it even if you are not good at drawing a picture. There are a lot of books about tale painting, and there are a lot of designs in the books, so you can trace them. You can paint tin and wooden objects and furniture with acrylic paint including tables and chairs. I like making something by hand, so it's one of my hobbies.

Here is my favorite work.

How do you like it? This picture is designed by Mutsumi Deguchi who is a professional painter. I love her works especially the colors.
I've painted a lot of different objects, but I like this one most. It looks like a tree stump or a slice of tree, doesn't it? I love wooden objects and furniture. It feels nice and warm, and it makes me feel at ease and relaxed.

日本語 version は続きから。。

続きを読む "木の温もり。"

信じる？信じない？

I went to an electric shop yesterday and got a new camera! There were so many different kinds of cameras that I had no idea which one is good for me, but I thought, ‘If I got the same camera as my old one, it would be easy to use because it might have similar functions.’ Then I asked a man at the shop about it, and he said 'yes', so I chose the same one without question. It was a good idea, wasn't it? The man said, ‘It's very popular now, so let me check if we have any more in stock.’A while later, he came back with a new camera and said, ‘This is the last one.’ I was glad to hear it.

I talked to my husband in the car on the way home that we were lucky to get the last one, but he said, ‘The man knows how to sell something.’
Me: ‘What do you mean? You mean he told a lie?’
My husband: ‘Probably. I'm not sure, though.’
Me: ‘If you are not sure, don't tell me that. I was happy to get the last one..’
My husband: ‘OK, OK. We are lucky to get the last one.’

What do you think about that? I think my husband met so many liars at work(He works in a bank and lends money.) that he can't trust people easily. I think it's a kind of work-related disease. I feel sorry for him.

日本語 version は続きから。。

続きを読む "信じる？信じない？"

ハツラツ冒険家先生♪

Yesterday was my son's Kateihoumon Day, and my son's teacher came to my house on time! Actually, the teacher arrived here 10 minutes earlier, and I was still cleaning the house(It was a final check.), so I was a bit upset..

I was worried about how my son was doing as the leader of the class, but the teacher said, “Don't worry, he is doing well. He'll get used to speaking in front of the class or the students soon. To tell the truth, I was thinking that it would be interesting if he became the leader. Of course, I didn't do anything for it.” I'm so glad to hear that. Actually, the teacher has become an assistant coach of the baseball club(My son is in it.) since the end of last year, so he has known my son for about 4 months already.

He said, “Teachers often give parents a call when something bad happens at school, but I don't really like it. Of course, I have to call them when their children did something bad, but I also want to call them when their children did something good, so please don't be surprised if I call you.”
I never heard of such an idea, but I liked it, so I said, “OK. I'll be waiting for a good one.”

After talking about my son, I asked him, “Why did you go to Africa to become a teacher?”, and he said, “I wanted to be one of Japan Overseas cooperation Volunteers and go to Africa. That was my dream from when I was little. I got a teaching license to become a member of it, and I wasn't going to be a teacher at that time.”

When I was listening to his story, I felt like that I saw his strong will with passion in his eyes, which I often find in people's eyes who are not afraid to follow their own dreams.
I hope my son will learn something from the teacher.

PS If you are interested in my son's character, please have a look at this entry.

日本語 version は続きから。。

続きを読む "ハツラツ冒険家先生♪"

スプリングクリーニング？！

Today, my oldest son's homeroom teacher is coming to my house, which is called 'kateihoumon', so I'm going to clean up the house more than usual! I know I don't have to do that, but something makes me feel 'have to', you know. I'm going to vacuum the living room, clean up the hall, and the toilet too.(The teacher might use it.)

Last year, my son's teacher came to my house 3 hours late. The teacher said that he had no sense of direction, and neither do I, so I couldn't blame him. I hope my son's new teacher is not going to get lost. Well, I think the teacher will be okay because he has wandered around 37 foreign countries. Yes, that interesting teacher is coming to my house today. I have a lot of things that I'd like to ask him, so I'm sort of looking forward to it.

By the way, have you heard of 'spring-cleaning'? In Japan, we do 'year-end cleaning', but in America, they do 'spring-cleaning'. At this time of year, my house becomes very clean.(I pulled up the weeds in my garden the other day.)　'Kateihoumon' has a good effect on me! Maybe I can call this 'spring-cleaning';-)

Anyway, I'm going to clean up the house!

