Category: Slice of Life

Spring Planting

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"Spring Planting" Cedar Park, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X-T10, 35mm, f/3.6, 1/80 sec, ISO3200
 “Spring Planting” Cedar Park, 2018

こんばんは。How’s it going?

Can you believe it’s May already? It seems like it was just February. Or March! And the weather is warming up lately, which means it’s time to plant some herbs and peppers. 🌶️

Last year we had a couple pepper plants growing on the deck, and it worked out nicely because it was a lot easier to harvest jalapeños when the plant is just a few feet away from the door. Our in-ground gardens down below are in mosquito-land, so I avoided harvesting peppers when we used those…

So this year, we have a jumbo “Mucho Nacho” jalapeño plant, one ghost pepper plant, a wheelbarrow full of herbs, and some basil in another pot. I had planted Scotch Bonnet seeds in that pot, but Mariko didn’t realize it and put her basil in there, so I will have to plant more seeds in another pot. 😕 Oh well.

Anyways, I am hoping we have another great harvest. It’s so nice to be able to grab a jalapeño or two whenever we need some extra hotness. 🔥

I hope you had a nice Tuesday!

またね～

#1 Meal

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"Favorite Meal" Cedar Park, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/20 sec, ISO3200
 “Favorite Meal” Cedar Park, 2018

こなばんは。 How’s it going?

Tonight Mariko went out to a movie with a friend, but before she left, she prepared my favorite meal for us: oyakodon (親子丼). I’ve mentioned it before, but the word “oyakodon” means “parent and child donburi”, and it refers to it being chicken and egg. Kind of macabre, but oh so yummy!

Anyways, Mariko prepared the chicken, onion, and broth and left the covered pan on the stove for us to finish cooking. I basically just had to add the lightly beaten eggs and cook until the desired doneness. Sometime we’ll top it with nori (seaweed) and/or scallion, but tonight, we just had it plain with a bit of hot pepper. To me, it’s a perfect meal!

When I lived in Japan I used to go to a bento place called Hokka Hokka Tei. It was fast, convenient, and inexpensive. Although I wasn’t a huge fan of oyakodon back then, my favorite dish was a similar one called “katsu-ju”, which was breaded pork cutlet with egg on rice. Mmmmm! If I remember correctly, it was one of the more expensive items on the menu, at around 500 yen. But if I was short on cash that day, the noriben was also yummy, and only something like 220 yen. I miss those days!

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In other news, I caught up with Segodon (episode 10 currently) and am still enjoying it. The character Princess Atsu (played by Kitagawa Keiko) is the subject of another Taiga drama from several years ago, Atsuhime (hime=princess). I’m going to start watching that one too, but at 50 episodes, it’s going to be a long haul. 😀

I hope you had a nice Monday!

またね～

Nihongo Update

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"Watch Bin" Cedar Park, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/3.6, 1/17 sec, ISO3200
 “Watch Bin” Cedar Park, 2018

こんばんは。How’s it going?

Today I was listening to some Japanese pop songs that I haven’t heard in a couple years, and I was surprised that I understood a lot more than I used to. Actually, I’d rate my comprehension of the lyrics as maybe 20% of the words, whereas before it might have been 5%. But since it’s mostly just bits and pieces, and not even whole sentences that I understand, I only get the gist of what the song is about. Still, it’s fun to hear the same songs and the mystery is revealed a bit more as I study.

I’ve been using the Anki flashcard system on my computer and phone to boost my vocabulary and it’s pretty good! However, I am going to switch from kana to romaji to get in more vocabulary quicker, then maybe I will switch it up and go back to kana for a bit. There’s a mental gap that I am encountering where I am trying to memorize both the meaning while seeing the kana/kanji and it’s kind of frustrating. So to build some momentum, I am switching to romaji (and I also study my kana cards separately as a refresher) and see if I can get more vocab under my belt.

In other Japanese-related news, I have caught up with Segodon so now I can just watch the TV Japan broadcasts when they are shown. And then I am also watching a Sailor Moon episode here and there. Fun to pick up the new words I have learned.

So, some improvement with my Nihongo, and also a bit of fun with the dorama!

Today’s photo is of my watches, sitting in a Kokuyo pen case. I tidied up my desk, but don’t have a good place to put my watches so I just threw them there. I like looking at them, so I don’t put them in the drawer but it seems like they need a better place to hang out than just the desktop. 😆 We’ll find a good home for them someday!

I hope you had a good Saturday!

またねー

Friday at Home

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"Friday Excitement" Cedar Park, 2017
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.5, 1/100 sec, ISO1600
 “Friday Excitement” Cedar Park, 2017

こんばんは。How’s it going?

Today we took our son Bay to the oral surgeon to get eight teeth removed in order to “clear the way” for braces. This required him to be put under for the procedure, which only took about half an hour. When he came to, he was still groggy and wasn’t all there. It was funny, but scary as well. Just seeing our son sitting in the chair, more or less helpless, is something I never want to see again. It made me imagine what my parents might have felt when I was in the hospital, and I very much regret that ever happened. 😔

But after coming back home, Bay took a short nap and was feeling better, albeit very sore. The bleeding from the tooth extraction stopped pretty quickly and he had no trouble taking his pain medication, antibiotics, and rinsing with the mouthwash so we are thankful that everything has gone smoothly. But because he needed some extra care today, I spent the day at home with him. I’m happy that my job is flexible enough that I can work from home if I need to. It’s a great benefit!

This evening I did some sketches, based off of the artwork for the anime Hisone to Masotan. I love the tumblr animation I reposted a couple days ago, especially the facial expressions so I wanted to try something similar, and maybe simplify my own style. I’m still trying to find a signature style…

Anyways, I had fun drawing the faces, and using the Staedtler 925 09 pencil, with its super-broad lead. I have 2B in it, so it’s soft and dark. This combination of pencil and lead is fun, loose, and it forces you to not get hung up on precision. I like it.

To see all the sketches I’ve been working on, you can check out the Flickr album “My Sketching Journey”, or my Instagram account barron.sketches which I created just for posting sketches, watercolors, and stationery items.

I hope you had a nice Friday!

またね～