PS I'm still waiting for you to find the courage to click the post button. It took me several hours when I did it, and Anne said that it had taken her a few month. I know how you are feeling.
So, the subtitle of today's entry is ‘続・1クリックの勇気’!

日本語 version は続きから。。

続きを読む "スプリングクリーニング？！"

1クリックの勇気。

About two years ago, I posted my very first comment on David's blog. I had never joined anyone's blog before because I thought it was dangerous like,‘If I do that, I would get involved in some crime!’(lol) When I clicked the 'post' button for the first time, I was very nervous and my heart almost jumped out my chest!
Looking back now, my English(and my life) started changing from that moment. I'm really glad that I found the courage to click the button. Two years ago, I never dreamed of having my own blog like this!
Now it's your turn. If you really want to be a good English speaker, try to find the courage to click the 'post' button.(Although I'm not sure how many people are reading my blog except the regulars of David's blog.)

David told us this before;

“If you are scared that your English is not good enough, remember that there is only one way to improve it, and that is by trying your best with the English you have now.”

I think it's so true, he was absolutely right. If you are still scared, you can practice 'clicking' here;-) Just one click, and your English(or something) will be starting to change!

日本語 version は続きから。。

続きを読む "1クリックの勇気。"

心の一句。

My washing machine is a hard worker. There are five people in my family, and I have two sons who always come back home with dirty clothes, so the washing machine works every day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.
I do the laundry every morning, and it feels nice to see the empty laundry basket, but every night, I find it full of dirty clothes...
When I saw my son putting his laundry in the basket last night, I was inspired to write this,

Arattemo nakunaranaiyo sentakumono.(with an extra syllable)

Anyway, it's a beautiful day today too. I'm going to hang out the third laundry!

日本語 version は続きから。。

続きを読む "心の一句。"

デジカメが・・。

As I mentioned yesterday, we took some pictures of us riding(?) on the bike. I was going to put one of them on the blog, but my camera seems to be broken. I got it 4 years ago, but the camera doesn't work right these days, so I guess it's time to get a new one.
I don't really like to get new digital products like a computer or a video camera because they have so many uses that I can't remember them easily. It takes me a lot of time to get used to new digital goods, but when I get used to it, it's going to be broken soon. Is this the aim of people working for electric companies? Digital products are convenient, but I might prefer analog to digital.
Anyway, I need a new camera!

日本語 version は続きから。。

続きを読む "デジカメが・・。"

バイク効果??

My husband looked very happy and went for a ride on his new bike yesterday. The weather report said the day before yesterday that it was going to be rainy yesterday, but the forecast was not right, and my husband was really happy about that. He usually sleeps late and takes it easy on his weekends off, but yesterday, he got up early and got himself ready. He was in a good mood, and he made me a cup of coffee and did the laundry for me. I asked him, ‘What happened to you?’, then he said, ‘Nothing much. It's just a lovely day today.’ Wow, the new bike has a good effect on him!(lol)

Before my husband left, we all tried to get on the seat of the bike and took some pictures. My oldest son said, ‘I might want to get a motorcycle license before I get a diver's one.’(He said that he didn't want to be a biker because it seemed dangerous before he saw the bike.) My second son said, ‘Cool!! I want to be a biker someday, too!’, and my youngest daughter said, ‘Me too!’ Then my husband said, ‘Let's go for a ride someday!’...Oh no, they are all becoming bikers?! What will happen to my family??

日本語 version は続きから。。

続きを読む "バイク効果??"

あ～、もう。。

My second son had a slight fever last night, but he is feeling better this morning and has gone to school. Today, I'm going to his elementary school to see his class, and of course there is a meeting for parents and teachers, so we are going to choose the PTA staff for this year.(Again!) There is a rule that we have to be one of the staff at least once while our own children are in elementary school(no matter if you are working, bringing up small children, and new in the school), so sooner or later, I have to do it for my second son. As you know, I have three children, so it means that I have to do it 3 times in the elementary school and another 3 times in the junior high. 6 times in all!

My sister went to the school yesterday, and she has become one of the staff. She said to me, ‘You should be in my group.’ I said, ‘Nooo, I did it at the junior high last year, you know. I want to take a break this year.’, but she didn't give up and kept saying, ‘Let's do it together!’ Then I finally said, ‘All right, I will...’ Ahhh.., I wanted to take a break from PTA job this year..

日本語 version は続きから。。

続きを読む "あ～、もう。。"

あ～、良かった。。

I took my second son to hospital this morning. He doesn't have a fever, but the right side of his neck is swollen and painful, and he keep saying, ‘I feel sick..’I thought that he might get mumps and took him to see the doctor.
Fortunately, it's not mumps but lymphadenitis. I'm glad to hear it. None of my children have had mumps yet, so if one of them gets mumps, it will be going around among them!
Well, they would get it sooner or later, and I think they'd better get it while they are young because the younger you are, the sooner you will recover.
My sister got it after she has grown up, and she had severe symptoms. Her neck was swollen really bad, and she had a high fever and had to stay in bed for a week. I still remember her face at that time. It was terrible! I had to ask her, ‘Who are you??’(lol)

日本語 version　は続きから。。

続きを読む "あ～、良かった。。"

晴れた日には。。

It's a beautiful day today, and so was yesterday. The weather was too nice yesterday, and it made me feel like, ‘I have to do the laundry a lot!’ I did it 4 times and washed all the lace curtains on the first floor. They are all clean now, and it feels nice!

Doesn't a nice weather make you feel like, ‘I have to do the laundry a lot!’ or ‘I have to hang out the futon!’? It's a kind of the feeling of ‘I have to’ for housewives..

For people who have hay fever, hanging out the laundry and the futon is not a good idea, but I like the smell of them after doing it.
I call it 'ohisama no nioi', and I love it.

I kind of understand the feeling of cats sleeping on a 'engawa' in the sunlight. I don't often see a house with a 'engawa' these days, though.

日本語 version 続きから。。

続きを読む "晴れた日には。。"

強い意志。

The other day, I found a nice saying.

“Where there is a will there is a way.”

Isn't it a nice saying? I think it depends on how strong the will is, though.
When I was young, I didn't have a strong will.(not much has changed, though..) I think I was always looking for easy ways.
I think people who have made their dreams come true have a very strong will. People who have a job that they really love are very lucky, but it's not just luck. They have a strong will with passion and never give up.

If I could live my life again, I want to live like them, I want to become people who are not afraid to follow their own dreams.
It's too late.. or never too late?


日本語 version は続きから。。

続きを読む "強い意志。"

私のシャドーイング。

Have you heard of ‘shadowing’? It' one of ways of speaking practice. While listening to native speakers' English, you follow and copy it without textbooks.

Here's my favorite book with a CD.

I think Everyone knows this program 'eigo de shaberanaito.'
Actually, David was on the program on September 22nd in 2006. When I heard that David was going to be on it, I was kind of interested, then I got the book.(I haven't been watching the program since then, though.)
There are some rules about how to use it and 10 stories in it, and　you have to read one of the stories every day(for 30 days).
The things I liked about the book are that each story has a connection with our everyday lives; the Japanese translations for each story are friendly, casual, and easy to understand; each story is not that long(or rather, it's short.); and there were a lot of expressions 'I can understand but I couldn't have produced myself.'(Plus, the book has a CD, and it only costs 980 yen!)
Of course I tried the 30-day lesson, but I gave it up on the 12th day.. ha ha ha. Now I'm only using the CD for my 'shadowing'. The CD has 4 versions for each story; a slow speed version and a natural speed one in a woman's voice, and the same ones in a man's voice. Before I started doing 'shadowing', I read the stories with the book several times. Ｉｆ there were some words or expressions I didn't know, I looked them up in a dictionary. It was difficult at the beginning, but I tried it again and again. I was doing it for about a month with the CD before, and I've memorized more than half of the stories, so now I can tell them by heart.(but I never tried to memorize them.)
When I listen to the slow version, I'm trying to copy the native speaker's pronounce of each word. When I listen to the natural version, I'm trying to speak exactly the same way as the speaker, the same speed, timing, and stress. Well, technically, what I'm doing now with the CD is not 'shadowing', but I'm not sure what to call it.

Anyway, if you are a beginner of 'shadowing', I recommend the CD.(It's not for 'shadowing', though.)

日本語 version は続きから。。

続きを読む "私のシャドーイング。"

涙がじわ～。。

A very good thing happened yesterday. I was very happy about that, and it brought tears to my eyes..
It's about my oldest son.

I think he has a good heart, but he is a bit timid. He doesn't like challenging, and it always takes him a lot of time to get used to new things. For example..
He went to a swimming school when he was in elementary school. He was slow to run and not good at sports, but he was good at swimming. There were sometimes events at the swimming school. Every time I asked him, “Do you want to try it?”, he always said, “Absolutely not.”
The nights before his school trips, I asked him, “Are you excited?” Then he said, “I'm a bit nervous..” He never says, “I'm looking forward to that!” or “I can't wait!” before these kinds of events. He says “I had a good time.” after events, always 'after' he gets home and is relaxed. That's my son.

The day before yesterday, he suddenly said, “I've become the leader of the class.” I was really surprised to hear that and said, “You've become what?! Really??” He said, “I told my friends not to vote for me, but.. I was chosen.” I asked him, “Didn't you have a choice to say 'no'?” He said, “Yes, I did if I really didn't want to become, but.. I said, ‘I'll do it.’
I said, “Great!! I think it's a good challenge for you. You can do it!”, then he said, “I don't think so.. ”

On Friday, I went to his junior high to see his class. The class was homeroom activity, and there was a handout about the students' New Year's resolutions as a second grader. I was reading my son's one, and it said, “I think new students are very nervous about their new school lives, so I want to be careful about how I treat them. I hope they get used to their new lives soon. “The teacher said, “Everyone wrote about themselves, but ○○(my son) wrote about others, and I think it's a very good point about him.”
I want to my children to become who care for others' feelings, so this made me very very happy.

After the class, I talked with the teacher. I said, “I was very surprised to hear that my son has become the leader of the class. He's never tried this kind of stuff, kind of hated it.” The teacher said, “He will be a good leader, and new students will trust him. All he needs is having confidence in himself. He'll be OK.”

Many good things happened, but the happiest thing for me was that my son said, ‘I'll do it.’ when he was asked if he would become the leader. I thought that he finally took the first step to challenge himself, and this made me really happy and cry..


【日本語 version】は続きから。。

続きを読む "涙がじわ～。。"

肩の荷。。

I'm going to my son's junior high school to see his class today.　I guess you think,　“This early??” Yes, the school takes place this event at the beginning of April every year because we have to choose new PTA staff for each section.(There are 4 sections in the school.) I was making school paper for PTA, and luckily or unluckily I was the leader of the team. Sometimes it was tough, but I tried to enjoy it. Well, I think I've learned something from my job.
After seeing the class, there is a meeting for parents and the teachers, then we have another meeting with our children's homeroom teacher and choose new staff at the meeting. After that, all members of the staff get together in each section and choose a new leader and a new assistant leader of this year's team.
I'm going to be very busy today, but I'm happy about that because I can take a load off my mind. Whew!

I'll write about my English study later.(I don't think I can do much today, though..)

日本語 version　は続きから。。

続きを読む "肩の荷。。"

自由だ～！！

Yaay, I'm free!! My daughter's kindergarten's life has just started, so I'm having a perfect free time! It's just a 3-hour free time because I have to pick my daughter up at 11:40, but nobody calls me ‘Mom!’ or asks me like ‘Let's play!’ or ‘Can you do this for me?’ ..Now, I can take off my 'mother face'. It's so quiet..
Since I gave a birth to my first baby, I've been spending with my children almost all the time for a long long time. It's about for 13 years! I had some hard time, but also a great time with them. Well, I want to say ‘You tried hard, well done!’ to myself.

From today, I'm going to enjoy myself and study English more and more. I'll write about what I've done today for my English study later.

Have a nice day!

PS I love having a chat with you all(including new people, of course), so feel free to drop me a line!


日本語 version は続きから。。

続きを読む "自由だ～！！"

悩殺ポーズ？？

We, mothers sometimes become a Japanese teacher.

Yesterday, my second son(He is 8.) was watching a children's program on NHK educational channel, and he seemed to get a question about a Japanese expression. He asked me,

“Mom, what does 'nousatsu pose' mean?”

“What did you say??” I said.

“'Nousatsu pose.' What does it mean?” he repeated.(Again, he was watching the program on channel 3!)

“Well, ... it means ...uh ...” I was trying to find a good explanation.

How can I explain that? The part he doesn't understand is the word 'nousatsu'. I think it means 'nayamashii', but it's still difficult for him. ...Should I demonstrate it? No, I can not do that!

Then I said, “You'll know when you grow up.”

I couldn't answer his question this time. Does anyone have any good ideas?
Being a mother is not that easy!(lol)

日本語 version　は続きから。。

続きを読む "悩殺ポーズ？？"

おもしろい先生がやって来た！

An interesting teacher came to my son's junior high last year. He is a science teacher and in his early 30s. His background is very interesting. He wandered around the world(37 countries) from when he was in his late 10s, and he went back to school and got his master's degree in London, then he worked for a company as a 'salaryman'. After that, he went to an upcountry village in Africa and worked at a school as a teacher for 2 years, and now he is working at my son's junior high school. Wow, his life is amazing!!
The other day, I went to the school to see my son's class and saw him for the first time. When I listened to his speech, I thought he was a very interesting teacher(and a bit like David). I talked about it to my son, and my son said, 'Yeah, he is interesting. I wish he was my homeroom teacher.'

Today, my son went back to school, and guess what happened. The teacher has become my son's homeroom teacher! My son is very happy about that, and so am I. The teacher gave his students a handout today, and it says..

‘Don't be afraid to make mistakes, and challenge yourselves. I think it is very important to think for yourselves, try, and make mistakes. You'll learn a lot of things from your mistakes. A mistake is the price of challenging, it's not your evaluation of your abilities. Let's make big mistakes together!’

What a nice speech! I'm very happy to have him as my son's teacher. I think my son will learn a lot from him.(I hope!)

日本語 version　は続きから。。

続きを読む "おもしろい先生がやって来た！"

それぞれの出発・・！

Well, yesterday was my daughter's entrance ceremony. My daughter's and my new lives have started, and actually there are more. My big sister was a kindergarten teacher before she got married, and she's started working as a teacher again at my daughter's kindergarten! Of course she can't have my daughter's class, but actually, my daughter's teacher is my sister's ex-student! What a coincidence!! The night before the entrance ceremony, my sister and I talked on a phone, and she told me about it. She said, ‘I never thought that I was going to work with the little girl I used to teach. Oh no, where does the time go? ...By the way, I'll be introduced in front of the parents tomorrow, but don't look at me, OK?’ I said, ‘Of course I'm going to record it on videotape!’ Yesterday, I saw her working as a teacher for the first time in ages, it was a bit strange, but she looked very happy, and her face was really nice. I thought that having a job that you really love is really, really nice! I wish I could do it too.(but not a kindergarten teacher..)

日本語 version は続きから。。

続きを読む "それぞれの出発・・！"

はじめに。。

Hi, I'm Tomo. Have you heard of ‘SPACE ALC’? It's a good site for learners of English, and there is a great blog called ‘デビッド・バーカーの英語と仲直りブログ’ in the site. I've been joining it for about 2 years. Before I joined the blog, I couldn't express myself in English like this. I started with only 2 sentences, and both of them were wrong. If you are studying English by yourself, and if you are looking for a place to communicate with others in English, I highly recommend David's blog. Don't worry, David is very nice and friendly, and so are the regulars(including me!lol). You are always welcome;-)

Thank you for coming! Please feel free to drop by again.

Tomo

日本語 version は続きから。。

続きを読む "はじめに。。"

最初の一歩。

I don't really know how to do blog, but I've started my blog, anyway. I'm going to write about my English study to motivate myself to study more. Just a while ago, I was like, 'What is blog?', but now I have my own blog. I can't believe that! I gave up writing my diary in English before, but maybe I can keep it up this time, so this is the first step. I'll try my best!

【日本語 version】
やり方はよく分からないけど、とりあえずブログを開設。
英語学習のモチベーションUPの為に、学習記録を付けてみようと思います。
この間まで「ブログって何？」って思ってたのに、自分が始めるなんてウソみたい。
一度は挫折した英語日記の再挑戦！？
とりあえず、最初の一歩。　がんばれ私♪


学習記録は4月10日から。。